HORSEPOWER #2

A lot of people seemed to like that Barringtone remix of Foals from a few days back so we thought we'd do something similarly (or rather 'tenuously') equine.

Oh, and it's also an excuse to post a great Kaos remix ahead of the Kitsune-signed producer's date at Resonance at the beginning of March.

MP3: New Young Pony Club - 'The Bomb (Kaos remix)' [Yousendit]

BOY WONDER

A little taster here for that Boy 8-Bit DJ date at the upcoming Prostitutes & Policemen on 7th Feb.

MP3: Boy 8-Bit - '21 Minutes to Know' [zSHARE link]

1. Boy 8-Bit - 'The Suspense is Killing Me'
2. DJ Brrrapscallion - ' Get Get Down' [Acapella]
3. Boy 8-Bit - 'The Cricket Scores'
4. Claudio Montefiori - 'My Love for you is a flame that never Dies'
5. Full Mental Slackers - 'Auto Riot' [Acapella]
6. Carlton L Bruce - 'So Freakin' Tight' (Gutter Breaks Tool)
7. Boy 8-Bit - 'Fog Bank'
9. Midfield General - 'Disco Sirens' [Boy 8-Bit Remix]
10. Lethal bizzle – ‘Myspace Girl’
11. Hybrid - 'Higher than A Skyscraper' [Boy 8-Bit Remix]
12. Huey ft T Pain – ‘Pop Lock and Drop it’ [Acapella]
13. Huey ft T Pain – ‘Pop Lock and Drop it’ [Carlton L Bruce Funky Drummer Mix]
14. Boy 8-Bit – ‘Bulbs Burn Out’

BLIND FAITH

Is it too early to be talking about a 'record of the year'? Possibly. Still, Hercules and Love Affair's 'Blind' is a track you'll be hearing a lot of in coming months. It features the unique vocals of Antony Hegarty with that collaboration resulting in one of those rare records that's simultaneously mournful and uplifting. It's also a great taster for the brilliant eponymous Hercules and Love Affair album that's released on DFA 10th March.

The video for the single is above while you can also listen to Frankie Knuckles' back-on-form remix below.

THEME TUNES #5

One of those dates - like Easter - that bamboozles us (because it's all linked to the Christian calendar and stuff), Mother's Day comes around again 2nd March. It used to be known as 'Refreshment Sunday' which sounds like it would be far more fun than just handing over a few quid to both Hallmark and Interflora.

Anyway you can let this post [dedicated to our pregnant friend Helen] act as a gentle reminder.

MP3: Crystal Castles - 'Mother Knows Best' [Yousendit]
MP3: The Knife - 'We Share Our Mothers' Health (Ratatat remix)' [Yousendit]
MP3: Will.I.Am - 'I Got It From My Mama (Blaze & Vezilla remix)' [Yousendit]

GREAT TINGS

Local duo The Ting Tings are currently touring alongside The Cribs and Does It Offend You Yeah?

To coincide with these dates, there's also going to be a free ltd edition EP with The Ting Tings' contribution being their track 'Great DJ'. However the band have also made this piece of electropop available as a free download too.

Kinda related, Switchflicker Records (the Manchester label that first released TTT's anthemic 'That's Not My Name' and 'Great DJ') also hosts another one of its Club Brenda parties at Mo-Ho Live 09/02/08. That one features a live set from The Answering Machine amongst all sorts of carry-on.

MP3: The Ting Tings - 'Great DJ' [Yousendit]

ANY LAST WORDS?

Yes, I know that Dan Nolan only posted a clip of Sebastien Tellier's latest video last week but here's the Tellier record that soundtracked the last minutes of the final Electric Chair on Saturday night/Sunday morning. It's his 'La Ritournelle'.

CIVIL ACTION

A Brightonian in Manchester [as Sting never sang], I Am Sam is the DJ/promoter behind the Civil Action and Jeudi Noir nights. Or should that be 'was' given how Jeudi Noir is currently on hiatus? In any case, it should be coming back at some point in the near future with the opening of another new Northern Quarter bar.

Until such time, there's this mix that the man called Sam has just done. Maybe you should get yourself acquainted with that.

MP3: I Am Sam - 'Mixo No. 2 (Born To Be Mild)'


Tracklist

1. Kings of Convenience - 'The Weight of My Words (Four Tet instrumental)'
2. Animal Collective - 'Leaf House'
3. Lopazz - 'Migracion (Fujiya & Miyagi remix)'
4. Magnet - 'Hold On (Metronomy remix)'
5. Architecture in Helsinki - 'Do The Whirlwind (Metronomy remix)'
6. Carl Craig - 'Home Entertainment'
7. Kraftwerk - 'Computer Love'
8. Claude VonStroke - 'Who's Afraid of Detroit?'
9. The Cure - 'A Forest'
10. A Certain Ratio - 'Wild Party'
11. Datarock - 'Maybelline'

HORSEPOWER

The NME has earmarked Foals as one of its 'ones to watch' bands for 2008. But don't let that put you off.

Charismatic in person and capable of making rather infectious music, we stumbled upon them last year. In fact their 'Hummer' was one of our tracks of the year. Even though it did end up on a Skins trailer and briefly threaten to do a 'Standing in the Way of Control'.

Anyway, they're lined up for a DJ set at the former Paradise Factory this Wednesday which might very well be a bit of fun. That said, they're not actually real foals.

MP3: Foals - 'Astronauts and All (Barringtone remix)' [Yousendit]

ONE HUNDRED PROJECT

Kumo music has developed a great Manchester-based blog.

It's also one of those that actually makes us seethe with envy by putting a great deal of effort into really ambitious projects. Like its current 'One Hundred Project', for example, which is co-ordinated by Marc Kets. The displaced Cape Towner is collecting together an extensive series of mixes and interviews from various people. If you hadn't guessed, they will eventually number 100 in total.

It all started with Sketch City's sterling Ryan Hunn but then Danny Northernights [representing this particular ramshackle service] brought the general standard down to something substantially more realistic (!). The latest features some ace tracks selected by Clampdown Records' Neil Clarke.

So that's three down and just a further 97 to go.

COUNT-DOWN

Calling himself The Count of Monte Cristal (when working with fellow Dubsided and Counterfeet artist Sinden), Josh 'Herve' Harvey is set to return to Manchester next week.

Playing the former Paradise Factory [we still can't get our head around what the venue is really called these days], that upcoming set of his is as decent excuse as any to throw a bit more light on some of his studio output. In fact we'll be sticking an interview we've done with him on the main site next week where he mentions a couple of exciting new projects to add to that myriad of aliases. Meantime, here's a few examples of the kind of material that's made him the music industry's remixer du jour.

MP3: Roisin Murphy - 'Overpowered (Herve & Roisin in the Secret Garden remix)' [Yousendit]
MP3: Estelle - 'Wait A Minute (Sinden & Count of Monte Cristal remix)' [Yousendit]
MP3: Voodoo Chilli - 'Turn It Up Jack It' [Yousendit]


(Please note: these files will expire in seven days)

HELPS THE MEDICINE GO DOWN

You might know David E. Sugar for releases like 'Oi New York, This is London' (which came out on Hot Chip's GrecoRoman label). Or the follow-up, 'Chelsea Girls'. Maybe you've seen him on the 8-bit "scene" using cracked Gameboys to make his electro-y stuff.

He's pretty much 'the new Calvin Harris'. Harris, in turn, was, of course, 'the new Mylo'. Which makes Sugar 'the new new Mylo'. However, he is not Scottish. And he might not have to endure a couple of hours in the studio with Kylie (if he's lucky, lucky, lucky).

Anyway, he is playing at Contort Yourself though. In February. So there.

MP3: David E. Sugar - 'Oi New York, This is London (Oi, This Doesn't Sound Like Skream mix) [zSHARE]'


Meantime you can find a few more Sugar snacks over at Electrorash.

SHUT UP AND DANCE

The problem with responding to an article that you don't agree with is that you end up giving the thing even more exposure. That said, the Manchester Evening News took it upon itself to make an appeal for new vibrant clubs in 2008 as, by its reckoning, 2007 was pretty rubbish.

Firstly, it's worth bearing in mind that this was published at the beginning of January: a notoriously quiet time in the clubbing calendar. So there's a whiff of 'space filling' hanging around those supposedly impassioned words.

