The Cold Cut

The Cold Cut can now be found at www.thecoldcut.com.

Enjoy!

The Cold Cut, as you know it, is in the process of migrating.

I've been keeping things on the down low for a while, but Blogger have been bugging me over my posts and its time that we parted ways. They have been a good home for me, but The Cold Cut needs to move on and become part of something bigger. That 'thing' is Be All/End All.

It's my new website, you see. But before you get worried about the wellbeing of The Cold Cut, let me explain...

Music is starting to take on a much larger role in my life. I love writing about music. I love singing. I love the process of making music. I want to develop my contribution to this industry- why spend all my time writing and listening to music when I'm not contributing myself? Therefore I made the expensive move of buying my first pair of decks, a mixer and Serato Scratch Live. I hope to be able to start remixing songs- in my first experiment (a remix of 'Violet Hill' on GarageBand) I managed to get to number 3 on the Hype Machine, so I'm going to look into this.

Be All/End All is going to grow as my tastes and ideas develop. I see it becoming a musical portal, with many types of content- music, posts, links, videos. The lot. The Cold Cut will be moving to www.thecoldcut.com over the next few days.

This new site also represents a move to my own self-hosted website. It's great to have complete freedom over design and content, and I am aiming for visually impressive content from now on. In my new job, I am exposed to IT everyday, and I now feel more confident with the challenges presented by CSS and PHP.

So what's been going on with me? I'm really sorry for my absence, but I've been busy these last two months. I'm currently applying to university in the US and have been settling into my new job; therefore I really haven't had any time or patience for the old blog. Things are beginning to settle down now (considering I have finished my SATs) and 250000 hits is a great time to revamp The Cold Cut.

I'll be spending some time on the migration over the next few days. Bear with me, and I promise you will not be dissapointed. Once again, thanks for your support, comments and readership.

Kanye West- Say You Will

Will here, and as promised, a new face. Be warned- with a musical knowledge that spans across galaxies, Ashwin is here, and he takes no prisoners. Enjoy.

Hey guys, I'm the new guy here at The Cold Cut, I'm Ashwin and it's a pleasure to meet you, but I'm no fan of small talk when there's music to be argued over.

So while Bloc Party seem to be moving away from the guitars and onto the synths with their latest surprise release, Justice seem to be doing the opposite.

Their new release was commissioned by Dior Homme for their new fashion show. It shies away from the more lightweight, simple, glitchy hooks of their album, and takes a more Waters of Nazareth approach to things. The tracks are intense, exciting, even involving a massive guitar solo in the final act. A guitar solo, in electro!

You all know why the dance world fell in love with Justice in the first place, that gritty, messy, just downright thrilling grungy sound, and the rock flavour accentuates that no end. It sounds more like Justice than ever, unapologetic electro in the high polished world of fashion. Enter Planisphère.

Now comparisons will always be drawn with Daft Punk when it comes to Justice, and DP themselves did a killer track for Louis Vuitton. This is more some kind of hectic electro opera though, with it's overarching melodies and hooks. Think Intersterlla 5555 kind of thing. I can see Justice doing a feature film if they keep stuff like this up. Man, that has to happen.
Anyway, enjoy the tracks.

Justice - Planisphère, Part 1 [Link 2]

p.s. Will pronounces Justice differently to me. I say Justice, he says Justeece. I think I'm right though, since in the introductions to Ed Bangers compilations, they say Justice. Opinions? [Will: I'm just trying to sound French!]

Myspace [BUY]

Update 2: The fileden links went down due to popularity! You guys sucked up 5 Gb of bandwith in about 5 hours. I've re-uploaded all the individual tracks on zshare for your listening pleasure. Enjoy.

Update: The Lemur is turning 17 tomorrow- Blogstars have put together another completely original mixtape to celebrate the event. Make sure you take a visit, comment, and most of all say Happy Bday to the furry dude. The Lemur Blog

Yay! I'm 18 today (26th July)! How exciting! The plan for the day was wake up (after a late BBQ last night with some frivolity), take a run, have brunch, open a few pressies/cards and then go to see The Dark Knight. The evening was be topped off with a meal down at the beach. Perfecto. I'm not going to cover the day's celebrations yet, although I will say that The Dark Knight was fucking amazing. A full review will be posted once I have got over the emotionally draining experience that was the best film of 2008.

To tie in with my celebrations, a secret team of uber-bloggers (and a few DJs/musicians) have been working behind the scenes with myself to create a super-blogtastic 18th Birthday mixtape for you. And it rocks.

The Blogstars (remember that name- coming to an internet near you soon) have each chosen a song to be featured on the mixtape, bringing together a host of musical tastes and some of the best music blogs on the internet. Think of this as the Justice League of music. On the right of each song, you will find the blog which selected it- click through to see some more from each contributor. Oh, and enjoy, as I will be doing!

You can download each track individually, but to save time you can obtain the whole tape in singular files as a zip. Mixtape artwork is above/below- click through for mega-sized versions. The tracklisting is as follows:

Blogstars Presents Happy 18th Birthday Mixtape (Full).zip (Link 2)

1. Cut Copy- Lights And Music (Boyz Noize Happy Birthday Remix)... The Lemur Blog
2. Treasure Fingers- Come True Tonight (Dub Mix)... Immuzikation
3. Rihanna- Disturbia... Pretty Much Amazing
4. Grum- Go Back... Check The Availability
5. K-OS- Neutroniks... Party cmyk
6. VETO- Built To Fall... Where Did I Leave My Keys?
7. The Uglysuit- Chicago... Hypeful
8. The Game Ft. Lil' Wayne- My Life... Gordon DJ Stealth McGinnis
9. Cut Copy- Going Nowhere (Whitey Remix)... Ohh! Crapp
10. The Silent Years- The World's Worst Birthday Gift... Hypeful
11. Felix Da Housecat- Silver Screen Shower Scene... Neon Cool Kids, Yo!

Bonus Tracks:

1. Patton Oswalt- You Are Allowed 20 Birthday Parties

Some very scary and mind blowing events took place over the last few days. It has rapidly dawned on me that these next few weeks will be the end of an era. Just over a month today, I will be leaving school, and wont have anything to really work for any more. It's both exciting and frightening. Luckily, I've secured a brilliant placement for my gap year with IBM (in short- dream job), and have also lined up some work experience with a certain car manufacturer (a clue: initials AM) for summer 2009.

I had my first A2 exam yesterday: M1, or mechanics, something that I should really be good at considering its the basis of my degree (mechanical engineering). I thought it went well, and now I must get back to the pile of work/job stuff that is building up in my room.

Anyway, I must apologise for my lack of inspiration or originality lately: I'm right in the thick of exam revision, and compiling a mixtape or trawling through my inbox is proving a bit time-consuming. However, my mid-term break is coming up on Saturday, and I have nine days to do loads of work and infuse this blog with some much needed inventiveness.

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Lupe Fiasco- The Coolest Vs. Let There Be Light (Justice Remix) (Link 2)
Lupe Fiasco- Lu Yourself (Link 2)

'Cross' and 'The Cool' were two of my favourite albums last year. I love Lupe Fiasco. I love Justice. Therefore nothing in the music world is as exciting as the prospect of Justice remixing the whole of Lupe's amazing second album. The above song is just the tip of the iceberg...

“I’m remixing the album with Justice, I’m gonna shout out to Justice”. It's comforting that the two outfits are working closely together, so the material can be treated with respect.

I've also included a Lupe rarity: Lupe is currently on the 'Glow In The Dark' tour, opening in front of N.E.R.D., Rihanna and Kanye West. Reviews have been varied: the general consensus is that Kanye's ego is growing a little too big even for a stage to accommodate (hence his solo performance... no backing singers etc.) and that Lupe Fiasco is a legend in the making. 'Lu Myslef' clarifies that fact: Lupe raps over Eminem's hit, exercising his huge lyrical wit:

"Since you don't have half the stance like an amputee, You don't have half the pants that it takes to command a family, a fan, or command a fee... So you will never get the ransom you demand from me! The goodnews' my foot's loose, my hands are free."

[Buy]

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The Hold Steady- Sequestered In Memphis (Link 2)

A few days ago, The Hold Steady released their first single- 'Sequestered In Memphis'- from their forthcoming album 'Stay Positive'. This single shows no sign of progression, but really, do The Hold Steady need to change?

'Stay Positive' is more a message for the band than for their fans. They will need comforting when few people buy the album, regardless of the fact that they're one of the best bands making music at the moment.

[Buy]

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Beck- Chemtrails (Link 2)

I haven't always been a Beck fan, 'Odelay' was the sound of undistilled talent, and a couple of tunes on his recent album were quite quirky. However, barring that, I don't agree with the view held by many of my contemporaries- that he is a genius.

