The Ashraf Obsession

the de-valuation of tunes (again!)

2011-12-14T11:04:00.002-05:00

Another article about free music being uncool and unsustainable, as well as damaging to all of us in a way -- it's always been hard for really good music to get out there, so I would say that in a sense not much has changed, but I still find this article though-provoking. Some of the comments below the line are also pretty good.

http://www.nsfreepress.com/story/music-devalued

new sounds

2011-11-08T12:30:00.002-05:00

My friend Thanu has introduced me to all sorts of new music. Most of the stuff I listen to is from the UK and I think I'm now getting more of an NYC sound finally. Tropical bass is extremely fun to listen to and makes you wanna move. To me it seems it consists of sounds from the Caribbean mashed up with beats and bass, hence you get tropical bass. There are loads of tropical bass nights here in NYC and it appears to be quite the scene.

I was informed of this mix sometime last week and I've been listening to it ever since, and you should have a listen too - enjoy!

Matt Shadetek - Sweat Lodge Exorcist Mix by mattshadetek

the Hype Machine

2011-10-28T10:35:00.003-04:00

Just read an article on the Guardian site about bands who initially do amazing then lose massive sales and their fanbase when their next album comes out. Seems to me like a trend that's more and more prevalent, especially when you look outside of mainstream pop -- the likes of Glasvegas, Franz Ferdinand, and even Vampire Weekend all seem to have had that flavour-of-the-month quality to them. Not that their latter efforts were good/bad, but more that whatever they did next didn't seem to garner as much attention as their debuts. I'm sure we all have our theories why, and I think many of the comments below the article itself are quite valid. My own suspicions are to do with the internet and the sheer volume of supposedly good music that's coming out -- once one band has been massively hyped, there's another one to hype up the next day. It's reached a saturation point and I'm not sure how the average fan is supposed to keep up with everything they're being told is good/great. Personally, I've gotten a little sick of music at the moment and can't really pay attention to anything new. Ipods and the instant nature of the web haven't helped; I was better off with radio and when good DJ's had more of a say. Blogs are kinda like all new media in that their content needs to be constantly renewed -- that means they always have to go after the next artist/sound/album. Also, for me, with so much music out there I feel like it's gotten a little cheaper -- all these people, they're not saying anything particularly new or profound, it's all a bit simple and repetitive really. Maybe this is what growing older is like? When pop music just doesn't seem to matter as much. Anyway, here's the article, and the comments below really do seem to sum up the many reasons why some artists are having a harder time now, while also reasoning that maybe it's not just about sales anyway.

Twinkly sounds

2011-10-17T17:09:00.002-04:00

I've been having a very busy, strange, and exciting month here in NYC, much more than usual. But its also been stressful, and as always, my automatic method to de-stress is to listen to music.

Bjork's latest single was released a few months ago but I'm only posting it up now. Have a look at her website, one of the funkiest I've ever seen.

'Crystalline' is the single and its got a sound only Bjork can pull off, and what I really love is how it goes all drum n bass at the end - I'm very happy to see that come back around. Its one of those songs I know I can play on repeat...

Old Band Releases New Album That Almost No-One Will Buy

2011-09-16T23:38:00.009-04:00

And with good reason too -- cos what I've heard isn't very good. Who am I talking about? The STEREO MC'S. Remember them? Were they ever really anything more than a one-hit wonder? It's hard to remember now. What I do know (circumstantially -- I came across an ad while looking up events in DC at RA) is that they've got a new collection of songs out, and it's called 'Emperor's Nightingale'. It's not terrible, to be honest, and probably if I paid more attention to the lyrics I might even like what I'm hearing. But the music backing up said lyrics just doesn't stand out to me in any particular way -- it's a bit dancey, a bit poppy, but I've not heard anything special. For some reason I keep thinking of that other old dance band, Faithless, though I have no idea why cos I don't think the music is really that comparable. I think it's cos of Rob Birch's voice sounding a bit like Maxi Jazz's. You can judge for yourself at a mini-site with some streaming tracks and a video here. Videos. I'm surprised anyone bothers with them anymore; I mean they cost money, and most people don't even spend money on music now. If you go the website do listen to the tracks 'Tales' and 'Bring it On' -- really quite decent and deserving of a bit of attention. And you know what, I've just Youtubed the Stereos and I feel a little bad now. I mean check out 'Connected':

That is class! Look at Rob Birch! He hasn't aged at all -- cos he can't. How could he possibly look any older? And what about 'Step It Up'?:

These videos make me happy -- they remind me of how seriously Brits (used to?) take their pop music and culture -- the clothes, the look, the feel! Lovely stuff. Probably a book could be written on why music is taken so seriously in the UK -- to the point that bands like the Strokes and the Killers broke over there before they did in their native US. But that book will not be written by me (and surely it's already been written?). I'm pretty sure this new album will get lost in the mix, in the thousands of new releases that are out every month -- but who knows, maybe it'll get picked up on the radio and talked about in the UK? We can only hope.

UPDATE: I've now listened to 'Bring it On' a couple of times and have decided that it's wicked. So, with that, and cos I know many interwebbers are ultra-lazy, here's a Youstube of said track:

new stuff

2011-09-13T17:41:00.003-04:00

What's up everyone. I made a new mix a couple weeks ago - listen to it here

And watch my latest little vid that's music-based. Yeah antiwar vids!

Jon Convex

2011-07-28T14:27:00.004-04:00

Just discovered a new tune and producer via Benji's B Radio 1 show that featured Martyn, which was on air a few hours ago. Listen to this mix its pretty terrific, you can download it here. Thanks to Didier for the tip! (Ps on this mix you can hear lots of new tracks off of Martyn's upcoming brand new album!!!)

So here's the tune its called 'Falling Again' by Jon Convex. He's signed on Martyn's 3024 label.

And it turns out he's got a mix up on FactMag.

Hurrah for new music!

Here to Stay

2011-06-23T16:15:00.006-04:00

I just want to note first that I love the name 'Felix da Housecat'. It's so fun to say.

Recently I got a 'new' vintage audio system. It was time to move on from my big black Aiwa box that I bought used in Ann Arbor 7 years ago. When I got my 'new' soundsystem the first song I played was a record I bought in some random record shop in New York a few years ago. The record is a single by New Order (one of the best bands ever in my opinion) called 'Here to Stay' and there's a very fantastic remix by...Felix da Housecat. This was released in 2002 I believe.

When I was playing the song, the guy who sold me the system and had come to deliver and set it up, was astonished that I was playing New Order; he remarked he hadn't listened to them since his high school days in the 80s.

Anyway, here it is! It sounds amazing when I play it in my room by the way. I love it.

(West) London Calling

2011-06-22T12:07:00.006-04:00

I'm not sure where to start with this post. It's fairly self-indulgent but since I'm the only one doing any real blogging here now I'll give myself a pass. I was checking out Platform and saw some of these vids posted. Then I went here and found more. I'm focusing on a few that stood out to me, for varied reasons, below. They're all filmed in London, all are about the length of the songs that soundtrack them, and all involve young urban Londoners. Whenever I come across stuff like this I wonder about where I might've ended up if I'd not left London -- would have I have had earrings and a silly haircut? I think I would've been one of the uncooler kids, but you never know. Now I'm 32 the nostalgia for this time period is passing a bit, but I wonder about that too -- how would 32 yr old me who'd not moved be? A saddo in a hoody, driving an old Merc around West London? Perhaps. Check out the vids and the tunes that go with them; perhaps Hena will comment on the merits of the film-making?

This first one's about Southall, where we'd go in the back of Dad's Honda to get Indian groceries. Me and Feraz would usually have a big samosa in a paper bag to eat to keep us occupied. It hasn't really changed much. The track on the video is really good too:

The next one is the last day of school at a school in Harrow, in West London, also near where we used to live. I used to see the older kids writing on each other's shirts and think that it would be me one day, but that never happened. I like the diversity of the group here and the fact that they all seem so chummy, despite the differences. Multiculturalism at it's finest!

This last one I've put in cos it made me think even more about the diversity present in modern-day London. These are the Asians that don't really get talked about but here they are showing that they've got their own place in London's street and youth culture:

There you go then. All those vids make me feel old. There was another one that made me feel even older but I'm only going to post the music from that. Check out Solar Bears:
Children Of The Times by Solar Bears

so, has dance music finally gone totally mainstream in america?

2011-06-03T11:55:00.006-04:00

You know, it's normal on pop radio and on the charts mainstream? I actually have no idea cos I don't keep track of the charts or listen to the radio, but I did come across this, which made me wonder. 10 million hits?? Someone is into this stuff, and it's quite amusing to watch Chris Brown dance with his hands while surrounded by a dozen rap cameos. The stadium dancing makes me want to go out. The tune isn't the greatest, basically fits in with all the David Guetta featuring whoever stuff, but if dance is finally mainstream I'm ok with that. Look at those happy dancing people in the club scenes; isn't that preferable to shots of expensive liquor and moody looking people being aggressive? I'm pretty sure this sound has been around for a while now, but still, it strikes me that the mainstreaming has come from an unexpected place. Back in the day, shows like 'AMP' on mtv and some of the radio shows on alterna-radio (such as 89x in Detroit) were clearly aimed at white people -- as were the big beat scenes that were promoted at the time. Even today, if you go to a festival like Movement in Detroit, the vast majority of the crowd will be very very pale (as confirmed by a friend who went to this year's event). Yet all that marketing never pushed dance over to the mainstream. Now it's being reclaimed by the demographic that invented it in the first place, through house and trance riffs on rap songs on to straight up cheesy dance a la the Chris Brown/Benny Benassi track. Full circle then! About time.

I am the paper above the skyscaper. + Massive x Gui Boratto

2011-05-27T09:52:00.003-04:00

That GusGus post got me nostalgic for this classic track -- the first GusGus track I ever hard. I'm pretty sure I have this video on a promo VHS cassette somewhere -- if you're old you may remember the weird foam VHS videos some bands would give out as promos. I hope I still have it!

Also posting this not-new but still very good remix of Massive Attack's 'Paradise Circus' by Gui Boratto. Who is he/she? No idea, but you may be familiar with this track from the TV... it's on ads for a car company who I won't name cos it'll make the track seem less cool:

Massive Attack - Paradise Circus feat. Hope Sandoval (Gui Boratto Remix) by lucidonline

Icelandic Hi-Tech Soul

2011-05-26T22:33:00.005-04:00

GusGus! Remember them? Polyesterday? A great track from yesteryear and then the band kind of -- went away. But not really, I just didn't hear about them. Turns out they've been signed to German dance music label Kompakt for a bit and are about to come out with a new album ('Arabian Horse'). I wouldn't really care except the track I've heard from the album is grrrreat! Smooth sexy vocal house, as good as their old stuff but with a better beat. I lowe it! Check it below.

GusGus - Over

I really really hope they come and do some live stuff now, cos if half their new stuff is as good as this track they will be amazing.

In other news, James Blake is going on tour again. I hope I get to the tickets before the scalpers this time.

Alarming (sorry)

2011-05-19T18:56:00.005-04:00

So someone has made an album entirely out of the sounds made by an alarm clock. Yes indeed. That someone is Jon Brooks who's made a bit of an ambient record based off sounds from a classic Braun alarm clock like the one below:

Weird but kind of cool. He basically sampled and then manipulated the sounds until he had a full range of notes, so it's not as amazing as it may at first seem, but still beyond what I could do. How he did it is quite interesting ; you can hear him talk about that below, and listen to the entire album here.

Jon Brooks - Music For Dieter Rams - An explanation of techniques. by cafekaput

Raving like it's 1986

2011-05-11T16:29:00.002-04:00

Yes, 1986, cos the first video featured below is from way back then. Didn't know house music culture was so established so early but I'm guessing black kids in Manchester were ahead of the curve (massively ahead! Maybe the year is mislabeled?). Back then I was eight years old and listening to things my older family were into -- stuff on Top of the Pops and the radio basically, Michael Jackson, Abba, Dire Straits. Who knew this underground thing was bubbling up? There's quite a lot of nostalgia for that era going around; blogs like Class of 808, musicians like Calvin Harris, and the second video below attest to that. Not sure how I feel about it -- I love the tunes and the era but I was too young to truly be a part of it; at the same time the current fashion is forcing me to realise that all that is way in the past. Plus, when it comes to nostalgia for music and fashion, what's next? A Britpop revival featuring crap Liam Gallagher type haircuts? I hope not. I think the mixed feelings come from the fact that I'm a recent old skool revivalist myself (if you've seen my trainer collection this will come as no surprise) -- it felt good to be doing my own thing, now it's a current thing, soon it'll be a past it thing. That and the recognition that it is the past, and that it's gone now, replaced with thousands of new Mp3's a day but no proper new scene. Anyway, check out the vids and enjoy the moves, the gurning, and the blinding clothing.

The one right above is by Friendly Fires, yet another band I don't know too much about, but I can definitely relate to the lyrics here and what the band-member is saying at the end of the vid -- watch it all the way through and you'll know what I'm talking about. Closest I've come to a nice outdoor dancefest is the Movement festival in downtown Detroit, but sadly I'll be missing it again this year. There is something special about being outside and dancing with others. One more thing, that first vid is from a community centre in Manchester, England, in 1986 -- check out the crowd. It amazes me just how diverse the rave scene really was, and also how it never took off in the US like it did in the UK and Europe -- why is that? Especially keeping in mind that in the beginning most of the music was coming from America.

C H A D V A L L E Y

2011-05-10T23:06:00.007-04:00

When I was growing up Chad Valley was the name of a Woolworths toy brand. I had a cricket set from them which was quite good. But people made fun of it and called it Chav Valley. Now Chad Valley's the name of a musician who's putting out some rather smooth dance tunes, like the one below. Times change, eh?

Chad Valley - Equatorial Ultravox - 05 Fast Challenges

That's taken from this EP:

Haven't heard a lot of his other stuff yet, but will be checking more out; as should you.

A belated Goodbye to the Streets

2011-05-10T22:48:00.005-04:00

Aah, yes, the Streets are no more. Other than a few remaining tour dates, Mike Skinner's musical project are all but done with. 'Computers & Blues' came and went, and it was a mixed affair, like most recent Streets albums. Having said that I think I prefer it to the last few albums; there are some thoughtful and melancholy tracks that are well put together, but perhaps it's the knowledge that that's it that is adding some poignancy for me. Still, I think Mike is one of the best at reproducing the garagey sound with the female vocals added for an extra touch of sweetness -- street music that's for more than dancing to. The last track on the album is 'Lock the Lock's and it's one of the standouts. Here's a video that uses various Streets video-art to make a video -- proving that not only is Mike a great musician, he's a pretty good visual artist too. There's talk of him doing video and soundtrack work in the future, I just hope I hear about it and get to check it out. Only one US tour date has been announced so far -- it's in New York, in August, which is also when my baby is due, so I don't think I'll be going to that...

mix by martyn

2011-04-20T15:23:00.005-04:00

Martyn has become one of my favourites. I've written about him before. I love his album Great Lengths.

Check out this mix by him its pretty good and fun. He also responded to my tweet which I thought was hilarious.

GO HERE NOW

2011-04-19T20:46:00.001-04:00

CLICK ON THIS

matthew herbert

2011-04-03T21:24:00.002-04:00

Fahad is annoyed I haven't done in a real post in a while. Before I used to bug him now he's bugging me.

So going back to the vault again. I discovered Matthew Herbert through listening to Gilles Peterson Worldwide back in college, which is how I also discovered Ame. I definitely need to go back to listening to online radio and playlists again at some point soon; its a great way to discover music.

A lot of the music I like is genre-less - you can't fit it into one category. Though I definitely post up a lot of house and dubstep, I also put up stuff that isn't easily defined and that's probably my favourite kind of music. Matthew Herbert falls into that category. I really don't know how to describe his sound. But check it out, what do you think?

Here are my favourite songs of his:

This is "Moving Like A Train" from his 2006 album Scale. This is also one of my fave music videos, its extremely creative.

Here's "Movers and Shakers" from the same album:

You can check out more of Herbert's music and all sorts of stuff on his site.

Peace!

New solo Burial

2011-03-25T20:33:00.006-04:00

Burial's got a new single out on Monday with three brand spanking new tracks on it: ‘Street Halo’, ‘NYC’ and ‘Stolen Dog’. Fact nicely provided the info and Soundcloud links to two of the tracks and I've been checking them out over the last two days. Neither are groundbreaking; they seem more like a continuation of the sound Burial developed over his first two albums. Definitely not a bad thing since I quite like that sound and there's something to be said for consistency. And even if they aren't radical departures they do show progression -- there's more depth to the tracks and 'Street Halo' in particular has a different mood than what I'm used to from Burial -- it's more aggressive and dancey. 'Stolen Dog' has more of "classic" Burial sound, with similar motifs (crackle, bass washes, bleeps, nonsensical lyrical snatches drenched in reverb) from his past work. Both tracks have a nice groove and good use of female vocals. Check 'em out for yourself:

Burial - Stolen Dog

Burial - Street Halo

You can check out a clip of the third track and order the 12 inch here.

couple of house tunes

2011-03-17T20:27:00.005-04:00

I was gonna write about how I had to pass loads of annoying people wearing green today but then deleted what I wrote as I really don't wanna recall those unfortunate sights of sad white people acting like they're still in college.

Anyway here are some tunes I've been listening to, I know its been a long time since I posted anything. Enjoy.

burial + four tet + thom yorke

2011-03-17T20:12:00.004-04:00

A triple collab on a two song 12 inch which is already sold out at Bleep.com. The tracks are up on youstube (see below) and I've only listened to each a couple of times so can't comment too forcefully. Overall nice and I'd be lying if I said I don't mind not nabbing that 12 inch. The Burial touch is clear in the beats and synth bass washes; Thom Yorke is easy enough to identify; and I think I hear Four Tet on the first track, "Ego", not sure where he comes in on the second, "Mirror", though. Not even sure how the tracks would be split between the two producers to be honest. Maybe they did one each? "Mirror" definitely has that melancholy Burial sound; "Ego" has a lot more going on, but retains that Burial space and mood between verses. I think I prefer soul-girl singing to Thom Yorke on dance tracks though.

"Ego"

"Mirror"

2011-02-24T22:07:00.004-05:00

Fresh outta Platform, it's Jamie XX and Yasmin with a live cover of Rui Da Silva's 'Touch Me'. What's that sound you hear? Steel drums mate.

A boring post about other blogs (and an article about XL recordings)

2011-02-24T10:37:00.006-05:00

Just wanted to highlight some decent blogs I've been looking at recently. First up is Class of 808, a superb throwback blog about the old sounds of Acid House and early Techno when it first took over the UK back in the late 80's. It's very frequently updated and posts up lots of great mixes -- I thought the sounds might seem cheesy 20-odd years on but they actually sound pretty great. It feels a bit sad to be nostalgic about music that's supposed to sound like the future but it happens to every scene eventually.

The other blog I've recently added to my "must check" list is Platform. Also out of the UK, the postings are Vice-style musings on various things but mostly music and pop culture related. I've not looked into the background of the site as I can't be arsed, but I've been getting a lot of links to new tracks and remixes through them (such as the Adele x Jamie XX one from not too long ago). Worth a look-in, I think.

Lastly, the Guardian had a good article recently about XL Recordings and how they're doing pretty well while the rest of the music industry is tanking. To me, XL is still rave music from the early 90's, but moved on pretty far from there. It's a good read, you can check it out here.

journeys

2011-02-06T19:36:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago I decided to finally put the countless hours I've done of listening to music to good use, by making mixes. I'm calling them 'journeys'. You can check out journey #1 and 2 here. I finished the journey #2 mix earlier today when on the amtrak train, passing little scenic coastal towns along the way. This latest mix has a story/theme/joke throughout it...

Listen to the mixes when you're reading, cooking, working, studying, running, praying - ok maybe not praying - but you can download them, just right-click where it says 'download'.

Enjoyee!

