After listening to some new Black Keys I wondered how my old buddies The Strange Boys were doing and what do you know? They've got a new album that came out yesterday. It's called "Live Music".
You kept that one quiet didn't you boys?
I wonder how "strange" these boys really are? Have they ever drank Baileys from a shoe? Have they ever been to a party where they wee on each other?
Whatever, neither have I (ahem), but what I have done is I gave Live Music a cheeky listen and loved it so much I thought I'd best post it on here too.
Here's the video for the first single off the album, "Me and You" (mp3)
I mentioned yesterday that I've got a Russian Circles poster on my wall so carrying on that subject why not talk about The Black Keys, of whom I've got 2(!!! fanboy alert) posters up, and their new up 'n' coming album "El Camino" which is out at the start of December. Just in time for Christmas. If you for some reason feel an imcomprehesible urge to get me a copy of El Camino, that's all fine. Just make sure it's a signed copy on gold-flake infused vinyl. Otherwise you ain't getting anything in return.
The duo are getting word out there with first single "Lonely Boy". Perfect vintage Black Keys. Dirty guitars and the kind of chorus that would have you sell everything you own just to buy a guitar and a plane ticket to the deep south swamps of America. Personally I haven't done that yet because I still haven't seen every single episode of Entourage, but the way things are going I'll be there soon.
Just as I'm about to write this day off as just another one of those days where I've accomplished absolutely nothing worthwhile I come across Russian Circles' new album "Empros". Not that listening to Empros would class as much of an accomlishment, but it's certainly worthwhile.
Russian Circles' last album "Geneva" was and still is one of my favourite albums of all time. Hell, I've even had a Russian Circles poster on my wall for the past 3 years.
Where Geneva was beautiful (it even had string instruments) and lulled you into a state of post-rock induced bliss, this time around it seems they're also slightly more forthcoming and ready to whip out that metal background of theirs. Right from the off with opener "309" and its raging guitars and drums.
If post-metal sounds slightly scary to you, don't fret because Empros has it's Geneva-esque gorgeous cinematic moments too.
If this were "true metal" we probably wouldn't be here right now. Me and metal, we just don't see eye to eye. I think it's the vocals that usually put me off. Or that "attitude". The people who listen to it, the "metalheads" have got way too much "attitude"
I know this metalhead guy and every time I see him (which is quite a lot, some might say maybe too much, because he's a regular at the bar I work at) we have the exact conversation:
(Him) - Hey man.
(Me) - Hey yourself.
(Him) - So, well, um you listened to the new Children of Bodom album yet?
(Me) - No.
(Him) - Oh.
(Me) - Uhhuh, anything else?
(Him) - Well, um....
(Me) - ......
(Him) - ......
(Me) - You listened to Of Montreal's 'The Gay Parade' yet?
(Him) - Um, no I don't think I have.
(Me) - Stop talking to me then.
Reading that, I actally think it's me who's got the attitude. What a bastard. Gonna change my ways so I just went out and bought the entire Cradle of Filth discography.
When the good people at ViceMagazine got in touch about their new show "On the Road" I was genuinely intrigued. Not least because it was them who got in touch with me. Hah, and I always thought Vice was supposed to be cool.
Anyway, seeing as my baby cousin's completely enamoured by everything Vice-related I thought I could break away from my busy-doing-fuck-all schedule and check it out.
"On The Road" is about roadies. The road crew. You know, those people who always dart about live gigs on stage fiddling around with all the instruments carrying loads of stuff?
How many times has it happened when you've been to a gig and it's about to start. All the spotlights are pointed at the stage and the background music's turned off. All systems are go.
Enter the stage a couple of scruffy guys in band t-shirts who take up the mics and instruments. In your intoxicated little head you think this must obviously be the band you've been waiting your entire life to see and you make this banshee-like shriek: "I LOVE YOU FLORENCE AND YOUR MACHINE".
Nope, never at any point did you notice anything wrong with Florence's oversized beard and hair.
Roadies are the unsung heroes. The people who make shit work. And that's what On The Road's about. People who make shit work. Oh and it's hosted by Jesse Hughes from Eagles Of Death Metal who may be one of the coolest guys out there.
Here's Episode 1 where Jesse meets up with Queens of the Stone Age to talk about their experiences with the road crew.
Initially this video started playing automatically. I did a bit of html magic and now it doesn't and I'm quite proud of myself now. Show me some love.
