It's Music, For Your Ears

So what have I been listening to for the last week? Lots of things. What is worth a mention? These songs!: (note: many of these are songs I have rekindled a love for)

3 Leg Torso - Frog
I stumbled across this band on YouTube while I was looking up Pink Martini videos, and fell in love with them. I have a weakness for gypsy like music, and this is very gypsy like. I've not found out a lot about the band, except they only play in America and are not entirely famous - though I hope to help that. An instrumental band, this song has violin, piano accordion, vibraphone, drums and reminds me of France. No idea why, but it does. And drinking Absinthe. Maybe I'm just a sucker for the gypsy/vibraphone fusion.

George Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue
Ok so this is an very famous oldie, but will always be one of my favourite "classical" pieces written, even though its more jazz-esque. If you don't know this song, you must be an ostrich with their head in the ground. I recently heard this again and the love for it came back, so it's worth a mention. It reminds me of the hustle and bustle of New York, and Gene Kelly. No idea why Gene Kelly but it seems like something he could dance to. And for the record, this song against the Manhattan skyline is one of the best opening scenes from a film I have ever seen (Manhattan, Woody Allen).

Kool & The Gang - Hollywood Swinging.
So this is more recently famous for being on the GTA San Andreas soundtrack (where CJ has to dance in the club mostly), and has been in countless amounts of TV shows and movies, more recently at the end of series 4 of Nip/Tuck. For a good example of famous rare groove, this is it. I love this song, at any time of the day, any time of the year. If you don't boogie to this, you must be a machine.

Beirut - Postcards from Italy
I heard this originally on a vlog from the lovely Galadarling and it got stuck in my head - which I will thank Galadarling for entirely! I've only just discovered Beirut, but he is a gem. A one man showcase, he infuses Gypsy music with melodic haunting vocals. This song reminds me of a mariachi band with a ukulele, or street festival music. Either way, this song and the rest of this album is gold and deserves to be listened to repeatedly.

Kenji Kawai - Making of a Cyborg (Ghost in the Shell main theme)
So this is a track from the very famous anime Ghost in the Shell, probably more known as the signing voices song at the beginning of the movie. I get this song stuck in my head a lot, especially while playing Postal 2, and this week is no exception. My delightful partner has a fantastic drumnbass remix for this song, not entirely sure who by, that makes this song sound that little bit better. But until I find out who it's by, I recommend this song for some dark ambiance. The song is in Japanese but sung by a Bulgarian choir to give that particular sound. Interesting....

LTJ Bukem - Journey Inwards
If you like drumnbass and you don't know LTJ Bukem, you must have been hiding in a bombing shelter for eternity. This guy is a pioneer of this genre. His album, Journey Inwards, is in my top ten all time albums. I'm sure many hardcore drumnbass fans out there will disagree with me saying Logical Progression sessions are better, but I disagree. I love the jazzy element to this album and the atmospheric drumnbass. Anyhoo, this song is the title track from the album, of the same name, and is a music delight for the ears. It's jazzy, it's mellow, its wonderful. It has a flutes in it, need I say more? I hadn't listened to this song for years until I decided to give a friend some Bukem and rekindled my love with this song. Personally, it reminds me of many winter nights in Melbourne, looking at the bright lights and feeling toasty in the rain. Let me know what it reminds you of.

Outkast - Prototype
This is from Andre 3000's "The Love Below" part of the Speakerboxx/The Love Below album Outkast release a couple of years back. I have a lot of respect for Andre3000, and got into this song while shopping for some reason. It makes supermarket shopping seem a lot more fun than it actually is. It was a single for them, but is just so blissful to listen to. Nice mellow guitar, some funky bass, Andre 3000's voice... what more could you ask for? A good beat! It's got that too. If you're not into Outkasts rapping/hip hop type stuff, check this song out to strike up a love for them.

Blatz - Roadkill
These guys were a screechy punk band from the late 80s/early 90s that broke up in 1992. Probably more known for being too stoned to tune their guitars, screaming and stripping on stage and playing the same gigs as Green Day (when they begun) and Operation Ivy, they still have a soft spot in my heart. I got into these guys when I was about 15, after a friend passed me a tape of them and said "Dude, you gotta check this out." Well I did, and nearly 10 years later I still like them. So why is this in my ten songs of the week? Once again, rekindled my love for this song while I was making a copy of it for a friend.

John Mayer - Gravity
Yes I love John Mayer, you can tell me I have bad taste but I proudly love Mr Mayer. It's strange but people assume he's just a pop icon, when in fact he's probably one of the greatest modern guitarists there are, and performers I have seen live. And he's funny, can't go past a funny cute man. This song is from his third album, Continuum, which I'm still debating if I really love or just like. Gravity is a waltz like blues song, in 3/4 time, and has a subtle beauty I can listen to over and over, and a touch of soul. This album is especially blues and soul orientated, but he's still a gem whatever he does, in my biased opinion.

The Hidden Cameras - Boys of Melody
Described as gay anti-folk church music, The Hidden Cameras are beautiful. They include a choir, string section, and go-go dancers. This song more recently was famous for being the backing track to the trailer for Shortbus (2006, John Cameron Mitchell). This song always seems to make me smile like a doofus while walking around with my headphones on. It has xylophones, strings, haunting vocals, and I think an oboe (gotta love someone with an oboe!). On a similar wavelength to The Polyphonic Spree or The Flaming Lips (to an extent), and defiantly worth being blasted into your ears.


Until next week, I hope these music recommendations will tide you over!

<3 Blackberry Moose