Cutting The Fat

No time for clever gimmicks or conceits here. I'm on deadline dammit. Recent things that are one thousand degrees:


Mayer Hawthorne & The County - Just Ain't Gonna Work Out

New Stones Throw artist Mayer Hawthorne has us over here at BW in a weeks-long swoon. Nat wants to have his babies. Lo-fi blue-eyed soul that sounds like long-lost Stax demos. LURRRRRRR.

(thanx to Stranger Dance for having a link when Badongo is bitching out)


Kid Cudi - Switchin' Lanes

It's fair enough to think that tracks recorded exclusively for video games should be retarded. They probably are, fundamentally. But Cudi's I'm-not-even-really-trying-here delivery suits the almost All Eyez On Me style beats. If you haven't yet, follow Dat New CuDi on Twitter cause he drops links to new tracks.


BLK JKS - Summertime (Carlos Ramos version)

BLK JKS are like a South African version of TV On The Radio - in that they sound similar, are amazing, and come from Johannesburg. Props to RCRD LBL for this track.


Body Langauge - Huffy Ten Speed

Neon Gold is ridiculous. We continue to worship at the altar. The consistency of the bangers over there is just unbelievable. This is my jam of the year so far.

8-Bit Heat

Check out this medley of rap songs done Nintendo style. Anyone know how to download it?

http://www.shotthen.com/2009/02/04/8-bit-hip-hop-medley/

Eyes Caught Fire

Who ever thought alt-country mixed with Nirvana could sound so good. Their name is The Mountain Apple Epidemic, their bio reads 'Used to have a band that was on the harder side of things, Tool-ish, now I try to rip off Wovenhand' and they are sublime. Like the soundtrack for a forgotten sequel to Deadman. Sample the album standout Eyes Caught Fire below or grab the whole album for free here.

The Mountain Apple Epidemic - Eyes Caught Fire

Myspace

Seek the light

Despite at least 18 months in the fickle glare of the indie spotlight, Bon Iver seems to be suffering very little fatigue, and certainly not with me or the rest of the BW crew - especially not after the amazing show we saw him play back in January.
There are plenty of live sets of Bon Iver floating around the interwebs now (NPR has two, also try Hard to Find a Friend) but I still felt compelled to post about The MySpace Transmissions because just about every live set I have heard Justin and company perform has been different. This has been available for just under a month now, but I only just came across it a couple of days ago. The set can be watched here or downloaded from the link below.
The stand out in this set has to be the beautiful version of Blindsided that runs to a full 7 minutes. However, stunningly constructed and performed versions of Emma, Flume and Lump Sum also appear.

Bon Iver - The MySpace Transmissions (courtesy of Howling Songs)

MySpace | Website

Speaking of magic...

I had the pleasure of catching Benga and Skream a few months ago at the ol' sweat pit that is Oxford Art Factory. Safe to say they fucking smashed it, moving quickly from banger to banger all with a set of cheeky grins.

The track below was not dropped (as far as my hazy memory can tell) but holy shit I wish it had been. All stripped vocals and soft rave bleeps new comer LaRoux (currently on tour with Ms Allen) brings on the goose bumps. Then in the last minute it simply cuts loose, releasing the tension with tough breaks and the kind of bass Skream is renowned for. Ace.

LaRoux - In For the Kill (Skream Ravey Remix)

Myspace | Website

Unexpected Monday Afternoon Magic

Good times for Adele. Last week (or so) she cleans up at the Grammy's, and now this absolute fucking banger of a remix of Hometown Glory appears courtesy of Chewy Chocolate Cookies. So the track has been mixed up a bunch of times, but this one kills facists and like perennial BW jam Sleepyhead, this proves you can get in and make nights in under 3 minutes.

Adele - Hometown Glory (Chewy Chocolate Cookies remix) [soundcloud download]

Update: zshare link was killed so it's a soundcloud d/l now.

This Isn't A Post About La Roux...

...weird right? Apparently there's other bands around, blogosphere.

I first came across Harlem Shakes a year or so ago after they did a Daytrotter session. Then, I found them super likable but just missing that extra je ne sais quoi. Now they've had a bit of time to mature as a band and I lurr the new direction they've taken. Mostly in that they've upped the fun and (metaphorical) thrusting factor, and are sounding tight. Kind of like if an English indie band heard themselves, then went back in time and grew up in New York instead. Their record Technicolor Health drops in March.

Harlem Shakes - Strictly Game

Myspace

Ahora bailemos...!

Last Sunday I skipped along to St. Jerome's Laneway Festival in Sydney, for the first time in my festival life, with no idea who the bands were that were playing (apart from The Holdsteady and Four Tet) and had little motivation to find out. Surrounded by music aficionados, I was in nurturing hands. As the day rolled by and my blood sugar level dropped, I was pleasantly surprised to turn down one (of which there are only two) laneway and encounter something I knew would pep me up again - that being - tribal and thudding Spanish tunes.

El Guincho is one of those acts other artists get down to see, including, on that particular windy afternoon, the guys from Hermitude and Ryan Stively from Port O'Brien. The adorable man behind El Guincho, Pablo Diaz-Reixa, had everyone dancing for the whole duration of his set and I personally thank him for making me forget how sore my feet were and fooling me into thinking I was back in Spain. I was so excited when we ran into the man himself, on our way home.

I hope his album is playing at the next party I go to, as I can't wait to get down again.

Pedro with a drunk and over excited BW contributor, Nat.


El Guincho - Kalise

Myspace | Website