This week, our back catalogue finally made it up onto Dancetracks Digital. Within days Flavour, the title track from Igor O. Vlasov's debut EP, Eulalia, was #5 on the Minimal Tech charts!!

Meanwhile, over on the Dub/Reggae charts, Deadbeat's Deep Down Dub mix of Ruoho Ruotsi's Balai Ballet (DCP002), clocked in at #4. Groovy!!! Links and screen captures below.

Eulalia, Igor O. Vlasov's debut 12" EP on de'fchild (DCP005), has been out now for moment now and is in correct record stores around the world. It will be available online in a few weeks from all the usual outlets. (Higher rez snaps)

6 weeks ago, it was that time to ramble on about top selections from the passing year! I have majorly missed that moment, but nevertheless decided to post this draft anyway, mixing in things that I've been feeling for weeks and months now.

Singles:

• Madtone, “Dark Dread” (Blossom's Kitchen records) This is one dark 7" record featuring amazingly twisted vocal production wizardry overlaying Basic Channel style bass-scapes, from a chap outta Peckham.
• Osunlade, “Sokinsikartep [LP Version]” (BBE Music) Resolutely gorgeous material from the Aquarian Moon album. This piece has two curious breakdowns the devolve into silence for several seconds, this initially feels wrong and saps the energy, but the writing on the track is so strong that it really doesn't matter!
• Sizzla - “Chant them down” (In The Streetz Jamaica) Classic riddim by Sizzla on his own record label. I had this on repeat with the bass boosted for weeks!
• M.A.N.D.Y. vs Booka Shade, “Body Language (Jona Rmx)” (Get Physical) You've prolly heard this track if you've been out at any respectable soirée over the last 6-9 months. The raw essence of the overplayed original is captured nicely in this remix.
• Omar S, “Striker” This fellow Alex Smith, is one badassss producer with an excellent sense of arrangement and keen eye on developing the various musical motifs he introduces over the course of a track.
• Thomas Melchior & Luciano, “Father” (Cadenza Records) Striking, truly remarkable material with a running time of almost 14 minutes, just enough time to truly savour the the subtle nuances and long temporal compositional structures.
• John Tejada & Arian Leviste, “Faux Obsolete” (Playhouse) Deeply rotund material from the chaps on Palette Recordings, Los Angeles.
• Róísin Murphy, “Sinking Feeling” (Echo) From the Ruby Blue album and produced by Herbert, this morsel combines a tasty dash of arpeggiated horn tabs and quirky percussion underlying the Moloko chanteuse's super sultry vocalizations
• Konono No. 1, “Paradiso” (Crammed Disc US) This isn't exactly a new release, I wrote about this back in 2004, yet this track continually makes it into my regular listenings. The sheer energy of the electrified and distored mbiras, the insanity of the inter-twining melodic lines and the shufflyness of the high-hats make it simply irresistible!!!
• Karri O., “Trafalgar featuring Nina” (Toys for Boys) Big basslines and rotund melodic figures from this Helsinki based producer.
• Loco Dice, “Paradiso” (Cadenza) Haven't been a fan of the stuff that I've heard from him previously, but this track is slice of eden currently on heavy rotation.
• Cosli, “Bada Bing” (Motoguzzi Records) Tasty morsels served straight up, booty shaken, mind stirred, direct from the Schweizer underground!
• Africans With Mainframes, “Faso” (Crème Organization) Brilliant tech-house track, by the group who gets my vote for funniest band name. Big up of all us Mandinkas with Mainframes!!
• Igor O. Vlasov, “Die Festsetzung”, “Flavour” (de'fchild productions) Igor is a ninja in the studio. When I heard these tracks as demos, there was no question about what to do with them. Press 'em up fast!!!
• Afromento, “Midnight Train” (Blockheadz Recordingz France)
• Claude Von Stroke, “Who's afraid of Detroit”, one of the most recognizable tracks from 2006. San Francisco based label dirtybird records and Senor Von Stroke destroyed dancefloors around the planet with this one. In Jan 2007, they released a remix album with cuts by Audion, Kevin Saunderson and some fellows with mad talent that I hadn't heard of before. Big Up!!!
• Titonton Duvante, “Levels of Scandal” (Sonar Kollektiv) Titonton was a random and beautiful discovery this year. Straight up Detroit, with a penchant for strings and rollicking 808 claps. This fellow has a lot of collaborations with the likes of John Tejada (on Palette Recordings), Kentaro Takizawa and Jeff Samuel.
• Thomas Mapfumo, “Tongosienda” (Zimbob) From Spirits Bite Our Ears: Singles Collection, 1977 - 1986, this album is a perennial favourite that has made its way back into heavy rotation. Thomas Mapfumo and the Blacks' richly evocative and mesmerizing Chimurenga sound played an important part of the Rhodesia's revolutionary struggle for independence in the 70s to become what is now Zimbabwe. The interlacing melodic polyrhythmic counterpoints featuring the mbira, electric guitar and voice is nothing short of stunning, especially considering that I don't understand Shona, the language in which most of this is sung. Another track on the album, “Madiro”, which in the Shona language refers to an individual's ability to do whatever he or she wants without fear or constraint, the freedom to do, to be, is so rich and full of musical gems that it is practically begging for a re-versioning circa 2007. *hint* *hint*. It is the kind of track that had it been created in the hyper economical musical environment of Jamaica, its riddims would be a classic with countless (re)versions.

