Anthony Wilson "Adult Themes"

The nature of my day job is largely thankless. We replace electronics for the insurance industry, so are customers are not repeats, usually suspicious, and have just been ripped off by thieves -- not the best environment for fun. I am no longer a rep, but the IT guy. I do answer the phones once in awhile, and, as luck would have it, found a fellow Jazz listener.
I recommended Kip Hanrahan, he recommended Anthony Wilson. I ordered "Adult Themes" on his rec, and was delighted with what I heard. Anthony Wilson has put together a terrific album. I enjoyed it from the first listen, but took a couple more spins just because.
"Because", the Beatles tune, is one of the covers on this record, and it is very well done. It is nice to have a familiar melody deconstructed and exploded by guys at the top of their game, and this is a pretty solid cover.
The gem on this disc is the "Adult Themes" suite, which closes the record. It is done in several movements and really swings. This is big band music with intimacy and chops that hold up to repeated listenings. Like Mr Gold(thank you), I will have to recommend this one!

Round Black Ghosts

This is a cool Dubstep collection. I have owned it for awhile, but it took several at volume listenings to really feel the disc. First impression was oh..the tempo is too fast...as it was late at night and I was looking for dark journey inside my skull, not a spine based trip. The next spin was at brunch while I multitasked in the kitchen. Much better.
The record is not "drum n' bass" tempo stuff, just not dubbed out honey...which, of course, is my "easy listening." To enjoy this record you will need a system with some bottom, and a time when you have not been beaten up all day by the stresses of "real life." Given those two conditions this will prove to be a hot disc for your edge electronics ears.
Recommended

The In-Kraut Vol 3

What a fun series -- though I only have this one! Swinging music made whole and fresh..
A bunch of covers including "Whole Lotta Love" -- all recorded by German Artists in the late sixties and early seventies. Some engineer has made magic happen, these tracks sound fresh and clear as if they weren't 35 or more years old!
We will be wearing this one out at brunch...

Sonny Rollins Saxophone Colossus

A jazz classic. With Rollins blowin', Max Roach on the drums, Tommy Flanagan playing piano and Doug Watkins on bass, it is absolutely magic listening. I have owned this disc before, but lost it long before moving out here to Kansas. A good friend sent me this, as my "real soon" migration to Costa Rica brought the opening track, "St Thomas," to mind for her.
She was right, it fits.More Rollins!

The Wire

Finally a recording of my favorite version of the opening song. "All the Pieces Matter" is 100% true for the show, and this disc. I will refrain from thinking about this coming out while a season is still showing -- can you say future double dip?
This CD from Nonesuch is yet another terrific release from a label that apparently can do no wrong. This would be as opposed to the heroes and vilains of the Wire who can, apparently, do no right without paying for it.
Being a Wire fan will of course deepen the understanding and enjoyment of this record, but, like having an understanding of any of the worlds at cross-purpose in The Wire will help you say "best show on TV" with even more conviction, it is not necessary.
Blues, soul, rap rock and punk co-exist alongside various pull-quotes in a dense packed CD of terrific material. Thanks Darren, I loves me some Xmas in February!
Recommended.

Mo' Music (I Know, Right?)

Nate brought this CD over on Wire night. We listened to it between episodes. Great from note one. Concept is straight forward enough, Onra went to Viet Nam to visit some relatives. Went to a record shop, bought 30 slabs o' wax. Mix/blend and repeat. Sharp blunt lo-fi goodness..GI Funk with a hip hop edge..recommended!

There I was on Myspace, just browsing. For every 10 loud abrasive obnoxious "page" songs there is a diamond.I have no idea who used "Bonfire Madigan", but cello and female voice together put the Reese cup to shame. I cruised to her site, Bonfire Madigan and bought this 10 year retrospective right from the site. On Saturday. Got here today in a cloth bag..who says small mobile independent is last year? I'm sure you would be pleased if you go to her site, listen to some cuts and do the right thing.
Recommended.

Vladislav Delay - Whistleblower

Music is hardly dead, contrary to RIAA reports. Electronic music is not just for dancing anymore You Want a Piece of Me? just in case you were reading the mainstream press... and just because it ain't 4/4 doesn't mean it is unlistenable!
Here are a couple reviews by those better than I (and perhaps less susceptible to the power of dub):

Pitchfork Review
The Wire Cover Boy
...and of course Sasu Ripatti's (aka Vladislav Delay/Luomo/Uusitalo/Sisto)site.
The astute reader will put together AGF and Mr Delay, and realize I have been a fan for awhile!
Steve and I blasted this one end to the other late last night, at Mark volume, sinking back into the couch and letting the dub unfold. A sublime listening experience was had by all. Actually this was our second teleportation this week, earlier we explored Jon Hassel's superb Power Spot. That album cover is a Navajo Sand Painting, and I am reminded of the spirit-space pioneer "Carlos Castaneda," whose Power Spot novel was a map of psychic places. Hassel's work was done in 1986. Whistleblower, the Delay album, hit the streets this month, Feb 2008. In spite of the end of 8 dark years being in sight this albums beats and blips are informed by the turbulence of our times..but no less enthralling than the kindler, gentler 4th World Musics, and an absolute must hear.

