Journal Fortunato_NC's Journal: Study Music 1
Lately, I've been studying with headphones on. Since I usually listen to public talk radio in the car, I'm not used to having "background music". But since my roommate has a very nice Creative Audigy sound system and very poor tastes in music, I have to put something over my ears to drown out the constant stream of bad 80's music pouring out of his office.
I'm also staying up late, thanks to my classes at UW. So I've been listening to a show on KCRW radio in Los Angeles called Metropolis. Metropolis bills itself as the "hypnotic pulse of modern city life", which translated means that the show is a mix of dance, drum and bass, chill and "old-school" techno music. I've always been a closet fan of this music (not that closet, you idiots...), but since I started working in Greenville, there has not been much of an opportunity for me to listen to it. This show has introduced me to some artists I wouldn't have heard of normally, and I figured I'd share some of my "discoveries".
Phoenix is a band from France, which means that their current chances of getting their new album Alphabetical released in the US anytime soon are about as good as Charlie Manson impressing a parole board. Luckily, Amazon will import you a copy, and their previous album United is actually available over here, if you have a halfway decent record store in your area. Phoenix mixes a traditional pop-rock band sound with electronic effects and keyboards to come up with a sound that manages to be low-key and get your toe tapping at the same time. "Everything is Everything" is probably destined to be a radio hit, with a exactly three-minute run-time, a hook that's hammered home every verse, and a catchy chorus that's easy to sing along with. This song, and some other Phoenix stuff are getting heavy airplay on KCRW right now, and it's well-deserved. I hope some other stations pick up on this talented bunch.
The Ananda Project's song "Kiss Kiss Kiss" is another one I've been looping through iTunes lately. I couldn't find a website for these guys, so you'll have to do your own Google work. This song takes a soothing piano loop, adds a simple backbeat and some guitar, and Heather Johnson's wonderful vocal work. The result is a brilliant blend of R&B and dance music, with sexually charged lyrics that still manage to work in the phrase "as I watched you eat your sandwich." I haven't heard anything else from Ananda Project, but I'm on the lookout. I really, really, really like this song, though.
Finally, I've been listening to some Felix Da Housecat. Simple 80's inspired electronic house music with an almost painful sense of irony (a sense of irony that's all the more painful when you consider I opened this journal entry bitching about my rommate's 80's-centered musical tastes). Ready 2 Wear is the best single off the album Devin Dazzle and The Neon Fever, whose cover art looks like something Rykodisc might have dreamed up for a Frank Zappa compilation. Felix Da Housecat definitely takes inspiration from New Order, Prince, and some other 80's standard bearers, but he doesn't wallow in it.
Anyhow, that's my listening habits lately. It's not Mozart, but what is these days?
places to check out... (Score:1)
Flaresound [flaresound.com] (The Jazz one is usually better)
great "work/study" music