why must I be the thief?

darkstar - aidy's girl is a computer

Not only am I stealing the contents of the following blog post, I'm stealing the idea of stealing these contents. Do I have no shame? Why, oh why must I live this way? Free your mind. The simple fact is, tarwater's descriptions are so pin-neat and pithy, and the idea of posting them with brazen disregard for his privacy such a good one, I had to nick them both.

Now: the involuntary posts by tarwater series

second installment: "sure, but is it dubstep?"

No idea -- I mean, it is Hyperdub's fifth anniversary comp (one disc is unreleased; the other, classics), but it has Flying Lotus on it, and I don't think he quite qualifies. Either way and thus far: the Darkstar track rules; the unreleased Burial more than hits its unloved digital ghost quota (it's called "Fostercare") and also rules - might be the best thing I've heard by him, even; and Kode 9 & The Spaceape's cover of the Specials' "Ghost Town" should earn them a guest verse on the next Sunn)))O record. Winter is almost here and this record could be your soundtrack to it -- it's almost as long.

the wild ones

Hecuba is an electronic duo whose sounds fuses edgy electronic cabaret with fifties pop melodies - imagine if The Knife moved to Los Angeles. Like A.R.E. Weapons they enjoy street-electro topped with jukebox crooning, but Hecuba are bit more art-school queers than rowdy Alan Vega-obsessed Yankees fans. The new video for "Suffering" is an homage to fifties biker culture whose most obvious predecessor is Kenneth Anger's Kustom Kar Kommandos:



perhaps less well-known but equally awesome are photos taken by Karlheinz Weinberger in the early sixties of teen gangs in Switzerland - obsessed with American idols like Elvis and James Dean yet isolated from the cultural milieu that originally spawned them, these gangs made up their own outfits and styles, combinations of greaser gear and metal-industrial accessories that look like clothes for a post-apocalyptic sock hop. check out the horseshoe belt buckle, bullet necklace, and skull medallion.

The Laughing Light of Plenty - The Rose

The Laughing Light of Plenty - The Rose

Oh the good Lord, he knows when to shine. In advance of my set tonight @ Savalas I was able to learn of and track down this highly-limited release from Whatever We Want records. It involves Thomas Bullock, aka one-half of Map of Africa and Rub-n-Tug, and formerly of A.R.E. Weapons. Although it's based here in NYC, WWW pretty much just ships its hen's teeth-rare releases abroad like to Phonica in London, where they immediately sell out. This track is a striking example why - it's a swirling, psychedelic disco-rock anthem. If you listen to this, it will put you in a good place, and you will stay there. Bit of a Stone Roses /Happy Mondays dense & trippy vibe as well. Why is cosmic disco, to use the parlance of our times, so satisfying? Because it's well-dressed drug music, elegant and deeply bugged at the same time.