An Open Letter To Izza Kizza

Dear Izza Kizza,

I'm a little upset with you.  We met at Dartmouth College (DJ Enzo introduced us) and you promised me an interview.  I e-mailed you to set it up and you never wrote back.  I even hit you up on twitter (weird) and you didn't tweet me back.  What's the deal?

I'm mad.  Well, I would be mad, except that your tunes are pretty good.  I gotta admit, I hadn't listened to much of your stuff prior to meeting you, but I listened to Kizzaland and The Wizard of Iz, and there's some pretty cool stuff going on in those tapes.  And you work with Nick Catchdubs, and he did a really sick remix of Clipse's "Cocaine", so there's some credit there.  

I especially like the collab tracks on Wizard Of Iz.  The beginning of "Connect The Dots" is awesome and the chorus is fly.  "Throw It Up" with David Banner is pretty jaunty and unstoppable.  And "It's Goin' Down" with Weezy and Birdman is a song to drink beers to in the summertime, even if Weezy's only on the track for like a second and a half.  So yeah, I can't really stay mad at ya.

So I'll put my hurt feelings aside for the moment and ask for your pardon.  Sorry for berating you earlier in this post, and drop me a line if you ever want to chat.  

Hugs,

Chris

Izza Kizza f. Colin Munroe - Connect The Dots (YSI) (filesavr)

Izza Kizza f. David Banner - Throw It Up (YSI) (filesavr)

Izza Kizza f. Lil Wayne & Birdman - It's Goin' Down (YSI) (filesavr)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYAepJp8m5hvUxrsWaUkTT64DKmWdPYdjvRpYN_2KT_GBAPOhOQB1jp2Q54vze7MpYPaTtwdXzXEgBspbK0K4In2WFS02llMTa1KG_EI4HV8PQNTv25hHsxHCMXAYjU0bYD5C0LL5Gg1w/s1600-h/izzakizzaTSRE.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341466264218423026" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYAepJp8m5hvUxrsWaUkTT64DKmWdPYdjvRpYN_2KT_GBAPOhOQB1jp2Q54vze7MpYPaTtwdXzXEgBspbK0K4In2WFS02llMTa1KG_EI4HV8PQNTv25hHsxHCMXAYjU0bYD5C0LL5Gg1w/s320/izzakizzaTSRE.JPG" style="float:center; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 324px;" /></a><br />Dear Izza Kizza,<div><br /></div><div>I'm a little upset with you.  We met at Dartmouth College (DJ Enzo introduced us) and you promised me an interview.  I e-mailed you to set it up and you never wrote back.  I even hit you up on twitter (weird) and you didn't tweet me back.  What's the deal?</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm mad.  Well, I would be mad, except that your tunes are pretty good.  I gotta admit, I hadn't listened to much of your stuff prior to meeting you, but I listened to Kizzaland and The Wizard of Iz, and there's some pretty cool stuff going on in those tapes.  And you work with Nick Catchdubs, and he did a really sick remix of Clipse's "Cocaine", so there's some credit there.  </div><div><br /></div><div>I especially like the collab tracks on Wizard Of Iz.  The beginning of "Connect The Dots" is awesome and the chorus is fly.  "Throw It Up" with David Banner is pretty jaunty and unstoppable.  And "It's Goin' Down" with Weezy and Birdman is a song to drink beers to in the summertime, even if Weezy's only on the track for like a second and a half.  So yeah, I can't really stay mad at ya.</div><div><br /></div><div>So I'll put my hurt feelings aside for the moment and ask for your pardon.  Sorry for berating you earlier in this post, and drop me a line if you ever want to chat.  </div><div><br /></div><div>Hugs,</div><div>Chris</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Izza Kizza f. Colin Munroe - Connect The Dots</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFpcmxRQ3RJMHVGa1E9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/08connectthedots" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Izza Kizza f. David Banner - Throw It Up</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFpcmxRQ3RiV3dLSkE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/06throwitup" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Izza Kizza f. Lil Wayne & Birdman</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">- It's Goin' Down </span>(<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFpcmxRQ3Q1UjdIRGc9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/05itsgoindown" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div>

What Cotton Candy Is To Food, O'Spada Is To Music

Despotz Records (or as I like to call them, Despotz Recordz) dropped this track in my inbox the other day, and boy is it tasty.  It's not your typical tasty - not a full meal, or even a delicious healthy snack.  No, this track is tasty in the way that something really sugary and probably involving Pixie Stix (tm) is tasty.  Like if I ate this song, I would bounce off the walls for a couple hours, crack a string of jokes that were only funny to me, and then collapse into a heap on my bed, sleep for three hours, and wake up with little-to-no recollection of what happened today.

Needless to say, I've been chowing down on it all day.

The track is by O'Spada, a band out of Stockholm fronted by Julia Spada, and it's called "Time" off of their debut album of the same name.  I've never heard of the band before, so I won't pretend to know anything about them, but this song is hypetastic.

Synthy like Passion Pit, rhythmically fractured like Hot Chip, and poppy without remorse.  I may overdose on the sugar of this track, but it's so damn sweet I can't stop listening to it.

O'Spada - Time (YSI) (filesavr)

Also, since O'Spada recalls some Passion Pit essence and I have no other place to post this great track up, here's the Cambridge boys' take on Dan Black's "Symphonies".

Dan Black - Symphonies (Passion Pit Remix) (YSI) (filesavr)

Despotz Records (or as I like to call them, Despotz Recordz) dropped this track in my inbox the other day, and boy is it tasty.  It's not your typical tasty - not a full meal, or even a delicious healthy snack.  No, this track is tasty in the way that something really sugary and probably involving Pixie Stix (tm) is tasty.  Like if I ate this song, I would bounce off the walls for a couple hours, crack a string of jokes that were only funny to me, and then collapse into a heap on my bed, sleep for three hours, and wake up with little-to-no recollection of what happened today.<div><br /></div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341461082979715346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja6GLvMZ35XJ4VQlCI4wm4Z3NEWGhEEp5RhpLKnuStvzeccG4g6T9A-01Saoa4Jscmkv-CiJkLofsfIsZzSNspFUBCzTsWf8qDo6PLsvQYiQ-qu0G7O13OtUA8KX5q6zUJLuwBfnG-K_0/s320/ospadaTSRE.PNG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" /><div>Needless to say, I've been chowing down on it all day.</div><div><br /></div><div>The track is by O'Spada, a band out of Stockholm fronted by Julia Spada, and it's called "Time" off of their debut album of the same name.  I've never heard of the band before, so I won't pretend to know anything about them, but this song is hypetastic.</div><div><br /></div><div>Synthy like Passion Pit, rhythmically fractured like Hot Chip, and poppy without remorse.  I may overdose on the sugar of this track, but it's so damn sweet I can't stop listening to it.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">O'Spada - Time</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFpcmxVdkd3NUxIRGc9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/time" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, since O'Spada recalls some Passion Pit essence and I have no other place to post this great track up, here's the Cambridge boys' take on Dan Black's "Symphonies".</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Dan Black - Symphonies (Passion Pit Remix)</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFpcmxWUnJCMTZGa1E9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/02symphoniespassionpitremix" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div>

Hooray for Hollywood

On Wednesday night, I went to see the Boston Pops perform a concert consisting almost exclusively of music by John Williams, conducted by Williams himself. Williams has a history with the Boston Pops, having served as their principal conductor from 1980-1993, and an excited, sold-out crowd welcomes him each time he returns to Symphony Hall in Boston. Now, I don’t make a habit of listening to movie soundtracks, but hearing such classics as the Star Wars theme and the Raider’s March from Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark got me thinking about film music, and that’s what I’d like to write about today.

