All Ears 025 – 13th June 2019

This is what we played at All Ears 025:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Videos of all the Bill Fontana tracks can be found here.

Bill Fontana – Simon East

Bill Fontana is a sound artist. He attended the New School for Social Research in New York and studied both music and philosophy. In a career spanning 40 years, Fontana’s sound sculptures use the urban environment as a source of musical information, conjuring up visual imagery in the mind of the listener.

Sonic Dreamscapes – Bill Fontana
Primal Sonic Visions – Bill Fontana
Shadow Soundings – Bill Fontana
Desert Soundings – Bill Fontana
Harmonic Bridge – Bill Fontana

Erland Cooper – Rachel Sedman

Erland Cooper is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist and producer originally from Stromness, Orkney. As a solo artist, he released the critically acclaimed album Solan Goose in 2018 on Phases. He is also the frontman of British bands The Magnetic North and Erland and the Carnival, with whom he has released five critically acclaimed albums. Cooper was born and raised on the Scottish archipelago of Orkney and now owns a London recording studio.

Bonxie – Erland Cooper
Cattie-Face – Erland Cooper
First Of The Tide – Erland Cooper, Benge
Lump O’ Sea – Erland Cooper
Sillocks – Erland Cooper
Spoot Ebb – Erland Cooper, Anna Phoebe
Sule Skerry – Erland Cooper, Astra Forward, Hiroshi Ebina
Whitemaa – Erland Cooper

Northern Soul – Hayley Cooper

In defiance of chart music, a youth subculture called Northern Soul saw 1970s working class kids from Northern England travel hundreds of miles to squeeze into dancehall all-nighters: drug fuelled clapping, stomping and high-kicking to a sound that’s since become praised as the older brother of the early rave scene. There is no real American genre called Northern Soul, it was created by the dancers and DJs on this side of the Atlantic. In contrast to Motown, the music was raw and unpolished; tracks were obscure flops or had been unreleased in the US. There are fewer strings and harmonies. But the most important thing is, it is dance music. Fast and furious.

I Got to Find Me Somebody – The Velvets
Tainted Love – Gloria Jones
Come On Train – Don Thomas
Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) – Frank Wilson
Gonna Be a Big Thing – The Yum Yums
I Got to Find Me Somebody – The Velvets
I Surrender – Eddie Holman
If This Is Love (I’d Rather Be Lonely) – The Precisions
Landslide – Tony Clarke
Lay This Burden Down – Mary Love
The Night – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
There’s A Ghost In My House – R. Dean Taylor
Turnin’ My Heartbeat Up – The M.V.P.’s

Jazz Harp – Rachel Sedman

Alice Coltrane was born in 1937 in Detroit. She was an American jazz musician and composer, and in her later years a swami. One of the few harpists in the history of jazz, she recorded many albums as a bandleader, beginning in the late 1960s for Impulse! and other major record labels. She was the second wife and the widow of jazz saxophonist and composer John Coltrane.
Dorothy Ashby was born in 1932. She was an American jazz harpist and composer. Hailed as one of the most “unjustly under loved jazz greats of the 1950’s” and the “most accomplished modern jazz harpist,” Ashby established the harp as an improvising jazz instrument, beyond earlier use as a novelty or background orchestral instrument, proving the harp could play bebop as adeptly as the instruments commonly associated with jazz, such as the saxophone or piano.

Journey In Satchidananda – Alice Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders
Afro-Harping – Dorothy Ashby
Shiva-Loka – Alice Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders
The Look Of Love – Dorothy Ashby
Blue Nile – Alice Coltrane

Canterbury Scene – Duncan Cooper

The Canterbury sound was an early 70s precursor to prog rock combining elements of folk, jazz, classical, psychedelia and rock. Or alternatively, a bunch of long-haired men with guitars, keyboards and too much time on their hands. It centred around the sudden explosion of a group of everchanging and overlapping bands from Canterbury in Kent, hell bent on improvisation and pushing the boundaries of rock.

Pataphysical Introduction, Pt. I – Soft Machine
Om Riff – Gong
Fugue in D minor – Egg
Going Up To People And Tinkling – Hatfield & The North
Notwithstanding – Gilgamesh
The Isle of Everywhere – Gong
Hazard Profile, Part 1 – Soft Machine
I Never Glid Before – Gong

Art School Bands – Simon East

A selection of bands whose members went to some well-known UK Art Schools: Goldsmiths, Glasgow School of Art, Leeds University, and Central St. Martin’s.

The Universal – Blur
Limit To Your Love – James Blake
Perfect Couples – Belle & Sebastian
Take Me Out – Franz Ferdinand
Good Fortune – PJ Harvey
To Hell With Poverty – Gang Of Four
Sorted For E’s and Whizz – Pulp
Bad Girls – M.I.A.
Rock the Casbah – The Clash

All Ears 022 – 21st Feb 2019

This is what we played at All Ears 022:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Simon’s playlist of videos for the Thurson Moore set is here.

Susumu Yokota – Simon East

Susumu Yokota (1961 – 2015) was a Japanese composer. He was well known in the English-speaking independent music scene for his albums of experimental ambient music, including albums like Sakura. He also released several highly regarded albums of house music.

TOBIUME – Susumu Yokota
song of the sleeping forest – Susumu Yokota
Sleepy Eye – Susumu Yokota
Do Up – Susumu Yokota
Plantation2 #Hipnosis – Susumu Yokota
Ritalin – Susumu Yokota
Reflux – Susumu Yokota
Saku – Susumu Yokota

John Foxx – David Grice-Ellis

John Foxx (born Dennis Leigh) is an English singer, artist, photographer and teacher. He was the original lead singer of the band Ultravox, with Midge Ure eventually taking his place. Foxx is one of those cult figures known more through the recordings of others rather than those of his own making. His detached vocal style inspired Gary Numan, for example.

