A Brief Musical History

It's interesting how listening habits change through time.  Back when I was at school, you were either a 'grunge' kid, although not actually grunge it was more 'nu metal,' or you listened to modern commercial r'n'b and hip hop.  The idea that you would listen to more than one type of music was just so incredibly incomprehensible that the people who did so were outcasted.  Then, gradually as we moved into years 12 and 13 people would start to broaden their horizons a bit and when requested to name musical interests on Facebook, would generally say, 'a bit of everything,' even though that only really meant anything you'd hear in any average 'student' club.

However, despite these declarations of liking everything, tastes were still pretty conservative as the 'grunge' kids had well and truly forgotten their roots and in some cases jumped off the music train altogether, and at the time, I saw no reason to be any different.  Gradually, I moved over into 'electro' thanks mainly to Justice, but I didn't really immerse myself in it.

Then, something wonderful happened, a Christmas miracle you could say.  Around Christmas time 2008 my cousin played a few tracks for me that just blew my mind.  They were the Erol Alkan's extended rework of 'Veronica's Veil', Aeroplane's remix of 'Paris' and 'Switchblade' by Heartsrevolution.  I just couldn't get enough.  It was at this stage that I realised that there actually is really good music out there, there was life beyond Radio 1!  So, I spend the next few months hunting high and low for music, reading blogs and such, but I was still fairly narrow minded.  It was only when discovering that electro demi-gods Busy P and DJ Mehdi cited credible rock bands and hip hop artists as influences whilst still making bangin' electro that I realised you are actually allowed to like anything you want. 




But, the greatest demonstration I have seen/heard of this was when I was at the Decked Out 10th anniversary party when Erol Alkan and Xavier De Rosnay were on the decks.  After getting ridiculously sweaty ravin' it up to some epic Justice tracks and other huge tunes for about an hour, on comes 'Roxanne,' and it went down an absolute treat.  The place went wild, no trace of people turning round to each other saying, 'what the f***!'  Everyone was just able to appreciate it for the good track it is.

However, not everyone lives by this philosophy.  It was our Halloween party, the stereos were hijacked by the girls, but I saw my opportunity to change the musical direction for the night and to my surprise and delight I saw that my housemate had a Late Of The Pier track, 'Broken' if you're interested, on her mp3 player, so I played it without delay, only for someone to say, ‘What is this shit?!'  My heart sank and I slowly proceeded to the drinks table to console myself.
 

Typical Germans

Everyone knows Germans right?  Always surrounding arbiters, cheating their way to semi-finals, I'm not bitter, and being connoiseurs of beer.  Well, you'll be glad to here these guys are completely atypical, although I can't say for certain that they don't know their way around a decent ale.

Yes, 'Leeds Club' really are something very different.  They are pretty tough to pin down, track 'Get Replaced II' sounds a lil' bit country and a little too like 'Tenacious D,'  but don't let that fool you into thinking they're a bit of a comedy band.  It also doesn't mean it's a bit of a shit song, it definitely has some bopping and foot tapping potential.



They also have some pretty heavy blues influences which they are able to combine with some nice hard and fast guitars and drum beats.  Although, I would say that the vocals definitely sound better when singer Christian doesn't try to hard, at the moment he sounds a bit like he's trying to be Elvis, perhaps trying to cover his accent.  I very much prefer how he sounds in the very first line of 'Bat Cat.'  I don't mind getting my lyrics with a German accent.

It would appear that they are currently unsigned, but they've been getting some good reviews back in Germany so that situatioin could change.  And if you like them too, then they've got some free songs to give away, so snap them up quicksmart.

Miami Horror

Hola y bienvenidos.

Hoy quiero hablar de Miami Horror.  El primero vez que escuché Miami Horror (back to English now, the Spanish may not have been overly marvellous anyway) was well over a year ago now, so even if you hadn't heard of them then, you probably have now.  Who knows why it's taken me so long to talk about them, but it's definitely not because they're no good.

Hailing from the land down under, or not depending on where you're reading this from, but just to avoid any confusion, they are Australian.  They make a rather cool brand of disco-y electropop, which helps to distinguish them from other wondiferous Australians such as Cut Copy, Midnight Juggernauts and Jason Donovan.

As of yet they've only cracked out one EP, Bravado, and a couple of other singles, Sometimes and Moon Theory.



That there track is from said EP and is probably my favourite track.  Although I would definitely push you in the direction of the Cassian remix of Don't Be On With Her.

By all accounts le album is very much on the way and judging by their two latest singles that have been released after Bravado, I would think they've spent a lot of time listening to In Ghost Colours, which is no bad thing at all.  If I managed to make an album that sounded like that I'd be dead chuffed.

Other reasons to like them?  Well, they supported Phoenix on their latest Australian tour and anyone with the Phoenix seal of approval has to be worth listening to!  It is however a little disappointing to see they haven't managed to get/don't want any gigs in Europe, but I'm sure they'll jump on the ferry one day rock the shit out of Shoreditch.

2-For-Tuesday

And no, I'm not referring to a deal offered by a well known pizza making establishment.

Well that match was a huge let down.  I know we saw a great individual performance, but it was nowhere near as exciting as last weeks 2-2 draw which was so good, I felt like I should have been watching it with my trousers around my ankles.

How to recover from such disappointment? 

How about some reverb-laden yet surprisingly upbeat Hungarian indie-pop/rock?

'You read my mind perfectly!'

Well then, you could do a lot worse than listen to Evil Men Have No Songs. They are pretty darn good, I tells ya.  Comme j'ai déjà dit, they specialise in making songs with plenty of reverb, but still provide audible lyrics.  I say 'they,' but as far as I can tell, this is, for now at least, a project of this one guy called 'RP.'  Finding stuff about him/them/it was practically impossible so all I can really go on for info is the myspace page.

