You Can Try to Cut it Down

I could understand why bands in the 90s like My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Slowdive & Chapterhouse were called Shoegazers... after all they did spend much of their time on stage staring at their feet, as waves of feedback drenched sound pleasantly battered the audience. I never quite figured out why the weekly papers branded them 'the scene that celebrates itself' though. Maybe they just spent a lot of time hanging about singing unintelligably but rather beautifully at each other.

Well the last couple of years has seen a revival of sorts of that sound, and here is some new & old stuff that's caught my ears lately.

Branding itself 'The Label That Celebrates Itself', you can see where the Sonic Cathedral label is coming from, and their club night has been a large part of this resurrection.

Their latest single is from Kyte, a very pleasant bit of Sigur Ros-style bombast. Excellent though the a-side is, i'm more interested in the flip, which features a remix by Northampton's Mercury nominee Maps.



It still astonishes me that Maps records at home... there seems to be such an overwhelming and well produced avalanche of sound. As usual I have little idea what it's all about. but it's unassumingly powerful stuff.

KYTE - SECULAR VENTURES (MAPS MIX)

A while ago I was sent some exclusive Maps demos to post, but rather rudely neglected to do so. Well better late than never, here are a couple for your enjoyment.

If you've heard the album, then these rawer cuts will be interesting to hear. If you've not heard the album, then hopefully these may encourage you to do so. It's less than 6 quid now so you have no excuse...



'Lost My Soul' is impossibly gorgeous, and while 'Make Yourself Exist' doesn't reach the heights of the album tracks, it's as far as I can tell an unreleased track.

MAPS - LOST MY SOUL (DEMO)

MAPS - MAKE YOURSELF EXIST (DEMO)

Moving further into 'Shoerave' territory we have Berlin's Ulrich Schnauss, whose two classic albums 'Far Away Trains' and 'A Strangely Isolated Place' have left a massive impression on anyone who's heard them. Strangely his most recent album 'Goodbye' arrived with little fanfare, despite being a worthy companion to its two predecessors.

I posted a track from it back in the spring, however the version I had was unmastered and I was perhaps a little critical of it for that reason. This is a sound that needs perfect production & a nice stereo.



I don't have the latter, but improving the production has helped no end. Check Medusa for instance. It starts sounding un-nervingly like a My Bloody Valentine track with a few electronic bleeps, and like MBV he's not afraid to develop the track into some serious noise. But the kind of white noise that drifts you off to golden slumbers. I really hope this isn't 'goodbye' from Ulrich.

ULRICH SCHNAUSS - MEDUSA

Seefeel were briefly popular in the early 90's, and it's time to assess whether they've stood the test of time with the double CD remastered reissue of their best known album 'Quique'. Although they were always considered 'Ambient' music, listening again it seems that Dub is a far greater influence. It's atmospheric, but not meandering. Loose basslines flow through the songs, as demonstrated to excellent effect on opening track (the best on the album) 'Climactic Phase #3'.

In truth, although the album is a rewarding listen, i'm not sure it really warrants the expanded double CD treatment. Are there really Seefeel fanatics still about, seeking out alternate mixes & lost tracks? Much as I've been thoroughly enjoying the first CD, i'm not left eager to dive into another 70 minutes of the same. But maybe that's not the point of the exercise... which is perhaps just to reflect upon & to revisit an excellent band, who would perhaps have been already forgotten were it not for a couple of Aphex Twin remixes (sadly not included here).

If you like this album, they do have others to explore - Succour was released on Warp, and Ch-Vox on Rephlex.... though I think the latter is quite hard to find now. Quique is the place to start though, and like the original version can be found on Too Pure records.



SEEFEEL - CLIMACTIC PHASE #3

Next time i'll try & remember the words

I've been meaning to write about Michael Fakesch's album for a while, and it seems today's the day. Apparently Michael was half of Funkstorung, who'm i'm not entirely familiar with, but thought were quite experimental electronic producers.

Well I don't know if there was always a spot of Prince trying to work it's way out of Funkstorung's bleeps, becuase now he's been set free from his former musical partner, Michael Fakesch seems to have turned purple. Reckon he's been drinking up that Funky Cold Medina.



The evidence:

MICHAEL FAKESCH - ESCALATE

MICHAEL FAKESCH - SODA (MOUSE ON MARS REMIX)

Look out for the album, Dos. It looks like this. The single, Soda, also comes with a Munk remix.




Speaking of band members striking out alone, Field Music's David Brewis has had a bit of time off from the band for a solo project... School of Language. In truth it doesn't sound too different to Field Music, but since they are excellent I shan't complain. The ooh aah ee ooh aah backing is a winner for me...



