can't i cry / for you?

how to donate blood / on an empty island

Peggy Lee - Fools Rush In

Pere Ubu - Horses

Privacy - Love Don't Love Long

Richard Hell - I'm Your Man

Chris Spedding - Video Life

Privacy - Pining

Underworld - Born Slippy

Most of these songs (apart from Born Slippy) come from Bradford Cox Micromixes that I chop up into individual songs for my own listening pleasure, but because artists like the highly-recommended Privacy are so hard to find (even though she's on the same label that puts out some of Dirty Projectors' work) I thought I'd share them on here.

knock knock / on the door

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti

not any more

Pink's new album Before Today leaked a few days ago and while it's definitely a lot less lo-fi than previous LPs like 2005's Worn Copy his new sound really allows the lush melodies to shine through. This is one of the more whimsical numbers, and also one of several that will bring to mind Bowie comparisons:

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti - Friday Night (Nevermore)

Ilyak

he takes her to the point / where she can't take it any more

Featuring fantastic production for such a relatively underground artist is this EP from Melbourne hip-hop up-and-comer Ilyak. I've seen him put on a great show supporting Project Puzzles at the Revellers about a month ago but in his own right he shines in these recordings. Forgive the box.net download links - download the entire ep from here.

Ilyak - Party of Life

Ilyak - Broken

The National

venom radio and / venom television

The National's new album High Violet has been released in one form or another in the last few days but this single was one of two that had official release dates beforehand. It's great for plugging in for a downhill ride home from uni if you're mad enough to drink the dangerous cocktail of bikes and headphones (the "Organ Donor", if I really want to stretch this out).

The National - Afraid of Everyone

a hero now / a hero then

The Smiths

wrap her up in the news of the world

It's been a while since I put anything on here but was prompted by the singer of Toyota War mentioning this site to me the other night without knowing I ran it. Most of these have been running around my head lately for different reasons, mainly because I've acquired a few different compilations that I eventually filter out - this song comes from the kings of compilation albums, The Smiths, taken from 1987's Louder Than Bombs.

The Smiths - This Night Has Opened My Eyes

Raymond Scott

the name of the game / is lightworks

I first came across this innovator of electronic music on J Dilla's album Donuts, where he's sampled on the song Lightworks, but then I found out he's written a whole bunch of stuff - most notably the Looney Tunes theme - but also a great back catalogue of advertisements and other instrumentals called the Manhattan Project.

Raymond Scott - Nescafe

The History Boys

one fucking thing / after another

I walked around with the original 20 or so songs which seemed pencilled in for MGS' August Production of The History Boys but a few weeks ago I went through my entire library and threw up a few more possibilities. If you're familiar with the play this song below (which I found on Art Decade two or three years ago) is a possibility for something like Irwin's TV theme (from 0.39 onwards for less than a minute or so).

Fabio Frizzi and Giorgio Tucci - Zombie Theme

DJ Shadow

and here's a story about / being free

I realize the irony of riding a bike while listening to Organ Donor but still continue to play the best songs from DJ Shadows two first albums on the way to and from uni every day; these two come from The Private Press.

DJ Shadow - You Can't Go Home Again

DJ Shadow - Fixed Income

Big L

ducks better scat / when the gat goes click clack

George put me onto Big L's first album Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous a while back and its hard-hitting power restored my faith in non-instrumental hip-hop.

Big L - Fed Up With the Bullshit

Big L - Put It On

Caribou

sun / sun / sun

Finally, some recently-released breakbeat magic from Caribou's latest album Swim, which I highly recommend.

Caribou - Sun

In a day or two we're going to record about four demos of the songs that we've been working on over the past month or so - Birthday Ballot EP? - so I might throw those up on here then if the quality's alright.

i'm not the man / they think i am at home

Kate Bush

she packed my bag last night / pre-flight

This song's a great cover of Elton John's classic by Kate Bush that launches itself into a stratospheric calypso rhythm about 45 seconds in. Kate's also unafraid to keep the lyrics unchanged, so the track doesn't suffer from the transposed gender-bending that blight covers the world over, somewhere.

Kate Bush - Rocket Man (Elton John cover)

Jay-Z and Notorious B.I.G. (remixed by RATATAT)

there's always too much / for me to have enough

I'm a big fan of both the RATATAT mixtapes, and this track from the second would be my favourite.

