FINALLY! I've been waiting for this day for a long long time, much akin to how I felt in regards to the Monsieur Adi song we posted a few weeks back. Today finally marks the official release of Cat Covers Vol. 1, a project started by Angel Riba, known professionally as CatComplex. Riba sought to promote the musical talent of his native Barcelona by providing them with an outlet through which they could showcase their skill. Cat Covers Vol. 1 is the result of this. It sees 13 artists re-interpreting Daft Punk's classic Discovery, to various degrees of success.
The Amplid cover of Veridis Quo (spelled Verdis Quo on the tracklist--not sure if this is a typo or intentional) is by far and away the best track on the album, and by extension possibly one of the best tracks of the year. The Amplid take one of Daft Punk's most subtle songs and mercilessly throttle it. Using the original piece as a reference rather than a template, the Amplid turn the track up to 11 (dare I say 12), and transform it into a commanding, stomping, electro tour-de-force. This is, quite simply, an absolute banger. Whereas many of the covers on the CD fall short, with this reinterpretation the Amplid prove that they alone could carry the future of the Barcelona music scene on their backs. It is that good.
The entire Cat Covers album is being graciously offered for free download here. Get the Amplid track below, and be sure to download the rest of the CD, it's worth the space on your hard drive. Viva Barcelona.
*Big thanks to the boys at Tracasseur who sent us these tracks (and the Adi one, for that matter) way back when. They're killer, be sure to show some love.
To say that I have been waiting for this day would be an understatement.
Truth is, I've been biding my time since March, when I first heard two excerpts from Monsieur Adi's forthcoming Fire Fire Fire EP, to be released on Technofavrik, September 19th. The title track, Fire Fire Fire, is perhaps the most powerful, well-executed, and exciting French House track I've heard, well, since Daft Punk. I've said it then and I'll say it now : this song is fucking incredible. Those scaling, harmonized guitars. That commanding kick. The gorgeous, cascading string bridge two minutes in. Adi wears his influences on his sleeve but he does it so well that if I were Daft Punk, I would be proud; if not a bit nervous at the unrealized potential of this wunderkind.
Ready for another new French release? No, this isn’t from some big name label or a 2008-resurgence. Rather, this is an example of some of the exciting new guard from the country with a golden touch. Pyramid is a young producer from Lyon who gained some attention this past winter with his artful remixes of Air and Daft Punk. Today he expands from the world of remix artist to solo enfant terrible with his debut release, The Hall EP. With five songs and just over 25 minutes of playtime, The Hall EP is a delightful, spacey house affair. There are obvious similarities between Pyramid’s production style and Daft Punk, but as a young French producer (or any young producer for that matter), I don’t see how one could resist their influence. As Pyramid is also a seemingly ardent fan of strings, deep synths, and arpeggios, The Hall EP harkens strongly to the TRON Legacy Soundtrack (though granted, without the thousands of dollars worth of production equipment at his disposal). Clearly Pyramid draws a lot of inspiration from the Daft boys, but he has enough raw talent and vision to make his works more nods to his heroes than mimicry of them. Track 7 Suns sounds like it could be Solar Sailor II, and the stomping In Charge (probably my favorite track on the album) reminds me a more powerful End of Line. All the songs on the EP have quite a large feel—tracks run an average of 5 minutes per track, with the shortest still clocking in at over 4—the pieces seem function more as movements than as singles. Take, for example, the first single, Solar (which Pyramid is graciously giving away for free).
