Jun 27, 2020

RhoDeo 2025 Grooves

Hurray, Liverpool are Premier League Champions, not on the field but when watching Man City loose (undeservedly) to Chelsea, it was always going to be something of an anti-climax without the fans on the stands. Rarely has a team been so superior than the rest this season, 30 years the Liverpudlians had to wait, but Klopp and his men made sure that nothing would come between them and the title not even a deadly virus...the restart saw them a little rusty but the next game they outplayed Crystal Palace in superior fashion. Their next match (as champions) will be at Man City, expect a demonstration....


As regular visitors you know what to expect....some more music from Hull's music scene and Pork Recordings, no worry i'll get back to Steve Cobb later but for now i go back to 1996 at a time when Siberia was largely frozen and baby mammoths a rarity so we can understand the reason to call yourself Baby Mammoth, alas Siberia has been thawing rapidly these last decades popping up lot's of instant frozen mammoths (another huge mystery as none of our scientists has any idea how it happened- i have btw) Anyway as these guys didnt grab the power of the internet when they closed up shop in 2003 there presence therein is surprisingly limited, this in contrast with the real baby mammoths that have been extinct for 10,000 years


Today's Artists are extinct time to dig em up........N Joy

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Amidst heavy competition, Baby Mammoth is the Pork label's most prolific act, packing in five full LPs of blunted instrumental hip-hop between their debut in late 1996 and the end of the decade. Like other Pork acts Fila Brazillia and Solid Doctor, the duo of Mark Blissenden and Andrew Burdall specialize in earthy breaks and ambient atmospheres, more slanted to the instrumental edge of acid jazz than other producer-based trip-hop acts. The pair first met Pork label-head Dave Brennand and associate Steve Cobby (aka Fila Brazillia) at a club in Hull, where both band and label are based. The relationship blossomed with the release of Baby Mammoth's debut, 10,000 Years Beneath the Street, in 1996. Blissenden and Burdall then released two albums the following year (as well as an EP and single). Baby Mammoth settled down to a more languid release schedule with one LP release each year in 1998 (Another Day at the Orifice), 1999 (Swimming), 2000 (Motion Without Pain), and 2001 (Seven Up). After a year-long break, the band returned with Octo Muck in 2003. A year later, Blissenden teamed with labelmates Steve Cobby and Robert Ellerby from Beige for the Fabric 18 mix CD.

Bullitnuts. An electronic studio based duo from Hull, UK, recording 3 albums with the highly respected UK label Pork Recordings in the 1990's. They amalgamated live musicians with stolen samples and midi triggered electronics, mostly using an AKAI S1000 sampler and an Atari 1040ST sequencer. They have since worked separately on various projects outside of the Pork label. The Bullitnuts were heavily reliant on a sequencer and samples and were not a "live" band at all. The music was constructed and arranged via midi through a 24 channel mixing desk and via effects then recorded in one go "live" to DAT tape like lots of people did in the 90's.

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Over six albums and a healthy remix slate, DJ duo Mark "Bliss" Blissenden and Andrew "Birdy" Burdall have honed Baby Mammoth’s downtempo formula to a sweet science. They’ve been tweaking the recipe by degrees since the excellent 10,000 Years Beneath the Streets, adding fresh flavors to their original, irresistible stew of hiphop, house, jazz and quirked-out techno. On Motion Without Pain, Baby Mammoth’s relentlessly inventive grooves dip playfully into fusion and "smooth jazz" seasonings - pancultural percussion, live drumming, splashy keyboard vamps, jazz guitar, sassy horns and samples plucked from exotica and easy-listening wax. Motion finds Baby Mammoth brimming with confidence and just-for-kicks joy, trimming the fat while accentuating the phat on nine faultlessly funky tracks. Blissenden and Burdall know exactly what works, and they rarely put a foot wrong. The anthemic strut of the opening "Elephunk" sets a punchy pace for such standouts as "Pacific Glitter" (echoes of the "Cosby Show" theme on this one), "Tasty Maloney," "One Foot Up My Arse" and "Pigs in Space." "The Ghost of Harry" milks its vaudevillian cha-cha loop and electronic cafĂ© instrumentation for all their groovy worth. Decked out in the subtler vestments of Baby Mammoth’s striking craft, the title track and "Ebb & Flow" especially sparkle amid Motion’s flashier moves.



 Baby Mammoth - Motion Without Pain    (flac   321mb)

01 Elephunk 8:18
02 Pacific Glitter 5:06
03 Tasty Maloney 7:18
04 The Ghost of Henry 4:40
05 One Foot Up My Arse 6:33
06 Motion Without Pain 7:30
07 Danger on the Rocks 6:43
08 Ebb & Flow 6:10
09 Pigs in Space 5:56

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Inspirational,blissful and chunky deep house from 'Pork' labels veterans Baby Mammoth here. The album accents percussion and doesn't layer on many ambient tracks. It is rather upbeat for a downtempo album. Highlights are  Baroque n' Roll, Frank's Angels.



  Baby Mammoth - Seven Up  (flac   338mb)

01 1 6:34
02 And I'll See You 8:09
03 Baroque 'n' Roll 6:41
04 Frozen 7:26
05 Pink Elephants (Live) 4:21
06 Lazy 6:51
07 Deadpool 5:51
08 Perfect World 5:10
09 Frank's Angels 6:24

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With Steve Cobby's Solid Doctor and Heights of Abraham projects put on hold and with Fila Brazillia entering a problematic phase, the way was clear for another band to assume the place of Pork Recordings leading act. This might not yet be obvious in September 1996, when '1st of the Day' was released, but curiously enough (and perhaps not surprisingly so), there was actually some speculation whether Bullitnuts could be another of Cobby's projects. A few details supported this possibility: the absence of credits on the album cover and leaflet allowed the speculation, while the intense schedule of releases by Cobby in 1995-96 certainly made the possibility quite plausible. And the music itself only added to the picture: inventive, atmospheric and groovy, displaying a variety of melodic and rhythmic resources, and achieving a seamless mix of the electronic, the acoustic and the electric, it had all the qualities one had grown to admire in Cobby's various projects, while at the same time retaining enough distinctive features that might justify the creation of yet another moniker. As the future would reveal, however, on this occasion the usual suspect was innocent: the people behind Bullitnuts were Robert Ellerby and Murray Clarke, a duo that had already issued a couple of releases under the name Opik.

As these considerations have already suggested, '1st of the Day' is an underrated gem, a work that deserves a place among the best that downtempo groove electronica has to offer. Almost every single one of its 10 tracks is a highlight, but some special mentions could be made. Treasures to be found include for instance the serene and melodic 'Fortean Daze', the percussive stroll and playful 'ethnic' chants of 'Rhesus Perplexus' or 'Feathered Up', which almost epitomizes the classic sound of atmospheric downtempo funk. And on the second half of the album, two of the pieces might be mentioned as absolute peaks. Based on a slow breakbeat groove and an almost solemn low piano theme, 'Joker In My Yard' builds on layers of keyboards and guitar to eventually reach notable heights, the ingenious interplay of instruments creating a dark atmosphere that is both unsettling and trippy. And closing the set, 'Semantic Pearls' bathes a suggestively jazzy rhythm section in wonderful moody spacey keyboards and produces some of the most magical moments to ever have surfaced from the city of Kingston upon Hull.



Bullitnuts - 1st Of The Day (flac   374mb)

01 Pizzle Road Rhapsody 10:38
02 Fortean Daze 9:13
03 Swivel Hip 6:16
04 Scattered 7:52
05 Rhesus Perplexus 7:59
06 Donkey Stroke 6:17
07 Joker in My Yard 6:34
08 Pipin' 11:29
09 Feathered Up 7:17
10 Semantic Pearls 3:44

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'Nut Roast', the Bullitnuts' second long-player, is a darker, more somber affair than the duo's impressive debut album. It tries to diversify the band's already eclectic approach to downtempo dance music, including some apparent rock influences, with steadily paced simple beats and guitar soloing featuring on some tracks. These attempts do not always produce the best results, but overall this is definitely better than anything Fila Brazillia released after 'Mess', for instance, and there are even two masterpieces: the dancefloor-friendly breakbeat with a sense of mystery of 'A Sponge, Two Bricks & A Spring', and the slow and sweet melancholy of 'Tipple Tales'. Worth checking out.....



