Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 208

June 07, 2013

Mining the Audio Motherlode, Volume 208

Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere

One of the best destinations online for intelligent writing about fantastic music is the blog Office Naps. Now in its eighth (!) year, Office Naps keeps steadily pumping out erudite explorations of unusual musical categories—recent ground covered includes moody country melodrama, Arabic-American fusions and variations on Eden Ahbez's "Nature Boy"—each one replete with a trio of killer songs to sample.

Proprietor Little Danny is ever generous with historical detail, contextual analysis, and personal observations on offbeat recordings and the artists who made them. Danny's magnificent record collection is on display through the voluminous archived pages of Office Naps. Need extra incentive to read posts dating to 2006? Since his sounds files are hosted locally, all the downloads are still available! And if these offerings aren't nearly enough, take time to visit Danny's other sites, the virtual jukeboxes The Exotica Project and The Lonely Planet. This is sonic spelunking of the highest order. Do yourself a favor and get caught napping.

For Office Naps' latest sonic expedition see our lead item, below.

Various ~ "Crime Jazz" selections
(Blog: Office Naps)

Arresting Sounds
"[These] three selections are more than just the sum of their jazz atmospherics, walking bass lines and bursts of brass, organ and strings. These share a peculiar theatricality with other jazz-based themes of the era–themes that, during opening credits, foretold ninety minutes of intrigue and high-stakes thrills. These selections embody the spirit of DRAMATIC ACTION. The sense of danger, justice and dark, moving forces is flamboyant, even hysterical. Sometimes it’s not enough for music just to be listened to. Sometimes it has to kick down the door and scream at you." (Description by Little Danny)

Phil Yost ~ Fog-Hat Ramble
(Blog: Ghostcapital)

Yostcapital
"One of the more obscure and mysterious releases in the classic Takoma cannon. Out there, Bay Area hippie-improv jazz canoodlings. Woodwind, bass and echo-driven. All instruments played by Mr. Yost. Biographically, I’ve found next to nothing about him, online. 320 Vinyl rip by yours truly. Big thanks to D." (Description by Nick B, taken from another Phil Yost LP offering at Ghostcapital)

Stanislas Tohon ~ Dans le Tchink System
(Blog: Oro)

King Tchink
"This album is a masterpiece. Totally afrobeat taken from traditional tchinkoume rhythm of Benin that Stanislas Tohon wonderfully modernized. Recorded in Côte d'Ivoire and Produced by famous Papa Disco, the orchestration, the arrangements and especially the density of the recording make this record unique. It is also very rare and hard to find. All the songs are good, there is nothing to throw. The new version of 'Yallow,' that Sam Fan Thomas made known abroad, is completely successful." (Description by Oro)

Kamal Ahmed ~ Haira Pheri
(Blog: Indian and Pakistani Vinyl)

Hooray for Lollywood
For another 20 gems by this composer for Pakistani film, go to Indian and Pakistani Vinyl.

Clear Light ~ Black Roses
(Blog: Hippy Djkit)

Tangled Up in Mr. Blue
"Clear Light is an amalgam of some good rock vehicular elements. It feeds these back mostly unrefined, and so serves as a function of nescient [sic] salvation—that is, to give us the beauty and frustration of pure form. The normal effect of all the 'good' elements is defined by the lack of adulteration. Eclecticism degenerates into chaotic purity, and influence into a plagiaristic nulle-part. All caused, no doubt, by sheer charismatic reticence." (Excerpt of Alan Lanier's review in the December 1967 issue of Crawdaddy)

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