Decadence in Berlin

Decadence in Berlin are from the English midlands and write pop music to the best of their ability. Comparisons have been made to post-punk groups such as Joy Division and the Fall, through to more contemporary acts such as the Rakes and the Young Knives. One promotions company went as far as to describe them as "Sonic Youth meets the Arctic Monkeys", but the band were unsure if they liked that or not. The following tracks are from their 2009 demo and are here for your listening pleasure.

The band are easily distracted, and inspiration for songs in this bunch include a short prose piece by Richard Braugtigan, the musical Cabaret, and the macabre myth of the Man-Moth.

Decadence in Berlin - Setbacks EP (2009)
1. Atlantic Radio Fire

2. Man-Moth

3. I Am A Camera

Hear more/see more of Decadence in Berlin through the usual channels, including myspace.

They will be playing with La La Vasquez in Wolverhampton in April, as well as making trips to Liverpool and Aberystwyth in the coming months.

James's Top 5 Remixes of 2008

Been a long time. Shouldn't have left you etc...

I shall make up for it with my top five remixes of 2008.

1) M.I.A. - Paper Planes (DFA Remix)

I first heard this while producing for the Analogue show on Bay Radio early in 2008. I cannot thank Graham enough. This funky fun remix is typical of James Murphy and DFA and for it to take my favourite song off my favourite album of 2007 and turn it into something new but equally awesome assures it my top spot for 2008.

2) Metronomy - Thing For Me (Breakbot Remix)

Over the last two years Metronomy has consistently impressed me and been an act I've taken to my heart. The stripped down sound lends it self so well to the remix/mashup genre and the amount of remixes alone from Nights Out could fill its own blog post - however this Breakbot remix is a lovely throwback to 70s soul (another of my obsessions) and stands out.

3) Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes (XXXChange Remix)

A good test of a remix is how it holds up to the original and if it can surpass it. XXXChange Remix of L.E.S. Artistes does exactly that and when you consider how good Santogold's self titled album of electro pop gold is then this is a sure sign of a fantastic remix.

4) Yo! Majesty - Club Action (Futurecop! Remix)

Another act introduced to me by Graham this time via this here blog. Yo! Majesty seem to be the answer to the question people have been asking since Salt and Pepper on released Best Of's. About time too as lesbian hip-hop never sounded so good. This remix of Club Action is typical of Futurecop! who seems to be permanently stuck in an Atari 5200 taking all things current into some crazy 80s vortex. 

5) Girl Talk - Still Here

From one of my albums of the year, Feed The Animals, this is just one track of fourteen in a seamlessly stitched mashup marathon. Girl Talk's effortless splicing of Procul Harlem, Blackstreet, Kanye West, The Band, Ace of Base and the theme from Footloose (among others) all within one track caters for those who like their music Attention Deficit Friendly.

Gang Gang Dance.

It's a wonder what ends up in my inbox sometimes. However, sandwiched between promises of bigger genitalia and some widow in a far off land asking for my bank details in order to collect an inheritance which no doubt does not exist I do occasionally get some gems sent to me from the lovely folks in internet land.

Gang Gang Dance make a lovely hip-shaking experimental noise with dirty synths and some tasty little guitar licks. The Brooklyn four-piece have just released their fourth album, 'Saint Dymphna,' through Warp Records, and have been remixed by XXXchange, who has previously worked with Spank Rock, and done his magic with Santogold's 'L.E.S Artistes'. The band, who are a favourite of the boys in both Hot Chip and Klaxons, have previously been described as "neo-primitivist," and I can see why as there is something tribal about the sounds they make: you can't help but move your feat to the infectious grooves. Here are two cuts from the new LP, which is now hot on my list of albums to pick up as soon as humanly possible. Liz Bougatsos’ vocals on 'House Jam' seem some way reminiscent of the haunting voices heard on The Knife's records, sticking sweetly to the synth line that punctuates the track. 'Princes' is a very different affair, sounding somewhere between Dizzee Rascal (down to guest vocalist Tinchy Stryder) and M.I.A. it's upbeat, and the guitar line that kicks in around three minutes just totally kicks.

mp3: Gang Gang Dance - House Jam
mp3: Gang Gang Dance - Princes (feat. Tinchy Stryder)

myspace: www.myspace.com/ganggangdance

You can hear XXXchange's awesome mix of 'House Jam' over at RcrdLbl.

