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Yeah, I'm chuffed about this being the fourth one of these in a row too.
This week’s piece originally started with a long meta-ramble concerning my uncannily uninteresting thoughts on the process of writing this thing. I’m not saying I won’t write another one of those in the future, but it can wait for now; this column isn’t exactly wanting for words.
If you've no idea what this is all about, or you’re so impressed (or incredulous) you want to see more, go here for archives and an explanation. Furthermore, clicking on the song titles below will take you to that track’s Last.fm page, where more often than not you can either listen or watch a video. If you want to comment, but can’t be bothered to register or log in, you can shoot me an email by typing karlruben squiggly gmail dott com into your device of choice.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, here is your weekly dose of The Cull!
* 2000 and One - Spanish Fly
Except for the fact that the synth stabs at the center of the beat remind me of theMacarena, there’s nothing to distract from the ordinariness of this. I guess vanilla house tracks like this might be a good tool to have for a DJ, to pad out a set between the more euphoric moments. On its own, though, it’s about as rewarding as listening to a white sheet hanging on a clothesline.
* Abi Bah - Dolly Street (feat Makode)
This, on the other hand, is attention-grabbing to a fault, which is why I’m cutting it, perhaps a bit before its time. Well, “to a fault” is a poor choice of words, since Abi Bah and Makode definitely succeed in getting my attention, and in creeping me out. It’s just difficult to listen to Makode relentlessly taunting his subject (or his subject’s lover?) in his warped disco diva falsetto for seven minutes, effective though it may be. Goading, haranguing, sneering at someone who’s already distraught, who’s wondering why their “doll isn’t here no more”, answering with a garish hidden rhyme: “she started working as a...”
It’s compelling, but too hard and ugly.
* Bush -Glycerine
Gavin Rossdale’s Cobain-y, mouth-stuffed-with-potatoes delivery works all right on several other Bush numbers, but here those distracting mannerisms get in the way of what at heart is a decent enough power ballad... if you’re willing to accept that such a thing even exists. Hear how much it improves - relatively - when he removes just a few of those potatoes (and his shirt! Woof, phwoar, etc).
* Future of the Left - i am the least of your problems (demo)
Run, don’t walk over here and bask in the glory of this and two other news songs featuring Future of the Left’s new line up, now with more guitar. Rejoice in the fact that even after shake-ups in personnel, and reportedly dismal album sales, both the left-field pop sensibility and the ineffably transcendent nature of Andy Falkous’ bilious presence is intact and arguably, better than ever.
* Guru, Kai:Bee & Lil’ Dap - The Way It Iz
“This world is full of thugs, hustlers, big willy mobsters
I kill rappers on the reg cause it's my job to
Separate the real from the fake
So I reveal the truth and
Break it down on a wax plate”I don’t think I’ve ever heard an MC’s lot articulated quite like this, though that just might be because this is what Guru sees as his own particular mission, not some general “rapper’s raison d’être”. Anyway, the idea of the rapper-as-filter for the filthy world at large is intriguing mythologising of the craft; maybe this could be seen as a more down to earth version of the ronin metaphor; the lone figure railing against untruths. A human shield between you and the people out to get you, hustle you, rob you - except that judging from the rest of the track, these guys (or their characters) are so entrenched on the wrong side of the law that they might be the ones doing the crime to you, as well as speaking the truth about it.
* Immaculate Machine -Dear Confessor
Listening exercise. Compare the studio version with this live take - ostensibly from after the album in question was released - and listen to the way the vocals have gone from dancing relaxedly on top, to desperately clutching the backbeat (the second and fourth beats of the bar when playing in 4/4). I hesitate to call it degeneration, because it might be a very conscious choice on Immaculate Machine’s part, but to me it sounds baffling. That live version is the way I imagine the song would’ve sounded before it clicked in the studio, the decision to abandon the staccato rhythm the very thing that finally made it work. Before you ask, this doesn’t seem a one time thing, the weird emphasis is there in this live clip from a later date too.
* Kylie Minogue -Wow
Nifty, those “wow”s. Feinting you out, seeming to grind proceedings to halt, and then instead just propelling you further, further, further.
An apt echo of the lyrics, really: Kylie admiring someone across the dance floor, blown away by their moves, their beauty, their cool. Maybe those wows are her getting too entranced, stumbling midway through a step, saving herself at the last second, and dancing on, like nothing happened, flushed by the embarrassment, but mostly just buoyed by that feeling of possible connection, of being there just out of reach, watching, dancing.
* Of Montreal -Disconnect the Dots
If you still believe that authenticity and being real is the be-all and end-all of music, there will be nothing for you here. There’s not a thing about "Disconnect the Dots" that doesn’t sound borrowed, begged or stolen, plastic, synthetic or ersatz, but, unless you’re hung up on “real”, you won’t mind one bit. Mr. Kevin Barnes and company say it best themselves: “it’s so beautiful/our lunacy/ so beautiful/ aaaaaahh”
* Rahim - Forever Love
While “Wow” is another brilliant variation on what seems like a favourite topic of Kylie’s (cfLove at First Sight), Rahim’s entry on the same subject ain’t too shabby neither, even if the concept is a tricky one. How is it possible to know when you first meet someone - hey, never mind meeting, how can you know when you first SEE someone, that you want to spend rest of your life with them? What is possible, though, is to imagine spending your life with someone in that moment when you first see them. That's how the mind works, that's how the imagination works; it doesn’t need much of an excuse to run riot with hypotheticals and faint possibilities, mapping out an entire lived life from just a shared glance, creating fictional familiarity from thin air.
Rahim put this across without sounding too starry eyed, staying on the right side of wistful, avoiding seeming like rabid stalkers; instead just cherishing that feeling of infinite possibility, just enjoying the place their imagination has brought them to.
* The Rumble Strips - Girls and Boys in Love (David E Sugar’s Shameless Mix)
Between this and the original, you basically have two mates telling you the same thing, from different stances. The Rumble Strips lean back as far on your sofa as possible without sliding onto the floor, and laconically assure you your heartsickness is nothing special, there are oodles with the same problems, and if you just ride this out without bringing yourself down too much, you’ll be okay. David E Sugar’s Shameless Mix, meanwhile, jumps up and down on your coffee table, euphorically stating “Don’t you see! There are plenty of boys and girls in love! Which means the world is a happy place, people are in love, it’s only a matter of time before you are too! Yay!”
Perhaps not be the best strategy for bringing a heartbroken person back from the brink, but it sounds plenty exhilarating.
Gen 23 2011, 16:39
Yeah, I'm chuffed about this being the fourth one of these in a row too.
This week’s piece originally started with a long meta-ramble concerning my uncannily uninteresting thoughts on the process of writing this thing. I’m not saying I won’t write another one of those in the future, but it can wait for now; this column isn’t exactly wanting for words.
If you've no idea what this is all about, or you’re so impressed (or incredulous) you want to see more, go here for archives and an explanation. Furthermore, clicking on the song titles below will take you to that track’s Last.fm page, where more often than not you can either listen or watch a video. If you want to comment, but can’t be bothered to register or log in, you can shoot me an email by typing karlruben squiggly gmail dott com into your device of choice.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, here is your weekly dose of The Cull!
* 2000 and One - Spanish Fly
Except for the fact that the synth stabs at the center of the beat remind me of the
Macarena, there’s nothing to distract from the ordinariness of this. I guess vanilla house tracks like this might be a good tool to have for a DJ, to pad out a set between the more euphoric moments. On its own, though, it’s about as rewarding as listening to a white sheet hanging on a clothesline.* Abi Bah - Dolly Street (feat Makode)
This, on the other hand, is attention-grabbing to a fault, which is why I’m cutting it, perhaps a bit before its time. Well, “to a fault” is a poor choice of words, since Abi Bah and Makode definitely succeed in getting my attention, and in creeping me out. It’s just difficult to listen to Makode relentlessly taunting his subject (or his subject’s lover?) in his warped disco diva falsetto for seven minutes, effective though it may be. Goading, haranguing, sneering at someone who’s already distraught, who’s wondering why their “doll isn’t here no more”, answering with a garish hidden rhyme: “she started working as a...”
It’s compelling, but too hard and ugly.
* Bush -
GlycerineGavin Rossdale’s Cobain-y, mouth-stuffed-with-potatoes delivery works all right on several other Bush numbers, but here those distracting mannerisms get in the way of what at heart is a decent enough power ballad... if you’re willing to accept that such a thing even exists. Hear how much it improves - relatively - when he removes just a few of those potatoes (and his shirt! Woof, phwoar, etc).
* Future of the Left - i am the least of your problems (demo)
Run, don’t walk over here and bask in the glory of this and two other news songs featuring Future of the Left’s new line up, now with more guitar. Rejoice in the fact that even after shake-ups in personnel, and reportedly dismal album sales, both the left-field pop sensibility and the ineffably transcendent nature of Andy Falkous’ bilious presence is intact and arguably, better than ever.
* Guru, Kai:Bee & Lil’ Dap - The Way It Iz
“This world is full of thugs, hustlers, big willy mobsters
I kill rappers on the reg cause it's my job to
Separate the real from the fake
So I reveal the truth and
Break it down on a wax plate”I don’t think I’ve ever heard an MC’s lot articulated quite like this, though that just might be because this is what Guru sees as his own particular mission, not some general “rapper’s raison d’être”. Anyway, the idea of the rapper-as-filter for the filthy world at large is intriguing mythologising of the craft; maybe this could be seen as a more down to earth version of the ronin metaphor; the lone figure railing against untruths. A human shield between you and the people out to get you, hustle you, rob you - except that judging from the rest of the track, these guys (or their characters) are so entrenched on the wrong side of the law that they might be the ones doing the crime to you, as well as speaking the truth about it.
* Immaculate Machine -
Dear ConfessorListening exercise. Compare the studio version with this live take - ostensibly from after the album in question was released - and listen to the way the vocals have gone from dancing relaxedly on top, to desperately clutching the backbeat (the second and fourth beats of the bar when playing in 4/4). I hesitate to call it degeneration, because it might be a very conscious choice on Immaculate Machine’s part, but to me it sounds baffling. That live version is the way I imagine the song would’ve sounded before it clicked in the studio, the decision to abandon the staccato rhythm the very thing that finally made it work. Before you ask, this doesn’t seem a one time thing, the weird emphasis is there in this live clip from a later date too.
* Kylie Minogue -
WowNifty, those “wow”s. Feinting you out, seeming to grind proceedings to halt, and then instead just propelling you further, further, further.
An apt echo of the lyrics, really: Kylie admiring someone across the dance floor, blown away by their moves, their beauty, their cool. Maybe those wows are her getting too entranced, stumbling midway through a step, saving herself at the last second, and dancing on, like nothing happened, flushed by the embarrassment, but mostly just buoyed by that feeling of possible connection, of being there just out of reach, watching, dancing.
* Of Montreal -
Disconnect the DotsIf you still believe that authenticity and being real is the be-all and end-all of music, there will be nothing for you here. There’s not a thing about "Disconnect the Dots" that doesn’t sound borrowed, begged or stolen, plastic, synthetic or ersatz, but, unless you’re hung up on “real”, you won’t mind one bit. Mr. Kevin Barnes and company say it best themselves: “it’s so beautiful/our lunacy/ so beautiful/ aaaaaahh”
* Rahim - Forever Love
While “Wow” is another brilliant variation on what seems like a favourite topic of Kylie’s (cf
Love at First Sight), Rahim’s entry on the same subject ain’t too shabby neither, even if the concept is a tricky one. How is it possible to know when you first meet someone - hey, never mind meeting, how can you know when you first SEE someone, that you want to spend rest of your life with them? What is possible, though, is to imagine spending your life with someone in that moment when you first see them. That's how the mind works, that's how the imagination works; it doesn’t need much of an excuse to run riot with hypotheticals and faint possibilities, mapping out an entire lived life from just a shared glance, creating fictional familiarity from thin air.Rahim put this across without sounding too starry eyed, staying on the right side of wistful, avoiding seeming like rabid stalkers; instead just cherishing that feeling of infinite possibility, just enjoying the place their imagination has brought them to.
* The Rumble Strips - Girls and Boys in Love (David E Sugar’s Shameless Mix)
Between this and the original, you basically have two mates telling you the same thing, from different stances. The Rumble Strips lean back as far on your sofa as possible without sliding onto the floor, and laconically assure you your heartsickness is nothing special, there are oodles with the same problems, and if you just ride this out without bringing yourself down too much, you’ll be okay. David E Sugar’s Shameless Mix, meanwhile, jumps up and down on your coffee table, euphorically stating “Don’t you see! There are plenty of boys and girls in love! Which means the world is a happy place, people are in love, it’s only a matter of time before you are too! Yay!”
Perhaps not be the best strategy for bringing a heartbroken person back from the brink, but it sounds plenty exhilarating.