What makes effective film music? Well, first I’d like to clarify the topic of discussion. Film music can be broken into two broad categories: film scores, which are typically classical compositions composed specifically for a given film, and film soundtracks, which consist primarily of previously released songs by a variety of artists. John Williams’s music falls into the former category, and that’s the category I’d like to focus on today.

So, what makes an effective film score? Well, most basically, it must fit the film. John Williams’s score for the Star Wars trilogy is a great example of wonderful film scoring. For example, his famous Star Wars theme, which opens with an ascending perfect fifth played stridently by brass instruments, sets the stage perfectly for the Star Wars films. The perfect fifth interval has often been used to suggest vast spaces—in Copland’s famous ballets, for example, which evoke the open prairies of the Midwest—and in Star Wars, it similarly suggests the infinite black expanse of outer space. The brass-heavy orchestration gives the theme a heroic quality that effectively fits the epic tale of intergalactic warfare that is the Star Wars trilogy (let’s forget the other three movies), and, furthermore, the punching, march rhythms lend a militaristic aura to this heroic theme. Simply put, the theme is perfectly fit to the film, and it was satisfying to hear it live on Wednesday.

The most hyped film score in recent years has been that from There Will Be Blood, composed by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead fame. I haven’t actually seen the movie, so I can’t fairly judge the music’s efficacy as a film score. However, I have gotten a chance to listen to the music alone, and it’s pretty fascinating. The score consists solely of string instruments, so it has none of the in-your-face strength of a brass-heavy orchestra. Yet Greenwood employs the strings to create a range of contrasting effects, from an atonal buzz in the segment entitled “There Will Be Blood” to a beautiful elegiac lament in “Oil.” I’ve always found Greenwood’s guitar playing as a member of Radiohead to be quite compelling, and so I approached his classical compositions with sincere curiosity. And, let me say that they do not disappoint—“Oil,” is particularly sublime. I look forward to hearing future works from Greenwood. I’ve included both of the tracks mentioned above, as well as the ubiquitous theme from Star Wars for your enjoyment.

