Go to the woods. Plug it into the trees. Let it warm up. An organic drum machine. And old power line that powered peoples lives and eventually drove them mad. Years later, still juiced up, random beats, forgotten loops, all day long. Whose drum machine was that anyway?

Electronica soundscapist Jerome Alexander’s project “Message to bears” has been released, on a leash, on “EP1″ and I am reliably informed, recently signed to an uber-cool swedish underground label. I made the uber-cool bit up. But it’s gotta be hasn’t it.

Electronica that doesn’t make me wince. Instrumentals that do more than float aimlessly looking for a place to roost, or trying to get your attention by flashing and spashing you with isolated and losts sounds. This is just a current, a jet-stream, it moves you - not in the “it moved me to tears” half-emotion. No this is surreal, and dynamic.

There’s no pretense, and it certainly doesn’t sound underground - this is open to the fresh air. Resonating through all sorts of frequencies that I really don’t understand.

MP3: Message about Bears - Found and you’re Safe

http://www.myspace.com/messagetobears

Tags: Folk, UK Music by Mike Smith
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After a couple of weeks off due to academic commitments and much sunshine, it’s time to start afresh with a number of new regular features and a Bush-endorsed surge.

1. Music for your ears, friends, co-workers, ipods.
The usual dose of new music, about two artists a week, every week. Always British. Never boring, always written about music that I see passion, spirit and excitement in.

2. “The Great British Tune Up”
Weekly round-up of what’s going on in new British music, and what people are saying about the British music scene on blogs and podcasts around the web.

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There’s nothing but green lights from here, so my optimistic manatra informs me, so I’m not going to stop and be content to just write about music every day in the same way without in some way progressing, getting somewhere and learning a few things, helping out some great bands and a fledgling new media in the process (that means blogs). And of course giving you a high standard of writing and music I hope you have come/ will come to expect. Perhaps more electro.

Tags: UK Music by Mike Smith
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MP3: Rod Thomas - Good Coat

Handclaps. Good move. Holding the song aloft and and giving the music a shot of adrenaline and it rises up - no hiding behind over driven words or instruments. These aren’t the usual knock-off, digital electro-house handclaps that sound nothing like human hands - this is no robot crowd. This is folk with a flourish, a snap and a pop, a few glances and winks in the general direction of disco. Seriously. Surprisingly. Perfect for the summer festival circuit - but equally suited to busking a dirty street, as much as a muddy and wet field. In fact rain would emphasise the above brightness.

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(now it’s time for something completly different)

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Meanwhile, in the same city…

“Stupid people think it’s cool, smart think it’s a joke (also cool)”

…not just another tune about tunes - “LDN is a victim” (is LDN is a victim) [myspace] is about the west london middle classes - dedicated to the them. I think. If Scroobius Pip’s “thou shalt kill” was the commandments for British music loving youths then these Electro beats are the lost unspoken Gospels. It ain’t hate - he’s just trying to preach, and get his people heard - so says the rapper of the “LDN is a victim”. “There ain’t no beef” he says on the Guardian Podcast. Apparently not a novelty, hyped as the scene’s anthem… still not sure how to take it - satire just isn’t simple, and it’s best that it stays that way. It’ll be out on pink vinyl in April.

Lily Allen pipes up in the comments on the tune; in support I presume…

“So what if w’ere middle class ? Just cause your mum was too lazy to get her fat ass up off the sofa and make some cash . I shouldn’t be able to make tunes yeah ?”

#RINSE YOUR ACCENTS# so they proclaim. The Guardian like it, the scene seem to love it, label folk seem to dig it - I expect Lily Allen enjoys it greatly - what’s not to like? £6.50 on ebay

So Thou Shalt Always Kill or LDN is a victim? If you don’t live in the U.K you may not care.

Tags: UK Music by Mike Smith
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MP3: Magic Arm - Outdoor Games

Magic Arm’s Outdoor Games seems to be struggling to begin. It can’t immediately think an answer to those who say “I’m happy to argue with you till the cows come home, but I’m not going back, and I’m not moving from this spot” - Magic Arm want you to be ambitious and take a few steps; they just aren’t all that persuasive.

These lo-fi ambitionists sound fantastic on this side of the Atlantic tonight. Here we have a British band that sparkle with the subtleties of sound and glimpses of brand new sonic dimensions you knew existed but never looked for; repeated mantras become forgotten questions, as this occurs familiar but quieter sounds ascend and become just as grand as the first time someone asked you ‘what are you going to do about it’.

myspace.com/magicarm

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Meanwhile:

Brighton based 20 Jazz Funk Greats use a magical moment from retro computer game Golden Axe on the Sega to helpfully illustrate a point they are trying to make about electro-house bass-faces Math Head. This is how I like my musical criticism. (more)

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And at the same time, in a different place altogether

Dan at Said The Gramophone spoke about one of my favourite songs of the year, “Soko - I’ll kill her”, which the usual panache and finesse “…’growing up’ seems like a place you end up, not a place you go towards.”. It’s a song that resonates on fragile wavelengths. The first 100 seconds are glorious.

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I chose to play the Soko track first on my latest podcast. It is called Take Your Medicine and it is about 30 minutes long and features a lot of rather good new music. And a robot. Get it here.

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Tags: Folk, UK Music by Mike Smith
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