Inside Nokia Music

Where do you start with a band like Pavement? In recent years there have been few acts that have cultivated – and then steadfastly retained – a similar level of underground, independent credibility. Or inspired so many other acts with their lo-fi, indie rock sound. In fact, if you heard Quarantine The Past, a retrospective of the band’s initial 10 year stint together, without knowing anything about Pavement and their place in rock music’s pantheon, you could be forgiven for writing them off as yet another grunge-lite outfit pedalling the sort of jangly guitar pop you’d find on an early ‘90s Nirvana or R.E.M. B-side. Which, in a perverse way, is probably the greatest testament that could be paid – those B-sides likely wouldn’t be there without Pavement’s influence, as the band’s sound cross-pollinated with that of their contemporaries, including Sonic Youth and R.E.M.

So it’s only when placed in the context of the early 1990s music scene that Quarantine The Past can be properly appreciated. While the album doesn’t include any unreleased or new tracks (Pavement reformed last year; the comeback tour is underway as you read this) it gathers the band’s most significant tracks from the period spanning 1989 to the breakup in 1999. Stereo and Cut Your Hair will be instantly recognisable to anyone who took an interest in the indie scene in the UK 20 years ago (it makes me shudder to think it was that long ago). Meanwhile, album cuts like Shady Lane/ J vs. S and Date w/IKEA continue Pavement’s pattern of wrapping winding lyrics around surprisingly tight melodies (despite all their efforts to sound to the contrary) that still sound fresh today.

The only criticism that can be levelled at Quarantine The Past is that it gives the desperate-for-new-material Pavement fan what she or he will have been wishing for: something they haven’t heard before. Granted, the tracks have all been given the obligatory run through the digital car wash, but re-mastering Pavement tracks almost robs of them of their raison d’être – they were never about crystal clear fidelity, but rather the quiet, knowing, scratchy warmth of a close friend. Of course, many Pavement fans are obsessive-compulsive completists who’ll buy Quarantine The Past anyway. But it won’t supplant last year’s brilliant and exhaustive deluxe reissues of the band’s original albums, crammed with live recordings, unreleased gems and alternative mixes. No, instead this is the ideal place for a new generation of fans to discover just why Pavement are spoken about with such reverence. It’s an album bursting with songs of charming honesty, intriguing simplicity and that cast the musical mould for a generation.

You can download Quarantine The Past, along with Pavement’s back catalogue, from Nokia Music Store. If you’re a Comes With Music member you can get it all for free.

Should you happen to see Gabriella Cilmi leaping buildings in a single bound, clad in tight blue leggings and sporting a fetching red cape, don’t be alarmed. “This is my superhero record,” the Australian singer-songwriter says of her upcoming album, Ten, with a hint of laughter. “One track is called Invisible Girl and another one’s called Superman, which is quite smooth and sexy… Another track, Defender, is all about going into battle to protect people that you love. I am a bit of a guard dog like that, so if anyone messes with my friends or family then I get a bit mad.” It’s a departure for Cilmi who, following the success of Lessons To Be Learned, could have conveniently been pigeon-holed as yet another white, female Jazz and R’n’B singer. Ten, Cilmi tells us, is “not quite what you’d expect. It’s definitely more electronic than my previous album, which sounded quite retro and fifties.”

The themes of empowerment and musical diversity percolate through the entire album. “I didn’t just want to make Lessons To Be Learned Part 2, that would be a little too easy and probably a bit boring,” reasons Cilmi, who talks with the sort of self-assurance you need when you’ve signed a recording contract aged just 13. Now 18, she’s keen to show that she’s not going to conform to anyone’s expectations but her own. “I had so many different possibilities for this album and have toyed with lots of different ideas. One was to do a New Orleans piano album, but I sat in front of my piano and realised my playing isn’t quite up to the standard of Dr. John or Professor Longhair.” The artists Cilmi references – two of the most celebrated Louisiana Jazz pianists – aren’t part of the average teenager’s CD collection, but they highlight her eclectic tastes and influences. Ultimately it was Donna Summer, the seventies disco diva, who set Cilmi on her way to Ten. “One of my mates gave me I Remember Yesterday and it kind of rocked my world and inspired me, so I started listening to Giorgio Moroder, who did Flashdance and worked with Blondie when they went disco, and other things like Amy Stewart and Gloria Gaynor with I Will Survive. Powerful women on a mission.”

