Do you want the funk? I can’t hear y’all! Do you want it or not? Regardless of your answer to that question, Vulfpeck are here to bring it once more. The Los Angeles, California-based funk group extraordinaire is currently gearing up to release their third full-length album in three years this coming December. Talk about consistency! In a rather unceremonious post on Facebook, they unveiled “Lost My Treble Years Ago”, the first single off Hill Climber (which is the official title of this new record), and linked to their Bandcamp profile, where you can already check out the full tracklist and cover artwork. Before devoting our attention to those finer details, though, how about we all check out the new song together first? Cool? Cool. Here we go:
Surprising precisely no one, “Lost My Treble Years Ago” is an absolute jam. The performances of the individual instrumentalists is on point (as always), and the composition is as dynamic and dance-inducingly groovy as ever. Vulfpeck are hands down the best contemporary providers of that old-school funk feel, so it’s nice to see them picking up right where they left off with their new material.
Right. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. Hill Climber will be out on December 7 via the band’s own label Vulf Records. It’s going to be comprised of ten songs in total, and is set to feature some guest musicians once again, including fan-favorite vocalist Antwaun Stanley and Louis Cole of Knower fame. View the tracklist in its entirety, as well as the quite minimalistic cover art, below:
1. “Half of the Way (feat. Theo Katzman)”
2. “Darwin Derby (feat. Theo Katzman & Antwaun Stanley)”
3. “Lonely Town (feat. Theo Katzman)”
4. “Love is a Beautiful Thing (feat. Theo Katzman & Monica Martin)”
5. “For Survival (feat. Mike Viola)”
6. “Soft Parade”
7. “Lost My Treble Long Ago”
8. “Disco Ulysses (Instrumental)”
9. “The Cup Stacker”
10. “It Gets Funkier IV (feat. Louis Cole)”
I don’t know about you, but I’m hella excited for this Hill Climber already! Having reviewed both their 2016 and 2017 records (called The Beautiful Game and Mr. Finish Line, respectively) already, I am looking forward to keeping my streak alive in 2018 as well. You can pre-order the album digitally on Bandcamp. For the record collectors among you, the vinyl first pressing is available here until Friday – do not miss out on the opportunity to grab it if you are into this format! Also, be sure to follow the band on Facebook to keep up to date with all things Vulfpeck.