John Legend "Once Again"

John Legend "Once Again" (2006)
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mp3 / 81mb

Label: Sony
Projected release date: 24 October 2006
Producers: Kanye West, John Legend, Dave Tozer, Will.I.am, Raphael Saadiq, Craig Street, Sa-Ra, Eric Hudson, Devo Springsteen & Avenue
Tracks: 13 (check: Amazon)

Diddy "Press Play"

Diddy "Press Play" (2006)
download link
mp3 / 111mb / uCrip

Label: Bad Boy Records
Projected release date: 17 October 2006
Producers: Timbaland, will.i.am, Havoc, Pharoahe Monch, Just Blaze, Kanye West, Rich Harrison & Cool & Dre
Tracks: 19 (check: Amazon)

RETROSPECTIVE: Hird "Moving On"

Hird "Moving On" (2004)
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mu / mp3 192kbps / 69.9mb / dhrip

Label: DNM - Dealers of Nordic Music
Producer: Christoffer Berg
Tracks: 9 (check: Amazon)

if you're a guy, this album is one of those records that you'd put on to impress a female over shiraz at your place. very little know that choice of music can tell a lot about a person, and that said, little realise they judge people by the type of music other people listen to.

err ok, despite the obvious absolute nonsense ive managed to regurgitate in the previous sentence, you somehow find yourself thinking how true this could be, with made-up yet convincing logics bouncing back and forth in your head. enter "moving on".

this record oozes 'cool' in its purest form. although this can seem frequent in future jazz albums, the timelessness of the work of this (then) 21 year old producer/composer is too apparent; with pseudo-jazz tendencies, hypnotic and beautifully flawed vocals of Yukimi Nagano, addictive fender rhodes licks thrown in, witty lo-fi drum samples (think: dirty ride cymbal samples and basic 808 presets) and that late-night-martini chord progressions that just makes you want to express your inner carnal knowledge with someone you err, love.

the same theme rings throughout the record. because i'm categorising this one as a mood record, that's actually a plus, from me. it plays safe, but after a few listen, you start thinking that this could more necessary than it seems. each song sets the mood so successfully that you'd want more of it in the next track - and anything that sets a different mood could make you ask "why?"

...back to my initial analogy, "moving on" as an album has got just enough jazz to make you seem somewhat sophisticated, but not too much that would make you seem like a jazz traditionalist geek. enough house tempo to make you seem laidback, but not too much that you're being seen as an irresponsible yuppie with rich parents. and just enough drum breaks to make you seem fun and funky, but not too much that you'd seem like an underage drum n bass raver high on chemicals; horribly funky, if i had to term it myself. ahh, now it all makes sense.

this is the future jazz i wish i had produced myself, and wish i had on when i had a female friend over for drinks a while back, instead of my prodigy "smack my bitch up" cd on repeat.

RETROSPECTIVE: Stars "Set Yourself On Fire"

Stars "Set Yourself On Fire" (2005)
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link01 mu / mp3 vbr kbps / 74.2mb

Label: Arts and Crafts
Producer: Tom McFall & Stars
Tracks: 13 (check: Amazon)

i may be a bit late, but i've only just recently fully realised of this phenomenon of smooth, sultry, drawly, charmingly lazy and magical voices of girl vocalists like zero7's sia, sarah blasko, stereolab's laetitia sadier and lisa mitchell. is this new, or just rare, or what?! please post me a comment if you know of an artist or a band with a vocalist with a voice like these angelic females

adding to the ultra-cool 'folk slash indie slash electronic slash post-rock' genre, "Set Yourself On Fire" quickly makes it to my same good book full of artists in the style of The Postal Service, Stereolab, Sigur Rós, and Death Cab For Cutie and Sigur Ros after a few listens.

rather eclectic with a fair collection of acoustic and electronic drums, ocassional sample manipulations, your standard guitars, bass guitars and keyboards programmings; i'm sure Tom McFall (The Kills) had more fun on this project then the former one. and i dont know who exactly wrote what in this album, but the lyrics are witchingly literal on some tracks - something that sets this band apart from others in its class, for me.

other things worth mentioning, orchestrations seems to be hand in hand like suburban teenagers and weed, in post-rock song arrangements today and it does even more on this record. poppish chord progressions and cheesy synth presets dominate this album, and it's always a good thing. if i wasnt such a (new) fan of this *female vocal timbre* phenomenon, i wouldnt complain so much of the fact that there's not enough of Amy Millan's magical vocals on here. my next girlfriend's gonna be a lady with such vocals. there. you heard it here first.

Ino Hidefumi "Satisfaction"

Ino Hidefumi "Satisfaction" (2006)
download link
rs / mp3 192kbps / 60.7mb

Label: Innocent Record
Producer: Ino Hidefumi
Tracks: 12 (check: Amazon)

i'm such a sucker for japan. not really, i'm lying. i'm such a sucker for japanese jazz. ok, i'm lying again. they always incorporate that fender rhodes in ways modern jazz tend to take forgranted these days. and that's the truth.

the album starts off with Ino's rendition of "spartacus" - a taste of what can be expected for the rest of the journey on the record. now, this can go either its extreme ways; you may like it and book the next flight to Ebisu, Tokyo and have a latte at mr. Hidefumi's Cafe Tenement, or you may not. again, i'm just here for the Rhodes Suitcase 88 used throughout the joint, so this record got me at 'hello'.

obvious influences are here. which i'm thankful about - since i myself have been over-exposed to the works of makoto, kyoto jazz massive, united future organization, and mondo grosso. you can call me japanese-jazz ignorant, but i'm putting this motherfucker in this pigeonhole. but that's a good thing.

i won't diss mr hidefumi's arrangements and performing skills but production-wise, it's lacking that dynamics depth that most of us are probably used to in some tracks (think: drums, rhodes, bass all in mono wtf?!) and i cant help thinking during mixing, he went a tad trigger-happy with some kind of limiter. it definitely sounds nice on the rhodes, giving it that sorta vintage almost-accidentally-charming drive, but on everything?! and for fucks sake, please cut those damn fucking samples properly godmutherfuckendammit

...though i cant stay mad at this record for long. with classics like "spartacus", "what are you doing the rest of your life", "bille jean" etc he can do whatever the fuck he wants. and with all this crazy rhode works, i'm only pleasantly angry. now where did i put that local travel agent's contact number again...