And, while noting the likes of Clique and Keys Money Lipstick, it has also overlooked some other great clubs hosting quality parties in recent times. Naive Melody, Micron, Up The Racket, Prostitutes and Policemen, Sex With Robots, Sequence, Locked, Soundscape, Prime Numbers, Sound Minority, Electrode, High Voltage, El Diablo's and Contort Yourself were always enthusiastically championing the freshest quality underground music.

Meanwhile Electric Chair, Tramp and Get Girl also ensured that they went out with a bang via appearances from upstarts including Toddla T, Buraka Som Sistema, Pilooski and more. The likes of Stylus and Development found freshness in new forms of house music. Sankeys delivered on a promise to host those less obvious names (including some Bugged Out line-ups that shifted from techno to bass-heavy 'fidget'). The Warehouse project brought - as Luke Unabomber observed - 'idosyncratic club music to large amounts of people'. Saki had the kids dancing over in Rusholme. The floors at Joshua Brooks and The Attic twisted and turned through dubstep, breaks, minimal, electro and indie. The Northern Quarter bars were soundtracked by an equally wide range of quality local DJs. There were the after-hours parties. The various festival events. Notable one-offs in boozers like The Salutation. Arty happenings at the Islington Mill. Even a 'sit-down disco' and a 'clothes swap'. The city's scene also managed to produce a number of club-friendly bands that could not give a flying fuck about some old disco called The Hacienda. In terms of 21st century production, we had Trus'me, Andy Stott, Kevin Gorman and Shadow Dancer gaining plenty of international recognition.

The way we see it, 2007 was actually pretty good.

YET MORE YOUTUBE

If I could have one wish for 2008, it would be for an end to the constant stream of cheap, tired and exploitative soft porn clips that has accompanied every major label dance release since Ministry of Sound decided to replace Benny Bennassi’s original video for ‘Satisfaction’ with one featuring a load of arses and drills.

Quite frankly, nothing signals creative death more loudly than a label bussing in a bunch of glamma modhuls and asking them to wobble seductively in time to a new release, while the director crafts increasingly-pervy close-ups of their tits.

Hurrah, then, for Manu and Fleur, who direct the clip for Sebastien Tellier‘s ‘Sexual Sportswear’. Firm believers of the old saying ‘less is more’, they have come up with a minimalist, but nonetheless impossibly sexy treatment of the track. Low light and lasers instigate the erotic frenzy, and thankfully, there’s not a crotchless tracksuit in sight.

UNBREAKABLE

More Bosch than 'bosh', here's the latest video from Zoot Woman. The track - 'We Won't Break' - is also knocking around as an official free download. Check TheirSpace. Word is that they're also looking for a live bassist too.

BEDTIME STORY

Some people appreciated the last link to the mix by Qlint so I thought I'd post another. This time the records are selected by the lovely Ewan Pearson - someone I've been following since his earliest Maas and World of Apples releases: a bloke who has always been nothing less than a true gent. He now resides in Berlin [doesn't everyone?] and you can find an interview with him here. Other recommended listening includes his recent-ish remix of Supermayer's 'The Art of Letting Go' plus all those other reworks collected on both the Piece Work and Small Change albums.

1. Kate Bush - 'Nocturne'
2. Cliff Martinez - 'First Sleep'
3. Can - 'Don’t Turn the Light On, Leave Me Alone'
4. Johann Johannsson - 'Englabörn'
5. Hatchback - 'White Diamond (Prins Thomas Disco Miks Part 1)'
6. Maps - 'To The sky (The Loving Hand remix)'
7. Mugwump - 'Boutade'
8. Vangelis - 'Let It Happen (Beatfanatic mix)'
9. Jim Rivers - 'I Go Deep'
10. Marc Ashken - 'Root Rot (CB Funk’s Rootdown mix)'
11. Brazilian Girls - 'Last Call (Carl Craig mix)'
12. The John Waynes - 'Violeta'
13. Laidback Luke - 'Housetrap'
14. Etienne Jaumet - 'Repeat Again After Me (Âme remix)'
15. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - 'Feuerprobe'
16. Midlake - 'Roscoe (Beyond the Wizard’s Sleeve re-animation)'

MP3: Various - Ewan Pearson 'And So To Bed' mix

NEVER MIND THE BALEARICS

I'm just writing a feature for another publication on Mike Simonetti and his Italians Do It Better label. Anyway, while trawling the old internet, I noted this mix which has already been hosted on Pilooski's blog and is a selection featuring some right hoary old dinosaurs presented in a new light. What you might call 'balearic'. It was put together by Tiedye's Qlint [Tiedye being the Swedish addition to Simonetti's IDIB family].

