Before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2012, US record label Illegal Art spent almost 15 years skirting copyright law disaster, becoming a sort of litmus test for how far the music industry was willing to go when it comes to policing the use of uncleared samples. Its most notorious release, Girl Talk’s Night Ripper (2006), featured over 300 of them, but miraculously escaped courtroom drama despite selling over 20,000 copies in its first two years. 

From its humble beginnings in 1998 through to 2012, Illegal Art operated under the control of a man named Philo T. Farnsworth, perhaps the most pseudonym-y pseudonym since John Lennon’s Dr. Winston O'Boogie. But, with today's reboot news, the real brains behind the operation is revealed to be a guy called Matthew S, a college professor and musician who previously recorded for the label as Oh Astro.

For the first in a slate of Illegal Art 2.0 releases planned for 2026, Matthew is debuting his own Myth Math project with the lead track from an upcoming EP, Tongues, out July 10. Listen to the lead track “Deep Down,” which features guest vocals by Mary F and Failure’s Kellii Scott on drums, below:

As Matthew says in a press release:

"An invitation and a manifesto, 'Deep Down' is a journey through song, voices, sound, and samples. Each sonic detail is infused with a yearning to unmute and connect. I'm opening myself to the world, hoping to find something deeper within." 

Made in collaboration with one of his students, Mitch Martin, the track grew from its sample-based origins into a more song-based approach inspired by artists like Sufjan Stevens and Jeff Tweedy, and that shift also reflects a change in the Illegal Art ethos more generally. While sample-based music will still play a role in the label’s new operations, it won’t be the only focus.

Tongues is out July 10. Pre-order here. Tracklisting below:

1. Deep Down
2. Lift
3. Infinity
4. Our Lips

Mitch Martin is also credited as a co-writer on "Lift" and "Infinity," and both of those tracks, plus "Our Lips," feature Kenny Karlsson, aka SonOfKarl, on drums. Film director and composer Seth Boggess is credited as co-producer on three tracks, plays bass on "Our Lips," and mixed the record, too.

As for what else is coming down the line for the label, there’s a new Girl Talk release made in collaboration with underground rappers (no names named yet), plus new work from returning Illegal Art artists People Like Us and Yea Big, who has a new instrumental hip-hop album prepped in collaboration with longtime collaborator Kid Static.