ListenUp
Marvin Gaye on Earth Day, a mix of yacht disco hits, DJ Tim Sweeney’s #PrivateJam and more in our week of music
Owen Pallett: Song for Five & Six
This week Montreal-based musician Owen Pallett released “Song for Five & Six” from In Conflict, his fourth full-length studio album (which features Brian Eno) out 13 May on Domino Records. The accomplished violinist and Oscar-nominated composer (for Best Original Soundtrack for Spike Jonze’s “Her”) has amplified the song’s beautiful whirl of sound with a complementary performance dance piece choreographed by Robert Binet of the National Ballet of Canada, that builds to an almost kaleidoscopic effect with the group of dancers pirouetting before a mirror in a room cloaked in black plastic which appears to breathe as they move.
Marvin Gaye: Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)
The world celebrated Earth Day this week and, to mark the environmentally minded holiday, we put on Marvin Gaye’s “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology),” a chart-topper from his 1971 album What’s Going On. The heartfelt single—released just a year after the first-ever Earth Day in the US—channels the concern shared by the peace activists of that generation. Over 40 years later, we are still arguing for better care of our planet, but we can thank landmark artists like Gaye for igniting an international interest in correcting humans’ harmful wrongdoings.
Luca C & Brigante: Lucio
Tim Sweeney, the man behind the internationally admired radio and internet show Beats In Space, joins us for this week’s #PrivateJam. The NYC-based DJ dropped a little knowledge and some tranquil vibes with his personal selection, “Lucio” by Luca C & Brigant. Sweeney explains, “This one’s an edit of Lucio Battisti ‘Amarsi Un Po.’ An Italian record that came out in 1977. The original is amazing and beautiful, and this edit really just extends the amazingness and adds a little kick. This one just reminds me of warm weather, aperitivos, pasta dinners and dancing all night long. Perfect for the summer.”
DJ Supermarkt: Yacht Disco – Credit To The Party Edit
As the Northern Hemisphere continues to warm up, music fit for a boat party in the middle of the Mediterranean is starting to emerge, like sonic rays of sun. Leading the charge is Berlin-based DJ Supermarkt, whose fondness for yacht disco is wholly palpable in his recent “Credit To The Party Edit” mix, which features 19 of his favorite tracks reworked by an array of DJs. Whether boogying down in a pair of deck shoes or ripping it up under the sparkling lights on a dance floor, this mix has us smoothly sailing right into summer.
Acid Arab: Berberian Wedding
After catching their eclectic, border-hopping set on this week’s Boiler Room show in Tel Aviv, “Berberian Wedding” from Parisian production duo Acid Arab has been in heavy rotation at CH HQ. Sampling street sounds with industrial, grime beats and heavy house undertones, the Parisian duo transports the listener through a smoke-filled bazar of a sonic landscape that’s easy to get lost in. Eastern melodies pervade throughout, with truly international influences including early ’80s Chicago and Detroit house sounds alongside Parisian electronic elements.
ListenUp is a Cool Hunting series published every Sunday that takes a deeper look at the music we tweeted throughout the week. Often we’ll include a musician or notable fan’s personal favorite in a song or album dubbed #PrivateJam.
