Francois K
Happy birthday to Francois K, born 10 January 1954. FK has an impressive body of work surrounding him, working with a diverse range of artists including D-Train, Joni Mitchell, U2, Jean Michel Jarre, Nina Simone, Goldfrapp, LCD Soundsystem, and the legendary Kraftwerk. His weekly NYC residency Deep Space travels across multiple musical universes, and often features electronic music luminaries.
One of my favorite FK pieces of work is his remix of “Forever More” by Moloko. A collaboration with Eric Kupper, the remix is a stripped back, modern classic that slowly builds around Roisin Murphy’s vocal performance.
RIP: Steve Jobs.
9/11. Ten years on.
House History: King Britt.
Horrible news broke this week, as Paris Hilton announced that she was studying to become a house DJ and wanted to be the “queen of house music”. I usually ignore any kind of news surrounding these type of people, but the fact that she was intruding into a genre that I care so deeply about really hit a nerve with me. Having house music exposed by a rich kid who has too much time on their hands and is simply riding the current trend only infects it, especially at a time when other pop acts have bastardized the art of four/four.
This news caused me to dig through my vaults and find some of the tracks from the early days of house music, when the production was raw, gritty and soulful. Artists who were just starting out with minimal equipment and telling stories of their lives, cities and environments through a musical form that was sample heavy, using musical instruments and technologies in ways that pushed the boundaries to create new sounds and styles. This wasn’t radio music; songs with traditional ‘verse/chorus/verse’ were rare, and time limits didn’t exist – they were free to run for as long as you wanted, as atmosphere and elements slowly unfold. Tracks stood alone, but also took on a different life when placed within a DJ set.
During this hunt I came across the site of King Britt, who has recently been posting the stories behind some of his work. Check out the details on some historic pieces such as E-Culture on Strictly Rhythm, and “Strong Song” – both collaborations with Josh Wink. The classic “Supernatural” featuring Ursula Rucker is also explained here.
King is an a highly versatile artist whose talents go beyond house over the past twenty years. He was also a member of Digable Planets, released the Sylk 130 project, got cosmic on the Nova Dream Sequence, remixed Tony Scott‘s “Hare Krishna” on Verve, and brought a new life to the gospel recordings of Sister Gertrude Morgan. Most recently he has been collaborating with science fiction singer Rucyl for Saturn Never Sleeps.
Check more King Britt on his official site or via Twitter @KingBritt
Steve Jobs Resigns.
Love him or loathe him, there is no denying that Steve Jobs is a rare force in an industry that is, for the most part, faceless and lacking in any kind of personality. Disregarding the fanboys or cult-status of the company he co-created, his journey through Apple is one of the most interesting business stories of all time, and despite this being his second departure as CEO of Apple, this time it’s on his terms and sees the company in a substantially different position compared the previous round.
While it’s unconfirmed, it’s widely believed that health issues are the main reason for him stepping down and leaving COO Tim Cook in the driving seat. Jobs will take up the position of chairman on the board, and it goes without saying that his influence on Apples products will continue to be seen for some time to come.
Grace Jones in Dub.
On September 6th, Grace Jones will release “Hurricane Dub”, featuring 10 new Ivor Guest-created dub versions from the Hurricane album, which will also be included in the set. This is the first Grace Jones album to be released in the USA in 22-years, since it was excluded from the original 2008-release schedule. Album artwork by Jean-Paul Goude, featuring the 64-year old icon in her trademark, menacing style.
Want.
As an old-school vinyl junkie, ‘special edition’ releases from our favourite artists push a certain “must-have” mental button. I’m not talking about re-released edition with a bonus cd of remixes or tracks not good enough to make the original album; I’m talking about genuine, limited edition releases that have had some proper work put into them.
Bjork‘s upcoming “Biophilia” album (due for release late-September) falls into this category. The Ultimate Edition is available for pre-order until August 12th. Presented in a lacquered and silkscreened oak hinged-lid case, consists of the Biophilia Manual—two discs of music in a 48-page, full-color, hardbound, cloth-covered, and thread-sewn book, tipped on lenticular panel to the front cover, with foil-blocked spine and back cover—along with 10 chrome-plated tuning forks, silkscreened on one face in 10 different colors, stamped at the back, and presented in a flocked tray. Each fork is adjusted to the tone of a Biophilia track, covering a complete octave in a non-conventional scale.
And it costs US$800 / £500. (How do I get this?!)
Available from shop.bjork.com (outside USA) or http://www.nonesuch.com/albums/biophilia-ultimate (USA/Canada).
Josh Wink @ XVI
Saturday July 2nd: Central Park’s SummerStage was home to a free Roy Ayers concert where he celebrated his 70th birthday and vibed his way through many of his classics, supported by an amazing crew of musicians. Sunday July 3rd: the Verboten crew and their regular Sunday afternoon/evening party played host to a 4-hour Josh Wink on the rooftop of a 16-story midtown-Manhattan venue called XVI. Once again, he demonstrated the art of a true old-school DJ, effortlessly weaving his way between musical spectrums. The last 90-minutes of his set were particularly special, pulling out endless classics from Murk, Gusto “Disco’s Revenge”, Paperclip People “Throw”, Prince, Doug Lazy, Hardrive “Deep Inside”, Yello “Bostich” and finishing his set with the legendary “Plastic Dreams” by Jaydee. A surreal moment occurred when he dropped Inner City’s “Big Fun” – with the atmosphere of New York skyscapers, a sunset and a dancefloor of smiling people singing along to the sublime anthem. (RA Photos available here)
Josh Wink has a weekly 1-hour show on Satellite radio (SiriusXM) in America, where he showcases recent sets. The past two weeks have featured his set from this amazing night and have helped me re-live an unforgettable time. Downloads the shows here: Part 1 and Part 2 (which features some jackin’ old-school house in the last 30 minutes).
