bitdepth

Skimskitta

The very first online audio that I purchased was Skimskitta by Mira Calix. I found out about Mira Calix through a feature on CBC Radio 3 (click on the Mira Calix link on the Flash-enabled page). The sounds I heard there were intriguing as well as her process of creating ambient musical soundscapes with bits of sound from nature as well as electronic sounds. So I listened to the excerpts many times and kept my eyes open for any CDs. Eventually I found some, but they were a bit expensive. Then I found Bleep, which is Warp Records online digital music store. I was able to listen to all of the tracks on Skimskitta and I bought and downloaded the tracks.
It’s hard to describe what she creates. It’s ambient and rhythmic and I think that much of it works on a subconscious level. I have to be in a fairly receptive mood, but every time I listen I hear more. My absolute favourite listen to again and again and again track is I May Be Over There (But My Heart is Over Here). (If you have the Flash plugin installed you can listen to the track through an embedded player by clicking on the name of the track.) The emotion and progression of the sound is breathtaking. I don’t know how to describe it, but it’s as if she reached into my heart, transcribed the notes within and then constructed the sound so that it resonates in my soul.
technorati tags: miracalix, review, music, skimskitta

June 30, 2005 miracalix, music, review

Real Gone

Tom Waits - Real Gone

The music was like electric sugar.

The arrival of a new recording by Tom Waits is always exciting. The latest one, Real Gone, is bold and wonderful. While he could coast on his inherent coolness, he and long-time collaborator Kathleen Brennan have stayed in the same lyrical territory, but musically it’s a bit more radical, but crisply produced and a joy to listen to. Waits and his musical accomplices wander through diverse musical terrain with infectious beats that get into your head and roll around in your mind and touch your soul. Tom Waits is like an old friend who you always look forward to seeing again to find out what he’s been up to.

He’s the type of wheel you don’t fall asleep at.

The tracks are amongst some of my favourite songs and I’ve been listening to it almost constantly since last night. What is interesting is that many of the songs continue threads started on other albums with rhythms, sounds and noises that remind you of the ancestors. The family was involved with the production as well with son Casey providing some turntable and percussion support. A few seconds in to the first track, “Top of the Hill”, he had me. It’s a hypnotic mixture of rhythmic sounds with a toe-tapping beat. Listening to “Dead and Lovely” I have an image in my mind of a dance hall filled with elegantly dressed couples dancing while the dark lyrics and smoky rhythm fill the spaces between the dancers.

What’s more romantic than dying in moonlight.

The meandering poem “Circus” paints the dirty picture of a circus and those who are trapped inside it and follows on from tracks like “9th and Hennepin” from Rain Dogs and “What’s He Building in There?” from Mule Variations. “The Day After Tomorrow” could be the completion of a trio of tragic letters home that started with “Tom Traubert’s Blues” from Small Change and continued through “Time” from Rain Dogs.

I know that rose like I know my name.

Who would have known that something with so many experimental elements could feel so familiar. But that’s Tom and I’m glad that I have another glimpse of more of the musical territory that he’s exploring with his friends and family.

October 9, 2004 cd, kathleenbrennan, music, realgone, review, tomwaits

Medulla

It’s tricky when
you feel someone
has done
something on your behalf

Björk is a fairly unique and talented individual. Her new CD, Medúlla is built around her distinctive voice. While it’s not completely acapella, it’s a fascinating collection of soundscapes and minimalist lyrics that I really like. I heard the track and saw the video for “Oceania” and I fell in love with it. This can be a dangerous thing as the rest of the songs may not be as enjoyable. The interesting thing is that the other tracks on Medúlla aren’t a lot like “Oceania”, which is probably the most mainstream of the songs, but I love the diversity of the other songs. Each song takes you on a little journey with amazing stereo explorations of sonic and emotional spaces. The design of the CD by M/M is beautiful as well with a striking photograph of Björk on the cover by Inez & Vinoodh. I find that Medúlla is the perfect way for me to take a break from everything that tends to swirl around me every day.

