Category: Music

Friday Music

I posted this on LJ yesterday, then got distracted and forgot to post it here!

Another week, another entry (and another attempt to type this damn thing, since my browser crashed when I was almost done the first time):

This first track is one of Laura’s favorites: The Propellerheads – “Velvet Pants” is from their first-and-only full-length album, decksanddrumsandrockandroll, which is probably best known for their collaboration with Shirley Bassey, “History Repeating.” This track is a sparkling bit of big-beat electronica, mixing lounge grooves with some late-60s found-sound spoken word by a ditzy girl who talks about her love of musicians with long hair and velvet pants.

Here’s a track I discovered recently: Hi-Posi – “Namidai Bouryoku” is a funky bit of Japanese pop. (EDIT: The site doesn’t like hot-linking, so just copy-and-paste the link.) Now, I’ll admit that, to me, Japanese music sounds like either yelling, hyperactive anime girls, or mournful, samurai-drama-end-credits balladeering. This is different, and I like it. The first thing that grabbed me is how danceable it is….my head was bobbing along as soon as the percussion kicked in. Good stuff.

Speaking of danceable, here’s my favorite track from German DJ Timo Maas’ first album of original recordings (rather than DJ mixes), Loud. On this album, several guest stars handled the vocal duties, and on this particular track, the vocals are courtesy of Kelis (of “Milkshake” fame). Mix in some theramin and some samples from the score of “The Day the Earth Stood Still”, and you’ve got a spooky SF dance track. Timo Maas (feat. Kelis) – “Help Me”

I’m loving the revival of the New Wave sound by the indie bands that are coming out now. Take a listen to this: The Bravery – “An Honest Mistake”, and tell me that it doesn’t sound like the summer of 1983 all over again.

…or we could go back to 1973. For the Glam fans in the audience: The Sweet – “Blockbuster!”. Pass me the glitter and eyeliner! I’ve always loved this track, but it never gets as much attention as “Ballroom Blitz”…and aside from “Blitz”, The Sweet often gets passed over for coverage of Bowie, T.Rex, et. al. when people are discussing Glam.

I’ll finish up this week’s selections with another new track that I’ve been playing over and over since discovering it: Kasabian – “Club Foot”. The best way that I can describe their sound is as a mix of Oasis and Radiohead….and even that doesn’t get it quite right. Either way: I love this track, and I hope you enjoy it as well.

Another week, another entry (and another attempt to type this damn thing, since my browser crashed when I was almost done the first time):

This first track is one of ‘s favorites: The Propellerheads – “Velvet Pants” is from their first-and-only full-length album, decksanddrumsandrockandroll, which is probably best known for their collaboration with Shirley Bassey, “History Repeating.” This track is a sparkling bit of big-beat electronica, mixing lounge grooves with some late-60s found-sound spoken word by a ditzy girl who talks about her love of musicians with long hair and velvet pants.

Here’s a track I discovered recently: Hi-Posi – “Namidai Bouryoku” is a funky bit of Japanese pop. (EDIT: The site doesn’t like hot-linking, so just copy-and-paste the link.) Now, I’ll admit that, to me, Japanese music sounds like either yelling, hyperactive anime girls, or mournful, samurai-drama-end-credits balladeering. This is different, and I like it. The first thing that grabbed me is how danceable it is….my head was bobbing along as soon as the percussion kicked in. Good stuff.

Speaking of danceable, here’s my favorite track from German DJ Timo Maas’ first album of original recordings (rather than DJ mixes), Loud. On this album, several guest stars handled the vocal duties, and on this particular track, the vocals are courtesy of Kelis (of “Milkshake” fame). Mix in some theramin and some samples from the score of “The Day the Earth Stood Still”, and you’ve got a spooky SF dance track. Timo Maas (feat. Kelis) – “Help Me”

I’m loving the revival of the New Wave sound by the indie bands that are coming out now. Take a listen to this: The Bravery – “An Honest Mistake”, and tell me that it doesn’t sound like the summer of 1983 all over again.

…or we could go back to 1973. For the Glam fans in the audience: The Sweet – “Blockbuster!”. Pass me the glitter and eyeliner! I’ve always loved this track, but it never gets as much attention as “Ballroom Blitz”…and aside from “Blitz”, The Sweet often gets passed over for coverage of Bowie, T.Rex, et. al. when people are discussing Glam.

I’ll finish up this week’s selections with another new track that I’ve been playing over and over since discovering it: Kasabian – “Club Foot”. The best way that I can describe their sound is as a mix of Oasis and Radiohead….and even that doesn’t get it quite right. Either way: I love this track, and I hope you enjoy it as well.

Like I wasn’t going to do this one?
Taken from various folks’ journals:

1) Total volume of music files on my computer?

A little bit over 14 gigabytes (somewhere in the neighborhood of 3000 songs).

2) The last CD I bought was…

The soundtrack to Constantine, by Brian Tyler and Klaus Bedelt.

3a) The last song I listened to before writing this was…

“Sensation” by Bryan Ferry

3b) Song playing right now:

“Screenwriter’s Blues” by Soul Coughing

4) Five songs I listen to a lot or that mean a lot to me.

Only Five? Sheesh. OK….

“Baker Street” by Gerry Rafferty: first I fell in love with the music, which formed the soundtrack to my summers at the beach in the Hamptons. Then, as I grew older, I found more personal significance in the lyrics.

“I Confess” by the English Beat: (featured in last week’s Friday Music) My favorite song by one of my favorite groups.

“Forever Man” by Eric Clapton: An oddity…not particularly important to me at the time, but for some strange biochemical reason, the combination of this song, the quality of sunshine, and reading the rulebook of GDW’s Twilight 2000 role-playing game absolutely crystalized in my memory. Now, hearing this song brings everything rushing back, and I re-live a Friday afternoon in early 1985.

“Thursday’s Child” by David Bowie: The lead track from his Hours CD, which will forever remind me of riding the subway to work in NYC in 1999. (I played the hell out of that album on my Walkman during my commutes…provided I could grab the CD before .

The theme to “Doctor Who”, composed by Ron Granier and Delia Derbyshire: Not just because I’m a geek fanboy, either. This track, composed and created in 1963, is one of the most influential pieces of electronic music of all time. Delia Derbyshire generated individual electronic tones, and then assembled the entire track by literally splicing together bits of tape BY HAND. Absolutely amazing, and was my introduction to the world of electronic music, which I still love (and compose myself) today.