Bullitnuts - Nut Roast (flac   347mb)

01 A Sponge, Two Bricks & a Spring 9:17
02 Savoir Fare 8:57
03 Dark Horse 9:34
04 Between the Eyes 9:49
05 Rockskool 8:06
06 Twice As Much 7:16
07 Lizard Tooth Eye 7:55
08 Hell for Leather 6:46
09 Tipple Tales 10:12

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Volume 18 for Fabric sees the series take a different approach, this time embracing a jazzy, leftfield feel compared to the deep and tech house approaches as shown on previous volumes. Appearing on 18 is not 1, not 2 but three artists in the form of Baby Mammoth, Beige and Solid Doctor who also records as renowned downtempo artist Fila Brazilla.

Baby Mammoth takes the first steps on the mix kicking things off with the cheekily titled Elephunk. From an ambient synth intro dropping the occasional vocal sample, the tune breaks into a deep breakbeat infused number featuring percussive loops and a keyboard solo. Blind Date incorporates a jazz infused reggae bounce with soothing flute licks, a quirky electro hook and deep latin percussion riffs and finally Baby Mammoth closes with a Nickodemus & Osiris remix of Finale which sees a Hammond organ doing a solo on top of a funky percussion break as the mix moves into funky latin house perfect for lazy summer afternoons.

Beige takes over the mix dropping four unreleased tunes for the Fabric mix. Appearing in his Momma Gravy guise he begins his Momma Gravy set with the quirky disco infused Shut Up which features a calming synth hook combined with futuristic sci-fi noises and 80s style drum beats. Boy Without A Comb brings forth more retro 80s elements and has a distinct new wave feel about it, fusing together elements of 80s disco, rock and pop with cheesy 80s style vocals to boot. Beige finally brings his section to an end with the guitar led Did You Piss On My Guitar?. Again it's on a notable 80s disco tip embracing the sounds of 80s electro synths mincing with a guitar riff.

Solid Doctor then takes over with his brand of quirky leftfield beats kicking it off with Fila Brazilla's Bullshit. It's electronica with a quirky jazz feel to it as Solid Doctor combine house-style vocals with an acid-induced hook. J*S*T*A*R*S churn out a catchy bassline melody, disco guitar lick and an infectious rhythm on Spansules. Solid Doctor then brings the mix to a close with Mandrillus Sphinx's 70s style disco influenced, Pigeon's G-Spot. Don't really know how they came up with such a title (and perhaps it's best not to know) but the tune definitely has a sweet funky feel to it and makes for a great closer to the album.

For someone who really doesn't expose himself to the Fabric sound as much as he should have, I found this quite an enjoyable mix and it offers a lot of variety. Loaded with flavours of electro, disco, funk and hip hop, Fabric 18 is like having a brand of Neopolitan ice cream with flavours you'd enjoy.



Fabric 18 Baby Mammoth, Beige & Solid Doctor (flac   420mb)

01 Baby Mammoth - Elephunk 7:08
02 Baby Mammoth - Blind Date 5:39
03 Baby Mammoth - Finale (Nickodemus & Osiris Remix) 5:53
04 Raw Cliff - Bewilder 4:35
05 Momma Gravy - Shut Up 4:57
06 Momma Gravy feat. The Singing Defective - Boy With a Comb 4:11
07 Momma Gravy - Bottle Back 5:54
08 Momma Gravy - Sizzling Finch 5:37
09 Momma Gravy - Did You Piss on My Guitar 4:52
10 Fila Brazillia - Bullshit 4:55
11 JJ Fuchs - Stick it in T'Middle 4:57
12 J*S*T*A*R*S - Spansules 7:23
13 Mandrillus Sphynx - Pigeon's G-Spot 3:13

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