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Tom Baker's DJ review section Husky Rescue, Country Falls LP, Catskills Records via Vital (UK) Cool lo-fi-ish lounge-rock with nice female vocals and soft wandering grooves. Nice sleeve art too. At a time when it seems like there's a hard rain perpetually just over the horizon, it's nice that people still make the sort of soft-edged tunes that let you know that sensuality hasn't been banished from the world. (thunderfinger) The Mutts 6 track EP, Fat Cat Looking at the charts, you could be forgiven for thinking that all that was happening was fakey pretty-pretties with fake attitudes and fake music, but there is an alternative world out there where guitar bands roam and somehow feed and clothe themselves -- which reminds of one of my favourite guitarist jokes from times past. What do you call a guitarist without a girlfriend? Homeless! So, anyway, here we have The Mutts who do some fairly rock-a-long stuff with some nice breaks and changes and some good riffs as well. I think they hail from Brighton, UK, and can be seen around London quite regularly. (thunderfinger) Gravenhurst 6 track LP, 30 mins-ish, Warp Nick Talbot is from Bristol, UK, and his likes include Flying Saucer Attack and Neil Young. Right now (Sept, October, Nov, 04) he/they are touring with Juana Molina. Here, on the record, we have a soft voice, and lots of fingerpicked guitar. It's a low-key, somewhat sad world but with interesting, subtle textures to it. (Mr Snerk) Tom Waits, Real Gone LP, Anti, out 4 October Tom Waits seems to have created a nice life for himself with the occasional album release and lots of cameo appearances in interesting movies. His last albums were in 2002 when he put out Alice and Blood Money. Here we have a variety of styles and ... no piano! And pretty much the same gritty voice though I might be imagining that it's getting a little more tuneful. Diehard fans from day one might consider this move from the back of the smokey bar to be a sort of Bloombergization (and lets not be mealy-mouthed, that's a roundhead badhead-ization) but the stylistic playtime is actually fun. Not that it's exactly eclectic. There is a raw bluesy sort of push throughout that ties it together and also ties it with the past. (thunderfinger) Green Day, American Idiot LP, Reprise Yeah! Big guitar! Small thoughts! Three chord tunes! Green Day take up the mantle left by the late, lamented, and mostly dead Ramones. It makes you wonder if playing at Guiness book of Records levels of loudness, even with earplugs, is just a bit much for the human system. Or maybe it was the social life. Whatever -- they produced hundreds of rambunctious, riff-laden, tuneful, rock hymns that were best enjoyed at home because the concerts were so loud you could barely make out a note. Cleansing by noise, all thought blown away, existence as urges! And how are Madsy and Kira now? Quite OK I hope. So it's a heavy, and maybe even a scarey, mantle that's been passed to Greenday mostly by the media. They aren't the Ramones. They have some of the same characteristics including a tendency to be cartoon- like but whether that's them or the American marketing machine is a question -- percieved reality is The reality in this sort of case anyway. Anyhow, lots of fun tunes, some good riffs, and the title track will get a few more people on their side. (thunderfinger) Miss Kitten, Requiem for a Hit 5 track single, Novamute Tunes and breaks at first and then we go closer to Miss K's home territory of heavier tech-house stuff. There's enough variety here to make this single quite good value and if you just have to have everything of hers then the single will give you a few more tracks to add to the album. (Dr Boots) Home Video, Citizen EP 5 track EP, Warp The promo material talks of seeds of voodoo in New Orleans, and their home in Brooklyn, NY, with its crowds of the weird and the commercial. Whatever the seeds, this is drifting melody that puts me in mind of a clean, electronica-based My Bloody Valentine. It's pretty. It's a little haunting. It's quite nice. (Mr Snerk) Paul Schwartz, Aria Metamorphisis LP, Koch Records The concept is to take moments from operatic arias and turn them into ambient/dance soundscapes. It's the sort of concept that will have some people running for cover without hearing a note because a) it is not a part of the religious creed and/or b) this sort of thing has been done