Primitive World

Phew, well it's been a rather hairy week, with my newish Vista PC suddenly deciding to not recognise my external hard drive - containing all my music. I'm rather embarrassed to admit quite how much is on there, but suffice to say it would have been slightly annoying had I lost it all.

Fortunately though, after a bit of messing round with drivers it seems to be back in business. Relief all round.

As a result i've finally been able to fix that Brand Image track that didn't upload properly last week. Yay!

So today i've been mainly listening to a track I was first sent & indeed should have posted up last year. Tahiti Boy is a guy called David who's formed a band with people from Poney Poney, Bitchee Bitchee Ya Ya and sometimes TV on the Radio. They had a single out last year on Ed Banger offshoot Arcade Mode, and this was it.



Based on this single, he seems blessed with a similar gift for pop & melody as Phoenix, and there's something about the way the track gently crescendos towards the end that hooks you in & makes you skip straight back to the beginning again.

TAHITI BOY AND THE PALMTREE FAMILY - SHE WAS MINE

Tahiti Boy are playing their first UK gig next week... which could be interesting. It's clear that So Me wasn't roped in to design the flyer though!




Could there be another band with a worse but also tropical sounding name? Why yes... how about Desmond and the Tutus. Yep that's pretty bad.



This wasn't exactly what I was expecting from a release on Tiger Sushi records, and in fact on first impressions I thought it was quite bad... but like a Black Mamba from their home country, it slithered up on me and sunk it's fangs into my buttocks. I guess this is evidence of the Afrobeat influence that I hear is infecting indie music these days?

DESMOND AND THE TUTUS - KISS YOU ON THE CHEEK

If you're at a loose end on Friday could I heartily recommend a trip to Adventures Close to Home's new home in Shoreditch. I'm djing, and Alex & Will will be buying fancy cocktails for every single person who comes.**




**this may not be true, but there's no harm in asking..!

Robot is Systematic

'Supreme Re-Edits' is how Cosmic Club Mastercuts describe themselves on myspace, and on the strength of volume 5 of their 12" series, I don't see how anyone could argue. If you thought that the Italo / Cosmic Disco era had already been mined to within an inch of its life, it seems there are still plenty of nuggets out there.



It's a little hard to find any information on the original artists (or indeed the mystery man behind the edits), so just enjoy the tunes. These 12"s are limited to 350 copies, so buy on sight!

BRAND IMAGE - ARE YOU LOVING? (COSMIC CLUB MASTERCUTS EDIT)

'LECTRIC WORKERS - THE GARDEN (1982 ORIGINAL MIX)


Another new exponent of Italo has cropped up on Cosmo Vitelli's excellent 'I'm a Cliche' label...



According to the blurb he's a DJ, graphic designer, Hip Hop artist, remixer & compilation compiler (totally Mexico, yeah?) but now turns out similar dark instrumenal sounds to Zombie Zombie. Well worth a listen for a modern take on some old noises...

UNCLE O - JUPITER MENACE

I enjoyed this new remix of Sebastien Tellier by Boys Noize... an overload of synths worthy of Jean Michelle Jarre or Jaques Lu Cont, with vocal accompaniment by Speak & Spell. I keep expecting it to break out into a more typically banging Boys Noize production, but on the whole I think the restraint works well.



Sorry the quality's not great on this one....

SEBASTIEN TELLIER - L'AMOUR ET LA VIOLENCE (BOYS NOIZE REMIX)

I don't get sent vinyl too often, so when I do it's great... and when it turns out to be really good it's even better.

Instantboys are (is?) yet another scandinavian master of the slow jam, this time hailing from Gothenberg. It's the b-side track that really works for me.. It's just occurred to me that it's very reminiscent of some old Carl Craig tunes, particularly when the breakdown drops half-way through. The crazily arpeggiated synths sound old enough to sound fresh & new (if that makes sense), and the whole thing seems so well produced that it seems odd to find it tucked away on the flipside of a debut single.




INSTANTBOYS - NYA FARGER

The latest European sounds to be picked up by DFA's 'Death From Abroad' label come from Berlin's Supersoul Recordings. Their Banksy-lite sleeves caught my eye quite a while ago, but I hadn't really let them into my ears too much. To be honest on the whole the double CD compilation comes across a little samey for my tastes, but there are undoubtedly some gems to be found within.



The following track appears on the album edited by I-F, but I really love the original... a simple but effective dancefloor riddim containing two great synth hooks where most producers struggle to find one.

WALTER JONES - DEUTERONOMY BROWN

DJs Take Control

I almost forgot to pimp my forthcoming appearances behind the 1s & 2s. Friday night's session is free... you can't get much better value than that in Shoreditch! Expect music for dancing.

Going up the Country

For the first time since 1992 I watched Glastonbury from home this year. There was a lot wrong last year, and not just the mud, but as soon as it started I was of course wishing i'd gone.

The big news was of course Jay-Z headlining, and Noel Gallagher displaying unprecedented levels of twattishness by saying that Glastonbury is an indie festival & Jay-Z wasn't welcome. Well Noel, mate.. the last I heard Glastonbury is a festival of performing arts, and has always been full of hip-hop, funk, soul, jazz & all kinds of shizzle that's not 4 blokes with too many Beatles albums. In fact having been unfortunate enough to stumble across 20 minutes of Oasis' last headline set I think he's wise to keep his mouth shut about pretty much anything to do with Glastonbury.

