Review of the Year 2016

Now that the album of the year list is out of the way (you can read that here if you haven't already) it's time to pull out some more highlights from 2016. Let's face it, in some ways it's been a pretty shitty year so it's worth picking out the good stuff and looking at it again, Here are some of the things I've enjoyed this year.

Video of the Year: 'Friends' by Francis & The Lights

Simple but beautifully executed, this video features both Bon Iver and Kanye West. It never fails to make me smile when I watch it - I love the synchronised dancing, and I love how you can see Francis trying to control his breath as he sits and counts in his head after his first energetic burst.




Track of the Year: 'Love & Hate' by Michael Kiwanuka

It's hard to pick out one overall track, but this is probably the one I've played the most and has been stuck in my head more than anything else. It's pure quality, and when played live the guitar solo is outstanding.





Free Track of the Year: 'Transient Program For Drums & Machinery' by Soulwax

Soulwax burst back from nowhere with this amazing 8 minute long track, which you can get for free by clicking here.




Dance Track of the Year: 'Boss' by Disclosure

Just a brilliant dance track and a return to their roots for the Disclosure brothers. If this doesn't make you dance then nothing will.





Acoustic Track of the Year: 'In The Light of the Room' by Alexis Taylor

Just one man and a piano, as the lead singer from Hot Chip presented us with a stripped back record of original tracks and a few covers. This is the standout track, and one which I listened to a lot as I read the book of the year (see below). For me the 2 will always now be linked.




Free Album of the Year: 'Rubble Kings' Soundtrack and Mixtape

This is actually two albums - one is the soundtrack to the brilliant 'Rubble Kings' documentary about gangs in New York in the 60s and 70s, and the other is a mixtape inspired by the four parts of the movie. Grab them both by clicking on the images above and below.

Gig of the Year: Kojey Radical, The Jazz Cafe, Camden 22/9/16

Pushing Radiohead off the top spot is a hard thing to manage, but while their show at the Roundhouse was a great set from a well established band, Kojey's set was the energetic sound of the bright future of British music. Coming just days after his 2 MOBO nominations, he put on a near two hour show featuring a host of guests - most notably Maverick Sabre and Ray Blk - and was still playing at 11 o'clock when they pulled the plug on him.

Festival Performance: Christine and The Queens, Other Stage at Glastonbury

I was right at the front on the barrier for this one so it wasn't until I watched it back on the TV that I realised how many thousands of people had watched her. A spellbinding performance that cemented her position as one of the acts of the year.

Christine & The Queens, Glastonbury 2016

Music Book of the Year: 'Porcelain' by Moby

A really entertaining read, particularly for the fact that Moby seems constantly bemused by the fact that he's successful at all. About two-thirds of the way through he gives up being teetotal and there are a few chapters of complete debauchery before he gets back on the wagon again.

Book of the Year: 'A Little Life' by Hanya Yanagihara

Not just the book of the year but one of the best books I've ever read. Devastatingly emotional, savage and haunting, I'll admit that this book made me cry more than any book ever has. As tough as parts of it were to read, I never wanted it to end.

New podcast: Austerity Audio vol. 17

Welcome to the latest in my series of Austerity Audio podcasts. For various reasons these seem to have turned into a monthly series in 2014, but hopefully you'll agree that the 11 tracks on this instalment were worth the wait.

As per the Austerity Audio rules, each of these tracks is available on the internet as a free and legal download, so I've gathered them up for you into one handy pocket-sized podcast to save you trawling around the hidden corners of the web. To listen just click on the picture above, or right click & 'save as' to download it to your Betamax video or Laserdisc player. In return for this aural goodness all I ask is that if you find something you really like then you spend a few pennies or cents buying a track by that artist to help them make a living. Here's the tracklisting:

1. Swans - A Little God In Our Hands
2. Papercuts - Life Among The Savages
3. Nap Eyes - No Man Needs To Care
4. Miguel - Simple Things (Lee Bannon Rework)
5. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - Swim & Sleep (Like A Shark) (Little Dragon Remix)
6. Holy Ghost! - Bridge & Tunnel (a/just/ed Remix)
7. Youth Club - She's A Dancer (Peter Anderson Remix)
8. Astronauts, etc. - Odessa (Caribou cover)
9. Blueprint Blue - The Cabin Is Cold
10. Kins - Mockasin's
11. Benjamin Shaw - Goodbye, Kagoul World

Losing My Edge with DJ Cull & friends - the radio show

A few weeks ago I did my first proper radio broadcast on Show Full of Bombs radio. I was ably assisted by Lee Maher (from the band Weird Gear), and between us we bounced a load of tracks of each other, hopefully for the entertainment and education of anyone listening. Although we had a few technical problems it was great fun to do, so here's the podcast for you to listen to, with the tracklisting below.

Losing My Edge with DJ Cull & friends - 24/11/2012 by Dj Cull on Mixcloud

1. LCD Soundsystem - Losing My Edge
2. Charlotte Gainsbourg - Trick Pony (Boyz Noize mix)
3. William Onyeabor - Good Name (Joakim remix)
4. Daniel Avery - Drone Logic
5. Grizzly Bear - Will Calls (Diplo remix)
6. Moodoid - Je Suis La Montagne
7. Rotifer - Black Bag
8. Fidlar - Wake Bake Skate
9. Cloud - Boy Sees Mirror
10. The Superman Revenge Squad Band - A Funny Thing You Said
11. Klaus Johan Grobe - Koordinaten
12. Trentemøller - Gravity (feat. Jana Hunter)
13. Swim Deep - Honey
14. Gold Panda - If U Knew (Reprise Long Live Take)
15. Death Grips - Get Got
16. Marijuana Deathsquads - Top Down
17. Dizzee Rascal - I Don't Need A Reason
18. Oddisee - Own Appeal
19. Yelle - Ce Jeau
20. John Grant & Villagers - My Love My Life
21. David Bowie - Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich mix by James Murphy)

New podcast - Austerity Audio vol. 1

In these cash strapped times we all need a helping hand to make our pounds / dollars / yen / whatever stretch a little further. So what could be better than a free downloadable podcast featuring 10 new music tracks? Not much eh? So here you go, the first in what I hope will be a fairly regular series of podcasts that you can download to the music device of your choice and listen at your convenience.

There are only 2 rules I'll use in compiling these: 1) The music must be free and 2) it must be good. There are no restrictions on genre or style, so expect a good mix of ideas. Each of these tracks has been culled from the internet for free over the past week or so from purely legal sources - in the majority of cases that means they've been given away by the artist or their label. If you want to get hold of any of the tracks individually I've put some pointers below, or a quick search of t'internet should turn them up for you. I'll just ask one favour from you - if you really like anything here then next time you have a few pounds to spare why not buy something from that artist? We're all in the same boat, so let's share some music, share some love, and make the world a better place. To grab the download just right-click on the picture above and save the file (drop me an email if you have any problems using the contact box in the sidebar). If you'd rather just listen to it then left-click and you'll be able to play it.

Here's the tracklisting:

1. Ryan Hemsworth - All Our Thoughts Are Physical (from his new EP 'Stay Alive' click here for details)
2. Yadi - Unbreakable (Mo Laudi Remix) (available on Soundcloud)
3. Slugabed - BomBok (from his new EP 'This Is A Warning' click here for details)
4. French Kiwi Juice - Lying Together (available on Soundcloud)
5. Weval - The Most (David Douglas Remix)
6. Indians - I Am Haunted (Jason Lytle Remix)
7. Pure X - Somewhere Else (available on Soundcloud)
8. Mathew Sawyer - Feeeeling (click here for details)
9. Four Tet - Unspoken (promo version) (available on Soundcloud)
10. Denai More - Gone (available on Soundcloud)

Recommended music: 'This Is A Warning' EP by Slugabed

It seems to be the week for releasing free, and more importantly good, EPs. Yesterday Ryan Hemsworth gave us his 'Still Awake' EP (which you can find here) and now Slugabed has done the same thing. The first new music from Greg Feldwick since last year's 'Time Team' album this is four tracks (and a remix) of upbeat, bass-driven and essentially happy music - something which is often hard to come by in this doom-laden austerity world. There's some reggae samples, a bit of dubstep, a slice of Major Lazer rhythms, and overall such a sense of enjoyment that it can't help but bring a smile to your face. Listen & download below.

Recommended music: 'Still Awake' EP by Ryan Hemsworth

Canadian DJ and producer Ryan Hemsworth is definitely one of this year's 'buzz' artists, and that buzz is about to get a whole lot bigger. His new EP has just landed, and not only is it brilliant but it's also available for free, which means that you can all hear his brilliance without coughing up any money - ironic really, because once you've heard it you'll realise that you would've happily paid a few quid for the privilege.

It's quite a fluid, dreamy set of tunes that are easy to lose yourself in despite the beats. And if you do download if you'll find this little not from the man himself tucked in with the music files:

thank you for downloading this and putting it on your computer laptop iphone palm pilot, whatever, and listening to it while you're doing stuff in the world.

it's free, so share it with anyone you think would like it. or keep it to yourself. cause it's for you :)

It's a nice touch that makes him stand out from the crowd and helps him exist in the real world rather than just to be an internet phenomena.