Oh my! O Children.

I can't believe that this year I have only posted once on this lil' old blog. Shocking. However, with the little redesign I've just decided to do, comes the plan of blogs galore. So where to start? I think I shall begin by looking at what I have been playing a lot of recently on my Last.fm and go from there...

I've been listening a lot to O Children the last few days. Formed out of the ashes of Bono Must Die, the band features the enigmatic Tobi O'Kandi on vocals and keys, and it is his dramatic oh-so-low voice which make O Children sound so awesome. They make me think a little of Ox.Eagle.Lion.Man who Tobi played drums for awhile back.

Like a lot of the bands emerging from London ways at the moment, O Children play dark post-pop music for kids who like to dress in black and wear wayfarers in winter. Currently there is no record, but the demos on Myspace shine like diamonds, despite the fact the band have only been together since slightly earlier this year. Choice pick would be 'Dead Disco Dancer' with its hypnotic refrain that "the disco dancer's dead", and mechanically precise bass-line.

The band are making up for the lack of a physical release however with a pretty damned fine t-shirt which is available from PureGroove. They are strictly limited edition, so if you want to be the hippest kid in the joint you will probably want to get yours as soon as. And if you live in London, get yourself to the Learner Dance Party tonight at Punk, where they will be playing alongside Televised Crimewave, and the noiseniks known as KASMs which feature Rory of Test Icicles fame. I'm kicking myself for being ill and living in the midlands.

mp3: O Children - Dead Disco Dancer (Demo)

myspace: www.myspace.com/ochildren

Do the D.A.N.C.E.

Rhythm is a dancer and so is Mike Long. Under the guise of his youtube account "dipsetmuthafucka", Long spent a year filming a video a day of himself dancing in his hometown on Hamilton, Ontario in Canadia.

Now I like a dance and considered myself skilled in the art of shape throwing but this guy is in a league of his own. His moves are as impressive as his bravery as many passers by stop and stare and then move on after quickly concluding this man is insane.

INSANELY AWESOME!

An absolute certainty is that every video will have some skilled dancing, some shot of Hamilton Ontario, a pair of highly desirable white shoes but most importantly every song scores off the charts when its comes to cool.

The genres tend to gravitate towards Rock n Roll, Soul, Reggae, Classic Pop - with some Elctro and Hip-Hop occasionally thrown in. But I must reiterate; every song is a diamond. He has created a mighty compendium of videos that should be considered the definitive list in desert island discs.

Its under Mike Long's inspiration that I have selected a few songs that recommend you all put on at full volume and shake a tail feather too.

Creation - "Makin' Time"
Merry Clayton - "Gimme Shelter"
B-52's - "Rock Lobster"
Os Mutantes - "A Minha Menina"
The Maytals - "Pressure Drop"

Here are also a couple of videos out of the bunch I'd like to draw your attention to as well. Firstly this Chuck Berry classic which has a bit of back story from Long's 'mom'.
Chuck Berry - "Maybelline"
And with The Knife being a popular choice amongst us at wewererockstars and this video being a prime example of Long confusing the people of Hamilton I present his take on Heartbeats.
The Knife - ''Heartbeats''

On his youtube account he's challenged someone to take up his mantle. If you think you could then go for it - before I do.

Girrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl Talk

Gregg Gillis (left) is an amazing man. If believe him to be created by God with the purpose of producing the most me-friendly music possible.

More commonly known as Girl Talk, he is music's answer to Attention Defecit Disorder. Taking the now established genre of the mash-up to new extremes, Gillis uses more samples in one minute than on the whole of "As Heard on Radio Soulwax Pt. 2"

Ok, maybe not that many, but he uses a LOT of samples very quickly and the affect is fantastic and I now cannot listen to Sinead O'Connor without hearing Lil Wayne (not that I listen to much Sinead O'Connor.

His new album is called "Feed the Animals" and I believe it to be an marked improvement on his 2006 album "Night Ripper". It uses samples from Pete Townsend, Ludcaris, Edwin Starr, Avril Lavigne Kelis, Rage Against the Machine, Jay-Z, Huey Lewis and the News, Aaliyah and Roy Orbison - and thats just the first 5 minutes.

