Von – Sigur Rós (1997)
Jón Þór Birgisson, Georg Hólm and Ágúst Ævar Gunnarsson form the group Sigur Rós in January 1994, the day of the birth of Jónsi’s sister: Sigurrós, which means Victory Rose.
They are quickly gaining in popularity at local level which allows them to produce an album with the icelandic label Bad Taste. This album, entitled Von introduces their post-rock, ambient sound.
In 1999, with the release of their second album Ágætis byrjun, they export their music and are particularly welcomed by international critics, especially in the United Kingdom.
Two significant elements of that group’s sound are the falsetto of Jónsi and his special way of playing the electric guitar with a cello bow which produces an aerial and fluid sound. He took this technique from Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin guitarist, who used to play Dazed and Confused live this way.
It is also interesting to note that when they are playing live, they are frequently joined by the classical fourtet Amiina which brings another dimension to their music.
The track Von, which is on the album of the same name, is not sung in icelandic, but in vonlenska. An imaginary language, composed entirely of syllables without meaning. The group defines it as “a form of vocal gibberish that fits with music“.
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Sigur Rós Official Website
Sigur Rós Official Fansite
Sigur Rós Official Myspace
Sigur Rós Von Live on Youtube
Further information on Wikipedia [en]
Buy Von on Amazon.com
She’s Still Here – Cody ChesnuTT (2002)
Cody ChesnuTT, American musician coming from Atlanta in Georgia, had all the chances on his side to start a career as a musician. His father was the manager of several local bands, which opened many doors, and he started shows when he was only 13 years old.
In his twenties, he founded the group Crosswalk. A contract with a major is in preparation. But things go wrong, the contract was never signed, and the other members of Crosswalk dropped him.
At the beginning of the millennium, he decide to isolate himself in his bedroom, which he renamed for the occasion: “The Sonic Promiseland”. Armed with several instruments, a single microphone, and a 4-track recorder, he began an introspective marathon.
He produce a double album of 36 low-tech musical sketches. These tracks, with a scratching sound like saphir on vynile disc, are drafts,sufficient to themselves. She’s Still Here is part of this album, it is a magnificent track full of sweetness and spleen.
“Drink my drink, im thinkin it over
she’s still here, I use to be sober
and I’ll bet, she might as well be dead
she’s stickin around, I don’t know
get’s so excited even when the wind blows
so if she’s gonna stay, the steps im taking now
can really be the walk we take together
here, while I think it over…”
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Cody ChesnuTT Myspace
Further information on Wikipedia [en]
Buy The Headphone Masterpiece on Amazon.com
Mystline – Nujabes (2004)
From his real name Seba Jun, this hip-hop producer and Japanese DJ leads the independent label Hyde-Out Productions, and manages two record stores: T Records and Guinness Records. Unfortunately, this artist is almost unknown outside Japan, despite the high quality of his tracks.
The originality of Nujabes productions lies in its Cool Jazz influences and the massive use of musical instruments such as flute, acoustic guitar, saxophone or piano. The music parts are produced with such skill that they can stand for complete music tracks on their own.
Mystline is not a track from one of two albums Nujabes produced under his own name (Metaphorical Music and Modal Soul). It is part of the soundtrack of the anime Samurai Champloo. This anime takes place during the Edo period of feudal Japanese history and widely uses anachronisms in objects, staging and the soundtrack. Thus, it widely uses Hip Hop culture such as rap, break dancing or graffiti.
The soundtrack of Samurai Champloo, a high-quality one, is published on four albums (Masta, Playlist, Departure and Impression) and is produced by many Japanese and American artists from the Hip Hop scene as Nujabes, Fat Jon, MINMI and also Force Of Nature and Tsutchie.
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