Franz Ferdinand & Sexwitch Producer Mr. Dan Recruits Stones Throw Spitter Guilty Simpson for Sparse, King of Rock-reminiscent "Firewater" (Speedy Wunderground)

Guilty Simpson is a seasoned Motor City street-worn, hard as nails emcee, yet quite surprisingly, one of the most genuine, nicest artists I've ever encountered during my 5+ years running The Witzard. Simpson has quietly released a number of nearly flawless albums produced by Madlib, Oh No, Apollo Brown, an ill-fated and ultimately, scrapped album co-produced by J Dilla & Mr. Porter, a 6-song EP recorded with Small Professor, and most recently, my absolute favorite album of 2015, Detroit's Son helmed by Australian producer, Katalyst. I would almost personally attest, as a long-time Guilty Simpson fan and Stones Throw supporter, that his collective non-album material is arguably just as strong, if not even stronger, than his crop of full-length albums; throughout the course of his sprawling 25-year career, Guilty has unleashed acclaimed one-offs with the likes of the late great Dilla, who somehow managed to clear samples of James Brown and The Beatles, Jazz-minded electronic producer Four Tet, Geoff Barrow's 35-member Hip-Hop posse Quakers, short-lived beat-centric Tortoise side project Bumps, Lions producer and guitarist Dan Ubick's Connie Prince & The Keystones, and even "Testify," a non-album cut recorded with Katalyst during the Detroit's Son sessions and recently resurrected from the cutting room floor.


"["Firewater" is a] feature I did recently. Got his info from someone over at Stones Throw. Happy to do it because features can be hit or miss, but his beat was sick with a powerful drive to it. Dope producer," Guilty Simpson wrote within a statement exclusively sent to The Witzard. "[Dan] Carey's beat is a murky, sinister jaunt layered thick with warped synths and dense drums. Seemingly, there is little room for any vocal to cut through the swampy low-end depths," Stereogum wrote within a premier-peppered piece. Mr. Dan said he reached out to Simpson through Stones Throw with the warbly, 808 drum-laden King of Rock-reminiscent "Firewater" beat and figured "there was no way I thought I'd get a reply." Carey has previously worked alongside Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, Chairlift, Tame Impala, Fatboy Slim, Yeasayer, and most recently Bat for Lashes' Psych-Folk side project with TOY, Sexwitch. Carey-owned Speedy Wunderground imprint plans to release an instrumental-backed 7-inch record containing "Firewater," which is currently available for pre-order ahead of its February 26th and limited to a world-wide edition of just 250 copies.