very badly on a number of occasions -- opera as elevator music, or biggest sin of all, dumbed-down classical. This is not all bad. The featured singer, Rebecca Luker, has a lovely voice and her entries and exits are all tastefully done along with the introduction of various small beats along with the selected pieces of melody. Whether this can be fish or fowl will depend on what the listener brings along to the party. (Count K) Moby and Public Enemy, Make Love F*** War 3 track single, Mute First we have the powerful title track and then an instrumental version followed by an acappella version... which is actually a hip-hop track of its own. It's stirring stuff with a nice sort of grinding beat to it which will sound excellent over a big PA rig. (thunderfinger) Beyer and Lenk featuring Tiga Heartbreak, Ananda 2 track single, novamute out sept 13, 2004 Two starkish thumpa-thumpa tracks with some nice breathing synth in the background which comes and goes. These tracks are for dancing and if you're liable to that sort of thing they will get you up and moving about. (Mr Snerk) various, Rush Hour 2 CD's, Universal Interesting line up on these discs -- Faithless, Layo and Bushwacka, Benny Bennassi, Groove Armada amongst others on the first, and the likes of U2 (Beautiful Day - Quincey and Sonance), William Orbit, Underworld, The Cardigans, and Leftfield (Open Up) on disc 2. It's not a bad collection as far as as these things go, and sure, you can play them in your car but I'm not quite sure what makes these tracks so especially suitable for driving (Rush Hour?). Well, anyway, there are some nice tracks here and the mixes make them not quite as obvious as these collections usually are. (Dr Boots) James Yorkston and the Athletes, Just Beyond the River LP, Domino Sparse singer-songwriter songs with a quiet voice and quiet instruments. Ideal for late .... or early. James Yorkston isn't an exciting evening out but there is some class and poetry here. No doubt some people will eat and drink to it and if some pubs and bars absolutely have to play music to try and create the false impression that they and their clientelle are happening and buzzy, then why not play this? People who weren't interested could then at least have a conversation. (Mr Snerk) Embrace, Gravity Single, Independiente Most of the Independiente titles I used to see were hip-hop but this is a totally different kettle of fish -- straight guitar-based pop. This was written by Coldplay's Chris Marten and it's quite nice ... lots of guitar and a tune and wandering voice. (Dr Boots) various, Rough Trade Shops - Indiepop Sampler 2 CD's, Mute, out Aug 23 04. Here we have the likes of Love is All, The Pooh Sticks, Modesty Blaise, Juniper Moon and Josef K as well as Primal Scream and The Jesus and Mary Chain... and more! Guitars, voice, and lo-fi glory live here. The tracks span a time from the 1980's to a few months ago. Some tracks are unavailable now so it's worth the price to nab these if you're a fan of this sort of thing. In a way this is a bit of a time capsule, but you can still find this sort of thing if you look hard enough. (thunderfinger) Escape Pod, Winter Limited edition 7" vinyl, Dead Digital out July 5, 2004 First a purple pundit's patch: narco folk, folk band abandoned on Mars, continuing to re-define eclecticism ... But don't be frightened, this is more lovely stuff from Escape Pod, brought to you by Dead Digital. It is a mix of ethereal voice and soft soundscape that operates somewhere at the back of your head and all of it presented within a harmonic and rhythmic framework that most people will understand. (thunderfinger) Two Lone Swordsmen, Sex Beat from the album The Double Gone Chapel 4 track single, Warp Catchy, rockalong track that is infectious but not quite into the killer category of something like Sisters of Mercy's Dr. Jeep. Here there is the main track, an instrumental track, a remix, and a remix instrumental. (Dr Boots) Squarepusher, Venus No. 17 single, Warp There are three tracks: Venus No 17, an acid remix of same, and then a twelve minute mini-opus called Tundra. This last, while not being programatic in any strict sense, makes it easy to conjure up visions of sweeping ice vistas ... until about the ten minute mark when staticy voices make you think that HQ is trying to get you on your fading radio. (thunderfinger) Goldfrapp, Strict Machine Single, Mute It seems to have been a little while since we