Tracklist:

1. Fabio Frizzi & Giorgio Cascio - 'Zombie Attack'
2. Mythos - 'When the Show Just Begun'
3. Tom Petty - 'Don´t Come Around (Tiedye dub-version)'
4. Paul McCartney - 'Check My Machine'
5. A Mountain of One - 'Ment Goes Nothing'
6. Klaus Schulze - 'Tango-Saty'
7. Brigade Mondaine - 'Generique'
8. Joe Cocker - 'Sweet Little Woman (12" Mix)'
9. SKY - 'Westway'
10. Crosby Stills & Nash - 'Dark Star'
11. Peter Green - 'In the Skyes'
12. Cat Gang - 'Locomotive Breath (Special Rock Version)'
13. It's Immaterial - 'Driving Away From Home'
14. B. B Band - 'All Night Long (Instrumental Version)'

MP3: Various - Qlint Tape Mix

7-UP

Don’t you just love end of year charts? You do? Good. We’ve got some more of them for you.

In fact Northernights asked some other local internet fiends for their seven records of 2007 and we got some of them back. Yer Mam!, by the way, has embarked on a very ambitious round-up of the year and we promised not to reveal that particular top seven until its already released. We suggest you head over there and enjoy that full countdown.

Meanwhile, the lovely Jamila over at Fucking Dance has selected ‘Bathroom Gurgle’ by Late of the Pier as her favourite song of 2007 but here’s the others in all their glorious seven-ness.

Get Weird Turn Pro

Armand Van Helden – ‘Je T’Aime (Switch Remix)’
Armand Van Helden – ‘I Want Your Soul (Crookers Remix)’
Bass Kleph – ‘Coup D’Etat (Original Mix)’
Chromeo – ‘Fancy Footwork (Guns N Bombs Remix)’
Justin Timberlake – ‘My Love (RUF Dubstep Remix)’
King Unique – ‘To The Left (Stanton Warriors Remix)’
Timbaland – ‘The Way I Are (Crookers Remix)’

Hip Young Gunslinger

Robyn – ‘With Every Heartbeat’
Rihanna – ‘Umbrella’
Groove Armada – ‘Out Of Control (Song For Mutya)’
Dragonette – ‘Take It Like A Man’
M.I.A. ‘Boyz’
Kate Nash – ‘Foundations (Metronomy Remix)’
Calvin Harris - Acceptable In The 80s

Northern Comfort

Plumstead Radical Club – ‘One Way’
Guilty Simpson – ‘Man’s World’
Linkwood Family – ‘Piece of Mind’
Pharoah Monch – ‘What it is’
Miles Bonny – ‘Miles Gets Open’
1gnition – ‘Secret Sunday Lover (Greg Wilson remix)’
Moodymann – ‘Technologystolemyvinyl’

The Console (selected by Hiro Mukai, Fran Donelly, Paul Forster, Simon Smallbone, Phil Northall, Rachael Burns and The Console readers)

M.I.A. – ‘Boyz (The Twelves remix)’
The Whip – ‘Divebomb’
Modernaire – ‘Bloodshed in the Woodshed’
Sébastien Tellier – ‘Sexual Sportswear’
ZZT – ‘Lower State of Consciousness’
Justice – ‘Let There Be Light’
The Black Ghosts – ‘Anyway You Choose To Give It (Boy 8 Bit Remix)’

The Indie Credential

Arcade Fire – ‘Keep The Car Running’
Grinderman – ‘Go Tell The Women’
Battles – ‘Atlas’
Iron & Wine – ‘Resurrection Fern’
The National – ‘Mistaken For Strangers’
The Twilight Sad – ‘That Summer, at Home I had Become the Invisible Boy’
1990s – ‘Arcade Precinct’