All the good things I've heard since starting to commute again

Started a new job and have a commute again so that means back to RadMac on Radio 6!  I'm very pleased, only downer is that their daily show is supposed to end and they'll move to weekends some time soon.  But, that's what the iPlayer is for.  But honestly, thanks God for RadMac.  I'll start to think I'm over music, then listen to them and get into it all over again.  Thanks guys!  Thanks the BBC!  Thanks Blighty for your eclectic radio offerings and refusal to conform to commercial viability!! 

Just going to basically post tracks without a lot of commentary as time is limited.  Dev Hynes seems like a prolific character; I remember hearing about Test Icicles when they first came around some time in the last decade, but never checked them out.  I will now though, cos I like this track by Hynes aka Blood Orange:



I've featured BC Camplight on this blog before.  Don't know tons about him/them, but I do know the main songwriter is an American who's now based in the UK (Manchester?) -- always intriguing.  This track appeals due to it's dissonant sounds and it's 80's vibes.  There are at least two 80's tracks it reminds me of, but I can't quite put my finger on either of them. 



Just read a bit about my boy BC and turns out he's an American who sees himself as a Manc who got deported from the UK a couple of years ago and ended up living in his parents' basement, depressed.  He then got EU citizenship via Italian grandparents, only for the UK to vote for Brexit!  His latest album, Deportation Blues touches upon this.  See?  Intriguing. 

Gwenno is Welsh and does electronic music.  What more do you need to know??  Ok, this is off her second album, which is in Cornish, and she used to be in subversive indie throwback girl group the Pipettes. 



I'm almost done, but I'm not done.  Actually I'm only halfway through.  New Gorillaz track Tranz, I like it.  Surprised the band came out with album so quickly after the last one. 



I thought this was a remix of the Fall, but it was just them!  Can't take Mark E Smith for granted, or at least you shouldn't've, when he was alive.  People probably knew that though.



Never listened to a lot of Dinosaur Jr, which is a shame really, what I've heard I've liked.  Them, Sebadoh, and Pavement -- must make time one of these days.  Or one of these commutes. 

Summertime '83

I do feel like most things in pop have already been done.  Not exactly a profound thought, I know.  I heard this Style Council song for the first time today (go ahead, judge me) and I found it to be so 2010's -- more so after watching the quite astonishing video.  Very sexual?  Check.  Wonky R&B played by white people?  Check.  Drake-style dad dancing?  Check.  Retro (!) electronics?  Check.  It's got it all!



A couple of months ago I finished my second Mark Radcliffe book.  I quite like the bloke as a DJ but his writing is... surprising.  Actually what's surprising is that he's had so many books published.  Anyway, the one I read recounts tales from his life in music, and includes an account of his first interview with David Bowie.  At the time Bowie said that his favourite albums of his own were 'Diamond Dogs'and 'Lodger' so of course I checked those out from the library and yeah, not bad.  'Diamond Dogs' has that 70's sound that I'm not really into right now, the glam thing, but 'Lodger' was better than expected.  I was afraid of something sludgy but it's quite bright, which I suppose makes sense since it came out on the cusp of the 80's.



Incidentally, the cover to 'Lodger' wouldn't look out of place today -- it looks like a (good) fashion ad.



The artist formerly known as Throwing Shade is now trading under her own name of Nabihah Iqbal and is about to release a new album on Ninja Tune.  I heard the first single off of it online yesterday and on the radio today, and it's quite nice -- has a very 80's sound to it, and I can relate to it's lyrics about ennui upon waking up in the morning very well!  It's extra interesting to me because, having seen a video of her process, I feel like I can almost hear how the track was made.  That's not to belittle her achievement, or say it was easy -- there's still musical talent involved (and after all, she's studied ethnomusicology at SOAS!).  But check out her FACT video and maybe you'll be able to hear the components of the new single too.

Another one that got away

I was listening to the radio yesterday when I came across BADBADNOTGOOD, a trio out of Toronto, Canada, who are new to me.  Their neo-trip-hop sound was immediately intriguing and reminded me a bit of early DJ Shadow.  The difference is that while DJ Shadow is/was all about samples, these guys are playing their tunes themselves.  While the track I heard (see below) may not be to everyone's taste, it was enough to get me interested; I liked the mix of sounds and genres, has a bit of a film soundtrack quality to it.  I recommend checking out their Soundcloud page as there's plenty of good stuff there.  They'd probably be pretty great live but, unfortunately, they already played here in DC at U Street Music Hall back in June, before I'd ever heard of them.  I hate it when that happens.


Gold Panda's got a new track he's giving away.  It also has a jazzy, filmy vibe to it.  I'm not a massive of the track to be honest, but I'm going to put it up anyway, for old times' sake.  Oh, and it's downloadable for free.


Lastly, another track I recently heard on the radio, this time by Simian Mobile Disco.  They seem to get a lot of respect, so I saw them live in DC not too long ago, but I hated the show and left early.  I probably wouldn't see them live again, unless their way of putting a show together has completely changed, but I do like this track, it has a nice analogue sound to it: