Parquet Courts & Bun B Unleash Perfectly Grimy Indie Rock-Rap "Captive of The Sun" Remix White Label 12-inch with DJ OG Ron C & DJ Candlestick B-side Edit (Rough Trade Records)
"I was riding in my friend Drew's black Honda Civic down Major Drive, past the soccer fields in Beaumont, and he was playing UGK's Ridin' Dirty, which I recall as an enlightening moment. It was the first time I had heard the Underground Kingz (UGK) on CD, or any Houston Rap that wasn't on the radio. I experienced a true epiphany, realizing the beauty at the core of Houston Rap music... Not long after that car ride, I bought Best of UGK (2003) at Best Buy. The opening track, "One Day," samples The Isley Brothers' "Ain't Been Good to You." The hook is: "one day you're here and then, you're gone." When it's slow like syrup, it sticks with you." Parquet Courts (sometimes Parkay Quarts and PCPC) frontman Austin Brown is a "Big Money" Texas native himself, who over the years, has made his love and admiration for Houston Rap pretty apparent; Brown even penned a piece for Talkhouse about Houston Rap—"a 260-page book of color photos by Peter Beste and oral histories collected by Lance Scott Walker, featuring faces and voices from all over the Houston Rap community: rappers, DJ's, producers, business people, and family members. It's an endearing account of a previously unexposed history, of an outsider art that threaded its way into popular Rap music, but never got mainstream recognition."
Austin Brown now lives in New York along with his fellow Parquet Courts bandmates Andrew Savage, Sean Yeaton, and Max Savage, who have released five full-lengths, two EP's, Live at Third Man Records, and countless side projects since initially forming in 2011. Parquet Courts' latest and arguably, most critically-acclaimed album, Human Performance was issued last April on Rough Trade. It even went as far as to receive a 2017 GRAMMY Awards nomination for Best Recording Package, which it ultimately ended up losing to David Bowie's final RCA/Columbia Records album, Blackstar (★). Parquet Courts, along with members of PC Worship and Eaters, appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert one fateful night in July 2016 to perform Human Performance stand-out "Captive of The Sun;" albeit, a slightly beefed up and slowed down rendition with an appended verse from UGK founder and Houston Rap legend, Bun B. It appeared as though all involved had a genuine good time and it was said that Bun B even became a Parquet Courts fan, after being introduced to their music by Nardwuar The Human Serviette at a DJ Khaled show, of all places!
Austin Brown later made reference to "Captive of The Sun" (Remix)'s distant lineage to Rap-Rock during a Beats 1 interview with Matt Wilkinson: "Rap music and Rock music don't have a great history of working well together. There have been a lot of failures on the way to combining Rap and Rock. But this was, I feel, a really great combination and everything worked really well"—seemingly making reference to often lauded late 90's Rap-Rock compilations, like Judgement Night Soundtarck and Loud Rocks! Parquet Courts & Bun B's long-rumored "Captive of The Sun" (Remix) was finally released on Rough Trade today, Friday, Feb. 17th. Its white label 12-inch version is additionally backed with a Chopped Not Slopped Remix by legendary Houston DJ's OG Ron C & Candlestick. Parquet Courts' frontman Austin Brown even compiled a "Nice & Slow" Spotify playlist, to celebrate its proper wide release—under the guise of Young Doc Gooden—showcasing 15 of his personal favorite late 90's-early 2000's Houston Rap selections.