Bringing back the mighty Soundcloud Showcase again with some more mighty fine tracks you just simply NEED to hear. I've been a bit ill/a bit hungover/watching way too much Entourage to write this post any earlier than now, which is why you might be thinking: "Hey, this is yesterday's news!"
If that's what you're thinking, it means you're obvs way too pretentious anyway...
On to the goods then mi amigos. (I've just started studying Spanish, and that was a little taster of my mad skillz)
I know nothing about the next band The Doldrums and don't intend to find out about them until this post's been written. Lazy journalism yes, but it's all good because I'm hardly the journalist. Y'see, these days I'm just a guy who embeds flippin' Soundcloud clips.
"I'm Homesick Sittin' Up Here In My Satellite" is a catchy tune. In fact as tunes go, it's pretty much a fishing hook made of Velcro That's how catchy it is.
You want more?
This tune's so contagious that I heard Danny Boyle's thinking of making a film about it called "2.33 minutes later".
We're at that point where the entire world's making remixes of Lana Del Rey's "Video Games", and why shouldn't they? Video Games is an ace tune.
Balam Acab are usually categorized somewhere between Witch House and Post-Dubstep but their remix of Video Games is a wondrously lush track, rich in soft textures with only the slightest modifications on Lana's vocals, which were the main focus point on the original version too.
Shells is a bedroom producer from The UK, whose previous Bret Easton Ellis themed works (Lunar Park EP) have been big ol' favourites of mine. Now he's got a new 2-track EP out Arctic b/w Spiders. I'm pretty sure neither track name is an Easton Ellis reference and I can't think of any other piece of literature it might refer to either. (I thought this was your thing Mr. Shells) Perhaps the closest we can get is my yet-unreleased book: Tundra Tarantulas - A cool arachnid love story.
If you're a fan of Four Tet, Bonobo and Seams, odds are you'll love this too.
To end this post on a high, we've got a 10-minute house jam of epic proportions courtesy of South Carolina's Hard Mix. "I Wonder Why You Cry" is a huge track. Using vocal chops from The Originals' "Baby I'm For Real" and Thelma Houston's disco classic "Don't Leave Me This Way" (also heard on Pariah's "Orpheus") to create a wicked kind of shoutback feel to the tune. Banging.
Here we go folks. A super hot, new and perhaps even recurring theme here on my blog now. Something I'm just gonna call Soundcloud Showcase, because it sounds snazzy and very "now".
In fact it's basically what I've been doing all along ie. posting new tunes off of Soundcloud that I personally love.
- Does that sound like something you might be interested in? - Well I hope so, because it's all I've got.
So what's a better way to get this party started by posting a hot little summery dance number on a cold, Wednesday morning in November, seeing as I have it on good authority that Wednesdays are the new Saturdays and winter is the new summer.
Anyway, Monarchy came out with their debut album earlier this year, "Around the Sun" is exactly what you've been looking for if "exactly what you've been looking for" is something to fill that chart-friendly electro-pop sized hole in your heart that was left by Hurts only really having one decent song. Monarchy's bass player obviously thought it wasn't enough to be "exactly what you're looking for" and went on to remix one of the best tracks on the album to make it even better. That's a whole load of better-ness right there. This is Vivien's remix of Monarchy's "You Don't Want To Dance With Me". Play it, download it, love it.
65daysofstatic are generally known for their energetic break-neck speed post rock bangers or not known at all, depending on who you are. But now they're on to something special, live-soundtracking the 1972 "classic" movie Silent Running. Not a lot of people tend to do this kind of thing these days, do they?
If the first released song "Burial Scene" is anything to believe, it seems 65dos have ditched the techno-vibes and whipped out the entire Explosions in the Sky discography
Slight change in style is also something Oneohtrix Point Never's gone through. After his ace little sidetrack with Joel Ford earlier this year to make the fantastic "Channel Pressure" album, Daniel Lopatin is back to his OPN alias and blessing us with an entirely piano driven slow number "Replica". Not to worry though. The trademark 80's style pulsating buzzsaw-synths are still there and still going strong. As ever with this guy, listening to him brings back memories of that bit where you're stuck in Metal Gear Solid. You know that bit where you have to plug in and play with controller 2 so that levitating psychic motherfucker can't "read your thoughts". Best day of my life when I got past that bit.
