Michael Nolledo, Author at ALARM

The Groove Seeker: Mophono’s Cut Form Crush

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

Mophono: Cut Form Crush 12″ (CB Records, 2/15/2011)

Mophono: “Be Human Part One”

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San Francisco-based DJ/producer Mophono is releasing his debut Cut Form Crunch on his own CB Records, featuring guest spots by Flying Lotus and MC Subverse. Keeping good company, Mophono builds an instrumental soundscape inhabited by dusty glitch samples and old-school beats under the direction of dub-like bass lines. It’s a heavy sound where Moog bleeps meet hard hip-hop beats, jazzy fills, heavy funk cuts, and fanatical synth hooks.

Advancing a style crafted by luminaries such DJ Shadow and DJ Krush, Mophono’s highly textured instrumental compositions encompass a wide range of dense atmospherics. But whereas Krush stays inherently nocturnal making soundtracks for the midnight marauder, Mophono steps to a completely different vibe. From dirty club stompers and wild synthetic experiments to classic break-out-the-cardboard B-boy tracks, Mophono keeps a variety that is disparate, noisy, and always funky.

World in Stereo: Kodo’s Akatsuki

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Kodo: Akatsuki (Otodaiku, 1/11/11)

Kodo: “Stride”
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In the Niigata prefecture, 32 miles west of Honshu in the Sea of Japan, is an island widely known as a place of exile. The remoteness of Sado Island made it a site for banishment until the 1700s, a punishment second only to death for those poets, dramatists, and even emperors who were seen as disgraces to their country. But its isolation has also made it one of Japan’s unspoiled beauties, an island of dramatic precipices and remarkable ravines crowned by two parallel mountain chains.

The island is where, 30 years ago, Kodo was established not only as a Japanese performing arts troupe, but as a village sharing a very distinct collective lifestyle. Preserving and revitalizing the art of the taiko (traditional Japanese drum), Kodo has been fusing high-energy percussion, elegance, and traditional dance for over three decades. Since debuting at the Berlin Festival in 1981, the collective has given thousands of performances on five continents. Kodo’s new album, Akatsuki, celebrates its thirtieth anniversary with brand-new compositions and never-before-recorded stage pieces.

The Kodo collective is always constant, never stagnant. The almost 50-member collective lives in Sado Village, a 32-acre plot of land established in 1988. Including staff members, performers, seniors, and apprentices, the group shares the same lifestyle: living, eating, creating, and rehearsing. As the oldest members turn 60 and the youngest apprentices 20 this year, it’s an evolving cast of players, a natural transference not only skills and techniques, but also ideologies and culture.

The Groove Seeker: Basil Kirchin’s Primitive London

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

Basil Kirchin: Primitive London (Trunk Records, 12/6/10)

Basil Kirchin: “Primitive London 3”

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As one of the most under-appreciated artists of his time (roughly from the late 1950s to the mid-’70s), Basil Kirchin’s music has been shrouded in obscurity. But thanks to Jonny Trunk and the folks at Trunk Records, who’ve reissued titles such as Particles and Abstractions of the Industrial North, Kirchin has not only been realized as one of jazz’s most eccentric characters, but as a musician ahead of his time in terms of experiments in sound and fusion.

Trunk Records’ latest release, Primitive London, reveals some of the grooviest music Kirchin ever made, bringing together two never-before-released film scores. The first is the strange cult-classic Primitive London, the 1965 Arnold Louis Miller shock-doc that explores the dark side of London during its birth of cool. Accompanying Primitive London is an even more obscure unreleased gem, The Freelance, a 1971 gangster film shot in London featuring a score by Kirchin.

Trunk Records’ decision to release them together is a fantastic idea: each film reflects two distinct periods in Kirchin’s musical career and development. Primitive London listens like a double feature; Kirchin’s swinging ’60s jazz turns into something entirely different by the 1970s, as he delves deeper into the spontaneity of free jazz and the nuances of the experimental.

World in Stereo: Generation Bass Presents Transnational Dubstep

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Various artists: Generation Bass Presents Transnational Dubstep (Six Degrees Records, 2/1/11)

Fleck & Fish Finger: “Rude Profile” (Pan Agnostix flamenco-step remix) [bonus cut, not available on album]

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Originating in East London at the turn of the century, dubstep loosely teeters between the electronic styles of garage, dub, and drum-and-bass. Distinct in its aggressive, bass-heavy qualities, it’s a fascinating genre that has blown subwoofers on both sides of the Atlantic. Though the music’s meditation on complex rhythms and cerebral twists make it all the more attractive, it is dubstep’s grimy, low-frequency synths and wobbly, soul-shaking bass riffs that have made it a movement.

