Lockdown Mix

I got the bug for putting a mix together again recently and this is the result, an hour of largely ambient and Balearic with some 80s Manchester and 90s Liverpool dropped in. Despite the promise of the vaccine the situation still seems pretty desperate. Everyone seems determined to celebrate Christmas despite the fact that if it goes ahead 'as normal', people will surely die within weeks and a further lockdown in January will be inevitable. Taking refuge in music often seems to be the answer. I still can't get Mixcloud to embed but you can find my Lockdown Mix here. 

Tracklist

• A Man Called Adam: Book Of The Dead (The British Museum Mix)
• Two Lone Swordsmen: Ink Cloud
• Steve Roach: Spiral Of Strength
• Richard Norris: Music For Healing 12
• Moon Duo: In A Cloud
• The Charlatans: Trouble Understanding (Norman Cook Remix)
• Andy Bell: Cherry Cola (Pye Corner Audio Remix)
• Future Beat Alliance: Tell Me About These Dreams
• Big Hard Excellent Fish: Imperfect List (Uncensored Original Mix)
• Nuel: Vibration
• Durutti Column: Take Some Time Out
• Tabula Rasa: Sunset At The Café del Mar

 

Monday's Long Song

I found this over the weekend, posted at the excellent Ban Ban Ton Ton website, and it has occupied my head quite a bit since. Italian DJ and producer Manuel Fogliata has recorded as Nuel and back in 2011 he released Trance Mutation, an album of minimal, organic repetition. Recorded round a single microphone in his home town near Rimini, Vibration and the other six tracks on the album take the structure electronic music but the instruments of much earlier times, rhythms and repeating melodies, something that sounds very old and also very new. Vibration has hand drums and a stringed instrument, a piano motif, some bells and shakers, lots of natural echo and, I think this is the word I'm looking for, flow.

The whole album is available digitally at Bandcamp. Ban Ban Ton Ton said that this is one album crying out for a vinyl repressing and I second that.