Tag Archives: TOTW

TOTW: Burial_Ghost Hardware

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I have now seen the latest documentary by Adam Curtis HyperNormalisation a few times I always find his works captivating insights into the world, Its hypocrisy and the influential forces that are both in control and out of control.

He has peppered the soundtracks of his documentary’s with Burial for several years now and it works perfectly, as if the track was composed for this vision of the world that is slipping into dystopia.

Burial has always hidden in the shadows both in his persona and music. The music itself comes from beneath the surface, taking influences from different dance music connected with city life and blending them with darker elements to create a sound that feels as if its oozing through the cracks.

Ghost Hardware is a perfect example, Reese Style Bass lines synonymous with Drum and Bass growl their way through the track like a savage beast hiding in the darkness while a garage style percussion powers through the track giving the swampy textures of the rest of the track momentum and pitched vocals add a feeling of humanity without loosing the tracks synthetic quality. It remains one of my favourite tracks from an artist with an already incredible collection of work:

 
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TOTW: Blanck Mass_D7-D5

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Blank Mass makes hard dance music. The synths are distorted and drums are compressed to become solid blocks of force. On His latest Single D7-D5 he has managed to further develop this sound and create a track that has more drive then his previous work, with a progressive structure that builds many layers of heavily produced sounds tailored with dark undertones. The effect is a track that balances between euphoria and unease, a power that although great could also be destructive.

The sound works so well because it is designed and structured by someone with a clear vision of the style he aims to achieve and the experience to back it up. Being one member of the double act Fuck Buttons, Benjamin John Power has applied his skills to this solo work and created a track with a strong identity that holds its own on multiple replays:

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TOTW: Pixies_ Monkey Gone To Heaven

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Out of all of the Pixies work, Monkey Gone To Heaven is my favorite.

The bands greatest skill is their ability to make the most out of often simple melody and song structure. The amount of emotion they can stir up by only offering whats needed gives the tracks lyrics a greater heft than they would in a more complex arrangement.

The steady build to the first chorus which starts with Bass and Drums before adding string instrumentation and piano is one of my favorite in all music and prepares the listener perfectly for the re-introduction of the distorted guitar sound that crashes in on the intro of the track:
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TOTW: Telefon Tel Aviv_ Fahrenheit Fair Enough

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This is the first and probably the last time I will make a Track My Track Of the Week for the Second time.

Fahrenheit Fair Enough was one of the first Tracks I made a Track of the week. At the time it was already a bit of a curiosity with a low quality stream on youtube the only way to access the track to share on my blog.

However 5 years later the Track finally gets a Reissue as a precursor to the release of their album of the same name and i can finally offer it as a track to listen to on multiple streams and in better quality. The fact that I am still so fond of this track 5 years since making it my TOTW indicates the powerful affect it has on me.

The mix of Glitch percussion with strong chord structured pads make remind me of another favourite IDM track Flim by Aphex Twin. Its this mix of the Harsh Complexity of the percussion with the softness of the instrumentation that make the track not only hugely enjoyable but also highly influential:
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TOTW: Soil and “Pimp” Sessions_ We Want More!!!

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Soil and “Pimp” Sessions always put on a good show so it was a delight to see them again last Saturday in a small venue in Liverpool.

Their bold and vibrant style of jazz makes them a joy to listen to even for those not usually fans of the genre. We Want More!!! was one of the first tracks that really attracted me to them and is a great introduction to any newcomer. It manages to blend the softer and the more brash elements of the band as a whole and summarises what the band is all about:

 
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TOTW: SWANS_The Glowing Man

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Since my introduction in 2012 with their album The Seer, SWANS have continued to grow on me as a band over their last three albums to becoming one of my favourite acts currently working today. So armed with some earplugs and high expectations I went to see them perform In Manchester last Sunday and wasn’t disappointed. This form of music could only come from the stubborn and clear vision of Michael Gira who controlled the band and the audience with a firm hand and steely determination.

The Highlight of the night was their complete playing of The Glowing Man, the title track on their most recent album. At just under 30 Minutes long the track goes through movements reminiscent of classical music but with the far harsher tones of modern electric instrumentation. It’s these movements that epitomise SWANS. Repetitive walls of distortion crash over you, battering your mind into a hypnotic trance before falling away to quiet, detailed and often beautiful instrumentation which is extenuated by the music surrounding it.

