Thursday, August 28, 2014

SHREM'S FUTURE ANTHEMS: "NIGHT FLIGHT" - Midnight Magic + Remixes


I adore music surprises like this. Here we are getting spoiled with Midnight Magic's brand new, fresh slice of nu disco "Night Flight" which arrived pretty much out of the blue. The cosmic disco ensemble from Brooklyn has been responsible for delivering the sauciest, the most flamboyant and the most genuine disco sounds of the modern era for a good few years at this stage, never going below the most excellent standard with either of their releases. The band's phenomenal lead singer Tiffany Roth, the contemporary empress of disco, stands out among my favourite vocalists out there next to Róisín Murphy, Steed Lord's Kali and Jessie Ware. And she has delivered another stellar vocal performance here! "Night Flight" announces the release of Midnight Magic's upcoming 5-track EP of "eclectic disco bliss", their first one for Soul Clap Records. The single is out now on Beatport!



Permanent Vacation has also just dropped a delicious compilation of remixes from "Midnight Creepers". Here's Hugh Mane's take-on the title track.



SHREM'S BIGGIES BUT GOODIES BASKET: "GO" - Grimes feat. Blood Diamonds


When I first posted about Grimes' "Go" back in June the track was met with very mixed emotions. 2 months after I am still very much in love with the song which is now also available with this haunting and stimulating piece of music video art. Seriously what a track, Grimes saving Pop music yet again...



Monday, August 25, 2014

SHREM'S DOUBLE TROUBLE: "TNR" - Kasper Bjørke feat. Jaakko Eino Kalevi /// "SPEAK OUT" & "TECNO SOUVLAKI" - Jaakko Eino Kalevi


Danish producer Kasper Bjørke is teasing us with yet another fantastic single before the official release of his long anticipated and special-guest-packed new record "After Forever" which drops 22nd September via hfn. This new track, oddly dedicated to Times New Roman font, features the unpredictable wonder child of folktronica and nu jazz, Jimi Tenor's natural successor on the Finnish electronica scene Jaakko Eino Kalevi. Kalevi's latest EP "Yin Yang Theatre" has some delicious moments too, like the irresistibly enchanting slice of nu-disco "Speak Out" and the experimental "Tecno Souvlaki" which was just accompanied by a video directed by Christine Gensheimer. This scandinavian edition of my Double Trouble thread (or even triple trouble?) is sounding rather well if I do say so myself...







Friday, August 22, 2014

SHREMIVERSARIES: Portishead's "DUMMY" 25th

PORTISHEAD "DUMMY"

RELEASE DATE: 22nd August, 1994
PRODUCERS: Portishead, Adrian Utley

SINGLES:

"NUMB" - Released: 6 June 1994



"SOUR TIMES (NOBODY LOVES ME)" - Released: 1 August 1994





"GLORY BOX" - Released: 2 January 1995





FAVOURITE NON-SINGLE TRACKS:

"Mysterons"



"Biscuit"



"Roads"



"Pedestal"



"Wandering Star"



+ that one exquisite track which only made it to the European version of "Dummy": "It's A Fire"




FAVOURITE REMIXES:

"Numbed In Moscow"



"Lot More"




"TO KILL A DEADMAN"



SHREM'S LIST OBSESSION: Top 20 Tunes I Can't Wait To Hear @ Electric Picnic 2014 The Most


Electric Picnic is only one week away! This year's impossibly good line-up inspired me to compile this festival song wish list. Here's to not too many clashes!

20 "The Attic" - Colm K.



19 "Digital Witness" - St. Vincent



18 "The Look" - Metronomy



17 "So Fresh So Clean" - Outkast



16 "Buffalo Stance" - Neneh Cherry



15 "Wildfire" - SBTRKT



14 "Domino Dancing" - Pet Shop Boys



13 "The Heat" - Jungle



12 "My Offence" - Hercules & Love Affair



11 "Everybody Dance" - Chic



10 "Millionaire" - Kelis Feat. André 3000



09 "Machine Gun" - Portishead



08 "My Forbidden Lover" - Chic



07 "Popgun track" - Linkoban



06 "Two Weeks" - FKA Twigs



05 "I Try To Talk To You" - Hercules & Love Affair



04 "West End Girls" - Pet Shop Boys



03 "Your Love" - Moko



02 "Papi Pacify" - FKA Twigs



01 "Roads" - Portishead



Thursday, August 21, 2014

CHOON OF THE DAY: "CURTAIN CALL" - Steed Lord [Video]


Iceland's most fashionable kids Steed Lord are serving up another exuberant visual feast with the video for "Curtain Call", the first single  taken from their forthcoming "The Prophecy pt. 2". We've been in love with the song for months at this stage but now the song will relive its second life with this flamboyant new video. Kali's on top of her styling game again. Second to none.



Wednesday, August 20, 2014

SHREM'S CLUB BIZARRE INTRODUCING: "STRONG HANDS" - Tami Tamaki


Do you remember "I Never Loved This Hard, This Fast Before"? The mysterious Tami Tamaki's explicit, obscure and unclassifiable vocoder driven slow electro track that sounded like both the most unique and the most bonkers thing we've heard in years? 8 month after discovering this unbelievable song I stumbled upon Tamaki's brand new rave-ready track "Strong Hands" available for free on the artist's soundcloud. Echoing both Crystal Castles and German Love Parade anthems, on the verge of the ultimate musical kitsch, "Strong Hands" makes me crave Tami Tamaki's music even more. One of a kind.





Monday, August 18, 2014

SHREM'S FUTURE ANTHEMS: "OUR LOVE" - Caribou


Caribou's title track from his forthcoming album "Our Love" is as good as it gets on the electronica front. The unusually delicate and mellow first half of the track turns into an ultimate house belter towards the end sounding like an ideal sonic recipe for a late summer festival's most spectacular anthem. The year 2014, the year that keeps giving and giving so generously the most sensational music releases. I thought it'd be a mission impossible to top the utter brilliance of "Can't Do Without You" but Caribou has effortlessly achieved just that. Put on your dancing shoes, baby!



SHREM'S NEWBIES BUT TO-BE'S: "NEVER ENOUGH" - Fantastic Fantastic


"Never Enough" sounds both current and retro. The song's aesthetics lie comfortably somewhere between Zoot Woman, Cut Copy and Penguin Prison. This pure jewel of a pop track comes from a new London duo Fantastic Fantastic and it's actually a b-side to their 1st single "Houses". The blissful melody, the flawless production, the uplifting aura around the track, it's what makes it an instant summer anthem. Check it out below, it pretty much guarantees to improve your Monday "back-to-work" mood.

"A Globally tinged Summer pop sound from a duo with the ability to glide seamlessly over decades and borders, song by song." as we read on their Facebook page.



Sunday, August 17, 2014

SHREM'S NEWBIES BUT TO-BE'S: "RIVER" - Ibeyi


"Daughters of the great Cuban percussionist Anga Diaz, the twin sisters of IBEYI quickly seduced the producer of Asa's albums. Lisa-Kaïndé plays the piano and sings. She's only 21 but her voice evokes the greatest ones. Her sister Naomi backs her vocals and plays percussions. They write their own material in Spanish, French or English." This is the info I gathered about the enigmatic Cuban sisters based in France from their official Facebook page. Ibeyi's "Oya" EP truly is an alternative delicacy, balancing mysteriously between the electronic soul, unconventional folk from the unidentified lands with some tribal beats to spice things up even more. Truly original and with this haunting video "River" will most likely stay with you for long!



Friday, August 15, 2014

CHOONS OF THE DAY: "PARALLELS" + "EARLY DAYS" - Kamp!


Polish synth-pop champions Kamp! return with another sleekly produced, Balearic single "Parallels" taken from their upcoming EP "Baltimore" released on 26th August by Cascine. No one does synth-pop quite as stylishly as the electronic trio from Łódź. Pre-order your copy of "Baltimore" 12" HERE!

Official press release:

"Kamp! continues to grow their global fanbase on the strength of their stylish synth pop, which fluidly melds modern versions of 80's new-wave with international disco. Their warm, layered production, hit-flavored melodies, melancholic vocals and Balearic brushstrokes, evoke images of dusk-till-dawn beach-parties and dusty mirrorballs in the corners of forgotten nightclubs."





Tuesday, August 12, 2014

SHREM'S BIGGIES BUT GOODIES BASKET: "MONUMENT" - Robyn & Röyksopp


Robyn & Röyksopp's "Monument", a collaboration of epic proportions between Scandinavia's fiercest musicians and my pick for top 5 best songs in 2014 so far now also receives a visual treatment. The video for "Monument" was directed by Max Vitali responsible for 5 other videos for Robyn in the past (watch them all below).

"We started writing Monument after playing around with a software that can stretch short bits of music into billions of years of sound. It made total sense to me that Max wanted to explore this floating feeling and mediation in the video." - said Robyn on her Facebook page earlier on.



"Call Your Girlfriend"



"Hang With Me"



"Dancing On My Own"



"Indestructible"



"Be Mine"



Monday, August 11, 2014

SHREM'S FUTURE ANTHEMS: "1 BAD B*TCH" - Ten Ven & Ripley x Zebra Katz


The blogosphere's darling, the incomparable Zebra Katz returns with yet another bizarrely catchy "Queer-HipHop-Meets-House" kind of anthem sounding immediately big! "1 Bad B*tch" has the brazen charisma and the saucy appeal of a forbidden underground anthem, standing out in the ocean of dance & electronica singles the same way "Tear the House Up", his collaboration with Hervé, and his sinister debut track "Ima Read" did.





SHREM'S DOUBLE TROUBLE: "RAPT" - Gingy feat. Starving Yet Full /// "PEOPLE CHANGE" - Hot Natured feat. Starving Yet Full


Azari & III's velvet voiced Cédric Gasaida better known as Starving Yet Full continues to inspire the wizards of dance scene with his extraordinary vocal skills, charisma and artistic versatility. Following the releases with Subb-an, Rampa, Moonlight Matters, Yolanda Be Cool and Pete Tong we are about to receive "Rapt" - an incredible vocal house stomper that pretty much guarantees a dancefloor feast. This instant "club goer pleaser" was produced by a Toronto based dj Gingy. Pre-order your 12" copy of "Rapt" HERE!
While preparing this post I have also realised I have never shared S.Y.F.'s collaboration with Hot Natured on my über-nerdy "carousel" yet. "People Change", one of the stand-out tracks on "Different Sides of the Sun", is a moody slice of deep house confirming Gasaida's superior position as the underground house scene's vocal darling. It's always a thrill to hear either Starving Yet Full or Fritz Helder featuring on new releases now that the Canadian quartet is sadly dis-banded.





Saturday, August 9, 2014

SHREM'S LIST OBSESSION: Top 10 Best Towa Tei Tracks


Towa Tei. 20 years of some of the quirkiest POP songs ever created. An exuberant sonic orgy of Japanese electronica, jazz, drum'n'bass, lounge featuring a multi-vibrant palette of singers from all over the world with a pinch of absurdity. Celebrating Towa Tei's 20th anniversary with this very special list. For all the releases check out the artist's specially designed new website HERE.

TOWA TEI「94-14」OUT 03.09.2014!
TOWA TEI「94-14 COVERS」OUT 03.09.2014!
TOWA TEI「94-14 REMIX」OUT NOW!

10 "Mind Wall" - featuring Miho Hatori (Cibo Matto), from "Big Fun" (2009)



09 "Apple" - featuring Ringo Sheena, from "Lucky" (2013)



08 "Taste Of You" - featuring Taprikk Sweezee, from "Big Fun" (2009)



07 "Angel" - featuring. Ayumi Tanabe & Viv, from "Last Century Modern" (1999)



06 "Luv Connection" - featuring Joi Cardwell, from "Future Listening!" (1994)



05 "A.O.R." - featuring Lina Ohta, from "Big Fun" (2009)



04 "Time After Time" - featuring. Amel Larrieux & Viv, from "Sound Museum" (1997)



03 "Butterfly" - featuring Ayumi Tanabe, from "Last Century Modern" (1999)



02 "Technova (La em Copacabana)" - featuring Bebel Gilberto, from "Future Listening!" (1994)



01 "G.B.I. (German Bold Italic)" - featuring Kylie Minogue, from "Sound Museum" (1997)





Thursday, August 7, 2014

CHOON OF THE DAY: "(H)OURS" - Juce


"(H)ours" is a new single by a London three piece girl band Juce comfortably flowing between 90's R&B female groups, electronic funk and olschool flavoured perfect pop melodies. Not just a tune of the day but a track of the week at least big time. Chalin, Cherish and Georgia about to conquer the whole blogosphere with their 90's vintage aesthetics, flawless harmonies and top notch pop productions. Check out the soundcloud clip below for a free download of the song courtesy of Annie Mac.





Tuesday, August 5, 2014

CHOONS OF THE DAY: "ALL ME" EP - Idriss Chebak


Idriss Chebak is a Moroccan dj and producer currently based in Lausanne, Switzerland. Fake Music have just released Chebak's "All Me" EP which is an irresistible cocktail of summery Balearic vibes dipped in a scorching sun ready for your garden parties and pre-club sessions. You can download it for free HERE!



Saturday, August 2, 2014

Crème de la crème: TOP 20 JULY 2014

20 (N) "Uptight Downtown" - La Roux



19 (N) "Back Again" - Ricardo Baez



18 (N) "Julia" - Jungle



17 (7) "Rush" - Roses Gabor



16 (N) "Hot Love" - We Are Shining



15 (N) "Nuts!" - Dego



14 (5) "Monument" - Robyn & Röyksopp



13 (N) "Les Arias Tropicales" - Exotica



12 (4) "Two Weeks" - FKA Twigs



11 (N) "Bugatti" - Tiga



10 (N) "Sylvia" - Kasper Bjørke feat. CTM



09 (N) "P.A.R.T.Y." - Seven Davis Jr. feat. Mezmawho



08 (11) "My Offence" - Hercules & Love Affair feat. Krystle Warren



07 (N) "Airwaves" - Gus Gus



06 (1) "Anymore" - Steed Lord



05 (N) "New Cuisine" - Easter



04 (2) "In Sintesi" - Róisín Murphy



03 (N) "Runaway" - Electric Youth



02 (N) "Your Love" - Moko



01 (N) "Ancora Ancora Ancora (Severino & Nico De Ceglia Remix)" - Róisín Murphy