Best of aught eight

10. Lykke Li - Youth Novels
9. V/A - Soul Messages From Dimona
8. Ratatat - LP3
7. Sebastien Tellier - Sexuality
6. Erykah Badu - New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)
5. Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
4. Hercules & Love Affair - s/t
3. TV On The Radio - Dear Science
2. Portishead - Third
1. Flagrant Fowl (Cousin Cole & Pocketknife) - Tambourine Dream (CD OOP)

An oldie but goodie

Re-upped for new friends. Soon to come, my year-end list, and maybe even a holiday treat.

DJ Educated Foot - Strictly Liable

Congratulations America

You didn't screw this one up! Here's a weird little mix I made. No tracklists from now on, as somebody has been paying some attention to little ol' Starry Eyes. So we're keeping this off the record, on the QT, and very hush hush...

DJ Educated Foot - Election Hump Love Jam

Do The Marshmallow. Again.

DJ Educated Foot - Financial Crisis Hump

And now for something somewhat different...

Hump Night is back in the building. I could kind of feel myself getting in a rut with Hump Night, relying heavily on dance/electro/disco/etc. so this edition is made solely of tracks from outside that spectrum. Also, it shows that I do still listen to rap (something I had become less sure these days). Anyway, it should make a nice soundtrack for the end of your summer. Enjoy!


DJ Educated Foot - Labor Day/Hump Night

Dollar bin treasures

Like any good record nerd, one of my greater pleasures is the alchemical conversion of dollar bin records into digital gold. Here's the cream of my latest excursion:

Sheila Hylton - The Bed's Too Big Without You

Sly & Robbie (aka the greatest rhythm duo of all time) provide the foundation for this incredible cover. If all Police songs had this kind of groove, I would be a much, much bigger fan.

Eurhythmics - Paint A Rumour (Jellybean Mix)

From an import comp of mixes by dance pioneers Francois K & Jellybean, this song fits in perfectly with the space-italo-disco that's all the rage in certain circles. Like mine.

Bran Van 3000 feat. Curtis Mayfield - Astounded (Demon Remix)

In perhaps my most favorite bizarre dollar bin find, BV3K of "Drinking in LA" fame apparently put out a second album that never made it to the US, but which included a previously unreleased Curtis Mayfield vocal track; this filter-house mix from the 12" single edits the lyrics to create the perfectly devastating couplet: I just want to love you/I just want to cry.

Blog heat

I have a new favorite blog. I've been a big fan of SFJ's work in the New Yorker (dude pointed out the seismographical origins of the now ubiquitous Autotune) but his blog is extremely refreshing and entertaining. Plus, it put me up on this:

Every day is a new chance

Delayed by technical issues (damn you overheating laptop!) & maybe just a touch of apathy, here is a new Hump Night for all y'all. Not as much about the dance-y dance-y, this mix is made more for late night trekking or those hazy moments after the dance-y dance-y. In other words, lots of crazy synth sounds and wordless vocals, ya dig?

DJ Educated Foot - The World Through The Little Window Of My Humpcraft

More life songs

In preparation for this weekend's upcoming pitchfork festival, here's a track from my most-anticipated group - the fabulous !!! (for those new to the group it's generally pronounced chk chk chk, but feel free to substitute your own set of 3 onomatopoeic sounds).

!!! - Sweet Life

Jam of the moment

And it's Canadian! On a Canada-related note, my sister is currently in Montreal, and I've repeatedly warned her that if she isn't careful she's going end up in a formless art-collective/band/commune before she knows it. Look out Sis!

Born Ruffians - I Need A Life

Throw off your shirt and let's get hot, hot, hot

Just in time for your 4th festivities, it's a brand new Hump Night! Feel free to use this as the soundtrack to your cookout/bbq/etc., but just make sure there are no little ones around. And don't be surprised if things get weird. Like real weird. Like animatronic George Harrison video meets proto-emo electro weird. You've been warned.

DJ Educated Foot - Hump-b-q

The End of an Era...