Now Ten is in the bag – it’s released in the UK on 22^nd March – has Cilmi settled on this new sound? “Oh no, probably not,” she responds with enthusiasm. “I have a zillion ideas and don’t know which road to go down. I love all different types of music, so I’m always looking at new things to try out. I would like to make a country record one day but don’t tell my label that,” she adds jokingly. The only constant that Cilmi will admit to, is making music that people can relate to. “I remember this video of Cat Stevens playing Father And Son. The video is him sitting in a corridor playing and I remember watching it and thinking that this is why I want to make music, music that people can feel.” Returning to her musical tastes, Cilmi admits to enjoying everything from the Macarena (“because they say ‘Gabriella’ in it”) and Shaggy (at the mention of whom she bursts into song, giving a quick medley of his hits) to Curtis Mayfield and Led Zeppelin. The latter’s House Of The Holy is a particular favourite. “I am a massive Led Zeppelin fan and there’s something for everyone [on that album], with a bit of everything on it, even some Reggae. I love the variety of it.” Asked if she’s heard Them Crooked Vultures (a collaboration between Led Zep’s bassist and keyboard player John Paul Jones, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl and Queens Of The Stone Age Josh Homme), Cilmi says she’s only heard one track. “My brother’s into it, so I will have to go home and listen to it. I did like Robert Plant’s collaboration with Alison Krauss, it sounded really good.” There’s a pause. “I got to meet Robert Plant backstage at the O2 and made the biggest fool out of myself,” Cilmi says, unable to stop herself. “I was in the queue for food and he was in front of me, so I tapped him on the back and the only thing I could think of asking him was, ‘Are you having the pie or the salmon?’, it was the most embarrassing moment of my life.”

It’s refreshing to hear that Cilmi’s managed to keep her feet on the ground, despite the global success she’s enjoyed so early on in her career, and the number of superstar artists she’s come across in her rise to stardom. “I played in front of Ronnie Wood when I played Jools Holland. When I played Sweet About Me he was tapping his foot along with it.” Cilmi gives the impression that she doesn’t take what’s happened for granted and still gets massive enjoyment from the journey she’s found herself on. “I felt super-special playing the main stage of Glastonbury, it was the best thing in the world,” she explains. “When I got up on stage in front of all of those people, it was amazing.” She readily owns up to still getting nerves prior to performing, despite doing live shows for the last five years. “I used to get really nervous and had to do meditation classes to calm myself down, but now I find that the best way to deal with it is to use my nerves as a fuel tank, to just throw myself into it.”

Cilmi is equally open about the fact that she doesn’t know quite where she’ll be, musically, tomorrow, next month or next year. It’s a trait she finds appealing in others, too. “I would love to collaborate with Danger Mouse,” the innovative producer behind The Beatles/Jay-Z mashup, The Grey Album, Gnarls Barkley and, most recently, Broken Bells, among others. “He is so versatile from all of the different artists that he has worked with. I would love him to produce one of my albums,” wishes Cilmi. “Also I would love to work with Justin Timberlake. It’s really interesting to see how he has evolved out of NSYNC to what he is doing now. He would be a good guy to take home to meet your mum. But probably not the type of guy I would take home,” she adds slyly. “I love his music. For a pop artist he is just the king, has some great melodies and when he’s on stage you just can’t take your eyes off him. Yeah, I would definitely love to work with him.” It’s this mix of youthful honesty, unadulterated talent and willingness to acknowledge and expand her musical roots that make Cilmi so compelling. So much so, that you can’t help hoping that she gets her wish.

You can download Gabriella’s single ’On A Mission’ from Nokia Music Store – if you’ve got  ‘Comes With Music’ , it’s completely free! Her new album, ‘Ten’ is out on 22nd March.

Anyone who heard the return of Raekwon on his Only Built for Cuban Links II sequel album will know that the WU are back and heavier than ever. To follow the original 1995 album (thats right, ‘95!) with something as dope is a rare and impressive feat indeed. A testimony to the Rae and crew’s talent and passion for the art.

So with that album still pretty much on weekly repeat, there’s some new WU to get your ears accustomed to.

First up is the new J-Love and Ghostface mixtape – Hidden Darts Pt 5 which can be found on the Nokia Store right now. Copy and paste this catelogue number into the Title search box to get taken straight to it: OD2DI6952366

I was going to spread this out over a few Blogs but I thought I’d better let you know about this free mixtape before the links die…

Avenging Eagles presented by DJ Mathematics features Meth, Ghost and Rae on absolute fire once again. I’ve been listening to it all week and I can honestly say that Meth has never sounded so good! This is a pre-release taster to the much hyped WU Massacre album from the 3 MC’s set for release on March 30th on Def Jam.

