Escape from Skratch by Arthur Bebop Brothers

A late addition, but by no means unnecessary, this is ENTIRELY necessary!

My good friend Jimmy decided to make an amazing track, using only samples from my favorite albums (my own ones, as detailed in December's post).

Seventeen minutes of acoustical glory, made by one of the Irish masters of electronic music. And he likes penguins (but, is also not opposed to crabs it seems, he is a equal opportunity marine animal  aficionado).



Listen here!

https://jimmypenguin.bandcamp.com/track/escape-from-skratch

Best Of Grand Designs Of Mice & Music 2016 - The Mix Tape

Hello people, for all 4 of you who may actually read this thing.

Jimmy and I spent a few hours in the studio today and thanks to his technical and acoustic wizardry, we have a mix CD / Track of all the previous years selected tracks to listen through, with the addition of 5 tracks from my own selection of albums.

Listen or download on MixCloud here !!

Arranged by Thomas, mixed by Jimmy Penguin

Tracklist:

01. Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Moanin'
02. Radiohead - Airbag
03. John Carpenter - The President and the Train
04. Dr. Octagon - blue flowers
05. DSTYLES - Hamburgers And Chocolate Ice Cream
06. DSTYLES - Won't You Be My Neighbor
07. Jamiroquai - Where Do We Go From Here
08. Blues Brothers - Shake A Tail Feather (Feat. Ray Charles)
09. KRS-One - Outta Here
10. Daft Punk - Da Funk
11. TOOL - parabol
12. TOOL - parabola
13. Yoko Kanno & The Seatbelts - Space Lion
14. Refused - Liberation Frequency
15. Rory Gallagher - 20/20 Vision
16. Soundgarden - My Wave
17. MegaDeth - The Killing Road
18. Mr. Bungle - Goodbye Sober Day

DECEMBER - MY FUCKING MUSIC, AND FUCK THE REST OF YOU

Well, the year is pretty much over, so for the final month, I decided to listen to MY music.

When December 1st rolled around, I pulled up an album I'd been saving of a Japanese Harmonica Virtuoso playing with a blues cover band. I was totally unable for it, I just can't process new music right now. I couldn't deal with it. So on went Hancock's Headhunters, which was the only music I listened to for about 3 days. I didn't want lyrics, I didn't want opinions, I didn't want ambience, I just needed something that was music, pure and simple, and something I had already processed. From there it was downhill, the next couple of days was Earth Wind & Fire, the Bee Gees and the Boogie Nights Soundtrack.. And you want to know something, Disco is fucking awesome. There's a reason it took over the world for a brief period. I mean even when Marvin Gaye tried to parody Disco he made one of the best Disco tracks there is.

So from there I went back to my five albums (this had came up when I had discussed the plan months ago with Jimmy, and he decided to mix some music from them). These albums are really in no particular order, and I'm not going to rate them per say, but say what they meant to me really.

The Blues Brothers - Original Soundtrack

Wow, what an incredible lineup. This is effectively the entire back line of the Stax studio from the golden era of Rhythm & Blues (the real kind, not the bastardized kind). I saw this film when I was young and impressionable, and it's musical leanings has affected me ever since. And to be fair to the two Blues Brothers Belushi & Akroyd, they sing quite well. As Steve Cropper said in the behind the scenes "they sang in key, and they didn't miss their queues!". The anecdote that always stays with me is how when Akyroyd & Landis were looking for the stars for the movie, effectively everyone they asked was available because their careers at that time were in the toilet. We've got James Brown, Arethra Frankling, Ray Charles and John Lee Hooker in here (to be fair, John Lee Hooker wasn't on the soundtrack, but the movie is definitely where I was introduced to him). And what else is great, so many of these amazing danceable tracks. How can you not like this album, it's just simply amazing. Some tracks are slower than others, but this stuff is toe tappingly great. This album lead me to investigate classic Motown, James Brown, John Lee Hooker and many others.

Jamiroquai - Synkronized

After being exposed to them a few albums earlier, Jamiroquai were an early favorite of mine. Are the greatest jazz funk band ever? Probably not, but these guys were the gateway for me to get in to funk, and later on jazz. Those bass lines are incredible, and Jay Kay still lays down vocals that fit the music fantastically. From an instrumentation perspective at least, let's be fair and say that the content of said lyrics may not stand up to scrunity of any intensity. This album was the last album that had Stuart Zender on bass, and whilst the funk disco based direction of the album is one of the things I love most about it, it's also the pushing in that direction that made him leave the band. I remember getting tickets to see Jamiroquai in Dublin for the tour of this album, and purposely didn't listen to the album for the several months before the gig. There's a few tracks on this album, such as "Black Capricorn Day", that many people will not even realise is Jamiroquai. The track that stands out to me the most coming back to it is "Were Do We Go From Here". Such epic bass! This always made me want to dance, and get further in to disco and funk.

John Carpenter - Escape From New York

Film is a big thing to me, sometimes I think more so than music. And one of my favorite directors is John Carpenter, who also led me towards electronic music. I have listened to this soundtrack over and over again, with the notable exception of "Everyone's Coming To New York". Surprisingly for a film OST, it glides from track to track like it was intended to be that way. Each track has this gorgeous simple slow build, at time a thumping beat that accentuates the tension. I mean there's almost an entire new genre of music now called "Synthwave" which in no small part takes it's queues from this era of music. I would say he was ahead of his time, but I think he was exactly of his time, these kind of soundtracks would most likely not be made today, and that would be a crying shame. The fact that this is one of my favorite movies and I can envisage the badassedness of vintage Kurt Russell running through the charred remains of St. Louis can only help.

Cowboy Bebop - Cowboy Bebop

This was most definitely my gateway in to jazz. I first saw the series Cowboy Bebop back around 1999, and was totally blown away. I had seen things such as Blood and Akira, but they always seemed to be focusing on the shock and the drama. Cowboy Bebop however was something totally new, something I had never seen before. It really got me to appreciate television as a genuine media. People talk of how Sopranos changed television in to an acceptable form, well I assure you Cowboy Bebop changed anime in a similar way. Each episode almost like a miniature film, and it always felt relatable (obviously not to say I can relate to piloting a spaceship and picking up criminals for bounties), and the writing and cinematography was incredible. I still contest some of the best fight sequences I've seen are contained within this series. And the music is simply phenomenal. Yoko Kanno is the master of cermonies here, and how with such little experience of jazz she can arrange such incredible pieces with forever astound me. I remember being alone after having moved to France around 2001, and this was one of the few CDs I had brought with me. I listened to it over and over again, sometimes for hours on repeat. Each time you can hear the littlest pieces that add more and more to each track, there is so much texture and life to the songs it almost defies belief. When they recorded their New York style pieces, Rudy Van Gelder was the engineer. It's simply incredible stuff, and in a simliar way to the Blues Brothers, has some of the best musicians in the genre, by virtue of the fact that it's not popular music. I love these guys, I feel like I will listen to them till the day I die.

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Moanin'

Whilst I always like to say I enjoy jazz, it usually comes down to I enjoy Art Blakey. This album is important, as the title track is the one that made me want to pick up piano again after an almost twenty year hiatus. Bobby Timmons silky touch over the ivories is simply mesmerizing. Every time I hear that title track I just want to sit back, close my eyes, and take in all the beauty that it has to offer. And this is the absolute beauty of jazz, it's not being minimalist, it's not trying to be anything more than it needs to be, it has almost exactly the amount of notes and instruments it needs to make an incredible textured, detailed and yet simple performance. It is pure music, for the sake of being so. It's not pretentious, it just is. I'm listening again to this, and the chills are traveling down my spine as I type to the sultry tones of Lee Morgan on his trumpet, which gracefully transitions to Timmons exquisite touch. I love the Jazz Messengers, I have over twenty albums of theirs on my phone so I just throw them on and listen through. Art Blakey is the true band leader, he is perfectly content to keep the beat, sit back on the drums and not interfere with the flow when it is there. And that's not to say he can't drum, you just need to hear Evidence when they played with Monk to know that man CAN drum, but chooses only to do what is needed. He's so good he almost doesn't need to be there.

