This week on Soulful Sundays, I am featuring the 2009 album from DJ Okawari – Mirror.
Because I’ve been feeling a whole lot of piano lately, you can see that I’m making quite a bit of a run with these fantastic Japanese hip-hop influenced DJs. DJ Okawari is no exception, definitely along the lines of Nujabes and Smooth J, I really hope you enjoy this. The stream is below!
Posted on December 20th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Featured Album Fridays, I am highlighting the 2009 album from Sarah Blasko – As Day Follows Night.
Here is the description of Sarah Blasko from her Last.FM:
Sarah Blasko (born September 23, 1976) is an ARIA Award winning Australian musician. She was born in Sydney soon after her family returned from French-speaking Réunion where her parents had been missionaries. An original and largely self-reliant musical artist, Blasko is known for her writing and production skills, as well as her unique voice and stage presence.
Blasko was first heard in the mid-1990s fronting Sydney band, Acquiesce, after an initial tour of France with founding members Dave Hemmings, Paul Camilleri, and her sister Kate Halcrow. With material written by Blasko and Camilleri, they recorded a single and an EP with producer Hugh Wilson, receiving some local attention.
In 2002, Sarah decided to go solo. Material for the Prelusive EP – a result of initial explorative collaborations with Wilson but fully realised with Nick Schneider and Steve Francis – was originally recorded as demos. However, after becoming disillusioned with the indecisiveness and lack of solid commitment from the labels she met with, Blasko decided to release and promote the material independently. With the financial assistance of then-manager Craig New, she also produced a music video for the leading track, “Your Way”.
She has a wonderful voice and her songs are terribly catchy. It’s been on my playlist for two weeks now, and I never skip one of her songs. As usual, the stream is below, I hope you enjoy!
Posted on December 18th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Soulful Sunday, I am showcasing the follow-up album to Volume 1 from Smooth J – Smooth Sound Collection Vol. 2.
Great follow-up album, definitely a little more energy than the first volume which I featured last week, but still a great listen. As usual, the stream is below, enjoy!
Posted on December 13th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Soulful Sundays, I am showing you guys a fantastic album from Smooth J – Smooth Sound Collection Vol. 1.
This is a fantastic album. Smooth J is a very talented pianist hailing from Japan and covers all sorts of genres. Definitely reminiscent of the ShinSight Trio and Nujabes, you’d better check it out! The stream is below, as per usual, so I hope you enjoy!
Posted on December 6th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Featured Album Fridays, I am highlighting the 2009 album from Maps – Turning The Mind.
Here is the description of Maps from his Last.FM:
MAPS is from Northampton, UK. This page is the official page for this artist.
The music is made by James Chapman, with August joining in for live stuff. Their debut album ‘We Can Create’ was released in April 2007 on Mute Records and their growing fanbase includes the likes of the Chemical Brothers. They were shortlisted for the well respected 2007 Mercury Music Prize album of the year, which saw their profile rise dramatically. The download-only single from Maps’ second album – ‘Let Go Of The Fear’ was released in May 2009, new album ‘Turning The Mind’ was released late summer.
Great electro-pop sounding album, definitely the style that I am going for right now. I definitely hope you end up liking it as much as I have! The stream is below, enjoy!
Posted on December 4th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Soulful Sunday, I am showcasing the 2009 album from Two Fresh – Baker’s Dozen.
It’s great to finally be back with this, I miss my beats! I found this great album from twin brothers Two Fresh – very reminiscent of Nujabes and definitely let me work the day away. The stream is below, enjoy!
Posted on November 29th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Featured Album Friday, I am showcasing the 2009 self-titled album from Miike Snow – Miike Snow!
(Yes, I’m actually back this time!)
Here is the description of Miike Snow from their Last.FM:
Miike Snow are Andrew Wyatt, Christian Karlsson, and Pontus Winnberg. Named after an acquaintance with an “i” added for extra flair, Miike Snow recently signed with Downtown records. Their self-titled debut was released May 12, 2009.
While you may not have recognized Karlsson and Winberg by their full names, you have surely heard their work as production duo Bloodshy & Avant. The duo has written and produced for Kylie Minogue, Madonna and Britney Spears and claimed a Grammy for their work on Britney Spears’ Toxic. Wyatt is fresh off co-production duties with Mark Ronson on Daniel Merriweather’s April release, Love And War.
I’ve had a taste for indie bands with an electro-pop feel as of late, and that is probably what you will be seeing for the next while. Either that, or slow love-ballad-y type bands that pull my heartstrings. Regardless, this is a great album and the stream is below. Enjoy!
Posted on November 27th, 2009 by Jon Lim
Filed under: Featured Album Fridays, Music | 2 Comments »
Whew! After a brief hiatus, Featured Album Fridays is back! This week on Featured Album Fridays, I am featuring the 2009 album from Har Mar Superstar – Dark Touches.
Here is the description of Har Mar Superstar from his Last.FM:
Sideproject of Sean Tilmann of Sean Na Na fame.
Har Mar Superstar is an American singer born in Owatonna, Minnesota.
While remaining relatively unknown in his home country, he has found fame in the U.K. indie rock/dance scene. His musical genre is generally lewd R’n’B music, mixed with electroclash.
He made a cameo in the 2004 movie Starsky and Hutch as “Dancin’ Rick”, a disco dance champion who faces off in a contest with Ben Stiller’s Starsky character.
An interesting album, that’s for sure. I loved the beats the most, and hopefully you guys enjoy it as well. The stream is below, cheers!
Posted on November 6th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Soulful Sundays, I am showcasing the 2008 album from Ozomatli – Don’t Mess With The Dragon.
Very different direction from me today, just because! Interesting album, and I had never really heard anything like this before, but very latin-inspired music that seems to cross a lot of genres. Hope you enjoy, the stream is below. Happy Thanksgiving!
Posted on October 11th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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This week on Featured Album Fridays, I am showcasing the 2009 album from The Rural Alberta Advantage – Hometowns.
Here is the description of The Rural Alberta Advantage from their Last.FM:
Toronto-based trio The Rural Alberta Advantage (Nils Edenloff, Amy Cole, and Paul Banwatt) play indie-rock songs about hometowns and heartbreak, born out of images from growing up in Central and Northern Alberta. They sing about summers in the Rockies and winters on the farm, ice breakups in the spring time and the oil boom’s charm, the mine workers on compressed, the equally depressed, the city’s slow growth and the country’s wild rose, but mostly the songs just try to embrace the advantage of growing up in Alberta.
Wonderful album and gotta give it up to some local flavour! The stream is below and I hope you enjoy.
Posted on October 9th, 2009 by Jon Lim
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