AWKWARD MOVEMENTS

King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard - 'Flying Microtonal Banana' LP [Flightless / Heavenly Recordings]

2017-02-26T01:59:00.002-08:00

Is King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard a thing everywhere yet? Either the more popular kids have got another one right (happens every so often) or with us finishing up the NTS show I'm slowly pulling my head out of a sink hole of unmastered experimental chin-stroked recordings from unnamed brooding synth heads. Either way I've been lost in a world of band music once again and the seven piece King Gizzard is currently on heavy rotation.

With this being there ninth full length since 2012 it definitely feels like they should be on their way to taking over the world. Not that prolificness equals quality, but in this case their whole catalogue of records is band music at it's absolute finest, and their live shows - of which there are many of in their home state of Victoria next month - are hypnotic experiences akin to the best psychadelic jams of the '70s, channeling a time when musicians still took pride in such things.

Flying Microtonal Banana is evidently the first of five LPs that will drop this year from the group. Whether or not I need (or can retain enthusiasm for) another four records from King Gizzard in the next 10 months is something that remains to be seen, but it's certainly off to a cracking start.

Microtonal music refers to music made using microtones, intervals smaller than a semitone. The cliff note on the interesting part is that these are scales outside of what we're used to hearing in the Western world. And it's an exploration of these scales and adjustments that makes up the concept of this album, best explained from the band themselves.

Earlier this year we started experimenting with a custom microtonal guitar our friend Zak made for Stu," further explained drummer Eric Moore. "The guitar was modified to play in 24-TET tuning and could only be played with other microtonal instruments. We ended up giving everyone a budget of $200 to buy instruments and turn them microtonal. The record features the modified electric guitars, basses, keyboards and harmonica as well as a turkish horn called a Zurna.

The lead single on the below also confirmed a strong belief of mine, that in club music or band recordings repetition is freaking cool. Tell my you don't hear elements of Kyuss and Hawkwind in what they do.

Go check out the full LP from their bandcamp page, and when they're in town make sure you go see them live. All sorts of awesomeness.

Black Void Smith - 'Holograms & Hypnosis' Cassette [NCA]

2017-02-19T00:46:00.001-08:00

Every year I swear off tapes, and this year, with the increasing trend for cassette releases to be shoved very high inside their label / curators colon that you can't play them in your machine without flinging shit throughout it (look at the £16 45 minute Raime mix for reference - you know none of the artists are getting paid for that either), it looks like it's finally curbing.

That said there are still those who will always prefer releasing - and in a lot of cases are even better suited to - the tape format. You can't ignore those labels and artists consistently dropping quality originals (at decent prices) that we should be supporting. Famous Moon King's new release Light Travels in Straight Lines is one that springs to mind, released a few days ago and essential listening.

And when it comes to the cassette mix game there's one label that's absolutely killing it, the Brassfoot co-curated NCA. In the climate of Spotify, Mixcloud and every man and his dog having a podcast and online radio show it can be hard to justify spending money on mixes. But when they do stand out from this overcrowded space you know there something special.

The first three offerings on NCA were partially mixed 50 minute affairs with Brassfoot on one side and Japan based J M S Kosah on the other that flew out too quick. Proper lo-fi styled dirty machine music for the most part mixed in with bits of jazz and even porno samples tying together originals, unique mixes and edits. Late last year the fourth instalment was handed over to Ashtrejinkens of LA and Tokyo based Ko Saito to handle and last month came the equally raw offering from Black Void Smith.

Don't know anything about Black Void Smith or the majority of heat on here. I can tell you that Holograms & Hypnosis is trippy as all hell on both sides, brilliantly gritty and raw in it's synths and drums, and definitely sounds best on tape. Pick it up, and dig in to it.

Can't believe there's still some left, last seen at Juno, Norman Records and a few others for around 7 quid.

Jimmy Monsta Funk - What's A Year Between Friends? 6 Hours of Wax Released in 2015

2017-01-26T14:46:00.000-08:00

Jimmy Monsta Funk never stops blowing us away. Last year's live sets, rave year tributes (1991) and insane levels of record appreciation across the board showed why he remains as our favourite DJ. We've been sitting on this for way too long, and will or won't be adding to it to complete the track lists on the last three sections depending, but it's definitely overdue for sharing. Over six hours of mixing, music as it's meant to be, wax only, JMF on 2015.

12 months ago the process began to put together some vinyl only mixes showcasing the best tracks (IMHO) that had been released, re-issued or slept on until I came across them during 2015*.

A further set of 40 winks occurred until the mixes were completed in March of last year, the files were then sent to the Awkward Movements HQ in August and an additional bout of narcolepsy plus a couple of months in winter hibernation (with a family tortoise, in a cardboard box filled with hay) went by, but we can now release these to you, our ever patient listeners..........

* The wait for 2016 best joints will not be this long I promizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

JIMMY MONSTA FUNK presents MO LAST YEAR

Part 1

A Band Called Flash - Mother Confessor (Future Vision Records)
Lay Far - Looking For Changes (Pablo Valentino Remix) (Soul Imago)
Aroop Roy - Pimp (Basic Fingers)
Moomin - Au Bord De La Mer (Closer)
Brother of Soul - Eyes of Love (Guidance Recordings)
Da Sunlounge - Oh Momma (The Groove Brothers Mission Mix) (Slow Town)
OB Ignitt / Omar S - Fellow Me (OBONIT)
So Long 15 - So Long 15 (So Long 15)
Joris Voorn - Ringo (Joris Voorn Rework) (Green)
Borrowed Identity ‎– Faith (Foul & Sunk)
Church Boy Lou - Show Me (Dirt Tech Reck)
System2 - Everybody’s Freakin’ (Viva Music)
Los Pastores - Smoke Game (NYC Mix) (Djebali)
Cratebug - You Make Me Feel Good (KAT)
Detroit - Deepscription (Unknown Deetroit)
2000 Black - Make It Hard (Rush Hour)
The Gene Dudley Group - Inspector Norse (Wah Wah 45s)
Joe Claussell - Je Ka Jo (Demo Version) (Ibadan)
Ezikiel - Casamance (Seydou Badji Senega voice) (Deep Vibes)
Ob Ignitt / Luke Hess - Jefferson Reserve (OBONIT)
Tommy Vicari Jnr - The Obsolete (Eclipser Chaser)
Basement Jaxx - Sneakin’ Toronto (The Martinez Brothers Dub) (Cuttin’ Headz)
Ti Rex - Untitled (Ti-Rex)
Medlar - Loon (Wolf Music Recordings)
Tatham, Mensah, Lord & Ranks - Off The Christmas Card List (2000 Black)

Part 2

GE-OLOGY Featuring Mark De Clive-Lowe - Moon Circuitry (Sound Signature)
Gregory Porter - Liquid Spirit (Claptone Remix) (Wonderwheel Recordings)
Seven Davis Jr - Sunday Morning (Kaytronik Ruff Kut Mix) (Ninja Tune)
Philou Louzolo - Afrofuturism Dance (Banoffee Pies)
Midland - Checkbob (Autonomous Africa)
Trinidadian Deep - Native Bush (Perpetual Rhythms)
Kiko Navarro & DJ Fudge Feat. Dono - Babalu Aye (Moyuba Dub) (Yoruba Records)
Kiko Navarro & DJ Fudge - Anyway I Want (Large Music)
Contakt - Eve of Gentrification (Terrence Parker Deeep Detroit Heat Remix) (Argot)
Guillaume & the Coutu Dumonts - Sutra (Freerange Records)
Keith Sano - Flowers From Your Grave (T2 Edit) (Holic Trax)
Adrian Lenz - Cover Me (’Shake’ Shakir Instrumental) (Blank Mind)
Terrence Parker - Welcome to Southfield (Technorama Records)
L’Atelier - Again (RFB Colours)
Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson - Angola, Louisiana (DJ K Re-Edit) (Pantone Music)
Mike Grant - The Struggle of My People (Mr G’s There’s Hope Mix) (Moods & Grooves)
Jovonn - Don’t Wanna Let You Go (Clone Classic Cuts)
System2 - Gotta Work (Politics of Dancing)
Dirty Sole feat Johnny Dangerous - Connect The Dots (Brian Heath Flapjack scat) (Four Play)
Bok Bok & Sweyn Jupiter - Papaya Lipgloss (Club Mix) (Night Slugs)
Deshte - Freedom (Krenta Records)
Young Edits - Cloudbusting (Foot & Mouth)
Horace Silver - Song For My Father (Luciole's Dub) (Soundcloud)

Part 3

Kuniyuki - Earth Beats (Percussion Dub Mix) (Mule Music)
D I A L . 8 1 - Crushed Milk (Detroit Electronic Quarterly)
Echoes - Unlikely Yours (In Haus Wax)
Harry “Choo Choo” Romero - Aquarium (Ovum Recordings)
D-Malice - Indian Time (DBA Dubs)
Mr Beatnick - Stutter (Don’t Be Afraid)
Delano Smith - A Tale of Two Cities (TØT)
CW/A - Mantra (Parachute Records)
Rennie Foster - Claude Young (RF Trax)
Mr. G - TT Rum Bar (Just Jack Recordings)
Ringard - Panach (Especial Mix) (Dance Around 88)
Stephen Brown - 2 FM (a.r.t.less)
The Nathaniel X Project - All In A Day’s Work (Undertones)
Mumbai Science - Black Hole (Floorplan Remix) (Lektroluv)
Daniel Jacques - Slaves of Rhythm (Jadac Recordings)
Boo Williams vs Glenn Underground - Stoppen Niggaz (Maad)
E-Dancer - Foundation (Dub Mix) (KMS)
Reshape - Bleep Repeat (Present)
Baba Stiltz - Intr Stellar (Unknown to the Unknown)
Cratebug - Clock Beats (Bug Records CHGO)
Red 7 - I Lost My Shoes On Acid (Red 7)
Nitejams - Untitled B1 (Nitejams)
Royce Wood Junior - Midnight (Special Request Remix) (37 Adventures)
Demdike Stare - Patchwork (Modern Love)
Soundbwoy Killah - Let's Thump (Bodyjack)

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Awkward Movements on NTS – 21.1.17

2017-01-23T18:03:00.000-08:00

The weekend's Awkward Movements show on NTS was dope. As always, and despite doing a show Christmas Eve, I totally underestimated the pure quality of music that gets released December / January and unfortunately for many slips through the cracks. And this was a shot at redemption.

