Today's beats for your feets are compiled straight outta iTunes. In other words, I'm lazy today - no importing, just using what is already in front of me. The tunes are still gonna get you groovin' though...
BONUS BEATS - FUZZY DICE A delghtful romp through some Brit funk classics of the ages. Thrill to Shakatak, Level 42, Freeez, Imagination, Heatwave, Belouis Some and more. The creme de la creme and some cheeze, if you will...
This is probably one of my top 10 favorite 12" singles ever. IMO Colourbox should have been huge. Their 4AD recordings were proto-trip hop. They laced their beats with rock guitars and slathered them in dub. I am still amazed at how good this particular track sounds considering it is 23 years old. It is a seriously spaced out dub, a cover of an oldie by Augustus Pablo. It has an all time classic bass line and some huge rim shots, all topped off with Lorita Graham's sweet vocals. I have heard a few different versions of this song and I always come back to this version. Added bonus - the flip side is just as good, with two more dub excursions filled with spaghetti western samples.
The sharply monikered Chico Fellini are an up and coming Lexington, KY based band who have just released their self titled debut album. They are indie rockers with more than a hint of glam. Actually, the glam comes largely from singer Chris Dennison, a man with some serious vocal range and a classic rocker falsetto. You will hear Bowie for sure, and a bit of Freddie Mercury. I swear when he hits those high notes that I'm reminded of Russell Thompkins, Jr., the singer from '70s soul legends The Stylistics. Musically they are a mash up of sleazy glam rockers Louis XIV (see Hot) and Brit pomp rockers Muse, with a hefty helping of the s kind of post-punk dance grooves Franz Ferdinand excel at. The swampy vibe of Electrolyte is very PJ Harvey-esque. The music is sharp and shiny, with guitarist Duane Lundy handling production. Bassist Emily Hagihara provides vocal harmonies and hefty bass lines in tandem with drummer Brandon Judd's tight beats. The album is concise, it's 9 tracks just over 30 minutes long, and it is well paced with a couple of mellow moments in between the glam melodrama. I dig it. You can find it on iTunes and Amazon and it looks like the band will have it at the shop on their web site soon.
- Tasty French glitch hop? Débruit says "mais oui!" - Recloose put Hop Off up on Twitter, and it's a jammin' hip house Japan only bonus track. Hit the link to visit his blog where he offers up all kinds of goodies, including instrumental and demo versions of today's tune. - Senegalese drummer Mor Thiam delivers the old school Afro jazz funk. Cool muso factoid - he's Akon's dad. - M.I.A. drops a pretty typical M.I.A. type jam with special guest Kovas. - The Juan Maclean have a fantastic new record out on DFA called The Future Will Come. It is a super sweet blend of Human League-ish synth-pop & Talking Heads circa Remain In Light type jams. I love it. - Ozomatli mainman and guest vocalist to millions Chali 2na might actually have a proper solo record coming out soon, and today's track is a little taster featuring Talib Kweli. - The Andrew Allsgood Experience blow my mind with Macho Wizard, a killer re-edit of Heart'sMagic Man. Seriously, the track of the week for sure! - Das Racist are a goofy hip hop duo with goofy songs, including Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell which landed in my inbox this week. Did I mention goofy? - Milke are a British combo who sent me a couple of tracks. They traffic in highly danceable synthpop with a distinctly '80s flavor. - Animal Collective get a nice, house-y remix courtesy of Minneapolis' own Gigamesh.
Black Moth Super Rainbow are one gearing up for the release of their new album Eating Us, out May 29th on Graveface Records. The band has enlisted the brilliant Dave Fridmann as producer. You may know him for his work with Flaming Lips and Grandaddy, and IMO he is the right choice to help shape BRMC's dense psych-rock - it is right up his sonic alley. As part of this Saturday's Record Store Day celebrations the band is issuing a orange/red vinyl 7" in a limited edition of just 500 copies. The A side is Born On A Day The Sun Didn't Rise, and the B side is a soft, stripped-down version of the same song, recorded with a banjo and sticky electro beats. It is as fab as I had hoped it would be, and the label has offered an mp3 of the song for you to sample. The band is also gearing up for a US tour, and the opening act is the lusciously good School Of Seven Bells. Go and see this double bill if it comes to your town - an evening of psychedelic dance rock will do you good!
