Sunday 22 January 2017

Sunday Jamz with Joe, Shak and Sam (22/01/17)



Another tragedy. Sam goofed, read about it here:
Sam's apology post

So, this week's installment will be an old-fashioned blog post once again. 

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Moving on, if this is your first time reading our blog, me, Joe and Sam share a song with one another on a Sunday, a song which has dominated the listening-time of our weeks, and then we all comment on it.

Here is the Spotify link to the playlist which accompanies this activity. It has every song selection from the three of us from the first time we did this. The order is as follows: Joe's song, my song, Sam's song.

The playlist: sunday jamz



Without further ado, here are the songs. Complete with all the colloquialisms of our infantile Facebook Messenger writing styles. 




Joe's song:
CW/A - Conducting the Method

Sam: "The thing I enjoyed most about this track was the way it layered itself. In the first minute, or so, we have a fairly minimal soundscape of some creepy humming, with a constant brief snare, and a grating scratch sound. I reminded me of a horror film, almost. Then we get this drum break and the bass of the track kicks in, as well as the addition of some distorted drum licks. From then on, the track continues to mix things up, and we get the addition of what I think is either a synth or some keys with heavy effects on them. The synth is probably my favourite part of the ensemble, as it shifts in tone, volume, etc. It just sounds sick. This is definitely something that I can picture goths dancing to in a dark room, in the best possible way."

Shak: "I thought this track took me a sonic journey and it’s something that I enjoy about electronic tracks like this. The various elements that make up this track, and the way they each take their turn and so the track never feels like it’s staying still. Some very IDM-esque dark ambient sounds on top of dance rhythms, but also bit of Deep House-esque bass. Some of the best parts of the track include these fuzzy static synths, around the 2:40 mark, that mellow out after a few bars and blend into the track. I also loved how NOISY is gets around the 4:40 mark. I can definitely picture this track to some vintage Windows Media Player visuals (which, by the way, if anyone knows how to still get them, hook ya boy up ‘cause I miss ‘em.) I also pictured the track being played at one of those crazy Slavic cave raves you see online. Yeah, I liked it." 


Joe: "I first discovered them whilst playing N++, a video game, as they feature on the OST. The track begins with this trance style echoed synth, which sounds sick, and I like how it mixes in with the crisp beat that builds on top of it. In this section, certain parts of the tracks sound like raindrops, pitter-pattering on a rooftop, and reminded me of Radiohead’s The Gloaming. Then, the super fat bass kicks in, BOM BOM BOM BOM BOM, and I think it’s super danceable but I also appreciate how unconventionally dark it sounds for this style of music. Then the main synth melody kicks in and it grows in volume in parallel to the bass fading out to expose this edgy sound of the synth. It just sounded super raw, like a big rusty blade slicing through the butter of the bass. The bass quickly returns to the forefront of the track and continues to develop its intensity whilst reverb is applied to the lead synth, making it sound almost percussive and stuttering. Yeah, I really like this track. BOW BOW BOOOOOW."

Joe: "This was an odd way to start the track, I thought the intro sample was mega creepy. That aside, I like the beat on this track. It sounds as if it’s been made of chopped up sound effects from old films, with the vocal sample at the beginning further adding to that old-school sound. It reminded me of Wu-Tang Clan in that way and I’m sure this kind of beat influenced DJ Shadow’s Endtroducing. I also enjoyed the jazz elements within the instrumentation as well. Overall, sick track."

Sam: "I’m not huge on this track. I think the beat is the best part of the track, being quite funky, and I appreciate its production, sounds super 90’s. I thought some of Pete Rock’s bars were good, I particularly liked his deliver of the line, "Harder than the hardest, odder than the oddest", and "The finesse I possess will make the hardest unstiff.” However, those were choice lines in an otherwise, what I felt to be, pretty flat delivery. I just found it hard to engage with the track a lot of the time, mostly due to Pete Rock’s delivery. It was smooth, but perhaps too smooth? I won’t be returning to this one."

Shak: "This is taken from one of my favourite old-school Hip-Hop albums and I’ve been jamming to this track, in particular, all week. Soul Brother #1 is a very simple track. It uses a conventional verse-chorus structure and is very much a snapshot of its era, with no outlandish elements about it. The main reason I love this song, however, is the track’s noticeable contrast. The beat is bombastic and hard-hitting but Pete Rock’s flow is incredibly smooth and chilled. In fact, he highlights this in the track itself with his bars, "Hon said I'm so smooth they should call me lubrication." This song is one of those cases where it’s an album I’ve loved for a long time, Mecca and the Soul Brother being one of my favourite Hip-Hop albums, and Soul Brother #1 has transformed from a track that I’d normally pass on to being a sleeper track that’s quickly become one of my favourites from the album."




Sam's song:
Tangerine Dream - Cloudburst Fight 

Shak: "The Tangerine Dream I listened to as a lot more sparse and eerie than this. This definitely has progressive rock splashes and tendencies I feel - whereas what I listened to before just sounded like straight up Berlin School shit. Far more ambient. The leading guitars in this really make the big difference. I wasn't expecting such direct live instrumentation. I have to say I'm not a massive fan, the excessive guitar soloing just feels like a detractor to the much more interesting electronic stuff happening beneath imo. Well, not even happening beneath because, the electronic stuff gets resigned to this really basic melody whilst the guitar goes off on one, but before the guitar came back with omega dominance, there was some much more enjoyable, more subtle, more pleasant electronic stuff going on. Around the middle of the track between the 2 and 4 minutes, is where i love the track. Then the guitar just goes crazy, totally overpowers the song and the electronics, and it's just too much. I don't think it's a nice mix, prog rock and prog electronic. Not at all. Around 6+ minutes, the soft outro to the song is for sure another highlight moment. It really is just the guitar heavy segments that leave me bemused and unimpressed."

Joe: "This track really reminds me of Pink Floyd. The acoustic guitars, especially, at the beginning of the track sounded quintessentially prog rock. The various tones of the synths also sounded very Floyd. That said, I did like the sound of the instruments, they gave me dink peaceful vibez. It’s when the drums come in that the synths transform into something that sounds WAY more 80’s, in both their tone and their melodies. This kind of soaring synth reminded me of shit like Ace Combat 2 on the PlayStation. Me likey! Then this electric guitar kicks in and goes into this CRAZY INTENSE solo whilst the synth melody loops in the background. Again, I likey! This end of the solo is signalled by these invasive horns (I think?) and the track breaks down into the bare bones of the looping synth melody. Then some kind of woodwind instrument, pan pipes I think, plays over the looping synth and sounds great. My favourite part of this track is the backing melody, from the synth, and I love how it progresses and carries the track to a slow, almost melancholic end. I thought the track was super emotional, especially for an instrumental, and it felt like I had just witnessed a grand story take place." 

Sam: "This is a track that I found whilst searching for more Progressive Electronic music. I love the interplay between the acoustic guitar and the various synth melodies, namely how they interchangeably lead the track. The synths, in particular, have a nice variation in their use whether they’re washing over you, gradually fading in and out of the track, or being more constant and building excitement. The whole song has a super futuristic feel to it, by late 70’s standards anyway, and I think what this track does for me more than the CW/A track was take me on a genuine journey-esque experience. Yes, the guitar is perhaps a bit overblown in its sound but that only further intensified the journey I pictured, personally, of an astronaut flying through space undergoing some hardship against the elements. Yeah, I really love this one. I recommend the album also!" 




That's it. What did you think of the songs?
What have you been listening to this week?

Make sure to tune in next week for the return of the Podcast-Video.


Anyway, thanks for reading.


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Disclaimer: We are not professional reviewers. Do not hold us to a high standard.




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