End of Week Beats + Pieces
Dazed Digital, Bee Hype, Test Pressing, 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 DOING:
Four times a year, I write a quarterly recap of ten great records from the previous three months for Dazed & Confused. I’ve been doing this for five years now, which is crazy. Anyway, the Q4 2023 edition of my column is live on their site now.
Every year (for the last few years), I’ve contributed to the great Bee Hype website’s annual Best Albums of the Year list. With contributors from 80+ countries around the world, the list always offers multiple different ways of looking at music. My friend Elijah always says that if you only listen to music in English, you’re actually just dabbling in music. I tend to agree. Anyway, the list is live here.
Since 2019, I’ve contributed to the great Balearic heritage website that’s also so much more than a heritage website, Test Pressing. They do a great end-of-year round-up post every year as well, which I’m very happy to be part of. Check the 2023 post here.
On Saturday night, I’m DJing before Detroit’s Marcellus Pittman at Flux Bar in Christchurch, New Zealand. It should be a fun night. JJ Walker and Kate Land are playing as well. Tickets here.
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING:
Inside the mind of Studio Ghibli composer Joe Hisaishi: In a rare interview, Japanese musician Joe Hisaishi reflects on creating the soundscapes for Studio Ghibli and why music should radiate raw emotion. Thomas Hobbs for Dazed.
"Making people feel and ascend through sound" - Inside The KG Experience: Stephen Akinyemi captured Karen Nyame KG's first four-hour extended set in London. Up on Mixmag here.
Chuquimamani-Condori - DJ E (Review): The artist formerly known as Elysia Crampton makes a gloriously chaotic and triumphant return. Max Pearl for Resident Advisor.
At home with Madam X in Athens: Greek-British DJ Madam X moved to Athens in 2021 and has found new levels of creative energy there. Niamh O'Connor strolls through the city with the KAIZEN label boss to learn how its laidback lifestyle has helped her refine her career, from preparations for her debut EP music to her MDMXERCISE fitness brand. Up on DJ Mag here.
UWI’s Reggae Studies Unit To Offer Sound System Course: Come January 2024, the University of the West Indies (UWI) Institute of Caribbean Studies will be offering a Sound System Course, which will be led by the Head of the Reggae Studies Unit, Dr. Sonjah Stanley Niaah. Claudia Gardner for Dancehall Mag.
WHAT I’VE BEEN LISTENING TO:
Here’s a selection of a few different dance-tempo 80s/90s tracks and compilations I’ve purchased on Bandcamp recently. It’s summertime in the Southern Hemisphere, and it’s time to have some fun.
FIN.