Archive for the ‘Earworm’ Category
Earworm: Memory Tapes “Treeship”
Monday, December 7th, 2009
Who: Memory Tapes
Sounds like: Well, not unlike the name suggests, dreamy, swirling soundscapes layered with wistful vocals and a melange of clapping percussion that gets as close to a musical score for the life that has passed you.
RIYL: Memory Cassette, Weird Tapes, Washed Out, Toro Y Moi, Air France, Delorean, Nite Jewel, Michel Gondry flicks
Need to know: Since his band Hail Social broke up a couple years back, New Jersey’s Dayve Hawk has been recording and releasing music under three monikers: Weird Tapes, Memory Cassette and Memory Tapes. He released the sold-out-within-seconds Memory Cassette EP Call & Response as well as a few free online EPs earlier this year. Now exclusively using Memory Tapes, Hawk recently released the universally adored Seek Magic LP, as well as a slew of remixes for Taken By Trees, Midnight Juggernauts, Britney Spears, Phoenix and most recently, Yeasayer. You can also pick up his remix of Dem Getaway Boyz’s “Imma G,” along with 16 others (including Flying Lotus, El-P and Hudson Mohawke remixing Gucci Mane, Young Jeezy and B.o.B., respectively) on the brand new [adult swim] mixtape, ATL RMX – download it here.
Track: “Treeship” was originally written for Rough Trade when they asked Hawk to whip up a mixtape. The song was given away on his blog, but also included as a bonus disc with the CD version of Seek Magic. You can see how he justified this as a valuable alternative, as Hawk fills the 22 minutes with as many progressions as the standard DJ mix yet manages to keep a smooth flow without any jarring effects. While it never reaches any sort of clear melodic arch, the shape-shifting textures and tones help add even more depth to Hawk’s already bottomless canon.
Buy: You can pick up the limited vinyl edition of Seek Magic here or the CD version here.
Tags: acephale, Dayve Hawk, Hail Social, Memory Cassette, Memory Tapes, sincerely yours, Weird Tapes, [adult swim]
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Earworm: Hurts “Wonderful Life”
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
Who: Hurts
Sounds like: Not to get lazy here but the Guardian’s Paul Lester said it best: “a boy-duo styled by Helmut Newton, directed by Anton Corbijn and produced by Trevor Horn on a Martin Hannett tip.” Or, in case all of those references mean nothing, silky-smooth, clean-cut, masculine synth pop that refuses to admit the days of New Romanticism ever ended.
RIYL: Pet Shop Boys, Roxy Music, Orlando, Ultravox, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Bronski Beat
Need to know: Hurts is Theo Hutchcraft (vocals), Adam Anderson (synths/guitar). Originally members of both Bureau and Daggers, the two teamed up with Biff Stannard (Kylie, Little Boots), who’s signed them to his Sony-affiliated Major Label label. Richard X (Annie, Sugababes) worked on a few of their songs when they were in Daggers. Theo and Adam are currently finishing their debut album in Sweden.
Track: “Wonderful Life” has the acute tone that made ’80s synth-based pop such a hit. But while retro throwbacks are all too conventional these days, Hurts aren’t afraid to dive deep into the decade without messing up their sharp, fitted suits and neat, angular coifs. Plus, it’s been ages since I’ve heard a band bleed a saxophone so mournfully without the aid of irony. And I firmly believe these guys aren’t at all ironic about anything.
Buy: Nothing yet.
Tags: Hurts
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Earworm: Javelin “Vibrationz”
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009
Who: Javelin
Sounds like: If Girl Talk did a complete 180 and left the Top 40, ’90s alt-rock and history of rap alone and dove knee deep into dusty crates of the most obscure, forgotten, feel-good sounds you’ve never heard.