Jay-Z was of course triumphant, and his come-back to Mr Gallagher at the start of his set was legendary... a bad karaoke piss take that seemed to galvanise the whole crowd. Having a live band rather than just a DJ seemed to make a hella lot of difference as well.... it sounded massive. If you've not watched it you can check it out on the BBC site for the next week or so.

I've got to say that apart from Jay-Z most of the line-up looked & sounded really uninspired. I enjoyed Crystal Castles & MGMT on the telly / internet, but there were FAR too many identicit indie bands of Noel Gallagher's favoured variety.


One band who would have improved things greatly are Poni Hoax, who despite being brilliant and despite being produced by Joakim remain resolutely unknown. I think this second album has been out a short while now, but doesn't seem to have bothered the charts or the NME despite a string of classic singles (Budapest, Involutive Star, & in particular Antibodies.. which shows no sign of leaving my stereo or DJ bag.

I'm in love with the album's opening track, which starts off all goth and then transforms into a krautrock freakout. Albeit a rather gothic one.



PONI HOAX - THE PAPER BRIDE

More psych-rock comes from 'And The Lefthanded' on the new DC Recordings compilation 'Death Before Distemper Vol. 2'.... a must-buy for those who get goose-pimples at the mention of the word 'analogue'.





They apparently hail from Helsinki, but there's so little clue to that in the music that I originally thought it might be another joke by the KLF (who invented a record label - Kalevala - and several fictional bands from Finland).

I think British Airways should play this as you take-off.

AND THE LEFT HANDED - ROCKET ROCK

Finally i've just lifted this straight from 20JazzFunkGreats but it's brilliant... the new single on RVNG of the NRDS, by a mystery producer whose identity is not that hard to uncover. Expertly teased from the Canned Heat original, the hooks and harmonicas are looped into mind-spinning patterns until the terrifying prospect of a new musical genre emerges... line-dance-disco.

WADE NICHOLS - WANDA RODE AGAIN

Rhythm & Sound

Last night in the Roundhouse I watched four unassuming looking folks make the most monumental noise i've ever experienced. I'm sure you've heard by now about the earplugs distributed on the way in, but I still wasn't prepared for the 20 minute physical onslaught of 'You Made Me Realise' at the end of My Bloody Valentine's set. It was like being strapped to a jet engine, and quite an experience. To begin with people nodded their heads, then held onto each other for support, then edged towards the exits as they reached the limits of their endurance. I've always suspected that 'Loveless' wasn't really designed for home listening, and i've never previously managed to crank it up loud enough to reveal its secrets. I'm not sure it was enjoyable, but it was certainly memorable.



Some other sonic futurists whose secrets i've been trying to unlock for many years are Basic Channel, Berlin's masters of dub techno. In their Basic Channel guise, they only released 9 records back in 1993.... which were then followed by a deliberately obtuse compilation with illegible track titles, static, and a label on the back commanding you to 'BUY VINYL'. The compilation was also strangely compiled, being made up with edits of the b-sides and featuring none of their better known tracks.

Now 13 years later, a second compilation is being released with vastly improved sound and a tracklisting that virtually crackles with hits compared to the first one.



It basically comprises 6 of the original A-sides, including probably their best known track 'Phylyps Trak'. They pioneered a sound that has been endlessly imitated since, however none of the copyists can come close to this masterful blueprint. Reverberating metallic sounds seem to shift in form in front of your eyes, while the whole thing is steeped with dub reggae as much as Detroit Techno. It might not hit you straight away but it'll never really leave you.

BASIC CHANNEL - OCTAGON


Some other BC greatness not from the album:

QUADRANT - HYPERPRISM

MODEL 500 - STARTLIGHT (MORITZ VON OSWALD REMIX)

Lost & Found

The upcoming Black Ghosts album seems to be creating a bit of a buzz, which is no great surprise after the quality of the singles that have been slipping out over the last year or so. Part of their success has been down to their impeccable choice of remixer, but Diplo's a no-brainer & guaranteed to serve up a tasty spread.

THE BLACK GHOSTS - REPETITION KILLS YOU (DIPLO REMIX)

Probably my favourite Black Ghosts remix was the version of 'It's Your Touch' by Ashley Beedle, and he's donned his velvet glove again for this remix of The Whip. It's a bit house & even rather trancey for my usual tastes, but somehow it works for me....

THE WHIP - BLACKOUT (ASHLEY BEEDLE GENERATION NEXT REMIX)

Another big tune of the moment comes from Moscow via Toronto, with Proxy's 'Dance in Dark' coming out on Turbo Recordings. According to the internet, it samples 'Schwarzkopf's 'Dancing In The Dark'', but that means nothing to me. All I know is that it's a cunning blend of extreme darkness and beatific light.

PROXY - DANCE IN DARK


I realised i've not pimped my art here for a while, so here goes...

If you've taken a stroll through Shoreditch anytime in the last year, you'll have seen Bortusk Leer's luminous monsters around the place. I've got some excellent originals left, spraypainted on nice paper....



Shuby has also been busy with her wheatpaste recently, and has done some beautiful hand-painted prints. I'd love to see these on a record sleeve if anyone's interested!



I've also got work left from three of New York's hottest talents... Dain, Gaia & Damon Ginandes






Sorry for the sales pitch, but i'm trying to get some money together to put on a big show later this year. Anyway, check my shit out here.... www.prescriptionart.com. I've got some really great stuff coming soon, so sign up to the mailing list. Cheers!