Bye Trish, Again

Now, more than a month has passed since Trish's tragic death. She was only 42. Even though I didn't know her and have never met her, I feel as if a part of me has vanished. I know, the music still remains, but being conscious that she s not present in this world is saddening. The fear of death is omnipresent. The closest person who died were my dog Lora and my childhood friend Bojan. I fear of death of my loved ones, who doesn't after all?

The beginning of zeroes when VIVA2 was an abundant fountain of new and remarkable bands, rise of Ladytron, peak of Placebo, Goldfrapp's arrival, discovery of Towa Tei, Stereolab, Pavement, Queens of the stone age...I remember, Ivan lent me the yellow CD "Noise Made By People". It seduced me with the tender crystal voice, tedious analogue synths, Antionioni's Blow Up feeling of presence of death, 60's women clothes and 60s TV shows, dreams from which you wake up with tears but you forget what you dreamed of.

This is the song from their first record, the collection of singles before 2000. I only discovered it now after her death.



Retro pop style they never actually changed, they developed it. In fact, Trish sings of the memories from the past world, the music is reminiscent of 60s TV show music.
"This phenomenon of carefully enunciating strange narratives over a psychedelic background can perhaps be viewed as a relic or a lost art form in itself, recalling the tendency in 60s British children's TV to combine whacked-out ideas with cheery, polite delivery. Trish emphasized that these memories of a pre-lapsarian, futuristic education through media were not her own (she was born in 1968), but that they were part of her imaginative heritage, like dated paperbacks that could be plundered for inspiration."
source: http://www.tinymixtapes.com/features/trish-keenan-broadcast-1995-2011



The following video is Papercuts, taken from their most praised LP The noise made by people.





Somewhat darker world comes from their LP Haha Sound from 2003. this song is my favorite from the album



Tender Buttons came out in 2005, with only Tish and her partner James Cargill. It nourished the true pop gem Michael a Grammar.




Although I was more concentrated on paying attention to her melodies and music, the texts are really amazing. Jessica Monk's marvelous post encourages me to observe Trish's lyrics more carefully.

We are mankind
We are manikin
With and without mind
With or without Darwin

Classify me
The strings of my autonomy
Classify me
The strings of my autonomy
Corporeal corporeal





The band's fourth proper album was expected this year and they announced the tour, if the band will still exist without Trish, that is still unknown.


Trish, you ll never be forgotten...

LONE

Matt Cutler, AKA Lone is a guy who makes great stuff. Thoughts directed somewhere far away, dreams that are yet to be made and voices yet to be heard. Beats that massage your brain in this -5 degree winter, funky samples that enhance your imagination..




The following track combines traces of the Boards of Canada and funky melancholia that is unique to Lone. You just have to like it, like those snow flakes falling outside your warm room.




His LPs Ecstasy and Friends (2009) and Emerald Fantasy Tracks (2010)are IDMish,neo-house, broken beat, dreamy tracks that will make you winter funky. mhmmm!!

FM Belfast

I subscribed to Last Fm to which I'm sometimes listening at work...as they tend to frequently repeat songs by same artists, I discovered FM Belfast. They sound just the way I like, low fi synth pop, female and male vocals singing about nonsense, VHS, toys, = icelandic Hot Chip.. their lyrics are a bit childish, their music synth-ish and so sexy.



These cute Icelandic synth geeks published How to Make Friends LP already in 2008. Even though I am 2 years late, it s never too late to get addicted!!

O Children

when u listen to this band the first thing that crosses ur mind is the melancholy and guitars of Joy Division and the vocal of Nick Cave...



why? why are they copying them so much? why does the singer sound like the spitted copy of Nick Cave and Ian Curtis? i have one answer: I DON T CARE...
their music is fantastic, production flawless, each song on the album is catchy in its way...what else should i ask for??:)

Mount Kimbie

the name sounded so catchy, so i gave it a try....now im addicted to them. it s not really dubstep (or post dubstep as someone might call them), it s more of abstract hip hop/garage layers with micro sounds that overwhelm you.. if you listen to the album while cooking, fucking, sleeping or whatever u r doing u ll get addicted to it..it s perfect for everything! listen to the whole album, your days will be colored by the newest sounds of London.
this is the single i suppose followed by a nice hipster video



and this is my favorite track from the album

Autolux

This LA band swings you into the lake of melancholy, new regrets and old thrills. It is my kind of emo :) the same one i felt while listening to Smashing Pumpking in teenage days, although this is much maturer nihilistic melancholy..

There are dozens of bands like this, the main parent being Sonic Youth, but this one has just stuck to my ear. Sugar male vocal, distorted riffs, great mastering, misanthrope lyrics. They have 2 LPSs, the new album Transit Transit just came out.

Kill this summer and fuck in sadness!!!

Midnight Juggernauts

BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
Midnight Juggernauts's new album Crystal Axis is out!! Oh my god, yes it is.. This album is on eternal repeat, I just can t get enough of it. This band comes from magical Australia. (what is it with that country, they all make groovy synth pop - Presets, Cut Copy,..) When their first album Dystopia came out in 2007, I was blissed. First three opening tracks were total hits. They introduced melodic synth pop-ish retro sound to symphonic rock. The new world is announced. the world where nostalgia and joy intertwine. the world of broken hearts and boogie woogie.
after their debut I thought: well, they can t overcome the grandiosity of the first album..fortunately,they surprised me. This album is even BETTER. every track is a unit of its own. Magnificent Vital Signs opens its door to this wealth of pop,



Lifeblood Now is red carpet leading to the castle of pop kingdom, New Technology is the grand dinner table where the pop deserts are served,


while the Great Beyond is the king and king's throne (or queen and queen's) !!



The best of all, I will see them live at the EXIT festival. Counting the dayssssssssssss tik tak tik tak..........