Give the Drummer Some's
Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere
On July 1, Google will finally kill off its popular RSS feed aggregator Reader. Claiming that short-form-news delivery platforms like Twitter are more in tune with how people consume information, Google is abandoning Reader eight years after it was introduced.
For the purposes of producing Mining the Audio Motherlode, this has been, if not a disaster, a huge pain in the arse. I have relied heavily on Reader to help me keep tabs on more than 500 music-sharing blogs, reading, saving and managing many hundreds of posts on a daily basis. Almost as soon as Google announced Reader's demise, a surfeit of products hoping to replace it flooded the market. I migrated to the best of them, Feedly, in March, but still find it a considerably greater challenge to use. Feedly promises upgrades, including the essential ability to search among previously saved items, but until it does, the time and effort it takes to pump out the Motherlode will probably keep publishing it on a roughly bi-weekly schedule.
But enough about the sausage-making, how about some sausage!
The Manipoto Voices ~ Songs of the Maori
(Blog: Kadao Ton Kao)
Ngati Dread
"We have here a collection of Maori songs by several Maori composers. Three of these are by Kingsi Tahiwi of the Ngati Raukawa tribe. The four Hikuroa sisters had a duty to their parents and, in particular, to their father who took a deep interest in Maori music and the training of his daughters' voices. This is what motivated these essentially individualistic soloists into collaborating their vocal efforts in the belief that they had something worthwhile to offer Maori music. KAY who sings lead in all the songs has a particularly outstanding voice and is a versatile singer. Her rendering of 'Now Is the Hour' with her sisters, touches one to the very soul. KELLY, the soloist in most of the songs, as well as her artistic technique, has a deep vibrant quality which brings colour to the different presentations. LAURA, the youngest of the group, has a soft deep voice so necessary to this type of harmony. HINERANGI, the eldest of the sisters, composes many of the songs used by the Quartet, with the idea of encouraging the Maori people to use their natural talents in this field." (Description from the liner notes)
Shuko Mizuno/Toshiyuki Miyama & The New Herd ~ The World of Shuko Mizuno
(Blog: El Goog Ja)
Shuko Jive
"Upon his return to Japan, Mizuno developed his illustrious compositional career, creating over one hundred works which showcase an impressive range of musical styles and his gifts as a composer. His proclivity for improvisational experimentation has earned him multiple commissions from the Japan Opera Foundation. The Tokyo Symphony Orchestra regularly performs his instrumental works. In addition to composing, Mizuno has conducted Japan's premier orchestras. He is considered integral to the Japanese contribution to improvisational music and is a member of the Japan Federation of Composers, Inc. Clearly, Mizuno's body of work over the last fifty years signals him as one of Japan's great 20th-century composers." (Description from Mizuno's website)
Orchestre Micky-Micky ~ Orchestre Micky-Micky
(Blog: World Service)
Congolese Classic
"I am not going to argue with anyone who says that this was not one of the greatest bands from Congo (Zaïre). Orchestre Micky-Micky wasn't even the best of the Congolese bands residing and recording in Nigeria. Their singing is poor, at times even off key. They lack great instrumentalists, no Franco or Nico imitations, no blaring horn section. Nevertheless this is one of the classics of African music." (Description by Stefan at World Service)
Various ~ Canny Newcassel: Ballads and Songs from Newcastle and Thereabouts
(Blog: Gonzo-archive)
Uncanny
Here's an unreissued gem from Topic's exalted catalog of British folk—a high-level collection of Geordie ranting, strumming and piping from Northumbria.
Iannis Xenakis ~ Terretektor/Nomos Gamma
(Blog: A Closet of Curiosities)
Sound Architecture
"According to the composer, 'the thesis of Nomos Gamma is a combinatorial organization of correspondences, finite and outside the time of the sets of sound characteristics. Various groups are exploited; their inner structure and their interdependency are put in relief musically.... The isomorphisms are established in many ways,... thus a vast sonic tapestry of non-temporal essence is formed (which incidentally includes the organization of time and durations).'" (Excerpt from Xenakis: His Life in Music, by James Harley)
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Re: Feedly. Saw this tip, having the same problem.
Install feedly app in Chrome. Open Feedly & sign in.
Type "FF" in the omnibar of Chrome, hit "tab" and it lets you search within your feely.
Posted by: Retrokustom | June 26, 2013 at 01:57 PM
"But enough about the sausage-making, how about some sausage!"
[Michael Scott]That's what she said![/Michael Scott]
Posted by: SPB | June 26, 2013 at 02:20 PM