Radar - China Darling

Canada had some great electronic disco in the early 80s and a lot of it emits that type of coolness that seems to come with a closer proximity to tundra. This track has a lot of cool elements with an ever present arpeggio rhythm driving a calm groove, wurlitzer chord stabs, and a snide rock vocal. The 'Chinese Rhythm' that often accompanies any song about a woman from China is a bit cliche but otherwise this track is pretty smooth.

Wanexa - The Man from Colours

One of the best productions from the camp of Gianluigi Farina , Francesco Rago, and Monneret De Villard Xenia Olga Anastasia, the crew that produced 'Lectric Workers' 'Robot Is Systematic' and many others. The Psychadelic female vocals and simple synth refrain are driven by droning flanged drums and a dreamy sensibility. The break in this track is a perfect example of how Italo Disco influenced the early pioneers of Techno.

She's Gone Away (instrumental)

This song is brutal. Driven by repetitive bass synth arpeggios and chunky layers of guitar and bass. The female female vocals on the hook are infectious and their hints throughout the verse are seductive. Jimy's metallic vocoder voice is a delightful interjection of Italo goodness.

Kasso - Dig It

Kasso had a string of classic dance cuts in the late 70s and early 80s including "Brazilian Dancer" and "Dig It." According to liner notes Claudio Simonetti and Giancarlo Meo had a strong hand in the production and writing with these songs (along with Linda Wesley who lent her vocal talents to the productions). Both tracks are very soulful dance tracks with full bodied vocals and percussive, funk-forward production. Brazilian born Simonetti has had a long career in music starting with his role in Italian Rock group Goblin, Capricorn, various disco productions and movie soundtracks. Check out this interview with him from DJhistory.com and his current website here. Giancarlo Meo has also had a long illustrious career in music production with a string of great tracks under his belt from his work with Simonetti in 'Easy Going' to dance numbers in the 90s.

Sparber - Cosmic Mix

Here is another mix that came my way. This one comes from Sparber of New York City.

Sparber - Cosmic Mix
1. A Love Again (special remix) - Savage
2. Crash - Doctor's Cat
3. Sermon (Serotonin edit) - Mark Seven
4. Magic Carillon - Rose
5. Feeling Without Touching - Glass Candy
6. Just Be Good to Me - The Revenge (feat. Danielle Moore)
7. In The Summer (Picture House's 'Summer In The Balearics' Mix) - Crystal Fighters
8. Flower (Sparber mix) - Liz Phair
9. I Gotta Little Love - Angela
10. Guinea (Andy Blake's Edit) - Discodromo
11. Little Fluffy Clouds - The Orb
12. What Is Love (Holographic Goatee Mix) - Deee-Lite

Muselmix Vol 1 - Speelycaptor

I get an occasional email from readers submitting their tracks and mixes. I have been meaning to feature a lot of them here but my lazy ass hasn't made it happen. Let me reconcile this today with a megamix from Speelycaptor of Denmark.

Speelycaptor - Muselmix1: Italo Disco Megamix

Intro: Sun Ra (movie quote from Space is the place)
1.) X-Ray Connection - Get ready (museledit)
(Boytronic- Luna square /synthhook)
2.) Mike Cannon - Going crazy
3.) Kano - Another Life
4.) Q - the Voice of Q vs
5.) Bamboo -Spaceship crashing
6.) FrédéricMercier - Spirit
7.) Imortals - Ultimate Warlord (museledit) vs
8.) Sex Band - I've got the answer
9.) B.W.H - "Stop" (museledit)
10.) Telex - "Diskow Moskow"
(Yello - i love u)
11.) Valerie Dore - "Get Closer"
12.) Tantra - "Hills of Katmandu" (Museledit) vs
13.) Cat Gang - "Locomotive breath"
14.) Ivan - "Fotonovela"
15.) Danny Keith - "Keep on music"
16.) Lama - Nineteen Ninety three
17.) Soif de la vie - "Goddess of love" (instrumental)
18.) Ken Laszlo - "Hey hey guy" (museledit)
19.) X-Ray Connection - "Replay" (museledit)
20.) Telex - "L'amour toujors" (museledit)
(Ofra Haza - "Im 'nin alu)
21.) Koto - "Chinese Revenge" vs
22.) Fake - "Donna Rouge" (Loops) vs Jamiroquai - "Cosmic Girl" (accapella)
23.) Creatures - "Believe in yourself"
24.) Hot Cold - "I can hear your voice"
25.) Laserdance - Humanoid Invasion
26.) Doctor's Cat - "Feel the drive"
Estelle & Kanye West - "American Boy" (accapella)
27.) Cyber People - "Void Vision"
28.) Digital Emotion - "Get up"
Jackson Five: "I want you back" (accapella)
29.) Fun Fun - "Living in Japan" vs
Lipps Inc - "Funkytown"
30.) Azul y Negro - "The Night"
31.) Trans X - "Living on video"

