Thought that us Europeans had the monopoly on dreamy electro-pop? Turn your head around and think again, monsieur!
I managed to come across this rather marvellous fellow on MySpace earlier today called Jamie Long. And boy-howdy has he struck gold. Throwing together dreamy synths, a handful of fuzzy guitars and an ample portion of brooding and downbeat vocals he creates a wonderful music pie your ears will never have too much of.
Especially enjoyable to listen to is 'Pool House' which has an intro that you just don't want to end that sounds like it's just flown in from Stockholm, so it's no surprise then that perennial favourites 'The Sound of Arrows' of got their hands on his work and offered up their very own wonderful remix of 'Years.'
If you go to his MySpace page (linked up top, like) you should be able to find a link to get an absolutely free download of 'Pool House' and 'Monaco.' Yay!
Also in the news today: I got my clammy hands on this latest piece from SebastiAn, 'Threnody.' Hmm, usually I can get down to his futuristic sounds, but on this record, do we really need 11(!) minutes if build up, don't get me wrong when it gets going I think it's pretty tasty, but I could have done without 11 minutes of pure engine noise.
Now, off to start thinking about what should make it into my luurve mix for Valentine's Day.
Friday, 29 January 2010
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Good dog!
Ikea and Henrik Larsson?
No, there is in fact more to Sweden than thes etwo fine exports. We can now add Labrador, self proclaimed best purveyors of pop music in the world, to that illustrious list.
But you might be thinking, 'whoah there, Johnny Big-Balls. That's quite a boast.' And, yeah, it is quite a big statement to call yourselves the best in the world, but you know what, they're not far off.
First up, let's take a look at [ingenting]. I must say that these guys are pretty brave to only sing in Swedish because ut's not exactly the route to stardom, especially since the biggest markets are anglophone. But, despite not knowing what they're on about, they still make some good music, especially with the booming 'Halleluja.'
Then we have 'The Mary Onettes,' described as the missing link between 'A-ha' and 'The Jesus and Mary Chain,' so I'm guessing that's where they took the 'mary' from in their name. I'm going to throw another name in the mix too, 'The Smiths,' especially on the track 'Void.' All in all, nice sounds!
Radio Dept have already been covered elsewhere recently so I'll leave them be, but they are good too, and incidentally playing at Emmabodafestivalen, which I might have to mosy in over too, if not for them then for the Ed Banger party in the woods, and it's only £60-odd which is dirt cheap.
And once more, for old times sake, 'The Sound of Arrows' and their quite ridiculously amazing song, and video, 'Into the Clouds.' Now, that is what pop music should sound like, end of!
No, there is in fact more to Sweden than thes etwo fine exports. We can now add Labrador, self proclaimed best purveyors of pop music in the world, to that illustrious list.
But you might be thinking, 'whoah there, Johnny Big-Balls. That's quite a boast.' And, yeah, it is quite a big statement to call yourselves the best in the world, but you know what, they're not far off.
First up, let's take a look at [ingenting]. I must say that these guys are pretty brave to only sing in Swedish because ut's not exactly the route to stardom, especially since the biggest markets are anglophone. But, despite not knowing what they're on about, they still make some good music, especially with the booming 'Halleluja.'
Then we have 'The Mary Onettes,' described as the missing link between 'A-ha' and 'The Jesus and Mary Chain,' so I'm guessing that's where they took the 'mary' from in their name. I'm going to throw another name in the mix too, 'The Smiths,' especially on the track 'Void.' All in all, nice sounds!
Radio Dept have already been covered elsewhere recently so I'll leave them be, but they are good too, and incidentally playing at Emmabodafestivalen, which I might have to mosy in over too, if not for them then for the Ed Banger party in the woods, and it's only £60-odd which is dirt cheap.
And once more, for old times sake, 'The Sound of Arrows' and their quite ridiculously amazing song, and video, 'Into the Clouds.' Now, that is what pop music should sound like, end of!
Friday, 22 January 2010
Let's Get Critical!
Ok boys and girls. we've had some good fun so far, but it's even more fun when we learn at the same time!
Noam Chomsky. He gets around a bit doen't he? Sticking his oar in left, right and centre, although if my oar had as much knowledge and insight to offer I'd be shoving it up in everyone's faces.
Before know, the only time I'd really heard anyone talk about Noam Chomsky was on Russell Brand's old BBC Radio 2 show, which, by the way, was scandalously cancelled after just a little bit of nonsense with an answer machine, he literally used to be the highlight of my week. Anyway, he'd mention him now and again, not really sure why, and say how great he was.
Well, now he can see why. He quite literally has a C.V. which is not only longer than your arm, but probably longer than your leg too, I'd say it would come about to about shoulder height on your average Dutchman.
I don't think there is a title you can give him that will really do his contribution to modern society justice, with his groundbreaking advances in linguistics, that I won't even try to explain here since it is beyond my tiny, little mind, impact on modern psychology and strong political views which have seen him somewhat marginalised, politically at least, in the U.S. which isn't wholly surprising given the very conservative nature of the US.
I could very easily write about Mr. Chomsky for pages and pages, but I'm almost certain you will find much better profiles elsewhere on the Internet, or even in a library, you know, that place with actual books that are so much easier to read than computer screens and don't mess up your eyes.
Anyhow, a while back the good people at VBS had a chat with Noam where they cover many interesting issues. Not least President Obama. And I think he raises an interesting point regarding his followers because I feel that when the hard times come it is more than likely that his loyal supporters will fall away and just add to the apathetic masses. Personally, I could understand why people would do this, such is the lack of any real political diversity these days because although he seems to be taking steps in the right direction, the U.S.A will still remain a capitalist's playground.