SCHOOL OF LANGUAGE - ROCKIST PART 1


Fresh from his smash hit (well, in my house anyway) 'Oi Oi New York', David E Sugar is wasting no time in releasing the follow up 'Chelsea Girls'.... two more tracks of Gameboy Grime.



In truth, on first listen this isn't a patch on the Grecoroman single, but both tracks are more evidence for David's touch for sweetness and hot grooves. In fact 'Chelsea Girls' is growing me more on every increasingly frequent listen.

The single's out on Brikabrak Records.

DAVID E. SUGAR - CHELSEA GIRLS (REMOVED BY REQUEST)

Here's the video instead:



This Thursday sees the second 'east london is a vampire', this time with David E Sugar headlining. Check it:



If you can't make that, he's also playing an interesting sounding night on 29th September.... Be @ The Bloomsbury Ballroom.

Vandal Update

A few lush new Banksy's have sprung up around London the last couple of weeks... most notably this by the Old Street roundabout, where his Pulp Fiction pictures used to be. It's a bit of a beauty IMO, and seems to be some kind of comment on these youth shootings that have been going on recently. As he says on his site... "How do we solve the crisis of youth crime? How do we get these kids to kill the right people"

This particular spot has been pretty much claimed by Banksy over the years. You can see an interesting pictorial history here.

The new one:




The guy has lost none of his ability to make you smile.

I think I posted up a picture of this a couple of weeks ago...



Well a similar piece has appeared in Ladbroke Grove (check the position of the CCTV camera!)



Along with a welcome return of the Rats... also in West London.





It's miraculous that he's still getting away with doing this without anyone managing to suss who he is. Long may it continue....


(pics from Art of the State)

Listens to her music on 45s

Enough bleeps... let's RAWK! Well, politely. And in sensible trousers.

I've been banging on about The Wombats here since their first single, and though not as good as 'Moving to New York' or 'Backfire at the Disco', by the sound of all the Radio 1 play this has been getting it seem this will finally be their breakthrough single.



Is that a children's choir I hear? Blimey. And I still don't hate it. There is something very likeable about these chaps. I also presume they've now been signed to a proper record label so we can stop calling them the biggest unsigned band in Britain.

THE WOMBATS - LET'S DANCE TO JOY DIVISION

Foals are an agreeably jerky band who you would have heard on Kitsune Maison Vol. 4. And true to form, this new single on Transgressive records is agreeably jerky.



As usual with these kind of tracks I have little idea what it's all about. That's not really the point though, it's got an intense energy and some interesting noises. They sound like they'd be a lot of fun live...

FOALS - MATHEMATICALS


A bit of a tongue twister this, the debut single from.... are you ready? Joe Lean and The Jing Jang Jong. Apparently Joe used to drum for The Pipettes, but failing to find a black & white spotted dress in his size decided to branch out on his own.

Things seem to be going well so far... they've landed support slots with Babyshambles & The Kaiser Chiefs, penned a very catchy single (below), and have an admirable ethos.... "There doesn't need to be a dichotomy between what cool kids like and what little kids like, I just want to make people kiss"



JOE LEAN AND THE JING JANG JONG - LUCIO STARTS FIRES (Removed by Request)

Like The Wombats, The Hussys have a knack for an insanely catchy tune... but unlike The Wombats don't seem any closer to cracking the charts.

The first single I got from them had so much pop across it's four tracks that it caused a massive spike in CO2 emissions and destroyed an area of the ozone layer the size of Greenland. It was dangerous stuff.



They now have a new 4-track single, 'Sunday Morning', which to be safe I listened to in a government laboratory. Well unfortunately I found that the first two tracks didn't quite produce the goods. I dunno, perhaps my expectations were too high. Thankfully though it all comes together for track 3, 'Rock Steady'. Ballsy (titsy?) 60s girl pop with a devastating chorus. A tale of a 60s obsessed modern mod, it's hugely evocative. We all know, but are not friends with (for they are too cool), girls like this. I'm a bit baffled as to why this isn't the lead track on the single for it's reet good.

THE HUSSYS - ROCK STEADY

You've Taken my Breath Away

I don't know why I found Metronomy a bit of a let down at TDK... I think it just seemed their hearts weren't in it, and the fact that one of the chest lights broke didn't help. I've had my faith well and truly restored by this new single though, possibly their best tune yet and certainly one that's in with a chance of being a hit through the age old ploy of putting 'radio' in the title. Radio stations ALWAYS play songs with 'Radio' in the title. That's a fact.



