DHS 13 - Part 3 (D)

Evening all,

I'm very pleased to see that the life support system of DHS is still beeping and the old man is not dead yet. It seemed for a while there as if an amputation would the only thing that would allow it to carry on living, but thankfully it wasn't needed and yet he still goes on living. Some strong drugs, the right nourishment and maybe even a little exercise and who knows, there could be life in the old dog yet.

Thank you both as ever for the last selection. My thoughts firstly on what a big wanker than me (don't say it...) my call Kev's 'meditation' on love:

'Fail for you'
Being the 'broken love' portion. It's nice enough, but seems extremely personal to me. Quite clever hook I suppose, but otherwise a bit 'meh' for me. You need to be going through a break-up to really appreciate it, and then I guess it could make you fall apart!

'Breathe me'
The imploring love is beautifully handled, nice subtle voice, good lyrics and I like the rising strings to bring more drama to the record - I feel like she really is imploring. Nice Sigur Ros-esque drop too.

'Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart'
Defiant love eh? This has been on my rotation for a couple of years. Great tune that to me spoke nothing of love and more of a great big fuck you. You were great, I loved you, but you left, so fuck you I'm moving on. No matter, a great record and well chosen.

'Brand New Colony'
Love as genius lyrical metaphors starts off with an intro from Super Mario Land which does not wet the palette for musical greatness. The lyrics are only decent to these ears and the cut is not really for me I'm afraid.

'Nothing Lasts Forever'
Seize the day love is a great idea, although I'm sure I've made a tit of myself with this kind of notion, but always felt ok about it. But I really like this tune, although I can't really tell you why other than the music is good and the vocal nicely understated. It's uplifting and beautifully done. Hats off.

And Hodge's Marcel Marceau tribute to David Bowie:

I've never really liked Bowie's music, even though I've really respected his originality - here was a man who was definitely doing his own thing, very successfully, and not only that he was able to reinvent himself constantly. You have to respect him if nothing else. I tried again when he died, but couldn't find anything that really vibed with me I find that I like small parts of his records but nothing more and can't stand to listen to anything more than once, which is never a good sign. So, 'Starman' I liked the riff before the chorus and the chorus itself but could take or leave the rest of it really. Same kind of thing with 'Life on Mars' there's some great double bass (I think?) in there and the lead up to the chorus and the chorus is ok. Bowie's voice is not bad  but there are some unusual lyrics - I guess that was part of his thing. 'Ziggy Stardust' I'd never heard before, even if I'd heard the name, and it's just not for me. 'Changes' sounds like something I've heard before, but again it doesn't do anything for me - christ I sound like a broken record here, sorry mate! 'Space Oddity' I do know and it's easily my favourite Bowie record - probably his most well known, is that right? Certainly his most accessible. Great lyrics, beautifully sung and really tells a story and I love the arrangement of the vocals and the percussion. But I have no real idea what the point of it is! But maybe it doesn't need one...

As ever, my thanks for music I would not have otherwise heard. My offering is thus:

'Hyperbolicsyllablecsesquedalymistic' - Isaac Hayes
Piano soul of the highest order. Great soul track anyway and then the piano just takes over, drips funk and takes you away, and then there is quite the surprise... made me sit up and smile. Tune.

'Nest' Young Fathers
The boys were back last year with another album and they're really firing on all cylinders. Two or three great tracks but this is the pick of the bunch for me. Just endlessly uplifting, great vocal and a rolling riff that bumps along nicely. Big smiley track - 'baby baby'

'Shut 'em Up' - Public Enemy / The Prodigy / Manfred Mann
Well what's not to like about that line up? World class remix business.

'Mile Out' - Neuropol
Especially for you Hodge. Su and I were having the most amazing chilled weekend in a remote holiday house in Wales at the end of last year and after a great long walk to a tiny beach we came back and chilled with the fire on and listened to the radio with food, games, box sets and all that. We returned to the music late at night and this track came on and I wrote it down straight away. This is what D&B should always be like for me. Immense.

'Bad Radio' - Leftfield & Tunde Adebimpe
Just shaded out 'Universal Everything' from the new album on the strength that this tune is just fucking badass. Play it loud and blow your windows out. Imagine this in the depths of a great club at 4am when you're off your tits. Terrifying. In a good way.

As Kev so succinctly put, one love.

It's good to be back.

DHS 13 - Part 1 (S)

Let's remind ourselves why we're here - it's about the tunes - simply and only about the tunes.  The writing and the blogging is (massively) secondary and a 'nice to have' as opposed to the necessity that is the music.  So from here on if updates are made on Spot with no accompanying Blog post then that's fair enough - so much the better if you do want to post a few thoughts/words, but it's far from the focus...

Accordingly, thank you both for closing out DHS12 and your updates to "The Best Of..." - not a bad thing heard and all much enjoyed and appreciated...