For those of you who have made it this far, here is the full interview between Noam Chomsky and VBS.
Enjoy!
Noam Chomsky. He gets around a bit doen't he? Sticking his oar in left, right and centre, although if my oar had as much knowledge and insight to offer I'd be shoving it up in everyone's faces.
Before know, the only time I'd really heard anyone talk about Noam Chomsky was on Russell Brand's old BBC Radio 2 show, which, by the way, was scandalously cancelled after just a little bit of nonsense with an answer machine, he literally used to be the highlight of my week. Anyway, he'd mention him now and again, not really sure why, and say how great he was.
Well, now he can see why. He quite literally has a C.V. which is not only longer than your arm, but probably longer than your leg too, I'd say it would come about to about shoulder height on your average Dutchman.
I don't think there is a title you can give him that will really do his contribution to modern society justice, with his groundbreaking advances in linguistics, that I won't even try to explain here since it is beyond my tiny, little mind, impact on modern psychology and strong political views which have seen him somewhat marginalised, politically at least, in the U.S. which isn't wholly surprising given the very conservative nature of the US.
I could very easily write about Mr. Chomsky for pages and pages, but I'm almost certain you will find much better profiles elsewhere on the Internet, or even in a library, you know, that place with actual books that are so much easier to read than computer screens and don't mess up your eyes.
Anyhow, a while back the good people at VBS had a chat with Noam where they cover many interesting issues. Not least President Obama. And I think he raises an interesting point regarding his followers because I feel that when the hard times come it is more than likely that his loyal supporters will fall away and just add to the apathetic masses. Personally, I could understand why people would do this, such is the lack of any real political diversity these days because although he seems to be taking steps in the right direction, the U.S.A will still remain a capitalist's playground.
For those of you who have made it this far, here is the full interview between Noam Chomsky and VBS.
Enjoy!
Tuesday, 19 January 2010
Funland!
G'day.
It seems that nowadays the Finns have given up tango dancing and sauna competitions and are now making music, with Renaissance Man and LCMDF seemingly the main culprits, and selling it to the rest of Europe. Yay!
But, wait! Who's this galloping in from the horizon? It's Husky Rescue. I say galloping, more waiting patiently for us foriegners to recognise them as they are soon to release their third studio album and have been together for nearly 8 years now.
Anyway, I got their free track 'We Shall Burn Bright' the other day and I'm quite enjoying it. It's a bit like Air France, but on a dark and slightly nightmarish LSD trip with it's whispered vocals and ominous tone which sort of reminds you of Goblin. So, yeah, it's definitely Finnish.
In other news, the votes are in and, with a little help from me old pal Joe, have been counteed and with a staggering 147.2% of the vote the winner was more Ed Rec gear. In second was rekkid spinning software with 72.5%, which ordinarily would be enough for victory in a four way race, but I guess it wasn't meant to be.
To play us out, a really beautiful version of 'Ray Ban Glasses.'
It seems that nowadays the Finns have given up tango dancing and sauna competitions and are now making music, with Renaissance Man and LCMDF seemingly the main culprits, and selling it to the rest of Europe. Yay!
But, wait! Who's this galloping in from the horizon? It's Husky Rescue. I say galloping, more waiting patiently for us foriegners to recognise them as they are soon to release their third studio album and have been together for nearly 8 years now.
Anyway, I got their free track 'We Shall Burn Bright' the other day and I'm quite enjoying it. It's a bit like Air France, but on a dark and slightly nightmarish LSD trip with it's whispered vocals and ominous tone which sort of reminds you of Goblin. So, yeah, it's definitely Finnish.
In other news, the votes are in and, with a little help from me old pal Joe, have been counteed and with a staggering 147.2% of the vote the winner was more Ed Rec gear. In second was rekkid spinning software with 72.5%, which ordinarily would be enough for victory in a four way race, but I guess it wasn't meant to be.
To play us out, a really beautiful version of 'Ray Ban Glasses.'
Friday, 15 January 2010
¡Vámonos Chicas!
Whilst getting my daily intake of NME tv the other day a band called Music go Music popped up. Unfortunately, the first thought that came into my head was that they look like a band your mum and dad might have been in about 30 years ago, such were the hair and clothes. But, that could just have been their style because we all know how 'in' the 80's are right now.
But, I gave them a chance and whilst not exactly ground-breaking, they're nice enough. After all, you could do worse than take Abba and Blondie as your main influences and I'm sure they'll pick up a nice niche following and manage to play to some full crowds, albeit in small venues, for their upcoming London dates. Yet, I'm not sure they'll shift many records in the UK judging by what makes it into the charts these days.
Completely unrelated, but worth mentioning anyway, a while back DJ Mehdi released 'Black, Black and Black,' his bootleg remix album, as a prelude to his 'Red, Black and Blue' remix album and he was giving it away for free and if you haven't got it yet, it's on his blog.
But, I gave them a chance and whilst not exactly ground-breaking, they're nice enough. After all, you could do worse than take Abba and Blondie as your main influences and I'm sure they'll pick up a nice niche following and manage to play to some full crowds, albeit in small venues, for their upcoming London dates. Yet, I'm not sure they'll shift many records in the UK judging by what makes it into the charts these days.
Completely unrelated, but worth mentioning anyway, a while back DJ Mehdi released 'Black, Black and Black,' his bootleg remix album, as a prelude to his 'Red, Black and Blue' remix album and he was giving it away for free and if you haven't got it yet, it's on his blog.
Thursday, 14 January 2010
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