Urban Crate » music

There’s a limit to your love.

bapester — Wed, 11 May 2011 17:22:59 +0000

I am in love with his version of Feist’s ‘Limit to your love‘. I love Feist for all she does, but for these few weeks at least, James Blake’s version takes the trophy. It’s not that it trumps Feist’s original version, but James brings a much darker and solitary interpretation by deconstructing the song while keeping its meaning intact. It’s akin to dubstep produced for the listening pleasure of the lone occupant in a post modern castle. [link]

He also did an equally haunting version of Joni Mitchell’s ‘A case of you‘ live on BBC Radio 1 several months ago. [link]

Gruff Rhys in Malaysia @ mapkl, Kuala Lumpur

bapester — Mon, 09 May 2011 19:10:53 +0000

I have a confession to make. All I knew about Gruff Rhys before the gig was that he was the frontman of Super Furry Animals, a band whom I also knew of only by name save for a few songs here and there. However that night’s concert has converted me into a believer of his music. Performing as a one man show, he had a literal smorgasbord of little gadgets and technological wizardry in front of him as his musical backup. Above all the ooh’s and ahh’s watching him toy over his metronome (Trevor?), retro keyboards etcetera, it really was a pleasure just to hear him sing and perform. With his down to earth stage presence, he engaged with the audience not just with his jokes but also his voice and his upside down guitar.

Please forgive me for taking photos from a similar vantage point- it was a sit-down concert.

May 33rpm and the nice people at bfm bring more quality live acts to KL. Amen.

click below for more pics.

incomplete and inaccurate setlist in no particular order

If we were words, we would rhyme

Conversation conservation

Cycle of violence

Candylion

Gyrru gyrru gyrru

Sophie softly

Sensations in the dark

The court of king arthur

Vitamin K

Gwn mi wn

Lonsome words

In A House With No Mirrors (You’ll Never Get Old)

The Terror Of Cosmic Loneliness

Tenori On Your Laptop

bapester — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 09:49:32 +0000

like for real y’all

Have hours of endless fun playing pretending that you’re the next Little Boots or Hot Chip or LCD Soundsystem.
Just randomly click on any of the grey squares and the selected squares will light up in loops and make you the greatest producer on earth!

credits after the jump.

Credits to the developer, Andre Michelle [blog][link]

(via have.love.will.travel’s tumblr) (embedding via sembeo.com)

Janelle Monae’s The ArchAndroid, in my notebook and my consciousness.

bapester — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 19:10:15 +0000

So I finally got hold of the mp3 album which is #8 on Amazon’s Best Music of 2010..So far and #3 on Metacritic’s list of highest-rated latest releases – Janelle Monae’s “The ArchAndroid”.

It has been a long time since I last bought a full-length album, but watching her video on youtube after coming across her name on Pitchfork’s Best New Music sealed the fact that this album is a must-buy. That video is ‘Tightrope’ featuring Outkast’s Big Boi. I’ll be attaching the video below for everyone’s viewing pleasure.

I was watching this video at a time when I haven’t been listening to much music of my own choice and just depended on our local airwaves, and watching the video was such a tremendous breath of fresh air. It was great to listen to hear a crisp voice backed by great production and such a refreshing and different musicality using genres so rare on mainstream radio. Very Raphael Saadiq X Outkast X James Brown.

This is quite an overdue discovery for she has been making music since 4 years ago. Her first general release was the EP called ‘Metropolis’. This artiste is definitely no cookie-cutter singer, as she conceptualized her releases around her alter-ego, a sci-fi character by the name of Cindi Mayweather. Her releases are made up of four parts or suites, with ‘Metropolis’ being the first of such suites. Metropolis is the name of the android community where Cindi Mayweather lives. This full-length release is the continuation of the suites (ie suites II and III) and is where this same protagonist undertakes a messiah-esque role to the androids of Metropolis.

