The Listening Club - 16th March 2014

Hello, good afternoon and welcome!

Lovely to see you, indeed. Good to have a break from spring-cleaning housework to tap this out, prior to popping off to see "Grand Budapest Hotel" in one of the finest cinemas in Europe, then to take in The Men later this evening, so yes, I'll be in absentia again... but there's plenty goodness to be had here, and also a #vortex theme to be thought up for two weeks time (hint, hint), so onwards...

Last week, cor blimey, @JimMcCauley pulled off quite an achievement, sending out live visuals to accompany the playback of  'Nothing Lasts... But Nothing Is Lost' by Shpongle, to the delight of those of us with a cast-iron internet connection - A stellar performance indeed - many thanks to Jim for effort above and beyond the call of duty, and for flipping the frisb across to @akx, who is here with the pre-match...

"Now that we've been on a Club-rule-bending, erm, bent as of late -- and thankfully so, because I was genuinely drawing a blank as to what album I'd offer up -- here's something a little different again.

It's a mixtape, from an excellently tastefully curated hidden gem of a ninety-five-and-growing-part series of mixtapes meant for driving and/or the after-party after a rambunctious night out (this particular instance is one of the latter, so let's call this week a rambunctious night out and its Sunday the afterparty). I tend to listen to them at work, which really is neither driving or an after-party, but hey, bending rules.

Anyway: out of all the 95 published so far, this is the one I've come back to most often (both according to my own knowledge and Last.fm's!), which is why it's my pick to share with you.

<3s from a not-that-cold-and-miserable-anymore Finland.

@akx

Drinking club recommendation: Something mellow. A bottle of wine to share with someone, perhaps."

Excellent. Download is here, trackist reveal for afters is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which will definitely reveal the origin, as it's the source, you have been warned)  is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 9th March 2014

Hello to you all...

Commencing LC intro checklist: Heartfelt best wishes to the assembled? check. General bonhomie? check. Lighthearted comment about recent good weather and it's effect on the writer's locale and general sense of well-being? triple-check. Additional info about fine gigs attended, satisfactory amounts of good food & alcohol consumed etc? check, check, check. AOB? Damn fine new haircut check and large amount of fresh cream cake in the fridge check. Boffo! Level up!...

Last week, in my own absentia, @eastvanhalen shook the collective speakers with Redd Kross's 1993 opus "Phaseshifter" - seemed like a mixed response from the assembled, but top notch banter ensued, which is grand to see. Thanks to Steph for the selection, and for flipping the frisb across to housewives favourite @jimmmccauley, who has been having an interesting time sorting stuff out - over to Jim for the major explanations...

"Brilliantly, this time around I already knew what my pick was going to be. It's something that I'd nearly chosen for my first go, but that I'd rejected because back then we tried to keep things under an hour, and this is a little over. It's from a label that's been here before; in fact on that occasion I'd pondered if it was a new album from this lot that I somehow hadn't heard about. It wasn't, but it was in a similar ballpark. It's brought to you by the letters D, M and T. Bring your dancing shoes, bring a nice cushion, and bring fractals.

And that's where my easy, not-actually-worrying-much-about-my-pick week went wrong. Why not, I figured, do some accompanying visuals? The short answer is that it would require a lot of dicking around with screen capture software, streaming services, bitrates and so on, and would ruin about three nights' sleep in a row due to thinking of stuff late in the evening, trying it out and jamming my brain into the fastest setting for a bit. I am an idiot.

Despite the clear idiocy, this week I'm going to try streaming some live visuals to go with the mystery LP. If it doesn't all go wrong they'll be at http://www.twitch.tv/jimmccauley and they should mostly look quite nice, if a little low-res and glitchy at times. Streaming isn't very kind to the sort of thing I'll be generating, but I think I've tweaked the settings into something I'll probably get away with. One way or another it should be fun.

Enjoy!

UPDATE

I think I've managed to get this into the sweetest spot I can, but I'm still pushing it. At worst this'll be a pretty heroic failure :D

ANYWAY, some tips for niceness:

1: Have enough internets: I'm uploading at 3.5Mbps and Twitch.tv just lobs it straight out the other end, so if you have a reliable 4Mpbs down then it should be fine.

2: Use the pop-out option on the video player, then stretch it to about 800x600 (or more if it looks nice, but that's the res I'm runing Neon at).

