REVOLUTION | Various Artists Rapster Records (!K7 Label Group) Release date: June 9, 2009 www.k7.com
Written By: Mario R. Martin
Welcome to the first installment of “The Death of Modern Rock” for 2009. While 2008 saw a monthly column, your fearless scribe has not been moved to put pen to paper lately. It’s been due to a terrible economy, the rise of a California sales tax (8.25% wasn’t high enough, so Los Angelenos are now paying 9.25% on purchases) and the overall turmoil the country has been in since late last year.
Needless to say, there’s been little to celebrate. And even less on the music front. We’re watching record labels falter. We’re witnessing the crash of our favorite music stores. We’re even watching conglomerates fizzle. And we’re hearing nothing but shit on the radio. Yours truly has been buying less of the new, and more of the old, stocking up on David Bowie, Roxy Music, Joy Division, Depeche Mode, etc. Honestly, even my beloved Jane’s Addiction is turning out a new box set of old material I already have, but it’s still a priority!
Recently, a CD came across my desk from one of my favorite labels, !K7. I tossed it into the pile of CDs and DVDs I get and put it out of my mind. Nate at !K7 dropped me a line to follow up on the release (like a good publicist should do!) and asked me what I thought of this CD entitled REVOLUTION. I do love the label and I promised to listen that day as I shuffled to LAX and back. The result? The best !K7 has released since Thievery Corporation’s DJ-Kicks record…minus the bossanova.
I have a theory: the best way, and most fair, to judge music is to listen to it while you are driving, preferably loud. I couldn’t stop listening to it. It was the most relevant and beautiful thing I’d heard in such a long time. Okay, let’s start from the beginning…
REVOLUTION is a various artist release. There’s a great deal of Cuban influence on the release and even more back-story. I’d like to take a bit of a different turn though. Let’s get educated on the process first. Take six producers at the top of their respective games and toss in instrumentation from Latin, dub, hip-hop, etc. Toss in some of the best voices (namely Roisin Murphy who brings haunting vocals to any effort) and you’ve got yourself a perfect amalgamation of sound ready to heat up the approaching summer.
Most notable in this mix is probably Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim). While we haven’t heard much from him in recent days, he’s like an old friend you lose touch with, yet you have hours of material to catch up on. Next is Guy Sigsworth who is best known for working with Bjork, Madonna and Alanis Morrissette. Marius De Vries can be connected to the likes of the Sugarcubes, while Rich File has lent his genius to James Lavelle’s U.N.K.L.E. project. Poet Name Life brings on the Black Eyed Peas vibe while Cameron McVey and Stan Kybert team up again after having brought about their skills to Massive Attack, All Saints and Neneh Cherry (by the way, what ever happened to All Saints?!). Those are the players. They are the genius in this recipe.
With credentials like that, you’re bound to find something you love in this record. Now, do you remember when bossanova was all the rage? Every artist utilized the bossanova sound freely until it gave way to the ill fated ‘swing’ sound. Regardless, take the kitsch of swing, the danceability of Latin, subtract the unnecessary over-popularity of “Buena Vista Social Club” and you’ve got yourself a banger.
REVOLUTION has Cuban influences, and Cuban is the new Latin. This release just became the most necessary to hit shelves. When all else fails and every sound that’s called music these days turns its back on listeners, REVOLUTION is here to fill and bridge the gaps between the obvious and surreal, aurally pleasing and sensually teasing your every sense.
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