The Saturday Mix #40

Vibrasphere - Tierra Azul (Nordlight Remix)
Sensational and mind numbing. Stunning soundscape complemented by a perfect image.

Kyoto Jazz Massive - Endless Flight

Kyoto Jazz Massive - Endless Flight (DJ Kawasaki Remix)
Groovy and cosy all at once. Jazz craze hits me like a train. But heck, I'm loving it.

Passion Pit - Little Secrets (Letting Up Despite Great Faults Remix)

Vitalic - Second Lives (The Bloody Beetroots Remix)
Second Lives gets the Bloody treatment. It's gonna send everyone on the floor into a mad tizzy.

Little Dragon - Scribbled Paper

Little Dragon - Scribbled Paper (Floating Points Remix)

brave men tell the truth

Vitalic - Second Lives
This is a way too awesome song. The doowop at the start, leading into a mysterious out of this world beat before spacing off. Fantastic beats punctuate the air, lent some oomph by the sick bassline. Vitalic is a maestro.

Vitalic - Trahison
A very simple song, yet it seems to elicit in me a vivid image of a person pondering by the wharf as waves crash upon the shore. Odd but yes, that's how it is.

Thievery Corporation - Until The Morning
Jazzy lounge sound. Very smooth and lush. Reverb adds a lovely ambient effect.

Röyksopp - Remind Me

The Saturday Mix #31

We're well into the 9th day of the new year, and boy does the hype machine not stop. First up is obviously Vampire Weekend's new album "Contra".

Vampire Weekend - Cousins
Fun. Unadulterated fun. Uproarious unadulterated fun. I'm still stuck on the fact that I can't find any remixes (or good ones amongst the handful out there for that matter). So, we'll settle for a remix of a track from their fantastic debut album. But will they reuse those tricks that made "Vampire Weekend" such an awesome album? Looks like we'll know in 2 days time (but I heard it's available on iTunes. lazy to check though).

Vampire Weekend - The Kids Don't Stand a Chance (Miike Snow Remix)
Elements so familiar to all Miike Snow listeners are present in this remix, which might explain why the short synth intro sounded so familiar. I like this remix, well, not surprising. Anything with a good deep bass beat is generally good to me, the rest is how the remixer makes of it.

Vampire Weekend - The Kids Don't Stand a Chance (Chromeo Remix)
A Chromeo remix.

Delphic - Doubt (Joey Silver Remix)
Also hitting the racks on 11 Jan is Delphic's much hyped "Acolyte". Hype works two ways, they could "make it or break it". When hype builds, expectations increase. What if someone (esp those major reviewers) pan it, then does it all go to waste as the hype becomes backlash? But I've got much confidence in their debut album. With singles such as This Momentary, Counterpoint and Doubt already circulating for quite a while, "Acolyte" will certainly do well in my opinion. And I guess the hype stems from the fact that these tracks have been around for a while, and people totally dig it. Oh well. That's hype for you.

This is what Richard Boardman said: "The word backlash has more realness than the word hype for us. There’s a danger and there’s nothing we can do about it. We are just who we are. We’ve already written these songs and we’re still learning how to play some of them live so, to be hyped and then to be backlashed is just one of those crazy things that can happen, but hopefully we can just live up to it and be better." Also, Delphic came in third in BBC's Sound of 2010 list. In the very same list, Ellie Goulding came out tops. Hype indeed.

Yeasayer - O.N.E

Yeasayer - O.N.E (MMMathias Remix)
Well, I kinda like the song as a song. But as a remix of O.N.E, I'm lost. I can't hear the original at all!

Vitalic - Poison Lips (Captain Flash Remix)

under the pull of this high tide

Vitalic - Allan Dellon
I think "Flashmob" was a pretty darn good album. I mean Vitalic probably still has some stuff up his sleeve.

Maps - Turning The Mind
Quite unlike Everything Is Shattering and intriguing song too. Took me a good 4 listens for the entire song to soak in. Copious use of the synthesiser lend a mythical air to the song, not helped (for better or for worse) by his semi-muffled voice. After the fourth listen, it reaffirmed my initial feel of this song, that it's pretty laid back and good for a lazy day.

Real Estate - Snow Days
Quaint song led by Martin Courtney's lulling vocals which sound absolutely lovely. But a little niggling point with me was the end, where they just dragged it on with the instrumentation. Cutting it short to about 3:30 would have been so much better, as they could have done the instrumentation part without over-doing it - it was more or less repeating the same thing over and over for about 3-4 times.

50 Favourite Songs of 2009: Part III

Asobi Seksu - Thursday (Acoustic)
For those familiar with Asobi Seksu, Thursday was a track of their 2006 album "Citrus". This is an acoustic reinterpretation of that wonderful track cut at famed Olympic Studios in London, amongst other reimaginations of their best work which makes up "Rewolf". Much more sparse and their sonic layers stripped, leaving Yuki's warbling to power the song. It's more affecting but not as strong musically as the original. However, the warm feeling one gets from James' guitar and beauty derived from the emphasis placed on her vocals in this sparer version makes this an enjoyable and repeatable listen.