However, that is no reason to despair because they have released a four track EP from their website and it is completely, absolutely, 100% (fat) free.  Ya cannae say ferer then tha'!

I'd get now if I were you.

But, don't go just yet.  There is more still.  They have released a single on french based label Beko DSL, which is also free.  The eagle eyed among you will remember that these guys also released a Jamie Long single a while back, who is also really good so you know that these/this guy(s) will be awesome too.

Oh and I also managed to listen to Jónsi's new album 'Go' and I thought it was pretty good.  Epic is probably the best word to describe it, but it does have a few more up tempo tracks like 'Go Do,' 'Animal Arithmetic' and 'Around Us' so you don't have to sit in an an empty white room, dressed in white while wearing  sunglasses looking deep in thought to listen to it.

Au revoir!

ViceStyle

Don't you just love it when people are really nice and say stuff that leaves you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.  I got a bit of that today and it actually made my day.  Not that that is any great achievement, seeing as my day has consisted of playing my Game Boy, quick visit to the shops and the gym.

Rock and roll.

Actually, that's a lie, I have done some rock and roll stuff.  Mainly learning how to play Daft Punk and Justice on the piano.  I'm not doing to badly for someone with no previous musical experience, but my brain does go into a bit of a meltdown when I try to play left and right hand at the same time.

This weekend as I'm sure you're all aware was a super important and sacred weekend for many.  That's right, it saw the launch of ViceStyle and I must say it does look rather impressive and sleek.  Personally, I was immediately drawn to the news item regarding some super awesome Air Jordan 1 Retro KO Hi shoes, but it seems I've missed out.  There are also some cool converses too.

Anyhow, it's also jam-packed full of other cool stuff, including an interview with Jean-Charles de Castalbajac.  Yeah, me neither, but there's nothing wrong with us music geeks branching out and learning about all cool stuff and not just the music side. 

Turns out he has some pretty crazy designs, the lego inspired suit being a personal highlight, and ideas which has helped him to become revered all over and has helped inspire designers like Jeremy Scott.  Even I've heard of him.

Also, his Triumph of the Sign exhibition saw him combine some 'old masters' with some modern brand logos which can have quite an unsettling effect on the viewer as it is quite frightening to see the rapid rise of the consumerist culture and how it is able to permeate all aspects of life and culture.

Happy reading.

Album Weekend

I'm back in little ol' St. Albans now for the next few weeks where the internet is plentiful and runs at the speed of light, well maybe not that quick.  Therefore, I can now actually stream songs without them having to buffer every 20 seconds so I have finally been able to listen to a few free albums.

So far, I've only managed 3 unfortunately.  First off was 'Congratulations' which I'm guessing everyone has heard by now, second was 'WHB' and last was 'Album.'  Ok, maybe that last one isn't new at all, but it was still a new listen for me.

The first time I listened to Congratulations I thought it was a little boring, but now I'm going at it again, I'm going to have to disagree with myself and say that I just 'didn't get it,' whatever that's supposed to mean.  There may be no 'Kids' or 'Time To Pretend' part 2, but it's still an enjoyable listen, but probably not so much if you're not already a fan, but who doesn't like MGMT?

We Have Band.  I'd already heard of them, you'd already heard of them, so what's the point?  They've been around for a while now before managing to get their first album out.  I first heard them on the Kitsuné Maison 6 compilation with their track 'Hear It In The Cans,' which for a while I actually thought was NYPC, until I finally decided to look at my iPod and check.  The rest of the tracks aren't quite in the same style as that, but still lost somewhere between an electro band and a rock band without really pulling either off consistently well, but I'd probably still buy it if I had the money to spare.

The final album I listened to, 'Album' was probabaly my favourite, but this shit be old so I'll leave it at that.

Oh, and now I've properly listened to 'Congratulations,' I really like it.

VBS Meets ... David Haye

Well hello there you cheeky parakeets.  How be's you?  Ploughing your way through the hot cross buns or just slamming back the vodka like any other normal breakfast?

Today we have a little boxing.  Now, I'm well too Vince Noir, I actually am a French Duke, I've never even thrown a punch in my life although I nearly did this one time, but that's another story.  But I'm all man!

David Haye is, like, really good at hitting people, I mean he's actually the best in the world, I'd love to be officially known as the hardest man in the world.  This guy managed to beat some other guy who was like 13' tall, or something ridiculous like that.  This weekend is also pretty huge for him as he is coming up against John Ruiz in a fight to decide who will be undisputed heavyweight champion.

Not at all bad for a lad from Bermondsey.  I go through Bermondsey nearly every day, cruising to uni on the 381, and just to give you an idea of Bermondsey, it is where Millwall F.C. is located, so you know it's not London's number one hotspot.  If you're not English, Millwall F.C is basically a football team supported mainly by racist thugs.  I hate Millwall.

Well anyway, Vice sent him to Senegal where he got up to all sorts of awesome stuff and luckily for us they decided to film it too.  After watching the film the thing that struck me most was what a really cool guy he is because the only time I've ever been exposed to boxers is when they have those pre-fight pess conferences where they just seem like total dicks, but he was totally down-to-earth.  Although, I did have a little laugh when we were introduced to his bodyguard, I mean what use is a bodyguard that you could beat up yourself?

Anyway, here it is for you guys to watch.  Oh, and look out for a cheeky cameo from who I'm certain is Diomansy Kamara.

Although a link may be a more rewarding experience since the video screen doesn't fit.