Musical Discoveries of 2008 Part 2 of 3

Harmonic 313 - EP1 / Dirtbox (Warp, 2008)

Mark Pritchard has flirted with using old synth sounds with hip-hop previously on the Global Communication Fabric mix and his nod to old library music project, Harmonic 33. He fully realizes those sounds on his latest project, Harmonic 313. Releasing two EPs this year, EP1 finds Pritchard in similar territory as some of J Dilla's electronic hip-hop producations while Dirtbox has mostly a dubstep sound. Harmonic 313's remix work is also worth a listen.


Jacaszek - Treny (Miasmah, 2008)

Miasmah continues their excellent output with Polish musician, Jacaszek. Combining chamber orchestra, female vocals, and prepared electronic sounds, Jacaszek manages to portray music of forgotten memories.


Kail - True Hollywood Squares (Alpha Pup, 2008)

This year was a little short of hip-hop for me, but Kail's concept album featuring different characters describing the true seedy underbelly of Hollywood rang to for me. Producation ranges from 8-bit video game samples to big band horns. Kail is a true ghetto tour guide.


Lambert and Nuttycombe - At Home (Fallout, 1970)

In a simiar style of Simon and Garfunkel, Lambert and Nuttycombe feature subtle guitar strumming with delicate two-part harmonies. There is a terrible sadness to this album that really shows the issues of Lambert's heroin addiction. I think I listened to this album more than any other from this last year.


The Left - Jesus Loves The Left: The Complete Studio Recordings (Bona Fide, 1984)

With all the recent so called punk music rotting on modern radio, many people want to claim that punk is dead. There are a few bands carrying the punk torch, but no other punk album that I heard this year hits like The Left. The Left capture what is best about punk: tiredless teenage boredom, asking questions, and wonderfully sloppy melodies.


Lindstrøm - Where You Go I Go Too (Smalltown Supersound, 2008)

Dance and electronic albums typically suffer from having one or two tracks that are great, and the rest of the tracks sound the same. I guess dance music is usually best in DJ mixes and live sets. That said, Lindstrøm manages to craft an album that combines many of the best parts of current dance music trends - am bient keyboard flourishes, disco breakbeats, and melodic dynamics - all into 3 epic and ambitious tracks.


Märtini Brös - The MB Factor (Poker Flat, 2008)

A mix album of the Märtini Brös best tracks from the last 10 years. Not since Tiefschwarz' Fabric mix has a minimal house mix sounded so good. Throw in some subtle flourishes over the 70 minutes with funky basslines, and it's all good.


Metro Area - Fabric 43 (Fabric, 2008)

The Fabric serious this year has some great contenders: Luciano, Ame, Robert Hood, and Mark Farina. Metro Area's mix beats them all out of sheer fun. The album starts with them commentating over the first track to give it a goofy feel, and then they settle into some rad Italo-disco and electro from the past 20 years.


Nik Bartsch's Ronin - Holon (ECM, 2008)

The European Jazz scene is one which has many different niche's and different styles. I am a fan of free jazz and improv jazz, but no other jazz album from the last year had the most intriguing mix of styles as this Swiss pianist's Ronin group. Modern classical, jazz, funk, electronic drone, and world music all find their way into these 6 varied tracks.


Noisia - Fabriclive. 40 (Fabric, 2008)

Each year, Fabric has a shining example of what's hot in the drum and bass world via their Fabriclive series. Noisia's release foregoes much of the cheesier vocal sounds of typical drum and bass and aims for dark complex beats. For 80 minutes, this mix consistently deals with the ebb and flow of the beats attempting to descend into glitch chaos.

Musical Discoveries of 2008 Part 1 of 3

My apologies for not blogging in so long. I've been busy working, reading, playing Call of Duty, socializing, playing with my dog, watching movies, and hanging out with Capree.

Typically, in years past, I would be up on the current year of music enough to do a full list of music from that year. I have listened to enough music from this last year to do a list, but I felt that this year also had a lot of older music that affected me. I'm also getting rid of numbering albums because I feel like all of these albums had something I really enjoyed in some way.

The list is simply albums (with one exception). This rules out much of the music I listened to this year. I spent much of time this year listening to dance singles, web mixes, and podcasts. This allowed me to continue to listen to music even though my work environment is more complicated and less music friendly than in the past. This next year, I'll make sure to document what I'm listening to regardless of format, year, or genre.