RIYL: Girl Talk, J Dilla, The Very Best, Future Islands, Tom Tom Club, Think About Life’s Family, The Go! Team, Universal Studios Florida, Coldcut
Need to know: Tom van Buskirk and George Langford are cousins originally from Providence, Rhode Island and now inhabiting NYC. Their live set-up includes “boombaatas,” brightly coloured boombox totems and broadcasting live via FM transmitters. Their music is based on samples that are “re-contextualized” into, as the label calls it, a “mixtape fantasy.” Best of all, their EP comes in a custom, hand-painted sleeve from a recycled dollar bin treasure. They’re actually signed to both Thrill Jockey and Luaka Bop; the former will release their 12-inches, while the latter will release their full-length album. You can grab some of their podcast/mixes here and their Jamz n Jemz mixtape here. They turned The Very Best’s “Julia” into a road-trippin’ rock anthem that sounds both inappropriate and marvellous. Mos Def and Damon Dash joined them on stage the other night when they played with Sleigh Bells.
Track: “Vibrationz” is a fundamental party jam. Where Girl Talk crams his “songs” with so many bits and bobs, Javelin are far less obvious with their cutting and pasting, seamlessly fusing the samples together with little evidence that it isn’t an original.
Buy: You can pick up their self-titled 12-inch here.
Tags: boombaatas, Girl Talk, Jamz n Jemz, Javelin, Luaka Bop, Thrill Jockey, Vibrationz
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Earworm: Three Trapped Tigers “6″
Monday, November 23rd, 2009
Who: Three Trapped Tigers
Sounds like: An (artificially) emotionally charged mathematical post-rock band formed by Small Wonder’s V.I.C.I, Buck Rodgers in the 25th Century’s Twiki and Forbidden Planet’s Robby the Robot.
RIYL: Warp Records, Battles, Lightning Bolt, Salaryman, Boards of Canada, Holy Fuck, Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, 65daysofstatic
Need to know: Three Trapped Tigers is actually three live humans from London, England: Tom Rogerson, Adam Betts and Matt Calvert. They took their name from a book by Cuban writer Cabrera Infante. They’ve released two EPs so far, both containing songs that are numbered not named. Originally they were a duo, but Rogerson and Calvert ditched their synthetic laptop and brought in Betts to give the live sound more presence.
Track: Using an awesome video clip from ‘70s Japanese cult favourite kids show Kure Kure Takora (aka “Gimme Gimme Octopus”), “6” combines those idyllic, serene synths made famous by Boards of Canada with mind-blowing time signatures as tight and rambunctious as the almighty Battles. It’s almost impossible to believe there are only three of them pulling this off, especially Betts’ frenetic polyrhythms, which like he himself is an octopus.
Buy: You can buy the two EPs and other merch over at bloodandbiscuits.bigcartel.com.
Tags: Battles, Blood and Biscuits, Kure Kure Takora, Three Trapped Tigers
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Earworm: Kid Sister “You Ain’t Really Down”
Thursday, November 19th, 2009
Who: Kid Sister
Sounds like: Dancefloor-ready Chi-town electro-rap by a sassy female rapper.
RIYL: Spank Rock, Amanda Blank, M.I.A., Nicki Minaj, Kanye West, Cool Kids
Need to know: The track “You Ain’t Really Down” is off Kid Sister’s long-delayed debut album Ultraviolet, which also features the infectious, should-have-been-a-much-bigger-hit “Pro Nails” featuring Kanye West. In addition to being a charismatic, high-energy rapper in a world where the female MC has become an endangered species, Kid Sister is also the girlfriend of Kanye West’s tour DJ, A-Trak, and the sister of DJ J2K of Flosstradamus.
Track: A cover of Status IV’s “You Ain’t Really Down,” Kid Sister’s version sounds like early ’90s female R&B empowerment for the 21st century. In terms of production, the song is full of snaps, Jason Nevins vs. RUN-DMC-style synth horn hits, old-school scratches and 808 drums. As for Kid Sister’s part, the rapper eschews her usual “Kanye-like rhymes” for a rare turn at singing. With her tone and abundance of vocal runs and harmonies, the song has an En Vogue feel that corresponds with its timeless subject matter: a man whose love was insincere.
Buy: Kid Sister’s album Ultraviolet was released on November 17th and is widely available.
- Jason Richards
Tags: A-Trak, Downtown, Flosstradamus, Kanye West, Kid Sister, Ultraviolet
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Earworm: Beach House “Norway”
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
Who: Beach House
Sounds like: The kind of music you hear while going under anaesthesia for your wisdom teeth.