Listen to the original here.

official, myspace, last.fm


Miike Snow - Black & Blue
This totally slow-groove ballad makes me go ape SMD style. Plus, there's a totally wicked official video. A very old man with pretty old school music instruments and stuff, with his weird contraptions playing them (which appears to play accordingly to the beats/sounds of the song, like the mechanical hand tapping the piano at the appropriate moments). Seems to me he's all trapped up in his house (of his own volition), and all of a sudden he decides to make it out that door. And as he does so, he hugs a stunned teen, walks down the street, tosses his seemingly permanently on headphones and then sheds his robe, embracing the sunlight. All while the trio that is Miike Snow are in the car staring after him.

I won't waste your time with my revelation/Hello my friend, I see you're back again/Hello mystery, don't bother to explain

Embrace this number (like the old dude) along with it's plethora of remixes and hold on while I leave this on repeat.

official, myspace, last.fm


Vitalic - Poison Lips
Sensual dance song, with the synths working overtime. The song is tight and not overdone, coming in at nearly 4 minutes - so it doesn't give you that overdose of synths and heavy beats that if not done well (think steak) leaves a bad aftertaste. It swirls and loops and infuses you with all that psychedelia that I'm not sure I want to make the trip back. Enjoy this song, and the video for dessert.

official, myspace, last.fm


Camera Obscura - French Navy
First single from awesome album "My Maudlin Career" does not fail to delight with it's lightness and comfortable beat and rhythm. French Navy is an upbeat story of meeting a new lover in a dusty library “by a trick of fate”. Tracyanne Campbell croons "You make me go, "Oooh"/With the things that you do, you do, you do" before chorus kicks in. It may sound like yet another love song, but this is a Camera Obscura love song, besides it's not all weepy and heartbreak. There's some happiness amid all that gloom which makes this a pretty neat musing that still manages to sound fresh.

official, myspace, last.fm


Passion Pit - Little Secrets
These guys would prolly remind everyone else of MGMT. Enjoy this electro-funk coupled with falsetto vocals plus wonderful production of a gem called Little Secrets which ironically wasn't that little, seeing how it was blogged about by nearly every another blog when it was leaked prior to it's official release.

official, myspace, last.fm


Franz Ferdinand - No You Girls
BBC: "...this is a very typical Franz Ferdinand song. It's slinky, it's a bit disco, it's a bit guitary, it's anti-macho, but also quite blokey in the chorus. The lyrics point toward sexual politics, and the lack of understanding between boys and girls..."

It nearly sounds like Take Me Out but manages to stand out on it's own with sleeker productions.

official, myspace, last.fm


Phoenix - Rome
Well, if you're wondering what's another Phoenix track doing here, it's because they damn well deserve it. This track is also just as awesome, it starts off upbeat and rampant, going all out to have their fun singing about "Who's the boy you like the most/Is he teasing you with underage?" The signature pop hooks and catchy lyrics that make you want to sing along is present, as is the word silhouette which seems to appear in a couple of the tracks in "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix". Almost midway, the
track drops tempo and eases you into muses of heartbreak before breaking out into it's glorious final chorus.

official, myspace, last.fm


Beat Radio - Stranger Flowers(mp3)
This is an mp3 link from their official site. A melancholic love song that sounds every bit like a lovelorn boy singing his heart out to... no one. It's really emotive (and the lyrics are hackneyed to some extent) and it's just Brian Sendowitz pouring his heart out in this acoustic track, which more than makes up for the "hackneyed" lyrics. Really sweet and lovely song and watch out for Beat Radio, they've certainly got more beckoning for them.

official, myspace, last.fm


fun. - Be Calm
Fun is the name of the game and it's also in their name. This track is full of carnival-esque joy and showmanship and lyrical genius. It's a joy to listen to this track on it's own and it's a wonder how he manages to cram all those whopper of lyrics into all of a little over 4 minutes.

official, myspace, last.fm


Memory Tapes - Green Knight
This is pretty much their website and it's where you can find a download of their fantastic track Green Knight. I'm not putting up their own mediafire link, because the previous time I did, I gotta into a shitload of trouble and I'm not keen on getting that all over. Hint hint: It's the October post.

official, myspace, last.fm

enter a world special made for kings

Washed Out - Feel It All Around
Slow mesmerising beat. Just nice.

Vitalic - Poison Lips
oh my god, you have to listen to this. absolutely. this is really dope stuff by Vitalic. but i need to get this out first, the asian girl that first appears in the video looks like a porcelain doll, right out of a production line. ok, the synths are working overtime with intense pulsating beats that thump away. it's like a jackhammer, but it feels like heaven. very nice video to boot - the drawing of the word V with smeared lipstick takes one back to "V for Vendetta". poison indeed.

Little Dragon - My Step
the singing is very stripped down (mostly), but is accompanied by an electronic rhythm that is reminiscent of.. damn, can't remember what it's called but if i do, i'll make sure i let you guys know.

today's songs have just wormed their way into my system, the beats are just going off in my head like sirens, and anymore intense i could probably see the lights pulsating to it. i totally love it. if this was facebook, i'd prolly like this post a million times.