Teki Latex and DJ Orgasmic’s online label Sound Pellegrino has announced the launch of a series of collaborative EPs. The first collaboration to take place will be Night Slugs co-owner Bok Bok and Swedish producer Tom Trago.
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Sound Pellegrino launch collaboration series
Posted in News
Tagged Bok Bok, Dubstep, Electro, Electronica, Experimental, Funky, IDM, Night Slugs, Sound Pellegrino, Tom Trago
David Lynch announces debut album is imminent
David Lynch: Surrealist, filmmaker, writer, director, producer, artist and now musician? Well, that last one shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise given his recent dalliances with electronic musicians and producers over the last few years.
His relationship with music has always been a close one; whether it’s working with Barry Adamson, Angelo Badalamenti and later Trent Reznor on the soundtracks to his films or in nurturing and promoting emerging and underground talents. So it seems only logical that the next step would be to cut out the middle men and create his own music.
Which brings us to this new project. Sunday Best Recordings released his first single ‘Good Day Today’ last year which was widely acclaimed by fans and critics alike. Since then he’s been working on his debut album ‘Crazy Clown Time’, largely alone though it does feature the production talents of Dean Hurley as well as Karen O’s vocals on ‘Pinky’s Dream’.
The record will be released on November 8 via Sunday Best. You can peek at the tracklist after the jump.
Posted in News
Tagged David Lynch, Electronica, Experimental, IDM, Sunday Best Recordings
John Cale signs to Domino to release new EP
Avant garde sonic conquistador and former Velvet Underground member John Cale has announced he will be releasing his new EP on Double 6 Records, having just signed to the label. The new four-track EP marks the label broadening its horizons as they ready the new Spiritualized LP.
Originally, the imprint was to be a sub-label for Domino, fostering underground acts and giving them a sizeable outlet. Since then, it’s grown into something major as plans emerge for various projects that are sure to drag the label into the big league.
The release of this new 12″ on August 9 also ties in nicely with Cale’s headlining set at the Field Day festival. There’s not a great deal of information besides that, but you can find out more about the release here.
Posted in News
Tagged Alternative Rock, Art Rock, Domino, Double 6, Experimental, John Cale
More details about the new Björk album
If you’ve been listening to your radio with any sort of attention you’ll have heard that the Rubiks-cube-wrapped-in-a-Chinese-finger-trap that is Björk will be releasing a new album soon.
The whole album was composed on an iPad and is being heralded in the most hateful way as “an app album”. I know it doesn’t sound promising but remember a good portion of Jason Forrest’s last album was composed using his Star6 app and that was chuffing awesome.
Gone are the days when music composed on anything but a sophisticated PC or studio equipment sounded like a broken Gameboy. Today the playing field’s been levelled slightly: It’ll still cost a small fortune to buy an iPad but the apps themselves are usually available for £20 or so.
It’s an exciting time for music, but one that could also saturate music, with everyone now able to equip themselves with a professional studio sound. The album features a range of 10 different apps for the iPad, with each track relating to a different track on the album, each controlled a “mother” app, designed by Scott Snibbe.
As Snibbe says “Björk will be premiering the music, video and, er, apps of Biophilia at the Manchester International Festival from June 40. Icelandic organ maker Björgvin Tómasson tells The Guardian that he was commissioned by Björk to build a MIDI-controlled organ and an organ-based gamelan for the occasion.”
Four Tet, Burial and Thom Yorke to collaborate on new 12″
Yes, you read that right; Four Tet‘s Kieran Hebden is using his recently revived Text Records to put out some absolutely stonking releases this year – you may remember mention of his collaboration with Caribou earlier this year. Well, it turns out he’s collaborated with Burial and Radiohead’s Thom Yorke.
The two tracks ‘Ego’ and ‘Mirror’ will be released very soon apparently. Bleep are offering the chance to preorder it here but the dratted thing’s sold out. In the mean time, tune your wireless to the Four Tet vs. Floating Points special show on Rinse FM tonight at 11pm (GMT).
Posted in News
Tagged Burial, Electronica, Experimental, Floating Points, Four Tet, Radiohead, Rinse Fm, Text Records, Thom Yorke
New Battles LP on the horizon
Experimental New York band Battles have conspired to release their third full length release. The new album will be their first since the departure of Tyondai Braxton last year.
To make up for it, the album features several special guest appearances; Matias Aguayo, Kazu Makino, Yamantaka Eye and best of all, Gary Numan. Catch up on the recent interview they did with Pitchfork here.
