RhoDeo 1848 Grooves

Hello, after the uber-cool acid jazz from the global city centers time for something completely different, in line with the season but don't worry no jinglebells.



Stax Records is an American record label, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It was a major factor in the creation of Southern soul and Memphis soul music. Stax also released gospel, funk, and blues recordings. Renowned for its output of blues music, the label was founded by two siblings and business partners, Jim Stewart and his sister Estelle Axton (STewart/AXton = Stax). It featured several popular ethnically integrated bands (including the label's house band, Booker T. & the M.G.'s) and a racially integrated team of staff and artists unprecedented in that time of racial strife and tension in Memphis and the South.

According to ethnomusicologist Rob Bowman, the label's use of "one studio, one equipment set-up, the same set of musicians and a small group of songwriters led to a readily identifiable sound. It was a sound based in black gospel, blues, country, and earlier forms of rhythm and blues. It became known as southern soul music."

Following the death of Stax's biggest star, Otis Redding, in 1967, and the severance of the label's distribution deal with Atlantic Records in 1968, Stax continued primarily under the supervision of a new co-owner, Al Bell. Over the next five years, Bell expanded the label's operations significantly, in order to compete with Stax's main rival, Motown Records in Detroit. During the mid-1970s, a number of factors, including a problematic distribution deal with CBS Records, caused the label to slide into insolvency, resulting in its forced closure in late 1975.


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At nine discs and 244 tracks, The Complete Stax-Volt Singles: 1959-1968 is far too exhaustive for casual fans, but that's not who the set is designed for -- it's made for the collector. Featuring every A-side the label released during those nine years, as well as several B-sides, the set is a definitive portrait of gritty, deep Southern soul. Many of the genre's major names -- Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas, Booker T. & the MG's, William Bell, Rufus Thomas, the Bar-Kays, Albert King -- plus many terrific one-shot wonders are showcased in terrific sound and augmented with an in-depth booklet. For any serious soul or rock collector, it's an essential set, since Stax-Volt was not only a musically revolutionary label, its roster was deep with talent, which means much of the music on this collection is first-rate. But if you only want the hits, you'll be better off with a smaller collection, since too much of this set will sound too similar, and sorting through the nine discs will be a monumental task if you only want to hear Otis, Rufus, Carla, and Sam & Dave.

VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 1   (flac  311mb)

101 Veltones - Fool In Love 1:59
102 Carla Thomas & Rufus Thomas - 'Cause I Love You 2:46
103 Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz 2:21
104 The Chips - You Make Me Feel So Good 2:14
105 Carla Thomas - A Love Of My Own 2:30
106 The Mar-Keys - Last Night 2:39
107 Rufus Thomas & Carla Thomas - I Didn't Believe 2:12
108 Prince Conley - I'm Going Home 2:51
109 Carla Thomas - (Mama, Mama) Wish Me Good Luck 2:25
110 The Mar-Keys - Morning After 2:15
111 Barbara Stephens - The Life I Live 2:26
112 The Mar-Keys - About Noon 2:33
113 The Triumphs - Burnt Biscuits 2:01
114 Carla Thomas - I Kinda Think He Does 2:38
115 The Mar-Keys - Foxy 2:17
116 William Bell - You Don't Miss Your Water 2:03
117 William Bell - Formula Of Love 2:08
118 Macy Skipper - Goofin' Off 3:01
119 Barbara Stephens - Wait A Minute 2:25
120 Nick Charles - Sunday Jealous 2:57
121 Barbara Stephens - That's The Way It Is With Me 2:27
122 The Tonettes - No Tears 2:34
123 The Mar-Keys - Pop-Eye Stroll 2:46
124 Nick Charles - The Three Dogwoods 2:29
125 The Canes - Why Should I Suffer With The Blues 2:53
126 The Mar-Keys - Whot's Happenin'! 2:30
127 The Del-Rios - Just Across The Street 2:23
128 The Del-Rios - There's A Love 2:20
129 Rufus Thomas - Can't Ever Let You Go 2:34

VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 1 (ogg   133mb)

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VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 2   (flac  298mb)

201 Booker T & The MG's - Green Onions 2:55
202 Booker T & The MG's - Behave Yourself 3:54
203 William Bell - Any Other Way 2:31
204 Carla Thomas - I'll Bring It Home To You 3:07
205 The Mar-Keys - Sack-O-Woe 2:33
206 Otis Redding - These Arms Of Mine 2:33
207 The Tonettes - Teardrop Sea 2:31
208 Rufus Thomas - The Dog 2:37
209 Booker T & The MG's - Jelly Bread 2:33
210 William Bell - I Told You So 2:32
211 The Mar-Keys - Bo-Time 2:45
212 Booker T & The MG's - Home Grown 3:15
213 Deanie Parker & The Valadors - My Imaginary Guy 2:43
214 William Bell - Just As I Thought 3:03
215 Carla Thomas - What A Fool I've Been 2:17
216 Eddie Kirk - The Hawg, Part One 2:53
217 Oscar Mack - Don't Be Afraid Of Love 2:33
218 Cheryl & Pam Johnson - That's My Guy 2:09
219 Booker T & The MG's - Chinese Checkers 2:29
220 William Bell - Somebody Mentioned Your Name 3:05
221 Bobby Marchan - What Can I Do 2:45
222 Otis Redding - That's What My Heart Needs 2:42
223 The Astors - What Can It Be 2:19
224 Billy & The King Bees - Bango 2:19
225 Eddie Kirk - Them Bones 2:23
226 Rufus Thomas - Walking The Dog 2:37
227 William Bell - I'll Show You 2:49

VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 2> (ogg   130mb)

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VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 3   (flac  287mb)

301 Otis Redding - Pain In My Heart 2:24
302 Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz, It's Christmas 2:47
303 Booker T & The MG's - Mo' Onions 2:35
304 Floyd Newman -Frog Stomp 2:14
305 Rufus Thomas - Can Your Monkey Do The Dog 2:28
306 Bobby Marchan - You Won't Do Right 2:34
307 The Drapels - Wondering (When My Love Is Coming Home) 2:18
308 Deanie Parker - Each Step I Take 2:51
309 The Van-Dells - The Honey Dripper 2:07
310 William Bell - Who Will It Be Tomorrow 2:25
311 Otis Redding - Come To Me 2:46
312 Otis Redding - Don't Leave Me This Way 2:58
313 Eddie Jefferson - I Don't Want You Anymore 3:00
314 The Cobras - Restless 2:26
315 Rufus Thomas - Somebody Stole My Dog 2:40
316 Barbara & The Browns - Big Party 2:42
317 Rufus Thomas & Carla Thomas - That's Really Some Good 1:57
318 Rufus Thomas & Carla Thomas - Night Time Is The Right Time 2:40
319 Otis Redding - Security 2:37
320 Oscar Mack - Dream Girl 3:01
321 Dorothy Williams - Closer To My Baby 2:28
322 Carla Thomas - I've Got No Time To Lose 3:01
323 The Drapels - Young Man 2:35
324 Booker T & The MG's - Soul Dressing 3:00
325 Wendy Rene - After Laughter (Comes Tears) 3:02
326 Ivory Joe Hunter - Can't Explain How It Happened 2:44
327 The Mar-Keys - Bush Bash 2:32
328 The Fleets - Please Return To Me 2:35

VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 3 (ogg   131mb)

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VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 4 (flac   277mb)

401 Rufus Thomas - Jump Back 2:22
402 Otis Redding - Chained And Bound 2:41
403 Barbara & The Browns - In My Heart 2:52
404 Johnny Jenkins - Spunky 2:21
405 Wendy Rene - Bar B-Q 2:32
406 The Mad Lads -The Sidewalk Surf 2:24
407 Booker T & The MG's - Can't Be Still 2:02
408 Carla Thomas - A Woman's Love 2:56
409 Baracudas - Yank Me (Doodle) 2:28
410 Otis Redding - That's How Strong My Love Is 2:24
411 Otis Redding - Mr Pitiful 2:43
412 Del-Rays - Don't Let Her Be Your Baby 2:37
413 David Porter - Can't See You When I Want To 2:55
414 Barbara & The Browns - My Lover 2:23
415 The Admirals - Got You On My Mind 2:38
416 Carla Thomas - How Do You Quit (Someone You Love) 2:55
417 Gorgeous George - Biggest Fool In Town 2:48
418 The Mar-Keys - Banana Juice 2:25
419 Rufus Thomas - Little Sally Walker 2:29
420 Sam & Dave - A Place Nobody Can Find 2:57
421 Sam & Dave - Goodnight Baby 2:48
422 Booker T & The MG's - Boot-Leg 2:06
423 Booker T & The MG's - Outrage 2:38
424 Otis Redding - I've Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now) 2:55
425 Otis Redding - I'm Depending On You 2:30
426 The Astors - Candy 3:02
427 Wendy Rene - Give You What I Got 2:49

VA - The Complete Stax-Volt Singles, Vol. 4 (ogg   123mb)

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RhoDeo 1848 Roots

Hello, .

Today's artists is a Cuban musician, composer and bandleader. He played the tres, as well as the tumbadora, and he specialized in son, rumba and other Afro-Cuban music styles. In the 1940s and 1950s Rodríguez established the conjunto format and contributed to the development the son montuno, the basic template of modern-day salsa. He claimed to be the true creator of the mambo and was an important as well as a prolific composer who wrote nearly two hundred songs.

Despite being blind since the age of seven, Rodríguez quickly managed to become one of Cuba's foremost treseros. Nonetheless his first hit, "Bruca maniguá" by Orquesta Casino de la Playa, came as a songwriter in 1937. For the following two years, Rodríguez worked as composer and guest guitarist for the Casino de la Playa, before forming his conjunto in 1940, one of the first of its kind. After recording over a hundred songs for RCA Victor over the course of twelve years, Rodríguez moved to New York in 1952, where he remained active, releasing several albums...   ......N'Joy

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 Arsenio Rodríguez, one of the most important figures in the history of Cuban music, was a prolific composer (he penned close to 200 songs), tresero, percussionist, and bandleader whose innovations changed the face of Latin dance music and paved the way for what would eventually become known as salsa. He is considered the father of the conjunto, an instrumental format that was revolutionary for its time because it introduced the conga drum, which had previously been considered taboo because of its African origin. His compositions, many of which became standards of the Cuban and New York salsa repertoires, frequently emphasized Afro-Cuban, particularly Congolese, elements in their subject matter.