'Chemtrails' highlights an eerie new direction; already miles away from the fun and games of 'Cellphones Dead'. The best way to describe this song would be 'ethereal': I felt like I was wading through it (in a good way). After a few plays it has done considerable work in bringing me over to the dark side.

[Buy]

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Vampire Weekend- Campus (Rostam Batmanglij version) (Link 2)

Unreleased demos always cause a ruckus when they're set free: however, rarely are they superior to the studio version's. It's an interesting fact that in the recording process, 'Campus' has had something taken away from it. The strings arrangements on the album version are inferior, and the atmosphere of a uni campus on a summer's day is swiftly put across by the softer vocals.

And the most important thing this points out is that their self titled debut could have been even better. A scary thought.

[Buy]

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Cool Stuff

1. If you weren't aware of Datpiff, head over there right now. It is far and away the best place to find up and coming hip hop, rap and RnB artists, and the great part is that all the music is free. I have rediscovered some great artists, and am getting into new ones (Wale's '100 Miles And Running'- Highly recommended).

2. Coldplay are the centrepiece of the new iTunes advert, and it's breathtaking. With the soundtrack of 'Viva La Vida', the band perform in marching band style, complete with Apple's tell tale visuals. 'Viva La Vida- Exclusive On iTunes'.

Wolf Parade- Call It A Ritual (Link 2)
Death Cab For Cutie- I Will Possess Your Heart (Link 2)
Cut Copy - Lights & Music (Boys Noize Happy Birthday Remix) (Link 2)

A Few Venial Sins is a twice monthly e-zine, with contributions in the form of poetry, gig reviews, general music articles and random pieces about food, TV, and everything else in between.

It's the first time I have been asked to write for someone else, and I was honoured to write an article on 'difficult second album syndrome' for this new e-zine. I am sure The Cold Cut will always be here, but since I started writing my aims have become more ambitious. With record companies finally coming to terms with the importance of blogs as promotional outlets, there are many prospects that come with running a succesful blog- my inbox is bursting at the moment, and I love that feeling that I'm making a difference.

My aim is to begin to branch out and start to get my name out there, hopefully whilst continuing to maintain this blog (possibly with a little help from other contributors- drop me a line if you're interested). Below is an excerpt from the article: follow the link to read the rest:

"An interesting point arises when you consider the question: 'what is your definition of a sophomore slump?'. Obviously, the quality of an album is subjective. However, in some cases, the boundaries between people's opinions become so extreme that for every person hailing the album as a realisation of talent (A), there is another to condemn it as a 'piece of shit' (B). Generally, this translates into the fans (A), and the critics (B). An apt example of this is 'Room On Fire', the second album by The Strokes.

How do you follow up an album that pretty much spawned its own scene? And let us not forget the endless horde of identikit rivals waiting to fill the gaps like a musical poly-filler (and just about as exciting), who were conveniently there for critics to draw comparisons. 'Room On Fire' was not the answer the journalists were waiting for."

Make sure you check out my article, comment, spread the love and make sure you read some of the other great content whilst you're there.

Coldplay- Violet Hill (Cold Cut Remix) (Link 2)

Just thought I would share something with you: I was messing around with the new Coldplay single earlier on Garage Band, and my doodling turned into a remix of sorts. It's just about good enough to post (aka not totally rubbish), so please leave a comment with your thoughts.

Music is, in my opinion at least, designed to be open to interpretation. Therefore I decided to try my hand at the old remixing, and I can assure you, it's a lot harder than it seems. I wasn't a huge fan of this single when it was released, but it's a definite grower. In my remix I hope I have brought out some of the more important aspects of the song: its maritime connection, a little more power in the lower end of the spectrum- bass in particular. There are a couple of cool tricks that I picked up today- inversion, reversing etc.- which have found their way into the remix.

Anyway, I have to say I really enjoyed the process- having a Mac is brilliant, but the utility is wasted if you don't learn how to fully use the programs. This remix has pretty much taught me how to use Garage Band in a few hours. I hope you enjoy it, and leave comments- I'll be able to put your tips into practice next time I decide to remix a song.

Discuss: Best computing program for remixing?

Update: Turns out I labelled all the tracks incorrectly (bar the Madonna one). Sorry!

