We’re half way through the “Music that Got Me Blogging About Music” and it’s only up hill.. down hill.. get’s better from here. So far we’ve covered Midwest hip-hop, West Coast hip-hop, and now we’re going International!
In this portion we will be covering groups from abroad and, not surprisingly, are all from genre’s other than hip-hop (unlike the other sections). This portion was only going to have four artists covered, the final list (my top five) took the best one from here, but I decided to add one because a few of his songs were very influential in my current music tastes (like every other artist on here).
So check ‘em out and drop some feedback in the comments below. Also, prepare for The Bay Area next week!!
Check out the International Goodness »
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When I first caught glimpse of Mattafix a couple years back I wasn’t a Big Fan (haha, sorry, just watched this film). I wasn’t really into their style at the time, but thought they had some potential, so I threw ‘em into my collection anyway. A couple months went by, and I decided to give ‘em another try. At this point I started to realize their talent, eventually becoming obsessed, and playing the album over and over again. I tend to do this a lot with albums I get hooked on, and it really pisses off my roommates (Pyramids in Moscow – being another good example). After my initial obsession subsided, two tracks stood out from the rest (even though I do enjoy a couple others). The first song being Things Have Changed, which I featured a couple months back, and the other being, of course, Stranger Forever.
Stranger Forever doesn’t have as meaningful of lyrics as Things Have Changed, but it does have a quality of its own. The basic premise is about recognizing someone from the past, but not knowing exactly where from. We’ve all had this happen to us… right? Well, this is what Preetesh Hirji (vocalist for Mattafix) is trying to get across, and I must say, he does it with grace. Though, the more I listen to his lyrics, it simply sounds like some guy creepin’ on a girl at a bar, but besides that, the song is elegantly done with Hirji’s delicate voice… that’s sometimes confused for a woman’s, but let’s put that aside as well :). So, pop this shizz in (push play), and tell me what you think (of his voice)…
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I’ve been listening to Mattafix for a couple of years now, but Things Have Changed brings me back just a few months when I was studying abroad in London. Everyday after class I would wait at Bakers Street tube station (take a look), and listen to my playlist, which consisted of quite a few Mattafix songs, including Things Have Changed. Particularly, it brings memories of how “things have changed” over time – traveling from Minnesota to Arizona for college, and from Arizona to London (and all the little things in-between).
The song starts off with a rich set of instrumentals accompanied with what seems to be a vocal percussion. Preetesh Hirji begins with what may be some powerful and inspiring lyrics, but in all honesty, are hard to comprehend :). Marlon Roudette then takes over with his elegant & graceful vocals, but is often confused for a woman because of his high-pitched voice (I test people all the time). Mattafix has a couple hits, and I’ll definitely post more of ‘em in the future, so make sure to sign up for my RSS feed, so you won’t miss out!
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