Lorsque l’on cherche le sommeil le soir, on pense à tout et à rien à la fois. Face à soi-même, toutes les portes de notre subconscient s’ouvrent. J’imagine bien cette musique m’accompagner, le temps d’une nuit dans les méandres de mes rêves. Puis me réveiller et tout oublier. Elle est toute aussi mystérieuse, entraînante et éphémère qu’un rêve.
Si le Kodama de 20syl est similaire à celui de Wikipédia (recherches profondes sur le sujet), il s’agirait, dans la culture japonaise, d’un esprit habitant les arbres, pouvant être à l’origine de l’écho. Ce morceau pleinement mystique m’embarque facilement dans cette légende et me permet d’imaginer d’où provient l’inspiration de 20syl. Si cela est vrai et que les deux sont liés, je trouve ça pleinement réussi.
Sans vouloir en faire trop, 20syl un génie! Je suis un grand fan, que ce soit avec Hocus Pocus au lycée, C2C plus tard ou en solo, je trouve tout ce qu’il fait génial!
Okay you guys, here’s the thing. Every single one of you has done something for yourself that you completely and one hundred percent supported. Whether that was a self-indulgent vacation to a foreign place you’ve never been to, a large purchase of technology, or a new experience, you know what that feeling is. I currently have that. It’s the most exciting thing ever because I have not felt this way honestly, in a really long time. I did it. I bought tickets to see my goddess queen of the musical world, in December. I can’t remember the last time I allowed something as material as a purchase make me so happy, but maybe it’s because this is the only musical lady I’ve ever genuinely loved from childhood. The consistency in my taste and her music is probably what makes the whole connection so special. But this is not necessarily the place for me to talk about this musician, I’m merely relaying an emotion and experience that I’m currently undergoing because I think you guys can totally relate on some sort of level.
The reason I talk about that with relation to this song though, is because of how happily Zero 7 has crafted this track. It’s not happy in a C2C kind of way, that is, universally happy, where anyone who hears a song of theirs just knows that there’s something to celebrate — rather, it’s happy in its lyrics and yeah, musically, it’s pretty happy. But check out these lyrics for a hot minute:
Hot on you, I’m thinkin’ of your style I know that spell you been weaving You, you give me what I want That kind of thing you make me feelin.’
It’s like, sexy in some sort of primal way, sexy in a way that I associate with happiness. I feel sexy happy, I think that’s it, and yet there’s nothing remotely sexual about my happiness right now. It’s the feeling of sheer joy with oneself, with the knowledge that you did something good for you. There’s something inherently sexy about that, the awareness of self. And yeah, maybe when one is in their twenties, one tends to do a lot of things for oneself that might be selfish. But these decisions are not always good decisions. And you know, the weirdest part of this song is that it makes me feel as if I’ve got some sneaky lover in my pocket, someone that I truly adore and feel fire with, even though that’s not the case. So there’s the sexy happiness, and then there’s the actual sexiness that this song inspires. I love the duality of it all.
Anyways, I heard this song in a store last week and immediately thought it was Little Dragon which made me really excited and then overwhelmed because I thought I had missed some announcement about them releasing new music. Luckily, I was wrong as soon as I geekily shazaamed the song in the middle of the store with this huge goofy grin on my face. Honestly, the whole scene was silly, if you guys saw me you’d probably think I was some weird old lady trying to understand iPhones, phone in hand raised up in the air as if that would help shazaam function better.
Mr. McGee is the ethereal happiness you’ve been waiting for — save this song for a moment that is truly all yours. Relish in that moment, and when you’ve finished taking it all in and find yourself ready to strut at your cat (or down the street, whichever honestly works) put this on your headphones and work it.