You can listen to the tracks below, or click on the picture of him above to download the EP.

Choice Cuts #8 2013

DJ Cull's Choice Cuts #8 by Dj Cull on Mixcloud

As promised, here's the second podcast for this week, and it's a very different set of tracks to the one from a few days ago. This one is dark, moody, atmospheric and powerful, mostly instrumental and quite intense. It's probably not the thing to listen to if you want help getting out of bed in the morning, but if you fancy a bit of isolated headphone time then you should definitely give it a listen. Just click on the play button above to listen, here are the track details:

1. Peals - Blue Elvis - free download here
2. Pinkunoizu - Tin Can Valley - free download here
3. Jokes - How I Won My Stripes - from the new EP on Fence Records
4. Jack Hayter - Scotty Road Holes In Walls - from the Sisters of St. Anthony series
5. Torus - 2mrrw - free download here
6. Fiocz - Monoid - from the forthcoming album 'Social Cognition' on Glass Reservoir Records
7. Stygian Stride - Drift - free download here
8. Benjamin Shaw - Mandible Candle - from 'Summer In The Boxroom' - details here
9. Mogwai - Hungry Face - from the 'Les Revenants' soundtrack
10. Ensemble Economique - The Vastness Is Bearable Only Through Love - from the new EP of the same name

New music: 'Yard Sale' EP by Torus

To celebrate their first birthday Sonic Router Records are giving away this five track EP from Torus, featuring 3 new tracks and 2 remixes (it's actually one of those name your own price deals, so you can oay for it if you want to).

The first couple of tracks are menacing slow-burners, while the 3rd one 'Shallow Depth' picks up the pace and the beat to become something of a dancefloor botherer. '2mrrw' is my pick of the bunch, but they're all good, so have a listen and grab it if you like it.

Choice Cuts #6 2013

DJ Cull's Choice Cuts #6 by Dj Cull on Mixcloud

Ten more brilliant new tracks for you to soak up. Just click on the play button to listen, the full track details are below:

1. Ghostpoet - MSI MUSMID - click here for free download
2. Marijuana Deathsquads - Top Down (free download of the week on this blog)
3. Yunioshi - Tanlines - new single, click here for details
4. Daniel Avery - Drone Logic (Factory Floor / Gabe Gurnsey Remix) - new single out now
5. Bon Iver - Hinnom, TX (Unders Remix) - click here for details
6. FaltyDL - She Sleeps (2000Black Remix) - from the new single out now
7. The Crystal Ark - Rain - click here for free download
8. Laura Mvula - Green Garden (Karma Kid Remix) - click here for free download
9. Apparat - K&F Thema - from the excellent Krieg und Frieden album, click here for details
10. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Higgs Boson Blues (from the new album 'Push The Sky Away')

Choice Cuts #3 2013

DJ Cull's Choice Cut #3 by Dj Cull on Mixcloud

My third mix this year contains 13 tracks of (mostly) new music for you to run through your ears. Just press play above to listen, all of the track details are below so you can get hold of the songs that you like.

1. Pulp - After You (new single, produced by James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem)
2. Ohmegawatts - Give Me Peace (free download, details here)
3. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - So Good At Being In Trouble (free download somewhere or other)
4. Scott & Charlene's Wedding - Two Weeks (free download here)
5. Gold Panda - Burnt-out Car In A Forest (from the new 'Trust' EP)
6. Karen Gwyer - Tehe! Blah Blah! Shhhh! (from The Bedroom Club II, details here)
7. Peaking Lights - Beautiful Son (Eskimo Twins Remix)  (free download here)
8. Kidkanevil & Daisuke Tanabe - Ghostgirl (KRTS RMX) (free download here)
9. Dyymond of Durham - Hunger (from The Bedroom Club II, details here)
10. Run DMT - Bardot States (Dreamwalker Version) (from the Stones Throw & Leaving Records dual compilation)
11. Indians - Somewhere Else (from the new album, details here)
12. Haiku Salut - Los Elefantes (free download here)
13. Dan Friel - Thumper (free download here)

Recommended music: 'Out of Time - Out of Touch' by Group Rhoda

Not a group at all, but a solo work by San Franciscan Mara Barenbaum, this intriguing debut album ha smuch more to offer than might at first meet the eye. The basic drum machines and simple basslines are a gateway into a world that owes as much to seventies film soundtracks as it does to Californian dubbed-out stoner vibes. Think Peaking Lights meets John Carpenter and you'll have an idea of the musical vibe. Throw in a hint of East German coldness and some reverb'ed organ and you'll be about there.

