The pairing of DJ Hell, one of the pioneers of Berlin’s electronic scene and a genuine dance music icon, and ex Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry may well be an unlikely pairing, but it appears to have produced a pretty spectacular musical offering in the shape of ‘U Can Dance’. An interpretation of an unreleased Bryan Ferrysong, ‘U Can Dance’ reflects a perfect melding of two distinct musical personalities.
Hell has been riding high on the success of ‘Teufelswer’, his highly rated double album that’s delivered some fruitful sonic experiments, club bombs and even some moments of controversy after allegations of plagiarism followed a recent collaboration with P Diddy. Ferry, meanwhile, has been as busy as ever—recording a new album, performing in places as far afield as Siberia, opening up the Cannes Film Festival…basically just being Bryan Ferry. Ferry may seem like an unexpected fan of dance, but he’s been going to clubs since he was a teenager, and in his lengthy career he’s worked with legends such as Nile Rodgers of Chic and David Williams from Michael Jackson’s band. As he said in a recent interview, “It’s always a pleasure to work with people from that genre, who follow a singular groove.”
Added to the spectacular original, remixes come from the irrepressible Detroit legend Carl Craig, London electro boffins Simian Mobile Disco and left of centre New Yorker Tim Goldsworthy. Already causing a great deal of interest from both fans of electronic music and cerebral pop music, ‘U Can Dance’ is sure to be frequently popping up in playlists of those in the know over the next coming months.
Philadelphia’s A Sunny Day In Glasgow exceed in crafting bliss laden, mellow pop songs. Last year saw the release of their second album ‘Ashes Grammar’, a hypnotic collection of hazy tracks that wormed its way deep into the psyche. Considering the lineup changes the band had during its inception, it’s fortunate the album saw the light of day. After bassist Ben Hickey and vocalists Robin & Lauren Daniels departed, the band quickly recruited new members – even going so far as to post an advert on their MySpace to find suitable replacements. Thankfully recording sessions for ‘Ashes Grammar’ where so fruitful that the band are releasing an EP of new material. ‘Nitetime Rainbows’ is released on March 2nd and contains four new tracks, plus three remixes of the title track. The songs are currently available to stream on their MySpace. Read more…
‘Little Freak’ is the third taster to surface from Usher’s forthcoming album, ‘Raymond Vs. Raymond’. Recent singles ‘Papers’ and ‘Hey Daddy’ both had a more risqué flavour than any of Usher’s previous work, signalling a slight change of direction for the R&B singer on his latest work. Carrying on with this trend Usher has recruited Nicki Minaj to co-star on his latest single – probably the most outrageous female rapper of the moment. Produced by über beat-smith Polow Da Don; ‘Little Freak’ has a distinct Atlanta flavour thanks to a heavy half step, cheeky Stevie Wonder sample and a speaker rattling bottom end. The highlight of the track comes in the shape of Minaj’s rapid fire verse which perfectly displays why UK Hip Hop legend Tim Westwood has been bombarding Twitter with messages such as, “Minaj has got the buzz right now!”
While many are waiting with baited breath for the new M.I.A. album, the singer has released a video for a new track titled ‘There’s Space For All Dat I See’. The video has been setting many blogs talking, after it was posted on M.I.A.’s Twitter earlier today. The track hints M.I.A.’s third album will be a slightly more subdued affair than previous efforts, although she is reportedly set to continue work with previous collaborators Diplo & Switch.
Sade tops the Shazam New Release Chart USA this week with ‘Solider Of Love’; which is generating plenty of interest with Shazamers thanks to it’s inclusion in the trailer for the latest series of Lost.
To check the full chart click read more (You may have to turn ‘Mobile Theme’ off to view this chart correctly in Shazam’s apps) Read more…
A new number one in the Shazam Pre-release Tag Charts UK this week as UK rhyme-smith Example claims the top spot with his latest single, ‘Won’t Go Quietly’
To check the full chart click read more (You may have to turn ‘Mobile Theme’ off to view this chart correctly in Shazam’s apps) Read more…
Dirty Projectors look set to continue their purple patch into 2010 with a limited 7” release of ‘Ascending Melody’/’Emblem Of The World’, released exclusively through Domino’s website. However, the band are also offering up the tracks as a free download. To get the songs simply head to the Dirty Projectors’ website.
For those yet to be introduced to Dirty Projectors, click below to hear the fantastic ‘Stillness Is The Move’ – recently covered by Beyoncé’s younger sister, Solange. The track is taken from their universally acclaimed album ‘Bitte Orca’, which reached the upper echelons of many taste makers charts for 2009 – including NME, Pitchfork and Rolling Stone.
Our favourite British bearded DJ/MC team is back with a new album, ‘The logic of chance’. Flirting with a more pop-oriented sound, its first single – to be released by Sunday Best on March the 1st- is an italo disco tinged number called “Get Better”. The lyrics display the duo’s usual social consciousness and comes with remixes from 2 Bears, Jakwob, Errors and Villa.
To promote their new venture, Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip will hit the road in March with a tour across the UK. Dates as follows:
14th MARCH, SHEFFIELD, Foundry/Fusion; 15th CAMBRIDGE, The Junction; 16th NORWICH, Waterfront; 17th NOTTINGHAM, Rescue Rooms; 18th LEEDS, The Cockpit; 19th LIVERPOOL, O2 Academy; 21st GLASGOW, King Tuts; 22nd MANCHESTER, Club Academy; 23rd LONDON, Koko; 25th PORTSMOUTH, Wedgewood Rooms; 26th BIRMINGHAM, O2 Academy 2; 27th BRISTOL, O2 Academy; 28th OXFORD, O2 Academy 2; 29th BRIGHTON, Brighton, Concorde 2.
Not content with topping the majority of ‘Album of the Year’ polls, Animal Collective have released a jaw dropping new video to accompany album track ‘Brothersport’. The playful, dreamlike sequence fits perfectly with the song, following two children as we dip in and out of an animated fantasy world. Midway the clip evolves into an almost disorienting section involving florescent egg yolks. While this may sound strange on paper, it actually works. Although the worry of inducing headaches has never troubled Animal Collective, as anyone who’s longingly stared at the artwork for ‘Merriweather Post Pavilion’ can testify.
In other Animal Collective news, Panda Bear and erstwhile member Deakin have recently announced solo tours later this year. Read on for the full list of dates. Read more…
There’s no doubt that Sub Focus has been running the Drum & Bass game for the past few years. Tracks such as ‘X Ray’ and ‘Timewarp’ were met with almost equal enthusiasm from underground D&B fans as they were by fans of Zane Lowe’s indie-tastic new music show on Radio 1. Added to that, his DJ sets for the critically acclaimed Ram night at London’s Matter night club have been some of the most talked about events in the club’s history; while his debut artist album has been held up as one of last year’s best examples of bass music from tastemakers the world over. While Sub Focus’ previous singles have always been underpinned with a least a smattering of 174bpm break beat, his latest track ‘Could This Be Real’ is the artist’s first dalliance into pop/dance territory – and the results are surprisingly good. Pitching up like a more credible version of an electro house record, ‘Could This Be Real’ combines the gritty sub bass heavy bassline of a Dubstep track and combines it with a twinkling Italo-House piano line. The record has been a constant feature in Shazam’s Pre-Release chart for some weeks and is likely to do well when the single is release next week in the UK Charts.
Fans of Sub Focus should click here to download his track ‘Smooth’ for absolutely nothing!
