This track from Chicago rapper Jeremih was released toward the end of last year. It is a little insubstantial but it makes me want to move! Sometimes that’s I you need from a song.
/RjK
*Artist #601
Monthly Archives: January 2013
Jah Youssouf* – M’Ami
600 and counting! I gave up trying to represent too much with one song and just picked my favourite song of 2013 that I hadn’t yet posted. It is probably fitting that it is from an African artist as World Music has perhaps been my most exciting discovery of the blog thus far.
Jah Youssouf is an artist from Mali, a region that I have been reading much about recently. Unfortunately most of it has been troubling.
This track is taken from his album Son Son Son and as with all the African music I love this sounds fresh and pure. Every time that I hear it I’m filled with joy.
If you are interested in some further listening check out this duet with his wife Bintou Coulibaly which was featured on the Okayafrica blog but alas I can’t find it on YouTube.
Jah Youssouf – Son Son Son:
/RjK
*Artist #600!!!
Roni Size – New Forms
I’ll admit it – I’m completely bottling artist number 600. I just can’t pick one that represents the journey so far. Something new or old, obscure or cheesy. It’s too hard. Probably I should just man up and stop over thinking it!
I chose this track today for a couple of reasons (on top of the fact it’s a great song). Roni Size is a DJ from Bristol and that’s where I will be spending the weekend. I’m very much looking forward to watching Ireland play at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday.
Secondly, my host for the weekend and old university housemate managed to fall asleep while watching Roni play live many moons ago, which was quite a feat! In his defence it had been a very long couple of days. At the same gig another buddy (who will also be in Bristol at the weekend) asked two songs into his set “why is the warm up act playing Roni Size songs?” All in all, it was a fun and very memorable night.
It’s taken from the 1997 album of the same name, which when I first came across it was just about the freshest thing I had ever heard. Heroes, a track which I have already posted would be in my top handful of tracks of the 90’s.
Roni Size – New Forms:
/RjK
New Order – Regret
As 365 days nears the milestone of reaching the 600th artist to be featured (599 and counting…) we have been taking stock of what has been posted so far.
As part of this process I realised I had only posted one New Order track so far. Their legacy and lasting impact on the new music I hear today merits more than that.
Look out for artist number 600 in the coming days. Let me know if you have any suggestions…
/RjK
Jeff Buckley – Hallelujah
Today finds me in a rather sombre mood and so the late, great Jeff Buckley seems a fitting choice. This is a cover of a Leonard Cohen classic and is taken from his startling debut album Grace.
It’s not a cry you can hear at night, it’s not somebody who has seen the light, it’s a cold and it’s a broken Hallelujah…
Jeff Buckley – Grace:
/RjK
Björk – Unison (live at the Royal Opera House)
As I mentioned yesterday, I have been listening to lots of 90’s music recently. In the ‘Best of’ playlists I listen to and read Björk features prominently. While she did produce much great music in the 90’s it somehow doesn’t seem to fit with the other tracks. It just sounds so stark and futuristic. It is hard for me to process the fact that Play Dead was recorded before Girls and Boys.
This track is typical of what makes Björk so utterly great. If I was to try and summarise it I might suggest the depth of feeling and emotion along with the magnitude of imagination.
I don’t often find myself drawn to live versions of songs but, for a couple of reasons, I made an exception for this. I love the scale that setting together with the choir and orchestra gives this already epic track.
Bjork:
/RjK
Bone Thugs N Harmony* – Crossroads | (GPF)
I have been on a real 90’s kick since realising I am part of the Wonderwall Generation and posting the Oasis classic Champagne Supernova a couple of weeks ago.
This is a cheesy hip hop classic of the era. I love the band name, just the wrong side of preposterous which is just the right side of perfect for a Hip Hop group. Also, the intro here is just ridiculous but great at the same time. All my guilty pleasures seem to have a healthy does of excess about them!
/RjK
*Artist #599
Darkstar* – Timeaway | (NAT)
One of the very best things about writing for this blog is getting sent music. This is sometimes bands or DJ’s sending me their own tracks but more often just my friends sharing music that they are excited by. Whist I don’t always share it, I never tire of feeling the warm glow of people’s enthusiasm. Also, I’m frequently introduced to artists I wouldn’t otherwise have encountered.
Darkstar are one such band. A friend (thanks Maggie) sent them along this week and I have been listening to them repeatedly since. Its dreamy and fragile and has rather hypnotised me.
Their album News From Nowhere is out on Warp Records on February 4th. Check it out
/RjK
*Artist #598
Jessie Ware* – Running
I know that I am late on Jessie Ware as she has received significant publicity over the past 18 months. Frankly, I had somewhat dismissed her as being a little too “pop” for my taste.
However, I heard this track over the weekend while out and about and I haven’t been able to shake it from my mind since. Also, once I got home and checked out this video that I realised she reminds me more than a little of Sade, especially stylistically here.
Jessie Ware:
Sade:
/RjK
*Artist #597
David Bowie – Where Are We Now?
Much has been written about David Bowie’s magnificent emergence from what everyone assumed to be retirement. What I admire most about it is the utterly understated way it was carried out. Excuse me, but I’ve been working, he says and we all feel stupid for thinking otherwise.
Where Are We Now is a gorgeous, melancholy piece of nostalgia about Bowie’s Berlin days. He is, as he says, ‘a man lost in time.’ He sighs his way through the opening verse and soars as he reaches the refrain. You’re not sure you like it that much on the first listen, but there’s something addictive about it and on second, third and fourth listen, you’re hooked. That’s how it went for me, anyway.
We’re promised more music by March and have been treated to the titles of the songs on his forthcoming album The Next Day. It is looking like 2013 could be the year that Bowie saves modern music, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. It’s a daunting task.
/HC