Transnational Dubstep, a compilation by Generation Bass blog co-founders / editors DJ UMB and Vincent Koreman in conjunction with Six Degrees Records, is one of the first major releases to document the fusion of dubstep and global roots music. As something of an infant genre, a surge of electronic producers and DJs from all over the world are taking it in all kinds of different directions. From Latin American to Balkan, Chinese to Indian, and Middle Eastern to Japanese — the sounds are extremely diverse, giving first-time listeners an amazing introduction and long-time fans a mine full of new gems.

The Groove Seeker: The Go! Team’s Rolling Blackouts

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

The Go! Team: Rolling Blackouts (Memphis Industries, 2/1/11)

The Go! Team: “The Running Range”

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Originally Ian Parton’s solo home-brewed music project, The Go! Team became a six-member band upon the release of its debut, Thunder, Lightning, Strike, in 2004. As Parton put together a group to perform the music live, the pieces fell into place, and the band quickly became the highlight of international music festivals.

After running into copyright issues surrounding TLS’ samples, The Go! Team released Proof of Youth in 2007 — a sophomore-slump-dodging record that proved that Parton’s distinct patchwork funk pop was not a fluke. Four years later, the Brighton, England-based sextet is back with Rolling Blackouts, a rambunctious effort that leans toward ’60s-inspired pop. Building off its trusted template with a slew of guest vocals, including Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino and Deerhoof’s Satomi Matsuzaki, the team’s upbeat blend of garage rock, hip hop, and noise pop sounds as refreshing at it did when Parton began.

Bill Frisell & Vinicius Cantuaria: Lagrimas Mexicanas

World in Stereo: Bill Frisell & Vinicius Cantuária’s Lagrimas Mexicanas

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Bill Frisell & Vinicius Cantuária: Lagrimas Mexicanas (E1, 1/25/11)

Bill Frisell & Vinicius Cantuária: “Aquela Miller”

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The fretwork abilities of guitar luminaries Bill Frisell and Brazilian singer/songwriter Vinicius Cantuária meet on a fantastic Latin jazz record titled Lagrimas Mexicanas (“Mexican Tears” in English). An expert collaboration that shows itself in every detailed note, Lagrimas Mexicanas has the harmonic twists and turns of a bossa-nova record sliced up by the experimental sounds you’d expect from Frisell. Whether sung in Spanish or Portuguese, Cantuária anchors much of the album with a voice as timeless as Gilberto Gil’s, capturing a worldly romanticism that comes off as seductive as the music that accompanies it.

Though it’s the first exclusive partnership between the two, the musicians have kept good company with each other in the past, playing together in a variety of settings — most notably Frisell’s guest spot on Cantuária’s second international release, Tucumã, in 1999. Cantuária, in return, was a part of the impressive global roster that made up Frisell’s Intercontinentals group.

Growing up in Manaus and Rio De Janiero, Cantuária’s Tropicália sound is informed by the places and people of Brazil. Taking Brazil’s rich musical tradition and relocating to New York in the mid-’90s, he has made a career in pushing the bossa-nova sound forward into the 21st Century.

The Groove Seeker: James Blake

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

James Blake: James Blake (Atlas Records, 2/7/11)

James Blake: “The Wilhelm Scream”

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After gaining significant attention in 2010 with three EPs — The Bells Sketch, CMYK, and Klavierwerke — London-based electronic producer James Blake is releasing his self-titled full-length on Atlas Records. The EPs established Blake as a new go-to producer, whose soul-noir brand of dubstep has surprised many with its low-energy beats and restrained, ultramodern approach. Blake’s music is a staggering, spacious collage of R&B and nu-soul samples suspended over deep drum kits, skittering glitch pulses, and highly saturated vocals.

But with so many musicians following the same avant-garde, cut-and-paste approach, Blake’s earlier music doesn’t so much break barriers as it tests fertile grounds. Though the EPs contain danceable grooves and imaginative arrangements, they remain stamp-less, sounding like the supplementary material to an experimental music seminar on producing and remixing beats.

“Limit to Your Love,” the first single to his upcoming album, covers Feist, reducing the original to its simple piano phrase with a tension that lies somewhere between nerve-biting silence and wall-shaking bass. But more importantly, the song reveals a voice capable of channeling the faint intimacy of Bon Iver and the soulful croon of Bill Withers. It’s a warm vocal style that is crucial in realizing Blake’s appeal.

World in Stereo: Sidi Touré’s Sahel Folk

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Sidi Touré: Sahel Folk (Thrill Jockey, 1/25/11)

Sidi Touré: “Bon Koum”

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It has been 13 years since Malian folk artist Sidi Touré released a solo album. Touré’s 1998 debut, Hoga, is a bluesy, foot-stomping, electric-overdrive kind of record. At the time, Touré and many of his Malian contemporaries were on the cutting edge of the evolving Afro-pop sound, just before its revival hit the West by the turn of the century. Now at 51, Touré’s sound has definitely changed, but it’s as powerful and provocative as ever.

