Postcode: *psy

music and video that inspire me

einstürzende neubauten – blume (1994)

experimental collective formed in west berlin in 1980. 

they used custom-built instruments, predominantly made out of scrap metal and building tools.

this clip is introduced by nick cave, a long time friend and collaborator of neubauten frontman blixa bargeld.

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the leisure society – 'a short weekend begins with longing' (2009)

“winding my way through the plans i never made…”

… a long weekend finished with the leisure society, at the thekla, bristol.

there debut lp was released in march ’09. their lead single, ‘the last of the melting snow’, won an ivo novello award for best song musically & lyrically.

brian eno recently cited the band as “the only other thing i’ve been listening to lately with enthusiasm”, promting a meeting between him and the band.

with or without added eno, new material is expected soon.

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jay electronica – the pledge / eternal sunshine (2008)

she said she never fell in love with a superman
christian, muslim, protestant, lutheran,
i told her that being a mortal is a portal to the true nature of growth; the christ like buddha man
that’s why i never spit the traditional garbage of a night fight, bright lights, white ice to the fans
the radio is just a stereo, like a house and a home, a chair is just a chair, ask luther van
go to work; go to church let your dreams die
bow tie, final call, and a bean pie
yarmulke for hanukah, wish list for christmas
this is the jist of the life that we lead, why?
so you can fit in, with the close minded in the sit-ins, and clothes lined ed-end
i could care less about a plaque and benz and get punked on tv by my friends
don’t get a nigga wrong, i get tempted by the rewards that all come along with nigga songs
but what does it mean if I’m a muslim and you a jew and because of that alone we don’t get along
and when you talk like this, and try to walk like this the radio stations’ll never put a nigga on
just mims, just 50, just wayne, just jeezy, dem franchize boyz, and jimmy jones
fuck that, fuck rap this god-hop,
king-dom mu-sic for the hard rocks
imma spit it till trl get it and hot97 hear the nigga with a bomb drop
ask flex, ask slay, ask who kidd
just blaze said jay is the new kid
i took eternal sunshine and i looped it
no drums no hook just new shit

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patrick watson – luscious life (2007)

born in california but raised in quebec, partick watson fronts the band that bares his name.

they originally formed to record music to soundtrack a book of photography. 

they have released three albums.

“sweat old luscious life: celebrate your dreams when you are awake”

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andrew bird – lull (2008)

signed to ultra consistent ‘bella union’ label, bird is an american multi-instrumentist. he casts his spell over the violin, guitar, mandolin and the glockenspiel. he likes to whistle too.

video is an adaptation of a lisa barcy 16-minute stop-motion animated film, ‘mermaid’.

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st. vincent – the party (2009)

aka annie clark, from brooklyn. sometime sufjan stevans and polyphonic spree collaborator.  

she’s been licking your ice cube again

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yeasayer – sunrise (2008)

seem to have traded in the post-apocalypse (of their ‘all hour cymbols’ longplayer) for post-relationship (with their new one – ‘odd blood’). a more radio-friendly universal, perhaps.

interesting album titles and cover art remain a constant.

gone is drummer luka fasano for “musical and personal reasons”.

maybe he didn’t like chis keating playing with his crash cymbal? such as in this gloriously affected clip taken from their jools holland performance in april ’08.

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local natives – camera talk (2010)

they nailed thekla. i walked out taller, wider, clearer. ready again.

electric harmonies, extra drums. southern fleet foxes; each after a pint of strong coffee, an ecstacy tab, a finger in a socket and a shot of sunshine. oh my…  

back again in late summer, i believe. check out their ‘gorilla manor’ lp.

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fionn regan – put a penny in a slot (2006)

off the irish troubadour’s mercury prize nominated first album, ‘the end of history’. performed last night at the thekla, bristol with ‘danny & the champions of the world’ supporting.

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arthur russell – little lost (1993)

“if nick drake had lived long enough to make records with new order, they might have sounded something like this” – rolling stone magazine

russell (may 21, 1951 – april 4, 1992) was born and raised in rural oskaloosa, iowa. as a child and adolescent, he studied the cello & piano and began to compose his own music. when he was 18 he moved to san francisco, where he lived in a buddhist commune and studied north indian music. in 1973, russell moved to new york and enrolled at the manhattan school of music, cross-registering in electronic music. he became interested in the early underground disco scene.

september 1986 saw the release of world of echo (upside/rough trade, 1986). critically heralded as “a magnum opus of sorts” by contemporary critics, it incorporated many of his ideas for pop, dance and classical music (and experimentation in dub, disco and minimilism) for both solo and cello format. The album was well-reviewed in Britain and included in melody maker’s “top thirty releases of 1986”. this was to be the peak of his lifetime crossover ‘success’.

russell died of aids on april 4, 1992, at the age of 40. in an april 28th column, kyle gann of ‘the village voice’ wrote: “his recent performances had been so infrequent due to illness, his songs were so personal, that it seems as though he simply vanished into his music.”

i’m not sure when little lost was penned and recorded by russell. it appeared on the first posthumous release – another thought (point music), in 1993.

this is an unofficial video, made with an excerpt of the animation ‘girl and dolphin’ by r . zelma.

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