Last week we featured Lucille and their single ‘Deep In Da Mudd‘ on these pages. It’s worth mentioning I caught the 9-piece live a few weeks back and it was excellent and almost spiritual; as the above video shows.
While the collective may call Tel Aviv their home there is a sense that they could easily be transplanted anywhere in the world and still be killing it live.
Check out these other tracks from their previous EP as we await the results of the album they are currently in the process of recording.
It’s been a whole while since we heard some hip hop that delivers positive vibes while remaining fiercely independent; Lucille seem to have managed just that.
Starting off as a solo project for Argentinean guitarist Izzy the band slowly grew into a veritable family; the 8-piece collective literally showing strength in numbers.
The high all round level of musicianship (particularly a horn section that sparkles stardust on everything it touches) allows for the tracks ideas to take off in multiple exciting directions. With a revolving door of talented guest female vocalists setting the tone Baltimore native MC Rebel Sun spits his confident stream of consciousness rhymes.
Picking up from where The Roots, Jurassic 5 and Dangermouse left off and adding The Gorillaz flair for surprises and dynamic changes means that no two Lucille tracks sound exactly alike.
Following the release of their “Smokin’ Soul” EP last year the band are gearing up for the release of their first full length album due next month.
Could it be that to find the heirs to The Roots throne we were supposed to look to Tel Aviv of all places? Lucille would have you believe so.
Tiny Fingers has already made people standup and take notice with their 2011 release ”Massive Fingers Spacetrip” which deservedly got the band attention in their native Israel. Earlier this year they followed it up with “Foreign Telegrams“, an album conceived and recorded in one intense session.
The genre hopping outfit continue their prolific spree re-emerging last month with what is surely their most ambitious project to date. Recorded in a single take, ”MEGAFAUNA” shows a band that clearly thrives in the pressure cooker environment of the studio delivering a brilliant dose of post-rock and electronic sounds with grooves the size of the Grand Canyon.
Whilst their music will undeniably be a little heavy for some there is a keen sense of melody throughout the project bringing to mind a cross between Planes Mistaken For Stars and TheMars Volta. The latter is not a completely casual reference as the El Paso superstars hand-picked Tiny Fingers as their support act during their israeli tour.
With dates in New York City for CMJ already under their belt and plans for a US and Scandinavian tour you can expect Tiny Fingers will continue to rise and judging by their recent output will likely surprise us with at least a couple more genre-bending releases in 2013.
“MEGAFAUNA” is out now and will be released via YouTube in its entirety with the three-piece promising further track leaks in the next few weeks.
We have featured Michel Gondry and his work for Weekend Videos in the past but seems we just can’t get enough.
Fortunately Jerusalem-based producer/musician Sasha Raskin has given us an excuse to post the video with his fittingly beautiful remix of Björk‘s ‘Jóga‘. He reduced the intensity of the original even further putting the Icelandic songstress firmly in the spotlight over a delicate electronic heartbeat and some well placed strings and beeps.
Kutiman first came to my attention with his phenomenal Thru-You project where he cut and pasted from a multitude of videos to create wholly original compositions. The artist’s work has recently been displayed his work at the YouTube exhibition at the Guggenheim in NewYork.
His most recent project was for Israeli singer Karolina. The two of them set out for a whole day in Tel Aviv shooting over 150 different locations. The final outcome just goes to confirm Kutiman‘s genius.
Tel Aviv three-piece Electraare at the forefront of the Israeli indie rock scene. The sound of The Clash and Buzzcocks seeps obviously through their recordings as does an occasionl hint of The Libertines just for safe measures.
With tracks as catchy as their single ‘Coming To Get You‘ there is no reason why they should change their approach. This is good ol rock n roll and it’s fine by me.
Their recently released full length ‘Heartbreak For Fools‘ is out now on Anova Records
An interesting story is equally as important as a good recording when trying to understand musicians. This is certainly the case for French/Israeli duo Charlotte & Magon and their blend of electro-chillout grooves. The two had been communicating for a few years via the internet and in march 2008 Charlotte flew over to Tel-Aviv for 12 days to finally meetMagon in the flesh.
The result of this rendezvous was majestic with the two artists discovering not just a musical affinity but, beyond their expectations, a blossoming romance. The aptly named ‘Love Happening‘ acts as a snapshot of their shared experiences during this period. Charlotte‘s voice floats over a backdrop of guitars, pianos, synths and other hidden gems bringing to mind Beth Gibbons‘ of Portishead in her full haunting quality. Musically the immediate reference point is the music of French legends Air. Indeed, some of the tracks could easily pass for bonus material to the illustrious duos 2007 release ‘Pocket Symphony‘.
‘Love Happening’ is the perfect score to document Charlotte & Magon‘s love.
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