I have to listen to this several times a day at the moment, absolutely love it, everything I like about a good techno record as well a nice dollop of nostalgia from my own raving days in both the sound and the label it’s on. There is a new Lone album on the horizon called ‘Galaxy Garden’ out on May 7th and ‘Crystal Caverns 1991’ in out as the first single on March 26th.
My good friend Aaron Thomason aka 2econd Class Citizen will release his 2nd album in early May this year, I’m lucky enough to have heard it in many stages of production and he’s outdone himself this time. To head off the promotion and campaign, Equinox Records have cooked up a treat for 25 lucky people.
“Perception / Identity”, the second postcard package on the label, includes two beautiful vinyl postcards – designed by the American illustrator toobz – and features two new exclusive songs which will give you a preview of what you can expect to hear on his album “The Small Minority”. The set goes on sale tomorrow (Friday Feb 24th) from the Equinox shop – be quick!
[youtube width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B–XpaD7Sr4&list=PL9D1A7CF1C01A895E&index=2&feature=plcp[/youtube]
He’s back!
I found these whilst looking for something else – pretty amazing! It’s in the Atacama desert in Northern Chile and was made by Mario Irarrázabal in 1992 apparently.
Another great cover from the Stones Throw label, truly becoming the Blue Note of this generation
I forgot to post this last week as lots was happening, the first half is from DJ Shepdog but I take over at the 30 minute mark for some dark electronica. This is also sans the chat that’s on the Strongroom Alive broadcast version that’s also kicking around the web but which also features a live mix from PC, my old DJ Food sparring partner.
There’s some as yet unreleased The The, a nice little mash up of Boards of Canada and Kraftwerk and some of the new Trunk Records release ‘The Seasons’.
Solid Steel Radio Show 17/2/2012 Part 3 + 4 – Shepdog + DJ Food by Ninja Tune
Tracklist:
Ronald Duncan & David Cain – August (from The Seasons) (Trunk)
Paul Giovanni – The Anointing (from The Wicker Man) (Trunk)
Jon Brooks – Zukunft Als Konzept (Reconstruction) (Cafe Kaput)
Bonobo – Black Sands (Duke Dumont’s ‘Grains Of Sand’ Reconstruction) (Ninja Tune)
Boards of Canada – Olsen (Midland re-edit) (mp3)
Kraftwerk – Neon Lights (EMI)
Jon Brooks – Zukunft Als Konzept (Reconstruction) (Cafe Kaput)
Bonobo – Black Sands (Duke Dumont’s ‘Grains Of Sand’ Reconstruction) (Ninja Tune)
Ronald Duncan & David Cain – February (Trunk)
The The – Electric Moonlight (Cinéola)
Arnaud Rebotini – The Choir of Dead Lovers (Black Strobe/K7!)
Demdike Stare – Regolith (Modern Love)
In the last few days I’ve been asked to do a promo mix for one of my heroes, curate a compilation of someone else who I’ve helped bring to the public conscious in the last few years, designed a pitch brochure for a prominent TV production company and started on ideas for the artwork for The Herbaliser‘s seventh album. I’m also in the middle of two video edits and artwork for my record store day release, I haven’t slept much…
To anyone wanting one of the DJ Food postcard records that I made for the recent Pure Evil Gallery exhibition, the LAST ONE is being auctioned tonight in aid of Resonance FM the independent radio station that’s home to show’s like Jonny Trunk’s OST, Ben Eshmade’s Arctic Circle and Alex Fitch’s Panel Borders shows amongst many more. The auction ends tonight (Feb 19th) at midnight GMT and you can see the list of goodies up for auction on the Fundraiser Spreadsheet.
The postcard is actually no.31 of 30 and is specially signed for the Resonance auction, also up for grabs is a one of a kind DJ Food 12″ controller record for use with DJ software like Tractor and Serato, on multi-coloured splatter vinyl. My items are lot # r9 and r10 (scroll down to near the bottom) and you can email your bids to [email protected] before midnight tonight. Please support this station if you can even if it’s a small donation, every bit helps.
Frustrated by the price of the 3A toys’ 1/6th replica of the ABC Warriors’ Mongrel last year (see above left) Jason McFee aka System decided to build his own set of robots, well, starting with the heads at least. His first choice was General Blackblood, notorious traitor turned good guy (later to turn traitor again – keep up) in the on-going saga of the meknificant seven in 2000ad. Still with me? Well if you aren’t it’s far too complicated to explain but I’ll let some of the images from Jason’s site do the talking. Very impressive version of a difficult design – looking forward to the other six.
