Lou Reed
One of Rock’s iconic figures, former Velvet Underground frontman Lou Reed, died yesterday, aged 71. His death was reportedly due to a ‘liver related ailment’ (Reed had undergone a liver transplant earlier this year). […]
Living To Music – Björk ‘Debut’
ARTIST: BJÖRK ALBUM: DEBUT LABEL: ONE LITTLE INDIAN YEAR: 1993 This Sunday (March 3rd) at 9pm, you’re invited to share a listening session with some likeminded souls, wherever you might be. This can be experienced either alone or communally, and you don’t need to leave the comfort of your own home to participate. If it’s not possible to make the allotted time, hopefully you can join in at your convenience at some point during the following weeks. See update here: https://blog.gregwilson.co.uk/2012/07/living-to-music-update-july-2012/ […]
The Monastic Mix
It’s my 200th blog post, so, in contrast to my 100th post, which was about the club where, as I’ve previously stated, ‘I experienced my greatest DJ highs’, Legend in Manchester, this time I wanted to to share something that symbolises a time when the garden wasn’t so rosy, and I was struggling with life, both externally and internally. ‘The Monastic Mix’, from 1996, was a much needed catharsis for me, both an ending and a fresh starting point – it was the last mix I ever tape edited, putting it together on my original Revox B77 reel-to-reel, which I’d [...]
Return Of The Prodigal – DJ Harvey
DJ Harvey (aka Harvey Bassett) makes his long awaited UK return tonight at Oval Space in London (followed by a Manchester date, at The Warehouse Project, next Thursday). It’s his first UK appearance since 2002 when he re-located to the USA, and where visa problems conspired to restrict his movements, meaning that it was almost a decade before he was able to leave the country.
Video Blog – Happy Mondays ‘Wrote For Luck’ & ‘WFL’
Happy Mondays ‘Wrote For Luck’ & ‘WFL’ Filmed at Legend, Manchester 1988 & 1989 […]
How Clubbing Changed The World
Last month I was over in Chicago chilling out in my hotel room ahead of my first gig in the city, at Smart Bar, a venue with a rich tradition, which opened back in 1982. Chicago is, of course, along with Detroit, Philadelphia and New York, revered as a key US city when it comes to the evolution of dance culture (and, indeed, black culture, with, way before House, a deep heritage in Rhythm & Blues, Blues and Jazz, dating right back to the ‘great migration’ of black workers from the southern states, beginning just over 100 years ago).
Living To Music – The KLF ‘Chill Out’
Back in 1990, with the Rave scene at its height, ‘chill out rooms’, where you could escape the constant main room 4/4 thud, were now a feature at a number of club nights and parties. Here the DJ’s set a more spaced-out atmosphere, creating trippy ambient soundscapes as opposed to rock the house rhythms. Ambient music had, of course, existed outside of the clubs previously, its best-known exponent being Brian Eno, whose electronic experimentations set the tone back in the 70’s (although you can trace its origins further back via the avant-garde). The DJ’s would pepper things up further with perhaps Pink Floyd, a BBC sound effects album, a section from a sci-fi movie score, a Strauss Waltz, or some weighty Dub – anything that fitted the vibe and enhanced the vibrations.
The Haçienda – 30 Years On
One of the world’s most celebrated clubs, The Haçienda in Manchester, opened 30 years ago today, on Friday May 21st 1982. In June 2007, a little after the 25th anniversary, the inimitable Manchester-based writer / musician, John Robb, author of books including ‘The North Will Rise Again: Manchester Music City 1976-1996’ (2009), ‘The Stone Roses And The Resurrection Of British Pop’ (1996) and ‘Punk Rock: An Oral History’ (2006), did a short interview with me about the club’s legacy:
Moore Alan More
Alan Moore remains a constant source of inspiration, and since my last post referring to his work, 'The Masked Movement', I've read some more of his books, as well as listening to numerous interviews courtesy of the wonderful world of YouTube.
Living To Music – Portishead ‘Dummy’
This Sunday (April 1st) at 9pm, you’re invited to share a listening session with some likeminded souls, wherever you might be. This can be experienced either alone or communally, and you don’t need to leave the comfort of your own home to participate. Portishead are part of a Bristolian bass lineage that also includes Massive Attack, Tricky, The Wild Bunch and Smith & Mighty, who, between them, stirred up groove cauldrons of Hip Hop, Funk, Electro, Soul, Jazz, Dub and Lovers Rock, with a pinch of Punk thrown in for good measure, distilling a unique British flavour that could only have come from this city.
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