Live they also achieve a huge dynamic range, being one of the loudest acts I’ve ever heard but also playing quiet enough to hear Michael Gira sing without a microphone on occasion. If you get a chance to experience their show go along, just make sure you take some hearing protection with you. The Glowing Man demonstrates every element of what makes SWANS great with no compromises:

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TOTW: Kölsch_Kir

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On this Mini EP entitled SPEICHER 93, Kolsch produces two cutting edge German House Tracks. Out ot the two KIR is my favourite.

The traditional driving kickdrum may start the track but instantly adds something new with the sudden pitch change, turning the Kick into both the melody as well as the driving force iconic of the Genre.

This slight twist on the tradition continues throughout the track and works incredibly well as the synth line swells and morphs between aggressive and wispy. Then we get hit the 2:50 mark and a traditional breakdown is replaced with an awkwardly jaunty staccato variation of the synth melody before we come back to the main arrangement backed up by an incredible driving deep bass part that elevates the track to a new level.

It’s the mix of the traditional and the fresh from a producer clearly experienced in techniques iconic of the genre which escalate this track above a lot of modern house music and make it to my track of the week:

 
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TOTW: Goat_Run To Your Mama

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Music is a flexible and shifting art form. Not only does it develop in style as technologies and artists thought processes change but our perception of music changes as we age.

In 2012 the Goat album World Music was getting a lot of praise and appearing on many critics end of year lists so I decided to give it a listen. Although I enjoyed it I couldn’t relate to it with the enthusiasm of several of my friends and peers. However the album has stayed with me over the past four years due to its catchy rhythms and great guitar hooks. Listening to it now with a bit more maturity I realise what a fantastic record it is.

On World music Goat stay close to the conventions of early psychedelic rock and the production styling could make the tracks easily mix between music from the 60’s without issue. However to keep it fresh they sprinkle instruments from different areas of world music with fantastic results. As a whole the album has a strong sound that unifies the tracks and also has a structure that has clearly been well thought out from its conception.

I could pick any track from this album as my TOTW but Run To Your Mama is probably the most instantly catchy. A strong groove is created by the entire band. The bass guitar, rhythm guitar and drums (including hand drums) all provide rhythmic elements for the wailing vocals and lead guitar line to ball over. The track ends with xylophone freestyle solo that manages to stay within the conventions of the psychedelic rock genre but on an instrument not usually found there.

Above all else World Music is an album that focuses on the rhythms that make us want to dance on a primordial level. It keeps these up throughout its run time, taking them in exiting directions which catchy hooks and a production style that suits the sound of the record perfectly. Give the whole thing a listen and start with Run to Your Mamma.

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TOTW: Death Grips_I’ve Seen Footage

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Death Grips skirt around the fringes of Hip Hop as a genre. As they develop their sound they continue to delve into this abrasive world of harsh tones and heavy samples. It can seem daunting to a new listener who starts from their most recent works.

For this reason I would recommend their first full length album “The Money Store” as a great starting point. It already has their unique style but is centered on the traditions of Hip Hop making it more accessible. Yet it still has the creativity to turn some of these traditions on their head.

I’ve seen footage is a favorite of track of mine. A strong synthesized drum beat drives the lyrics of MC Ride which focus on the viewing of material that is damaging and yet you can’t get it out of your head, something highly prevalent in the modern internet age. It’s the way that the Vocals are processed that adds interesting elements to the track. They are sampled and looped in smaller parts to create rhythms, cut off mid delivery to add elements of surprise and ran through distortion to merge them into instrumentation it all comes together to create an aggressive sound which still holds its own today:

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TOTW: Lou Reed_ Walk On The Wild Side

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I have been listening to Lou Reed a lot this week and looking back to my previous Track of the week’s I’m dumbfounded that he hasn’t made an appearance on any of them until now.

Transformer for me is a perfect album; it manages to exemplify what Lou Reed was best at, telling tales about the fringes of society but with a fragility that could only originate from his unique perspective. Every track could and probably will make my Track of the Week segment in the future but for now I have to pick one and so I thought I would start with the track that initially got me into his music.

Walk on the wild side manages to introduce us to a world of characters that are side-lined by the most of society. Brief tales of transvestites, prostitutes, drug dealers/takers and celebrities who congregate together around Lous life are delivered in a light and joyous way that’s backed up by the instrumentation.  This fairytale like counterpoint to some darker and more serious issues allows the track to work on several layers.

It can be enjoyed as both a light pop song and a historical document of late 60s/early 70s New York. It makes the track timeless, exemplifying a time and a place you can travel to every time you hit play:

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