Adele x Jamie XX

2011-01-18T16:54:00.006-05:00

Not sure about Jamie from the XX's Jamie XX moniker, I have to say. He's been remixing again; came across this at Platform
last week. Wasn't too thrilled at first, but it grew on me after a couple of listens. I like the South American/Caribbean vibes and prefer it to his Gil Scot-Heron remix from last year. Haven't heard much Adele in my life, did look her up but wasn't too interested in what I found. This remix is good though:

Croonin'

2011-01-05T23:20:00.008-05:00

Couple of artists I've wanted to cover for a bit and am finally getting round to here, plus one old tune that can be put under the crooner category (not really, but i'm gonna do it anyway). Ok, so, both James Blake and Jamie Woon have been getting tipped for big things in 2011. I've had them on my new-headphone enhanced mp3 player and do think their tunes are worth mentioning. Couldn't pick which version I liked so I'm going to put a selection up. First up is James Blake, who's getting the most buzz. This track is 'Limit to Your Love' and it's actually got a decent video. On initial listen I wasn't sure if he (skinny little white bloke) could be singing this song, but the vid seems to indicate that he is, which is pretty astonishing before you even get to the deep bass and use of space in the track. Check it (best heard with decent sound so you can actually hear the deep bass when things get shuddery -- it's there):

I'm going to put two version of a Jamie Woon track up. The track is recent single 'Night Air' and I'm putting up a live version and a remix. I think the live version is quite good as the song seems to hold up well in a basement club setting while actually sung live. The remix is by Deadboy; I like it on my headphones but it doesn't sound as good to me on the PC -- maybe you'll feel differently:

Last is an oldish Pulp track that popped up recently when I listening to something else by them. Had forgotten how well put together the track and lyrics are, and the high-production-value video seems a bit of a throwback when seen now -- can't imagine many bands having much of a budget for videos nowadays, and it's funny to think that Pulp were themselves big enough for a video like this. But this is post-'Different Class', when they were briefly massive and could probably do whatever they wanted -- including disintegrate:

BONUS:

Discodeine feat. Jarvis Cocker - Synchronize from Pschent on Vimeo.

two plus two

2011-01-03T00:42:00.001-05:00

DP + TRON = 2 + 2

everyone said film is rubbish, but soundtrack is amazing. of course it is.

tune-age

2010-12-22T12:31:00.009-05:00

Who knew that Jarvis Cocker had made a collab dance track? Not me, but I'm glad I heard about it as it's quite good. Jarv's voice is well suited to loungey crooning -- he could be a good Bryan Ferry if he tried a bit harder. His collaborators here are a French duo called Discodeine. I'm just hoping Jarv tries more of this kind of thing:

While I'm at it I'll put up some other dancey tunes I've heard and liked, some recent and one from a while back. First up is the recent Gorillaz single that wasn't on Plastic Beach, in case you missed it:

If you're in the mood, you can look up the official video for 'Doncamatic' and reflect on how much of a difference to the listening experience it makes to be able to see the artist -- perhaps just listening is better? I had similar feelings after watching a DVD about Belle and Sebastian -- I liked them better when I couldn't picture them. Same goes for the XX -- hard to take seriously when you realise they're almost still pimply teenagers. Perhaps Gorillaz had it right when they stuck to just being cartoons (though their guest artists have always seemed to appear as themselves). Ok, moving on, next is a remix of a Caribou track. I posted about Caribou not too long ago; this is a remix of the track Sun by UK-based artist Midland. It's quite tasty:

Last up is a song by Metronomy, who I heard a couple of years ago. I was reminded of them again while looking up Discodeine so here's a track by them. I've included the video here as I found it to be rather charming (it doesn't hurt that it features England with mostly nice weather):

Metronomy - Heartbreaker

The Mike Skinner Conundrum

2010-12-15T22:31:00.004-05:00

The two videos below summarise what I think is the Mike Skinner conundrum. The first vid is the new official vid for what'll be the first single off the next Streets album, Computers and Blues. The second vid is something Skinner apparently threw together on a whim with collaborator Robert Harvey (see if you can guess what band he used to be in). To my ears and eyes, the first song and vid are kind of not-very-good -- the music isn't too great and the vid is just a Pop Video, and a pretty low concept one at that (this is on first listen and view). The other song and vid, though, is, I think, much better -- some funny lyrics, a pleasant tune, and some nice wintery imagery. It probably cost a tenth of the official single's video but it's much nicer to look at. Granted I've heard the song more than once so that repeat listening effect might play a part, but I just find the track to be much more likable. Anyway, so the conundrum is that Skinner can make some great tracks when he does it very fast and they are seemingly throwaway, while the stuff that gets worked on for ages and then sits around waiting to be released doesn't seem as good. I think a new release model is needed here, but sadly most of the tracks he puts on his blog aren't downloadable. He does deride the way release schedules work himself and perhaps this is one of the reasons he's saying that the next Streets album will be the last? If you can put out new tunes every day quite easily it must be annoying to put 12 together for an album and then let them get stale for months before they're out.

PS Just listened to 'Going Through Hell' again and it's already growing on me, but still think it has a slightly over-produced sound

High Tech Soul

2010-12-08T22:00:00.006-05:00

Although it's not really very well made - some of it seems quite choppy and unprofessional, as a music nerd from the Detroit area, I was pretty much blown away by this one hour documentary from 2006 (you can watch the whole thing online HERE). First of, props go to my sister who recommended it to me. The rest of my thoughts are gonna go in bullet points:

This thing has got some MAD beats! I like the original dark, menacing, dirty underground sound of Detroit techno.

Can't help but feel some love for Detroit after watching this. I like the attitude of the place and the other-worldliness that you don't get in normal cities with tourists such as DC where I'm at now. There's definitely something REAL about Detroit. You don't end up there or go there if you're a faker.

It's funny how Detroit techno made its first big moves in the music world in London, another place where I've lived. I never really appreciated that connection when I first moved to America. The popularity of techno music in London forever changed the music scene not just in the UK, but in the whole of Europe. The techno scene in Berlin looks wicked - I'd love to check that out one day.

Have to check out some music from the pioneers of techno - Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson, and Derrick May.

Dentro De Mi Corazon

2010-12-01T11:56:00.004-05:00

I'm changing it up on this blog by putting up this track in Spanish. I'm doing another backtrack again because I first heard this song quite some time ago. Its remixed by my man Jay Dabhi, a terrific producer and DJ from Queens who is also one of the regulars at my masjid. God knows how many times I've asked Jay annoying questions about dj'ing and producing...heh.

Check it out! Its a really fun house tune, and I especially love the last 2 minutes.

Moises Modesto & Tommie Nibbs feat. Tha Heights - Dentro De Mi Corazon (Jay Dabhi Club Mix) by jaydabhi

The White Streets

2010-12-01T10:49:00.005-05:00

Coupla things. First is a comment after reading this article. To summarise, Jack White runs Third Man records; Third Man releases limited edition stuff by the White Stripes and other bands Jack White is involved in; usually that stuff is a weird vinyl version of an already existing record; now instead of selling at a normal price and letting people flip the records on ebay, Third Man is selling directly through ebay itself and keeping all the extra money. Fans are moaning that it's not fair but I think it's totally legit -- musicians need to make money and White argues that by selling through ebay it's the artist getting the extra cash rather than some random flipper. The music itself is available in other formats for cheap/free, so it's not like fans can't access the actual tunes -- they just can't get the special versions without shelling out extra. And why not? Hasn't it always been that way any way -- limited and special editions cost more but you don't have to buy them. When bands are only making money now from concerts and merchandise I think a strategy like this is actually very clever -- leverage your fame to make some extra money and thus an income. It's better than having your tunes in an advert.

In other news, Mike Skinner is blogging again and this blog is the best one I've come across in a long time. It's updated pretty much every day and he's usually responding to an actual person off twitter, or he's giving us his thoughts on creativity, boredom, fame, etc. Posts are usually accompanied by music or really good imagery -- all the music is coupled to a freshly made video. The tunes are very good which makes me wonder why his last couple of albums have been a bit crap? Sadly they don't seem to be downloadable. There are podcasts which I haven't checked out yet, perhaps the songs are included in those. There's a link to a blog that's supposedly by the Streets' manager, Ted Mayhem, which is also worth a read. He's already influenced my choice of TV to purchase... Skinner only start blogging again in October so if you hurry you can catch up on all his posts without it being too much of a hassle!

They're new here

2010-11-29T17:35:00.009-05:00

Gil Scott-Heron and Jamie from the XX have collab'ed on a remix album of Scott-Heron's recent 'I'm New Here' disc. First single out will be 'NY is Killing Me' which is up on the duo's website to be checked out. It's kind of dubsteppy, with some pleasant bleeps and samples throughout but not really mind-blowing. See what you think.

Media player from Underworld!

2010-11-26T00:35:00.002-05:00

Underworld, one of the top electronic bands from the UK in the 1990s', has put up a whole bunch of their catalogue online for everyone to listen to. And I was able to embed it here in the blog! Check it out, especially you Trainspotting fans.

Feraz actually told me about this link but he's being really annoying and won't post it on the blog. Instead he's reading guidebooks about D.C. Silly git.

New Cut Copy

2010-11-23T14:17:00.003-05:00

Been a fan since seeing them live a couple of years ago. Their recorded sounds are a nice blend of 80's synth-pop and indie, while live they turn into an amazing pop-dance monster! Here's a track off their next album, Zonoscope, which is due in Feb of next year.

Cut Copy - "Take Me Over" (Radio Edit) Premiere by modularpeople

Jamming for Pakistan

2010-11-15T16:29:00.015-05:00

This concert is happening this Thursday in Brooklyn. Its not just a concert, its an effort to raise more awareness about the floods in Pakistan and their aftermath, the biggest natural disaster in our time. But most people don't know that because there is hardly any media coverage about it. So we're putting on Jamming for Pakistan to raise more awareness about what happened, and to raise money for the Edhi Foundation which does direct relief and recovery work in Pakistan.

Here is more info:

Jamming for Pakistan
Hip hop, rock, punk, and urdu come together to jam for Pakistan

Featuring:

The Kominas

Holistic

Arooj Aftab

Zerobridge

The Raskol Khan

Thursday, November 18th
Doors open at 8pm (come early!)
Show starts at 8:30pm

$20 at the door

Cameo (inside the Loving Cup)
map
93 North 6th Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
L to Bedford Avenue

RSVP on facebook

Proceeds raised go to the Edhi Foundation to assist the survivors of the flooding in Pakistan.

Co-sponsored by:
Action for Progressive Pakistan, Khadijah's Caravan, Left Turn NYC, Pakistan Solidarity Network, South Asia Solidarity Initiative

I've been listening to the bands a lot over the past few weeks. Check out some of their songs, come to the gig if you're in NYC, spread the word. Its gonna be good. We're gonna have the Kominas - that's right, THE taqwacore band (Muslim punk)! Holistic will be performing their catchy hippity hop, Zerobridge will be playing good ol' NYC indie rock, the Raskol Khan will be bringing his hip hop and jazz fusion, and Arooj Aftab, who truly has an amazing voice, will be performing her tunes in Urdu.

The Kominas - Tunnnnnn

Holistic - Supercool

Arooj Aftab - Aey na Balam

Zerobridge - Late Bloomer

The Raskol Khan - See in Me

chase and status

2010-10-13T21:44:00.002-04:00

watch the vid
track is "eastern jam" by chase and status - LONDON duo! :-D

fierce dubstep, paris b-girls and devdas - my fave dance bit is around 3:34 - check out the camera movement! I need to do something like that.

This other track is also doing my head in. I definitely know this is the next album I'm getting.

Myspace files: Warpaint

2010-10-11T17:40:00.006-04:00

First off, my apologies. There was supposed to be a Live Double Whammy! Part 2 but I never got around to it. I was going to write about seeing James a couple of weeks ago; I'll just summarise by saying it was a great show, full of hits I'd forgotten existed, and Tim Booth's dancing was amazing.

So, on to Warpaint. As usual when it comes to the Myspace files, my knowledge of the band is minimal. I heard them on Jarvis Cocker's radio show this past weekend and liked what I heard enough to look them up. They're apparently based in LA. To me, their melodies are almost like a lo-fi Interpol, while the vocals remind me of Hope Sandoval (other than when they're being grunted out). Not bad really -- after listening to them a bit more on Myspace I'm not as taken with them as I was after one listen of a track on the radio, but I think they're still worth mentioning and checking out. Oh, and I think the track I heard on the Jarvis show was 'Undertow', which is also up on Myspace. Jarv said they reminded him of Fleetwood Mac; see what you think.

