The Listening Club - 24th June 2018

Midsummer greetings to you all.

Although it's grey in Amsterdam right now, the forecast is fine and hot, which is grand as we're in full-on festival prep mode here for Down The Rabbit Hole next weekend. With Eels doing a grand (and surprisingly rocking) set last week and John Cale to come this week before we head for the fields, the pre-fest entertainments are going pretty swimmingly too. Big thanks to @emmaprice also, who will be running things here next Sunday in my absence...

Last week, @saucer was in the chair, rocking the assembled with his pick of Snapped Ankles' debut album "Come Play The Trees" which went down very well indeed. Many thanks to @saucer for the pick, and for sailing the frisb across to @JimMcCauley, who has this to say by way of introduction...

"It's that time of year when the turnout here's normally a bit thin because of Glastonbury, but with Michael Eavis taking a break this year so that he can, I dunno, murder more badgers while the weather's really nice or something, I thought I'd go for a bit of a festival vibe  tonight.

"This lot have been killing it at festivals all over the place for the past couple of years, and this, their debut album released this year, has quickly put them into the position of My New Favourite Band In The World That I Definitely Have To See Live At Some Point.

"They sound like the bastard indie dance pop children of Lady Miss Kier and Dieter Meier, their songs have a delicious vein of very dry humour running all the way through them, they know how to strike a pose and they’ve made this album of pretty much non-stop bangers that often sees me throwing shapes when I should be concentrating on making dinner.

"#DrinkingClub: something long and strong, in a plastic glass. Enjoy!"

Righty-ho. Direct download is here, and the HearMayBeSpoilers stream is below:



See you at 8pm BST (GMT+1) tonight.

The Listening Club - 17th June 2018

Greetings folks,

Hope you're all doing good. June is proving to be a bit of a let down here in Amsterdam following the scorching May weather, overcastness being the order of the days. Still, there's a raft of gigs on the horizon, including the lovely Eels on Thursday, so all is good, even if the sun is hiding...

Last week, @xpollen8 was in the chair, presenting what I'm pretty sure is a world first, an album by his dad, Mo, from 1976, which certainly had folks guessing, grooving and bamboozling in equal measures. Thanks to David for keeping it in the family, and for sailing the frisb across to @saucer, who sends this by way of introduction...

"Probably a quirk of the timing of my life, or of some synaptic issue I ought to see someone about, but I think of punk as something that ended (not began) with the Sex Pistols; so the thousand flowers that started blooming in 1976... and that still pop up now and then between the paving stones... certainly not punk but maybe they're post punk?

Now, folks don't talk much about "post Residents," but maybe it's a thing, too, in terms of employing musical surrealism as alchemy, or anonymity as an artistic statement.

(Oh. There's a "post Neu" element here as well.)

Please don't search for it because spoilers, but a review of the folks behind this evening's selection included the line "They're dressing up as trees but not being dicks about it."

Anyway, I do hope you enjoy this, whether it's your introduction or a relisten."

Okaydoke. Direct download is here, and the HearMayBeSpoilers stream is below:


See you at 8pm BST (GMT+1) for playback.

The Listening Club - 10th June 2018

Greetings folks,

Hope you're doing good. Pleasantness abounds here in Amsterdam, patches of sunshine and live rock'n'roll keeping spirits high. Quick note that I'll be away festivalling at the end of the month at Down The Rabbit Hole, so am looking for someone to handle this here shenanigan on Sun 1st July, let me know if you're up for helping out, thx.

Last week chez #LC, @Isperia_ was in the chair, with a double header of crazy dancing and beard stroking courtesy of "Poutatorvi" by Poutatorvi, from back in 2009. Many thanks to Teppo for the pick, and for sailing the frisb all the way across the Atlantic to @xpollen8, who's here with this week's intro...

"What can I even say about this? None of you have ever heard this before, nor anything much like it, probably.

Listen with open ears and I'll provide a link to an explanation afterwards."

Rightyho. Direct download is here, and the HearThis stream is below:



See you at 8pm BST (GMT+1) for the playback...

The Listening Club - 3rd June 2018

Greetings folks,

Hope you're all doing fine. Still hot as balls here in Amsterdam (hottest May on record, so I read, hum ho), so Sundays are falling into the summer pattern already, either I get this done before I go out, or I go out, then have to drag myself back in when I remember it needs to be done. Today is one of the latter, but as we haven't gone any further than the stoop of the house, it's not so bad... heh.

Last week @akx was in the chair, sending the assembled bopping with a trio of EPs from Japanese Futurefunk artists MikazukiBigwave, Night Tempo & Macross 82-99. Which ones I have no idea, but they're fresh! Thanks to Aarni for the pick and for sailing the frisb across to @Isperia_, who's here with tonight's intro...

"Summery salutations!

Th​​ank you @akx for shoving me into the chair again - I've had a very busy week and haven't been able to scour my libraries, so I've returned to a personal summer classic.

This is a record I had in my car back when I still had a car, because this was almost perfect for cruising-around-music. The album stil sits on my shelf, and I always return to it during summer. And since summer hit a bit early here this year, it's high time to share it with all of you.

The band in question hasn't to my knowledge given themselves a specific style label, but "jazz progressive fusion" comes to mind.

Enjoy!"