The People Skills LP on Blackest Ever Black was one such release. Dropped in December it seemed to go under the radar for many, myself included, but if you've not heard Gunshots at Crestridge I strongly recommend checking it out.

Likewise on the Boomarm Nation Family Album 2017 which the good people at Boomarm Nation are sharing as a potentially free download. Dropped the 1st of January it's one of the best compilations I've seen in time, featuring the likes El Mahdy Jr, Gulls and Elite Beat working on tracks including a remix of Aghali Ag Amoumine of Takamba fame which opened the show.

Too much heat to shout out individually but as a last mention we've got to give shouts to Kink Gong. The new record's called Imer Zeillos and is out on Discrepant this month, and as with everything else he touches is an incredible listen. We managed to drop two cuts from it at the top of the show for you to check out. Stream and full track list below.

If all goes according to plan we should be having a guest takeover next week for the show. More details forthcoming but be sure to lock-in.

Aghali Ag Amoumine - Takamba (Gulls DUB) [Boomarm Nation]
Kink Gong - Comme Un Éventail Se Rétracte [Discrepant]
Kink Gong – Le Double Vent Traverse Les Oreillesv [Discrepant]
Charles Hayward / Han-earl Park / Ian Smith / Lol Coxhil – Similkameen [Slam Productions]
People Skills - 89¢ Public Render [Blackest Ever Black]
Hookworms – Deu [Faux Discz / Gringo Records]
Moon Wiring Club - Rotten Druid [Gecophonic Audio Systems]
Rabit - Searching [Self-released]
David Moss - Terrain #2 [Cornpride]
Graham Lambkin - The Harmocia [Kye]
People Skills - Town of Diana [Blackest Ever Black]
Odd Nosdam – M e n u s [https://nosdam.bandcamp.com/]
Antonio - Breeze [Smashing Tape Records]
Elektro Guzzi – Parade [Denovali Records]
Nicola Ratti - W10 [Where To Now?]
El Mahdy Jr. & XJ - Dari Fog Nakhla [Boomarm Nation]
PeopleMover - All In (Daktronics) [ddust Direct]
Max Graef & Glenn Astro - W313D (Max & Glenn's Dub Up) [Ninja Tune]
Eric Copeland – Hairy [Palmetto Arts]
German Army – Kiiking [Czaska Records]
Black Deer - Post War [L.I.E.S. Records]
John Bender - 35b5 Records [Superior Viaduct]
Moon Wiring Club - Time Means Nowt [Gecophonic Audio Systems]
Yves De Mey - White Noise Spring [Entr'acte]
QST - 8 [Inta]
Willis Anne - B1 [LAN]
Black Merlin – Klang [Jealous God]

Awkward Movements on NTS – 7.1.17 (2016: Year Of Death)

2017-01-13T01:48:00.000-08:00

If you locked in to Awkward Movements on NTS last weekend you would've caught Paul Ackroyd aka Kamikaze giving tribute to the artist's death toll of 2016. You can't fit it all in a two-hour show however, with the original being over four hours covering 43 artists. Paul's words and tribute show below.

2016 was not kind to the music world. Throughout the year barely a week would pass before the announcement of another musician's passing. It got to the point on my weekly show on Reel Rebels Radio that I had to introduce a dead-person-of-the-week feature. And a lot of tribute shows happened across the station through the year.

There were the headline-grabbers of course. David Bowie, Prince, Leonard Cohen, George Michael... But, big-guns aside, it was the highly-respected but less high-profile artists that often left the deepest wounds. On a personal level Alan Vega, Pauline Oliveros, Phife Dawg, Marlene Marder, Else Marie Pade, Getatchew Mekurya - all heroes, thus gutting to hear the news.

But those barely scratch the surface when it comes to musicians who died in 2016. It being customary to have reflective backward-looking review shows this time of year we struggled to find any other way to round up the year than to pay our respects. So step up 2016 : A Year Of Death. A four-hour Awkward Movements special for NTS playing music from 43 musicians who died through the year. 43!! And those are just the ones we've heard about.

2016 was particularly harsh on experimental, electronic, and electroacoustic musicians. Don't get me wrong, most had reached a respectable age, it was their time, they'd had a good innings - all those sorts of phrases we throw about when someone dies in older rather than younger age. But death is death. For musicians we've spent times in our lives listening to, their passing will have an impact on us. Certain music holds significance to different periods of our lives, we're not only feeling a sadness that an artist we admire has died, but often awash with nostalgia too.

The year started with the death of Pierre Boulez, but many more electronic, experimental and electroacoustic powerhouses dropped after him. Pauline Oliveros, Else Marie Pade, Jean-Claude Risset, Eugeniusz Rudnik, and Jed Speare to name a handful. Ben Patterson, Bruce Lacey, Don Buchla, Peter Maxwell Davies, Tony Conrad and Jean-Jacques Perrey to name a handful more. And of course Richard Lyons from the legendary Negativland.

A lot of 'classic bands' too. Paul Kantner from the original Jefferson Airplane lineup, Rick Parfitt from Status Quo, two thirds of Emerson Lake & Palmer, Glen Frey of The Eagles, Gilli Smyth from Gong... Most of those artists I've never felt the need to play on the radio before - not to say I haven't enjoyed their music. More that, with my leanings towards the more obscure musical offerings this world has to offer, they're not artists I would ordinarily find myself playing on the radio.

The same can be said of George Michael. I never thought the day would come when I'd be spinning Status Quo and George Michael in the same show. But, although not the biggest fan of his music, it's hard to deny what a thoroughly decent chap he seemed to be. Charitable work, enormously generous donations, etc etc. And not for the headlines, mostly under-the-radar work. To have sold as many millions of records as he did in his life yet find the time to selflessly and secretly volunteer in homeless shelters speaks volumes to me. Plus Too Funky is just a damn fine tune!

As for the other big guns - Bowie, Prince, Cohen - well they've been very well documented already, but I would like to point you to three Planet Of Sound specials from the year. Kevin Robinson dug deep with these, and painted interesting, impressive and heartfelt musical tributes to all three. Click on the links for Kevin's David Bowie show from January, the Prince show from April, and his Leonard Cohen offering from November.

And whilst we're chatting tribute shows let me point you to Kevin's discotastic tribute to Loft founder David Mancuso. I'll be honest, Mancuso was little more than a name I had seen in passing before his, erm, passing, though Kevin's show started me on a musical journey which it's fair to say has got the hips-a-shakin. Nu Yorican Soul represent Mancuso in our 2016 : A Year Of Death offering, though to the best of our knowledge, and fingers crossed n all, the members of Nu Yorican Soul are safe and well.

Interesting point there though - that thing when you hear that someone has died, and you've heard of them, been meaning to get round to listening to them, but for whatever reason you missed out. Or those that you'd never heard of but end up learning about them posthumously, your interest likely piqued from something you clocked in the obituary pages. Or the other option - those whose works you've flirted with over the years but never gone balls-deep with, never fully experienced within the context of their back catalogue. If there is awareness beyond the grave then I imagine that would be appreciated - that their music lives on and continues to locate new ears way beyond their passing.

So three artists in the show that fit that description for me - Paul Bley, Ahmad Sabri and Gato Barbieri. The latter an Argentine saxophonist, the middle a Pakistani qawwalii singer, and the former a Canadian jazz pianist. Another I didn't previously know was Cassius Clay. I mean I knew of Muhammad Ali, but I had no idea about his slightly strange stand-up style ramblings.

Which leads us to the wider world of celebrity. Lots died, you've heard about most of them already. But whilst planning the show we considered dropping that Aphex Twin tune that samples Gene Wilder, comedy skits by Victoria Wood, Paul Daniels magic records, punk songs about Johann Cruyff, or numerous memorable film scenes for those in the acting world that moved on to that next plane. And although it would've been fun, we were so pushed for time, what with all the dead musicians, that all of that stuff got shelved.

