Revolutionary Spanish Destruction Rocks

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

Happy Straya Day. If you're out and about celebrating, by all means be thankful you had the good fortune to be born into a beautiful natural landscape with a whole heap of privileges you can take for granted, but don't be a dick about it hey? Don't forget that the actual date represents an invasion of one nation over another and the subsequent oppression of the traditional owners. Owners who didn't even have a right to be counted in a census until as late as 1967. Maybe have a sensible discussion about moving it to the date on which we acknowledged the humanity of the people who lived and loved this land for over 40,000 years - the 27th of May; when we became one Australia and not when we were invaded by Britain. 

And so to the music. First up, I guess I know what it says about my state of mind at the minute, I have some hardcore stick-it-to-the-man music from Gil Scott Heron and a revolutionary jazz compilation. Both of those are multiple disc sets, so they'll be back next week. To fill the 'old favourites' spots, I have Ray LaMontagne, Tori Amos and Jesse Malin. Representing Hip Hop you'll find Q-Tip and Pharoahe Monch. Another compilation from Uncut, this time all new music, plus She's Spanish, I'm American thanks to last week's SOTW leaves only a new release from California X. 

Check it out:

• Gil Scott-Heron - The Revolution Begins (Disc 1)
• VA - Freedom Rhythm & Sound Revolutionary Jazz 1963-82 (Disc 1)
• Ray LaMontagne - God Willing and the Creek Don't Rise
• Q-Tip - Amplified
• Jesse Malin - The Fine Art of Self Destruction
• Pharoahe Monch - W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)
• Tori Amos - Boys For Pele
• California X - California X
• VA - Uncut Rocks Off
  
• She's Spanish, I'm American - She's Spanish I'm American EP

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Hilltop Hoods
2. Bruce Hornsby
3. The Autumn Defense
4. Datarock
5. JEFF the Brotherhood

Song of the Week : The Jam - Pretty Green

I am going with a The Jam song today. I had Sound Affects on this week's list and at the same time watched a two part BBC thing on Growing Up Poor. This song Pretty Green seems like it was made for a documentary like that - with talk about money and power and music and the whole English accent thing. 

I've never closely followed the catalogue of The Jam, beyond the odd track on a compilation, plus That's Entertainment has always been a favourite. But the Mojo book I was reading recently really talked up this album, so I thought it was worth a shot. It was.

Catch Ya Later, Mate

Have a great day wherever you are, but especially here in Australia. Just don't use it as an excuse to wave a flag at people who don't look like you, or believe in the same God as you. Use it as a day to be 'Australian' which is multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and hopefully forward thinking. We used to be the 'clever country', remember?

Hoo roo. Hasala malakim.

Playlist : October 24th -28th, 2011

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

This week the Australian and more specifically Perth Hip Hop community mourns the loss of Hunter of the SBX Crew. Hunter battled cancer for more than a year and managed to organise a compilation of Australian rap acts to raise money for Canteen. The disc is due out in November and you can order it here on release. Condolences to Hunter's son and family, the Syllabollix Crew and the whole Australian Hip Hop community on a great loss.

So with a heavy heart, it's on with the music. I had to have a "Skip Hop" contingent and I've chosen Bliss n Eso and the excellent Culture of Kings compilation where I first heard Hunter. Watching This Is England '86 this week has put me in the mood for The Jam. New albums from Ben Lee and Noel Gallagher; a Nina Simone anthology, Dixie Chicks - yeah Dixie Chicks. What pimp?! Come at me - plus some other gems and there you have a whole week's listening. It's actually a short week this week because of the relocated-just-for-CHOGM long weekend.

My list goes:

• Ben Lee - Deeper Into Dream
• Ray LaMontagne - Gossip In The Grain
• Bliss n Eso - Day of the Dog
• VA - Culture of Kings Vol 2
• The Jam - Greatest Hits
• VA - Retrospace : Soul Mixtape
• VA - Elizabethtown OST Vol. 2
• Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - S/T
• Nina Simone - Sugar In My Bowl : The Best of Nina Simone
• Dixie Chicks - Home

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Hilltop Hoods
2. Nas
3. US3
4. The Pleased
5. Sonic Youth

Song of the Week : Hunter - Jam Roll

Yesterday morning, Perth rapper and long-time Syllabolix Crew member Hunter lost his battle with endocrine cancer. You can read about it at PerthNow.

This is one of the only solo tracks of his that I know. It appears on Culture of Kings Vol. II. Hunter and the SBX crew were among those who first gave Australian Hip Hop its own sound. In the early days, we had Mighty Big Crime who were Beastie Boys rip offs, plus a bunch of mostly American-style lesser lights. Even the DJs on 100FM who I listened to in the 80s would put on fake US accents to rap or to talk Hip Hop.

