Beats + Pieces Vol. 76

Sampology, Iris Little, Karmasound, BUY NOW, etc.

Selected Works is a weekly (usually) newsletter by the Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa (Wellington, New Zealand) based freelance music journalist, broadcaster, copywriter and sometimes DJ Martyn Pepperell, aka Yours Truly. Most weeks, Selected Works consists of a recap of what I’ve been doing lately and some of what I’ve been listening to and reading, paired with film photographs I’ve taken + some bonuses. All of that said, sometimes, it takes completely different forms.

WHAT I’VE BEEN LISTENING TO:

Meanjin/Brisbane-based composer, producer and DJ Sam Poggioli aka Sampology brings the sunshine out with ‘Morning Sun’, the first single from his forthcoming new Ripen Vol. 1 EP. Jazz funk reimagined for the modern deep house era, ‘Morning Sun’ sees Sampology teaming up with the choral trio of Tiana Khasi, Hannah Macklin and Kalila. If this is any indication of what the rest of the EP is gonna sound like, we’re in for a good good time. Due for release July 4 via Middle Name Records.

The second act in a story told in five parts, ‘2’, is a vivid intermingling of delicate acoustic fingerwork, airy atmospherics, and clockwork rhythms. Over its first movement, the song gently unfolds into a triumphant paean to what Little describes as “The original separation—the beginning of the other” before exploding into a flurry of hefty industrial electronics that fade gently into the good night.

Shaped in an almost telepathic collaboration with the Otautahi-based producer, musician and songwriter Chris Wethey (AJA, Deva Mahal, Byllie-Jean), ‘2’ was inspired by Portishead, Björk, FKA Twigs, Jenny Hval, and the 19th-century American poet Emily Dickinson’s masterpiece of prose, ‘Two—were immortal twice.’ Alongside vocals, piano, guitar and synth from Little, ‘2’ also features chopped-up drum loops originally played by Hikurangi Schaverien-Kaa and distorted guitars from Michael Howell.

Thanks to Iris for inviting me to write the sales notes for this one.

In 2023, Damián Botigué AKA Karmasound teamed up with Pedro Ricardo for one of my favourite albums of the year, Un Nuevo Amanecer, released by the excellent Spanish label Canela En Surco. Across the recently released MISS U EP, Damián gets back into full jazz broken beat producer mode, crafting three shuffling club tracks that fold together influences drawn from the realms of jazz fusion, soulful house, hip-hop and “world” music. As soon as the wormy synths kicked in on ‘Panorama’, I knew we were in for a good time.

I hope you like Swiss dub pop on a Tom Tom Club lean?

Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa-based synthesist and composer Sophie Burbery digs into the possibilities and potential of the Korg MS-20 and the rare Roland System 700 with her new five-tracker, Antithesynth. In her words, “By prioritising sound over form, this project reimagines composition as an emergent dialogue - where music is not imposed, but uncovered.”

Aotearoa musician Shaun Blackwell, aka Hemi Hemingway, continues his pivot from ‘60s crooner pop to ‘80s new wave. Expect more of this soon.

Eddie Johnston, aka Lontalius, is back at it.

BUY NOW:

Ostensibly, New Zealand historian Michael Brown’s BUY NOW is the story of fellow New Zealand musician Eyeliner’s cult vaporware classic, BUY NOW (2015). Once you dig a bit deeper, though, it’s really the story of how a generation of millennial New Zealanders grew up at the ends of the Earth before connecting with the world through the internet. It’s also the story of how, in the modern era, international scenes can galvanise online through ideas and iteration. That said, I’m not sure how many more stories we’ll really see play out like this. Beautifully explained and contextualised, BUY NOW is a great window into a very specific world (that intersects with many worlds).

More details here.

WHAT I’VE BEEN READING:

Adam Duritz Is Just Happy to Be Anywhere: A soulfully earnest singer whose folk-rock band stormed the charts in the age of grunge and irony, the Counting Crows frontman became both an overnight icon and an easy target—and throughout his band’s rise and fall, he kept quiet about his struggle with mental illness. At 60, he’s found some peace at last. Now what? For GQ, Grayson Haver Currin.

The Decline of the Working Musician: You used to be able to make a living playing in a band. A new book, “Band People,” charts how that changed. For The New Yorker, Hua Hsu.

AUDIO ANTIQUING: DOWNBEAT CLASSICS

For this week’s Audio Antiquing on RDU 98.5 FM, I had a chat with station Host Bex about 90s & 00s downbeat classics from Aotearoa and Te Waipounamu. Listen here.

FIN.