Chopstick Dubplate - Wanted: Murda We Charge For (2013)

Few releases scream ‘murderation!’ harder than Chopstick Dubplate’s Murda We Charge For album.

The brainchild of Aries and Jacky Murda, the vocalist jewel in this eight-track skank-packed crown is Mr Williamz, an instantly distinctive vocalist who flexes perfectly over a 170 jungle riddim.

You just can’t beat a bit of Ragga Jungle!

‘Wanted – Murder We Charge For’ is a brilliant 8 track release, filled with feel good vibes and infectious rhythms. In a day and age where precision engineering of tunes seems to take priority, it is nice to return to the roots of the music every once in a while, and this exemplifys that point.

Covering all manner of topics, with wit in abundance (“sometimes you have to fly pon ryanair” in particular strikes a satirically amusing chord!) and backed by archetypal ragga jungle chopped breaks and stomach churning subs, this really shows that reggae influenced drum & bass could quite easily have a renaissance should more artists choose to take up the baton. Obviously there are artists that delve into the sound, but it is particularly refreshing to see a whole LP dedicated to it.

With nods left right and centre to classic reggae cuts, (for instance Wanted’s take on the sleng teng riddim) Aries and Jacky Murda have really done the EP justice with their work on the production front. Mr. Williams heads up the vocals across all the tracks, whilst Top Cat, King Kong and Dennis Brown all feature in part. The combination pull out all the stops in order to put some of the fun back into Drum & Bass, something that at times seems to be lacking.

---- dnbblog.com

Mini mix from soundcloud for you to sample di wares here below. Worldwide Traveller has got to be one of the funniest tunes I've heard in ages, I think it's just fantastic that it actually is about Ryanair. Mediafire Link further below for the album @ 320kbps! Enjoy! :)




Tracklist:

01. Worldwide Traveller
02. Tell Mi Who
03. Girls Dem Dada
04. All Over Town
05. Have You Ever
06. Holla Fi We
07. Wanted
08. Rumble Jumble Life

Download Link - Mediafire

Phronesis - Life To Everything (2014)

Scandinavian/British jazz trio "Phronesis" have the ability to excite, inspire and move people in a way that few bands are able to do. Formed by Danish double-bass player Jasper Høiby in 2005; the trio is made up of himself, a British pianist Ivo Niame and Swedish drummer Anton Eger. Their charismatic live performances have firmly embedded them in the minds of audiences worldwide and prompted Jon Newey (Editor of Jazzwise Magazine) to describe them as “the most exciting and imaginative piano trio since EST”.

"Life To Everything" is their latest album on independent label "Edition Records". It is well worth checking out, these guys have been getting very high critical acclaim over the last few years, their 2010 album "Alive" was named "Jazz Album Of The Year" in both Jazzwise and Mojo magazines. Along with a number of other nominations such as "Best Jazz Ensemble" and "Best Jazz Act" AT the Parliamentary Jazz Awards and the MOBO awards respectively. This live album sees another good strong release from a band who are gaining a lot of international recognition.





"Phronesis are a jazz trio built around Danish bassist Jasper Hoiby's sinewy phrasing and huge tone, and encircled by fluent British pianist Ivo Neame and Swedish drummer Anton Eger's eerie, birds'-wings sound. This edited live album features heated climaxes in which Eger's remarkable drumming is goaded by repeating hooks and bass vamps bring the house down on several tracks, but the buildups are just as absorbing – see Hoiby's downward- twisting bassline as Neame and Eger share percussive roles on the serpentine Urban Control, or the cello-like bowed intros and unhurried conversations on Phratenal and Wings 2 the Mind, the cat-and-mouse darts and feints of Nine Lives, the whirling dance of Herne Hill, and the transformation of Dr Black from a solemn folk melody to an ecstatic, audience-baiting thrash. A live album is exactly just the way to get the current Phronesis message across, and this is a powerful one."