SBX’s uniqueness gave us a completely Ocker sound and content. They rapped about Centrelink and beer and trainlines. Hunter actually has an LP called Going Back To Yokine where he raps all about his home suburb. This track Jam Roll is about fudging Dole forms and living unemployed. I think that now Australian Hip Hop has found a happy medium between the larrikin and the serious exponent of the culture, but back when people like Huntz got started, it was still finding its way ahead. He really was a pioneer for what we have now.

As I said, I have only heard a few of his songs apart from his appearances in other people’s tracks like Drapht, Hilltop Hoods, Bias B and Matty B, but I have been following him on Twitter for the last year. It has been a little bit of a humbling journey. He ran the gamut of emotion from day to day from upbeat positivity to out and out depression. It was a sad day for the heads yesterday and a lot of us felt it. So this is me pouring a ‘forty’ on the curb for a ‘homie’ who’s gone. Except Hunter hated US rap.

RIP Hunter

Rest in peace to a rapper who helped point Australian Hip Hop in it's own direction. Without Hunter, things wouldn't be quite the same. He introduced a uniquely Australian identity to the music and elements of it still remain. That identity was the reason we managed to shake off most of the US imitation from our collective backs.

Play safe out there kids, no matter what you do. And don't forget to have fun. Hasala malakim.

Playlist October 17th - 21st, 2011

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

This week has been fairly unspectacular. I've spent a lot of it in a haze of hayfever/flu drugs while I fought off epic sniffles. I'm almost recovered now though, thanks for asking.

To the music and this week I have a band I just discovered, Real Estate, though they're not new. I have a soundtrack from a so-so indie sleeper; the latest from funky jazz rap outfit Us3; some Nas; a Rickie Lee Jones classic, Prince's 20Ten record that he released via the Daily Mirror in the UK, some good old-fashioned Sonic Youth and more.

See what you think

• Nas - Nastradamus
• Rickie Lee Jones - Pirates
• Ray LaMontagne - Til The Sun Turns Black
• Real Estate - Days
• Prince - 20Ten
• The Pleased - Don't Make Things
• Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
• Us3 - Lie, Cheat & Steal
  
• VA - Away We Go OST
• Band of Horses - Cease To Begin

Top Five Artists Last Week

1. Digable Planets
2. Fela Kuti
3. Superstar Quamallah
4. Toy Box Scholars
5. Horse Feathers

Song of the Week : Cymbals Eat Guitars - Definite Darkness

My song this week came from the free Spin playlist for October. I don’t know this band, but this song makes them sound like Weezer maybe spent some time in the studio with Bush of all bands. What I like about it is it wouldn't raise an eyebrow if you took it back and released it in the early to mid 90s. When the kids are ripping off that kind of sound and doing it well, I’m not sure if that’s a good sign or not, but I like how it sounds.

There’s an obvious 90s vibe running through with the quiet loud distortion of it. Even the arpeggiated guitar under the verse. It makes me think that nostalgia is moving faster than ever before, but then I remember that 1991 was 20 years ago and that’s about how long nostalgia usually takes. There’s still a little bit of current style about it too, with an epic harmonised refrain of Ooooos and the swelling of instruments into that wall of sound orchestration we’re used to from Bon Iver, Polyphonic Spree etc.

TGIS

Well that's me for another week. I trust your week will be sunshine and lollipops; or at the very least, a light breeze and good coffee. If you get a chance, stream the Real Estate LP on NPR if you like mellow surf pop. It's quite an enjoyable listen.

Take care out there kids. Don't let the Man turn you around. Hasala malakim.

Playlist : January 17th - 21st, 2011

Hi and welcome to another week of Work Tunes.

This week's list features a couple of albums I've been meaning to get for at least 10 years, as well as some old favourites and one or two I've never heard. For me, that makes a good list, and it looks like this:

• Beastie Boys – To The 5 Boroughs : It hasn’t been that long since this album was on my playlist. I’ve put it on again because lately I’ve been hearing a lot of hate for it from people who are true Beastie Boys fans. I have always liked this album and maybe I’m not hearing whatever it is that puts people off it. I thought repeated listens might help me understand why it copped so much flack. For me, Open Letter To NYC is one of their better tracks, and the Hip Hop/New York history lessons scattered throughout the lyrics are like reassurances of our culture’s true place in the world. Sounds strange, I know, listening to an LP to see if I hate it, but I am intrigued by how little respect it’s given.

• John Lennon & Yoko Ono – Some Time In New York City : I’ve been on a little bit of a Lennon kick lately after reading the interview he did with Rolling Stone three days before his death. I’ve come to truly believe that he was the Beatles. Not only that, strange music aside, I have cemented my view that Yoko Ono is a decent and enlightened individual who had no direct part in the breakup of the Beatles. If anything, it was John’s fault and had to happen anyway. So this is Some Time In New York City; the third album Lennon made post-Beatles. Tell me anything good that McCartney ever did post-Beatles. Wings?! Pffft.

• The Decemberists - The King is Dead : The latest effort from Portland natives The Decemberists features guest appearances from Peter Buck of R.E.M. fame and Gillian Welch of Gillian Welch obscurity. Apparently the title is an homage to the Smiths classic The Queen Is Dead and you can hear a little Morrissey and Marr influence in past work by The Decemberists. Buck’s bright jangle, Conlee’s accordion and a fine dose of fiddle lends this LP a folk and country vibe.

• Das Racist - Shut Up, Dude : Released as a free download in March 2010, Das Racist’s first mixtape caught a lot of attention; mainly due to the video game created for the song Who’s That? Brooown! These guys basically use rap as a comedy vehicle, but they are at the same time very decent rappers. Fittingly, Playboy has called them a cross between “Hip Hop and Cheech & Chong”. In September, the duo released another mixtape, Sit Down, Man which I’ll play next week. Meanwhile, you can download this mixtape from the album name link.

• Ray LaMontagne - Trouble : I only recently found out about Ray LaMontagne with the excellent God Willing and the Creek Don’t Rise album. Last week, a mix on 8tracks included Jolene from Trouble. It was stunning and I set about getting some back catalogue. Trouble is an impressively sparse and subdued set with some first-rate lyrics. Check it out if you liked the Pariah Dogs last year.

• Paul Kelly – The A – Z Recordings (Disc One) : I’m going to attempt to hear all of Paul Kelly’s sprawling and epic boxset one disc at a time. That will take 8 playlists to do, but I think it will be worth it. I’ve been a massive Paul Kelly fan ever since 1985’s Under the Sun which was on ultra-high rotation (in cassette form) during that summer for me. Since then I’ve bought virtually everything PK has released (including with Uncle Bill). Australia’s greatest living songwriter deserves every clichéd and exaggerated epitaph we can bestow upon him. Some highlights on the first disc are the cheeky Adelaide, the timeless Beggar on the Street of Love and the excellent Cake and the Candle which was given to Kate Cebrano to record. Tune in next week for Disc Two.

• Things of Stone and Wood - Junk Theatre : One of two albums I picked up last week after missing my chance to pick them up in the 90s, Junk Theatre is as far as i know, Things' second. Their debut, The Yearning, featured the massive hit Happy Birthday Helen and less successful but still popular Share This Wine. I was a big fan while at Uni (and the band actually played in our courtyard) of their folky brand of Melbourne song. They're somewhere between Noiseworks and the Mucky Duck Bush Band which makes it all a little dated. The only songs I know here are Wildflowers, a cautionary tale about right wing politics and Churchill's Black Dog about depression.

• Concrete Blonde - Group Therapy : My 90s obsession with Concrete Blonde pretty much ended soon after I saw Johnette Napolitano play live. That's not to say she turned me off them, she was great. I think it was probably because I discovered Eminem and got back into rap in a big way. Whatever it was, I bought everything Concrete Blonde ever did, but not Group Therapy from 2002 - which I picked up last week.

• VA - More Sounds of the New West : Another of last week's purchases, this is the sequel to one of my favourite compilations. The first Sounds of the New West is so important to me, because I bought it after discovering Ryan Adams and Whiskeytown when the whole Alt Country genre was new to me. Since then my original purchase has introduced me to the Hansom Family, Kate Campbell, Lambchop, Neal Casal, Hazeldine, Calexico and Will Oldham. So when eBay offered up the sequel in a one cent CD auction, I snapped it up. I haven't listened yet, but I hope to find a stack more artists.

• Pearl Jam - No Code : I'm still on a quest to get back into Pearl Jam. I don't understand why they lost me, I only know that No Code was when they did. This is the most recent Pearl Jam album I own. With any luck, the passage of time might make it sound a little better for me. That aside, There He Goes from this album has always been a good listen.

And there’s the whole list for this week. My best wishes go to the people of Queensland who are fighting against terrible hardship in the floods that have wreaked havoc upon their sunny state. If you want to donate, you can do so at http://www.qld.gov.au/floods/donate.html To all my people in the Q-L-D, stay safe and warm and dry.

Bye for now, but before you go, this week is your last chance to grab my Best of 2010 Mixtape. Until next time; Peace man, right on.

Playlist : Top 10 Albums of 2010

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

This week, I have chosen my Top 10 of 2010. This list is not necessarily of the 10 best albums released all year, it's just my personal favourites released all year. I also have to stress, this is not in any kind of preferential order. If I had to pick the best album of 2010 from a personal point of view, I'd say Wake Up! is it.