...and a rather disappointing era at that, as the Pacers and J.O., the one-time heir-apparent, are parting ways a couple of years too late. Still, I am amazed at what they're getting back in the deal, as a starting-caliber point guard and a #17 pick are nothing to be ashamed of. Unfortunately, it likely means that my favorite prediction regarding the NBA draft won't come true in so many words, from freedarko.com:

"11. Pacers: D.J. Augustin
Augustin, who is the guy who Danny Granger thanks when Granger is 3rd Team all-NBA next season, heralding Granger's greatness like the Silver Surfer does for Galactus. In a CP3-crazed world, extra points for D.J.'s GPA and Gulf Coast cred. (DS)"

In unrelated news, these are the songs that get you through 12 hours of document review:

King Khan & The Shrines - Took My Lady To Dinner

Hideo

So with Jamie Lidell (featured with the awesome Señor Coconut Mix of "Little Bit Of Feel Good" on Summer Hump) and now Nomo under my belt, my live music-going days in Chicago are officially off to a pretty, pretty, pretty good start. For those not in the know, Nomo is a modern afro-funk ensemble whose new record Ghost Rock drops on Tuesday. Last night, they played the new record in its entirety for the lucky few (including me) bold enough to venture out on a Sunday night. To spread the good word about Nomo, here's their incredible take on one of supreme space commander Sun Ra's tunes.

Nomo - Rocket #9

Summertime...

...and the mixin' is (not) easy. One of my more labor-intensive mixes, but when I'm trying to provide you with THE soundtrack to your summer I will settle for nothing less than the best. Without further ado, the latest supersize Hump Fortnight:

DJ Educated Foot - Summer Hump

Still, where did the lighter fluid come from?

Time for a new feature on Starry Eyes wherein I send out tracks to friends, rivals, nemeses, etc. for a brief review; for lack of originality let's just call it Guest Shots.

The initial installment is courtesy of one JDM, an admittedly "pro-gunshot" medieval historian who is much, much better at Guitar Hero than you are. The track is a club remix of GOB's own theme music by NYC bass don Drop the Lime.

Drop the Lime - The Final Crackdown

Quoth the JDM:
"Like any good remix, The Final Crackdown does an effective job of lifting the the signature bits of the original song and blending them together with a new structure, some extra bells and whistles (or gunshot sounds) and producing something 50% new, 75% old, and 110% pure octane! Unfortunately for this reviewer, there was at least 50% too much octane - any good astronaut story needs some emotional grounding. They may be leaving together, but still it's farewell. Or something. Let's be honest, The Final Countdown wasn't the subtlest song to begin with. And while Crackdown distills and elaborates on the peaks of Countdown, turning a 2-note song into a 1- or 1.5-note song doesn't end up doing it for me. It needs something more. Is there a sound effect for big hair?"

Hello Chicago!

Escort - A Bright New Life

New Hump soonish.

Swedish Ish

And once again it's on. This very special edition of Hump Fortnight goes out to my main man Scott, who let me crash at his place during a recent trip to the Twin Cities. In return, I promised a compilation cd on a theme of his choosing, thinking it would likely be genre-oriented. Instead, Scott had a single artist in mind - Ace Of Base. So here's an all Swedish pop(-ish) edition of Hump Fortnight, anchored by the spirit of Ace Of Base.


DJ Educated Foot - Ace Of Hump

The fix is in

In a first for Starry Eyes, I opened my inbox this morning to a brandspankingnew Fixtape from the one and only Chew Fu, whom you might remember from his incredible "Wicked Game" refix. Well, that one is in this fixtape along with a whole lot more goodness. So I'm passing the savings on to you:

Chew Fu Fixtape (w/track ID's)

Chew Fu Fixtape (single track)

In related free music news, one of my favorite electronic labels, Ghostly International, has collaborated with Adult Swim to bring you Ghostly Swim, a whole album of exclusive tracks from the Ghostly roster and friends. I suggest you check it out here.

I made you a muxtape

Due to technical difficulties & assorted travel/travails, no Hump Fortnight for now. Hopefully soon, but in it's place I've made you a muxtape; yes, honestly, it's just for you. Actually a lot of the stuff on here is stuff I like too much as is to want to try to mess with it in a mix anyway, including my previously mentioned favorite song of all-time (though "Be Thankful..." is a close, close second). Please enjoy and get out there and make your own (but be sure to send me a link)!
The goods

(Oh yeah, like many things here on Starry Eyes, if you didn't know "Erotic City" is very, very NSFW (& literal) and "Sagittarius Rapp" is pretty questionable too, even though it's all just a metaphor, man)

Sunny weekend business

Now, I know what you're saying. You're saying, JD, there's a lot going on this weekend. There's Race for the Cure (which is apparently associated with some Garth Brooks jams). There's Record Store Day. There's that Spoon show at the Vogue you couldn't get tickets for. And there's the first semi-tolerable movie to come out in a while (hopefully) with the Apatow-overexposure bunch. And the NBA Playoffs start this weekend (though you, hypothetical reader, are likely nowhere near as interested in that as I am). That's all well and good, but what sort of jams do you have to help me through this weekend? And no more disco, please. We need something we can cruise to.

Fair enough. How about some sweet funky soul music, with an impressively single-minded protagonist?

The Originals - California Sunset

Or what about about some dubby-funk (with the loop from LL Cool J's "Doin' It")? (And peep the original on my standout sunny day cruising disc here).

Grace Jones - JA Guys (Dub Version of My Jamaican Guy)

And as a bonus - if only I had listened to Black Velvet, I might not have been so confused at 5:30 this morning. I mean, they did tell me. So yeah, sorry about that whole deal. I did not get my thing together.

Black Velvet - An Earthquake's Coming

Evolution of the 12

Back from my 5 year reunion, and overall I'd have to say it was a rousing success. Great to see so many different folks. One thing I knew I had to do during my time in the Lou was head to my old stomping grounds Vintage Vinyl. And it was everything I remembered and more; since I didn't have a turntable back in the day I had paid no attention to all the actual vinyl they had in stock. This time I started to make amends and walked away with a couple of different disco 12" singles. The key name on each label was one Tom Moulton, the originator of the 12" disco mix.

The two records I found (MP3's below) show an interesting evolution in disco. The Papa John Creach track (apparently one of the first disco singles ever released) is in itself a solid, solid track with a swirling, organic, almost rootsy disco feel. Two years later we get to ORS (Orlanda Riva Sound)'s Moon-Boots at which point disco had (to paraphrase the soundtrack to my weekend, the Juan Maclean's "Happy House") launched into space. In any case both are great tracks and for interested parties I highly, highly recommend Soul Jazz's 2xCD comp "A Tom Moulton Mix". The ORS track is on there, as is what is definitively my favorite song of all-time (and that's a lot of songs my friend): Patti Jo's "Make Me Believe In You." But I'm going to have to save that one for another day.

Papa John Creach & The Midnight Sun - Joyce (12" Instrumental Version)

ORS - Moon-Boots (Special 12" Disco Mix)

This Is(?) My Beautiful House

New mix time. This edition of Hump Fortnight is in preparation for my 5 year undergrad reunion, and to that end it's a reimagining of past classics. Anyone who's paid much attention knows I have an unhealthy love for the cover version, so this mix is chock full of covers, remixes, etc. of some stuff everyone should (hopefully) know. A taste of false nostalgia - bon appetit!

DJ Educated Foot - Hump Fortnight: Same As It Never Was

Opening Day

Back before my mind was filled with knowledge of songs, samples, producers and labels, my useless trivia quotient was met and exceeded by the minutia of batting averages, strikeouts and stolen bases. Unfortunately, this does not appear to be the year for my beloved Cards, who will have an uphill battle in the NL Central against a loaded Cubs squad and the emerging Brew Crew. Maybe if they can tread water until they get a healthy Carpenter back (along with Agent Mulder) they'll have a shot at squeaking in. But I'm not expecting big things. In any case, to celebrate the season, here's a tangentially related track that is awesome in its own dark-disco way. Ballplayers, come out and play-ay!

Barry de Vorzon - Baseball Furies Chase

EL2 - OST

Hump Fortnight Special Edition! This one goes out to my dude Tyrion. Back in the day, a pinnacle of cinematic achievement known only as "Elias Lorenzo" was perpetrated upon an unsuspecting public. While the details remain hazy and possibly forever lost to time, this is the original soundtrack to the as yet unmade sequel "Elias Lorenzo 2." Meaning it's a little shorter on mixing and longer on funk instrumentals to score the imaginary scenes in my head (peep the ill shootout set to the Bar-Kays' version of "Hey Jude" son). Hope you still get a kick out of it.

DJ Educated Foot - Elias Lorenzo 2 OST

No One Ever Really Something Something

After Monday night's show at the Vogue, N*E*R*D's third record, due out this summer, officially reached most anticipated status. From the new stuff they played, it sounds like they managed to break out of the slightly AOR-rut of Fly Or Die and got back to the sense of adventure that made In Search Of.. one of my favorite albums of all time (hopefully lead single "Everybody Nose" is just a bit of an outlier trifle). In fact, I would argue that in some ways In Search Of... was a fairly prescient album for the naughties, what with its obsessions with fame, sex, sex tapes, and politics, all of which are coalescing nicley as we near the end of the decade. In any case, I unfortunately wavered a bit on whether or not I really wanted to go, then thought WW22YOJDD? And I knew 22 year-old JD would have stopped at nothing to see this show. All in all, I was rewarded as these guys put on a heck of a show (Chad was even there in appropriately goofy sunglasses & hat), and the live version of "She Wants To Move" is the truth. To commemorate, here's my favorite N*E*R*D non-album track as their big hit "Maybe" gets remixed by funky-electro-space-pirates Sa-Ra Creative Partners. Now if the band had busted out this version, my mind would have truly been blown.

N*E*R*D - Maybe (Sa-Ra Remix)

It was acceptable in the 80's

So I followed my curiousity and got burnt. But who could blame me? It sounded so promising; a strange, almost homemade looking record promising disco songs about trains with five guitars??!!! How could such a thing exist? And what in God's name does it sound like?

Overwhelmed by an insatiable need for answers to these questions I purchased the LP. Tony Rizzi and Disco Pacific? Oh, how you have let me down. Not only do you fail to utilize the FIVE guitars to add any muscle to your sound, you essentially made a record of smoove-disco-jazz, and not even something as promising as that sounds. But the most vile of your sins is even more simple and insidious - you made a boring record.

Fortunately, as a good record buyer should, I hedged my bets. I went with the closest thing I could find to a sure shot - Soft Cell's Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go? 12" and the lure of its 9 minute "Tainted Dub." Bingo! (see results below) And then there was the longshot; the band simply called Wah!, the record less simply called Nah=Poo-The Art of Bluff. Oh yes, this was the proverbial ticket. A surprisingly solid post-punk record, perfectly sequenced and solid throughout. I've shared my favorite track below - it's a little bit average for the first three minutes but then it gets all synth + beat = magic at the end. What did these records have in common? A decade that I am realizing I may have unjustly overlooked in previous record buying excursions - the 80's.

Soft Cell - Tainted Dub

Wah! - The Death of Wah!

I'm losing my patience, I just came here to bounce

New mix time. Creatively retitled Hump Fortnight (I waive any pretense this is a weekly mix series, and am now aiming for twice a month in a quality-over-quantity based decision), this mix is your soundtrack to woozy spring nights, with a gooey, cosmic-nougat middle sandwiched by some more pop leaning stuff (as in the songs have vocals). All in all, not a bad little mix. Plus I got to feature the song for my favorite video I've seen in a long time. Also, it's got a band called Shit Robot.

DJ Educated FOOT - Hump Fortnight/4 Capital Letters

Milk....what?

Honest, I had thought about posting this track even before I saw the video referenced here. But the internet zeitgeist has spoken!