My life as an echo – John Foxx and Robin Guthrie
Underpass – John Foxx
Europe after the rain – John Foxx
Dislocation – Ultravox
Young Savage – Ultravox
No one driving – John Foxx
Dangerous rhythym – Ultravox
Hiroshima mon amour – Ultravox
Sunset rising -John Foxx

2 Tone – Jeremy Lewis

Jerry Dammers of the Specials formed the label in 1979, backed by Chrysalis. Bizarrely, bands signed to 2 Tone were allowed to leave after releasing just one single, which led to ska revival stalwarts Madness and The Beat doing just that. 2 Tone was also caught out by Elvis Costello’s former label WEA/Radar, who prevented it by injunction from selling the one-off single he recorded for them. Instead, it was given away for free at gigs and is 2 Tone’s no. 1 rarity; a copy will now cost you about £150. The label was home to The Specials, The Selecter and The Bodysnatchers, driving the ska revival with their politically-motivated, punk-inspired, DIY ethic. Into the mid-1980s, the label attempted to broaden its appeal to include jazz-pop and jazz-funk. It folded in 1986. The label’s logo and name remain as icons of its heyday.

The Prince – Madness
Gangsters – The Specials
Easy Life – The Bodysnatchers
I Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down – Elvis Costello and the Attractions
The Feeling’s Gone – The Apollinaires
Run Me Down – The Higsons
X – Rico
Missing Words (live) – The Selecter
Ghost Town – The Specials

Gene Clark – David Grice-Ellis

Harold Eugene “Gene” Clark (1944 – 1991) was an American singer-songwriter and founding member of the folk-rock band the Byrds. He was the Byrds’ principal songwriter between 1964 and early 1966. Although he did not achieve commercial success as a solo artist, Clark was in the vanguard of popular music during much of his career, prefiguring developments in such disparate subgenres as psychedelic rock, baroque pop, country rock, and alternative country.

Eight Miles High – The Byrds
Polly – Gene Clark
No Other – Gene Clark
For a Spanish Guitar – Gene Clark
She don’t care about time – The Byrds
Silver Raven – Gene Clark
Something’s Wrong – Dillard & Clark
I’ll feel a whole lot better – The Byrds

Clash In Dub – Jeremy Lewis

Right from the off, these punk potentates and post-punk pioneers were known for their reggae and ska – be it the audacious cover of Junior Murvin’s Police & Thieves on their eponymous debut album, or the seminal Guns of Brixton, which provided the backbeat and backbone to 1979’s London Calling LP – itself widely regarded as one of rock’s finest albums. Or even the cheeky rendition of the Maytals’ Pressure Drop, for which Messrs. Strummer and Jones commissioned none other than dub maestro Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry as producer. Tonight, we trawl obscure B-sides, US promo 12” singles and tracks buried towards the end of a much-maligned triple LP to present The Clash in Dub.

Version Pardner – The Clash
Robber Dub – The Clash
Radio One – The Clash
One More Dub – The Clash
Justice Tonight/Kick It Over – The Clash

Thurston Moore – Simon East

Thurston Moore is an American musician best known as a member of Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside that band, as well as running the Ecstatic Peace! record label. In 2012, Moore started a new band Chelsea Light Moving.

Smoke Of Dreams – Thurston Moore
Sugar Kane – Sonic Youth
Groovy and Linda – Chelsea Light Moving
Speak To The Wild – Thurston Moore
Teenage Riot (Live) – Sonic Youth
Schizophrenia (Train Sessions) – Thurston Moore

All Ears 021 – 17th Jan 2019

This is what we played:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

You can find Tom’s UK R&B set on this YouTube Playlist.

Daisy Age Hip Hop – Simon East

Daisy Age Hip Hop is a music genre that arrived in the late 80’s and early 90s. The bands associated with it were focussed on peace and harmony, a total contrast to the Gangsta Rap that was emerging at the same time. It is named after De La Soul’s D.A.I.S.Y. concept acronym “da inner sound, y’all” for their first album: 3 Feet High and Rising. As well as De La, this genre included bands like A Tribe Called Quest and Digable Planets.

Me Myself And I – De La Soul
For Da Love Of Da Game – DJ Jazzy Jeff
Sunshine – Mos Def
Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat) – Digable Planets
I Like It (I Wanna Be Where You Are) – Grand Puba
Passin’ Me By – The Pharcyde
Punks Jump Up to Get Beat Down – Brand Nubian
They Reminisce Over You – Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth
3 Ft Deep – DJ Format, D-Sisive, Abdominal
Check the Rhime – A Tribe Called Quest
Sum Of Us – Jurassic 5

Jazz Rock 1971 – Michael Goodliffe

It’s 1971. Sadly, the Beatles were finished. Many musicians felt three chord pop to be too confining and wanted, and were good enough as musicians, to fuse elements of pop, jazz, rock and blues into what became known as progressive rock. Tonton Macoute, in their only album, were one such band. The Mahavishu Orchestra, fronted by English guitarist John McLaughlin, lasted much longer…

A Lotus on Irish Streams – Mahavishnu Orchestra
Don’t Make Me Cry – Tonton Macoute
Natural High Part 1 – Tonton Macoute
Natural High Part 2 – Tonton Macoute
You Know, You Know – Mahavishnu Orchestra

Sitar – Duncan Cooper

The sitar was developed during the 16th and 17th centuries in India, arriving at its current 20 string form sometime in the 18th century. This 30 minute collection traces the recent history of Sitar recordings. From the improvisational Ragas made famous by Ravi Shankar in the 1960s, to the hippy embraced Raga rock movement, spiritual jazz of Alice Coltrane and more recent infusions into dance music. The music demonstrates the versatility of the Sitar (and its sister instrument the Tanpura) as a lead or backing instrument, or simply to provide a textured drone while other melodies take form.

