Category: Music

Pretty extensive entry this week, so here we go:

I’ve been dipping into an unfamiliar pool — steampunk music. I’ve been a fan of steampunk since well before it had a name, and now it’s experiencing a bit of a popularity explosion, including an extension into the musical genre. Abney Park is a Seattle-based industrial/electronic/gothic band — who have the best goddamn website I’ve ever seen, EVAR (no, seriously, go check it out). The particular angle they’ve taken is Steampunk — the band’s conceit is that they’re the crew of the airship Ophelia. The music is quite good as well. I’ve linked two tracks from their website:

I first thought that this song was going to be a cover of the Bauhaus track of the same name, but no — it has no connection beyond the shared title. Abney Park – “Stigmata Martyr”

This track starts with a nice synth approximation of strings and horns before mixing in more electronic sounds. Abney Park – “The Wrong Side.”

Both tracks are great, but I’d love to see the steampunk aesthetic reach further into the goth/industrial sounds — Hmmm. Something for me to work on, perhaps.

Moving away from Steampunk, but still in the realm of technology — the new iPod Nano ad features an earworm that I had to hunt down. Irresistably catchy work from a Canadian singer-songwriter, and former member of Broken Social Scene: Feist – “1, 2, 3, 4.”

Leaving the Steam entirely, but moving into another variety of punk — the Cyber kind. One of my favorite tracks from the Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex soundtracks: Origa – “Rise.”

A while back I posted “Thou Shalt Always Kill” from the UK experimental hip-hop outfit Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip. Here’s another single from the same guys, and, in my opinion, of similar quality: Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip – “The Beat That My Heart Skipped.”

Another group that gets the “experimental hip-hop” label, although really it’s more a melange of hip-hop, rock, electronic and more…although without a doubt experimental. The album, For Hero, For Foolis a concept work, following the epic adventures of a character they call “Hour Hero Yes.” Subtle – “The Mercury Craze.”

A Mountain of One (AMO1) is a UK-based group that does modern progressive/psychedelic and has been called “the sound of England dreaming.” Their debut album, “Collected Works” (gathering all of their 12-inch singles) is out next week. I am so glad that I stumbled across them this week. A Mountain of One – “Can’t Be Serious.”

Occasionally, I am reminded of just how good an album Paul Simon’s Graceland actually is…the mix of Simon’s poetic lyrics with the sounds of South African pop music of the 80s was a winning combination — and this praise comes from a person who knows and likes the real stuff (Simon caught flak in some circles for co-opting the South African sound). Hard to pick a song to feature, since they’re all so good, but I know that loves this one, and it features some of my favorite lyrics on the entire album: “She looked me over and I guess she thought I was alright….Alright in a sort of a limited way for an off night.” Paul Simon (feat. The Gaza Sisters) – “I Know What I Know.”

Enjoy.

Let’s get to it:

First up: NEW DURAN DURAN. This is a leaked single from their forthcoming album, Red Carpet Massacre, coming in November, and is one of a couple songs on the album written with and featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland (Timbaland, in fact, was a producer on the album). Their influence is pretty clear on this track. Could it be that the hottest producer in the biz and pop music’s current reigning king have the added juice to bring DD back into the limelight? Stranger things have happened. Duran Duran – “Nite Runner (feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland).”

By now, you’ve all heard the mocking of Britney Spears…ah, less-than-stellar performance at the VMA’s earlier this week (along with the ridiculous and disturbing assertion that a woman who looks like this is “fat.”). Yes, she seemed to stagger aimlessly around the stage. Yes, she gave up even trying to lip-synch. What all of the feeding-frenzy ignores, however, is that the song is pretty damned good. Sure, Spears has never been more than packaged product, but you can’t ignore that the music has always been really slickly produced. The new single is a great dance track — which is exactly what it’s supposed to be. “It’s Britney, bitch….” Britney Spears – “Gimme More.”

