This guy clobbered together a load of old scanners, hard drives and a ZX spectrum to create this slightly spooky rendition of Nude. Sadly he missed the closing date for the recent competition to do just that but his results are pretty interesting... Read the original post by creator James Housten for a bit more info
Big Ideas (don't get any) from James Houston on Vimeo.
Everybody is saying the same two things about this album: it sounds like Depeche Mode in places and it doesn't have any of the big room anthems that the previous album, Movements, had.
BlackPlastic hates to agree but as statements these are both true. There is nothing quite like 'Mandarine Girl' on The Sun & The Neon Light and certain parts, notably 'Control Me', DO sound like Depeche Mode. What most are wrong about is what these facts mean.
The Sun & The Neon Light doesn't just sound like Depeche Mode. It also sounds like the meloncholic Joy Division of 'Atmosphere' on 'Sweet Lies' and the swirling bass / cowboy twang of 'Dusty Boots' is very Underworld. Yet most of all this album sounds like Booka Shade: Even
when their forebearer's inspiration is notable everything is still distinctly Get Physical and meticulously put together.
So there are no 'bangers' here. If you want those BlackPlastic suggests you a) stop reading; and b) pick up the limited version which features a continuous bonus CD of club versions. The Underworld comparison above is important because The Sun & The Neon Light as an album picks up where Dubnobasswithmyheadman and Beaucoup Fish left off: this is a mature electronic album that has been crafted into a cohesive body of work. To complain that this album lacks club hits is like complaining your car moves too slowly underwater: that is not what it was designed to do.
Booka Shade will doubtless have more work in the future that caters to your ass. This one... This one is for your head. Don't be stupid enough to miss the point.
BP x
You know what time it is: Ed Banger are back with another installment
of their Ed Rec series and they intend to party...
And on the whole, they succeed. There are moments that are less
exciting: Uffie seems less alluring than normal and a couple of tracks
feel dangerlously like filler (see Krazy Baldhead's 'Now Cow, No
Pow'), which really hits hard when you have only 45 minutes of record.
Yet there is plenty of attitude and innovation to keep things
interesting. For the former check Busy P's effort 'To Protect and
Entertain', a lewd, crude and downright rude hip-hop record, or Mr.
Flash's predictably Ronseal 'Over The Top' - an electro 80s hair metal
track. Offering the latter are SebAstian with 'Dog', a nasty hardcore-
metal track that stays fresh because the rhythm section is just too
funky and French to ever get used by a metal band, and DJ Mehdi, who
truly raises his game on the piano-house workout 'Pocket Piano'.
Through in a live version of Justice's 'Stress' that sounds like the
soundtrack to a shark attack and you have quite a package. Ed Rec Vol.
3 may not feel as fresh as Vol. 2 but that is probably a reflection of
their increased exposure as much as anything. They still sound like
the most innovative and exciting collective on the planet right now.
BP x
Lately BlackPlastic has been occupied with thoughts that 'Under Pressure' just might be the perfect pop song. It's generally difficult to justify such assertions but let's try anyway:
1. That bassline. It's timeless, everyone knows it. Along with Madonna's 'Holiday' bassline this must be one of the most distinctive ever written.
2. The drums. By golly, those drums are good. They sizzle and snap, they thud. Combined with the drip drop piano part it creates something special.
3. The wandering guitar. Understated, beautiful.
4. The swell. You know the the build up bit prior to Bowie's "It's the terror" bit... Sublime. And then it collapses like a house of cards prior to:
5. The second swell. Why can't we give love that one more chance?
6. And fade to: finger clicks. Perfect.
What makes 'Under Pressure' so great is that has not just fantastic instrumentation, vocals and lyrics but also beautiful structure. In fact BlackPlastic would argue the considered pacing actually demonstrates poise.
Go have a listen.
BP x
BlackPlastic isn't sure but this may have been around for a while...
Whatever, it's a slice of pure slow fuck summer breeze and
BlackPlastic loves it.
Maybe Felix is just ahead of the curve because Virgo... is already
sounding a bit better to our ears. Alternatively it might just be that
this Shinichi Osawa remix is so goddamn fresh that everything it
touches turns to loved-up pure gold. Slap this down and it sounds like
spending your summer catching rays on a 24/7 rollercoaster of love.
Shinichi has already proven, with awesome remixes of 'Pogo' amongst
others, his abilities to great lush shattered electro-antems. This mix
of 'Radio' shows he can do summer pop too.
BP x