New Music Jan/Feb 08

Piano Jazz cover of Iron Man. Nuff said!
Rolling Stone Review

An out of the blue purchase from PBE. This is some terrific music. Not a lot of info on the www, but found this excerpt -- scroll to the bottom of Dirty Linen Mag Issue 95 for a little Delgado review action...

AGF is a must, she does the beats for the funny as fuck Quio. Someone else's opinion: Electronic Beats to be exact!

Queen Adreena -- got this one from their myspace page. I went looking for reviews to link and found this: " On the 13th December, the group (with Richard on bass) took to the stage of the ICA in London to provide a unique live soundtrack to David Cronenberg's adaptation of J.G. Ballard's novel about car-crash erotica. The night was very popular with the band receiving praise from the music press."
Wow. A live Soundtrack to a Cronenberg film written by JG Ballard -- and a vaguely pornographic one at that! Can we say synergy? I pulled the above quote from Room-Eleven.org

Here is yet another terrific Nonesuch Records Release. Can I get on a catch and release program? Read about this surprisingly prog Spanish band on their own site.

Beautiful Scars

I can't find a picture of this album cover bigger than 150 x 150 anywhere.
There is (count'em) one review from the BBC, linked here.
This is a beautiful, thoughtful and soulful CD that deserves to be listened to, over and over. Sure, "Bad Mouth", his collaboration with Ishmael Reed, just came out last year and spits into the wind of absurdity that grips the United States, was likewise ignored, but "Beautiful Scars" is personal, and universal in a way "Bad Mouth" is direct and on message.
"Scars" is hardly apolitical, but hardly controversial. Cuba and everything that country means has been going since America first got nervous. Sexual politics has been going on nearly as long :) and is explored here, quietly, beautifully, with plenty of rhythm to keep the spine lubricated.
Jump in with this as your first Hanrahan Cd and, well, like jumping straight to Calculus without Algebra, one might be lost. Start with "Coup de Tete" from way way back in the day, pause and notice "Desire Develops an Edge" then respin this disc. It deserves your attention, and will reward those with hearts and minds and ears engaged.

MIA Kala

I could talk about her VISA nonsense. We all know if I go down that road I will be talking about immigration, the great wall of Mexico and the absolutely ludicrous notion of "stopping the invasion".
Then I would link it to the Hanrahan records I'll be reviewing that aren't even available here (USA) yet...then it goes to films we can't see for years and when we do they are cut or dubbed...
Which leads to our embarrassing uncompetitive Broadband rates, tariffs, penalties and laws restricting trade and artistic freedom -- "in the land of the free" and by this time the review of this terrific CD will be lost in the chaff of ideals and reality...

Music from a Third World Perspective in full knowledge of the First World's bogus promises and veneers of civility and Reason that demands to be heard should be!

MIA has crafted a brainy multi cultural love letter to the world.
Pop hooks and deep beats attempt to foment change with this multilanguaged cult crit/rave/favela stomp from the edge(s) of known civilization.

Globalization is here to stay, and, as frightened as our elected officials think we are, we can all grow from the input of our brothers and sisters across the planet. MIA makes the lessons bittersweet, humbling and exhilarating all at once..
Recommended

Last FM

More music stuff here. I just ordered Kip Hanrahan's new record from CDJapan...and while playing around on the site realized that a) I don't have Japanese character set loaded and 2) there was an English version. It also looked like there were some Kip Hanrahan podcasts available somewhere..
I got to Last FM and discovered a personalized radio station.
Feel free to press play below:


Yes, I resisted skinning it in pink...

Palace of Lights

I bought "Neo Realist At Risk" back when "at" was a word, not a symbol, and Vinyl was the media..Loved it then as I do now, on CD. What has survived in the intervening decades was a cassette converted over to CD with some Laurie Anderson and Wally Badarou to complete the mix.
Back in the '80s when this came out and I loved it, I immediately, as was the nature of things, went out and bought everything I could find by Savant (this was it) and K. Leimer. Projects like "Land of Look Behind" and "Imposed Order", and then I lost track of Leimer and Barreca.
Never forgot though, played the surviving copy of the copy sparingly as I had already damaged the foil layer of the disc..Then I tripped over the "Palace of Lights", probably while reading about copyright and the recording industry or some such nonsense.
"The Neo-Realist(at Risk)" is very much along the lines of "My Life in the Bush of Ghosts", which is reviewed earlier somewhere on this blog, without as much overt funk and a decidedly more inward, intellectualized approach. This is not a bad thing, and I don't have to read that "geek is in" in Cosmo to know big brains rule -- and Byrne and Eno are no lightweights in their own tanks!
There are excerpts from reviews on the PoL site (click the post title) and tracks from the CD releases to try before you buy. The "Media" versions are priced reasonably, the downloads more so but no compressed music played on my vintage electronics if at all possible please!
I ordered the disc(s) on Monday, received on Friday in a "one piece folder" (biodegradable corrugated). No tracking info, no order progress customer service niceties like Amazon, but fast shipping and good packaging go a long way towards making me a supporter of the independent e-tailer.
I am looking forward to exploring the whole catalogue of PoL releases.

m.i.a. galang

Terrific song + video..can't wait for the new album!

