scissorkick

Today's post is taken from a 12" soon to be released on the German Alien Transistor label featuring the fitting collaboration of The Notwist and Themselves in the form of 13 + God. A full-length record is slated to follow the single in April, but until then you can process this nugget of atmosphere that perfectly represents both artists involved. Marcus Acher's subtle sing-speak buffers the neurotic echo of Doseone's nasal inflection over the typically engaging and antiseptic Notwist melancholy. I think the full-length has the potential to be something really interesting, sort of in the vein of Subtle's overlooked 2004 LP, A New White on Lex, which fused hip-hop spontaneity with rock improvisation.

13 + God :: "Men of Station"

Posted by Steve at 1/27/2005 03:41:41 PM | Permalink | Comments   

Back from the UK and cannot be in a better mood. Both gigs (especially the Brighton throwdown) were fantastic and I met some new friends who I will surely be in contact for a long, long time. If you are a Brighton resident and haven't utilized the services of the Booze Brothers, then we should talk. Anyway, coming back on such a high leads to today's post which can certainly be filed under 'songs-for-the-first-day-of-your-new-life.' Not like I am making any huge changes, but whenever you travel and return to your place of residence you have a lingering hangover, a new optimism that only lasts for a short time, but feels like the final epic cinematic moments of a John Hughes film. You know, guy-gets-girl-, successful-jailbreak- or mannequin-comes-to-life-type shit. Courtesy of Boston's Matters & Dunaway comes "RNA," a solid piece of instrumental electronic rock so warm it will melt through any mid-January Northeast blizzard. Emotive, arpeggiated synths add the 80s nostalgia to an otherwise instant anthem that hits tones of dub, prog and pop. Simple, moving and instantly appealing. Wrap your heads around this one.
Matters & Dunaway :: "RNA"

Posted by Steve at 1/26/2005 06:31:18 PM | Permalink | Comments   

Before I take off for London tomorrow night and skip a few days of posts, I'd thought I'd leave you with a mix of some brand new records I picked up for our two gigs in the UK. For readers of scissorkick in London and/or Brighton, you'd really make the trip even better if you came out and introduced yourself and shared a pint with us. This 50-minute mix is a great sampler of the kind of stuff Aaron and I will be playing in addition to some hip-hop, jazzy breaks, dub and reggae. I hope you like. The file is 72MB so it may take a while to download. Enjoy and check out the info below: Friday, Jan 21st Nice Up! w/ resident Shepdog & special guest Diesler (Tru Thoughts) In the bar room: DRM + Sema4 (Bastard Jazz, NYC) Located @ 93 Feet East - 150 Brick Lane, London FREE before 10pm, £5 after Saturday, Jan. 22nd Release party for Bastard Jazz 007 - "The Out of Luck EP", by Mawglee. w/ DJs: Mawglee (Bastard Jazz, Tru Thoughts), DRM + Sema4 (Bastard Jazz, NYC), Lost Idol (Cookshop, UK) Located Upstairs @ Polar Central - 11-12 Queens Road Brighton, UK 7:30PM-Close & FREE!

Transatlantic Mix (52:08) Mat Young "Look At Me" from Illy Uno 7" (Bully Records) Chimp Beams "Calm Tribe Mix" from Lost Nomad 7" (Concent) Presto "Track 3" from Dazed 12" DJ Zeph "Go Back" featuring Vursatyl from Sunset Scavenger 2x12" (Widehive) Smalltown DJs "Same Old Situation" Feet First EP 12" (Bigfoot) The Baker Brothers "Little Suns" (Break Reform Mix) 12" (Peddler) The Pleb "Snake in the Bush" from the Don't Break EP 2 12" (Giant Step) La Funk Mob "Ravers Suck Our Sound" (Nightmares on Wax Mix) from Breaking Boundaries EP 2x12" (Mo Wax) A Polished Solid "Radart" from the S/T EP 12" (Mo Wax) Major Force "The Return of the Original Art Form" 12" (Mo Wax) Fingathing "Slug it Out" from the Walk in Space 12" (Grand Central) Afrodisiac SoundSystem "Track 2" from Afroheat 3 12" (White) Mawglee "Out of Luck" (Ed Royal += Enne Mix) from Out of Luck EP 12" (Bastard Jazz) Quantic "Mishaps Happening" (Quantic Beat Mix) from Mishaps Happening 12" (Tru Thoughts) DJ Sema4 :: "Transatlantic Mix '05" (72MB)

Posted by Steve at 1/17/2005 11:50:35 PM | Permalink | Comments   

Without question, the major benefit of doing a blog like this is receiving comments from people I've never met. And there are a lot of you who stop by daily and leave comments that have pointed me to music that has totally become a staple within my rotation (Tiki Obmar, d_rradio, et al). Best of all however are the readers who produce their own tracks and with whom I obviously share a similar perspective. There's nothing better than posting brand new stuff for an audience located all over the map and thus providing even the smallest bit of exposure. I hope thats why music bloggers do what they do. Today's post comes from our friend Colin aka The Slumberjack over at Beat Down the Up Set who runs a label (Catpac Records), contributes to a Glasgow, Scotland weekly of the same name, and has a 12" split single coming out on UK label C Side Trax. After a small email correspondence, The Slumberjack just alerted me to a new Roots Manuva remix he did of the British MC's "Witness" for a Ninja Tune remix contest. This is a solid reworking of the track and those familiar with the original will definitely feel the direction he decided to take it. Downtempo, slightly melancholy with enough juice to rock during an enlightened DJ set."Ah Oo Ee You You" is a harp-based track. On the site it's described as the exclusive programmed version and that live bass and drums are due sometime soon. Can't wait to hear that. This will definitely appeal to those into the more organic side of electronic production. Think Boom Bip, Mum and Four tet. Actually, this reminds me a lot of the more mellow stuff by Console. I hope you agree.
Roots Manuva :: "Witness" (Slumberjack Remix) The Slumberjack :: "Ah Oo Ee You You"

