Vinyl Treasures

I happen to live in a place where people still have their original vinyl records. It's fantastic. Due to this fact, many of them end up at local resale places. I have a favorite spot I go to about twice weekly. Yesterday, I scored some real treasures. Let me start with Ella Fitzgerald and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra doing the George Gershwin songbook, on Verve. Let me assure you that this is the only way to hear this release. The vinyl's warmth is ideal for Ella's vocals and the arrangements are out of this world! The other treasures are all greatest hits packages on their original labels. Diana Ross and the Supremes, Abba, Peter, Paul & Mary and the Mamas and the Papas! Love them all! Hearing "Leaving on a Jet Plane" brought a tear to my eye (no really it did). There is a distinct difference when listening to these on my turntable. The sound is unbeatable. I won't bore you with all of the great 101 Strings and Ray Conniff releases I picked up. I love a good instrumental standard! Plan on seeing more postings on my finds. I'm racking up quite a few!

No Hassle

Richard Dorfmeister and Rupert Huber have done it again. Better known as electronic music's Tosca, they are preparing to release No Hassle on !K7 in April. This is the duo's fifth release and hearkens back to some of their classic work. I still believe Suzuki is their finest, but No Hassle captures that same mood and intensity. I felt their last release J.A.C. was not their strongest. It felt a bit too contrived for me. This follow up proves their status as the leaders in downtempo, laidback beats. This record will be playing continuously at my house. It's already a classic. It doesn't get better than this. They have made an art out of chilling you out without putting you to sleep. Each track manages to keep your attention by flooding your ears with blissful sounds and warm beats. I'm still holding out for another Kruder & Dorfmeister release too, but Tosca more than fills that Viennese void. Here's a track from Suzuki. Sit back and relax.

Semi NSFW David Byrne Video

I love this!

Deep House Chicago Style

Just listened to the latest release from one of Chicago's finest, Glenn Underground. Silent is deep house on the jazz tip. It's smooth, sultry and classic GU. Released on Chicago's homegrown Unified Records, this is a must have for deep house fans.

Bonnaroo shames Coachella

I am still holding out hope that Coachella will add some big names to the less than legendary line up this year. In the meantime, Bonnaroo hit it out of the park. They landed David Byrne (my secret dream is a Talking Heads reunion at Coachella). They even have two nights of Phish and Ben Harper's new band Relentless 7. Come on Coachella...it's your 10th anniversary!! Let's turn it up!

Electronic goodies!

Below are a few picks both old and new that never cease to amaze and delight. Don't fear electronic music!! I know there are many of you out there that only know the term "techno" and that saddens me. The music below may be computer generated, but has soul and warmth. Take a listen.

This release is my top of last year. Mikkel Metal does it like no other. His site has a few free downloads. Enjoy!








Save for one track on this release (you'll know it if you hear it), this second release from Sten is solid throughout. Keeps the head bobbing and the headphones pulsing.




Can't seem to stop listening to this release from Fenin. No surprise that Fenin is based in Berlin. There is something in the water, no, in the beer over there. They can do no wrong with their laptops. Can't wait to hear the new projects he has in the works. Hit the download section on his site for a couple free mix downloads. Worth checking out for sure!




SCSI-9...outstanding. Get this record! Easy as Down is flawless. Kompakt is a consistent distributor opening my ears to new music at every turn. SCSI-9 are Anton Kubikov and Maxim Milyutenko. More please.

In honor of that sport event today...

Sorry for the poor quality. SNL won't give up the real thing. I give you...Pamela Bell.