... and so, the thirteenth chapter...

As we all know, pretty much every song ever written is about love in one form, shape, guise or flavour - and so my five to open DHS13 are 'love songs' - in ridiculously simplified order they are,

- broken love
- imploring love
- defiant love
- love as genius lyrical metaphors, and
- 'carpe-diem' love

Posted with One Love

x

Best of DHS 11 & 12 (S)

Good work D on your recent update - s.o.l.i.d...

(whatever than means)

As for me - I'm slightly thrown by the fact my Spotify display, for a collaborative playlist, has ceased showing which subscribed member contributed any given tune - in terms therefore of not picking my own tunes I'm trusting purely to luck and almost literally no memory whatsoever - forgive therefore and indulge me please if any of the following contains any faux-pas...

Ryan Davis - My White Zebra - if the least worthwhile reason I gave was simply, 'because it's Ryan Davis', I think it would still be justified - quality nonsense - I tip my hat to whoever selected it...

Sigur Ros - Hoppipolla - how could one of us not, and I'm more than glad that it could be me - one of THE most ubiquitous tunes of the last 10+ years but absolutely one of the best - still makes me go gooey every time I hear it - I tip my hat to whoever selected it...

Jay Z - Empire State Of Mind - fairly sure this was posted by D - doesn't matter either way - quite simply one of the tunes of the century so far - I fell in love with it then thought I was over it then spent 96 hours in New York and junior and I walked around humming this tune for 4 days straight - I tip my hat to whoever selected it...

Pachelbel's Canon in D - *no words*      *hat tipped*

L.S.G - Netherworld - simply because if there'd been a chance for me to put this on a long-lasting 'best-of' list and I hadn't taken it I would've paid to have myself assassinated - I tip my hat to whoever selected it...

Rui da Silva - Fire - 'cos one has to doesn't one?!  Prog to the power of prog squared with lashings more prog and umpteen side helpings of prog.  I tip my hat to whoever selected it...

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This one may well have taken us a while but, all things considered, this 'best of' malarkey isn't getting any easier.  Genuine mentions to Rebelski's 'The Rift Valley', Morricone's 'The Ecstacy Of Gold', Aphex Twin 'Film', Essay 'Morning Mountain', Koto 'Jabdah' and at least another dozen that were under consideration.

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DHS13 to open as soon as we close off this round of 'the best of'...

S

Best of DHS 11 & 12 (D)

Well, it's been a long time as Rakim might have said. DHS 11 & 12 have encompassed almost 3 years of our lives, beginning on 11th December 2012. For me personally this has been quite a time of experience and change; 2013 was when I realised for the first time that the job I'd had for years was not for me and was taking too high a toll. My football team got promoted to the premiership, continuing their rollercoaster ride, and capping that year off I met Su and began a 'courtship' that took me 7 hours to get there and required 2 trains, 1 ferry and a bus ride. Never was my time so well spent...

Since then I've left my job, undertaken a massive gamble on a completely new life, left London, got engaged, started a different career and generally laid the foundations for the rest of my life. And Palace are still in the Premier League, which is nice. Quite a lot for 3 years I think. But hey, my life has been many things, but rarely dull...!

And through it all, there has always been music to keep me going. A little slower on DHS sadly, but I constantly hope it will pick up again. Maybe it will, maybe it won't but no matter what I'm glad it's here for now and in its 7th year.

A lot of fun was had in selecting 6 tracks for this best of, and I got it down to 8 before it really got tricky (and a bit nerdy) to decide. Honourable mentions go to Jobe for 'Broken' and to Fred V & Grafix for 'Forest Fires' but in an escalating order of magnitude for me, here are my favourite 6:

The Charmels 'As Long as I've got you'
Dripping with soul and with that great brass section, topped off by a soaring vocal that is free as a bird. Sweet soul music in all senses of the word. Lovely.

Roland M. Dill 'Tzycho'
This is what progressive music should sound like for me - it's got drive, intensity, a killer bass line and a fantastic break that builds and builds and requires fist-pumping / pogo-ing / general bonkers behaviour when it kicks back in. On a big sound system this would be HUGE.

Bubble Club 'Goddess'
If goodness and warmth had a sound, this would be it. It's a totally lush soundscape that simply washes over you and invites you in for a big hug. It gently builds with wonderful melodies as you drift along happily and contented. A wonderful piece of music.

Etherwood 'Hold Your Breath'
What. A. Fucking. Tune. This is what drum 'n bass should be all about, you can keep all the moody nonsense. Good lyrics, GREAT vocal, totally works with the piano and strings build up and then the beats couldn't be anything else, love the filter in and then WALLOP! it's all up in your grill. Tune.

Caribou 'Can't do without You'
Easily the best dance record of 2014 for me. Original with immaculate production, a simple hook and then increasing tempo and mayhem behind it, offset by a lovely ethereal vocal making a great contrast. Then it builds and builds some more until it's a total monster. The production is incredible.

The Cure 'Plainsong'
The best record of DHS 11 & 12 for me is by the Cure! Who saw that coming? Certainly not me, as to my eternal regret I judged this band by how their lead singer looked when I was an impressionable young man and it's completely my loss. Kudos to you Kev for insisting I give this album a couple of goes. I don't love it like you do, but I think it's really good and this is the best track. I just love the epic scale, it makes no excuses and just aurally assaults you, and it is simply brilliant. Nice contrast with the vocal - no other would do it justice I don't think, and it all works perfectly. Love it!

So that's me done. Where will the next 3 years take us? I hope DHS is still going, but even more so I wish us all well (and that Palace are still in the premier league!)

One Love

DHS12 shuts - 'Best of DHS' reopens

It's been well over three years since The Best Of' was last open - but DHS12 is shut now so tradition dictates that we each review the last 180 submissions and pick your favourite six from the 120 you weren't responsible for!  (If that makes sense...?)

Not keen to put a time limit on it - let's see how it goes - but no problems shutting it and moving on if it takes too long...


S

DHS 12 - Part 18 (D)

Afternoon all, I thought I'd better get this in reasonably swiftly before DHS collapses under the ridiculous privacy breaches it enforces on Kev, our founding father. I'll keep it as short as I can too...

So thank you as ever for the music:

Sir Kev
Bubble Club - I can only agree with you fella on this being Utter Bliss, you can just drift away on it can't you? Beautiful and onto the Master List. Marvellous.
Turtle - Love the contrast of the soft yet almost mournful synth and the urgency of the breakbeats, goes well alongside Bubble Club too. I love a good synth sweep myself. Lovely.
Home Video - I can see why the vocal stays with you fella, real haunting number. This is only an ok for me, would be great in the background of a beach bar somewhere.
Essay - This is brilliant, love that hook and the design of the track really works. A unique sounding track for me, doesn't do much but what it does do is plenty. Sweet.
Barry Jamieson - What's not to like? He's gone to town on this one and thrown the kitchen sink at it for me. From Rez to the big synth sweeps, the breaks and the acid squelchs and the melodic hook towards the end it's like he's said 'ave it! and lumped it over. I'll have some of that.

Lord Hodge
Moby - Heller was a bit of a one trick pony for me, but the trick he did he did very very well and thus he was always distinctive. His remixes were always high quality - I remember his take on 'shed my skin' being particularly good. This is another, and was especially good on a big system. Tune.
Dirty Vegas - I hadn't heard this tune in ages! Didn't it have a video with a dude breakdancing on some lino outside a diner or something? With a narrative about waiting for his girl or something? Marvellous. Never heard it at Bedrock but this was a great tune, top selection!
Chems - You are not wrong Hodgson, I clearly remember Digweed playing this and thinking 'what the fuck?!' Also agree about it being a big system tune, that isn't quite so good otherwise - seems like a novelty track on headphones at first but it's actually a slice of classic chemical brothers. Good shit.
L.S.G. I remember the furore on the boards about this at the time, and remember Lisle's gig at the Beach pretty well, as well as Big Kev claiming the credit! Sorry to disappoint you lads but I'm clearly in the minority on this one, it's just ok for me, never really liked the kind of spacey stuff that was about a bit at the time. I mean it was ok but sounded melancholy to me, even 'Gamesmaster' which was probably the best one of its kind.
Rui Da Silva - One of my best nights at Bedrock ever was at the Beach when not only did Digweed drop 'Star Guitar' for the first time but he played this as an encore. Christ I swear I almost danced myself to death that night, it was fucking brilliant. Was at an after party that Shealan invited me to after that gig and Demi played a copy and I hounded him for the name. Also remember tidying up Lisle's copy after he played at that converted lavvy (Public something...) and then ducked when it got to the scratches, and I bugged the hell out of Plastic Fantastic to get me this too. Unbelievable record.

Gents that's almost a perfect ten, very well played indeed. I see I'm already failing at keeping this short...

