Probably the FACT magazine Mixes are the best and more solid of the many music mix series out there—check this Day&Night post for a good selection—. And one pretty eclectic too: from Indie heroes—The XX—, to reputed DJs—Ben Klock—, remixers—Ewan Pearson—, or electronic music producers—Autechre, Robert Hood—.
The good thing is that each week there is a couple of new mixes to discover. The not so good thing is that download is only possible during three weeks. Again, the good thing is that there is a complete archive in Mixcloud, so the music is available online.
Two of my favorites are the ones by King Midas Sound and Fantastic Mr. Fox, but there is a lot of music to explore.
10 Best records of 2009 _in numerical order_ 1. Merriweather Post Pavilion, by Animal Collective 2. Zii e Zie, by Caetano Veloso 3. XX, by XX 4. Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle, by Bill Callahan 5. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, by Phoenix 6. Fever Ray, by Fever Ray 7. Let's Change the World With Music, by Prefab Sprout 8. How to Get to Heaven from Scotland, by Aidan Moffat & The Best-Ofs 9. Jewellery, by Micachu and the Shapes 10. Inspiration Information 3, by Mulatu Astatke & Heliocentrics
Another 28 great records of 2009 _alphabetical order_ Album, by Girls Beacons of Ancestorship, by Tortoise Beat Conducta 5-6, by Madlib BiRd-BrAiNs, by tUnE-yArDs Bitte Orca, by Dirty Projectors Bromst, by Dan Deacon Dark Was the Night, VV.AA. (curated by The National) Embryonic, by The Flaming Lips Farm, by Dinosaur Jr. Five Years of Hyperdub, VV.AA. Hold Time, by M. Ward Logos, by Atlas Sound Manners, by Passion Pit Noble Beast, by Andrew Bird Popular songs, by Yo La Tengo Primary Colours, by The Horrors One, by Ben Klock Rockwell, by Anni Rossi The Ecstatic, by Mos Def The Eternal, by Sonic Youth The Good Feeling Music, by Dent May The Love Language, by The Love Language To Be Still, by Alela Diane Together Through Life, by Bob Dylan Veckatimest, by Grizzly Bear Watersports, by Mi Ami Wavves, by Wavves Wilco (the Album), by Wilco
14 songs of 2009 _alphabetical order_ 1901, by Phoenix Hibari, by Ryuichi Sakamoto (video) House of Diamonds, by Bowerbirds Islands, by Xx Lalita, by The Love Language Lisztomania, by Phoenix My Girls, by Animal Collective Osaka Loop Line, by Discovery Rum Hee (Deerhoof Remix), by Shugo Tokumaru (In Fairtilizer) Sasong, by Avery Tare & Kría Brekkan (In YouTube) Stillness Is The Move, by Dirty Projectors The Reeling, by Passion Pit Velvet, by The Big Pink Woof Woof, by Dan Deacon
Fourteen beautiful Spanish records from 2009 _alphabetical order_ 1971, by Elle Belga A Nadie, by Javier Corcobado And it Matters to me to see you Smiling, by bRUNA Chill Out, by Joe Crepúsculo Chorando Apréndese, by Emilio José Desayuno Continental, by Extraperlo En la Cama con Antonna, by Antonna El Perro Es Mío, by Francisco Nixon El Primero Era Mejor, by Manos de Topo La Educación, by Abraham Boba La Mejor Hora para Despertarse, by La Banda Municipal del Polo Norte Larga Duración, by Lagartija Nick Macumba o muerte, by Za! Otra nube, by Javier Colís y las Malas Lenguas Romancero, by La Bien Querida
Hear the list in Spotify (except Joe Crepúsculo, Antonna, Manos de Topo, Javier Colís and La Bien Querida)
A beautiful evening in Paris, one of the greatest (indie) rock bands of the last 20 years, and an adventurous group of filmmakers lead by Vincent Moon. A cover of a Troggs' classic, and one of Yo La Tengo' best songs. Here we are, another Les concerts a emporter jewel on La Blogotheque. Maybe the best of the year, so far.
Second part (with 'Sugarcube', and 'Periodically double or triple') is also great.
From a Pitchfork's new performance series set in a chapel in the middle of a Brooklyn graveyard and named Cementery Gates. St. Vincent sings one of the songs from the album Actor. What I like from hearing St.Vincent performing alive is to realise that her songs are not only beautiful and well built, but also urgent and touching. I don't think that perfection she looks for in the record production makes the songs any better than this.
I guess no-one was expecting nothing like that from Neil Young. It was 1992 and for the last 15 years he had become a kind of wild rebel, angry with the world, revered for the youngs and selling less and less records. But suddenly, as his classic record 'Harvest' turned 20 years old, Young went back and wrote another beautiful record of acoustic ballads, 'Harvest Moon'. And, by far, the best of all was the title one: a track that has one of his finest melodies crafted with warm and wise lyrics about love and the pass of the time. The first time I heard it I just thought it was a good song. Now, for me, it's a classic.
Leven Muster collective is a dutch musical ensemble based on percussions and wind instruments that had released a performance titled Sensing City, in which they introduce rhythms that doesn't follow a music sheet, but the musical patterns of the city (the cars, the people walking, traffic lights...).
Online music magazine Pitchfork Media has agreed to collaborate with US public radio (NPR). The deal is related to NPR Music's “Live in Concert From All Songs Considered”. The radio will ofer webcasting and Pitchfork will provide video and help to pick the shows.
The first product of the collaboration is a concert by Antony and the Johnsons in Washington D.C.
Not truly original, or innovative, it ain't the key moment in some relevant group history, but this song by Lavender Diamond has magic. Included in the The calvary of light EP, it shows the same innocence as the first Belle & Sebastian records and some kind of religious feeling, as if it was based on an appalachian theme. Looking at the basic structures, all the songs by Lavender Diamond share the same style. At the same time all look pale by his side.
By 1979 Smokey Robinson already was a living legend. His music numbers with The Miracles (great songs such as 'You really got a hold on me', 'The tracks of my tears' or 'Tears of a clown'), or another Motown acts, as 'My girl' (The temptations) or 'My guy' (Mary Welles) are true classics. He had even started a career as single artist that included critically acclaimed LPs like Smokey or Quiet Storm.
So, he had nothing to prove. But he did. 'Cruisin´', included in the LP Where there's smoke is his last great song, an example of elegant sensuality that would fit perfectly in Marvin Gaye' records as Let's get it on or Here, my dear. A laidback song full of mellow arrangements that still shows rhythm.
Posts