Back to the musicians though, and it's Alan Vega's death that probably hit me the hardest through the year. Suicide have made me very happy for a couple of decades at least, and that's in no small part due to Alan Vega's croonings. Within 24 hours of his death I'd churned out this tribute show, which, if you're not so familiar with the works of Alan Vega and Suicide, I'd like to point you towards.

Another tribute show I made back in the summer was for the victims of the mass shooting at Pulse - a gay club in Orlando where 49 people were murdered. It's wall-to-wall LGBTQIetc artists, and not an Elton in sight.

Sticking in club land though, and equally horrific was the fire at the Ghost Ship in Oakland when 36 people lost their lives at a 100% Silk night, including Joey Casio and Cherushii. Our thoughts remain with the friends and families of the victims.

Over to South Africa next, and to Lucky Ranku and Pinise Saul who both passed on late in 2016. Moving a few hundred miles north and Congolese megastar Papa Wemba died on stage inna Tommy Cooper stylee. A further few hundred miles north and east to Ethiopia next, and to Getatchew Mekurya - another which struck me deeply on a personal level. Love that man, simple as.

Next it's Parliament and Funkadelic keyboard maestro Bernie Worrell, and also on a funk/soul tip Billy Paul and Sharon Jones. On an 80s pop tip there was Prince-associate Vanity of Vanity 6. And lest we forget the legendary Prince Buster too.

Saving some of the more untimely deaths til last, and Liliput's Marlene Marder, acid house guru Spank Spank, Fashion MC Tenor Fly, and of course Phife Dawg from A Tribe Called Quest.

Rest in peace one and all. And 2017 if you're listening - go a little easier on us. Please.

Negativland - No Business
Ben Patterson - A Fluxus Elegy
Cassius Clay - Round 8 : The Knockout
A Tribe Called Quest - The Donald
Tenor Fly - Rude Boy Talk (Toddla T & Mele Remix)
Prince Buster - Seven Times To Rise
Papa Wemba - Analengo
Malombo Jazz Makers - Abbey's Mood
Dudu Pukwana & Zila ft Pinise Saul - Baqanga Bay
Getatchew Mekurya - Gofere, Anttchi Hoye
The Sabri Brothers - Kali Kamaliya Wale
Jed Speare - Taboo Death
Pauline Oliveros - III of IV
Don Buchla & Robert Moog - In The Beginning - Etude II
Pierre Boulez - Avant L'artisanat Furieux Rapide
Jean Claude Risset - Computer Suite From Little Boy - Contra Apotheosis
Leonard Cohen - You Want It Darker
David Bowie - Blackstar
Bernie Worrell - Volunteered Slavery
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights
Billy Paul - Everyday People
Nu Yorican Soul - The Nervous Track
George Michael - Too Funky
Vanity 6 - Nasty Girl
Prince & The New Power Generation - Gett Off
Spank Spank - Da Phormula
Joey Casio - Debtor's Prism
Cherushii - Ultraviolet Nights
Tony Conrad with Faust - From The Side Of The Machine
Liliput - Die Matrosen
Suicide - Frankie Teardrop vs The Space Alien 1976 demo
Jefferson Airplane - White Rabbit
Bley-Peacock Synthesizer Show - A Loss Of Consciousness
Gong - The Pot Head Pixies
Bruce Lacey - Kissing Film
Jean-Jacques Perrey & Harry Breuer - Re-Entry To The Moon
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Honky Tonk Train Blues
Status Quo - Down Down
Gato Barbieri - Mi Buenos Aires Querido
Eugeniusz Rudnik - Stone Is A Musical Material
Else Marie Pade - Etude
Peter Maxwell Davies - Execution and End Music

Awkward Movements on NTS – 24.12.16

2017-01-05T20:53:00.001-08:00

Here's the Christmas Eve NTS show from you're good friends at Awkward Movements. I'm not sure why I've started by labeling it with Christmas Eve, as there's no mention of the holidays in it, nor end of year lists (seriously, some of these end of year shows started December 1st before some of the best tracks came out) - just heat. Including Mor Thiam (above) who's Dini Safarrar (Drums Of Fire) LP has been reissued from 1973 to 2016 on Jazzman.

It's essential listening if you've not picked it up. And here's the crazy thing, many years ago when I was working across the hall from Gerald's cave of records I remember seeing the original of this on his wall. Glad I finally got to not only listen to it but own a copy as well.

Ras G appears twice (we've rinsed him in 2016), a cut from the Gas boxset (worth the money), Malcolm Pointon experiments on Public information and loads more. Full track list below, just underneath the stream.

As a side note, we're thinking of making the Muslimgauze tribute show we did last year an annual thing. It seems that Bryn Jones is still a central figure in what we do, and has been since Paul and I started playing records together (though back then it was more to each other). Plus everyone seemed to like and in a matter of weeks other people's tributes were popping up everywhere, even back on NTS.

So this is a shout out for anyone that might have rare audio, stills or just a request of what they'd like to see in it and we'll do our best to accommodate.

Rashad Becker - Themes VII [PAN]
BD1982 - Coney Island High [Diskotopia]
Azla Vegan x Ras G - Assïira Sost [https://azlavegan.bandcamp.com/]
Elite Beat - Budget Dancehall (SKRS Dub I-Wah Version) [Boomarm Nation]
Demdike Stare - Animal Style [Modern Love]
Le Matin – Macrobiotique [Isaiah Tapes]
Anthony Child - Relational Constellations [Editions Mego]
Mica Levi & Oliver Coates - Bless Our Toes [Slip]
Andrezj Nowak – Lo [DUNNO Recordings]
Yamaneko - Accela Crash [Local Action]
Malcolm Pointon - Study 1 [Public Information]
Gas - Zauberberg 4 [Kompakt]
Jaimeo Brown Transcendence – Paterson [Motema]
The Swifter - Travelling Angle [Sonic Pieces]
ot to, not to - Little One [Other People]
Ras G - Mi Gramz [Fat Beats]
Fotomachine - Black Science [Jheri Tracks]
Serpente - Fio Obeah
Mor Thiam – Kanfera [Jazzman]
Rizan Said - Cosmopolitan Hacha [Annihaya]
A I W A - 1-000-maam [Always Human Tapes]
Brandt Brauer Frick - Blackout 94 (feat. Beaver Sheppard) [Because Music]
Airhead - Kazzt (Mumdance Remix) [Different Circles]
Porter Ricks - Bay Rouge [Tresor]
Steven Warwick - Low Ceiling [PAN]
October - Death Drums Along the River [No Corner]
Clerk 5 X Deviant & Naive Ted - Wisdom's Infinite [https://untitledire.bandcamp.com]’

Jimmy Monsta Funk Tops Of 2016

2017-01-02T19:12:00.001-08:00

Lists of things to buy and check out are always good provided they come from the right people, and Jimmy Monsta Funk is still top of that list. He's dropped some proper heat on us this year and we're still sitting on about six hour of mixes comprising of wax from 2015 that'll be up shortly.

A lot of good pieces in here I missed the first time around including the Junjo reissue and the Shabaka And The Ancestors LP. Keen to dig in properly in the coming weeks and see what else we slept on.

5 Documentaries Of 2016
Inside Obama’s White House
Koko: The Gorilla Who Talks to People
Planet Earth II
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
What Happened Miss Simone?

20 Tracks To Check From 2016
808 State - In Yer Face (Bicep Remix) [Feel My Bicep]
Adesse Versions - Push It Along EP [Heist]
Byron The Aquarius - High Life EP [Sound Signature]
Damiano von Erckert – California [DVE Records]
Floating Points – Kuiper [Pluto]
Jack The Mack - Jack The Mack 3 [Unknown Chicago]
Mall Grab - Menace II Society [Unknown To The Unknown]
Marcel Lune - Sketches EP [Local Talk]
Mark Flash - Audiofluid EP [Underground Resistance]
Mella Dee - Deep Soul EP [Dext Recordings]
Ninos Du Brasil - Para Araras [Hospital Productions]
No Question Asked - Validation Of A DJ [No Questions Asked]
Prince - Chelsea Rodgers (DJ K disco funk re-edit) [Pantone Music]
Rising Sun - Trilogy EP3 [Fauxpas Musik]
Samo DJ & Tzusing – Hollabackboi [Public Possession]
Save! - Darkness In The Middle (I:Cube remix) [Les Disques De La Mort]
Stojche - Asset 005 [Tangible Assets]
Swindle - Works Haffi Run (feat Ghetts) [Butterz]
Timeline - Forever Forward EP [4evr 4wrd]
Truncate - Wave 1 [Truncate]