Just 3 of the 48 pages painted by Jim Murray for a comic to promote DOTA 2 (some sort of game, not quite sure). You can read the full thing here and download wallpapers of select images at the end.
Dropped through the letterbox this morning, a bit of a time warp going on, two special ‘What If?’ stories with Colin Wilson back on Rogue Trooper in classic fashion and Henry Flint (him again) on The Visible Man. This issue comes with two cover variants, one by Chris Weston and one by Mike McMahon – I got the Weston one and a giant poster of it sans cover copy too.
Most Kraftwerk fans will have heard about their residency at New York’s MOMA this coming April. For those fortunate enough to go, there is unfortunately a 2 ticket/show limit.
Hitler took this particularly badly
This incredible photo popped up on Facebook today, the caption reads: “Kraftwerk at the Ritz. 1981. I was the Dj at this show. Amazing. I invited Afrika Bambaataa to the show. The rest is history.” Photo by Laura Levine who has taken photos of pretty much anyone who is anyone in music
Strut release a 2xCD and 2xLP compilation of 80’s electronic oddities and rarities curated by Trevor Jackson. As ever, he doesn’t go straight for the obvious but we get a unique compilation with a lot of less familiar names or lesser known tracks from the bands you have heard of. The CDs boast 25 tracks with the double vinyl showcasing half of these. The album launch party includes a live performance by 23 Skidoo and a DJ set from Trevor at Electrowerks on March 24th. Check out a little sampling of tracks on his Soundcloud and an interview about the compilation below.
[youtube width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcEMyNeKpQg&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
The limited CD / Book / flexi disc edition of The Search Engine is highlighted on the Creative Review blog. You can still get a copy from the Ninjashop but I’m told they are running low on stock.
After my guest appearance on Jonny Trunk’s OST show on Saturday I should point out that Resonance 104.4 FM‘s annual on-air fundraiser is running now, right up until midnight on Sunday 19th February. They’ll have auctions of unique and wondrous items, special live events, celebrity guests, spontaneous competitions and much more. I will be donating the last remaining postcard record from the recent exhibition to Jonny’s co-host, Robin the Fog, for his fundraising show on Saturday 18th Feb at the regular OST time of 4.30-6.30pm GMT. I’ll also be donating a one of a kind DJ Food 12″ splatter vinyl controller record from the same show and Jonny will have an unreleased Basil Kirchin soundtrack to ‘The Shuttered Room’, which is one of only 29 copies made, up for auction too.
If you love Resonance 104.4 FM and shows such as OST, please support them via a donation, pledge, bequest, gift or purchase from their shop. The alternative – for the station to take regular on-air advertising – is something they’d all prefer not to contemplate. But Resonance urgently need funds to continue its work. Visit resonancefm.com to make a donation of any size or to view their list of auction items. Also, if you’re an artist and want to donate an object for them to auction then please get in touch with Robin.
I recently received back into my possession, several old scrapbooks from when I was aged between 11 and 15. Some of these consist entirely of cuttings about Adam & The Ants but that’s a story for a future blog. Whilst going through these I found this, written by Adam Ant back in 1980 for a teenage magazine. Seems apt to post it today, more to come in the coming months…
[youtube width=”640″ height=”480″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-emKstoheQ0[/youtube]
In a weird bout of synchronicity, King Cannibal posted, “Dear music industry. I bet It’s kinda embarrassing that Sigue Sigue Sputnik guessed it right.” on Twitter, late on Friday night. Being a SSS fan, I replied, asking him to elaborate, “the whole bit about the music not being important. Global branding, advert space on albums. Looking like Gaga”, he said. Mark Emsley from ireallylovemusic chimed in with a timely reminder of their, “history will prove us right”, catchphrase which sometimes adorned their adverts.
I have to admit, he’s got a point, and then tonight, Thrift Shopxl posts an obscure B-side of theirs on Facebook and this: “Check out what Degville says in this Japanese interview from 1986 about the brand and how it’s about the stuff around the music – it’s like a blueprint for today’s label deals:” and the video above. Like everyone else at the time, I thought they were just having a laugh, and they probably were, just playing the pop game and seeing what would happen. But what Degville’s saying, (and he was only towing Tony James‘ line), is eerily prescient and looking at the fashion sense of a lot of K Pop bands you wonder if they were influenced by Sputnik along the way, although this is probably more to do with SSS’s wholesale theft of many Japanese manga elements for their look in the first place.
[youtube width=”640″ height=”380″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co41XRmG1Xc&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]
Instant super star – BTW, anyone buying a vinyl LP for that price is being ripped off unless it’s being pressed and printed in gold.