Aurgasm

strings // electro // soul

It seems easy to assume that two prized string players, recognized as some of the finest young French musicians would be influenced by the Parisian electro scene, like Ed Banger and Institubes. They would, naturally, then set out to create electro infused with the graceful cello and viola lines. At first listen, this is what you might hear. But SomethingALaMode (or SALM) has pushed that further; the result is less novelty, more solid songwriting. A few samples from their varied and impressive debut: “Little Bit of Feel Good” delivers some mighty soul vocals; “GString” is a bit more familiar electro-fare, but with a very distinctive feel.

Music mastery; on the strings and the synths.
SomethingALaMode – Little Bit of Feel Good (feat. Adam Joseph)
SomethingALaMode – GString
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video art // electro funk

More and more, I’ve noticed I’m absorbing great music via video; the Carl Sagan ‘A Glorious Dawn’ video is an addictive example. VJ’s are demanded for parties, Processing and OpenFrameworks are making it easier to create, and now video appears to be the preferred medium for delivering audio online. Above, Ethan deftly blends oscilloscope visuals with light paint and timelapse, while underneath burbles some glitchy and fuzzy funk. Thanks to my friends at Echonest for the tip.

A funk and Rhodes lover’s wet dream.

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cinematic electronic // heady ambient

Not since Trentemøller has an electronic artist approached his music with such delicacy. But while the Dane kept your brain busy measure to measure, the sole member of Bersarin Quartett, Thomas, makes no bones about holding you rapt in a piece of steady, twirling music for up to sixteen minutes. Natural strings, arpeggiated synth and raspy drums combine to construct a cinemascape of melancholy and thought.

Sublimity missing a screen.
Bersarin Quartett – Oktober
Bersarin Quartett – St. Petersburg

NYC Peoples: I’ll be in town this weekend, mostly to attend this epic Quantic (and his Combo Barbaro), Nickodemus, Beto, DJ Busquelo beach party on Governor’s Island Sunday. Holler if you’re around, you should certainly not miss.

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vocal electronica // experimental pop

Katrine Ottosen’s album Fall Down (2008) is a debut that should not be left unnoticed despite the flood of DYI Indie artists. The Copenhagen-based musician who records under the name CALLmeKAT takes the listener with a distinctly Scandinavian sound: melancholic, floating and intense. Fall Down shifts between the experimental and the somewhat urban dream-pop, recalling the fragility of Stina Nordenstam and the edgy mysterious soundscapes of such artists as Klima and Sol Seppy.

From sharp to dreamy electronic arrangements.
CALLmeKAT – Do Your Trick
CALLmeKAT – Flower In The Night
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ambient // electronic // guitar

Wilco fans (you know who you are) will recognize Nels Cline as that band’s lead guitarist, but he’s been doing other stuff on his own (collaborating, featuring, musicating, etc.) for a little over thirty years, now “” and yet, still, his solo stuff seems to remain under-appreciated. Perhaps some of it is too experimental for a big following (and I don’t mean that as any kind of affront to Wilco fans), like the opening track from Coward, his latest album; it’s called Epiphyllum, and is basically a wall of foamy, pulsating sound. The rest of the album, though, gets a little more melodic, borrowing heavily from Middle-Eastern sounds and even The Twilight Zone at one point, and rounding out nicely with Cymbidium, yet another wall of sound “” but one with cracks in it, chinks of guitar and scars of bass. There are shades of Susumu Yokota and maybe Faithless, too, and overall of quiet, confident comfort. Close your eyes and let it grow.

Soothing, glowing noise
Nels Cline – Cymbidium
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