Creamtone

Monsieur Blumenberg - Seherazade Mon Amour

Okay, I’ve been on a chillout tip lately. Here’s a deliciously slinky loungecore piece from Monsieur Blumenberg (Kikko Montefiori from Montefiori Cocktail fame), off the album Musique et Coleurs. Never knew trombones could be this sexy.

Blackalicious - Alphabet Aerobics (Cut Chemist 2-&-half-minute workout)

This pimpin’ rap masterpiece is pure lyrical genius. With tongue firmly in cheek, Gift of Gab goes back to elementary school and explores the alphabet! Every line consists of only words starting with an alphabet, beginning with ‘A’ and ending with ‘Z’ words (’Zealot!!!!’). Not only that, his rap speeds up as it grooves along to Cut Chemist’s beats. What a cunning linguist!

A couple of weeks ago, Kristal RockHardMelons shared with me a very poignant short story by Haruki Murakami entitled On Seeing The 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning.

It really moved me , so I thought I’d share it with you…

It’s a bittersweet story, speaking of the simplicity of finding a soulmate (the 100% perfect person)… how it could happen in just a blink of an eye, yet how we can also lose it all just as quickly. It explores how humans perceive perfect love to be impossible, when it’s perfectly possible. The true tragedy occurs when we have found that miracle but we become skeptical about it.

What happens? We end up challenging it, turning something so perfectly possible into something impossible to attain anymore.

A sad story, don’t you think?

Does such a girl exist? Yes, I believe she does.

Have I found her yet? Maybe, maybe not.

April Stevens - Do It Again (Wagon Christ Rmx)

Here’s some classic Gershwin lushness deftly remixed by the one and only Luke Vibert (aka Wagon Christ). It’s a whimsical, magical and enchanting journey through lazy beatscapes, sensuous sax stylings and heavenly strings — complete with cheeky bubble sounds. When April Stevens beckons you to “do it again” in her sultry voice, you know that resistance is futile.

Learn more about the mad genius Vibert here

Okay, I haven’t found time to fill up this page yet… come back soon, I’ll be talking about ktone.fm, creamtone records and the 2nd album I’m working on. Anyways, here’s a cool drawing of me with X-Ray Specs (da bomb!) done by Krissie…

Beastie Boys vs Steve On-point - Super Disco Breakin’

Fantastic bootleg fan remix of a Beastie Boys classic! Minimalist staccato breaks and great vocal samples — “First you make a sale, then you open my drawers. What am I?”
Old skool phatness.

Ch-Ch-Check out the Beastie website…

Ever since I discovered Internet radio some 5 years ago, no station has quenched my musical thirst more consistently and had me beaming from ear to ear more often than SomaFM.

It is a listener-supported, commercial-free Internet radio station that is run by a bunch of guys broadcasting from a basement in San Francisco.

SomaFM boasts 7 stations broadcasting a gorgeous rainbow of musical genres, each one holding a unique personal space in my heart…

DRONE ZONE
“Served best chilled, safe with most medications. Atmospheric textures / minimal beats.”

I spent many cold winter nights in London spacing out to the intimate ambient soundscapes of Drone Zone, which was the 1st station that was launched by SomaFM. Beautiful bliss.

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

BEAT BLENDER
“A late night blend of deep-house and downtempo chill.”

Whenever I’m in the mood for something more upbeat yet chilled, Beat Blender offers an eclectic selection of triphop, downtempo, chillout, jazz and house. Pure class.

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

GROOVE SALAD
“A nicely chilled plate of ambient beats and grooves.”

Ahhh… The soundtrack to endless summer days, lazing on the grass with a pint of Stella in one hand. And who can forget the bikini babes?

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

CLIQHOP IDM
“Blips’n'beeps backed mostly w/beats. Intelligent Dance Music.”

It always amazes me how digital machines — so artificial, so synthetic, so non-organic — can create soundscapes that move the soul & soothe the most savage beast.

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

SECRET AGENT
“The soundtrack for your stylish, mysterious, dangerous life. For Spies and PIs too!”

This is where it starts to get funky and kitschy. If you’re in the mood for uber stylish tunes to match your mysterious moonlighting job as a secret agent, this is the station for you.