September 5, 2004 bjork, cd, medulla, music, review

People Like Us

One thing that I’ve realized is that while I have a bit of a background and interest in sound I don’t have a lot of sound-related stuff on the ‘blog. I do have images and lots of film stuff, but not much sound stuff outside of more traditional music at all. I’ve been fascinated the last few days with a radio show from WFMU, “DO or DIY with People Like Us”
hosted by People Like Us who is Vicki Bennett. The show is a neat collection of offbeat music and collages created by People Like Us that I just love listening to.

I first heard People Like Us as part of the Illegal Art exhibition where her hauntingly beautiful track “Swinglargo” is included. I then saw the video “We Edit Life” that she was commissioned to make for Lovebytes. What she cuts and mixes together is clever and fun and with obscure references that I sometimes pick up and sometimes don’t, but always enjoy. She’s also profiled as a Featured Commoner as she’s a supporter of the Creative Commons project and is one of the people who suggested a sampling license. She has a very wide range of recordings available for download on her site, so you can listen and then buy some CDs. I’ve got to listen some more myself and buy some CDs. (But People Like Us also makes me want to do more with sound on my own too…the last thing I did was silent!)

November 18, 2003 art, audio, music, peoplelikeus, podcast, sound, vickibennett

Talkin’ Honky Blues

I hadn’t heard anything from Buck 65‘s new CD, Talkin’ Honky Blues, but I loved the other CD that I bought, so I got it and I love it. I’m listening to it right now on my new PowerBook (but that’s another Titanium-tinged story for later). It’s filled with great lyrics, catchy loops & rhythms, great instrumentals, and just good songs. One neat aspect thrown into the mix is the addition of live musicians which move the CD into the world of carefully-crafted, alternative music. It’s an eclectic combo with Buck’s distinctive voice forming the core and music elements that remind me of Portishead and Ennio Morricone along with a sprinkling of Tom Waits. I don’t want you to think that Buck 65 is derivative… he’s original and not derivative… there are just some family resemblances. It’s eclectic, very listenable, and beautifully crafted. I think this could be “The Big One” that moves Buck 65 into the larger consciousness of the music public. But, I’ve got the CD and he’s doing ok, so whether greater success spoils him or not won’t affect this lovely little disc. The CD has some enhanced CD content (which is something I’m partial to) with a video that provides a neat glimpse at Buck 65 and some info about the CD as well as a link to the “Buck a Month Club” where I’ll be getting more music every month. Now it’s in heavy rotation in iTunes and in the CD player in the car.

October 17, 2003 buck65, cd, music, review, talkinhonkyblues

Hail to the Thief

I’ve been listening to the new Radiohead CD, Hail to the Thief over the past week. It’s a bit downbeat, but that’s to be expected, and it continues to move forward by striking a balance between pop and experimental elements. There are two songs on the CD that I love: the first single, “There there” and “Punchup at a Wedding.” The two songs seem to be some of the less processed, and more built around the band playing (who knows if that’s how the tracks came about, but that’s how I think about it). The video for “There, There” is an amazing stop-motion animation with Thom wandering through forest filled with anthropomorphic animals. The video is at the “Radiohead Television” site, and if you check out the site at the top of the hour you can see a half-hour show, “The Most Gigantic Lying Mouth of All Time” which features music from the CD combined with more experimental video and animation as well as some live stuff. It’s a neat progression from the videoblips used to market “Kid A” in a more viral sense. I’ve only seen one episode, but I liked it. One quirky thing that I’ve noticed is that it looks as if the site isn’t working when I access it with Safari, but that was because the pop-up blocking feature was stopping it from happening… so you have to allow unrequested pop-ups for that site to see the show (just make sure you turn it back on after you leave the site). The band is doing the rounds like every other band now as it seems they’ve become much more well-adjusted as human beings following the grind of “OK Computer” documented by Grant Gee in “Meeting People is Easy“.

June 22, 2003 cd, grantgee, meetingpeopleiseasy, music, radiohead, review, video

2 / 3