smokedontsmoke

MUSIC TAKES ME HIGHER

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:10:18 -0800

I’d like to share with you what could very well be one of the sweetest love letters around. Now you have to understand that most things, when seen through the eyes of Dylan Dawkins, aka Persona La Ave, will come out the other end more warped, more other worldly, evidently more sexy and funk-centric than they had once been. Below, please feel free to open this seeming love letter to music - because after all, it does take us higher.

Albatross - Murder It’s been a long time coming, but Life...

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:55:32 -0800

Albatross - Murder

It’s been a long time coming, but Life Aquatic Records has just announced it’s second release. It’s hard to believe the last was over a year ago. In true LA Records fashion, this release is from Oz’s own Albatross. Albatross is a slow burning producer duo, never too hasty to release their sound. Which makes this double a-side 7” release all the more tasty.

Here is a-side Murder, which drifts high, lofting as a spectacle, touching down only to whisper “they’ll call it murder”. Listen to the other a-side Caspers Theme on bandcamp, as well as two great remixes by Guerre and Dro Carey. There you can also download the tracks for free. Read more from Jarred himself at Life Aquatic, then go ahead steak claim on one of the 250 limited 7” records right here.

**also, please peruse there soundcloud, there are some gems, especially Stockholm Syndrom which they just put up last night…whoa

PORTALS is officially live!

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:25:11 -0800

PORTALS is officially live!:

Hypno Safari - Shade you told me you believed in me, no i just...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:11:17 -0800

Hypno Safari - Shade

you told me you believed in me, no i just need some of that hope, you have so much

Boise seems to have a knack for producing honest musicians. Logan Hyde just sent me over his project Hypno Safari. And it’s just that, honest. Logan works with what he has, and does a lot with a little. He keeps things simple. And I think that’s why when this track picks up, it’s nearly overwhelming.

You might also know Logan from the stage he shares with Trevor Powers, as the guitarist for Youth Lagoon. He’s continuing to work on Hypno Safari in between shows, while on their huge tour. So be on the lookout for an EP in the future. And in the meantime grab the track and follow him up: facebook/twitter

Galapagoose - One Who Can’t Move It’s fittingly so...

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:40:10 -0800

Galapagoose - One Who Can’t Move

It’s fittingly so that Australian producer Galapagoose, aka Trent Gill, is putting out his debut LP out on Magical Properties Records, because the minute I saw him do what he does, there’s no other word than magician, that comes to mind. One Who Can’t Move is our first listen to the album (via xlr8r), and it’s beautiful. That anchoring sample from Send In The Clowns, those drifting air-like synths, and that deep almost on-the-other-side-of-the-wall beat holding it all together like glue.

Very excited for this release. It’s out March 13 on Deadelus imprint Magical Properties. Peep the tracklist and more at xlr8r.

Free Music Collection : February 2012 It’s that time...

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:29:07 -0800

Free Music Collection : February 2012

It’s that time of the month again, and we’ve tended our gardens, and found some beautiful growth. Click through to start harvesting for yourself, and see my contributions below. As always love to Stadiums & Shrines and Think or Smile.

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Lay Bac – Shortcuts: Deep cuts, and dancy vibes will cut you right to the core.
PORTALS Mixtape #1: Full of so many good jams you’ll wonder if good music super novas really do exist.
Beat Culture – Tokyo Dreamer: If beats could be friends, then this album would be full of some of your best. Oh an did I mention there’s enough Beyoncé samples to make you want to put a ring on it.
Flights – Anywhere But Where I Am: Sounds so sweet for the winter months. These folk introspections are meant for quiet nights and thoughtful mornings.
Magical Mistakes – Special Friends EP: Birthed in a small village in Japan, and drawn together by the power of the internet, this is some of my favorite electronic sounds around.
easily suede – Signalling: Drifting in and out of consciousness, these are some experimental sounds that touch the soul.
Handbook – Nomadic: The prolific producer is back with another album full of some of the sweetest hip-hop inspired beats this side of the internet equivalent of the Mississippi.

Moon Bounce - Telephone Moon Bounce have been a favorite for...

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 09:45:05 -0800

Moon Bounce - Telephone

Moon Bounce have been a favorite for quite some time. And now Corey Regensburg is working on a new LP that’s yet to be named, but is due sometime this Spring, if the fates allow. Telephone is our first listen, and it comes fully equipped with this homemade video, he admittedly had no real plan for…they just kind of did it. And yet I can’t imagine a more fitting moving image. As the vocals loop, “There, with a telephone” - Corey is doing his version of just that. And frankly, I’m glad it doesn’t look like anyone else’s.