NOVEMBER - RICHARD BROWN

1. Mr. Bungle - California (Goodbye Sober Day)
2. Led Zeppelin - IV
3. John Martyn - Solid Air
4. Kingston Wall - I
5. Crosby Stills Nash & Young

Ritchie is the gentleman who has taken it upon himself to teach me piano. Well, he is doing so for the exchange of money and sanity. I could probably help him a little more on the sanity side of things if I would actually practice, and play in a key other that F minor pentatonic. But hey, we can't all be winners Ritchie.

Ritchie is most definitely a hippie who is starting to possess a roundly cynical view upon the world at large. He has a ways to go until he is as cynical and jaded as I, but I'll slowly drag him there at the cost to his idealism and faith in the human race in general.

Mr Bungle - California (Goodbye Sober Day)

It actually came up not so long ago that when I offered my initial opinion of this album as being a negative one, our poor talented bassist in our circles Issac (there is more than one poor talented bassist, but this is the guy in particular we're referring to) couldn't sleep when he heard I didn't gel with this album. Much in the same way as D-Styles, this is kind of an acquired taste, but all the sweeter for it. It's more than a little eclectic, and to say there is some bizarre changes throughout would be an understatement. It's a little difficult to pick one track, as they flow from style to style (and often, within that one track to which you may try to nail down). I think the last track is actually my favorite, but that change requires a whole album to build an be appreciated. It's almost as if the entirety of this album was made to build to that heavy point that punctuates the track so viciously. Knowing what I now know, I wouldn't be surprised their previous albums were designed to flow seamlessly in to this one. One thing is for sure, I do intend to find out by listening to more Mr. Bungle.

Led Zeppelin - IV

I think I may have screwed things up here. I'm sure I have heard all these tracks at some point before, and I may have even heard this album before, but hey, it got put on the list, so here we are listening to it. Well here I am listening to it rather, I certainly hope none of you out there is stupid enough to listen to all these albums in the fashion to which I have. It was a terrible mistake and this is your cautionary tale. Don't listen to everything I've listened to this year unless you really don't prize your sanity or self respect highly at all. And maybe in more regards to the latter than the former, I've never had much self respect to begin with, and as regards sanity, that is also very much up for debate. But enough, Led Zepplin, what more is there to say? Great cruising rock, it's almost a case of if you like your music is any way modern, how could you not like Led Zepplin? Great simply (and remember, we don't confuse simple with stupid) rock, great rhythm, and probably the best know rock ballad of all time in the form of "Stairway To Heaven". If you've never listened to any Led Zepplin, you need to get out from what ever rock you've been hiding yourself under and rectify that errror (yep, I did notice that made a type in the previous "error", but thought it funnier to stay there).

John Martyn - Solid Air

This is actually what Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young should have been. A pure man playing his guitar with the minimalist of backing and pretentiousness. It's a great album, that flows beautifully from track to track, with those sultry tones to guide us, accompanied by some wonderful acoustic, smooth bass, and occasional additions from some muted keyboard. Nothing overshadows what we need to hear, and at the same time nothing is missing. I don't know how this John Martyn is, but I think I'm going to have to track down some more of his acoustical efforts at some point down the road. A very chilled record, not something that requires intense concentration, but excellent none the less.

Kingston Wall - I

There's nothing really bad to say about this, it does seem a little standard rock however. It reminds me a little of Hendrix era rock, so it was quite funny when they turn around and play "Fire" a few tracks down the line. Again it is good music, and it doesn't offend me, but it doesn't really do anything new or exciting. Good background music, I get the feeling these guys may give a great live gig. I find it difficult to write much more about these guys, I mean there's nothing bad here, but it doesn't fill any musical void for me thus far in my life, so it's almost what is the point?


