Archive for June, 2009

Michael Jackson died

Friday, June 26th, 2009

An icon of pop music and style is gone. Mr. “White Glove” with his own private amusementpark and writer of god knows how many hits. Owner of a massive singing talent and the artistic drive of an army.

Michael Jacksons hits are really basslines – there is so much bass in these tracks. “Billy Jean” – the hookline of this song is the bass in my opinion. This is the greatest impact he has had on me. I grew up in the eighties and his music was everywhere. As a young crazy about music and playing all sorts of weird stuff on keys, bass and guitars, Michael Jackson was very much present in the musicalspectrum. Along with Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, Bach and all the other heavy dudes.

I like the old stuff best – doesnt really care about the new songs. When he started out, he quickly crossed the border from funky motown to eighties pop in a fantastic way.

Remember “Thriller” ? – everybody must remember this track. Back from his debut in 1979, it took him three years befóre he wrote this track that apparently sold 100 millions copies. Amazing video.

One of my absolute favourites is Billy Jean, with one of the most entoxicating basslines of all times. Everybody who has not lived in a cage remember this bassline. The story – as I have heard it – is, that he was driving in his car, slowly cruising the streets on a hot summerday, when he got the idea to this bassline. So simple and yet so powerfull. It drives this track for sure. Was that also Quincy Jones? I am not sure.

Many basslines to remember from his career for sure. Thanks!
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

 

 

 

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Steve Miller strikes again with a new chill out album – “Electrosensitivity”

Monday, June 22nd, 2009

Sometimes its hard to be first out with the good news, and this time it might actually be very late, but nevertheless, here is something about Steve Millers newest downbeat album called
“Electrosensitive” – released on Subatomic.
Steve Miller has been active for many years both as a producer and a DJ, and many
Will know him from Café Mambo on Ibiza, where he was resident DJ for a number of years.
Now he is ready with a new collection of songs.
The first track on the album is a guitar driven, soundtrackish, bluesy song called
“Earth”. With a sensual soulful vocal that also contributes very well to the intense cinematic atmosphere. Could easily have beenon the soundtrack list for a Cohen Brothers film I think. Great track with a very hypnotic guitar line.
The second track brings us back in the club with the track “A Feeling”. Its not in the
same league as the opening track, when it comes to originality, but the clubby atmosphere is definitely there.
The track “Halftime” brings us a bit down again with a slow vocal track driven by a
Jazzy beat and a nice acoustic bass line. Works well in the late hour with a longdrink,
a sunset and some good company.
So does the next track “Black Iris” – very cool bluesy guitar on this track. Goes well
with the sensual vocal.
Moving further down the track list the track “Elijah” grooves on with a jazzy loungey
feel, nice acoustic bass loop and a soulfull vocal and a “Santana” guitar solo toward the end of the track.
Next track that brings us down tempowise, is the track “Midnight” – same soulfull voice as on at least some of the other tracks on the album. Slow track, also perfect for
a longdrink accompanied by the sunset.
“Lay Your Love” is a very nice slow groovey vocal track, but with a more distinct electro bottom end than the rest of the album. Some hypnotic synthesizers and strings.
This track I would have loved to hear without the vocal and more of the hypnotic psychedelic syntlines that lurks underneath the strings and vocal. Still a nice track though.
Lastv track on the album “Waterfront Dub” is my favourite track on the album and its
not only because of its dubby atmosphere. There is just a very nice instrumental feeling in this track and it proves that simple does it sometimes. Nice dub/reggae instrumental chill out downbeat feeling for all the summer months to come.
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

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“Laughing Stock” – good chill out for the hammock

Monday, June 15th, 2009

I stumbled over one of my old Talk Talk records the other day. “Laughing Stock”.
Fantastic cover I think. A futuristic tree with many very weird birds sitting in it.
It looks like they are glued to the tree. Well, I have a thing with trees.
Talk Talk started out as a synt pop band, you may remember hits like “Life´s what you make it” and “Such a shame”.
The album “Its my life”, was a huge commercial succes, sort of in the new wave line at the same time as Duran Duran started out.
I didnt really care much for this music when they were big in the start eighties, but then a few years back I realised they made a few very fantastic albums at the end of their career as a band. (I honestly dont know if they still make records together – doubt it – I think these last records were made to fulfill their contract with the record company – boy must they have been dissapointed at first).
The laughing Stock is a very mellow affair with all acoustic instruments. The occassional synt is there, but it sounds like they actually recorded the whole thing together in the studio as a band playing. Like in the good old days.
I can imagine that this was a path they were likely to take, after all the years in the synt pop machine. Its really easy flowing music, perfect for a chill out nap in the hammock. Mind you, you can easily get lost in the many beautiful details if you care to listen!
Laughing Stock is the last of three “experimental” albums they made between 1984 and 1989 and they are all produced by the unofficial member of the band in that period: Tim Friese-Greene, who some might know as the producer behind Thomas Dolby.
The other albums from that period: “Spirit of Eden”, and the colour of spring, are both fantastic albums. All produced in the same frame of mind as “Laughing Stock” who is the latest of the three, from 1991.
I love the music, but I must admit that it is his voice that takes home the price from this listener.
Really special, I guess you could put it on top of everything and it would be interesting to listen to – well, you know what I mean.
chill out downbeat artist Ganga
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

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Suddenly everything is smaller