"Feed the Animals" is available as a continuous download from Illegal Art Records for free (though you are encouraged to donate some of you own money). I listen to it on the cycle to work everyday. I use it to time how fast I gol; though I rarely get into worth before Jay-Z's Roc Boys mixed with Radiohead's Paranoid Android comes on - usually because I slow down to make sure I get a listen.

Try before you buy for free?

Girl Talk - Part 1: "Play Your Part"
Girl Talk - Part 5: "Set It Off"

Actually, this is my album of the year so far. Though I think I may suffer from the Attention Defecit thing...

Super Cute Voices!

You know how sometimes you here a band, and you just know they are special. A band you want to keep all to yourself but it is impossible, because all you want to do is tell everyone how awesome they are? Well, Super Cute Voices are one such group.

The Welsh two-piece is comprised of 18 year olds Stuart and Charlie, who hail from Aberystwyth and Llanelli respectively, and they make far much more noise than their diminutive numbers would suggest. I was fortunate to catch them live at an Aberystwyth battle of the bands competition yesterday, and even the compare seemed a little confused as to whether or not the band was ready to start, seeming somewhat uncertain as to if there was just two of them. Stuart handles vocal duties as well as thrashing away on guitar, whilst Charlie (a powerhouse of a drummer) hits the skins and sings all the vocoded vocals (oh yes!). However, what really makes this band stand out from all the carbon-copy indie pretenders is their use of electronic tomfoolery. All their songs are backed by a series of midi synths and 8-bit blippery, not to mention the most bizzare Japanese voice samples, all programmed by Stuart, coming together to make a complete package which sounds somewhat like the off-the-wall Japs, Polysics, or 70s new wavers Devo. Unsuprisingly, Stuart heralds these acts as their two main reference points, but that doesn't make their music devoid of originality. Rather the opposite: they take the prototypyical new wave sound and make it their own.

Imagine To My Boy trapped in a Mark Mothersbaugh's gameboy. Perhaps.

And if you are wondering who won the battle of the bands... well, let's just say the winners were cute.

Super Cute.

mp3: Super Cute Voices - So Desu Ka

mp3: Super Cute Voices - Work!

Post exams, pre lectures..

Woop. Finished my last exam on friday and since then have; drunk too much, wasted a day away being hungover, noticed that Aberystwyth has moved itself into a cloud, been climbing, eaten crumpets, and made postcards with far too many spelling mistakes in them for an English student.

Music wise 2008 has been bountiful, with the loan bringing the bank account into the plus figures it has resulted in me gaining far too many albums for me to type them all out (very much helped by a lovely housemate of mine :) However, I feel these definitely deserve a mention because they are just SO GOOD.

1) Erol Alkan - Bugged Out/ Bugged In mix
2) French Touch Anthology
3) Shy Child - Noise Won't Stop
4) Chromeo - Fancy Footwork

In regards to the French Touch Anthology, you most definitely get your money's worth - 4 discs costing around the same as a normal album. Currently I'm enjoying the second cd the most entitled The French Lounge however it has resulted in me daydreaming off into a world of black and white french films, where I get swept off my feet by a tall, dark, handsome french man... *sigh*

Anyhows, there are plenty of very cherry popping, heart meltingly good, bass lined beats to drag me back into the present day. Most noticably the noise is coming from those Italian boys; Crookers, Boy 8-Bit remixes and the Herve/ Sinden/ Switch lot.

To give you a little teaser, here is one of my favourites, and my aim of the next month or so? To get this played out in Aberystwyth, where it'll catch more than just myself hook, line and sinker...

Lethal Bizzle - Selfridges Girl Not On Myspace (Boy 8-Bit remix)

Enjoy!

x E x

A brief history of the twentieth century.

It is amazing to what levels I am willing to procrastinate in order to avoid doing any revision for my exam next week. Of course, there is far too much on the internet designed to help divert my attentions. One of my favourite past-times is to read up on little tidbits of history on wikipedia. Sad, I know, but I've always had a love of history, and it's pretty interesting stuff, honest!