This isn't another victory lap- just another commemoration of a big event (for me, at least). I must admit I'm feeling like shit at the moment (school's great, its just my body is apparently in a mood with me!)- I've got aches in places I didn't even know existed, a back which seizes up and the makings of a terrible summer cold. All in all, I just want to sleep. Lots.

Anyway, 100000 down, many more to come. Here's some tunes. More posts coming later on today.

Dangermouse- December 4th (Link 2)
Madonna- 4 Minutes (Timbaland Remix) (Link 2)
Lil' Wayne- Lollipop (Gabriel Antonio Remix) (Link 2)

Update: What a learning curve! I think I could make a much better podcast second time around, given I now understand how to use Audacity. I might go back and put in new vocal cues... expect more podcasts soon! And watch out for the podcasts on iTunes.

So, with the one year anniversary, I decided it was time to start branching out. Therefore, today I take my first steps into the world of podcasting. I wasn't initially convinced- radio, which you can download- ooh! However, it seems to have gone the distance, and I feel that its time The Cold Cut crosses over into another world.

As I mention in the podcast- I'm new to this, so things are likely to improve very quickly. One thing is clear: your voice never sounds the same when recorded... I sound a little suicidal at the beginning (school, work etc), so I had to get a little more excited about the music.

Download the April edition of The Cold Cut podcast... (Link 2)

Tracklist:
1. Eve/Radiohead- Tambourine Reckoning
2. Artful Dodger- Something
3. Sway- Download
4. Wale ft. Daniel Merriweather- Let's Ride (produced by Mark Ronson)
5. The LK- Private Life Of A Cat
6. Kate Bush- The Big Sky
7. Peter Moren- Social Competence
8. The Joy Formidable- Butterflies Last Spell (TEED Remix)
9. Metric- Combat Baby
10. Matthew Dear- Neighbourhoods

Just a few random tracks I'm enjoying at the moment...

Radiohead- Street Spirit (Link 2)
Vampire Weekend- Oxford Comma (Link 2)
The Courteeners- Aftershow (Link 2)
Madonna/Britney Spears- 4 Minutes To Break The Ice (Link 2)

On 1st April 2008, The Cold Cut turned 1. A momentous occasion, don't you think? So momentous that I forgot to post about it on the day...

Anyway, the site's been going for just over a year, and although it was a bit of a bumpy start, things are settling down nicely. At first it was 'The Cold Cut', devoted to anything and everything. Then it was films, music and TV. And finally, music. It now has a clear cut identity... although I still cover anything that takes my fancy.
I used to obsess over stats, but recently it has become more of a treat to see the hits increasing. At the moment, I'm getting around 1000 a day.
That might not sound like a lot, but on one particularly boring day I had a look at how many hits some of the most popular music blogs were getting daily. The results were interesting: Good Weather For Airstrikes gets around 1300 a day. Neiles Life has around 500 a day. The obvious leaders, though, are Pretty Much Amazing! (with an average 3500 visiters a day!), and Brooklyn Vegan (unpublished figures, which are huge). So basically, I'm still low down on the food chain, but I'm not doing too badly. I can't really compete with those websites as they are run by hordes of people (hint hint- If you would like to write here then email me...).

I just thought I should commemorate this moment. I hope there are many more anniversaries to come.

PS- I'm looking to branch out and get my name into the air. Any ideas of publications/magazines/websites that you think would let me write for them? Cheers...

Edit: Okay, so all 14 songs are on Hype machine. They're not doing too badly, but I had an idea. The other day I had chart domination for a little while, (1-4 most popular tracks), and wouldn't it be cool if I got 1-6 or 1-14 (if you so wish). Basically, if you have the time, head over to hype machine, listen to the tracks and drop a big fat heart on them. Cheers...

The Cool Volume II: All The Rage (zip file, album artwork included)
Single tracks available below...

I'm feeling pretty chilled out at the moment. I'm on holiday, spending some time with the 'rents- I have things to do, but overall life is just ticking along. However, when I started this post a good month or two ago, I was in a fit of rage (disclaimer for friends and family- not brought on by people, just a circumstance). You know that feeling- you want to put your fist through a wall or something similarly solid. I was helplessly frustrated when I started this post- luckily, I'm not anymore (although I'm still a little tetchy- an apology to family, friends and readers must be extended). However, why let a good thing go to waste? I only got half way through before going away to blow off some steam- you will no doubt notice a change of musical tone...