Visionary concepts aside, this album is chock full of gems that highlight Monae’s creative prowess. I am hesitant to consider it an R&B album in strict terms, because this album spans a whole spectrum of genres. The first full track, ‘Dance or Die’ brings to mind N.E.R.D and Erykah Badu, but quickly moves on towards old school with ‘Faster’, then electropop in ‘Cold War’ and this goes on till the last track. Yet the shifts in music styles are a seamless one (kudos to her and her producers), and they not only brought variety but more importantly highlighted the versatility of her vocals.

While Janelle Monae may not be the first to toy with the idea of alter ego’s and concept albums, who knows if she may be the one to bring this to another level and lead a new trend in album releases. After all, she is also “plans to shoot a video for each song on The ArchAndroid and create both a movie and graphic novel based on the album”. This is definitely one artiste to watch in the coming years. For all we know, she might one day also turn out to be a ‘messiah’, not unlike her alter ego, to bring about major shifts in the music industry.

Favourite tracks: Locked inside, Cold War, Tightrope, Neon Valley Street

Buy album online from the official store

(reference:wiki)

New Detroit: Kyle Hall

bapester — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 20:06:03 +0000

It is hard for me to say whether Malaysians, clubbers to be specific, still listen to house music. I seldom go clubbing nowadays, and honestly have not stepped into a club that played house music in years. Some friends might say techno, trance and house have gone out of fashion but I am no judge to the statement. I am not one who dances to house music, and some of it may be repetitive and vacuous, but I enjoy having house music in the background.

Recently, Gilles Peterson (where else?) did a podcast with budding Detroit producer and DJ, 18- year old Kyle Hall. Yes, you heard right, EIGHTEEN. He first got into electronic music at the age of eleven. Hailing from a city that was, and probably still plays a major part in defining house music, he was exposed to house music since a tender age. It was Detroit’s musical legends themselves like Mike Huckaby who mentored, trained and taught him the tricks of the music trade. His productions have been garnering worldwide attention since last year, particularly remix of Darkstar’s “Aidy’s Girl is a Computer”, already has a couple of EPs and releases under his belt AND has his own record label, Wild Oats.

Anyway, loving the stuff he does. Jazz- influenced, soulful and fresh all at once.

There isn’t a need to say too much when it comes to a music blog post, because all you have to do is click ‘download’ and let the music speak for itself. Enjoy.

download

Know more:

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Listen more

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Have you heard of the Esbjorn Svensson Trio?

bapester — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 19:06:47 +0000

Bet you haven’t. Me neither, until Monday when I was listening to Jamie Cullum’s online jazz show on BBC Radio 2. Sure glad I did tho. Anyway, I was halfway through listening to the show, when one song made me sit up and pay attention. That song was the Esbjörn Svensson Trio’s (e.s.t in short) ‘Tuesday Wonderland’. The piano’s bass section starts off the song with a riff, then a theme starts to play, alternating with the riff. Then magic happens, the double bass enters with just one single sustained note, but played with effects (flanging, if I am not wrong). Then the piano re-enters for improvising, by this moment I have already died and entered aural heaven. All done in 7-7-7-8 time.

[If you are curious to know what I am talking about, you may just click here and watch the video yourself.]

Some quick wiki-ing will reveal that the trio comprised of the late Esbjörn Svensson – the purveyor of much of the piano magic, Dan Berglund responsible for all the ethereal effects done to his double bass and Magnus Öström who provides drumming that sounds veering to electronica. This Swedish trio have been around since 1993, and over the years went from gaining local accolades to global recognition in the jazz world. A sad discovery that came with my discovery of this band was that Esbjorn Svensson the pianist passed on 2 years ago due to a diving accident.

I am no jazz specialist and so lack the expertise to best describe nor characterize or pigeonhole their music. On a personal level though, their music makes me enter a mental and emotional limbo where time suddenly reaches a standstill and problems are put on hold. It is not like anything I have heard before, it remains jazz but its sounds are contemporary and current. For its dark, ambient and reflective style, I liken it to listening to the Radiohead of jazz, for a lack of a better comparison (the opening section to ‘Serenade for the Renegade‘ reminded me of “Everything in its right place”). If I may also use the word ‘trippy’ to describe their music, for they also remind me at times of Massive Attack and Portishead.

