I guess there are a lot of zombies artist names out there but I think black or wolf might be used a little more, there is one I posted about earlier this week that does Dubstep and a more disco one that spells his name Zombi. Either way both have great output, especially this remix on the latest Zombi EP by Brooklyn’s Escort. The track has a very DFA sound to it, but what you get are these really sped up Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon sounds transformed into disco, hopefully you can hear the parts i’m talking about.
I was in the car with Scott and Sam from Ghostly International and I flipped over this Actress LP. I can see a lot of people not being into it but if you grew up on Jeff Mills or any Detroit Techno that is this simple yet dark n’ dirty style of making melodies on muted keys and a driving kick that is backed up by cheap strings and thinned out metallic hi hat always will grab me up and ruin me until I just end up dancing in my chair. Also, if just listen to the last 30 seconds if that sound doesn’t grab you, its well worth checking. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Its Marvin Gaye, check it out please, it won’t disappoint.
For all the low level sounding ambient fans, if you haven’t picked up the Yagya record then you’re in for a treat. Yagya has this sound similar to Gas and The Sight Below but goes into the dreamer end. Gas sounds like you’re suck in the middle of field and you’re surrounded by smoke thats in the distance but everything is in slow motion and The Sight Below makes you feel like someone knocked you out of your misery during a tragic second and your half awake and half unconscious but its going to be fine because they’re here to save you. Yagya is more of a slowly floating and you have full control but its always starting to rain and its extra foggy but you don’t care because you’re floating, which is always a good thing.
Zombi – Sapphire (Escort Remix)
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Actress – Crushed
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Marvin Gaye – Heavy Love Affair (The Revenge Rework)
Navis has been a long time commenter on this blog but I just recently stumbled onto his photography and was very impressed. The colors are just perfect; such a nice tone, feels modern yet still authentic. From the Flickr EXIF data it looks like he’s using a Canon EOS 30D. Tim, perhaps you’d like to elaborate on your equipment (lenses etc.) and methods in the comments?
You can find more of Navis’ work at his Flickr and his portfolio.
As you may already know, Alex Cornell — the same Alex who posts on this blog — is also my intern around the studio. A while back Northwestern University asked him to take on the daunting task of layout and design for their “Day For Night” magazine. The previous design was pretty much your run-of-the-mill college publication without much thought put into the design so this was a great chance for him to really evolve the visual language of the magazine. The big constraint was colors; apparently he can only use black, white, and one spot color of his choosing per issue. As you can see, the finished product is superb, Alex’s excellent eye for typography and layout really shine through in his first issue for the magazine. This project was featured (and deservedly so) by Behance last week and is up on Alex’s portfolio page there. Congrats Alex, very nice work!
Finally home after an eventfulweekend and it’s time to get back to work on the album. I want to thank everyone who made it out to the shows and Ghostly for making it all happen, it was a great time all around. banx_zor got some great shots of the SF show at Mezzanine (posted above). If you have any more of the SF or LA shows let me know! As you can see in photo 2 above, Dusty Brown made a rather animated cameo during the set, thanks to him for tearing it up on the keys. Our very own Alex Cornell also turned in a great performance on a couple guitar tracks (3rd picture down). For those who were wondering, the last 2 tracks I played in each set were new songs, the final one being a single due out shortly on Ghostly International. I’ll keep you posted.
Before djing in LA before Tycho I had to go music shopping and picked up some new albums and a couple EPs but I mostly played a lot of the tracks i’ve posted on the blog. This Bullion track isn’t really anything for the dancefloor but it was nice to hear it loud and see if people could appreciate it. The samples he chooses are a bit cut up but you never really notice since the rest of the round sounds smooth out the mix and the fast keys looping keep you completely satisfied.
After all the Burial hype someone needed to take the raines and Zomby did just that but with a bit more of a punch, I could only find 3 songs in his whole catalog that i liked but those 3 are pure gems.
The Librarian did an outstanding deep dubby techno track that his label mate Teef remixed. The track has this great line in it: “..the queen has been wounded the worker will fight, the queen has been wounded the worker will die. and i can’t stop until you’re gone. and i won’t stop until you’re gone. your heart is still beating…” really worth checking out.
The dreamy at times Paavoharju put Finland on the map when it comes to indie accepted experimental folk here in the States. The band is on a phenomenal label called Fonal, if you have any time to dig you might want to check that catalog thoroughly because they have some lovely releases.
Bullion – Long Promised
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Zomby – Test Me For A Reason
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The Librarian – The Hornet’s Nest (Teef’s Antihistamine Remix)
Visual Acoustics is a documentary about architectural photographer Julius Shulman. It’s been touring the country since July of last year, when it premiered in Los Angeles, and just recently won an award for Best Documentary Feature at the Palm Springs International Film Festival. I guess it’s not hard to believe; mix photography, modern architecture, and film together and you have an unbeatable combination! Shulman’s work epitomizes architectural photography, and it would be fascinating to hear him talk about it and get an in-depth look into his world. I just watched the trailer and it really does look amazing. I just wish they would have a screening in San Francisco…
Anyone seen this yet?
Populating his photos with human models and striking landscapes, Shulman combined the organic with the synthetic, melding nature with revolutionary urban design. The resulting images helped to shape the careers of some of the greatest architects of the 20th Century…Through the exploration of both Shulman’s art and uniquely individualistic life, Visual Acoustics offers an unforgettable portrait of Modernism’s most eloquent ambassador. [Link]
Thanks to everyone for coming out and supporting last night in SF, it was an incredible vibe and I had a great time playing. We drove down to LA today just in time to see Michna’s show @ Turntable Lab. Tomorrow I’ll be playing the L.A. installment of the Ghostly Anniversary show at Jimmy’s Lounge. It’s a daytime show (doors @ 2pm) and I should be going on around 7pm inside (remember to set your clocks forward for daylight savings!). Here’s the lineup with tentative set times (right now I only have times for a few of us )
Kate Simko DJ Set – 3pm [Outside]
Michna – 3:30pm [Outside]
The Sight Below – 4pm [Inside]
Deru – 4:45pm [Outside]
Lusine – 5pm [Outside]
Aarnio (Jakub) Pt. I – 6pm [Inside]
Elliot Lipp – 6pm [Outside] Tycho – 7pm [Inside]
Kate Simko LIVE – 8pm [Outside]
Aarnio (Jakub) Pt. II – 8pm [Inside]
The Ghostly 10 year show is tonight (Friday – 3/6) and I wanted to debut a new track I’ve been working on during the set but wasn’t sure if I would have a live version complete by today. I’ll be cutting it close but I think I can get it wrapped in time so I should be playing it towards the end. I also just got the official, updated set times:
10-1030 Christopher Willits
1030-1110 The Sight Below
1110-1200 Deru
1200-1245 Lusine 1245-130 Tycho
130-225 Michna
225-315 Kate Simko
315 – 400 Eliot Lipp
I will post the LA times when I get them, should be going on around 7pm for that one (Sunday, early show). I’ve got some new visuals prepared as well so it should be a good one. Hope to see you all out!