As this may be my last post ever I did consider some more contemporary tracks that I've been enjoying, but as with Hodge's Bedrock theme, I was absolutely loving a mix album at Easter and have played it so many times it's ridiculous. Here are some of the tracks from it:

Hardway Brothers 'Mania Theme (Weatherall remix)'
The first track that said to me that slowish BPMs can still knock you for 6 in a dance mix. The build on this is amazing, and the soaring melody? Outstanding.
The Asphodells 'A Love from Outer Space'
Wicked tune, great vocal and slick production. Tune.
The Horrors 'Wild Eyed (Weatherall Mix)'
A bit moody this, with a lovely incessant riff that builds and builds and then an ethereal vocal that peaks over the break. And then it all kicks up a notch. Splendid.
Martin Brodin 'Badabing (diskjokke remix)'
Great build to the bassline break, lovely strings and some big energy all the way through it and then a wonderful surprise towards the end that rounds it all off nicely - fists in the air at that point for me. Play LOUD!
Walls 'Into Our Midst'
Ok, last track of DHS12 and I can't do any better than this. I love this track as you already know and so it can rightly stand in the pantheon of last record with its head held high. I would easily end a set with this so I know it's all good. After a build that does not let you know the magnitude of aural pleasure that awaits you, just before two and a half minutes it starts. Then grows, and grows and grows... I like that the melody and intensity is seemingly subtle yet utterly addictive. I hope you do too.

I'm sure you all know which mix I've lifted these from and I could not recommend it highly enough. Weatherall's Renaissance of course. Why have a I never seen him DJ??

One Love

DHS 12 - Part 17 (H)

Straight in, no kissing:
D
Cash - what needs to be said? True legend, one of the most iconic, recognisable voices ever to be recorded imo.
YF - new to me, like.
AC - again what needs to be said? For my money she is the most credible female pop star/musician(that's the important part for me, the fact she actually writes, plays and co-produces her music) in modern era.  I have two poss three more of her tracks in my potentials list to bring forward. She's lush
MR - this is new to me and I really like... Great summer feel good flavour to it.
MB - echoes of Sotomayor, enya and some other cinematic sounding efforts.

S
BC - absolutely cracking record and undoubtedly the standout track on Warrens master series mix on Renaissance.
Turtle - really strong record... Correct amount of quirky noises but retaining melody for it to be right up street. Subsequently found some other nice things from them and gone in my playlist.
HV - it's pretty dece isn't it?! He does seem to have a way of really working with strong vocals and keeping them pure as opposed to chopping them up (which quite frankly I thhink we could all do after a day of messing around on a basic set up)... For this reason and several others I will always hold him in high regard no matter what types of criticism he gets.  Top lad.
Essay - this is ace.... Have to say I buzz more off Eulbergs remix though. Top tune of the summer.
BJ &S - love the original - this is the one though. Great track.

Strong work gents.

Well, it's been a while since Bedrock at Heaven... I've just about got myself back on track ;)
That really was a special night musically... And it's the theme for my five.  I've mentioned to both of you about a separate space for us to throw our memories in... I do think it would be a great way to share stories and music but it would be completely open season and just add as you find and flick out an email to say anything should you want to.

So the tune that took 13 years off me and made it all come flooding back... And what a belter:-
Hellers remix of Mobys Southside.... This was possibly one of the first "moments" I had towards the end of a bedrock night (wasn't last tune by any stretch) but he did bring the lights up at the drop and the place was electric, incredible atmosphere..that great trancey but driving prog that we all coveted so much back then... I still love it now.. Hence I lost my mind hearing it on that system again. Superb.

This is all about some of my fave memories from bedrock so rather than just regurgitating the tunes from the Easter evening I thought I'd base it around some of those other big moments from the main rooms...

D.Vegas - never got fed up of the bass on this.... Vocal is dated but it was one of those "signal" tracks at the time for a couple of months or so... It got played you knew it was about to kick up a gear.  Great groove the got us all going and smiling for the inevitable pummelling thereafter.  Crowd favourite.

I'll never forget hearing the sinister vocal : it began in Afrika ka ka... It bean in Afrika ka ka.... I swear everyone stopped dead looking round like what is going on?  It may not be the best track he ever played but Christ it had an impact first time you heard it... It also demonstrates perfectly just how awesome a tune can sound on a bug system but not transfer to small sound listening (imo) I wouldn't necessarily pick this tune but brings back ace memories of London followed by Brighton the next night when he looped the fuck out of it and clearly enjoyed seeing the London lot for the night before screaming blue murder knowingly at him from the dance floor. Good times.

Staying with Brighton... And I have searched in TOTAL and I hope I've not missed/overlapped on
something already added(??):
Kid loops on netherworld.  Christ that was so good.... SO good... Lisle knocked it out the park with this... Thanks to someone for lending him the plastic to play :) Beautiful record

RDS - again not the best record ever made but screw me sideways if you don't remember hearing this the first time.  This was a "one more.... one Moooooore" tune at the very end of the eve.  And it knocked 7 bells out of me. Build. Tease. Build. Tease. Build. Kill me now.  In hindsight it is almost unbearably repetitive but again on the main floor it just worked so very very well.

Bless the memories, bless the music - thanks for sharing some of the above good times with me at various stages.... And thanks for being patient with me.

Keep on Keeping on,
Always,
H