I love a great beat – doesn’t necessarily have to be quick – just quirky, interesting and ideally with a big bass. So open my Holeytonal Loves a Big Beat playlist on Spotify and get thumping.
Dan Black – I Love Life
Daedelus – Make It So (feat. Michael Johnson)
La Roux – Tigerlily
Peaches – Talk To Me
Out Hud – It’s for You (album mix)
Moderat – Les Grandes Marches
Mum – They Made Frogs Smoke ’til They Exploded
Telefon Tel Aviv – Stay Away From Being Maybe
Modeselektor – The White Flash (feat. Thom Yorke)
Ratatat – Mirando
Animal Collective – My Girls
Telepathe – In Your Line
Esser – Stop Dancing
Any other tracks which you think should be here? Let me know…
Denmark is home to the worst band on the planet – Alphabeat. Maybe thats why it took me longer than usual to open Veto’s album Crushing Digits. Damn Alphabeat.
The Copenhagen 5-piece, Veto, create electronic rock driven by massive hooks, synths, bleeps and pounding beats. With Troels Abrahamsen’s soaring vocals lushly complimenting the textured landscapes.
I’m really going to have to listen to something else soon – I’m starting to feel sorry for the rest of my music collection.
There is so much to find on this album – every track has its moment. I especially love that despite Crushing Digits’ racy nature, Duck, Hush And Be Still, the last and most subdued track on the album, is stunning. It feels like a perfect ending.
Ok. Maybe premature. A month into 2009 and I might have already found my song of the year.
Peter Bjorn and Johnis made up of 3 Swedes called, Peter, Bjorn and er, John. I bought their previous album, Writer’s Block (iTunes)after stumbling on the track featured in this post. It’s a lot more lo-fi than their new work. I’m sure you’ve heard the excellent single Young Folks from the album.
Now they’ve got over writer’s block, I’m hoping their new album, Living Thing is going to be a musical War and Peace. There’s a tracklisting at Off the Radar. Now listen to the fat beat and super pop chorus constantly like I have and see why i’m excited:
“Why don’t you post about female artists?” my friend asks. Well I have actually, when I rung about the glorious Bell. Gender, two genders or no gender – I don’t care so long as their music rings true.
So, the fact that holeytonal features more male artists, or bands with male leads, is not the reason for posting about CHEW LiPS. I’m posting about CHEW LiPS because I look like a tit when I groove to their tunes on the tube.
Only 8 gigs old, CHEW LiPS’s 8-bit drone disco and indie fusion has already been featured by Steve Lamacq on Radio 1. Its especially refreshing after Pendulums’ shit but commercially successful dance-rock crossover – I’d even prefer Alphabeat.
Try your hardest not to tap your feet to this excellent tune courtesy of CHEW LiPS – only available to download at holeyontal:
Tour dates include 93 Feet East on Friday 12 September. But I can’t be bothered to go to the far east this week, so I’ll wait until Saturday 27 September and see them at the St. Moritz Club in the West End.
Part III? Deserved? Yes. I just saw Esser live for the first time. Fantastic. It was a Transgressive Records event, and no one was a patch on Ben Esser with his band (although Liam Finn came close).
Also found out the new video for the super tune and new single Headlock was on YouTube, so here it is:
If any of you ladies ever sleep with this dude, keep your dental gear safe. Favourite lyric so far this year: “Pissing on your toothbrush helps to relieve the pain”. Pure filth. Listen out for it in the this punk pop megathon:
Anyone got a ticket to Brooklyn? I need to go. I can’t take it anymore. I have to find out how so much good music can come from one place. Here is yet another great group from the Big Apple.
I peeped Peephole through Bell’s MySpace. Glad I did. Their main man is called Kent Odessa. What a name. Its nearly as good as mine.
Aside from great nomenclature, their music is really where its at. The currently unsigned, Peephole, draw from the legends Prince, Bowie and Serge Gainsbourg. MGMT aren’t too far from their imaginations either, with some great driving and distorted bass lines a la Electric Feel. Peephole’s USPs are their experimentalism, with some interesting use of minimalism, as heard in their song Traitor. They also receive counseling from fruit.
You can download all these and more MP3s from their MySpace, but if you’re too lazy to go there, then just listen to these:
My name is Rylan and I’ve been a homeopath for the past 24 years. Great. But how many songs are there about homeopathy? As far as I can tell, only one. It’s by Bell.
Olga Bell, born in Russia, raised in Alaska and now living in Brooklyn, has vocal and musical qualities that instantly remind you of Björk. Theres even an interesting cover of Its Oh So Queit on Bell’s MySpace.
At first I reacted against what I thought was a blatant rip off of the Ice Queen, but I kept coming back for more. Throwing IDM into the mix did it for me.
So, homeopathy? Bell’s Echinacea is the IDM infused Björkathon, with a great trippy beat, and clapping. Its a bit of a shame Bell didn’t make more use of the cheering at the opening of the track, otherwise its quite the tune:
Esserfuses tuneful trippy electro experimental pop with raw lyrics that rub the underside of your skin. Call it what you like, but lets hope Esser continues to write the best pop in ages.
Alphabeat, just stop now! In fact, I wish you never started. Esser is going to eat your heart out.
Formerly the drummer in the defunct Ladyfuzz, Esser has re-signed to Transgressive Records. Tickets are available to see him on the Transgressive Summer Tour, I’m looking foward to his Cross Kings gig in London. Especially after hearing session tracks from his appearance on BBC Radio 6 over at the The Daily Growl. His upcoming second single, the fantastic Headlock, can be heard at Esser HQ.
Those skin crawling lyrics I mentioned? Well taste this, “I have a habit of getting my foot stuck in my mouth, you are the only person I know who can help me get it out” . Reads about as well as anthrax, but maybe its the cheeky cockney accent that makes it sound like Wordsworth. I love it, but you can make up your own mind…
Can a passion for kit cars lead to assembling great music? Well it seemed to work with Leon Jean-Marie. The east Londoner, who’s family originate from St. Lucia is certainly starting to get a lot of attention. Island records plucked up the uber talented multi-instrumentalist and the world now waits in anticipation for his debut album Bent out of Shape to be released on 7 July.
For some reason Island are trying to genreise Leon Jean-Marie as Wonky Pop. He is better than that. Much better. Alphabeat is Wonky Pop, and they are awful.
His first single Scratchproves this man makes no ordinary music. I’m not sure how to define it, maybe Prince meets Skunk Anansie? Decide for yourself.
Bed of Nails, his latest single, produced by Mark Ronson, is completely different to Scratch, but also brilliant. Its more like the Beatles meet Blur. Check out the vid:
Do you like experimental? Well The Chap are about as wacky as you can get. They are about to release their third album, Mega Breakfast, at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen on 13 May. I reckon they might even be too cool for Hoxton. Some blogs, like Keytars and Violins are already hailing this as an album of the year.
Keys, cello, violin, computers and melodica are amongst the north Londoners’ instrumental forces. Lyrically, you won’t find many others singing “Come on, come on cloner; clone me another me, my generation needs another me”.
At 19, Ben Garrett is creating massive music envy amongst bloggers. The Londoner is making seriously hot music as frYars. His silky voice and Morrissean melodies fit snuggly with catchy and thoughtful electro pop. Although not convinced with the quality of their youtube outing, frYars is pally with Esser, and their sound is quite comparable.
frYars has two EPs; The Ideswas received well and lead to a tour with Goldfrapp. His latest, thePerfidyshould continue to propel frYars to greater recognition still.
I ran into the frYars at The Blue Walrus. The Ides features in their excellent Snazzy No. 10 mix. I’m still looping this fantastic track. Check out the video with the weird lamps:
Spent far too long looking for good music today, and failing. Is there anything out there at the moment? Decided to go back through my playlists and refound this great pop track from VHS or Beta. The Louisvilleans have three albums on their backs, and this is taken from their latest, Bring on the Comets. Dance-Punk. Whatever. Its good.
I love a great beat – doesn’t necessarily have to be quick – just quirky, interesting and ideally with a big bass. So open my Holeytonal Loves a Big Beat playlist on Spotify and get thumping.