Spaced Out

Driven by a gravelly bass line and soft girl vocals you can hear a throw back to Parliament's pitched up Sir Nose between verses. This song is airy and full of funk. Its hard not to start nodding your head or shrugging your shoulders when this one is bumping. Pure Energy put this out in 1983 for Prism Records. Check out their funky catalog.

Marzio Dance and the Xenon empire

Marzio Dance had his hands in a lot of amazing projects in the early eighties Italian scene. 'You Can Do It' and 'Rap-O-Hush' have had a lot of play in the resurgence of electro and Italo Disco  (I recently featured the electro instrumental 'Adventure' in podcast 10). You can see and hear why he has had so much internet air time when you check out this amazing performance of 'You Can Do It' at Xenon Disco, the legendary discotheque of Firenze.



His work with Xenon (named after the legendary club) produced a few tracks including 'Symphony.' This ambitious arrangement conjures a sonic landscape of imposing laser towers, circuit board cities, and space ship battles. This song is a bold undertaking.

"A new adventure and a new sensation for your mind. 

come to the world of color, music, and lights and ...

Xenon empire and you can hear the ... sound storm"

Xenon attempts to push the genre beyond the dance floor and into a theatrical imagery that is larger than life. 'Symphony' does manage to tackle its own lofty title through a combination of arranged synthesizer strings and chorale vocals. But this song more importantly serves as a time machine to an analog era.

Nicolai - Rock Your Baby

This fun cover of George McCrae's "Rock Your Baby" is a fun soft groove. I have been unable to find any information about Nickolai or this track. Any info at all would be appreciated. Otherwise sit back and enjoy the crooning.

Lucky Guy

Yikes! My last post was nearly a month ago so let me dust the cobwebs off of the feed and try to play catch up. I just bought a house that is in need of some tender love and care so that has consumed a lot of my mental energy as of late. Looking forward to a fresh start, reconfiguring the studio and harnessing a new feng shui for my life. I consider myself a pretty lucky guy so how better to celebrate than Ryan Simmons' song of the same name.

'Lucky Guy' is just fun Italo pop from German pop sensation Dieter Bohlen of Modern Talking and Blue System. Despite featuring the ubiquitous group chant of 'oh ee ohh' this songs has some unique qualities including the spacious synth pad and percussive guitar strums. I featured this on podcast 06, check it out in that context.

Koto

Koto's (Alex Cundari, Anfrando Maiola, Roberto Bisca, Stefano Cundari) sound can typify what people conjure up when they think of Italo Disco. The repetitive synth leads and percussive bass arpeggios became almost cliche and typify the sound of Italo in the 1985 and 1986. But on their own these are fun tracks with playful melodies that play counterpoint off of each other. Both tracks have contemplative bridges that emerge from the main theme that should not be missed. The use of vocal samples and dialog give these a character that is so indicative if the era. Memory Records released both of these tracks in 1985 and 1986 respectively. Check out Koto's catalog for more synthesizer goodness.