Crosby Stills Nash & Young

Four iconoclasted musicians, all now worth millions each, playing in front of an audience of more millionaires who all paid highly for this privilege of hearing these four acoustically felate each other for an hour, and record the whole thing, and will then most likely turn around and sell it through Time Warner Classics or whatever label is popular that month.
Of course none of the audience have any idea of the music of these guys, which is made all the more hilarious when one of our egotistical troupe of performers shouts to the audience "to sing along now", to which none of them fucking do. Hell, these people can't even clap in time. They're the morons who pay god knows how much money for a single plum, in perfume, floating in a man's hat.
I could not listen to this album in one sitting. I could only listen to it for a couple of tracks at a time without feeling the need to wretch in disgust. The fucking quaintness of them playing a song for Mayor John Daly, Jesus. It's like when a prizefighter makes his way up from the ghetto, how can he really unleash the animal in the ring when he wafts to sleep in a million dollar mansion with a supermodel beside him? It's depressing to admit it, but I guess when you talk about folk rock and blues, not long after these guys get money, they lose the edge. Preaching about social injustice is a little more difficult to do when you're wearing the best of Versace and flying everywhere on a private jet.

OCTOBER - NAIVE TED

1. Dr Octagon - Dr Octagonecologyst (Blue Flowers)
2. Fuguees - The Score
3. Orbital - In Sides
4. Plastikman - Artifaks
5. Jeff Mills - Live At The Liquid Room Vol. 2


I just opened up this text file, and one of the greatest things about it is I'd already written a few token pieces of text with respect to this month, which is great, it means even less of this crap fest I have to relive.

Naive Ted, who I really don't know that much at all, dropped this list upon me of his musical influences. Quite interesting as I did have one of his albums from Luke's list, so in a roundabout way I have "reviewed" one of the albums of one of this years "victims". From what Jimmy told me, I was hoping for some obscure jazz, but alas, that is very far from what I got. I don't think there was anything from this month that I would ever feel the need to go back and relisten to.


Dr Octagon - Dr Octagonecologyst (Blue Flowers)

This is a weird one alright, as Jimmy told me, this guy is "touched". I mean Wikipedia describes him as "one of hip-hop's most eccentric and unusual personalities." We're talking about hip hop here, I mean this is not a genre unacustomed with weirdness. To be bizare by those standards takes some fucking doing I'm pretty sure. And despite the weirdness of the lyrics that stream throughout, this is actually flows really great. It reminds me a lot of Sebs's stuff last month, it's old school hip hop, but some of the content... I'm trying to listen to this stuff as music, but when a guy is going on about ass surgeries, it can be a little difficult. That said, it really doesn't bother me that much! I love these beats, I love his vocal delivery, I will actually totally listen to this album again. I was going to make this album number two, but rethinking it I am moving it up to number one. Yep, it's better than the Fugees.


Fugees - The Score

First listen through this album didn't really gel with me, but after multiple listens it's starting to slowly sink it's hooks in. More than a little bit gangsta in some places, and the shouting and "huh yeahs" don't add to the enjoyment.
Whilst there's in particular one or two nice covers in here (Killing Me Softly being front and centre), having some homeboy give his grunts over it has little to add. Where's Lauren Hill's smooth sultry tones not enough for you Wycleaf Jean?
That said it's been noted on the net she's quite the fruitcake. And that's coming from Wycleaf Jean ..... So maybe it was her idea to have the grunting?
Some solid tracks in here, and could be well worth a listen.


Orbital - In Sides

I feel like I'm trapped in a rave filled techno soundtrack of a Playstation game here (and the game is WipeOut I've since discovered.)
The saddest thing is I'm starting to dig this album. It's got some dark thumpy vibes (technical language there), but still feeeling like I may be missing out on the full experience when I'm sitting here trying to listen to this music, as opposed to hopped up on mushrooms in some glowstick illuminated abandoned industrial complex surrounded by people with anime hairstyles, PVC pants and piercings.
I was tempted to place this above the Fugees, but I think the highs of the Fuguees soar much higher than those of Orbitals effort.
That said, this definitely the more consistent of the two.
Whilst I kind of enjoyed it to a degree, I don't see myself playing this album again in a hurry by choice, and none of the tracks stand out from each other to me in particular, so it's a little what is the point.
This to me is background music, would be good the backing of some Action B-Movie.
So in essence it's a little bit like elevator music. I may play it in the gym and see how many people complain.

