maze feat frankie beverly - twilight (remix)

its the end of the week, and what better way to celebrate than with with one of my all time favourite boogie records. maze, minus the vocals of frankie beverly, drops some serious hypnotic, drug induced, late night boogie action that just makes you want to get down to your local discoteca...

short and sweet, but when the record is this good, who cares...

gunther kallmann choir - daydream (mp3)

buddy rich - the beat goes on (mp3)

well, today has been a day of falling foul of 'optimistic record grading' and making everything at Common cost £10, even if it was only for the hour or so that it took me to put all of the proper prices back on the till. i hope your day's been less disappointing and that you didn't sacrifice eighty two minutes of your life to the god of poorly translated till manuals (i suppose i could always declare myself my own time-zone and get it back that way).

should i write a happy post as a therapeutic exercise? nah, i think i'm just gonna embrace the frustration and see where it goes. now, what can i have a rant about (stop laughing scholes, anyone would think i have some sort of reputation for this sort of thing). oh yes, i've got it...

please don't take this as a slight against sampling. some real magic has come from someone taking a snippet of an existing song (or two) and building it up into something new. however, here are two examples of songs that have been fed on a little too greedily all in one go if you ask me.

i won't name any names here as i'm pretty sure everyone knows who took the entire chorus of the gunther kallmann choir's lovely version of 'daydream', added their own vocoder verse, some vinyl hiss and got a bit magic-button-happy with the flanger. is it just me that thinks the original's verses sound more than a just a little bit sinister?

likewise i'm sure you all remember who stripped buddy rich's chorus away from the, dare i say it, ryan hunn-esque big band sound and, from memory, just looped it for four minutes or so.

take a song you like, sample the whole of the catchiest bit, loop it, add a few minor embellishments to at least ease your own creative conscience and, if you're feeling really creative, maybe even *gasp* add a slightly beefier kick drum to, you know, make it more down with the kids.

i can't even begin to describe what this is, but i know what it's not...

(rant rant rant rant rant)

schneider with the kick - shout (mp3)

so inbetween the regular stag weekend shenanigans in prague last month (don't ask, mainly because i can't remember anyhow), i managed to find a rather spectacular shop called music antiquariat, an aladdin's cave of east european rock, pop and new wave records. they had a very strict "5 record listens only" so there were a few picks that were bought on the strength of covers alone ... a dangerous game, but one that every so often reaps rewards such as this gem!

taken from their 1982 'exposed' lp, this is american-born, berlin-based helen schneider on an experimental tip. it's a bit of a new wave monster, so you should probably go ahead and get yourself one of the few copies over on good ol' ebay.

syl johnson - concrete reservation (mp3)

syl johnson - everybody needs love (mp3)

nope, nothing to do with ali g or staines of nuffink, but a nod towards one of the most overlooked soul artists in musical history.

syl johnson was born in mississippi in 1936 and was originally a blues artist. he moved into soul during the 60s, releasing music on labels such as twinight and hi. his potically charged and ghetto themed soul is some of the best music i have ever heard. the reason for this, i think, is syl's voice. he had an uncanny way of expressing pain and struggle through his voice and could make even then most throwaway lyrics sound like a painful struggle.

'concrete reservation' is taken from dresses too short, the 1969 album on twinight that preceded the better known 'is it because i'm black' lp. syl is on top form here, pouring his heart out about the state of the ghetto, his ghetto.