Live Double Whammy! Part One: Virgin Freefest

2010-09-29T13:06:00.006-04:00

Well, I've been off for a long time but hopefully this long-ish post will make up for my absence. Had a music filled couple of days which I think are worth sharing.

First up was the Virgin Mobile Free Fest this past Saturday in Columbia, MD. This has become somewhat of a mid-Atlantic institution and I think this was the second time they did it for free. A surprisingly indie-leaning line-up was spread out over three stages, with a good amount of dance acts thrown in too. Oh yeah, and Ludacris was there.

Merriweather Post Pavillion, which is where the fest took place, is a pretty good outdoor venue, close to lots of roads and even rail. Needless to say, the event was packed (did I mention it was free?), and nice sunny weather only helped. Age-wise, the crowd was a mix -- I'd say it leaned towards the younger, but there were people in their 30's (cos how many kids listen to Pavement?), some young parents, and even older folks with their teenage kids. Not sure how I feel about that -- I'd like to be a cool young parent, but do I want to expose my little 'uns to the smoke, sun, dust, and extremely loud noise? Probably not. And if my kids are teenagers they should really be making their own way to these things. Young people nowadays! More on that later.

So the place was packed, and it was very hot. That meant some shade action for me, so I went over to check out Neon Indian in the "dance forest" -- a shaded area near the edge of the grounds that was actually full of trees. The nice thing about being slightly older, and being me I suppose, is that I no longer feel the need to be up front where the action is. I spent a lot of the time watching acts from the comfort of a beach mat in the shade where the sound was good but not ear-damagingly loud. Had time for a chat here and there too. Neon Indian was decent, some good tracks, but not enough to really grab my attention. Next up was DC's own Thievery Corporation on one of the main stages. I listened to them mostly lying down and thoroughly enjoyed the experience -- a multicultural dance music band like Thievery, with influences from all over the shop, really defines the festival experience for me. I started feeling the vibe while listening to their global rhythms.

I then checked out the cheeky funky sounds of Chromeo back in the dance forest. I enjoyed their fun take on 80s' electro influenced dance music; they reminded of Daft Punk without the pretension. Pavement were up on the main stage next. I don't know their music very well but got quite into the indie guitar sounds and lo-fi aesthetic. I took a half an hour break to see Sleigh Bells (started off good, but felt overly pummeled half way through -- noise for the sake of it, toughness for the show of it?) and then went back for more. After that was a haphazard attempt at securing lawn space while everyone bar me and one other person went to check out MIA. I wasn't too bothered cos I'd seen her after Kala came out and I think she's annoying now, especially after that infamous NYT article. So, lawn space hopefully secured, I instead headed once again to the Dance Forest to see Modeselektor. Their furious techno was under-appreciated since they were on at the same time as MIA but I loved it and got down properly for the first time that night (mostly cos I was by myself). Half an hour of Ashraf shape-throwing ensued.

Last act of the night on any stage were LCD Soundsystem. An odd choice of headliner, one would think, since really how many people are into them? But they attracted a big crowd who seemed to know their stuff. I wasn't sure about them myself to be honest. Up until recently I had a low opinion of LCD: they were an over-rated indie version of dance; James Murphy was involved with DFA, the home of crappy punk-funk; he was also fat and annoying. I checked out 'Sound of Silver' and was thoroughly unimpressed by it, despite the glowing reviews. But then I read about their most recent album, and how it was their last, and started to rethink (and to stop being a hater). Plus, I've grown older and started asking myself the same questions as Murphy seems to have (am I a bit past it for all this? Am I relevant or cool? What's the point to any of this anyway??). Lastly, my brother said they were great live, and that definitely proved to be true. They were another highlight of an overall great day of music, and 'Losing my Edge' brought a big smile to my face as it closed the night out. I will definitely be giving LCD another go, as well as picking up some Pavement.

Now for the fest experience overall. I haven't been to too many big festivals, and not a single overnight one. The ones I have been to have generally been underwhelming, but I think there are multiple factors that go into that -- any music event held at RFK stadium is going to seem a bit crap no matter what happens, and HFStival half a decade ago was no exception. I enjoyed this one quite a lot but I can't imagine ever wanting to go a festival and stay there for more than a day -- the dirt and heat and discomfort are tolerable when we're talking hours, but extending that to days and adding tents, portaloos, and no showering to the mix sounds like a recipe for misery to me. So you can keep yer Glastonbury! Another festival downer is the sheer amount of drugs in the mix, whether it be alcohol, weed, or tobacco. I felt smokier after the freefest than I have in a long time; it was basically as bad as indoor concerts used to be when smoking was still allowed (if you live somewhere where indoor smoking is still allowed, sorry. Now go wash your clothes and take a shower, cos you stink). And then there's the kids. A festival like this being free is a pretty great thing, but I realised that it's only free because it presents corporations with a captive audience and a massive marketing opportunity. The middle section of the festival site was entirely devoted to corporations, their wares, and their crappy free giveaways. And people lined up for that junk! Not only that but they seemed happy to be getting even more for nothing, even if it was rubbish. Ok, some of the giveaways were actually useful, like the beachmats Virgin were handing out if you recycled something. But the bright green Toyota bandanas people got and then actually wore? The State Farm backpacks?? NO, NO, NO! C'mon, the kids! When I was younger "selling out" was still a real concept; now it seems that having your music in an advert is an aspiration -- that or on the soundtrack to some shitty mainstream teevee show. But that kind of selling out is really just one part of the larger commodification of what used to be youth culture by large multinational corporations and The Man. Yes, I sound like a bit of an old punk at this point, but it's true! Kids should be taking full of advantage of corporate stupidity by enjoying the music and ignoring the marketing but they don't seem to be clued-in enough, or to even care that they're really only seen as consumers. Rant, rant, rant; I could go on, but I don't see the point. I had a good time, the line-up was good, the setting was good, and I only got one piece of free crud -- the aforementioned Toyota bandana, soaked in ice water, and used to wipe the sweaty scuzz off the back of my neck before being discarded. Why can't young people think like me, eh?

El Iqaa

2010-09-26T21:47:00.000-04:00

Let's see if we can get this music blog started up again. I hope so!

Over the last couple months or so I haven't really discovered any new artists to listen to. Well I might have found a new band just this past Friday, but they haven't released an album yet, so I'll put them on hold for now.

So I'm gonna go back to my collection. Allow me to introduce to you, if you haven't heard of him already, to El Iqaa, aka as Olivetones the visual artist, aka Joe Namy, a Lebanese-American who is an artist in many forms. He is part of Other: Arab Artists Collective.

I discovered his recordings, called "Detroit Beirut" around 2007/2008 and was re-listening to them yesterday. He has quite a few gems - many of which might be good for a film, hmm...

You can actually download the whole album right here, give it a listen. My faves are 'July War', 'While They Were Sleeping', 'Zeina', 'Al Arabiya', 'Olds 98', and 'Floating On a Nod' - there are about 28 tracks!

Joe also has a radio show called Electric Kahraba on WNYC, and I definitely need to go back to listening to it.

maya

2010-07-14T20:43:00.007-04:00

MIA coming back wiv powah powah

Just had my first listen of the new MIA album. Somehow I had completely forgotten it came out yesterday, so upon the end of my workday today I immediately proceeded to a record shop and bought it.

First off, thank you to whoever does the CD packaging for the album! Recently artists whose CDs I've bought have forgotten that CDs are meant to come with album sleeves. MIA and her folks didn't forget, and also provided a little funny poster AND a free 7" vinyl single, for those who bought the album on CD. As one of those who stubbornly still goes to record shops and buys CDs, I appreciate that. Its so much more satisfying to trek to the record store, buy the CD, take it home, unwrap it (my technique is to roughly slide the CD on the edge of a table to cut the plastic wrapping), and then to play the CD for its first listen. You don't get ANY of that on Itunes. On top of that you can also buy the deluxe edition which comes with 4 extra tracks, which is what I did.

Anyway, on to the album. I'm not gonna do the whole track-by-track thing, for that you can go to the other reviews out there.

MIA definitely went back to the experimental board with this one. All of her records are fairly experimental but this one is the most left-field by far, and is the least accessible and might need an acquired taste. I'm happy she went down this path instead of going the more poppy route which is what many predicted.

This album also seems to be a lot more cohesive than Arular and Kala. The tracks definitely flow into each other quite well.

As for what the album sounds like - well I can probably guarantee its like nothing you've ever heard before. You can hear the various influences for sure, but as usual MIA and her producers have come up with something very unique. This album is a lot more mellow, with a fair number of pops and breaks in the tracks. You can tell its an MIA album - no one else would make a record like this - but these songs are definitely not close neighbours to the tunes on her other albums.

Here and there you can hear MIA actually singing! I had to pause for a bit before I realized that yes, MIA is actually singing, which is also something new for her listeners. What does she sound like? Her singing actually sounded a lot like many pop stars these days - ie, they can't sing very well. But since this is MIA, you know she doesn't care.

Since I just had my first listen I didn't digest a lot of the lyrics and messages yet, ah but yes, they are there, even in the song titles themselves (and in a certain video). It definitely appears that a lot of this album is about our use of technology today - and well just take a look at the album cover. I quite respect that, as the high rate of consumption we have of technology is something that has made me uneasy for years. And I'm only 23.

MIA has definitely created her own niche market. And I would say that consists of the many many hipsters out there, music-lovers who appreciate her creativity, and the progressive folks and organizers who don't always agree with how she presents her politics, but appreciate her representing, being herself and continuing to have a presence.

I just pressed PLAY again for my second listen.

Go out and get the album!

Myspace files: Aeroplane

2010-07-11T11:49:00.006-04:00

Randomly heard about this act recently so checked out their Myspace and am chalking them up as a great discovery! They're from Belgium and make some really great uplifting dance tunes. The Myspace tracks are all remixes but they've started putting out their own work now (I say they though I'm pretty sure it's a solo act now) and you can hear 'We Can't Fly' if you download the Essential Mix they've done (link's on Myspace and on their Facebook page). Any act that can make Robbie Williams sound good is definitely talented so check out Aeroplane and do a little boogie!

Feel the bass

2010-06-30T17:13:00.002-04:00

I have a feeling F&F are going to like this one.

I've been listening to this track for ages and only now just realized I should post it up. It's called 'Broken' by Martyn via the UK - you can tell because it totally has that London sound. Its from about 3 years ago.

This tune is amazing - it is enchanting and exhilarating. Let it take you in:

This song almost makes me want to put my speakers next to my windows and blast the tune, like this man right here in 'La Haine'

One Love Festival 2010

2010-06-20T03:24:00.009-04:00

One Love delivers yet again. Found out about this festival last year during my first summer in Istanbul. It was alright back then with M83, Starsailor, and best of all, Tricky. This year we almost didn't go. We were being lazy yesterday and got to the venue very late. No matter though, we got there just in time for who we actually wanted to see - Fischerspooner and Groove Armada.