Chandra (The Moon) – Michael Mandrell and Benjy Wertheimer
Journey In Satchidananda – Alice Coltrane & Pharoah Sanders
Gat II (Tala: Ek-Tal) [Raga Jogeshwari] – Traditional, Ravi Shankar, Alla Rakha, Ms. Jiban, Ms. Widya
Mathar – Indian Vibes
Tomorrow Never Knows – The Beatles
River – Talvin Singh & Niladri Kumar
Ja Sha Taan (Karachi Deathcult Mix by Transglobal Underground) – Fun ‘Da’ Mental

Back in Perfect Harmony – Salmon & Croot

After a 17 year hiatus, “Kings of Variety” Salmon & Croot, return to the stage, in this, the first show of their 96 date warm up tour.

Trip Hop – Duncan Cooper

It’s difficult to put your finger on what Trip Hop actually is. As ever the term was coined by a journalist (circa 1994), and loosely describes an electronic and slow pulsed take on hip hop, often with a few psychedelic elements thrown in for good measure. In the UK we tend to think of the holy trinity of the Bristol Scene – Tricky, Portishead and Massive Attack – who were all at their peak in the early to mid 90s. These bands along with some Japanese and US takes on the Trip Hop vibe are featured tonight.

Heavy Loaded Head – Various Artists
I Could Just Die – Earthling
Roads – Portishead
Hell Is Round The Corner – Tricky
In / Flux – DJ Shadow
Protection – Massive Attack ft. Tracey Thorn
Karmacoma – Massive Attack

UK R&B – Tom Beesley

Contemporary R&B is a term used to describe a particular genre of black urban music drawing on soul, hip hop, pop and electronic dance music. Many view the music of Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson as the originators in this field. This selection brings together some of the current UK exponents of the style.

Offence – Little Simz
Water (If Only They Knew) – Kojey Radical ft. Mahalia
Got Me Thinkin’ – The Mouse Outfit feat. Sparkz
Shade – IAMDDB
On My Mind – Jorja Smith
2 Sides- Oscar Jerome
Spilling into You – Poppy Ajudha ft. Kojey Radical
Sober – Mahalia
Trip – Ella Mai

All Ears 020 – 15th Nov 2018

This is what we played:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

You can find Linda Green’s Female Voice set on this YouTube Playlist.

You can find Helen Steward’s Ornithaudiology set on this YouTube Playlist.

You can find Simon East’s Fence Collective set on this YouTube Playlist.

Astral Jazz – Tom Beesley

Astral/Cosmic/Spiritual Jazz emerged in the late sixties, as various musicians who had played with John Coltrane took his ideas and pushed them into new territory. This selection brings together the sounds of Pharoah Sanders, Don Cherry, Lonnie Liston Smith and Alice Coltrane.

Degi-Degi – Don Cherry
Expansions – Lonnie Liston Smith and the Cosmic Echoes
Blue Nile – Alice Coltrane
The Creator Has A Master Plan – Pharoah Sanders

Female Voice – Linda Green

I have chosen ‘Female Voice’ as it gives me an opportunity to play and share tracks by powerful singers whose music I really enjoy and listen to a lot. Ranging from the 1980s to the present day and from Joan Armatrading to The Unthanks, these sounds bring back fond memories from the last thirty years and create a great kitchen karaoke.

Rolling In The Deep – Adele
Back To Black – Amy Winehouse
Put Your Records On – Corinne Bailey Rae
Moonshine Freeze – This Is The Kit
Horizon – Aldous Harding
Love And Affection – Joan Armatrading
Magpie – The Unthanks
Strong – London Grammar

Ornithaudiology – Helen Steward

The sounds of birds are some of the most evocative in the natural world. Birdsong is often what we most notice and pay attention to, but in fact it represents only a small fraction of the world of bird sound – which encompasses contact calls; alarm calls; various forms of drumming (woodpeckers, snipe); wing-clapping (wood pigeons); booming (bitterns); whistling (wigeon and many other ducks); squealing (water rail); and more. I’ve tried to include a wide range of these auditory phenomena in this set. All the birds sampled can be heard in the British Isles (at the right time of year); and many can be found in Ilkley!

Film & Music Play: Orchestrations of joyful doing – Clare Dearnaley

Music either leads or compliments my films, I’ve chosen tracks for mood, lyrical content, propaganda, to give you room to think or simply to make you smile.
Audio tracks include: Public Service Broadcasting, The Clash, Nightmares on Wax, Who da Funk, Jenny Scheinman, Julie Byrne and a live recording of a young local band called Altum.
Visuals are from recent film shoots, as a series of little loose vignettes. Art workshops, dancers and 15 and 16 year old musicians to give a few examples. I’ve been focusing on children and young adults caught in their joy and absorption of performing creative acts. This is mostly research footage, I hope it will go on to help me make a longer film – fingers crossed!

Progress – Public Service Broadcasting
A Ride With Polly Jean – Jenny Scheinman
Beating – Altum
Lost in the Supermarket – The Clash
Shiny Disco Balls – Who Da Funk
You Wish – Nightmares on Wax
Natural Blue – Julie Byrne
Best Team (Joshua James Remix) – Rozi Plain
Imagination – Brayd3n

John Lydon – Tim Davis

John Lydon’s singing has been described by Captain Sensible as ‘old man Steptoe moaning’ and by Jah Wobble as ‘a mixture of Withnail and Kenneth Williams’. But from the Sex Pistols to Public Image he has always been angry.

