If you've been following the podcast over at http://www.indie500radio.com recently then you'll be aware that Matthew and myself have basically adopted a fervently parochial outlook for 2015, focussing our attention on the French indie scene rather than simply dishing up further coverage of bands already covered in the international press (generally with better researched and more articulate praise I shouldn't wonder). It's a principle we've agreed to stick to for as long as it suits us which means bands from outside the French/Francophone circuit will doubtless get a shout out if their record makes us stand up and pay attention - as for the rest of it, I'll be doing my level best to knock out write ups to keep track of the everflowing stream of bitchin' music passing through my senses on an almost daily basis.
This noble intention was adopted back in January when no-one in their right time bothers releasing a record seeing as the majority of us are broke as a joke after Xmas/New Year and probably still caught up in the musical hangover of the previous year. But fear not as those lovely people at Ninja Tune came to the rescue yet again with this bombastic newie from Steve Spacek, one half of nimble fingered bass nerds Africa Hitech who wrecked my tiny mind with their last LP '93 Million Miles' a couple of years back. I hadn't stuck that on in a while and listening to 'Modern Streets' sent me back for a spot of beat nostalgia - Spacek does his thing in the same dub 'n' bass register across both releases but his more recent stuff takes Hitech's sound out of the club and into the winter night, replacing strobes with streetlights as he chronicles the languid bus trip across town as opposed to the delirium out on the dancefloor earlier in the evening. The cover of 'Modern Streets' reminds me of traffic lights viewed through the clarity that several beers and a side salad of chemicals brings to the urban night rambler, not quite the comedown but certainly the start of the inevitable descent. And that's no bad thing because this isn't a depressive record, it's a slab of contemplative dance music destined for the wee small hours in the wake of a bit of a mad one - the beats skitter across the surface like the fidgety twitches of a bedbound clubber and the low-end throb underpinning it all caresses your temples like a boxing coach bringing you down from match night. According to Ninja Tune's website Spacek created most of this on I-Phone/I-Pad apps which taps into my imagined narrative of this record being made on the move, the sensations of nocturnal urban Britain seeping directly into it like bass booming out from car stereos or intrusive hiss seeping forth from teenagers' headphones on the night bus. He keeps his vocal contributions to subtle intrusions rather than out and out grandstanding, slipping between the chords with a mellow House delivery that reminds me of Kele's sumptous 'Trick' LP from last year - indeed, if that record soundtracked the preparation stages for a night of dancefloor bravado and stolen smooches then 'Modern Streets' provides the perfect counterpoint for the evening's closing stages (and we all know what happens then). Stick '93 Million Miles' between the two and you've got a cracking night out. Ninja Tune have hit another home run here and Spacek might just have won January with this wee beauty. Smokin' stuff!
Check out : 'Inflight Wave', gliding smoothly up above the streets and houses.
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