Mannn this was tight! As soon as Fischerspooner came on you knew it was gonna be wicked. They're so extravagant with costume changes, dancers, and visuals. I know that's gay, and they're DEFINITELY gay, but I'm telling you, it worked. The atmosphere was brilliant, you couldn't help but be caught up in it and dance your ass off. Their sound is electroclash/electropop, basically good-sounding 80's music with hard beats. Their look is Lady GaGa turned up to 10 with originality and comedy. The singer was bloody hilarious! At the end of their set he tried to surf the crowd all the way to the back and then the front again but the Istanbul crowd didn't know what he was on about and it took three attempts for him to get it done.

It would be very difficult for Groove Armada to top that but they came close with the first few numbers of their headline slot. Live, Groove Armada were basically a rock band which also managed to combine electronic music. The best thing about them were their singers though. SaintSaviour in particular was a revelation. She was so into what she was doing. Every beat was choreographed with a dance move. The band weren't bad either. At one point one of them brought out a trumpet for Groove Armada's first hit, "At the River" which was pretty cool. Overall, One Love Istanbul is so good I'm considering coming back for it next year from America. And check out some Fischerspooner. If they manage to recreate their live sound on record their albums must be awesome.

Rating: 11/10

Therapy? Troublegum

2010-06-05T16:41:00.003-04:00

Feraz reminded me of these boys recently and whilst looking them up on youtube I realised how great this album was and how many good tracks there were on it. I bought this on tape when I was about 14 or 15 cos I liked a couple of singles off it and I had a coupon to get it cheaper than normal. The tracks I initially liked where 'Trigger Inside' and 'Nowhere', which were the first singles I heard off it. As a disaffected teenager in the Welsh valleys I felt like the songs spoke to me; plus they were good to play loud and Therapy? were definitely making the kind of music that parents frowned upon. They'd pop up on Radio 1 every now and then. Thinking about it now, it's quite amazing how much time I had to listen to the radio back then. Anyway, once I got the album and listened to it repeatedly more and more of it seemed pretty damn good. Below is a selection. Back then 'Knives' was of course the highlight, but I'd say all the tracks have held up pretty well over time.

Wow

2010-05-30T01:04:00.003-04:00

I know that Fahad wrote about the Gorillaz album a few weeks ago. I've been listening to it and had to share this track called "Empire Ants". It really is one of the most amazing and beautiful songs I've ever heard. Its just on a whole different level. Damon Albarn, please make more music like this!

Have a listen, and wonder, what does this song make you think of?

Myspace files: Caribou

2010-05-07T11:25:00.004-04:00

Been hearing quite a lot about Caribou, who's just put out a new album and got some good reviews. He's coming to DC next week with former Myspace-filer Toro y Moi, so what better way to get a taste for his tunes than to check out his Myspace? I like what I've heard and I think I'll see if I can Craigslist some tickets. Overall the sound is dancey and quite close to straight up house. Sung vocals and a lo-fi aspect give things a more indie vibe but thankfully it doesn't stray into annoying DFA/punk-funk territory (though there is a prominent cowbell-like sound on 'Odessa'). Reminds me more of early dance in a pleasing way, with vocals that have some 80's and New Wave overtones, though the track 'Sun' is pretty much straight up dance with just one repeating vocal sample. New album 'Swim" seems like it's the fifth one put out by the Canadian -- catch him on tour and you can get a tour-only release.

http://www.myspace.com/cariboumanitoba
http://www.caribou.fm

Deadboy - If U Want Me

2010-05-06T09:43:00.002-04:00

Another kind of already old track that I'm only now getting round to telling you about. Been hearing this on quite a few mixes and think it's well worth putting up. It's by another young Londoner, goes by the name of Deadboy, and it's another infectious and dancey track. Loving this sound right now, not sure what genre it goes by (UK bass? Funky? Dubstep? House? 2-step?) as I was never good with genres, but this sound seems to be all over the place at the moment, at least it is if you check out mixes on FACT and XLR8R. Check out those sites for some good and regular new mixes. Another place I've been getting some good recommendations is over at the AVClub's monthly Beat Connection blog. Anyway, back to Deadboy:

Joy Orbison - You heard it here last

2010-05-05T22:08:00.005-04:00

Actually, if one of your main sources of music info is this blog you probably haven't heard of him at all. Well, let me fill you in, or at least tell you about one of his singles. Joy Orbison is a relatively new musician out of London who's put out some tracks and gotten a lot of attention. He combines the europhic sounds of early rave and jungle with some more 2-steppy stuff; some would say he's dubstep, I'm not so sure myself. His first single is the one I bought last month, 'Hyph Mngo' b/w 'Wet Look'. Both tracks use isolated vocal samples to infuse some warmth, along with analogue synth sounds and a danceable BPM. 'Hyph Mngo' pretty much put Joy on the map and I'm amongst the many who are looking forward to a full-length from him.

http://www.myspace.com/joyorbison

Mash it up

2010-04-07T01:36:00.002-04:00

I think these tracks actually work in a weird, or not-so-weird, way:

But I think this is my favourite mash-up of all time:

And come on you can't beat this:
"The shoes on my feet
I've bought it
The clothes I'm wearing
I've bought it
The rock I'm rockin'
I've bought it
'Cause I depend on me
If I wanted the watch you're wearin'
I'll buy it
The house I live in
I've bought it
The car I'm driving
I've bought it
I depend on me"

THAT'S RIGHT!

Watch 'Music of Resistance'

2010-04-04T20:52:00.003-04:00

Chandrasonic from my all-time favourite group, Asian Dub Foundation, aka ADF, hosted a series called 'Music of Resistance' on Al Jazeera. Its a great series about how music can be used for social change. There are episodes featuring musicians from around the world; I've chosen to highlight the episode I feel most connected to.

This episode is about the formation of ADF. I've always thought that their music, especially their first album Facts and Fictions, was amazing and revolutionary. Watch it to see some of the band members talk about their music, the history of racism and fascism in East London, and where the anti-racism movement is today in the UK.

Sidenote: If I saw members of ADF walking around on the street, I would be very, very excited.

Listen to 'Fortress Europe'!

Listen to a legend

2010-03-22T21:20:00.008-04:00

The tables have turned and my brothers have told me off for not writing in the blog. I'm not sure where this month has gone, to be honest.

Moving on - here's a departure from my usual posts on house music. I know next to nothing about Arabic music, especially classical Arabic music. What do I know is, is that Um Kulthum is a legend, and for much reason. Her voice has POWER.

This is one of her most famous songs, "Inta Omri". I first started listening to this a few months ago, and was reminded of the song again when I heard it in the background, in a scene in this film.

This song is really quite amazing and no wonder its so popular and famous, and there have been numerous covers of it. There's so much emotion and melody in the music and in her voice.

The tune is quite lengthy with numerous transitions, so here it is posted in parts from a live recording, which I love, and I wish I had it on vinyl:

Part 1 - I love the sad-sounding guitar in this bit

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6 - love this bit too

Myspace files: Pendulum/the Ruby Suns/Toro Y Moi

2010-03-18T10:04:00.008-04:00

I think I'll do this every now and then. So many bands release new music and then come to town that often the only way I have to decide if they're worth seeing is by checking out their Myspace pages and the tracks on there. After that my decisions are made!

All I knew about Pendulum before this morning is they were supposedly good Australian Drum n Bass. Maybe I'm thinking of another band though; I just checked out Pendulum and their sound veers between the Prodigy, Linkin Park, and terrible terrible metal backed with Drum n Bass beats. They've somehow impressed Zane Lowe, but I'm struggling to see the appeal. Maybe it would help if I was 15. Here's their Myspace, see what you think. As for me, I'm taking them off the "to check-out and possibly download" list.

http://www.myspace.com/pendulum

The Ruby Suns are better. They're from New Zealand and make some nice sunny pop with international influences (particularly Polynesian). Really puts me in a spring and summer mood! If they were slightly dancier they'd be even better (check out the synth stabs on 'Cranberry') but as is they seem like a great band to hear outdoors on a hot evening.

http://www.myspace.com/therubysuns

Toro Y Moi is one bloke who's now based in South Carolina, though I think he's from New York or Philly originally. Not sure why he's gone down to SC, though sunshine and beaches may have something to do with it. I first came across him when he popped up on the DC events page at Resident Advisor. Had to check him out then but turns out he also isn't all that dancey. He does use more electronics though, producing a reverb soaked sound that has shades of 80's pop, soul, and even 60's-ish surf rock in it.

http://www.myspace.com/toroymoi

I may check out the Ruby Suns and Toro y Moi later this month as they're both playing a cheap show at the Black Cat. I'll let you all know how that goes if it happens.

Local Natives - Airplanes

2010-03-17T06:18:00.004-04:00

I've been listening to new music for the first time in years and I'm happy to say that I like what I've been hearing. It's encouraging to know that there's still plenty of good music being made by youngsters rather than thinking that it died out in the late 90s. Funnily enough, a lot of the stuff that I like is American! Why don't I hear this stuff in America? Local Natives came out with their debut album "Gorilla Manor" last year and this is one of their singles off've it. Love the lyrics, particularly towards the end. Not sure how lasting this band'll be but mind you, virtually all of the bands that I got into in the 90s have gone now or are making much less music and what they do make is crap anyway. Don't expect this lot to be around in five years time but so what? Enjoy it while it's still fresh.

Deadmau5

2010-03-08T14:08:00.010-05:00

Alright, I'm going to put a bunch of random stuff on here now which I see flying about London or when I listen to 6 Music in the morning. First up is Deadmau5. I saw Deadmau5 posters all over the underground when I first got to London last autumn. I had no idea who he was and only realized he was a person until I looked at the Deadmau5 Wikipedia entry just now. Anyway he's a DJ, from Canada, and EVERYTHING that I've heard of his has been sweet as hell up until this point. Just type in Deadmau5 into YouTube, for example:

Enjoy!

Groove Armada - Paper Romance

2010-03-02T19:09:00.004-05:00

I've never really thought much of Groove Armada, I heard their singles "Superstylin" and "I See You Baby" at the beginning of the last decade and didn't really pay much attention to them after that, until now. If you've never heard this song before I guarantee that you'll like it on a first listen. It's infectious, uplifting - it practically forces you to have a good time. Never mind that it's a straight up rip-off of the brilliant MGMT...

