matthew levinson

It’s been a while since I last posted, so here’s to another roundup of music and other things taking my fancy. The European sampler from Cyclic Defrost is unsurprisingly great. If you want to read more, check my review at Stylus. But the short version is: the track from Pivot is amazing and I’m dying to hear their new album, Francis Plagne, Inchtime and Saddleback are brilliant too. The rest is great, but those were the ones that surprised and thrilled me.
Everyone’s been waiting for Bugz to drop the first big broken beat crossover, but maybe Royskopp have beaten them to it. 49%, on their new album, The Understanding, pastes a huge garage vocal ala Robert Owens onto a Maddslinky-style rocking chair beat. Those Norwegians also worked on their countryperson Annie’s debut album. She’s been around for a while, releasing singles that everyone from electroclash and househeads through to indie kids get hyped about. Her new album reminds me of that moment, 1am, drunk, at some dodgy bar, and dancing to Madonna, when you start to think that the conically breasted New Yorker is alright. It’s kinda like St. Etienne and Madonna with a touch of Robbie Williams, doesn’t sound like my usual thing, but there you go. By the way, the new St. Etienne album’s quite listenable too. It’s no So Tough, but it’s not that forgettable last one either. Did Brett Anderson get back together with Bernard Butler? The first song on the Tear’s new album sounds like vintage Suede.
The new records from The Chap, Nudge, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Legends, 2400W and I’m Not A Gun (AKA John Tejada) are great too. I’ve been hunting for the new album, the first real one, from UK grime crew Roll Deep, but after turning Shibuya upside down, I’ve given up for the moment. Actually I’ve been making do with Radioclit’s screwed down and chopped up version, thanks to Jace/Rupture.
I’ve been flying through books lately… Yukio Mishima’s oddly existential Patriotism had me up all night last night, thinking that is, after finishing the short 53 pager in no time. Insomnia isn’t cool. Another short one, Murakami’s Hear The Wind Sing. And I’m now reading The Elephant Vanishes, a collection of Murakami’s short stories, which seem to owe a debt to Raymond Carver.
Music

iPods are a big step forward – as much a hot new technology as a zeitgeist defining change in the way people listen to music – but the manufacture seems pretty average on the recent models.
My 4th gen 40GB model died after only five months. Fortunately I’m in Tokyo, where the super-helpful Mac Geniuses at the Apple Ginza store were happy to replace it, but if it happens again in seven months then I’ll just have to throw it away.
Crazy, as friends with early models – one good friend has a happily functioning 1st gen 5GB model – report no problems.

1. Various – Sexual Life of Savages: Underground Post Punk from Sao Paolo, Brazil (Soul Jazz LP)
This dark rhythmic punk funk puts most of the white bread stuff currently exciting the NME to shame. Highlights for me are tracks by Fellini and As Mercenarias.

2. Six Vicious – Krunk’s Not Dead (Sixtoo 7″)
Heavy instrumental hip hop with a dark post punk mood, the sleeve’s cool too.
3. Vex’d – Gunman/Smart Bomb (Planet Mu 12”)
Heavy heavy dubstep . The A-side is all ravey synth stabs that build into a massive ragga dubstep. The B-side is more on the industrial tip. Both bombs.
4. Acetate Zero – Crestfallen (Arbouse CD)
Beautiful Mogwai-ish shoegazer soundscapes, lots of atmosphere, odd French vocals.
5. Jackie Mitoo – Ayatollah/Mash Up Babylon (Basic Replay 12″)
Low down dubbed out mixes of the ska-est rude bwoy.
6. Ark – Caliente (Perlon LP)
I loved Ark’s single a couple of years ago, so I’ve been looking forward to this album. It’s as good as I could have hoped. Off the wall electro, little bits of deep house, techno with a real punk do it your own way vibe.
7. Keith Tucker – Detroit Saved My Soul (Seventh Sign 12”)
The title track, It’s A Mood (Detroit Saved My Soul), is a deep groove that could easily cross over in a very big way. The B-sides are heavy Detroit electro funk, equally good.
8. Jay Haze – Love For A Strange World (Kitty Yo LP)
The label boss of Context and Context-terrior drops a solo album for Kitty Yo. The results are glitchy electro pop, reminiscent of Ken Cesar’s tracks for Cheap. Very cool.
9. Marco Passarini – Sullen Look (Peacefrog LP)
His cover of I House U last year was excellent and this one keeps the tone. It’s a bit more accessible: extremely funky electro with a sharp techno feel.
10. Various – Cooperation Sessions 1 (Goya LP)
I bought the second in the Co-op broken beat series last year from Picadilly Records. That was essential, this is even more so, I was thrilled to see it in a sale bin at Disk Union in Shibuya. A little more experimental and I guess a little rougher round the edges.
11. Mood II Swing – I Got Love (Bingo 12”)
I love Ciafone and Mood II Swing. I’m not totally excited about what they’ve done with this, instead of the heavy repetition and dub delay of the original, they’ve just thrown a big drum’n’bass break under it. Still it’s a killer break and sure to big for d’n’b heads.
12. Dynarec – Eiso X (Vapourwave 12”)
Former Delsin head drops the first track on, what I assume is, his own new label. Still a little of the broken vibe that colours most Delsin, but much harder. This is dark, hard, distorted electro techno like early New York Nugroove stuff from Joey Beltram and Lenny Dee.

I’ve also picked up old records by Freakwater, Durutti Column, Motherhood, Lisa Shaw, Monochrome Set, Orange Juice and BMX Bandits. The guys from Solo Action sent me their back-catalogue, which I’ll write about before too long (suffice to say it’s killer broken techno).
Category: Music

I was a little skeptical at first, but so many sites are tacking on Google Ads – loads of blogs, Sydney Morning Herald and Inthemix.com.au – and plenty of people are talking about the profits from doing it. So there’s now one on Fortune Grey. What do you think?

Every issue seems to run a little bit later than the last. Still Cyclic Defrost is Australia’s best electronic music mag. Check out the interviews with Sydney’s Feral Media label, the Frequency Lab artist-run space, Melbourne’s Velure, Architecture In Helsinki, activist hip hop crew Combat Wombat, and internationally Hrvatski, Autechre, MIA, Chris Cunningham, Sole and McEnroe. Truckloads of reviews, including my report on Budapest-based Chabz & Krizo. Plus, in what is getting to be a highlight of the magazine, a fantastic trip back into Sir Robbo’s past in Cyclic Selects.
Category: Media