alternate headlines:

Bing the Noise

Bing, the Noise

Goodies in the post: Data 70's Space Loops Volume One and Space Loops Volume Two. Good-looking (especially the former, a gatefold-sleeved double-7 inch with 16 tracks across four sides) and great-sounding contributions to the area that begins with H. (Naturally, when asked in Gutterbreakz's interview if they feel affinity with the memoradelic crew, Data 70 's Bob Bhamra and Jon Chambers politely shrug off the association). Although everyone in that field is influenced by library music or uses it as a sound-source in terms of samples, few have actually made anything that sounds like it could be modern-day library (the recently-started Mordant Music 'Travelogues' series of download-only releases, maybe...). But that's what Data 70's short themes sound like: yes, the imprint of the familiar constellation of talismans and touchstones is there but equally this is music that could only have been made after the 90s electronic moment.



I must say I was tickled to learn that Data 70 call their studio West Norwood Cassette Library, as West Norwood/West Dulwich was where I lived for about a year when I first moved to London from Oxford. And I recall that the local library's unusually good record section was one of the few redeeming things about the area (at least in 1986; maybe it's improved). That and the excellently serene cemetery.

^^^^^^^^^^^

A word also for bleaklow, the superb new release by V/VM alter-ego The Stranger, especially the queasy wilting synths and staggering punch-drunk beats of "Indefinite Ridge".

As Wiley and his "Rolex" this week inch ever closer to the Top Spot--only Madonna and Timberlake in the way now, a pox on their eyes--another Nuum incursion into the UK pop chart slips out of the Top 10. I'm talking about Pendulum and their drum'n'bass/metal fusion "Propane Nightmares", which peaked at #9. Kind of stretching the Nuum to its conceptual limit here: the group are from Perth, West Australia, and although they were a force in D&B a few years back they decided to go rock and become a live group (a Prodigy-type move and indeed they famously remixed "Voodoo People" some while ago) So while their sound still has that jacknifing hard-stomping sub-Bad Company beat it's slowed down quite a bit from d&B's ZFI and is topped by Enter Shikari-style transcendo-metal tuneage(Shikari of course being huge d&b fans, repeatedly interrupting their live set with little bursts of almost touchingly wack Venetian Snares mimicry they've knocked up at home). The resulting composite is... pretty horrible actually. Have a listen for yourself . Or just look at the picture.

interesting post by Mentasms on the Crystal Castles album. Diagnosis: a simulation of the aural/spiritual exhaustion induced by over-exposure to digitized, low bit-rate audio.



Impostume, acerbic on the proto-politics of bad service in UK retail

Actually America isn't all "have a nice day" phony warmth and politeness you know. In fact there is a particular kind of recalcitrance that some supermarket check-out people have developed over here, which is to be not overtly rude or surly, but non-responsive, in a sort of supercilious, aloof, all-this-is-beneath-me kind of way. So the typical exchange will go:

Customer: "Thank you."

Check-out person: "Mmm mmm."

Often said as close to inaudible as possible, and while already turning to face the next customer. And others just don't reply at all.

The idea seems to be: I'm not going to participate in this little ritual nicety, because this job is not who I am. Dignity and distance achieved through disdain. And fair enough really.

Brian Eno turned sixty yesterday.

Okay, that I can get my head around, that figures...

But on Monday...

Grace Jones turns sixty.

Now that is something that does my head in, for some reason. I just can't picture Grace Jones as an OAP.

Not sure who gave me that 'Do Not Say Pretentious' postcard--it was years ago and
it's been on the wall in front of my desk ever since--but on the back it says:

Campaign.
Mark Cousins.

and there's an address for Morning Star Publications in Dunblane.

Big up to him and to them then.

ang tight the Hillsborough crew, locked in... shout out to Sedgy and Smiff... we bubblin... ang tight all the S14 crew... ang tight everyone from Sheffield innit

via Ambrose White (the chap who sent me some bassline house cd-rs several years ago) a link to community radio station Sheffield Live! and its in all ways resonantly named show Up From Below--the station's Saturday night niche for Niche and all flavas of 4X4/UKG. Shows archived here. Oh and here's one on Sundays called Drop the Funk, Drop the Bass

(Ambrose also rates Maurice Fulton's Wednesday night show Bubble Tease)

what a wonker



Intriguing that "wonky" is the meme of the moment:

Wonky pop


Wonky dance*


Wonky design

(Or at least something close: a graphic aesthetic of wrong-as-right)

(And Momus connects it to music, mentioning at the end of that post that he's making a new album and trying to make it sound "wrong")

What does it say about where we're at?



* But isn't this just the "drill 'n' bass"/"eclectro" moment again? I.e. sameyness of scenius(es) prompting the inevitable willfully offkilter, riddmatically omnivorous, edging-out-of-your-own-genre responses.

I mean, Rustie's stuff is great fun but to my ears bears a similar relation to Terror Danjah that Plug did to Dillinja…

Certainly not quite enough to make me Believe in Beats again

the cough and the riff -- Impostume on Sabbath and "Sweet Leaf," stoner and doom.