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Black Moth Super Rainbow Tour Dates * w/ School of Seven Bells
Sat. Apr. 25 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Carnegie Mellon University (Spring Carnival) Wed. May 20 - Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge * Thu. May 21 - Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon * Fri. May 22 - Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club * Mon. May 25 - Quincy, WA @ Sasquatch Festival Tue. May 26 - Portland, OR @ Holocene * Thu. May 28 - San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill * Fri. May 29 - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour * Sat. May 30 - Costa Mesa, CA @ Detroit Bar * Sun. May 31 - Phoenix, AZ @ Rhythm Room * Tue. Jun. 2 - Austin, TX @ The Mohawk * Wed. Jun. 3 - Denton, TX @ Hailey's * Thu. Jun. 4 - Little Rock, AR @ Sticky Fingerz * Fri. Jun. 5 - Nashville, TN @ Exit/In * Sat. Jun. 6 - Columbus, OH @ Circus * Fri. Jul. 24 - New York, NY @ South Street Seaport
I'm a big fan of Jill Scott. Her honey tone is sweet and soulful, and she specializes in quiet storm moments. I didn't realize she was an actor too. A few weeks ago HBO premiered a new show called The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency - it's actually a BBC/HBO production and has already aired in the UK. It stars Jill as Precious Ramotswe, a Botswanan woman who leaves her abusive husband and sets up a detective agency. It has been a highly entertaining show so far, and is quite different from HBO's usual fare in that it is kinder, gentler and a bit more family oriented. There is a sweetness to her character, lots of interesting co-stars and a real reverence for Africa. I have really been enjoying it, and it has had me digging out my Jill Scott records. This track is a remix featuring Mos Def, taken from an old Mixmag comp. Like it says, it is all about the head nodding goodness...
The objective is simple - provide an eclectic array of beats to move your feets. Today's selections fit the bill - Snoop Dogg leaked a new Bollywood flava'd song to all of his followers on Twitter yesterday, including me. Pocket is recording songs with all kinds of special guests, including this one with the always cool Robyn Hitchcock. Harmonic 313's album When Machines Exceed Human Intelligence has seen steadily rising time in my CD player - I love the dubstep space funk hip hop flavor of it. Grace Jones' album Hurricane, out last fall in Europe, still has not gotten a US release. This is just plain stupid record company behaviour, because it is good enough. Chaz Jankel played keys for Ian Dury & The Blockheads, but also made some great disco solo albums in the early '80s. A few of the songs have been getting the remix treatment courtesy of Tirk Records and it's sister label Nang - look for more later this year. Lindstrøm & Prins Thomas are masters of spaced out prog disco, as ably demonstrated by Rett Pa. The hot promo action this week is the camp fun of Shoes by Tiga, produced by Soulwax, and a new song from Joyo Velarde. She has been the house backing vocalist for Quannum Records, and is finally getting some well deserved face time. This week's oldie is a killer funky rendition of Feelin' Alright by Lulu. Finally, this is the second week in a row to feature my new favorite Aussie electro act, So I'm Jo. Here is a bit of their bio - Ideas, machines, instruments & error are the foundations of an evolving So I’m Jo sound. “We listen to lots of stuff...From M83 to Metro Area, Matthew Dear, Jamie Lloyd, Hot Chip… these guys are all making some amazing music. The Tim Sweeneys and the Mad Rackets of the world really inspire us as well…interesting people doing interesting stuff who create culture and push the envelope”.
Here's a little funky Friday bonus beats action - a synthpop primer of my early '80s faves feat. OMD, Blancmange, Soft Cell, Human League, Ultravox, Thompson Twins, Flying Lizards & more...
Canadian duo Junior Boys release their 3rd album Begone Dull Care today. I'm a big fan of their lush, melancholic electro pop songs. They channel the best of the '80s into their sleek, romantic synth pop. Their debut Last Exit was a blog and critics fave, as was it's follow up So This is Goodbye. Each record has seen them grow from their more abstract beginnings into a full on pop act. Their latest looks to continue that tradition, being their most poptastic record to date. It was inspired by Scottish-Canadian animator and electronic composer Norman McLaren's short film Begone Dull Care. He specialized in direct film animation, which is to physically manipulate or paint on the actual frames of the film. Junior Boys employ a similarly meticulous approach to programming and sequencing their music, and an album title was born. The first single is Hazel, and it will be getting a full release later in the spring with 3 remixes by Ewan Pearson. It is a sweet slice of tight '80s flavored electro with more than a hint of romantic yearning. It will be interesting to see how critics react to the more straight forward approach of this album - I like it. The band are currently on tour in the US with label mate Max Tundra. If you buy the digital version on iTunes you get a bonus exclusive Prins Thomas remix of "Work".
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I 8tracked up a great mix of finely aged tunes from the baggydelic/rave era of the late '80s. Its a dozen of my faves - I'm not giving any names or tracklists here. Listen, love and tell which of your faves I forgot to include...
Death were a Detroit based trio of brothers - David, Bobby and Dannis Hackney. In the early '70s they started playing r'n'b in their garage, but after seeing Alice Cooper in concert they decided to start playing hard rock. This was the mid seventies, and the African American community was listening to funk, soul and disco. Death did not fit, but they were undeterred and continued to rock. They signed with a small label and started recording. They completed their demo. Supposedly the band's producer met with Clive Davis and played him the music. Clive was into it, and purportedly said he would offer them a deal on one condition - they had to change the band name. This rankled David Hackney, and he refused. No deal. They soon parted ways with their label, self released a single in '76 and soon moved on to other musical projects and raising families. The story takes a crazy twist. Last year one of their kids hears the 1976 single at a party and recognizes his Dad's voice. He finds out that Death has a cult reputation that has grown from the one 7" single. He tells his Dad who digs out the demo from his attic. The son mentions the demos on the internet and a collector who owns a copy of the single happens upon the post. He contacts Drag City, the label contacts the Hackneys, and, as they say, the rest is history.
