Tag:
Let the transmission commence! A few weeks ago I promised to touch on a couple key links in the proto-punk funk story, both of whom seemed to possess wholly self-contained visions of new wave disco years before the fact. As was the case with Suicide's debut, the cockney disco of Ian Dury And The Blockheads … Continue reading Terminal Vibration: Back To Get Ya!
Japan Adolescent Sex Ariola Hansa 1978 You must've known this one was coming! I can think of no album that more perfectly encapsulates the entire slow-dissolving red light sleazy glamour of gutter funk disco than Japan's debut album. Lumped in at the time with the tail end of glam rock — which was by then well past … Continue reading Japan – Adolescent Sex
ARP Solina String Ensemble A sound as indelible as the 303 or the electric guitar. While we're on the topic of gutbucket dancefloor funk, time well spent down at the red light disco, it's as good a time as any to sing the praises of that little magic box: the ARP Solina String Ensemble. Oftentimes … Continue reading Sun-Glazed Solina
Ian Dury And The BlockheadsTop row: Chas Jankel, Mickey Gallagher, Davey Payne, Norman Watt-RoyBottom row: John Turnbull, Ian Dury and Charley Charles If there was one figure that had a vision of punk-inflected disco before anyone else, it was Ian Dury and his Blockheads. Emerging from Essex in the U.K. (where The Prodigy would later … Continue reading Ian Dury And The Blockheads
New Wave Man It was a shame to hear about Ric Ocasek's passing last weekend. One of my earliest musical memories was seeing him in the video for Magic on MTV. I distinctly remember thinking he was the coolest guy I'd ever seen! Even watching it now, his eccentric, offbeat delivery — alternating between quirky new wave … Continue reading Ric Ocasek
Man-machine rhythms melting into the night... There's a few things I noticed while compiling the Terminal Vibration anthology on Cheap Hotel, things that had been swirling in the background for some time before finally coming into focus. They all center around the idea of the 1980s as the decade when the liquid, telepathic grooves of … Continue reading Terminal Vibration: Melting Machines
Motion 003: It's The Terminal Junction The latest Motion playlist is actually an adaptation of the original Motion mix from a few years ago. I'd forgotten all about the O.G. outing before stumbling upon it about a week ago, and the general mood has fit the current drift of the Heights perfectly. All I did … Continue reading Motion 003
Funkadelic The Electric Spanking Of War Babies Warner Bros. 1981 Funk. The term has been rinsed thoroughly through the years — applied and mis-applied all over the shop on a seemingly loop — but at the end of the day, what is it really? The groove, hitting on the one, interlocking parts of a rhythm, all of them cycling … Continue reading Funkadelic – The Electric Spanking Of War Babies
The Truth I've always loved this quote from Derrick May, which is quite crisply evocative of the rich undercurrents of depth and mystery running through techno music. Actually, I'm worried I might be paraphrasing somewhat (in fact, it's rather likely, since I can't seem to find the interview I heard it in anywhere). But what … Continue reading Techno
A couple thoughts occurred to me over the course of last week's endeavors, including the whole Island Disco post and the trio of concerts (especially the Jarre show) that I was lucky enough to attend. These were thoughts that I didn't get a chance to work into the other pieces, even if they may have … Continue reading …One More Thing