Started listening to Plastic Beach about a week ago. My first thoughts were similar to that of Demon Days, sounds good but nothing stands out. It seems like with Gorillaz, at least in my case, you need to give their albums a few listens to really feel their sound. Well, after a few listens I found some keepers, unfortunately not as many as in Demon Days.
Stylo was the first single from the album, released at the end of January of this year. Though it’s not my favorite, it’s among the better ones, some others being Superfast Jellyfish, On Melancholy Hill & Plastic Beach. But we aren’t here to discuss those, we’re here for the best (of the best), and those would be…
Empire Ants (for one). The song is split in two, the first half with vocals from 2-D (or Damon Albort in reality), with some pleasant, dreamlike instrumentals; and the second half with vocals featured from Little Dragon’s Yukimi Nagano, with a beat that’s straight 80’s XTC (or is that just me, I didn’t live through much of the 80’s). The song takes you to another reach, typical of Gorillaz. It’s my #1 pick, followed closely by Broken.
Broken is a little like the first part of Empire Ants, in that it has a pleasant & smooth sound (other than that, not so much). What I particularly like about this track is its soul-striken lyrics, instead of the usual drug induced ones (those can be fun too, though). They really capture the heart …or maybe that’s just my sensitive side… Anyways, it’s a well thought out track, and good for the those times of heartache … actually, that may not be the best idea (but listen to it nonetheless).
Finally, I just wanted to touch (a little) on some of the tracks that aren’t worth listening to: Sweepstakes (gets stuck in the head, and not in a good way), Some Kind of Nature (sorry Lou, ya just don’t do it for me here), and Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach (Snoop I expect much more with a beat like this). The other tracks on the album are fairly good, but I haven’t warmed up to them quite yet. Tell me what you think, and let me know your most/least favorites are?
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I consider Bonobo a rare talent. Not only does he resonate such an affective sound, but he is consistent at it. With a lot of musicians I come across, their albums usually consist of a fair amount of good tracks, but a greater amount of mediocre, unmemorable ones. Reasons for this vary, but it usually has to do with the record labels attempt to hurry and/or manipulate the album for monetary reasons (I love to blame them). But I’m not here to criticize “big business”, I’m here to commend unrecognized talent (or what I consider to be), so let’s get to it…
Nightlite features Bajka who appears on four other tracks from Bonobo’s most recent album, Days to Come. I wouldn’t necessarily consider her a singer, nor a rapper, but possibly something in between. Whatever you call her, she’s a poet (maybe that’s what you call her) that can harmonize with Bonobo’s beat beautifully. Some of my favorite tracks on Days to Come include her vocals (this being one), and I’m sure I’ll feature a few others in the near future. As for Bonobo’s beat, it’s a cool, 
downtempo night in Paris (or reminds me so). Wonder if it’s inspired by classic French music?
I also just downloaded Eyesdown off Bonobo’s website, which is the new single from his upcoming album, Black Sands. The expected release date for the album is March 29th of this year. Check it out if you’re into Bonobo’s sound; I’m guessing it’ll be something worthwhile (like everything else of his). Let’s just say it’s the most anticipated album (for me) in March. Well, actually Plastic Beach by Gorillaz is, so I guess it’s second.
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I had a little difficulty with this one. I caught Clubbed to Death on some trip hop station, and knew I had heard it before. I could of sworn it was from Fight Club, but couldn’t find it on the soundtrack. I would’ve looked it up on the Internet, but didn’t know the name of it (at the time). It really started to get to me, so I started listening to the same radio station in hopes they’d play it again (so I could Shazam that shit!). After waiting a loonnng time, just as I was about to break, it came on! I found out the name, and looked it up… of course, it was from The Matrix (but it does sound a lot like a Fight Club track).
Anyways, then I had another problem… where the hell was it in The Matrix? I looked it up on YouTube, and found some user manipulated clips, but nothing genuine. So, I decided to watch the movie, just so I could bestow this invaluable information to you (i.e. I have a lot of time on my hands 
). Well, here it is (the song is in the first 40 seconds). I would embed it for ya, but those damn YouTubers won’t allow it.