A descendent of Congolese slaves, Rodríguez was born on August 31, 1911, in Guira de Macurije in Cuba's western province, Mantanzas. At age seven Rodríguez was blinded by a horse's kick; he would later become know as "El Ciego Maravilloso" (The Marvelous Blind One). As a child, he began playing a variety of instruments, including Afro-Cuban drums and percussion, bass, and tres, a Cuban six-string guitar that would become his primary instrument. Some important early influences on tres included Nene Malfugas, Isaac Oviedo, and Eliseo Silviera. He began composing in his teens and in the early '30s formed El Sexteto Boston. In 1937 he joined trumpeter José Interain's Septeto Bellamar. 1937 also saw the first recordings of Rodríguez's compositions; Miguelito Valdés sang "Bruca Manigua," "Ven Acá Tomas," and "Fuñfuñando" with Orquesta Casino de la Playa.

During this period, the standard format for playing son was the septeto, consisting of trumpet, guitar, tres, bongos, bass, maracas, and claves, with two or more bandmembers singing. The general trend in the 1930s had been for the son to stray somewhat from its African roots, adopting a more subdued sound. This would all change around 1940 when Rodríguez added conga drum, piano, and a second (and later third) trumpet to the typical son ensemble, giving birth to the conjunto. The conjunto format revolutionized the son with the added drive provided by the conga's deep tone and the trumpet section's power. Around this time, Rodríguez introduced the son montuno, a son with a montuno section featuring improvised vocals (soneos) by the lead singer (sonero) over a repeated chorus; trumpet, tres, and piano solos also occurred frequently. Rodríguez is also credited, along with bandleaders Antonio Arcaño and Pérez Prado, with developing the mambo rhythm during this period. Another key innovation was the band's adaptation of the guaguancó to the dance band/conjunto format. The guaguancó is an Afro-Cuban style traditionally performed by voices and percussion; Rodríguez mixed some of its melodic and formal elements with those of the son. These further "Afro-Cubanizations" of the son are among Rodríguez's most important and lasting contributions. The conjunto format, son montuno, and mambo are three essential elements of what would later be called salsa.

The 1940s were a classic period in Rodríguez's career and the history of the son. Many of his most famous compositions were recorded, including "A Belen Le Toca Ahora," "La Yuca de Catalina," "Juventud Amaliana," and perhaps his most famous work, the bolero "La Vida es un Sueño," which was written after an unsuccessful attempt to restore his sight in 1947. Among his bandmembers during the '40s were several key figures in the development of the son, namely vocalists Miguelito Cuní, Marcelino Guerra, and René Scull, trumpeters Felix Chappotin and Chocolate Armenteros, and pianist Lilí Martínez. This period is represented on several reissue CDs: Montuneando con Arsenio Rodríguez y Su Conjunto (Tumbao), Legendary Sessions: Chano Pozo and Arsenio Rodríguez (Tumbao), Dundunbanza (Tumbao), A Todos los Barrios (RCA), and Oye Como Dice (Cubanacan).

In 1953, Rodríguez moved to New York, leaving his conjunto in Cuba under the leadership of trumpeter Chappotin, who would become a legend in his own right. Compositions such as "La Gente del Bronx" and "Como se Goza en el Barrio" (both available on the Tumbao CD named after the latter) continued to reflect his gift for writing about his everyday surroundings. His popularity in New York, while strong, would never match what it had been in Cuba. The mid-'50s saw the release of a strong album, Sabroso y Caliente (reissued on CD on Antilla), which added flute and timbales to the conjunto setup. "El Ciego Maravilloso" would continue to experiment with different instrumentations for the rest of his career, at times adding one or more saxophones to his band.

Primitivo
In the late '50s, Rodríguez recorded Primitivo and appeared, under the leadership of conguero Sabu Martinez, on the Blue Note release Palo Congo, which featured his brothers and conjunto sidemen Quique and Caesar Rodríguez. This album includes chants from Palo Congo, an Afro-Cuban religion of Congolese origin. In the early '60s, Rodríguez recorded Quindembo/AfroMagic (Epic), an innovative experimental album on which he wrote and sang on all the tracks. Rodríguez called this style, which blends jazz influences with son and more earthy Afro-Cuban religious elements, "Quindembo," a Congolese word meaning a mixture of many things. Around this time he also recorded two very strong albums in the conjunto style, Arsenio Rodríguez y Su Conjunto, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. In his final years he continued to experiment, developing a style he called "swing son." The last album Rodríguez recorded was Arsenio Dice, a 1968 Tico release. On December 30, 1970, "El Ciego Maravilloso" died of pneumonia in Los Angeles. As a composer, performer, and musical experimenter, Rodríguez was one of the undoubted giants of Cuban music. In the United States, he was a decisive influence in the '60s and '70s tipico movement, and his experimentation pointed to way to some of the developments made by the more adventurous architects of salsa, such as Willie Colón. His legacy is recognized on several tribute albums, including Larry Harlow's Tribute to Arsenio Rodríguez and Tico's all-star Recordando a Arsenio.

Arsenio Rodríguez's recorded material can be divided into two eras. The first era comprises all songs recorded in Havana between 1940 and 1956, which were released as 78 rpm (and also 45 rpm) singles by Victor/RCA Victor. All these tracks except one ("Me quedé sin ti", 23-7000 B) were re-released as a 6-CD boxset in 2008 by the Spanish record label Tumbao Cuban Classics, which had also issued several compilations of this material in the 1990s. The second era comprises all recordings made by Rodríguez in New York between 1950 and 1970, the year of his death.

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This new six-disc boxed set by the Cuban bandleader and guitarist Arsenio Rodríguez, is a G.T.O.: a Great Thing, Objectively. First, it gets the stuff out there, collecting in one place nearly every scrap of music Rodríguez made for RCA Victor between 1940 to 1956, before he left Cuba for good (for New York and Los Angeles). His music has not previously been so well documented, in a large-canvas, year-by-year sense, and RCA has been a poor custodian of it.

The appearance of Arsenio Rodríguez's ensemble in 1940 created a style that, because of its instrumental set-up and Arsenio's conception of harmony and rhythm, would change forever the path of popular Afro-Cuban music. Arsenio's deep knowledge of African culture and folklore, and the addition of a second trumpet, a piano and a tumbadora to the classic septet, converged in a new style of son, which became known as the son montuno. Later, Arsenio would adapt the traditional guaguancó to his son montuno, creating a new style of guaguancós, uniquely and characteristically his, that the dancers in the most humble quarters of La Habana soon made their own. This 6-CD collection (3 double digipacks) gathers, for the first time ever, all his recordings for RCA Victor (1940-1956). It also includes two booklets with photos, history, discography and anecdotes. The first one, written by the musicologist David Garcia, is a fine review of the life and works of "El Mago del Tres." The second one was written by Jordi Pujol, producer of this project. It includes a comprehensive discography of Arsenio's ensemble, and recounts some interesting anecdotes about the musicians and singers that were part of the group until 1956. We hope this project will help immortalize and spread the musical works of Arsenio Rodríguez, "El Alma de Cuba." -- "Featuring: Miguelito Cuní, "Lilí" Martínez, Felix Chappotín, "Chocolate" Alfonso, René Scull, Rubén González, "Papa Kila."

  Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 1 ( flac  278mb)

101 El Pirulero No Vuelve Mas (3:17)
102 Yo 'Ta Namorá (3:19)
103 Corazón De Hielo (3:37)
104 Yo Tuve La Culpa (3:34)
105 No Hace Na' La Mujer (3:21)
106 Todos Seguimos La Conga (3:29)
107 Sediento De Amor (3:42)
108 Como Traigo La Yuca (3:40)
109 Con Un Solo Pie (3:08)
110 Intranquilidad (3:18)
111 Sin Tu Querer (3:14)
112 Sandunguera (3:01)
113 ¡So Caballo! (3:21)
114 Triste Lucha (3:10)
115 Ñaña Seré (3:05)
116 A Buscar Camarón (3:09)
117 Pilla Con Pilla (3:10)
118 Oye Como Dice (3:07)
119.Camina A Trabaja, Haragán (3:12)
120 ¿Quien Sera Mi Amor? (3:17)
121 Quien Ama No Traiciona (2:47)
122 Mi Chinita Me Boto (3:09)
123 Oye Mi Consejo (3:13)
124 Estas Equivocada (3:25)

 Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 1 (ogg    120mb)

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Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 2    (flac  327mb)

201 Mujeres, Enamórenme (Guaracha) (2:45)
202 Yo No Como Corazón De Chivo (Guaracha Son) (2:55)
203 Tu No Eres Culpable (Bolero) (3:16)
204 Mi Guane (Guajira) (3:20)
205 Nadie Mas Que Tu (Bolero Son) (3:04)
206 Timbilla (Rumba De Cajón) (3:02)
207 Agonía (Bolero) (3:17)
208 Yeyey (Pregón) (2:59)
209 Deuda (Bolero) (3:16)
210 No Hay Yaya Sin Guayacán (Son Montuno) (2:59)
211 Ya Lo Veras (Bolero) (3:19)
212 Canta, Montero (Guajira Son) (3:22)
213 Inspiración (Bolero) (3:06)
214 El Ultimo Amor (Bolero) (2:54)
215 Chicharronero (Son) (3:04)
216 Una Experiencia Mas (Bolero) (3:12)
217 Dame Un Cachito Pa Huele (Son Montuno) (2:49)
2218 El Reloj De Pastora (Son) (3:01)
219 Cero Guapos En Yateras (Son) (3:11)
220 Cangrejo Fue A Estudiar (Son) (3:00)
221 Tengo Que Olvidarte (Bolero Son) (3:14)
222 Celos De Mujer (Guaracha) (3:05)
223 Juventud Amaliana (Guaguancó) (3:16)
224 Semilla De Caña Brava (Guaracha) (3:11)
225 ¿Por Que La Trajiste? (Bolero Son) (3:21)

Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 2   (ogg  137mb)

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Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 3 (flac  297mb)

