1. ancoats2zambia (The Baby Namboos)
2. Angels with Dirty Faces (Tricky)
3. Animal (Ke$ha)
4. Anniemal (Annie)
5. Arabian Horse (Gusgus)
6. Baduizm (Erykah Badu)
7. The Beauty in Distortion / Land of the Lost (J*DaVeY)
8. Bizarre Nation [Disc 2] (Various Artists)
9. Blowback (Tricky)
10. Body Talk [Pt. 1, 2, 3] (Robyn)
11. Boy in Da Corner (Dizzee Rascal)
12. Boy Is Fiction (Boy Is Fiction)
13. Broadcasts in Colour (Boy Is Fiction)
14. Broke with Expensive Taste (Azealia Banks)
15. Call to Mind (Commix)
16. Cannibal (Ke$ha)
17. Carpainter (Carpainter)
18. Chatterton (Chelonis R. Jones)
19. chiptek (she)
20. Chiptune Memories (she)
21. city of glass (glaspaser)
22. coloris (she)
23. Colours (Adam F)
24. COSMIC EXPLORER (Perfume)
25. CRUSH (2NE1)
26. Da 2nd Phaze (Eskiboy)
27. days (she)
28. Dedication (Zomby)
29. digital ambient designs (she)
30. Discovery (Daft Punk)
31. Dislocated Genius (Chelonis R. Jones)
32. Don't Stop (Annie)
33. Down to Earth (Bungle)
34. Entropy (Icicle)
35. Esperanza (Esperanza Spalding)
36. Everything Ecstatic (Four Tet)
37. False Idols (Tricky)
38. Family Portrait (Ross From Friends)
39. Fatherfucker (Peaches)
40. Fear Not (Logistics)
41. The Fifth (Dizzee Rascal)
42. The Forgotten Floor (4Gotten Floor)
43. Future Brown (Future Brown)
44. Future History (Nu:Tone)
45. Gangster Chronicle (London Posse)
46. GAS (GAS)
47. Generally Speaking (Newham Generals)
48. Godfather II (Wiley)
49. Greatest Hits (Skepta)
50. HAKA: The Greatest Hits (Various Artists)
51. Half Shadows (TOKiMONSTA)
52. Halfaxa (Grimes)
53. Heligoland (Massive Attack)
54. Homework (Daft Punk)
55. Human After All (Daft Punk)
56. Human Story 3 (James Ferraro)
57. I Feel Cream (Peaches)
58. I Love Grime (Various Artists)
59. The Inevitable End (Royksopp)
60. The Intricate Beauty (King Britt)
61. Introducing Tokyo Prose (Tokyo Prose)
62. Junior (Royksopp)
63. Junjo (Esperanza Spalding)
64. Juxtapose (Tricky)
65. Kamikaze (Icarus)
66. King Original [Vol. 3, Vol. 4] (Footsie)
67. Lazy Beats 2 (Eggshell Goblin)
68. Level3 (Perfume)
69. Lifeforms (Future Sound of London)
70. Linear S Decoded (SHXCXCHCXSH)
71. Lipstick (Orange Caramel)
72. Living the Dream (Jammer)
73. London Zoo (The Bug)
74. Los Angeles (Flying Lotus)
75. Love & Devotion (Heterotic)
76. LOVE&PEACE (Girls' Generation)
77. Loveless (My Bloody Valentine)
78. LP5 (Autechre)
79. Lubuaku (Konono No. 1)
80. Mad Raver's Dance Floor (Goth-Trad)
81. Man on the Moon: The End of Day (Kid Cudi)
82. Man on the Moon, Vol. II: The Legend of Mr. Rager (Kid Cudi)
83. Mark E Works 2005 - 2009 Selected Tracks and Edits (Mark E)
84. Mary Musth (MAGNOLIUS)
85. Maths + English (Dizzee Rascal)
86. Maxinequaye (Tricky)
87. Melody A.M. (Royksopp)
88. Memories (Bungle)
89. Memories of the Future (Kode9 + The Spaceape)
90. Mercury's Rainbow (Zomby)
91. Metaphorical Music (Nujabes)
92. Method to the Maadness (Kano)
93. Midnight Menu (TOKiMONSTA)
94. Midtown 120 Blues (DJ Sprinkles)
95. Millennium Mambo OST (Yoshihiro Hanno & Lim Giong)
96. Mixed Race (Tricky)
97. Music for Real Airports (The Black Dog)
98. Nanda Collection (Kyary Pamyu Pamyu)
99. Nearly God (Nearly God)
100. New Amerykah - Part One (4th World War) [Erykah Badu]
101. New Designer Drug (J*DaVeY)
102. New Energy (Four Tet)
103. nightbath (galen tipton)
104. No One's Listening Anymore (Klute)
