Panda Buzz

Back on them Buzz album reviews and this month I got Buoys, Panda Bear's latest solo effort. And I really liked it, like four stars liked it.

Buoys is pretty wavy and well Animal Collective. Just like the first video for the album.

The waviness extends to the comment section under the video, which is an utter delight.

What's the whole album like? It's short, sweet, and summery, and Dolphin is a top example of the feel and pace of Buoys. Plus One Loo's mum asked it was called Bathroom Music? I'm fully on board with that descriptor.

I'm also fully on board with the whole album, so much so that I burned it to CD for the Celica.

I'll come back and stick a link to my review when the February 2019 issue of Buzz Magazine hits the streets of Cardiff. In the meantime, I don't think I shared my last Buzz reviews on here so here's my take on Amor and Subjective from the last issue.

Related Post: Avey Tare's Slasher Flicks

Update: It's not online yet, but here's a picture of the print edition:

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Thinking I should've gone 5 stars on this. Top album like. Got Apparat and Hot 8 Brass Band this month. 💿💿💿💿💿 #PandaBear #musicjournalism #dancingaboutarchitecture #AnimalCollective #review #printisnotdead #buzzmagazine

A post shared by Sammyfax (@ceefaxoflife) on Feb 13, 2019 at 12:55am PST

Repeat, Rewind, Start Again, Never End

I'm rereading Retromania by Simon Reynolds. Yeah, I know. I finally got around to finishing his latest work, Shock & Awe, over Christmas and decided to leap back in.

Naming my blog after an obsolete medium, it's no surprise that I can't help but look backwards, particularly to the time I was 17-18. Despite going through some personal shit that I'm not sure I'd cope with now, that period has a halcyon glaze. It appears it can for a lot people too, mythologies arise for many from late adolescence, cultural choices set in stone.

And I process and return to that time through tapes. I have a shoe box of tracks and mixes I tapped off the radio, almost all BBC Radio 1 specialist shows from 2002-3. There may be one or two things from Radio 3's Mixing It strand, but it's mainly The Breezeblock, The Blue Room, and Gilles Peterson.

Currently in the Sony is a Mr Scruff mix from spring 2002, with a Peshay mix on the other side. Adding to the circles and the loops, the standout track on the Mr Scruff mix is Natural Self's Raise the Game.

A joyous riot of horn blasts, good times and broken beats. It's also a joyous riot of pretty much the last 30 seconds of Black Brothers from Latin Jazz chap Tito Puente.

Loops upon loops upon loops. It's not even the first time I've written about these never ending cycles. Is escape possible? Do I even want it?

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No More Heroes

As well as dipping a toe into AI, I've taken the time to get right in on some classic Wii games.

Top of the pile was Suda51's hack'n'slash romp, No More Heroes. Following otaku-loser Travis Touchdown as he works his way up the United Assassins Association Top 10 by, well, assassinating other assassins, it's about as subtle as a beam katana to the face.

Mixing geek culture, punk attitude, and ultra-violence, No More Heroes is unlike anything else on the family-friendly Nintendo Wii. While the gameplay is a little repetitive and the semi-open world element of Santa Destroy is a misfire, the surreal humour and excellent character design means No More Heroes is still worth a visit 10 or so years after its release. We're in cult classic territory here.

Whether that will also apply to Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes remains to be seen. Coming out in the next couple of days on the Nintendo Switch, initial reviews are mixed. Still that's not going to stop the push for Travis Touchdown to be added to Super Smash Bros at some point.

And yes, No More Heroes gets its name from The Stranglers' punk perennial.

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Elements of AI

In an attempt to future-proof / stay relevant / do something, I've started a short online course called Elements of AI.

It describes itself as "[...] for everyone interested in learning what AI is, what is possible (and not possible) with AI, and how it affects our lives – with no complicated math or programming required."

Elements of AI is from the University of Helsinki and Reaktor and is beautifully designed. It utilises simple graphics and motion, tight copy, and interesting questions to tackle a potentially complex subject. So it felt fitting that I listened to something complex, tight, and interesting as I started on the course.

Step forward Rotterdam techno and IDM don Speedy J.

Patterns starts out all hypnotic (are those grasshoppers?) before the crunchy distorted kicks tumble in and it goes somewhere odd and intriguing. It's a nice match for the course.

And there's a nice coincidence that Speedy J appears on Warp's Artificial Intelligence compilation from way back in 1992 with Fill 3. Artificial Intelligence was also a series of albums from Warp. Speedy J's debut LP, Ginger, was part of the series along with early Autechre and Aphex Twin side project Polygon Window. It all fits together nicely.

And I'd just like to state for the record that I, for one, welcome our new AI overlords.

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Original image: Akritasa [CC BY-SA 4.0], from Wikimedia Commons

HNY

How's the head this morning? If you require something soothing to ease you into 2019, then may I recommend this?



Aquarius Echo Chamber by Yamaneko is an instalment in Longform Editions' series of ambient output. Fact has a tidy interview with the label/collective, framing it in opposition to streaming and Spotify and skipping ahead.

And as 2019 is gearing up to be a big one, with lots of challenges and changes, I'll be needing some slow music to keep me in check.

Wishing you a happy new year.

Related post: Bathtime With Yamaneko