Plastikman - Artifaks

This is quite trancey ambience to me. This sounds like a bad soundtrack to me, I don't really get anything from this. Why would I put this one when I could just sit quietly twiddling my thumbs in desperation? I'm not really sure. I may have to chalk this one up to more drugs. I actually don't really remember this, which is probably the more damning piece of the puzzle. At least I remember Jeff Mills. Oh god, how I wish I couldn't remember Jeff Mills. I feel like listening to Plastikman I should be hooked up to a drip whilst staring blankly at the ceiling.


Jeff Mills - Live At The Liquid Room Vol. 2

What a pile of crap.
Andy, I may have to ask you how many drugs you took in your formative years, and if I need take them to "appreciate" this "music"
I listened to this album once, and I have no notion what direction or structure it taking at any point. As Jimmy said to me "he just went up there on drugs and fucked a bunch of random records on the decks. If any of the rest of us did that we'd be laughed off the stage."
You know what I've come to realise in the last month in particular?
I've reached a new level of appreciation for silence.
I am more than just content to cruise along home from work with my depressing thoughts and the quiet rumble of the motorway to keep me company than to listen to this. Just silence, I like silence. Jeff Mills can keep his records to himself. I prefer to just alot the approximate time of the album and spend that in silence. That's my way of listening to Jeff Mills.

SEPTEMBER - SEB

1. KRS One - Return Of The Boom Bap (Outta Here)
2. De La Soul - Stakes Is High
3. Public Enemy - Fear Of A Black Planet
4. Iron Maiden - Powerslave
5. Motorhead - 1916



It's after 11 on a Thursday night, and I don't have to be in to work in the morning. I'm feeling a little disenchanted with the human race in general right now, pissed off at a few things (I'm coming to the conclusion I plain don't like December), and thus seems like a good time to pull out the remainder of that bottle of Chivas Regal, get a little drunk, and little angrier, and put this stupid blog shit to bed once and for all.

Seb is another in the famous circles of DJs & Streetfighters of which I have found myself embroiled. Why is it I only seem to choose interests which only appeals to other guys?
I'm sure most of the people in this circle think the same thing. I've noticed for a while that he ain't no big fan of "the man", and this is reflected in his music choices. The story that always comes to mind when I think of Seb is how a few years ago he didn't want to be included on the Census, so elected to spend the night sleeping on a park bench. That there is a man of principles I guess.
But fair play Seb, I don't know much about Hip Hop, and people have since remarked that "my" taste in Hip Hop is "classic old school". Thanks for that Seb, you've made me look like a legit purveyor of golden era hip hop.

KRS One - Return Of The Boom Bap (Outta Here)

 

Man, this album is most, most excellent. This man has a great lilt to his voice, and some amazing grooves that he raps along to. This is beautiful stuff, the tone seamlessly fits in to the tempo and intertwines with the beat as he gives us his ghetto poetry. And a lot of it actually seems to be about music, and not some heavy political slants. There is some many fantastic tracks on this album that effortlessly flow from one to the other. I was very tempted to make "I Can't Wake Up" my best track of the month, but I have to be fair, "Outta Here" is the track that made me keep turning up this album each time. This is definitely one of the albums I will be returning to time and time again, and I think a visit to KRS One's back catalogue may also be on the agenda.

De La Soul - Stakes Is High

A slightly bizarre album, but extra points for being interesting. I don't think this is as good an album as Public Enemy, but I'm throwing up here above them as I think it's much more varied, and little less political. I've also been told by a lot of people that it's very difficult to buy this album, and it generally isn't available on streams, due to the large amount of samples used. You know a lot of this hip hop, whilst not annoying me too much, I also find doesn't need a lot of concentration or interest from me. This is kinda my version of ambient music, leave it on in the background and let it roll away. I'm actually finding listening back to these last two albums are making me quite chilled and relaxed. Maybe I need to listen to more hip hop. I think it might be good for me. That's probably the opposite of what many politicians assert, but that may not be the first time a politician was wrong about something.

