noteworthynibbles

[noteworthynibbles]

[This post is a little different] ~ I was there. Saturday. We knew when the Lillo’s dropped. We could feel it. I expected it, but it still tore me up inside, because there was supposed to be one more person at the show. So yes, this is definitely a Prydz. You call it cheese, I call it pure emotion, settling into a nest made out of heartstrings. (60)

[noteworthynibbles]

It’s amazing how many scenes this remix leads us through in <5 minutes. Slowed, pitch lowered, softly glitched, and dropped at the right time, this track oozes artistic chill. Bass is pulled out and twinkling melodies inserted, joined with a manipulated vocal thread. Some of the joyfulness of the original is retained, but this is a more urban, expansive take. Depth and dimension and mystery. (65)

[noteworthynibbles]

In The Dark has two personalities. Without the bass and delicately layered vocals this could be a completely different song, a sweet acoustic nobody. With the beats comes an edginess and sense of urgency, which takes this in a totally new direction, into the land of electronica dark-pop. A song for the night, reflective but not cold. It ends deeper than it starts, but keeps its head above the water. (70)

[noteworthynibbles]

This track lives a double life commuting between dream-land and the heart behind your ribs. It starts off slowly with gloomy, soulful, and expansive vocals, before picking up and embracing the pain of losing someone in the best way possible - getting lost in a soundscape. There’s rolling waves of synth melodies and sheets of soft noise effects. Production through the roof and into the heavens. Unlike anything I’ve heard before, a truly unique track. (74)

[noteworthynibbles]

Caribou’s Can’t Do Without You is expertly layered, driving you deeper into a journey, holding your attention at each phase change. This Kidswaste x Manila Killa cover is much sweeter, lighter, and soft. From the start it’s built on orchestral synths and comes full circle closing out with Yiruma’s piano solo River Flows in You. The strings and flourishes throughout bring a good balance of bass pushing you deeper, downward into “chill land” with a gentle layer keeping you afloat. (80)

[noteworthynibbles]

This remix dissects Bad Kingdom and builds it up so it’s ready for a dark dance floor. There’s driving bass as solid as concrete bricks from start to end, the original melody as a binding agent, and mutated vocals that are flattened, bent, gently glitched up, that take this track to the next level. (54)

[noteworthynibbles]

The XX in an alternate slightly more upbeat universe, with plain ol lyrics: Someday you’ll understand / the reason why you just can’t be my man. Even still, this track by Float Fall hits all the right notes. It’s soothing and sweet, just a touch of sadness, with muted, carefully placed instrumentals to highlight the duet of voices. It’s not anything new, but sometimes you just want vanilla. (67)

[noteworthynibbles]

Acousto-electronic multi-instrumentalist. Blinkbeats is a producer and composer from the Netherlands who covers electronic music, acoustically. Many of his covers require a mastery of the original, especially the sans-vocal tracks, but this is accessible and impressive. Trust me, it's close. In the future, I'd like to hear (and see) blinkbeats' original beats, because with talent like this, I'm expecting nothing less than sublime. (66)

[noteworthynibbles]

Shlohmo is, and has always been, a world builder. You can hear the influence of his early instrumental work on his more recent lush, layered remixes. Forgot I Was Here starts off simple, a buzzy kalimba, which echoes and builds up a soft and expansive environment. The kalimba, continuing throughout, allows for musical exploration and a sense of adventure, but keeps it grounded so you can find your way back. (70)

[noteworthynibbles]

Smells like summer. Delicate vocals, like toughened glass, are paired with percussion that sounds like it came from the kitchen and beach simultaneously. There's a joke in there somewhere. Kind of like if Alt-J were a beach band...Let's talk about vibes, this seems like the right approach here. Pools is varied but comfortable, incomprehensible and familiar at the same time. It's free and luscious and makes you want to listen to more by Glass Animals, to see if they always sound like this. You hope this isn't a one-time thing. (91)

[noteworthynibbles]

Locked in a Cage sounds familiar; it's a mashed potato of Portugal. The Man and Alex Clare's Too Close (aka the IE8 theme song). Depending on who you are, it's either appealing or not: catchy electronic/indie/drumnbass, filled with power chords and a liberal sprinkle of "woaohhs." There's an addictive energy here, it's kind of addictive in the sense that you think you might have heard this before, but enjoy it immensely. Maybe you haven't heard it at all - your mind is generating the music before it blasts out, and you're satisfied - and satiated - with the outcome. (98)

[noteworthynibbles]

Holy shit! The Only One has a house beat at the beginning, building up to an epic but delicate pitch-fucked vocal drop - more of an ascent - into a melodic, wet, bright rainforest.There's ghostly vocals scattered throughout and the inflection on "...this love" slithers under your skin and stays there. It's danceable, luscious, and expertly crafted. If jungle is your thing, hit this one up. (65)

[noteworthynibbles]

Lighthouse by NewVillager (whose two main members are multi-media artists) is "new pop." There's a harp, guitar, bass, drums, and a chorus of different voices that blend smoothly together: it's multi-media music. There's a touch of folk, pop, and even gospel. It's all over the place musically, but has the same goal throughout: to uplift without being too saccharine. (59)

[noteworthynibbles]

What the hell do I categorize this as? I thought it would get easier to write these descriptions after over a month, but it looks like I haven't reached the end. Childhood's End starts off with poetry, a low voice, someone's father has died. A best friend is crucified. This is a surprisingly dark song about loss, growing older by surviving emotional hardships, and crying out for help without a reply. The minimal instrumentals and clearly enunciated vocals make this sound like a personal diary entry. (86)

[noteworthynibbles]

It hurts that it hurts to see your face. Aghh! Sometimes I feel wonder at feeling. Don't Think reminds me of Aesop Rock - they're both lyrical and it takes multiple listens to get the full meaning. This track is strangely soothing and meta-feeling-feeling. I don't typically listen to rap, but I'm going to chuck this one in the "like" bin. (60)

[noteworthynibbles]

Shlohmo and Jeremih team up in No More, a gritty glitchy R&B fest. Shlohmo isn't just producing this track, this is his. Jeremih's vocals are pitch-bent and clipped, always making this track interesting. I find the bell sound in the background at the start of the track a little annoying, but by the end, after traveling through the growing soundscape, I forgot all about it. (65)

[noteworthynibbles]

I grew up listening to similar hindi chants on cassettes in my house. Our cassette player was never this glitchy (or bassy) but this reminds me of home. Arists who sample chants often find them mystical, eclectic, and beautiful without really knowing the meaning. And in some ways they are right, it's better not to know, because they give you glimpses of another (part of this) world without leaving yours. Do you believe in reincarnation? (75)