Diamond Geezer

It'll be difficult to ignore this so we won't.

For no other reason than it is quite great, the new Neil Diamond album is quite great.


The thing is that nothing has really changed; these songs sound like he's supposed to, this is Neil Diamond exactly like you'd want him to be. Passionate and articulate. Reassuring; but broken. And all of a sudden, reborn!

There's a coincidence here maybe. Lord Johnny of Cash passed away quite recently after finishing an album also produced by Rick Rubin. The theme in both productions has been the unproduction of both artists and a resortion to the bare bones of the singer/songwriter therein.

Is Neil about to pop-off and this is his way of telling us? Probably not. But decide yourselves from the usual source.

"I'm On To You" is just wonderful - listen to this one again and again.

"Tell me now how I was wrong and I'll tell you how right you are........"

- the best line ever??

p.s.

when i was 7, i thought he was singing "vicar in blue jeans" ......

Boys Zone

I want to be this cool when I grow up. The Beastie Boys live.

Not bad for a bunch of 40 year olds.



Back when they were 20 year olds they were actually a punk band. But not a very good one.



And finally, this, which is just very very good. Mixmaster Mike at his very best.



There's a long boring introduction I didn't get round to editing........

Now See Him Dance

I was unhappy that the only video I have of the Lumpy One did not feature more of his talents... So here I can present his dancing skills.

Techno, Techno, Techno Party!!

Making Italy Proud

Willy Wonka Wannabe

You may have heard that the 3121 album is due for a March release; assuming nothing's brought forward (as tends to be the fashion these days).

This is the cover, allegedly.

















The news along with this is the rumour of the "Purple Ticket". It appears that limited cd's will include an invitation to a private concert dans la chez Nelson.

Who knows how true this is? Pre-order your cd now and buy the hype.....

More Manuvas from Rodney Smith

Arguably the finest British Rapper, it turns out that Roots Manuva over-did it when recording for last years Awfully Deep. Rodney ended up recording nearly 30 tunes but had no intention of releasing a double cd. Instead we get Awfully Deep Part II, the aptly titled Alternately Deep and it's very good.


















This isn't a compilation of sub standard tracks dismissed for the last album, or at least it doesn't sound that way. Maybe it's just that it's good to hear from him again so very soon.

It's available. Go listen and be suitably impressed.

No Apologies

I know we've had the wee weird one once (say that 3 times quickly) already this week, but if I had known this was available back then, this would have been posted already.

I'm sure you'll agree that, on this form (and with a new album due soon called 3121), it's impossible to have too much - this is serious.



It's Kiss and it's Gett Off, it's everything from Dirty Mind but it's got the dirty groove of The Black Album.

There is seriously no other soul on this planet as talented as this man.

(ok - I'm getting carried away and this can be debated obviously; I apologise for coming over all Stalinesque there.....)

Sly and the Extended Family Stone

A new album of Sly and the Family Stone covers has been released recently and there's an interesting Podcast available here. There are two separate podcasts here so make sure you get to hear both.
















Artists such as Chuck D, The Roots, Big Boi and Isacc Hayes contributed to the project and some of them talk here about how the Stone sound influenced their work and well as giving samples of the album. I wouldn't normally be interested in a covers album in fairness but there's lots of respected artists in here so I'm looking forward to getting my hands on this one.

Psycho Killer vs. Steel Butterfly

David Byrne and Norman Cook have joined rather curious forces for an even more curious project about Imelda Marcos.

"Told from the point of view of the players in this remarkable story, Here Lies Love will trace the rise and eventual fall of this astounding political figure using music, staging, and multimedia backup."

Here Lies Love

Apparently Byrne has been in England recently, in Brighton to see Mr Slim and then in London for other random wanderings - check his online journal if you're remotely interested.

Of far more interest is his sound & video page

Rawk & Roll

Well as you should all know, one of our members is in a rock and roll combo, playing the sort of the stuff that the kids seem to like these days. Unfortunately I've been unable to post any videos by the group because, well, you'll have to ask Leo.....