Public Enemy - Fear Of A Black Planet

Right, this stuff is a little more uptempo and charged than the previous two. Whilst I appreciate the muscical style of this album, being a white male listening to an album that seems to be about telling us how the white man is the reason for everything wrong with the world I find a little difficult to commit to. However, the scotch is starting to kick in, and this is starting to make me feel a little angry and disenfranchised. Fuck you whitey, you and your white cops beating down my homies! No matter the content, this stuff has sme great beats and grooves. The vocal style suits perfectly to the music. Whereas a lot of modern rap I hear seems to be guys shouting and trying to sound angry, this stuff recognises the vocal as an instrument to be played with, and mixes in excellently with the beat. This is eminently listenable, well worth a listen through.

Iron Maiden - Powerslave

I'm not sure I'd even heard many of these tracks before, and I'm really not sure it does anything for me. It feels clichéd, and I don't know can I really recommend it for any reason. Makes me think of Van Halen, the sound is almost too clean for me to think of this as metal. I'm not even sure if this is classified as metal or simply hard rock, and I really can't be bothered to open up Google and find out. The first track is still playing as I type this, and I've already lost interest as it goes through. As the album progresses there are some nice licks, but of course they are are repeated over and over for the duration of the track. This ain't no Motorhead I assure you.

Motorhead - 1916

After my previous Motorhead experience, I was not looking forward to this one. Thank the lord above though, this was nowhere near as bad as the last Motorhead album I was inflicted with. I think. Maybe I've just blacked out the memory of my previous Motorhead experience. Thankfully, not every track on here feels like the start of the "Ace Of Spades", but we are listening to Motorhead, so don't nobody here be expecting any kind of musical variety at all. This is like the musical version of Cornation Street. It hard bluesy rock, followed by a little more hard bluesy rock, and polished off with a little bit of hard bluesy rock, just in case you weren't sure if you had enough hard bluesy rock. If you listen to the first track of this album and decide you like it, I have some good news for you - just about every track that follows sounds more or less the same. Motorhead must be the most consistent band in existence.

AUGUST - PADRAIG JOYCE (AKA REICH JOYCE AKA PBAP)

1. Daft Punk - Homework (Da Funk)
2. Nirvana - Nevermind
3. Revenge Of Shinobi OST
4. Weezer - The Blue Album
5. Richie Hawtin - Decks EFX 909

PBAP is how this man is known to me, and I'm at the point where I'm not 100% certain I know his actual name. I think it's Padraig. anyways, another streetfighter in our circle of firends who is also a DJ (really? A DJ who plays streetfighter you say?). Must be a common thing. I've not seen Padraig that much at all recently since he moved, so I hope he's keeping well down south. I remember asking him one night late in to August when I said "Jesus Padraig, Rave much?". To which he succinctly replied "YES PLEASE!". That probably sums up all we need to know about this month, and solidifies my feeling that being trapped in a thumping rave fest with black lighting, drugs and thumping subwoofters would be very close to my idea of hell.


Daft Punk - Homework (Da Funk)