20 Albums Of 2016
Achim Funk & Mr. Nylson - The Bridge To Yesterday [Newtold]
Anohni – Hopelessness [Rough Trade]
BadBadNotGood – IV [Innovative Leisure Records]
Black Milk & Nat Turner - The Rebellion Sessions [Computer Ugly]
Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition [Warp Records]
Family Atlantica - Cosmic Unity [Soundway]
Floorplan – Victorious [M-Plant]
Ital Tek – Hollowed [Planet Mu]
Kaytranada - 99.9% [XL Recordings]
Kendrick Lamar - Untitled Unmastered. [Top Dawg Entertainment]
Mr. Lif - Don't Look Down [Mello Music Group]
Oliver Coates – Upstepping [PRAH]
Omar-S - The Best! [FXHE Records]
Saul Williams - Martyr Loser King [Fader Label]
Shabaka And The Ancestors - Wisdom Of Elders [Brownswood Recordings]
Skee Mask – Shred [Ilian Tape]
Steven Julien – Fallen [Apron Records]
The Invisible – Patience [Ninja Tune]
Trim - 1-800 Dinosaur Presents Trim [1-800 Dinosaur]
Yussef Kamaal - Black Focus [Brownswood Recordings]

5 Top Reissues
Henry "Junjo" Lawes - The Evil Curse Of The Vampires [Greensleeves Records]
Massive Attack V Mad Professor - No Protection [Virgin]
Peter Thomas & Mocambo Astronautic Sound Orchestra - Space Patrol (Orion 2016) [Mocambo]
Studio Pressure – Jump [Certificate 18]
The True Underground Sound Of Rome Featuring Stefano Di Carlo - 1991 - 2016 Secret Doctrine [Male Records]

Exhibition Of The Year
Stay. Now. Then: Housing Questions and Answers for 99 years at ArkDes Stockholm
http://www.arkdes.se/articles/bo-nu-da-bostadsfragor-och-svar-under-99-ar

SEEING DJ JOHN COLLINS FROM UR AND EDDIE FOWLKES DISCUSSING TRUMP ON CHANNEL 4 NEWS UK

Keith P Tops Of 2016

2016-12-31T00:02:00.002-08:00

Looking back at the records and tapes I shouted at last year and it's pretty spooky how many artists and labels came back again. Maybe I'm getting old, not playing out as much and listening at home instead, or maybe it's just the couple of big boxsets breaking the record budget, but the most noticeable shift was towards albums over singles. For whatever reason the music that really stuck with me this year were completed pieces start to finish, showcased by the likes of Lone, Trim and Black Merlin exploring different concepts and vibes for a whole LP, still made up of individual tracks.

The master of this seems to be Seekersinternational and there's no denying the impact that he had on our bank account this year. There's knowledge and history in those recordings, and Seekers have taken all the influences upon them to craft their own presence across multiple sub-genres. 2016 was the year of more people hearing the Seekers own sound across a number of labels, each one carrying it's own heat.

On a similar tip, the #BokehThread incident occurred too, and restored my faith in getting sent new bits to listen to. Big ups all involved there, especially Miles and the Bokeh Recordings camp themselves who also took up a fair bit of our listening time across the year and undoubtedly our most hit label, and always reliable.

7s, 10's, EPs and 12s
Healing Force Project - Gravitational Lensing EP [Firecracker Recordings]
Kaiju - Burn Down Babylon [Deep Medi]
Beatrice Dillon / Karen Gwyer - Curl / Common Soundproofing Myths [Alien Jams]
Copeland & Gast - Sisters Of Control [All Bone]
Porter Ricks - Shadow Boat EP [Tresor]
Lemme Kno ‎- UNTHANK009 [Unthank]
Brassfoot - Realms [Apron]
Lee Gamble - Chain Kinematics [UIQ]
Seekersinternational - TrustInDigikal / IfUWantMe [Bokeh Versions]
Don't DJ - Gammellan [Berceuse Heroique]

LPs
Al Dobson Jr. - Rye Lane, Vol. 2 & 3 [
Black Merlin - Hipnotik Tradisi [Island Of The Gods]
Dan Melchior - Plays 'The Greys' [Ever / Never]
Floorplan - Victorious [M Plant]
Sleaford Mods - Live At SO36 [Harbinger]
Lone - Levitate [R&S]
African With Mainframes - KMT [Soul Jazz]
Seekersinternational - LoversDedicationStation [Bokeh Versions]
Seekers International meets MX 7 - Inna Dancehall Showdown [ICS Library]
Rashad Becker - Traditional Music of Notional Species Vol. II [PAN]
Howlround - A Creak In Time [Psyche Tropes]
GH – Housebound Demigod [Modern Love]
Shinichi Atobe – World [DDS]
Ibrahim Alfa - Hidden By The Leaves [Workshop]
Kassem Mosse ‎– Disclosure [Honest Jon's Records]
Trim - 1-800 DINOSAUR Presents Trim [1-800-Dinosaur]
Dog Chocolate - Snack Fans [Upset! The Rhythm]
Andy Stott - Too Many Voices [Modern Love]

Cassettes
The First Baboon Civilization - The First Baboon Civilization [Moontown Records]
SeekersInternational - RaggaPreservationSociety EP [Diskotopia]
Stretch & Bobbito - Radio That Changed Lives: 11/02/95 [Stretch & Bobbito]
Aquadab & MC A ‎– All Over There [Bokeh Versions]
Abu Ama ‎– Arabxo Ishara [Bokeh Versions]
Ras G - The Gospel Of The God Spell [Street Corner Music]
Ras G & The Koreatown Oddity - 5 Chuckles - InTheWrld ‎[Leaving Records]
Damu - Off The Spectrum [Keysound]

Best Reissues / Compilations / Super Expensive Boxsets
Count Ossie / The Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari - Grounation [Dub Store]
Gas — Box [Kompakt]
DJ Guy - Structures & Rhythms 94-99 [Organic Analogue]
Sun Ra & His Solar Arkestra - I Roam The Cosmos [Art Yard]
King Geedorah - Take Me To Your Leader [Big Dada]
Various Artists - Magnetophonics - Australian Underground Music 1978-1984 [Vinyl-On-Demand]
Various (Adrian Sherwoord) - Sherwood At The Controls Volume 2: 1985-1990 [On-U Sound]
Steve Reich - Drumming, Six Pianos, Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ [Deutsche Grammophon]

Essential Book Buys
Here's hoping you didn't sleep on '313ONELOVE' by Marie Staggart. There's something moving about the A4 sized hard cover book and the way it's been lovingly crafted. Despite this social media age, it feels like Detroit techno hasn't been watered down by the people that make it. From the fans perhaps - with 'Detroit' continuing to appear in too many press releases from records all over the world - but not from the artists themselves. This book is that extra dimension to the original scene that many didn't even realise was missing, and worthy tribute to the city and artists who birthed and built techno as well as those carrying it on today.

On the other side of the spectrum comes This Is Grime by Hattie Collins. A scene that's built itself up from London youth centres and artists connecting directly with followers and contemporaries. The originators come together to tell the story of how Grime formed and grew to what it is today. Kano, Dizzee, JME, Wiley, Novelist, Terror Danjah, Jammer, Crazy Titch - the list goes on and on of those in conversation with Collins, the job's been done properly. Stunning photos too.

Watch and Rewatch
With release dates being different in countries and all that, the two documentaries that I repeatedly rinsed the most this year were actually released in 2015.

Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives and Wall Writers: Graffiti In It's Innocence (along with Invisible Britain worth saying) were the films I carried house to house to share and insist on making people watch. Links above give a better run down, but you can check the trailers below.

Awkward Movements on NTS - 10.12.16

2016-12-22T03:14:00.002-08:00

What? It's almost holidays, we're allowed to archive late.

Awkward Movements on NTS from earlier in the month here, with full track list below. Starting with 20 minutes drone it was longcore from the start, which is the name generally given to tracks we like but are shelved till end of the year because they're too long.

Both of the recent Seekersinternational releases appear once again, nice to hear Side B of InnaDancehallStyleShowdown in it's entirety on radio as it was meant to be heard. One of two new Ras G plates that dropped features heavily towards the end, three tracks from Baker's Dozen on Fat Beats. Rrose, Grischa Lichtenberg (pictured above) and some African Head Charge are throw in there too for good measure along the way among others.

Big ups Paul for closing out a stunning year of radio. It's yours truly back on this weekend, and I promise no crappy 'Christmas' or 'end of year' specials, just tunes from the (metaphorical) crate.

Goncalo F Cardoso & Ruben Pater - The Life Of A 21st Century Drone Machine [Discrepant]
Demdike Stare - Hardnoise [Modern Love]
Porter Ricks - Shadow Boat [Tresor]
Rrose - Specimen 2 [Infrastructure New York]
Keita Sano - Sucker Part 2 [Rett I Fletta]
African Head Charge - Slippery Heel [On U Sound]
Demdike Stare - Sourcer [Modern Love]
SeekersInternational - RaggaPreservationSociety [Diskotopia]
SeekersInternational Meets MX7 - InnaDancehallShowdown (Side B) [ICS]
Rashad Becker - Dances VII [Pan]
German Army & Old Komm - Abuna/The Freak Of Algiers [Discrepant]
Peder Mannerfelt - Perspectives [Peder Mannerfelt]
Grischa Liechtenberger - 004_241 B [Raster-Noton]
Ras G - Britt Britt [Fat Beats]
Ras G - Hella Cousins [Fat Beats]
Ras G - King Douglas [Fat Beats]

Graffiti Writer vs Council Worker

2016-12-16T02:59:00.000-08:00

For those who might not be tuned in to Mt. Druitt News on Facebook you may've missed them posting this battle between a graffiti writer and the council worker responsible for this particular patch of building maintenance.