John Williams - Theme from Star Wars (YSI) (filesavr)
Jonny Greenwood - Oil (YSI) (filesavr)
Jonny Greenwood - There Will Be Blood (YSI) (filesavr)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HOyCUJIwhTHJXOsMFtjbZKu57mXArnsmNRngxM4NfMJTUeF3g7W9wT3qZ-ZxsDxq9hxytOY2YwabH-Ps78JUFFbrJHppZX70c9MR2SKatpLiOdzQw_vmNfAJADIGyajRYBcs34yHo3k/s1600-h/lego-star-wars-the-game.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5341072754544304082" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HOyCUJIwhTHJXOsMFtjbZKu57mXArnsmNRngxM4NfMJTUeF3g7W9wT3qZ-ZxsDxq9hxytOY2YwabH-Ps78JUFFbrJHppZX70c9MR2SKatpLiOdzQw_vmNfAJADIGyajRYBcs34yHo3k/s320/lego-star-wars-the-game.jpg" style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 244px; height: 183px;" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">On Wednesday night, I went to see the Boston Pops perform a concert consisting almost exclusively of music by John Williams, conducted by Williams himself. Williams has a history with the Boston Pops, having served as their principal conductor from 1980-1993, and an excited, sold-out crowd welcomes him each time he returns to Symphony Hall in Boston. Now, I don’t make a habit of listening to movie soundtracks, but hearing such classics as the <span style="font-style: italic;">Star Wars</span> theme and the <span style="font-style: italic;">Raider’s March</span> from <span style="font-style: italic;">Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark</span> got me thinking about film music, and that’s what I’d like to write about today.<br /><br />What makes effective film music? Well, first I’d like to clarify the topic of discussion. Film music can be broken into two broad categories: film scores, which are typically classical compositions composed specifically for a given film, and film soundtracks, which consist primarily of previously released songs by a variety of artists. John Williams’s music falls into the former category, and that’s the category I’d like to focus on today.<br /><br />So, what makes an effective film score? Well, most basically, it must fit the film. John Williams’s score for the <span style="font-style: italic;">Star Wars</span> trilogy is a great example of wonderful film scoring. For example, his famous <span style="font-style: italic;">Star Wars</span> theme, which opens with an ascending perfect fifth played stridently by brass instruments, sets the stage perfectly for the Star Wars films. The perfect fifth interval has often been used to suggest vast spaces—in Copland’s famous ballets, for example, which evoke the open prairies of the Midwest—and in <span style="font-style: italic;">Star Wars</span>, it similarly suggests the infinite black expanse of outer space. The brass-heavy orchestration gives the theme a heroic quality that effectively fits the epic tale of intergalactic warfare that is the<span style="font-style: italic;"> Star Wars</span> trilogy (let’s forget the other three movies), and, furthermore, the punching, march rhythms lend a militaristic aura to this heroic theme. Simply put, the theme is perfectly fit to the film, and it was satisfying to hear it live on Wednesday.<br /><br />The most hyped film score in recent years has been that from <span style="font-style: italic;">There Will Be Blood</span>, composed by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead fame. I haven’t actually seen the movie, so I can’t fairly judge the music’s efficacy as a film score. However, I have gotten a chance to listen to the music alone, and it’s pretty fascinating. The score consists solely of string instruments, so it has none of the in-your-face strength of a brass-heavy orchestra. Yet Greenwood employs the strings to create a range of contrasting effects, from an atonal buzz in the segment entitled “There Will Be Blood” to a beautiful elegiac lament in “Oil.” I’ve always found Greenwood’s guitar playing as a member of Radiohead to be quite compelling, and so I approached his classical compositions with sincere curiosity. And, let me say that they do not disappoint—“Oil,” is particularly sublime. I look forward to hearing future works from Greenwood. I’ve included both of the tracks mentioned above, as well as the ubiquitous theme from <span style="font-style: italic;">Star Wars </span>for your enjoyment.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">John Williams - Theme from </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Star Wars</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnT2pLa0RlcElLSkE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/starwarstheme" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jonny Greenwood - Oil </span> (<a href="https://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnT2pLa0RlM1FLSkE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/07oil1" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jonny Greenwood - There Will Be Blood</span> (<a href="https://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnT2pLa0QwMEZMWEE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/06therewillbeblood1" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><br /><br /></span>

No More Dark Night of the Soul

So I haven't really been listening to a ton of music lately, work has been busy and I have been playing a lot more ultimate, so the time for music has evaporated. I have had the chance to listen to a bunch of NPR though and one feature that recently caught my eye was a streaming first listen to "Dark Night of the Soul," a collaboration between Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse and who would have guessed it, David Lynch! In addition to a host of other guest vocalists, "Dark Night of the Soul" is a thick, sonically saturnine album that really is as good and engrossing as you would expect/hope it to be. Ranging from dark folk, to punkish elements and almost ambient dub, "Dark Night of the Soul" creates a landscape. In the spirit of Stephen Colbert, a tip of the cap to NPR for their steaming the album in its entirety and an infuriated wag of the finger to EMI who is blocking the physical release of this monster collaboration due to some copyright ruckus. I have no tracks to post from the album, but please head over to NPR and listen to it and then buy the David Lynch photo book and the blank CD-R that will be released instead of an actual CD. Large scale collaborations like this are the innovative music, especially music that pushes the preconstructed boundaries of what types of artists work together and now we have a large record label preventing such a work of art from being heard by the general public. Now I have to find alternative means of acquiring the album...

On a later note, here are a couple of songs I've found and enjoyed recently.