Instead, with not much else to offer you, there is this; a live recording I filmed on location in Italy.

Leo The Lump - solo

Purple Slut

On the 2nd of February 2006 Prince appeared on the Saturday Night Live show on American TV.

But that's not what this is.

25 years ago Prince appeared on the same show and performed 'Party Up' from one of his finest albums, 'Dirty Mind'. It's not a surprise really that he didn't perform 'Head' or 'Sister' from the same album....



At the end of the tune, Prince demonstrates the acting skills he would later assault us with in his movies.

If you want to see the two tunes he performed more recently then go here. And if you like Dave Chapelle or just a laugh, you can see him play basketball with Prince here.

Medical Mayhem

A comedy that the small islanders amongst must make the effort to see. The 2nd series is due at the start of March.

The funniest thing since 'Spaced' and also featuring Mark Heap who played Brian in that little gem.

The DVD of the first series is also due out in March if you didn't catch it first time around. But if you're a uknova user you'll find it there.

God Hates a Coward

What follows is posted with the intent to share a work of sheer genius...

For some of you, members of the TMIBTIS Mike Patton "Mutual Appreciation Society" this should be a welcome reminder...

Others should consider this an introduction to a little of the man's work.

I say a little... I mean an iota.



If you want the file, it's here:

God Hates a Coward by Tomahawk performed Live at Sydney, Aus in 2002.

Go on... check it out... don't be scared... God Hates a Coward.

Fact is, everyone I have shown this vid to has been blown away and with good reason; it's a fantastic, catchy tune with a simple, effective bassline (personally, I believe it also has a lot to do with the "surprise element" when you first open the clip).

Not that there's anything wrong with the original Album version, but I like this version so much I even ripped it to .mp3.

The Sooth(Sayer)

sooth·say·er (n.)

One who claims to be able to foretell events or predict the future; a seer.

As quoted from the sidebar on this page:

"Whether it's brand new, sadly overlooked or if you've rediscovered Leo Sayer and think we should all give him another try, please share it with us all. "

Me thinks Mr. Shinners may have his ear a little closer to the ground than we all realise.

And yes... I did opt for the stoopidest pic I could find of the chap...

Just Close My Eyes indeed.

Table Manners

This is the first Beck offering but will not, I guarantee you, be the last. Hopefully you'll be aware of the album version of this track. If not you should check it out.

Sufficiently proving that instruments are not prerequisite to making music you'll either feel inspired by the resourcefulness or depressed that you can't do this, even with Rebirth....

Clap Hands - with a guitar and some crockery.



Another video from the same album: Black Tambourine
is linked for your appreciation and awe.

Liquid Refreshment

I'm sure the fans of Mike Patton and Primus will like this one. It's actually quite old stuff from before the majority of us had progressed to wearing long trousers but a it's fabulous jazz inflected bass guitar romp.



Liquid Liquid were only around for a few years (81-83) and their album "Successive Reflexes" is a compilation of their E.P. releases and a few live tracks.




If, however a recommendation from me is insufficient for you, you should be aware of the pedigree. The bassline you hear on 'White Lines' (and the lyric 'something of a phenomenon')by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five is lifted from their tune 'Cavern'.

Credibility indeed.

White Stripes sing Dolly Parton classic

Anyone for some rock? Country maybe?

Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene...

Recorded live at their show at the Empress Ballroom, Blackpool.

Jack White makes absolute mincemeat of this tune, in the most positive sense of course...

Watch the clip here

The full show is also available as a .torrent here

Rebirth (RB-338) of Slick

This should be of some interest to most of you, or is that much interest to some of you?

People are gonna start thinking me a right disco-biscuit if I continue to post electronica-themed articles...


Propellerheads Software, the folk who brought us Reason amongst others have recently pulled/discontinued their Rebirth app (the legendary Roland synth device simulator)

Okay I'm gonna lift straight off the website here as I'm too lazy to make the words up myself (also there's the imminent arrival of the wife who will certainly have something to say about me being "at the computer again").

"The spirit of sharing was a vital part of the ReBirth Community. People who shared ideas, who offered their expertise, and who contributed music, inspired others to do the same in an ongoing cycle of creativity. In this tradition, Propellerhead Software offers the full version of ReBirth 2.0.1, and visitors can personally experience the phenomena of ReBirth and the legendary Roland Devices.
The ReBirth Museum download archive includes the RB-338 CD-Rom files, as well as the collected works of user created ReBirth Mods, Songs, and Extras. Visitors are welcome to download these items and experience first-hand the excitement and history of the 338.
ReBirth is a discontinued product, and Propellerhead Software does not provide technical support for the application, mods, or extras."

So I've gone and done the grunt work for any of those interested (and I personally think this is a kick-ass app for anyone to have, and it's free, so... if not, why not?).

Check out the usual resource and grab the rebirth installation torrent.

Once you have it down and installed, you may want to visit the Rebirth Museum, register, and then you'll have access to search and download 100's nay 1000's of songs, mods and extras to your heart's content.

And then, of course, there's the added incentive of having the synth, sequencing and drum machine to create your own stuff... If you so choose...

Filling up a hard-drive near you...

Ice Ice Baby

Ignore this if you possibly can. Not only is this one of the oddest videos ever but the mix manages to make something from Medúlla even stranger (and more interesting in fairness).

Björk - Triumph Of A Heart.

Blowverbodsbord

I quickly want to share this one with you. After all, "It's about the music. And stuff."
Behold Dutch legislative ignorance. An Amsterdam sub-council decided pot-smoking youngsters are a pain in the ass in a certain city area, and placed this sign. The text underneath it reads:

blowing prohibited
due to troubles in the area
50 euro fine, art 2.8 sub 2 blah

(My "civil servant English" is really shit, but above attempt should draw you the picture.) Of course, there's a whole story behind it. But the ignorant part is where the sign, within 24 hours of it being put up, got nicked.

Gimme a D,
gimme a U,
gimme an H.

Name one smoker you know who wouldn't want a trophy like this on his or her wall...

By the way: tourists coming to A'dam for reasons of mind expansion shouldn't worry. Coffeeshops are still open, and for now a prohibition like this only goes for a very small part of the city, far away from the centre.

More like Copy & Paste....

This all going too smoothly. Too many people agreeing if you ask me....

So; Cut Copy. I like them, but then I would because I like New Order. And Joy Division. And Electronic. The production has chucked in a funky feel in places but I can't help hearing someone else's music everytime. There's an Ian Curtis (admittedly with less angst) sound-a-like on vocals - if you listen to Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division and Future by Cut Copy you'll hear what I mean - and they've also been very obviously influenced by Bernard Sumner and his music and songs. Don't get me wrong, It's chunkier in places for a dirtier dance feeling and I do like it so I guess it's not a bad thing that they've been influenced by these great bands; maybe they were poor and only had 3 albums in the house when they were growing up....




Check out Twisted Tenderness by Electronic from 1999 just because it's a good album.






Which is enough of an excuse to direct you to the classic Blue Monday by New Order.




In recommending José González (good call) Bas inadvertantly also pointed us in the direction of The Knife and having had a listen I can suggest that they're worth wasting some time on; they've an unusual female vocal (a bizarre Cyndi Lauper/Siousixe Sioux/Cerys Matthews/Miss Kittin/Björk mix - seriously.... all the freaky chicks!) and some great tunes. "You Make Me Like Charity" off the Album Deep Cuts is freakin' funckin' fabulous & followed by the gorgeous "Got 2 Let U".
Take the time to listen to it all, once more, again, after the first time (!). It's a fun and satisfying listen - like hearing Moloko for the first time. (But what a shame it is that their latest album is weak).

Yup, by suggesting an non-electronic direction Bas has managed to find us more music of the electro genre. Yippee!

P.S. - Waiting for feedback on Junior Senior; anybody getting it?

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