'everybody needs love' is take from the same album and is probably one of my favourite soul ballads ever. it has the lot= incredible vocals, souring strings, killer drums, the lot!

syl is one of the greatest male soul vocalists that there's ever been. fact.

laidback - bakerman (mp3)

another quickie today, this time from the danish pop outfit, laidback. these guys have been churning out the hits for almost 30 years now, with their more recent releases appearing on bff favourite label, music for dreams. most of you will probably know their seminal electro release 'white horse' or the big summer time favourite, 'sunshine reggae', but my personal favourite over the years has got to be 'bakerman'. this slice of low slung, sleazy pop music makes baking bread seem that little bit cooler...

also has a top video. go take a peep...

syrup - sweat shop (mp3)

in honour of my extreme laziness, here's a top top track from composts very own, 100% live disco/funk outfit, syrup. if ever there was a tune to get you off your arse and get you motivated, then this has got to be it. with possibly more funk than you can shake a stick at, this sounds as good today as it did when i first heard it back in 1999...

now go do something productive...

minnie riperton - simple things (mp3)

it's that time of year again when you can't seem to go for five minutes without someone whinging about how they wish they were at glastonbury blah blah blah blah blah.

well, not for me all that traipsing around, missing the bands you actually want to see and seeing far too many of the ones you don't, eating the worst food imaginable and all of this in conditions less like camping and more like those i learnt about in my gcse geography module on favelas, only with more crime.

nope, give me my records, brews on tap and dry feet any day: it's the simple things.

antibalas - beaten metal (mp3)

wow... what can you say about antibalas? if you don't know of them, you need to.

one of the most energetic and politically charged live acts around today, the brooklyn based afro-funk orchestra made their name through their legendary live shows and outspoken views against the american government. they also made their name by coming the closest to re-creating fela kuti's legendary sound of soul and funk inspired afrobeat. however, they add to this the rich jazz heritage of new york and come out with a devastating sound.

comprising of fourteen core members, their live shows can see antibalas (meaning bullet-proof in spanish) grow to up to twenty members, taking over with huge bass, a massive horn section and killer breaks. i caught them for the first time at band on the wall three years ago and it truly was magical.

"beaten metal" is taken from their most recent album, security and would absolute destroy a hip-hop crowd with its huge breaks and terrifying horns. i've put the track up from the main drop, about thirty seconds into the tune.

these guys are really special. get on it.

rockets - space rock (mp3)

top, top track from the bizarre alien esque french rockers, the rockets. taking their influences from disco, prog, rock and space/alien mystique, these guys were - how shall i put this - a little bit mental. after changing their names more times than is necessary, they finally settled on the rockets moniker after previous attempts at being rocket men, rocketeers and crystal...

anyway, these guys were that good they have actually got a cover band...

buffalo daughter - stereotype c (mp3)

i'm sober, and not feeling at all sexually ambiguous so i don't think this'll take too long - and don't worry scholes, i've no intention of popping the beef blog's neneh cherry*; that's all yours.

nope, the buffalo here has nothing to do with eagle-eye's big sis, but rather the japanese girl/girl/boy noise merchants buffalo daughter, who were hitting their prime right around the time we were all watching dogs being victimised for their lack of correctly functioning portable hi-fi equipment, reading lodown, expressing a preference for builders' brews, wearing bathing ape and thinking that for some reason james lavelle was more than just a big-chinned, star wars obsessed, talentless geek.

some of you may recall the riffalicious 'earth punk rockers' from the little japanese themed post i stuck up last month. well, actually, you probably don't as the disappointing lack of comments attests to a touch too much un-piqued interest for my liking. well i thought i'd have a go at giving them another push but if this doesn't do anything for you then you really are a lost cause, each and every one of you**.

this is actually a collaboration with the decidedly bonkers new york based japanese girl/girl band cibo matto and, in somewhat of a coup for those of us who think 5 inches are at least as good as 12 (despite what my inbox keeps telling me on a daily, no hourly basis), it's only available as a sneaky extra track on the japanese release of buffalo daughter's cd-only album 'i'.

