When I hear music

I know, I know, its been a week or something since the last post. Gosh, mom, if I had known you were worried, I would have called.
I'm sure you're so very curious about what I've been up to. Well, not a lot. Enjoying the new digs. The boys and I made the short trek to Sunset Hill for, well, sunset last week. It was nice, but we got there a little late for my taste. It still looked like there was fire on the Olympics which was pretty rad.
Had a low-key weekend due to the fact that I had to be in the vault for some awards show on Sunday.
Made German pancakes on Saturday and Sunday. They turned out surprsingly well. I'm kind of glad I only recently learned how easy they are to make. If I had known previously, I would most likely be even fatter than I am now.
Saturday night made some manicotti which turned out pretty well. I'm going to start photographing my creations and if anyone wants recipes, let me know.
Tonight--chicken parmigiana. Yum!!

So, now that you know what I've been up to, I can get to talking about the shit I like to talk about. Namely, music.

I've never been one to ascribe any of the myriad micro-genre titles that are so rampant in dance music. In fact, if you know me, then you know that I generally refer to dance music as dance music. One of the monikers which has always bugged me is IDM--Intelligent Dance Music. Its elitist name is diametrically opposed to the populist impulses of dance music. Just because IDM has a tendency to eschew the 4/4 time signature, producers and critics have deemed it is somehow more intelligent than other dance music--that it somehow appeals to the thinking man. In a way, it does. IDM has become more of a branding tool that alerts the rock kids to electronic music with a krautrock bent.
So let them have their labels because every once in a while, the outright DM has more thought than all of that other shit combined.
Enter Booka Shade's newest album, Movements.
I can't tell you how much this album has taken me off guard. It is their second LP coming on the heels of last year's Memento. Memento was a great album. It more than adequately represented the sound of a label which, until that point, had only released 12"s.
Movements, though, is light-years beyond. It features the already giant-sized "Mandarine Girl" a version of "Body Language" and twelve other tracks. Just listening to how they've built onto their previous sound is jaw dropping. The care with which they have created some of the filters is mind boggling.
Imagine a filter crawling onto a keyboard melody and shooting out different tones--some sound natural, some sound like they're from outerspace. Then the seemingly same filter moves its way down to the chugging bassline--madness ensues. This isn't just selecting a chunk of a track and slapping on a filter, this is the type of obsessiveness that separates good from great. There are plenty of hand claps and a bass drum that rattles windows for you rhythm junkies. These guys keep the 4 on the floor and have created an intelligent dance album that lives well-above anything labeled IDM.

So, you want some music.
I can do that.

Here's "The Birds and the Beats" from the album. It is representative of not only the eclecticism, but also the bombastic approach these guys have to knockin' out beats. (Up later, having problems w/ my box acct.)

So I'll give you this one, too. This is entitled "Wasting Time" and its a bit more melancholic, but still groovin'. Enjoy!

And if you're looking for more--
Labelmates (and co-owners) M.A.N.D.Y. have a mix available for download here.

If this type of dance music makes you shake your head in bewilderment, then I'll direct you here to one of the finest mixes from BeatsInSpace---Darshan Jesrani of MetroArea. If you still don't get it, then you probably never will--go back to your rock-n-roll concerts.