How often do we forget the value and power of our individuality? I mean it’s not something one dwells upon daily but do you realize that your genetic makeup is one of a kind and that every feeling, emotion, thought, inclination or breath you have is unique to you an only you? I’m not talking about corny stuff like the clothes you wear or music you listen to, I’m talking about YOU, not the society version of you but the person deep inside…
We are free when our acts proceed from our entire personality,when they express it, when they exhibit that indefinable resemblance to it which we find occasionally between the artist and his work. – Henri Bergson
Every single one of us has something unique and powerful to offer. EVERYONE. True freedom, not material bullshit like being able to buy a nice car or the new iPhone, true freedom comes when all our actions are in accordance with that one of a kind blend of genes that makes you special. That’s a massive concept but one that deserves attention. I mean, do you know how advanced your body is? Computers are amazing yet nothing close to what you are. Yet if you put in a virus in a computer that joint is going to freak out. Behaving, thinking and acting in ways that aren’t in accordance with your beautiful and unique disposition will have the same effect. When you really think about that for a minute, when you realize what freedom really is you might realize the seriousness of the matter…
Look at me, I just can’t believe what they’ve done to me,We can never get free… – Amber Coffman (Major Lazer)
Nobody ever thinks about that. Nobody ever thinks about finding themselves anymore. I mean we spend so much time trying to find another person, hustling in our day jobs, playing angry birds, trying to get laid, drinking coffee, worry about nonsense, watching movies and all that other crap that we ignore the discovery of ourselves. The irony is that you offer less to the world and others when you don’t have yourself in order…
Entertainment, Show them what you do with meWhen everyone here knows better, What I once refused to beIs everything they long togetherI’d rather be alone…” – Phoenix
I could go on for days about the subject but I won’t, there’s too much to cover. Maybe I’ll write a book someday about it, probably not though, who has the time. I think it’s just important to know that most things these days are designed to keep you away from you – the current system wouldn’t survive otherwise. Anyways, every now and then just remember to step back from all the distraction, step away from people and work on yourself. It’s hard to be objective about yourself and it’s even harder when you’re dealing with people who don’t understand the value of that.
That brings me to the subject of todays post, the May 2013 edition of Le Miel du Mois by Steph Lund. Now here’s someone whose never had a problem with tapping into that unique expression of herself through music. There are many ways to express and explore your individuality and it’s no secret art is one of them. The way Steph selects music makes absolutely no sense to me but I love it. It’s the same feeling you get when you look at a great piece of art, at first glace you really have no idea why you like it or why it connects with you but it does and there you are. I think it’s because when someone is honest about their art it reflects their unique personality and you for that moment you dive deep into their zone, it’s a beautiful thing. Anyways, I’ve yapped enough for the day. Press play on LMDM Mai, as usual every song is great and more importantly its the expression of someways life in art form, doesn’t get any better. Enjoy.
Well, seeing as I just danced for like two whole minutes at my cat to this song, I think it’s only fitting that I write about it. I also want to talk forever and ever about their live show which I attended on Thursday at Irving Plaza. But I won’t talk forever, I promise.
There’s a lot to say but let me begin by saying that The Knocks were a fantastic opener for C2C. We’ve talked about them before, and I understand the hype now. They’re so much fun live, with an excellent selection of songs and a fair gauge of what the crowd is into. Seeing as a lot of the audience at this show was French, they played a lot of funky electro, and even managed to get live edits of a couple of Justice’s tracks.
I was kind of turned off by the amount of pushing there was in the crowd, more so than usual, but I was quickly distracted from that once C2C entered the stage. Four turntables set up on top of boxes that played a variety of animations and light shows over the course of the performance.
They opened with The Cell, which is the first track on Tetra. Perfect opener, high energy and the smiles on each of the men’s faces were priceless as they watched a New York crowd go absolutely bonkers for their music. The moment that I heard the opening notes for Happy, I knew that things were about to get a little more wild. At that point, I turned to my friend, huge smiles plastered across both of our silly faces, and said, “They wanted to make a song about happiness, and they just happen to have a room filled with really happy people.” And that was true, as I looked around. All night, my friend and I were dancing next to this one dude whose sole intention was to move his body all night long. He arrived alone and left alone, wearing a fedora and simple clothes, he was the embodiment of what C2C’s music is about. It’s about art, craft and technique, sure, but it inspires such an overwhelming amount of happiness in so many people. It’s an instantaneous amount of happy, like when you’re sitting in your living room and your roommate puts on Down the Road and you hear the first ten bars, immediately smiling and asking who the eff this is? Because you’ve never heard such a happy balance of sound and music.
As a former turntable DJ (I took classes and have since not been able to practice, but I would still know what to do if given the opportunity), I was absolutely floored by the tricks that they pulled on stage. Everything from trading places, to working as four on one turntable with one person scratching while the other worked the cross fader. These are standard tricks for them, but me being the rookie that I am having enough trouble with simple looping, it was a magical sight.
These Frenchmen do a pretty excellent job of creating sound that embodies a good feeling, and then pairing it with a video that matches that visually. So if you haven’t seen the video yet, look below.
The show ended with an incredible tribute to the Beastie Boys where the members of C2C took turns rapping their own verses to Intergalactic. As some of you know, there’s a lot of overlap between Hocus Pocus and C2C, and I was secretly hoping that they would break out into rap earlier in the show. Nevertheless, this dose of rap was enough to leave the crowd really pleased in a high energy way, the perfect way to leave a crowd after a great night.
That said, this track should give you a lift if you’re down and keep your spirits up if you’re up! Enjoy.
A couple of months ago, CP asked me what my favorite track of the summer was. My response was none other than C2C’sDown the Road. With the perfect combination of vocals and tripped up beats, one can expect anything from a head bob to a full out no regrets dance session in the middle of a crowded New York City street. Yes, that has happened. For the same reason, I bring you one of my new favorite C2C tracks off their newest album, Tetra. The entire album is remarkable to say the least, with an eclectic mixture of vocals and the turntable craft we’ve gotten used to expecting from C2C.
Delta gives us a classy build-up from low to high that leaves us in anticipation, similar to Down the Road but with a lovably different flavor. The whole track is so catchy taking us from highs to lows with vocal repetition combined with perfect instrumentation and just the right amount of “licks” to get to the center and realness of this track. Certain emotions are often times linked to very specific tracks. The one I’d choose for this track is motivation. Perhaps even inspiration. I was both motivated and inspired to smile at people as this track played on my headphones on the subway, to find that a good majority of the people I silently interacted with responded in the same manner. I love doing that in this city. It’s so contagious.
Rewind to around 8am. Disappointment immediately set in once I realized that there was no sun the walls of my apartment. I sat in my kitchen attempting to gain momentum for this long day but couldn’t help but feel sad about the fact that it was 8:30AM, and looked as if it was 5:30PM outside. This song essentially changed everything about this day. In heels and nice clothes with two bags (one for work, one for the gym — this is how I constantly roll) I sauntered down the street like a dancing diva. (I wish. I probably looked less like a diva and more like a hot mess due to the disgusting humidity and it’s non-compliance with my hair, but whatever.)
Anyways, may this track do for you what it’s done for me. And more! May your days be filled with happy vibes and ignorance of the weather. Get away from those sticky sucky rainy day blues!
About a month ago I shared with EMPT the lovely likes of C2C , and I’ve got a remix that will blow your mind. Cherokee brings you a sexy take on a track that I’ve decided is my favorite track of the summer. Why? Because it does a few things. One, it brings the funk. How can anyone say no to funk? Second, it’s all about slapping the bass. Well, maybe not all about it, but there’s a consistent amount of slapping said bass.
Simplicity. This is the key, especially when it comes to an already fire track. The piano in the beginning is subtle but sets the perfect tone for how the pace of the song will progress: danceable, funky, but also not fast and banger-esque. It’s a strolling song. Actually, I’ve tested and proved that claim. As I was walking through Brooklyn today, I noticed that my pace matched the song perfectly. And that pace, was in fact a stroll.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts, because I know ya’ll love C2C like I do. Enjoy!
Holy. If it was possible for a track to be as hot as the weather outside, I think it would be this track. Like if fire could be translated to the literal notes and turntable rhythms of a song, it would exist in one’s ears as this song. Oh my sweet heavens.
There are few times that one accidentally comes across this kind of music. You know a track that makes you feel like the only appropriate reaction is to stand up wherever you are, and freak out. If you don’t flail those arms, shake your booty, make weird pointy gestures with your fingers in the air at no one in particular, and maybe even start head thrashing with an epic air guitar, then you’re not doing the musical gods justice. The truth is that I came across this track on accident when my roommate started playing C2C‘s music yesterday in our kitchen. She knew right away that I would fall in love, and she was right. She showed me a few other tracks, and I knew C2C needed to make its way into my iTunes immediately.
They’re a french turntable group that consists of four members, and their music hasn’t really made it in the states yet. I mean, maybe it has, but this was the first I’d heard of them. To my knowledge, they’re relatively new on the music scene, but they’ve done collaborations with French hip-hop group Hocus Pocus. I’m always a lover of turntable music. A fascinating different spin on something entirely original.
This track is so incredibly sexy not just because of how smoothly each transition is between sounds, but because of how carefully each sound is chosen. Not a single note seems out of place, and just when you think it couldn’t get any more surprising, there’s a guitar. Or a new set of vocals. Or a break that feels so right that you just can’t help but smile.
I can’t wait for you guys to click play on this one. I’m not even going to tell you where to play it, or what to wait for. The truth is that if you’re at work, it will probably sound even better because you may not be allowed to just break out in dance. Constraint sometimes makes things even better…But you might just have to excuse yourself for a minute or two. It’s okay, life is full of excuses.