I personally, cannot wait that long!

Download the Avenging Eagles mixtape here or here.

F’ Whut!

You can download loads of Wu-Tang, Ghostface, Raekwon and all the other clan members stuff from Nokia Music Store - if you’ve got  ‘Comes With Music’, you can get it all completely free!

…According to research from Nokia Music into the listening habits of music fans in 15 countries between December 2008 and January 2010.

TOP 10 GLOBALLY DOWNLOADED MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS

1. Twilight (Original motion picture soundtrack: International Version)

2. AVATAR

3. Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds

4. Mamma Mia!

5. The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Mexican version)**

6. Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

7. Alvin And The Chipmunks 2

8. Slumdog Millionaire

9. The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Original motion picture soundtrack)

10. Watchmen

Notice how it occurred 3 times on the list?… but sadly it doesn’t qualify for the “Best Original Score” category according to the rules of the 82nd annual Academy Awards…

Leave a comment telling us your favourite film scores or soundtracks and we’ll give 1 lucky reader 50 tracks from the Nokia Music Store.  Terms and Conditions

From James Horner’s mysterious AVATAR score to the thrilling melodies of Sherlock Holmes or the eclectic mix of Nine, check out Nokia’s movie soundtrack selection

If you’re a fan of the music behind the latest movie releases Nokia Comes With Music is the place to download all the music you’ve ever wanted, for free, and to keep forever.

Check this mad video from Netherlands Dance producers Nobody Beats The Drum – made from a few wooden blocks and just a few more photos:

Nobody Beats The Drum – Grindin’

You can see the making of it here.

Found on this blog

You can download Nobody Beats This Drum’s album ‘Beats Work’  from the Nokia Music Store - if you’ve got ‘Comes With Music’, it’s completely free!

I came across a nice little website for the band Labuat, a Spanish group that play a fusion of styles. The website is an interactive one that allows you to draw or trace a pattern in time with the music that’s playing. It plays out a story with the inky style and the various animations which I think is quite relaxing.

http://soytuaire.labuat.com/

Appears (although my Spanish is rubbish) that you can record the traces you make and replay them.

Inevitably had to go onto YouTube and check out what their other stuff is like. Have to say, I think they’re rather good. Definitely will be adding to my collection! They apparently supported Beyonce when she played in Barcelona in 2009 and were the first act onstage.

Here’s another track – a good slide into the weekend methinks.

You can download Labuat’s album ‘Labuat’  from the Nokia Music Store - if you’ve got  ‘Comes With Music’, it’s completely free!

A Stitch In Time by The Smashing Pumpkins

The next instalment from the epic forthcoming Teargarden By Kaleidyscope has landed sooner than expected with the release of A Stitch In Time - hopefully this is a sign that the project may begin to progress a little quicker.

It seems that on my previous post I may have been mistaken about something. Clues are beginning to show and suggest the “album” will be 11 x 4 track EP’s and not 4 x 11 track EP’s as I originally thought (yes, I know that doesn’t constitute an EP). But there are still a few things that suggest I was right in the first place.

A Quote from Billy’s Blog

“The story of the album is based on ‘The Fool’s Journey’, as signified in the progress of the Tarot. It is my intention to approach this by breaking down the journey of our life here into four phases as made by these different characters; the Child, the Fool, the Skeptic, and the Mystic.”

I think I’m sticking to my guns on 4 “EP’s”!

Can’t say I think much of the track just yet, but I usually have to chew food and allow it to tantalise both the sweet and the sour sides before I can say anything with wholehearted honesty.

All 3 tracks so far have been pretty tame, but the smart money’s on the “fool” and the “sceptic” chapters bringing the thunder!!!

I’ll be posting on the entire progression of this project.

Smashing Pumpkins albums are available to download from The Nokia Music Store - if you’ve got ‘Comes With Music’ get them for free!

I discovered these boys on my social network travels and put out a few tweets, they reciprocated by sending me this amazing 3-way freestyling video from a session with Tim Westwood on BBC 1 Xtra. It would seem a bit out of place in the context of my posting record, but I have a fever for the flavour of the Grime scene and so decided to share.

Freestyling lyrics has always amazed me, but done as a collective it’s just downright crazy blud!

Marvell are currently negotiating a record deal so hopefully we’ll see them up on the Nokia Music Store in the near future. In the meanwhile you can check out their website for mixtapes and vids.

I don’t half bang on about them Arctic Monkeys do I!?… but how can I not when they’re one of the few bands on the scene these days that without fail, spoil us with a wealth of b-sides on every single they release.

