silence is a rhythm too
Wednesday 4/30
Apparently the Black Box Recorder did not come out yesterday. Sorry for the mis-information. I've also got to big up my mate Shifty for the lap-top loaner, enabling me to feed the internet jones I have and do some updates around here while my iMac is in the shop.
I have been listening to the Missy Elliot remix of Madonna's American Life and enjoying it immensely. It's nothing too innovative, and in fact it repeats some of Missy's tricks from her own records, but it's still fun to hear these 2 power-houses combined. Also getting big plays is the new BOB SINCLAR album III, which is some fabulous French funky '80's flavored disco and house. The best thing about it is that the tracks are all 3 or 4 minutes long, so it never gets too repetitive or boring like so much dance music does. Guaranteed to get your booty shaking.
Tuesday 4/29
Black Box Recorder release their album Passionoia today in the US, so if you're a fan of sharp, dry witty Brit pop go get it! I also heard that ELBOW will be releasing their new album in August. Entitled Cast Of Thousands it features guest appearances from both The Doves & Alfie.
My little iMac is now getting poked and prodded diagnostically to determine why it isn't working , so hopefully soon all will be well and my bank account won't be hurt too badly!
Monday 4/28
The computer gods continue to play havok with my life...something is wrong with my poor little iMac, so it's going to be a few days before I can do any serious work on this site -hence the lack of updates this weekend! Anyway gentle readers, please bear with me, as I hope to have everything back to normal sometime this week.
Thursday 4/24
Another one of those bands I've been reading a bit about lately is HOT HOT HEAT, so this week I picked up their 2002 release Make Up The Breakdown. A rockin' four piece, these guys do new-wave post -punk stuff, like some love child of early XTC, Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello's Attractions. It's super tight and super catchy, and filled with some nice keyboard and piano bits. I'm really loving this record!
Also getting a few spins is the Flaming Lips Fight Test EP. The remix of Do You Realize?? bores me -Scott Hardkiss would not have been my choice for remixer! Their version of Radiohead's Knives Out is pretty stellar, and the track The Strange Design Of Conscience is dreamy electronic(a) stuff. Not essential but a good listen anyway.
Tuesday 4/22
I've got about 10 new things (see The Hitlist) to listen to after my little shopping spree today, and the MADONNA album American Life is the first to get played. I have to say that I totally dig the cover art, with Maddy in full military gear toting a big machine gun -very appropriate to the world today. Musically it sounds similar to the last album except it's a lot mellower, and with a lot more folky guitar on it. Next up it's the Flaming Lips EP. God I love new music Tuesday!
A HUGE thank you to T.W.A.N.B.O.C. for plugging my humble little website...
Monday 4/21
I've been rather uninspired to write these last few days, probably due to the fact that I didn't buy any new tunes last week. Also, I've been listening to essentially the same records for like 2 weeks now, i.e. the Bent, Polyphonic Spree and Edwyn Collins albums. Well, tomorrow sees the release of the new Madonna album, the new Evan Dando album and (what looks to be a fun listen) the Flaming Lips Fight Test EP. Happy shopping!
Wednesday 4/16
Peacefrog Records has put out a 2CD set of PLAID remixes called Parts In The Post. I love these guys, and I like hearing their imprint on other people's tunes. You get tunes from Björk, Goldfrapp, Herbert, Funki Porcini, Nicolette, Grandmaster Flash and a lot more. There's a very nice mix of Tao's Riot In Lagos, which is a cover of a great old Ryuichi Sakamoto tune.
My fascination with Casino Versus Japan continues with the purchase of Go Hawaii, Erik Kowalski's 1999 release. Again, Boards of Canada is the obvious reference, but he definitely puts his own spin on the style. I've been listening to this and his latest every day now for the last couple of weeks, so I'm hooked...
Just a note about this week's downloads...it's a DFA special edition with new bitchin' tunes from LCD Soundsystem and The Rapture.
Sunday 4/13
Events conspired to enable me to go and see The POLYPHONIC SPREE last night. What a trip! When was the last time you went to a rock show where you saw 23 people on stage, dressed in flowing white robes? There were flutes, French horns (or should that be Freedom horns?), trombones, trumpets, a theremin, a couple of keyboards, a drummer, a percussionist, a big Japanese stringed thing, and 5 or 6 'choristers'. Suffice it to say that they made a considerably big noise. Tim Delaughter was a very active frontman, pogoing around and directing his band with big sweeping gestures. They played all of the songs off the record (except for the 30 minute album closer) and a few new tunes, as well as a fab cover of the Alan Parsons Project tune Time. It must be a real nightmare for the sound guy to mix, and there were moments when it was a little too loud. Their enthusiasm is amazing to watch though, and it rubbed off on the audience. I loved it, and would recommend going to see them for yourself. Truly an uplifting musical experience and spectacle. And yes, along with the T-shirts and CDs for sale at the show, you could buy your very own Polyphonic Spree robe! (Also of interest...before the band came on the soundguy played the soon-to-be released Grandaddy album Sumday. It's not a big departure from their sound, but it still sounded pretty damn good!)
