SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS - FROM THE MP3 PLAYER OF ACID TED
Today's first post was courtesy of Dirk (aka Sexy Loser), one of this blog's oldest and most loyal readers/contributors.
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Today's first post was courtesy of Dirk (aka Sexy Loser), one of this blog's oldest and most loyal readers/contributors.
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Yes, I know it's February but here are numbers 51-100 in the tardiest end of year chart going – head here for 101-150 or treat your ears to 151-200 here.
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When asked to takeover this column I had to ask myself first just what is 'electronic music'.
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Essential moral and technical help provided by John Tatlock.
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Matt Black, stalwart of the warehouse scene, and among the greatest living British producers, pops into Clash to offer some insights on the role technology plays in musical creativity and to show off his hot new Ninja Jamm iPhone App for remixing tunes on the hoof.
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This past Monday I took part in a panel discussion as part of WFMU 's series of Radio Free Culture broadcasts.
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"Often described as 'a female Lenny Bruce,' sometimes even as 'worse than Genêt and Bataille,' the scandalous performance artist from NYC put conservative America in a state of shock with her outrageous and hilarious one-woman show, and her extreme statements to the press. New York dance producer Mark Kamins recorded with her the now-legendary Tales of Taboo EP (1986) and the album entitled The Truth Is Hard To Swallow , which brought the good word to the forefront of the music scene.... and which have been shamelessly sampled by the likes of 'S-Express, Coldcut, and most of the early Belgian New Beat/Techno scene, for whom she became a kind of heroic figure." "…this morning's [post] features what I can only assume to be Nigerian folk music. The sample track above opens with what sounds like a homemade brass instrument of some kind, not uncommon in Nigerian folk, and Awutolo and Fada laying down a terrific, complex rhythm while singing at times in a kind of call-and-response and at times in unison. The total effect is of an intricate soundscape that snaps, pops, buzzes and honks far enough above the level of ambient to keep the listener's ear keen, while never swerving into catchy hook or melody."
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Here in the North East, we're well accustomed to music development agency Generator and Northern Film & Media stoking the region's creative fire with exciting, innovative arts projects.
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Eddy has had a lot of special co-hosts on The Remix over the last few months, but never so many in one sitting as last Friday night.
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Before the iPod and shuffle, the only option if you wanted to flit randomly between musical styles was a compilation CD or a multi CD changer, a machine that once stuffed with your favourite discs would seamlessly blend from one album to another with only a great clanking noise to hint at the switch.
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For a sound that started off brooding in bedrooms and basements in South and East London, dubstep has made some impressive moves over the last year or two.
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New York born funk legend Jimmy Castor has died at the age of 64 in Nevada.
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Brendan Angelides may be a new artist to Ninja Tune's roster, but he's certainly not a new name to me.
Read MoreColdcut, two British white guys, essentially took a big New York hip-hop record even further back to the "true" essence of hip-hop, by throwing in an assortment of samples that reflected their own personal tastes.
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I interviewed South African trumpet player and composer Hugh Masekela on tour last year.
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Forget four seasons in one day, if Crowded House wanted to observe some bizarre weather conditions then perhaps they should have visited RockNess.
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Steve Reich, Steve Reich, Steve Reich: a composer whose music is inescapable.
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Long time MLD readers will remember my brother Ryan's regular " TEN4SEVEN " series.
Read MoreFirst old chart of a new year, and it's w/b 19th January 1997, a chart to celebrate the week at number one for one of the very greatest one hit wonders.
Read MoreNinja Tune is an independent record label that is based in London, England (with a satellite office on Montreal for U.S/Canada business), created in 1990 by the duo known as Coldcut.
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Jackiroqs is a Stoke-on-Trent based progressive house, techno and electronic producer/remixer formally know as GLVG .
Read MoreOn Monday 6th December a band made up of influential artists and musicians of the alternative scene from Pete Doherty to Penguin Prison, Kooks to Coldcut and Crystal Fighters to Dan Le Sac, will be gathered at the legendary Dean Street Studios in Soho to make history by re-recording John Cages's celebrated piece, 4'33", which comprises of four minutes and thirty three seconds of silence.
Read MoreAfter taking a look at the last twenty years of London's hugely influential Ninja Tune imprint , chatting to founding duo Coldcut about the way the label's mode of operation has shifted over the years and how they've managed to stay alive and kicking where so many similar collectives have fallen by the wayside.
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Ninja Tune's 'Beats 'n' Pieces' aesthetic, which colours virtually every artist on the 20-year-old British label, began when founders Matt Black and Jon More burst onto the international scene as Coldcut with their 1987 remix of Eric B and Rakim 's 'Paid in Full.' The result was an abstract hip-hop landmark that augmented its slinky beats with movie samples, sound effects and cross-cultural flourishes, such as Israeli folk singer Ofra Haza 's operatic vocals .
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Josh Davis, aka DJ Shadow, is a quiet but intense presence in the restaurant of a West End hotel.
Read MoreNinja Tune turns 20 this year, and to celebrate, the label has just released Ninja Tune XX , a two-volume compilation featuring new and exclusive material from all the Ninja regulars as well as a host of friends, peers, and influencers.
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Floodwatch chin-strokes to the thinking man's thinking man's music.
Read MoreNinja Tune have looked back on their early years, discussing the origins of one of Britain's most respected imprints.
Read MoreThis is a lot of music, six-plus discs' worth, enough to fill up a cheap flash drive and keep you busy for a week or two.
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So the official history has Grand Wizard Theodore in the late 1970s, sitting in his bedroom in the Bronx practising his mixing on two turntables.
Read MoreA new signing is the solo artist Anna Calvi, who plays dark, atmospheric Spanish-tinged guitar-pop.
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As the Nineties dawned, London's Shoreditch wasn't the hive of culture it became after the dotcom boom, but rather a wasteland of warehouses and neglect.
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In 1990, electronica duo Coldcut (aka Matt Black and Jonathan More) decided to turn their backs on major labels and, for better or worse, do it on their own.
Read MoreFormed 20 years ago by dance-pop group Coldcut, the Ninja Tune label has remained a consistent producer of influential, innovative electronic music.
Read MoreSome solo projects are unexpected, and then Radiohead's drummer unveils his debut album 20 years after that band first formed.
Read MoreClashMusic has teamed up with Ninja Tune to celebrate the label's 20th birthday.
Read MoreThe buzz around Obaro Ejimiwe aka Ghostpoet has been slowly but inevitably building all year.
Read MoreAs part of its 20th anniversary celebrations this year, Ninja Tune has partnered with Black Dog Publishing to mount a month-long exhibition showcasing the label's art, design, and photography.
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