heard from the great G. This is a development from where we were before -- in other words, more zappy dancey stuff but still with some nice art to it. We get two mixes of Strict Machine here: one, the radio mix and the other the Benny Benassi edit. The first gets clues from Depeche Mode and the second from Moroder. The cover style and general air is wonderland decadence with a tip of the hat to old Berlin. Let me run my fingers through it. (thunderfinger) Pink Grease, The Pink G.R.EASE Single, Mute, out 14 June Two thumpalong tracks from the forthcoming LP, This is for Real. Here we have some driving drums and guitar. It's general fun from Alternative Universe -- which hasn't gone away just yet even if the general run of record stores would make you think it had. Ben Arthur, Edible Darling LP, Bardic Records Life was never all that easy for singer-songwriters but in yesteryear all you had to do was be a bit clever, and wail soulfully along with your guitar. Nowadays, an eclectic bunch of musical influences should be displayed along with a bit of cleverness... except for stand-still genres, where you don't want to be unless you _are_ the genre. Here we have Virginian Ben Arthur, who's been playing guitar since 14 and has been on stage with Tori Amos and Bruce Hornsby. It's not too bad at all and expresses the required singer-songwriter thoughfulness in a variety of ways and with some skill. (thunderfinger) Tim Wright, Thirst LP, Novamute Analoguey synth noises and beaty grooves with a little voice and funk thrown in. Nice lot of variety here that you could dance or pose to, or, why not, just be you. This is modern urban stuff that keeps progressing from that initial meeting between trippy stuff and hip-hop. It's mmm-mmm good too. (soldierSue) Pan Sonic, Kesto 4 CD's, Blast First thro Mute released 17 May Aren't they annoying, the sort of reviews that go on and on about something completely extraneous to the task at hand. Quite frequently the object of this is to let you know what a fantastically cool and in the know person is doing the review and at other times it might not be ego but just a complete lack of any connection with the music at hand. As an illustration, let's consider the matter of clothes and music: could you describe most genres in terms of the clothes people wear? Sure you could! So what would people wear to a Pan Sonic concert? OK, some clues: PS are Mika Vainio and Lipo Vaisanan from Turku, in Finland. They first moved to Barcelona to escape the long Finnish winter and now live in Berlin. Not much of a clue? They recently did an epic world tour after placing two ads in The Wire magazine (big clue). These ads asked for interested promoters and fans to contact them. What they wanted was accommodation and a share of the concert profits. This saw them play a huge variety of venues in all sorts of countries. So now we have this epic four CD set just as some more touring activity gets under way - in England and Scotland this spring, China in November, and Japan and Australia in 05. The content? Scapey and beaty, broad and sweeping: you can dance to bits or just take the trip. The clothes? How would I know? (thunderfinger) Animal Collective, Sung Thongs LP, Fatcat Round sounds, lots of voice, sometimes dibby-dib-dibbing, mostly busy - it has a sort of amped space-hippie vibe and then some slow lilting passage will summon up rocks, sticks and organic carrot juice. (thunderfinger) Two Lone Swordsmen, From the Double Gone Chapel LP, Warp Is the description "left field" helpful? I guess it should be as it conjures up visions of creativity, eccentricity even. And sometimes cringe-making twee-ness. In any case it is usually considered to be for smart educated kids and frowned upon by those whose social emphasis is ... not connected with smartness. Here, we have some grooves and some pretty straight songs that mostly have a greyish cloud somewhere around. The details of the straight songs are interesting though -- instruments low in the mix, droning FXed sprechtstimme, cheesy little drums. It has a nice pace and is worth a listen. (thunderfinger) Miss Kitten, I Com LP, Novamute out May 17 While this is her debut LP, she is not new at all to the electro scene, having collaborated with The Hacker, Felix da Housecat, Sven Vath and T. Raumschmiere and Tricky. To some, this will be electroclash grown up a little but it's not as simple as that, and it is better than that. There