...For The Whole World To See hit record shelves in February. It is a choice historical nugget, a primo slice of high energy garage rock. It is a juxtaposition of styles - classic FM rock a la Hendrix meets the crunching pre-punk sounds of The Stooges & MC5. Its seven songs rage hard, full of quick time changes, catchy choruses and blazing solos. It is, as a recent NY Times article called it, punk before punk was punk. I love it. A highly recommended reissue that I think rock fans will really enjoy.
Here is a nice little mix of jazz classics to soothe your Sunday and help you ease out of the weekend. It features tracks from Mile Davis, both solo & with Gil Evans, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, The Modern Jazz Quartet, Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto, The Bad Plus and Wynton Marsalis.
Just got clued on to an online mixtape site that works much like the old, beloved Muxtape. It is called 8tracks, and it is pretty easy to use. Browse the network's song library or upload a track. I only uploaded 1 of the 8 tracks in my mix - 7 were already on the network. I am, of course, SIART. Today's inaugural mix is Glitches 'n' Bugs, a tasty selection of tracks by Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Röyksopp, The Shortwave Set, Amadou & Mariam, Fever Ray, N.A.S.A., the Super Furries and Q-Tip. I warn you - the Super Furry Animals song The Very Best Of Neil Diamond is ENORMOUSLY good. Enjoy!
Here are your beats to move your feets on this fine Friday; a couple of Aussie electro bliss moments from Faux Pas and So I'm Jo, some Dave Wrangler mixes and mash ups, a Sir Billy '80s industrial edit and a nice dubstep remix of Horace Andy & Ashley Beedle. The three oldies are a disco classic from the O'Jays, an old school hip hop joint by Sugar Daddy and a sweet slice of primo '80s Britfunk from Freeez. Get yer dancin' shoes on...
Got a bunch of tunes in the e-mail this week so without any further ado... ________
I covered UltraChorus last month. The Minneapolis duo has whipped up a few new remixes. One is a jazzy makeover of Brit funker Jamie Lidell and another of My Dear Disco (featured last Funky Friday).
Jamie Lidell - Little Bit Of Feel Good (UltraChorus Remix) My Dear Disco - White Lies (UltraChorus Remix) ____________ Vice Records is reissuing King Khan & The Shrines' What Is?! album, and the band is bringing it's sweat-soaked soul explosion to your home town... King Khan & The Shrines - Land Of The Freak 04-29 9:30 Club - Washington, DC 04-30 First Unitarian Church - Philadelphia, PA 05-01 Music Hall of Willamsburg - Brooklyn, NY 05-02 Maxwell's - Hoboken, NJ 05-03 Santos Partyhouse - NYC 05-07 Paradise - Boston, Mass 05-08 Babylon - Ottawa, ON 05-09 La Sasa Rossa - Montreal, PQ 05-12 Phoenix Theatre - Toronto, ON 05-13 Magic Stick - Detroit, MI 05-14 Wexner Center - Columbus, OH 05-15 Bottom Lounge - Chicago, IL 05-16 Triple Rock - Minneapolis, MN 05-19 The Warehouse - Calgary, AB 05-20 The Starlite Room - Edmonton, AB 05-22 Commodore Ballroom - Vancouver, BC 05-23 Sasquatch Festival - Quincy, WA 05-25 Dante's - Portland, OR 05-28 Great American Music Hall - San Francisco, CA 05-29 Echo - Los Angeles, CA 05-30 Echo - Los Angeles, CA
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The Rumble Strips are recording their second album Welcome To The Walk Alone with Mark Ronson at the controls. Out June 8th in the UK, London has a very Dexy's Midnight Runners kind of thing happening...
I have always loved to share my favorite music, going way back to my mix tape days of the early '80s. This blog is an extension of that, a sort of an ongoing mix tape.
If you like what you hear I encourage you to go out and buy the CD, LP, cassette, 7" or 12". Support the artists who make the music.
FYI - ALL LINKS ARE DEAD ONCE THEY DROP OFF OF THIS FRONT PAGE.
If you own the copyright to something and want it removed contact me at djrez1 at silence is a rhythm too dot com.
Today's beats for your feets are compiled straight outta iTunes. In other words, I'm lazy today - no importing, just using what is already in front of me. The tunes are still gonna get you groovin' though...
A delghtful romp through some Brit funk classics of the ages. Thrill to Shakatak, Level 42, Freeez, Imagination, Heatwave, Belouis Some and more. The creme de la creme and some cheeze, if you will...