* you won't believe me but i swear on the on-its-way-to-me-at-this-very-moment mint copy of phoenix's 'too young' that this was an entirely accidental pun.
** oh i'm only kidding, you're not really.

taj mahal - why did you have to desert me? (mp3)

i'm back on it people! second blog in as many days and the second in some kind of apology which actually is just an excuse to bang on about records i like!

today's installment comes from taj mahal. yes, you did hear me right. some call him a blues legend, which is justified to a certain extent. however, he made so much music that it is inevitable that a lot of it was, well, not particular great.

taj mahal (real name henry st. clair fredericks) struggled to be recognised by blues purists due to his obsession with fusing the sacred formula with other musical styles, and in the opinion of some, creating a highly watered down sound.

but there was always one track which popped up on his many albums which would blow you away. this selection is taken from his mo' roots album and is so, so, soooooo good, it's hard to do it justice in words. when he was on form, he really was on form.

i'm gonna shut up and let you judge for yourself.

nicely.

jaylib - the mission (stringed out mix) (mp3)

oh dear, i haven't posted for so long i almost forgot how to do it. i've let the side down massively, as it were...

yes, i am indeed back blogging after a mental month of leaving uni work as long as i possibly could without doing it. but now it's all finished, and i'm in the mood for blogging.

you asking? cos i'm blogging...

so here i offer to you, out there, an apology. this apology comes in the form of madlib's very own 'stringed out remix' of 'the mission', featured on the special deluxe re-issue of champion sound, the legendary jay dee and madlib collaboration album. this really is string sampling hip-hop at it's very best and is an absolute belter.

and that is all i have to say about that really, it needs no more! i hope you enjoy... part two of my apology will be up tomorrow!

crosby stills & nash - almost cut my hair (mp3)

the mancunian male is rather fond of his hair. it comes with the territory. you inherit the parka jacket, the manc swagger, the cocky attitude, and of course the gallagher barnet. but getting this hair cut, now thats a problem. it takes years upon years to gain someone's trust, and only then are they allowed near this sacred hair adornment...

it would seem that those hazy woodstock days were no different. david crosby, stephen stills & graham nash obviously had the same dilemma's. but instead of threatening to rip your barbers head off - the mancunian approach to an indifference - they penned a song about the perils of a visit to your local barbers...

masha qrella - don't stop the dance (mp3)

attend local university art and design degree shows: check.
stay out a touch later than planned and drink lots of beer: check.
get dodgy portland street fish and chips on the way home: check.
watch css on jonathan ross: check.
make a brew and decide that now's definitely an appropriate time to post something on the beef blog: check.

is drunken blogging a good idea? let's find out - oh wait, just let me stick on some fujiya + miyagi.

now, i've got this list you see. suggs is on this list, so is jay kay. it's a list of people who make me angry at the mere sight of them. it's nothing to do with their music (there are more than musicians on the list), or even anything that they've particularly done: it's something more instinctive than that; something primal. it's like those dirty, wrong thoughts i have about the ginger one from girls aloud, or the strange and confusing feelings i have about noel fielding. i can neither control nor rationalise it.all i can do is accept it, keep adding to my list and hope for the love of god that i never meet any of these people in person because i really don't know what would happen.

where am i going with all of this? well, brian ferry's on this list, but luckily i heard the song i've posted before i knew it was a brian ferry cover so could enjoy it in its own right and on its own merits, unfettered by the wrath that tumultuously simmers within me. only afterwards did i discover that it's actually a beautifully tight, pomp-free distillation of the original by ace german electronic indie pop outfit masha qrella released on ace german electronic indie pop label morr music's ace 'a number of small things' series of 7 inches (and by my reckoning that's ace to the power of 3, or ace cubed, which means that if it was any more ace it would enter the fourth dimension of aceness and be able to travel through time or something - and don't anyone dare say it sounds like nouvelle vague!).

so, in summary:
drunken blogging: good.
ginger one from girls aloud/noel fielding swimsuit special: gooder.
northern european electronic indie pop: the goodest.

enjoy.

john lennon - how do you sleep (leo zero rework) (mp3)

big, big bff exclusive for you here folks! created on the london-manchester train route about 12 days ago, and first heard at a mountain of one's life-changing blow-your-socks-off first-time-outsida-london debut (yeah i know it's hyperbole but so what, that's what blogging is all about) this is leo's rework of john lennon's mccartney-bashing 'how do you sleep'. i've been told that this is a rip from the imagine dvd, so is a stripped down version, with nagging from yoko (she ruined the plastic ono band!), an inspired bit of dirty-mouthed ad-libbing, and drums taken from a big soul star, who once partook in a little dancing on the ceiling.

this is fucking brilliant and i've haven't stopped listening to it all day, but it still doesn't sound as good as it did just under two weeks ago - if you missed it, you missed out ...

michael franks - monkey see - monkey do (mp3)

a quick track today courtesy of american jazz man, michael franks. 'monkey see, monkey do' is a pleasant jazz-rock ditty that was one of mr franks's biggest hits. released back in 1975 it appears on the extremley average art of tea lp. it would seem our monkey friend above, has heard the rest of the album, and is advising us what to do if we had to listen to it. good call...

justice - d.a.n.c.e. (mp3)

i wear the tightest jeans, i sport the latest hair, i read vice religiously, i can be seen at clique every month and you can be sure that you'll be hearing only the latest grimecrunk dubcore tunes blasting out of my Moto. to put it simply, i'm down with the kids. i'm so down with the kids that justice are so ridiculously old news that i don't even know why i'm wasting my time posting this when i could be spending this time sat in a bath worrying that my week-old hair cut went out of fashion two weeks ago. *

for those more likely to be throwing out their backs than throwing out shapes, justice are french and make those sorts of retro '70s disco/funk electronic pop records that only the french seem to be able to make so well (and so seriously).

close your curtains, turn the stereo up, stick this on and dance around your living room like there's no tomorrow because whilst you may be of an age where it's no longer really acceptable to do this in public, it still feels soo good. just make sure you stretch properly beforehand though!

* this entire paragraph is a lie.

the art of noise - moments in love (mp3)

due to our tv being on the blink and currently unable to pick up any channels (ftn being one of the only ones), i have recently become accustomed to the ways of the game show re-runs. now some of you might think this is a terrible thing. let me tell you, it is not. these are our national treasures. if its not bullseye, its gladiators, and if its not gladiators, its the wonderfully groomed gordon burns laying down some crazy, multi coloured puzzles...

i mean, krypton factor, what is there not to like. first up there's the ladies man presenter with his immaculate comb over, ill fitting suits and charming persona. then there's the games - the futuristic ones - they look so out of date, you could almost be watching running man. oh, and then there's the video imagery, the green krypton factor 'k' which very cleverly morphed into illustrations representing the next round. then last of all, the music, that theme tune, those interludes between the rounds. who could make such appropriate sounds. well, as i just found out tonight, the art of noise, that's who...

so to honour those krypton factor days, i propose a post. one that has appeared on an uncountable amount of 'chill out' compilations. one that is undoubtedly music to make babies to. one that is the art of noise's finest hour. one that is - 'moments in love'...

testing... one two one two...

radio common is broadcasting loud and clear over at the home of best foot forward. the first thing on-air is an hour from a mountain of one's epic dj set for best foot forward from the other saturday.

after that, on a roughly monthly basis, we'll be putting up mixes from all sorts of common regulars, friends and special guests and you never know, we might actually manage to get kev and mark to cobble something together for it.

beat freak sound system (aka rebel mc) - live in acton 87 (mp3)

and now for something completely different. rebel mc is probably best known these days for running congo natty and generally being well-up on all things jungle, but not many people know that he was one of first group of people responsible for bringing the then-burgeoning chicago house scene to the uk, often through his beat freak warehouse parties. this is a live set from acton, a small west london town, back in 1987, and was ripped from a rather fabulous vinyl recording of the gig (which I'd love to post the sleeve image of as it's a lovely parody of the greensleeves covers of the late scientist albums, but can't find my digital camera lead!).

this is mainly made up from loud crowds, horns and whistles, adonis' "no way back", afrika bambaataa's "planet rock" and an unknown track which i'd love to find out about - any help on that part is greatly appreciated, and if you need to break out the vicks to take you back there whilst you listen then please feel free!

can you believe this is 20 years old? - "all the people who get offended easily - get the fuck out of here right now!"

harlequin four's - set it off (mp3)

air power - welcome to the disco (mp3)

deadly avenger - lopez ost (mp3)

its time for another round of bargain bin finds, and what better way to start than with my new favourite haunt, the 'record shack'. this extremely small, dusty and down right shit tip of a place is ran by a lovely old guy. who, it would seem, knows nowt about records, but pretty much everything there is to know, about drinking brews and sporadic opening times...

being fairly new to the area, i only came across this place the other week. just a two minute stroll from my house - and with all his 12"s at just a quid a pop - what better way to spend my current 'man of leisure' status...

first up is 'set it off' by harlequin four's. appearing on numerous compilations over the years (trevor jacksons dj kicks springs to mind), this is a massive primitive house/electro crossover track from 1985. released on the jus born record label and mixed by new york disco legend walter gibbons - a must have record this certainly is...

second up is 'welcome to the disco' by air power. released way back in 1979 on rinder & lewis's avi label, this is a nice soulful disco affair that ebbs and flows for a cool 10 minutes plus. apparently a big play for joey negro, its somewhat of a lady killer...

third up is 'lopez ost' by damon baxter aka big beat maestro, the deadly avenger. released back in 1998 on the illicit ep, it features one of my favourite record related pictures. the track in question is a beautiful, string laden downbeat trip, that could quite easily induce a bout of melancholy...

james holden - kaern turned (mp3)

i'm in london for a few weeks, hence the lack of blog activity, but just thought i'd share this great bit of ambient beauty, care of "friend of bff" neil devlin. this is a lovely bit of selected ambient works reflection first heard in preliminary form on holden's awe-inspiring fear of a silver planet mix cd.

hope y'all enjoy...

a camp - i can buy you (mp3)

... what the hell are you doing?!

i really feel the need to help correct the musical karmic imbalance created by the truly awful result of one ms persson's recent collaboration with the manic street preachers (i admit though, nicky wire's looking good for his age). luckily, it just so happens that one of my most favourite songs is by the lady in question; from the 'a camp' album she did with mark linkous (or mr sparklehorse to you and me).

keep this on your person at all times so that, if you find yourself accidently hearing even just a couple of bars of 'your love alone is not enough', you can administer it immediately and not only ease the pain but also help bring the cosmos back into alignment.

late night rant over.

richard wahnfried - druck (@33+6) (mp3)

considering our bandwidth problems of late, i shouldn't really be posting an epic 22 minute track. so to keep things running smoothly, i think this one might have to be for a limited time only...

for anyone who knows me (and cares to listen), i have been banging on about the innovative communication label for some time now. started up by one of the electronic music pioneers, klaus schulze (tangerine dream, ash ra temple, cosmic jokers), it went on to release numerous seminal experimental, electronic & ambient releases through the late 70's and 80's...

one of the artists on that label was richard wahnfried - a klaus schulze side project - and for anyone who can comprehend it, klaus shulze describes richard wahnfried as: 'the collective pseudonym of an idea: time-electronic, and experiment between avangarde and muzak: utility-music for sound-covered environment in which a new generation grows up: richard wahnfried is this generation: music between genius and nonsense: new ideas transported by an old medium into your ear'. okay, so carrying on...

amongst other things, klaus shulze is also hailed as a pioneer of the trance music scene. easy to understand when listening to 'druck' played at the 'correct' speed, and even easier to understand when you see how many trance related compilations it has appeared on...

