December 2009
10 posts
Season's Greetings From Can
Mute are offering up Can’s 1976 version of Silent Night as a little festive treat.
Grab it here.
Cut Men
Thankfully, the dissolution of Mi Ami’s record label back in February hasn’t curtailed a formidable year for the group. Their first release for Thrill Jockey, ‘Cut Men’, ups the ante further from the mega-treble squall and dub rumblings of their debut LP. However, I’m particulary fond of the handclap-laden version on the b-side.
Previews, Vinyl, MP3 available at...
The Year We Make Contact
Bop Yestrum will soon be ringing in the new year once again at the Menáge. The night will mark the first anniversary of the reopening of that most lovable of dives, a great twelve months for the club (Animal Collective DJs!, Health, Sic Alps) and some truly memorable gigs courtesy of the longer half of Yestrum in his Ordinary Days cape, Strange Victory and Oscillations.
Joining us on the night...
Füsün Önal
Füsün Önal - Ayyy Kasma
Füsün Önal - Ah Nerede
Füsün was a pretty big Turkish pop star and actress in the 70s and has the corny back catalogue to prove it. There’s some gold there though, particularly these two tunes. The former is great bit of Turk-Funk while the latter seems to have been reappropriated as the soundtrack to the hijinks of the Anatolian Robin Askwith:
Sunday slow jamz
Erkut Taçkin - Sevmek Istiyorum
Kamuran Akkor - Ikimiz Bir Fidaniz
Risks a Magma Picklers
Recent Yestrum guests Sic Alps team up with Magik Markers for some of the best stuff I’ve heard out of either. With both bands abandoning some of the pop tendencies of recent releases, Magik Markers stray furthest with three dreamy, swirling psych outs.
Only available on their upcoming US tourdates which is a shame because you definitely can’t find it at this link.
R.I.P. Jack Rose
Sadenned to hear of the passing of Jack Rose at the weekend. Rose was one of the finest solo guitarists of our generation and his show in Belfast a couple of years back remains one of my favourites.
Arthur Mag features mp3, videos, and tributes from friends and contemporaries.
West is Best
Some further slacker sensibilites from across the pond with a couple of groups making fresh starts.
Best Coast is Bethany Cosentino, last seen hollering in the wonderful Pocahaunted. Her new set-up includes Mika Miko’s Jennifer Clavin and another Pocahaunted colloberator, Bobb Bruno.
There’s a rake of seven inches either released or on the way, through labels such as Art Fag, PPM,...
Cult Music
The Stones Throw Podcast is always a winner. Recent favourites have include Madlib’s Jazz Mix and Dam-Funk’s ‘Spiritual Flight’, which took in a load of 80s Gospel Funk.
James Pants’ neat little ‘Cult Music’ mix features many Bop Yestrum favourites such as United States of America, Bruce Haack, and Pierre Henry.
Check it out or subscribe to the podcast...
Postpunksampler
In the spirit of the great Krautrocksampler and Japrocksampler books, Julian Cope has infrequently used the Album of the Month slot on the abundant Head Heritage to provide further potted histories from unearthed gems. For the most part eschewing the usual touchstones, Danskrocksampler, Hardrocksampler and Glamrocksampler include a few class “obscurities that many will have heard about but...