Plato Shrimp / What Are You Listening To Today?

**Posted by Rampop II** 8/16/2022 1:38 am

crumbsroom wrote:
it seems I'm not the only one who overthinks the mixed tape to the point of near paralysis.
....
Currently though, this is where I am at.

WHOAH!!! That is a sick fuckin' groove! I've never heard of Jean–Pierre Djeukam so I think it's time I did something about that.

The mixtape is definitely an art. Jinnistan makes great mixtapes. Now I'm tempted to digitize the Yoda Jammies collection and post it, with artwork. And those would barely scratch the surface. I would need to make sure I still have a reliable tape deck. Cassettes had their limitations, but they also offered benefits we don't enjoy with modern modes of mix–making.

**Posted by Rock** 8/16/2022 11:21 pm

**Posted by crumbsroom** 8/17/2022 11:31 am

Rampop II wrote:
WHOAH!!! That is a sick fuckin' groove! I've never heard of Jean–Pierre Djeukam so I think it's time I did something about that.

I imagine he's one of those guy whose recording history left almost no footprint, which is frequently the case for these African artists. It's why I scoop up any nicely curated collection of these things whenever I find one that looks like it invested some love into the process.

This one comes from a Cameroon collection, and is one of the most varied and consistent I've found in a couple of years. You almost can't go wrong with these things though. Out of the dozens I've bought, every single one I have is quality.

The mixtape is definitely an art.

And one that, like anything, I could never resist doing intentionally wrong as often as possible. Line up a few tracks in a row that somehow found some kind of miraculous flow between completely disparate genres. And then carpet bomb any expectations with a bunch of shit right in the heart of the tape that wouldn't let those listening get their grounding. Do Angry Samoan's "Homosexual", Van McCoy's "The Disco Kid" and The Bonzo's "My Pink Half of the Drain Pipe" go together nicely, or have I just ruined everyone's good time? Made it impossible that anyone could put one of my mixed tapes on during a party. Have I undone all the good I have done up to that point in introducing my friends to new sounds? Probably. Which is why I would do it every single time. Sometimes even putting songs I knew they liked right at the end, when I knew the tape would run out half way through.

And the sad thing is, people would keep asking me to make them one. They'd open that door themselves when they had to know it would only lead to me handing them piles of these things for the next few years of their lives. To the point that I'm certain I made most of them fear music. But, hey, that just leaves more for me!

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/17/2022 1:59 pm

A few weeks back, I posted Bergman's "Shine a Light On Me" as part of a recent batch of Third Man Records releases. So I picked up her LP, and it's consistent in quality, a kind of electronica gospel music (I won't try to be so cute as to coin a new genre) that translates girl-group R&B through Stereolab. Probably the main sticking point for most people will be the heavy emphasis on Jesus, but the conviction seems genuine (she apparently had a conversion moment when her parents were killed in a car accident), and the gospel roots of many of the songs seem like a sincere source of strength and inspiration. The resulting music is too breezy and pretty to be considered oppressively proselytizing.

**Posted by crumbsroom** 8/17/2022 6:59 pm

**Posted by crumbsroom** 8/17/2022 11:33 pm

**Posted by crumbsroom** 8/17/2022 11:56 pm

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/18/2022 12:12 am

Guilty. Not guilty.

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/18/2022 12:26 am

"Guilty feet have got no rhythm."

**Posted by Rock** 8/20/2022 5:24 am

**Posted by Rock** 8/20/2022 5:28 am

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/20/2022 8:41 am

Rock, I'm guessing that you're aware that Abigail Mead is the pseudonym for Kubrick's daughter, Viviane?

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/20/2022 8:42 am

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/20/2022 8:55 am

I got the Ramsey Lewis record, Mother Nature's Son, an album of White Album covers. I'm not a huge Ramsey Lewis fan. I only have In-Crowd (which is pretty standard) and a couple of his funk-soul early 70s LPs produced by his former drummer turned Earth Wind & Fire leader Maurice White. White is on drums here, and is a highlight. Lots of potential samples. I would have liked to have heard just the jazz trio on their own, but the curse of the album is that it's arranged with a sleek and sweet, overly reverbed orchestra which makes it all sound like some kind of Disney movie (and, yes, it even has a version of "Good Night" to double that effect), plus it has a strange moog thing going on as well. As such, it's an interesting exercise, but only a couple of tracks escape getting bogged down in the production.

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/20/2022 9:00 am

And for those who want to know a superior example of this kind of jazz Beatles cover...

(Bonus points for naming the track that sampled the intro.)

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/20/2022 10:22 pm

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/21/2022 5:35 am

**Posted by Jinnistan** 8/21/2022 5:45 am

**Posted by Rock** 8/21/2022 10:22 pm

Jinnistan wrote:
Rock, I'm guessing that you're aware that Abigail Mead is the pseudonym for Kubrick's daughter, Viviane?

I learned that after some quick googling. Looks like it's a reference to Kubrick's old home Abbot's Mead?

**Posted by Rock** 8/21/2022 10:23 pm