Posted by Steve at 1/13/2005 11:58:38 AM | Permalink | Comments   

Since tonight is the monthly Dubtempo party at Manhatta (316 Bowery, NYC; 10 PM; $3 Red Stripe all night) I figured I'd post some stuff from old college friends Tim and Andy aka Apeanaut who are resident DJs there with Chicus, Karl Injex and DRM. It's sort of embarassing that I haven't posted for these guys because I really appreciate their approach toward production and songwriting. Rather than steer their hybrid of dub, reggae, dancehall, 80s electro, forward thinking electronica and oldschool hip-hop full speed into a brick wall (like so many producers), they instead remove roadblocks brick-by-brick, carefully deconstructiong and reconstructing tracks with an intelligent eye on what moves a dancefloor. Their recent string of releases for Redbud and Bastard Jazz have shown incredible evolution and diversity and have caught the ears of XLR8R, Flavorpill and others to great acclaim. Even a new track I heard recently, in its infant stages, has me excited with its potential and a killer banjo line played by Tim (yes, banjo). If you enjoy the posted tracks, you can pick up all the Apeanaut stuff, including the "War Games" 7" designed by yours truly (shameless, I know, sorry) at fine vinyl purveyors near you or online like Turntable Lab. But I'd suggest you strongarm you're local wax emporium to pick this shit up. The "Dem Girls" remix is not yet released but should be coming out on Redbud sometime soon. Supposedly the old school verses at the end of the track have been cut, so you get a real exclusive here and to be honest, I think they work nicely.

Apeanaut :: "War Games" Mahlon Stewart :: "Dem Girls" (Apeanaut Remix)

Posted by Steve at 1/12/2005 11:04:44 AM | Permalink | Comments   

While I'll readily admit that the NY scene is not as vibrant as it was in the pre-Giuliani days, there are still pockets of underground noise that seem to exist just slightly off of the radar. Although Brooklyn has unfortunately become synonymous with fleeting musical trends like Electroclash and Dance Punk, it is still a vibrant source of alternative sonic options, one of which is an insane Japanese dub and afrobeat scene that includes groups like Akoya Afrobeat Ensemble, Asian Orange Sound System and today's post Chimp Beams. Self-described as an "electro jazz dub trio" the band take stock in the more psychedlic side of live cinematic groove, melding trip-hop (yes, I said it) with the headspinning ambient layers of the most THC-infused dub. I swear I saw these guys with Organic Grooves, but I barely remember the night. They're that kind of act. Both of these tracks are from their record "Vibrato" which is available at their Web site.
Chimp Beams :: "Lovely Chimps" Chimp Beams :: "Mute Salvation"

Posted by Steve at 1/06/2005 05:28:54 PM | Permalink | Comments   

Of all the fantastic side and related projects, friends and records sprouting from the 11-person Canadian rock juggernaut Broken Social Scene -- Apostle of Hustle, Metric, KC Accidental and Feist come to mind -- one stands out glaringly from the pack of talented musicians. While not a direct offshoot of BSS, Stars will be touring with the BSS later this year and share their penchant for intelligent, carefully crafted pop songs that while sophisticated and often cleanly produced run the impressive range of the pop spectrum as well as any records produced by the BSS. Their newest release, Set Yourself on Fire is already making waves in Canada and should be easily available in other parts of the world in March. However, we decided to give you a taste of what will surely be one the of the best indie pop records to come out in 2005. While you will probably be able to find the album's stellar first single "Ageless Beauty" online somewhere (try the Stars Web site) I've decided to post "Reunion," a track I feel fully captures the band's sound and acts as a bridge to some of the other artists on the brilliant Arts & Crafts label.

Stars :: "Reunion"

Posted by Steve at 1/05/2005 11:41:35 AM | Permalink | Comments   

While the break was a good one for scissorkick, we realize that for others around the globe it's been hell on Earth. Our deepest wishes go out to any readers affected by the tsunamis and their after effects. For an easy way to donate some available scratch, click this link from the Red Cross. I found it a simple way to help make a difference. Now on to 2005 and I predict a huge musical year for patient listeners tired of rehashed trends and marketed movements. While I won't stake my reputation on my prescience, I do think we'll see some quality hip-hop in '05 following in the footsteps of Danger Mouse, Prince Po and The Foreign Exchange. A track that has caught my attention as of late comes from the Zebra Traffic camp in the UK. Affiliated with the ever-reliable Tru Thoughts funk factory, this modest English hip-hop label splits time with the label on a new compilation, Shapes: Yellow that features some exclusives from our friend Quantic and a nice little banger from Dirty Diggers a duo comprised of Young Max & Pat Stash based in Yorkshire and East London respectively. You can read more about them and pick up their "Diggers Don't Get Days Off" EP at the Zebra Traffic Web site. Great loop with the layered, stuttering keys and a tight drum roll that intros a nice underground gem that reminds me of early Visionaries or some pacific Northwest stuff from 5 or 6 years back. Not sure why I'm feeling this so much, but my resolution for 2005 is to be less critical about this stuff, unless of course I'm getting paid.

Dirty Diggers :: "For the Haters"

Posted by Steve at 1/03/2005 03:12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments