Eyemaylisten Music Blog

It’s that time of year again when Kitsuné Music release another brilliant compilation of the artists on their label. Kitsuné Music was created in 2002, and is part of the Kitsuné Fashion Label. Artists such as, Alan Braxe, autoKratz, Bloc Party, Boys Noize, Digitalism, Hadouken!, Klaxons, Simian Mobile Disco and many more have found themselves part of the Kitsuné entourage at some point.

I first heard about the record label about 2 years ago when I first heard Lo-Fi-Fnk’s: Change Channel and Metronomy’s track: This Could Be Beautiful emerge from the first Kitsuné Maison Compilation. I was instantly hooked and thinking back, was one of the first CD’s that really made me explore the apparent boom of electro sounds coming from Paris.

Released on October 27th, the Kitsuné Maison Compilation 6 is tagged, “The Melodic One”. Lo-Fi-Fnk start the album nicely with their usual but more defined style, whilst Digitalism, Beni, autoKratz and many others carry you through the album at a nice pace with some great new music. It’s pretty similar to what you would expect from the Kitsuné Maison series except I found that a lot of the bands/artists had a more evolved and mature sound to when they first appeared on the scene. Kitsuné themselves say; “There is a Kitsuné sound, but it keeps on evolving towards always more melody. A sometimes aggressive, violent sound and sometimes throbbing, melancholic or all of that at once.”

More evolved or not, I am loving the new album and it fits in nicely to the past editions. Definitely worth a listen.

- Stuart

Good old friends of Eyemaylisten, Drive A, have new material and we are very happy to shout about it. They are back with a great new look and have certianly matured; I can almost perv on them now ^_^.

Their new single; ‘Are You Blind’ is worth checking out. It’s a stretch out of the sound we are used to hearing from them, their sound has developed and we’re liking the vibrations! It’s less rocky and it seems they are embracing a more punkesque vibe. It’s definately addictive. The new album; ‘Loss Of Desire’ is due for release in February 2008 and we will most certainly be giving you a full review when it comes around – I can’t wait. They are very talented lads.

Watch the short video they filmed for us back in June!
- Luu

Good morning. I have something of great delight to share with you on this beautifully muggy Sunday morn; Boom Boom Satellites and their CD “Exposed”.

“Japanese dance rock pioneers Boom Boom Satellites (aka
bassist/programmer Masayuki Nakano and guitarist/vocalist Michiyuki
Kawashima) celebrates their 10-year anniversary with the digital release
of “Exposed.” Boom Boom Satellites are widely considered one of the
first true “dance rock” band’s (the genre didn’t even exist back then)
and their impact is felt in the music of some of today’s most popular
artists. “Exposed” offers 12 tracks that blends philosophical lyrics and
an untamed physical rave experience with the toughness of rock’n'roll
and the precision of electronic programming.”

Well, I hadn’t read that part of their bio before I cracked into this album and wasn’t suprized when I finally did read it. This album definitely mixes a rock sound with some beautifully electronic based vibrations and merges effortlessly. I am so into them they haven’t been off my stereo… in fact, I’ve had to turn my last.fm tracker off so I don’t look like a loon listening to them over and over. I have a severe weakness for Jrock, although if you listened to their album without a visual aid you probably wouldn’t know any different, they present themselves in clear English throughout the album.

The first track that catches me is, “Bring It On Down.” It sounds familiar in a really pleasurable way. I may have heard it already but I’m finding it hard to place just where. It’s fast moving, catchy and repetitive in a comfortably tingly way. It sends vibrations to the musical soul and makes you want to move. If you love electronica, you should check these guys out. If you are on the Hadouken! bandwagon, these guys aren’t as in your face but will fill the gap with a uniqueness. You can check out their video of the track “Easy Action” here on youtube.

There are twelve tracks on the album but “Six Fourty Five” is easily the strongest track for me, closely followed by “Fiends” and “Get Back In My House”. All three tracks are very much electronica based with immense lyrics. This is music I would expect to hear on a good night out. It would be easy to OD on these guys.