All Smiles - Our Final Roles as Birds (YSI) (filesavr)
Dem Hunger - Police Rasta (YSI) (filesavr)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWW5P_c1-c9eZ0jyCEtNVo4Vx7XULEpE46BdYLL4UJT6NtcvjBoHpKhDy-WkqMNLWCF-3A9jtPNntvxNpuDfM1xoOXftQJoC1EljirMd6C5TGWi2a1nonCyku307phPSJB_5mbiPChqMN/s1600-h/TSRE+Dark+Night.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340692254088506466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWW5P_c1-c9eZ0jyCEtNVo4Vx7XULEpE46BdYLL4UJT6NtcvjBoHpKhDy-WkqMNLWCF-3A9jtPNntvxNpuDfM1xoOXftQJoC1EljirMd6C5TGWi2a1nonCyku307phPSJB_5mbiPChqMN/s320/TSRE+Dark+Night.jpg" style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 271px; height: 320px;" /></a>So I haven't really been listening to a ton of music lately, work has been busy and I have been playing a lot more ultimate, so the time for music has evaporated. I have had the chance to listen to a bunch of NPR though and one feature that recently caught my eye was a streaming first listen to <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104129585" target="_blank">"Dark Night of the Soul,"</a> a collaboration between Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse and who would have guessed it, David Lynch! In addition to a host of other guest vocalists, "Dark Night of the Soul" is a thick, sonically saturnine album that really is as good and engrossing as you would expect/hope it to be. Ranging from dark folk, to punkish elements and almost ambient dub, "Dark Night of the Soul" creates a landscape. In the spirit of Stephen Colbert, a tip of the cap to NPR for their steaming the album in its entirety and an infuriated wag of the finger to EMI who is blocking the physical release of this monster collaboration due to some copyright ruckus. I have no tracks to post from the album, but please head over to <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104129585" target="_blank">NPR</a> and listen to it and then buy the David Lynch photo book and the blank CD-R that will be released instead of an actual CD. Large scale collaborations like this are the innovative music, especially music that pushes the preconstructed boundaries of what types of artists work together and now we have a large record label preventing such a work of art from being heard by the general public. Now I have to find alternative means of acquiring the album...<br /><br />On a later note, here are a couple of songs I've found and enjoyed recently.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">All Smiles - Our Final Roles as Birds </span>(<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnYlJiTERsMHlGa1E9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/06ourfinalrolesasbirds" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dem Hunger - Police Rasta</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnYlJTOC9ubHpIRGc9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/policerasta" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)

Stu Reid Sampler: Moby Samples Folk Singer Vera Hall

Time for another Stu Reid Sampler, where we find the dopest samples from the dopest songs and trace them back to the dopest originals.  And other things concerned with dopeness.

This one's a bit of a flashback, taking a page out of Moby's book - a guy who was insanely popular following the release of Play, his 6th LP.  In the preceding and following years, he was merely sanely popular.  He's made some noise recently, but it's gonna be hard for him to top Play.  It was 18 songs of brilliance - moving, poppy, commercial and yet personal.  

Fun facts about play:

 - All 18 of its songs were used in commercials, a first for any album

 - 50% of the songs on the album were released as singles

 - It started with slow sales but stayed on the charts for 3 years

 - The liner book contained a series of essays by Moby.  Wrote Moby, "These essays are not really related to the music, so if you hate the essays you might still like the music, and if you like the essays you might hate the music.  Who knows, maybe by some bizarre twist of fate you'll like them both."  Funny guy, that Moby.

BUT, as the album's Wikipedia page notes, "the fusion of gospel and house for which the album was most widely praised also drew some criticism for Moby's style of appropriation, with some critics claiming not enough credit was going to the original (often anonymous) musicians and performers.  THAT, my friends, is where The Stu Reid Sampler comes in.

"Natural Blues" is a tune that centers on a spiritual female vocalist, backed with electro/techno instrumentation.  It really embodies the gospel/house fusion described above.  But the anchor of the track is clearly the vocal part, so I was super excited when I learned that the original was done by Vera Hall.  Hall was a folk singer (who is immortalized in the Library Of Congress) and her voice is positively unbelievable.  It's emotive, pained, sympathetic, beautiful, and many other wonderful adjectives.  