Saturday 4/12
MANITOBA is Canadian Dan Snaith.He's just released Up In Flames, the follow-up to Start Breaking My Heart. That album was full on glitch-tronica and IDM, similar in style to Plaid or Boards Of Canada. This new record seems to be inspired by My Bloody Valentine (one review I read said it was the record MBV would have made today if Kevin Shields could be bothered to actually make his own record), as full of raging wall-of-sound guitars as it is of electronics. There are bits of jazz and folk in the mix, and Dan actually sings a lot on it too. It's really a remarkable shift, and it sounds pretty unique.
I have to say I love the Yo La Tengo record -it's beautiful stuff. I've also been enjoying Thomas Bangalter's soundtrack score for the French film Irreversible. It's a good mix of house-y beats and some spooky,psycho-killer downtempo. The other big record this week comes from British label Memphis Industries, and is a roster sampler called Estuary English. Best known for Blue States and Broadway Project, both of whom are on it, it's a leftfield collection of psychedelic British genre-mashing tunes, taking in early '80's lo-fi hip hop, folk music, '70's Brit rock a-la Marc Bolan and IDM. And that's just scratching the surface. And it's cheap to boot. If you're looking for something a little different, check this one out.
Tuesday 4/8
So I'm listening to the new YO LA TENGO album Summer Sun for the second time today, and am amazed by how mellow and ambient and jazzy and warm it is. There are no raging rockers on it. This is just another case of a band I've been listening to for over a decade continuing to surprise me with their music, and it's pretty damn cool.
Apparently Dave Grohl is a huge fan of Killing Joke and is going to play drums on their new album. The dude sure gets around...
Sunday 4/6
I saw BETTIE SERVEERT last night. I've been a fan of the band for about 10 years now, and they're as good as ever on their new LP Log 22. They are also a great live act. They kicked off the show with Palomine and the crowd was into it right away. They truly rocked on oldies like Kid's Allright and Tomboy, and slid from tight grooves to loose jamming with ease. The band clearly fed off of the enthusiastic crowd response, and really seemed to be enjoying themselves.Carol is a great live singer, playing Velvet Underground riffs on her rhythm guitar while the lead guitarist rips into it like Neil Young. This is the third or fourth time I've seen them, and they just keep getting better with age. A highly recommended gig if they ever come to your neck of the woods.
Friday 4/4
The POLYPHONIC SPREE are a 23 member band out of Texas, formed by Tim Delaughter,former lead vocalist for 90's rockers Tripping Daisy. Their album The Beginning Stages Of... was released in 2001, and I started seeing their name in the music press a lot last year. This week I took the plunge and bought the album, and all I can say is "hallelujah! I see the light!". Musically, it's like Up With People on acid meets the Flaming Lips. The band rocks, the choir -yes, the choir, sings, and it's all about being happy and warm and celebrating life. It sounds like it's incredibly cheesy, and it kind of is, but lyrically it's got that same simplistic appeal that makes the Lips so lovable. I've played this two days in a row at work, and by today I had a couple of co-workers completely sold on the hugeness of it. I think I'll put one of their tunes up for you to try this weekend.
Thursday 4/3
The April issue of Muzik Magazine has a super tasty free CD attached. Titled Disco Punk - Dance To The Underground, it's compiled and mixed by The DFA. It includes their remixes of Metro Area, Radio 4, Le Tigre & Fischerspooner, and other tracks by Playgroup, The Rapture, Out Hud & LCD Soundsytem. Wickedly funky stuff, this is worth searching out a copy of the magazine for.
EDWYN COLLINS' album Dr. Syntax came out last year in the UK, and finally got released in the US this week. I've played it twice and I'm sold. I've been listening to this dude's music for like 20 years, and he continues to impress and amaze me. The album is much more electronic than anything he's done, but it works beautifully with his songs. There are the usual countrified ballads, some mid-tempo rockers, and a bunch of funky dance numbers -20 Years Too Late is like an out-take from the Playgroup album that Edwyn played & sang on, and Johnny Teardrop mashes the beats of Timbaland & The Neptunes with some Ennio Morricone vibes. There are some seriously soulful r'n'b moments on here too.I know 2 listens isn't a lot, but I love it already!
My brother kindly offered to take me to see BETTIE SERVEERT Saturday night as a belated birthday gift, and in light of the fact that their new album is fantastic I agreed...woo-hoo!
Tuesday 4/1
A couple of music news items that caught my eye today...MADONNA has filmed a controversial video for her new single American Life.I haven't seen it but several reports paint it as being full of violence & anti-war imagery. Yesterday she announced that she's decided to withdraw the video out of respect for the troops.
On a slightly more humorous note, I noticed on one of the upcoming new releases slate that P. Diddy is releasing a dance album. He's rumored to be working with Felix da Housecat, Nellee Hooper and Deep Dish. I have to admit I'm a little intrigued due to his choices. Just another step in the direction of world domination for the Puffster...