And finally for today, Finnish kings of drone KXP have got a new tune out. It's the title track from their up and coming 3-track "Easy" EP which celebrates the band's signing to Manchester label Melodic Records. Featuring more vocals than probably their entire debut album put together this is a song you'll find either brilliant or super annoying.
What a day yesterday was for us lot who love electronic music. Loads of new releases means there's gonna be that much less spare time to do anything other than just listen in awe.
First off is of course the new Massive Attack and Burial collab "Four Walls" that got aired on Mary Ann Hobb's radio show last night. "Four Walls" is the A-side of the super limited 12" that features two Burial mixes of Massive Attack tunes.
B-side "Paradise Circus" is off MA's last album "Heligoland", whereas "Four Walls" is a never-before-heard unreleased piece. So feast your ears on it below. Burial's reworking is exactly the kind of late night ghost walk we've come to expect. No seriously, I should have slept a lot more last night, but there I was listening to it again and again.
If you were in the intention of purchasing said 12", it would set you back roughly 25 quid but hey that ain't nothing if you take into account the fact it's made of solid gold and unicorn tears. That's how special this baby is.
Yesterday also marked the day the Dutch master (no not Edwin van der Sar) Martyn (possibly a pseudonym of Edwin's) released his new album "Ghost People". Martyn says his music doesn't categorize under house, dubstep, techno or D 'n' B because it is simply Martyn-music.
Martyn-music's fine by me if it sounds this sweet.
Mixmag are doing us all a favour by streaming the whole thing. You'll want to check out "Masks". This tune is a fucking beast.
And seriously as if that wasn't enough for one day, Rustie comes along and bangs out his debut LP "Glass Swords", so expect some crazy Hudson Mohawke -styled playful, all over the place beats.
Rustie's a Scottish guy who's apparently 28 but looks about 12 so I'm just gonna average those two and say he's 20 which makes "Glass Swords" phenomenal stuff from such a young kid.
The whole album's being streamed over at The Guardian. Enjoy.
Ólafur Arnalds is at it again. The Icelandic neo-classical wizard is yet again creating and releasing a new song each day of the week.
He did it "way" back in 2009 to create his 'Found Songs' album, recording a new song every day and giving it away as a free download. Ultimately they'd also all be compiled into a physical release.
This time around he's calling it 'Living Room Songs'. Why? Because it's all going down in the man's living room in Reykjavík. Which is also where you can see him next week if you're lucky enough to be heading over to the Iceland Airwaves festival.
With Living Room Songs we also get to peek in at his work because each day/song is also preserved in video format in addition to just sound.
Y' See?
This is day 2's song 'Near Light' (mp3) but you can see them/download them all over at http://livingroomsongs.olafurarnalds.com/
There's still a couple of tracks to be released. Get in on this!
You just know this girl is gonna be huge. With an already crazy amount of radio play for her new single 'Video Games' which isn't actually physically released until october 9th things should only get bigger for Lana Del Rey or Lizzy Grant amongst friends. Video Games is a simply beautiful song. Haunting and subtle at the same time.
She's also got a knack for ace videos. Both the videos for 'Video Games' and b-side 'Blue Jeans' are montages of old footage mixed with new ones to create a kind of retrophile pornography.
It seems as though I'm not her only fan though, because Jamie Woon's gone and remixed Video Games and given it his own very recognizable sheen. Sounding perhaps a little bit too much like Lana's vocals superimposed onto Lady Luck . Nevertheless it's pretty damn sexy.
Lana Del Rey - Video Games - Jamie Woon Remix by woon
If you weren't aware of recent developments, Jamie Woon is returning to Helsinki after his triumphant set at this summer's Flow Festival and is playing Helsinki's Circus on November 28th
Okay so I seem to be the advocate for everything James Blake but, hey, give me a break. The man has stolen my entire look, face, body and soul so the least I can do as a bit of payback is stalk his entire life.
You might remember a while back I posted 'Fall Creek Boys Choir' his collab with Justin Vernon aka. Bon Iver? Well that track was just a sample of the new James Blake EP titled 'Enough Thunder'.
Enough Thunder's released October 10th but the good people at Blakey HQ have decided that an online stream of the EP is the right way forward. True dat. It's ace.
Thing's even got a Joni Mitchell cover on it (A Case of You) which is basically just James and a piano making a hell of a lot of young women moist in the loins.
So here it is James: I'm still pissed off with you for completely cramping my style, but yet I do salute you for making an album of babe-friendly smooth tunes to accompany sweet tender love-making.