RIYL: Galaxie 500, Damon & Naomi, Mazzy Star, Brightblack Morning Light, sleeping pills, Cocteau Twins, Grizzly Bear
Need to know: Beach House is the Baltimore-based duo of Alex Scally and Victoria Legrand. After releasing two breathtaking albums on the Carpark label, they signed with Sub Pop this summer. A brand new album titled Teen Dream is scheduled for release on January 26, 2010. They recently finished a tour with pals Grizzly Bear, who Victoria sang back up for on their single “Two Weeks” and “Slow Life,” which is featured on the New Moon soundtrack. Pitchfork loves Beach House almost as much as Grizzly Bear.
Track: According to Gorilla Vs Bear, “Norway” was written after during a train ride through some Norwegian mountains. It makes complete sense – there’s a strong pastoral feeling to the tranquil melodies emanating from the dizzying synths and guitars, which are treated with pitch-bending effects. What’s most notable though is the tempo, which is frolicking compared to their usual snail’s pace as well as the broadened richness in Victoria’s voice.
Buy: Teen Dream isn’t out till the new year, but you can pick up “Norway” for free here. Plus Insound has everything else from the band here.
Tags: Beach House, Carpark, grizzly bear, Norway, Sub Pop, Victoria Legrand
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Earworm: Róisín Murphy “Orally Fixated”
Thursday, November 12th, 2009
Who: Róisín Murphy
Sounds like: Lady Gaga, if she tried to make music as “edgy” as her radical outfits. (Many have said Gaga nicked her style from Murphy, an avant-garde fashion icon in her own right.) But given the kind of forward-looking pop Róisín has been making for nearly 15 years, it feels like a slight comparing such an envelope pusher to a poser like Gaga.
RIYL: Moloko, Grace Jones, La Roux, Black Box, Goldfrapp, Robyn, Sia
Need to know: Róisín got her start as the vocalist for the late, great UK dance duo Moloko. Together they had a bunch of hits including “Sing It Back,” “The Time Is Now” and my personal favourite, “Familiar Feeling.” When she and Mark Brydon split, Róisín embarked on a celebrated solo career that has seen her release two brilliant albums. A new album is expected in 2010, after Róisín is done expecting – she’s apparently due to give birth any second now.
Track: “Orally Fixated” is likely what you think it’s about, considering it opens with the echoing words, “Eat me,” and dives head first into innuendos like, “You never feel full and frankly it’s dull / Because it’s always about you” and “You’ve got to give your mouth a rest.” Ahem. While this sort of overt sexuality is usually left to provocative stars like Britney Spears (see recent single “3”), Róisín fits the role like a glove thanks to the energy of the music. Throwing it back to ‘80s Italo house and electro, Róisín is as much fixated on an ADHD effect, using arpeggiating synths and microsampling, which provides a rush of jump cut noises. Who said pregnant ladies should take it easy?
Buy: Nothing to buy yet, but you can grab the track for free either here or here.
- Cam Lindsay
Tags: Lady Gaga, Moloko, Orally Fixated, Róisín Murphy
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Earworm: The Girls At Dawn “It’s the Only Time”
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
Who: The Girls At Dawn
Sounds like: Three girls from the Langley Schools Music Project snuck into Gold Star Studios, messed around with the gear and ended up achieving Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound without any clue of how they did it.
RIYL: ’60s girl groups, Langley Schools Music Project, Phil Spector, Ronettes, Dum Dum Girls, The Mayfair Set, Grass Widow, Shangri-La’s, Best Coast, The Shaggs, most of what Captured Tracks and Hozac Records release
Need to know: There isn’t a whole lot. Three girls from Brooklyn - Erin (guitar/vocals), Ana (bass/vocals), Sarah (percussion/ vocals) - who make hauntingly pretty, harmonic lo-fi. They released their first single Never Enough/Every Night on Hozac and have a new self-titled 12-inch EP coming out on Mike Sniper’s Captured Tracks label.
Track: “It’s the Only Time” is pop music at its most barebones and rudimentary, sounding not just like a first take, but possibly the first time they’ve picked up these instruments. But the amateurishness gives it an irresistible charm, especially when it’s stifled it with noxious levels of reverb.
Buy: You can order their new EP here.