One of my favourite things to do is combine this "hobby" with music, as in, find out what it is that so-and-so band are singing about. Now, there are only a couple of groups I have come across who do this to quite an extent, one of which I have never really given much time of day until earlier, when I heard they were releasing their third full-length. British Sea Power, Brightons's eccentric quartet, release Do You Like Rock Music? on January 14th, and from what I have heard of it so far, it sounds like a rather amazing record. Several years ago my good friend Robert lent me their debut, The Decline of British Sea Power, which I never got around to listening to, and until this very moment is still sat on my shelves back at home. God knows why I never gave it a spin, for they had so much going in their favour of me liking them: for example, their rather interesting stage shows which included dragging in folliage, stuffed birds, and a 10ft bear which the group would shoo of stage. Then theres the name, harking back to a nostalgic time in history when Britania ruled the waves. If that wasn't enough, they used history in their songs! Awesome! I feel stupid for never giving them a chance, but I can honestly say after hearing the majority of DYLRM? I am pretty much a fully fleged convert. They remind me a lot of Hope of the States, who split up some time ago, but released two brilliant records during their career, both of which take great influence from the past. My picks of the pack would be 'Canvey Island', a song about the flooding that hit the island in 1953 and left 58 dead (you can read more about it on wikipedia). Seriously, the song sounds massive, and clearly the band's answer to the question posed in the album title is a resounding "yes!" In 'No Lucifer' the assault continues, a track which sounds heavily influenced by Arcade Fire (ex-Arcade Fire drummer, Howard Bilerman was a contributor to the record), but none the less spectacular, with singer Yan informing the listener they "...can always just say no to the anti-aircraft crew, the boys in the Hitler-Youth".

British Sea Power's new record, Do You Like Rock Music?, is released on January 14th through Rough Trade, and can be pre-ordered here.

mp3: British Sea Power - Canvey Island
mp3: British Sea Power - No Lucifer

This neatly leads me on to my favourite band of last year, and one of my albums of the year, in the form of iLiKETRAiNS. The Leeds . The term 'library rock' has been banded around the group quite a bit, and this is a fair description of their blend of post-rock and wry, intelligent lyrics, which explore a whole host of topics from the ill-fated journey of Scott to the Antarctic in 1912 ('Terra Nova'), the great fire of London ('25 Sins') and the black death ('We All Fall Down'), the Salem witch trials ('We Go Hunting'), and a protest song at the results of Dr Richard Beeching's 1960s report into the railways, which reulted in the closure of many branch lines and the loss of thousands of jobs ('The Beeching Report'). As you can imagine, it's not your conventional topics of songwriting when in comparison with the majority of bands in the indie charts. But then again, that's what makes iLiKETRAiNS so special. In October they released their debut full-length, Elegies To Lessons Learnt, on Beggars Banquet, which is easily the most macabre and bleak album of the 2007: if it's happy-go-lucky indie-by-numbers you are after it's probably best to keep clear, but if you want to think about what you are listening to, and get a history lesson in the process then they could be the band for you.

And on the subject of wikipedia hunting, iLiKETRAiNS saved most of that bother by providing a "text book" with the album which gives information on the subjects they portray in their music. If only the history curiculum in schools was taught by iLiKETRAiNS!

iLiKETRAiNS's debut album is available now from Beggars Banquet, and can be ordered here, whilst their next single is released on vinyl/download only in February.

mp3: iLiKETRAiNS - We Go Hunting

mp3: iLiKETRAiNS - Terra Nova (taken from Progress Reform, 2006)

mp3: iLiKETRAiNS - TiNSLEYViADUCT (2005 demo)

Happy 2008 - Here is some sound.

I've been far too lazy this Christmas. A perfect chance for me to get back into the swing of blogging is squandered, with my time going into playing Wii until the early hours. Never mind, eh?

To make up for my absense I thought I'd put up a jumbo post of some of the stuff I'm liking at this current moment in time. Firstly, Okioki. Another amazing Aussie band, the Nintendo-friendly three piece from Perth have already played gigs with Hot Chip and Yuksek down under. Their myspace is a little vague with information, but they are worth a listen. Imagine playing guitar along to your gameboy and you are part of the way to working out how they sound. If you are expecting the art noise mess that Crystal Castles get out of nanoloop-ing and 8-bit sampling you may be a bit dissapointed, but if you're looking for a nostalgic gaming sound that could soundtrack games of the future, then this could be the hit your after.

mp3: Okioki - Defend the Gas Station
mp3: Okioki - Pocoyo vs The Incredible Machine

Next up, thanks to a heads-up from Gohan, his remix of fellow Parisians Thieves Like Us's 'Drugs In My Body'. This has become a personal fave of mine, and has been given quite a lot of playtime over in my media player. Thieves Like Us, signed over at Kitsune, ran a remix competition for the track towards the end of last year, spawning many a mix. Yet, out of the mixes I've heard of 'Drugs...' this is probably one of my faves. Tiny keys, synthesized choral line... simply love it. I've been watching over Gohan's stuff for awhile now, and if you haven't checked out his tracks over on his myspace, do so now! Thieves Like Us have UK tour dates in February, check their myspace for more information.

mp3: Thieves Like Us - Drugs In My Body (Gohan remix)

For our third sitting we have CHAINGANG. Flaming hell, Australia keeps throwing up some pretty awesome groups, this foursome hailing from Sydney. The email these guys sent me said a lot about the band all being from other bands, and having come together to create this slab of angry noize-rock. I haven't got an idea who the bands they used to play for were, but it seems that the line-up they are currently holding is pretty damn tight. Pulsing drums, dirty bass and heavy guitars, and with a distinctive punk attitude, encapsulated in front-woman Hayley's urgent vocals.

mp3: CHAINGANG - Get Off My Stage (demo)

Stimulation, I need some action.

If you haven't noticed, I love the Teenagers and I find that I have to write about them pretty often to relieve myself of the need that builds up inside me like steam in a kettle (as I did here and here). There is just something so fun about their minimalist blend of pervy lyrics, distinctive bass lines and tinny programmed drums. Sometimes I imagine that if it wasn't for vocalist Quentin's affected French accent the band would be rather plain, but after seeing them live I was totally enthralled. I think they are the kind of band which work better in a small venue rather than massive settings, as with my experience with them they made the stuffy Birmingham Academy 3 into the coolest party that you've ever been invited too. They are a band that actually appear to be having a good time on stage, especially Quentin who excels himself pulling (admittedly camp) shapes at the first sign of a camera from a hand sticking out of the crowd.

You may have heard 'Selflove', an album demo which was floating around on the blogs a short time back, but with the release of their latest single for Merok, Starlett Johansson, the band have renamed the track and unleashed it under the title of 'Full Flavor'. It is, as far as I can tell, a song about masturbation; a topic which seems rather fitting for a band who are renowned for writing rude songs. 'Sunset Beach' is an older song of theirs, but I still love it like I would I small child who happened to be mine. It sounds like the soundtrack to an American 80s TV show which you happened to stumble across on cable in the early hours of the morning, still feeling the effects of the heavy evening of drinks from which you haven't recovered. And then you wake up and realise it was all a dream, and you are sitting in your underpants in the living room, the TV throwing out nothing by static.

According to the band another single is in the pipeline, as well as an album, which will be on Merok.

mp3: The Teenagers - Full Flavor

mp3: The Teenagers - Sunset Beach

A foal is a horse that is one year old or younger.

Foals dress for the occasion and have awesome songs to match. Hailing from Oxford, these ex-art school types create a sound akin to Youthmovies crossed with the pop sensibilities of Bloc Party. The band won a lot of fans over at SXSW earlier this year, and with a couple of singles under their belt released on the Transgressive label, it could not be too soon for them to release an album. Did I mention they are perfectionists? In the short time they have been together they have recorded a mere handful of tracks, but the love and attention that goes into them is clear, as each one is pretty much near perfection. 'Hummer', a song the band describe as being about running, was their first single for Transgressive back in April, whilst the demo version of 'The French Open' shows the groups more progressive side...

mp3: Foals - Hummer

mp3: Foals - The French Open (demo)

Current single, 'Mathletics', is out now.

Behind my gameboy I got gamegirl.

Tranterco is one part of Melbourne's Gameboy/Gamegirl, who you will have surely heard of if you've had your finger on the pulse of the coolest blogs in blogland during the past year. Tranterco (who is responsible for the faux rapping in GB/GC) has been djaying for awhile and as well as throwing down tunes he also puts his hands to some pretty interesting mash-ups and mixes. Examples from his myspace page include a mix of Justin Timberlake's 'Rock My Body', and a mash-up featurning SebastiAn and 90s R&B outfit Bell Biv Devoe. My pick from what I have heard of his output, however, has to be his mash of Spank Rock's 'Bump' and Midnight Juggernauts' 'Shadows', and I've included it below.

I've also thrown in a Gameboy/Gamegirl track, so you can check out Tranter during his day job. 'Pumps Rumps' is, to me, a throwback to 90s group 20 Fingers' 'Short Dick Man' brought kicking and rapping (?) into the naughties, but like a million times better. GB/GG have got a killer sound, and Ican't wait until they release some new material besides the tracks over on their myspace. Head over to Hype if you want to hear more, 'Sweaty Wet/Dirty Damp' is highly recommended.

mp3: Tranterco - Midnight Spanknauts (Midnight Juggernauts vs Spank Rock)

mp3: Gameboy/Gamegirl - Pumps Rumps

That's why I copy and paste.

Every now and again you stumble across a musical gem, that once you've heard you never will forget. About two years ago I heard a song on late night MTV2, a song which since that day I have been able to remember vividly, yet until a couple of days ago I didn't know what it was. I could remember the cutesy animated video and the unforgettable chorus, but did I know who wrote that little piece of magic?

No, of course I didn't.

Plastic Operator are a two piece international electronic pop outfit, with one half from Antwerp and the other from Montreal. How did they meet? In London whilst studying audio production of course. After hitting it off, realising they both had a shared love for well written pop music, the duo began to make their own blend of bittersweet electronic pop music; music which is sure to leave you feeling both melancholic and uplifted simultaneously. Okay: try to imagine the Knife if all they listened to was the Postal Service and the Pet Shop Boys... they are somewhere in that region. Seriously, the stuff they produce is amazing.

Anyway, I digress slightly. On hearing the band's self produced debut Different Places I was stunned into silence when the third track kicked in and I realised this was the song I had been looking for. Call off the search! That tune that had managed to evade me for so long finally had a name, 'Folder'. It was P.O's first single back in 2005 and was well received by much of the music press, and now two years later it was blasting from my stereo. It's so catchy, vocalist Pieter Van Dessel's distinctive voice flowing over a sea of electronic keys and synthetic drums, seemingly sad with its strains of string and blipping synths. It's pop perfection. Plain and simple.
It's the kind of song you would want to fall in love to.

Why not fall in love with it too?

Plastic Operator's debut album Different Places is available now on Fine Day.

mp3: Plastic Operator - Folder

Acres of dead space cadets.

Elle Milano are back! And not only do they have a new single, but a new album. Fans of the Leicester three-piece (they recently lost a member) may remember their Swearing's for Art Students EP which came out seemingly years back now which gained them a reasonable amount of support from the music press, especially from Indie fanzine ArtRocker.

The first single to be taken from the album, 'My Brother, The Astronaut' takes up where the last EP finished, an scathing indie rock anthem that leaves you gasping for air. Not a band to play quietly, the track is loud and abrassive; all angular guitars and shouty lyrics. Lots of fun! It also sounds remotely similar, in places, to a certain Fallout Boy song. This, however, may be intentional, as the band are well know for their satirical and cynical outlook on the British alternative music scene, as well as the shallow consumerist attitude of today's youth. Check it out for yourself, along with the classic title track from their EP, 'Swearing's For Art Students'.

The new single 'My Brother, The Astronaut' is released on Brighton Electric 0n October 29th, and is limited to 500 white vinyl and download. This will be followed by the debut album Acres of Dead Space Cadets later in the year.

mp3: Elle Milano - My Brother, The Astronaut
mp3: Elle Milano - Swearing's For Art Students

This just in!

Bloc Party are good again. Honest!

Bloc Party's new single is called Flux and is currently whizzing around the blogsphere like bird flu in an apocalyptic vision of the future. RAD!. We Were Rock Stars is not content to sit idly by and neglect our duties in hyping this beyond hyperbole so: THIS IS THE BEST SONG YOU WILL EVER HEAR!!!