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

2010-03-01T15:18:00.006-05:00

Gorillaz are back with a new album out next week. It's another concept piece and I have to say I'm a little surprised -- I thought they'd called it quits after some big shows in Las Vegas were billed as their last ever. But here they are, and they'll be playing Coachella next month too. The new album, 'Plastic Beach', can be heard in full here. I've given it a listen and I'm pretty pleased, there are some very nice tracks and some cool collaborations (half the Clash, Bobby Womack, Little Dragon, and Mark E. Smith are some of the stand-outs). Might even be worth a vinyl purchase in fact. Hear it yourself and let us know what you think. If you're a bit ADD you can hear a mix of all the tracks at the Gorillaz Youtube site, and watch some other vids and things too -- vid for the first single should be up tomorrow.

Viva la house! Franck Roger - I'm Waiting

2010-02-27T16:01:00.003-05:00

This is the sort of stuff that I love.

Check out this very very tasty and sexy track. Turn the volume up and jam to this. Franck Roger is a Parisian producer, this track is from June 2009.

Edit:
They took down the track from losetube. Damn man, damn the corporations. Oh well you can listen to some other tunes from F.R. right here.

Another edit:
I found the track here! Listen to it, it's so good.

Tindersticks - Falling Down a Mountain

2010-02-19T10:45:00.005-05:00

Tindersticks were a band that were always on the periphery for me -- an indie band that didn't seem to go away but not a band I really paid a lot of attention to. I copied their CD's when I came across them, liked what I heard, but never really become a proper fan. That was until their last album, 'the Hungry Saw' came out. I ended up seeing them live in support of it and was entranced; it remains one of the best shows I've been to and 'the Hungry Saw' is a staple on my record player (yup, I liked it so much I bought it on vinyl). They released 'Hungry Saw' after a five year break in which it looked like they were finished. Instead the break did them good and they got creative again, resulting in a new album just out, 'Falling Down a Mountain'. From first listen it's clear that the band are still excited about working again -- the tunes carry an enthusiastic vibe, as does the overall disc, and most of them are even kind of upbeat, which is pretty weird for the famously morose Tindersticks. It's good, though there are some tracks that grate, particularly 'Peanuts', and to me the album as a whole doesn't feel as cohesive as 'Hungry Saw' did. It could be that I'll love the songs more if I get to hear them live, but I don't think this album will become as special to me. In some ways it almost seems like an established pattern has been repeated but to slightly lesser effect -- here's an instrumental, here's a latin-tinged fast track, here's some soul -- but after doing some reading it seems that that is standard Tindersticks fare. Can't really fault them for doing what they do best after having been around since the 90's. You can take a listen to the whole album here; I hope they'll tour on the back of it, but playing the new one in it's entirety, as they did for 'Hungry Saw', probably isn't necessary.

I present to you...

2010-02-13T01:25:00.005-05:00

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, India's national treasure:

Govinda.

"Meri Pant Bhi Sexy" from Dulaara.

This is obviously a knock-off of Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy", which is actually one of the first songs I remember hearing when I was little. And you can blame Feraz for that.

This post is a tribute to the evening I spent with the siblings Manisha and Madhav where we spent hours watching Bollywood videos from 90s'. We do indeed miss those days.

MUTINY: Asians Storm British Music

2010-02-08T14:03:00.006-05:00

I would LOVE to see this film! This is the music I've grown up on.

"Combining music documentary and social documentary, MUTINY: Asians Storm British Music charts the meteoric rise of Asian music in 1990s Britain, as well as the decades of cultural cross-pollination and political struggle that led up to that historic moment. Shot independently on digital video over the course of seven years, MUTINY features Asian Dub Foundation, Talvin Singh, Fun^Da^Mental and a host of other British musicians of Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi descent, presenting these artists and their music at extreme close range.

Through its dynamic mix of live performances, candid interviews and seldom-seen archival footage, MUTINY presents the story of a generation that grew up in the 1970s and 80s, defining itself in an environment of racial violence while drawing strength from both British street culture and South Asian roots. The artists who emerged from this generation became some of the greatest innovators in British music, mixing the influences of their parents' cultures with electronica, hip-hop, reggae and punk and producing unique and powerful new sounds.

MUTINY follows these musicians from their early forays in music and activism through their negotiation of record deals and press attention during the "Asian Underground" hype of the mid 1990s, to dealing with the loss of industry backing by the end of the decade. MUTINY'S artists are undeterred, pushing forward with their music and laying the foundation for the next generation. Outspoken and uncompromising, they remain in command throughout this fast-paced and uplifting feature.

With: Anjali, Asian Dub Foundation, Black Star Liner, Fun^Da^Mental, Hustlers HC, Invasian, Joi, Kaliphz, DJ Ritu, Talvin Singh, State of Bengal, and more."

I've just found out about this film and I'm totally geeked. Haven't been able to find a trailer online though. I need to get my hands on this film.

Check out this banging track by Anjali called "Stinging Sitars". I know it was in a phone advert a couple of years ago...erm, yeah. But I love the surfer music with the sitar man.

TOWNSHIP FUNK

2010-01-26T21:45:00.007-05:00

M.A.N.D.Y. were dj'ing at the Muse last week, a fairly new DC lounge/club, and were joined by the UK's Matt Tolfrey (actually it was only half of M.A.N.D.Y., the half known as Phillip Jung). They were there to help celebrate the one year anniversary of the Clinic night, one of the few parties in DC that attracts world-class DJ's that I know of. This night was nicely packed and everyone seemed to have a great time. I went over there right after checking out the film 'Berlin Calling' that was playing as part of a German film festival here. That was a nice way to prep for the night as it's about a German techno DJ who starts losing his mind cos of drugs. The film stars real-life DJ Paul Kalkbrenner, who also did the brilliant soundtrack. Walking down the street to see M.A.N.D.Y. (from Berlin) was a nice way to follow-up from the film (although no drugs or losing of the mind were involved for me, don't worry). I had a hands-in-the-air moment when 'Township Funk' came on towards the end of the night. I first heard it a couple of years back when it was getting a lot of buzz and was apparently big in people's setlists. Since then DJ Mujava doesn't seem to have been up to much at all, which is a shame, but this track still kills! Check out some vids below.

The interesting vid for Township Funk:

A great M.A.N.D.Y. remix, has me itching to scour the web for mp3s:

And a scene from Berlin Calling -- check out the dance move! Here, DJ Ickarus runs away from the mental hospital:

IMAN at the Apollo

2010-01-24T19:08:00.008-05:00

Last night IMAN at the Apollo took place. This event had about a dozen performers, and sold out days in advance.

IMAN is Inner City Muslim Action Network and they're based out of Chicago. I first heard of IMAN when I went to their summer festival, "Takin' It to the Streets" in 2003. I was 16. Since then, IMAN has grown and evolved, and well, I'm not 16 anymore.

I have the feeling that last night is going to be seen as a landmark event for Muslims in America - IMAN sold out the Apollo, which seats 1,500, and it was Muslims putting Muslim artists on stage. The place was full of positive and invigorating energy.

Early on, like the dork I am, I watched the DJs Kid Dragon and Raichous prepare for their DJ set, and wished I could do what they can. Then I realized I should probably do what I was supposed to.

As a backstage volunteer I didn't really get to see the show except from the sidelines from time to time, but at the end I went into the audience area to watch Mos Def perform. I definitely didn't mind though as it was such an interesting experience to be a volunteer for such a huge event, especially to be a stage runner, as my role was to basically stand backstage, fetch artists or make sure they were on call for their turn, and also act as security.

The hugeness of the event isn't just that it was at the Apollo and that it sold out, but the many number of acts in the show. The stakes were definitely high backstage as all the acts had to be assembled, prepped, ready to go, and on time. Its a miracle really that all the IMAN staff, volunteers, and Apollo staff were able to pull it all off - because there were so many performers! I definitely think there were too many, but it worked out in the end.

So my experience of last night was from backstage, and I got to see first-hand what it takes to put such chaos into an orderly event. Artists would be eating, praying, or listening to their headphones minutes or seconds before they went on stage and started belting out their songs. It takes time, stamina, and talent to do that. There were so many people behind the curtain, so much activity going on, and each artist had to manage their way across and then told to walk into the limelight.

There were babies crying, artists eating sandwiches, hosts dancing, groupies, security men whistling...I definitely took it all in and am grateful I got to see the other side of the show.

Now, finally, here are some songs from a few of the artists who performed last night. Enjoy!

This is "Rise Up" by Alex Schein

The Reminders are a husband-wife duo and are tons of fun to watch live.

Outlandish were also present and performed three tunes, including this one "Kom Igen." There was no dupatta present. I was hoping they'd do "Guantanamo", but they didn't.

And of course Mos Def was the last act. He wore jeans and a jean jacket and tried to shuffle like James Brown. It was a lovable performance, and he performed this classic of his:

PS this is a pretty good review of the event.

Ame - Excelsior

2010-01-21T17:23:00.005-05:00

Hey guys and gals,
sorry for the long hiatus. Its been a pretty crazy month over here in NYC.

But this song is very soothing and I listen to it when I get home and all I want to do is sit or fall asleep. I discovered this tune via Gilles Peterson back in 2006 or so. Gilles is playing in Brooklyn on the 29th by the way!!! Which I'm very excited about.

Anyway, this song isn't really on the radar but its such a good tune, so I'm giving it some exposure here. This is "Excelsior" by the duo Ame.

Enjoy

Gil Scott-Heron

2010-01-14T18:35:00.006-05:00

I was listening to Radio 6 the other day when Gil Scott-Heron's new single came on, "Me and the Devil." The impact was immediate: it caught me, put its hands around my neck, and then tried to throttle the living crap out of me. This isn't some song which sounds okay on a first listen and then may gradually grow on you over time. This song grabs you by the balls. Now I had no idea who the composer was, just that he was supposedly the "Godfather of Rap." So I did a little research. "Me and the Devil" is from Scott-Heron's first album in over fifteen years. He's been in and out of prison since 2001 for various drug-related charges, most of them for possession of cocaine. He's been making music since 1969, his biggest hit to date being "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" from 1971. He's now 60 years old. Well if this new single is a good representation of the album that's to come, the game most certainly isn't up yet for Mr. Scott-Heron. Phenomenal.

Vampire Weekend - Contra

2010-01-05T13:11:00.002-05:00

I reviewed it here.

"I'm pretty bad"

2010-01-04T22:22:00.005-05:00

Couldn't find a direct streaming link unfortunately but check out this tune right here. It's "Bad" by Kode9, one of the foremost dubstep producers and label owner of Hyperdub, a dubstep label. This tune just really does my head in - I think its great how he fused dubstep and house together and came up with this.

This is a set by Kode9 from a few years ago - its one of my favourite dubstep mixes. I had this on repeat while in college and would unknowingly try to imitate the beats via beatboxing - I'd only realize what I was doing when I noticed my friend laughing at me.

For those confused on what dubstep is, its a new musical movement of the last decade. I disagree with Fahad on the notion that no new musical movements or genres emerged in the 2000s' - there was, and is dubstep. This is a good briefer on dubstep and features some great dubstep tracks (listen to the Burial and Benga links.) I consider myself lucky to have been in London in 06/07 just when dubstep was beginning to get more notice.