Rise – Public Image Ltd.
Shoom – Public Image Ltd.
Bodies – Sex Pistols
Public Image – Public Image Ltd.
World Destruction – Time Zone, John Lydon, Afrika Bambaataa
This Is Not A Love Song – Public Image Ltd.
Open Up – Leftfield

Fence Collective – Simon East

Fence Records was a British independent record label based in Anstruther and Cellardyke, in Fife. It was founded by musician Kenny Anderson (a.k.a King Creosote) and run by Johnny Lynch (a.k.a The Pictish Trail) until 2013. The Fence Collective is the name given to artists on or associated with the label.

Far Gone (Don’t Leave) – Pictish Trail
Bubble – Bats In The Attic King Creosote & Jon Hopkins
A Compromise – Kid Canaveral
Real Anymore – Randoph’s Leap
Horseshoe – Withered Hand
Woozy With Cider – James Yorkston
For One Night Only – King Creosote
Bats In The Attic – King Creosote & Jon Hopkins

All Ears 019 – 18th Oct 2018

This is what we played:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Also you can find Susie White’s Miles Davis set on this YouTube Playlist and her Billie Holiday set on this YouTube Playlist.

DJ Koze – Simon East

Stefan Kozalla, better known as DJ Koze, is a German DJ and music producer. He was part of German hip-hop act Fischmob in the 1990s, while also recording under the name Adolf Noise. He began recording under the DJ Koze moniker in the 2000s, releasing music through the German electronic label Kompakt. He has done remixes for countless acts.

20:00 It’s Only (DJ Koze Mix) – Herbert
20:02 Atlas (DJ Koze Remix) – Battles
20:05 Made To Stray (DJ Koze Remix) – Mount Kimbie
20:07 Bad Kingdom (DJ Koze Remix) – Moderat
20:10 Muddy Funster – DJ Koze & Kurt Wagner
20:15 The Love Truck – DJ Koze
20:22 Illumination – DJ Koze & Roisin Murphy
20:25 I Exhale (DJ Koze Remix) – Underworld

Miles Davis – Susie White

Miles was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader and composer. He was one of the most influential trumpet players in the history of jazz and 20th century music. His albums Birth of Cool (1949 &1950) Kind of Blue (1959 &1975) and Sketches of Spain (1960) highlight his innovation and incredible talent.

20:30 ‘Round Midnight (live) – Miles Davis Quintet
20:40 So What (live) – Miles Davis and John Coltrane
20:50 Blue In Green – Miles Davis

Ted Stevens – Neil Patterson

Ted Stevens came to ‘fame’ alongside Mike Mogis and Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes) as part of the vibrant, mid-90s music scene centred around Saddle Creek Records in Omaha, Nebraska. Through the mid to late ’90s Ted led Lullaby For The Working Class, releasing a handful of albums and EPs, each delivering the impassioned immediacy of emo-core with arcane, spine-tingling acoustic instrumentation. In 1999 Ted joined Cursive as guitarist, whilst periodically releasing his own music as Mayday and Unknown Ted Stevens Project.

21:00 Eskimo Song Duel – Lullaby For The Working Class
21:03 In Honor of My Stumbling – Lullaby For The Working Class
21:06 Temple/Temporary/Extempore/Tempo – Mayday
21:09 Herald! Frankenstein – Cursive
21:12 Standing in Line at the Gates of Hell – Mayday
21:15 Dead World – Ted Stevens Unknown Project
21:18 Still Life – Lullaby For The Working Class
21:21 Tone/Atone/Atonal – Mayday
21:24 Asleep On The Subway – Lullaby For The Working Class
21:26 The Man vs. The Tide [Part 2] – Lullaby For The Working Class

Billie Holiday – Susie White

Billie Holiday was a jazz vocalist born in 1915 in Philidelphia. Her first influence on her singing came when she used to run errands for the girls in a near-by brothel in return for listening to jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong. She originally went to audition at a club to dance but didn’t get through but then was asked if she sang, and that was her break. In 1938 she appeared at Cafe Society in New York and introduced one of her best-known songs, Strange Fruit, a poem written to music by Abel Meerpool as a protest song.

21:30 Blue Moon – Billie Holiday
21:33 I’ll Be Seeing You – Billie Holiday
21:36 All Of Me – Billie Holiday
21:39 Fine And Mellow – Billie Holiday
21:42 When You’re Smiling – Billie Holiday
21:46 I Can’t Believe That You’re In Love With Me – Billie Holiday
21:50 One For My Baby – Billie Holiday
21:55 Strange Fruit – Billie Holiday

Eno Collaborations – Tim Herring

Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno, born 1948, is best known for his pioneering work in ambient and systems music and as a highly influential record producer. Starting as the synth player for Roxy Music in 1971, he branched out on his own to help create ambient music. He has worked with some of the major artists of the last 30 years, including David Bowie, Robert Fripp, John Cage, David Byrne and more recently Damon Albarn.

22:00 Virginia Plain – Roxy Music
22:04 Atmosphere – Harmonia & Brian Eno
22:09 Warszawa – David Bowie
22:14 Heavy Seas Of Love – Damon Albarn
22:18 Die Bunge – Cluster & Brian Eno
22:22The Jezebel Spirit – David Byrne and Brian Eno
22:25 Love Without Violins – The Gift & Brian Eno

Deepchord – Tom Beesley

Deepchord is the recording moniker for US electronic music producer Rod Modell. He also releases material using vintage analogue equipment with Stephen Hitchell as Echospace. The sounds at work are predominantly those associated with dub-techno: dubby beats, crisp static, synthetic analogue grooves, and deep chords. The film shown is an archive assemblage entitled Race for Space.

