Quality

The Meters

Season Song
Blue States
Man Mountain
Eighteenth Street : 2002
[Listen] [Buy]

Sophisticated Cissy
The Meters
The Meters
Josie Records : 1969
[Listen] [Buy]

Proclamation
Gentle Giant
The Power and the Glory
Vertigo : 1974
[Listen] [Buy]

Agent Orange [UK Bonus Track - produced by Sa-Ra]
Pharaohe Monch
Desire
Street Records/Universal Motown : 2007
[Listen] [Buy]

Where are these weeks disappearing to? Now only four until FmGT moves in together, along with an absurd amount of musical equipment. We're making plans on what to do with it all, which may include some guests to the house for a few sessions here and there, along with some podcasting all summer long.

And so, after a week's absence, I dive back in with another weird assortment to keep the heart beating.

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First up, Blue States, a band who were definitely among the first wave of downtempo acts stretching back to '98, along with the likes of Kruder & Dorfmeister, Thievery Corporation and Bonobo.

In five words: lush, textured, symphonic downtempo tunes. This track also functioned as the closing credits track from 28 Days Later, playing as the film fades into an uncertain end/beginning with the fatigued trio flagging down help on the green hills. Having now seen both movies a few times [Days was better, sorry, although Weeks wasn't shabby by a long shot], this song kept sticking.

There's nothing outwardly remarkable about it except for its larger-than-your-headphones feel. Main man Andy Dragazis's composing is sweet and evocative, the driving rhythm laced with a series of disparate instruments [electric guitars, Hammonds, trumpets, bouzoukis] and a chorus of voices that echo, dream-like in the mix. A good song for any lazy, chilled-out day.

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Next up: The Meters. There are a bajillion web sites and bits about the Meters available, but the summer cannot, and will not pass, without at least a little Meters in one's life. Taking it right back to the beginning here, with one of their first big hits, a lazy, sexy R&B track full of attitude and gusto for a dying sunny day.

Leo Nocentelli's funky, concise guitar licks bring a smile to the face, but the real stars here are Porter and Neville [some things never change]. A thick, chunky bass line keeps things interesting, and I'll never say no to Neville's soulful, lingering marks on the organ in the background.

The Meters will almost certainly make an appearance during the soon-to-begin Midnight Snacks series, so stay tuned. [More details at the end of this post]

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Up next: another Midnight Snacks candidate, Gentle Giant. Madlib sampled a couple of their tracks, including this one on the Lootpack cut "Likwit Fusion" [and "Playing the Game", a track I posted a long while ago, on his own track "Level Zero"], so naturally I was hooked. They're an acquired taste to say the least, but definitely worth a look. In my opinion, for British prog rock at its finest, look no further [sorry to Yes, ELP and King Crimson].

Their influences and inspirations are weird and bizarre -- many of the themes and lyrical ideas on this LP are directly inspired by the literature of Graham Greene -- but their music is funky and worthy of investigation.

It's hard to explain the sound of this track; just trust me and give it a listen. Good prog rock or bad?

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To close today, a fucking excellent track from Pharaohe Monch's long-awaited album, due for release on June 27th. It's fire so far, on only a limited number of listens from front-to-back, but Monch is back, of that there is no doubt. His delivery is as sharp and densely-syllabic as ever, the rhymes whip-smart, and the beats [produced by a solid roster, ranging from of-the-moment Black Milk to The Alchemist from Dilated Peoples] are thick and nasty enough to give Monch a solid soapbox.

Goddamn.

It's good, peoples, and yes: it's ok to still have hope. This track, listed as a UK bonus track, has the sleek, synth-soaked signature of Sa-Ra and is a glossy compliment to Monch's delivery.

Stay tuned closer to release day for a full review.

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As I mentioned before, my Midnight Snacks series will kick off soon. Still not really sure how to define it [sure, might well be more-of-the-same but with a catchy new name], but it promises to be good.

Included thus far will be:

- Kashmere Stage Band
- Sly & The Family Stone
- Gentle Giant
- George Duke
- Donald Byrd
- The Meters
- James Brown/The J.B.'s
- The Gap Band

If you have any others you absolutely want to see get the FmGT treatment [now that you see the sort of era/genres I'm working with], leave a comment and I'll see what I can do. Either way, it will be a fairly regular feature with no definite end, so if there are a lot of suggestions and bands/artists you always wanted to dig more about but were afraid/too busy to ask, now's the time. I have deep stacks; let's see what we can come up with.