Whatever, the clip doesn’t give justice to Clubbed to Death. The damn thing is a full composition, running for seven minutes and thirty seconds… and eating up my bandwidth, accordingly. Well, you know my way with words (or you soon will), accurately describing a song in its full depth… or not… I should really work on that 
. All I have to say is that it’s a song with some interesting instrumentals with some classic piano playin’.
As always, post a comment and tell me what you think… does it sound like The Dust Brothers? (creators of the Fight Club soundtrack) Oh, and be a fan on our Facebook page, ’cause i’ll give you this song if you do!!… we’ll ya get it either way, but common.
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It’s funny how songs can remind you of the most random places. In The Twilight reminds me of strolling around The British Museum, admiring all the fascinating artifacts. I actually went there twice while I was in London; once to actually appreciate the art, and another time to goof off and take funny pictures (I act like an adolescent at times all the time).
The reason I chose this song is because I like it (duh, haha)… ok, other than that I chose it for it’s unusual, yet appealing instrumentals. A lot of the time when I hear DJ’s experiment with new sounds the end result just sounds like a bunch meshed noise resembling a child pressing on a soundboard! However, in this case the sounds collaborate into a relaxing, downtempo beat with a natural flare. If you like this then definitely check out my first feature of TM Jukes, Knee Deep, which has some soulful vocals. And, if you’re reading this right now, you better scroll down and comment on this damn blog or else! 
(or just be my Facebook fan )
Important, my favorite parts are at 2:06 (saxy) & 2:21 (the beat hits right) – check ‘em out!
This song will put you on another level.
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So, I decided to introduce another series onto the site. The first one was the Know Good Classics series, so check that out if you haven’t. This series, Some Cool Ass Ringtones, is pretty self explanatory. I get the ringtones usually from my favorite hip-hop or electronic beats. I might also pull them off of some classic tunes, so look out for those as well.
The first set I bring to you is from my absolute favorite trip hop artist, DJ Frane. Goddamn, does this guy have talent! I have never seen so many rich & intricate beats from an artist. All of the ringtones featured come from his third full-length album, Journey to the Planet of Birds. Right now, I have Cloudy Voyage as my ringtone. Like I said in my article about his album, he is a major reason for the creation of this blog.
(Learn how to transfer ringtones to your iPhone in the Full Article)
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TM Juke is a meticulous, soulful DJ & producer. His mellowed out, ambient music is good for a nice relax.
Knee Deep was the first song I listened to of his, and I became an instant fan. The piece starts out with some peaceful, ambient sounds followed by Alice Russell’s elegant voice. Jim Orbox then accompanies her with a nicely played duet. I am very impressed with Jim Orbox’s voice, which meshes well with TM Juke’s sound… I wish they would collaborate more often. I love the instrumentals on this, especially the sax (I’m a sucka for it). I’ve always thought this would be a good song for the intro to a tv series (maybe something like “Californication“).
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I started listening to Frane about a year ago when I found his third album, Journey to the Planet of Birds, on a favorite forum of mine. After my fixation with the album died down, I decided to get my fix off of his other albums, so I gave Electric Garden of Delights a try.
I’d characterize Electric Garden as a mind-altering, drug-influenced arrangement, a lot like his other albums. But unlike his other albums, this album is set in a blissful garden, enchanted with exotic creatures and psychotropic plants. It’s an appealing album, but I’m not sure if it can hold up to his other works.
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Going back to 2000, we find a futuristic narrative set in the year 3030. Del tha Funkee Homosapien, or “Deltron Zero” in the story, is a superhero sworn to fight against the evils of the universe (viruses, an oppressive government, the Corporate Bank of Time… just to name a few) with his trusty side-kicks, The Automator or “The Cantankerous Captain Aptos” and scratch mastermind Kid Koala or “Skiznod the Boy Wonder”. Yea, this may sound a little corny for a hip-hop album, but with Del on the mic, Automator and Kid Koalo with backup, it’s a hell of a hip-hop classic.
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With the release of his final installment in the “beats to blaze to” trilogy, Frane once again creates a beautiful masterpiece. Each track is a well-crafted composition that should definitely be blazed to!
Gravitational Communications: The journey begins with a downtempo intro, but really starts to shine with the second track, Gravitational Communications. The guitar rift is absolutely phenomenal in it! This, along with Visions of U, are the stand out tracks in the album.
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