Speaking of great dance tracks, here’s another track from Róisín Murphy’s upcoming album Overpowered, coming out in October. This is the second track I’ve heard (the first being the title track, which I posted a few weeks ago), and it sounds like this album is going to be as good as her first. Róisín Murphy – “Let Me Know.”

Actors with bands. Historically, not the best idea. (I’m looking at you, Bruce Willis.) However, everything I’ve heard from Juliette Lewis’ band, Juliette and The Licks, has been pretty good. Nothing earth-shattering, but better-than-average garage-band guitar-rock. Here’s an example: Juliette & The Licks – “Sticky Honey.”

Some International Hip-Hop for , because I haven’t posted any in quite a while. Tang Ren Ti is a Chinese rapper who performs what he calls “Jazz Rap” — delivering rap in the kunming dialect (kunminghua) over jazz compositions. Nice. Tang Ren Ti – “Shanliang De Xin (good heart)”

For those who have enjoyed the recent efforts by Muse (“Knights of Cydonia”, “Supermassive Black Hole”, etc.), I am pleased to report that their earlier work is just as good. Here is a track from their 2001 album, Origin of Symmetry: Muse – “Bliss.”

We began with Duran Duran, and so we’ll close the circle by ending with them….sort of. A great mash-up, featuring DD, The Beatles and a bit of assistance by Erik B. and Rakim. DJ Clive$ter – “Together Undone (Duran Duran vs The Beatles).”

It’s Friday Music, Bitch.

Another weekly entry:

Now that Amy Winehouse has finally hit here in the US, I wonder if her first album, Frank will get any play. It doesn’t have the same retro-soul sound as her current stuff. Still great, though. Here is one of the more well-known singles from it (well, actually a nifty remix of it by Mylo). Snarky indictment of a certain type of club-going woman…Amy Winehouse – “Fuck Me Pumps (Mylo Remix)” (And don’t worry….despite the title, she actually says “F-me pumps” in this particular version…so you can listen at work.)

Very nifty electronica group, doing an entire composition based around a sample of a classic bit of music. Not what you’d expect, either. They didn’t go for the obvious sample, which makes this particular composition a lot more interesting. Mint Royale – “Singin’ In The Rain.”

I had the honor of seeing guitarist Michael Hedges live at Liberty Hall in 1987, at the hieght of the “New Age” music movement (which he really never quite fit, despite recording for Windham Hill). The most amazing guitarist I’ve ever heard. He ended up dying in a car accident in the late 90s. Take a listen to this track — recorded at the concert I attended, in fact. He said that it sprung from a time when he rented a flat in San Francisco, above a health food store and nextdoor to a gay disco. He described the song as “starting out rocking, before settling into a nice groovy funk…and then finally burning out in a blaze of disco glory.” All of this done on an accoustic guitar, and simulataneously amazing and amusing. Michael Hedges – “The Funky Avocado.”

I’m pleased to note that there are still groups performing gothy, ethereal music, without the proliferation of bin-bag PVC outfits and fetish straps. Bat For Lashes is one such group (well, really, the work of UK singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Natasha Khan), leaning more towards the Kate Bush side of the spectrum, with absolutely enrapturing instrumentation. I’ll give you two tracks:

First, a track founded on harpsichord and theremin, backed with a militaristic drum tattoo as the song progresses: Bat For Lashes – “Horse and I.”

Second, a drifting, gothic take on the style of early-60s girl-group break-up songs: Bat for Lashes – “What’s a Girl To Do?”

While I’m in a “evolved goth” mood (as opposed to “emo kid goth”), here is one of my favorite tracks from Peter Murphy’s solo work: Peter Murphy – “Cuts You Up.”

Lastly, jazz-influenced hip-hop. Not only is the backing music and beat syncopated, but so is the rhyme structure. I love to listen to the twists and turns of his delivery. Play this for any friends you have who think hip-hop is all posturing: K-Os – “Superstarr Part Zero.”

There you have it. Enjoy.