22:28 Sonorous Unreleased Intrusion Dub – Echospace
22:37 Wind In Trees – Deepchord
22:44 North Sea – Deepchord
22:50 Aeronautics – Deepchord
22:56 Cruising Towards Dawn – Deepchord

All Ears 018 – 20th Sept 2018

This is what we played:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Also you can find Phil Hardy’s CocoRosie set on this YouTube Playlist.

And the videos that Simon played as part of his Soulwax set you can find on this YouTube Playlist.

Leaf Label – Tom Beesley

The Leaf label was established in 1996 by Tony Morley and is now based in Horsforth, Leeds. Initially known as an electronic music label releasing mainly instrumental music – early successes include records by Caribou and Susumu Yokota – the company’s approach has broadened over the last few years and now features an eclectic range of artists including The Comet Is Coming and Snapped Ankles.

20:00 Toive – Vladislav Delay
20:03 AZUKIIRO NO KAORI – Susumu Yokota
20:05 Dundas, Ontario – Caribou
20:09 Tomorrowtoday (part 2) – Triosk
20:13 Barnowl – Caribou
20:18 Exit – Nightports & Matthew Bourne
20:22 Cosmic Dust – The Comet Is Coming
20:25 I Want My Minutes Back – Snapped Ankles

Soulwax –Simon East

Soulwax are a Belgian band, centred around brothers David and Stephen Dewaele. Other current members include Igor Cavalera and Stefaan Van Leuven. In their other main guise as 2manydjs they released the album As Heard on Radio Soulwax Pt. 2 in 2002 which mashed up all kinds of old and new tracks. They have done countless remixes for many different bands.

20:29 Deadly Valentine (Soulwax Remix) – Charlotte Gainsbourg
20:31 Phantom Pt II (Soulwax Remix) – Justice
20:34 Let It Happen (Soulwax Remix) – Tame Impala
20:38 Huarache Lights (Soulwax Remix) – Hot Chip
20:41 Get Innocuous! (Soulwax Remix) – LCD Soundsystem
20:45 DARE (Soulwax Remix) – Gorillaz & Shaun Ryder
20:49 Do You Want To Get Into Trouble? – Soulwax
20:53 Much Against Everyone’s Advice – Soulwax
20:56 Is It Always Binary – Soulwax

Terrible Angels: The music of CocoRosie – Phil Hardy

“US freak-folk and fractured dream-pop band based around the half-Cherokee sisters Sierra and Bianca Casady. During the last decade, the duo have crafted precious music that frequently spirals off into pretentiousness, yet boasts a fierce beauty at its cluttered core.”
Gig review in The Guardian, 6 August 2012

21:00 Lemonade – CocoRosie
21:05 Tearz For Animals – CocoRosie
21:09 Rainbowwarriors – CocoRosie
21:14 Un Beso – CocoRosie
21:18 R.I.P Burn Face – CocoRosie
21:21 Terrible Angels – CocoRosie
21:26 Gravedigress – CocoRosie

Japanese Innovation – Gary Winters

With strong routes in the western post-war avant-garde explorations of minimalism and drone this is a sampler of essential underground Japanese recording artists from the last 50 years. Concentrating primarily on electronic and noise (Japanoise), of course this is not a complete survey of ground-breaking sonic experimentation, but just one blossom on a very large cherry tree. “If by noise you mean uncomfortable sound, then pop music is noise to me.” – Merzbow

21:29 Chronograph – Sketch Show
21:33 Shinzo No Tobira – Mariah
21:36 GENSHI – Susumu Yokota
21:38 All Things Will Be Reduced To Equal D Pt. 1 – Konstrukt & Keiji Haino
21:42 Be Sure To Loop – OOIOO
21:46 Farsa Del Buen Vivir – Merzbow
21:49 (star) – Boredoms
21:52 Slider – Bo Ningen
21:56 Supercodex 02 – Ryoji Ikeda
21:57 Day Tripper – Yellow Magic Orchestra & Norio Yoshizawa

I Love You, You Big Dummy: The music of Captain Beefheart – Phil Hardy

“Beefheart once described his thing to an uncomprehending radio interviewer as ‘music to dematerialise the catatonia’. His style was rhythm and blues-based but completely unorthodox in its approach to structure, rhythm and key.”
Obituary in The Guardian, 18 December 2010

22:00 Clear Spot – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:03 Sure ‘Nuff ‘n’ Yes, I Do – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:06 Click Clack – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:09 The Floppy Boot Stomp – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:13 Hot Head – 2006 Digital Remaster – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:16 Owed T’Alex – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:21 Ink Mathematics – 2006 Digital Remaster – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:22 I Love You, You Big Dummy – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
22:25 Big Eyed Beans From Venus – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

Harry Smith Anthology – Gary Winters

Harry Smith was an artist at the centre of the mid 20th-century American avant-garde. Although best known as a filmmaker and musicologist, he described himself as a painter, and spoke of his art in alchemical and cosmological terms. In 1952 Folkways issued Smith’s Anthology of American Folk Music, comprising of recordings issued between 1927 and 1932. The 84-track anthology is recognised as a seminal inspiration for the folk music revival of the 1950s/60s. Smith spent his final years as ‘shaman in residence’ at Naropa Institute. Shortly before his death in 1991 he is quoted “I’m glad to say my dreams came true. I saw America changed by music.”