Albums:

• Rhythm and Sound, See Mi Yah (Burial Mix) some of the most breathtakingly deep and melodious riddims, reversioned 13 times in album form, by the likes of Sugar Minott, Paul St. Hilaire and Ras Donovan and Ras Perez.
• Swayzak, Route de la Slack: Remixes and Rarities (K7) A two “disc” set of original tracks by Swayzak and remixes of stuff prolly not too well known.
• Burial, Burial (hyperdub) Enough has been written on this release, including me, needless to say, first rate material that draws on the dubstep sounds of South London, with strong compositional influences from the Basic Channel crew.
• Cheikh Lô, Lamp Fall (Nonesuch Records) Grooving Mbalax and pop fusion. Notable especially for the blues-y vocal expression (sung in Wolof) and the tight horn and bass arrangements.
• Kronos Quartet & Asha Bhosle, You've Stolen My Heart (Nonesuch Records) Kronos Quartet this time linked up with one of the most notable and prolific Bollywood singers, in a collaboration that was compelling and mind-opening in its own right!
• Bill Frisell, Ron Carter & Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Ron Carter & Paul Motian (Nonesuch Records) This is my first exposure to Bill Frisell and it has very quickly become one of my favourite albums. The sense of space, sparse arrangements and simple instrumentation really highlight the interplay between the bass and guitar.
• Mark Knopfler & EmmyLou Harris, All The RoadRunning (Nonesuch Records) Surprised that the leadman from Dire Straits and country/folk music singer-songwriter Emmylou Harris would appear on my list? Alas I don't live in a box! The result of this collaboration is a lyrically rich and emotionally evocative set of tracks, where the highlights move between Knopflers deft handiwork and Harris' signature melancholy.
• Youssou N'Dour, Egypt (Nonesuch Records) Big up to Nonesuch Records for putting out a lot of Mbalax music and getting this particularly West African sound out to a broader audience. This record by the Youssou N'Dour sees a departure from his usual melange of Mbalax and Afropop, this time singing in Arabic (rather than Wolof/French) and fusing traditionally Islamic musical instrumentation, verses and idioms (No, that is not a paradox!) with those of his native Senegal.
• Alex Smoke, (Soma) I enjoyed selected cuts from both Incommunicado (2005) and Paradolia (2006). The unmixed techno album, featuring all original material can be hard to get right. Alex got many many things right on this his debut and sophomore albums.
• Thom Yorke, Eraser (XL) I jumped on the bandwagon and picked this up last summer. There were some good attempts at more contemporary synthetic instrumentation (on the minimaltek tip), though sadly it does sound dated where it doesn't necessarily have to be. The best tracks are those where his trademark tenor takes the stage front and center.
• Lucien-N-Luciano, Blind Behavior (Playhouse) Upon a bed of tasteful bleeps, quirky flourishes and subtle rhythmic gestures, Lucien interweaves evocative and whimsical synthetic lines, bass and speech-singing. Beguiling and beautifully oblique.

Essential weblogs/podcasts:

• Benn loxo du taccu is Wolof for “one hand can't clap” and the name of a particularly awesome West African music blog by an American/English homestyle that lives in Paris and Dakar. His writing is insightful and never forgets to add the requisite context to help you appreciate the music. The flavours range from current trends to classic sounds. This is easily one of the better pan-African music blogs out there!
• Absolutely ESSENTIAL listening, the Blogariddims. I'm not totally blown away by the name, but the podcasts/mixtapes (here's the feed) are simply stunning, undeniably first-rate stuff. The mixes range from classical, electro-acoustic and avant-garde-y stuff (where you might find Morton Feldman, Penderecki or Edgar Varèse ) to standard reggae/dancehall/dub to blends that are straight up hot-off-the-press from Rinse FM. Very very healthy and part of a balanced listening diet!!!
• RSI Radio by John Eden, part of the crew responsible for Blogariddims, does this periodic radio show due to his Repetitive Strain Injury, featuring an expansive selection of reggae, dub, dark electro/techno/garage, old-skool 7" business and just about whatever else he's feeling at the moment. What's especially tasty is the way he'll play a riddim, like Hot Milk for example, by a certain artist, then mix in several different versions of the same riddim through the years, tracking and noting the musical fibers and commonalities that weave through the music over the years. Fascinating and very enlightening!!
• Beats in Space is a groovy house and techno podcast based in NYC that is notable for its interesting array of guests and especially because one of the first editions featured a sensational disco tinged set by the unequivocally badassss producer and selector Maurice Fulton.
• Comfort Noise productions. Yes yes, our good friend Marius from p45 records (Zürich) rounds out this list with his rich and very deeply musical genre-spanning radio show and mixes. Every month, it is a pleasure to see what he's cooked up in the studio and what interesting guest he's invited to play and interview. We're looking forward to meeting him when he visits San Francisco later this year. Big Up!!