Like just about everyone in the known world, I have listened to Discovery, probably the gateway for many in to electronic music.
And whilst I'd heard one or two tracks, I hadn't listened to Homework, the debut by the French electronic duo known around the world.
In the midst of listening to this album, I actually saw the Daft Punk Unchained documentary, which was quite the letdown, but gave some interesting insights to the group in question.
On first listen I thought this album was a little "rave", but it still held my interest for the majority.
It does feel a little disjointed.
In comparison to Discover, where the whole album flows beautifully from one track to the other, this album feels quite disjointed.
Daft Punk have commented that this was more a collection of tracks, and that shows.
It's very interesting however, as by listening to this you can "hear" the bridge from the techno origins of electronic music in to the new melodic sound which Daft Punk is so well known for, it's almost like a history lesson in modern music.
One of my favorite tidbits about it is how when Jean Michel Gondry commented on "Around The World" (which he directed the video for), that the tracks by Daft Punk would take one beat, and repeat to just before the point of which it would be too much, and only then change it.
I guess they are the masters of "dropping the beat", and you can really hear it throughout this album.
Ironically the most important parts of the album are the bits that "miss", and it really highlights the fine line between the catchy chart topper hits Daft Punk have thrown out, and the origins they came from to develop that sound.
I think from the point of view of musical structure, this is actually the best album I've listened to thus far this year.
As Pratchett would say "don't ever confuse simple with stupid"


Nirvana - Nevermind

Whilst massively overrated and over played, I can't honestly say Nirvana are a bad band. This album, whilst not my favorite, is quite listenable and by no means a bad album. There's some nice chunky guitar, and it flows quite well. The influence on modern pop rock is indisputable. I suppose I had more of a problem with the people who listened to Nirvana as opposed to Nirvana themselves. It's not particularly complex, but it's probably in the category of Metallica and the Ramones, pushing a bit of a new sound and inspiring people to get in to music. That said, it's more than a little repetitive. I wouldn't put this on by choice, but if someone else was putting this on as background music I wouldn't feel compelled to leave, or in the case of most of the rest of this list, shoot myself. It's been happily running in the background here for the last few minutes whilst I type this, check Facebook, drink coffee and remark how bloody dark it is now at 1800 in the evening.


Revenge Of Shinobi OST

Jesus, maybe I'm the one who's wrong here. Maybe I'm the only guy this year not taking drugs. There's some decent tracks on here, but listening to this as an album drives me slightly mad. Many would say I'm already far past that slightly stage, but listening to another album of bit tunes is not in any small way helpful to the preserve of whatever infinitesimally small quantity of sanity that somehow hasn't yet escaped my cranium of despair (at bit tunes).
I can't really say anything wrong with this music, there's some interesting licks. But when you listen to that same lick over and over, and then a teeny tiny variant of it over and over, and just when you think you've escaped it's wrath, it's back in the track after next. I really don't think it's fair to include a video game soundtrack in this list by nature of the layout of it, but I'm gonna speak about it as I hear it, without any particular emotional attachment as I've not played the game in the first place. And in that scenario, it does very, very little for me.


Weezer - The Blue Album

What the fuck PBAP, I feel like this is just a joke you're playing on me. I know we were all young once and made mistakes, but this superpop vibe of these hipsters really doesn't do a damn thing for me. I just listen to them rabbit on and on with their few chords, having flashbacks to that Happy Days music video that was on the Windows 95 disc, and politely (or not so politely the article may make it seem) wait for them to stop their monotone vocals and guitar at the end of 45 minutes. Generic pop indie rock of no interest to me really. This just sounds to me like all the crap I imagine hearing on the radio. And the scary thing is, this is probably the cream of what that current category has to offer. There were girls in the gym this week talking about bands like Snowpatrol and Walking In Cars, and whilst this stuff would probably blow those bands out of the water, they wouldn't care for them as they're not on the radio this week.


Richie Hawtin - Decks EFX 909

"Thank god that's over", the words I uttered after the first play through.
This, to me a least, is deep rave territory. I feel like I'm back in the nineties, watching a DivX rip of Blade in front of a gigantic monitor whilst eating a pot noodle. This is probably the first album this year that I could only stick a few sittings, and whilst I wish I could say different, does not seem to be the last. I'm pretty sure I'm in a deep deficit of the drugs required to get through this album. I don't even know what drugs do I need, nor do I want to know.
It's the same approximate beat, ran through a slightly different synth or timing over and over and over and over until I lose all will to live. It has a psychotic amount of tracks and they all make me question my station in life, and why I even would subject myself to this.
Three times was enough, I don't think I ever need to listen to this album again. Fuck this shit again for good measure.