105. Nocturnes (Little Boots)
106. Now More Than Ever (Logistics)
107. NXB (Triad God)
108. NYC, Hell 3:00AM (James Ferraro)
109. Ode to Hyde (MAGNOLIUS)
110. Omaru (Toiret Status)
111. One Way (Mark One)
112. Orbits (Starkey)
113. orion (she)
114. Pamyu Pamyu Revolution (Kyary Pamyu Pamyu)
115. Parallel Memories (Mr. Mitch)
116. Pimp Master (Soil & "Pimp" Sessions)
117. Pimp of the Year (Soil & "Pimp" Sessions)
118. Pimpoint (Soil & "Pimp" Sessions)
119. Pink Friday (Nicki Minaj)
120. Pink Tape [f(x)]
121. Planet Pimp (Soil & "Pimp" Sessions)
122. The Planets (Terror Danjah)
123. Polydistortion (Gusgus)
124. Pre-Millennium Tension (Tricky)
125. The Present Lover (Luomo)
126. Pressure (The Bug)
127. Product of the Environment (Tricky)
128. Psionics (Goth-Trad)
129. Queerifications and Ruins (DJ Sprinkles)
130. Quixotic (Martina Topley-Bird)
131. Rave Rising (Ennnn)
132. Reality Distortion (かめりあ vs. Akira Complex)
133. Red Light [f(x)]
134. Remixed (by Tricky) [Various Artists]
135. Restless (Faye Wong)
136. Rhythm Trax Vol. 4 (Dam-Funk)
137. Robyn (Robyn)
138. Royksopp.com Tracks of the Month (Royksopp)
139. Safe (Visionist)
140. Science Fiction (Bachelors of Science)
141. Sealed for Freshness: Blend Tape (Pac Div)
142. See Clear Now (Wiley)
143. Senior (Royksopp)
144. Shark Carousel (Mrs Jynx)
145. The Shimmering Hour (Wisp)
146. Silica Gel (BODYGUARD)
147. Sine Tempus: The Soundtrack (Goldie)
148. Skid Row (James Ferraro)
149. Skilled Mechanics (Skilled Mechanics)
150. Sleepstep (Dasha Rush)
151. Snakes and Ladders (Wiley)
152. Sonic Diary (costanza)
153. Soundsystem (The Qemists)
154. SPD GAR (Various Artists)
155. Speed Garage Anthems [Vol. 1, Vol. 2] (Various Artists)
156. Speedin' Bullet 2 Heaven (Kid Cudi)
157. Squid Ink (Icarus)
158. The Standoffish Cat (Mrs Jynx)
159. Sushi (James Ferraro)
160. T5UMUT5UMU EDIT PACK (T5UMUT5UMU)
161. Takk... (Sigur Rós)
162. Tangram (Reso)
163. That's Harakiri (Sd Laika)
164. There Is Love In You (Four Tet)
165. This Is Normal (Gusgus)
166. To Anyone (2NE1)
167. Tongue'N'Cheek (Dizzee Rascal)
168. Top Producer (Jammer)
169. Torsion Spring (stepic)
170. Treddin' On Thin Ice (Wiley)
171. TREKKIE TRAX X HAKAisDEAD (Various Artists)
172. Trekkie Trax The Best 2012 - 2017 (Various Artists)
173. TREKKIE TRAX THE BEST 2016-2017 (Various Artists)
174. ukg (TQD)
175. Undeniable (Terror Danjah)
176. The Understanding (Royksopp)
177. ununiform (Tricky)
178. Value (Visionist)
179. The VinchOnacci Project (DaVinche)
180. Vocal Studies + Uprock Narratives (Prefuse 73)
181. Von (Sigur Rós)
182. Vulnerable (Tricky)
183. Warehouse Dayz (Bachelors of Science)
184. Warrior (Ke$ha)
185. WZRD (WZRD)
186. Yo! Bum Rush the Show (Public Enemy)
187. Youth Novels (Lykke Li)
188. ZB2 (Footsie)
189. Zips 1 + 2 (Wiley)
190. 3 Feet High and Rising (De La Soul)
191. 4 Walls [f(x)]
192. 7 Days of Funk (7 Days of Funk)
193. The 13th Note (Mrs Jynx)
194. The 18th Day (Estelle)
195. 21 (Marcus Intalex)
196. 23 (Subeena)
197. 28 Gun Bad Boy (A Guy Called Gerald)
198. 100% Publishing (Wiley)
199. 1983 (Flying Lotus)
200. () [Sigur Rós]
Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Best MVs 2018
Came out three weeks into the new year and faced no competition at all for the rest of it. Chung Ha's charisma is just off the charts.