Kelis vs. Holy Fuck vs. Daniel Plainview - Milkshake (DJ Co-op's triple thick edit)

A Very Special Valentine's Day Hump

Night that is. In honor of the holiday/corporate event, I put together a mix, of which I am pretty, pretty, pretty pleased. It just all came together nicely. And you better enjoy it for a while, since crunch time has officially arrived. Not sure how many more posts I'll have until March, but this one ought to tide you over, as it's an hour plus. C'mon, it's got a Yes cover, Chris Isaak, Guns N' Roses and Elton John??? That, my friends, is the sweetness.

DJ Educated Foot - Valentine's Hump

"Oh, I got a chorus for your ass..."

18-1, emphasis on the one. A little bit of awesome New York rap, to celebrate the victory of the New York Football Giants. Sending this one out to the supposed greatest team of all time, not to mention the greatest big-game quaterback of all time...

Cool Calm Pete feat. Lathia Black & Thirstin Howl III - F******k Yooooouuuuu

Raves (no, not that kind)

Alas, I fear the time may have come to buckle down and study for this whole bar exam nonsense, so mixes and postings may be slow to come over the coming months. But today, as my good friend Ice Cube said, was a good day. You see I saw the lights of the Goodyear blimp and it read...oh, no, that wasn't what made it good. Rather today was a confluence of my tastes and good luck on the level rarely seen. To begin - the last issue of the series that got me back into reading comics, Y: The Last Man, finished off the story on a high note. I found a really, really awesome comic called Johnny Hiro, which featured a guest appearance from none other than Jeffrey Steingarten (!). Oh, there's this little show called Curb Your Enthusiasm, whose 6th season is now my greedy little clutches. And last, but far from least, I scored a copy of Starry Eyes gods Hot Chip's latest relase, Made In The Dark (and a touch early nonetheless). Whew.

To celebrate this consumption, let me break you off a little piece of a tasty band that passed through Indy last night - Howlies. Now, I promise not to become one of those blogs, that's constantly hyping the next big thing, etc. But these guys brought the heat, and made me glad to have ventured out in a cold, cold night.

Howlies - Angeline

Wednesday Night Fever

So...no new mix yet. Hopefully, I'll have one up soon. To tide you over, a tasty bit of disco goodness:

The Mike Theodore Orchestra - The Bull

from this guy:

Oh my!

"one hundred thousand billion billion billion billion positrons"

Always nice when space.com (as dumbed down by yahoo) reminds you of one of your favorite hip-hop songs of all time (if not, in fact, my actual favorite). Plus, it has a Reggie Miller reference, always a bonus (though not as great as the Reggie Miller reference in "Stay Fly"). Enjoy! Hump Night, hopefully, later tonight.

King Geedorah feat. MF DOOM & Mr. Fantastik - Anti-Matter

The obligatory (belated) top 10

As part of my music blogger contract, I must submit a top 10 album list for the previous year. I have tried to fight it (and am really fighting making any reference to specific performance) but the time has come. Let's get on with it.

10. The Budos Band - The Budos Band II
9. Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights

Leading it off are a couple of standout releases from the mighty, mighty Daptone Records. The Budos Band is more on the gritty, globalized funk tip, while Ms. Sharon brings the deep, deep soul (as previously mentioned on Starry Eyes). Now, my only question is what is Daptone going to do to top this in '08? (I really hope the answer is a Menahan Street Band full-length).

8. Wu-Tang Clan - The 8 Diagrams
7. Radiohead - In Rainbows

Next are a pair of albums from old standbys, one a model of consistency, the other less so. The Wu-Tang record came on real strong (considering it was only released in December) as it served as a perfectly grimy soundtrack to winter. I have little to add to the critical mass of internet hype regarding In Rainbows (bka as the album that changed everything ever, though not really) but it is a solid, surprisingly personal & accessible Radiohead record. Good enough for me.

6. Oh No - Dr. No's Oxperiment
5. South Rakkas Crew - Mix Up

Crazily funky instrumental hip-hop built from Turkish, Greek, Italian and Lebanese psych records? Crazily funky electro-dancehall from outer space? Yes and yes.

4. Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala

This record, for me, struck the same indie-pop with just a touch of groove sweet spot that Belle & Sebastian's last record did. Fantastic songs, interesting production touches, and an embrace of pop & its possibilities all add up to a compulsively listenable record.

3. M.I.A. - Kala

After Arular and its hype and ensuing backlash tore the internet asunder, Kala sounds to me like potential being fully realized. It's a throbbing, beguiling record that's happy to set up its own parallel sonic universe and let the listener make his/her own way through the world as seen by M.I.A. Brilliant.

1. (tie) LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver

For a long time, this record held the top spot alone, as it was everything I could have hoped for in an LCD Soundsystem record and more. It's a startlingly brilliant synthesis of sharp, personal songwriting and impeccable dance music production; but I also feel a need to also champion this next record along with Sound of Silver...

1. (tie) Chromeo - Fancy Footwork

Here's where I break ever so slightly from the critical consensus; I cannot for the life of me understand why this record hasn't gotten more attention as the absolute gem of a pop record it actually is. Everyone I play this record for unabashedly loves it, and rightfully so. Maybe it hasn't gotten as much recognition because it's heavily indebted to 80's pop & r & b, but as much as it sounds of that time, it also sounds perfectly of the moment. Buy this record. You will love it.

So there you have it. Lamely, it ends with a tie, but I would have an impossible time picking between those two records for the one record I couldn't live without in 2007. Thanks for reading and indulging my musings. Thankfully, this only has to happen once a year.

Starry Eyes & guitars???

Absentee – “We Should Never Have Children” from Schmotime

You gotta love any song that starts out with “Oh darling, you’re no oil painting and I’m no Michelangelo” only to follow that up with “Some people never should have met, let alone find themselves in bed.” This is a truly fantastic song and a favorite of mine ever since I first heard it. And while it’s the definite standout of the album, don’t sleep on the whole record. It’s packed with sharp songwriting, solid hooks, and dude’s charmingly gruff vocals. It gets the full Starry Eyes recommendation. Note: If you’re going to place this on a mixtape for a special someone, just, uh, proceed cautiously.

Delving into the archives of the Foot

As I hinted at in my last entry, I am currently matched up a true goliath of boredom - the bar exam. In order to combat this boredom, I wanted to do a (hopefully) daily series highlighting some jewels from my music library. And so far it's looking like it will be in semi-alphabetical order. Fittingly, we begin with:

A-Ko – “Fire” from Chicago 12” (Melting Pot Music)

This inaugural entry comes from a fantastic 12” I picked up from the Record Collector back in Iowa City. It’s RJD2-esque instrumental hip-hop, from (apparently) a local Iowan but released on a pretty great German label, Melting Pot Music. While all four tracks on the 12 are winners (a rarity indeed), this track is definitely the standout for me with its stunning cinematic groove, and absolutely deserves to soundtrack a pivotal action scene and/or its aftermath in Elias Lorenzo 2: Detect This! in which our hero has gained thirty pounds but learned surprisingly little about life (and I may have been studying for this role). Take that, Michael Mann.

Hump Night - So Effin' Disco

So for anyone who has been down with the Foot for a while, I have a weekly mix series I like to do called Hump Night, which focuses on Wednesday evenings. Well, tonight I'm proud to announce that Hump Night is back, baby! I'm really proud of this mix as it features some Bollywood, the personification of disco, a song about working at a supermarket, a Kylie Minogue reject, a track from an upcoming record that's a concept album about the life of John Delorean, the track that most makes me want to buy a vocoder and dispense relationship advice, and bringing it full circle, a banging remix of a song that samples a different track from the original Bollywood soundtrack. I think it came out pretty...pretty...pretty good. Check it:

DJ Educated Foot - Hump Night Rides Again

Hope you enjoy. Look for a big things from Starry Eyes in early '08 as I do all I can to combat the vast & unimaginable boredom of studying for the bar.