Yo! Familiar Desire Funk (June 3rd - 7th)

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

It's a long weekend where I am, for Western Australia Day (formerly Foundation Day), so I'm looking forward to a Monday without any solid purpose. Right now I'm fighting a cold as well as a %#^^&$^&$# wisdom toothache, so forgive me if you know me irl and I'm a bit cranky.
  
A few new ones and some bands I just discovered this week. There's new releases from Camera Obscura and Bob Evans, plus Mona and Maria who I've only just found. Boards of Canada are another band I've been meaning to check out for a good 5 years or more. There's some rock classics from Blondie and Van Halen (on a huge Blondie kick still). A compilation packed full of funk and one with old school Hip Hop get a gig. The best of the Church is here too and lastly Pearl Jam's Backspacer.

Check it out:

• VA - Yo! MTV Raps
• Bob Evans - Familiar Stranger
• Blondie - Blondie
• Camera Obscura - Desire Lines
• Mona and Maria - My Sun
• Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children
• Pearl Jam - Backspacer
• Van Halen - Van Halen II
• VA - Funk Soul Brothers
• The Church - The Best of the Radio Songs

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Al Green
2. Steve Martin & Edie Brickell
3. Suzanne Vega
4. Oblivians
5. The Sonics

Song of the Week : Kraftwerk - Electric Cafe

Because Daft Punk's new one was flavour of the month last week, I gave it a spin. I have to say I really enjoyed it. The production is great and it sounds terrific, inside headphones especially. It is nicely intricate and it plays around with that retro sounding electronica. 

And there's the thing. Everyone was falling over themselves to declare it a masterpiece and raving on and on and on about how great it was, but forgetting that it borrows pretty heavily from a number of sources that they wouldn't afford the same rave reviews.

So with that in mind, I span another album this week by Kraftwerk. The title track off Electric Cafe is, from this album at least, probably the best example of where some of the sound of Random Access Memories comes from. I'm not knocking Daft Punk for pastiching and blending the way they did. As Simon said, there are elements of ELO on RAM too. It’s great, but people should acknowledge the debts it owes when fawning over it.

Kommen sie bitte und listen to Kraftwerk

Toodle Oooh

Happy weekend bliss wherever you are, but especially in Perth with the long one. Be excellent to each other and drive safe if you're on the roads - especially around one particular big black Jeep with a cranky, sniffly old hipster dufus in it.

Hasala malakim.

Playlist May 2nd - 6th, 2011

Well hello there tunesters. It's been a massive break for me over Easter. After the first weekend was spent working day and night, I tried to make the most of every day I had left. It was an excellent break.

And so on to the music. This week's list contains a number of new ones, from The Waifs, Okkervil River and Drapht. Plus I'm trying to hear some classics I haven't heard in a while (Blondie) or at all (50 Cent). Here's what I've got:

• Blondie - Parallel Lines
• Okkervil River - I Am Very Far
• Drapht - The Life of Riley
• John Mayer - Battle Studies
• The Strokes - Is This It
• JEFF the Brotherhood - We Are The Champions
• 50 Cent - Get Rich or Die Tryin'
• John Mellencamp - No Better Than This
• The Waifs - Temptation
• VA - Spin Magazine April 2011
  

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Tori Amos
2. Beastie Boys
3. Ryan Adams
4. Bob Dylan
5. Neko Case

Song of the Week : Psychedelic Furs - Pretty In Pink

One of the things I managed to squeeze into my holidays was a 20 minute visit to a record fair in Vic Park. We were running late with everything we had to do that day, so I only just got there in time. I managed to pick up three great records for a total of less than $20. Madonna’s debut, Van Morrison – Moondance and the Pretty In Pink soundtrack.

I think I’ve mentioned before that Pretty In Pink was the first soundtrack (besides Grease) that I remember everybody my age (about 14 at the time I think) having. I wasn’t even really a fan of the film, beyond Molly Ringwald, but the soundtrack is superb. It has a pretty obvious euro vibe with New Order and The Smiths and OMD. Even Suzanne Vega sounds more English than American. Probably because she’s Canadian (I think, eh?).

I chose the Psychedelic Furs title track to the film, which inspired the film itself. I can’t tell you how 80s geeked out I was when I got this pristine condition vinyl ($9 thanks!) home and put it on the turntable. I had it on cassette back in the day, because I had my own ‘boombox’, but hearing it on wax was transporting. I played it twice in a row that day and I’ve spun it twice since. This is what the 80s sounded like. Enjoy.

Until May

I was going to resurrect the old style Work Tunes for May, but I got so busy on the holidays that I've changed my mind.

Until next week, may your mornings always be hot buttered toast with cartoons and your nights forever be cocktails and moonlight.