Thanks to how this month has been structured over the millenia, February is almost over. Thus, let us now flick the switch on the ephemeral iPod, and let the magic happen randomly.
What songs have I chosen for your ears this month? Just walk on in…
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“Wild World” – Days of Sorrow: This is all I know about this band: They were a 1980s New Wave act from Germany, had a few drummers, began as a quartet, and ended as a quintet. That was all I could find about Days of Sorrow; I only know about this song because it came up as a recommendation on YouTube.
“Unbelievable” – EMF: Luckily, more info can be found on the Epsom Mad Funkers from Gloucestershire. The lads were signed by EMI after performing four shows for the scouts without having to even present a demo. The song, featuring a sample from American commedian Andrew Dice Clay, was the 1,000th No. 1 on the Billboard charts, hitting the top spot on the Hot 100 in July of 1991.
“Our Darkness” – Anne Clark: Heading south to Croydon, Clark could teach a thing or two to laptop musicians like Skrillex, as this live performance of her 1988 single from M’era Luna in 2007 clearly demonstrates. The spoken word artist at one time managed affairs at the Warehouse Theatre, bringing in acts such as Ben Watt, Paul Weller and French & Saunders. Yes, that French & Saunders.
“Spies in the Night” – Michelle Creber, Andrew Stein & Natalie Sharp: Did you know there is a genre of music called spy music? Artists include Ennio Morricone, Shirley Bassey and Henry Mancini. The Manhattan Transfer also threw their hat in the ring with this song from their 1981 album “Mecca For Moderns.” Over 30 years later, Creber et al infused their cover with electronics for the Canadian performer’s debut disc “Songs of a Century.”
“Psychonaut” – Fields of the Nephilim: Speaking of Morricone, we conclude our journey by following shaman Carl McCoy into the deepest depths of the mind and spirit with a performance of “Psychonaut” from the group’s double live album, 2012′s “Ceromonies.” The video above was compiled from two separate performances over two nights at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in 2008.
Photo: Flickr/Kris Krug.
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