                                                                             ------ Review By The Guardian

Tracklist:

01. Urban Control 

02. Phraternal 

03. Behind Bars 

04. Song For Lost Nomads

05. Wings 2 The Mind

06. Nine Lives 

07. Deep Space Dance

08. Herne Hill

09. Dr Black.

Download Link - Mediafire

Ye Banished Privateers - Songs and Curses (2013)

Ye Banished Privateers be a band, a crew an’ a soup kitchen who think that gettin’ new interesting bruises,
mixin’ the perfect tar “perfume” an’ getting’ the audience to vocally overpower them is at least as important as hittin’ the right notes.

Ye Banished Privateers play original songs inspired by traditional sea shanties, bastardized irish folk, old scandinavian ballads, plays and court protocols of the pirate era and puttin’ it into a cracked and homemade 17th century punk mold.

This album was distributed for free by means of TPB, Grooveshark and a number of other file sharing media.

More information : www.yebanishedprivateers.com

Tracklist:

01 - Bottle of Rum
02 - Welcome to Tortuga
03 - Yellow Jack
04 - 'Bout Me Father
05 - It Matters Not
06 - Color of Sin
07 - Waves Roll High
08 - Fire Down Below
09 - When ye Dead Come Sailing Home
10 - Drowned Walz

Download Link - Mediafire

Hiromi - Voice (2011)

Hiromi Uehara (born 26 March 1979), known as Hiromi, is a jazz composer and pianist born in Hamamatsu, Japan. Hiromi started learning classical piano at age five, and was later introduced to jazz by her piano teacher Noriko Hikida. At 14, she played with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. When she was 17, she met Chick Corea by chance in Tokyo, and was invited to play with him at his concert the next day. After being a jingle writer for a few years for Japanese companies such as Nissan, she enrolled to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.There, she was mentored by Ahmad Jamal and had already signed with jazz label Telarc before her graduation.

In 2011, Hiromi initiated her Trio Project with English drummer Simon Phillips and American bass player Anthony Jackson with whom this album has been recorded. Simon Phillips has been drumming for rock or heavy metal acts since the mid-1970s while Anthony Jackson (and his custom made six-string bass guitar) is a seasoned jazz and fusion session musician. As a result, Hiromi’s trio music appeals to a much wider audience that goes beyond the traditional jazz circles.

“I don’t want to put a name on my music,” she says. “Other people can put a name on what I do. It’s just the union of what I’ve been listening to and what I’ve been learning. It has some elements of classical music, it has some rock, it has some jazz, but I don’t want to give it a name.” Yamaha Jazz Pianos – Hiromi

“Voice”, the title track of her 2011 recording by the same name is emblematic of the live performances of Hiromi and the Trio Project: a long piece lasting over ten minutes, complex melody lines, a high octane rhythm section and relentless virtuoso soloing to the constant cheers of an enthralled audience.

As Hiromi says, "I called this album Voice because I believe that people’s real voices are expressed in their emotions. It’s not something that you really say. It’s more something that you have in your heart. Maybe it’s something you haven’t said yet. Maybe you’re never going to say it. But it’s your true voice. Instrumental music is very similar. We don’t have any words or any lyrics to go with it. It’s the true voice that we don’t really put into words, but we feel it when it’s real."

Tracklist:

01. Voice (9:13)
02. Flashback (8:39)
03. Now or Never (6:15)
04. Temptation (7:54)
05. Labyrinth (7:40)
06. Desire (7:19)
07. Haze (5:54)
08. Delusion (7:49)
09. Beethoven's Piano Sonata N°8 - Pathetique (5:13) (Written by Ludwig van Beethoven)

Download Link - Mediafire - Part 1

Download Link - Mediafire - Part 2

Ichiko Aoba - うたびこ (Utabiko)

Everyone likes a bit of folk music once in a while, this is うたびこ (Utabiko) the 2012 album of Japanese singer-songwriter Ichiko Aoba.

While the cover may seem like some sort of a minimalist wet dream it doesn't totally convey the fluidity of emotion that the album expresses quite well. While having only one girl (with a beautiful melodic voice) and one guitar (played with similarly melodic sounds) I suppose it could be described as being minimal in some sense.

However the album contains a wide variety of songs, and doesn't overstay it's welcome as I find can become a problem with a lot of folk artists in general sometimes.

It sounds beautiful, and despite the songs seeming relatively simplistic in their construction, it doesn't border on repetitive. Definitely worth checking out.

Download Link - Mediafire