Category Experimental

Nov 14 2012

Goin’ Old School: Jean-Michel Jarre, Anne Clark & D-Mob with Cathy Dennis

Goin’ Old School isn’t a trip down music memory lane, it’s a mugging in the dark alleyway of nostalgia:

In 1981 Jean–Michel Jarre continued to break new ground, both in synthesizer music, and chart music, with his hit Magnetic Fields II.

The amazing Anne Clark’s 1984 breakthrough Our Darkness. Pioneering electronics.

D-Mob with Cathy Dennis, before she penned one of the greatest British Pop songs of all time, hitting the charts with House-lite and C’Mon And Get My Love in 1989.

You can buy most of this  music from:

 

Nov 2 2012

Crystal Castles’ ‘Affection’

Crystal Castles

Here’s out third crack at Canadian noiseniks Crystal Castles new album (III), or Crystal Castles again, depending on your viewpoint. Coming Mid-November, the hints of the album we have has so far, Plague and Wrath Of God point toward a more emotional, more musical album. This new tune, Affection, definitely reinforces that notion.

Affection is a dreamlike collision of Electro beats and 90s Trance arpeggios creating a strangely comforting blanket of synths. Warping noises ebb and flow out of the track while Alice Glass’ vocal circles the track like a lost ghost. We are finding ourselves looking forward to (III) a lot more than we were (II). It should be interesting at the very least, and if Crystal Castles continue to break their own mold as the do here, could be something special.

♫ Crystal Castles – Affection

Crystal Castles’ (III) is released 12th November.

Buy Crystal Castles’ music from:

Nov 1 2012

Age Of Consent cover Tim Capello

Age Of Consent

Yes, you read that right, some has covered Tim Capello. OK people, we’re through the looking glass here. Tim Capello’s I Still Believe is one of the greatest songs ever written, I don’t think anyone has been brave enough to cover it up until now. Enter London Moody ElectroPoppers Age Of Consent. May god have mercy on their souls.

To be fair to them they have a good old crack at it. What their cover lacks in saxophone (boo!), it makes up for in ominous, dread-filled snyths and pounding drums (yay!). Age Of Consents version is actually quite cinematic (the original comes from he soundtrack o The Lost Boys), carrying with it an underlying sense of drama amidst the industrial hammerfall sounds and vintage SynthPop atmosphere. An impressive dark-dancefloor tune that’s just missing a sax solo.

♫ Age of Consent – I Still Believe (Tim Cappello Cover)

Buy Age Of Consent’s music from:

Sep 27 2012

Crystal Castles’ ‘Wrath Of God’

Crystal Castles

Crystal Castles are seriously starting to work toward the release of their third album, titled (III), which we presume means it’s actually titled Crystal Castles again. Wrath Of God is the second track from the forthcoming record to be released.

(III) has been produced entirely by CC’s Ethan Kath in a computer free zone. Everything has been, apparently, recorded directly to tape (which will make their live shows interesting), that;s not to say there is still a lot of drum programming and arpeggiating going on. Wrath Of God is a majestic tune, more haunting than we’re used to from CC and may be an indication of the different mood on the new album. The booming beat, bit-crunched synths and distant, wailing, vocals are still present, but tempered with a misty production style and shimmering, ghostly, piano. The album should be an interesting affair.

♫ Crystal Castles – Wrath Of God

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Sep 25 2012

Mark Stewart & Factory Floor’s ‘Stereohype’ video

Post Punk electronic pioneer Mark Stewart is about to release a new single with Indie-Electro outfit Factory Floor. The second single from his current Politics Of Envy album.

Here’s the video for Stereohype, directed by Orla Fokdalm as edgy as the abrasive track itself.

Stereotype is released 1st October.

Buy Mark Stewart’s music from:

       

Sep 24 2012

Figure Of 8 reMixes Creatures Of Love

Creatures Of Love

The best thing to come out of Belfast since Sons Of Anarchy season three, and star of the hit dragon-porn show Game Of Thrones, Figure Of 8 is back with a brand new reMix. This time he’s tackling Industrial EtheriPop outfit Creatures Of Love’s new single ‘Vakkula’.

