Caught in the Net: Dave Sitek's new label comes out fighting

Prolific producer and TV on the Radio member Dave Sitek has launched his own label, Federal Prism.

Its first release is a single by Brooklyn duo Telepathe – Sitek produced their 2009 debut album. "Destroyer" – four minutes of moody, aggressive electro-pop – can be heard at snd.sc/WailYk. The single comes with a heavy-hitting remix from Trent Reznor, his Nine Inch Nails bandmate Alessandro Cortini and frequent collaborator Atticus Ross. The vinyl and digital versions can be found at federalprism.com.

An Epic fuss over Death Grips' latest

A telling snapshot of the music world right now: on Monday Sacramento noise-rap group Death Grips leaked their new album on their website, thirdworlds.net. A band with buzz, they'd signed to major label Epic in February but they said Epic was showing little interest in releasing the new album, so they offered it up as a free download. The record, No Love Deep Web came with extremely racy cover art. An online flurry of attention followed but the website was quickly taken out of action. The band claimed the shutdown was the label's doing. Some dismissed it all as a publicity stunt, a few defended the label, while others rallied behind the band. Meanwhile the album remained readily available on Soundcloud (at time of writing), snd.sc/W6TKUj. It's a cacophonous affair of experimental hip-hop.

Sub Pop is rocking all over the world

I happened across two great riff-based guitar songs this week, both on the ever reliable Sub Pop label. The first, from Vermont-dwelling garage-rocker Kyle Thomas, under the name King Tuff, is a lovely dash of throwaway lo-fi garage pop. Hear "Screaming Skull" at snd.sc/W8yEVE. Somewhat heavier is "Scene From a Marriage" from Australian punks Total Control. It's starts quiet and slow, then builds. Find it at snd.sc/Wb7gWV.