Tag Archive for 2000’s

Vieux Farka Touré – Fafa | (NAT)

I have often found myself surprised by the journeys that writing this blog has taken me upon. Perhaps the most surprising (and most fruitful) has been the exploration of World Music. I have found so much music that is joyous and pure and that I couldn’t have conceived of two years ago.

Speaking of which, if you had told me that I find myself listening to (and enjoying) a Radio 3 program called World Routes I probably would have laughed. But this is the situation I find myself in.

It was through this avenue that I discovered Malian musician Vieux Farka Touré. His music is so striking and I like how it sounds so timeless. Even though this track is taken from his 2008 album Fondo, it sounds like it could easily be centuries old.

/RjK

*Artist #595

Aloe Blacc* – I Need A Dollar

This track was released a couple of years ago by Californian singer Aloe Blacc. I liked it at the time but had forgotten about it until I heard it played in a bar while socialising over Christmas.

/RjK

*Artist #592

Franz Ferdinand* – Take Me Out

My choices have taken a rather esoteric turn of late so I wanted to return to something slightly more recognisable, for a day anyway!

I was reminded of this track after stumbling across a YouTube playlist compiled by 6music (the best radio station ever). It celebrates their 10th birthday by compiling “100 of the greatest tracks to have been released in their lifetime”. It still has an all time great intro and such a catchy guitar riff, it’s a dancefloor classic and the stuff that indie dreams are made of…

/RjK

*Artist #591

Sigur Rós – Njosnavelin



I thought something mellow was in order to help cope with the jarring prospect of the first Monday morning of 2013. The ever-soothing sounds of Sigur Rós will do just the trick.

This is taken from their 2002 album ( ). There is a pretty apt video here too, which I take to be their native Iceland. Hopefully the combination will help ease the pain a little.

/RjK

Outkast – Hey Ya (GPF)


I am a little in two minds about whether posting guilty pleasures on a Friday was a successful ploy or not last year. This has lead me to wonder whether it is worth continuing or not. Let me know if you have any feedback on this. My current thinking is that it’s good to mix things up so I will continue it for now but perhaps review it again in a couple of months.

This track is a favourite. I am actually very surprised I haven’t posted it already. While I might connect with some other Outkast songs in a more substantial fashion, this is simply one of, if not the best pop song I have ever heard. On the basic level of “Does it make you want to move?“, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Shake it, shake it like a Polaroid Picture, shake it, shake it…

/RjK

Kanye West and Jay-Z – Otis


2012 was the year of hip hop. Or certainly that’s how it seemed to me. I have been thinking about my top tracks of 2012 over the past few days. Look out for a few tasty hip hop numbers to slip in there (I’ll post the list tomorrow). My admiration for the genre has certainly been reignited over the past 12 months after a long spell of disillusionment.

As such, it seems appropriate to end my second year of blogging with two titans of the scene. Also, I ended year one with Otis and there is a nice symmetry to ending year two with him also.

The track is filled with clever rhymes, it’s like Jay-Z and Kanye are trying to get one over on each other with each passing verse.

Luxury rap, the Hermes of verses. Sophisticated ignorance, write my curses in cursive…

An added bonus is a cameo in the video of Aziz Ansari (AKA the hillatious Tom Haverford from Parks and Recreation).

Happy new year…

/RjK

26th November 2012

Neutral Milk Hotel* – Two-Headed Boy (Helen Chandler guest post)

This is such an intense 4 and a half minutes of a song. Jeff Mangum beats the acoustic guitar like it’s a percussion instrument and shout-sings the often mystifying lyrics and you feel like you could get drunk and sing along.

Two-Headed Boy reminds me of a time, a few years ago, when I seemed to want to shout it at the top of my lungs whenever I got drunk with my friends. I think they got sick of that pretty quickly.

Jeff Mangum played Whelan’s in Dublin earlier this year, after rescheduling from November 2011. I couldn’t make the new date, but I heard that he played this song and wished that I could have been there, whiskey in hand, enjoying its fierce intensity.

/HC

*Artist #563

24th November 2012

Mylo* – Sunworshipper

I wanted to dial up something soothing to ease my fragile state and this is what I came up with. It also really reminds me of my year in Berkeley and in particular being in a similarly delicate state while driving out of Las Vegas.

It is taken from Mylo’s classic Destroy Rock and Roll album which still makes me want to MOVE whenever I hear it.

/RjK 

*Artist #561

21st November 2012

Broken Social Scene – Sweetest Kill

A mellow, sombre track to steady myself in the middle of a busy week. It is taken from Canadian band Broken Social Scene’s fourth album Forgiveness Rock Record which was released a couple of years ago.

In other news I went to see The Picture of Dorian Gray last night in the Abbey Theatre. As you might imagine it was fairly dark but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

/RjK

19th November 2012

Mark Farina* – Dream Machine

This is Monday morning listening. I need something quiet and chilled out to ease me into the working week, especially after a busy few days. This does the trick.

Mark Farina is a Chicago House DJ who I listened to a lot in university, I haven’t heard much of him recently but this still sounds great.

/RjK

*Artist #557