Iskra

DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist, “[Part 2]”

Oh shit! Enjoy! This is the second half of Product Placement, the breakbeat extravaganza collaboration between two break experts. Incredible stuff, and honestly, I could probably just end today after this. This project ties together the songs that provide the key breakbeats that hip-hop was built out of, but provides more context for them, and it rules.

TWRP, “Need Each Other”

Gleeful electro-funk outfit TWRP are entirely about cranking up a good time with the fattest grooves they can conjure. Is it pointlessly retro or not? I don’t think it matters, frankly. If they can bring it, does it matter that they’re conjuring the sounds of the 80s?

Wire, “Practice Makes Perfect”

The second Wire album, Chairs Missing, was a little less frenetic than the debut record. Many of the songs are given more room to develop, with a little bit more of a drone-y feeling to some of the songs. It’s still great, but it’s a different sort of record. This is how the record opens, setting the stage for how things would go.

Piss Vortex, “Abyss”

Hee hee, Piss Vortex. Sorry folks, couldn’t resist this band! A little grindcore never hurt anybody! (This is not true, lots of people have probably been hurt at grindcore shows.)

Sumerlands, “Blind”

We’ve talked around here a lot (well, I talked…typed…whatever) about metal’s many genres. One thing that these genres can do is result in pigeonholing your listening too much. So, I periodically sample from genres that I’m not big on. Usually it doesn’t work! This album was one of those experiments, where I decided to go for a modern heavy metal record. It doesn’t really do much for me. Oh well!