With “Swag” seemingly chosen as the buzz word for 2011 it was appropriate that Jay-Z and KanyeWest‘s long rumored collaboration had tons of it. . Having set the bar very high with last year’s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy‘ it seems anything Kanye touches turns to gold and Jay-Z also has the midas touch again reminding us how much better than everyone else he is. ‘Watch The Throne‘ gives the rap megastars an opportunity to make as many outlandish and likely true boasts as they possible can over a tight production.
Cougar scribe Olivia said: “Take Jay Z and Kanye West, you expect something epic, huge and over the top ( just like the massive promotion around the album ), a mix of Kanye‘s creativity and Jay‘s flow , so something perfect basically. Indeed it is a great album. Considering the amount of talent in this twosome have that’s not too surprising“.
As the end of the year approaches, it’s time for us to look back at the past twelve months and decide what have been our favourite albums of the year. This time it hasn’t been an easy task because let’s face it, 2011 has definitely not been a great year for music, and personally, I will forever remember 2011 as the year my all-time favourite artist released an album I was ashamed of.
However, in defence of 2011, we could say that it was put in a particularly delicate position by 2010, which generated excellent albums such as LCD Soundsystem‘s ‘This is Happening‘, Arcade Fire‘s ‘The Suburbs‘ or Beach House‘s ‘Teen Dream‘ amongst many others… and ended majestically with Kanye West‘s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy‘ …
Overall, 2011 seems to be more a year of nostalgia and remembrance than a year of creation, with the release of The Beach Boys‘ Smile Sessions, the remastering of Pink Floyd‘s ‘Dark Side of the Moon‘, the 10 year anniversary of Nirvana‘s ‘Nevermind‘, the end of R.E.M or LCD Soundsystem… and finally the deaths of Miss Amy Winehouse, DJ Mehdi and pioneer Gil Scott-Heron , we seem to have embraced the past rather than the present ( this said there wasn’t much to embrace really)…
So yes.. I am disappointed by 2011, but I have to acknowledge that good albums were also released, whilst promising new artists broke through. Let’s hope in 2012 there will be a focus on quality over quantity.
‘Making Mirrors‘ is the third studio album by Melbourne act Gotye, released in August. Gotye (pronounced gore-ti-yeah) is really one-man wonder Wally De Backer, armed with a sampler and the kind of home studio set up any musician would kill for. When he’s not drumming for indie rock trio The Basics, De Backer builds catchy songs on and around his own recorded samples.
But before you throw him in with Girl Talk (though who doesn’t love Girl Talk), it’s worth mentioning that the hook samples are obscure and generally brief, not the sort of recognisable licks that find their way onto a Kanye West album. Legend has it that De Backer began sampling after he inherited a hefty collection of old LPs from an elderly neighbour, which explains why most of the samples aren’t immediately identifiable. With this newest album, De Backer relied heavily on live recording drums and acoustic instruments, and then sampling and manipulating them for the desired effect.
The album has already supplied 3 impressive singles—the most recent, “Somebody That I Used To Know” is deliciously simple, with minimal instrumentation and vocals that alternate between bare confessional in the verses, and heavily layered harmonies in the refrain. It’s a formula that also works in the album’s first single; “Hearts a Mess” is catchy and powerful, more uptempo than “Somebody” but more haunting as well.
Every track on ‘Making Mirrors‘ showcases De Backer’s talent for crafting enjoyable and ear-grabbing tunes, but one track stands out above the others lyrically: “Eyes Wide Open,” the second single to be released. Even with a fairly complex instrumentation (including the catchiest gallop beat ever recorded), it’s still the vocals and lyrics that project the most. The song, which De Backer describes as a “dystopian vision” of the world’s future, is the first that he wrote in what we might consider the ‘traditional’ way—he constructed the song and then worked samples and live recordings into it, as opposed to building the song up from samples.
The rest of the album is a surprising mix of light and dark, with a few heavy songs interspersed between upbeat jams. But the real magic in this album is the pure joy that comes through most of the songs—they have the magnetic delight of motown, that tambourine clap-happy energy that has always made the Golden Oldies so irresistible. “I Feel Better” is the best example of this, since it could probably pass for a Four Tops song, with a twist.
De Backer records, produces, and mixes all the music for Gotye, and recorded ‘Making Mirrors‘ in his parents’ barn. I should probably pretend that it is his ingenious use of original samples, or his knack for production, that makes this album so solid, and the songs so dynamic. But truthfully, the songs stand on their own as well-constructed and memorable tracks, regardless of the recording methods.
As most music snobs, I profess to love analog and sniff at all things digital; but it is a more and more irrelevant point of reference these days, when even ‘live’ recordings are manipulated to fit modern standards of perfection. ‘Making Mirrors‘ is a pleasing combination of both, with layers that blend live and sampled tracks in a way that pop music hasn’t seen yet.
After answering the previous week’s call from Kendal Calling, it is on to Big Chill for team Cougar Microbes‘ next stop off in a marathon of summer festivals.
Right from the off this is the friendliest I have encountered yet. Stewards wish you a jolly good knees-up. Caterers willingly smile without gritting their teeth. Furthermore there is plenty of space to pitch your tent – and there are showers.
It is no secret that this year’s Big Chill is far from a sellout – the consequence of an ever-growing UK festival market which pretty much operates all year round. But those who have flocked to Eastnor Castle Deer Park are in for numerous great acts to wave their glowsticks to.
Fenech Soler get our procedings off to a start with their cool – sometimes too cool – synth-heavy pop. The tent packs out quickly with impressive hair-do’s and catchy hooks. There are far worse ways to start a weekend.
Next up we have received an anonymous tip that Wild Beasts are tearing up the main stage. Not to fear though, we’re soon nodding along to melodic tunes in the vein of a laid back Everything, Everything. Wild Beasts by name, master craftsmen by trade.
A brief visit to one of our friendly caterers and then back to the main stage. Empire of The Sun ‘wow‘ us with glam costumes, a glitzy stage show and quality pop before veteran dance legends The Chemical Brothers light up the night with an impeccable set.
Day two starts with a gratefully received four-pack of Lucozade delivered by a bleary-eyed Chemical Brothers fan. Our summer benefactors are certainly treating us well.
Today is wetter and greyer but there is still plenty of fun to be had. We try a spinny fair ride, immediately wish we hadn’t, and recover just in time for Metronomy. The Brighton outfit are great, but then we knew they would be. They draw mainly from albums ‘Nights Out‘ and ‘The English Riviera‘, showing off their quirky electro hooks and witty lyrics en route to crowd pleasing closer ‘Radio Ladio‘.
Escaping the gloriously unpredictable weather we head for Juke Joint, a deep south barn themed tent. It feels authentic enough and as DJs spin tidy tunes we sip on a delectable Southern Comfort cocktail. Just the one – we’re working.
Saturday’s headliner is Kanye West who has the crowd howling with disapproval after turning up half an hour late. He somehow wins most people over – citing vocal troubles as his excuse for lateness – then goes on an inexplicable 20 minute rant. He raves about his music videos, boasts about awards, attacks the press and likens his public image to that of Hitler. Cue more howls of disapproval. Nonetheless his performance, when it comes, is fairly spectacular.
The final day of our festival extravaganza is peppered with heavy rain showers. However, this is no reason for the fun to stop. We spend a very pleasant half hour watching PJ Harvey‘s Let England Shake film – in a tent – before scoffing some tea and cake chez Mr Scruff.
Then it’s on to the main stage to take in our final act of the weekend – legend Robert Plant and The Band of Joy. The seasoned local boy blasts out a great set drawn from a back catalogue that boasts Led Zeppelin classics. It is a perfect way to end a great weekend.
Cougar Microbes attended Big Chill 2011 in collaboration with Lucozade‘s Play Festivals campaign.
When news started circulating that Jay-Z and Kanye West were uniting to release an album the reaction in Cougar HQ was combination of excitement and apprehension.
Over the past few years these two gentlemen have been responsible for some of my favourite releases but of course these collaborations can be hit and miss (anyone remember when Hov did ‘Best Of Both Worlds‘ with R. Kelly??).
‘Otis‘ sees the two superstars delivering sharp lines and their boastful approach is actually refreshing in contrast to some of their more serious output. My only critique is
The video sees them (seemingly) having a lot of fun suggesting ‘Watch The Throne‘ was as good to record as it has been to listen to so far.
Feels like Cougar Microbes is constantly on the road these days. We’ve only just got back from Kendal Calling (review to follow shortly) and some our team is already headed to the next festival this weekend.
Once again we are teaming up with Lucozade to bring you a full report and photos from this years epic Big Chill festival. The massive line up includes Four Tet, 2ManyDjs, Crystal Fighters and Rodrigo Y Gabriela to name but a few. And we haven’t even mentioned Mr Kanye West yet. WOW!
Really looking forward to the image and review for this one
Thank fuck for The Hood Internet! Every time my music collection spits out one of their mashups it is guaranteed to get people listening.
Here is one they just published featuring Kanye and Ellie Goulding dueling over their respective “light” songs. I’ve also added the MJ vs. Ratatat mash from a while back because, well… because it is so damn cool.
As a special bonus treat here is a video of Party Supplies, who famously gave us this remix of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros‘ ‘Home‘, performing a spot of live remixing. Impressive stuff indeed.
Additionally here is a sprinkle of Party Supplies on tracks from the our # 1 and # 2 albums of 2010.
to feature an array of amazing releases and artists (past, present, old and new) with the goal of promoting them to anyone interested and anyone who stumbles across this site.
If you like any of the tracks, please go buy the albums and help finance the artists producing this great music.
If there are any issues with the tracks featured do not hesitate to contact: "team (AT) Cougar Microbes (DOT) com and we will happily oblige.
With “Swag” seemingly chosen as the buzz word for 2011 it was appropriate that Jay-Z and Kanye West‘s long rumored collaboration had tons of it. . Having set the bar very high with last year’s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy‘ it seems anything Kanye touches turns to gold and Jay-Z also has the midas touch again reminding us how much better than everyone else he is. ‘Watch The Throne‘ gives the rap megastars an opportunity to make as many outlandish and likely true boasts as they possible can over a tight production.