Radio Garden

2016-12-15T02:18:00.002-08:00

Well happy to have discovered Radio Garden (Radio.Garden) today, a web app that connects you to radio all over the world. An international research project from Transnational Radio Encounters, directed by Golo Föllmer at Martin-Luther University Halle in collaboration with other universities across Europe, it's a simple concept brought together by great design and intentions.

The interface lets you scroll across the globe selecting hot spots where radio is being streamed live that you can lock in to. There's also 'Jingles' mode that not only plays station idents but breaks down the sounds, 'History' that takes you back to now defunct stations and classic broadcasts (the earliest I've found is 1936 in Luxembourg) and 'Stories', compiling talks from figures in radio, music and beyond, all accessed from the globe interface.

It was a pleasure drowning out my colleagues by travelling around the world via radio today, with Kuala Lumpur and Bucharest being surprise highlights. The best parts were often having absolutely no idea what was playing, and as someone always on the lookout for new tunes for our own show it was nice to enjoy a disposable moment of radio, enabled by knowing full well I wouldn't be able to identify or bite what I was listening to.

Lock in here: http://radio.garden

By bringing distant voices close, radio connects people and places. Radio Garden allows listeners to explore processes of broadcasting and hearing identities across the entire globe. From its very beginning, radio signals have crossed borders. Radio makers and listeners have imagined both connecting with distant cultures, as well as re-connecting with people from ‘home’ from thousands of miles away – or using local community radio to make and enrich new homes.

Radio Is My Bomb: A DIY Manual For Pirates (1987)

2016-12-14T02:10:00.004-08:00

Stored on libcom.org ("a resource for all people who wish to fight to improve their lives, their communities and their working conditions") alongside such greats as Steal This Book by Abbie Hoffman and Government In The Future by Noam Chomsky, we found this treasure worth shouting out.

Published by Hooligan Press in London in 1987, Radio Is My Bomb: A DIY Manual For Pirates is a wonderfully dated guide to pirate broadcasting. Mostly aimed at activists it covers everything from laws (including going to court and getting gear back), existing stations, equipment and basic ethics to name but a few parts in it's 72 pages.

The information may be mostly redundant, but as a behind the scenes snapshot of a period, and a beacon for London's DIY radio scene, it's certainly worth looking at. Possibly even worth printing and binding as a Christmas present for Secret Santa in your squat.

Big ups to whoever took the time to scan it it to PDF, links below.

Part 1: http://libcom.org/files/radio-is-my-bomb-part-1.pdf
Part 2: http://libcom.org/files/radio-is-my-bomb-part-2.pdf

BrandNewNoise by Richard Upchurch - Handmade Voice Recorders and Sound Gadgets

2016-12-10T18:50:00.002-08:00

Brand New Noise aka BrandNewNoise is the online shop for handmade music gadgets from Richard Uphill, shipped from his workshop in Brooklyn, NY. You've got a love anyone that's turned a home hobby in to a full time business, and when the product's are this good it's even more exciting.

Uphill's original offering was a simple voice recorded in a wooden box. That concept evolved to include a pitch shifter, looper, 1/8 jacks in and 30 seconds of sampling time. And more recently he's added the Phone-Home Xylophone (with built in recorder, pitch-shift and looper) and the Zoots thumb piano with all the bells and whistles as the rest.

The custom made recording devices remain the stars though, with killer designs done in limited batches, including David Bowie, 8-bit Santa, and signed Black Keys and Tedeschi Truck Band editions to name a few.

Surprisingly affordable and made from sustainable materials, it's worth picking one of these ups if only to play around with. It's only a matter of time before Sonar features a performance with twenty three of these things. Hanging out for it.

Awkward Movements on NTS – 26.11.16

2016-11-30T01:20:00.001-08:00

John Zorn (pictured above from 1993) is like the honey badger of composition, the dude ain't scared of shit. He will literally take on everything to find the sound he wants. Hundreds of albums, featuring his composition, playing and producing have graced us since the early seventies, and he's still finding new genres to explore.

49 Acts of Unspeakable Depravity in the Abominable Life and Times of Gilles de Rais is the latest of his works and is pure madness, with bits of metal, jazz, blues, funk and classical somehow coming together.

Stoked to be playing it in the Awkward Movements Show on NTS on the weekend, which you can stream below. Loads of other heat as well, including forthcoming and released Seekersinternational, new Japanese rap on Bokeh Versions and a load more live and experimental pieces from the likes of Ghedalia Tazartes, Jan Jelinek and Mike Cooper among others. Full track list below underneath the stream.

Apologies for the mic sounding a bit weird, we were trying out some vocal recording theories that we'll be dropping for the next show.

Paul Ackroyd holding it down again in a fortnight's time, bound to be big as always.

Titus 12 - Grow Chart [Forthcoming / Unreleased]
Seekersinternational - DSC07(LegalNow) [ICS Library Records]
MX7 - DeathMask [ICS Library Records]
O$VM$VM – Eazy [Idle Hands]
Aquadab & MC A - Island Nation 24 Spectacles [Bokeh Versions]
Masayoshi Fujita & Jan Jelinek - What You Should Know About Me [Faitiche]
Jeff Mills - Gravitational Lensing [Axis]
Rider Shafique - Freedom Cry [Young Echo]
Solo1 - PM Song 1 [Memory No. 36 Recordings]
Wolf Dem - Tin Procession [Great Cirlces]
Solo1 - Unsound Equipment [Memory No. 36 Recordings]
Leyden Jars - The Marsh of Time [https://leydenjars.bandcamp.com/]
Seekersinternational – SoundDedication [Diskotopia]
Sikka Rymes feat. John D, prod. Genesis Hull – Love Di People [Duppy Gun Productions]
Georgia – Longry [F T D]
Renick Bell - Trying To Control the Four Winds [UIQ]
John Zorn - Scene 9 [Tzadik]
Eternal Tapestry - Where the Trees Touch the Ground [Sky Lantern Records]
Negative Reaction - Land Of Surrender [Vinyl-on-demand]
Florencio Coronado - Alma, Corazon Y Vida [BAM]
Ghédalia Tazartès - Chris Corsano - Dennis Tyfus - Untitled #1 [Ultra Eczena]
Mike Cooper – The Migrant Song [IDEA Records]
Awengele – Awengele [Soundway]
Don't DJ - Evocation In Desert Ruins [Berceuse Heroique]
Gulls - System Pools (Shock Version) [Common Language]

Awkward Movements on NTS (Jimmy Monsta Funk) – 12.11.16

2016-11-14T14:39:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we had the pleasure of handing the Awkward Movements Show on NTS over to Jimmy Monsta Funk. Drawing from his own record collection he put together two hours worth of tunes released in 1991 The first 80 minutes are pure UK independent record labels too with the last 40 mixing in US, Belgium, Netherlands, Italy and Canada, still all released in 1991.

Why 1991?

Jimmy Monsta Funk - Water Water Everywhere

25 years ago before the Criminal Justice Act had been written into law, before Take That infected the airways with their drivel, before Superstar DJs gave it large with the egos and Super-clubs herded the dressed up sheep into their evenings ‘entertainment’; a summer of ‘pop-up’ parties (before ‘pop-up’ meant anything outside of a children’s book) took place across the UK. This all happened after and yet as an extension to the heralded 2nd Summer of Love, which had lead to epic headlines across the terrified tabloids and also a year before the largest ‘free-rave’ in British history took place at Castlemorton Common in Worcestershire (my main memory of that party was receiving a jiffy bag full of rubbish with a piece of paper with my name and address, something I suspect that I’d given to another party goer who had promptly thrown it on the floor, along with a note from an old lady saying ‘why do you people want to destroy our countryside!). What makes the summer of ’91 special for me is that I turned 18 and as a avowed hater of those spit and sawdust nightclubs you use to find up and down the country with shit music and an all you can eat buffet I didn’t know until then that I needed a proper outlet for my teenage energy and the need to go on missions that were more about ‘bare’ basslines than ‘Bear Grylls’. In fact each weekend as we gathered outside of the usual bar in my home town of Oxford to find out where and when the party was going down, there was always a excitement in the air as we found out where we’d be ‘chasing the base’ that night.

The reason I decided to come back to this period is three fold. Firstly, an academic I once read (although promptly forgot the name of) mentioned that everyone has an unforgettable summer in their life, mine was 1991. Secondly, as the year was sandwiched in between the cool and often discussed Second Summer of Love (which actually covered to summers 1988 and 89, greedy bastards) and the explosion of legal festivals and Super-clubs of the mid-90s, this period is often forgotten about when journalists prattle on about first hearing Marshall Jefferson or Todd Terry - props to Todd and Marshall nonetheless). Finally, in a year where several iconic and culturally relevant clubs up and down the country have closed their doors due to Babylonian maneuvers I cannot help but think that without night-time outlets to rid ourselves of the stress the week can bring, but also places that work as an outlet for a our creative energies, we somehow lose one of the most important things that makes Britain great and that’s it’s musical culture.

