― Barima (Barima), Thursday, 25 September 2003 14:39 (twenty years ago) link
Also, BJ on cover of next Mixmag and waiting on the Face to give BJ (haha) their 3rd-in-a-row cover story.
― Barima (Barima), Thursday, 25 September 2003 14:40 (twenty years ago) link
― Nicolars (Nicole), Thursday, 25 September 2003 15:26 (twenty years ago) link
album review:
BASEMENT JAXXKISH KASH (XL) When Basement Jaxx exploded overground back in '99 they proclaimed their sound to be 'punk garage'. Couldn't call it that now, of course, for fear of confusing pallid teenagers in drainpipe jeans searching for an amphetamine guitar fix. And it seems unlikely, given the current musical climate, that any other 'dance' act will be leaping from the underground to the heart of the charts any time soon. The times they are a-changing - Basement Jaxx, thankfully, haven't. 'Kish Kash', you see, is instantly identifiable as being from their Brixton basement. There are the big singalong numbers like 'Good Luck' and the beats that get their weight through sounding like they've been deep fried in a greasy spoon rather than pumped up in the studio. But as ever the only 'formula' at work here seems to be 'throw it at a wall', and 'Kish Kash' is another glorious mess of ideas that sticks rather than slides. Take 'Lucky Star', where bhangra samples and bashment basslines are stuffed together like clothes into an overflowing suitcase, whilst Dizzee Rascal bounces on top trying to keep the whole thing locked down. Getting the garage man of the moment on your album would look cynical were the Jaxx's street level affiliations not so solid, as would roping in Siouxsie Sioux so soon after electroclash has made the old dominatrix trendy again. But her appearance on 'Kish Kash', like Dizzee's moment, sounds utterly unforced - like a scuzzier progression from Peaches' on 'Rooty's 'Get Me Off', a track which still beats the current crop of electro-porn cuts into submission. Which is what 'Kish Kash' does to the glut of retro 'garage punk' - if you want real rock 'n' roll energy, remember which way round those two words should go. (8)
― DJ Martian (djmartian), Thursday, 25 September 2003 17:51 (twenty years ago) link
"If I Ever Recover" sounds-an-awful-lot like "_______________" by _______________.
― nader (nader), Friday, 26 September 2003 04:28 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 26 September 2003 04:49 (twenty years ago) link
― Matt DC (Matt DC), Friday, 26 September 2003 08:14 (twenty years ago) link
― Tim Finney (Tim Finney), Friday, 26 September 2003 11:51 (twenty years ago) link
― mitch lastnamewithheld (mitchlnw), Friday, 26 September 2003 12:00 (twenty years ago) link
― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Friday, 26 September 2003 12:11 (twenty years ago) link
Instead of the "Didn't know that it was over..." part the chorus consists of a sampled diva singing "Looking for something/It's too late/Won't you be a man?!?" in a pretty pissed-off manner (ie. it's Mike's girlfriend). Presumably changed due to clearance difficulties???
― Tim Finney (Tim Finney), Friday, 26 September 2003 12:19 (twenty years ago) link
imho it's nowhere near as good as the version on the finished album, though.
― toby (tsg20), Friday, 26 September 2003 13:12 (twenty years ago) link
I wonder if software exists or is in R&D that could compare the sonic signatures of all your MP3s and identify songs that sound similar that perhaps hadn't occurred to you before.
I suppose it'd take some of the fun out of the research that happens when a Basement Jaxx track sounds awfully familiar and you can't quite place it, but isn't technology supposed to take the fun/mystery out of everything anyway?
Or maybe it's the software/tech that produces mash-ups, no? (Or could mass produce mash-ups?) Mind you I'm not advocating mass production - I just wonder if the software exists.
― nader (nader), Friday, 26 September 2003 18:30 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 26 September 2003 18:40 (twenty years ago) link
― Ben Williams, Friday, 26 September 2003 18:41 (twenty years ago) link
― nader (nader), Friday, 26 September 2003 19:07 (twenty years ago) link
It's the music that's more like Fingers. I guess the fact that it's an English bloke singing is where the Streets come in (although I don't really hear the Streets--the Jaxx singer isn't rapping and he's not overplaying the accent... ;) but then I don't like the Streets that much and I haven't listened to them ages, so you should probably ignore me...)
― Ben Williams, Friday, 26 September 2003 19:14 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 26 September 2003 19:17 (twenty years ago) link
― gabbo giftington (dubplatestyle), Friday, 26 September 2003 19:19 (twenty years ago) link
― Ben Williams, Friday, 26 September 2003 19:21 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 26 September 2003 19:30 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 16:26 (twenty years ago) link
― cumming technoid, Sunday, 19 October 2003 16:58 (twenty years ago) link
― stevem (blueski), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:06 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:09 (twenty years ago) link
― mohammed abba (dubplatestyle), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:14 (twenty years ago) link
― mohammed abba (dubplatestyle), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:17 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:20 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:21 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:22 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:33 (twenty years ago) link
Are you being contrary or just posting after listening to 10 seconds of each track? A little from column a/little from column b?
― Ronan (Ronan), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:47 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:52 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 18:55 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:18 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:26 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:28 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:33 (twenty years ago) link
(Barima in intolerance non-shocker)
― Barima is pronounced 'Burma' or one of many female orgasmic sounds (Barima), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:35 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:38 (twenty years ago) link
(Most of the dance fans I know think IDM is a random, very meaningless and dumbass term, no 'fense)
― Barima (Barima), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:39 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:41 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:43 (twenty years ago) link
― cinniblount (James Blount), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:44 (twenty years ago) link
― Ronan (Ronan), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:44 (twenty years ago) link
Next single - 'Plug It In', round mid-January time?
― Barima (Barima), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:50 (twenty years ago) link
Actually I was being a bit facetious when I referred to Basement Jaxx as IDM. I know they're not IDM because the D is actually valid. Taking the term at face value would be dance music that is "intelligent" and judging by the praise being heaped on the album, I'm surprised you'd take offense at my use of the term, Ronan. Besides, one doesn't have to have a Simon Reynolds glossary to understand whether music is moving you or not. Or to enjoy electronic or dance music. The only way my opinion could be cast aside as "uninformed" is if you're enjoying the album on some academic prog-type level, in which case my comment on this album being masturbatory would be dead-frikkin'-on.
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:51 (twenty years ago) link
― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 19 October 2003 19:54 (twenty years ago) link