Convivality

So much wonderful stuff coming up - pay attention Australians! This weekend: Saturday at Melt in Kings X having a jolly Christmas bash, playing some tunes 11:30 til 1 to see how things go for a potential Disco Delicious night later on in January (!!) which is super exciting. Sunday afternoon we're doing a laid back Death Strobe collab party with Pete Versus Toby at Ching-A-Lings from 3pm which will be a beauty. January 8th is time to pop down to Melbourne for Special Disco Version & The Juan Maclean which will be ridiculous, followed by a swift return to Sydney for a Picnic warehouse party on the 9th with Lovefingers. Yes the next 5 weeks will certainly make its mark in the history books in the categories of 'best music' and 'deadliest hangovers'.

YAY.

This edit of Miss You done by Dance! Dance! Dance! is just dandy. The original is as classic as it gets anyway, and the extended dance mix of 1978 did a magical job of grooving and stretching the fuck out of it but this just puts the cherry on top by being a bit more firm on the reigns, for the most part keeping it in the laid back sneaky disco realm. Handy intro for djs too. Beautiful!

The Rolling Stones - Miss You (Dance! Dance! Dance! Edit)

This has been a favourite of mine for a very long time, decided it's finally time to stop being selfish and share it out for those of you who don't know Lexx, a fantastic Swiss producer who's been released on Permanent Vacation, Bear Funk and Sonar Kolektiv among others. This, the A on his Perm Vac 12", is a wonderfully rich nudisco tune; a bit spacey, a bit deep. A bit of everything really, I guess you could say it's balearic or even dubby. The bass sound in particular really grabs me! The whole thing is a glorious journey through soothing synths and gently grooving rhythms. Truly an excellent record.

Lexx - Axis Shift [buy]

Been ripping into a lot of the old Stilove4music records which are, for the most part, stunning deep, soulful and funky affairs. This Andy Ash double 12" has some big tracks worth checking out. Lots of percussion binging and donging and shaka-shakaing in most of the tunes with some tasteful sampling done throughout. This number has a really nice celebratory vibe to it, very uplifting, very saucy and very party. Yum yum.

Andy Ash - Carnival De L'Spirit [buy]

I'll try to get the big top 10 written up next. Come enjoy these swell events this weekend! xx

International Mischief

Really excited about a bit of Auckland action this Saturday! All you lucky lucky Kiwis come to Cassette for Golden Age. BOOZY TIMES. Inspect the flyer. For those of you in Sydney, well by golly you're also in luck! Wunderparty Picnic hosts Darshan Jesrani, one half of the legendary Metro Area, this Friday night at GoodGod. OH BOY. Not much else needs to be said - a brave and beefy Funktion One sound system, spectacular music and a non-stick non-toxic dancefloor. Grab tickets to the gig here. Also check out Darshan's Red Bull Music Academy lecture - he's a clever cookie.

Metro Area - We Also Not [buy]

I have no explanation why the only In Flagranti releases from their entire catalogue that I didn't own until the other day were Sounds Superb Vols 3 and 4. Makes no sense. Thank god I came to my senses and picked them up at long last. This edit is fucking brilliant. No idea what the original is but it's piping hot. Super sleazy, somehow droopy yet tight. That makes no sense. Awesome tune.

Bruno Cried - No One Has Ever Pinned Anything On Me [buy]

Been listening to these Space remixes more and more, couldn't help posting up another. Bottin's fab remix of their first track is a loud and funky affair which goes big on the bass. Seriously this is a great release! Not that Space needed any updating but these are all really nice interpretations and reworkings.

Space - Tango In Space (Bottin Remix) [buy]

Just a bonus Andrew Weatherall remix because it rocks. Have rediscovered RVNG MX5 by Justine D which is where I first heard this rocking monster. Classic stuff.

My Bloody Valentine - Soon (Andrew Weatherall 12" Mix)

Auckland here we come!

What's On My Floor Vol. 1

For quite a while now the floor in my room has been covered in little piles of old records I've accumulated in bulk over the last couple of years. I figured I might as well share some of the more noteworthy finds amongst seas of complete bollocks (I love that word.) It could be a bit of harmless fun or it could start violent riots... We'll see.

A member of the genuine quality family is Brazilian muso Eumir Deodato who, until finding a couple of records in the stacks, I hadn't listened to very much. The stuff I have here is mostly quite accessible jazz fusion, nothing too outlandish - just nice grooves. This jamification of Also Sprach Zarathustra (the theme from demigod Kubrick 2001: A Space Odyssey) really struck a chord with me (lolZ ^_^) and although for the most part it has nothing to do with the theme, I still think it's a cool adaptation. Ya dig? This is off the '72 album Prelude, all top stuff.

Deodato - Also Sprach Zarathustra

This Enoch Light record, 'Spaced Out', completely blew me away when I heard it. I've heard some of the other Enoch stuff and have since scrambled to get my hands on everything that exists through any avenue, but nothing compares to this LP. It's 60s psychedelic craziness taken to a very humourous level; it's as Austin Powers as you can possibly get. Shocking abuse of new stereo technology, totally bent whacked out synths wobbling about... it's like all these classic songs have been transformed from a dull kindergarten theatre version of Hamlet into a full technicolour production of Hair. This record is very rare although I believe a CD version of it exists somewhere. Just see if you can find some mp3s, it's worth it! All the tracks are way too short so I just did a bit of loopage on Bond Theme to make this it a decent length - no funny business.

Enoch Light & The Light Brigade - Ob-La-Di

Enoch Light & The Light Brigade - Bond Theme (Andy Webb's Slight Extension)

Another Brazilian here, Luiz Bonfa. This song is, for the most part, a dreamy acoustic samba but the chorus I think is brilliant. What a killer bassline!! With fantastic femme vocals to boot, it has a really bold energy about it although it completely lacks any oomph on the frequency side of things - I think the drummer was put in a corner and told to try not to get any of his noise anywhere near a mic. This is begging to be extended and expanded and exploded. It's off a nice album called Sanctuary.

Luiz Bonfá - Non-Stop To Brazil

Alright, this one is nothing short of a musical disaster; however, it is historically very interesting. The seizure-tastic cover gives you a pretty good hint of what tasteless surprises the record contains. It's the follow up to Perrey & Kingsley's first album, The In Sound From Way Out, and again is one of the very first commercially recorded uses of the Moog synthesiser. If you don't accept this album as nothing but cheekiness and fun, then it's a complete waste of time. Certainly not something I'll be putting on at a party or playing in my car but it was good for a laugh. Moogs kick ass. The LP is called Spotlight on the Moog: Kaleidoscopic Vibrations.

Perrey & Kingsley - One Note Samba

Is anyone interested enough for me to do this again? There's plenty of other cool/awful/interesting things sitting about here. Have a swell weekend!!

Radio Shack

Oh boy, it's been an agonising week of having my net capped. Finally back in action...

I think I've forgotten how to blog. Let me see... This song by San Serac is really cool, I like it a lot. It is cute and funky and 80s-ish and stuff. It's from this groovy little release with a fab Morgan Geist remix. That is all.

San Serac - Night Works [buy]

OK I think i've got the hang of this now. The marvelous Rove Dogs has started this really hip edits little edits label, Small Time Cuts. Really digging this edit a big 80s Topo & Roby burner done by Get A Room! - a collaberation between Rove himself and Jeff Larson. Plenty of tasty reverb drenched powerdrums, grunty vocals and a nice thick bedding of deep analogue synth dickery. He's a man with a plan, really looking forward to seeing how this label pans out.

Get A Room! - Under the Vice [buy]

Mmm, all this 80s stuff is way too contemporary bro. Tirk have strangely, but welcomely, released a cool little remix EP of Space's first single Carry On, Turn Me On. The remixes mostly, like the original, have quite a light poppy air which isn't so common with most of the band's stuff that follwed, but it's certainly nice and refreshing. I reckon the AN-2 remix is the most interesting and offers the biggest change to the original, turning it into an tight and funky 11-minute low budget space odyssey - picture a charmingly crude papier-mâché star cruiser chilling in a plasticine galaxy. Soulful and adorable!

Space - Carry On, Turn Me On (AN-2 Remix) [buy]

Future Classic's delightful Après vinyl series is nearing release number four by Lithuanian producer Mario Basanov. Following a toy space gun shootout groove from Loin Brothers, a truly mixed bag of artists and [insert prefix]-house sounds on the second 12" and some indie influences from the likes of Sidwho? and Clubfeet more recently, Après 4 boasts a very fine simple-and-effective slow-mo synthy sorta house with some killer remixes from Downtown Party Network and 6th Borough. This remix is certainly not in any hurry to reach its destination - recommended lazy Sunday listening. Coming soon!

Mario Basanov - Do You Remember (6th Borough Vocal Mix)

Auckland cats - come to Cassette9 next Saturday (the 12th) as I'll be popping over to play a record or two and drink a beer or eighteen. Got some great records on the way so stay tuned!

Under The Midnight Sun

'Allo cats and kittens. Just a friendly reminder that we're still looking for hip unsigned artists to get on board for our upcoming label. We've had a bunch of really interesting submissions - keep 'em coming! Anything with a dark/deep/disco vibe would be ideal. Shoot choons off to info(at)deathstrobe.com

Man, I'm getting lazier and more tired by the day. Here are a few songs to assist with melting into the couch this summer. Awesome groovy rolling bassy discofunk with minimal flair - just solid cool. This is a really cool release from Tyko Nordström, known here as For Disco DJs Only. And it's digital which should make you weird futuristic mp3 bandits happy.

For Disco DJs Only - Engelska (Tyko Nordstrom's Disco Dub) [buy]

This is also Tyko's doing I believe, released or distributed or somethinged by the magnifique Loft Records (which Tyko obviously has some level of involvement in. Total?) It's so simple and to the point and I love it so fiercely. The recording sounds like a really filthy rip which is doubled by the fact that the rip I did is far from clean, but I think it adds to the vintage analogue vibe of the track. Toasty warm.

Dub Version - Boogieasy (Unreleased Dub Version Re-Edit) [buy]

Greg Wilson's latest Credit to the Edit record is a total blinder, particularly this Escort track. I don't need to say much more, so I won't. Seriously worth getting your hands on this release, every track is pure gold.

Escort - Starlight (Greg Wilson Version) [buy]

Don't need to say much about SirBilly either. His legendary record collection and creative editing combine in a way that is easy to predict. This one is a good laff, ON AN UNRELATED NOTE FUCK I WOULD LIKE A JOINT RIGHT NOW.

Peter Tosh - Buk In Hamm Palace (SirBilly Edit)

Oh hey I got a Diana Mini yesterday, man it's a wonderful little toy! Any other lomographers about? Any tips? No doubt I'm going to be shoving this in everybody's face all summer long.

The Sky Was Low

Been such a mixed spring so far... Today was magnificent though, totally Donna Summer weather. Here's some CLASSIC DONNA - very soothing when you're squirming about trying to decide if it's too hot for a blanket or too cool for just a sheet.

Donna Summer - Spring Affair

I've been holding out on this until release day - RVNG have just dropped their first full length release, Pink Skull's second album 'Endless Bummer'. Been listening to it a stack in the last couple of weeks and I can say with confidence it's absolutely one of my favourite albums of this year. Plenty of wonderful, weird and warped psychedelic sounds on this record; overall it's got a very raw innovative indie disco vibe to it, woven together with a bunch of 2-or-3-minute experimental strands of intriguing audio. Chicken Dream Inside Egg strikes me as sitting somewhere between debut WhoMadeWho fat bass simplicity and some of the more upbeat lo-fi cuts off The Flaming Lips' latest LP, also a contender for my album of the year. This is very special stuff - RVNG have really kicked their long playing releases off with a bang!

Pink Skull - Chicken Dream Inside Egg [buy]

If you happened to live next door to me you would probably know that this Paradise Lost edits record hasn't strayed far from my decks since it came out in April. The Sydney warehouse party crew really put something special together with this, all four edits are very cleverly and originally arranged. Catch Me Baby keeps me standing on the tips of my disco shoes waiting hungrily for the beautiful bassline to wander back in after what may be the world's longest teasing bridge.

Paradise Lost - Catch Me Baby [buy]

Got a bunch of records due to arrive any day now so hang tight dearest friends!

The Rat Is In The Trap

Sorry folks have had a busy few days. Will race through this for the sake of getting it done. All this music is awesome. Including this Disconet remix of a golden Hamilton Bohannon tune which many may recognise as being manically reworked in Oizo's Gay Dentists. Funky stuff. As I've said before, the most recent Disconet greatest hits releases have been right on the money - there's an amazing Imagination megamix sort of thing on this one too.

Bohannon - Let's Start the Dance (Disconet Remix) [buy]

Cool sorta electroboogie tune off 40 Thieves' Beats In Space EP which is a burner. Don't know why I put off buying the record for so long but very glad it's in my basket now. Grand!

40 Thieves - Love To Shake It Baby [buy]

I tend to find that some of the edit series, like Super Value, tend to sound a bit dated. This Super Value Classics record is an absolute stand out for me, I've been listening to this track sooo much and there's no chance of it getting tired any time soon. Simply gorgeous sunday slowmo jazzy disco.

Super Value - Untitled [buy]

Ha, this edit of Love Shack is really good fun. I'm not sure where the other elements are taken from or which parts are actually original but it's a kind of cruisy pool party version of the B-52s classic. Plenty of rampant percussion jamming and people screaming. Love the Situation stuff!

Situation - Goblins in the Bikini Shack (Naughty Hellfire Club Edit) [buy]

Fantastic new Soft Rocks single, I'm so in love with this. I didn't realise they got this deep. Such a thick groove down low with a bit of a back seat strutty guitar thing going on and a bit of floaty spaciness happening up high. All these elements come together to make a seriously rad song. So cool!

Soft Rocks - Leave Your Earth Behind [buy]

Goodnight.