Thursday, June 11th, 2009

I am sitting here wondering whether I should go down to the studio or just work from home on my laptop today. Ofcourse there are some situations that require a bigger studioenvironment with acoustic recording facilities and all that, but lots of my production and writing, I can actually do at home. I even have a small soundcard that I got for my live- and DJ gigs, that I have here also.
That means I can record here in my living room if I wanted that. Its better ofcourse to record acoustic instruments and vocal in the studio. I always do that, but often plays around with ideas here in my living room with my laptop.
Anyway the point is, that it got me thinking about one of my old favourite electronic acts. One of those early electronic pioneers that really got me started with electronic music, back in the days when I was still at the conservatory and didnt even own a computer. I think I knew one guy who had a computer.
The Orb, huge long soundscapes with trancy synthesizers and lots of found sounds. Dogs barking, motocycles, naturesounds and the occasional Ricky Lee Jones wordings about a trip she was on once. Perfect for the chill out room at the rave.
Yes The Orb, was really expanding my electronic horizon and was a fantastic additive to organ improvisation, bach fugues and music theory, which was a huge part of my life at that point.
They were right in the middle of everything in those years around 90-92.
My point is, when these guys played live, they flew in their own huge – and I mean huge – mixing console. Several meters long as I recall it. They just couldnt do without it. So they flew it in when they were on tour. This is crazy to think about these days, where everything can fit in a little laptop if you want it to.
And it puts my own little home setup in perspective.
They only used samplers, synthesizers, sequenzers and lots of FX racks I gather. No computers.
Ok enough, you get the point. Things also got smaller in the music business.
Chill out, downbeat artist Ganga.
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

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Nightmares On Wax – Smokers Delight

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009

Sometimes in electronically based music productions, theres a tendency to overproduce everything.
Especially music where the mainpart of the production is electronic, has a tendency to be crammed full with ideas and smart techniques.
I think, that if you reach that point in your production, where there is something lacking, and you dont know what it is, you should just leave it as it is for a week, and then return with fresh ears and ideas. This is just my workaround mind you.
Its not easy, if you are really anxious to get it done and if you have a deadline, but believe me, in my opinion there is a much better chance of a good result, if you give it time to breathe.
Ofcourse there is alsways the risk that you find out that it just doesnt work at all, and you have to ditch it entirely. But thats still better than some crap mix ending up on an album or in some other kind of publicaly available production. I tried it, and I am not goona say where its at…hehe. It was sound track work I can reveal that much.
Anyways, this struck me when i listened to Nightmares On Wax “Smokers Delight”, which is a brilliant example of a less is more production technique. Some of the tracks anyway.
Just listens now to the track “Stars”. Its a long track, 7 minutes, and there is not much going on.
But it diesnt matter, because the right mood is established and the elements are there and they work perfectly together. Its ofcourse very much a slow track like this, that the “less is more technique” can be applied with succes to.
On the other hand, slow tracks make room for much more details to be permitted, the risk of plastering it over with all sorts of unnessacary stuff is very much there.This doesnt happen here though.
Looping is great, could be some kind of mantra for this chill out downbeat sample based music from Nightmares On Wax. It almost puts you in a trance with its long meditative grooves eating its way in and out of your attention span in the nicest way.
Perfect for a nice dreamy afternoon at the beach. Go get the album I say. Its worth every dime.
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

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Brian Eno – “On Land”

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009

In this little summer series about older and newer albums in the downbeat chill out ambient genre, my eyes today have fallen upon the old Brian Eno classic “On Land” or “Ambient 4 On Land”.
It was my first Brian Eno CD, and I didnt know his music so well when I bought it back in 88 or something. The release is from 86 if I am not mistaken.
I remember it being a very surprising experience.
Slowly moving textures that almost makes you fall asleep. And this was for some years how i used this music.
I put it on when I came home from work or studies, closed my eyes, and let these weird but friendly sounds carry me away – perfect meditation music. Mostly because of the nature of the sounds. No waterfalls or waves, panflute or any other of these new age clichees that is so well represented in that kind of music. Just…well… interesting sounds and interesting atmospheres, the occassional recordings of frogs or bells and a deep drone of dark slow beautiful sounds.
I put this CD on and it put me out – many many times.
Its one of my all time favourite albums and it started my interest for Brian Enos music even though it was some years before I should start writing and producing electronic music myself.
I was studying organ at the Royld Danish Academy of Music at that time. So there was not really time for doing anything else than studying and playing organ for the 6 years it lasted.
Anyays, this is definitely one of the albums that has meant most to me over the years.
Brian Enos liner notes indicates that when he made these tracks/compositions, he had discovered that the synthesizer was not so usefull an instrument to achieve what he wanted.
He found use for all sorts of found sounds and recorded sticks, stones and pieces of chain and using nearly only non-intsruments.
On top of that, he used also the complete body of sounds used in his earlier works and incorporated them into these new tracks. As a result, some of the earlier works were digested by the new ones which were in turn, digested again. As a sort of recycling.
He writes: “This techniques is like composting: converting what would otherwise have been waste into nourishment”.
I think every now living producer/electronic music creator works like this. But back in 1986 when he wrote the revised version of these liner notes, it was maybe something else. The technical revolution was not started yet – it was before the liberation of the production means to normal people.
Now this techniques is everyday life for most music creators.
He wrote these lines 22 years ago.
Ganga – Downbeat / Chill Out Music

http://www.ganga.dk
http://www.flincmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/gangalounge
http://www.youtube.com/gangalounge
http://www.last.fm/music/Ganga
http://www.ilike.com/artist/Ganga
http://www.gangamusic.info
http://www.bandbase.dk/ganga
http://www.reverbnation.com/ganga

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