Tags: Captured Tracks, Hozac, The Girls At Dawn
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Earworm: Comanechi “On and On (Babe Rainbow remix)”
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
Who: Comanechi, Babe Rainbow
Sounds like: Comanechi – gnarly, distorted fury rock, fronted by fearless drummer/vocalist Akiko Matsuura; Babe Rainbow – hauntingly slothful beatscapes self-described as “surf-step.”
RIYL: Royal Trux, Coachwhips, early Be Your Own Pet, Japanther, Selected Ambient Works, SALEM, Hyperdub
Need to know: Comanechi is a two-piece from Hackney, England comprised of Akiko and guitarist Simon Petrovitch. Their debut single “My Pussy” was surprisingly about a kitty cat… I think. According to FACT, Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon was inspired to say Comanechi made her “want to punch holes in Thurston [Moore]’s face until she can f**k it”, and Beth Ditto from Gossip says they’ll be the reason she plans to “start killing people in 2010.” Quite the colourful kudos. Babe Rainbow, on the other hand, is British Columbian Cameron Reed, the 27-year-old mastermind behind Vancouver’s Music Waste festival and newly-signed Warp Records artist (whoa!). He has a blog that’s my idea of eye candy: random posts about cool shit.
Track: Originally a slow-burning, fuzz-driven rock’n’roll dirge, Babe Rainbow flips “On and On” into a droning, sizzurp-induced dream sequence that sounds like he’s drained everything – the hostility, the snarl, the guitars, the sex – but the faint melody out of it.
Buy: Comanechi’s loooooonnnnnnnggggg-awaited debut album Crime Of Love is out on December 7th via Merok, the label responsible for discovering Klaxons, Crystal Castles and The Teenagers. You can pre-order it here. Babe Rainbow’s EP will be released by Warp eventually.
- Cam Lindsay
Tags: Akiko Matsuura, Babe Rainbow, Cameron Reed, Comanechi, merok, On and On (Babe Rainbow remix), Simon Petrovitch, Warp
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Earworm: Blakroc feat. Raekwon “Stay Off The F**kin Flowers”
Monday, November 9th, 2009
Who: Blackroc featuring Raekwon
Sounds like: Classic, twisted Wu-Tang funk with murky, progressive live instrumentation.
RIYL: Raekwon, Wu-Tang Clan, The Black Keys, Danger Mouse, Beck, Gnarls Barkley, DJ Shadow, Jay-Z (specifically “99 Problems”), Black Lips.
Need to know: The concept of rock and rap joining forces has an indelible stigma attached to it, and for good reason. Anyone who’s lived through the likes of limpbizkit, Korn, Project Wyze (remember them?) etc, knows how awful music can get when you combine metal riffs with rap vocals. It’s the “chocolate ice cream and turkey” principle - independently, they can be delicious, but combine them and the result is liable to be disgusting.
So when Ohio-based blues rock duo The Black Keys announced that they were working with Jay-Z’s former business partner Dame Dash to create Blakroc, a collaborative project featuring a strong lineup of rap guests including Mos Def, RZA, Pharoahe Monch and Q-Tip, it didn’t sound like the best idea.
Fortunately, recent attempts to merge the two genres in the world of independent music have yeilded far more tasteful results than the major label-fuelled rock-rap movement of the early ’00s. For examples, Kid Koala’s turntablism-meets-grunge project The Slew, whose touring band included former members of Wolfmother, and the Black Lips’ psych-rap song with GZA of the Wu-Tang Clan, “The Drop I Hold.”
Perhaps inspired by the GZA’s experimentation, Raekwon joins The Black Keys on the first single from their Blackroc project, the aggressively-named “Stay Off The Fuckin Flowers”. And you know what? It’s not half-bad.
Track: On “Stay Off The F**kin Flowers” Raekwon’s chorus-less flow tells yet another hard-to-follow crime-kingpin tale rife with cryptic yet memerizing Shaolin slang. The dirty, slow blues-funk backing track works really well with the storytelling format - The Black Keys’ evolving arrangement accentuates the action and add to the narrative thrust.
Buy: Nothing yet, but Blakroc’s album is slated for a November 27th release.
- Jason Richards
Tags: Blackroc, Dame Dash, Raekwon, The Black Keys, Wu-Tang Clan
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