A favorite artist of mine since the ’90’s and one of the more organic producers in the field of electronic music, multi-instrumentalist Max Brennan always worked from his base on the Isle of Wight, a relatively isolated outpost in the middle of the English Channel. Brennan appeared to be growing as a musician as his Fretless AZM project continued, and his fourth 1998 album Oceans of Light revealed glimpses of improvisation among its deep grooves and the occasional excursion into beatless electronics. Truly cosmic stuff.
Here’s a song I can play over & over again [and believe me, I have]: Board of Canada’s infectious synth take on Midnight Star’s ‘Midas Touch’, now lovingly re-synched to the original video.
San Propers‘ influence has spread far and wide during recent years, but this longtime collaborator and friend has been on the forefront of my attention for more then a decade. Standing shoulder to shoulder with DJ’s such as Theo Parrish, Moodymann and Rahaan, San has proved to be Amsterdam’s most popular advocate of vintage funk, thrusting disco and straightup structuring house beats.
This mix was recorded 8 years ago during my weekly radio show called ‘Earsmear’ on DFM, and displays just the right blend of forbidding atmosphere, subtle funkiness, samples and noise. Repeated play recommended.
Outspoken veteran dance-music producer and a theremin enthusiast, Daniel Wang was born in Tibet and spent bits of his childhood in Taiwan and California. In the late ’80s he moved to New York to attend college and fell in with the club scene, eventually becoming involved as a house and disco DJ. He started Balihu which became his primary outlet, and eventually abandoned the use of samples altogether in an effort to emulate the producers who have inspired him. This 1997 track was released on the ‘Mood Mylar‘ 12″, which favors a strong craze for eccentric repetition, fun and diversity. Exuberant neo-electro.
An excellent modern pianist who is adaptable to many acoustic jazz settings, Stanley Cowell has long been underrated except among knowing musicians. Taken from the 1981 album ‘New World‘, this invigorating track displays amazing technique, finding each player exploring seemingly different territory, keeping the listener in a deep meditative state trying to take it all in. Recommended.
The minimalistic funk of New York’s Liquid Liquid is definitely not a bad choice to start this years’ series of posts with. The angular, bass-propelled funk grooves laid the groundwork for post-rock bands like Tortoise and Tarwater more than a decade before the fact — stripping all excess and artifice, resulting in their hypnotically dub-like sound. Remarkable intense stuff.
Came across this 1999 gem while nosing through my dusty tucked-away boxes of cd’s. Climbing a few rungs up the left-field ladder with these deep house musings from siblings Beni and Christoph Reimann on the now defunct but brilliant Source Records. Accomplished laptop vibraphonics, tinkling key work ensuring top-notch electronic jazz fusion.
Posted by freudeu 
Posted by freudeu 
Posted by freudeu 