Raf Coney

The production on Raf Coney's "She's Mine" is pretty epic. The opening saxophone and piano set the stage for an elaborate production. The vocals are understated and an acquired taste but after a few listens this track rapidly becomes an ear worm. The piano refrain with the sax will have you craving another listen. Hiss Records released this one in 1983, they have a small catalog but there are some great tracks in there.

Joe Ericson - Take Your Time

"Take Your Time" is a full bodied, live production that stretches beyond the normal sequenced drums and synthesizers. The delayed female vocals, synth stabs and slap bass keep the energy rolling through this number. Layered by imporvised synth leads and rapid drum pattern changes "Take Your Time" is a drawn-out dance jam. Fun and funky!

Jo Jo - Mind Games

Here is a classic cut from 1982. Underground, rare and lo-fi "Mind Games" is another gem from Italy's Il Discotto Productions. Not too much info about this one but the vocals and instrumental are top notch.

Giani Velcreaux - Blubbermouth

I have always meant for Italobot to be a platform for sharing music, from the past and today. I have had a lot of great track submissions and plan on featuring many of them here in the near future.

That being said I have also intended to use Italobot as to showcase my own musical adventures. At the risk of turning this space into a tool for self-promotion I have decided to start uploading my own tracks (on the rare occasion that I think they are done or at least as finished as they are going to get). I am sure many of the musicians and artists who visit this site can sympathize with the difficulty an artist/musician has in letting go of a project, saying "That's enough!" Being a perfectionist I would as soon let all these tracks stay in obscurity, digitally festering on hard-drives and soon to be unreadable CD-Rs.

Perfectionism aside its good to let go of a project eventually and let it prosper or fail in the interwebs. "Blubbermouth" is both relaxing, cerebral, and anxious, inspired by many of the sounds you hear on Italobot. In the near future I will be releasing this along with a few other tracks on an EP. Stay tuned.

Giani Velcreaux - Blubbermouth

Quando Quango - Love Tempo

Manchester's Factory put out this synth pop number in 1983 by Quando Quango. Its a bubbly track that grooves on and on.

Quando Quango - Love Tempo

Valery Allington and Sangy

This track is a classic, embodying the best mix of electronic disco and soulful R&B crooning. Vallery Allington's "Stop" sees Sangy behind the console, crafting what could be called, italo, disco or proto-House, but the vocals and sparse arrangement on this track make it fit easily into a mix of any of the above genres and more. Maybe that's why its so popular. In 1986 she cut a track called "Let's Make It," a rocking, industrial number (also produced by Sangy) that is a departure from the early 80s funk.

Musix Records featured a lot of Maurizio Sangineto's (aka Sangy) work with Armed Gang, James Kahn, and more. He teamed up with Maurice Cavalieri to release a few tracks as 'Firefly' that will forver grace disco mixes. These two were monsters in the late 70s and early 80s putting out some of the most sought after and precious tracks of the genre. I profiled both of their work earlier on italobot. Check it out if you don't know.

Italobot Podcast 10 - Foggy Summer

Italobot Podcast 10: Foggy Summer

01. International Music System - Dancing Therapy
02. Yellow Magic Orchestra - Behind the Mask
03. O'Gar - Playback Fantasy
04. Joe Kris - You'll Dance
05. Xalan - I Only Move for Money
06. Barry Mason - Together
07. Nexus - Stand Up
08. Capricorn - Maybe No
09. Diana Est - Le Louvre
10. Vinise - Play Boy
11. Marzio Dance - The Adventure

Summer passed us by out here in San Francisco, but I guess that's okay because I had some time inside to make some music and listen to tracks. I had a lot of fun with this one and I hope you do too!

Click here to download the mix.

Subscribe in iTunes.

Mirage

Another classic from 1983, Louise Freeman's "Mirage" has a funky stuttering synth rhyhtm and subtle vocals that have made this a much sought after record. This one has the fingerprints of one Paolo Micioni whose work I have review here before. A great track from one of the greatest years in Italo Disco.

X-Visitors

This track really swings! Its hard not to listen to this without moving your body to the back beat. San Francisco Bay Area funksters, X-Visitors put this one out in 1983 on Dancing Bear Records. The main synth melody is just molasses-thick, the dissonant cowbell, monotone rap and soulful crooning on this one all combine for a shoulder-shuffling number.

