Aurgasm

bossa chill // acoustic // atmospheric downtempo

In 1997, Brighton-based duo Smoke City released “Underwater Love”, a Brazilian-flavored trip-hop tune which landed a great number of fans and ended up on over fifty compilations. The dreamy, sweet-tongued voice of vocalist Nina Miranda created the sharp allure and addictive quality of the track. Now, after some collaborations with Bebel Gilberto, Nitin Sawhney, and Da Lata, Nina joins eclectic producer Dennis Wheatley as Shrift. Together they create a seductive sound that transports you halfway between South America and wind-swept fantasy. Off their upcoming album, “Floating City” spins around you in a genre-fusing 6/8 rhythm and “As Far As I Can See” nails beautiful melody with little, deliberate instrumentation.
Effortless artistry from two worldly musicians.

Shrift – Floating City
Shrift – As Far As I Can See
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electronic // downtempo

Supple beats marry shimmering coral chords in seaside bliss amid warming, caressing petals of sky to rendezvous your senses and massage on contact. Transposed emotions from Melbourne form piano flute cloudscapes, dazzling luminous sunsets, and curious blips washed in reverb flowing uptempo or downbeat. Jack Vanzet’s Voyages blossom into euphoric rewards for your ears, and his Unfinished Business is a 19-minute dopamine symphony of calming awe.

Dreamy audio estuary.
Thrupence – Synchronous Bloom
Thrupence – Folds
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acoustic rock // 70’s folk rock

Gentle voice. Calm melodies. You should know him already: Nick Drake had a short, yet prolific musical career; one that saw its biggest response after his apparent suicide in 1974. He was signed at the age of 21, and only produced three complete albums — but each is full of aural beauty. I was first turned on to him by this incredible complilation aptly named Acoustic. (You’ll love it)
Drake’s somber songs have a chillingly beautiful sound that will completely clear your mind. Listen and release.

Nick Drake – Road
Nick Drake – Riverman

Since Aurgasm’s launch over two years ago, I have been putting all of aurgasm’s mp3s in this folder called /tracks/. If you had pulled it up in your web browser, it was a directory listing of all the music I’ve posted for the past 6-8 months. What you may consider a treasure trove for you, the IFPI (essentially a worldwide RIAA) considered it a violation of the DMCA. The Digital Millenium Copyright Act is what the RIAA uses to sue dead grandmas without computers, claiming they’re sharing mp3s.

So what happened the other day?

Thursday, the IFPI contacted my webhost and had them remove all the mp3s on my site. No further legal action is being taken (that’s a good thing), but all of aurgasm’s music is gone for the moment.

…and thank you.

I appreciate the outpour of support everyone has given. Fellow bloggers have been educated by my mistakes and supportive of my plight. Aurgasm’s readers have eager to help; offering to document their purchases that came from this site and more. For the moment, be comfortable and sit tight. Things will hopefully return to normal quickly.

So what now?

Aurgasm will continue to feature your favorite music you’ve never heard, but we’ll be thorough in obtaining permission to share the music we need to share. Up to now, a good portion of the music on Aurgasm has been posted with artists’ (or their representatives’) consent, though not all. I am eager to put Aurgasm’s music back online, but need to first get legal consent from all artists to share their wares. I’m in the midst of communications with the IFPI to rectify the situation.

With sage advice from EJ of Loudersoft, I fired off this email to the IFPI this morning:

To Whom It May Concern:

1) I have permission from the record label, PR company or the artist directly for many of the tracks posted on my site. Additionally, some of them are not copyrighted whatsoever, therefore it’s unlawful to claim to represent the copyright for all of them.
2) If there are any specific examples of tracks that you consider to be in violation, you are required under U.S. jurisdiction to provide me with complete and full disclosure of the specific offending items.
3) If you fail to respond to this with the appropriate information on or before November 1st, 2006, I will assume that the IFPI is withdrawing their DMCA complaint, that it has no further merit, and that I am exempt from future action on this claim.

-Paul Irish
http://aurgasm.us

Stay tuned for more music and hopefully less drama. :)

california glam-pop // breezy electro-rock

The keytar is our first tip-off. The way its plaintive, dull-yet-sunny sound meshes with Juliette Commagere’s vocals, the electronic overlays, the rich bounce of bass, is a recipe for some very catchy pop. It’s a new-new-wave sound, shiny and nostalgic; it siphons something of Blondie and Berlin, of Latin pop and Irish ditties, and swirls the whole thing into a dance party. Hailing from Silverlake CA, Hello Stranger, formerly Vagenius, are effortlessly attuned to and enamored of LA’s decadent, chintzy, eclectic culture of Hip. Their lyrics admit as much with nonchalant honesty – that is, when they are not being all tongue-in-cheek.

Feels like you’ve been humming these melodies forever
Hello Stranger – Her In These Lights
Hello Stranger- Es Tu Vida

Post contributed by Natalia
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classical // operatic

Do you recall the beat of Busta Rhymes’ Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See? Now imagine a man and woman singing operatically over that beat in Italian, with a gently plucked classical guitar and accordion filling the air. If you’ve seen Volkswagen’s Big Day commercial, you’re one million miles closer to what’s in store with this adventure. So take a trip with a thrift shop warrior and hear what happens when a not-so-average Josh takes command of an 85-piece orchestra as only part of his medium.

Evocative soundscapes with lush, orchestral backdrops.
J. Ralph – Mi Ricordo
J. Ralph – Thrift Shop Warrior (Instrumental)
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danish singer-songwriter // brooding // experimental

Jomi Massage is not the name of a woman. It’s an “electric massage device” from the early 1960’s, back when marketing such a device was rather daring. Songwriter Signe Hoirup Willie-Jorgensen wanted embody the sensual, touching and alluring feeling with her brave music as Jomi Massage. Listen to “Undressing Aloud” with your headphones plugged in: it is filled with sensuality, thrilling tenderness, and contains a certain vulnerable and fragile feeling. “Like weather” sounds melancholic, slightly moody and sorrowful.

Daring and baring, expressive and sensitive.
Jomi Massage – Undressing Aloud
Jomi Massage – Like Weather
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left-field house // quirky jazz-house

From her first solo album Likes… (2004), Dani Siciliano has shown that she is much more than beautiful vocals for dancefloor-oriented tunes on collaborations with Matthew Herbert. A vocalist, producer and DJ, original and witty, Dani returns with her second album Slappers (2006). Once again Herbert is sharing production duties with Dani. Yet having background in both night clubs and jazz combos, she has her own knowledge of music. Dani creates her own sound by combining the elements of house, disco, blues, pop, electronica and even a little country with an instrumentation that includes teacups, spoons and such.

It’s playful and serious. As Dani says herself, “it’s about woman.”
Dani Siciliano – They Can Wait
Dani Siciliano – Come As You Are (Dani’s Come Lighter Cover)
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vocal // jazz

With the flood of music coming from Sweden, Josefine Lindstrand’s debut might be undeservedly left unnoticed. You won’t find much about it on the blogosphere, but by no means mistake not: Josefine is not a beginner in the music world. Swedish singer and pianist, Josefine, has previously collaborated with Django Bates and Uri Caine, as well as indie pop artist Maia Hirasawa and lent her vocals on two of Efterklang’s records. “Send Out The Singers”, from There Will Be Stars (2009), features a oh-so-lovely marimba and gentle whistlings that make this track irresistible. While “Jewels” carries tender vocals, elegant trumpet and piano arrangements recalling late-night cabaret jazz.

Delicate Nordic jazz notes.
Josefine Lindstrand – Send Out The Singers
Josefine Lindstrand – Jewels
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I want your reaction, here. Leave a comment and for any/all of the songs, write your reaction to the song – keep it brief! (5-15 words, extra points if you hit exactly 10) After a few days, I’m going to publish the most evocative/impressive/amusing comments here. Be sure to leave your name!
Ready?

Up close, Mr Angry is on the left and Mrs Calm is on the right — move back six feet and they switch places!
UPDATE! The best reactions follow:

dub // vocal jazzy reggae
Joe Dukie & DJ Fitchie – Midnight Marauders

broken beat // afro-beat
Bugz In The Attic f. Wunmi – Zombie (Part One)

vocal downtempo // electronica
Coldcut – Autumn Leaves (Irresistible Force Remix)

cuban // son
Barbarito Torres – La Calabaza (The Pumpkin)