Thursday 12 March 2015

Diverse Pleasures



It has been an absolute age since I got my arse into gear and did a trawl through some of the newer music that has caught my ear. I am just so unenamoured of the World of Pop these days - I tend to spend more time wallowing in the nostalgia-fest that is BBC Radio 2 (on weekends in particular), or else classical stations such as Radio 3 or Classic FM are my preferred aural backdrop.

That aside, let us clear the decks once again for a mini-showcase of recent choons by some eternal favourites, some welcome surprises, a few classy numbers, and inevitably some cheese...

Two great musical icons joined forces at the turn of the year, the legendary Giorgio Moroder (one of the more surprising comebacks of recent years) and Our Princess of Pop Kylie Minogue. The result is rather fab:


Speaking of comebacks, around the Festering Season (yes, it has been that long since my last round-up) a particularly welcome gift was the return of a long-lost fave band of mine, The Beautiful South! Well, not entirely. Only two of them, in fact - lead singers Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott. However, their song Real Hope (an excoriating critique of "reality TV" talent contest/karaoke shows such as X-Factor, The Voice et al) is a true return to glory, and I love it:


Nothing else in music (or indeed music news) is ever quite as big as Madonna releasing/promoting a new album. Of course, the whole universe knows by now that the pop-tastic Living For Love is the first single from Queen Madge's Rebel Heart. However, there is a huge cavalcade of remixes of the track out there to choose from, as well. I've waded through them to the best of my ability (so you don't have to) and, in my opinion, the utterly marvellous Offer Nissim has probably done the best job:


Our houseboys (and one-time Madge collaborators) from Kazaky are (also) completely unstoppable. Despite being apparently now reduced to a threesome - oo-er - they seem to release a new single and video every few months! Their latest brilliant production is the (as ever) sex-fantastic What You Gonna Do:


Taking a break from dance numbers, here's a sweet one - a good song with a powerful message about tolerance, it's Kadie Elder and the faboo First Time He Kissed a Boy:


I have said it before, and I will say it again... Marc Almond is a God. He has a brand new album out this week, The Velvet Trail, and from it here is the sublime (song and video) Life In My Own Way. I adore this:


One I missed completely from last year - and many thanks again to the lovely Henry at Barbarella's Galaxy for digging it out recently - is the mysterious Kovacs and My Love. Her voice is a thing of beauty...


As ever, we go from the sublime to the ridiculous. With a song for everyone who's sick of mobile phones, here's a combo of fierce drag queens from the "Crucible of Civilisation" Italy and the "Land of Tackiness" that is Spain, RIIING! by Lacroix & La Prohibida. Muy bien!


With it's hilarious "home-made" video and analogue synths, the new one from Eurotix takes me right back to the end of the 70s/early 80s. This kind of thing was de rigeur on TV back then. It's rather an excellent effort for all that - it's When You Are In My Dreams:


Quite possibly the only video any of us have seen lately that features naked dancing "Princess Leias" over a sumptuous ethereal soundtrack, here's Tropea by Kaleida. It is gorgeous:



STOP PRESS: If the above embed code doesn't work - visit the VK video site

Oh, and by the way: "I'm the kinda person you don't wanna fuck with!" Not necessarily my words - they are those of the charmingly-named Death Team [theirs is a genuinely inspired piss-take of a website, by the way!]) and their choon Fucking Bitches in the Hood. I think I will be singing this in my head whenever I head to the office from now on...


And finally, in case that was a "fuck" too far, here - by complete contrast - is a jolly little divertissement that most definitely is not "new" (it was recorded almost four years ago), but new to me - and "right up our street"... I take constant delight at discovering musical oddities from the four corners of the earth, but this one really made me sit up and take notice. Dave Brubeck as you never heard him before - it's the Sachal Jazz Ensemble and their sitar-heavy version of Take Five!


As always, dear reader, enjoy - and let me know what you think.

11 comments:

  1. Moroder AND Minogue? Now that is a nostalgia fest.

    Death Team.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are you a "Fucking Bitch in the Hood"? It is something to aspire to, apparently. Jx

      Delete
  2. I've been playing the Kylie track since day one of release. I'm mad about it. It is a defo for any party playlist in the future. JJxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agreed! (What's your verdict on the rest, by the way?)
      Jx

      Delete
  3. The Marc Almond album is already a strong contender for album of the year for me, with Madge putting in a rather decent effort (for her) x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To my shame I have yet to hear the whole of The Velvet Trail, but what I have heard fills me with joy. As for Madge, I think her latest album is probably the best since Confessions on a Dancefloor... Jx

      Delete
  4. Well, I finally got around to checking this latest selection of yours out - so sorry for the delay, I always love these posts as you know :)

    Anyways, I can't say I cared all that much for "Take Five", "Real Hope" or that Eurotix number. I quite liked "Tropea" however, but I'm afraid the drag queens and the fucking bitches just made my ears bleed.

    Much, much better is the lovely "The First Time He Kissed A Boy" - and I love the Marc Almond song! And you already know I love the songs from Moroder & Kylie, Kazaky and Kovacs.

    That just leaves the queen and what is currently my favorite remix of "Living For Love" - the fabulous Offer Nissim also did an even better "Living For Drums" mix that M has been using when promoting the song on TV, but sadly the mix is an instrumental one.

    Now, believe it or not - I have already bought 8 different versions of Rebel Heart, but haven't found the time to listen to the album yet! You see, a new Madonna albums means sitting down and REALLY listen to it the first time I put the disc on, and I just haven't had the time. But with my vacation starting NOW, you can bet what I will be doing :)

    Already looking forward to the next selection my dear - MUUUAHHH!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. EIGHT different versions?! You'll need ten days, dear!

      Glad you liked (at least some of) the selection - let's hope the rest of the year brings us much more in the way of aural pleasure - fnaar fnaar...

      Jx

      Delete
  5. Well, it's the collector in me - to get all the songs per se, I would have needed two versions. But then there is different packaging, the vinyl etc.

    I'm sure there are some more aural goodies on the way. I might even use my vacation time to put up a new selection of my own...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for sharing our music. :) We just released a new retro EP: https://youtu.be/njpDHoHsu7E

    Dennis from Eurotix.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are more than welcome, dear!

      Jx

      PS I am listening to it as we speak...

      Delete

Please leave a message - I value your comments!

[NB Bear with me if there is a delay - thanks to spammers I might need to approve comments]