I'm a Vocoder

What would electronic music be without the robotic timbre of vocoded vocals? Now that auto-tune and a renewal of interest in vocoder use are prevailing in popular music it is always important to take a look back at how the vocoder was used in the 1970s and early 80s. To hear it in these earlier tracks is to see how an innovative technology was used to define genres that at their foundation enforced a science fiction element within the music. Today our daily life is the stuff of science fiction and thus the sound of the vocoder no longer represents the same elements of space and the future that it once did. Not only has the unique nature of the vocoder changed over the years but its harder to get the body and volume out of today's digital vocoders and software emulators that you had with the old analog devices.

Check out Gay Cat Park's homage to this wonderful instrument, circa 1982.

Hollywood Seven

Many people fall prey to the allure of fame and fortune. Its hard not to when we are immersed in a pop- crazed, mass media culture that seems to place the highest value on the cult of personality. Alides Hidding's 1980 disco tragedy Hollywood Seven is a lesson in the drawbacks to the dream of stardom, sung in a story format and driven by percussive brass and dramatic chord stabs. This one came on in the car today and I had to get it up immediately.

X-Visitors

This track really swings! Its hard not to listen to this without moving your body to the back beat. San Francisco Bay Area funksters, X-Visitors put this one out in 1983. The murky bass and monotone vocals on this one
X-Visitors - The Planet Doesn't Mind

Camomilla

Queen of the Night and Indian Reservation were featured on Camomilla's 1985 12-inch "Queen of the Night" on Magnum. Queen of the Night really typifies the Italo sound of the mid 1980s, thick accented female vocals and a melodic, ear-worm synth lead that wiggles into your brain. Indian Reservation is the story of a lonely Native American girl looking for a love. Its a little more nuanced and erratic, with a chunky bass, percolating rhythms, and sustained electric piano that give it a darker feel. Both fun tracks. Enjoy!

Dancing Therapy

International Music System put out this infectious number in 1984 on Emergency Records. The melody of the chorus and thick synthesizer pads truly has healing qualities. What else can you expect from Maurice Cavalieri and Gino Stefani, the geniuses behind Spacer Woman?

Vam Cyborg

Some Spanish electro from 1983 for my re-entry into the trenches of Italobot. I have been spending a lot more time getting back into my instrument at the unfortunate expense of my drum machines and keeping this blog up to date. So to make it up for you I'll get a few extra songs up today. This one from Vam Cyborg is driven by some great minimal arpeggios and has a fun breakdown with heavy breathing and whooping, vocoder chords.

Gina X Performance

Gina X Performance was an Electro Pop group from Cologne, Germany comprising of Gina Kikoine and Zeus B. Held. Best known for their track "No G.D.M." they cut a few full lengths including 1980's, "X-Traordinaire" which featured this haunting number.

Zenobia Conkerite

Zenobia cut this pop number in 1985 for Streetwise Records, co-produced by Michael Wooten. I have a personal preference for the dub version because it leaves a lot to the imagination. The vocal single is pretty good and has a tinge of a yacht rockin feel. Before dropping this she had a hand in song writing for a few soul numbers in the 70s and 80s including one or two for motown. Check out this immaculate rare soul number she did for Platinum Hook, produced by Deodato.

Rofo and Ray Muylle

This is a pretty popular track from Rofo that I have heard around. It gets lumped into the hiNRG category but it certainly stays away from the more obnoxious sectors of that label. The back beat is very '80s' and the rapid 32nd-note phrases give this song its HiNRG status. All in all its a fun track worth getting up here. It was produced by Ray Muylle who had a couple of boogie tracks with the New York City Band and then went head on into 80s territory with his work with 1000 Ohm (check out his work on "I Think She Understood").

Basic - Face in the Night

A beautiful and obscure Italo track from Basic. The vocals are sparse amongst a lush composition. This track evokes the best of the genre. Listening to it gets me excited to keep digging and searching for more of these gems. Pardon the poor mp3 quality.

