Tayalarz vol.5: Lemons Rubik

so far, the emphasis of the Tayalarz mixtapes has been discovery, finding new artists and new music, but as is traditional of us muso types, as one year ends and another begins, we like to look back over what has shaped the previous 12 months

and so to put a Tayalarz spin on things, the January mixtape has tracked down unique versions of songs from some of the biggest artists of 2013, all available to download for free via various blogs and such

as always, the following tracklisting provides all of the appropriate links needed to garner these tracks from their sources and for the second month Ted Joyce has provided the wonderful artwork yet again

1.  Jay-Z - Tom Ford (Crizzly remix) (available via Music Ninja)
2.  Lordes - Royals (La Felix Remix)
3.  Katy Perry - Roar (Brillz radio edit) (available via The Music Ninja)
4.  Kanye West - Black Skinheads (Donovans Rewerk) (available via Nerdy Frames)
5.  Justin Timberlake - Suit and Tie (A Few Thangs Rmx) (via Mad Decent)
6.  James Blake - Retrograde (Minorstep remix) (available via Hilly Dilly)
7.  Arctic Monkeys - Just Hold On We're Going Home (Drake cover) 
           (available via We All Want Someone To Shout For)
8.  Haim - Let Me Go (Ancient Mermaids Remix) (available via Hilly Dilly)
9.  Silver Swans - Wrecking Ball (Miley Cyrus cover) (available via Indie Shuffle)
10. Daft Punk - Lose Yourself to Dance (La Felix Remix) (available via Acid Stag)
11. Robin Thicke - Give it to You (Trippy Turtle Remix) (available via Pigeons and Planes)
12. Angel Haze - Same Love (Macklemore and Ryan Lewis cover) (available via Brooklyn Vegan)

In the tracklisting above are links to the artist's bandcamp/soundcloud/website if you click on their name, and clicking on the track name or blog link will direct you to where I originally encountered their music, good luck hunting it all down...   
and shortly the Tayalarz series will be looking ahead at the artists others have been touting big things for in 2014 along with a few of our own personal discoveries

Hackney Colliery Band - Common Decency

The summer of 2012 and all of the negative energies and grumbles of washed out summers that typify us British have been erased by the sun drenched positivity and pride that arrived with Jubilee celebrations and stuck around as our over analysed and over debated Olympics finally took hold.

It was the summer of 2012 that I discovered Hackney Colliery Band, and near enough couldn't escape them at times. With a fuzzy head after birthday celebrations, I travelled the DLR to the newly opened London Pleasure Gardens, and as i walk in a crowd has gathered round a brass band, the vibe is casual, they almost look as if they are busking here, the mood is playful and engaging, and the music... hang on... what is that they're playing?

 

 Those that stumble upon Hackney Colliery Band in a similar situation to mine with have no doubt done the same cartoon style double-take, the sound is stunningly colloquial, a strange throwback that is as much an indulgence as it is a curiosity. Yes, this is a brass band, yes, with trumpets and trombones and other instruments I may be able to name after adequate research... but what is that they're playing?

To base a review purely on the merits of their cover versions would be poor form indeed, new album Common Decency sees to that, but those that are paying attention to this band are surely doing so after hearing hip-hop melded with a good old British sense of fun, and when I perched my bum on the grass in front of a stage in Victoria Park for an Olympic celebration of Sports and Music, surely those that booked Hackney Colliery Band must have thought the same.

The beauty of the album is that it isn't just a covers album, unique original material is abound, and for those unfamiliar with the source material it is sometimes difficult to discern which is which, making this flighty and joyous rumble of brass and rebellious behaviour a joy to revel in.

I won't lie to you, at live outings and on record, Kanye West's pompous and already mammoth sounding All Of The Lights takes on a majestic incarnation when being blasted out by brass horns, it is my favourite track by a country mile and just the thought of it sends a shiver up my spine and a smile across my lips. Empire State of Mind by Jay -Z/Alicia Keys is a magnificent reinterpretation and the closing Prodigy medley is bloody good fun, but Smile for The Webcam and You Got What I Need also hold their own against the easy lure of recording the songs of others and watching fans flock to you.

 

And as the summer seemed to be signalled that it was time to wind things up with the Olympic Closing Ceremony, and BBC newscasters walking around the stadium talk about and hint at the sights we may see coming up later, who is that I can hear in the background, performing as a precursor to the main event, its only that Hackney Colliery Band again?!?

With good reason have they found so many new acolytes along their musical journey, this is enthralling feelgood music that would fit in at village fêtes as perfectly as it would at trendy Shoreditch nightspots, if there is one thing that is universal, it is fun, and as the summer of 2013 draws in, I've got good reason to believe that Hackney Colliery Band should be the perfect soundtrack to every summer.