Monday's Long Song

 

Die Wilde Jagd is the project of Sebastian Lee Philipp, who released one of the most interesting albums for me with his debut almost ten years ago. His mixture of electronic, krautrock, medieval lyricism and complex melodies also fascinated me live. 

The sound has continuously evolved over the years and reached its final stage with Haut in 2020. our tracks in 45 minutes. No more pop songs, no more catchy interludes. Instead, the full blast of krautrock. The album is a single cosmic trip that reaches its climax in Himmelfahrten. The song surges up and down, verses and choruses alternate, the intensity continues to increase. After more than five minutes, a distorted guitar suddenly enters the soundscape. This is music about and for LSD trips.

If one band has developed krautrock further in recent years, then it is Die Wilde Jagd.

Die Wilde Jagd - Himmelfahrten

New Song On Sunday

 

Golden Bug is the stage name of Antoine Harispuru, a French music producer and DJ. I like his music, which is a unique mix of electronica, disco dub and psychedelia. During the week he released his latest album Piscolabis II.

The new tracks are wilder and the rhythms are heavier than on the previous album. The guitars of Lionel from The Limiñanas are sharp and the distorted grooves of the drum machines convey strange electronic impulses. 

The best example is L'Effet Domino, on which Ennio Morricone meets echoing beats, spherical synths and the voice of Anna Jean. 

Strawberry Hotel

 

During the week Underworld released their new album and I was excited to see what they had to offer. The standards are high, considering the style-defining music they have released in the past.

And to be honest, I was disappointed after the first listen, but only because the expectations for new highlights were very high. It's probably because of the times, that we always expect new highlights, that things should go on and on and that we can no longer be satisfied if an artist only delivers one good product. 

The album contains enough tracks that sound familiar and would be hailed as great tracks by others. With other songs, Underworld try to integrate new worlds into their sound. For me, it's an album that I need to listen to several more times to fully appreciate the beauty of the songs.

A Friend's Recommendation

 

A few days ago I visited a long-time friend who plays bass in a local band in his rehearsal room. On the whole, I can't do much with their music, which is a mixture of speed-metal, noise rock and post punk, but I like their sound and enthusiasm live. 

A few years ago, I asked him which album from this genre he could recommend to me so that I could immerse myself more deeply in this type of music. He then recommended Dances Curses by Hey Colossus.  

Hey Colossus is an English rock band and active since more than 20 years. They are known for noise rock, to which they add elements of krautrock, psychedelic rock and post-punk. On Dances Curses they often play with three guitars, creating a solid foundation for their musical experiments. As a whole, the double album is bulky and not light fare. But individual tracks stand out, such as Donkey Jaw, on which they move along the post-punk road, or on The Mirror, to which Mark Lanegan breathes new life into the blues with his spoken words.

Hey Colossus - The Mirror

Hey Colossus - Tied In A Firing Line

Hey Colossus - Donkey Jaw

A Distant Shore

 

In 1982, the music scene diverged. Grandmaster Flash brought us hip hop with The Message, new wave synth pop conquered the charts, The Pogues brought us their version of Irish music, The Smiths were a big hit with their melancholy and Primal Scream were working on a new sound. 

But one album stands out from the crowd in retrospect. Tracey Thorn, who some people knew from the Marine Girls, an English post-punk band, released her debut album. 

She had already written some of her own songs back then, which she didn't want to release with the Marine Girls and only recorded with herself on guitar and a few overdubs. Basically, they are very personal love songs in which she used her expressive voice to prevent them from coming across as cheesy. 

Whenever I was looking for an album that contained calm and great songs, I regularly turned to this one. Even today, the album is still convincing and gave me an idea of what this voice is capable of. And anyone who dares to cover Velvet's Femme Fatale without failing can't be bad.

Tracey Thorn - Small Town Girl

Tracey Thorn - Femme Fatale

Tracey Thorn - New Opened Eyes

Hey Joe

 

58 years ago today, Jimi Hendrix recorded Hey Joe, his first single, which was to make him famous worldwide. It reached top positions in all European charts, but flopped in the United States. 

As it's one of the most covered songs, I'd like to take the opportunity to list some of them here. Willy DeVille did a very good version transporting the blues into a Tex-Mex mariachi sound.

Patti Smith chose this song in 1977 for her first EP and has almost completely alienated the song with Tom Verlaine on guitar.

Wilson Pickett has proven that Hey Joe can also work as a soul number.

There were always artists who tried to render the song in their own language. One of them was Wolle Kriwanek, an artist from my area who never rose above the status of a local great and recorded it as blues sung in Swabian in the early 1980's.

Johnny Hallyday, a French rock 'n' roll and pop artist did the same in the 70's.

Deep Purple covered this song in their very early days and have given the song a bombastic organ sound. 

I know that there are many other versions, but this will suffice for now.

Bureau

 

Harald Grosskopf is a German drummer, musician and keyboarder who has played with various Krautrock bands for more than 50 years. Now he released his latest album Strom, on which he once again explores the possibilities of electronic music. 

Nothing really groundbreaking, but with its flair for contemporary electronic excursions, it is far above the average of other releases. Bureau convinces with a rich, driving rhythm over which he skilfully layers synthesizers.