On top of the list, I've made a mixtape of one track from each of the albums. You'll find a link at the bottom of the post.

This year for me has been a good year for discovering new artists, thanks largely to NPR and KCRW and their excellent album preview features. A few of these new artists made it to the list. And here it is:

• The Weepies - Be My Thrill : Two years on from the album that got them some well deserved mainstream attention, Hideaway, The Weepies released something a little less weepy and a lot more cheery. While Be My Thrill contains a few sad, sweet tunes, the title track and the catchy I Was Made for Sunny Days are a large slice of sunshine. ****

• John Legend & the Roots - Wake Up! : When I heard Compared To What from this set for the first time, my jaw dropped. I was stunned that so much old-fashioned funk and soul was coming off a track from an album released in 2010. The other tracks on Wake Up! are in the same mold. This is probably my album of the year. *****

• Ben Folds & Nick Hornby - Lonely Avenue : I must admit I've never read a Nick Hornby novel, but I have seen the excellent film adaptions of High Fidelity and About A Boy. It's obvious that Hornby writes good everyday type people well. Combined with Ben Folds' uniquely suburban heart and pop sensibilities, this colaborative effort makes for good listening. ****

• Best Coast - Crazy For You : Released in July, which is Winter in the Southern Hemisphere where I am, this album sounds exactly like Summer. You can almost smell the coconut oil and the sea breeze mixed with the smoke from the late night bonfire at the beach party where romances are born and hearts are broken. This is joyfully rowdy pop music for the Sun. ****

• Ray LaMontagne and The Pariah Dogs - God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise : The fourth album from raspy-voiced country/folk songwriter Ray LaMontagne was the very first one I heard. The bluesy, sweet melody of New York City's Killing me had me instantly sold on LaMontagne's style; and the rest of old-time roots record does not disappoint. ****

• Aloe Blacc - Good Things : It was I Need a Dollar that made me want this album. Like Compared To What on the John Legend and the Rootrs LP, Dollar stunned me with true 60s/70s soul and the groove behind it that really makes it bounce. 2010 saw soul music fans like me given a little taste of what was still possible with the genre. ****

• Justin Townes Earle - Harlem River Blues : Another artist who has been around for some time whom I only discovered this year. Harlem River Blues is a collection of tunes that lend a little from everywhere; including rockabilly, bluegrass, folk, alt-country, blues and rock. It's a well-rounded album with the standout title track, One More Night in Brooklyn and the heartbroken Rogers Park. *****

• The National - High Violet : For me at least, and for a good number of music publications, 2010 was The National's year. The massive success of 2008's Boxer and a busy touring schedule meant High Violet was much anticipated. Things got even more hyped with the release of a new The National track on the $1m raising charity compilation Dark Was the Night. Something of a hit single relatively speaking, Bloodbuzz Ohio ensured High Violet got to #3 on the US charts where Boxer had peaked at #68. *****

• Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here : Released early February of this year, I'm New Here ended a 13 year absence of new material from the man some would call a proto-rapper. This is an album about redemption, about finding a way through a new and not always welcoming world. After a long life of drug problems, incarceration and hard living, Heron seems to be contemplating what lies ahead and how it all ends. Here is music from the very soul of a man with a lot of soul. *****

• She & Him - Volume Two : The very digable Zooey Deschanaul and indie songwriter M.Ward released a collection of simple pop that sounded like the 50s run through a Doris Day film filter in 2009. That was Volume One and this is Volume Two, which is more of the same. Deschanaul wrote the lyrics and her voice is well suited to the pop from another age. There were stronger tracks on Volume One, but this is by no means inferior. ****

So those are my very favourite albums from this year. Please, feel free to comment this post and tell me where you think I got it right and where you disagree totally. I'd love suggestions for better albums to listen to that I haven't caught yet.

In the meantime, here is the mixtape I promised you, made up of a track each from my Top 10. You can get hold of it here. Tracklist is as follows:

Gil Scott-Heron - I'm New Here

John Legend & the Roots - Compared To What

Aloe Blacc - I Need A Dollar

The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio

Ben Folds & Nick Hornby - Claire's Ninth

Best Coast - Bratty B

The Weepies - Be My Thrill

Justin Townes Earle - One More Night In Brooklyn

She & Him - Thieves

Ray LaMontagne and The Pariah Dogs - New York City's Killing Me

That's it for this week. I'm officially on holidays from Christmas Eve, so no Work Tunes for the next fortnight. You may find a review or two over at Make Films Not Movies.

Take care and have an outstanding break, you crazy cats. Peace man, right on.