What a treat I have for you this week! Two amazing artists who you've probably never heard of. One goes under the name μ-Ziq which is Greek for Mu-sic (Ed. You sure about that? No) and the other are known collectively as Up, Bustle and Out! Read on to discover more...
It's not easy to pick up his albums so maybe worth waiting on ebay for one to come up although it seems you can currently get Royal Astronomy on amazon for a reasonable fee >>
The drumming is funky, sharp and very live. It sounds like the kit is right there in your front room.
The group also manage, despite the emphasis on rhythm and beats, to sound very authentic in whatever they are trying to do. So the Cuban albums for example sound both very modern and yet traditional too. This is far more than just world music with heavy drum and bass overdubs.
Actually I'd say the Cuban sessions are the best albums out of the ones I've heard. Just occasionally some of the other albums, particularly the extensive 16 track Light Em Up straddle too many styles to be truly cohesive - jazz, trip hop, break beat, flamenco and Indian!
It's pretty hard to find out anything about the group - barely a photo exists on google and the musicians go under names like Senors Roody and Cuffy. It seems they are based in Bristol and are a loose collective of musicians, producers, and DJs, signed to the excellent Ninja Tune label. I expect they all have day jobs too, probably primary school teachers or something by day, and DJs by night.
Start with this one >>
It's Something Called IDM
I think it must be both cool and risky to have a name that not many can spell, or remember, or pronounce. Where would your records be filed in the store and how would you search online? Anyway μ-Ziq's will turn up if you search on u-ziq or mu-ziq and you will discover his real name is Mike Paradinas and he is a DJ and electronic music pioneer from London. His sound has been described as "drill 'n' bass" and is closest to Aphex Twin, Squarepusher or Autechre. However like the best of these types of artists he is actually unique and he has a sound all of his own which I would describe as melodic and even classical in a way (with heavy beats).
Intelligent dance music (IDM) is a form of electronic music that emerged in the early 1990s, characterized by an abstract or "cerebral" sound better suited for home listening than dancing.
I have noted that the first of his two offerings here, Lunatic Harness from 1997, has been granted the honour of 27th best IDM album of all time. What is IDM? Google knows... it stands for Intelligent Dance Music which come to think of it is actually quite a good description for this sort of music. Is it dance music and is it intelligent? I think yes on both counts although I would tend to agree with the definition above that if pushed I would opt for a home listening appraisal with plenty of foot tapping and head nodding if not full on dancey jigging. It does sound fantastic loud though!
The ranking, courtesy of Pitchfork, actually contains a pretty good review of the album:
With Lunatic Harness (his fourth album in five years), μ-Ziq struck the perfect balance between manic drum programming and gorgeous songs. Lunatic Harness gobbles up the beats of the day—jungle’s chaotic drums, hip-hop’s beatboxing brio, the cerebral spasms of “braindance”—and weds it to lullaby-like melodicism.
Royal Astronomy came two years later and like Lunatic there's a helluva lot to take in across a range of different styles that nevertheless retain the Paradinas character.
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| Mike Paradinas - you wouldn't recognise him in the street |
It's not easy to pick up his albums so maybe worth waiting on ebay for one to come up although it seems you can currently get Royal Astronomy on amazon for a reasonable fee >>
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1. Up, Bustle and Out - Urban Evacuation
2. Up, Bustle and Out - Rebel Radio Master Sessions Vol.1
3. Up, Bustle and Out - Rebel Radio Master Sessions Vol.2
4. Up, Bustle and Out - Light 'Em Up, Blow 'Em Out
5. μ-Ziq - Royal Astronomy
6. μ-Ziq - Lunatic Harness
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It's All About The Collective (and the Drummer)
The first thing that strikes you about Up, Bustle and Out, is the incredible drumming. This runs like a thread through whatever type of music they are producing. Here we have reggae dub with Urban Evacuation, Cuban music with the Rebel Radio sessions, and world dance rhythms with Indian and Spanish flavours in Light Em Up...The drumming is funky, sharp and very live. It sounds like the kit is right there in your front room.
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| A drum kit in your front room |
The group also manage, despite the emphasis on rhythm and beats, to sound very authentic in whatever they are trying to do. So the Cuban albums for example sound both very modern and yet traditional too. This is far more than just world music with heavy drum and bass overdubs.
 |
| l to r, Up, Bustle and Out |
Actually I'd say the Cuban sessions are the best albums out of the ones I've heard. Just occasionally some of the other albums, particularly the extensive 16 track Light Em Up straddle too many styles to be truly cohesive - jazz, trip hop, break beat, flamenco and Indian!
It's pretty hard to find out anything about the group - barely a photo exists on google and the musicians go under names like Senors Roody and Cuffy. It seems they are based in Bristol and are a loose collective of musicians, producers, and DJs, signed to the excellent Ninja Tune label. I expect they all have day jobs too, probably primary school teachers or something by day, and DJs by night.
Start with this one >>