All of the tracks on the album carry an indefinite quality and do not compete with one another for play time, each being unique. There is not a track on the album I would dare to skip, which is rare for me. They have a clearly distinguishable sound. I am in love.

MP3: Shut Up And Expload – Boom Boom Satellites

- Luu

Well goodness me, didn’t that take some time. Our internet resources have been out for a long long time.. and still are.. but alas, we are learning to work around it. At least until VIRGIN sort themselves out. I have also literally JUST got back from Istanbul. Turkish music is most defiantly different, probably something I would respect a little more if I knew the language better. Luckily Matt had donated his ipod to moi so I survived all the long hours of traveling.

So.. a lot has been going on. We have been sent lots of music and have ALOT to discuss. Firstly, Mesh-29. We received their nice little album through the post about a month ago. It’s official release date was 20th Oct, you can pop over to Media Addiction and get a limited edition signed&numbered copy.. Or just get it from itunes. The album’s called Secret Traffic. Kudos to the album artist, I love it. It’s nice, organic and portrays the sound well. Gives it a recycled paper feel. Although… Mesh-29 are far from recycled. They are rolling with the whole independent music scene, which many of you will know by now we fully admire and support.

The album itself is very soft, well contained and thought provoking. The piano solos bring thoughts of Placebo (this might just be me finding that likeness) but somewhere between the unmistakable vocals and thought provoking acoustic sounds lies a deepness. Ok, they are not ‘pop’, they are not ‘nu-rave’ or ‘electronica’, but they are organic and that’s what I like about them. Soooo… check them out (click on their name in the above paragraph to visit their myspace) and let me know what you think!

Secondly; Dan Black. I received an email about this guy and hella, he’s been on repeat ^_^. If you only click on one of my recommendations today be sure to click on this video; Dan Black ‘Yours’ Video (directed by Paris-based Chic Et Artistic) because I am very much addicted. The track ‘Yours’ is different. Foremost, this is not lovey-dovey. It’s an electro anti-love song fueled with a new kind of angry yet passionate beat. The video too is well composed also, so for the visual among you; feast. I am loving this vibration, so get onboard.

Image; Eleanor Hardwick

If you want more, I can give you more; MP3: Dan Black – HYPNTZ. Ok, so possibly not the first to take Rihanna’s Umbrella beat, but it’s different. So many have tried and failed… but here I am certain Black gets it. Give him a spin. You won’t be disappointed.

I have so much more to come, my inbox is litorally jam packed, so rest assured your sterio will be fuelled with a lot more over the next few days.

Hope everyone had fun in the snow in England

Also I hope everyone likes our new guest writer Stuart…
-Luu

Joseph Mount. One of the other artists who has been a great influence on my music tastes in the last couple of years. You may know him better as Metronomy. Joseph Mount performs his strange and catchy instrumental electropop live with Oscar Cash and Gabriel Stebbing; known for their charming dance routines and light shows (most famously – the use of push lights stuck to their chests).

The debut album, Pip Paine (Pay the £500 You Owe) was released in 2006, under Holiphonic Records. I found it’s catchy and unforgettable sound very hard to stop listening to and it was a refreshing change from some of the music I was listening to at the time. The newly released Metronomy album, Nights Out with songs such as, “Radio Ladio”, “Holiday” and “Heartbreaker”; is made in a simlar style to the last one but with a more refined sound. They also engaged in their first headline tour this year, supported by London based act Primary 1. It proves to be a fairly successful year for anyone involved with Metronomy and I’m sure this will continue into the future.

Stuart

Hey Stuart here, and since this is my first appearance on Eyemaylisten I thought I’d briefly say a bit about a couple of artists that have been constantly drumming through my ears in the last year or so.

