Nite Jewel). A trill-happy, funky bass plays off a fat synth bass lick layered with tape hiss and lasers. Anyone who can pull off such a slap-heavy jam so well deserves recognition in my book. Ariel Pink”™s Haunted Graffiti ”“ Fright Night (Nevermore) Like that segue? This might be my favorite song off the freshly-leaked Ariel Pink album. As solid as the album is it”™s a bit frustrating to a super-fan like me in that it”™s virtually all older tracks they redid as studio productions, but this song is an entirely new jam and it slays. PC Worship Mutant Soul Band ”“ Wake Up in the Dark and There”™s Nothing Going On For a brief period of time Justin Frye (PC Worship) sang for a post-hardcore band my brother and I were in called Tropic of Nelson. It wasn”™t until years later that I finally caught a PC Worship set and it totally blew me away. Psyched-out, sludgy riffage that dissolves into a free-jazz noise freakout””truly a stoner”™s delight. The Association ”“ The Time It Is Today An excellent sunshine-pop band from California in the ”™60s, this track reminds me of some of Love”™s finest movements. That vocal harmony at the end of the verse always kills me. The Space Lady aka “Suzy Soundz” ”“ Major Tom The Space Lady is a street performer who played on the streets of Boston, Cambridge, San Francisco and Berkeley in the ”™70s. Originally a song by Peter Schilling, Space Lady”™s version is a far more pared down and alien, a really bizarre contrast of humor and melancholy. Svenne & Lotta ”“ Roly Poly Girl This is the B-side to the “Bang-A-Boomerang” single released by Svenne & Lotta, a Swedish pop duo from the late ”™60s who are still active today. The Yamaha keyboard line right in the intro totally hooked me the first time i heard it and the synth solo in the middle continues to blow my mind. Such a perfect pop song. Mahmoud Ahmed ”“ Abbay Mado ”“ Embwa Belew Mahmound Ahmed, an Ethopian singer from the ”™60s who recently enjoyed a resurgence of popularity due to the Ethiopiques series started by Buda Musique. This is the first track off his 1975 album ErÃ¨ MÃ¨la MÃ¨la. I love that warbled organ sound in the background and his bone dry vocals and delivery. Sudden Sway ”“ Me Says Conscience (humsing) It”™s such a crime that this group isn”™t a household name, but I guess that”™s generally the case with bands that were just way too far ahead of their time. This is a track off their 1984 double single and computer program (??), which sounds like a mix of Magma, Kate Bush and Animal Collective. ”˜Nuff said. If you haven”™t given The Depreciation Guild a listen, check out their new album, Spirit Youth, on Spotify now. Then check out their debut album “In Her Gentle Jaws”, also on Spotify. Thom Edit: Dave and I are less than happy with the current layout of this blog, so we”™re going to change it so that when reading Spotisfaction it doesn”™t feel like you”™re looking at a headache.

Post author By The Spotisfaction Team
Post date May 26, 2010

Something a bit different today.

As you are aware, we are very fond of mixtapes. We are also quite fond of The Depreciation Guild. So when the Guild”™s guitarist, Christoph Hochheim, did a Needle Exchange mix we had to give it a listen. In short, it”™s fantastic. It”™s everything you could ever ask from a mixtape, and we felt we had to share it.

This is a bit unorthodox, I agree. Big thanks to Christoph for this selection as well as to self-titledmag.com for the mix. Without further delay, here we go. It”™s not a Spotify playlist, rather it is embedded in the site, but you can download the MP3:

Needle Exchange 021 – Christoph Hochheim/The Depreciation Guild

Ralph Lundsten And The Andromeda All Stars ”“ Alpha Ralpha Boulevard
Daedelus ”“ An Armada Approaches
Dimlite ”“ Kalimba Deathswamp/Kurt Feelings
Roberto Cacciapaglia ”“ Quite Still
The Samps ”“ F.X.N.C.
Ariel Pink”™s Haunted Graffiti ”“ Fright Night (Nevermore)
PC Worship Mutant Soul Band ”“ Wake Up in the Dark and There”™s Nothing Going On
The Association ”“ The Time It Is Today
The Space Lady aka “Suzy Soundz” ”“ Major Tom
Svenne & Lotta ”“ Roly Poly Girl
Mahmoud Ahmed ”“ Abbay Mado ”“ Embwa Belew
Sudden Sway ”“ Me Says Conscience (humsing)

Ralph Lundsten And The Andromeda All Stars ”“ Alpha Ralpha Boulevard
The epic opener to this Swedish electronic music composer”™s synth-heavy neon-fantasy Alpha Ralpha Boulevard. Makes me feel like I”™m floating down a river of orange and pink sherbet”¦in space.

Daedelus ”“ An Armada Approaches
Daedelus is one of those artists who”™s developed such a distinct sound palette over the years, yet still finds new ways to contextualize them. The first track off his excellent new EP (Righteous Fists of Harmony) starts off with his signature 8-bit English horn (that”™s the only way I could think to describe it) playing a slow-building melody that lets you know what you”™re in for in the best way possible.

Dimlite ”“ Kalimba Deathswamp/Kurt Feelings
I don”™t even know how to begin describing this one, but it”™s truly some of the most compelling, melodic dubstep/jazz craziness I”™ve ever heard. Dimlite contrasts cold electronic sounds with the natural sound of kazoos, unprocessed vocals, clapping, and scotch tape to make for a track that”™s as psychedelic as the EP”™s cover.

Roberto Cacciapaglia ”“ Quite Still
A recent discovery of mine, Roberto Cacciapaglia”™s sheer diversity of releases is truly astounding. This track is off The Ann Steel Album, which he composed for a model of the same name. “Quite Still” is a melancholy “popera” jam, for umm”¦robots.

The Samps ”“ F.X.N.C.
A track from Cole Marsden Greif-Neill”™s new project (also of Ariel Pink”™s Haunted Graffiti/Nite Jewel). A trill-happy, funky bass plays off a fat synth bass lick layered with tape hiss and lasers. Anyone who can pull off such a slap-heavy jam so well deserves recognition in my book.

Ariel Pink”™s Haunted Graffiti ”“ Fright Night (Nevermore)
Like that segue? This might be my favorite song off the freshly-leaked Ariel Pink album. As solid as the album is it”™s a bit frustrating to a super-fan like me in that it”™s virtually all older tracks they redid as studio productions, but this song is an entirely new jam and it slays.

PC Worship Mutant Soul Band ”“ Wake Up in the Dark and There”™s Nothing Going On
For a brief period of time Justin Frye (PC Worship) sang for a post-hardcore band my brother and I were in called Tropic of Nelson. It wasn”™t until years later that I finally caught a PC Worship set and it totally blew me away. Psyched-out, sludgy riffage that dissolves into a free-jazz noise freakout””truly a stoner”™s delight.

The Association ”“ The Time It Is Today
An excellent sunshine-pop band from California in the ”™60s, this track reminds me of some of Love”™s finest movements. That vocal harmony at the end of the verse always kills me.

The Space Lady aka “Suzy Soundz” ”“ Major Tom
The Space Lady is a street performer who played on the streets of Boston, Cambridge, San Francisco and Berkeley in the ”™70s. Originally a song by Peter Schilling, Space Lady”™s version is a far more pared down and alien, a really bizarre contrast of humor and melancholy.

Svenne & Lotta ”“ Roly Poly Girl
This is the B-side to the “Bang-A-Boomerang” single released by Svenne & Lotta, a Swedish pop duo from the late ”™60s who are still active today. The Yamaha keyboard line right in the intro totally hooked me the first time i heard it and the synth solo in the middle continues to blow my mind. Such a perfect pop song.

Mahmoud Ahmed ”“ Abbay Mado ”“ Embwa Belew
Mahmound Ahmed, an Ethopian singer from the ”™60s who recently enjoyed a resurgence of popularity due to the Ethiopiques series started by Buda Musique. This is the first track off his 1975 album ErÃ¨ MÃ¨la MÃ¨la. I love that warbled organ sound in the background and his bone dry vocals and delivery.

Sudden Sway ”“ Me Says Conscience (humsing)
It”™s such a crime that this group isn”™t a household name, but I guess that”™s generally the case with bands that were just way too far ahead of their time. This is a track off their 1984 double single and computer program (??), which sounds like a mix of Magma, Kate Bush and Animal Collective. ”˜Nuff said.

If you haven”™t given The Depreciation Guild a listen, check out their new album, Spirit Youth, on Spotify now. Then check out their debut album “In Her Gentle Jaws”, also on Spotify.

