Friday, April 24, 2009

Album Of The Week(end)



http://www.murcof.com/

14 comments:

Thrifty Blimpy said...

Threadjack!!

i just went to the sally army store and bought Hard Rain by Bob Dylan, Harvest by Neil Young, and Stone Free by Hendrix on vinyl for the princely total sum of £1.50!

take that credit crunch! take that moneygeddon! take that cashpocalypse! I'M WINNING!

Mnemonic said...

There's a reason Hard Rain was so cheap, Blimpy...and I speak as a committed Dylan fan.

Blimpe Mahuta said...

Not even worth 50p? You can't even get a chocolate bar for 50p in these moneygeddon end times!

Luke-sensei said...

well, this was pretty interesting. Not life affirming (for me personally), but definitely something different.

I liked the minimal electronica more than the orchestral moments, but the overall effect made it more than the sum of it's parts.

Also, completely new to me, so, good choice Shoey. I'll definitely go back to it.

Shoey said...

Thought it was about time for some minimalist electro classical from Mexico on the 'Spill.

Thanks for listening

DarceysDad said...

Ah!

Now this - completely new to me too - is a fine example of music I can only describe as "physically unlistenable". PLEASE don't be offended by that comment, Shoegazer, I'll try to explain.

It seems to me that Murcof's music is designed to get under your skin. Being almost entirely instrumental and highly repetitive, it is looking for almost subconscious acceptance by your brain in order to work its magic (and I'll grant you there is quality/magic there).

In my case however, the feeling of accepting this and becoming attuned to the music in my ears feels like an unwilling loss of control. It's actually stressful to listen to, and I don't deal well with stress at the best of times!

Since most of this album has time signatures way above my resting pulse, I genuinely feel nauseous because my heartrate rises and I don't want it to!

Motorhead can get away with doing that to me because I love the sound guitars make. Murcof's digital bleeps aren't acceptable to my brain the same way. For what it's worth, I've always had the same problem with rave/dance/techno etc.

I think it's fairly obvious by now that my musical preferences break down into two main parts: guitar riff abandon or melancholic [organic/acoustic] chillout. I do own several (hundred) albums that fit into neither category, and of those, Shoey would presumably have looked at my Tangerine Dream collection as an indicator that I'd go for this. Sadly, my friend, no ... but thanks for trying.

Now, having listened all the way through that to the end, I need something to cool the jets so I can sleep when I go upstairs.

:o{

Shoey said...

Thanks for playing DsD & sorry for the palpitations. You may be pleased to hear that Murcof moved away from these minimal beats & samples to a much more fluid & orchestral sound. His Cosmos album may be what you are looking for, as a fan of Tangerine Dream. More recently he seems to be reinterpreting classical pieces. Supposedly, there is a new album this year.

DarceysDad said...

Mmm, yes that sounds much more promising.

nilpferd said...

I quite liked the Murcof-Erik Truffaz collaboration on the Mexico EP, it's on Spotify. Finally had a chance to listen to Martes as Mara is off sick. I find it very melancholy, I quite like the more electronic pieces like Mir, parts of which remind me of Cobblestone Jazz. Not so keen on the operatic and choral vocal stuff though. The orchestral/electronic combination works better for me, as in Mes or Muim.

Shoey said...

Hope Mara get's better soon. Mr. Murcof could have used her name for the last track - he seemed to run out of M names by the end.

nilpferd said...

cheers Shoey.
Mararacha (as she's been known since this afternoon) would have no problem with that.

steenbeck said...

Shoegazer, I've been trying all weekend to find time to listen and today was going to be the day, but it's frustratingly slow to download, and David worked from home all day and needed the computer. I'll try again tomorrow. Sounds fascinating.

(and I hope Mara's feeling better)

Shoey said...

Steen, perhaps drop box is now pandora's box & jam packed with bugs? Is there room for the Shallows - will have a look in a bit.

steenbeck said...

Finally had time to listen. I liked it. I think my favorites were Mo and Mes. I liked where he plays with sound, and generally, just the different textures of the sounds, but I didn't like it as well where the beat came in. If that's the right word. It reminded me of the sounds pouring out of every hip clothing store in downtown NYC in the 90s.

It does put you in quite a mood, and I was trying to think where I would listen to an album like this. Then it occurred to me that it would make a good soundtrack for a movie. (Which is high praise from me) It's moody and evocative, and I can almost imagine what the movie would look like. Thanks, Shoegazer--completely new and very interesting. I would look for more--following the leads you gave DsD.