Spotify Monthly Selections October

Slight noise issues prevented us from recording a *full* episode of the podcast today, so we're going to pick it up again tomorrow. But that actually gave me a chance to looky at the post list and notice I hadn't posted this months spotify playlist and a rundown of my choices. So let's put it on and have us a little dance shall we?

Well, I say that like the selections don't have something in common with my podcast selections for this week. That is they lean on the downtempo side of things. It's also a bit of a nostalgia dive into what I was listening to (and what was new) when I was at university. A lot of these tracks were excellent backing for my AfterEffects animations, starting with the fantastically detuned and distorted sound of Clark's Tooth Moves. We keep it Warp for the meantime with one of my favourites from Cosmogramma after me and Adam gave our mixed opinions on the album I thought I'd at least talk a little bit possibly about it.



A tune I made the mistake of animating a show-reel to, I can now just again appreciate SBTRKT's Never Never however many years after I've graduated, I'd completely forgotten about that incredibly deep bassline for one. Sampha's vocals in combo with the production make for a deliciously smooth package that I've fallen for once again. I remember writing a review of Moderat's II when it was released, and I distinctly remember immediately being head over heels for Let In The Light. Admittedly you all know I have a massive weakness for distorted vocals of any kind, but lately I've been all about those thunderous drums.

Similarly another album I reviewed at the time, Squarepusher's Shobaleader One d'Demonstrator (which actually got a follow up not too long ago finally). It received mixed opinions at the time but man I will always adore that intro track. Once again, full disclosure I love me some vocoder/talkbox goodness but hot damn talk about establishing an aesthetic effectively. I've seen a lot of comments comparing the album to Daft Punk oddly, I can see similarities to bits of Discovery sure but even then that's a stretch, I much prefer the descriptor I've used since a few weeks after the review: Space Jazz.

Which somehow made me think of Ladytron's Destroy Everything You Touch, one of the standouts from Witching Hour, with Marnie's vocals on point as usual. Another dive into my University listenings with the beautifully laboured strings and beats combo of Apparat's You Don't Know Me, and the surprisingly downtempo Green Light Go from Modeselektor. Rounded out with a random pick of a Tokimonsta tune I like (reminder to me to actually pick up some of her stuff finally). Rounded out with the absolutley crushing Amarillo from the Gorillaz's slightly underrated album The Fall, a fantastic sound if the "mostly composed on an iPad" tale is to be believed.

-Claude Van Foxabt