Pretentious as the artist-formally-known-as-Prince may be, this was one hell of a kickoff record from his Warner Bros. days and easily on par with some of his best 80's material once given a bit of time to sink in. Reggae, funk, pop, soul, and whatever other genres tags you see attached here is what you get people, so 13EE PW33P41R3D.
I mean, seriously now, it's fucking Prince, what more can I say? Get this and everything else he did prior to 1992 and save yourself the humiliation later.
Grand Magus are yet another fantastic modern group carrying on the excellent tradition set by Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath and countless others in delivering album after album of skullcrackin', blood pumping old school metal. All the more strange then that Grand Magus's release this year, Hammer of the North, is only freakin #77 for 2010 so far on RYM. What a travesty! It's easily top ten material...
Anyway, the nine tracks on this 2008 bumpuncher should be more than enough to get you into dragon slayer mode in a relatively heavy-yet-non-cheesy-manner. Every song's a highlight, with some even reaching anthem status on the strength of the riffs alone ['The Shadow Knows', 'Iron Will'].
Sometimes you wake up and you want something metallic but without the breackneck drumming and endless guitar and vocal pyrotechnicality. Old school, but fresh. In that regard, Grand Magus are ready to serve...and serve they do in spades!
Here's a late night treat for you bozos, and a personal favorite on top of that. Japanese nu-jazz outfit Kyoto Jazz Massive are my morning coffee and my evening aphrodisiac, a conglomerate of fantastic ideas and atmosphere dreamily molded to execution that couldn't be more dynamic. Think of the grandeur of a modern Return To Forever armed to the teeth with sultry crooners that wouldn't be out place in a 70's soul group. Couple that with some slick electronic elements tuned just right for a ride down club avenue, then mix it up like a cocktail over easy. The result? This album will pop right out of the bottle. guaranfuckingteed. It's that smooth, that classy, and each song hits you harder the previous number.
And speaking of numbers, one such highlight can be listened to right below, killer bassline extraordinaire 'Deep In Your Mind', where my man Terry Callier lets his voice connect you to the beat beyond. Shalom!
Forget The Beatles, The Zombies or The Kinks: these fuckers are where it's at. Oh, and Windy is the best damn song of all time-
Who's peekin' out from under a stairway
Calling a name that's lighter than air
Who's bending down to give me a rainbow
Everyone knows it's Windy
Who's tripping down the streets of the city
Smilin' at everybody she sees
Who's reachin' out to capture a moment
Everyone knows it's Windy
And Windy has stor-my eyes
That flash at the sound of lies
And Windy has wings to fly
Above the clouds (above the clouds)
Above the clouds (above the clouds)
[Insert Asskick Flute solo]
So yeah, this is a stone cold classic of the late 60's through and through. Even Satan thinks so! Get the bitch sunny-side up on your queue immediamente.
One of the few decent black metal bands to hail from the U.K. in recent years, A Forest of Stars have slovenly yet diligently garnered a rather studious cult following since the release of their debut album The Corpse of Rebirth back in 2008, which received a variety of mixed reviews subsequently. It showed potential, but lacked character.
The band promised fans and detractors alike afterward that the next album would push the envelope and make them a household name. Cut to two years later and we have Opportunistic Thieves of Spring...and whaddaya know, nearly every expectation one might have was reached with ingenuity to spare. Bravo!
Stylistically, even those not accustomed to black metal will be able to tell right off the bat that this ensemble has an honest and distinct sonic self awareness: beyond the screaming of main male vocalist Mr. Curse and the atypical percussive onslaught you can hear some heavenly female vocals (courtesy of flautist and violinist Kati Stone from My Dying Bride), some drone and folk elements that seem more at home on a Boris record, and the sporadic ambient flourish that gives credence to their 'Psychedelic Black Metal' tag.
Although the elements mesh well on the whole, the longer tracks tend to let those special non-metallic elements shine in loneliness [the opening ambient section to the 16-minute 'Delay's Progression'] and elsewhere we see things stripped down and made delightfully primitive without a hint of lushness or hate ['Raven's Eye View', especially near the middle]. Listen to those blast-beats go head to head with a fuckin' flute and tell me that doesn't make you shit bricks!
Opportunistic Thieves of Spring showcases how 2010 has been a damn fine year for black metal and otherwise thusfar, and you song-starved scavengers should revel in these remains with fleet ferocity and a desire to derive it's blackened bliss.
Jethro Tull made the late 60's and 70's explode with folk and prog. and all sorts of expeditious bewilderment on behalf of music fans everywhere, and most of you snobs probably have such classics as prog-parody Thick As A Brick, art-rockin' Aqualung and mayhap even the primordial Songs From The Wood.
I doubt any of you casual collectors have this under the belt however. After all, most prog. outfits don't have very good reputations after 1979. Everyone tried to jump aboard the New Wave cruise ship upon it's departure and most only found the open arms of the sea embracing them. 1982's The Broadsword And The Beast, however, represents those slim pickings of groups who not only made the deck, but excelled upon arrival. Ian Anderson's wily fluteage and exotic instrumentation-meets-hard rock is still the order of the day, but the synths of the era have certainly burrowed deep into these arrangements and birthed something that under normal circumstances wouldn't exist: Progressive Synth-Folk!
This special edition remaster features 18 tracks in total, and the standouts are numerous within the whole of 'em, especially on tracks where the 80's elements and Tull's classic sound clash headlong ['Beastie', 'Rhythm In Gold', ''Jack Frost And The Hooded Crow', and so many others]. It's like a bunch of robots sitting by a campfire somewhere in the depths of a Mideastern wood and smoking spark cigars by the light of the stars!
For those of you who dismissed post-70's Tull as washed-out stains from an era long bygone, this record will go an equally long way towards changing your mind, if not lighting your fires to explore even further to see where the true difference lies in reputation and actual execution. Consume this with pleasure, ladies and gents!
Sorry to say, but there's not much background for tonight's upload guys, as SLik d is just a regular old joe like you and me...for better and for worse. The main points of interest for this curious is that he lives in California and is part of the rising "New Coast" sound in hip-hop, and it could be awesome given some time to develop as a scene.
Or should I say it might be awesome, yet it sounds stupid too. "New Coast? WTF?" some of you might be thinking. I'm honestly thinking the same thing. Questionable labeling aside, this is some tight shit that has more in common with Nujabes and some of the more off-duh-heezy rap entrepeneurs like CunninLynguists than, say, Lil' Wayne or Eminem. Not that I hate those latter two blokes, but yeah....
Anyway, Midnight Vibes is full of surprisingly sharp ideas and killer atmosphere. Do I like sharp ideas? Hell yeah. And do I love good atmosphere? You bet your grandma's virginity I do! Hence, what we have here is quite entertaining indeed. Amateur and a bit rough in places, yet slick and contemporary in a way that serves both the musical connoisseur and your dumbcunt friends who think Lady GaGa is the epitome of art. Hell, track numero tres 'SupaNova' is opened up with flute samples for Chrissakes, and if that's not a good sign I wouldn't know what is!
No track-by-track breakdowns though: music of this sort needs to be experienced directly. Lyrically there's nothing special either unless you consider sex to be the penultimate expression of songwriting...or maybe drugs.
Desiring a pretty good flow with plenty of jazzy samples and a relaxed West Coast vibe predominating your nightly airwaves? Are you tired of having to listen to hip-hop alone in your bedroom every night because its too "socially conscious" for your buddies? Perhaps this shall ease your troubled worries for a fortnight or so. Happy hopping everyone!