Now I’m not saying that everyone should embrace ‘club’ music (or EDM has it’s been annoying called over the last few years), but it has been vitally important to the development of musical styles in the UK (drum and bass, grime and dub-step all instantly come to mind), but maybe it also acts as something for bands, IDM artists and traditionalists to kick against too, there’s nothing wrong with that either.

As a result of my thinking, and as a little ting for the Awkward Movements show, I decided to put together a selection of tracks released on independent UK record labels in 1991.

Cosmo & Dibs - Help Me [Moving Shadow]
2 Bad Mice - 2 Bad Mice [Moving Shadow]
Rebel MC Featuring Tenor Fly - The Wickedest Sound (Don Gorgon Mix) [Desire Records]
The Brothers Grimm - Judgement Day [Production House]
Bitin' Back - Boom Box [Fokus Recordings]
Shoot The Moon - Technophobia (Tuff Mix) [Creative Rhythm Records]
Altern-8 - Infiltrate 202 [Network Records]
The Prodigy - Everybody in the Place [XL Recordings]
D’Angel - Rolling Thunder (Microgroove Mix) [Outer Rhythm]
Melancholy Man - Precaution [Warriors Dance]
John + Julie Featuring Auriole - Circles (Round And Round) [XL Recordings]
Indo Tribe - Owl (I Can See You Mix) [Jumpin’ and Pumpin’]
The Hypnotist - Rainbows In The Sky [Rising High Records]
Is That It? - State Of Mind [D-Zone Records]
Raging Rockers - Kounter Act [Ruby Red Records]
Epitome Of Hype - Ladies With An Attitude (Club Dub) [Big Life]
Tuff Little Unit - Join The Future [Warp Records]
Xray Xperiments - Take No Chance [Xray Recordings]
Doc Scott - Surgery (Ordinary Mix) [Absolute 2 Records]
Redshift - Tingler [Pro-One Records]
Rum & Black - Slaves [Shut Up And Dance Records]
Set Up System - Music and Noise [XL Recordings]
Turntable Hype - Set You Free (Turntable Hype Reprise) [Go Bang! Records]
Joey Beltram - My Sound [R&S Records]
The Untouchables - Take A Chance [Strictly Rhythm]
Oi Sonik - Just Let Your Body Ride [Flying Records]
Rhythm Warfare - Two Notches (Battle Mix) [Strictly Rhythm]
Ray Love - Robin’s Revenge (1991 Liquid Mix) [Techno Kut]
Code Red - Dreams Forever [Menta Radio]
Defcon - Dread At Controls [Dance Records Attack]
Frequency - Where Is Your Evidence? [Lower East Side Records]
All In One - Mama’s Kick [Mid-Town Records]
Voodoo Child - Voodoo Child [Instinct Records]
X-Es - Roller-Coaster [Freaky Records]
Trigger - Stratosphere (Extended Mix) [Target Records]
Quadraphonia - Quadraphonia (Original Remix) [ARS]
CJ Bolland - Horsepower [R&S Records]
F.U.S.E. - F.U. [Plus 8 Records]
Underground Resistance - Beauty of Decay [Underground Resistance]
Meng Syndicate - Sonar System [Hithouse Records]
Da Juice - C’Mon C’mon [Torso Dance]

Awkward Movements on NTS – 29.10.16

2016-11-06T01:49:00.000-07:00

So first thing's first, and it's good news. James Leyland Kirby, the man behind musical projects of The Caretaker and V/Vm (pictured above) to name but two, does not in fact have early onset dementia as we mentioned in the show. It is in fact the character of The Caretaker who he has given the disease to, which will be chronicled musically across six albums over the next three years. Everywhere At The End Of Time is the name of the first LP, out now and definitely worth picking up.

We managed to get away with only playing one track off of it on last week's Awkward Movements show on NTS, dropped alongside some Ras G, Four Tet, Basic House and an excerpt from a new Howlround cassette. On that note we've heard word of a DVD and new LP from those guys coming end of 2016 or early 2017 which is plenty of reason to get excited.

Jay Glass Dub returns as does Powell with a new LP on XL Recordings, and we also push out to Diamond Submlimating on cassette and Rattle for the first time. Loads more heat in there, too much to mention, but there's a full track list below above the stream.

Hope you dig it, and for an offline copy feel free to reach out for the download.

Ras G - Psalm 82:6 [Street Corner Music]
The Caretaker Into Each Others Eyes [History Always Favours The Winners]
Milan Knizak - Composition N. 3 [Sub Rosa]
PG Sounds - Power [Acido]
Howlround - Amboy Parts 1-6 [Front & Follow]
iskeletor - Heavy Machyn Gun [Blacklist]
Yves Tumor - Serpent I [Pan]
Kassem Mosse - Galaxy Series 5 [Honest Jon's Records]
Powell - Plastic [XL Recordings]
Four Tet + Designer - Dark [Text Records]
Four Tet - Both When I Am Alone And When We Both Are [Ache]
Jay Glass Dubs Interlude II - Careless Dub [Bokeh Versions]
Ossia - Control (Version) [Berceuse Heroique]
Diamond Sublimating - Csepel House Revonation Ltd [Tapes Sublimating]
Basic House - C-Skin (Rupt Edit)
Ancestral Voices - Distant Sare [Samurai Music]
Grischa Lichtenberger - 004_241 B [raster-noton]
Rattle - Click [Upset The Rhythm]
Sandro Brugnolini - Grace [Schema]
Stefano Torossi - Repetition [Schema]
Asis - Part 4 [Acido]
Nebulo - Motifs [Seagrave]
TSVI - Assam's Children [Nervous Horizon]

The Dead Albatross Music Prize 2016 - Results Show

2016-10-30T23:32:00.000-07:00

I love Dead Albatross season. Living with a curated list of albums surrounded by a constant stream of radio and commentary while you decide which one's are your top releases of the year is an absolute pleasure, mostly due to the quality of contributors.

From the brain of Paul Ackroyd, what started as an alternate Mercury Prize has morphed in to it's own being with Ela Orleans scooping the prize in 2013, Ibibio Sound Machine in 2014 and Annabel (lee) last year.

The pool continues to grow as contributors do, with people nominating their favourite LPs released from UK and IRE year round, regardless of format, reissue or compilation status. From that shortist was created for the panel to go through, and select a top seven from. The votes are tallied and a dead albatross awarded to the winner.

For those that slept you can check this year's shortlist here: http://www.deadalbatross.com/2016/09/meet-shortlist.html

It all came to ahead with a countdown radio show broadcast last Thursday on Reel Rebels with all shortlisted albums featuring ending in a countdown of the Top 5 and a winner.

Show can be streamed underneath, with the track list underneath. Don't keep scrolling if you still fancy a surprise.

via The Dead Albatross Music Prize
Massive congratulations to Family Atlantica for winning this year's Dead Albatross Music Prize. Matthew Collings finished in second place with his stunning Requiem For Edward Snowden album; Circles of Upper and Lower Hell by Ela Orleans finished third; Gonzo's Dies Irae came fourth; whilst Onoe Caponoe finished fifth with Spells From The Cyclops.

Tracklist for the Dead Albatross Show
The Bug - Iceman featuring Riko Dan
Chimpo - Ram Dance Man ft. Trigga and Fox
Gaika - 3D
Foetus - Today I Started Slogging Again
The Work - I Hate America
Ela Orleans - [interview]
Gonzo - Samboia Kanguik (excerpt)/Ses (excerpt)
Palehorse - Terrifying Japanese Coldplay Documentary
Family Atlantica - El Negrero (Slave Ship)
The Comet Is Coming - Space Carnival
Girl Band - Why They Hide Their Bodies Under My Garage
The World - It Takes 2
Yeah You - A Must Have
The Modern Institute - From Eye To Eye
Playgroup - Subway
Embla Quickbeam & Graham Dunning - Floating Worlds
Matthew Collings - [interview]
Peter Brotzmann/Heather Leigh - Ears Are Filled With Wonder (excerpt)
Floating Points - Kuiper (excerpt)
Djrum - Space Race Pt 1 & 2

The Dead Albatross Award 2016 Top 5
5. Onoe Caponoe - Vapours In Abyss
4. Gonzo - Dies (excerpt)
3. Ela Orleans - Beatrice
2. Matthew Collings - Collect It All
1. Family Atlantica - Cosmic Unity feat Marshall Allen

Awkward Movements on NTS - 15.10.16 - Discrepant Records Special

2016-10-21T03:20:00.002-07:00

There's no doubt Discrepant has been one of our favourite label over the years, and hence the tribute show was long overdue. Last week's Awkward Movements Show on NTS was two hours dedicated to a catalogue that's constantly blown us away with it's originality and breaking sounds.

Paul Ackroyd goes through the catalogue since it's inception in 2011, playing a load of rarer bits from the early cassette releases alongside the essential listening ones that continue to blow new fans away.

Label boss Gonzo features of course alongside the likes of Kink Gong, El Mahdy Jr. and Mike Cooper who're three artists from the Discrepant catalogue who've hit our yearly 'Best Of' lists. I don't even want to imagine a world where I never got to hear Xinjiang.

