No DRM, please

Steve Jobs has some thoughts on music.

Recent music purchases

It’s been a while since my last music update. I’ve made quite a few CD purchases between April and August of this year (29!), albeit with mixed results. Here’s a list of my recent acquisitions, with iTunes links for each. Skip to the end for those that I highly recommend. Happy listening!

Not recommended

• 13 & God: 13 & God
  This is a collaboration between Notwist (one of my favorite bands) and Themselves (a group I’ve never heard of). The two or three tracks that sound like other Notwist releases are decent, but the rest of the album is a disaster.
• DJ-KICKS: The Exclusives
  The critics said good things, but I should have known better than to buy a DJ compilation. My bad.
• Casiotone For The Painfully Alone: Etiquette
  I really dislike the male vocals, but the arrangements are nice. There is one good track–Scattered Pearls–that is definitely worth a 99¢ download.
• Stereolab: Fab Four Suture
  I keep buying Stereolab albums hoping for something along the lines of their excellent Dots And Loops release, but I am always disappointed.
• Nightmares On Wax: In A Space Outta Sound
• Ellen Allien & Apparat: Orchestra of Bubbles
• Herbert: Scale
• Juana Molina: Son
• Crackhaus: Spells Disaster

Recommended

• ISAN: Plans Drawn In Pencil
  ISAN albums are always a safe bet. Consistently good, laid-back and ambient. Great work music.
• Nobody: And Everything Else…
• Herbert: Around The House
• Talkdemonic: Beat Romantic
• The White Birch: Come Up For Air
• Loscil: First Narrows
• Hefty 10 Digest
• Mia Doi Todd: La Ninja
• Islands: Return to the Sea
• Midwest Product: World Series Love

Highly recommended!

• Herbert: Bodily Functions
  Finally back in print, this is one of Herbert’s earlier releases, and is by far my favorite. A nice mix of jazz piano and house beats with great female vocals.
• Asobi Seksu: Citrus
  Hooray for catchy, dreamy Japanese rock! I can’t get enough of this.
• Kings Of Convenience: Quiet Is The New Loud
  Wonderfully mellow vocals and acoustic guitar–almost like Simon & Garfunkel. Be sure to also check out their Versus remix album.
• Psapp: The Only Thing I Ever Wanted
  Quirky, squishy pop music filled with bleeps, clanks and chirps. Very fun.
• Electric President: Electric President
• The Album Leaf: In A Safe Place
• Ms. John Soda: Notes and the Like
• I’m Not A Gun: Our Lives On Wednesdays
• American Analog Set: Set Free
• B. Fleischmann: The Humbucking Coil

MILOSH and DNTEL at the Rickshaw Stop

Tickets are on sale for two of my favorite electronic acts, MILOSH and DNTEL. The show is this Tuesday (August 8) at the Rickshaw Stop near Market and Van Ness. Who’s in?

Oh, and there will be corn dogs.

via Upcoming.org

Musical distractions

One of my favorite tracks on my iPod right now is “All Around” from the new Jel album, “Soft Money”. As it turns out, Jel’s official website has made this track available to download for free.

Got your headphones ready? jel-allaround.mp3 [4.6MB]

Man, that’s addictive. By the way, that’s Steffi Böhm of Ms. John Soda doing the vocals. If you dig this stuff, you’ll probably like Lali Puna as well [Flash, sound].

Ooh, tangent: you can hear the wonderful title track of Lali Puna’s “Faking the Books” during this fun slideshow of their Japan tour [more Flash].

Jel probably fits into the category of “instrumental hip-hop”. For more in the genre, take a look at RJD2.

As for the Jel album itself: “All Around” is outstanding, but the rest of the tracks don’t quite stack up (some may disagree with me on this one). Still, it’s definitely worth a listen.

Great new music

Here are some recent CD purchases that I am enjoying.
All are highly recommended. Take a listen.

• Devics: Push the Heart
  Reviews: Metacritic (68/100)

• B. Fleischmann: Welcome Tourist
  Reviews: Pitchfork (6.8/10) | TMT (4/5)

• His Name Is Alive: Detrola
  Reviews: Metacritic (75/100)

• Milosh: Meme
  

• Mogwai: Mr. Beast
  Reviews: Metacritic (76/100)

• My Little Airport: 只因當時太緊張
  Reviews: TMT (4/5)

• Erlend Øye: Unrest
  Reviews: Metacritic (74/100)

• Polmo Polpo: Kiss Me Again and Again
  Reviews: Almost Cool (8/10)

• Proem: Socially Inept
  

• Ulrich Schnauss: Far Away Trains Passing By
  Reviews: Pitchfork (6.9/10) | TMT (4.5/5)

Yoshimi Battles Snoop Dogg

The Flaming Lips vs. Snoop Dogg vs. Will Farrell.
Download the mp3.

via Boing Boing

2005 In Review: Music

Of my forty-odd CD purchases this year, these are my favorites. I highly recommend them all. Links will lead you to high-quality music samples courtesy of the iTunes Music Store.

Enjoy.

1. Iron & Wine: Woman King
   Only a 24-minute EP, but absolutely worth it. Check out his previous full-length as well.
2. Lali Puna: I Thought I Was Over That
   Remix albums don’t get much better than this. Lali Puna and Dntel are a match made in heaven.
3. Paul Duncan: Be Careful What You Call Home
   An outstanding release on par with the best Iron & Wine. Where would I be without Tiny Mix Tapes?
4. Stars: Set Yourself on Fire
   This is one indie release that actually lived up to the hype. Not a single disappointing track.
5. Sam Prekop: Who’s Your New Professor
   Hat tip: Almost Cool Reviews.
6. Ms. John Soda: No P. or D.
   More great music from Morr in Germany. This was on my wish list for years, and just recently became available in the U.S.
7. Books: Lost And Safe
   Wow, another solid release from these guys. Keep ‘em coming!
8. N. Lannon: Chemical Friends
   Props to Amazon for recommending this. I would not have found it otherwise. An excellent mixture of electronics and acoustics.
9. Psapp: Tiger, My Friend
   Psapp was one of several artists I discovered through Last.fm, a great (and free) service that offers recommendations based on your iTunes listening habits. This album fits perfectly into my electronic-y pop collection.
10. Styrofoam: Nothing’s Lost
    Is this what the kids call lap-pop? Sign me up for more of this.