THE BEST MUSIC: NEW & OLD
Not much will take you back to the late noughties like a touch of Uffie. For a hot second she (and Ed Banger records) were right of the centre of the electronic music scene.
Bonus track: we can’t talk Uffie and not Pop the Glock. How well has it aged? Hmmm…
It might feel like Summer is coming to end. But maybe it doesn’t have to. Maybe Summer was really all the friends you made along the way. Here’s one more friend to make before it’s too late. Sisters and brothers, enlightenment is now.
It’s a groovy stomper if ever I’ve heard one. The track is a collaboration between Robin Twelftree, The Gambia and Bongo Koi. It was recorded at the culmination of a drive in a Mercedes from London to Gunjur, on the banks of the River Gambia. The vocals belong to none other than Joseph N’Gole, a mystic. How about that.
The vinyl release also has a delightful less edited version, which is well worth picking up if that tickles your fancy. You can hear a snippet and pick that up here.
Shout out to Ben Gomori’s Turned On podcast for the tip.
“Oh I’m missing you for all the sun you shine. There’s a colour missing from the rainbow. Given time we will be dancing once again. I’ll be listening to hear your calling”
I wonder if you’ll be with me on this: I’ve been listening to and loving Crazy P for a long while; they’ve given me a lot of amazing moments, most memorably seeing them at Great Suffolk Street Warehouse, Metropolis and Printworks. But I’ve never really taken the time to find out about who they are. And it is only today, with the sudden, tragic death of lead singer and all-round badass front-woman Danielle Moore at the young age of 52 that I’ve read more about her and the group.
There are much better places to read about her life (including here). But I’ll just say that she is a massive loss, and she will be missed for her music, her individuality and her presence. There aren’t many electronic groups or producers out there that infuse the level of emotion they do in their music, while maintaining a powerful groove.
Here are my top 6 tracks, but it could easily have been a longer list. Mark my works, each of them have the power to give you goosebumps. RIP Danielle.
Nothing beats Heartbreaker. An all-time classic with an instantly recognisable and beautifully elongated intro.
Like a Fool has another classic and beautifully shimmery intro and just gets better and better with the vocals.
The build to the second drop in Cruel Mistress is from another planet.
This one is really built around Danielle’s vocals.
Open For Service really gets going 3 minutes in – a kitsch disco-infused set-opener.
Finally, from 2022, Medlar’s Remix of The Witness.
I like it, but there are a lot of music producers out there combining RnB vocal loops, atmospheric drones, some breaks and old school house piano chords. It’s good, but I think we get it…
And then this came along.
A little touch of SBTRKT alchemy and the whole shtick comes alive again. I challenge you not to throw your hands up 2 minutes in. For me it easily surpasses anything on his 2023 album The Rat Road.
For more SBTKRT, here is his seminal 2011 album.
Since I came across this album today I’ve had it on repeat. It was released in 2021 on Seb Wildblood’s All My Thoughts imprint, and the music shares a lot stylistically with his releases. You’d also be forgiven for at times mistaking it for Four Tet or Jacques Greene. Which is all really to say that it is pretty lush.
The world of Please Keep Shimmering is heavily textured, flitting between organic ambient soundscapes and tracks that are more recognisable as house. In the words of RA, it “flutters and glistens”. He also introduces subtle IDM influences in a really cute way that never overpowers the deep groove. The album is a rich, contemplative, work of art. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. Please keep shimmering.
Iconic French electro duo Justice have released their first album since 2021. Tame Impala (twice), Thundercat and Connan Mockasin all pop up on vocals. All in all it’s a nice release but I can’t shake the analysis from this tweet…
French electro doesn’t need polish.
Bonus tracks: my two Justice faves: one classic, one newer.
Post #365, would you believe it?! And we have a whole new visual identity to celebrate the milestone. You could now read a new post every day for a year* – what a year it would be.
Journey is Bondax’s second full length album, and it’s a real treat just in time for the summer. Feel good electronic music to soundtrack escapades in the sun. The album sits somewhere in between Flight Facilities’ blissed out electronica, and Disclosure’s high energy dance music – and for me, that’s a very nice place to be.
They have a great set of vocalists on the release, including one of my all-time favourites in Andreya Triana, also Tara McDonald and SHELLS; you can read my post on Fade (feat. SHELLS) here.
* Yes I know we are in a leap year
Trust me when I say I have something very different for you today: Drawn Onward is a palindromic audio documentary about the migrant experience. It plays the exact same forwards as it does backwards. The producers were inspired by the yearning of migrants to return to the lands they and their people have left behind. If they got it wrong this could have felt gimmicky, but the result is magical, unnerving and powerful. The reversed speech almost sounds like a foreign tongue which is then translated. All in all it is an amazing piece of sound design.
https://radiolab.org/podcast/short-cuts-drawn-onward
Credit to two of my favourite non-music podcasts, RadioLab, and BBC’s Short Cuts, presented by Josie Long.
Image credits: Jared Bartman
We are delighted to announce the successful acquisition of Harry’s Musical Emporium by new investors!
A New Chapter for Music Tech Innovation
This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Harry’s Musical Emporium, allowing us to accelerate our growth and solidify our position as a leader in the music technology industry. The combined expertise and resources of the new investors will fuel our mission to meet our growth goals.
Building on a Strong Foundation
We are incredibly grateful to our previous investors for their unwavering support in helping us reach this point. Their belief in our vision has been instrumental in our success.
A Shared Vision for the Future
We are excited to embark on this new chapter with our new investors. Their commitment to innovation and their passion for the music industry perfectly aligns with our own values. Together, we will continue to develop cutting-edge music tech solutions that empower and inspire creators around the world.
Looking Ahead
With this acquisition, we are well-positioned to meet our growth goals. We are confident that the best is yet to come for Harry’s Musical Emporium, and we look forward to sharing our continued journey with you.
This is a really special album. My Noise is Nothing is the second collaboration between poet and spoken word performer Ellen Renton, and producer Lord of the Isles. You can read my thoughts on their first release Whities 029 from 2020 here.
For this release they have re-located their unique alchemy. Lord of the Isles creates a set of beguiling, luscious soundscapes – over these Ellen Renton delivers her thought-provoking, evocative, yearnful verse. The music and her voice intertwine with a harmonic give-and-take that is hard to describe. The result is the kind of album you can play again and again.
If you are lucky, you may be able to grab a ticket to see them perform live. They touch down in London at Kings Place on 21st March.
HARRY'S MUSICAL EMPORIUM 