Triple Mango NL13: Morning Music
The Two Sams 🥭 burger/ink 🥭 Mount Kimbie 🥭 and my good bud Jack
Hey there!
Joined this week by my good bud Jack. Jack and I have known each other for the better part of the last 20 or so years thanks to our parents’ annual gathering - Plastic Swordfish International - a formative gathering that often gets ‘confused’ for a cult when I tell people about it.
Jack and I shared some time in Berlin this past year which naturally resulted in us attending an obscure Thai funk show in a museum courtyard and seeing some local jazz at a seedy dive bar. Music lighting the way.
In the spirit of the Swordfish, we’re keeping it sharp and to the point this week. As Jack and I both appreciate the gentler side of life, this week’s selections do as well. An organic blend of pseudo-jazz, dub techno, ambient, and shoegaze, straddling the line of euphoria and melancholy. An 8 am time slot might suit them best.
Here’s what we’ve been listening to and digging up. Hope you dig em too 🥭🥭🥭
EP: Tara Clerking Trio - In Spring (2021)
Jack: I’m really enjoying these pieces from Tara Clerking Trio. Somewhere in the ballpark of modern classical and pseudo-jazz. Perfect for frustratingly hot days in the sun.
Album: Mount Kimbie - The Sunset Violent (2024)
Nick: Been loving Mount Kimbie’s trajectory as they’ve navigated from post-dubstep to sprawling shoegaze and post-rock. This one’s even breezier than their last and closes out with another top King Krule feature.
EP: Spirit Blue - ps / dm (2024)
Jack: This sort of pop/alternative is fairly outside of my listening wheelhouse, but they’re serious earworms and I find the grooves irresistible.
Album: Priori - This but More (2024)
Nick: Beautiful ambient, dub techno, downtempo crossover out of Montreal that my good bud Cam put me onto. Finding that euphoric / melancholic sweet spot.
See this new James K track for more of it.
Album: Sam Gendel & Sam Wilkes - The Doober (2024)
Jack: For several years now I’ve been following closely anything that either of these two Sams put out, and their collaborations are always excellent. Gendel’s modulated tenor saxophone really sounds cool over anything; still true when it’s these drum machines and plucky bass.
Album: Dummy - Free Energy (2024)
Nick: LA-based noise-pop band that was opening up for another new find Dehd. Giving some early 2000s new wave vibes a la Interpol. First two singles are out now with the album on the way next month.
Tune: Laraaji - Daddy’s Gonna Tell You No Lie (2024)
Jack: 50s doo-wop from Sun Ra meets Laraaji’s soundscapes… surprising but shouldn’t take much convincing :D
Anytime: The Verve - The Verve EP (1992)
Nick: Before they released ‘Bittersweet Symphony’ out into the world in 1994, The Verve put out this spaced-out EP that has continued to fly somewhat under the radar. Feels nice on the brain when the brain doesn’t feel nice.
Anytime: The Durutti Column - The Return of the Durutti Column (1980)
Jack: I’m not sure how it took me so long to discover Vini Reilly’s guitar playing as the Durutti Column, but I’ve spent an absurd amount of time exploring their catalogue this year. The clean guitar tone is expressive, melodic, and funky at times, but it really shines on this classic debut record. Their 1989 record Vini Reilly is an honorable mention as well. Really beautiful!
Album: Andrew Wasylyk - Fugitive Light and Themes of Consolation (2021)
Nick: My good bud Alessandro put this one on when we were hanging lakeside on an excellent dog day recently. I haven’t been able to stop playing it since. The moment right around 2:50 on the second track is up there for the meltiest musical moment of the year.
Archive: burger/ink - [las vegas] (1998)
Jack: I’m more than a bit ignorant when it comes to (most) electronic music. Is this techno? I have no idea but the drums sound great :)
Archive: Charles Brown - I Just Want To Talk To You (1977)
Nick: Queer country rock treasure I discovered recently thanks to the excellent Numero Group newsletter. Tenderness at its finest
Archive: Jorga Mesfin - The Kindest One (2007)
Jack: A reissue of a 2007 album from the brilliant Jorga Mesfin in Addis Ababa. Spiritual and Ethiopian jazz that’s both a tribute to its progenitors and exemplifies contemporary work in the genre. He recently had some wonderful selections on an NTS guest slot.
Archive: Hermeto Pascoal - Viajando Com O Som (1976)
Nick: Saw DJ Ramon Sucesso’s feature in Resident Advisor this week and he was holding this one up as a prized possession. Somehow the further I go into Brazilian jazz and funk, the less I know. Per the liner notes, Miles Davis described Hermeto as “the most impressive musician in the world”. He’s also well known for his ability to play anything from tea kettles to PVC pipes. Down the rabbit hole.
🥭 Here’s a Spotify playlist that has a taste of everything mentioned 🥭
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See ya in a couple weeks for NL14!
Nick
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