Tuesday, March 11, 2008

bedshaped swings his pants.

After doing this on my personal blog for some time, it made sense to move it here to a more fitting place.
So, here's the first of hopefully some regular postings, showcasing what's on heavy rotation on my MP3 player. There's no rules here and if there were, then I'd like to exercise my right to bending them a little. Sometimes it's newer stuff, sometimes it's older stuff, but wherever they're from the important thing to remember here is that they are all free to download.
So enjoy.


The Young Knives - "Up All Night"
This has stuck in my head since I caught it on the radio a few weeks back. I like the fast tempo, I like the jangly guitars and I particularly like the vocal arrangements. They're a kooky looking bunch judging from their videos, but I just think that adds to the charisma of the song. This is a much better example of where I'd like to see 'indie/pop' going, rather than in the direction of The Hoosiers, The Wombats or even Scouting For Girls. Although I must admit Scouting do have a knack of becoming something of an earworm. Running at 2.46, it's great to see short, sharp, punchy songs coming back to the fore.

Hercules & Love Affair - "Blind (Frankie Knuckles Remix)"
Here's a bold statement....This is my favourite song of the year so far. I can't pinpoint exactly what it is that digs into my head and oozes such a pleasurable listening experience, but it just sounds great. Vocals provided by the distinctively sounding Antony Hegarty sit just perfectly in this track. A sweeping disco beat, lush synths and a bassline that's more funky than Jack McFunk from FunksVille. Add in some catchy percussion and a little brass and you get a choone that's just makes me wanna Vogue™.

Estelle feat Kanye West - "American Boy"
Can't say I was particularly fussed with Estelle's previous stuff, but this song is a killer. Funky beats, a slappin' bass and a keyboard line that grows from annoyingly distracting into killer hook within minutes. She's got a nice breezy voice that tumbles along, but it's Kanye that gives the song that extra oomph that it needs. Can he do any wrong nowadays?

Sam Sparro - "Black and Gold"
I don't know much about this guy. I think he's a DJ of some sorts who travels about a lot. Hell, I'm not even sure if it's actually Sam who sings on this or if it's one of those guest vocal spots. What I do know is that it's a proper grower! A nice dreamy and atmospheric feel to it, spurned along by a pulsating beat. The part at 4.21 that sounds distinctly like a Messenger notification is a little odd though. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be there or if I just have a shitty copy. Or perhaps it's subliminal!

Elbow - "Grounds For Divorce"

I'm really looking forward to their new album. I must admit, it took me a couple of listens to get into this song, but with each one in turn, it just started to sound better and better. And what a brilliant opening line (ignoring the quietly mumbled intro), "I've been working on a cocktail called grounds for divorce". Loving the bit when the guitars get turned up too. Typical sounding Elbow, with added meatiness. Love it, love it, love it.

That's my swinging pants session over for the time being.
It's been groovy.

4 Discussions:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Splendid stuff, bedshaped. Not a duff track amongst them - and you're a gem for posting Estelle and 'Black and Gold'. I've been looking for those (albeit not very hard) - and already adore Blind.

10:28 PM  
Blogger bedshaped said...

You're welcome sarah. And thanks for the comment.

11:05 PM  
Blogger weenie said...

Estelle and Kanye - ace!

9:00 PM  
Blogger bedshaped said...

weenie,
It's a good track, that's a no-brainer. Unfortunately, it's getting very overplayed by the radio now. I guess that's the price to pay when it hits the top spot, huh.

9:10 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home