It's hard to tell what this MV is supposed to be conveying. It seems like abandoned exposition for a movie that doesn't exist, something modelled after...I, ROBOT? A cinematic vignette without surrounding context. Matters aren't helped by the song, which, despite its claims to "filth," isn't especially dark, saucy, or even coherent - sonically or lyrically. Suggestive, at the very least (Malaysia 2028!), but not unenjoyable as such.
(Special mention also to Man of the Woods, another confounding song/video combination, one so silly it almost charms its way onto this list.)
When this premiered, Sarah and I compared it to K-Pop, and I think the point of reference still holds. It's more open and pleasure-focused than most Western pop allows itself to be, and Troye Sivan's presence could be as powerful solo as in a boy band.
Where vertical composition goes now that it's been introduced is anyone's guess, but music videos are a great way of experimenting without having to commit more than a few minutes to the attempt. This is a nice song from an artist who deserves to be more famous, and hopefully still has the chance to be. It's no Superlove, but Tinashe's dancing remains incredible here.
If Michael Mann directed post-human music videos.
Hard to describe in words, yet perfectly clear as experience.
Unpopular opinion but...I prefer this song to Bodak Yellow by several orders of magnitude. No disrespect to Cardi though, who wended her way across the social media swamp and claimed the treasures lying in wait. I just happen to like this MV a lot, so it gets pride of place.
Title says it all.
One of Young Thug's best, with a strong assist from Lil Uzi. That and the MV's dark visions make this one stand out in Thugger's extensive body of work.
This one made me stand up and take notice. I haven't connected as much with their other songs, but there's no denying the grinding beat and energetic raps on DIANA.
Some unbelievable flows here. I always appreciate the ambition of MVs that push toward 10 minutes (or more).
The first few seconds of this video are so bizarrely disorienting that I hoped the whole video continue in the same vein. Nevertheless, the remainder is plenty solid, although I'm still not sure Drake belongs in this song.
Finishing up with more of the best. BRTHR's one of the best MV directors working right now, and this one, for Kali Uchis, is another great serving of rainbow-slime psychedelia. It's always hard to choose just one image from BRTHR's videos, so I went for two this time. Compositionally similar yet very different, they seem to express two halves of the MV -- even if, unfortunately, some of the wilder tangents are left uncaptured.
I know everyone's mad at Ariana now and I understand 100%. But I can't bring myself to disavow her earlier achievements, and this must be her very highest. Complemented with an all-time best MV by the great Dave Meyers, no tears left to cry breaks up its visual space post-cinematically to match Ariana's limitless emotion. The infinitude of interiority is expressed through digitally manipulated exteriority, like INCEPTION with all the fluidity that flat-footed film lacked. And what a strange, marvelous mood this song casts: crestfallen but resilient, defiant but hurt, vulnerable in all the most heartbreaking ways. Ariana's recent admission that she suffers from debilitating PTSD informs this song retroactively, adding the specificity of her experience to a song with the utilitarian, audience-focused dimensions of all great pop. It lives on unresolved dialectics, yet none of these impinge on the song itself. It's only as wounded as it needs to be, sublimely self-assured when it's not. After Roller Coaster, this was 2018's ultimate pop gem, and I'll always be grateful to Ariana for giving it to us, no matter what else the future holds.
Saturday, April 6, 2019
04/19
Brandon Soderberg's commemoration of Freddie Gray's death goes farther than just memorial, actively linking that tragedy to other key events since 2014. Just look at the density of this screencap:
Injustice after injustice. And no signs of improvement. As our mayor celebrates one month of exile from her job, it's anybody's turn at figuring out where to go from here.