Toledo Girl

Toledo Girl is a wonderful track recorded first by Little Jack Jingle in 1984 and then covered by Cosa Rosa in 1986. Both versions are pretty spectacular, Cosa Rosa's Spanish guitar breaks and flamenco atmosphere added some wonderful flavor to the track. I featured the Cosa Rosa version on podcast 03.

Mike Francis

Well after a month break from italobot I think I am ready to jump back on board. I was holding out for a few tracks that I have been trying to track down but there is still so much goodness to share that it seems criminal to wait any longer to get more music out there (though I suppose it some view it as criminal to share).

Here is a wonderful track from the soulful Mike Francis. This Italian crooner left us too soon just last year. "Night Time Lady" is a real slice of 1984, soulful, yacht-rocking disco. Be sure to acquaint yourself to this edit from Boogie Business that arrived in my email last week. Check out more of Boogie Businesses edits on his soundcloud page. Pure Italo, boogie funk!

Italobot Podcast 09 - Sees it Sideways

Italobot Podcast 09 - Sees it Sideways
01: Kano - Super Extra Sexy Sign
02: Video Club - Lost Time
03: Marzio - Phantom of the Opera
04: Milkways - Love for NR Part 1/Part 2
05: Ruth - Roman Photo
06: Bagarre - Lemonsweet
07: Plastic Mode - Mi Amor
08: Glam - More Than Ever
09: Giak - Inside You
10: Fake - Donna Rouge
11: Lustt - Pillow Talk
12: Kay Franzes - Take Me and You'll Win

"Save Link as" to download

I really indulged my inner disco time-traveler on this one and had a lot of fun in the process. Hope you do too!

Subscribe in iTunes.

Mike Macharello and Single Girl

Here is a great release from 1984 that has been described as the first Chicago House track but that could be under dispute. Regardless it is a fun, playful, and simple track. By 1985 Knight Action released R-Trax/D-Rail which unquestionably falls under that catagory of House music. Producer Mike Macharello produced a string of house tracks in the 1980s.

Fabio Frizzi and the Frizzi Brothers

Fabio Frizzi composed a tremendous amount of Italian horror soundtracks in the 70s and 80s. His music from the films is beautiful and haunting, blending traditional instruments with electronics and a rock fusion sensibility. Thankfully he found some time in 1983 to produce this funked out Italian jam "Capita" with his brother Fabrizio Frizzi for Jumbo Records.

Slow Flight

Digging has been slow going lately but I'm trying to keep on top of things. So to celebrate the pace of my posts here is Trophy's "Slow Flight." Trophy put this stripped down electro-disco number together for Fuzz Dance in 1982. The vocals are murky and there is some vocoder in there with the same tone as Bambaataa's 'Planet Rock.' Its has a real loose feel and the mix is pretty rugged...lots of space in there.

Don't Come Stoned...

I decided to put this one up on the heels of recent news that voters in California will be voting this November on whether or not the state should legalize the recreational use of marijuana. Max n' Specs comprised of Lorenzo Mills, Robin Lent. They recorded "Don't Come Stoned and Don't Tell Trude" in 1980 for CNR Records. An entertaining tale of two criminals planning a heist, this one is just fun.

Pink Project

Pink Project was Luciano Ninzatti and Stefano Pulga and they liked to do covers of Pink Floyd, Space, and more. "Amama" is a space disco track with some blocky synthesizers thrown in for good measure. You can tell from their sound selection that they were inspired by France's Space. Released in 1982 on the album Domino for Baby Records. Produced by Salvatore Annunziata and R. Fraschini. Check out Pink Project performing "Disco Project" back in the day. Those outfits are kind of freaky. Browse youtube for some of the other covers on the album.