Grab Telephone here.

Shigeto - Please Stay Shigeto’s Lineage EP just released...

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:15:06 -0800

Shigeto - Please Stay

Shigeto’s Lineage EP just released today on Ghostly International. I couldn’t stop listening to the EP all day yesterday (thanks to FADER), it did a great to to aid my Monday blues, and keep me from plunging their depths, as can sometimes happen. The eight songs play as some kind of meditation, allowing you to let it subvert your conscious and play its part in whatever you’re doing.

Zach Saginaw’s many facets of talent shine through on this mini-LP. It’s almost as much a look back on music - jazz, hip-hop, etc. - as it is on his own ancestry. I highly suggest you go stream this bad boy, then buy it on wax over at Ghostly.

Porcelain Raft - Unless You Speak From Your Heart Porcelain Raft...

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:31:44 -0800

Porcelain Raft - Unless You Speak From Your Heart

Porcelain Raft wasn’t too much on my radar before I got to see him last year at SXSW, at the Transparent x Forest Family Recs showcase. Mauro Remiddi somehow transcends age, both physicality and musically. You can tell he’s no youngster, there’s something ‘lived’ about him, yet there somehow remains a freshness in his eyes.

From reading more about his life and experiences, it’s no wonder his music is as eclectic, solid, and enjoyable as it is. He directed this video for one of his more upbeat and infectious pop songs on his new album Strange Weekend out now on Secretly Canadian. You can stream the whole thing on his facebook.

Magical Mistakes - Supermoon Crashed featuring Mutual...

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:58:50 -0800

Magical Mistakes - Supermoon Crashed featuring Mutual Benefit

Erik Luebs released his Special Friends EP today, and in doing so has unpigeon-holed himself from any constraints the word “producer” might have put on him. This EP is a collection of collaborations and remixes with people like Jordan Lee from Mutual Benefit, Lady Lazarus, and more.

Supermoon Crashed surprisingly melds these two totally different forms of making music. Erik’s thoughtful electronic production is married perfectly with Jordan’s more naturalistic instrumentation and swooning croon. I’m a fan of anything Magical Mistakes touches, but it’s nice to see him expanding his territory and collaborating with some other great artists.

Grab the Special Friends EP

Flights - Pillar Maybe it’s the rain today that makes...

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:12:29 -0800

Flights - Pillar

Maybe it’s the rain today that makes this song/album hit so heavy. The rain always does that. But boy am I glad Mark stumbled on this, and decided to share. The album plays as a soundtrack for the contemplative wandering soul. The album title, Anywhere But Where I Am reminds me of a quote by French poet and philosopher Charles Baudelaire:

“It always seems to me that I should feel well in the place where I am not…”

But, contentment is a strong force, and halfway through this album, I already feel it setting in. That we may be happy wherever we are.

Grab the full-length for a price of your choosing on bandcamp.

(via yvynyl)

Pale Seas - Something or Nothing There’s something about...

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 10:33:13 -0800

Pale Seas - Something or Nothing

There’s something about music that just sounds nice. London’s Pale Seas just has a really nice sound. Vibes similar to other favorites like High Highs, they sweep you in with flawless melodies and strong natural instrumentation. It’s music like this that catches me off guard because it doesn’t have a hard beat or sample a million things, it’s just music…but sometimes I have to remember, that that’s enough.

They’ve got a 7” out March 5th on Fear and Records. Go pre-order it here. And listen to the b-side here.

Gathered Ghosts - Went To You (feat. Andreanna) On Saturday,...

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:30:38 -0800

Gathered Ghosts - Went To You (feat. Andreanna)

On Saturday, January 14th, Gathered Ghosts released their first EP, Fluttering So Sweetly. From great projects, great projects are born. Javier A. Suarez plays guitar for longtime favorite Craft Spells, and started making his own sounds early last year as Gathered Ghosts. This EP is soft and swoony, with infections guitar, yearning vocals from both Suarez and guest vocalist Andreanna Wilson.

Go grab Fluttering So Sweetly and hear for yourself.

Seiho is a Japanese electronic artist, who just released a brand...

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:39:35 -0800

Seiho is a Japanese electronic artist, who just released a brand new full-length on Japanese-based label Day Tripper Records. There’s a growing, and close knit community of really talented electronic producers in Japan, and they are deservedly gaining some ground. I was pointed to Seiho by one of my favorite Japan-based (by way of California) artists, Magical Mistakes.

Seiho’s production is impressive, and it’s evident he has some serious know how. Which is why it isn’t surprising to find that he has formal training in Jazz. I never cease to be amazed at how different forms of music can inform one another. You can stream the two tracks from Mercury below, and order the album here.

*Also check out Japanese electronic artist collective INNIT periodic mix for a great tracklist including a new track from Seiho, Magical Mistakes and more.

Tokyo Dreamer

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:45:42 -0800

Tokyo Dreamer:

The long awaited album is finally hear. 17 year old Sunik Kim started making music a little less than a year ago, which makes his debut full-length Tokyo Dreamer, even more impressive.

I like where an album like Tokyo Dreamer fits in the long history and evolution of sampling music. It’s the execution of the continuing journey of what’s possible with sound. Filled with samples that range from Beyoncé to just the sound of water, there’s a heart-feltedness that shines through. It’s refreshing to hear optimistic music in a time that can seem so the opposite. Perhaps it has to do with how young he is, maybe not, either way, the vibes are good, and the production impressive.

Follow through to the bandcamp to download this gem for free.

&lt;a href=”http://beatculture.bandcamp.com/album/tokyo-dreamer” _mce_href=”http://beatculture.bandcamp.com/album/tokyo-dreamer”&gt;Tokyo Dreamer by Beat Culture&lt;/a&gt;

Corduroi - Emerald Rain Corduroi has done what you hope all...

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:59:17 -0800

Corduroi - Emerald Rain

Corduroi has done what you hope all musicians and artists do with time; evolve. Emerald Rain is the first listen at his upcoming EP Future Adventures, out Valentine’s Day on Mush Records. These sounds are new and unique, like nothing we’ve heard from Corduroi before. Partly because this track, along with at least one other on the upcoming EP, was co-produced by recently transplanted Austin producer Galapagos.

Read more about Future Adventures here, and be on the lookout for it’s arrival here.

Gabriel White has emerged from...

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:42:00 -0800

Gabriel White has emerged from the innards of Knoxville’s burgeoning music scene, with an experiment of an album, that as far as experiments go, has stood to prove the hypothesis that Gabriel is really talented. The album ranges from soft pop, acoustic heavy tracks like Get it Away, to the more synth based dreamy stuff you hear below in Over Time in Time.

You can stream and download Relay, in it’s entirety, here. Oh, and thanks to pals Amdiscs, a physical form will take place in the near future.

Newtimers - January Love Tipped off by my...

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 10:53:00 -0800

Newtimers - January Love

Tipped off by my favorite Spaniard music lovers, I stumbled across this absolutely irresistible sound. Newtimers are two professional artists and producer from Sweden, trying to take a break from the pressures of the industry, to just create something spontaneous and fun. Combining all their favorite things - clouds, sex, music, and people - they have created a sound both old and new. Subtle production, infectious melody, and vocals sweet enough to moonwalk on, make me very excited to see more.

Will you be my January Love?

soundcloud | facebook | twitter

[photo]

Caged Animals - All the Beautiful Things in the World It’s...

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 10:14:44 -0800

Caged Animals - All the Beautiful Things in the World

It’s hard to believe that Jamie Harley didn’t peak a long time ago, but with new videos like this one, it’s obvious that he hasn’t. This beautiful rainbow of frolicking naked women nearly personifies the tracks title. The track lies within the album Eat Their Own, released late last year. And if the nudity doesn’t suit you, you can stick with the censored version here.

“All the beautiful things in the world that I want, are coming to me, are coming to me.”

Introducing PORTALS

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 10:03:00 -0800

Introducing PORTALS:

It’s a special day today. I get to introduce to you something that I, and the people that make up some of my all-time favorite blogs, have been working on. And that is PORTALS.

PORTALS is the ultimate collaborative effort between sixteen blogs. Our hope is not to pander to the expectations of what we should be, but to stand as a safe-house for the music and art that represent the age we live and breath in. Click through to start getting to know PORTALS, and download or stream our first mixtape full of so much good, you’ll want to do something about it.

PORTALS on: facebook / twitter / 8tracks

Family involved: