buffaBLOG - The Buffalo music blog: thundercat

Showing posts with label thundercat. Show all posts

chip tunes, listen up, listener's digest, mtorsell, mtorsell is a nintendo fanboy, new music, thundercat, video game, yamauchi — 0 comments

Listener's Digest: Thudercat - "Bowzer's Theme"

Rarely does one think of CEOs when they think of musical inspiration. No offense "International Business Community" but you guys don't have a reputation for being a group ripe with artistic material beyond complaining about your less than scrupulous habits. With that in mind, today's song from Thundercat is a bit of surprise, a tribute to the recently deceased former Nintendo CEO Hiroshi, Yamauchi.

And yet, this tribute is not as surprising as it first may seem when you realize that Yamauchi took Nintendo from a simple playing card manufacturer to the massive video game company it is today. And, if we have finally begun to recognize games for their creativity and artistic merit (which we should be doing because they are one of the largest examples of what Keat's called "negative capability," or the ability for a person to imagine a world seemingly ex nihlo (from nothing) that we can point to) then Yamauchi's business leadership is commendable and maybe even a little visionary (during his tenure the company published Super Mario, Legend of Zelda, Metroid, etc. etc.). So, why not?

Thundercat's tribute is in the spirit of the time of the 8-Bit era, which I should also point to as producing some incredibly catchy and worthwhile songs as well. "Bowzer's Ballad" is a stirring chip tune with all the grandiosity of a video game loading screen (I mean that sincerely, I get goosebumps the minute someone fires up a Legend of Zelda cartridge in my proximity).

Rest in peace Mr. Yamauchi, hopefully you are comfortable in that Princess's Castle in the Sky (don't worry, she isn't in another castle either. Man, that Toad can be a jerk).

Album review, jpero, thundercat — 0 comments

Album Review: Thundercat - Apocalypse

For the greater part of my life, I have lived under the impression that a virtuoso’s instrumental prowess must live and die at stage center, never wavering for the “lesser” aspects of musicianship like atmosphere, intent, or all of the other attributes that make music such a rivetingly diverse universe. On that note, I’d like to thank Thundercat for proving the aforementioned sentiment to be patently false.

Apocalypse, Sean Brunner’s sophomore album under the moniker Thundercat, envelopes the listener with trademark space jazz fusion while simultaneously positioning them in a world where anything can happen. Though Brunner can unleash a torrential, and not to mention technically spectacular jazz line on a whim, restraint triumphs on the soundscape of Apocalypse, providing a tactful and instrumentally scintillating experience throughout. On Apocalypse, Brunner’s bass remains as the nuke ready to dispatch at a moment’s notice, but his finger hovers steady on the shiny red button.

Brunner’s swirling finger-picking bubbles, found underneath tracks like "Heartbreaks + Setbacks," provide an intricate classical backdrop that supplements the more atmospheric subtleties of reverberated synth pads and delayed falsetto.

The opening track, "Tenfold," presents his audience with an idealogical soup of electro-house (thanks in part to his co-producer and pal, Flying Lotus) backed by a simple and steady bass drive - further proof that despite his ability, Brunner isn’t here to impress the jazz junkies with his furious finger picking.

Being more lyrically dense than Thundercat’s debut album, Golden Age Of The Apocalypse, Brunner is allotted a great deal of thematic creativity. These are spaces which he chooses to fill with psalms of love, life complications, and of course, being too fucked up on ecstasy. Brunner’s subject matter deals primarily in the world of love had and love lost. Cliché though it may be, the naiveté melds seamlessly with his pop-infused brand of astral jazz and adds a sense of universality that everyone will have at least a nugget of something to latch onto.

Of course, good friend and collaborator, Steven Ellison (Flying Lotus), did help produce Apocalypse with Thundercat, but somehow seems primarily absent (aside from the track "Seven" which sounds like a b-side from Cosmogramma). So if you were excited to pick this album up in hopes of a more direct collaboration between the two friends, you might be disappointed. This is truly a Thundercat album - and a good one at that.

At the end of the day, not only is Apocalypse just a great Thundercat album, but it is a rare instance of a musician who’s interested in all aspects of music, despite his uncanny ability to groove a jazz line with the best of the best. If nothing else, at least listen to the track "Oh Sheit It’s X" for a good laugh and some good old-fashioned funk.

Grade: A-

buffablog road trip, cleveland, flying lotus, house of blues, sknapp, teebs, thundercat — 0 comments

buffaBLOG Road Trip: Flying Lotus and Thundercat

Los Angeles producer Steven Ellison, better known as Flying Lotus has emerged as one of most talented, creative forces in electronic music over the past few years. After releasing his brilliant fourth album, Until the Quiet Comes in 2012 the artist has been working with rap artists like Mac Miller, Earl Sweatshirt, and Joey Bada$$ in addition to releasing his own hip hop debut as Captain Murphy and co-producing the new jazz funk album from labelmate and friend Thundercat. Thankfully, he stil finds time to tour and bring his mind blowing live show to the masses. The performance features a 3D art installation that the producer calls Layer 3 and is executed live by visual artists to give the show a cosmic, transcendent feel that is simply unmatched by anyone else in electronic music. Tonight, we make the short trip down to Cleveland's House of Blues to catch the artists legendary live set. Joined by the Bass shredding Thundercat, who will release his newest album, Apocalypse, on Brainfeeder in July. Tickets are $25 at the door. Doors open at 7:30, show at 8:30.

brainfeeder, flying lotus, listeners digest, mtorsell, new music, thundercat — 0 comments

Listener's Digest: Thundercat - "Heartbreaks + Setbacks"

Lately, Brainfeeder, Flying Lotus's record label, seems to have hit its stride. Today, Thundercat, the project of LA based bassist Stephen Bruner, released the first single of off his forthcoming LP, Apocalypse, which will be released by Brainfeeder on July 9. With a smooth beat, a great hook and Bruner's yearning vocals, "Heartbreaks + Setbacks," co-produced by Flying Lotus, is an excellent first impression.