I really like "Natural Blues", but it's tough not to find something a little deeper in the a capella original "Trouble So Hard".  This is one of those examples where the original sheds a new light on the sample.  Enjoy.

Moby - Natural Blues (YSI) (filesavr)

Vera Hall - Trouble So Hard (YSI) (filesavr)

Time for another Stu Reid Sampler, where we find the dopest samples from the dopest songs and trace them back to the dopest originals.  And other things concerned with dopeness.<div><br /></div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340298834475843714" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXDzIk4VUm1UoU8hkQVFANXXGSXU9GnAdqGzHkbL-khfJRg0CfSj0d-pHjgdTUk98s5pTcsT8mC2HBSLjdWh7IlqdU_BF7QJM8ufwajumv_Ja3klZpRTkZTnSIHq7RALJIHwV3r91093w/s320/vera+TSRE.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" /><div>This one's a bit of a flashback, taking a page out of Moby's book - a guy who was insanely popular following the release of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Play</span>, his 6th LP.  In the preceding and following years, he was merely sanely popular.  He's made some noise recently, but it's gonna be hard for him to top <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Play</span>.  It was 18 songs of brilliance - moving, poppy, commercial and yet personal.  </div><div><br /></div><div>Fun facts about play:</div><div> - All 18 of its songs were used in commercials, a first for any album</div><div> - 50% of the songs on the album were released as singles</div><div> - It started with slow sales but stayed on the charts for 3 years</div><div> - The liner book contained a series of essays by Moby.  Wrote Moby, "These essays are not really related to the music, so if you hate the essays you might still like the music, and if you like the essays you might hate the music.  Who knows, maybe by some bizarre twist of fate you'll like them both."  Funny guy, that Moby.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>BUT, as the album's Wikipedia page notes, "the fusion of gospel and house for which the album was most widely praised also drew some criticism for Moby's style of appropriation, with some critics claiming not enough credit was going to the original (often anonymous) musicians and performers.  THAT, my friends, is where The Stu Reid Sampler comes in.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Natural Blues" is a tune that centers on a spiritual female vocalist, backed with electro/techno instrumentation.  It really embodies the gospel/house fusion described above.  But the anchor of the track is clearly the vocal part, so I was super excited when I learned that the original was done by Vera Hall.  Hall was a folk singer (who is immortalized in the Library Of Congress) and her voice is positively unbelievable.  It's emotive, pained, sympathetic, beautiful, and many other wonderful adjectives.  </div><div><br /></div><div>I really like "Natural Blues", but it's tough not to find something a little deeper in the a capella original "Trouble So Hard".  This is one of those examples where the original sheds a new light on the sample.  Enjoy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Moby - Natural Blues (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnblRwY3lsUjlMWEE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/08naturalblues_1" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div><div><br /></div><div>Vera Hall - Trouble So Hard (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFnblRwY3lFd2QzZUE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/troublesohard" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)</div>

Boston Artist: Father Abraham

Living in Boston, Chris and I are constantly on the lookout for interesting local musicians. Hailing from the Central Square area in Cambridge, Father Abraham fits the bill.  Father Abraham is a hip hop producer who in addition to having just released an album entitled I Am Not A Sailor I Am the Captain, is also working on an ambitious project to release a song a week for an entire year. With Aesop Rockian vocals and nimble, bumping horns backing him up, Abe's track HIAFC is an enjoyable listen. Utilizing a grandiose backing chorus, Spacemarch is another creative jam from Father Abraham, whom I am glad to have stumbled upon.