Pink Project - 'Disco Project Medley

Plastic Mode

"Mi Amor"  by Plastic Mode is the perfect song for a perfect day. Spring is so close and this Plastic Mode track beckons for more warm, clear days. You may be familiar with Plastic Mode's "Baja Imperial." It was re-released on Morgan Geist's Unclassics compilation. Both of these tracks are stellar. Tony Carrasco has his hands on "Mi Amor" in addition to Mariano Boncaldo and Angelo Valsiglio. Both songs appeared on their EP "Plastic Mode."

Tout Petit La Planete

Belgian born Plastic Bertrand (aka Roger Marie François Jouret) had an international hit in 1977 with the song "Ça plane pour moi" a rocking number with a great underground sound. But lately I have been bumping a lesser known of his space disco number, "Tout Petit La Planete." The crunchy clavinet and spacey synth leads are very fitting for 1978, harnessing a cosmic sound and tastefully integrating the vocoder with subtlety. And you got to love those guitars, time to bust out the distortion pedals. He is still active musically, check out his website to catch up.

Magazine 60

I have meant to write up Magazine 60 for a while now. Some of you may already be familiar with these tracks but I had to get it up here for those who aren't. Don Quichotte made some waves in the U.S. market and there are few versions of it out there. Great breaks and fun lyrics. It was sampled by Will.I.Am for his song "I Got It From My Mama" (another mindless contribution to pop music).

Italobot podcast 08 : Altair Nouveau

Italobot podcast 08 : Altair Nouveau

1. Jon Anderson: Meeting (Garden of Geda)
2. Mike Oldfield: (Incantations) Part One
3. Landscape: Shake the West Awake
4. Righeira: Tanzen Mit Righeira
5. The Buggles: Inner City
6. Giorgio Morder: Paul's Theme (Jogging Chase)
7. Talk Talk: It's My Life (Dub Version)
8. Imagination: Music and Lights
9. Ministry: Work for Love
10. Barry De Vorzan: Theme from "The Warriors"
11. Heaven 17: Crushed by the Wheels of Industry
12. Wind: Luxury
13: Mike Mareen: Dancing in the Dark (Galactica Remix)
14. Change: Hold Tight
15. Stephanie Mills: Pilot Error (Club Mix)
16. Raw Silk: Do It to the Music (Dub Mix)
17. Sylvester: Fever
18: Midnight Passion: I Need Your Love (Instrumental)
19. Rosetta Stone: Sunshine of Your Love
20. The Immortals: The Ultimate Warlord
21. Tantra: Hills of Kat Mandu (Patrick Cowley Remix)

If you haven't heard of Altair Nouveau its time to get acquainted. His brand of music is a blend of space disco, fusion and the fantastic. You can get a taste of his new EP Space Fortress with his single Sorcerer which has a very live feel and soaring synthesizer lines. He has been a resident of the West Coast of the U.S. for a while now but he informed me that he is about to grace the Eastern Seaboard in a few weeks with a move to New York City. San Francisco will be sad to see him go but he was gracious enough to allow me to stream this mix he did last fall as part of the podcast.

To subscribe to the Italobot Podcast in iTunes:
1. Open itunes and go to (Advanced > Subscribe to podcast)
2. Paste this url in the podcast subscription field:

http://feeds2.feedburner.com/Italobot

Don't Hurt Me

Rene's 'Don't Hurt Me' is another classic track from powerhouse Discomagic Records complete with powerful synth lines and the charming calm of piano and saxophone. Written by Rino Facchinetti the former lead singer of Styloo with some help on the synths and drum progamming from Walter Bassani. There are some pretty wicked synth percussives in there towards the end and you got to love his use of the amen cadence too.

Port Salut

This track is off the wall and seemingly, pretty damn rare. And like a fine cheese this one has been aged to perfection. It sounds like space disco but the bass line tears through this song like pure funk. The chorus is infectious and the drum track snaps with the crunch of that synthesized bass. There is not much info online about Port Salut so if anyone has any more information about this one post it in the comments below.

Trust in Me

I'm riding high on a beautiful day in the Bay Area so I thought I would get a little boogie up here since the taste of Spring is nearly on my lips. L.J. Reynolds was in The Dramatics from 1973 to 1981. This one appeared on his album Travelin.