are different moods here and some pop sensibility as well... in a good way, which is to say it is tuneful and accessible rather than disappearing into edgy angst. What part Chicks on Speed producers, Tobi Neumann and Thies Mynther had in this is hard to know but it doesn't sound like Eurotrash Girl anyway. Guests on this album incude Indochine, Chicagoite L.A. Williams, and The Hacker. Nice tracks all. Miss Kitten, Caroline Herve, is French born and lives in Berlin. There is a big tour underway which goes through until June. Details at www.misskitten.com or www.novamute.com Agnetha Falskog, If I thought you'd ever... single, Warners, out April 12, album April 19, 04 Yes, you got it right. Agnetha used to sing things like ... Dancing Queen! Abba! Pure pop inanity with funny costumes, and that was its appeal. This? It's nicely produced and put together, and nicely sung too. It's only one track though, so I'll reserve judgement. This one track isn't all that interesting. Throbbing Gristle, Mutant Throbbing Gristle LP, Novamute These are classic Throbbing Gristle tracks remixed by the likes of Carl Craig, Hedonastik, Two Lone Swordsmen, Carter Tutti, and Simon Ratcliffe - hence the title "Mutant". And we have throbbing synths and pulses and occasional little electro orchestral things in the background. It is more dancey and arty than a geek bleepfest and should be greeted with some enthusiasm on a certain sort of club floor. (niasamucious) various, F.U.N. LP, Four music/Amato www.fourmusic.com www.funberlin.com Twelve techno tracks from the club F.U.N. in Berlin. It features people such as Italian X-Rays, Blackstrobe, DJ Oskar and Sebo K, DJ Naughty, Mocky, Headman, and Kaos and The Wild Guts. I have to admit I'm a bit partial to crescendos of bleepiness over a pounding (preferably at several kilowatts) four by four. This LP is mostly an onwards progression from that basic old skool stuff though. The tracks generally have more complex arrangements in beats, voices, and harmonies than the old timer tracks. Some of it has even moved along to catch laggards who were trying to grasp funk but couldn't quite squeeze their fingers around it. (thunderfinger) MuM, Nightly Cares and ... single, Fat-Cat Softly swirling instruments and a small female voice. These two tracks are mini-symphonies from the land where pop meets art and craft. The band are from Iceland but it would be unfair to use the "B" word in a descriptive way. In a separate small interview we'll be asking about the influence of "B" however. (Thunderfinger) Speedy J, Literon single, Novamute There's 14 minutes plus of two meaty beaty tracks here. Meaty, in that there's a relentless pounding going on while in the background are sort of ethereal industrial noises, if you can imagine that. The second track is a machinelike thing as well, but this time with the driving force mutating and developing. Quite nice, all round. (phoophace) Michael Reinboth, Soul Elektrisch LP, TrustheDJ.com MR01 Micheal Reinboth hails from Munich where he operates as a DJ and runs Compost and Compost-Jazzanova Records. That should give you a fairly good clue as to what this mix is about - smooth grooves and voices with nice rythms and cross-rythms. The tempo on some tracks is quicker than you might expect which makes the thing danceable as opposed to late night revery making. You can do that too. Oops, nope, TTDJ has gone into liquidation so this will not be issued but you can chase up Reinboth on his own labels. (Dr Boots) Luke Slater, Traktion Action Novamute Dense electro beat action for your dance edification along with a cheesy melody that's saved by interesting textures and is redolent of old computer games music. (Dr Boots) Clea, Stuck in the Middle single, upside Four cute women with two tracks of smooth harmony pop with a little garage voice wobble. For late. (thunderfinger) Nitzer Ebb, Murderous, Control I'm here single, Novamute Beats, grooves, and voice on the 8:05 opening track and a deep synth groove on the second will get feet moving in groovy shops and clubs. (Coraline) Sean Paul, I'm still in love with you Single, Atlantic Strong ragga roots and a spliffy rythmn section are a nice intro to the more interesting and less commercial side two which is called Like Glue. (Coraline) Si Begg, Buss 5 track sngle, Novamute While trip-hop went off on a strange (and good, if you like it) road all its own, there is still a body of work coming out which