22:29 Present Joys – Harry Smith’s Anthology American Folk Music
22:31 John the Revelator – Blind Willie Johnson
22:34 Home Sweet Home – Harry Smith’s Anthology American Folk Music
22:37 Feather Bed – Cannon’s Jug Stompers
22:39 King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O – Chubby Parker & His Old Time Banjo
22:42 The Coo Coo Bird (The Cuckoo) – Clarence Ashley
22:45 Le vieux soulard et sa femme – Harry Smith’s Anthology American Folk Music
22:47 Henry Lee – Dick Justice
22:51 Must Be Born Again – Harry Smith’s Anthology American Folk Music
22:52 Indian War Whoop – Hoyt Ming and His Pep Steppers
22:55 Sail Away Lady – Uncle Bunt Stephens
22:57 Judgement – Harry Smith’s Anthology American Folk Music

All Ears 017 – 19th July 2018

This is what we played at All Ears 017:

You can find most of the tracks on this Spotify Playlist,

except Tom Beesley’s Qawwali set which you can find on this YouTube Playlist,

and Emily Muirhead’s Rodriguez set which you can find on this YouTube Playlist.

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry – Simon East

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry is a Jamaican music producer and a pioneer in the 1970s development of dub music: using remixing and studio effects to create new versions of existing reggae tracks. He has worked with and produced for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Marley and the Wailers, The Congos, Max Romeo, Adrian Sherwood, The Beastie Boys, The Clash and many others.

20:00 Return of Django – The Upsetters
20:02 Rude Boy – Prince Jammy & Lee Scratch Perry
20:04 Hold Fast Dub – Lee Scratch Perry
20:06 Mistry Babylon – The Heptones
20:09 Beat Down Babylon – Lee Scratch Perry
20:12 Bush Weed – Lee Scratch Perry
20:15 Clint Eastwood Rides Again – Lee Scratch Perry
20:17 Chase the Devil – Lee Scratch Perry
20:18 War Ina Babylon – Max Romeo & The Upsetters
20:22 Black Vest – The Upsetters
20:26 Zion Blood – Lee Scratch Perry

Qawwali – Tom Beesley

Qawwali is a form of Sufi devotional music popular in Pakistan and North India with its roots at the Sufi saint Nizamuddin’s shrine in Delhi. Its origins date from the late Thirteenth century.

20:30 Maalik Ne Banaye Saare – Chhote Mazid Shola
20:40 KAISHA HASHI NAGAR HAI SARKAR MUSTUFAKA – Anish Navab Kadari
20:50 Ankhian Udeek Diya – Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Rodriguez – Emily Muirhead

I first fell in love with the music of Sixto Rodriguez in the 1990s. I was told that he had shot himself on stage in the 1960s, after his first album had bombed in the USA. Then in 2012 I watched a film called Searching for Sugarman which documented the search for Rodriguez. He had become the sound of the Apartheid in the 1990s and a South African cultural phenomenon, but like me, they all thought he had committed suicide. His music is unique and timeless and I am so happy this amazingly modest and talented musician is now enjoying the recognition that he deserves.

20:59 Sugar Man – Rodriguez
21:03 Big in South Africa – CNN Report
21:05 First performance in South Africa – Rodriguez
21:04 I Wonder – Rodriguez
21:06 I Think Of You – Rodriguez
21:10 Crucify your mind – Rodriguez
21:16 I’ll slip away – Rodriguez
21:20 Can’t Get Away – Rodriguez

Mark Kozelek – Simon East

Mark Kozelek is best known as the main artist of the indie folk band Sun Kil Moon, and as the founding member of the indie rock band Red House Painters. He also released several solo and collaborative recordings. He appeared in several films: Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky and Shopgirl.

21:23 Mistress – Red House Painters
21:26 River – Red House Painters
21:29 San Geronimo – Red House Painters
21:32 Ben’s My Friend – Sun Kil Moon
21:38 Between Days – Red House Painters
21:41 Heron Blue – Sun Kil Moon
21:44 Among the Leaves – Sun Kil Moon
21:48 What Happened to My Brother – Mark Kozelek & Jimmy LaValle
21:53 Summer Dress – Red House Painters
21:55 Up To My Neck In You – Mark Kozelek

French Synth Pop – Joe Johnson

The celebrity soundbites of a typical ‘I remember the 90s’ TV show would probably suggest that the latter part of the decade was all about Radiohead’s melancholic rock and the UK’s post-Britpop hangover, yet across the channel the mood was notably celebratory. The blueprint of French house, or ‘French Touch’ as it is also known, can be found in the disco bass lines and filtered samples of Daft Punk’s early singles, such as Around the World. However not all French electronica from this period was aimed at the dance floor; the atmospheric, jazz influenced sounds of St Germain and Sebastien Tellier, combined with Air’s downbeat acoustic ballads, certainly prove that the genre wasn’t as mindless or repetitive as one might recall.

21:58 The Operation – Charlotte Gainsbourg
22:02 Rose Rouge – St Germain
22:06 Cochon Ville – Sébastien Tellier
22:10 Gordini Mix (Brakes On Mix) – Alex Gopher
22:14 Music Sounds Better With You – Stardust
22:17 Newjack – Justice
22:19 Revolution 909 – Daft Punk
22:21 Photograph – Air
22:24 La Ritournelle – Sébastien Tellier
22:26 1901 – Phoenix

12k Label – Tom Beesley

Label boss Taylor Deupree established 12k in Brooklyn, New York in1997. The label ‘fuses elements from ambient and acoustic experimentation with carefully arranged digital textures and associative micro-noises, the label’s aesthetics revolve around a precisely-outlined, yet deeply emotional concoction of the technological and the organic.’

