Be A Good Sport

For a couple weeks in January this is what I was digging.

I go batty writing all day, so I'm starting a biweekly(-ish) mix series. I'm listening to new music all the time, but the ones that stick in my craw often come up through research. Plus, figured this would be a way to journal what I'm actually liking over the course of the year -- something that never really comes across whenever it comes time to do year-end lists, which usually focuses on new music only.

No guarantees or structures. Sometimes it will be a buncha tunes. Sometimes it will be one tune. I'll try to do this every two weeks or so. Keep the work manageable for me and the blends digestible for y'all.

The first one comes with liner notes, which can also be found in the "Lyrics" field. iPhone users should be able to see this automatically.

Anyway, let me know what you think!

Floyd Cramer "On the Rebound"
* I stopped seeing a lot of films in the theaters, thinking I'll wait 'til the disc hits the public library shelves. It's like a socialist new music Tuesday. I kid. Glad I waited for "An Education." Hey, there's the wedding crasher! Liked Carey Mulligan, but the story is a bit light. Then again the film kicks off with this country-soul instrumental. What more can I say?

Hosono Haruomi "Sportsmen" & YMO "Rap Phenomena"
* I am really kicking myself for not picking up all those YMO LPs back in the day. Can't have it all, right? The country version of "Sports Men" above is pretty bizarre.

Burial "Raver" & Kode9 "9 Samurai"
* Preparing for an interview with producer Kode9, I checked out his Hyperdub label's catalog. As usual, I'm behind the times and hadn't known about Mercury Prize-winning artist Burial and the whole mystery behind his identity. All of which is less interesting than this intensely moody and weird music. I really liked Kode9's 2009 single "Black Sun." Weird, bending synths and skittering beats. These two tracks put it in context.

Killer Mike "Burn"
* Hearty raps over peak-tweaking Funkadelic breaks. I loved Funkadelic when I was in high school, though most of it went over my head. Lovely to be able to revisit it.

Nigel Godrich "Bass Battle"
* More library action. Wish I saw Scott Pilgrim in a theater, though. Love this "battle" b/c it sounded like it was fun to record. Really into Scott's Bad Brains-ish lick.

Japandroids "1297 Heavenward Grand Prix"
* The Mountain got into this group, so I had to give in. Noisy, poppy, good beats.

Daedelus "Femme Fatale"
* Disco askew. Eghk.

PJ Harvey "The Words that Maketh Murder"
* Patti Smith hearts this. Now it's hard for me to tell if I like this song b/c it makes me want to dance in my kitchen, or if I like this b/c it makes me think of Patti Smith dancing in her kitchen.