Lovables

This looks like my kind of Valentines Day scene. Toughing it out in the urban wastelands with my tough-as-nails girlfriend. Fighting off brigands and looking for a refuge for our forbidden love. And as we made love by the burning compounds of the warlords "It's Beautiful" played inside of our minds.

A fun-loving track produced by the team of Mauro Farina and Giuliano Crivellente,

Alek Stark - Trapped EP

Alek Stark cut his teeth in the the late 90s and 2000s with his label Star Whores and releases on numerous labels including Transient Force, home to some wonderful new electro and space disco tracks. His new Trapped EP on 158.8MHz Records has some fine cuts and he has made it freely available for the first 97 downloads. "Trapped" is driven by a drum track very reminiscent of old Prince layered with a spaced out synth, "Who I Am" is another great homage to space disco number complete with textures of arpeggios and vocoded vocals, "Inside You" has a pretty infectious, percussive synth lead and big soul claps.

All in all Stark's EP and label meet his purpose in honoring the Italo sound of the early 80s. Very robotic.

Download the Trapped EP.

He is pressing 20 or more copies on vinyl. If you are interested in getting one email him:

158.8mhz@gmail.com

Wonderful Train

I'm not sure where I can get a ticket for the wonderful train and I'm not sure where the wonderful train goes but I love train rides. And Angela St. Philips makes it sound like its just the best. What I love about the liner notes on this one is they tell what synths they used, the Oberheim Dmx, Dsx, Korg Poly 61, Prophet 5.

Download Oberheim DMX drum sounds

I have been looking at a great soft synth that emulates the old Oberheim sound. The OP-X from Sonic Projects sounds great, affordable and you can try it free.

Lovables

A fun-loving track produced by the team of Mauro Farina and Giuliano Crivellente, "It's Beautiful" is another good Valentines Day track so I thought I'd throw it up here for you lovers out there. It has a lot of cliche Italo synth phrases but isn't that what you love about this period of pop production?

Lovables - It's Beautiful

Altair Nouveau

http://www.altairnouveau.com

Altair Nouveau - Fall 09 Mix

setlist

Elle et Moi

Sensual is the first word that comes to mind to describe Max Berlin's iconic "Elle et moi" (She and I). A poetic, sexual lullaby that beckons for the evening warmth of bed sheets. Check out the lyrics here. Below is a  great remix from Joakim.

A Stroll through the Technopolis etc.

Here are a few to last you the weekend.

Maritime Tatami by Victrola is wonderfully dark and minimal with incredibly haunting vocals. Simple drums and a chunky, blocky bass sound. The B-Side "A Game of Despair" follows in a similar vein but with chorused guitars. A little more lyrical it doesn't conjure the same sense of future dystopia as "Maritime Tatami."

Victrola - Maritime Tatami
Victrola - A Game of Despair

Lastly a fun-spirited song for Friday to bring you out of the post-apocalyptic sound of Victrola. The Clocks' "Wake Up" has an almost cliche "80s" sound but its hard not to give in to its cheerful chanting. It was released in 1981 on Balls to Play Records. The B-Side is pretty fantastic, I will try to get a copy of it for download but you can preview it here (not sure how long this link will work).

The Clocks - Wake Up

Dream Machine and the Orlando Riva Sound

Orlando Riva Sound, or O.R.S., was a disco outfit from Germany in the late 70s that put out some serious heat. "Body to Body Boogie" is slow and sensuous but to me the real star is the B-Side to the Ariola re-release of "Body to Body," "Dream Machine." "Dream Machine" is a great space disco number that has a little more depth in my humble opinion, but you can be the judge of that yourself. I guess it depends on whether you feel like an evening of back rubs or contemplating singularity.

Both tracks were produced by Anthony Monn who did some wonderful work in the genre through the 70s and 80s and he apparently produced Bolero's "Hold Me in Your Arms" which is a staple in my rotation (See podcast 01).

Orlando Riva Sound - Body to Body Boogie
Orlando Riva Sound - Dream Machine