The new LP, entitled ‘Gloss Drop’, comes out on 6 June. To tide you over until then, download Four Tet’s remix of ‘Tonto’, the original being taken from 2007′s ‘Mirrored’.
Download: Battles – Tonto (Four Tet Remix)
Tagged Battles, Electronica, Experimental, Four Tet, Post Rock, Warp
Download Justin Broadrick’s FACT mix
It was only a week ago that I wrote about the tremendously talented Justin Broadrick and his new EP as Pale Sketcher. Since then, he’s put together a jawdropping mixtape for the infamous FACT podcast series.
The mixtape is exactly what you’d expect from Broadrick, with everything from Slowdive to Cabaret Voltaire to RZA to Boards Of Canada to Dr. Octagon. Sterling stuff, check it out below.
Download: Justin Broadrick – FACT Mix 224
Radiohead – King Of Limbs
The first thought in most people’s minds will be “THIS IS SHIT IN RAINBOWS WAS SHIT TOO”. These people are wrong and should be treated as second-class citizens.
The opener is a slow burner but it’s the second track, ‘Morning Mr. Magpie’, is where things get really interesting. With a very danceable electro/disco guitar riff over stuttering drum beats, it’s already one of my favourite Radiohead tracks. ‘Little By Little’, the next track, is full of glitched vocals and shimmering cuts and bursts of sound that bring to mind Four Tet’s better work. Of course, the leading track ‘Lotus Flower’ is the one that will be remembered. Personally, I don’t think it’s the strongest track on the album, but I’m sure I’ll change my mind countless times.
It’s early days yet (Radiohead being renowned for producing albums that grow in brilliance over a number of listens), but I would definitely rate this album alongside Kid A and OK Computer. The songs aren’t quite as striking as ‘Everything In Its Right Place’ or ‘Paranoid Android’, but they’re not far off.
Of course, the album has its weak points; the first track ‘Bloom’ is a slow burner at best. It’s still a good start to the album but it could just as easily be an Aphex Twin b-side. And does anyone remember James Blake’s LP earlier this year and it’s use of mellow pianos over glitchy IDM. It seems this new sound is this year’s antidote to autotune. It may not be their best album, but most bands would kill to be as good as Radiohead on a bad day. For all its brevity and it’s flaws, it packs a punch.
Stand out tracks: Lotus Flower, Morning Mr. Magpie, Little By Little
Title: King Of Limbs
Artist: Radiohead
New Hype Williams LP
I’ll come clean and admit I don’t know a great deal about Hype Williams. What I do know, however, is that they have a new album out on Hippos In Tanks and the leading track sounds like a pastiche of a pastiche of a cheesy, low-budget 70s sci-fi film. In the best possible way, I promise.
With dulled, archaic synths plodding along over a drum beat that’s not unlike a gunshot in the hallway of an abandoned John Hughes high school, there are some soundscapes in this music that sound unusual but familiar all at the same time.
I’ll also admit it does sound clumsy at times, particularly towards the end, but it’s pretty much the most unique thing I’ve heard recently. And that’s something, right?
Download ‘Businessline’ below in the mean time, then go here to buy ‘One Nation’.
Download: Hype Williams – Businessline
Tagged Electronica, Experimental, Hip-Hop, Hippos In Tanks, Hype Williams
James Blake – James Blake
Like all debut LPs from musicians hailed as “the next big thing”, James Blake‘s first full-length was under a tremendous amount of pressure to be the album of the year.
The LP as a whole is not the storming radio-friendly package of hits that many may have expected. It is, however, a very modest collection of intelligently crafted soundscapes put together without an eye on the charts.
To Blake’s fortune (that sounds like a Sci-Fi film from the 70s), he created most of the album while still in university, before anyone knew who he was. The benefit of this, of course, is that the only things he had to live upto were a couple of well-received but largely unheard 12″ singles. As a result, he doesn’t try to second guess the listener’s expectations.
I must admit I was expecting a series of acoustic, folky piano ballads – albeit good ones. Brilliantly, this is not what I heard. Equal parts Aphex Twin and Feist, the album is an extraordinary listen that peaks and troughs with absolute grace.
I’ve never felt such relief as when I listened to this album; I honestly thought the whole album would be like David Gray for the dubstep generation. Thankfully, this was an horrendously misinformed, misjudged and completely retarded prediction.
Now, go buy your copy, by a really nice soundsystem/pair of headphones, curl up into a ball on the floor and play this at full blast. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you may even dance.
Title: James Blake (Atlas / Polydor)
Artist: James Blake
Out now on Atlas / Polydor.