Stream below with full track list, get in touch for the download.

Gonzo - Samboia Kanguik (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Gonzo - Ses (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Gonzo - Ruidos (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Gonzo - Ark Eulogy (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Yannick Dauby - Tsit Lau Tsui (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Mike Cooper - Oraneus [Discrepant]
Tiago Sousa - A Conquista Do Pao [Discrepant]
The Dead Mauriacs - Cocktails Pour La Fin Des Temps (excerpt) [Discrepant]
German Army - Tragic Life [Discrepant]
Old Komm - Ventspils Theme 1st Movement [Discrepant]
El Mahdy Jr - Ghost Tapes (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Mutamassik - Long Beards [Discrepant]
Rizan Sa'id - Electric Mawwal II [Discrepant]
Malayeen - Dina [Discrepant]
Charbel Haber - Last Evenings On Earth [Discrepant]
Johnny Kafta's Anti-Vegetarian Orchestra - BBQ In Karantina [Discrepant]
Kink Gong - The Lisu (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Yannis Kyriakides & Andy Moor - Vamvakaris [Discrepant]
Gonçalo F Cardoso & Ruben Pater - A Study into 21st Century Drone Acoustics (excerpt) [Discrepant]
Romperayo - Dando Vueltas En Ovni [Discrepant]
Hair & Treasure - Juno Lake Loop Pt 1 [Discrepant]
Gonzo - Irae (excerpt) [Discrepant]

Wall Writers: Graffiti In It's Innocence (2015) - Dir. Roger Gastman

2016-10-15T02:24:00.000-07:00

Currently doing the screening circuit, this feels like the graffiti documentary we've been waiting for since Style Wars set the benchmark in 1983. And where many since have done a brilliant job showcasing then 'current' eras in writing, Wall Writers: Graffiti In It's Innocence steps backwards, further exploring the birth of graffiti from 1967 - 1973.

Check the trailer below.

Directed by the legendary Roger Gastman and voiced by John Waters, there's something intangibly genuine and heartfelt in the shooting and purpose ofWall Writers that easily transcends the hours, weeks and days of youtube shorts so commonly associated with graffiti nowadays.

As an added bonus they also launched a book, but looks like that one's currently sold out and only shipping to the US. Here's hoping there's a reprint.

We're stoked to have been invited down to the screening at the end of the month, hosted by the great Mindspray crew. Errol Donald aka Pride of The Chrome Angelz fame is the cat behind it, and they're doing good things.

The screening is happening 28th of October at Central Saint Martin's College in Kings Cross. For full information including the synopsis, time and to book a seat, head over here: http://www.mindspray.co.uk/film-screening-wall-writers-october-2016/

Errol was kind enough to share some stills with us, which you can check out below along with a note from Gastman.

CORNBREAD declares he has retired. 1971

Director’s Statement 
From graffiti’s humble beginnings in 1967 to the first painting being sold in 1973, Wall Writers reveals the context of the start of a movement that would eventually grow to transform city life, public transit, public art, and ultimately visual art the world over.

Graffiti has been a part of my life since 1991. When I was just getting into this world as a teenager, I always wondered where it came from and who started it. First, I should define what graffiti is to me: someone writing his or her name over and over in illegal places for the sake of fame. It’s worth mentioning that the media termed this ‘graffiti,’ while the people doing it just called themselves writers. I mean American graffiti, not Egyptian hieroglyphics or political murals. So many people have claimed to be “the first” in the US over the years but when you do the math, it turns out they would have been four years old or something.

BAMA poses in front of his painting "Orange Juice" at the Razor Gallery. 1973

Photo by Herbert Migdoll.

Wall Writers: Graffiti In Its Innocence is my answer to that curiosity. It is an exploration and excavation of the people who started it all, unknowingly launching the biggest art movement of the 20th century, one stroke at a time. Unearthing these writers and telling their stories was a challenge—an obsession, even. The film took seven years of hardcore research and I kept the focus on Philadelphia and New York of the 1960s and 70s. This project and the accompanying book involved tracking down people known only by pen names, piecing together shreds of information like a puzzle and trying to document things that have long been erased--literally. This film is my curation of a form that was widely reviled and largely undocumented.

My goal really was to tell the story of the kids who started this movement—many who had been forgotten or are unknowns to the culture of today. I wanted to give them a voice and their rightful place on the historical timeline.

- Roger Gastman

MIKE 171 Tag Circa 1971

Photo ©SJK 171.

Nixon – Wall in the Bronx featuring Nixon posters and a CHARMIN 65 tag

ROCKY 184 and STITCH 1 Circa 1972

Photo-courtesy of ROCKY184

SNAKE 1, STATIC 5, FLASH 191, and STITCH 1 at the P.S. 189 school yard in Washington

Heights, New York. Circa 1973.

The fashion and the graffiti of the era could not be captured more perfectly than in this photo.

Photo courtesy SNAKE 1.

TAKI 183 and WORSHIP GOD Circa 1970

Photo by Smith

TAKI 183 Tag on fire hydrant

Photo by Allie Marsiello

Awkward Movements on NTS - 1.10.16

2016-10-09T03:09:00.000-07:00

Last weekend's Awkward Movements show on NTS now available for the digital rewind in it's full two hour glory. Big ups everyone who locked in live, hope you dig it as much as we do.

We featured new tracks from a load of our favourites, including The Silver Apples (though the above picture is 1968) who've dropped their first album in nineteen years, Damu who's done a crazy mixtape of originals released on Keysound, as well as AyGeeTee, the Firecracker label and D/P/I who deliver as expected.

There's just no denying the quality of that Black Merlin plate on Island Of The Gods. Surprisingly there's still some kicking around, jump on it or regret it once it's gone.

Stream and track list below, and as always reach out for the download if you're after a more portable less internet required version.

Abu Ama - Back in England [Bokeh Versions]
Damu – Off The Spectrum (excerpt) [Keysound Recordings]
Les Graciés – Salubrious [Firecracker Recordings]
AyGeeTee - Walker on This One [Seagrave]
D/P/I – Ecstatics [Shelter Press]
VHVL – 0002 [Leaving Records]
Mike & Rich - Brivert & Muonds [Planet Mu]
Silver Apples - Nothing Matters [Chicken Coop Recordings]
Count Ossie & The Mystic Revelation of Rastafari – Narration [Dub Store Records]
FIRE! - She Bid A Meaningless Farewell [Rune Grammofon]
The Gaslamp Killer - Shred You to Bits [Cuss Records]
Manse - Cymbal Shudder [Mns]
Airhead – Kazzt [Different Circles]
CoH - Escape and Return [Ge-stell]
G.H. – Screamin Demon Pickups [Modern Love]
Fis – SeaPR [Subtext]
Luc Ex – Ziganie [Music That Always Is]
Robert Turman - Stuck In My Head [Actual Tapes]
Black Merlin - Time In Motion [Island Of The Gods]
Suns Of Arqa - Asian Rebel (Brian Hyphen Dub) [Emotional Rescue]
Willow - Untitled A2 [Workshop]
Lao - Caracol Ha [NAAFI]
Dylab - Machine Juke [Broken Soles Recordings]

Jimmy Monsta Funk In Session @ Rye Wax In Peckham 7.10.2016 [LDN]

2016-10-06T15:56:00.002-07:00

Apologies for the late notice on this one, but 24 hours in London should be enough of a heads up. The one Jimmy Monsta Funk is going live for three hours at Rye Wax, South East London. Strictly wax and quality selections from one of the best personal collections I know of.

Sitting opposite Peckham Rye Station, Rye Wax is a dope underground space in the basement of CLF Art Cafe doubling as record store, comic purveyors, cafe and gallery as well as a venue. And most importantly the sound system is top notch.

We've waxed poetic about Jimmy Monsta Funk plenty of times here, still the best on decks that I know. It's been a minute since his last residency at Snugg last year (live recording here: http://www.awkwardmovements.com/2015/06/live-recording-in-heat-of-night-snugg.html), so Friday night is something to look forward to. Get involved.

Who: Jimmy Monsta Funk
What: Three hours of wax
Where: Rye Wax, The Basement, CLF Art Cafe, 133 Rye Lane, London SE15 4ST
When: Friday 7th October 2016
Cost: Free

And if you've been paying attention you may've seen us tweeting about nine hours worth of mix that he delivered, coprising of three long time recording sessions. Going up soon, we promise. In the meantime here was his six hours worth of 2014 tracks that dropped last year on Seance.

Stream and download below:
http://seanceradio.co.uk/awkward-movements-presents/

Awkward Movements on NTS - 17.9.16

2016-09-30T00:42:00.004-07:00

From the Radio Olympics almost straight in the Dead Albatross Music Prize, Paul Ackroyd aka Kamikaze emerged from hundreds of records sleeves for a dope couple of hours of music the week before last. Apologies for the delay getting this up, been a crazy hectic couple of weeks over here.

No words, just two hours of heat in tunes, including Graham Dunning (pictured above), Golden Teacher, Suns of Arqa and former Dead Albatross winner Ela Orleans.

