For your ears this week it’s hardcore rave from nearly 20 years ago. The word classic gets bandied around a lot in music, especially here on a Saturday, but they don’t come much more classic than this. For some this will conjure up memories of raves in fields, for others sticky nightclub dance floors, flared dungarees and dodgy tie dies. For me it’s my final school year and GCSE hell but time can’t temper the in-your-face Hoover noise that this track delivers after all the years. All together; “I Wanna Kiss Myself!”
Back in October I linked to a video on YouTube which frankly was too weird even for me. Featuring a Japanese guy play bass whilst dressed in a dress which climaxed in him drinking poisoned milk or some such. It was four minutes of down right oddness. Well the guy is back with more freaky shit.
Afraid? Yeah. Me too. Well get ready as he promises “I WILL UPLOAD MORE BASS PLAYING VIDEOS.” More??? There’s no bass in this video! Crikey. Only in Japan…
This Disco revival isn’t leaving us any time soon is it. Formally DJ Touche of The Wiseguys (remember them?) now Fake Blood he’s bringing you this slice of retro tinged disco.
Sent to me by my good friend cNp, this excellent piece of video by Patrick Jean has New York being overrun by Pac Man, Space Invaders and Donkey Kong and many more. With nods to 8-bit legends Commodore, Ocean, amongst others it’s a treat for the old schooler in you.
You can find the original along with a bunch of others over at One More Production
Back to 1999 this week with Blackalicious – Alphabet Aerobics. From their 1999 A2G E.P., you’ll cannot fail to be impressed at the lyrical dexterity of Gift of Gab as he works through the entire alphabet.
This week, complete with vinyl crackles, is the wonderful Les Fleur by Minnie Riperton. A member of Rotary Connection and better known for her smash hit Lovin You, she passed away aged 31 after being diagnosed with breast cancer. She did however leave behind a legacy of wonderful music. La Fleur is the opening track on the classic 1970 album Come To My Garden, the first of her six solo albums. It’s one you should know if you don’t know. Enjoy.
Standout track from recent album Heligoland now receives a standout video. Filmed inside Cambridge University’s anechoic chamber (designed to create total silence) and featuring former Guantanamo Bay detainee, Ruhal Ahmed, this short by Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin is a reflection on Ahmed’s experiences whilst in detention (particularly how he was interrogated using high-volume music) and about the use of human sound on the body.
Ensure your pets arent anywhere near you. If you like them that is…
I’m a long time listener of Gilles Peterson, close on 12 years now since he joined Radio 1, and way back in January 08 he featured a then unknown (to me) rapper going by the name of Jay Electronica. The guy comes with a flow part MF Doom, part NAS over soundscapes part Madlib part Jaydee. Yeah I know. Big names to be throwing around but seriously, they’re not lazy comparisons, the guy has cajones.
His first “official” single Exhibit A, produced by Just Blaze, is a quality piece of work;
but it’s Act 1: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge) which got tongues wagging and brought him to Gilles’ attention. A 15 minute track (which kicks off the aforementioned podcast) with snippets of film dialogue, Jay’s raps, based on the soundtrack to the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is classy. The following youtube video has nine minutes of Act 1, trimmed due to youtube length constraints, but it’ll show you this guy is special.
All of this stuff is in the public domain by the way. Put your super google technique to good use and you’ll find his discography spread across the blogosphere somewhere. Make his Wikipedia Discography entry your checklist if you wish.
Anyway, it seems Jay is making a break for the overground now (in the UK at least) Already making waves towards the end of 09 in the states, his Exhibit C EP is up on iTunes (and Exhibit A) for you to invest in and with Zane Lowe rinsing it on his show the other night we might finally see him get some wider recognition.
Lets hope so because the hip hop most people be listening to at the moment is not doing the art form any favours. Yeah. I’m looking at you Black Eyed Peas…