Coming very soon for you…

iDONEaMIX

In the dim distant past – I was a DJ – I didn’t forget how to do it though…here’s a mix for the summer:

iDONEaMIX by mattrutherford

(click the down arrow for download)

Tracklist:

Diddy vs Dirty Money – Coming Home (Dirty South Mix)
Martin Solveig feat Kele – Ready 2 Go
Fedde Le Grand – Control Room (Original Club Mix)
Hypster – Neon Teens (Original Mix)
Thomas Gold – Marsch Marsch (Original Mix)
Mord Fustang – Lick the Rainbow (Original Mix)
Afrojack & Quintino – Selecta (Original Mix)
Sander van Doorn – Koko (Original Mix)
Simone Cattaneo & Alex Gardini – It’s Like That (Main Mix)
Faithless – Sun to Me (Mark Knight)
Jay C & Felix Baumgartner – Souk (Thomas Gold Mix)
Tiesto & Mark Knight feat Dino – Beautiful World (Original Mix)
Fatboy Slim & Lazy Rich – Gangster Trippin 2011 (Lazy Rich Mix)

Desert Island Discs

The BBC have recently put about 500 episodes of Desert Island Discs online for on-demand listening – it is a treasure trove of fascinating people with interesting and sometimes surprising musical choices. For those unfamiliar – guests get to chose 8 of their favourite pieces of music, then one book (to supplement the Bible and The Complete Works of Shakespeare)  and a single item of luxury. The programme has been running since the 1960’s and is currently hosted by Kirsty Young.

It got me thinking about what my Desert Island Discs would look like – and I finally came up with these eight songs:

• Sea Diver by Mott the Hoople
• Shipbuilding by Elvis Costello
• Tower of Song by Leonard Cohen
• Dream a Little Dream of Me by The Mamas and the Papas
• You do Something to Me by Paul Weller
• Stay with me Baby by The Walker Brothers
• Waiting for the Night by Depeche Mode
• Ballade de Melody Nelson by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin

A Spotify Playlist is here

My book – The Long Walk : The True Story of a Trek to Freedom by Slavomir Rawicz

My luxury – A freshly made bed, every night.

If I had to save ONE song – it would probably be The Walker Brothers – Stay with me Baby

What would your Desert Island Discs be?

Early Spring Till

I was out there missing steps, when you swung around to me
Best to land, not to crash, pulling out too late
Call on everyone you ever knew, and plead

Well I’ve been the bum who’s underfed
I’ve been the one who should’ve said
Maybe I’m wrong and I’ve always been that way

Are you tired, do you feel… wrung out?
Have you fallen from where glory sprouts?
Are you cut off in fields and pressed down?
Like an early spring till that don’t come around

I think I’ve been there
I think I’m waiting too long
You tried this, panting and poured,
You set a course to cross me out.

Are you tired and broken, once so stout?
Are you full of the feeling, don’t doubt it when it’s gone?
I could cut off this reel and leave now
I could fill up with air and scream so loud.

I think I’m going to…

Early Spring Till – Nathaniel Rateliff (Spotify Link)

Welcome to the future…

Now that the Brits are done and dusted, it’s time to look forward at some of the new  music around. Here are five music acts I think we’ll be talking about in 2011…

	Ed Sheeran – first album is due in August, but if you dig around there is a wide back catalogue of material available. Essentially an acoustic guitar wielding singer songwriter but with an iPhone full of grime scene contacts. Checkout the No. 5 collaborations project for work with Devlin, Wiley and P. Money amongst others.  Spotify Link / Homepage.
	Gypsy and the Cat -  don’t know much about this lot, but hailing from Australia, reminded me a little of a blissed out MGMT.  I found their Gilgamesh album after hearing a track on the Kitsune Compilation No 9. Spotify Link / Homepage
	Wretch 32 – Grime and HipHop stars from London must be queuing up to make it into the big time… but this fella must be near the head of the queue.  I picked up a couple of great mix tapes from this London MC – featuring a who’s who of grime stars.  Wretch 32 also features on the Ed Sheeran EP at the top of this.  Homepage
	Missing Andy – second place on Must be the Music, I can only hope that their Essex boy, mod-ish sound translates better to an album than Emma’s Imagination did.  No Spotify / Myspace
	Jack Hayter – previously a member of Hefner, and later Dollboy – I heard about the ‘Sucky Tart’ EP after hearing the lead track ‘I Stole the Cutty Sark’  on Radio 6. Blending a folky sound, with some great lyrics and an almost haphazard production style – he reminded me a little bit of David Ford and Ivor Cutler.  Lovely stuff. Spotify Link / Homepage.

What are you listening to for 2011?

Radiohead–King of Limbs

I’ve just downloaded and started listening to the new Radiohead album, ‘King of Limbs’ – but I have to comment on the model for getting the album out.

Announce the album on Tuesday, telling everyone it will be ready for download on Saturday, Make pre-orders on the website a very reasonable £6 for a digital copy. Then, release the album a day early to those that have bought it in advance. Ensuing press coverage is excellent.

Excellent stuff – that’s the way that bands should do business – limit the opportunity to leak and pirate the album as much as possible, price the album well and then deliver quickly and at high quality.

This feels like the future… now, let’s hope the album is as awesome as the dancing in the first video.

Essential : Mogwai / Hardcore will never die, but you will.

The follow up to last years live album, ‘Special Moves’ –Mogwai deliver another run through some of the finest song titles of all time. I guess if you (mostly) deliver instrumentals, you get a free hand with tracks like ‘George Square Thatcher Death Party’ or the marvellous ‘You’re Lionel Ritchie’

The music itself – is perfect – just as you’d want and expect a Mogwai album to be, sweeping, filmic and at times tender – but contrasting with impenetrable ‘walls’ of sound. Epic stuff at times, especially in the 8 minutes long ‘Lionel Ritchie’

Fantastic album – well worth a listen (Spotify) / download (Amazon)

Mercury Prize 2010–Shortlist

Nominations for this years prize are out…the 12 artistes are:

A Spotify playlist of all the nominated albums is here (excluding the Kit Downes Trio, who’s album isn’t on Spotify)

I need a bit of time to consider who I think will win what is a pretty close race this year…

Who is your tip to win?

What are you listening to?

If you are going to spend time outdoors this summer, it is super important you have the right soundtrack, a perfectly blended mix of tunes that go together like steak and salad or gin and tonic.

I’ve put together a Spotify playlist especially for those barbecues or garden cocktail parties, for lazing in the garden or chilling at the beach.

I believe that it’s called Al Fresco – on Spotify

So, pop a bottle and get the BBQ fired up – these tunes should keep the head nodding as the sun blazes down.

What are you listening to?

Quality Tweets

A quick round up of high quality music found on Spotify – originally from my Twitter stream.

• Fink – Live at in Session at KCRW : http://bit.ly/9qrqaF – lovely laid back guitars.
• Kelis – Flesh Tone : http://bit.ly/bVHse8 – future funk
• Funky Porcini – Go on : http://bit.ly/cSd4Uo -   lovely chilled electronica

What are you listening to at the moment?