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Superstructure is probably the largest unsung hero for his musical talents, he’s done a completely midi version of Kid A by Radiohead which you won’t find anywhere but on cassette, he has stuck to his sound from the beginning and everything that pops up even like this snippet I always try to check out.
This is the Best Coast killer, prepare for Purity Ring to be bigger than ever imagined. The girl sings lyrics that give me goosebumps, young and old girls are not even ready for this sound, CocoRosie and Joanna Newsom fans will have a new girl to gush over and its definitely a true talent.
When I listen to this Toby Tobias track it has this dance end to it which made buy it because I wanted to play it out but also it creates this lil cutesy environment in my head that I imagine up, like some gummy animal world on a black backdrop, lots of fun things going on.
I’d be happy in a world where this Sportag remix was in the top 40s.
I wouldn’t say bad dream or even trip would explain the visuals you’re about to see but more of a well orchestrated psychedelic outtake from the original 1950’s Johnny Quest cartoon coming to real life. The progress of Matthew Dear’s music this year are leaping over mountains on the creative realm, its doing to be hard to bring your A game now if you think a band can just go on stage and be unique and mysterious.
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I’ve been an ISO50 reader for a long time—long before Jakub and I put on Ghostly International Roller Hockey Team jerseys and took to a rink in rural New Jersey to embarrass the label—and so when Jakub invited me to take a whack at a guest post, I naturally jumped at the chance. (Meanwhile, does anyone want my (priceless) jersey?)
I’ve since moved to California, where I work out of the Los Angeles “Vitsoe apartment,” which is both the home I share with my wife, and a unique space where we show Dieter Rams’ 606 Universal Shelving system deployed in all ways. From straightforward bookshelves, to workstations, to room dividers, kitchen shelving, and closets, it’s pretty much all represented here (we specifically chose an apartment without any built-in storage).. As a former dj and avid collector of music, my favorite use of the system is for media storage. After all these years of collecting vinyl, I’m finally able to put it all on shelves that will not bow under the weight. Vinyl collectors: contact me, it’s more affordable than you’d think!
I thought it might make sense to do a first post about some of the songs that have been keeping me going while working out of the apartment—and since it’s a Vitsoe apartment, share some images of the shelving put to use for various media, plus the beautiful Dieter Rams equipment we listen to it all on.
Lorn – Weigh Me Down (Illum SphereRemix).
Unbelievably beautiful reworking of one of my favorite tracks on Lorn’s new album “Ask the Dust.” I’m huge fan of his heavy hitting beats, but this is a nice change of pace, skillfully re-tooled by Illum Sphere. For a taste of Lorn’s own softer side, check out ‘Pause’ from his ‘Self Confidence Vol.2’ unfinished / unreleased / demo tracks over at the Brainfeeder site. A strange anomaly in a very dark oeuvre.
Yppah – Blue Schwinn.
I’m a huge fan of Joe Corrales’ work as Yppah, it’s sort of a shoegazy version of Bonobo, a combo that is pure win in my book. This track is from his third and most recent release on Ninja Tune, “Eighty One.” Anomie Belle’s vocals are a great addition in an instrumental sense, I love how she’s just swirling around in the background and I’m unable to make out the words.
Lost Twin – Soothing Words.
There’s no shortage of great producers in Brighton these days. I can’t remember exactly how, but I found him via Bandcamp, and to my pleasant surprise, he’s offering the whole ‘Birds’ album for free. I would have no problem paying full price (and then some) for his work. Although obviously entirely different in tone, there’s something a little Burialesque about the auto-tuned quick vocal snippets.
Dextro – Ring Cycle.
I’m not sure exactly why Dextro has stayed off most people’s radars for so long: He deserves far more exposure in my opinion. His first release was on Border Community, then the subsequent releases were through his own imprint, 16K Records. Maybe that’s why. I don’t know. What I do know is that his sound manages to successfully bring together elements of Ulrich Schnauss, Slowdive, and dare I say it, BOC. His last album, Winded, from 2009, is a real gem. I’m hoping he follows it up soon, it’s been too long.
A Sol Mechanic – [Almst(Touching)].
I’ll never tire of a good “Everything in Its Right Place” sample. In his own words “it’s less of a remix and more of a branch off. N E Ways.” That’s a good way of describing it, because after that amazing initial drop, the sample gets filtered into the background and the minimal stutter beat takes over.
Geskia! – Melamine.
Geskia’s sound is unabashedly Scoott Herren influenced, and most of his work occupies a space dead center between Prefuse and the long gone DeLarosa & Asora projects. This is a compliment, as he pulls off what so many other fail to do successfully.
Jai Paul – BTSTU.
There’s been a lot of buzz about this kid from London, and deservedly so. I saw a tweet from Four Tet that said simply: “that Jai Paul track,” which of course sent me into a Google frenzy. What I discovered is that there are literally only two tracks under his belt to date. It sounds like he’s in good hands over at XL, in a recent NPR spot I heard them describe how they are giving him loads of space and time to do what he needs to do, because that’s just how he rolls. He really has a grasp on the “Less, but better” approach.
Autechre – See On See (PixelordRemix).
The thing I like about this unofficial Pixelord remix of ‘See on See’ from 2010’s Oversteps is that it brings me back to the Tri-Repetae days, when the tracks were grounded in dark emotion, and they would hit you in the gut with crisp, hard beats. They lost me long ago, but it’s nice to be brought back if even for a few minutes.
Continuing with album design theme, here is a great set of Bulgarian Socialist era album cover designs, curated by SOCMUS.
SOCMUS is a virtual museum that presents different sections of the Bulgarian graphic design from the socialist era, 1944-1989, and is curated by photographer Nikola Mihov, and the architects Martin Angelov and Valeri Gyurov.
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Soft Metals we’re a underrated gift last year with their label Captured Tracks producing soo many good releases in the past year. I had to share this for 2 reasons and you’re going to love the 2nd one probably more: 1st. the synth choices 2nd: it’s a free download here.
Cascine seems to always find bands that sound like they make all their music in a ray from a sun burst in the clouds of Scandinavia. The vox echo in the intro ends up sounding soo good once you get into the thick of the track especially with the strings and synth piano part that comes in at 2:01.
Dntel did it, he made one of the most honest sounding tracks i’ve heard in a number of years, nothing tied to this that sounds like it was forced or rethought because others will hear it, the soundtrack to claymation from a 70s PBS cartoon, soo happy its as look as it is.
I overlooked posting this gem from Burial, everyone’s probably heard it blah blah blah but its worth the post. He probably doesn’t even look at his facebook or read what people write about him, atleast I like to think that he’s this pure yet distant soul.
Nice little side note, we made it to over 30 minutes today on 4 songs, pretty nice I have to say so myself.
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If you’re a Com Truise fan or a lover of synth music on vinyl then you’ll be happy to hear Seth Haley has 3 releases coming to vinyl this summer, his debut EP Cyanide Sisters, Galactic Melt Redux and a collection of B Sides called In Decay.
Under artists it says “Mungolian Jetset presents Jaga Jazzist vs. Knights Of Jumungus” i’ve only heard of Jaga Jazzist and that being said this is probably my favorite Jaga Jazzist song i’ve ever heard especially at 1:50 and on. So now i’m guessing its time to start digging up more about these other 2 groups for more loveliness.
Every John Maus song that leaks will be posted on this blog, its my goal, here’s a new one from 2007 on the upcoming B side release. If you get a chance order the limited run of pink vinyl and support this man genius.
Waiting for this new Marius Våreid track to drop, its a must own for what I love to hear on a dancefloor, that perfect marriage or drive and build at a pace that makes me just smirk with happiness.
Chicago is the lucky one here, the film and photos of Tim Navis + Kim Holtermand’s trip to Iceland will premiere next month along with music performance from the artists listed below. Also this trip will be coming with a soundtrack on DVD, head to the soundcloud links to get a glimpse of the sounds and artists Deru compiled.
Film Premiere & Live A/V Event in Chicago July 10th, Lincoln Hall
Outliers, Vol. I: Iceland featuring…
This past October, Chicago film collective Scenic traveled to the Icelandic countryside alongside photographers Tim Navis + Kim Holtermand and music composer Deru to create a series of improvised, collaborative short films. The resulting documentary – entitled Outliers, Vol. I: Iceland – will be released in June, along with a companion soundtrack compilation featuring thirteen contemporary classical composers and electronic music producers.
To celebrate the release, Scenic will join Deru onstage for a live, multimedia A/V performance inspired by the journey. Soundtrack contributors Shigeto (Ghostly International), Loscil (Kranky), and Sweatson Klank (Alpha Pup) will perform full sets, and the first 200 ticketholders are invited to an exclusive live screening of the film and Q&A session with the artists in advance of the show.
