Under The Influence

In case you missed her last time round M.I.A. is a UK treasure to be cherished. When the vast majority of the UK music scene was flooded with similar sounding indie bands (similar sounding everything for that matter - and not much has changed since) she released Arular to dropped jaws. It was responsible for introducing Baile Funk to most of the western world (thanks to the work of Diplo at the helm) - an all new addictive dance vibe.

Kala builds on her debut sound without becoming an imitation. Although we still get to enjoy her mighty 808 sine waves the beats feel somehow more advanced. There's a bit of Bollywood influence thrown in the mix this time which works really well with her sound. There's a lot more influence going on all over the place for that matter including more old jungle/rave sounds.

20 Dollar may very well rip your sound-system apart - it starts off sounding like it's going to be a cover of Blue Monday but quickly deviates.

There's less politically loaded commentary on here - probably for the best if she wants to get the Mercury Prize for this one.

There are some things in this world that you wish would never end. Goldmund festival was just such an event. It's really impossible to go about describing the atmosphere of the weekend. 500 people all intent on enjoying original music and having a chilled weekend. The Location was perfect - set in the trees beside a beautiful lake just north of Berlin. Food/organisation/atmosphere wise I've not seen a festival that's come even close to it.

While I was there I got to thinking. If I were going to hold a festival, who would I want playing? If I could take a couple of acts from Goldmund I'd certainly poach Rose Kemp and Golden Disko Ship. Paul The Girl, one of the UK's most innovative unknowns (with one of the best voices), immediately springs to mind. I wonder if Efterklang would pop over for a visit.

You know, if it turned out to be half as enjoyable as Goldmund I'd be the happiest man in the world.

Strangely Fleetwood Mac / The Eagles were the first things that came to mind on first listen. It's not quite what I expected. That's not entirely true because I'd watched a couple of their videos on youtube a while back and I now recall it being something like this. I was introduced to these guys through their exceptional live acoustic album, Radio Radio TV Sleep (one of the most beautiful albums I've ever heard). This is much rockier - actually that's why I've put off listening to this for so long, their acoustic stuff is just so damned good I figured it would be impossible to top.

I think I still prefer the raw stripped down innocence of Radio Radio TV Sleep though there's plenty of lovely stuff to explore here. The 70s sound is definitely carried the whole way through the work. I like their chunky guitar distortion. Some of the tracks, Music In Me being a prime example, are adorned with that beautiful string sound that I've come to demand from the Norwegians.

Yeah, it's growing on me - agreeable sounds for the rest of my summer.

At the outset this felt like typical female fronted pop-rock, the more I listened the more I realised that there's actually some really interesting work going on here. Second listen and I'm finding myself rather intrigued.

Kind of punky. It would be easy to drop the PJ Harvey label on this because of the rawness that comes through - it doesn't really sound like PJ Harvey (well, Pause/Off does a bit). Killed By The Telephone has interesting almost found sounding patterns towards the end.

You know what, this is almost prog. They use those classic keyboards and the vocals have an 80s Debbie Harry vibe.

That's it, prog it is.

Again I find myself apologising for the lack of content over the last couple of weeks. This sailing thing is really starting to take over my life. I have a stack of stuff sitting here that I just need to find time to get online.

Actually, before the sailing I was away for a week in Berlin at the best festival I've ever been to (Goldmund). I made recordings of many acts over the weekend (all of whom were amazing) so I'll be sure to fill you in on those too.

So anyway, I'm going to apologise in advance this time, I'm away sailing for another week this week. I promise that I'll get some stuff uploaded as soon as I get back.

Oi Va Voi have recently released a new album that's getting very good reviews - I thought it prudent to listen to some of their old stuff first. I try to make a habit of working that way where possible.

This is cool. Very eclectic mix of sounds and influences. At it's core you get Jewish klezmer type goodness but it's spiced up with all sorts of other things. Drum and Bass beats for example are used in the vast majority of the tracks. I guess it's basically traditional Jewish music with electronic wizards working the controls. Lots of cool bits of looping and the like.

It surprises me that this doesn't sound more dated, given that it's 5 years old now (in a genre, ethnic/electronica, that's a bit risky for that). Looking forward to sitting down with their latest offering now.

Did you look at the tags? Hip-hop! I know. Not really what I expected, though actually I was prepared to expect the unexpected with Fog... anyway, it's a scratchfest in here.

I think this is Fog's first album. The basic makeup is scratch driven beats (by which I mean often the entire drum line is made some individual scratch samples) with acoustic guitar providing much of the main rhythm. The majority of the solos are a short sample such as a single horn note cut to oblivion and reconstructed to surprisingly melodic effect.

I can see why a fan of the earlier stuff might not be particularly impressed with their last offering. Really original stuff on offer here.

Howzer! This one caught me off guard. The opener (Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues) really sets the tone. Alternative-Rock/Punk-Pop, in the sense that it's catchy as all hell. Bit of an Albini sound about the recordings.

Mike Patton esk vocal moments - I think it's the way he screams when he's losing it - controlled crescendos. Sounds like Ween sometimes too. Great lyrics as well, "The little kid pissed on the big kids porch, He thinks he's amazing he's rubbish of course, But one of those bands got paid I heard, One of those bands got paid"

Reminds me of an old Hawkes Bay band, Big Blue Blanket. I believe that a good song is a good song no matter what style it's played in. There are some people blessed with the ability to write good catchy songs. These guys have that gift and it makes for some of the most enjoyable alternative punk-rock I've ever listened to.

It only takes a moment to understand the motivation behind what's going on here - it's a revolt against racism in America. It's done in a very uplifting way, you know, so it's positive sounding.

For the most part it's a gospel record. You get lots of great handclappy gospel rhythms which as you well know always goes down well with me. Though actually, there's some sort of weird synchronisation going on in one of the songs, I can't remember which. The claps on the left and right channels are just far enough out of line to be a tad off-putting.

The first half is upbeat then it gets more acapella based during the 2nd half. I really love the major->minor key changes in the harmonies - in Freedom Is a Constant Struggle it's used to great effect. Check out We'll Never Turn Back for that matter.

Interestingly there's a cover of Come By Here (more commonly known as Kumbaya) on here (ah, this has the crazy handclaps in it). I had never looked into the history of the song before. Seems there's a bit of debate about who actually wrote it. Turns out that a cheeky white reverend may well have stolen it and claimed it as his own. Sums up the tone of the album really, eh?

It's funny, it's gotten to the point that when I drag an album into my itunes I really have absolutely no idea what it's going to sound like. I mean, I just purchased this a couple of days ago - clearly it was a considered action - but I have no idea in what context. That's not to say I'm disappointed - I'm not.

The genre stamped on this one is new-age - so far off target with that bit of tagging. Funk/soul/hip-hop spring to mind. Makes me think of Michael Franti/Spearhead. The title track has a Sly Stone inspired pre chorus build up going on.

Basically it's all about the funky breaks.