Cool Is An Illusion

Tips for 2011

Ted Woodward — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 13:08:07 +0000

I recently met up with some old school friends, one of whom works for a major record label. I quizzed him on who he thought would be the breakthrough acts of 2011 and having rattled off a list of artists he asked me to compile a Top 5 from those he suggested. What’s most notable from the three-solo artists included is the filtered down sound which British artists seem to have taken a shine to. The list is in no particular order.

Clare Maguire
When it comes to describing new artists it is always very difficult to avoid comparisons. I must admit that the two artists I am about to compare Maguire to do complete injustice to her ability. There is an intensity in her voice that is not dissimilar to that of Beth Ditto and her vocals resonate in the same haunting manner as Florence Welsh’s. A far more flattering comparison might be to that of a 2011 Kate Bush.

Jamie Woon
Jamie Woon is an artist who came to most peoples attention as a result of the excellent Burial remix of his first release a cover of folk song ‘Wayfaring Stranger’. His latest single ‘Night Air’ is equally as good and has received considerable radio play in the last month or so.

James Blake
A graduate of Goldsmiths, singer and producer James Blake has garnered much praise for his cover of Feist track ‘Limit to your love’, a track that, without sounding a cliche, he makes his own. Surprisingly, despite the minimalist sound of ‘Limit to your love’ as a producer Blake is creates far more production heavy tracks notably CMYK with its house/dubstep sound.

Francis and the Lights
Once again reverting back to the lazy journalism of a quick comparison, there is something about Francis Farewell, Francis of the Lights, which sounds very Cat Stevens like. The New York based band, who perform live with two drummers, also produced Karaoke from Drake’s debut album Thank Me Later.

Mona
Hailing from Nashville, Tennessee, Mona produce rock with a notably southern twang. Their very raw and unpolished sound plays like out like pre-shaved Kings of Leon and their lead singer Nick Brown, with his hoarse vocals, has enough of an air of nonchalance to provide him with suitable Rock star swagger.

16 Bit

Ted Woodward — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 18:47:45 +0000

The first 16 Bit song I heard was Swine Flu, seemingly named because it was as infectious as its medical namesake.

It was widely regarded as one of the best dubstep tracks of 2009, however this track alone really does very little to highlight the versatility of this production duo.

Many dubstep artists are unable to diversify as successfully as 16 Bit; they are capable of producing both colossal examples of the genre at its most grimey as well as tunes which contrast this considerably, making use of subtle samples, almost like a dubstep equivalent of liquid funk.

The following two tracks are examples of their industrial and destructive sound at its most vicious:

And below are a pair of tracks which give a prime example of the subtlety I described above:

See here for the original Noisia version of Machine Gun and here for the sample used in Shallow.

Big Boi – For Your Sorrows

Ted Woodward — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 17:54:23 +0000

Although Andre 3000 is generally considered the better half of rap duo Outkast, there is no doubt that Big Boi is blessed with immense likeability, masses of swagger and a particularly tidy flow. This catchy track from his soon to be released album Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty features Funk legend George Clinton and West-coast rapper Too Short.

Alix Perez – Contradictions

Ted Woodward — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 13:02:06 +0000

The best track on the largely disappointing album ’1984′.

B-Complex

Ted Woodward — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:27:22 +0000

During the past year Drum ‘n’ Bass has begun to see the emergence of more DJ’s from the continent. As well as Hospital Records recently signing Belgian artist Netsky, they also included a number of songs on compilations released in 2009 by Matus Lenicky, under his alias B-Complex. Hailing from Bratislava in Slovakia, Lenicky has also remixed tracks by The Very Best and New Education and seems certain to become a popular figure in the Liquid scene.

MC Trigga

Ted Woodward — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:09:56 +0000

Originally a Drum ‘n’ Bass MC, Trigga has without doubt one of the most unique and easily recognisable voices in British Urban music. During the last few years his notable Mancunian/West Indian swagger has seen him collaborate with the likes of Wiley and Skepta.

http://www.myspace.com/mctrigga187

John Holt & The Paragons

Ted Woodward — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 10:19:36 +0000

Heat up a cold January morning with some classic Reggae.

The Best Albums of 2009

Ted Woodward — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:44:34 +0000

10. Ian Brown – My Way

9. Miike Snow – Miike Snow

8. White Lies – To Lose My Life

7. Raekwon – Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… Pt. II

6. Alicia Keys – The Element of Freedom

5. Editors – In This Light and on This Evening

4. Florence and The Machine – Lungs

3. Kid Cudi – Man on the Moon: The End of Day

2. Clipse – Till the casket drops

1. Jay-Z – Blueprint 3

I was fairly disappointed to see that my choices for the best ten albums this year were all quite mainstream acts, as it doesn’t really reflect what I have been listening to this year. Stylistically, choices such as both the Editors and White Lies albums do bare some similarities to the electronic based 80’s music that I have been listening to of late. Yet there is nothing in the list that really sounds much like dubstep, which has become the staple genre in my music tastes recently, mainly due to the recent emergence of numerous blogs which cater solely for it.

Although the list is a top ten, it must be said that all of the albums apart from Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 are on an equal par with one another, and that even Jay-Z’s 11^th studio album was not a particularly stellar offering.

Alicia Keys once again displayed her talents as one of the best songwriters in the world. Similarly, Ian Brown showcased an ability which places him amongst a select few talented modern artists, who despite having achieved fame and fortune still write songs which people from a similar working class background can relate to, perhaps something Jay-Z no longer possesses.

The Miike Snow album was a masterful blend of Andrew Wyatt’s understated vocals with electronically tinged pop production from Scandinavian super producers Bloodshy & Avant. Whilst the morbid overtones in Florence and the Machine’s debut album Lungs, made it an unassuming yet not unsurprising hit in the album charts.

Both borrowing strongly from Ian Curtis’ short lived legacy, Editors In This Light And On This Evening and White Lies To Lose My Life restored my faith in Indie music, after offerings from the genre in the last few years proved that quantity is most definitely not better than quality.

The four rap albums in my top ten display the diversity of a genre in which, of late, artists appear to suffer from chronic inconsistency, pardon the pun.

Raekwon’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… Pt. II was a triumphant return for the Wu-Tang rapper and also featured some of Ghostface Killah’s best verses to date. Man on the Moon: The End of Day, the debut album from Kid Cudi was a breath of fresh air; playing out like a sci-fi opera for the Hip-Hop generation.

The third album from brothers Clipse, Til the Casket Drops, was a fitting end to the decade with Rap’s hottest duo and arguably the decade’s most consistently entertaining producers The Neptunes once again producing quality rap music.

But ultimately it was the Blueprint 3 which I went back to time and time again, and not just for one song. It is by no means revolutionary, although the wordplay is often brilliant, Jay-Z is far to content to talk about money; the trappings of it, how he makes it and how he spends it. But it’s a fortunate thing to be able to find an album where you can happily listen to every track and for that reason it is my number one album of 2009.