Nastinos

Archive for the ‘Artists - Solo’ Category

The Polish Ambassador is jumpsuit wearing David Sugalski, self billed on his myspace as ‘half diplomat, half groove generator, all asexual cyborg. Indeed it’s not merely his music, but the make-up of his entire character and back-story which help create an intriguing and unique listening experience.

The Polish Ambassador – Earth vs The World

His facebook page lists his hometown as ‘The Infinite,’ and Sugalski commonly references his early days in outer space long before he came to earth to spread his electronic beats to the masses. Currently residing in Our World (more specifically California USA) The Polish Ambassador does not do much ambassadoring (-adjective, doing ambassadorry stuff) these days, he simply makes varied and interesting electro beats for us to listen, and dance to.

The Polish Ambassador – The Electro Kids Just Want To Dance

To date he has 3 full length albums; Dimplomatic Immunity (2007), The Phantasmal Farm (2007) and I Found Him, Now I Must Kill Him (2008). Each one blends together elements of early computer game music with intelligent drum beats designed to make earthlings dance, each track is layered with synthesized bass and futuristic melodies which pay homage to his upbringing in the far reaches of the universe.

Space shenanigans aside, in a time where many electronica artists are blasting our ears with heavy bass and pounding drums, the The Polish Ambassador provides a much lighter melodic sound. Some may find this boring, but the beats are very danceable in a head nodding way and his ability to evoke mood in his lyric-less pieces is something that is much harder to create than it is to listen to.

The Polish Ambassador -  Infiltrating The U.N.

Spotify Links

Diplomatic Immunity
The Phantasmal Farm

Warren John Myles has long been a stalwart of Sheffield’s anti-establishment subterranean music scene, though you would be forgiven for not instantly recognising his name, as he is perhaps more familiar for his work in art-punk anti-emo noise combo  Heart/Yeah?, and more recently, violinear electro-folk pop trio Urgent Talk. It may therefore be a surprise to hear that ‘No Drama’ is in fact his third solo album release, following on from 2007’s ‘Gameboy Songs’ and last year’s ‘Coughs’.

‘No Drama’ marks a significant departure from Myles’ earlier work in both scope and conception. I think it is fair to say his first two works were more exploratory pieces, charting Myles growth as an electronic artist and gameboy connoisseur, and it was perhaps an overemphasis on this particular ‘instrument’ that turned-off many a snobbish muso which meant the musical depth and quality of songs such as ‘I am the tiger from clipart’ remained largely overlooked. Even yours truly must hold his hands up and apologise for this. ‘No Drama’, however, is no avant-garde statement, but one of serious artistic intent. The electronica remains, but it is primarily developed from an acoustic guitar with samples mixed through his laptop, producing a quite remarkable range of sounds and offering a much more versatile platform upon which to explore his songwriting skills.

Don’t get me wrong, this is not pop in any highly-polished, Trevor Horn sense of the word. Nor will it be storming the charts or be covered by this year’s X-Factor winner. I imagine the raw, bedroom production will not be to everyone’s taste, neither will his strained vocal parts, but if you look past these for a moment, Myles’ pop sensibilities come shining through. He has a real ear for a catchy hook, and a great sense of harmony, and though his voice is admittedly not the strongest, it has a fragile quality which really captures his human vulnerability, and gives us a glimpse of the man behind the entertainer and exhibitionist we are used to seeing shed his shirt on stage. Myles has always been a very poetic and insightful lyricist, something perhaps not fully conveyed in the noise records of his past. In this context though his words shimmer with a heady mix of surreal beauty and satirical social commentary. In fact, it is a more mature Myles, as both a songwriter and individual, who shares with us his own personal reflections on growing up and settling down, epitomised in the song ‘Little Coney’. This song in particular has an incredibly infectious dancebeat melody you can’t help but hum and tap your foot to, a vibe somewhat ironic considering the song’s opening line: ‘now why would I want to stay out in a club?’. 

This is an impressive offering from Myles, which firmly cements his place as one of the most innovative and exciting artists currently performing in the Steel City. Furthermore, ‘No Drama’ can be downloaded in its entirety completely for free at: http://theeeldance.blogspot.com/2009/08/warren-myles-no-drama-dyr07.html. Therefore you have no excuse not to check it out!

Rating: 7.5/10

Look out for my review of the new Urgent Talk album in the next week, also from Sheffield’s ‘Dear You Records’ stable.

Warren John Myles – Little Coney:

Warren John Myles – And When I Die Throw My Body In:

Warren John Myles – Bagshot Balloon Factory Theme: