Sources:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2017/01/22/music/tracy-hyde-polishes-indie-aesthetics-film-bleu/
https://fromtheintercom.com/interview-for-tracy-hyde/
Category: Vinyl Records Highlights
Artist of the Month Vol #1 – March 2020
Khruangbin (/ˈkrʌŋbɪn/ KRUNG-bin) is an American musical trio from Houston, Texas, with Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald Ray “DJ” Johnson Jr. on drums. The band is known for blending global music influences, such as classic soul, dub and psychedelia.
Their debut studio album, The Universe Smiles Upon You (2015), draws from the history of Thai music in the 1960s, while their second album, Con Todo El Mundo (2018), has influences from Spain and the Middle East.
Debut Album – The Universe Smiles Upon You
Taking influence from 1960’s Thai funk – their name literally translates to “Engine Fly” in Thai – Khruangbin’s debut album ‘The Universe Smiles Upon You’ is steeped in the bass heavy, psychedelic sound of their inspiration
The Universe Smiles Upon You’ was recorded at their spiritual home, a remote barn deep in the Texas countryside where their first rehearsals took place. The band listened to a lot of different types of music on the long drives out to the country but their favourites were 60s and 70s Thai cassettes gleaned from the cult Monrakplengthai blog and compilations of southeast Asian pop, rock and funk. This had a heavy impact on the direction of the band, the scales they used and the inflection of the melodies; which coupled with the spaciousness of the Texan countryside culminated in Khruangbin forming their exotic, individual sound.
Khruangbin – Con Todo El Mundo
Whereas their 2015 debut album ‘The Universe Smiles Upon You’ was influenced by 60s and 70s Thai cassettes and compilations of southeast Asian pop, rock and funk, ‘Con Todo El Mundo’ hops east over India to take inspiration in similarly under discovered funk and soul sounds of the Middle-East, particularly from Iran. Laura Lee explains the album’s title: “My grandpa would always ask me ‘Como me quieres?’ (‘how much do you love me’?), and he’d only ever accept one response. ‘Con todo el mundo’ (With all the world).”
‘Hasta El Cielo’ is the band’s glorious dub version of their second album ‘Con Todo El Mundo’. The full album has been processed anew along with two bonus dubs by renowned Jamaican producer Scientist.
The band’s exotic, spacious, psychedelic funk aligns with the dub treatment particularly well.
Khruangbin & Leon Bridges – Texas Sun EP
Sometimes the most unlikely partnerships create the best results. That’s certainly the case with Thai (influenced) funk trio Khruangbin and soul singer Leon Bridges, two Texas-based acts who joined forces for the excellent Texas Sun EP. The title track opens with haunting backroads chords before segueing into a globally-influenced melody that plays host to Bridges’ wistful, love-drunk lyrics. The vibe stays steady throughout the course of this short-but-sweet EP. It’s all sunshine and open roads, the freedom of nowhere to go and someone lovely to navigate the route by your side.
Mordechai is a story of finding yourself in unexpected places. Travel weary and without a home after 24 itinerant months of travel and touring, Laura Lee went on a hike with a family of strangers, led by a father named Mordechai. Here, on this least expected journey after so many others, she found spiritual awakening and rebirth.
SingJazz 2018 Highlights
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Incognito – Tales From The Beach
$48.80 -
Parov Stelar – La Fete EP
$32.70 Add to cart -
Parov Stelar – Princess 2LP
$55.50 -
Parov Stelar – Coco EP
$32.70 -
Lalah Hathaway – Honestly
$37.20 Add to cart -
Soul II Soul – Back to Life
$38.30 -
Jamie Cullum – Interlude
$48.10 -
Incognito Live In London – The 30th Anniversary Concert
$56.70 -
Jamie Cullum – Momentum
$49.10 -
Lauryn Hill – The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill (Sony)
$50.20 Add to cart
My Favourite Indie Folk Albums
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Lisa Hannigan – Passenger
$46.50 -
Florist – The Birds Outside Sang
$38.00 Add to cart -
Lily & Madeleine – Fumes
$34.50 Add to cart -
Birdy – Birdy
$44.20 Add to cart -
Angus & Julia Stone – Down The Way
$52.50 -
Iron & Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days
$41.30 Add to cart -
Kings Of Convenience – Riot On An Empty Street
$40.40 -
Father John Misty – I Love You, Honeybear
$40.60 -
Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell
$34.00 -
Bon Iver – For Emma Forever Ago (US)
$39.70
Record Collectors’ Guide – Volume 1
Diana Krall – Live In Paris
Recorded live during Krall’s sold-out run at the legendary Olympia Music Hall in Paris in late 2001, Live in Paris captures the energy and spark of Krall’s concert performances. The album’s dozen songs feature several of Krall’s regular collaborators, including guitarist Anthony Wilson, bassist Christian McBride, and drummer Jeff Hamilton, as well as Orchestre Symphonique Européen, conducted by pianist/arranger Alan Broadbent.
[button style=”green” link=”https://www.retrophonicrecords.com/vinyl-records-highlights/record-collectors-guide-vol1/?add-to-cart=4829″ ]Buy Now[/button] (S$40, 2LP, 45 rpm, Verve Records)
Eva Cassidy – The Best Of Eva Cassidy
(3LP+CD, Blix Street Records)
Steve Leggett of Allmusic gave the album 4.5 out of 5 saying, “(Cassidy) was a masterful song interpreter, able to take on almost any song in any style or genre and spin her voice around it, giving it a kind of haunting and sincere freshness. This set makes a great introduction to Cassidy’s style and substance “.
Lebohang Nthongoa of Times Live gave the album 9 out of 10 saying, “This album is all about beautiful music and pure singing talent, with no frills, bells or whistles! I find very little fault in this album: from the choice of songs to the way they are covered makes for a great albu
Kings Of Convenience – Quiet Is The New Loud
Debut album by Norwegian indie pop duo Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe. Gracefully harmonic acoustic guitars paired with soft, gentle, almost intimate singing, Kings of Convenience’s music breathe fresh air into age-old folk music and shows that indie isn’t always about rock or electronica.
[button style=”green” link=”https://www.retrophonicrecords.com/vinyl-records-highlights/record-collectors-guide-vol1/?add-to-cart=3557″ ]Buy Now[/button] (S$39.50, 2016 re-issused, black vinyl, Astralwerks)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Limited edition, highly sought after album, and a must-have for any Star Wars fans. Record comes with special bespoke hologram etching with Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighter on one side of each LP. Just watch this video https://youtu.be/DLuvkcV2oi4 and don’t tell me if you are not sold within 10 seconds.
[button style=”green” link=”https://www.retrophonicrecords.com/vinyl-records-highlights/record-collectors-guide-vol1/?add-to-cart=4878″ ]Buy Now[/button] (S$58.00, 2LP Set, Hologram Etching Edition)
TRON: Legacy (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
The score of Tron: Legacy features an 85-piece orchestra with mixture of orchestral and electronic music (by Daft Punk!). The soundtrack album was nominated for Best Score Soundtrack Album for Visual Media at the 54th Grammy Awards.
The vinyl release is rare and supposedly out of print since 2014. But we found a copy some where so it is now waiting for the rightful owner to snatch it up.
[button style=”green” link=”https://www.retrophonicrecords.com/vinyl-records-highlights/record-collectors-guide-vol1/?add-to-cart=1345″ ]Buy Now[/button] (S$48.50, 2LP Set, Disney)