Getting there...

Okey Cokey Pig in a Pokey, I hear what Mr Tea is saying, time for some good old fashioned wordage to justify me tunes.

First up, Mos Def's The Ecstatic has been doing the rounds on my ipod for ages. It's not a groundbreaking album, but its got some interesting production and there are a couple of jumpy tunes that get the blood circulating even on the coldest of March mornings. I particularly like the guest appearance on this track by Slick Rick

Auditorium: Mos Def ft. Slick Rick

Second up, an old school classic that I first found on a bootlegged CD from Camden when I was but a fair bright eyed lad of 18. I'm a big fan of his similes, particularly the line "cold like a blizzard, on the mic I am a wizard, with the funky fresh rhymes coming out of my gizzard". Anyone who rhymes blizzard, wizard and gizzard in a tune has got my attention. If that wasn't enough, the sample is from Shaft. You may assume therefore that the tune also has a certain amount of rhythm that helps at stupid o-clock in the morning. You damn right...

Finally, this is from Youngblood Brass Band. The sousaphone player on this is phenomenal. His solo is just ridiculous, and for the technically minded among you contains some awesome multi-phonics that take more than just a little practice. For the slightly less technical minded, the sousaphone is a big, snake like brass instrument that is playing the bass in this track. Enjoy.

Resurgence

Sooooo my feeling is that the blog has somewhat maneuvered away from its primary purpose of spreading the word on tunes which give you that momentum on the trek to the tube/train/bus, that adrenaline before leaving the house for a night out or that deep sense of contentment when kicking back to enjoy a cold beer. Articles, videos and thoughts that spark the imagination are welcome supplements of course. 

To really make this blog a resource again I think we should endeavor to put a bit of meat on the bones for future links, bring out the reasons why you feel it worthy of mentioning, express to the forum, and to the world, your happiness/love/interest/confusion about a tune/link.

Here is my attempt to take it bring the blog back from the brink...

I picked up Burial's "Untrue" recently, which I first stuck on the ipod a couple weeks ago. I first went through the tunes whilst getting the tube back from work, having started to come down with a full on flu/cold thing which ended up taking me out for the subsequent 4-5 days.

Anyway, I was at that weird turning point - just before really being ill but with that growing sense of what was to come - and whilst standing up in a packed tube carriage, I stuck Untrue on, and the concoction of sensations almost made me feel high. Not necessarily good high, or bad even, just disconnected from reality. The music seemed to strangely reflect and build upon the hazy drifting sense of fatigue which comes with the onset of illness, and the frankly surreal sensation of being on a packed tube train at rush hour.

Or maybe it was just that the chap on the cover art looks like he's in need of the Lemsip sitting in front of him.



He makes all his tunes using just Sony's Sound Forge wav editor, which I think helps to give it that choppy, rough round the edges, almost not quite syncopated, sound.

Next up, a techno tune that manages to keep me entertained throughout the track, I like listening out for the subtleties as the tune evolves - decent pair of headphones permitting. It manages to be both catchy and energetic, whilst at the same time hypnotic



Lastly, a tune that has been sitting on my ipod that has grown on me of late, again, I like the way it unfolds slowly. Up your street it you like Fourtet



T

My favourite Beatles album is probably...the best of the Beatles..

He's back. That is all.

New Year, New (old) Tunes

Thought I'd share some of the stuff santa brought me.

From Four Tet's remixes album:

From an album I should have owned for at least 15 years longer than I have:

I also got a ukulele. This will be me by the end of the year....

Frozen notes

Happy new year!

I listened to this tune during the late afternoon train journey back from Norfolk, post Christmas hols. As I watched the frozen, bare flat fields pass by, and the winter scene slowly succumb to the creeping darkness of night, this tune's cold, ethereal quality seemed to match perfectly with the scene outside my window. The mood and the tone of the vocals reminded me very much of the choral music that can be heard on the radio (Radio 3 generally...) played over the festive period. Anyway, enjoy:



Talking of the radio, I very much enjoyed discovering Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata which caught my ear on Christmas eve. A very famous piece of course, and I'm sure for the classical bods amongst you this tune comes as no great revelation, but whilst I had heard snippits here and there (TV, film etc), it was only over Christmas that I listened to it properly, and in its entirety.

Again a fitting piece for the time of year I feel. I recommend listening to it from start to finish without doing anything else; don't read, don't cook, don't text, in fact, don't think, and afterwards, I promise you, you will feel calmed and revived.

More Geek Stuff

Howdy all,

Thought I'd follow up the massive response to the below geek posts (what happened to comments...) with some more geek stuff. Firstly, I discovered this after watching one of Mr Tea's geek videos, as it's Alby Reid's blog (his is the decimalisation of time video below). It is well worth a look for all things geekish. Predoninantly science-y, but particularly interesting, especially the stuff on nuclear energy: http://wordpress.mrreid.org/

Secondly, you may well be aware of Derren Brown. He's often on the television doing strange things. He is a very interesting bloke as well (as a side recommendation, his book "Trick of the Mind" is fascinating, and he is an excellent and amusing writer, it's definitely one to consider for the christmas list). His website, particularly the blog section, is frequently updated (not just by him) with very interesting stuff. Check it out. http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/

Finally, a link from the Mr Reid blog above, if you don't get far enough down the page to discover it yourself. This is a nifty little program based on the fact that your eyes don't like the light that laptops/computers give out all day long, and would rather the screen followed the light intensity pattern of the sun. The program, therefore, makes your screen give out different intesities of light at different times of the day. If you're on a computer a lot, it makes sense, particularly if you use the pooter into the wee hours. Check: http://www.stereopsis.com/flux/

Gold Panda

Yo yo- have escaped with a couple of days leave to deepest darkest somerset to write essays with the snow outside- and take advantage of momma's cooking. nice. Anyhow having a little listen while i try and get things done and i think these two tunes are as tasty as the aforementioned cooking. Both have been around for a good few months but who knows they may have escaped radars still:

Snow & Taxis (Glitterbug's Pink Snow by Gold Panda

You by Gold Panda