Indestructible

Impressive remix of this track by Robyn.  She's too pop for my tastes but A-Trak finesses her tune with a musical awareness akin to monsieur adi, so that level of talent made me put aside my differences.  The result is something permanent and uplifting.  It loses the plot slightly at the very end but, this is the radio edit, so I need to hear the full version to see why the last section seems incomplete and/or rushed.

Indestructible (A-Trak radio edit) by robyn

Spirit of the Night

When I first started up 'Spirit of the Night' by Tesla Boy, I thought I was listening to something decades old.  That familiar, high energy 80s feel is the lifeblood of this tune.

Once the bassline kicked in I was trying not to giggle like a schoolgirl.  Beautiful instrument choices and a song structure that does not branch out into experimentation, thus keeping me in the time machine, so to speak.

The lyrical style was a bit surprising, so until I could get used to an unfamiliar accent, my head wasn't in the track.  The vocals hiss and lilt a little too emotionally, with a nasal edge that pinches certain syllables, but it is still an era-specific vocal style.  After a few listens I calmed down and started to accept the personality the singer was trying to project.

I thought the track couldn't get any better and it proved me very wrong indeed.  The chorus is beautiful; perfectly bright synth illuminates and lifts the mood of the track up into the clouds.  I was a kid again, playing Turrican on my Atari home computer, with Chris Hulsbeck's 16-bit soundtrack in my ears.  Yes, they borrowed wholesale from 80s compositions, but they did it with such clarity of purpose that the end result was an almost spotlessly authentic reminiscence.

The bridge was a nice break in the pace, with a combination of staccato synth and choral repetition building into an steadily energetic synth solo.  The final section is an instrumental continuation that left me wanting to hear more of the first and second sections again.  A couple of times I stopped the track once the bridge ended, but that was mainly because I had to hear the first half of the song all over again.

This tune takes masterful era recreation and fits it into a modern pop structure that ensures no part of the tune wears out on the ears.  The final section could have done with a better arrangement, but there is really nothing seriously wrong with it, the problems just left me wanting more of what I liked, and that can't be a bad thing, can it?

Not many tunes have parts that give me goosebumps.  The first half of this track is forever in my brain, and for that reason alone it makes the cut.

Tesla Boy - Spirit Of The Night by Tesla Boy / DJ Futures

Stand Alight (Monsieur Adi Remix)

Monsieur Adi took a Paper Crows track called Stand Alight and made love to it.

The intro to this remix sets a strong pace, building up steadily into a vibrant and dreamy first section that blossoms beautifully.  It's like a break in the clouds; rich bells and synth layers set a mood full of gold and rainbows.  When the silky vocals kick in, the tune takes a moodier slant that perfectly balances the lighter elements of the music.

Emma Panas' voice has a lot of underlying strength and body that adds elegance and a foreboding nuance to the music.  The vocals have a distinctly different feel from the original, thanks to Monsieur Adi's ability to transform and enhance the personality of this track.

The chorus is a real mood-lifter as the vocals become stronger and the bright instrumentation dances more energetically.  The bassline is subtle and effective, holding the tune together nicely.  Monsieur Adi has crafted the sombre and slightly menacing original into a beautifully colorful dance number with powerful hooks and a tangibly emotional core.

The usage of violins in the first part of the bridge is one of the most memorable parts of the track for me, and really adds to the experience.  It's a very musically inventive and intuitive addition that I could listen to again and again.

The bridge itself is a little too similar to the original's disappointing third section, but it recovers quickly and expertly builds into the final section.  The layering is dreamy and wonderful, especially in the final minute of the song where additional instrumentation lifts the tune into a stratospheric climax.

A permanent addition to my collection, and for me that's high praise.  Monsieur Adi has significant talent, and I will be watching him closely.

Paper Crows - Stand Alight (Monsieur Adi Remix) by Sainted PR

Night

Zola Jesus has a track called 'Night'.