The original is a surprisingly catchy slice of machine beats and ominous tones. Shades of early 4AD output and pre-Pop-Trance Delirium dungeon music with a powerful vocal line. A vocal line which Figure Of 8 picks up and runs with it, pairing it up with a pulsating SynthPop bassline and roomy dance beats. Merging his classic dance sound with a slight Italo-Dub touch, Figure Of 8 takes just the right approach to sliding this track onto the dancefloor. The soundsystem echoes and reverb washed drums allow the track to retain it’s left-field vibe whilst giving it a kick in the kick drum. Figure Of 8 has taken the track from strobe light to mirrorball, while loosing none of the song’s character.

♫ Creatures Of Love – Vakkula (Figure Of 8 reMix)

♫ Creatures Of Love – Vakkula

Vakkula is a free EP, out today on Creatures Of Love’s Bandcamp.

Buy Creatures Of Love’s music from:

 

Sep 19 2012

Ladytron’s Marnie announces solo album

Ladytron’s  Helen Marnie has announced that she has been recording a solo album in her time between Ladytron chores.

The album is being recorded in Iceland and Marnie is crowdfunding the release where pledges can pick up everything from personalised ringtones to Helen’s old Mini Cooper. Check out the video for a taste of what’s to come.

You can help crowdfund the release, and pick up some unique items, here.

Sep 14 2012

AlunaGeorge reMixes by Lil Silva

AlunaGeorge

Here’s just one of the reMixes of the amazing AlunaGeorge’s new single Your Drums, Your Love. Alongside the reMix package featuring Duke Dumont, the Prototypes and Deebs, Bedford’s Lil Silva steps up to give the track a shuffling, glitch workout.

We were lucky enough to catch AlunaGeorge live last weekend at Bestival, they were everything we’d hoped they were. Slick and sexy, playing late on Sunday they were the perfect end to the festival. Lil Silva takes the impassioned warmth of their new single and applies it to spikey drums and a UK Bass flavour. The reMix is loaded with intricate layers of sound, there’s so much to hear in this mix. And it’s funky too. It;s a harsh urban groove that shouldn’t sit well with Aluna’s sweet vocal, but somehow really does.

♫ AlunaGeorge – Your Drums, Your Love (Lil Silva reMix)

AlunaGeorge’s Your Drums, Your Love is released 7th October.

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Sep 3 2012

A couple of new (or old) Monsieur Adi demos

Monsieur Adi

In the past week the most underrated artist producing today, France’s Monsieur Adi let loose a couple of new (or old in some cases) demos on his SoundCloud account. Adi talent cannot be contained by genre, and it’s amazing to hear him branching out in terms of styles and sounds.

The first track, Paradis, is a brooding dark affair. The darkest we’ve ever had from Adi. Ominous droning synths and menacing whispered vocals lean the track an Industrial quality whist keeping an analog French Electro sound. This use of an Electro pallet with an experimental flavour makes for a track that’s as unsettling as it is fascinating. Of course, Adi’s emotional arrangements just ass to the songs involvement. Joyride was apparently written for Madonna, during Adi’s reMixing Madonna phase, but he presents it here as sung by Javi. It’s an excellent Pop track, and Madge is truly missing out with this one. You can kinda’ tell it was written with her range, and style, in mind and it would have been something new for her whilst obviously referencing classic Madonna. It’s about time the music industry at large paid attention to Adi, he could be knocking out hits for any number if stars right now if they’d let him. Joyride is a sweeping, rich Pop tune with added helpings of Adi’s musical majesty. The demo is from last year, but Adi plans on devolving the track further, we can’t wait.

♫ Monsieur Adi (Feat. Javi) – Joyride (Demo.)

♫ Monsieur Adi – Paradis (Demo.)

Buy Monsieur Adi’s music from: