n0mad23

Good call putting this one back on Featured. Absolutely amazing, so thick but retaining razor sharp separation between the multiplicity of sounds. In arrangement and execution and spirit - a fave to be sure!

All tracks would be at home in the same collection. Each very different, but like from the same family. Nice job with that connection. I think my favorite is #1 as well - it's because of the wicked rhythm and how the vocal tracks weave together. It's almost hard to imagine they weren't done at the same time. I can't choose a second favorite, though #4 seems a little out of place. Maybe it's just the transition. I really hope we can hear these in their entirety. Cheers!

There are some interesting things happening in this one, and it's pretty obvious you like those industrial sounds and rhythms! There are elements here that remind me a bit of Test Dept., and the (de)tuned percussion works really well. I'm wondering about your levels though. I'm experiencing massive amounts of distortion and I have my volume at its lowest setting. Have you checked for clipping?

Very laid back and simple groove here, with the right sensibility behind it all. The bass line is fantastic. I could see taking this one in many directions, but it's really sweet in this form. For example, could you imagine what it would sound like with some sampled drums replacing some of the synth ones? Totally different dynamic that would work well, too. Nice one!

I had to check this one out simply because of the title. Bill Burroughs wrote a letter about this in `61 and said, "Be afraid. Be very afraid." I'm totally about percussion, and I'm digging this one - fabulous back beat! The stagger in this with that beautiful melody is too much! Your sense of timing in transitions really works, too. I'm not sure how well the title works as the patterns/fractals are more familiar to other substances, but otherwise more than works for me. Faved so I can pull it up easily again! Cheers.

Non-verbal audio story-telling. It's cool that you've done this with fx as interpretation is vast as there are listeners. Hip hop is really mostly outside my knowledge base (do know what I like though), but what really works for me in this one is the way you do transitions. Very subtle and distinct at the same time, especially as it retains a nice, steady beat. Really a beautiful track on several levels. Cheers.

You really understand dissonance! I can't help but wonder if it connects somehow to your studies in psychology. Dissonance and dis-ease are intricately connected. Pretty wicked how you weave it all around an excellent beat. Nice one.

Faved. Need I write anything more?

The title really works well (esp. with the vocal) and it's really a delightful blend of rhythm and the sounds expected from Trance. In other words, while staying firmly in the Trance genre it also seems to bend the rules in the process. Outstanding production, and I love the panning you do in that it moves but not so much as to be distracting. You're definitely an artist to keep ears/eyes on. Nice. I'll certainly be checking out your other tracks. Cheers.

3rd play...there seems to be an 'empty hand insurrection' going on, and it's quite inspiring! If this is satirical as I suspect, you do realize nearly nobody's going to get it. The 'ambient' or fx sounds you're using here are all from pop culture, aren't they? They ones that aren't (i.e. - your creations) are geared to invoke pop culture sounds. I hear little snippets that are US TV circa `73, `74, video game blip sounds, etc. Commodification of culture, the leveling of subversive elements, the successful commercialization (and normalization) of hip hop. And you're giving it back. The percs here and rhythms of your keys ground it authentically in the genre (and are really nice, too!). In a sense, it's more authentic than what people are buying. In terms of constructive criticism/revision suggestion I'm going to have to second Big Pete's request for vocals in the second half. I feel this would close the circle and give it more of a sense of completion. Outstanding draft, and I'm looking forward to hearing subsequent revisions.

Nice one. Funny how many of us from WA are represented on this site. Nice job with levels and separation with this one. The "cricket/night" sounds work really well with your percussion. Look forward to hearing more of your stuff. Cheers.

It does seem incomplete somehow. It's not quite minimal enough to stay there, and not full enough to be totally satisfying. A really great start, though! I love the effects you've weaved into the piano riffs and think this could be expanded. Have you considered trying Eshar's advice? I think a bit of percussive rhythm would really round this one out. Beautiful sounds you've got going.

Funny how a good piece of satire can twist certain knickers into atomic wedgy status. This is a happening piece! Love the intro and drums and how they genuinely turn the genre upside down. I really like how the lyrics here really go after the whole commodification/commercialization/corporatism of hip hop culture. If this is hip hop, I've got to adjust my bias again as I really dig this one!

It's amazing just how many hidden gems are to be found on this site! This is certainly one of them. There's a certain folk sensibility behind this that really delightful, and your guitar work and voice are spectacular. Any new releases in the works?

"Ninny" is one of my favorite words to use in an insult, so I had to have a listen. "Ninny Pants Dance" is a compelling title to be sure! I really like your sonic sensibility with this one, and the panning of the electronic sounds works really well. Really catchy rhythm. Good use of 'noize,' too. Knowing that this was to be a loop for a podcast kind of makes it hard to find suggestions for revision - hopefully it worked well in that capacity. Nice track. Cheers.

Really nice arrangement. The movement between the string sections are lovely, especially with the contrast that the percussion creates. Sure hope we see more tracks posted by you soon!

The build up through this piece is truly amazing, and there were moments I remembered owning Psychic TV's "Toward Thee Infinite Beat," but only moments as this one has a spirit of its own. This is the kind of "trance" I really like, but I think it's because you're not attached to the rules. You bend or break them to serve the music instead. Sweet track.

The Dj4Real! That's it, isn't it? Your approach here is that of the musician playing his/her instrument - just your's is the "deck," whatever form that takes. Really excellent arrangement and execution: the levels are right, the transitions right where they need to be without being totally predictable. Nice sonic choices!

Actually, the lyrics here remind me more of David Byrne's more obscure recordings than anyone else, sans the vulgar language. Really interesting guitar work, and nice phase filter! Cheers.

I downloaded that organ loop, too and still haven't found a use for it. Kudos for finding "just the right thing" for it! I really like the audio surprises in this one - every time I settle into a comfort zone you go in a direction I hadn't predicted. Awesome and simultaneously rewarding as a listener. Fusion seems like a good place to put it, as it's too tight and well arranged to be "experimental." It seems you know the rules well enough (at least inherently) that you can bend and break them without stumbling. Nice.

BTW - I keep thinking I read the comic that your avatar's from. Why does it seem so familiar?

I'm reminded of Test Dept. or maybe Boyd Rice with this one. A folk song with Goethe for lyrics is really a surprise! I'm really digging the accordion melody here, especially with the guitar.

I really admire what you're trying to do with this one. It's one thing to say how much you support something, and entirely another when actually giving something back to the community. There is indeed a difference from lip service and deed. Nice production, too. Cheers.

C'est musique pour Les DamnÃÂs de la Terre! I love how you don't stick with French throughout this, as the Arabic(?) makes it even more immediate. Strange how the only rap I've ever really liked has been from Senegal (also in French) and now from Tunisia! Again, I love how you've brought in a distinctly N. African sensibility to your music. Well done!

Whoa, my earphones are shaking! I really like your fusion of sounds/traditions. There's a distinctly North African feel to your melody that mixes well with a more familiar hip hop rhythm. I almost moved to Tunis when I was a kid, and it's something I'd always wished my family had done. I hope you continue to "mix" things up like this, as I really love a lot of the music that comes from your part of the continent. Cheers.

So that's how it feels to hear one of your own! In this (re)context, it seems a bit like Philip Glass shifting into accessibility. You are indeed becoming that prion disguised as a tasty happy mcMeal, aren't you? Hip hop it is (and no one will question otherwise) while that infectious groovy rhythm sets up shop in the listener. I really like the groove in this - it's got that Voudon sensibility where you could loop and dance this one gently for hours. Your jacked in my friend, and I can't wait to see/hear where you go next!