You might not expect it, but Eau Claire’s music scene has been making pretty progressive turns in recent memory —especially for a ~60k Wisconsin town. Even if you leave aside the bigger name indies (ahem—Bon Iver, S. Carey), there’s been a host of bands and producers devoting themselves to their own sound. Sloslylove’s Tendencies is a great example of this trend —the record flips 80’s funk and soul into a mesh of electonric r&b and hip-hop. Think something along the lines of Dam-Funk or Onra’s Long Distanceexcept with less intense drum clap and a chillwave vibe. Highly recommended.
“Ring the Alarm” / Giorgio MoMurda Paintings Vol. 2 (Bandcamp - 2012)
When I ate breakfast to this album this morning I felt like I was in a game of Perfect Dark.
“Camel (Nosaj Thing Remix)” / Flying Lotus L.A. EP 2 X 3 (Warp - 2008)
“Camel” is likely one of the best Flying Lotus songs ever put to wax. It’s one of two or three of the songs that defined the sound of Fly Lo for me during this period. The percussion gave impressions of nameless villages (Nepalese? Brazilian?) and the static gave the feel of rain. The Nosaj Thing flip, however, might be even better. In the midst of all the great music that came out during this period, I think this remix got lost - which is a shame. It totally re-contextualizes the sounds found within. Where in the Fly Lo version we found ourselves hiding from the rain under an awning in a post-apocalyptic shantytown, Nosaj puts us in the submerged aftermath. The echoes of the village remain, but only as muffled ghosts.