A few good times in my life
Copenhagen's Anders Trentemøller is back with a few more tracks from his upcoming album and he turned into darker and noisy style. A track that features another side of him. There is nothing to add to the press information to this song:
A hooky bass line opens the track, ultimately taunting whip-crack drums into entering an unabating duel. Oscillating echoes materialize, like murmurs from the netherworld, eventually culminating into actual voices.
Last week Drew posted that a copy of a new vinyl arrived at his place. I didn't knew that Pete Namlook's album Air from 1993 was re-released so I checked out my CD and listened to this once again. Peter Kuhlmann is a German ambient and electronic-music producer and composer and released as Pete Namlook more than 100 solo albums and collaborations. Air is an overlooked beauty in ambient and solar drone music. Led by slow electronic groove and accented guitar licks the songs are suitable for a one hour trip into space.
Pete Namlook - Wind
Another few songs from the era where female vocalists were big in business and simply greats songs were released. The first one is by Lesley Gore, a singer where Quincy Jones got aware in 1963 and the result of several test takes was her greatest hit - It's My Party. To the other ones I doesn't have to lose many words. Martha Reeves had many hit singles with The Vandellas and Nina Simone stands for everything a female soul voice should have.
Lesley Gore - It's My Party
Martha Reeves and the Vandellas - Dancing In The Streets
Nina Simone - Ain't Got No - I Got Life
The Jazz Butcher - Southern Mark Smith (Original 45)
The Jazz Butcher - We Love You (The Great Awakening)
Jasper Van't Hof - Pili Pili
Wolf Alice are back and released another song from their last album Blue Weekend. And one more time the song lives by the voice of Ellie Rowsell. She is able to sound between Sarah Nixey from Black Box Recorder and Sarah Cracknell from Saint Etienne. The sound is still the same - a washed-out wall of sound with guitars and a few electronics. Also nice listening to her experiences on the west-coast.
In the early 80's Manchester's Inca Babies appeared on the scene with a great fresh kind of post-punk and Rock and Roll. I was surprised what these kids are able to do because seldom in these days I heard this kind of mixing genres and influences by Link Wray, The Cramps of The Birthday Party with the energy of new wave. The spine of their sound was a deep rolling bass combined with sharp guitar riffs and drifty drums - perfect for three minute hymns.
The Inca Babies - Opus Den 1985 Hulme
The Inca Babies - Devil In My Room
The Inca Babies - She Mercenary
Now they are back with a new record and it seems they didn't lost their power.
It was a few weeks ago when I got a sampler by girl groups from the 60's. This bought was full of classics from times long gone by but listening to them after all these years it is a great fun. So I decided to make a little series out of it. The CD's were full of great voices from both sides of the ocean and maybe you call me nostalgic but these songs were part of my musical education and there is no reason not to feature them at this time. Most of the songs were simple but with great hooks or a voice that was outstanding. I think I don't have to say much because you might know and probably like these songs. If it turns you back to some better days (when we didn't discussed our today's problems) I feel happy.
Aretha Franklin - I Say A Little Prayer
The Crystals - Then He Kissed Me
Gloria Jones - Tainted Love
José Gonzalez, a Gothenburg born son of Argentine immigrants is one of those artists that makes a kind of music that is hard to describe. Influenced in his young days by hardcore bands like Black Flag and later by Joy Division (Love Will Tear Us Apart is a regular part of encores in his live appearances) he turned the last years into singer/songwriter genre. During the last years he released some remarkable folk songs torn between Nick Drake and Paul Simon. What make them different from many others is his languorous singing and picked acoustic guitar playing. He released his last album Local Valley a few months ago and now DJ Koze remixed Tjomme (what means dude) and the result is Caribian/Balearic groove. A song to let the sun in.
Höga Nord Records from Gothenburg, Sweden is one of those record labels that are fantastic for me releasing great electronic music - especially re-releases from bands I never heard before. The last one I found was Lovin Hell an EP originally released in 2016 by Vox Low a band from Paris. Their dark sound is somewhere between cold, minimal Cologne techno and post-punk guitars like JAMC did. One of the best findings this year
Jonas Wehner aka Warm Graves, a Leipzig based collective, announced a few days ago the release of their new album in spring 2022 after their first release almost nine years ago. Since then he played their atmospheric and wide sound on various festivals in Europe. Based on krautrock bands like NEU! they are back with repetitive drum grooves, dramatic organ sound and echoed chorus inviting to a trip into space. A new name but worth to investigate.
Since the long gone by days of The Pale Fountains I follow the releases of Michael Head because of his abilities of writing fantastic songs. If it was with Shack or with The Red Elastic Band he always wrote timeless songs. Sadly he didn't got the recognition he should have and he is still another artist for insiders. Maybe because he had a lot to work to get rid of using drugs he wasn't featured but every couple of years he releases an album that was far over the average of many others. The last one he released was Adios Senor Pussycat four years ago and it is full of personal life-affirming songs and it one of those albums I can listen to from the start to the end. For me a perfect start into a wet autumn Sunday.
Michael Head & The Red Elastic Bank - Picasso
Michael Head & The Red Elastic Bank - Josephine
Jesse Fahnestock a Swedish producer and DJ is the mastermind behind the project 10:40 who brought us with Sleepwalker one of the best EP's from electronic beats. On Sleepwalker he re mixed another song by Spacemen 3 after after How Does It Feel almost six month ago. Both songs were released originally on Spacemen 3's third album Playing With Fire. Both songs were remixed on a down-tempo dub floor and both worth to give them more than a listen. Another remixes by great songs from an underrated album.
Soul is a genre you might love or not but sometimes artists appear building bridges from the classic sound of blues and gospel inspired music to a very own kind of psych-rock and hip hop. Curtis Harding shows on If Words Are Flowers what today's soul music can be. A smooth and voluminous voice drifting between all named genres. Perfect arranged songs shows the acoustic spectrum that modern soul could offer. Full horn sections meet guitar licks and wah-wah sounds. Sometimes I think Stevie Wonder meets Jimi Hendrix or other psychedelic guitarists. If you decide to get a modern soul album from this year go and get it (otherwise you can own the latest Sault album).
Last week Swiss Adam featured Coyote a Nottingham based duo riding the Balearic way in a very high class way. Their album Mystery Light is the perfect soundtrack for a relaxed evening when you allow your mind drifting into other spheres. I will enjoy this sound until I find myself at the beach in near future.
Another new song was released that reminded me by it's title to a song from decades long passed by. Hush was a song by Joe South and got popular by Deep Purple in the late 60's. Now Maria Zardoya, Puerto Rica and now in Los Angeles living singer released a song with the same title as The Marias. But the sound couldn't be more different. Her smoke-velvet vocals over a pulsing electronic beat with some guitar chords makes this song an outstanding indie-pop song.
A few days ago I found in my vinyl collection Ry Cooder's live album Show Time from 1977 again. I have to admit that I always had an open ear for the music of his music. From his early days as a well known session musician over his first albums with eclectic song collections to his steps towards to world music and soundtracks he always made the songs he played on unique. This album was recorded in the period when he celebrated his Chicken Skin Music a melange of classic folk songs and new ones played with Mexican and Hawaiian musicians and it shows all the abilities a guitar player could have. Listening to these songs again he is one of the most influential and underrated guitar player ever and I will go on listening to his soundtracks and collaborations with Wim Wenders later.
Ry Cooder - Jesus On The Mainline
Ry Cooder - Viva Sequin / Do Re Me
Ry Cooder - How Can A Poor Man Stand Such Times And Live This
No, this is not about one of Bruce Springsteen's greatest songs. This Thunder Road is by Martinou, a Swedish DJ and producer and taken from his latest album Rift. His music is stamped by conventions of house and techno but he reduced speed and create a flow and groove of something sublime. One of the best in this genre this year.
I can't resist to feature the great storyteller with Thunder Road right now.
Two songs today that came first to my ears a few days ago that made me believe that it is possible to make great pop songs still. The first one is from Alewya Demisse, a 25 year old Saudi Arabia born singer/songwriter, producer, model and multidisciplinary artist now living in London. I first got aware of her with her first single Sweating from last year. Now she is back with Play where minimalist polyrhythmic sound where combined with almost spoken words. Remarkable how light-footed the piece intertwines current African club sounds with the legacy of the dub in British club music.
„What happened to the boys we fucked with at school
Now you’re in love with a man the same age as your dad
And i’m in love with a girl that I can’t stand“
Since 1995 Japanese psychedelic rock collective Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. hold the flag of space music very high. During the years they released various albums with the aim travelling the galaxy for spaced out sounds influenced by late 60's progressive rock and a massive package of krautrock. Earlier this year they released their album Leviation Sessions another noisy trip into space. Not the worst way to start into the new month.
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