Little People - Start Shootin'

"Start Shootin'" is the 13th track on Little People's 2006 album Mickey Mouse Operation.

I selected this track because I don't typically hear a good bass and cello in an trip hop track.

As usual, I like to select a review from online:

"Let's get one thing straight, Mickey Mouse Operations is a very chill album. Little People create an excellent blend of original sounds with steady beats that grow on you as you listen. Little People have an excellent style of music which seems to blossom from minimalism in the sense that everything you hear is what you want to hear without any filler." - Review

Lusine- Two Dots

Lusine- Two Dots

This song is the 2nd track on the 2009 album, A Certain Distance.

Such a gem of a song, this downtempo tune truly eases your mind. The ethereal vocal hooks pull you in and create a fun, laidback vibe. But this catchy song is intelligent and organically builds to a unique, techno ambience. It is quite exhilarating.  

Real Sound of the Day: Boards of Canada- Dayvan Cowboy

Boards of Canada- Dayvan Cowboy

 

 

This is the 5th track from the 2005 album, The Campfire Headphase.

 

This timeless song probably sounds familiar because it was recently featured on the 2014 Nissan Altima Commercial. Dayvan Cowboy opens up with chill guitar harmonics which drift along like a light and steady wind.  Eventually, a rhythmic guitar and percussive beat  blend together with a smooth violin and distant bells to create pure harmony. This dream-like song is a true and monumental masterpiece.

 





 2014 Nissan Altima- Zero Gravity Commercial



Telefon Tel Aviv - John Thomas On The Inside is Nothing But Foam

Telefon Tel Aviv - John Thomas On The Inside is Nothing But Foam

This is the 4th track from the 2001 album, Fahrenheit Fair Enough, considered by some to be a masterpiece.

This chill glitch track creates a feeling of trippy pseudo-industrial organic beat with a standard percussion and guitar to keep it all together. The album is the masterpiece and this track is a pinnacle.

I like what others have to say about it:
"I'm not sure how to say this, but this is music you LISTEN to. This is audiophile music--you know, people who can justify buying speakers for $2000 apiece, and don't use them to watch movies. In fact, this album kind of only works on good stereos. If you try to play it in a boombox, or with pc speakers, or in most cars, you'll just hear the dot matrix printer/jar full of marbles sounds, and you'll miss the whole song underneath. These are complex arrangements, and they deserve to be reproduced on equipment that really lets each sound breathe and be appreciated." - Reviewer

Another says this:
"The sound flows and builds on itself through out the whole album, as if one is traveling a round trip. I've found I can put this album on repeat while working and not get tired or hearing the cd play over. This album is not background noise however, it is very well engineered beats that define a new step in electronic music." - Reviewer

Song of the Day: Planet of Sound- We are Together

Planet of Sound- We are Together

 

Officially released last week by Armin Van Burren's label Armada, "We are Together" is enchanting. The whistle and piano combined with that majestic female voice creates a surreal ambience. These chill and laidback vibes take you to a musical realm that is uplifting. This will be the refreshing sound of the summer.

Metaform - Heaven Can Wait

Metaform - Heaven Can Wait

This is the sixth track on the 2008 album Standing on Shoulders of Giants. This album is a work of art with 19 tracks completely sampled from old vinyl of classic hip hop style mixtapes. 
Jive magazine reviewed this album saying:

"Layering his compositions with samples from multiple genres, Metaform takes the listener on audible journey that few other producers are capable. What distinguishes him and this project from so many others that are similar is that Metaform maintains the soul of all his samples in his incorporation of them, so he isn't just using a loop for nostalgia or create an effect a familiarity but is building upon the groundwork of these giants to create something new and exciting that will be remembered on its own merit."

I picked this song because I was attracted to the classic breaks style of this track. It has an oldschool feeling without feeling like a boring hip-hop track waiting for rap vocals.

Throwback Thursday Song of the Day: Plaid- Rakimou

Plaid- Rakimou (feat. Mara Carlyle & Benet Walsh)

This song is the 10th song on the album "Not for Threes" released by Plaid in 1997.

The ethereal vocals are a driving force for setting the ambience of this down-tempo hymn. I love how this song progresses and the strings and light percussion build to an impactful moment when the rhythmic kicks drop in . The textured pads and vocals then all come together in perfect harmony. It is simply timeless.

Milosh - Run Away

Milosh - Run Away

This song is the 10th track on the 2008 album, Meme. A departure from typical drum and bass, it sets a different tone that drew me in immediately.

It's impressive how articulate Amazon reviewers are. I agree with how this album generates a relaxed feeling providing lush rich sounds. The songs on the album are very textured but I do not find them to be overproduced.

"Whispering electronics like feathers made out of electricity, kissing my skin, milosh's voice like warm dust blown along by wind, in the summer everyone's at the seaside, alone in the city, a duster singing, a sweet soft duster singing of love and regret and tears imprisoned in sidewalk paintings, like staring at a tiny speck until it becomes a world of it's own to stay in for a while, where secrets live freely. Married women becoming girls, married women becoming people, sleeping on the asphalt, forever falling inward backward, into self, like stepping off a ledge. It's strange how middle of summer can feel like autumn. Oh milosh." - Amazon Review.

Peace Orchestra - Who am I

Peace Orchestra - Who am I

This song is from the 1999 self-titled album, Peace Orchestra.

Many great artists are prolific. Others are one-hit wonders. One wonder is how such a talented artist as Peter Kruder produced this album solo and has not produced more than this album.

In any case, this classic track maintains a truly fresh feeling years later. In 1999, thirteen years before popular YouTube channels like "TheSoundYouNeed" drove dubstep-frenzied audiences into more nuanced electronica vibes, Peace Orchestra was setting the bar for all beats to come.

It's recommended to listen to the whole album, but this single track adds a touch of complex sound that might remind you of Acid Jazz or Trip Hop without being overbearing. The vocals add a distinct meditative mood while each sound layers on and off as to mold the shape of the mood. This album on repeat will reveal the richness of this captivating, textured work of art.

REAL SOUND OF THE DAY:

 

Tycho- Awake



 

This song is the opening and title song on the album "Awake."

 

Awake opens up with soothing guitar harmonics. Soon after the drums kick in and you become awake to this journey. The uplifting guitar melodies coupled with the soft synths cause your mind to wander off with the music. It is true electronic chill out music that elicits emotion. Simple, yet effective, it is realness of sounds. 

 

How does "Awake" make you feel?  

Bonobo - Recurring

Bonobo - Recurring

For today's post, I'll post a song of the day and work to describe the sound.

This song is the last track, 11, on the album "Days to Come".


I like the mixture of strings with the Drum and Bass style feel / electronic trip hop. 

For me, a good song has good basic elements of structure that I look for in electronic music. The build is simple and grows in the first 30 seconds, adding violin strings in the second 30 seconds. It builds straight through the breakdown.

A strong violin component seals this track for me. The other components give it an earthy feel to my non-musically inclined ear.

Pete is quoted thusly:

"I respect the rawness of the sounds and the music. It sounds more vintage but a good blend of tranquility--very original and timeless though. I like that it is a step away from electronic music and more towards realness of sounds."

"Q: What is recurring? A: Everything! The perfect end to a perfect day, progressively building upon itself to create an undeniable sense of movement, this piece is overflowing with nostalgia and the promise of, what else, Days to Come." - Review