Friday, January 23, 2009

The Return Of Funky Friday

It has been a while. You need these beats to move your feets because it is the middle of winter and you need to warm up. OK, maybe you don't, but I sure as hell do. James Pants' album Welcome is one of my fave records of last year, covering all kinds of stylistic ground but all of it funky. Blancmange's Vishnu is a great bit of Indo-synth pop, a bonus track from the bonus disc of the reissue of their album Mange Tout. I've been on a bit of a '70s fusion kick lately, so am all over the Mahavishnu Orchestra - Miles Beyond is sublime. Animal Collective are blogosphere faves right now, and the Dave Wrangler remix has been floating around for a few weeks. Nice and blissed out, much like the original and it's album. Today's art is also brought to you by Animal Collective - it's alive! Italian DJ Sir Billy has a thing for edits, and he keeps sending them to me. First up is a great edit of Magazine's cover of the Sly Stone classic. The other is an edit of a 1967 tune by James Taylor - yes, that one. Who knew he had the funk in him? Speaking of edits, how about a superb Cosomo Vitelli edit of Fleetwood Mac? Mmmmm. Firefly's tune is a prime slice of 1981 Italo disco that apes the Chic formula of the era - funky bass and nice scratchy rhythm guitar. Onra is a French Vietnamese DJ who has a new album out called 1.0.8. Even though the tracks are all short (around 2 minutes or less) and entirely instrumental, the record is chock full of head nodding hip hop goodness with distinctively Indo-Asian flavor. Highly recommended.

James Pants - We're Through
Blancmange - Vishnu (Full Length)
Mahavishnu Orchestra - Miles Beyond
Animal Collective - My Girls (Dave Wrangler Remix)
Magazine - Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin (Sir Billy DevotEdit)
James Taylor - Knocking Around The Zoo (Sir Billy Knock On Wood Edit)
Fleetwood Mac - Keep On Going (Edits By Cosmo Vitelli)
Firefly - Love Is Gonna Be On Your Side
Onra - Super Genesis
Onra - Dreams

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Random - Shuffle Play

Loose Ends - Hangin' On A String (Contemplating)
Some random shuffling of iTunes this weekend led to this song. I've posted it before. It is a classic bit of of '80s Brit-funk. I really love it. You know what really blows me away about this tune? The fact that it is 24 years old. Wow. I am old. And it has aged well.

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

Getaway

The view from my front door says it all - I am buried deep in the heart of winter. January is typically the snowiest and coldest month of the year around here, and around here winter lasts until April. That means another three months of cold and snow, another three months of budget busting heating bills. A beach in the Mexican riviera would be nice. I could use a getaway...

Earth, Wind & Fire - Getaway