True to form, they’re doing it again with the release of third Humbug single and album opener My Propeller. As with the release of Humbug’s previous 2 singles, they’re only set for release on 10″ & 7″ vinyl through Oxfam in the physical realm. Thankfully the 2 previous singles and their b-sides made their way onto Nokia Music Store, so I should expect the same for those of us who’ve completely expended our holiday allowance,  taking days off to successfully track these elusive beauties down.

…and in other news…

With the horrific lull between the release of Favourite Worst Nightmare and Humbug, and consolation for this only coming from frontman Alex Turner’s side project The Last Shadow Puppets, it’s come as a welcome surprise that the band have dropped the word that they intend to begin recording album number 4 in the near future, possibly reunited with Humbug producer and finger-in-all-pies man Josh Homme.

My Propellor is released on the 22nd March.

Loads more Arctic Monkeys music available to download from the Nokia Music Store - if you’re a  ‘Comes With Music’ subscriber, it’s completely free!

If the second album is generally acknowledged to be a band’s tricky proving-point, then what of the third? If you’re lucky then like the third act of a play it would move towards resolving much of the heartache and trauma expressed in the second, reviewing lessons learned and hoping for better in the future.

The Winter of Mixed Drinks

The Winter of Mixed Drinks from Scottish indie folk Frightened Rabbit manages to portray this excellently. Whilst its critically acclaimed predecessor, The Midnight Organ Fight (well there’ve certainly been worse euphemisms for sex) wallowed, even reveled in the still-raw emotion of a recent breakup and its subsequent flailing rebounds (“You twist and whisper the wrong name, I don’t care nor do my ears” – The Twist) their third release gains some ground in moving on from the experience.

Luckily the album feels no less personal and sincere than Organ Fight despite Hutchinson (Scott; writer, lead vocals + rhythm guitar) describing it as this time, semi-fictional. The brutally frank lyrics and all too-familiar emotions however are far from fictitious.

The going is sometimes rough, images of death and lonely desperation rear their heads throughout the album; but this time the voice is more wry, on the outside looking in at the feelings (“When all you need’s a coffin and your Sunday best, to smarten up the end” – Things).

Leading single Swim Until You Can’t See Land rolls and tinkles like the lyrical waves and shoreline that describe someone (let’s be honest, probably Hutchinson) distancing himself from a heartbreak and its deliverer.  (“Let’s call me a Baptist, call this the drowning of the past. She’s there on the shoreline throwing stones at my back.” – Swim Until You Can’t See Land)

The progression of the album is faltering, it loops and returns to an earlier refrain (Man/Bag of Sand) and time is given to instrumental meandering. As it approaches the midpoint it sees our narrator wishing to shortcut this difficult rite of passage (“If this is the prime of life, I wish I could skip the blasted youth, skip the youth it’s aging me too much” – Skip The Youth). But slowly, despite the set-backs and self-doubt some acceptance is gained. The momentum is helped by Hutchinson (Grant; drummer, brother to Scott) using his drumming to drive on the songs when guitars and vocals drift and fade with almost militaristic beats.

This third record also sees the addition of a fifth band member, Gordon Skeene on keyboard.  Whilst it enriches the sound adding a choral, airy sound (see: Foot Shooter; the track most likely to be referred to as ‘epic’ and ‘the one that gets them noticed’) die hard Rabbit fans won’t be complaining of the band over-complicating things. No lilies being gilded here; they won’t be going all Snow Patrol any time soon.

Things turn around though somewhere after the current single, Nothing Like You’s almost gloating accomplishment of having finally pulled someone that although not particularly special has the vital quality of being nothing like the person who so badly wounded him. In the last couple of tracks our protagonist’s outlook brightens as the tunes become more affirmative (“Though the corners are lit the dark can return with the flick of a switch. It hasn’t turned on me yet, yet” – Not Miserable).

Deluxe edition bonus tracks Fun Stuff and Learned Your Name provide a great little epilogue to the main album that may leave you questioning whether all is so neatly finished and resolved…(“And I’m quite all right, I get by just fine; I’m not depressed, not most of the time. It’s just the fun stuff is much less fun without you.” – Fun Stuff)

Frightened Rabbit – Nothing Like You (Alternate Video) – Fatcat Records

More Frightened Rabbit videos on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/frabbitTV

Frightened Rabbit are currently touring, more information can be found at: http://www.myspace.com/frightenedrabbit

Download Frightened Rabbit on the Nokia Music Store. If you have a ‘Comes With Music’ Subscription you can download as much as you want for free!