Oh and a small tip: for maximum enjoyment, crank up the volume...

1. Roxy Music- Bitter Sweet (B)
2. Patrick Wolf- Bloodbeat (B)
3. Iron & Wine- Boy With A Coin (B)
4. Howling Bells- Low Happening (B)
5. Eminem- Soldier (B)
6. The Whip- Frustration (Mazen Murao Master) (B)
7. Les Savy Fav- Rage In The Plague Age (B)
8. Chemical Brothers- Galaxy Bounce (B)
9. Muse- Bliss (B)
10. Justin Timberlake- Cry Me A River (Remix ft. 50 Cent) (B)
11. Walter Meego- Forever (B)
12. Louis XVI- Finding Out True Love Is Blind (B)
13. Guillemots- Get Over It (B)
14. Black Star- Thieves In The Night (B)

Click the (B) next to each song to see a selection of albums from that artist.

Finally. I can almost hear you breathe a sigh of relief. The Cold Cut has been looking a bit dated recently; my writing has come on in leaps and bounds (or so I'm told!), my reputation is starting to build, but I felt like the appearance of my blog was holding me back. Now, its time to become part of the major league. Welcome to The Cold Cut Version 2.0.

The new template has been a long time coming; this one looks a lot more professional, and forced me to learn my way around HTML. I can change the polaroid, and might even set it up so it changes between multiple images each time the page is refreshed. Ooh- edgy!

I hope this is a bit easier on the eyes. What caused the rapid change? Well, given 3 of my tracks sit in the 1, 2 and 3 most popular tracks spot on the hype machine (and another at 5!), I thought it was about time for something new...

I'm feeling inexplicably down at the moment- not that I think you all want to hear regular updates on how I feel, but it might explain the lack of inventiveness this weekend. I have an absolute bitch of a week coming up, so I'm just trying to take things easy today.

Rather than writing a long post today, I'm just going to treat you to some of the great music being released at the moment, which I have missed. Enjoy...

We Are Scientists- After Hours
The eccentric, New York three piece have produced a single (and album) worthy of stardom.

Elbow- Grounds For Divorce
Guy Garvey et al have finally become comfortable with their sound. Great songs ensue.

Del The Funky Homosapien- Bubble Pop
Del coasts through a song that, whilst not his best, still has me salivating over the prospect of his new album.

Vampire Weekend- A Punk
I'm not going to waste my time writing about these guys... everything has already been said. They're young, talented and destined for big things.

Bat For Lashes- Sweet Dreams (Live Lounge)
Further proof that here we have one of the most talented women in music.

Wow. 50000 visitors. Its hard to believe The Cold Cut has only been going for 10 months, but I feel as if this blog is at least beginning to make an impact. I had a few issues at first- I didn't focus enough, but music is quickly becoming an even more important part of my life, and I'm really glad that its the focus of this blog.

I just want to thank everyone who has visited The Cold Cut, from a one-time visitor to those of you who come here everyday. Regardless of your standing, I urge you to subscribe to my RSS feed, tell your friends, spread the word and comment. Your contribution means more to me than you would believe.

It happened very quickly- some pretty cool stuff started happening about 3 months into this blog's life. I've had Dev Hynes of Lightspeed Champion commenting, a producer of Lupe Fiasco's (The Black Mage, or Chris of 'Chris N Drop) new album commenting numerous times, been on Rolling Stone's blog and much more. Lately, I've started to receive loads of band submissions, something I'm truly grateful for- I hope my posts have helped you all in some way or another. My popularity is increasing, with the Hype Machine indexing my blog (I've been number 1 on the popular list about 10 times now!), regular Paper Thin Walls spots and popular posts on Elbows. The page rank is going up as well- just as a side note, if you want to exchange links, drop me a line...

I have serious plans for this blog... I recently bought a new domain, www.thecoldcut.com, which is not functioning just yet, but will soon be up. With the new domain I will keep Blogger hosting for now, but may eventually move to Wordpress so I can integrate a much better template. I've put more advertising on the blog to offset the costs of file hosting- I will hopefully soon be making enough to buy a yousendit premium account.

Thanks for a great 10 months. Long may it continue... This one's for you!

Led Zeppelin- Thank You

I've been meaning to update the overall look of this blog for a while now, and today I finally got around to creating a new header and some better templates. Hope you like it- there will be some more changes coming over the next couple of weeks.