stamp the wax

Guitar, Indie, Live Reviews 24/02/2012

Live Review: Dog Is Dead @ Thekla, Bristol – 21 February

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Standing in a sparsely populated hull of a ship is already an odd sensation. This is multiplied however when waiting to see a five-piece from Nottingham that operates under the name ‘Dog Is Dead’. Naturally with this kind of name one might expect a virile metal concoction to make your ears weep. Yet the noise that emerged was entirely different. I’d be lying if I said their sound wasn’t essentially poppy, with strong hooks and brazen melodies, but unlike much other cannon fodder around at the moment, they manage to dunk these tunes into a layer of simple synth and tasty harmonies you can sink your teeth into. Moreover, the versatility of this band meant they were able to produce a saxophone to delicately (and rather brashly at times) play alongside the riffs, giving them a slight edge in this indie dog-eat-dog world.

Competitions, Electronic 26/01/2012

Competition: Win Nicolas Jaar – Space Is Only Noise Vinyl LP

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2011 was quite a year for Nicolas Jaar and just two months into 2012 he’s set to take to the stage of Camden’s Roundhouse to showcase his new label Clown & Sunset. Having just been voted the no. 1 live act in the Resident Advisor polls, and seeing Nico at his last London date (where he played one of three sold out nights at Fabric), take it from us, this is one opportunity not to miss out on.

Electronic, Hip-Hop 17/12/2011

New Release: Azealia Banks – Liqourice

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Azealia Banks, the vibrant 21 year old rapper from Harlem, is back to give us one more fix before the year is up. Since the profanity-nourished track 212 went viral, there’s been some whispers of a debut album come 2012 plus rumours of business phonecalls with Kanye West.

Electronic, New Artists, RnB & Soul 14/12/2011

New Artist: Szjerdene

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It’s always great to see musicians doing something different, as is the case with North London singer Szjerdene. She’s been elegantly fusing Soul, RnB and Jazz vocals with Glitch-Hop backdrops; drawing clear parallel’s with the Future-Soul sound that has come out of L.A. in the last few months via OFWGKTA sub-group The Internet. Leila’s Tale has her beautiful tones sprinkled generously over a rework instrumental from Swiss-born producer Dimlite. A match made in heaven, we can’t wait to hear more!

Free MP3s, RnB & Soul 13/12/2011

New Release: Mar Variation – Avril 14th with Szjerdene

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It’s safe to say that Aphex Twin, known as the most inventive and influential figure in contemporary electronic music today, has had a pretty interesting 2011. Kanye West sampled the track Avril 14th off the 2001 drukQs album to make a melancholic love joint with John Legend called Blame Game. Now, Dutch-born RnB/Neo-Soul singer Mar (of Full Crate & Mar) and North London counterpart Szjerdene have collaborated to showcase their version of the famous piano track. It is in keeping with Mar’s Variation project, which has him reinterpreting old songs in his own style, accompanied by some very cinematic videos. The video for Avril 14th is a bit heavy, (it might even be a homage to Aphex Twin’s notoriously messed up music videos) but we love the new interpretation – AAAAND it’s a free download which you can get here.