Sahel Folk, the West African musician’s debut on Thrill Jockey, is informed by the people and places most important to him, making for a record that comes off naturally introspective. Direct from the stunning red-dirt roads of Bamako, Mali, Touré and his unmatched guitar playing have made an album that’s nothing short of inspirational.

The Groove Seeker: Beep’s City of the Future

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

Beep: City of the Future (Third Culture Records, 1/18/11)

Beep: “Robo Pup”
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San Francisco-based trio Beep has tapped into a fresh vanguard with its upcoming release City of the Future. The indie-rock-meets-experimental-jazz trio is commanding without being loud, making the dynamics and improvisational strategies of jazz accessible to a whole new audience. City of the Future contains pieces that advance rather than deconstruct in an accomplished style that forgoes any art-school tropes narrowly associated with the experimental tag.

Produced by Eli Crews (producer for Deerhoof and Why?), the record is marked by passionate percussion and a broad sense of what a melody can sound like. Making avant garde sound closer than ever to the present, Beep has found a sound that mixes the vibrancy of the modern rock recording with the experimental subtleties of a jazz record.

World in Stereo: Josephine Foster & The Victor Herrero Band’s Anda Jaleo

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Josephine Foster & The Victor Herrero Band: Anda Jaleo (Fire Records, 11/2/10)

Josephine Foster & The Victor Herrero Band: “Los Cuarto Muleros”

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“Anda Jaleo” has a long history as a Spanish folk standard; its melody repeatedly transforms and reemerges anew. First recorded in 1931 by poet and dramatist Federico García Lorca and flamenco singer/dancer La Argentinita, it was a popular dance before it was adopted by the Republican Army as a resistance song during the Spanish Civil War. But under head of state Franciso Franco’s repressive military regime, Lorca’s leftist art was outlawed, including the folk-song collection Las Canciones Populares Españolas, which features “Anda Jaleo” and many others.

The song’s name appears again in avant-folk artist Josephine Foster and husband Victor Herrero’s recent reworking of Lorca’s Las Canciones, a simple and skilled record that shows the songbook’s ability to connect with audiences 80 years later. Along with Herrero’s acoustic band, Anda Jaleo was recorded live in the Grenadine Sierra, capturing a rich, lively mood that stays within the traditional framework of the 1931 original.

World in Stereo: Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Ségal’s Chamber Music

Each week, World in Stereo examines classic and modern world music while striving for a greater appreciation of other cultures.

Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Ségal: Chamber Music (Six Degrees Records, 1/11/11)

Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Ségal: “Histoire de Molly”

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Six Degrees Records begins 2011 with a wonderful collaboration between West African kora player Ballaké Sissoko and French cellist Vincent Ségal, simply titled Chamber Music. Geared toward reimagining a genre closely associated with the days of études and opuses, the record successfully fuses African classical with Western classical music.

One of the best traditional kora musicians (the kora being West Africa’s 21-string, long-neck harp lute), Sissoko has released more collaborative projects than solo works, keen on showing the instrument’s adaptability to the modern world. In his collaboration with Ségal, known best as the cellist for the French trip-hop group Bumcello, Sissoko has found a new avenue in which to showcase this West African griot tradition.

The Groove Seeker: Zoon Van Snook’s (Falling From) The Nutty Tree

On a weekly basis, The Groove Seeker goes in search of killer grooves across rock, funk, hip hop, soul, electronic music, jazz, fusion, and more.

Zoon Van Snook: (Falling From) The Nutty Tree (Mush Records, 12/7/10)

Zoon Van Snook: “Lomograph”

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As Zoon Van Snook, UK-based oddball producer Alec Snook has released his debut album, (Falling From) The Nutty Tree. It’s a chameleonic kind of record; Snook uses everything from folk, jazz, hip hop, and IDM to create his style of cut-and-paste electronica.

Though the album has its scattered and weird moments, Snook’s knack for melody and rhythms make for an approach that is more contemplative than erratic. With plucked and chimed melodies over heavy, glitched-out beats, the record has a warm, well-textured sound.

Aside from Snook’s support of English indie bands I Am Kloot and Skunk Anasie, listeners received their first taste of his aesthetics with Snook’s 2008 four-track EP, Interviews and Interludes. The song “Bibliophone” from that record is a stuttering display of found sounds, household objects as percussion, reverse sampling, and temporal masking that makes for an experimental, glitchy IDM odyssey.