22:28 Dusk, 20th September 2005 – Seaworthy
22:28 Map in Hand Pt. 2 – Seaworthy
22:32 the youthful sea – savvas ysatis + taylor deupree
22:35 reservoir – savvas ysatis + taylor deupree
22:42 Somi – Taylor Deupree
22:47 Largo – Stephan Mathieu & Taylor Deupree
22:50 desequilibre – Ghislain Poirier
22:53 skimming – Taylor Deupree

All Ears 016 – June 21st 2018

This is what we played at All Ears 016:

You can find all the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Except for the tracks from the Funny Guy Can Sing set which are all in this YouTube Playlist.

Mr. Scruff – Simon East

Andrew Carthy is better known by his stage name, Mr. Scruff, inspired by his scruffy facial hair and his trademark loose-lined drawing style. He is a record producer and DJ and has been associated with the Ninja Tune label for most of his career. He also creates the album art, videos and merchandise for his records with his own set of cartoon characters.

20:00 Is He Ready? – Mr. Scruff
20:00 Wobble Control – Mr. Scruff
20:02 Shelf Wobbler – Mr. Scruff
20:05 Sea Mammal – Mr. Scruff
20:10 Sweetsmoke – Mr. Scruff
20:13 Bunch Of Keys – Mr. Scruff
20:20 Nice Up The Function – Mr. Scruff & Roots Manuva
20:23 Chipmunk – Mr. Scruff

Tim Burgess – James Tate-Smith

Best known for his work with The Charlatans, Tim also has recorded several solo records, collaborating with the likes of Lambchop, New Order, Peter Gordon, Throbbing Gristle, Factory Floor. Alongside records he has written 2 books, one celebrating the record shop, makes coffee for world peace (and David Lynch), runs a music festival and owns a record label. All whilst having the worst haircut in music.

20:29 ONLY A BOY – Tim Burgess
20:32 White – Tim Burgess
20:36 Begin – Tim Burgess & Peter Gordon
20:39 Oh Men (The Other Two Remix) – Tim Burgess
20:42 Life Is Sweet – The Chemical Brothers
20:46 SAY YES – Tim Burgess
20:49 YEARS AGO – Tim Burgess
20:51 Many Clouds – Tim Burgess
20:54 The Great Outdoors Bitches – Tim Burgess
20:57 A Gain – Tim Burgess

Funny Guy Can Sing – Gareth Heaton

Sometimes a song can have great comedic value and listenability all at the same time, it’s true! Our aim in this set is to prove just that.

21:00 Party Pom Pom – Adam Buxton
21:04 Shia LaBeouf Live – Rob Cantor
21:08 Masterchef Synesthesia – Swedemason
21:12 Ladies Of The World – Flight Of The Conchords
21:15 All Night Garage – Joe Cornish
21:18 Double Team – Tenacious D
21:22 Repeat Stuff – Bo Burnham
21:25 Love Youself – Reggie Watts

Raï – Tom Beesley

Raï first emerged in the Algerian port city of Oran in the 1920s, it self-consciously ran counter to accepted artistic and social mores and appealed to young people who sought to modernize the traditional Islamic values and attitudes. The music blended Western electric instruments with regional, secular, and religious drum patterns and melodies.

21:25 Moute – Cheikha Djenia
21:30 Maghboun – Khaled
21:34 Ya marsoul – Cheikh Ain Tadless
21:37 Goulou Limma Chaba – Zahouania
21:43 Ya khouya ould mma – Benfissa
21:48 Lila ou Nhar – Khaled & Chaba Zahouania
21:54 Douar zine – Hanino

Neil Halstead – James Tate-Smith

Neil first released records with Slowdive, in the cathedrals of noise era of shoegaze, collaborating with Brian Eno on one of the genre’s best records, Souvlaki. After Slowdive broke up Neil, alongside Rachel Goswell for Mojave 3, a more alt-country direction. He has also recorded several folky solo records and formed another band Black Hearted Brother. Slowdive reformed in 2016 to huge acclaim and released a new album in 2017.

21:59 When the Sun Hits – Slowdive
22:03 Some Kinda Angel – Mojave 3
22:07 To Hold Your Tiny Toes – Mojave 3
22:10 Star Roving – Slowdive
22:15 Time in the Machine – Black Hearted Brother
22:17 Sing – Slowdive
22:22 Two Stones In My Pocket – Neil Halstead
22:25 Palindrome Hunches – Neil Halstead
22:27 Got My Sunshine – Mojave 3

Ween – Gareth Heaton

25 years ago Dean and Gene had a baby, called Ween, then fuelled by mushrooms and backed by audio cassette, baby Ween achieved minor (but dedicated) local cult status. Now, many years later baby Ween got older achieved minor (but dedicated) global cult status.

22:31 Ocean Man – Ween
22:33 Roses Are Free – Ween
22:38 Hey There Fancypants – Ween
22:40 Push th’ Little Daisies – Ween
22:42 What Deaner Was Talkin’ About – Ween
22:44 Voodoo Lady – Ween
22:48 Old Man Thunder – Ween
22:48 Drifter In The Dark – Ween
22:51 I’ll Be Your Jonny On The Spot – Ween
22:52 Up On The Hill Ween
22:54 Waving My Dick In The Wind – Ween
22:56 Bananas And Blow – Ween
23:00 The F**ked Jam – Ween
23:01 The Blarney Stone – Ween

All Ears 015 – 17th May 2018

This is what we played:

You can find all the tracks on this Spotify Playlist.

Two of Jacqueline Saville’s pieces are online: Summer of ’96 – recording or text, and The Lesson – text.

A recording of Andrea Hardaker’s The Conformist is here.

Kate Bush – Rachel Sedman

Kate Bush (b. 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, dancer and producer. She first came into the public eye with her work in 1978, aged 19, with her hit single ‘Wuthering Heights’. Since then she has written and produced over 11 albums and developed a rich, experimental sound world in which to explore many themes of life and humanity. In 2014 after a 30 year absence from live performance, she held residency at the Hammersmith Apollo for the “Before the Dawn’ concert series.

20:00 Breathing – Kate Bush
20:05 Under Ice – Kate Bush
20:07 Sat In Your Lap – Kate Bush
20:10 Lily – Kate Bush
20:14 Rocket’s Tail – Kate Bush
20:18 The Sensual World – Kate Bush
20:22 Babooshka – Kate Bush
20:25 Pi – Kate Bush

Woodstock – Georgie Richmond

In August 1969 more than 400,000 people attended The Woodstock Music and Art fair. The dairy farm in Bethal, for that weekend, became the third largest city in New York. 32 acts, mostly leading and emerging artists of the time, performed over the 4 day festival on one stage. This celebrated and peaceful gathering is widely regarded as one of the greatest happenings of all time and a pivotal moment in popular music history.

20:30 I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-To-Die Rag – Country Joe & The Fish
20:30 Volunteers (Live at Woodstock) – Jefferson Airplane
20:33 Going Up The Country – Canned Heat
20:35 Freedom – Richie Havens
20:39 Everyday People (Live at Woodstock) – Sly & The Family Stone
20:41 Something’s Coming On – Joe Cocker
20:43 Fire (Live At Woodstock) – Jimi Hendrix
20:46 White Rabbit (Live at Woodstock) – Jefferson Airplane
20:48 Sea Of Madness (Live at Woodstock) – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
20:50 Piece Of My Heart (Live at Woodstock) – Janis Joplin
20:53 Dance To The Music (Live at Woodstock) – Sly & The Family Stone
20:57 Purple Haze (Live at Woodstock) – Jimi Hendrix

Björk – Rachel Sedman

Björk Guðmundsdóttir (b. 1965) is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, musician, actress, record producer and DJ. Her career has spanned over 4 decades and influenced many subsequent musicians and songwriters. She has developed an eclectic musical style that draws on a range of influences and genres spanning electronic, pop, experimental, classical, trip hop, and the avant-garde. She is known for bringing in differing groups of people to collaborate with her and influence each album creating a diverse sonic palette.

21:00 So Broken (Live) – Bjork
21:04 Pleasure Is All Mine – Bjork
21:07 An Echo a Stain – Bjork
21:10 Headphones – Bjork
21:14 Hunter – Bjork
21:18 Nattura – Bjork and Thom Yorke
21:22 Birthday – The Sugarcubes
21:25 It’s in Our Hands – Bjork

Poetry/Spoken Word (live)

Half an hour of stories and poems by Andrea Hardaker, David Hesmondhalgh and Jacqueline Saville.

21:30 Blether Mouth – Andrea Hardaker
21:35 You Think You’re Looking East But You’re Really Looking North – David Hesmondhalgh
21:37 Summer of ’96 – Jacqueline Saville
21:40 The Conformist – Andrea Hardaker
21:45 It Took Me By Surprise – David Hesmondhalgh
21:48 The Lesson – Jacqueline Saville
21:52 I Am Sixteen, Going on Seventeen – David Hesmondhalgh
21:56 We Keep Dancing – Jacqueline Saville
21:59 The Riff That Made His Name – Jacqueline Saville

Northern Soul – Georgie Richmond

Starting in the early 70’s, Northern Soul was a scene that thrived on the rare and the obscure. After Motown’s success, small start-ups across America attempted to replicate the sound, on a budget, often making one off records by artists who never recorded again. This provided a rich seam of rare vinyl waiting to be discovered by die hard soul lovers in Northern England.

22:05 Landslide – Tony Clarke
22:08 Night-Time – The Strangeloves
22:10 Soul Time – Shirley Ellis
22:13 There’s A Ghost In My House – R. Dean Taylor
22:15 Tainted Love – Gloria Jones
22:17 Time – Edwin Starr
22:20 Seven Days Too Long – Chuck Wood
22:22 If This Is Love (I’d Rather Be Lonely) – The Precisions
22:23 Let’s Wade In The Water – Marlena Shaw
22:26 Here I Go Again – Archie Bell & The Drells
22:28 The Snake – Al Wilson
22:31 Out on the Floor – Dobie Gray

Keith Jarrett – Shaun Hutchinson

This set is 8 tracks from Keith Jarrett’s 1985 ‘Spirits’ album. He made this album alone in his home studio playing all instruments: vocals, guitar, glockenspiel, soprano saxophone, recorder, piano, tabla, flutes and percussion. This is Jarrett’s most personal album of boundless expression, moods range from jubilation to a burrowing pensiveness, but always with an ear attuned to catharsis! I met him after a gig at the Royal Festival hall in the 90’s and asked him to sign ‘Spirits’ but he refused saying ‘I don’t think I can sign that’ and walked off, as he felt (like Stravinsky’s Rite Of Spring), he was merely a vessel the music passed through.

22:34 Spirits1 – Keith Jarrett
22:39 Spirits2 – Keith Jarrett
22:41 Spirits5 – Keith Jarrett
22:45 Spirits9 – Keith Jarrett
22:50 Spirits 15 – Keith Jarrett
22:53 Spirits 22 – Keith Jarrett
22:56 Spirits 26 – Keith Jarrett