Been shopping

January is always a good time to pick up some wholesome bargains, not least at Smallfish and Boomkat where you can snap up some real treats for not very much.

Ardisson - 'Hardware Handshake' (Seed) - Wicked glitched out 2-step bizness.
Frivolous - 'Midnight Black Indulgence 12" Sampler' (~Scape) - Sumptuous micro-house.
U.S.O.S - 'Groove In A Tent' (Headspace) - A nice deep house oddity from a few years back.
Jeff Samuel - 'Awt EP' (Spectral Sound) - Fine-ass bumping tech grooves from the master.
Geoff White - 'Ince' (Spectral Sound) - Deep and complex grooves.
Jirku-Judge - 'Watching You' (Onitor) - More of that clicky stuff, with some nice chords to boot.
Bitter Suite - 'Foot Note EP' (Friends & Families) - Quality deep house with oodles of soul.
Leo Cubanero - 'Wer Hat An Der Uhr Gedreht?' (Festplatten) - Quirky minimal clicks 'n' wobbles.
Radiq - 'Quadrille' (Logistic) - Rich and detailed 4/4 noodlings from Yoshihiro Hanno.
Dan Curtin - 'Album Sampler' (Headspace) - Awkward techno ramblings of the best kind.
Horror Inc. - 'Horrorama EP: The Remixes' (Revolver) - Bumping mixes of Akufen's side project from Dimbiman and Mike Shannon.

Frivolous - anything but...

An artist recommendation for you to start the week off
- Frivolous.

Known to his folks as Daniel Gardner, he's been releasing records for six years now, including two LPs. Originating from Montreal, his sound shares the same quirky, soulful ethic as a large chunk of the Canadian set (Akufen, Mike Shannon, Deadbeat etc etc) but with even more of the living breathing heart that makes that particular brand of electronic music so inviting.

Reports of his live sets tell of home-made equipment creating a feast for the eyes as well as the ears, and you just need to check out his DIY page to see the kinds of creations this manically creative mind has come up with (Broken-Ruler Music Box, Frivo-lozikel (a pedal-powered reverb unit), Double Cable-Tub Bass).

And as for the tunes, they veer between truly soul-stirring moments of uplifting beauty to head-down groove-laden funk, all shot through with a sense of humour that enhances the music rather than detracting from it. Here's the SB&B recommended list:

Frivolous - 'Song Of The Kwanning Bird' - (Karloff) - A lovely little funk-out with a wonky piano line and all manner of smiley dancefloor dynamics.

Frivolous - 'Kisses (Spilt Milk Mix)' - (Proptronix) - taken from the 'XXX EP', sampling old-time country tune Kisses Sweeter Than Wine and giving it a hefty dose of funk (and check the aluminium can sampling - tight!)

Frivolous - 'Island Of Sanctity (v.2)' - (~Scape) - A recent single for Pole's label, with a real stop-in-your-tracks musical moment as the mournful blues vocal drops away to a belter of a house beat.

Frivolous - 'Midnight Black Indulgence' - (~Scape) - The latest Frivolous LP released some time last year, with all manner of moods touched upon. Check the 'Post Depression' skit for some ace Only Fools & Horses sampling.

Frivolous - 'Busy Bee' - (Trimsound) - Dropped as part of the last ace Trimsound compilation, this has got some great considered electro snarls, great vocal snippets and yet more of that hip-swivelling stuff.

For more info on this immense producer check the following links:

Frivolous Home Page
Free streaming tunes at New Music Canada
Frivolous Discogs page