House Is A Feeling

Phoenix’s “Tabloid” compilation for Kitsuné is something I’ve been listening to a lot lately and really enjoying. It’s not got anything to do with dance music particularly but is a really strong selection of rock and pop which will let you discover some acts you might not have heard before if you’re interested in that.

Can anyone remember when dance music labels and artists became such conduits for hearing really good rock music? That almost seems unremarkable by now. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions.

Anyway Kitsuné have made a nice video to promote the mix which shows Phoenix doing what a cold blooded British or Irish person could only describe as “faffing around in the (bloody) snow”. Watch it here.

Belgian Franco Cangelli who runs Mowar has done a mix of older disco and house for the Energy Flash blog here. Franco gets extra marks from me for including two Jungle Wonz tracks, no doubt I’ve mentioned about 15 times that “The Jungle” is my favourite old Chicago tune. It’s those strings, that mix of grey introversion and the almost naive ambition of the music.

For those of you who’ve not heard it, Burial and Fourtet’s collaborative release, “Moth/Wolfcub”(reviewed here by Richard Carnage of the Tape blog) is on Youtube to check out.

In the spirit of our times I feel I should cease my old fashioned sermon from the mount and let the most exciting and informed voices speak here. I’m talking of course about “Youtube users”. (Stop laughing please.) User generated content, as promised, is changing the world for the better as it continues to blur the lines between amateurism and professionalism, creating enlightening battles of words and thought.

Yes these ideological high priests are kind enough to devote minutes or even hours of their time to calling each other wankers. Expertise vs street knowledge, practice versus theory, and the perennial war between people who do things and those who spend all day masturbating in a darkened room. All are hashed out daily on forums/messageboards in this golden age of knowledge, civility and learning.

Tensions are high regarding “Moth” as a complex argument brews between two great minds: “How is it a comeback when you didn’t even address me in the first place…think before you post simple man. It’s also ‘were’ not ‘where’-Chinmassager

However unity is restored when a great philosopher weighs in: “I would love to listen to this on K, all the layers in the track would absolutely blow your mind.”-dotman88

Moving on from such high minded theory T-Bar reopens in London tonight and if any of you are there I’ll probably see you. Mind you for all I know there are people sleeping on the pavement outside by now to ensure they get in. If you’re going along say hello: I ressemble golfer Sandy Lyle circa 1985, though more in terms of my mental approach to the game rather than actual physical similarities.

Michael Mayer and Jamie Jones will wet the “proverbial baby’s head” (while several hundred revellers drink in the baby and one or two vomit in the baby, you get the picture) tonight and it’s for free.

So it begins: one thing’s for sure, Houndsditch won’t know what hit it (and still won’t have any sentient humans present after 11!)