NEW MUSIC: LUDUS PINSKY

Ridiculous name. Like a villain in a cheap Victorian melodrama. Visions of Ludus (Ludicrous) twirling his moustache as the hero is fated to die horribly but then he talks too much the hero escapes and we all nod off to sleep. Meanwhile, I’m tired, so expect grumpiness. 

Of the tracks Ludus says: Tracks constructed with analog rigour and a futuristic rather than rétro sound . Ludus Pinsky develops and assembles himself the equipment he works with to obtain the kind of sound he needs. The 4 tracks in this EP range from tribal electronics as in …….. to futuristic pop as in ……., from the film-score-like theme of “Nothing is as it appears” to electronic disco as in …. That’s really what it says. Which isn’t terribly helpful. The record company do try a bit harder with: “Ludus Pinsky is Lapo Lombardi’s alter ego, a multi-talented Florentine artist, well known in the Italian Reggae/Dub scene. Among others he worked with Ice MC and Il Generale. More recently he’s been sharing Alexander Robotnick’s passion for analog synths, collaborating with him on two projects, Italcimenti and The Analog Session. This is his first solo EP, featuring 4 tracks constructed with analogue rigour and a futuristic rather than retro sound.”

Umma Flute takes the acidic path from the outset, weaving a hypnotic feel like it’s Harthouse 1992. A classic acid sound, like the last 20 years never happened. But in a good way.

Nothing Is As It Appears goes for a more Moroder style synth sound, like a lost track from Midnight Express or even Blade Runner. A bit of Kraftwerk added to the mix with the vocodered stentorian vocals. A gradually escalating track which peaks briefly towards the end. Cinematic stuff.

B IS FOR BARBARELLA

Barbarella is a trance/ambient track and album (“The Art of Dance”), released on Rising High Records in 1993 at a time when RHR could do no wrong. Confusingly, it was also the name of the artist. And in the incestuous world of early 90s dance, it was a collaboration between Sven Vath (allegedly the inspiration for Moody DJ, if anyone remembers the cartoons) and Ralf Hildenbeutel.

The track itself is a trippy journey in space, full of tinkling pianos, whooshing sounds and that early trance drum pattern. I’ve no idea why they chose the Barbarella name.

Vath went on to set up respected trance labels Harthouse and Eye-Q. Whilst Vath and Hildenbeutel would go on to collaborate on Vath’s best-known album “An Accident In Paradise”. Vath is now owner of the Cocoon club in Frankfurt, one of Europe’s leading clubs.

Barbarella – Barbarella (My Name Is Barbarella – The Spaceship) Caspar Pound Remix

Barbarella – Barbarella (Irresistible Force Remix)

Barbarella – The Mission

The Barbarella stuff is pretty hard to get hold of these days. But it appears on Sven’s Retrospective 1990-1997 album.

A IS FOR AMON TOBIN (PT 1)

Somewhere back in the mid-90's a fresh faced Brazilian ex-pat living in the UK decided he was going to put down his harmonica, pick up a sampler, and name himself after a Stephen King novel. The resulting album, Cujo's 'Adventures In Foam' (released on Ninebar records, later reissued on Ninja Tune) signaled Amon Tobin's entry into the world of music.

Immediately upon hearing this record, the powers that be at Ninja Tune signed him up to record as Amon Tobin, and he quickly went to work on his debut 'Bricolage'. If you'll recall, these were the 'trip-hop' years for electronic music. But 'Bricolage' shone above all that. Although employing a marriage of jazz and beats, it stretched it further by bringing in elements of bossa-nova, batucada, and jungle, and combining it with a sense of song-writing that elevated it above the standards of that scene.

Next up came 'Permutation'. Although stylistically a logical follow up to 'Bricolage', it was also on this album where things starting taking a noticeable turn to a much darker output.

A IS FOR ADRIAN SHERWOOD (PT 1)

Adrian Sherwood has been involved with music since the 1970s.

Adrian (born 1958 in London) is a record producer best known for his work with dub music as well as for remixing pop acts such as Coldcut, Depeche Mode, Primal Scream, Pop Will Eat Itself, Sinéad O'Connor, and Skinny Puppy.

He is co-founder of Carib Gems and Pressure Sounds, and founder of Hitrun Records as well as Green Tea Records and Soundboy Records. His most well-known label is On-U Sound Records. He is also the fourth member of industrial funk outfit, Tackhead, credited as "mixologist."

He describes his role as "I organise the bands and make them up, because a lot of them are studio bands before they become real bands, I produce the records, record the records and mix the records, and then I try and make sure our records are presented in a way that is suitable to me, that feels right with my own sensibilities."

In 1986 he began working Jamaican dub producer and singer Lee Perry. They produced the classic album "Time Boom X De Devil Dead" and Sherwood's support helped relaunch Perry's career.

He made contributions to the industrial genre in his remix of Einstürzende Neubauten's song Yü Gung, on the album Halber Mensch, as well as his production work with Ministry, Cabaret Voltaire, KMFDM and Nine Inch Nails. Adrian has also contributed to the blues, with his Little Axe project with Skip McDonald, producing his album on Real World Records “Champagne and Grits” in 2006.

In 2003, Adrian Sherwood released his first album as a solo artist, Never Trust a Hippie? which featured collaborations with various artists such as Sly & Robbie, Steven "Lenky" Marsden, Carlton "Bubblers" Ogilvie and Jazzwad.

In 2006 he released his second album Becoming A Cliché that again featuring numerous artists such as Lee "Scratch" Perry, the late Bim Sherman, Dennis Bovell, Little Roy, Lee 'LSK' Kenny, Samia Farah, Raiz and Mark Stewart. A limited 2-disc version was released simultaneously with the second disc titled "Dub Cliché".

On beginning a solo career, Sherwood stated, "I wanted to do some of my own writing and make something that was challenging for me...As a producer, it’s my job to satisfy the artist foremost. I wanted to make something that was a little more aggressive and modern. I wanted to paint a picture that was contemporary, one that specifically showed where my brain was at. I’ve got to the point in my life where it’s time for me to call all of the shots."

Most recently, Sherwood received notice for the original reggae score he created for the acclaimed 2006 independent film, Johnny Was starring Vinnie Jones, Roger Daltrey and Samantha Mumba.

On music, Adrian said, "Music is lovely because it stimulates people; superficial music doesn't. If you make something that you put your heart and soul into and really try to push it so it leaps out the fucking speakers at you, and if there's a good feel to it, then you've achieved something."

Impossible to create a representative selection, so here's a random one (tomorrow the pop stuff):

Doug Wimbish - Logdrum (Sherwood Remix)

The Unknown Cases - Masimbabele 89 (The Adrian Sherwood Remix)

Adrian Sherwood/Doug Wimbish - Karma Kola