301 Mi Convicción (Bolero Son) (3:22)
302 Adivínalo (Guaracha) (3:11)
303 Soy El Terror (Son) (3:22)
304 Lo Dicen Todas (Guaracha) (3:13)
305 La Vida Es Un Sueno (Bolero) (3:31)
306 El Tabernero (Bolero) (3:14)
307 El Cerro Tiene La Llave (Guaracha) (3:17)
308 Te Esperaré (Bolero Son) (3:21)
309 No Vuelvo A Morón (Son Montuno) (3:16)
310 Esa China Tiene Coimbre (Son Montuno) (2:36)
311 Soy Tu Destino (Bolero) (2:54)
312 Sacando Candela (Guaracha) (3:14)
313 A Puerto Rico (Bolero) (3:08)
314 No Toque El Guao (Son Montuno) (3:04)
315 Me Siento Muy Solo (Bolero) (3:05)
316 A Belén Le Toca Ahora (Guaguancó) (3:07)
317 Los Tres Juanito (Bolero) (3:20)
318 Luna Al Amanecer (Bolero) (2:48)
319 Dame Un Besito (Son Montuno) (2:51)
320 Orgullo Inútil (Bolero) (3:04)
321 Lo Que Dice Usted (Son Montuno) (2:23)
322 No Me Llores Mas (Son Montuno) (3:18)
323 En Su Partir (Bolero) (2:56)
324 Pueblo Nuevo Se Paso (Guaguancó) (3:15)
325 Feliz Viaje (Bolero) (2:44)

 Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 3  (ogg  138mb)

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 Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 4 ( flac  283mb)

401 Llévatelo Todo (Son Montuno) (3:22)
402 Mírame Mas (Bolero) (3:02)
403 Flor Del Fango (Bolero) (3:14)
404 Que Cosas Tendrán Las Mujeres (Son Montuno) (3:11)
405 Me Bote De Guano (Montuno) (3:18)
406 Es Mejor Olvidarte (Bolero) (3:32)
407 El Palo Tiene Curujey (Son Montuno) (3:06)
408 Finaliza Un Amor (Bolero) (3:01)
409 Los Sitios Aceré (Guaguancó) (3:17)
410 Sagrado Amor (Bolero) (3:00)
411 Flor De Canela (Bolero) (3:17)
412 Dundunbanza (Son Montuno) (2:38)
413 Pero Yo No Sé (Bolero) (3:21)
414 Juventud De Colon (Guaguancó) (2:59)
415 Por Tu Bien (Bolero) (3:09)
416 No Puedo Comer Vistagacha (Guaracha) (2:55)
417 Kila, Quiqui Y Chocolate (Son Montuno) (2:46)
418 Vuelvo A La Vida (Bolero) (2:56)
419 El Rumbón De Luyano (Guaguancó) (3:20)
420 Recuerda Aquella Noche (Bolero) (3:19)
421 El Rincón Caliente (Son Montuno) (3:24)
422 ¡Que Susto! (Bolero) (3:15)
423 La Sandunga Del Son (Son) (3:15)
424 Con Reciprocidad (Bolero) (2:44)

  Arsenio Rodríguez & Su Conjunto - El Alma De Cuba 4 (ogg   115mb)

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RhoDeo 1848 Aetix

Hello,


Today's artists are a French cold wave group, formed in Denain, near Lille, France in 1980 by brothers Philippe and Hervé Lomprez. They are mainly active during the 1980s and 1990s.....N'Joy

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Centered around brothers Philippe and Hervé Lomprez, Trisomie 21 (often abbreviated to T21) are a French cold wave group who have endured since the early '80s, spanning styles such as brooding, experimental post-punk as well as a more danceable synth pop sound. The band formed in 1981, taking their name from trisomy 21, the medical term for the extra chromosome that causes Down syndrome. The two Lomprez brothers were initially joined by keyboard player Jean-Michel Matuszak (who also served as their manager) and bassist Pascal Tison, and their music was influenced by dark post-punk acts like Joy Division and the Cure as well as the experimentation of the Residents and Yello. Belgian label Stechak released T21's debut mini-album, Le Repos des Enfants Heureux, in 1983. Bassist Laurent Dagnicourt replaced Tison for the group's 1984 full-length Passions Divisées. Emphasizing the band's rhythm section while keeping their keyboard-heavy experimentation intact, the album included the haunting "La Fête Triste," which would emerge as one of their signature tunes.


Following two successful concerts in Belgium, T21 signed to Brussels-based industrial/goth label Play It Again Sam, greatly increasing their visibility. The 1985 EP Wait & Dance was issued by PIAS' short-lived Scarface imprint, followed by the 1986 full-length Chapter IV: Le Je-Ne-Sais-Quoi et le Presque Rien, which contained the group's biggest hit, "The Last Song." A re-recorded, remixed version of the album appeared in 1987, as did the full-length Million Lights, which appeared on PIAS proper following the Scarface sublabel's closure. The album was created solely by the Lomprez brothers, without a bass player, and was significantly more electronic than their past material. Arriving in 1988, Works marked the debut of guitarist Bruno Objoie, who also contributed to the more atmospheric Plays the Pictures (1989) and live album Raw Material (1990).


The 1992 full-length Distant Voices, which featured Tuxedomoon violinist Blaine Reininger and backing vocalist Lena Kane, found the group experimenting with jazz, pop, and cinematic textures, resulting in some of their strangest yet most accessible work. However, disputes with their label would delay their next album by several years. Following the release of three compilation CDs, 1987's ambient-influenced Gohohako would be T21's final album for PIAS.

The group went on hiatus for a while, but returned in 2003, when they were asked to remix the song "Le Grand Secret" by French pop/rock band Indochine. The comeback album Happy Mystery Child was released by Le Maquis in 2004, followed by a series of remix albums featuring producers from throughout the techno, electro, and EBM scenes. In 2007, the Belgian label Alfa Matrix released T21's live album Rendez-Vous en France, some copies of which included a CD of early rarities and demos. The group's final release on Le Maquis, 2009's Black Label, was one of their heavier, more driving releases.

The group embarked on what they assumed would be their final tour, playing one last gig in Brussels. However, the Lomprez brothers secretly returned to the studio in 2017, with early member Tison contributing to some of the sessions. The full-length Elegance Never Dies was released by the group's own Chromo Music Production by the end of the year, and the group toured throughout Europe in support of the album. Additionally, the American label Dark Entries released Chapter I-IV, a vinyl box set containing expanded editions of T21's first four records, which were also reissued individually. The group also released a three-CD box set of early material titled Originally in 2018.


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"Passions divisées" is a really interesting coldwave record. The Lomprez brothers apply their maximalist approach to minimal wave which results in fairly rich sound, with interesting drum patterns and synth arrangements. However, these 'brooding' attempts at gothic vocal delivery is really unfitting and even irritating at times. Unfortunately, this really takes away from the excellent composition. That said on Is Anybody Home ? Trisomie 21 created a track where vocals don't suck; they even made them fucking amazing.

Even though by 1983 the new-wave movement (and all it's subsidiaries) was a bit long in the tooth, Trisomie 21 delivered a charming EP with gusto and finesse. It contained ghostly waltzes ("Il Se Noie"), bass-laden (faux Western?) wave-themes with an abundance of sound-effects ("There Is Something Strange Tonight"), elegant -almost spectral- catatonic dark-wave ("Logical Animals"), plus wave serenades with fragmented arrangements - leading to a  spectacular display of ectoplasmic fireworks ("Coming From Darkness"). So the record ends and once the silence is back, one gets the impression that the Trisomies 21 could not have started their musical journey better.  In the future would be followed by many other jobs, but Le Repos des Enfants Heureux, is, and remains in effect still today, one of the leaders of their great and unfortunately too ignored career.

Trisomie 21 - The First Songs (flac  354mb)

Passions Divisées
01 See The Devil In Me 6:25
02 Relapse 6:50
03 Djakarta 3:50
04 Moving By You 1:50
05 Is Anybody Home ? (Part 1) 3:40
06 La Fête Triste 6:35
07 No Way 4:10
08 Love For A Life 5:20
Le Repos Des Enfants Heureux
09 Il Se Noie 4:25
10 There's Something Strange Tonight 4:45
11 Logical Animals 5:10
12 Coming From The Darkness 6:30
13 Breaking Down 4:20

Trisomie 21 - The First Songs  (ogg   154mb)

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For their fourth album the Lomprez brothers spent September and October of 1985 recording nine new compositions. In January 1986 Chapter IV, Le Je-ne-sais quoi et le presque-rien was released by PIAS sub-label Scarface. The title came from a 1957 book by French philosopher and musicologist Vladimir Jankélévitch. The songs on the album, including the emblematic The Last Song , were captivating, original and without concession. This record further opened the door to new opportunities, and the band's music spread further internationally. Sadly some of the songs had phase related problems and caused partial cancelation playing back monophonically, so the band remixed and re-recorded the songs and reissued them on CD only in 1987. Added here the remixes/re-recordings as bonus tracks. All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. . The album gives a so-strange feeling to the songs, the structures are unpredictable, the beats are syncoped, yet it is very emotional and powerful.

 Trisomie 21 - Chapter IV and Wait and Dance Remixes (flac  316mb)

01 The Last Song (Re-Recorded) 4:36
02 There's No Trouble There (Remixed) 4:42
03 Memories (Re-Recorded) 4:35
04 Pleasure (Remixed) 3:43
05 The Cave And The Light (Remixed) 2:18
06 Night Fly (Remixed + New Edit) 4:47
07 Is Anybody Home (Part 2) (Remixed + New Edit) 5:10
08 Is Anybody Home (Part 3) (Remixed) 2:52
09 Your Dream (Remixed) 4:10
10 Waiting For (Remixed + New Vocals) 3:35
11 Crying Wolf (Remixed) 3:59
12 Relapse II (Remixed) 3:19
13 Shadow Of Time (Remixed) 3:44
14 Son Of Time (Remixed + Some New Instruments) 3:21

Trisomie 21 - Chapter IV and Wait and Dance Remixes  (ogg   135mb)

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This is where Trisomie 21 became more solid. Their first records were great post-punk, great dark electro in a more naive way. With Million Lights, their musical and production skills shift up a good bit. But that's not good at all, at least in my book. Their unpredictable side and their musical limitations was their charm, IMHO. Since Million Lights, they never recaptured their previous freshness. That said Trisomie 21 do for synth based pop music what the likes of My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive did for guitar based alt-rock. Wonderful, expressive, existential French coldwave with the most beautiful lush atmospheres and textures. Perfect for a melancholic walk in the park.