Full track list and archive below, grab a rewind before this weekend's Awkward Movements show on NTS. And as always, reach out if you feel like the download.

Nancy Sesay and The Melodaires - C'est Fab [Optimo]
Girl Band - Um Bongo [Rough Trade]
Yeah You - childproxypowerstate [Slip]
Golden Teacher - Like A Hawk [Rough Trade]
Richie Brains - Buss It [Exit]
Miss Red - What Would You Like [https://missred1.bandcamp.com]
Gaika - PMVD (feat Mista Silva) [Mixpak Records]
Onoe Caponoe - Ghost Surf (Spirit Board) [High Focus]
Bruxa Maria - Human Condition [Extreme Ultimate]
Matthew Collings - Bluffdale, Utah [Denovali]
Gonzo - Irae [Discrepant]
Floating Points - Elaenia [Pluto]
Graham Dunning - Monogon [Seagrave]
Suns Of Arqa - Asian Rebel [On-U Sound]
Fats Comet - Dub Storm [On-U Sound]
Family Atlantica - Enjera [Soundway]
Melt Yourself Down - Bharat Mata [Leaf]
Dog Chocolate - Roundabout [Upset The Rhythm]
Anxiety - Sewer In My Mind [La Vida Es Un Mus]
Ela Orleans - The Great Barrier [Night School]
Heather Leigh - Fairfield Fantasy [Editions Mego]

Awkward Movements on NTS - 3.9.16

2016-09-07T23:25:00.000-07:00

Archive here for last week's Awkward Movements show on NTS; full track list below and get in touch for download as always.

I may start giving up on planning shows. Generally there's a box of tracks I definitely want to play and then a pile of other joints that we might squeeze in if there's time. And most of the time the first pile goes untouched bizarrely.

We started off with beaten up jazz breaks and ended on track with 'jazz' in the name, so there might be something in going full circle there even if the sounds weren't even close. We also bumped in some longcore, as it seemed to harsh to not play the full 15 minutes of M. Geddes Gangras' Interior Architecture stand-out track. Dude's a genius.

Bokeh Versions has fast become a buy on site label, and we managed to get in not just the current release but one from the label boss slated for release in the future courtesy of Jay Glass Dubs (pictured above).

One of these days I may finish with footwork, God knows the rest of the world seems to be moving on. But despite so much of the output being unplayable, week after week there also seems to be something crazy fresh coming out, for the most part from Teklife. Also with Planet Mu re-releasing one of the greatest albums of the last decade - DJ Diamond's Flight Muzik - we had to get some in there.

As a final shout out we need to say that the Michael Turtle reissue on Music From Memory is stunning, make sure you cop it if not already done so.

Sad City - Steady Jam [Emotional Response]
Elusive - Swing Motion [Alpha Pup]
Jay Glass Dubs - Compound Dub [Bokeh Versions]
LXV - Mihal Drop Scene [anomia]
Michal Turtle - El Teb [Music From Memory]
Stuart Chalmers - Pop Plunder 18 [Beartown Records]
NHK yx Koyxen - 1759+ [Diagonal]
Black Dice - Last Laugh [L.I.E.S.]
Knxwledge - heypapi157[WTT] [https://knxwledge.bandcamp.com]
Trim - Man Like Me [1-800 Dinosaur]
YPY – Zurhyrethm [EM Records]
TLC Fam - Umgcwabo weNdanda (Da 4th Term Mix) [Gqom Oh!]
DJ Diamond - Speakerz 'n' Tonguez [Planet MU]
DJ Earl - Fukk It Up [Teklife]
Zomby x Burial – Sweetz [Hyperdub]
M. Geddes Gengras - Wings_Carroms_Fountain_Worm Suite Pt. 1 [Intercoastal Artists]
Buttechno - Yalta Sea Blues [ГОСТ ЗВУК ]
System Error - Dogs of Babylon [Self-Released]
Abu Ama - B!n Ladens Funeral Fiesta [Bokeh Versions]
The Angel Race - Jazz - Filled Freedom [Mathematics Recordings]

Awkward Movements on NTS - 20.8.16

2016-08-28T21:52:00.003-07:00

Paul Ackroyd aka Kamikaze in control and selecting on last week's Awkward Movements show on NTS. Two hours of awesome tunes, and since they're such nice words that I've recently looked up and because I've overcome my fear of pretentiousness I'm going to include the words 'idiosyncratic' and 'didact' as descriptions this week.

It's been a minute since we heard some Conlon Nancarrow on the show (pictured above), still one of the most mind-blowing cats in music history in my opinion. If you're after an introduction to his work here's a good place to start: http://www.awkwardmovements.com/2011/12/conlon-nancarrow-music-book-events.html

Tunes from labels the likes of Sub Rosa, Poo-Bah and Seagrave who're ever-good, sitting alongside a load of new joints, including an absolute cracker of an opening track from Villalobos & Loderbauer on Perlon.

Stream and track list below, get in touch for the download. Don't mind saying Paul's been insanely busy with the radio Olympics and in the lead up to Dead Albatross. I don't think anyone consumes as much music as him.

Yours truly back on the weekend, reach out for requests, abuse and the like on Twitter.

Villalobos & Loderbauer ft Tea Time - Mas Profundo Que Mis Pies [Perlon]
DJ Problemas - Tempo De Ir Para Casa [Bandcamp]
Fabioulous Barker - The Crown [Katakana]
Art Of Tones - Devil The Difference [House Of Disco]
FFF - Amen Soldier VIP [Murder Channel]
Ras G - Beats Of Mind [Poo-Bah]
DJ Zozi - Mellow Vibe [1080p]
Perfume Advert - Mirror Shield [1080p]
Alma Negra - Tabanka (Version) [Sofrito]
Conlon Nancarrow - Study For Player Piano No. 7 [Wergo]
Dajuin Yao - Satisfaction Of Oscillation [Sub Rosa]
Juan Blanco - Tanidos [Areito]
Epoca de Invierno - Lluvia, Tuberias y Particulas de Aceleracion [Delirio De Cordura]
Aiwa - GRI Conscious [Seagrave]
DJ Marfox - Swaramgami [Principe]
Zanfjord - Cublionious Nixon Thrice [Bandcamp]
Jabulani Badco Mkhani - Corrupt [Shangaanbang]

Awkward Movements on NTS - 7.8.16

2016-08-18T03:26:00.003-07:00

With our next show going out this weekend thought we'd see how late we could leave it before getting the archive up for the last one. Not really, but any excuse will do. Track list and archive here for the Awkward Movements on NTS that was broadcast at the start of the month. Reach out for the download link.

Had to play the latest Adrian Sherwood collection twice, though probably could have gone the whole thing. Sherwood At The Controls Vol 2 is definitely worth picking up if you've not done so already.

Couple of other stunning LPs appeared including Treatment Works from Beattie Cobell, John Roberts on Brunette Editions, Kassem Mosse on Honest Jon's and an unexpected blues jam from Vakula taken from his Dekmantel LP.

Stuck on tapes still too, with casette releases from Blue Tapes and Bokhari Records making their way in along with a few other bandcamp pickups. Sometimes shit just sounds better on reels.

Stacks of fun as always, packed with so many good tunes. Paul Ackroyd aka Kamikaze back hosting on Saturday, get locked in.

unfollow - Half Blu [Blue Tapes]
Lemme Kno - Way (188 Krew Mix) [Unthank]
The Beatnigs - Television (Dance Mix) [On-U Sound]
John Roberts – Fumes [Brunette Editions]
Cut Chemist feat. Edan - Mean Gene [https://cutchemist.bandcamp.com/]
Mark Ernestus' Ndagga Rhythm Force - Walo Walo Rhythm [Ndagga]
Kuf – While [Macro]
Rinf - Big Bondage (Kinky Sex Wet Mix) [On-U Sound]
Xaõ Seffcheque - Kassa-Bubu [Kess Kill]
NHK yx Koyxen – 943 [L.I.E.S.]
Nonkeen - The Journey of Hello Peter [R&S Records]
Sote - Krom Uth [Ge-stell]
Beattie Cobell - Gate Clock [More Than Human]
DJ N.K. - Ghetto Sound of Lisbon [Lit City Trax]
Paterson – Guwiyang [Bokhari Records]
Computer Graphics – Experiment [Car Crash Set]
A Taut Line - Burleigh St. [Disktopia]
Special Request - Reset It (Head High Real Mix) [XL Recordings]
Hieroglyphic Being & The Configurative Or Modular Me Trio - The Outernothingness [Mathematics]
Kassem Mosse - Chilazon 2 [Honest Jon’s]
Trikk – Esplendor [Optimo Trax]
Sarathy Korwar - Lost Parade [Ninja Tune x Steve Reid Foundation]
Hype Williams – BREWING [https://jesustakethewheel.bandcamp.com]
Hidden Spheres - Land [Rhythm Section International]
Vakula - Gomeisa Blues [Dekmantel]
Elysia Crampton & Chino Amobi - Children of Hell [Break Worls Records]
Roger van Lunteren - DSP Cgn [Diffuse Reality]