Robyn Konichiwa Bitches

Saw this video, bought the single. Original track and 4 remixes..catchy.

The Wire season 4 opening credits

When oh when can I get a copy of this cover with some fidelity?

Some New Music

4 new discs spinning here...
Tom Waits Orphans 3CD Megapackage
V/A Sensacional Soul 2CD Digipack
V/A Science Faction - Dubstep
Milanese Extend

..and the last shall be first...
Milanese Extend was one of a pair of CDs bought from Aquarius Records blind, based on a terrific review in their free newsletter. I can't beat their review, and if you know what "grime and dubstep" are, well, you probably already have this. What works for me is deep bass, great samples, glitch and chaos stuck to body bending beats. This one goes way off the map, particularly in the later tracks, but this is a record that brings to mind "Praxis" at their very best. The difference being, Praxis played the shit, Milanese constructs his..

Tom Waits Orphans provides the perfect collection for your hip boomer friends just in time for Christmas. How thoughtful! 3CDs, thematically labeled, and 1/2 of it reworked versions of some of his coolest songs guarantee a weekend of terrific listening. Their are a couple of name naming tracks that belie the esoteric nature and bring him directly to the here and the now. This is, regardless of the mediated nature, wartime. Act accordingly.

Science Faction Dubstep went something like this:
1. load in player
2. turn it up
3. no, louder
4. OMFG. Bring disc to Darren's. "Put this on now. Mark volume." His subwoofer woke up. His house shook.
This is the shit. Deep deep bass, reverb, Dub like you would not believe. Starts great, gets better. In a year of terrific releases this has my vote for best instrumental CD.

Sensacional Soul is a compilation that borders a Soul Jazz release...digipack, booklet, great music on multiple discs. This is apparently Soul music made in the USA for the Spanish Market circa 1967-1974. Smokin' tunes, sung in english and spanish. mostly.

Monk @ Carnegie

This is a special recording. Don't take my word for it, read what Blue Note has to say!
Thelonius Monk, John Coltrane..these names are synonymous with Jazz. This recording, in case you did not read the Blue Note link, was made in 1957 and promptly put in the Archives. It surfaced in 2005 and was released on CD shortly thereafter. This is a live recording nearly 50 years old and it sounds great.
My good friends the Deans sent me a copy and I was somewhat shamed by not already owning it! First listen was magic, then played it again. This disc is now part of the Sunday Brunch collection, since everyone knows jazz is brunch music...

Tolcha Gestalt

Here is the new stuff. Tolcha have crafted a disc that will finally replace the Conjure record in the continuous play slot at the ValisCafe! This CD is almost a compilation, as guest artists infuse each track with a different sensibility.
Common to all the tracks is head nodding, body movin' bass. Most of the hip hop I listen to is instrumental, or sample based, and I am a breakbeat fan. This disc is very electronic, very layered and filled with vocals. Pretty sure I picked this cd up because the woman from Jahcoozi(Sasha Perera) sings on it, but the tracks with other vocalists were excellent as well.
On a sad note, this is the last disc I will be getting from David at PBE, he is relocating overseas. Not sure what his plans are, but I hope to get another PBEdate before Christmas!

Stevie Wonder - Superstition Sesame St

Sesame Street, Muppet Show, Zoom, the Electric Company--all great TV..

Terror Tractor

PJ's Pub in Aggieville June 23rd
Terror Tractor
Dryline
Unmerciful
Torn Apart
A good music night, bad picture taking night.
Missed the first band, Torn Apart, I was drinking some at the T-Star..
Unmerciful had a nice wall of sound to warm up my ears..
By the time Dryline started I realized that my funny shiny black rubber disco shirt was not the post modern hoot I thought it would be..
Place was full of serious tattoos, piercings and black. The lighting was dim, camera was saying things like "focus it yourself" and "how about some flash?"

My subject, Terror Tractor had the benefit of playing last. I had dropped my camera (damn scotch) and exhausted the batteries before they played their first track. I did capture them setting up...Those shots are even weaker than these hottie shots..
I left when the moshing got rough during the Tractor set, the boys were rockin' the house down.

This last pic is a hardbody who should have felt as out of place as I did, but she didn't care..
Less scotch next show will net y'all some good shots. Stay tuned.