January Playlist: Space Oddities
A tribute to the unique sound worlds of artists and composers from a wide array of time periods and styles, our eclectic soundtrack takes listeners on a journey through a vast galaxy of different musical planets.
“Ground Control to Major Tom… Take your protein pills and put your helmet on...”
The iconic song of David Bowie launches us into our January playlist, “Space Oddities”. A tribute to the unique sound worlds of artists and composers from a wide array of time periods and styles, our eclectic soundtrack takes listeners on a journey through a vast galaxy of different musical planets.
Taking off with Bowie’s 1960s nostalgia, we then launch into the orbit of Grace Jones’ fierce and fiery planet - in the flames of “Slave to the Rhythm”. We take a breather from the rhythmic heat in the lesser-known jazzy world of Shostakovich, a composer oft-noted for his serious symphonic works. We then leap back in time to revel in the Renaissance gem, “In te Domine speravi” - a polyphonic wonder that grows into a vividly florid and ornamental experiment in choir-writing. The world of J. S. Bach follows, through the bow of modern day “oddity” Gidon Kremer; to hear so many voices under the control of a single instrument, through a steady pulsation, we see the seed of future explorations in sound planted.
Our own Simon Kanzler’s eclectic underground world follows - we jump cinematically from heavy metal and contemporary jazz to strains of Renaissance-like choral writing, to an almost cannibalistic effect. Kanzler’s work propels us into a black hole of sound - the in-betweenness and nothingness of Pan Sonic’s chilling “-25”. We emerge, dazed, in the ethereal and fantastical planet of Bjork and Arca - the pair’s “Utopia” creating a lulling and hypnotic effect through its pulsing flute choir and sounds of magical creatures. Stravinsky’s Soldier’s Tale follows, in a patchwork movement of three dances - a sultry Tango, a lilting Waltz, and a vivacious Ragtime.
Stravinsky’s manic energy tosses us into the streets of Paris, into Serge Gainsbourg’s smoky sound world; we then quickly shuttle over to Tokyo, to the city pop vivacity of Mariya Takeuchi’s “Plastic Love”. The “Clouds Across the Moon” put us in some good, fun sonic limbo for The RAH Band’s 1980s cult classic; Charles Ives’ ethereal and celestial “The Unanswered Question” follows, expressing eternity and timelessness through a wash of strings, a cacophony of wind sounds, and a lone trumpet call. We plunge back into the depths of Earth for the final track - Pete Heller’s “Big Love”, in its remix by emerging DJ Dr Packer.