random tunes part 9

i know this is complete indulgence but i like it so this is going to continue
until i get bored with this little game of calculated chance (possible)
or i give up this whole blog thing completely (unlikely)
or i run out of tunes to randomly play (impossible)
so as seems to be the case lately it is sunday evening and time to roll the mice
nuwerun by aurelio martinez
all the way from berlize in south america on a label called stonetree records
the style of music is called garifuna and according to wiki has been proclaimed by unesco as
one of the masterpieces of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity
this track would be a fine example with up-tempo, acoustic instruments
and a smokey, funky, dirty sax sound sitting very nicely in-between the fine vocals
lonely night by richard hawley
well i'm goin' away now baby it's going to be alright i just can't stand another lonely night
goin' away now baby, going to take my shoes, going to walk off these lonely blues
this man has a voice that pricks up ears whenever it is heard
and he can write a beautiful song and play a nice acoustic guitar also
the production does not let him down either - lovely stuff
ya fama by toumani diabate's symmetric orchestra
kora player from mali the centre of west african music
there's no doubt he decided to add the o word to the title of this album for good reason
for every track has a multitude of instruments mixed in
this one features stabbing brass sounds, female voice harmonies, and various percussion
and gets along at an infectiously cracking pace inspiring some serious get-down dancing no doubt
visions 4 by triosk
i rate these lads very, very highly - 3 piece new noise outfit from sydney - forget the j word
upright/electric bass, drums/percussion, piano/noise machine - no vocals thank-you very much
they have a very acute sense of melody and repeat rhythms and definitely a case of the sum of.....is greater than....
this tune kicks along very solidly and as is typical with triosk like nothing else i have ever heard
friday night sees a rare appearance of this globe-trotting outfit in sydney - woo-hoo
m.a.t.h. by gotan project
this is one out of the bag for this very smooth, very groovey, very eclectic outfit
someone seemingly has convinced them that you gotta have rap on your album to be contemporary
it's actually an interesting exercise in taking their hybrid french/argentinian style
and going further in the mix-it-up style by taking on a full-blown rap artist
complete with the usual profanities and high-speed vocals - i can cope with this just fine
without visible sign by jan garbarek
from his album from a few years back titled in praise of dreams
norwegian based saxophonist held in high regard and recording on the ecm label
there's something about the warmth of violins taking centre stage on a recording
then allowing in this case a tenor saxophone to fill in the gaps
a lovely, gentle, long album track that needs no more than that which it is
zanzibar by taj mahal
what a great segue into this track from another well respected musician
also an instrumental track with bluesy electric guitar working with simple drums
the feel of the tune in obvious deference to the title and thus having an african groove
probably something him and his trio knocked out in one take at a soundcheck
but his one take would still be better than just about everything else around
cowboy dreams by prefab sprout
always happy to hear this band for they are masters at their pop-based music
hugely underrated as is the case with way too many musicians these days
i've heard and enjoyed many albums from them and they are all very good
this track is very typical of their tongue-in-cheek singalong style
always with the best production, crisp vocals and nostalgic sound
lonely stretch by the triffids
born sandy devotional will go down as a major australian album from last century
it was great then it is brilliant now with re-mastering and the music is ageing beautifully
this starts out with strummed, edgey guitar and echo-laiden electronica
then mr mccomb's voice lands and delivers a song as big as the country it comes from (whoa)
look out now....i'll be so good for yooooooouuuuuuuuuuu
nothing that harms by the laughing clowns
oops sorry ed a not so gentle reminder of some other superb 80's australian music
and another case of that which improves with re-mastering and ageing
one day this band will be given the praise it is due
i just hope that in light of the s-aints revival he is just warning up for the real deal
this tune typically is totally unique and gets better and better with each listening

damn - all over for another week - 10 more not-so-random tunes
methinks there is a pattern emerging here so need to add some more randomness
better haul out that list of just gotta haves and do some shopping