3: Start streaming before 8 - because it'll show you an advert (plus another in the pop-out window if you use that). I'll be up and running before that anyway.

4: Try the Twitch.TV iPad app and search for jimmccauley on that. Its search is a bit flakey but the video comes out really nicely.

5: Don't go into a trance.


Hooray! Seeya later!

PS Bear in mind I won't be streaming the audio, because it'll eat bandwidth and sound like shit!"

All rightey! Download is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned)  is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 2nd March 2014

Greetings to you all, hope you're getting on and getting by...

Amsterdam is looking quite splendid at the moment, another sunny weekend bringing out surprise and shock on the faces of both residents and tourists expecting grey gloom. Could this really be spring already? Lawksalordy I hope so...

Last Sunday, as well y'all know, twas the #drinkingvortex, and a seriously tasty concoction it was too, some fine and unexpected treats there for sure - many thanks to all who contributed, as always - great fun!

Back to modern times, we find @eastvanhalen dealing with plenty real-life-situation stuff, but (bless her cottons) managing to find time to pick out something for us all. And here she is with the intro...

"A half dozen years or so ago I made a three-entry band/artist bucket list, and this band was on it. Though considered a cult band, they aren't particularly obscure. Nor are they inaccessible, favouring the kind of smart, gleefully melodic, guitar-driven songs that people will variously insist are power pop, punk/pop, or plain old rock. They feel very West Coast to me: part sunny California power pop, part LA hardcore. You can headbang and harmonize to them at the same time, which is a surefire route to my musical heart.

I know our esteemed host likes this band, and some of the cohort likely have heard this record, but given that they're a West Coast phenomenon I suspect folks across the Atlantic might not know them so well.

Hope you all enjoy."

Okaydoke. Download is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned)  is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 23rd February 2014

Hello to you all,

Hope all is fine wherever you are, all is good here in Amsterdam, feeling in a suitably discombobulated state of mind for the ol' #drinkingvortex this week, after witnessing a mighty show by the legend that is Bootsy Collins on Friday night, and ducking and diving around town consuming a whole lot of food and drink yesterday. So with an egg and bacon sandwich in one hand and a glass of red on the side, onwards we go, trying not to drip yolk on the keyboard...

Last week @faberfedor was in the chair, and as usual bent the admittedly-non-existent rulebook to offer up a selection of his favourite mashups, providing something for everyone for sure. Big thanks to him for the selection, and (I think) for picking @eastvanhalen to go in the chair next time. But first...

Yes indeed, it's time for the #drinkingvortex, so crack open those bottles and find yourself a comfy chair to behold these 17 wonderful alcoholic odes - thanks as always to everyone who chipped in a track!

Google Drive download is here (replaygain is set if you have it on your player (iTunes doesn't, I know), otherwise volume will vary, apologies!), and the (volume levelled) Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned)  is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 16th February 2014

Greetings to you all,

Well then, again I'm drawn towards making comparisons betwixt the weather now and the weather this time last year ("doesn't he have anything else to go on about...?" nope, sorry) after a really lovely sunny weekend here in AMS. Markets were visited, lunch was very much "on the go", strolls were had and, apart from a rather blustery wind, joy was rather unconfined. Unlike the UK it seems, which looks to be sinking slowly into the ocean. I'm resisting any smug pro-Netherlands comments, as this place seems to be doing fine despite 26% of it already being below sea level, but they do take their water management rather seriously here (as you'd expect). Some lessons could, and should be learned pretty quick in the UK because this is sadly going to become more and more of a regular occurrence on those shores, as I'm sure you'd all agree.

Anyhoo, on a considerably lighter note, next Sunday will be #vortex time again, and as a fine companion to last month's #cookingvortex, it's going to be a #drinkingvortex! I can't think of a subject closer to the hearts of the #LC massive's collective consciousness, so this should be a great one. Tunes to me, Eric, this time please!

Last Sunday, @thejayarr was in the hotseat, and offered unto us all The Wrens 2003 album "Meadowlands" which received a mixed bag of reactions, although erring on the positive side, for sure. Thanks to Jon for the pick, and for skimming the frisbee across the (rapidly growing) Atlantic to @faberfedor, who, before he scooted off on a business trip, had this to say...

"Hello fellow LCers!

I've been selected again, so you know what that means! Rules will be broken! And this time, I'm breaking several rules.

