creative commons album

Jimmy Behan – In the Sudden Distance

Jimmy Behan is one of those artists I kind of discovered accidentally. I had a couple of his releases on my hard drive, but they were mixed in with a lot of other things I'd downloaded at approximately the same time, so I didn't really notice they were there. Then occasionally a track would pop up on shuffle, and I'd think, this is great, who is this? I'd look at the name, and nine times out of ten it would be Jimmy Behan. So I dug his releases out and gave them a proper listen.

Bangguru – Bang the Guru! EP

For those born in the '70s, or even youngsters who just foster an invented nostalgia for what it was like to be a kid in the '80s, there's a certain timeline of sounds that inevitably weave their way through the collective memory. Portuguese electropop band Bangguru have a sound that embodies all these elements within a single package, and not only is this the kind of music I like to listen to, these seem to be exactly the sort of people I'd like to hang out with.

netBloc 13

"Color in a world of monochrome" is the tagline for the thirteenth netBloc compilation release from blocSonic, and there couldn't be a more appropriate way to describe this collection of photos, artwork, and of course fantastic free music. A feast of visual and audio delights, there's more than enough here to keep you interested for the long haul, and to make you want more.

Pequeña Fiera! “Secrets with no words” – dreamy and hazy experimental art rock release

Another great release from the Error!Lo-Fi Records (Spain). Pequeña Fiera! is a band that explores the border between lo-fi and experimental/art rock (vide Radiohead, Sigur Ros, etc.). What we got on Secrets with no words are 5 very dreamy and hazy tunes that take us somewhere very much behind the rainbow. If the band thought about the compositions a little bit thoroughly than it would definitely be a minor underground hit-band.

Paolo Pavan “Looking for a Way Out” – CC licensed modern jazz

Pianist Paolo Pavan has been previously reviewed here for his excellent jazz album titled Inside. The title refers to his fondness for mainstream tonal jazz which he continues to explore on Looking For a Way Out. Yet, as the title implies, Pavan becomes a bit more exploratory. Aside from his rather prodigious talent on keyboards, the musician also displays a gift at arranging. There is also some impressive soloing by Daniele Arena on trumpet, Davide Marinacci on tenor sax and Michele Villari on alto and soprano saxophones. If you are at all interested in modern jazz, you should like this.

Erdbeerschnitzel helps clean out your ears with Pathetik Party

A lot has happened in recent years that is making me give electropop another chance. You might think there's only so much that can be done with dancey club-type music, but the advent of IDM as a distinct "listening" genre (i.e. stuff you might actually play at home) has really opened doors for musicians like Tim Keiling, also known as Erdbeerschnitzel, to spread their wings and explore a bit.

Markovich/A.M.P.’s Emotive Force – project-based alternapop

It's nice to see Creative Commons licenses being used for undertakings that push the limits of collaboration and remote recording technologies, and Markovich/A Music Project (A.M.P.) are doing their best to test those limits. As the name suggests, they are a music project more than a band, and although they aim to make pretty straight-up downtempo and trip-hop, there's still enough variation in there to make for some very interesting listening.