Yeah! Thoughts?

Sneaky sideblog post

2009-12-30T10:18:00.002-05:00

Check out my hastily-written highlights for 2009 over at Popwreckoning

Another agreeable article

2009-12-30T09:44:00.005-05:00

Ok, so I might be cheating by simply pointing to articles written by other people here. But if someone else has nicely articulated what I've been thinking then why should I make the effort to re-write it myself? This article is from a Canadian weekly called the Eye (or Eye Weekly?) and goes into the phenomenon of too much music -- something that I've been pondering about recently too. Was I better off when the only music I could really focus on was what I could afford? When I was forced to make choices rather just download anything I was interested in? Most of the music I get now barely gets listened to, and it is hard to keep up with all the latest it bands, before the next ones come along. Something has changed. The author also touches upon the lack of a culture to attach on to when everything is so fragmented and all you know about a band is... nothing really. Music becomes background noise. I've also been getting into buying vinyl records of albums I really like, and those become the songs and records I really listen to. Not sure how things will evolve from here, though I recently read another article about the next decade in music which basically focused on streaming as the next big thing -- we won't even own music any more, we'll just listen to our self selected radio-like streams -- sounds a bit crap if you ask me. But that was written by some tech nerd so who knows.

Too much music?

PS I will not miss big stadium acts

The Return of Massive Attack

2009-12-28T17:22:00.003-05:00

I posted a new Portishead track a few weeks ago and now it's time to post the next single from Massive Attack featuring Hope Sandoval formerly of Mazzy Star. Portishead and Massive Attack basically invented "trip hop" music with their debut albums back in the early nineties. Until recently, Portishead stayed true to their low tempo, spy music sound, whereas Massive Attack always innovated and changed their sound with every album, using guest vocalists, and morphing into a live band with their third album, Mezzanine.

After that, things went decidedly downhill. So much so that Massive Attack's last album, 2003's 100th Window, was released by 3D by himself and was, well...not that great. Thankfully, Daddy G's back for LP5 and judging by this track, and the list of collaborators for the new album (Damon Albarn, Guy Garvey, Martina Topley-Bird, and others), it should be a good one. Heligoland should be out around February 8/9 2010. This track's called Paradise Circus:

Holistic goodness

2009-12-21T20:52:00.005-05:00

Here's my review of Holistic's album Technicolor

Can the retro sound from popular TV shows and pop music of the 60s’ fuse with hip-hop? A range of artists have tried to answer that question and this is what the group Holistic has done with their latest album Technicolor.

Holistic is comprised of three young men who originally hail from Indiana, but have been based in NYC for several years. The Iron Sheik, Iz Inferno, and Rad Nice are all emcees, and the Iron Sheik and Iz Inferno double up as the producers of the group.

The three members each bring something unique to the emceeing table: Iz Inferno has a deep, addictive, voice; Rad Nice has catchiness and thump; while the Iron Sheik gives listeners lots of rhythm. Their verses cover a seemingly bizarre range of subjects, from watching NBC in the morning to the trauma of police brutality -- Holistic aren't afraid to rap about what they see around them.

Many songs on the album feature sounds reminiscent of the 60s’ era, hence the retro-sounding title Technicolor. In theory, one may think that sounds reflective of the Woodstock generation would not mesh well with hip hop rhythms and rhymes, but I found that Holistic make it work, and it works well.

Check out “NBC” for example, which appears early on in the album. The song features an intriguing loop that seems straight out of a classic TV show. With low, rolling bass, the boys of Holistic enter the tune with their verses, and show how hip hop can evolve by using the unlikeliest of sources from the past.

Another example from the album is “D’Accord”, where Holistic display their fondness for the French language. Here, the main layer of the song could be right in place on an album that’s over 40 years old. The group display a flair for coming up with a revitalizing sound for a hip hop track.

“Supercool” is another top track, and is their latest single (check out the link below for the stylish video, directed by Rad Nice.) The song is more conventional in its production than the other tracks with vintage elements, but still provides plenty of head-bopping and can be put on repeat.

The song from Technicolor that truly showcases the emcee skills of the trio is “Summertime Sky”. Listening to Holistic’s voices, heavy rhythms, and lyrics, on top of a relaxed beat, makes you think of, well, summertime. In my opinion, “Summertime Sky” deserves lots of airplay.

Holistic have an experimental style of hip hop, and don’t limit themselves to targeting Muslim-only audiences or topics, which is a refreshing change from some other Muslim acts. Give them a listen and you will also be hooked - and might find yourself repeating, “The world looks mighty good to me, I start my days with NBC! Whatever it is, I think I see, I think I see!”

Go here to see Holistic’s website.

Check out their latest single "Supercool" which has a pretty groovy video.

Simian Mobile Disco

2009-12-16T14:11:00.004-05:00

I hear this song all over the radio in the UK. The first time I heard it the reviewers trashed it, but since then I've only heard good things about it. It's a typical uplifting trance/house/whateveryouwannacallit number. It should get you in the mood to party though, which is almost never a bad thing. If you like what you hear below, make sure you check out their MySpace page.

Soap Kills

2009-12-13T20:41:00.010-05:00

I first heard of the band Soap Kills a few months ago when I got word of Y.A.S., which comprises of Yasmine Hamdan, the former singer of Soap Kills, and Mirwais, the famed electronic producer who produced Madonna's Music album.

I have been reading Pity the Nation by Robert Fisk which is an account of Lebanon's 15-year civil war. The band Soap Kills pops in my mind frequently because the band's name was meant to not let the Lebanese forget about the war, despite reconstruction's attempts to wash away the memories of war.

Here's an excerpt from this very insightful and intriguing interview that is about Y.A.S., which gives details on the origins of the now-defunct Soap Kills. The following is what got me very interested in the band:

"Zeid and Yasmine wrote a song together called Soap Kills, which was meant, at the time, as a scathing commentary on the reconstruction of Beirut after the civil war.

“With all the war being wiped clean,” recalls Zeid, “we thought, wow, it’s shiny and it’s awful.” More than just a song, they also thought Soap Kills would be a good name for a band. And so, one of the legendary stories of the Beiruti underground began.

For nearly a decade, Soap Kills was held up as the next big thing. It was a band that blended old-school Arabic music with trip-hop and downbeat techno, a band that served as an unprecedented artistic hothouse for live experimentation and studio innovation, a band that was always on the verge of a major record deal but never quite made it happen."

So far, I haven't been able to get my hands on many songs by Soap Kills, but here are a couple that I'm very fond of.

I like this one because it fuses classical Arabic singing with some good ol' drum and bass!
"Tango"

This song is cool and definitely threw me off with its reggae tones.
"Herzan"

New Portishead

2009-12-10T10:20:00.004-05:00

It looks like we might only have to wait until next year for a new Portishead album. That's a extra speedy turn around for Portishead, who spent three years making their second album, and made us wait a whole ten years for the aptly titled "Third" which came out in 2008. A new track has been donated to Amnesty International which you'll find below.

I don't want to spoil the song for you before you take a listen so just check it out. Sounds like familiar territory for Beth Gibbons et al and she doesn't look too happy in the video which is normal for this lot. I'd be interested to know what you think she's singing about.

An Agreeable Article on the Last Decade in Pop Music

2009-12-07T10:31:00.004-05:00

Thought I'd share this, especially since it's from the Guardian, my main source for music news. The writer's saying pretty much what I would like to say if I were a better writer -- there are a lot of micro-scenes in music now that are perfectly happy to be micro-scenes, which is all well and good unless you're an obsessive like me who wants to hear everything that's good. What he says about the lack of musical progress during the decade is something I hadn't really thought about, but it makes total sense, especially when contrasted with other decades. There's been a lot of rehashing but nothing really really new that's captured the public's attention -- not sure if I see that changing in the future? If people have easy access to their preferred micro-scenes, and are happy with that, then what need is there for a big mainstream change? Another article on the site also mentioned how easy it is now to access old music, which ends up competing with our attention too. Add DVD box sets, Youtube, DVR's, free newspapers, blogs, etc etc, and it's enough to make you miss FM radio and four TV channels as your only access to pop culture! Or is that just me?

Review of the decade: Alex Petridis on Pop

who's afraid?

2009-12-03T23:05:00.002-05:00

Here we go, a minimalist contribution from me. Don't know much about this track or artist, but I do rather like it, and the vid isn't bad either. Reppin' the adopted hometown:

Viva la house! via: Deep Dish

2009-12-02T21:47:00.011-05:00

Sorry for the hiatus folks, us Ashrafs have been doing a fair bit of travelling, not together of course otherwise we'd hurt each other.

I figured its time for me to do another 'Viva la house!' post. Of course, any househeads who come across this blog will have heard of Deep Dish, a very famed Iranian-American duo based out of Washington D.C. They did used to have a record shop called Yoshitoshi in Georgetown which I went to once a few years ago, and was very geeked to see.

Here is one of my favourite tracks, their remix of "Rise" by Gabrielle. I used to play this in the car in high school and would drive more slowly on purpose so that I could enjoy the full 9 minutes. This song is I think, really beautiful. I love all the channels and valleys, the build-ups and break-downs, that the song navigates.
(Edit - the link disappeared, am working on finding another one!)

This here is "The Future of the Future" from their 1998 album Junk Science which I highly, highly recommend. This song is also very well-crafted in my opinion.

Audiopharmacy

2009-11-19T19:51:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago I went to an event at the American Indian Community House, which is a really nice educational space in Lower Manhattan. Members of Audiopharmacy were present and played a few low-key tunes. Let's just say, I was impressed.
The band is actually a sort of collective, and are from the Bay area. Here's their bio:

"For those who don't know, the group started back in '94. Teao and Zygoat made music under the name II Sense (two sense). In '97, they combined with Defiance and Laxman to form Kaotic Souls, one of the only experimental and conscious hip hop acts in San Jose, Ca. The group eventually grew to the supa huge size of about 30 members... all spirtually connected artists. Finally in 2002, they created the name Audiopharmacy Prescriptions. Now, Kaotic Souls is broken down to subgroups, all of which are in the Audiopharmacy family. Audiopharmacy Prescriptions then became the San Francisco indi label which supports and signs unknown kin met along the path of consciousness and community. respect people's planets."

I think its great that they have their own label.

Check them out for yourself, here's "Honward" from their latest album U Forgot About Us.

Find more of their songs on their myspace. I especially like "Jah I Way" - a lot.

The XX at DC9

2009-11-18T10:07:00.003-05:00

We saw current It band the XX at DC9 the other night for a sold out show. First time I've been to DC9 (which is tiny) and it's been so packed, but that wasn't surprising given the amount of hype the XX have been getting. Happily it didn't look like a bunch of hipsters, though plenty of people took pictures and iphones were on hand. I felt quite clever for buying tickets early, and we spotted one of the singers being very nondescript beforehand. Though some of their songs are a little too low-key, for the most part the XX's sparse dancey sound is cool and I like the beats, the very low bass notes, and the fact that they use drum machines instead of boring Apple laptops. Me and Lubna were quite excited about seeing our favourite possibly-Muslim musician, Baria Qureshi, who plays bass and keyboards for the band. Make that played because, sadly, she officially left the band about a week ago, which we didn't know til she didn't get on stage. Typical! We were excited to see a cool brown person and give her some support, but it wasn't to be.

We missed most of the opener, Jon Hopkins, and regretted it cos the one track we heard was great--sounded like the Aphex Twin, and he was playing his stuff live on some sort of music box. The XX had to walk through the crowd to get to the little stage in the corner, before starting off with "Intro", which had me thinking that maybe they'd play their whole record, in order. They did still play pretty much every song they've recorded, but that's what I expected given they've only got one album out and I don't think people really do B-sides any more. The songs actually seemed to be at a slower tempo when played live, which was a bit off-putting. But after a couple of tracks in the changes sounded cool; the songs came out very dubby, with an early dance vibe, more bass, and guitars that sounded like they were coming from underwater.

For the concert their beats were tapped out live rather than being pre-programmed, and the beats boy Jamie Smith got down on actual drums as well -- he def seemed to be doing the most work. He's filling in most now that the XX are a three-piece instead of a four, cos as well as beats he was adding in bass notes and keyboard live too -- what a hard-working young man! The other members also hit a few knobs at the back here and there, but Qureshi's absence was still felt as the overall sound wasn't as full, despite the effort. As the bass got heavier and the effects more prominent I started thinking that maybe they'd go all out ravey at the end, or go all dub-step on us, but that didn't happen. It's a shame more bands don't take chances when playing live, cos if you can't have fun then, when can you? Personally I'd like to see more live shows end in loopy techno with more cool covers thrown in (the XX performed covers that can be found on the interweb already: Womack and Womack's "Teardrops" and the other one by Kyla).

On the way home we pondered how far a band like the XX might go. Sadly, I don't think they'll go very far at all, at least not in terms of maintaining the buzz in the long-term. The emphasis these days seems to always be on the next big thing, and there are so many bands, all of them putting out great first albums to loads of hype. After the first rush of buzz, the first record, the first tour, it seems hard to stay important as there's some other, newer, band with a cool sound to hype instead. Things seem to become old news very quickly and I'd be surprised if bands like the XX, Vampire Weekend, or the Very Best have long careers. I think it's more likely that members will keep doing different projects with different people and stay musical that way, or just fade away. It's quite hard to keep up with everything that's supposed to be good nowadays as there's almost no such thing as obscurity any more -- the XX may never have a top ten single, but in their own way they're massive and can't be missed. Having said all that, at least their hype is worth it, and even if it all doesn't last long I'm sure they're having a lot of fun. I just hope they took their A-levels as a back-up plan.

The Big Jay-Zed

2009-11-11T19:58:00.005-05:00

Jay-Z. What can you say about Jay-Z that hasn't been said before. Not a whole lot I would reckon - you can probably find what I'm about to write already written some place before. I've had a bit of a love-hate relationship with Jay-Z and rap music in general. I have my moments where I might buy a record or listen to a track repeatedly. This happened in 1998 when I bought Jay-Z's single, "Hard Knock Life." It's usually just a passing fad though, and then I go back to listening to Oasis or Blur, or something more white.

But back to Jay-Z. You can't help but admire this guy man. I saw him on Later with Jools Holland last week and he was absolutely phenomenal. Later's a live weekly TV show in the UK with musical acts. Check out Jay-Z performing "Empire State of Mind" below. I know it sounds cheesy, but Jay-Z's passion and love for his art is staring you in the face as you watch this clip. I'm not gonna fall in love with rap music overnight, but watching Jay-Z on Jools has definitely given me a deeper appreciation for his music. Nice one son.

Massive Attack - Man Next Door

2009-11-04T18:10:00.010-05:00

Listen to this track by Massive Attack, one of my fave groups of all time. The albums Blue Lines, Protection, and Mezzanine are not to be under-appreciated. What I love so much about the group is how versatile their sound is.

Let the sound envelope you when you listen to this. And listen to the lyrics - do you interpret them literally or metaphorically? I take the metaphor - I think the "man next door" could actually be me or you, instead.

Anyway I'm sure a lot of music geeks have heard of Massive Attack, but the masses aren't very familiar with them.

This is another version of the song with the same singer Horace Andy (and others)

Peace.

Sneaky side-blog plug

2009-10-30T18:03:00.003-04:00

Check out me lastest review for Popwreckoning -- I went to see the Icelandic band Múm for them last Friday:

Múm w/Sin Fang Bous, Black Cat, DC, Oct 23rd 2009

Atlantic Conveyor - We Are

2009-10-23T17:28:00.004-04:00

I'm sick of looking at craigslist listings for furniture. Time for music.

I've really been feeling this track the last few days. I love how the bassline drives the whole tune. Check it out for some real funk and groove.

This is Atlantic Conveyor's Myspace.

Check out their website for more tunes.

Looks like they are doing a bunch of shows in London - London folks, check them out!

Here is the tune, "We Are"

This ROCKS:

2009-10-23T14:53:00.002-04:00

Oh, I say, you look so super!

2009-10-21T11:43:00.009-04:00

Just read in the Guardian that Liam Maher, lead singer of Flowered Up, has died. Can't say I know much about the band but I do love the epic track "Weekender" -- 13 minutes long, captivating throughout, and one of those songs that might make you question your lifestyle. You can hear it at their Myspace page (they were trying for a comeback). More info on the band here, and a vid should be below.

Flowered Up - Weekender from http://stx.vox.com/

Electric Dreams while handbrake skidding

2009-10-20T15:05:00.010-04:00

I was listening to a Mike Skinner podcast the other day and suddenly had a mid-80's flashback. Was it? Could it be? Yes! He'd put on an extended version of "Together in Electric Dreams" by Phil Oakey and Giorgio Moroder! The last time I heard that song was in my cousin's car in Harlow, probably shortly before/after getting a hard slap on the thigh while in the passenger seat on the way to Muslim sunday school. For a few weeks there we'd hear it every time he gave us a lift, and something about the sadness of the song stood out even back then when I was but a wee fat lad dreading the mullana's cane. The cousin (actually cousin's cousin, an angry and terrifying teenager when I was under ten) had it on cassette and we probably heard it in his mum's VW polo with a cool cassette case carrier thing sliding around on the passenger floor (I always wanted one of those). I'm sticking in a link to the song as I only ever heard it, never saw the video until earlier today. You can see a vid of the extended version here -- check out Phil Oakey's hair! He didn't look like that in the Human League. It was nice to hear this song again and be reminded of those Epping-Harlow trips; in my mind Feraz is in the back seat, the weather is nice, and it's after sunday school, so there's no caning to be afraid of. Good times!

[Just a note: I'm pretty sure this was the first Human League-related song I ever heard, and I never did get round to seeing 'Electric Dreams' the film.]

[Note two: Imeem was being weird so I changed to a Youtube link:]

Viva la house! via: Basement Jaxx

2009-10-17T17:37:00.009-04:00

Here's a secret:
I love house music.

Ok that's not really a secret. But its rare to find fans of house music these days unfortunately. All too often house gets dissed - people think its about popping pills and glowsticks. Well, its not, trust me. I don't do those things.

But I won't be pretentious and pretend I'm an expert on house music, because I'm not. I'm just a really big fan, and I want you to hear what I love - maybe you'll get the itch too for house.

So this will probably be the first in a series of posts I will do about house music. Up first is Basement Jaxx, a group with a very long and famed history, who also have had a lot of crossover success. I'm really into their old stuff on their Remedy and Rooty albums - check them out if you want to hear some truly funky house with incredibly unique beats, and of course, lots and lots of good old bass. I find it hard to believe that Remedy was released 10 years ago! I remember sitting in my room and playing those tunes nonstop.

Here is "Samba Magic", one of the Jaxx's earliest tracks, before they released Remedy. I hope this track dispels the stereotypes the house haters have about house.

"Fly Life" is one of the Jaxx's biggest and earliest releases. Does my head in every time. MASSIVE TUNE

This is "Romeo" , the first single from their second album Rooty - I think this song is going to always be one of my favourites.

Put the volume up and enjoy.

Discovered: Harmonic 313

2009-10-14T22:07:00.008-04:00

Alright, well, I might be a bit behind here but I came across Harmonic 313 recently thanks to all the hoopla surrounding the Warp20 release (which I'm sure is excellent). The name intrigued me as 313 is the area code for Detroit, but apparently that's not where the name comes from. Instead Harmonic 313 is the alias for one Mark Pritchard, one of a few aliases. He's based out of Sydney and does some nice bleepy 8-bitty dubsteppy stuff which I am likin'. There are some mixes up on the web that are readily available (see links below) but I recommend picking up the album When Machines Exceed Human Intelligence as it's quite excellent and is an actual album, meaning you can hear it evolve as it plays -- very nice. Oh, and 313 is apparently the frequency produced by planets turning on their axes, so there you go.

There's a mix here.
And another one here.
And here's the myspace page for Mark Pritchard.
Oh, and check out the Harmonic 313 homepage, which is fun and if you win the word game you can get a free track!

Think Doctor Who...

2009-10-14T09:19:00.010-04:00

Not bothered about the video but I'm digging this track from Muse's new album:

Cubic Zirconia - F*ck Work - Dam Funk remix

2009-10-07T17:50:00.004-04:00

This is what I'm presenting for my first post here. I discovered this funky little track a few weeks ago. As we're in the midst of a deep recession and people are looking for work (some have just given up) - I think this song is appropriate for the times:

Enjoy!

Welcome.

2009-10-07T12:10:00.004-04:00

(photo credit)

Welcome to anyone who happens to find this new music blog (or if you were forced to read it...)

We are three siblings with the last name of Ashraf.

This is our blog about music.

Read our posts and tell us what you think.

Who are we? Well -

Hena likes to create things with cameras and stories. She currently lives in the land of Brooklyn, after stints at the University of Michigan and London's East End. Hena's musical education began at the age of 11 and has been non-stop ever since. She likes to disappear into her headphones.

Fahad is a possibly misanthropic non-profit health-care provider with a life-long love of pop music in most of it's forms. He is inspired by John Peel and Joe Strummer, and proceeds to do very little with it. Fahad spent time as a college DJ with turns at the decks during frat parties and weddings; was a Muxtaper before it expired; and a blogger to blag free concert tickets.

Originally a massive Queen fan after Freddie Mercury's death, Feraz then got into Britpop after sneeking peeks at his brother's copies of the NME. Now in London, he anticipates to discover loads of new tunes after growing up on mid-90s British indie music.