Trisomie 21 - Million Lights (flac  255mb)

01 The Hazy Ridge 2:15
02 Sunken Lives 4:40
03 There's A Strange Way This Morning? 5:25
04 Sharing Sensation 5:00
05 The Rickshaw 6:00
06 The Fairylike Show 4:18
07 Some Twenty One Miles From The Coast 5:30
08 Magnified Section Of Dreams 2:00
09 The Clencher 4:54
10 Million Lights 6:30

Trisomie 21 - Million Lights   (ogg  100mb)

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RhoDeo 1848 Supernatural 8

Hello, in accordance with these autumnal days when the light is fading, the supernatural manifest and us humans start to shiverrrr


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Montague Rhodes James OM FBA (1 August 1862 – 12 June 1936), who published under the name M. R. James, was an English author, medievalist scholar and provost of King's College, Cambridge (1905–18), and of Eton College (1918–36). He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge (1913–15).

Though James's work as a medievalist is still highly regarded, he is best remembered for his ghost stories, which are regarded as among the best in the genre. James redefined the ghost story for the new century by abandoning many of the formal Gothic clichés of his predecessors and using more realistic contemporary settings. However, James's protagonists and plots tend to reflect his own antiquarian interests. Accordingly, he is known as the originator of the "antiquarian ghost story".. . ...... N Joy

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Stephen Sheridan's drama has the master of the ghost story M.R. James describing an incident in his life 'far more substantial than a work of fiction.' James is taking a break at a remote house in Cornwall. But the owner is keeping a lamp burning all night and is obviously terrified. The moral of the tale was that we should be careful how we acquire secondhand books. (I know about this - they breed).

M.R.James, Provost of King's College Cambridge explains to a Christmas gathering of friends and undergraduates how he first became interested in the supernatural. He tells the tale of an ancient cabalistic text that dooms the family and associates of a Cornish bibliophile. With John Rowe, Jonathan Keeble, Charles Simpson, David Collings, John Eitts, Jean Trend, James Durrant, Alex Hutchinson and Trevor Nichols. Director David Blount.

The book in the story was a sixteenth-century tome called De Regni Umbrorum, or The Kingdom of Shadows, of which only one copy existed, and which was said to invoke the Devil.

A tale of the supernatural by Stephen Sheridan.

Cast:

John Rowe as MR James,
Jonathan Keeble as Young James
Charles Simpson as Henry Gilbert
David Collings as Dr De Lacey.
supported by
John Eitts, Jean Trend, James Durrant, Alex Hutchinson and Trevor Nichols

Director: David Blount
Studio Manager: Roy Fraser


Stephen Sheridan - The House at Worlds End   ( 44min mp3  30mb)

"M.R.James, Provost of King's College Cambridge explains to a Christmas gathering of friends and undergraduates how he first became interested in the supernatural. He tells the tale of an ancient cabalistic text that dooms the family and associates of a Cornish bibliophile. What terrible secret lies hidden in the library at Cranleigh Hall, and why is old Uncle Magnus so afraid of the night?.

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previously

Robert Westall - The Stones of Muncaster Cathedral ( 87min mp3  60mb)
Robert Westall - The Wheatstone Pond ( 60min mp3  39mb)
Victor Pemberton - Dark. ( 86min mp3  60mb)
Scott Cherry - The Book of Shadows ( 78min mp3  60mb)
Koji Suzuki - The Ring ( 78min mp3  60mb)
Wilkie Collins - The Haunted Hotel ( 60min mp3  38mb)
JCW Brook - Jonas ( 60min mp3  60mb)

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RhoDeo 1848 Re-Up 166

Hello, hardly surprising after last weeks lull in requests this week would see plenty. On a side note i got 2 requests for pages re-upped 3 months earlier. I'm sorry usually, there haven't been uploads the month before and that happens because, let's face it, this blog is extensive and the chance of dropping in on a random page is small and the number of my visitors limited hence pages get overseen for more than a month which is dropping time for many free hosts and thus no more downloads .



11 correct requests for this week, 1 outstanding , whatever another batch of 43 re-ups (12.5 gig)


These days i'm making an effort to re-up, it will satisfy a smaller number of people which means its likely the update will  expire relatively quickly again as its interest that keeps it live. Nevertheless here's your chance ... asks for re-up in the comments section at the page where the expired link resides, or it will be discarded by me. ....requests are satisfied on a first come first go basis. ...updates will be posted here remember to request from the page where the link died! To keep re-ups interesting to my regular visitors i will only re-up files that are at least 12 months old (the older the better as far as i am concerned), and please check the previous update request if it's less then a year old i won't re-up either.

Looka here , requests fulfilled up to December 1st... N'Joy

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6x Sweden NOW In Flac (Adam Beyer - Ignition key, Lucky People Center - Interspecies Communication , Garmarna - Vedergallningen,  DK7 - Disarmed, Twice A Man - Music For Girls, Stina Nordenstam - This Is )


3x Sundaze Back In Flac (Quantum Leap - Fotoplay, Quantum Leap - Redsun, Quantum Leap - Passion)


3x Sundaze Back in Flac (Harmonia - Musik Von Harmonia, Harmonia - Deluxe,  Eno-Moebius-Roedelius - After The Heat )


5x Sundaze NOW In Flac (Michael Rother- Flammende Herzen,  Phantom Band - I, Phantom Band - Freedom Of Speech, Czukay, Wobble, Liebezeit - Full Circle, Jah Wobble's Solaris - Live In Concert )


3x Beats NOW in Flac (808 State - Utd. State 90, The KLF - The White Room, VA - Ambient House)


4x Grooves Back In Flac (The Neville Brothers - Treacherous, The Neville Brothers - Treacherous 2, The Neville Brothers - Treacherous Too !, The Neville Brothers - Live at Tipitina's)


3x Sundaze Back in Flac (Angelo Badalamenti - OST Wicker Man, Angelo Badalamenti - OST Very Long Engagement, David Lynch - The Air Is On Fire, Badalamenti & Lynch Archive part 7)


4x Sundaze Back in Flac (VA - Space Night Vol. 05 alpha, VA - Space Night Vol. 05 beta, VA - Space Night Vol. 06 alpha, VA - Space Night Vol. 06 beta)

3x Grooves NOW in Flac (Complete Billie Holiday Lester Young 1, Complete Billie Holiday Lester Young 2+3, Billie Holiday - Stay With Me)


3x Grooves   Back in Flac (Booker T. & The MG's - Soul Limbo, Booker T. & The MG's - Uptight , Booker T. & The MG's - McLemore Avenue )


5x Aetix Back in Flac (Marc Almond ‎- Mother Fist And Her Five Daugthers, Marc Almond - The Stars We Are, Marc Almond - Jacques, Marc Almond - Enchanted, Soft Cell - Science Fiction Stories)

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.

Sundaze 1848

Hello, ok somehow i didn't get round posting work of today's artist earlier, the reason is simple with µ he drops to the absolute bottom, so my scrolling rarely reaches that deep. Then there is the schitzo nature of the artist releasing music under a great many alter ego's, what to post ? Luckily he has a main alter ego that's closest to his spirit. We'll be concentrating on that clever/not so clever µ-Ziq one the coming weeks.


Today's Artist  is better known by his stage name μ-Ziq (pronounced "mu-sic" or mew-zeek), an English electronic musician from Wimbledon, London. He is one of the pioneering IDM electronic music acts during the 90's, alongside Aphex Twin, Autechre, and The Orb. He is also the founder of the record label Planet Mu. .......N'Joy

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One of the premier names in the field of electronic home-listening music, Mike Paradinas' recordings retain the abrasive flavor of early techno pioneers and explore the periphery of experimental electronica even while coddling to his unusual ear for melody, the occasional piece of vintage synthesizer gear, and distorted beatbox rhythms. While his side projects -- including Diesel M, Jake Slazenger, Gary Moscheles, Kid Spatula, and Tusken Raiders -- have often emphasized (or satirized) his debts to jazz, funk, and electro, Paradinas reserves his most original and exciting work for major album releases as µ-Ziq. Early µ-Ziq LPs were based around the most ear-splitting buzz-saw percussion ever heard (in a musical environment or otherwise), with fast-moving though deceptively fragile synthesizer melodies running over the top. As Paradinas began weaving his various influences into a convincing whole, his work became more fully developed, a fluid blend of breakbeat hip-hop and drum'n'bass with industrial effects and the same brittle melodies from his earlier work. Later works have reflected his interest in other forward-thinking electronic styles such Chicago's juke/footwork scene, while also looking back to his formative influences such as the British rave scene and Detroit techno.

Born in Wimbledon (though he grew up in several other spots around London), Paradinas began playing keyboards during the early '80s and listened to new wave bands like Human League and New Order. He joined a few bands in the mid-'80s, then spent eight years on keyboards for the group Blue Innocence. During that time, however, Paradinas had been recording on his own as well with synthesizers and a four-track recorder. When Blue Innocence disintegrated in 1992, he and bass player Francis Naughton bought sequencing software and re-recorded some of Paradinas' old material. After the material was played for Mark Pritchard and Tom Middleton -- the duo behind Global Communication and Reload as well as being the heads of Evolution Records -- they wanted to release it; recording commitments later forced Pritchard and Middleton to withdraw their agreement, though by that time Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin) had also heard the tracks and agreed to release a double album for his label, Rephlex Records.

The debut album for µ-Ziq (paraphrased from the side of a blank tape and pronounced "mew-zeek") was 1993's Tango n' Vectif. The LP set the template for most of Paradinas' later work, with at times shattering metal-cage percussion underpinning a collection of rather beautiful melodies. The Rephlex label was just beginning to flourish, with added journalistic attention paid to Aphex Twin's recent Selected Ambient Works 85-92, and though James began to feature less in label doings than co-founder Grant Wilson Claridge, later Rephlex work by Cylob, Luke Vibert (aka Wagon Christ), Seefeel, and Squarepusher made it among the cream of electronic home-listening labels.

When Naughton began taking college more seriously (something Paradinas had attempted briefly, from 1990 through 1992), he officially bowed out of µ-Ziq. Second album Bluff Limbo was scheduled to be released in mid-1994, though only 1,000 copies made it out of the gate. (It was officially issued by Rephlex in 1996 after Paradinas served papers on the label.) Paradinas' first major-label release came later in 1994, after he undertook a remix project for Virgin Records. The EP µ-Ziq vs. the Auteurs was one of the most high-profile examples of the remix-by-obliteration movement, a burgeoning hobby for many electronica producers in which the reworking of a pop song would bear no resemblance to -- or trace of -- the original.

Though the EP was hardly a prime mover in the sales category, Virgin signed Paradinas to a hefty contract and gave him his own Planet Mu sublabel to release his own work as well as develop similar-minded artists. Written into his own contract was a provision for unlimited recording under different names, and during 1995 Paradinas definitely took it to task: he unveiled three aliases and released as many albums in less than a year's time. The nu-skool electro label Clear released his debut single as Tusken Raiders early in the year; it mined the fascination with Star Wars and electro music shared by producers like Global Communication, Aphex Twin, and James Lavelle, head of Mo' Wax Records. Clear also released the first Paradinas alias full-length, Jake Slazenger's MakesARacket, later in 1995. Although they were still audible, the LP downplayed his electro influences in favor of some rather cheesy synthesizer figures and a previously unheard debt to jazz-funk.

The distortion reappeared on Paradinas' second LP of the year, Spatula Freak by Kid Spatula. The first American-only release of a Paradinas album (it appeared on Jonah Sharp's San Francisco-based Reflective Records), its sound had the metallic feel of the first two µ-Ziq LPs but with a less-dense production job. Just one month after Spatula Freak, Paradinas released his first proper µ-Ziq LP for a major label, In Pine Effect. The album included tracks recorded from 1993 to 1995, and though it was quite a varied album, the distance appeared to give it quite a disjointed feel.

Paradinas spent 1996 releasing a second Jake Slazenger album (Das Ist Groovy Beat Ja? for Warp) and his first as Gary Moscheles (Shaped to Make Your Life Easier for Belgium's SSR/Crammed Discs). Both LPs journeyed further down the queasy-listening route of the first Slazenger record, with departures into '80s-style party funk and surprisingly straight-ahead soul-jazz. He also owned a half-share in the Rephlex-released Expert Knob Twiddlers (credited as Mike & Rich), the fruit of Paradinas' 1994 recordings with the Aphex Twin.

Paradinas entered 1997 ready to undertake the most ambitious style makeover in his career: the fusion of his home-listening techno with the hypertensive rhythms of street-level drum'n'bass. One year earlier, Aphex Twin had released a single of schizophrenic jungle noodlings ("Hangable Auto Bulb"), and Tom Jenkinson's Squarepusher project had provided the first convincing headphone drum'n'bass act. Paradinas waded into the pool with Urmur Bile Trax, Vols. 1-2, a double EP also released as one full-length compact disc. Though the changeover wasn't completely convincing, the next µ-Ziq full-length more than made up for expectations. Lunatic Harness presented a complete synthesis of the many elements in Paradinas' career, from synth-jazz-funk and beatbox electro through to ambient techno and jungle.

Paradinas and µ-Ziq were introduced to many rock fans after he toured America as the support act for Björk. This tour influenced 1999's Royal Astronomy, which focused on acid techno and hip-hop influences. Issued in 2003, Bilious Paths became the first µ-Ziq release to arrive on Paradinas' own Planet Mu label. The dissolution of his relationship inspired his unrelentingly dark 2007 album Duntisbourne Abbots Soulmate Devastation Technique. Paradinas' Planet Mu duties and his Heterotic project with wife Lara Rix-Martin -- whose debut album, Love & Devotion, arrived in early 2013 -- were among the reasons µ-Ziq took a break until the release of the juke-influenced XTEP and rave-inspired full-length Chewed Corners, both of which arrived in 2013. That year's Somerset Avenue Tracks (1992-1995) compilation celebrated µ-Ziq's 20 years of recording, and collected unreleased tracks from the beginning of his career. Rediffusion appeared in 2014, and XTLP, compiling both XTEP and Rediffusion, followed in 2015. Two digital collections of rare or unreleased recordings, RY30 Trax and Aberystwyth Marine, both appeared in 2016. Following in this vein, Challenge Me Foolish, a collection of tracks dating from the late '90s, was released in 2018, this time on CD and vinyl.


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Back in 1993 this was a welcome addition to the electronic world and really got the ball rolling for µ-Ziq. This was instantly hailed as a classic and rightfully so. Some even see it as Mike Paradinas' best album. The time period is pretty representative of where µ-Ziq was in the world of all his other comparing artists. Aphex Twin had only released Selected Ambient Works 85-92 and Squarepusher hadn't started for two more years. So that in itself should say where Tango N' Vectif lies in the spectrum of things. I still think it sounds fresh to this day. Songs are all particularly enjoyable to listen to and have a going on, not to mention the diversity on this album is stunning. From the beauty of Burnt Sienna to the fast pace of µ-Ziq Theme to the crazy sound of Caesium to the inviting metal sounds that are later accompanied by beautiful keyboard playing in Phi* 1700 (u/v). Really, this album has it all. It's definitely one to explore and give a lot of time to, but it's definitely worth it to unlock all the goodies Tango N' Vectif has to offer.

µ-Ziq - Tango N' Vectif (flac  417mb)

01 Tango N' Vectif 4:10
02 Swan Vesta 6:09
03 Burnt Sienna 8:06
04 Iesope 5:56
05 µ-Ziq Theme 4:36
06 Auqeam 3:58
07 Vibes 3:54
08 Ad Misericordiam 3:29
09 Beatnik #2 5:36
10 Die Zweite Heimat 5:31
11 The Sonic Fox 5:33
12 Caesium 5:39
13 Phi*1700 [u/v] 8:10

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µ-Ziq - Tango N' Vectif 2 (flac  433mb)

14 4 Time Egg 5:51
15 Phragmal Synthesis Pt. 1 5:32
16 Phragmal Synthesis Pt. 2 6:04
17 Phragmal Synthesis Pt. 3 4:51
18 Xenith Filigree Anus 7:45
19 Whale Soup 3:21
20 Amenida 2 5:34
21 Paco 4:03
22 Crosstown Traffic 6:04
23 Xolbe 2 7:14
24 Driving Is Easy 5:01
25 Methyl Albion 3:35
26 Glink 7:21

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Historically interesting from the standpoint of µ-Ziq's later work, shades of Jake Slazenger and Kid Spatula can be heard on Bluff Limbo. This is a cutting release even to the present date. Not a single sour track. Of course some songs are better than others. But don't let that deter you from checking this out since it holds a ton of strong material that I can't complain about. Gob Bots should be heard by everybody, I can't begin to tell the countless times I've blasted that song while cruising around at night. The Wheel is so chill, so so chill. Metal Thing #3 is truly embraceable underneath that metallic exterior. Every new element added in Zombies changes the entire dynamics of the song; it's so ace. And Riostand? Man, Riostand has to be my favorite on all of Bluff Limbo. Those enticing melodies that build it up and form the song along with the brilliant percussion, the unique emotion that is present throughout... like the undertaking of man's journey condensed into 6 minutes. It's exhilarating at times. Ethereal Murmurings is an introspective journey through peaceful and emotional soundwaves and a beautiful way to end the album.

µ-Ziq - Bluff Limbo  (flac 563mb)

01 Hector's House 4:26
02 Commemorative Pasta 4:37
03 Gob Bots 4:50
04 The Wheel 6:15
05 27 1:18
06 Metal Thing # 3 5:51
07 Twangle Frent 7:06
08 Make It Funky 4:38
09 Zombies 5:17
10 Riostand 6:18
11 Organic Tomato Yoghurt 3:58
12 Sick porter 5:15
13 Sick Porter 7:38
14 Dance 2 5:46
15 Nettle + Pralines 6:29
16 Ethereal Murmurings 10:20

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In Pine Effect is the most stylistically developed album under the µ-Ziq name to date. Mike Paradinas was riding the peak of creativity sky high and released a fantastic album right here. There is tons of personality etched on In Pine Effect, an organic take meshing the past with the future. It makes me wonder why there's so few ratings for it at this point. Right from the beginning with the jaw dropping Roy Castle (a dedication to the man himself), you are automatically hooked in to the world of µ-Ziq. I think repeated listens is the way to go with this one, because at first a few tracks really stuck out to me, like Roy Castle and Phiesope. Then upon further listens the wondrous melodies and clever design that never gets old starts to pop out. Iced Jem and Pine Effect in general are two of my favorite songs around. This only goes farther to cement µ-Ziq in an even harder encasement of electronic mastery. Styles are changed up every album and In Pine Effect is just another example of that. Who knew pipecleaners could get so damn funky and fresh?

µ-Ziq - In Pine Effect  (flac 459mb)

01 Roy Castle 6:41
02 Within A Sound 6:03
03 Old Fun # 1 7:04
04 Dauphine 6:36
05 Funky Pipecleaner 6:48
06 Iced Gem 6:00
07 Phiesope 6:01
08 Mr. Angry 5:33
09 Melancho 5:18
10 Pine Effect 4:49
11 Problematic 6:10
12 Green Crumble 3:56

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µ-Ziq peeks his head into the U.S. with this first Astralwerks-associated release, and with mixed results. The opening title track showcases ear-splitting atonal keyboard stabs and Kabuki vocal samples that finally give way to Mike Paradinas' trademark of over-distorted drum machines. "Happi" comes next, bouncing sweetly like some reworked Esquivel song with half the compositional value and twice the redundancy. Just as monotonous comes the simplicity and forward-thinking club-dub of "Loam" that, at best, has a good build to it. "Reflectiv" follows, sounding like the closing theme to a high-school-in-space, made-for-TV movie. Light at the end of the tunnel comes in the form of "Leonard," like a red-headed stepchild who surprises the listener with some engaging melodies amidst the crunchy diet of drums. But then something completely unexpected happens -- not since his mesmerizing "On (µ-Ziq Mix)" for Aphex Twin has Paradinas tapped into such brilliance -- this time for his own composition, "Balsa Lightning." Acoustic piano basslines give way to chewing-gum keyboard riffs and soaring counter melodies before a single burst of percussion ever comes through the door, and when it does there's no question that this is one of those "best of the artist" moments -- a great build with a great pay-off -- and it's easily overlooked because the rest of the disc seems to fall so short of the same caliber. A alter ego remix follows in its wake, "Balsa Lightening (Jake Slazenger Mix)," that puts the tempo at half-speed with funkier drums and thematic rock star keyboard solos that reveal his alter ego having a playful time. Simply by association, this is the second best track of the EP. It's hard to know how to rate a recording like this: it's a single diamond surrounded by so much rough. In the case of this release, "Balsa Lightening" only strikes once, but with such a crackle that it just about splits the sky in half. .