Clocking in at just over 6 minutes, Solar is divided into three distinct parts. There is firstly the celestial intro, decorated by arpeggios and a powerful kick drum. Then, three minutes in, you’re caught completely off guard by a new pattern of bouncing synth lines and hollow drums. It hops and buzzes for a solid two minutes before winding down, but suddenly switches on you yet again. Finally there’s a coda of sorts, characterized by a sharp, metallic melody and sparse accompaniment. The song ends and you don’t quite know what just hit you—it’s clearly a house/electro track, but it’s not anything like the pop-style prominent in the scene today. There’s no chorus, there’s little repetition of verse, and it’s a bit experimental thematically. But it works. For all of its abnormalities, it sticks with you. The whole EP echoes this feel. Honestly it’s a bit ADD in places, but Pyramid manages to hold the tracks (movements) together such that despite their discrepancies, they feel wholly communal. That said though, you can hear Pyramid’s greenness in the EP; at times it feels that the abrupt pattern changes or thematic shift of a song is due to Pyramid’s indecision rather than careful calculation, but give the kid time to find his stride. This is, after all, his first effort. And if this were a test, in my book he would pass with flying colors. The Hall EP showcases a new, budding talent, who, with a bit more time and experience under his belt, will undoubtedly develop a stronger sense of personal style and at that point will become perhaps unstoppable. The Hall EP is available on Juno here, and on Amazon here. Hop on the bandwagon now, my money is on this kid.
And as if I needed to demonstrate the Daft Punk similarities any more, here is a bonus remix he did of the classic Something About Us. Now, mind you, I usually hate Daft remixes. Why remix perfection, I always say. But this one? This one is oh so right.
I'm giving you a night call to tell you how I feel.
Now that I'm finished with what has been an absolute hell of a semester's end, I'm devoting my time to keeping up with this blog. To start, I'm compiling a years end 'best-of' list, with a number of my favorite tracks from 2010. Going through all the music I've acquired and loved over the past year has been arduous at best, but simultaneously rather inspiring. 2010 was a great year for music, though perhaps not so much for its audiences. With the rising popularity of music blogs, blog aggregators, and artist-direct free downloads, the sheer volume of available new music proved somewhat problematic for a listener (like myself) with a wide range of music taste and a penchant for discovering the next big thing. If 2010 has taught us anything, its that the world's talent pool is endless, and the chance of music celebrity in this day and age is quickly dwindling.
Today's Comedown Sunday tune is a product of this too-much-too-good paradigm. Kavinsky released his Nightcall EP (produced by none other than Daft Punk's Guy-Manuel) in September, as an 'aperitif' to his upcoming 2011 album. In conjunction with the release, Kavinsky and his label, Record Makers, ran a remix contest promising the winner a spot on the EP. In the excitement over the contest, pre-approved remixes became a passing thought in blog posts and reviews. One such remix is by Ed Banger's audaciously talented Breakbot (my favorite breakout artist of the year). I hope this post gives this stellar remix some of the front-and-center attention it deserves, as it oozes sex and funk, and begs repeated listenings.
In celebration of finally learning the release date of the TRON Legacy soundtrack (November 23rd!) composed by none other than my absolute favorite electronic act, here’s a Daft Punk-related post.
First off, I can’t even tell you how excited I am for this soundtrack to come out. If you want to preview six of the tracks click here. I was overwhelmingly surprised by them—they don’t sound anything like Homework-era Daft, which is what I had been expecting. Instead of samples and electronic sounds, Daft Punk seems to have utilized a full orchestra. Wow. Here it is everyone: Infallible proof that electronica artists can be just as talented at songwriting and composition (sometimes even more so) as their ‘traditional instrument’-wielding counterparts.
Asking me to pick a favorite Daft Punk song is like asking me to pick a favorite child, but here are a few of what I consider to be all-time bests. These aren’t the most famous of Daft songs, and haven’t really gotten any radio play in the states, so hopefully these are new for some of you. Two fast-paced bangers and two slower, sexier pieces. Right-click to download.
Ok technically this isn’t Daft Punk. But, it’s Thomas Bangalter, who is one-half of Daft Punk. This song features some of the best scratching I’ve ever heard on a track. Incredible.
More guitar solos on this track, this time in a smooth-jazz style. A simple love song about that certain je ne sais quoi that makes you keep loving someone more and more, even if they don’t quite reciprocate