Ok, maybe not. But perhaps one of the best releases of the year and a quick one too. A Weekend In The City, an album well below the par set by 2005's (great year for music that) Silent Alarm, seems to have been done and dusted and if the rest of BPs new stuff is half as good as Flux, produced by A Weekend In the City producer Jacknife Lee, then we'll be welcoming them back to the dance floors of indie discos across the UK.

P.S. In order to bring you this literally HOTTT with three Ts off the press we have the added 'joy' of Zane L0L yammering on at the end of the mp3 but hopefully we'll replace this at a later date but no doubt in about 2 weeks you will have heard this everywhere and be sick to death of it a la Standing in the Way of Control.

Bloc Party - Flux

Sweet as Sugar.

London's David E. Sugar has been around for awhile now, and in my opinion is one of the UK's bright sparks who continues to excell himself again and again. Whilst he produces his own original material, utilising a Gameboy's default sounds to program his beats, it is his remixes that have really grabbed my attention.

My first encounter with Sugar's work was his remix of Klaxons 'Golden Skans', a smashing mix with the best bit coming in at 2:43 with the song stripped back to the vocals and keyboard before the beat kicks back in. Sweet as.

His reinterpretation of Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly's 'War of the Worlds' is not so much a remix but Sugar ripping up the original and sticking it back together in the form of a three minutes of perfectly chunky glitch pop. It's like, wow, how to make a song that was already a tune in to the theme from an early 90s Sega game that you want to listen to on repeat. Thumbs up.

I have never really liked the Rumble Strips, and after seeing them last summer and being put off by their tad mediocre sound, I have never really strayed anywhere near them (well apart from to listen to Sportsday Megaphone's remix of previous single). However, how could I resist when I saw that David E. Sugar had put his hands to work at remixing their latest single 'Girls and Boys in Love'. At what a mix it is! It starts off all tinkling pianos, until roughly the 50 second mark when in drops a crunchy electro riff which is partnered once more about 15 seconds later by that lovely piano. It's big and punchy, and puts the original to shame!

On the subject of his original material, as an added bonus I have thrown in his cover of the Cure's 'Just Like Heaven', which sees a classic slice of Robert Smith put through the 8-bit blender and coming out squeakyfresh the other side.

David E. Sugar's new single 'Chelsea Girls' is out October 15th on Brikabrak.
'Chelsea Girls' video directed by Peepshow Collective.

mp3: Klaxons - Golden Skans (David E. Sugar remix)
mp3: Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly - War of the Worlds (David E. Sugar remix)
mp3: The Rumble Strips - Girls And Boys In Love (David E. Sugar's Shameless mix)
mp3: David E. Sugar - Just Like Heaven (Cure cover)

Just Jak It.

Pseudonecrophile are a boy and a girl from Houston, Texas, who I seem to have stumbled across out of nowhere. However, since hearing them only a few days ago on the old myspace I have became somewhat obsessed with their irresistable blend of electronica and attitude, a mix that hits hard but manages not to sacrife its pop edge. Imagine Crystal Castles if all they listened to was Justin Timberlake. Or something like that. The track that has stuck in my head most is 'Jak It', an ode to a Jack Mitchell who, as the song informs, is a sex god. Apparently. Bass-heavy beats and quicksharp vocals is the name of Pseudonecrophile's game - and it's the kind of game I want to play.

The remix by supercool Parisian Gohan is also highly recommended and worth checking out, and if you enjoy that you can download his album from his myspace. 'John Woo' is a bit of a tasty tidbit to get your juices flowing. It got mine going for sure. Bonus, non?

mp3: Pseudonecrophile - Jak It
mp3: Pseudonecrophile - Jack Mitchell (Gohan remix)
mp3: Gohan - John Woo

Coming Back With Power! Power!

BOOM! M.I.A is missing no longer, I have found her in my stereo every single minute since the release of her second major album Kala on the 20th of August.

I feared an album too 'banging' for my tastes with the more raucous tracks; 'XR2', 'Bird Flu' and 'Boyz up on her myspace at the beginning of the year.

"...take a pill good time all the time"

However this contender for album of the decade has come with some more saccharine tracks that are more to my tastes and serves to make the album a richer and more eclectic venture.

While blogging M.I.A. continuines the theme of 2007 being a great year for albums as many artists are following up on their 2005 releases which by and large were best bunch of records ever released in a 12 month period I have to say that this album is extremely good at making it feel little has come before it. It is totally complete, not one song could be swapped with 2005's Arular as it would serve to ruin both albums.

While Arular was an explosion of positively addictive Carioca Funk, Kala is much more of a Hip-Hop affair with Timbaland even producing a track. Its more stripped down and the samples are more recognizable and M.I.A's delivery and content has moved towards gangs and guns; though more AK47s in Africa than 8 Balls and Glocks in South Central LA. Contributions by Timbaland and Afrikan Boy help Kala conform more to the typical Hip Hop formula of collabirations.

"I’m illegal I don’t pay tax tax,
EMA yes I’m claiming that that"

She hasn't sidestepped pure dancibility and with Tacks like Boys, XR2 and the sublime Jimmy which sees her adopting a more Bollywood style she will be permanent fixture on all god DJs set lists - certainly in America where she is far out pacing her level of fame over here.

Is there a theme to Kala? Does it all string together? Not really, no. Perhaps there are many threads that unwravel for a track and are reswen back into the fabric of the album later. While she criticises the status quo with regards to the West and the Third world in Hussle and $20 she is at ease with forgetting them completely with Jimmy and Come Around.

"no one on the corner has swagga like us"

Is it all good? You bet your Air Max 95s it is! Its arogant and funny, dancable and edgy, lots of good things and yes more good thing besides. While I did not think this immediately this is one of the greatest albums to come out of the UK (though this album owes everything but M.I.A. herself to the US) in the last 10 years. Its made listening to Arular harder and while I think this had the potential to become slightly dated in the long run right now its perfect and I'm prepared for the time when she claims she's bigger than Jesus and really isn't cool anymore, I'll be there asking the very important question, "Where were you in 92?" I was 7 growing up in Northfields, South Ealing near Hounslow where M.I.A. is from so I kinda feel like we're kindred spirits. I am seriously considering changing my name to Jimmy Aaja!

This was very close to a sensible album review and this worries me. To counter balence this I shall turn to M.I.A. herself and how she described her album to the Gaurdian in March: "Shapes, colours, Africa, street, power, bitch, nu world, brave." I couldn't agree more.

M.I.A. - Boyz
M.I.A. - Jimmy
M.I.A. - Paper Planes
M.I.A. - Come Around Feat. Timbaland

2005 Version 2.0

If I have not said it before I shall say it here and now: 2005 was the greatest year for music ever. Well, for me it certainly was as it produced the most amazing albums in my living memory and it has always been albums that really make my pussy moist.

And now all those amazing artists are now coming out with their follow up albums and all helping to bring 2007 closer to the bench mark 2005 has set. We've already had Arcades Fire's follow up to Funeral, the excellent Neon Bible, LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver, Bloc Party's A Weekend In the City and quite a few other notable artists. Over a series of blogs I would like to draw attention to a few more acts that are following up their 2005 albums with produce of a similar high grade.

First up is New York based The National. Their 2005 album Alligator was the reason why I have bought their entire back catalouge, why I am willing to pay silly money to see them play in November, why I bum them hard and why I bought their new album, Boxer, without hearing a note.

The Album does not dissapoint and while I do love the format of albums I find it very hard to review them. But Huzzah! I live in blogland where the mp3s roll like mighty semi-legal rivers of music down the to estuary of your ears and trickling into your mind tanks the knowledge of how amazingly good albums can be sans the need for me describe the indescribable.

Here are two tracks from Boxer, Fake Empire and Mistaken For Strangers and since I know you're curious here's one of my favourite tracks from their Alligator album, Mr. November.

PS For me the National are a warm blanket that I like to wrap myself up in even when its hot, if you are cosying up to them too then I suggest starting with Alligator and moving on to Boxer from there. Also if you have a nosy round the blogs you may be able to lay your hands on their Black Session that did in Paris a while back - a truly magical recording. x