Father Abraham - HIAFC (YSI) (filesavr)

Father Abraham - Spacemarch (YSI) (filesavr)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_bZNZ6WNgGaxOMjB2pVlx2vshHpyhJMud-IIn6zgQhtFR3nycXssRw2Iqd6DJCsvkTuWBv-beQYE2UK5rR4jK8iYWSapHz-_zSW-XLTGb4d0QLpedR9Hm_CIsjZ6hPzczJKMYGOwBAqN_/s1600-h/TSRE+Abraham.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338371892350200242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_bZNZ6WNgGaxOMjB2pVlx2vshHpyhJMud-IIn6zgQhtFR3nycXssRw2Iqd6DJCsvkTuWBv-beQYE2UK5rR4jK8iYWSapHz-_zSW-XLTGb4d0QLpedR9Hm_CIsjZ6hPzczJKMYGOwBAqN_/s320/TSRE+Abraham.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" /></a>Living in Boston, Chris and I are constantly on the lookout for interesting local musicians. Hailing from the Central Square area in Cambridge, Father Abraham fits the bill.  Father Abraham is a hip hop producer who in addition to having just released an album entitled <span style="font-style: italic;">I Am Not A Sailor I Am the Captain</span>, is also working on an ambitious <a href="http://52pickup.us/" target="_blank">project</a> to release a song a week for an entire year. With Aesop Rockian vocals and nimble, bumping horns backing him up, Abe's track HIAFC is an enjoyable listen. Utilizing a grandiose backing chorus, Spacemarch is another creative jam from Father Abraham, whom I am glad to have stumbled upon.<br /><br />Father Abraham - HIAFC (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFqc0wxUnJtMEpMWEE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/01hiafc" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><br />Father Abraham - Spacemarch (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFqc0wycWZrYUNGa1E9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/16spacemarchrorystark" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)

The Hold Steady is Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a day for reflection for those who have given their lives in battle, but also for straight chilling with friends and family. For me The Hold Steady really evoke a sense of Americana both through their sing along lyrics, but also their Springsteen-esque guitar and raucous organ riffs. While not a perfect live album, A Positive Rage manages to capture some of The Hold Steady's tremendous live energy and passion. Whether grilling, enjoying a baseball game, or just kicking it at home this weekend, The Hold Steady will always be part of the great American party.

The Hold Steady - Stuck Between Stations (live) (YSI) (filesavr)

The Hold Steady - Massive Nights (live) (YSI) (filesavr)

The Hold Steady - Citrus (live) (YSI) (filesavr)

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmaoLy3FffCTtsnW4CVbRCHNRLZAdmzLGb6O_1C3WxH4LKW_RNCZy5DybzwQtKlzUrj5jFBx4yGJPSQM8QgmBT438Z4e6s9JC4XcIxhitWYVvqOMqSVNeiaGMLpU8JTg5Ud-QrkowWR1BM/s1600-h/TSRE+Ron+Gardenhire.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338367495003005890" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmaoLy3FffCTtsnW4CVbRCHNRLZAdmzLGb6O_1C3WxH4LKW_RNCZy5DybzwQtKlzUrj5jFBx4yGJPSQM8QgmBT438Z4e6s9JC4XcIxhitWYVvqOMqSVNeiaGMLpU8JTg5Ud-QrkowWR1BM/s320/TSRE+Ron+Gardenhire.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 245px; height: 320px;" /></a>Memorial Day is a day for reflection for those who have given their lives in battle, but also for straight chilling with friends and family. For me The Hold Steady really evoke a sense of Americana both through their sing along lyrics, but also their Springsteen-esque guitar and raucous organ riffs. While not a perfect live album, A Positive Rage manages to capture some of The Hold Steady's tremendous live energy and passion. Whether grilling, enjoying a baseball game, or just kicking it at home this weekend, The Hold Steady will always be part of the great American party.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Hold Steady - Stuck Between Stations (live)</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFqc0x6aytCMTUzZUE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/02stuckbetweenstations" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Hold Steady - Massive Nights (live)</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFqc0x6ayttNEpMWEE9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/05massivenights" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Hold Steady - Citrus (live)</span> (<a href="http://www.yousendit.com/download/MnFqc0x6ays0b0RIRGc9PQ" target="_blank">YSI</a>) (<a href="http://www.filesavr.com/14citrus" target="_blank">filesavr</a>)