Hearts - LONDON KICKS - Fashion, Music, Art, Film, London and Going Out

May 13, 2008 at 15:31

Once upon a time Jack Bevan and I lived together in a pokey flat above a curry house in the East End, and for a time it was wonderful, until we were chased out of our home by a Greek Tracey Emin lookalike who used to sing Madonna songs at the top of her lungs in the early hours of the morning, and would make a habit of burgling us once a week. Good, good times. Since then, as the drummer in Foals, Jack has played a part in making one of the defining records of 2008 (reviewed next week), so it goes without saying that these days Jack's a busy boy. Nonetheless we've still always managed to find the time to dork out over our first love, music or spazzing out to one another about the latest songs that have ruined our sleep patterns. Some of our selections have been good, some absolutely, embarrassingly abysmal, and some have irreversibly changed our views on music entirely. Jack and I now want to spread the wealth, and share with you some of the songs we've been grateful for sharing with one another. Enjoy.

My My – Propain
I love, love, love this track! There's a subtle softness to the production which always makes listening to it a pleasure. The antithesis of abrasive, how it is multi-faceted in its abilities to slay dancefloors, and yet still remain a firm fixture on a lot of my early afternoon playlists, when dancing is the last thing on my mind. In other words, the perfect minimal techno track. (JB)

Steve Reich - Pendulum Music
I always thought Reich's music was way too brainy for me to feel any emotional connection to it, so when Jack put me on to this track I was pleasantly surprised and it's become something of a favourite of mine. Not everyday music by no means, but when I find myself sitting alone in my room, sometimes this song's hypnotics are all that will do. (RC)

Strategy – Future Rock
I find this group's brand of laptop krautrock very exciting. Somehow in spite of all the electronics, they manage to make music that sounds very organic to me. The combination of ambient layers and field recordings, never fails to spook me out especially when the creeped out sounding synths enter half way through, creating something with all the intensity of a fire burning in a cave (JB)

Arovane - 7Tascel
The definition of prettiness, I listen to this and I can't help, but imagine myself, alone in the middle of nowhere, laid out on the ground, watching a gathering of robotic fireflies perform their heartbreaking aerial ballet, the black night sky and twinkling stars acting as the most magnificent, never-ending backdrop imaginable. (RC)

Studio – No Comply
Without fail I always, always hate the first two minutes of this song, so much so I almost forget how much I adore the final two and a half minutes which are actually sublimely blissed out. It just manages to tick all the boxes for me; resolving arpeggios, a satisfying bass kick in, soaring synthesizers, drums that dance for days. It never fails to give me goose bumps. (JB)

Polmo Polpo - Acqua
This was an eye opener having never known minimal techno could be as punishing as this is. Sounding like something constantly on the verge of collapse, lumbering and suffocating, initially the chaotic noisiness is a bit overwhelming, but once locked in to its lolloping groove, it's a killer. (RC)

Mahogany – Tessellation, Formerly Plateau One
This is so dreamy. It makes me feel a hazy eyed kind of reminiscence for a time I'm unsure I've even experienced. Sometimes I think it reminds me of the soundtrack to a TV show from the early 90s I cant entirely recall. Other times I think it sounds like the score for a film from the future that's set in the past. Whatever it makes me feel, it always undeniably beautiful. (JB)

Clark - Ted (Bibio Remix)
In its original form Ted is a pummelling juggernaut of a song. When it kicks in, it feels as if the world just fell apart around you. This remix sounds like the wicker-man worshipping folks of summerisle, somehow got a hold of it and decided to come up with their own pastoral take, replacing the body crushing beats with hyperactive guitars. Its special when you find yourself coming back to a remix of an already great song, as much as I have to this. (RC)

Nelly Furtado – Maneater

I know this is kind of old, but there are so many reasons for me liking this song now as much as I did then. One is the nostalgia factor, as it takes me back to the time I first heard it, and Robin, my girlfriend and I wigged out to it something like 30 times in her pokey campus bedroom whilst in a state of cherry lambrigni bliss. Nostalgia aside, its just an undeniably great pop song, massive hooks, banging drums, perfect! (JB)

Mathew Jonson - Marionette
A techno track with enough of a tension build up, it could have been used in a John Carpenter film, when the sounds of moaning machines became synonymous with his film work. Feeling at times like a mournful take on the Moroder beat, this gathers momentum like a breeze that gradually turns in to a cyclone. (RC)

Words: Robin Carolan & Jack Bevan

Original Artwork: James Hines