Thom

Edit: Dave and I are less than happy with the current layout of this blog, so we”™re going to change it so that when reading Spotisfaction it doesn”™t feel like you”™re looking at a headache.

Tags Christoph Hochheim, Playlists, The Depreciation Guild

Link: Mukinabaht: Feature: What Is The Cheltenham Underground? It would appear that for some unknown reason, Thom decided to write an article about the Cheltenham Underground on his day off from Spotisfaction. In the absence of a playlist today, head on over to his blog and have a good ol”™ fashioned read.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2QPhL6EffuKVumtPEEjMqw

Today”™s playlist is for those we love and those who love us back.
See some of you tonight at Slak.
David

James Cook:

Dad & I – A playlist

65 Spotisfaction Friday (28 May) – JCook

So, Spotify is about sharing, right? Here”™s a playlist with a story for every song; these are all songs that connect my father and I somehow.

Space Oddity – David Bowie
Voodoo Child (Slight Return) – Jimi Hendrix
Ruby Tuesday – The Rolling Stones
A Town Called Malice – The Jam
Muscle Museum – Muse
Will You? – Hazel O”™Connor
Avalon – Roxy Music
Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
Sunshine Of Your Love – Cream
Brothers In Arms – Dire Straits
Street Spirit (Fade Out) – Radiohead
Ashes In The Fall – Rage Against The Machine
Caramel – Blur
Pyramid Song – Radiohead
Alone Again Or – Love
Stay – Shakespears Sister
Hard Headed Woman – Cat Stevens
Theme From Harry”™s Game – Clannad
Samba Pa Ti – Santana
I Drove All Night – Roy Orbison
Nights In White Satin – The Moody Blues
No Distance Left To Run – Blur

I can credit my parents with giving me a fantastic musical education I think; my Dad especially, whose tapes in his car we used to listen to time and again on the long journeys up to Scotland to spend time with my Mum”™s family at Christmas and the like. The Beatles, Bowie, Hendrix were my upbringing. This is where the playlist starts.

As a child, I remember singing along to Bowie on a trip to the nearest playground. When we got there, I actually decided I”™d much rather listen to Space Oddity and the rest of the Bowie album, rather than play on the swings. It started to rain, and I have this image of sitting in the car singing along to Space Oddity with Dad, looking out at an empty park through rain-swept glass. – “I”™m floating in the most peculiar way, and the stars look very different today.”

Voodoo Child was the first song I ever performed in front of an audience at school. The concert had been the usual choir/orchestra affair and then I walked on stage backed by the best drummer is school, turned up my amp too loud, and hit the parents with a poorly played version of Jimi Hendrix. I think I hit the spirit of the song (if not all the right notes) because we got the best cheer of the night, and Dad was there to see it! – “If I don”™t meet you no more in this world then, uh, I”™ll meet ya on the next one, and don”™t be late.”

Ruby Tuesday was a song me and Dad used to practice, me on the guitar and he singing. I only started playing the guitar because he wanted to learn, but after a few years he put the guitar to one side and just took an interest in my interest in it. – “Catch your dreams before they slip away.”

A Town Called Malice, or, apparently according to Dad, A Town Called Alice. – “I could go on for hours”¦ and I probably will, but I”™d much rather spread joy”¦”

As a teenager, I made a mixtape of my favourite artists for Dad to listen to in the car, in a reversal of my musical upbringing. Muse, Blur, Radiohead, Rage Against The Machine are all here, and I remember having conversations about the merits of them compared to the classics. Muse in particular became a band we were both equally enthusiastic about.. he spied the decline in their artistry alot earlier than me, completely unfussed by Stockholm Syndrome and Time Is Running Out before the disappointing Absolution was released. – “And we all went to heaven in a little row boat; there was nothing to fear and nothing to doubt.”

So I can credit Dad with alot about who I am as a person, my passions, my interests, and my taste in music. Sadly, he passed away 2 years ago to the day yesterday, I spent the day making this playlist, and David and Thom have done me the honour of featuring it today. There were only 2 songs that could finish this playlist. Nights In White Satin is a classic from Dad”™s favourite artist, The Moody Blues. The song Go Now was his all-time favourite and it was played at the funeral, though thankfully it isn”™t available on Spotify – a prescient choice I think! No Distance Left To Run by Blur is another one from that mixtape I made Dad, and pair up with Nights In White Satin beautifully. Here”™s to the big man.

– “It”™s over, you don”™t need to tell me.”