I Love 1981

Soul Mekanik- Eighty One (RIP Records)

"Robots" MP3

I have always been obsessed with the early '80's. Despite breaking my nose attempting to do the freeze when I was a kid, I have also always been obsessed with breakdancing. I still collect the records and the cheesy films and have a passion for the history, the true old school, the "Boogie Down Bronx"! One of the most important cultural revolutions of all time and also a place that was nothing at all like Wisconsin, where I grew up. That never stopped us from memorizing Beat Street abd renting Breakin' 2 so many times my parents were forced to have the video store tell us it was rented out...and that was my sister asking for it! (I obviously was cool enough to have seen it in the theatre with my ultra-hip mom...who called to tell me she likes pier bucci btw)

ANYWAY I have posted about breakdancing enough on this site, but when I saw that the title of Soul Mekanik's album was "Eighty-One", my eyes lit up. Could this be the Paul Hardcastle of the 21st century? Well, not quite but the album has some really good tracks and I like the modern yet old school electro feel. The sound is difficult to describe but there are elements of house, minimal techno, funk, and electro with some nicely constructed vocoder that I am always a sucker for. "Robots" is the first track I heard by Soul Mekanik because it was used on the fantastic Fabric 26- Global Communication (Mark Pritchard and Tom Middleton) CD. I can't say enough about that installment of the Fabric series...it is a must have and covers a lot of ground from glitchy IDM to great tech house tracks that Middleton selected.

Robots Robots Robots Automatic Electronic

Familia

Pier Bucci-Familia (Crosstown Rebels)2005

"Towers" MP3
"Tita" MP3

I know, I know, I have been a major slacker with the posts lately but promise to update the site much more frequently now. I have a lot of new music to share so keep checking back and I assure you, more free music for you. *instert excuse here* I was in Costa Rica recently and while relaxing in the 90 degree weather and sipping on Caprinia's, I always had my mp3 player and portable speakers rocking. One album that received some quality beach-play was Pier Bucci's "Familia". This was one of my favorite releases of 2005 and every track is solid. I love how it is very minimal in parts, yet still has that warm, rich feel to it with the minor vocals. I put up 2 tracks to make up for the lack of recent posts. Buy this album, it is worth it.

Resident Advisor said:
Following in the fine footsteps of Ricardo Villalobos and Luciano as Chilean artists to make their mark on the Electronic music scene, Pier Bucci unleashes an album full of quality that should hopefully make people stand and take notice of this talent. Familia is the album and it features 10 nicely crafted productions from the man who grew up in Chilli but now calls Berlin his home.

The album starts off delightfully with the soothing melodies and deep basslines of ‘Tita’. ‘Towers’ is another superb production, full of smooth bass tones, warm pads and crisp beats. ‘The R-8 Mooger’ is quite a moody track while ‘L'Nuit’ is a little tougher with its gritty basslines and twisted percussion. ‘Jesss’ bounces along nicely in a minimal fashion while ‘Hay Consuelo’ turns up the pace a notch with some smooth deep sounds creating a tasty production on the whole. There is a German touch in the retro electric sounds of ‘Cosmic’, a contrast to the smooth pads and flow of ‘Siberian’. There are some delightful melodies on the penultimate track that is ‘Pipostrack’, and there is a nice upbeat feel about the final track, ‘Hydra’, which closes the album off with some nice hi hats, an eerie bassline and some quirky synth sounds