It starts off reminding me of Klein & MBO's 'Dirty Talk' before turning very Hot Chip. That's no bad thing of course, and so it proves. Twisted electronic pop of the highest order.

METRONOMY - RADIO LADIO

The single also includes live favourite 'Are Mums Mates', and is good reason for buying the single in itself.


I'm finding 'The Salmon Dance' a strange choice of single for the Chemical Brothers (being a bit rubbish), but Italian's Crookers have fixed it right up to become the kind of a fidget house classic that Switch himself would be proud of. 'Wow' indeed.

THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS - THE SALMON DANCE (CROOKERS WOW MIX)


Canadian improv-rock... an expression guaranteed to get people fleeing screaming from the record shop... well hold yer horses cos this is fantastic. A new and brilliant album from Holy Fuck.

They supposedly play improvised electronic music, but with real instruments & cheap casio keyboards. The results can be pretty varied as these two tracks show.

Super Inuit was recorded live on tour with !!!, and is a drum-fuelled krautrock groove... with added yelping and a hint of LCD Soundsystems 'All of My Friends'.

HOLY FUCK - SUPER INUIT (LIVE)



Lovely Allen is exactly what it says (Lovely, that is.. not 'Allen'), and reminds me of 'Boces' era Mercury Rev, when Suzanne's flutes peeled out.

HOLY FUCK - LOVELY ALLEN




Finally if anyone's looking for a Bestival ticket for this weekend, a friend of mine has a spare one at cost price..... lemme know.

And if you don't love me now, you will never love me again

So it seems Klaxons have won this year's Mercury prize. I have to say my metaphorical money was on Maps, but no-one else seemed to agree with me.

I can't see it being nominated next year, but having given his Crazy Covers compilation a bit of a slating a few weeks ago, i'm delighted to report that Tom Middleton's new solo album is a real gem. Anyone whose enjoyed Global Communication's timeless '76:14', or enjoyed his magnificent choral Amba project at the Big Chill will lap up 'Lifetracks'.



So called because it's been a decade in the making, most of the sound does hark back to mid-90s electronic music... a time when melody & rhythm were king, and Autechre-style abstraction and experimentation were on the peripheries of the scene.

As a result some people may find the sounds here a little dated, but if you embrace the nostalgia you'll find some timeless sounds that remind you of why The Orb, Orbital and Global Communication themselves were so popular.

This track, Shinkansen, is slightly reminiscent of the lush drum & bass Tom released as 'The Chameleon' on LTJ Bukem's Good Looking label. Like the rest of the album it's beautifully produced, and i'm sure could pretty much take your head off if listened to on a nice stereo with some strong buds...

TOM MIDDLETON - SHINKANSEN

I think the track's watermarked by the way, so please don't start spreading it all round the web or I may get in the shit!


Getting to some rather more cutting edge dancefloor sounds, here's something that arrived in my inbox yesterday... a remix of Sydney's Pomomofo by Boy 8-Bit.



I'm yet to hear the original, but this remix has some retro chord stabs & swirling pianos married to some latter day fat beats & timestretched vocal loops. All in all pretty tasty.

POMOMOFO - BACK AT THE CLUB (BOY 8-BIT REMIX)

Some new remixes of Bonde do Role's 'Solta O Frango' have arrived, as a consequence of it bothering the advert breaks recently trying to flog us Finnish phones and Ugly Betties. I'm quite taken by this Ladytron version, with its beautiful ascending synths leading to a drum break freak down. For some reason i've not listened to the Bonde do Role album yet, despite having a big beating heart for the Baile Funk, despite everything i've heard by BdR being magic, and despite finding DJ Gorky to be a bloody nice chap. Another one for the list...

BONDE DO ROLE - SOLTE O FRANGO (LADYTRON REMIX)

Finally for today, here's a track from the new single on Adventures Close to Home (the label). Free Blood have been formed by one of the members of !!! (the other singer), and seem on first impressions to be almost as awesome.



As you'd expect the single comes with a strong set of remixes from Hot Chip, ACTH themselves, and my favourite by Chik Budo.

I was about to post the Chik Budo mix, but after another couple of listens i'm getting hotter for the original of that track.. 'Never Hear Surf Music Again'. As you'd expect from someone from !!! it's slightly long, rather unclassifiable and never short on either funk or ideas.

FREE BLOOD - NEVER HEAR SURF MUSIC


By the way i'm getting more into this DJing lark again nowadays, so if you want me to play some fine records at your night then give me a holla... xxx