So without further ado, here is part 1. Part 2 will follow tomorrow, and part 3 the day after that.


Aaron Lightman - Aaron Lightman (Fallout, 1970)

Similar in style to some of Donovan's music as well as other more successful musicians of the baroque pop tradition, Aaron Lightman intersperses shorter pop tracks with longer orchestral arrangements. The reissuer, Fallout Records, is a UK label that specializes in reissues of lost music from the 60s and 70s. I attribute my interest in baroque pop music this year to the label's strong output.


Blue Sky Black Death - Late Night Cinema (Babygrande, 2008)

Having been blindsided by their first album, A Heap Of Broken Images, back in 2006, I have been eagerly anticipating their next instrumental full length. Kingston and Young God combine samples from classical, blues, soul, movie soundtracks, and other places unknown with their own instruments such as pedal effects guitar, cello, and keys. The eclecticism of their tastes really shines in their style of Godspeed dramatics with boom bap beats.


Colin Blunstone - One Year (Water, 1971)

Another baroque pop gem. Colin Blunstone is the singer from The Zombies who took to doing his own work after The Zombies broke up. Tracks like "I Can't Live Without You" highlight the sheer madness of Blunstone's vocal dexterity over chamber orchestral arrangements.


David Axelrod - Seriously Deep (Dusty Groove, 1975)

Long out of print, Seriously Deep is one of the most sampled records during the golden age of hip-hop. David Axelrod was known for his productions, and his own album captures his variety of styles: jazz, funk, electronic, classical, and the prototypes of hip-hop. Capree says this sounds like cheesy porn music, but I don't care!


The Final Solution - Brotherman OST (Numero Group, 1975)

A funk and soul soundtrack for a blaxploitation film that never came out. Numero Group has been doing fantastic deluxe reissues of lost funk and soul of the 70s and 80s for a few years now. This is my favorite release of theirs from this year.


The Frogs - It's Only Right And Natural (Homestead, 1989)

The Frogs do what most irreverant gay music cannot: avoid kitsch and novelty. The Frogs sound like early Pixies or Nirvana demos, but with a passion and humor really unheard by my ears since Xiu Xiu. While Xiu Xiu's main drive is emotional intensity, The Frogs use satire to highlight the ridiculousness of the fears of the socially conservative.


Graham Lambkin and Jason Lescalleet - The Breadwinner (Erstwhile, 2008)

Two musicians known separately for their work in experimental music come together to remind us how to use the physical space of a studio. All sounds on this album were original recordings from Lambkin's home: the radiator, the creaks in the floor, the silence/noise of the various rooms/hallways, the neighbors talking through the wall, etc. Using the physical medium of tape to stretch, distort, and splice, Lambkin and Lescalleet remind us of the power of sampling: the ability to recontextualize and present something new from something old, tried, and common.


Grouper - Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill (Type, 2008)

Grouper has always had potential, but I found the concepts on her earlier stuff to be done much better by bands like Charlalambides and Christina Carter's solo work. With Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill, she has given more structure to her typically ambient/drone folk. What ended up happening is a melancholic fresh take to the late 80s 4AD roster such as Cocteau Twins and His Name Is Alive.


Guilty Simpson - Ode To The Ghetto (Stones Throw, 2008)

I first heard of Guilty Simpson from Madlib and Jay Dee's Jaylib project and Dabrye's Two/Three. I have always found his brash rapping about living in Detroit to be hypnotising. It captures the documentary style found in the best rap and hip-hop. Madlib, Oh No, Black Milk, Mr. Porter, and J Dilla all contribute fantastic production. My favorite hip-hop album of the year.


Gultskra Artikler - Kasha Iz Topora (Miasmah, 2007)

Miasmah is hands down my favorite label currently. Erik Skodvin, half of Deaf Center, snatched up Gultskra Artikler after Lampse put out the fantastic 2006 release, Pofigistka. Kasha Iz Topora is a continuation into the Siberian madness of previous releases. Classical cello and piano, electronic flourishes, and field recordings are combined to evoke haunted Lynchian memories with Russian folk tale flair. Miasmah is the new Kranky!