Okaydokey. Direct download is here, and the HearMightBeSpoilers stream is below:

See you tonight at 8pm CEST (GMT+1)

The Listening Club - 27th May 2018

Greetings folks,

Hope you're doing fine. Melting a little here in Amsterdam, as Summer hits with an early vengeance, and in between the thunderstorms, there's not much that can be done apart from drawing a chair outside, grabbing your current reading matter and watching the world go by whilst sipping a cool beverage. Here's hoping the rest of the Summer maintains... this is rather pleasant.

Last week chez #LC, @ohmyliver was in the chair, pulling people out of their comfort zones with his pick of Peverelist's "Tesselations", which went down rather well, so it seems. Thanks to Oli for the pick, and for raffling the frisbaton to @akx, who is here with this week's pre-match...

"Hey hey hey!

Summer has come - unexpectedly and prematurely - to Finland, so I figured this week's pick should be something summer-appropriate. After a long while hemming and hawing in front of my CD shelves, vinyl shelves, list of digital albums and Bandcamp collection, I finally realized the genre I wanted to play tonight. Then there was the problem of figuring out what, or whom, exactly to play, so I thought what the heck . . . So here's a triple feature - three EPs (somewhat trimmed, mind) from three artists that are on top of the Japanese/Korean future funk/synthwave/vaporwave game. And I can guarantee this is fresh stuff; one of these EPs was released this week. :)

Weather allowing, I'd recommend listening to this outside (balcony, patio, walk, bike ride -- all good!), and grabbing a cold drink (something sweet, maybe, #drinkingclub)."

Right then. Direct download is here (right-click, save as), and the HearBeSpoilers stream is below:



Hope to see you tonight at 8pm BST (GMT+1).

The Listening Club - 20th May 2018

Hey there folks,

Hope all is going good for you all. A mighty fine day here in Amsterdam, which is much appreciated, as there's a free world music fest happening this afternoon in the Vondelpark, and a slice of live Italian soundtrack grooves courtesy of Calibro 35 to follow after, so it's all hands to the pumps right now...

Last week, @samsmitter was in the chair, smoothing us out in unexpected ways with his pick of "Classic Mellow Mastercuts Vol.2" by those legendary multi-billion sellers, Various Artists. Thanks to Sam for the mellow vibes, and for sailing the frisb across London to @ohmyliver, who's right here with tonight's intro...

"So I caught the fabled Listening Club frisbee  What to pick? 

Been listening to a bit of Drill, the newish sound of disaffected youth, which has emerged from Brixton in the last couple of years.  If you don’t know it, it’s the more trap influenced child of Grime, with the angry electronic innovation of youth making music with whatever they can get hold off like the PlayStation’s Music 2000 replaced by a less interesting heavy influence of US trap beats, and bars glorifying the behavior that manifests in things like the wave of stabbings and shootings by London youth.  Fear not I didn’t pick an example of this genre. Not out of Daily Mailesque moral panic, but because I don’t find the genre that interesting, probably because I’m too old.

A couple of weeks ago I badgered, in a fanboy way, Lawrence from Felt/Denim/Go Kart Mozart on the 55 bus as it slinked westwards from Old Street roundabout.  It was slightly depressing, especially as I love his work, to see a man seemingly shrunken by the disconnection between his talent and how much fame and success he actually got. He repeatedly asked if I had brought any of his records, and told me to buy his new record (he was on his way back from recording in Stokie) a number of times. As a consequence I’ve been adding to his Spotify play count whilst at work.  But I presume everyone’s familiar with his work, so didn’t pick any of that.

I did think about picking an album by Scott Bradlee’s Post Modern Juke Box, but whilst I love their cover of Bizarre Love Triangle, the rest of their stuff in all of its late-night talkshow knowing cleverness grates after a few songs.  

So I went for this, released last year.  It’s sort of post-dubstep Techno, done by the ex flatmate of Bristol’s Pinch (who’s track Qawwali is one of my favourite tracks from the ‘00s) who has veered away from Dubstep to something more Techno, because in parts, it has the feel of music that should be experienced to the backdrop of a still stimulated, but yawning, dawn of a sunny summer day.  Which, err, might or might not work at 8pm on a Sunday evening, but in parts it’s very good."

Okaydoke. Direct download is here, and the HearBeSpoilers stream is below:


See you at 8pm BST (GMT+1)

The Listening Club - 13th May 2018

Greetings and salutations,

Hope you're all doing fine. Amsterdam has lobbed a wet grey day out after a glorious week, sadly curtailing any outdoor perching, which is a shame, so instead I'm inside working my way through a pile of art films looking for bits and bobs to appropriate, as I'm wont to do.

Chez #LC, last week, @eastvanhalen was in the chair, taking us down to New Orleans with her pick of Dumpstaphunk "Live at 2011 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival", which was a funkin' good time for all assembled. Thanks to her for the pick, and for sailing the frisb back over to London, where @samsmitter is waiting with this week's intro...

"My pick today is one of a series of CD compilations that I started to collect in the early 90s. These were very clearly a labour of love for the compiler, this much was obvious from the detailed liner notes, careful selection, and overall quality of production. It seemed very much like one man's mission to share his 12" collection with the world in the new CD era. As well as being full of great music, these things introduced me to a lot of artists and made me listen in a new way to stuff I might have turned my nose up at ten years earlier. The compilations covered different musical genres, and this one had a somewhat spurious "genre" as its heading, but it works, and of all of them on my shelf (and latterly, on my phone) it is the one I've gone back to the most. Hope you enjoy it! Sam x"

Okaydoke. Direct download is here, and the HearBeSpoilers stream is below:


See you at 8pm BST (GMT+1).