Sharing the sharing.
You’re tossing and turning in your sleep. A nightmare. You’re in your bed, in your room. But it’s not your room. It’s a carnival fun-house. A band is playing the most beautiful music ever heard…in a nightmare. The singer sounds like Jello Biafra, but it’s not Jello Biafra. Dreams are like that.
Note: This is the entire album Hideous Dance Attack.
Dangermouse messes with Britain’s biggest export since, well, since a bunch of disenfranchised chaps bailed the island to follow their own nation start-up dreams, the web goes grey for a day and the masses are alerted to the mash-up. No newcomer to the genre, Osymyso, messes with your head and record collection with these two takes on the same theme.
With a penchant for literary lyrics, Puritan manage loose, almost off-handed pop songs to dark, dusty anti-ballads with a Malkmus-esque flair. Imagine Lloyd Cole making music in an American bedroom without the Commotions.
If you had to pigeonhole RF, you might label it Intelligent Acoustic Music. His whispering guitars and gentle programming make me want to snuggle up with my iPod and a good Haruki Murakami novel.
The easy explanation: he’s smoking something.
Collages of stuttering breaks and swirling samples, along with extended doses of “spoken word” culled from the underbelly of American pop culture. A potentially played-out formula turned downright entrancing.
Halifax’s art-hop pioneer evolves his doomsday mic checks into full-blown audio armageddon (see “Storm Clouds & Silver Lining”) for his Ninja Tune debut.
Douglas has played with some crazy kids (John Zorn, Cibo Matto, and Sean Lennon) and covered Rufus Wainwright. These remixes have a splash of electronic vermouth with a foundation of gin jazz and a little speed.
The “As Serious As Your Life” B-sides come in all flavors: Jay Dee and Guilty Simpson capitalize on the original’s funky underpinnings with b-boy savoir faire while the live version pushes the limits of both RAM and patience.
Sunny, ambient pop songs from San Diego, CA where everything is obvious. Howard Hello isn’t obvious.