'druck' originally appeared on the 1981 album, tonwelle. amongst others, it features the likes of manuel göttsching on guitar, and ex santana percussionist michael shrieve. if you stick to the rules, both tracks on said album are supposed to (according to the record) be played at 45rpm, but in my humble opinion they are to fast, sounding far better pitched down. they are the sort of tracks that you can't just skip through, you need to let them play all the way through, listen to them evolve as they create a soundscape...

so go make a brew, sit back and relax...

kasso - sound of rimini (mp3)

after being rudely being awaken by the postman this morning (i mean, half past 8, come on mr postie, have some consideration) i go downstairs to discover a couple of records, shit loads of bills, and some promo cd's. after putting the bills in my things to (not) do pile, i tuck into the records, then the cd's and amongst them i find a promo of the new back to mine by royksopp...

after a quick peruse of the tracklisting, the first impressions are it seems a wee bit obvious, a wee bit of an italo/disco band wagon jumper. so, with nothing better to do, other than eating my third portion of cheese on toast, i stick it on, and its actually pretty damn good...

anyway, i get to track three, and its by early 80's italian outfit kasso, its a top track but you could say, its smothered in parmesan, then i think, 'what track by kasso isn't?'. so, i go for a dig in my kasso 'section', and there it is, it's my favourite cheese induced kasso track. its the 'sound of rimini'...

freescha - smurf shoe (mp3)

it's easy to forget at times that manchester has more than one record shop: more than two or three in fact.

but all of these little record shops that we maybe take a little too much for granted are endangered, and that's not just those in manchester of course. the reality of this has been brought home to me over the last month or so with one of my favourites going the way of the dodo.

so, by way of me paying my final respects, here's the rather excellently named 'smurf shoe', from californians freescha's third album 'what's come inside of you' (which has a nudey lady picture on the front and pretty much each track features some form or other of orgasmic moaning just in case anyone was in any doubt as to the suggestive nature of the title); just one of the many, many little electronic-tinged treats that only managed to find itself a loving new home because of pelicaneck records.

not only was it an excellent little record shop, but it also provided oklahoma with a decidedly different take on the coffee-shop soundtrack for that essential post-purchase mochaccino: dubstep with your carrot cake anyone?

don't sleep ...

erot vs kings of convenience - gold for the price of silver (mp3)

okay, so hands up who's got the odd record kicking around at home that they've had for a while but have just not gotten around to giving a proper listen? hands up who's got more than the odd one? hands up who's got stuff that's still sealed?

well today's piece of sagely advice from my good self is to dig out all of these neglected acquisitions, stick them on from start to finish and keep your ears switched on because there might just be your new favourite song hidden amongst those compilation fillers, album tracks and b-sides. and because you already own it, it's like getting new music for free!

this is exactly what happened to me earlier this week when, rather than just flitting between the lovely fourtet remixes and the single version of failure, i let 'versus', the kings of convenience odds and sods album, just run whilst i went about my morning regime. i've been listening to track four all week since then.

according to the sleeve notes this was originally just an instrumental track by erot, a friend of erlend and eirik, that the boys just knocked-up some words and a melody for and then the three of them re-recorded it (you know, as you do). this is obviously a precursor to erlend's working with royksopp and also 'unrest', his rather spiffy album of collaborations. it's also easily as good as the fruits of either of those projects. it's just such a simple loop with a lovely bass-line and some equally lovely guitar licks, and of course there are those unmistakeable dulcet harmonies: enough to make even the manliest of men swoon.

over a mug of green tea a rather tipsy mr scholes proclaimed this to be a lost balearic classic: high praise indeed and even in the cold light of sobriety i don't think he's far wrong.

whilst i'm at it, here's where the best foot forward crew's best dance moves come from.

bombers - don't stop the music (mp3)

with our recent bandwidth problems, what better way to re-start proceedings than to post a track that portrays our obvious intentions...

'dont stop the music' is a great take on kurt hauenstein's (of supermax fame) already great record. available on their self titled lp from back in 1978, this is just a top tune. with the constant disco mantra chants, the guitar wig outs, and the heavy synth use, this just pushes all the right buttons...