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

INDIE POP ROCKS
“New and your favorite classic indie pop tracks.”

Once in a while, I like to switch off all that electronica & indulge in some frenetic air-guitar action. I swear there’s an aspiring rock-star wannabe hidden inside me.

Tune In:
128k mp3 stream

TAG’S TRANCE TRIP
“Progressive house / trance. Tip top tunes.”

Ahh, how it all began… Dancing in abandoned cathedrals in Brixton with megawatt soundsystems, gurning like mad monkeys and never wanting the music to end. Memories!

Tune In:
160k mp3 stream

After 5 years, SomaFM still kicks butt. According to their website, the name Soma is based on “the future’s perfect pleasure drug”.

Word.

Yup, it’s going to be a random series of posts introducing music that’s playing on my stereo, mainly stuff that’s moved me either cos they’re so achingly good or awesomely bad… and sometimes, just plain quirky.

To kick things off, here’s an evocative piece from the soundtracks of Days of Being Wild and 2046 — two beautiful art films directed by the Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar-Wai. Listening to this cinematic tune transports me to an era that I didn’t grow up in, yet somehow it still feels familiar and comforting. It’s a strange kind of ‘borrowed’ nostalgia…

Xavier Cugat - Perfidia

Read more about Xavier Cugat

A while ago, I came across a sweet hip-hop/dusty breaks/big-horns cover version of Just by Radiohead, off the brilliant album The Bends.

This version is by DJ Mark Ronson featuring Alex Greenwald (lead singer of Phantom Planet) backed by invincible horns from The Dap Kings.

The Motion Group/Abbey Road Video Services have made a wicked video for it that showcases London graffitti art in animation — there’s even some Banksy in it.

Lovely stuff.

Update: Just found out that it’s gonna be on an album of Radiohead covers, released by British label BBE… featuring versions by The Cinematic Orchestra, Matthew Herbert and RJD2.

Booyaa!

Here’s a sweeeeet Radiohead homebrew animation of Creep (Acoustic) by Low Morale … Click on the Flash movie to view!

Two years? At least.

After shutting the previous website for an extended hibernation, I guess it’s time to revive Creamtone. Yes, it’s time to dust off the vinyls, hook up the bassbins, spin up the decks & party like it’s err… 1999!

Yeah, baybeh… Tonight, the Milky Bars are on me!

Funny that you mentioned 1999 (just pretend that you did), cos’ it was at the turn of the millennium when - over a post-FABRIC, greasy 7am fry-up at a tiny breakfast parlour run by hairy Greek men in Farringdon, London - my musika chillmate Roy (“Royston / Razor”) and I had an epiphany.

We should start a record label and throw the best parties in London.

Or, at least in the EC1 district.

Heck, we’d been practising hard at it for the past 3 years at Exeter Uni. with our mates in the Creamtea Collective anyway.

After years of dabbling in the scene, experimenting, organising mad parties, gaining experience and establishing contacts; we finally decided it was time for the Creamtea Collective to make a start at something official. Creamtone Records was born on May 1st, 2000. Creamtone Records began as a net label/community dedicated to showcasing creative talent, whether it be designers, producers or DJs. Our mission was to share our passion for good music and art. With our motley posse hailing from Finland, Sudan, Brunei, UK, France and Singapore; we had some truly unforgettable adventures.

Creamtone lives on, although it’s run solely by me now… the ethos remains the same and my bruthas, sistahs and I remain tight even though we hardly get a chance to meet and party anymore. Yeah, it’s hard when we’re spread out all over the world.

Kudos to my mates; here’s sending massive big-ups and heartfelt wishes to…

• Henri aka En Route (Finland)
• Mo’ aka L Sultan (Sudan)
• Roy aka Royston/Razor/Geezer (Brunei/UK/Paris/Baltimore jetsetter)
• James aka Haze (UK)
• Nathan aka Draco (UK)
• Dave aka BNZ (UK)
• Matt aka Ultra (UK)
• Samantha aka Lady J (UK)
• Wei Wei aka Cherry Garcia (Brunei/UK)

Let’s do it again. Real soon.