µ-Ziq - Salsa with Mesquite   (flac  269mb)

01 Salsa With Mesquite 7:26
02 Happi 6:31
03 Loam 6:08
04 Reflectiv 6:52
05 Leonard 6:05
06 Balsa Lightning 6:49
07 Balsa Lightning (Jake Slazenger Remix) 6:42

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RhoDeo 1847 Grooves

Hello,

Tonight's Artists are an acid jazz and funk group formed in 1990 in Tokyo. the trio quickly emerged as a leading force on the Tokyo underground club scene, making their recorded debut the next year, becoming a cult favorite on club circuits ranging from London to Hamburg to New York City.. . .....N'Joy

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United Future Organization's biography google-translated from their website

In 1990, formed by Naobu Yabe, Rafael Severg and Toshio Matsuura.  Establish the cornerstone of the creation period of club culture in Tokyo.  We will try not only to act as a DJ but also actively and multilayered development.  Since announcing the 1st single in 1991, its momentum spreads globally and 5 original albums are released in 32 countries, winning high trust and appreciation both in Japan and abroad.  In 2002, although Toshio Matsuura withdrew, activities diversified further, and its trend has been drawing attention.  (jun./2005)

1991 - 1st single "I LOVE MY BABY (MY BABY LOVES JAZZ)" announced, chart in English UK music magazine Starting the event "JAZZIN '" in Shibaura's now now  About 11 years in Nishi Azabu moved to Aoyama ~ Shibuya from the 12th year of 2003, and still boasts high popularity and attracting customers for 15 years as a regular event hosted by UFO  )
1992 - 2nd Single "Loud Minority" announced Paul Bradshaw who gets tremendous support and trust among music people all over the world, becoming a topic in the top of the chart with FM RADIO music magazines from around Europe  Awards "planet · jazz · award" of "STRAIGHT NO CHASER" magazine serving as editor in chief

1993 - Togin 'Loud label presided over by Giles ___ Peterson with a contract with a label (now Universal Music) and making a major expansion in the world wide with a hand with the contract with the label "DJ selection"  Home prize "" Best Club Award "double winning, the first album" United Future Organization "decorating the cover of Billboard magazine, will be released in 29 countries worldwide (ex: David Burn of Talking Heads"  In 1993, he selected the same album as "Album Best 10", announced the workshop album "MULTI DIRECTION" that produced the same year, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Nobukazu Takehura, Cool Spoon, Soul Bossa Trio etc.  The album is also a dance chart in the UK 's "NME" magazine that gets a high reputation as a producer  Produce open the Minami-Aoyama "blue" as a resident DJ plays the first chart in as Npi Configuration album

1994 - 2nd album "NO SOUND IS TOO TABOO" announced Former invitation from US prestigious label and Contract NY to New Music · Seminar Participate in major European cities such as UK, France, Germany and Austria  In the same year, participating in a campaign album "RED HOT + COOL" with the message of eradicating AIDS the same year, the same year, "STOLEN MOMENTS" of the same album recorded will be appointed for album titles as well, get a high reputation

 1995 - Single "COSMIC GYPSY" announced Australia, after going through the United States ~ Canada and finishing a tour with the final tour in London In the final London, playing with MINISTRY OF SOUND which is the largest club in Europe at that time Play MILO (ex:  Workshop album "MULTI DIRECTION" which produced many newcomers together with Takemura Yamato, Audio Active and etc. Produced the second volume for the first time in 2 years from the first announcement in 1993 In the same year, video clip  Collection "THE SCENE" announced
 1996 - The single "THE PLANET PLAN" was announced at the coupling with the movie music "MISSION IMPOSSIBLE", the same song is also used for commercials such as Durban (1999) in Japan, Harpy (1998) overseas, Ridge Racer 4 (1999)  Furthermore, a remix board of "LOUD MINORITY" (announced in 1992) was announced in the UK, Japan, and it was used also for the CM of Ford Company in Europe, etc. and got a topic, 3rd album "THE 3rd  PERSPECTIVE "announced

1997 - Announced remix album "SPICY RIMIX" (Carl Craig / JAZZANOVA / DJ DAI / DIMITRI etc. appointed as a remixer) Following the release in Europe and the United States, it has drawn 40 world tours world tour there,  We added a variety of remixes by Fila Brazilia, King Brit, Tanaka Fumiya, Ken Ishii and others including the Jazz Festival (Montreux / NORTH SEA / Montreal etc) and the Glastonbury Rock Festival, and the best record "Now and Then"  Presentation

1998 - Naobi Yabe announced MIX CD "CITY LIGHTS" Participated in opening ABSOLUT VODKA's website, which is responsible for music supervision with DJ SPOOKY and COLD CUT at the same time Portable CD player <  LOOPMASTER UFO Model> (PIONEER) produced By this time, collaboration with Simon · Taylor (TOMATO / London), CASIO to present a digital watch of UFO model from CASIO, such as presenting creative talent in various fields beyond music  , Other CASIO mobile personal computer CASSIOPEIA "FIVO" produced a CM song

1999 - 4th album "Bon Voyage" announced Single cut "Flying Saucer (Featuring Dee Dee Bridgewater)" also actively develops as a hit remixer mainly in NY club scene Incognito (Mercury - Japan, Talkin 'Loud -  While working on artists such as Jackson 5 (Motown, Kitty Japan), SNOWBOY (UBIQUITY - San Francisco), Small Circle Of Freinds (Kitty Japan), M - Flo (Avex - Japan), Sagawa Express CM song production  And SEGA DREAM CAST "Space Channel 5" Sound Track remix etc.

2000 - Playing on large scale events such as Spain , Los Angeles , Czech Republic etc. which launches a monthly event in the large club in London also gained popularity.
2001 - Single "Listen Love" is announced (Jeffery Smith is a vocal and it becomes a topic) Also as a remixer - Art Konik (COMET RECORDS, FRANCE), Dzihan and Kamien (Couch Records, Austria), Stratospheric (Internal Bass,  UK), domestic artists AKIKO, Hirai Ken etc remix
2002 - Announcing the long-awaited 5th album 'V (Five)', taking a European tour over Britain, Denmark, Sweden and Germany, who receive high praise at home and abroad NHK hosted, full-scale jazz by Herbie Hancock General Producer  Naohi Yabe appears as the only DJ in the first memorable tournament of the Festival (Urawa International Stadium)

2003 - Participated in the Paris collection of Yohji Yamamoto / Y's, and with this, Porsche Design sponsored party, which will serve as music director for men's / women's show in Florence in Paris, 2005
2004 - Start monthly party at Hong Kong 'kee club' Roppongi Hills 52F Organized Lounge by J - WAVE Award ceremony music award ceremony of the Roofong Hills Poolside party of the awards ceremony of hotel · New Otani

2005 - FM Tokyo 35th Anniversary Party (Takanawa Prince · Hotel) Released "UFO LOUNGE" from Rambling Record At the film festival held in Portugal, he was highly acclaimed to command the cinema concert playing music in silent movies in real time  .  The movie chosen here was Yosunari Kawabata 's first screening in the world and was a "crazy one term" (a work of Taisho in 15 years) that wrote the scenario, at the end of the year, the 15 th anniversary of UFO formation together with DJ KRUSH Tokyo /  Celebrating big in Kyoto / Osaka tour

2006 - Produced "TIGHT" (VOL.14) for the first time from a different genre in popular MIX - CD series of hip - hop series Preliminary invitation from Poland (Warsaw) Omotesando Hills Official sessions organized by VOGUE magazine &  Party "UFOs for REAL" (SCENE 1 - 3) entitled Released all the songs of the past work releasing the best of 3 simultaneous releases

Currently,
Regular party "JAZZIN '" celebrating 15 years as a resident DJ in Japan, SHIBUYA FM (78.4 MH), YOKOHAMA FM SALUS (84.1 MH), FUKUOKA TENJIN FM (77.7 MH) as a regular radio program, weekly on the United Future  Organization presents Rolling around the RADIO "Lush Hour" etc. and other major parties, acting actively, etc., the offer from overseas has been growing year by year, and not only London, but also Milan, Stockholm, Helsinki, Los Angeles,  Make full-fledged overseas activities such as Toronto. I am producing music for Venezuela's high-end rum sake




Pioneers of the Japanese acid-jazz sound, the United Future Organization comprised Tokyo club DJs Tadashi Yabe, Toshio Matsuura and French expatriate Raphael Sebbag. Joining forces in 1990, the trio quickly emerged as a leading force on the Tokyo underground club scene, making their recorded debut the next year with the 12-inch "I Love My Baby (My Baby Loves Jazz); " "Loud Minority/Moon Dance" followed in mid-1992, becoming a cult favorite on club circuits ranging from London to Hamburg to New York City. UFO's debut LP Jazzin' 91-93 appeared that September, the same month the trio made their triumphant British debut at London's Fridge club; an American record deal was not forthcoming until 1994, however, with a self-titled collection appearing on Verve Forecast. No Sound Is Too Taboo followed in 1995, with United Future Organization resurfacing in 1997 with 3rd Perspective. In 2000 the trio returned with the album, Bon Voyage on Instinct.

One of the three original founding members, Toshio Matsuura, left the group in 2002 to work with Universal Japan on a remix album project.

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On UFO's fourth album, the Japanese producers consolidate the world-spanning vision inherent in the title of their previous album, No Sound Is Too Taboo. Most of the styles on 3rd Perspective are French in persuasion, from accordion waltzes to spy-soundtrack grooves. That doesn't make for a bad album, just one which seems to harp on one style when UFO has been known for using the whole world as their palette.

United Future Organization - 3rd Perspective   (flac  329mb)

01 His Name Is... 5:08
02 The Planet Plan 4:26
03 Friends - We'll Be 4:49
04 Spy's Spice (Mon Espionne) 4:51
05 Fool's Paradise 4:55
06 Waltz (Le Serpent Rouge) 4:29
07 Picaresque Eye 5:42
08 Nica's Dream 4:11
09 Cosmic Gypsy 4:07
10 Dice For A Chance 4:44
11 The Moving Shadows 5:01

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The marriage of jazz and electronica has, too often, produced bland and lackadaisical offspring. But the United Future Organization manages to bring together elements of both, along with traces of club music and "rare groove," and create something that is both elegant and rhythmically propulsive, not to mention structurally interesting. Their latest album is an excellent example of what they can do at their best. On "Tres Amigos" Cuban percussion, horns, and piano are goosed along by a thick, bouncy bassline; "Flying Saucer" blends disco rhythm guitar with jazzy horns and a gorgeous vocal courtesy of Dee Dee Bridgewater; "Dans Ce Desert" is a surprisingly funky 6/8 workout with flamenco castanets, electric piano, and French vocals. In less gifted hands, this sort of shameless mix-and-match could dissolve into mere cleverness or self-conscious eclecticism. But these guys keep tight control over their sources and play the various elements off each other so skillfully that the result is an impressively organic and unified whole. Highly recommended.

United Future Organisation - Bon Voyage   (flac  318mb)

01 Flying Saucer 4:40
02 Happy Birthday 4:43
03 Niji 6:37
04 Good Luck Shore 5:27
05 Pilgrims 6:41
06 Dans Ce Desert 5:06
07 Somewhere 6:58
08 Tres Amigos 6:00
09 Labyrinth - Enter At Own Risk 5:12

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United Future Organization - V     (flac  384mb)

01 Intro 0:53
02 Esperanza 7:18
03 Everyday Routine 7:23
04 No Problem 7:36
05 Microcosmo 4:22
06 World Thing 8:02
07 Lunar Enfant 7:22
08 Por Do Sol 5:55
09 Listen Love 8:51
10 Transworld 6:25
11 Suite Espagnole 7:33

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RhoDeo 1847 Roots

Hello, .

Today's artists are a Mexican classical guitar duo whose music is influenced by a number of genres including nuevo flamenco, rock, and heavy metal. The duo's recordings consist largely of instrumental duets on the flamenco guitar. Currently residing in Mexico City, they began their career in Dublin, Ireland, during an eight-year stay. They have released five studio albums, three live albums and one EP..   ......N'Joy

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Rodrigo Sánchez (born 1974) and Gabriela Quintero (born 1973) grew up in middle-class families in Mexico City. Their parents listened to flamenco, jazz, and rock music, but they were both exposed to heavy metal, like Metallica, which proved influential to Rodrigo and Gabriela. Rodrigo and Gabriela met at the age of 15, at 'la casa de la cultura' (House of Culture) in Mexico City, where Rodrigo's brother was the director. Quintero was in a drama class and at the suggestion of his brother, Rodrigo met up with her. She remembers "this 15-year-old boy there, dressed in a black ... with messy hair. Yet he was different to the other metal-heads his age: he seemed very serious and didn't drink or smoke". The two bonded over their interest in music and they soon became a couple.

Before they became the most visible flamenco duo of the early 2000s, guitarists Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero had bonded over heavy metal while growing up in Mexico City. They combined their talents for a time in the metal group Tierra Acida, playing around D.F. in the roughest clubs the city had to offer. Though they recorded some material, Tierra Acida never hit it big, and an album was never released. Instead, Sanchez and Quintero concentrated on learning more guitar styles, teaching lessons during the day and playing bossa novas in hotel bars at night. Bored and frustrated with their chances in the Americas, the two decided to try their luck in Europe instead.

Rodrigo y Gabriela traveled to Dublin, where a friend had offered them a place to stay. The musicians spoke no English, carried little money, and upon their arrival found that their offer of European hospitality had vanished. The pair soon turned toward busking on the streets of Dublin, a move that enhanced their reputation and helped land them several contacts. Among their newfound friends was fellow busker Damien Rice, who soon asked them to accompany him on tour. He also introduced the duo to Niall Muckian, who became their manager. In the first half of 2001 they recorded a 9-track demo called Foc of their own material supplemented by some covers, also featuring an appearance by Zoe Conway.

As interest in the band grew, it was decided to re-record the songs on the demo as re-Foc in 2002 with a number of friends, including Lisa Hannigan who provided vocal stylings and Conway, who by now also was a feature of the live set-up of the duo. The album appeared on Muckian's own Rubyworks Records as he found that "because it is all instrumental, we found it hard to get major-label interest or any radio-play, so I put it out myself". As interest grew, the duo were offered further support-slots, which resulted in an eight-track live-album recorded in Dublin and Manchester, released in 2004

Rodrigo y Gabriela became the newest fixture of the world music circuit, known for their nimble-fingered guitar work and diverse background (few flamenco guitarists could boast a background in metal music). Their third album, Rodrigo y Gabriela, was released in 2006 and debuted atop the Irish charts, beating out Arctic Monkeys for the number one spot. The album was produced by John Leckie, includes covers of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and Metallica's "Orion". The duo lists Metallica as being among their key influences, alongside other heavy metal bands, the other tracks are original works inspired by the places they have been and the people they have met.

The duo had their national American TV debut on Late Show with David Letterman on December 18, 2006, performing "Diablo Rojo". Their song "Tamacun" featured in the pilot episode of AMC's Breaking Bad in January 2008. They continued to tour, making their way through Japan (as evidenced by their second live album, Live in Japan) and America. Their feature on MTV gave them a huge boost in popularity in the United States. This led to a feature on Nightmare Revisited, a tribute album to Danny Elfman's music from Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. The duo performed an instrumental version of "Oogie Boogie's Song."

They released a new album, 11:11, in September, 2009. Alex Skolnick of Testament guests on the album, as do Strunz & Farah. Upon the release of the new album, they received much mainstream American popularity and were the featured music on Monday Night Football on October 12, 2009, as they celebrated Latino Heritage Month. Their song "Santo Domingo" was chosen as the Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week for November 10, 2009.

On January 20, 2011, Rodrigo y Gabriela entered the studio with Hans Zimmer to write and record sessions of the score from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. The soundtrack was released on May 17, 2011, three days before the film's general release.On July 25, 2011, Rodrigo y Gabriela released another live album entitled Live in France, a document from the 11:11 tour that, like the studio album, mixed Rodrigo y Gabriela's dazzling nylon-string guitar chops with electric six-strings for a dueling shredfest.

Since their inception, the pair had always envisioned working in Cuba. They recruited pianist and arranger Alex Wilson to come up with charts for a new set of songs. Wilson and the duo worked out a set of tunes, rhythms, and charts in three days in Mexico City, then Wilson went on to Cuba to hire a band. From June through September, the duo recorded with Wilson and C.U.B.A. (Collective Universal Band Association) in Havana, with producer Peter Asher. A number of special guests joined the proceedings as well, including Anoushka Shankar, flamenco and jazz bass legend Carlos Benavent, former Testament and White Zombie drummer John Tempesta, Le Trio Joubran, and Los Van Van drummer Samuel Formell Alfonso. The resulting album, Area 52, was released in January of 2012, and the duo toured the globe in support. They were the subject of an Alejandro Franco documentary film on their formation and early years entitled For Those About to Rock: The Story of Rodrigo y Gabriela, which debuted at SXSW in March of 2014, just in time for their next studio album, 9 Dead Alive, which appeared in April.

Both Rodrigo and Gabriela play Yamaha NX series electro nylon string guitars exclusively. Rodrigo plays the slimmer neck NTX1200 and Gabriela plays the more traditional sized NCX2000 and NCX1200.

The pair dated for many years before ending their relationship (but not their musical partnership) in 2012. "We're now better friends by far," said Quintero. "We no longer behave like 15-year-olds and it's allowed us to grow up." They both live a vegan lifestyle and support animal rights


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The very first moments of Rodrigo y Gabriela's sophomore effort, 11:11, hit the listener cold in the face, and not just because of the amazing guitar playing. Sure, it's there, but it's what anyone who heard the duo's astonishing debut would expect. No, it's the sound of the record: immediate, forceful, crystalline; it's in-your-face compelling and impossible to ignore. 11:11 features 11 new compositions, dedicated to 11 musical artists (not all guitarists, either) who have had an influence on the duo. Recorded in Ixtapa, Mexico, the set was self-produced with the exception of two cuts, which were co-produced with John Leckie. The set was mixed in Wales and London by Colin Richardson, who has worked with metal bands Trivium and Slipknot. The set opens with the striking, rhythmically complex "Hanuman," dedicated to Carlos Santana. While it doesn't work so much on the level of Santana's soaring solos, what it does do is capture the dramatic, rhythmically complex elements of his trademark style and roots him directly inside the entire lineage of great Latin guitarists. Next up is "Buster Voodoo," dedicated to Jimi Hendrix. The late guitarist's original nickname was Buster, and he wrote "Voodoo Chile," hence the title. This track is far afield from the preceding one in that it lifts elements of the Hendrix tune, and moves into a solid meld of heavy metal dynamics and contemporary Latin style -- there's even the use of a wah-wah pedal on a nylon-string guitar to excellent effect. The fuzzed-out intro to "Santo Domingo" is a rather jarring effect for a tune that is dedicated to Latin jazz pianist and composer Michel Camilo, but it's named for the city of his birth and therefore captures in sound the splendor and color of the city. The Afro-Cuban, Spanish, and Mexican rhythmic complexities shown by Gabriela Quintero are perhaps more astonishing than the stellar, even dazzling single-string work by Rodrigo Sanchez.