The death of Esbjorn Svensson was globally regarded to have created a void in the Nordic jazz scene, and I personally consider it a tragedy that such unique music has ceased to be created. And that makes me treasure the aural wonder that is the E.S.T even more.

Below are video links to some E.S.T videos that I have found and liked, in no particular order:

1) Goldhearted miner -Check out the use of a piece of paper to imitate the banjo sound

2)Beyond the Yashmack – An abridged version of the video. Imagine what the full version would sound like, as the different phases build up towards a climax.

3)What though the way may be long- Lovely reflective piece, with a very nicely made accompanying video.

4)A Picture Of Doris Travelling With Boris - One of those tracks with a relentless drum beat that is capable of elevating a person towards an out-of-body experience.

5)Eighthundred Street by Feet- An almost classical sounding piano section that reflects the clasically-trained Esbjorn.

6)From Gagarin’s point of view- Trippy(?). Love how they incorporate other genres in their music, as many others may have also noted.

My January Playlist, Part 2

bapester — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:09:25 +0000

…continued from Part 1

3. Raphael Saadiq

It is rather outdated of me to have only heard this old soul brother’s music so late in his career. After all, this guy was nominated for THREE Grammys last year, for crying out loud (not that Grammy nominations were a benchmark of quality music, but this time round it unarguably is). As usual, I only got to know about him after listening to one of Gilles Peterson’s radio shows online (where else?). My curiosity piqued, I knew I had to get hold of his music.

After a listen to the album, “The Way I See It“, there is no question on all the accolades, nominations, album sales, rave reviews, hype that it has been receiving. This is one of those albums that I could listen to from front to end, and loving almost every moment of it (and even demanding repeat listens for my favourite tracks). It really is that good.

I may have gotten all my American culture references mixed up, but listening to this album conjures up images of 1960’s black America back when guys in woolen cardigans (way before Kanye West did) and girls in huge skirts would dance by the jukebox in the diner.

My favourite tracks from the album include the usual heavyweights of the album, the single “Staying in Love” (watch its very aesthetically pleasing video here), Grammy-nominated track Never Give You Up (featuring CJ Hilton and Stevie Wonder) (listen here), the catchier tunes “100 yard Dash” and “Big Easy“. But my personal favourite is the slower track “Sometimes” and its use of rather alternative hiphop- sounding samples. The lyrics are quite personal, and it shows in his vocal performance of that song.(listen here)

Recommended listen: ‘Skyy Can You Feel Me‘ (listen here), from his debut album ‘Instant Vintage’. FYI, this was the song in Gilles Peterson’s show that got me so hyped about Raphael Saadiq. Lush female vocals, Raphael’s own souful rendition, chillout beats, sexy bassline. Bliss.

4. Essential Mix by Sharam

In BBC Radio 1’s weekly show Essential Mix, the globe’s best DJ’s will put out their best in a 2-hour mix. This mixes can be heard online via the Essential Mix website. Many are top quality, and some mixes become etched forever in people’s memory as classics and essential listening (Daft Punk’s 1997 Essential Mix, for instance). Along the vein of memorable mixes, Radio 1 held a poll for the best mixes of last year, and these were the top 5:

1. Sharam

2. Subfocus

3. Luciano & Deadmau5 at Wonderland Ibiza

4. Fake Blood

5. Gui Boratto

I got hold of the Sharam and Fake Blood Essential Mixes (Sharam because they’re no. 1, Fake Blood because I like electro). After a listen at both of them I love the Sharam mix more. Although I do not dance to house music, the mix was really excellent. And about Fake Blood’s mix, maybe I am getting a bit old for electro :S

You can try looking for these mixes online if you are resourceful

5. Aguas de Marco (Waters of March)

This is one of those songs that you may have heard at endings of movies or variety shows but never bothered to find out what it was. Well, now you will know what it was

Listen to this version and see if it sounds familiar.

Now this is actually the English version of the Brazilian song Aguas de Marco written by Antonio Carlos Jobim. The version I love though, is this one by Joao Gilberto, where he bungles the rhythm and sings out of sync of his own bossanova guitar riff. Totally cool. Me love bossa.

