2 with ten – the letter g
ok, before we start i think a quick recap of the 2 with ten rules is in order. in a perfect world i would like u to post no more than 2 artists from the letter in question. ideally these bands are found within your own personal itunes library. i would prefer more recent artists but again that’s tough given the limits of the library in question. (if there isnt much to choose from in your library this might be a reminder to stay current and not get complacent with your music.). now post one song link from each artist be it a youtube or myspace link. that’s it. pretty simple. if you want to list just one band/link and ask a question then do that as it will take this blog to even stranger places.
grizzly bear. gb is an indie band from ny that debuted in 04. they are my first g but it’s not because of their most recent and popular record veckatimest that everyone seems to think is so amazing. it’s actually because of their second record yellow house which i think is much better. yellow house came out on warp records in 06. i think that as a whole, from start to finish, it’s a very complete record – it flows extremely well with warm, dreamy, psychedelic, folky, unique and timeless elements to all of it. i don’t even remember how i got this record but i think i got it from amy. the track i picked was called knife.
gabin. this was an easy choice for a few reasons. i discovered gabin when we were signed to astralwerks as they were fellow labelmates…but from italy. gabin is the electro lounge duo of fillippo cary and max bottini. they are both great musicians with a defined style- bottini happens to be a well known jazz bassist in his own right. so here’s the story, before i took a trip to rome in 04 i had my a&r guy get me in touch with their manager. i set up a time to meet with them at their studio and played them our then unreleased debut cd off of a little digital camera that i had it on. they immediately took a liking to the song hollywood and eventually remixed the track. to date it’s one of the most radically interpreted remixes we have ever had made. this track still gets played on chillout stations and appears on our first remix ep which is actually tough to find in print.
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Francis Ten
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For “G” I’m bringing back my Graham Collier recommendation (originally under “C,” not knowing we were going by first names), newly spiffed up and with links. After preparing this contribution I watched your “F” video, in which you stated that you are not a big jazz fan. I’ve gone through jazz eras and non-jazz eras, and yes, it’s a matter of time and place for me too. So I’ll post this one for anyone who might be interested, and who knows, you might like it. As always, there will be more newer artists and albums in future posts. Expect the unexpected!
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“Deep Dark Blue Centre” is a British 1967 release from The Graham Collier Septet that, to the best of my knowledge, marks the first major album appearance by drummer John Marshall and woodwind/keyboard man Karl Jenkins. Both of these musicians later went on to Nucleus and Soft Machine, and Marshall also played on the first two solo albums Jack Bruce recorded after Cream split up. Collier is the double bass player and primary composer, and the rest of the Septet consists of drums, guitar, horns, and reeds. On several tracks the music has the feel of chamber jazz, especially when the trumpet, trombone, and reeds are playing without the rhythm section. The last two tracks (Conversations and the title number) feature some fast-paced sections reminiscent of the music of jazz composer Charles Mingus. Post-Soft Machine, John Marshall joined Eberhard Weber’s group (as detailed in my “E” contribution) and Karl Jenkins immersed himself in the world of classical-lite; he is best known for his Adiemus albums and concerts. It is interesting to listen to these two musicians honing their chops on “Deep Dark Blue Centre.” You might feel like you are listening to fussy arrangements without a core (that was my first impression), but the music could grow on you, as it has with me; you will eventually capture the heart and soul beneath the charts. Besides, where else will you hear jazz oboe? Here are some links: The Graham Collier Music page, with a link to a 13-minute audio montage: http://www.grahamcolliermusic.com/ *** The Deep Dark Blue Centre page, where you can listen to one complete track (Conversations): http://www.grahamcolliermusic.com/recordings/page32/page32.html *** Graham Collier’s Jazz Continuum page; no musical links but lots of cool brainy stuff to read (not now, just whenever): http://www.jazzcontinuum.com/.
The Grates – Aw Yeah … This song is about as addictive as they come, at least for me… It inspired me to name a recent mix-tape “One Foot In The Grave”, and this song closes the mix. Plus it has a pretty sweet video taboot@
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Rwbzwp_Z3k
Great Lake Swimmers – Pulling On A Line… For me just about any GLS song is great but the vid for Pulling On A Line was filmed in your backyard (Topanga Canyon).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-0HgSHYu2Y&feature=rec-LGOUT-exp_fresh+div-1r-1-HM
This is my first 😉
Gomez – We Don’t know Where we’re going http://blip.fm/~iq5f8
Gustavo cerati – Puente http://blip.fm/~iq5vw [I know, it’s in spanish ;)]
P.s: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustavo_Cerati
Generationals- Angry Charlie- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRzCXWh8ysM
Glasvegas- Geraldine- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xm4l-sfX-J4
Gordon Voidwell — ok, it could be a “V” but let’s call it a “G” as in Get on the Good foot. Start with PAYBACK (no, it’s not a JB cover) and get random from there for p-funk smoothies and crispy electro soul-pops fresh from the blender.
http://www.myspace.com/gordonvoidwell
i was gonna say gb. love love love veckatimest. definitely one of my fav albums of 09. how can u not be totally into this song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjecYugTbIQ
my other g is what u like to call a party host… girl talk. his mash ups are pretty brilliant. he actually remixed gb’s knife
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmD7CvuLxdE but watch/listen to this mix first http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDDdpxEf9hM i know he plays a lot of stuff u normally wouldn’t listen to but i’m telling u his mixes are awesome for workouts and running. i’m determined to make u appreciate him-next show he does here i’m dragging u!
Do I get a question too? Have you heard the Grizzly Bear/Feist collaboration “Service Bell”? Wait that was 2 questions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3RJw7FfHKs Just thought I’d mention since everyone was big on Feist in F’s.
#1 Gary Numan:
Ok this guy has a 20 year history and was a real pioneer in electronic music so it is hard to choose. In an attempt to keep things current, here is Halo off of “Jagged” from 2006 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG57MyicowU
I hear he is due to release something new, and has some collaborations in the works. I’m not a great music historian or anything, so can’t really do reviews justice… but wow, this guy just keeps innovating.
#2 Gang Gang Dance First Communion off of Saint Dymphna – 2008 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0VePHmc7iE
I like the balance between the kinda noisy/experimental electronica sound, and the more traditional instrumentation.. I don’t usually review music so it is difficult for me to explain why I like what I like, but this band for me is like whacking open a musical pinata.. you know basically what you are gonna get… but its still a surprise. =)
Happy New Year there Fran. OK, so here we go with the “G”s. I got a lovely 160 gig iPod for Xmas from my missus which I’ve been filling up with basically every CD I own. I’ve uploaded 400+ so far and nary a dent in my capacity yet. Beautiful. The consequence is that I’ve now got LOADS of stuff to draw from.
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Groove Armada – “Superstylin'” – Having lived in London for six years gave me an ear for the electronica goodness. Catchy little number this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KABmnF2T6M
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Guided By Voices – “Motor Away” – Man, these guys have like, a bazillion albums, some of which are full of head scratchin’ weirdness and some contain awesome little gems like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meshV00_Jns
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Enjoy!
My G’s are pretty sparse for whatever reason, so I’m going with one obvious choice and one older one.
Gus Gus: you already mentioned them in the F’s, so no surprise here. There was a period where it seemed like you couldn’t get a DJ mix tape without one of their songs. I’ve always liked their more downtempo music, especially the slightly pervy “Teenage Sensation”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UodcWXik9xo
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Game Theory: they were a college-radio fave in the late 80’s. For whatever reason, they hit my sweet spot at the time. I think it had something to do with their really cute guitar player – she had this giant head of teased bleach-blonde hair, so hot at the time (http://donnettethayer.homestead.com/files/pictures/donnette_eth_mesg.jpg). The music is a little dated now.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLOw-nRJA4U