"Atman," dedicated to the late Dimebag Darrell of Pantera and Damageplan, features a searing guest appearance by Testament guitarist Alex Skolnick and is truly one of the high points on the recording. It is also a terrific reminder that Rodrigo y Gabriela began their musical careers as electric guitarists in heavy metal bands. Other standout tracks include "Master Maqui," with acoustic solos by Strunz & Farah; "Hora Zero," inspired by -- and dedicated to -- Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla; and "Savitri," dedicated to the John McLaughlin-led acoustic trio Shakti. The set whispers to a close -- in sharp contrast to its beginning -- with the title track, dedicated to Pink Floyd and featuring the piano work of Edgardo Pineda Sanchez. Throughout, Rodrigo y Gabriela showcase their metal chops as part and parcel of their Mexican guitar heritage. They've not simply melded the two, but have created an entirely different form of music for the acoustic guitar in the process. It's also important to note that while their technical facility is indeed dazzling, this is not the reason to sit down and dig into this record; it's the music itself. It's infectious and accessible, full of pathos, intensity, passion, and color. It's dazzling because the compositions are so imaginative and tight -- a light year's growth from their debut. This music is arranged with flair, soul, intelligence, and economy; as busy and full as it sounds, there isn't an extra note anywhere here. 11:11 reveals a true musical and sonic expansion without Rodrigo y Gabriela losing sight of their strength as an acoustic duo. Awesome.

  Rodrigo y Gabriela - 11-11   ( flac  412mb)

01 Hanuman 3:43
02 Buster Voodoo 4:24
03 Triveni 3:56
04 Logos 2:51
05 Santa Domingo 4:03
06 Master Maqui 5:06
07 Savitri 3:47
08 Hora Zero 5:25
09 Chac Mool 1:51
10 Atman 5:51
11 11:11 4:50

Bonus from Pirates Of The Caribbean
12 Angelica 4:17
13 The Pirate That Shoul Not Be 3:55
14 South Of Heaven's Chanting Mermaids 5:48
15 Palm Tree Escape 3:06
16 Angry And Dead Again 5:33



 Rodrigo y Gabriela - 11-11 (ogg    194mb)

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Given the sheer excitement and fiery acoustic guitar pyrotechnics that Rodrigo y Gabriela generated with their first two studio albums, what transpires on Live in France may not only dazzle, but astonish. Recorded in five cities during their tour supporting 11:11, this 11-song set features nine performances of cuts from that album, and a solo improvisation each. The wah-wah pedal introduced on 11:11 is plentifully present here, used most effectively by Gabriela as a powerful rhythmic element on "Hora Zero" (written for Astor Piazzolla) and as a gnarly lead instrument on "Santo Domingo" by Rodrigo (written for Michel Camilo). "Gabriela Solo" begins with an intro to Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Chile," and indeed serves as an intro to the duo's beautiful performance of the tune dedicated to him, "Buster Voodoo." Hearing her percussive style, where intense polyrhythms are played on the wood of the instrument as much as on the strings themselves, is a mindblower. When Gabriela kicks the wah-wah pedal on, the entire track hits stun. "Savitri" (inspired by John McLaughlin and Shakti) combines tango, flamenco, and even Indian classical themes in a slightly different arrangement than the studio version. Rodrigo's fluidity is matched modally by Gabriela's seamless rhythmic interplay; she accents the ends of his lines with the beginnings of new ones. Here too, the wah-wah pedal makes a necessary appearance -- from both guitarists. Rodrigo's lead lines in the middle eight are as hefty as they are hypnotic. The reading of "Hanuman" (dedicated to Carlos Santana) highlights -- even more so than the studio version -- the deep commitment of its subject to Afro-Cuban music in his own approach to the guitar; knotty montunos and rumbas are sharply articulated in both the front line and in the rhythmic pulse. If you already have the studio recording and wonder whether purchasing this is necessary, the answer is simply "yes." The spontaneity, improvisation, and interaction between the audience and Rodrigo y Gabriela make Live in France a musical document that exists on an entirely different level than its studio companion.

Rodrigo y Gabriela - Live In France    (flac  347mb)

01 Hanuman 4:48
02 Triveni 4:29
03 Chac Mool 1:11
04 Hora Zero 5:52
05 Santo Domingo 5:56
06 Gabriela Solo 4:11
07 Buster Voodoo 5:26
08 11:11 5:16
09 Rodrigo Solo 6:32
10 Savitri 4:02
11 Tamacun 6:02

Rodrigo y Gabriela - Live In France   (ogg  170mb)

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From Re-Foc, their very first release in 2002, post-nuevo flamenco guitar duo Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero thumbed their noses at purist notions of flamenco. Having initially come from heavy metal, they wedded their new music to metal's pyrotechnics and the various folk styles of their native Mexico, creating a new genre in acoustic music. That said, Area 52 is unlike anything they have recorded before. The album began as simply an orchestral overview of tunes from their catalog to issue while they wrote new material, but it became something wholly other. Along with producer Peter Asher and arranger Alex Wilson (whose charts here are almost too fantastic to believe), they employed C.U.B.A., a 13-piece Cuban orchestra, and the diverse talents of several guests. Recording mainly in Havana, the duo, with C.U.B.A., set about completely reinventing RyG's songs. Take opener "Santo Domingo," with Los Van Van's Samuel Formell in the drum chair. Here, those acoustic guitars are augmented by strings, a whomping funky electric bassline, a full brass section, saxophone, and flute. They travel through fiery Afro-Cuban montunos and charging descargas wed seamlessly to their brand of flamenco. "Hanuman" features metal drummer John Tempesta in a frenetic son layered over flamenco before Santana-esque lead guitars and a full-fledged timba take the lead. Sitar great Anoushka Shankar helps out on "Ixtapa" by playing an illuminating solo amid the acoustic guitars and percussion section, before they force her to up the ante and improvise Latin style, touching on guaguanco. She responds fluidly and imaginatively; eventually, flamenco gets moved all the way over into salsa and Afro-Cuban jazz à la Machito! "11:11" highlights the gorgeous upright bass playing of guest Carlos Benavent (formerly of Paco de Lucía's group) and the chanted vocals of Carlota Teresa Noriega in call and response with the band. Sanchez's acoustic steel-string and electric lap steel guitar solos are delicious, too. The oud playing of Palestinian Le Trio Joubran on "Master Maqui" stands in contrast to Wilson's big horn charts (which are a dead cross between Gerald Wilson's and Tito Puente's). The ouds and guitars exchange fours and eights, getting kissed by a flute. Before things get too sweet, the horns blast in, ushering in a duel between ouds and guitars melding Middle Eastern and Latin musics. "Tamacun" reprises Tempesta on drums. It commences as a frenetic big-band flamenco with guitars, drums, and flute up front before things get whompy, and danzon and rumba make entrances and exits. While it would seem that nothing on Area 52 should work, it all does. What started out as simply an orchestral retrospective has become an entirely new Rodrigo y Gabriela album, one that showcases an even more startling range of musicianship. In sum, this album expands the very definition of musical collaboration.

Rodrigo y Gabriela y C.U.B.A. - Area 52 (flac  379mb)

01 Santo Domingo 6:31
02 Hanuman 5:33
03 Ixtapa 8:11
04 11:11 7:31
05 Master Maqui 5:13
06 Diablo Rojo 5:10
07 Logos 4:46
08 Juan Loco 4:09
09 Tamacun 6:55

Rodrigo y Gabriela y C.U.B.A. - Area 52  (ogg  151mb)

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Rodrigo y Gabriela's 9 Dead Alive is their first album of new material in five years. Written, arranged, and co-produced by the pair, they deliberately attempt to forgo the Latin influence in their music in favor of an all-rock (albeit still acoustic) approach -- which marks a return to their pre-recording roots in heavy metal. (That they don't entirely succeed is part of what makes 9 Dead Alive so compelling.) Each tune was composed for a different inspiration: authors, philosophers, activists, scientists, and a queen. The set was exquisitely recorded in Mexico by Fermin Vasquez Llera. There isn't a dull moment in these 41 minutes. "The Soundmaker," for 19th century luthier and guitarist Antonio de Torres Jurado, commences with Rodrigo's knotty riff and Gabriela's chugging rhythmic vamp. Two things are immediately apparent: that their collective playing style owes much to heavy metal -- where they came from before studying flamenco -- and, divorced from its bombast, metal is steeped in lyricism. "Torito," with its careening interscalar soloing and riffs, possesses some of Gabriela's most inventive rhythmic technique, slapping and frenetically strumming her guitar with controlled, yet passionate, aggression in dialogue and argument with his leads. Her cross-cut syncopations drive Rodrigo's attack and melodic inventions in "Misty Moses" (for Harriet Tubman), a tune that changes directions several times and shifts its central harmonic focus with dazzling clarity. "Somnium" (inspired by 17th century writer, feminist, and nun Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz) employs twinned, stacked melodies that move from allegrissimo to presto, and employ reverse arpeggiato, all the while overflowing with emotional resonance. On "The Russian Messenger," Gabriela creates a menacing rhythmic attack of palm slaps on the wood of her instrument, interspersed with slashing minor sevenths; Rodrigo counters with delicacy in a flurry of lithe single notes. On "Megalopolis" (for poet Gabriela Mistral), Spanish music comes shining through in gloriously articulated fingerpicking, doubled melody lines, and a narrative structure that recalls Spanish folk music. "La Salle des Pas Perdus (for Eleanor of Aquitaine) articulates musical themes from her "art of courtly love" era in the melody. The two guitars fluidly exchange tightly woven lines in nearly songlike interplay (here too, Anglo and Spanish lyricism entwine) before tempo and tension briefly increase, then dissipate elegantly. The dialogue that transpires throughout 9 Dead Alive is lively, eloquent, and actively intellectual, but it is also intimate. Between them, Rodrigo y Gabriela engage in musical and even cultural queries, and sometimes -- provocatively -- leave them wide open. This album evidences an expanded creative reach for the pair, even as it re-engages the sharp edges they displayed on earlier recordings.

 Rodrigo y Gabriela - 9 Dead Alive ( flac  246mb)

01 The Soundmaker 4:53
02 Torito 5:03
03 Sunday Neurosis 5:16
04 Misty Moses 4:39
05 Somnium 3:43
06 Fram 4:31
07 Megalopolis 5:01
08 The Russian Messenger 4:53
09 La Salle Des Pas Perdus 3:02

  Rodrigo y Gabriela - 9 Dead Alive (ogg   115mb)

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