is almost at the fork in the road where it came from. The works comprise interesting and inventive musical backgrounds to reasonably intelligent lyrics. And this work is one such. (thunderfinger) UMEK, Telontol LP, Novamute Fast paced beats with all kinds of ethereal things going on in the background, including eerie winds. This is first and foremost, dance music. I suppose you could just sit and listen to it but you'd soon find, if you have any affinity at all for this style of music, that your head is bobbing, and your feet are twitching - and then you're up and dancing. (thunderfinger) Broadcast, Ha Ha Sound Single, Warp Records Female voice, synth washes, laid-back cocktail beats - it all grooves along in a soothing kind of way. For late in the chill room. (thunderfinger) Kevin Saunderson, Deep Space Techno LP, Trust the DJ I still love this stuff: slowly building thumpa-thumpa with nice gliding textures happening. It is very good getting-out-of-yourself dance music with no drugs needed by YT to achieve it. Kevin Saunderson has been doing this since the early '80s and was a member, with Juan Atkins and Derrick May of the Detroit techno producers, Deep Space Soundworks. As an aside, I wonder if any academic musicologists have discovered this music as something to write about. There's lots here to cogitate on as the surface simplicity is soon belied by all sorts of echoes of past forms. (Dr Boots) Laibach, WAT CD, Mute Dirty, aggressive, sleek, minimal - these are adjectives that have been used to describe Laibach's newest turn in its twenty-three year history. Well, it's pretty cool stuff anyway - dark, powerful. There is quite a lot of sprechtstimme in a deep German voice and the German language seems to accentuate those qualities somehow as well. There are some stomping grooves here and even a little operatics on one track but not enough to get too pseudy. Supposedly, this whole thing is a taunt for the PC police (no, no, not Mac vs PC... politically correct is what we're not talking) so if you're sick of those po-faced anti-liberty weenies, give this a try. (Dr Boots) Plaid, Spokes LP, Warp Records It's kind of interesting that while the "charts" might be full of pre-masticated babyfood, there is a parallel universe that has all kinds of interesting things from all kinds of genres. And, what's more, labels and artists are making a living - not a private jet and harem living but you weren't interested in making donations to that anyway. This, from Plaid, is lovingly crafted, downbeat, almost orchestral (in the sense of sweep and attention to timbres) electronica. The mood is thoughtful and it's ... nice. (Thunderfinger) Hilary Duff, metamorphosis LP, Buena Vista thro Warners I have absolutely nothing against cute blondes that make sexy little singing noises. Quite the contrary. This is (generally) pop as fun, pop for the moment: where there is no yesterday and no time beyond now. And when "now" comes again there is no recollection of what was ... or albums like this. No matter - people will buy it and listen to it and have a little fun. It is reasonably straightahead guitar pop with scattered funk bits. www.hillaryduff.com (Thunderfinger) Plastikman, Closer LP, Novamute Anything from Novamute gets my interest. I wouldn't have chosen the title Closer though - that's too powerful a connection with Joy Division for my taste but I guess there are lots of people around these days who've never heard, or heard of, Joy Division. Shame! This is not reminiscent of Joy Division in any other way though. Hmmm, well actually, it is pretty sombre, but this is electronica with grooves and subtle textures. There are a lot of quiet beginnings and quite simple, slowly developing, tracks. I think the word "minimal" could be used here. If that sounds like you, go listen to it. (roastsocks) Luke Vibert, YosepH LP, Warp Records Luke Vibert is a friend of fellow Cornishman Richard James, aka Aphex Twin and released his first music as Wagon Christ in 1994. Warp is his latest label and he has recorded on quite a few. This is twisted voice and instrument assembly with mid tempo grooves and enough changes for it to be thoughtful rather than straightahead. If you were to compare this with his mate's work you'd probably say this was less complex, melodically and harmonically, and because of that has its own, more on the ground, voice. (Thunderfinger)
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