Firstly, the young talented DJ and producer, Benoit Heitz aka Surkin. The 20 year-old from southern France first appeared a few years ago mainly hitting the French clubs in Paris with his club hits, ‘Radio Fireworks’ and ‘Ghetto Obsession’ from his mini-album Action Replay. His fast-paced, cut-up mixing of old and new electro and house packs a hard punch that no dance fan could ignore. His newer projects; a solo EP, ‘Next of Kin’ and newly released joint production with label-mate Bobmo under the title ‘High Powered Boys’ are his most successful yet. Just the album to come now…

Secondly, I would like to mention one of the front runners of the new wave of French electro, Pierre Busson aka Yuksek. His productions and remixes alike have captured the interests of many. His is sound hard to describe because it is so unique. I would say that his songs are made for the dancefloor and although a mix of techno rhythms, pop structures and accurate melodies make his music easy to listen to; the art of the thumping beat make his music, personally I think, un-rivaled in clubs.

Stuart

Hey, Matt here again. Luu is still having ‘technical difficulties’ with her internet, uh ohh!

Slight deviation from the norm today! Just a quick post about a great podcast I’ve been listening to for a while now… the SL Blaise Podcast. It showcases the best in new electro music while reminiscing about gems from the past, all rolled into one sexy sounding half hour. If you are stuck for new music or want something fresh then you can find it here, a great bit of listening if you have some time on your hands… check it out, or subscribe now using iTunes.

Oh, and we’ve fixed the comments feature, you no longer have to be registered to rant anymore! So go on, spill your guts.

Okay, must dash. I’m a slight bit obsessed with Scottcam at the moment…

Matt
x

Hii guys, Matt here after a long absence! It’s good to be back!

So since I last posted there’s been so much music floating about that i love… too much for one post. So I’m just going to centre on one band today: Late of the Pier!

You may have heard of these guys, they have been releasing singles and demos since March 2007, and they have supported some awesome bands like Hadouken! and Justice on recent tour dates. If you haven’t heard of them, you should definitely check them out! Their debut album, Fantasy Black Channel was released in the UK in August, with a number of the singles they had previously released as well as their upcoming single ‘Bathroom Gurgle’.

I myself absolutely LOVE the album. Their self described ‘Thrash’ music is well summed up by the album art – hard to describe, yet utterly beautiful given the chance. Every track could be the stand-out track of the album in it’s own right, as every song is completely different to the next. Despite this, the album flows well, being gapless at the beginning. The intro ‘Hot Tent Blues’ leads well into ‘Broken’, an obvious choice for the first track due to its extreme catchiness.

The previously released singles, as you would expect, are amazing, and new tracks match their quality while perfectly complimenting the rest of the album. At 43 minutes long, the album is a perfect length to satisfy your synthpop cravings while not losing your attention.

It has everything an album should offer: great album art, a fantastic selection of music and of course, a hidden track at the end! Their new single, ‘Bathroom Gurgle’, is being re-released on October 2nd in the UK. Check it out on iTunes here. You should so buy it!!

The band is on tour at the moment so if you are near any of the venues then you should definitely get down there! Check out their myspace page for dates and venues.

Well that’s enough from me for today! Luu hasn’t got the internet at the moment, so I’m going to be taking over no doubt until she gets it back I’ll see you kids sooon!

Matt
x

We knew the crossover would be painful.. and it is now upon us. We have just moved house and stupidly relied on Virgin to have our net up and running… alas, they haven’t. I only have about five minutes so I will endevour to summerize my sterios activity over the past few days…

Edith Piaf – Je ne regrette rien.

Noah And The Whale – 5 Years Time

Tokio Hotel – Der Letzte Tag

Goldfrapp – Twist

Goldfrapp – Utopia

- Luu

And I bring you… Iceland.

A sound which you really should be plugging into if you haven’t already is the Icelandic sounds of ‘Sometime‘. A four piece electro-pop fulled vibration that will stick to you kids like treacle. They have been imprinted on the inner depths of my insides since being introduced to their sound a few weeks ago…

They have a long list of influences with the likes of The Beatles, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Pet Shop Boys and even The Beach Boys getting a mention. Their sound is variable but awesome. If you like Bjork, Shiny Toy Guns and the Chemical Brothers, these are the guys for you. They somehow manage to become a beautiful fusion of all three with strong vocals and some seriously electro beats.

Vibrate your sound systems. Listen to Sometime.

MP3: Sometime – Catch Me If You Can

- Luu