Safe and Sound

February 28, 2008 at 6:26 pm · Filed under Reviews

Justus Köhncke’s two previous full-lengths on Kompakt, Was Ist Musik (2002) and Doppelleben (2005), were slightly frustrating affairs. Both albums were filled with clever pop structures, quality sound design and subtle shifts in mood, but somehow they tended to fall short of pure emotional captivation. Partly of course this was due to Köhncke’s notorious vocals, which are at times just too deadpan and at times just too camp (check his destruction of Jürgen Paape’s seminal ‘So Weit Wie Noch Nie’ for the evidence, but the albums were also occasionally marred by Köhncke’s weakness for soft-focus disco, with kitsch rather than glamorous and decadent results. Safe and Sound combines many of these tendencies, but happily, it’s a much more satisfying listen. So much so you’ve got to wonder what inspired the difference. Perhaps this more muscular sound is down to Köhncke spending a lot of time in the clubs, or perhaps it’s a product of his new studio (located in an old butcher shop). The newfound help of the album’s co-writer/producer Fred Heimermann (certainly on ‘Tilda’, but likely more) might also be a contributing factor. But perhaps there was just something in the air? Those leaves on the Pop Ambient-esque cover, after all, do look suspiciously like marijuana.Köhncke’s disco tendency come to the fore on several tracks, but more confidently than on the previous two albums. With its ‘70s strings, ‘Parage’ is downright funky and would, in an ideal world, play on radios in Cadillac cars with whitewall tyres. ‘Molybdän’ lives up to its elemental name (attn non-scientists: ‘molybdenum’ is a heavy metal) and mimics more disco ball glitter than disco sound itself with sparkling stabs of sound and winding analogue washes. More overtly disco is the brilliant opener ‘Yacht’ which pays strong homage to ‘Slave to the Rhythm’, but then develops its own melodic narrative.Grace Jones isn’t the artist from the past to get name-checked. The first single from the album, ‘Feuerland’, is a cover of Krautrocker Michael Rother’s track from his 1977 LP ‘Flammende Herzen.

Comments

Joris Voorn

February 28, 2008 at 6:15 pm · Filed under Articles, Media

Joris Voorn is a producer, a DJ, a live act and a visual artist. Like many Dutchmen, he makes techno with a nod to Detroit, first pricking up ears in 2004 with the release of the ‘The Lost Memories’ EPs which included the big dancefloor cuts ‘Missing’ and ‘Incident’, the latter of which became one of the most hammered anthems of the year. Since then Voorn has released two full lengths albums, ‘Future History’ and this year’s ‘From a Deep Place’, both of which fused together deep house, old skool Detroit and even some ambient landscapes.Aside from his own bleeps and bloops, Voorn also spins records. Last year his debut mix compilation for Belgian club Fuse headed in a more minimal direction, fusing together Detroit classics from Robert Hood, Carl Craig and Jeff Mills with newer outings from Sleeparchive, Marc Houle and Matthew Dear. Those who’ve heard ‘Fuse’ or one of Voorn’s high energy live shows might be surprised by his RA podcast though: This one is fifty-four minutes of deep house meets ambient with an emphasis on silky synths and even silkier vocals.

Joris Voorn - Resident Advisor Podcast #62 16-07-2007

Comments

RA 68

February 27, 2008 at 6:44 am · Filed under Media

Dan Curtin - Resident Advisor Podcast #68 3-9-2007

Tracklist:
01. Michal Ho feat. Jonjon - Take Away - Tuning Spork
02. Dennis Ferrer feat. Mia Tuttavilla - Transitions (Sasse Edit) Defected
03. Fuckpony - Cold Slave - Get Physical
04. Innersphere aka Shinedoe - Phunk (Ricardo Villalobos rmx) Intacto
05. Freak 7 vs Critical Phase - Pitch Black (Orlando Voorn rmx) New Religion
06. Einzelkind - Maferefumeco - Kindisch
07. Falko Brocksieper - Black Box - Sub Static
08. Reboot - Clear Motion - Below
09. Bushwacka! - Long Distance - Olmeto
10. Selway+Vincenzo - Dream Stealer (Joe Mull rmx) CSM
11. Sleeper Thief - Vaja de Suba Te - Mobilee
12. Bart Skils & Anton Pieete - The Shining - 100% Pure
13. Gemini - In My Head (Derrick Carter rmx) Classic
14. Gourachandra - Show You The Way (Dan Curtin rmx) It Is What It Is

Comments

you are like the summer rain…

February 27, 2008 at 5:58 am · Filed under Art, Media, Reviews

Arid - All Things Come in Waves

“Why do you run” should warm the hearts of fans of Belgian Pop at the tail end of 2007. This scintillating pop single bears good tidings. To celebrate the group’s tenth anniversary, Arid are finally releasing their third album, five years after “All is quiet now”. Despite the clear success of their first two albums, the vocalist Jasper Steverlinck took the chance to go solo, with this period of his career being marked by the successful cover of David Bowie’s “Life on Mars”, followed by his first solo record. Singles such as “Life” and “Believer” are to date unique in the history of Belgian rock, so it is fantastic to see Arid back in great form. Thanks to this exceptional singer, their elegant and refined brand of rock with twirling guitars contains many more nuances than all the Coldplay and Placebo tunes put together. This record absolutely deserves a listen. I’m amazed that Jasper Steverlinck has improved his vocals so much. I’m also letting you know about their best song “You Are”. If you looking for simple lyrics with combination of piano /guitar driven catchy melodies, discover Arid!  Words : ”it explains all my feelings today somehow.thanks”

I know how you feel
You’re still hopeful for something real
We always knew this day would end
And leave us silent once again
I hope you know the state I’m in
I complicate most everything
We always knew this day would end
And leave us broken once again
I hope you know the state I’m in
I complicate most everything
I hope you know just what you miss
I hope you It will come to you At the break of day
It will come to you,It’ll wash away
It will come to you Like the morning sun
There’ll never be another you, there’ll never be another chance at bliss
There’ll never be another you, there’ll never be another time like this
I hear your words,You call my name
There’s nothing left for us to say
In broken voice, you’ll set me free

 listen from here:Arid-All Things come in waves

Comments (1)

Nektar

February 25, 2008 at 11:42 pm · Filed under Articles, Media

RAGANOVA - nektar-the remixes ep vol 2
finally!nektar remixes are out.percussive,melodic and clicky origin was changed in 8 ways…from 8 point of views. second part of raganova’s nektar remixes is heavier couse of more tech influence in two cases.another have minimal breath.

1. lubo tomko remix (7:06)
2. tekk remix (8:22)
3. topper remix (6:57)
4. victor gonzales remix (6:54)

Comments