Over the top of the tracks floats Mara's distinctive vocals - often sounding aloof and detached from the music, they somehow compliment the overall feel by sounding slightly out of place, as if she was just passing through on her way to another life.

The album is out now on one of my favourite indie labels, Nightschool Records - buy it from them here.

You can listen to a clutch of tracks from the album below.

Track of the Day: 'Terms and Conditions (Nicolas Jaar Remix)' by Chet Faker

A brooding record, that starts with a slice of atmospheric chillyness, picks up the pace with some ticking rhythms, adds a chunk of manipulated vocals, and then turns into a bit of a house monster. Cool without being cold, intelligent without being smart-arse, hip without being hipster, it brings the best of both of their two worlds together.

You can listen, and download the track for free, at the top of the page.

Track of the Day: 'Luther (Holy Strays Reshape)' by Eaux

Morning Ritual Recording have released 2 of my favourite tracks so far this year: 'No More Power' by Eaux and 'Christabel B' by Holy Strays. To go with those we now have a track by the former remixed by the latter. Here Sebastien Forrester (aka Holy Strays) takes 'Luther' and (IMHO) radically improves it, resulting in something that, certainly when it starts, sounds like something that wouldn't be amiss on a latter-day Radiohead or Thom Yorke album. The slow-burning groove and haunting warmth of the original is replaced by skittery beats and a clinical precision that brings out a totally different character to the song.

You can listen to the track and download it for free above.

Track of the Day: 'Canterbury Pt. 1' by Dam Mantle

Regular readers will know that I've been a fan of Dam Mantle's music since I saw him at SXSW last year. After a long wait the debut album of Mr Marshallsay is just over the horizon and due to arrive on October 8th. As a taster you can grab the first track on the album for free below. It's a calmer, more studied affair than some of his previous outings, building a subtle groove over a crackly backing, which bodes well for the rest of the album.

Track of the Day: 'Elizabeth's Theme' by Dirty Beaches

Wafting into your headphones like a summer breeze comes this gorgeous new track by Dirty Beaches. A lazy, hazy, late '60s instrumental vibe permeates the air as acoustic guitar and gentle piano float through the ether. Try listening to it without imagining that you're walking along a deserted beach at sunset...you won't succeed. The most beautiful and gentle piece of music you'll hear this week. Listen and download for free below.

Track of the Day: 'Shore Enough' by Naive Machine

Some summery, squelchy vibes for your weekend courtesy of Dave & Jim aka Naive Machine -  I particularly like the vinyl crackles 2 minutes in. Grab it while it's hot using the link above.

Track of the Day: 'FYTS' by Evian Christ

There's a new track floating around the internet today by Evian Christ, called 'FYTS', and it's a belter. Dark and mysterious, with spooky childlike voices at the start, followed by an insistent bass and some psychotic drums, it pitches and turns like a horror movie.

You can listen to it by clicking on the image above, or download it here.

Oh, and if anyone knows what FYTS stands for, or you just fancy making something up, then let me know...

Track of the Day: 'Marijuana' by Chrome Sparks

Some mellow vibes on this short and sweet (but not sickly) new track from Chrome Sparks. With a slowed-down sample that makes me think of old 70s bands like The Stylistics (ask your mom) this has just got just the right balance of beats to blissed-out blips. Grab it for free above, light up a fat one and enjoy...

Track of the Day: 'Fitzpleasure (The Internet of Odd Future Remix) by alt-J

This has just dropped through the ether for your aural (fitz)pleasure - a remix from alt-J's album 'An Awesome Wave' by Odd Future member The Internet. Stepping up the beat quotient, but at the same time turning the track into a bit of a slinky beast, this is an interesting take on alt-J and show both contributors off at their best. Grab it while it's free above.

Track of the Day: 'Sweet Life' by Frank Ocean

The second track to escape from his forthcoming 'Channel Orange' album, this is much more conventional than the previous 'Pyramids'. Channelling John Legend and Marvin Gaye, this is a classic-sounding soul tune. Produced by Pharrell Williams from N.E.R.D it's, as you might expect, an ode to how good life is and how you should enjoy what you've got - "Why see the world when you've got the beach?". Given Ocean's statement about his sexuality this week, and the positive way it's been received, I imagine life is pretty sweet for him right now.

If you missed 'Pyramids' when it came out you can also grab that below.