Call it a mélange, a pastiche, if you will

Once in awhile – not every day, but once in awhile – I’ll get an e-mail with some music attached. Sometimes it comes from a fan / friend of a band, other times from someone wanting to promote a band or album. Most of the music is pretty good and I’ll usually respond indicating my appreciation to them for taking the time to e-mail me. I also promise to write about the music as soon as I can.

If there’s anyone reading who has sent me music, you’re probably aware that I’m slow about getting to that. Believe it or don’t, there’s a reason for that!

While I like the music, sometimes it’s way different than what I usually post here. I end up putting it on the back burner, trying to think of a way to integrate it, and there it sits.

Instead of doing that, what I thought I might do instead is start an irregularly occurring feature where I can post about music different from what you usually get here. By doing that, I can, I hope, expand the horizons of a couple of my readers, and keep myself from looking like such an ungrateful ass when people send me stuff!

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First up is the person I’ve been putting off the longest: Tago Mago, about which I know nothing other than he/she/they periodically put out remix EPs. Their site is here, with plenty of downloads and other stuff. This remix of Outkast’s “Ms. Jackson” is from the Tago Mago EP My Quiet Corner to Reflect.

Ms. Jackson (remix).mp3

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While we’re on the subject of remixes, DJ Chris Cox took The Politik's self-titled debut and remixed it into a 13-minute version. I guess that’s for busy people who don’t have time to listen to an entire CD. Actually, BlogCritics wrote that the album is “destined to be a DJ favorite and ultra hip music fan’s prized possession” and that it contains “some of the most beautiful music that you may not have heard, unless you’re really up on your shit.”

Politik Mix Tape.mp3

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Headway is a band from Nottingham, England. A reader who shares a hometown with the band clued me into them. They’ve been together more or less since 2003. Their debut EP is scheduled for a Sept. 18 release. There’s a long list of influences on Headway’s MySpace space, from Nine Inch Nails to Stevie Wonder. They describe their sound as “elegant piano mixed with a driving rhythm section and swooping rock guitars.”

Safety.mp3

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This Is Somewhere, the third album from Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, just came out Aug. 7 on Hollywood Records. The band is from Vermont and are slowly working their way up to the big time with recent spots on Jay Leno and Craig Ferguson’s shows. In October, they’ll go on tour with Gov’t Mule. I’m also seeing and hearing a buzz around the blogosphere, so keep your ears open for these guys. Tour information and stuff is on the Grace Potter site. They’re actually coming to South Florida in early 2008, so I will need to pencil that into my date book.

Ah, Mary.mp3

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Now that I have someplace to put it, if you are somehow associated with a band or just want to share their music with me, drop me an e-mail at e0a8198 at yahoo dot com.

Labels: indie, new stuff, rap, remix

posted by aikin @ 11:26 AM