I’ll forgo the apologies for neglectful posting, they are becoming routine, but don’t you worry, good things are in the mix and will be coming soon. As for now, the latest off of RVNG is a new release by Allez-Allez, one of the only labels whose releases wake me from my lethargic state of apathy. No, not the incredible 80s group responsible for African Queen, but rather the dudes who run one of my favorite blogs on the internet who are merely referencing that group, duh. Either way, this is churning sci-fi inspired synthetic disco meant for warping Friday evenings into the cosmic realm and it comes with a bizarrely amusing video that I absolutely love. The entire EP, titled Hideous Racket, is real quality so buy it HERE if you dig “Weird Science”.
Hey guys—do you think the “joke” I make about how Jimmy & I are “famous” “rich” “good-looking” “bloggers” is “over”? Have I used it “too much”? Ha ha, of course not. “Irony”!
Jimmy & I were tandem windsurfing yesterday off the coast of the island from “Lost” (it’s real, and we get to go to it) when two golden-feathered doves landed on our respective shoulders and whispered in our ears: “RVNG is releasing a new mix, curated by Andre Bumrocks and Jason Evans from Hey Convict!, and it will be released simultaneously with a 7″ featuring some highlights from the mix, on purple vinyl.)” And then the birds, which were actually clockwork creations made in the distant past by unknown master Persian craftsmen, turned into MP3 players, and we listened to the mix, and then went back to the shore and made out, with babes.
“Irony”! Actually we got an email from a guy named “Josh,” and because we are a) big RVNG fans and b) suckers for people who make the mistake of thinking this website has any readers besides my girlfriend (hi Ari!), we decided to post a track off the 7″ (it’s a seven-inch because this is the seventh release in the series—also because Andre Bumrock’s favorite band is Avenged Sevenfold).
The mix itself (called “Purple Brain,” a reference to the great 70s rock band Deep Purple and the Steven Martin film The Man with Two Brains; that’s the cover up top) consists of what sounds like three dozen nameless brain-erasing parallel-universe beardo classics; it’s a little all-over-the-place, but if you’ve got a problem with all-over-the-place, you’re reading the wrong blog. Really, the problem is that an hour is way too short to actually get a grip on the ridiculous number of things going on in this mix, and more than once tracks get cut off just when you’re ready for more. Still: better to have listening to thirty seconds, and lost, than to never have listened to even thirty seconds, of a song, at all, right?
I didn’t recognize any of the tracks on my first couple listens, but I was able to recognize many instruments, including:
• The guitar
• The drums
• The flute
• The bass guitar
Bottom line: if you like any of those instruments, I feel confident you’ll enjoy this mix.
“Josh,” who is very nice, asked that we let you know when you can pre-order the fine merchandise listen above, so, please be aware, you can pre-order both Purple Brain and the Purple Brain 7″ on May 26.
The track I’m leaving you with is the B-side to the seven-inch, a happy, apolitical, message-less little ditty by the apartheid-era South African troupe the Bahumutsi Drama Group (founded by activist and playwright Maishe Maponya). I feel confident that when the Drama Group recorded this “joint,” they were hoping it would someday be played in a Bushwick loft to a bunch of drunk, mostly white, out-of-work “artists”/web designers! Enjoy!
A quick post from the road in NZ. I have been listening to this release for a little while and I feel guilty for not posting it a little earlier because the rad dudes over at RVNG were kind enough to send me a copy. As you are hopefully already aware, RVNG Intl. has been releasing gold edits consistently for the last couple years and have featured a stunning lineup, including Lovefingers, Wade Nichols (Todd Terje), Mock & Toof, Jacques Renault, Betty Botox and Greg Wilson in addition to releasing regular mixes by Tim Sweeney and JD Twitch. Not to turn this into a name dropping post, but hopefully you get the point. I also regularly check the playlists they post monthly on their site.
Their releases to date have been consistently incredible and the latest, volume 8, features New York’s nu-italo erotic masters In Flagranti, who also have a new album due out Brash & Vulgar. Unfortunately, there’s no nudey cover for this release but it features two serious rock reworkings of Kiss’ “I Was Made For Lovin You” and Slade’s “Run Runaway”! Today I have chosen the charming disco lullaby titled “Stahl Rig”, which as discogs informs us, is combined with the artist name on the release Petite Storm to clue us in on the original. I have yet to work it out, but maybe you can help? Here is the track, let it lull you sleep as the night drifts into the wee hours of the morning. The release is sold out on their site, but it is still available at Juno and a few other sites so go get it if you like!
