Astronautalis
Encyclopedia
Astronautalis is an American
hip hop
artist based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota
.
After gaining some renown in local circles in Jacksonville
and competing at Scribble Jam
, Astronautalis self-released his debut album, You and Yer Good Ideas, in 2003. He eventually signed with Fighting Records and the record was re-released on July 12, 2005, followed by his second album, The Mighty Ocean and Nine Dark Theaters, in 2006. In 2008, reports of a new album emerged, and his third album, Pomegranate
, was released in September of that year. In winter 2009, he toured with the Canadian
indie rock
band Tegan and Sara
through Europe, and supported them again through the spring of 2010 in Australia. In July 2011, he revealed the title and tracklist of his fourth album, This Is Our Science produced by John Congleton, was released on September 13, 2011.
He has been described as "if Beck
were a decade or so younger and had grown up more heavily immersed in hip-hop," with his rapping
style noted for "blending styles of indie rock
, electro, and talkin’ blues
" with hip-hop. He has described himself as "historical fiction hip-hop."
During live performances, Astronautalis will typically perform a freestyle rap
based on topics chosen by members of his audience.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
artist based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
.
After gaining some renown in local circles in Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
and competing at Scribble Jam
Scribble Jam
Scribble Jam was an annual hip hop music festival hosted in Cincinnati, Ohio. Dubbed "America's largest hip hop festival", it was co-founded in 1996 by "Fat" Nick Accurso, and Jason Brunson, founders of graffiti magazine Scribble, and DJ Mr Dibbs, in the parking lot of a local nightclub...
, Astronautalis self-released his debut album, You and Yer Good Ideas, in 2003. He eventually signed with Fighting Records and the record was re-released on July 12, 2005, followed by his second album, The Mighty Ocean and Nine Dark Theaters, in 2006. In 2008, reports of a new album emerged, and his third album, Pomegranate
Pomegranate (album)
Pomegranate is the third album from alternative hip-hop artist Astronautalis. It was released on September 23, 2008. It gained favourable reviews from numerous music blogs.-Songs:...
, was released in September of that year. In winter 2009, he toured with the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Tegan and Sara
Tegan and Sara
Tegan and Sara are a Canadian indie band composed of identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin . Both Tegan and Sara play guitar and keyboard and write songs.-History:...
through Europe, and supported them again through the spring of 2010 in Australia. In July 2011, he revealed the title and tracklist of his fourth album, This Is Our Science produced by John Congleton, was released on September 13, 2011.
He has been described as "if Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
were a decade or so younger and had grown up more heavily immersed in hip-hop," with his rapping
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
style noted for "blending styles of indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, electro, and talkin’ blues
Talking blues
Talking blues is a form of country music. It is characterized by rhythmic speech or near-speech where the melody is free, but the rhythm is strict....
" with hip-hop. He has described himself as "historical fiction hip-hop."
During live performances, Astronautalis will typically perform a freestyle rap
Freestyle rap
Freestyle rap commonly refers to rap lyrics which are improvised through a acapella or with instrumental beats, i.e. performed with no previously composed lyrics, or "off the top of the head"...
based on topics chosen by members of his audience.
Albums
- You And Yer Good Ideas (2003, self-released)
- The Mighty Ocean And Nine Dark Theaters (2006, Fighting Records)
- PomegranatePomegranate (album)Pomegranate is the third album from alternative hip-hop artist Astronautalis. It was released on September 23, 2008. It gained favourable reviews from numerous music blogs.-Songs:...
(2008, Eyeball RecordsEyeball RecordsEyeball Records is an independent record label based in Northern New Jersey, formed in 1995 by Alex Saavedra. They have released albums by artists such as Thursday, My Chemical Romance and Murder by Death....
) - This Is Our Science (2011, Fake Four IncFake Four IncFake Four Inc. is an independent record label based in New Haven, CT. It was founded in 2008 by Ceschi and David Ramos. According to an interview with Ceschi on Ugsmag.com, the Ramos brothers started Fake Four with help from San Bernardino, California's Grimm Image Records and Dayton, Ohio's Squids...
)
EPs
- Meet Me Here (7")
- Texas Kinda Rhymes With Sexist
- A Round Trip Ticket To China (2006)
- Dang! (2006)
- Split EP with Babel Fishh (2006)
- The Very Unfortunate Affairs of Mary and Earl (2006)
- The Young Capitalist's Starter Kit (2008)
- Seven Freestyles in Seven Days (2008)
Future Albums
- The Four Fists (2011 release expected; a collaboration album with P.O.S based on a collection of short stories by F. Scott FitzgeraldF. Scott FitzgeraldFrancis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
)
External links
- Bandcamp page
- modelcitizens homepage
- Fighting Records homepage
- [ Allmusic bio]