8tracks  

7 days ago

The Late Greats of 2008

Wrapping up another fantastic year - we've had 2008 in a row now, and we're still going strong, here's a selection of this year's finest (with a bit of cheating at the end). The Black Seeds - Little Atoms (DJ Vee Remix). Kiwi band, immensely popular in their home-country, released an overview of remixes this year. Susana Travassos - O Que Tinha De Ser. Algarve born and raised, released her self-produced first album this year: Oi Elis, a tribute to Brazilian legend Elis Regina. I bought this album after an unexpected live surprise in Sao Bras, Portugal (see photo). Mixing various styles, with (of course) fado shimmering through, a dream of a record. Matthew Herbert Big Band - The Story. Herbert fuses sampled sounds from pretty much anywhere into carefully crafted compositions. 'There's Me and There's You' combines this with a brassy big band and singer Eska Mtungwazi. Quantic & Mr. Scruff - Donkey Ride. Dance floor fun and games, Ninjatunes' revered enfant terrible dropped a new one this year, aptly titled Ninja Tuna. Hercules And Love Affair - You Belong. Debut album by this amazing New York transsexual punk house band. The lead singer really turns me on, but alas, she's also a man (I'd never have known if I hadn't been told). Morgan Geist - Lullaby. Producer genius behind Kelley Polar released his own album this year. Lullaby is exactly what it promises. Kelley Polar - A Feeling of the All-Thing. Not as mind boggling as 2005's 'Love Songs of the Hanging Gardens', Kelley Polar's second album still packs some beautifully camp cello-electronic tracks - this one being my favourite. Hot Chip - My Piano (dub). Not really blown away by their second release, but this is a killer dancefloor dub. Kudu - Bar Star. Also New York, also punk house, but with a much bigger bite. To go mad on just after 2008 strikes twelve for the last time. Kate Nash - Foundations (Metronomy Remix). This is cheat # 1, because it's 2007. But I couldn't leave out Metronomy's take on Kate's almost-break up jerker (brilliant in its own right). Girl Talk - Digital Hustlin'. Cheat # 2 (2007 gig), but I only recently found out about this Pittsburg mashup wonder through reading Lawrence Lessig's 'Remix' (and Lessig is a law professor in his 40s, so an authority on electronic music for the new millennium). A sure sign that sampling and remixing is becoming a 'creative' art form in its own right - not just a burglar's occupation (this is all unauthorized use), Girl Talk magically breathes new life into song's we've pretty much heard before.