My January Playlist

bapester — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:15:38 +0000

Thought I’d like to share my latest musical finds. For no real reason, I have been surfing up a lot of new music this month, and loving a lot of it.

1. Jazzanova

Heard about this Berlin-based nu-jazz DJ collective through my favourite online radio show, Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide, sometime last year. The radio show has their own annual music awards, and these guys won the John Peel ‘Play More Jazz’ award. I haven’t heard much of their music prior to this, but a quick wiki revealed that they do tonnes of remixes (jazz ones, presumably).

They’ve only had two albums out, and I checked out their most recent one, 2008’s “Of All the Things“. Needless to say, it was a great listen. The more publicized track of this album is the catchy track, “I Can See“, of which the video was surprisingly aired on one of Astro’s music channels (view video here). My personal favourite though, is the beautiful track called ‘Little Bird‘ which features the haunting vocals of Jose James (listen here). I am not sure what other music listeners might think, but I don’t think any jazz listeners would not feel the least bit moved by his rendition backed by a soulful strings section.

Their myspace page already shares a lot of their great music. The one that got all my senses a-tingling was the track called Behold These Days (Berlin ‘74) (video here). Apparently it’s a theme from a short-lived musical theatre show called “Belle et fou“. It’s a great chillout track, can almost transport myself to a different world in a different time and place.

2. Vampire Weekend

This lovely Afro-inspired indie band has a new album out, “Contra“, recently released in the US on the 11th of January. Personally hadn’t had a listen of the album yet, but I am looking forward to some great new sounds, considering that Pitchfork just gave it a rating of 8.6 out of 10. Plus, the two tracks off this album, Cousins (video) and Horchata (mp3) are top notch.

..to be continued on part 2..

2manydjs in KL- A capsule review (really)

bapester — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 16:25:29 +0000

Nicolas Cage in the Eyes of the Soulwax.

It was a great night.

2manydj’s are legends.

The video DJ-ing was hilarious, as above.

But the killer visual was of Major Lazer and Aphex Twin in bikinis.

omfg.

Sorry for lack of pics, was too busy enjoying meself.

Supporting acts were superb too.

Only thing missing was long island iced teas.

And Heinekens were sold out by 2am!

It was a great night.

Might enter the history books as the best of 2010.

And my ears are still buzzing.

None of this rhymes.

Shuanise- A voice everyone should hear.

bapester — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:40:17 +0000

Sometimes I wonder how much poorer my musical experience would be if not for that fateful night in my UK dorm room when I tuned in to Gilles Peterson on BBC Radio 1 four years ago. I love how his radio shows have and continues to expand my horizons in music, introducing me to new musical styles and artistes – usually left of centre, lo-fi music spanning jazz, soul, hiphop, electronic, experimental and everything in between.

Another gem that I discovered from his radio show is soul singer Shuanise. Born in Dallas but hailing from North London (and of Nigerian roots), this mishmash cultural background is a sufficient indicator that she is no cookie-cutter soul singer.

Many of her sounds are vaguely reminiscent to American soul queen Erykah Badu on her 2008 album, New Amerykah Part One (4th World War). Not surprising, considering that both of them are musically influenced by the late producer J Dilla. But unlike the more goddess-like demeanour of Erykah, Shuanise’s voice comes across as more earthy and genuine.

She’s no blind photocopy of Erykah Badu though, far from it. Her music is urban London soul as produced with a vibe that is unique to her and her alone. With her unique cultural background, her musical exposure from her tender years and her musical influences, you couldn’t expect anything less original . I haven’t heard many of her songs yet, but I am loving everything I hear on her myspace page- my favourite being ‘Adam’s apple’ (on her myspace page) for its mindblowing production.

My words can only do so much, it’s time to let her music do the talking. Please visit her myspace page and do give her a listen.

If you like what you hear, download the excellent ‘Masudanante Naima’ for free, available here.

And if you REALLY like her, then buy or download her debut EP, Voice of Reason.

Credits: Rhythm Incursions and Up My Alley