I'm in love from the start.  Whispers and deep strings set the mood before the thumping bass beat begins.  Marching drums add a notion of inexorability to the pace, constantly alluding to a dark destination.  The vocals seem a little fragile at times, maybe due to the fact that Zola was 19 at the time of this track's release, but the mood is succinct and the clarity of emotion is kept throughout, so after a single listen it didn't matter anymore.

The ghoulish vocal echoes are masterfully placed.  These augmentations unsettle you just enough before the drums hit a steadier marching rhythm and carry you deeper into the core of this track whether you like it or not.  I like it when a tune has such solid mood mastery that you feel encompassed in the world it creates.

Once the beat picked up the pace I got goosebumps.  There is a real sense of world-ending doom in the pit of what I consider a love song.  The dark mood is rich and epic, and to date I have yet to see the artist recreate something this tantalizingly gothic.

There is no distinct third section, instead the lyrics take a stronger role before the pounding march dissolves into ghostly echoes.  It's a hauntingly dark track that conveys a tangible notion of the very end of everything.  A love song for anyone who has even the slightest romance with finality and loss.

1 Night by WorkItMedia

Above Your Head

Anoraak has released this track for free, so there's no harm in giving it a listen.

This tune has a mellow 80s 'Prom Night Slow Dance' bass line accompanied by lilting synth and a steady, walking beat.  The overall feel is a soft, melancholy love song with a comfy electro-pop pace that takes me back in time a little.

The falsetto chorus sometimes surprises me while I'm lost in the mood the rest of this tune creates. Also, the bridge doesn't do enough with the personality of the song, leaving me impatient for it to end.

Speaking of ending, the track finishes abruptly, but in a way that leaves space for reflection, so intentional or not, I like the way it comes to a close.  Apart from a boring bridge, 'Above Your Head' is a nice mood piece to forget your troubles with, so it makes the cut.

Above your head | Free Download-> http://ecard.naive.fr/anoraak/ by anoraak

Blog Ethos

Just a few notes on the nature of this blog for you readers..

1.  I will post old tunes; often more than a month old, some as old as a year or more.  This is to bring sounds to those who might have missed them, forgotten them or lost them in a pile of newer stuff.

2.  Sometimes I won't link to an artist's myspace page or itunes store or whatever.  Unless you are the artist, you probably shouldn't worry about that, okay?

3.  I will sometimes post tracks I only like parts of.  This is because I want to draw the reader's attention to the small portions of awesome within, while telling them in very clear terms that the rest of the tune is utter trash.

4.  I do not adhere to any nonsense about being impartial and leaving the readers to decide whether a tune is good or not.  I'll tell you what I think and you can either read it or ignore it.

5.  Not all of my posts will have music in them, such as this one.

So now that's off my chest, I can get back to writing about good music.

Young Black Boy

Swedish artist Adam Tensta is responsible for today's track 'Young Black Boy'.  The lyrics tell a familiar tale many of us are aware of, so it's good to hear a catchy tune with a decent message.

Thick, dirty electro bass perfectly complements a banging beat.  The music is the star here.  Adam's lyrical style is sometimes too simplistic and often jars with the mood and pace of the tune.

Once you give it a few listens you start to forget the details and enjoy this for the banger it was meant to be.  I especially like the bridge, which briefly slows down to a two-step for a few seconds.  This is crying out to be remixed.

Adam Tensta - Young Black Boy by AdamTensta

Breaking Ground

So this is my music blog.  The name describes something viscerally tactile, blisteringly hot, crackling with energy, emotionally charged.  Sexy, no?


I chose Verdana as the font, it seems to be the easiest on the eyes and fastest to scan over quickly without getting text blindness.  White text on a black background should make it a comfy read and help colorful pictures pop nicely.


This blog is not about posting what's new, popular, or relevant.  It's about soundwaves that resonate with brainwaves.  Good sounds that make good feelings, regardless of genre, era or structure.


So let's roll this katamari already.