Rule 1: I'm not submitting an album this time, but a list of songs. Your job, if you accept it, is to decide what the commonality is amongst them. The answer is in the playlist.txt file as is, as usual, the song names.

Rule 2: I'm flying out for business on _very_ short notice, so there's a very good chance I won't be at the club this weekend. :-( This is the first time the MC won't be MCing his gig.

Rule 3: Since I probably won't be with you ;-(, I'm going to throw the frisbee now. Since I won't know who will be attending, here are the frisbee targets in order: 

    1. Your favorite Canuck and mine, Eastvanhalen
    2. Our favorite type of monkey, MonkeyTypes!
    3. or JimMcCauley, just because. :-)

If I can, I'll join you. If not enjoy!  I'll follow the Twitter thread afterwards."

Well there you go. Never a dull moment, eh? Direct download mp3 is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned) is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 2nd February 2014

Well then Listening Clubbers, last week was a positive stock pot of musical genres all norman cooked up and blended together with such culinary precision that would make Nigella trip balls was it not. Massive thanks to Jim McCauley for serving up that eclectic melodical feast that did so nourish our hungry ears.

So, onto this week's pick which is about to be introduced by me, JonnyDaPigg, as Mr ListeningClub is busy making power ballad related puns on his holidays. So without further ado, me.

“So, me again. I had thought that when it got back round to me I could pick one of the 3 or 4 possibles that have been on my list for a while. True to form this has not happened. I have had various things to consider this time, such as the fact that I needed to procrastinate my self assessment time away, just recently moved and haven't unpacked properly yet and most importantly, the derby on Saturday. (that's Newcastle vs the filth in case you were wondering). This in mind I could quite easily be in one of two frames of mind. Happy, joyus and smug, in which case anything of my list would sound like angels, or depressed, dejected and full of despair in which anything of my list would sound like Sting doing covers of his own stuff in the style of Shatner whilst sat on a pile of money wearing nothing but a loin cloth. In a flash of inspiration however, tonight's choice swung in. It's a genre only introduced to me a year ago during a gig and it blew me away. So upon returning I scoured the internet for live mixes and Bandcamp for albums, which is where I found tonight's offering. The juxtaposition of the genre's name only adds to the ability of this music to make me smile. Which is why it was picked. Win on Saturday, heed held high, lose on Saturday this'll make me feel better. So, flappers at the ready, put on your dancing shoes, have a gin cocktail or two and don't forget your glow-sticks, enjoy...”

Reets then. Direct download mp3 is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned) is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!

The Listening Club - 9th February 2014

Well hello there everyone!

Yes, I'm back from hols, looking more than a little tanned and culture-shocked after a couple of weeks trekking around the Western Cape, up mountains, down valleys, along beaches, around vineyards and in and out of many fine bars and restaurants, even finding time to get down with the Cape Town hipsters to John Wizards homecoming show after their long European tour. Holiday with a capital H indeed, much needed and much appreciated!

Thanks again to Jim for sorting out the #cookingvortex, and Jonny for his pick last week of highlights from "The Sounds Of The Speakeasy", holding the fort splendidly in my absence, looks like a fun time has continued to be had by all, and delighted to see plans for the #dambusters trip coming together too - that's going to be one hell of a weekend... Frisbee-wise, I see that @thejayarr is signaling his readyness, so over to him for the intro...

"This is a record that I've played the hell out of over the last year or so, and one I considered last time it was my turn in the hotseat, so this was a relatively easy pick. It’s the most recent record from this band, although it’s now over a decade old - apparently this year will finally see the release of the follow-up, but you never know.
                                                                                                
I only heard of it about three years ago, from a passing comment from someone I follow on twitter, and it was months before I actually listened to it properly. And even then it didn’t really click for me right away. It’s an album with a good reputation, which is fully deserved, but if ever there was a record that warrants multiple listens, it’s this one. Luckily there’s enough stand-out tracks to make it worthwhile for new listeners.
                                                                                              
Because of its reputation, I wouldn't be surprised if some people already knew this one, but hopefully if that’s the case, it’ll be worth re-visiting. Enjoy!"

Okaydokie! Direct download mp3 is here, and the Mixcloud stream (which may reveal the track titles, you have been warned) is here!

Search #listeningclub to see what's going on, and follow @listeningclub for the admin.

Hope to see you tonight at 8pm GMT!