Tag Archives: Track of the week

TOTW:Burial_Rough Sleeper

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Plenty has been said about Burial by many different areas of the media and its easy to see why. He appeared out of nowhere with a fully developed and original sound on his self titled debut album in 2006. This mix of extremely polished production and his anonymity made him become a major talking point.

6 years later and the dust has settled on the speculation but he’s been no flash in the pan. He has developed a unique sound, creating something that both stays fresh and yet is distinctively his. The new EP/Single “Truant, Rough Sleeper” Has longer and more harmonically focused tracks, without loosing that sparse sound he’s become notorious for.

Although I love both tracks, it’s the development of rough sleeper that really does it for me, the use of organ and saxophone really makes the track feel fresh and the constant stop and start of the track keeps you on your toes. 14 minutes of fantastic and unique music:

 

TOTW: Datassette_Videohorse

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This week I have been working my way through bandcamp looking for stuff. The recommendation feature once you buy some music, is a great way to find new stuff and spend more money.

I was recommended Datassette after buying the FEZ album by Disasterpeace and although that music is fantastic and I’m sure will feature in a future Track Of The Week I have been listening to the Datassette album more.

“People without mouths” has some really good pieces of electronica with these fidgety lead synth lines that make me come back for repeat listens, videohorse is a perfect example:

TOTW: USA Out of Vietnam

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Well TOTW took a short break due to the holidays but also due to me writing my albums of the year which should have come out earlier this week.

To make up for this I thought I would recommend an album I first heard on the great all back no front podcast.

USA out of Vietnam have released this 5 track EP on bandcamp and the whole thing has been on regular play on my commute to work. As you listen through the album it constantly surprised me, going in directions i didn’t expect

The more rustic recoding of the tacks added charm for me, Like a rough diamond you can hear the quality beneath the surface but i think the fact that it is a bit rough around the edges make it something to persevere with and make the reveals so much sweeter

The highlights are definitely the first two tracks especially the middle of we are comets, we are on fire so give those a listen, and if you like it please buy it:

TOTW: Shit Robot_Take ‘Em Up

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Shit Robot creates old school electronic dance music using a large collection of analogue kit.
Pulling artists from the DFA label to feature on tracks gives the album a nice verity and with a quirky take on quite a well trodden genre the album from cradle to the rave manages to feel fresh and catchy,

Take ‘Em Up is a highlight for me:

TOTW: Bat For Lashes_Laura

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Bat for lashes creates a great variety of music, tinged with influences from many genres and that’s what makes her albums really enjoyable. Elements from electronica, pop, avant-garde, folk and many more are looked at and distorted through Natasha Khans lens Creating some great music and fantastic albums in the process.

Laura is a slower piece that really stood out for me on the album, I’ve played it alot this week and its well worth your time:

TOTW: Shout Out Louds_Hard Rain

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There are tracks that connect with people. For everyone they’re different, shaped by our past experience and connections we are attracted to certain Music which latches itself to us. It can bring us back to a moment or connect to our raw emotions in a way other mediums couldn’t achieve, especially within the same timeframes.

For me finding those tracks is the golden ticket. It’s almost an addiction and I spend hours of my time and a large percentage of my income doing so.

When I originally heard the shout out louds with their first single the comeback I was hooked, their ability to write pop songs that were both upbeat and melancholic really struck a chord with me and the track was regularly on rotation way back in 2004 which was then extended by the release of their first album in 2005.

It’s the finale of their second album that I consider to be their finest work to date. Everything seems to just work for me, The instruments and vocals blend together in a way that’s so natural it sounds effortless and we get this slow progression to a crescendo of distorted guitar reminiscent of the post rock genre. This mix of effortless melody driven by a strong beat from the drums and bass really gives the track a natural feel that makes it infinitely replayable.

Hard Rain is that golden ticket, it does everything I could want from this type of music and it hasn’t worn off in the 5 years of repeat listens, I hope you can get as much from it as I do:

 

 

 

TOTW: Mew_ An envoy to the open fields

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“And the glass handed kites” is a fantastic album. One I have listened to countless times but have struggled to put on my track of the week list. The reason for this is how it’s constructed, as a flowing suite of music rather than a collection of easily selectable tracks.

The internet has bred a pick and mix culture. We have the ability to house months worth of music on a device that will fit in your pocket, but this can result in an extended compilation player.

The cure for this is an album like “and the glass handed kites”. You go on a journey experiencing the highs and lows. From big bombastic stadium suffocating rock to quiet self reflective indie and back again. It manages to do this so well that you wont even notice it’s happened until an hour later when the album finishes.

So now it may be a bit hypocritical to suggest a single track, but I’ve tried to pick one that demonstrates the feel for the whole thing. It’s good to read a magazine but sometimes it’s more fulfilling to get stuck into a novel. Treat this track like the blurb or a quick thumb through and if you like what you hear, listen to the whole album, you wont be disappointed:

TOTW: Four Tet_ Unspoken

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The album Rounds by Four Tet has a lovely natural feel to it. Traditional instruments are severalty sampled and then treated to the electronica production ethos that would usually be applied to synthesis, resulting in something fresh.

There are often arguments that the computer revolution has resulted in “lazyer” music. Created by producers which lack the technical proficiency of an instrument that was required until the development of the Digital Audio Workstation. I would argue that the skill for these artists comes from the art of production itself.

Bands still exist to appease the rhetoric “real music” fans. But now we also get this whole new development of music as we know it. Albums like Rounds do something that would have been impossible 30 years ago. Technology has progressed to the stage where an individual can compose a full album on a laptop computer. Along the way this freedom is only going to allow more diverse and interesting music and the work of Four Tet is a perfect example of this.

TOTW: Aphex Twin_ Rhubarb

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I know Ambient music isn’t for everyone, all of it isn’t for me. But at it’s best with its simple structures and interesting soundcapes, it can become something that connects to us in a very tribal way. The simplicity can seep its way through our concious thought and deep into our raw emotions.

Personally I find this very interesting. How little can an artist do and still have the desired affect of a listener feeling something? Does complexity in music actually act as a barrier separating ourselves from what was felt in its creation? By adding to the fundamentals of a track do you loose something?

Ambient music does a great job of asking these questions to the listener. It doesn’t reach out and grab you but at the same time It never bores you, even on repeat listens. Behaving like a pallet cleanser for your eardrums.

There are many artists that do it well and I expect to add a few over the following months to Track Of The Week. This week it goes to Aphex twin who has created some fine examples in his Selected Ambiant works albums. Through listening to them on the train Rhubarb really stood out to me. It envelops you with its rich textures and I find it deeply comforting, like waking up in bed and knowing you can lie in for an hour.