Jay-Z and Notorious B.I.G. - Allure (RATATAT remix)

Paul McCartney


she could be a neurosurgeon / if she's doing nothing urgent

Paul. Solo. Electronica.

Paul McCartney - Temporary Secretary

Lindsey Buckingam

i should ride / on the double

Having gone his own way from Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham pursued a successful solo career culminating in the album Law and Order (which he's posing next to above) and specifically in this single, which features drumming from former bandmate Mick Fleetwood.

Lindsey Buckingham - Trouble

Tom Tom Club

it's ok / i've overstood

Tom Tom Club were a side-project of several Talking Heads members, best remembered for the single Genius of Love. This is a personal favourite of mine, along with the Lorelei.

Tom Tom Club - Wordy Rappinghood 12"

Beach House

are you coming home / are you still alone?

Beach House's third album Teen Dream is now available in full and I thought I'd post this song again in its lush album version.

Beach House - Used To Be (Album version)

two / can be as bad as one

Like Radiohead's Videotape, One proves how simple truly great music can be.

Harry Nilsson - One (Is The Loneliest Number)


Pitchfork did a 60's list a while back and I found this there, and have no plans to let it go.

Francoise Hardy - Tout Les Garcons Et Les Filles

You would have heard the synth line on this more times than you think, whether it was interspersed between Relax (Don't Do It) in the final sequence of Zoolander, or coming out of Kenneth Parcell's boombox as he did some street-performing in his neighbourhood.

Herbie Hancock - Rockit

Ain't a damn thing changed

It's my post zero at Cellosun as the first and latest, up-to-datest (single), most expatiated, least precedented unique-George-scented contributor reshackler and expander of musky tabernackle-ah, popping like snap-crackling smack to bring us back from the lack of athletic rhyme attack, sort of — and other shit.

PART 1:

"Plus my voice is fucked, so when I say 'oh!', I want y'all to say 'oh!'"

Phased from your original plan, you deviated,
I alleviated the pain, with a long-term goal,
Took my underground loot, without the gold -
You sold platinum round the world, I sold wood in the hood,
But when I'm in the street, then shit it's all good

Pharoahe Monch @ Meredith Music Festival, 12/12/09
featuring DJ BOOGIE BLIND, Showtyme, and Mela Machinko

For me Pharoahe Monch was pretty much on par with Why? for my 10 hours sleep from 60 at/around Meredith experience, and far overshadowed my enjoyment of the likes of Animal Collective — queue no-name canvas shoes, one speeds and moleskine diaries thrown at my head and missing because the limp-wristed motor skills of hipsters are sapped by the restrictions of jean-like tights and malnutrition.

Not merely a product of some serious delirium, it was an amazing set - despite being 3:20pm - especially with Boogie Blind from the X-Ecutioners (sporting an Obese Records t-shirt), with a seething, jumping fist-pumping, straight shoulder hand-slamming Egyptian-jamming crowd standing - obviously with the most well-known Simon Says as the final track making the hip-hop-headed angels look down upon the Supernatural Ampitheatre and weep with joy. The end of Monch's Australian tour, nice going if you didn't go to Meredith or see him at Prince the night before...typical you.

The X-Factor Boogie Blind, go investigate

Bush-bashing to Falls went horribly wrong for Monchhichi

Pharoahe Monch and Mos Def freestyle:

PART 2:

2/5 of Why? at Meredith

Why? at the East Brunswick Club, Tuesday 15/12/09
with Aleks and the Ramps, and Parking Lot Experiments

My second time seeing my favourite band in four days — Yoni Wolf asked where my karate kid headband had gone...it's not...I don't think of—well, it's not the biggest deal, per se...that he remembered...but, um...you know. My week was still pretty great. I guess.
Their set differed from Meredith's by including a few more from Eskimo Snow and Elephant Eyelash - Into The Shadows of My Embrace was replaced with Eskimo Snow and These Hands, and a few such as Yo Yo Bye Bye, Sanddollars, and Brooke & Waxing, Good Friday, and Gnashville were added.

They finished with 21st Century Pop Song by Hymie's Basement, a collaboration of Yoni with Why?'s guitarist etc. Andrew Broder also from Fog - it sounds exactly what it sounds like, pretty good. Then they participated in the East Brunswick Club trivia night. What a band.

Aleks and the Ramps

"I have this recurring dream where Ol' Dirty Bastard comes and teaches me tai chi, this song is about that." - Aleks

...So, I can't remember which song it was, but...still..you know? Man? Okay, just the obvious then:

Antique Limb - Aleks and the Ramps

You may have heard it on Triple J, but the chances of this decrease immediately if you have never listened to Triple J. They were heaps of fun and funny with the whole between-songs-banter thing so for Melbourners, go see them wherever they're playing next.

________________

As Big L said on Put It On: "And I'm out, I'm out, I'm out, I'm out..."

if your shower / has a fair amount of pressure

A Tribe Called Quest


can you let me know / right now

I acquired this thinking that it was an edit by Why? as opposed to being one named after the Carly Simon track it samples. But either way its a vast improvement on the original and a reminder that good things could still come out of 1990.

A Tribe Called Quest - Bonita Applebum (12 inch Why? edit)

Positive K

what's your man / got to do with me?

This is actually an shortened adaptation of the original song by Positive K done by Hot Chip on their DJ Kicks compilation (the one that saw My Piano's debut). Incidentally, their new album isn't far off, but if One Life Stand and Take It In are anything to go by it might fall well short of Made in the Dark. But back to this; a minute or so of rhyming interspersed with pleading that sadly cuts off "peewee herman" at the very end.

Positive K - I Got A Man

Why?

it sounds like a screaming school of fish

I finally saw one of my favourite bands at the Meredith Music Festival, when Yoni Wolf and co. took the stage for an elaborate, foreplay-like soundcheck. Without dwelling too much on just how great they are, here are two of their more unknown songs, both coming before the heady glory of the album Alopecia. A Little Titanic is taken from Oakandazulazylum, while 500 Fingernails is off the Sanddollars EP and also had an airing on Why?'s Almost Live.

Why? - A Little Titanic

Why? - 500 Fingernails

Thanks again to Jack and George who can claim equal credit for introducing me to Why? and especially to George, who is going to be writing on here in the very near future.


Themselves ft. Why? and cLOUDDEAD


watching me fold / any chance you might have had / at a tryst

I would have nearly missed this if it hadn't been for the beautiful hypem, with three of the best signings to the label Anticon collaborating on this song and Yoni leading the way.

Themselves ft. Why and cLOUDEAD -Rappin’ For Money

Blue Orchids

i'm sorry / to bother you

Many thanks to Conway from the great band Toyota War (go check them out). In a review they were likened to The Fall's singer Martin Bramah's band Blue Orchids, and although there are a few differences the most striking similarity of both band's singers stands out. A very appropriate song for that special time of year we call Change of Preference week.

Blue Orchids - Bad Education

Phil Collins


if you feel it / do it

Rounding out this post is an adjustment to a great tune from the Phil Collins album Face Value which featured on a micromix compiled by Geologist (of Animal Collective fame) for Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox. Astute observers will note that the picture above isn't of Phil at all, but a still of Bowie from the movie Real Cool World. If it's still, it's not moving; justification?

Phil Collins - I'm Not Moving (Idjut Boys edit)


Stay tuned for more things from George soon

and neither one / particularly / appeals to me

Beach House

are you not the same / as you used to be?

These two songs are taken from Beach House's forthcoming third album, Teen Dreams; Norway in particular is an especially blissful track. Teen Dreams is out on the 26th of January next year.

Beach House - Norway

Beach House - Used to Be

DJ Shadow

no wonder / the sound has so much body

Credited as the grandfather of underground hip-hop, this song comes from DJ Shadow's breakthrough album Entroducing. It samples heavily from Giorgio Moroder's Tears, taken from Son of My Father.

DJ Shadow - Organ Donor

The Lovin' Spoonful

back of my neck / getting dirt and gritty

A song for all time. It might just be me, but the guy on the bottom left looks scarily like Michael Palin.

The Lovin' Spoonful - Summer in the City

The Specials

why must you record / my phone calls?

I foolishly ruled out two-tone ska like this from music for next year's play. You're left listening to this and wondering what might have been...

The Specials - Gangsters

The Smiths

and if the day came / when i felt a natural emotion

I realize The Smiths are a bit of a recurring feature here but decided to share my favourite song of theirs regardless; the Peel Session version of Nowhere Fast. 1.50 minute mark...

The Smiths - Nowhere Fast (Peel Session '84)