The parts of this essay that concern Stuart Hall and his collaborators are very strong. They make a lot of sense in relation to that specific period of British history, when no coalition emerged that was significant enough to overturn Thatcherism. I'm less fond of where Haider takes those conclusions, which seem unhelpfully vague and general.
Really liked this dismantling of the Green New Deal excitement. A useful rhetorical tool for sure, but impossible without radical change.
Simple as it sounds: Where Do Correct Ideas Come From?, by Mao.
And on the subject of China, there's a willingness to tackle elder care that is lacking in Japan and, evidently, Britain. I feel like it could be rewarding to dig into how Communist countries handle this vs. capitalist countries, how human life is valued under these two oppositional ideologies.
Linn Ullman in her own words.
Alt Lit is dead and deserves to die.
Adam Kotsko, author of Creepiness, on creepy Joe Biden. I think this also illuminates about why so many men shoot for the status of "uncle," it's a low-stakes version of adulthood that doesn't challenge them in any serious way.
So much to say, so much I felt about Agnes' passing. Richard Brody is great about it, as he always is with Francophone filmmakers of a certain age. For myself, I made the conscious choice a few years ago to spend time with Agnes' films while she was still alive. The choice came as a result of a Tweet, glimpsed just briefly in my Twitter feed but destined to have a large impact on me, which advised we appreciate Agnes, Godard, Luc Moullet, and a forgotten fourth while they're still alive. I took this suggestion and generalized; I want to appreciate all elders while the chance exists.
And lastly, I decided yesterday (4/30) that I'd like to attend an action for solidarity with Venezuela and Maduro...only to read this a few hours later. Maybe I haven't been tuned in enough, but the bloodlust raging around Venezuela had seemed to be calming in the last few months. I thought perhaps the USA had lost interest in its perpetual victim. Uncharacteristically, it seems I was too optimistic, and Venezuela is very much still under threat. So I'll be attending that action after all in just a few hours, less to affect any kind of change than to make vocal my hatred of imperialism. I am, however, open to all possibilities.
Injustice after injustice. And no signs of improvement. As our mayor celebrates one month of exile from her job, it's anybody's turn at figuring out where to go from here.
The parts of this essay that concern Stuart Hall and his collaborators are very strong. They make a lot of sense in relation to that specific period of British history, when no coalition emerged that was significant enough to overturn Thatcherism. I'm less fond of where Haider takes those conclusions, which seem unhelpfully vague and general.
Really liked this dismantling of the Green New Deal excitement. A useful rhetorical tool for sure, but impossible without radical change.
Simple as it sounds: Where Do Correct Ideas Come From?, by Mao.
And on the subject of China, there's a willingness to tackle elder care that is lacking in Japan and, evidently, Britain. I feel like it could be rewarding to dig into how Communist countries handle this vs. capitalist countries, how human life is valued under these two oppositional ideologies.
Linn Ullman in her own words.
Alt Lit is dead and deserves to die.
Adam Kotsko, author of Creepiness, on creepy Joe Biden. I think this also illuminates about why so many men shoot for the status of "uncle," it's a low-stakes version of adulthood that doesn't challenge them in any serious way.
So much to say, so much I felt about Agnes' passing. Richard Brody is great about it, as he always is with Francophone filmmakers of a certain age. For myself, I made the conscious choice a few years ago to spend time with Agnes' films while she was still alive. The choice came as a result of a Tweet, glimpsed just briefly in my Twitter feed but destined to have a large impact on me, which advised we appreciate Agnes, Godard, Luc Moullet, and a forgotten fourth while they're still alive. I took this suggestion and generalized; I want to appreciate all elders while the chance exists.
And lastly, I decided yesterday (4/30) that I'd like to attend an action for solidarity with Venezuela and Maduro...only to read this a few hours later. Maybe I haven't been tuned in enough, but the bloodlust raging around Venezuela had seemed to be calming in the last few months. I thought perhaps the USA had lost interest in its perpetual victim. Uncharacteristically, it seems I was too optimistic, and Venezuela is very much still under threat. So I'll be attending that action after all in just a few hours, less to affect any kind of change than to make vocal my hatred of imperialism. I am, however, open to all possibilities.
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