メリークリスマス！Chúc mừng Giáng Sinh vui vẻ! Merry Xmas!
私はスペシャルなクリスマスカードを作った。３曲のカードで、是非ダウンロードして下さい。http://bit.ly/55BUNr
Tôi vừa mới ghi âm 3 bài hát để làm một thẻ Giáng Sinh đặc biệt. Download ở kia: http://bit.ly/55BUNr
Guided by a magnetic inspiration, I just recorded 3 Xmas songs for you, to make a special Xmas card. Download it here: http://bit.ly/55BUNr
Dear friends, fans and passing smiles,
here we are, the last month of 2009 is here. While most of the projects are still on their way (new song from Awaken, solo album from Snowcat and even -yeah- some new Nekokawa pieces in sight), we will close this year with a special present for you fans. What? To know more, just......jump into Awa-news number 13!
Artists sometimes say very smart sentences, with or without knowing.
It's rock'n'roll philosophy time!
One of my mottoes is that if you want to get unusual results, work fast and work cheap, because there's more of a chance that you'll get somewhere that nobody else did. Nearly always, the effect of spending a lot of money is to make things more normal. (Brian Eno)
What are the hottest news in Awaken's Universe?
SOMEDAY AT XMAS?
Are you a true Awaken fan? If so, you will soon be able to get your own copy of the online 45rpm from Snowcat himself. Let the sleighbells rock! In waiting, why not refresh your magnetic mind by taking a new trip into Awaken's Parallel World? Ah, and if you look closer to the selective discography below, you may find the Xmas record too.
Links: http://www.awaken.be
Our interview:
KEVIN SHAKEY: Strange, Radical and “Hitchhiker”.
Once upon a time, there were the 70s. Creative. All excesses were permitted. Music was a large field of experimentations, some that remained obscure, some that gained credibility to the eyes (and ears) of an underground audience (Gong, Can, just to name a few), and some that got the huge success they deserved (David Bowie, Tangerine Dream). Then came the 80s, with their electronic rhythms that were, if you look closer, a commercial recognition for what we still can call 'experimental', although the pop format kept those creations into an underrated mold. Yes the 80s were money-related, but still flamboyant, creative, excessive. Then, to our big misery, the 90's saw music started to play it safe.'Safe' is the worst sticker that can ever be put on art. Kevin Shakey definitly doesn't play it safe at all: having a wide range of inlfuences covering Neil Young, Léo Ferré and the German Kosmische Musik, Shakey records and spreads his quite personal style without seeming to care much of pleasing the average audience. Having recently releasedan album with Ted Melvins, and still working on several projects, Shakey kindly replied the Awa-news interview.
Links: http://www.myspace.com/kevinshakey
What happened on December some years ago?
Let's jump into Awa-news' time machine...
01/12/1988: Jerry Garcia, from the Grateful Dead, releases his "Almost Acoustic" album.
31/12/1948: Hello Donna Summer!
18/12/1987: Bye bye Conny Plank, producer of Kraftwerk, Killing Joke, Gianna Nannini, and a bunch of others...
You like Awaken? You *will* like this album:
SIEDAH GARRETT, Kiss Of Life (1988)
Suddenly famous thanks to her contribution to Michael Jackson's Bad, Siedah Garrett seized the opportunity to record her album on the following year: Kiss Of Life. Although released on the Quincy Jones' label Qwest, the Dude doesn't produce here. However, it sounds like if he had been there: tasty digital synthezisers, strong drumprogramming, amazing synth-bass lines, well, that kind of high-class electro-funk, with inspired songwriting and the great voice of Mrs Garrett. Some sounds seem to come directly from Jackson's Bad with a slice of Thriller's Rod Temperton unmistakable style, but Kiss Of Life has a life on its own and is strongly recommended by yours truly. No filler to regret, only strong and quality-oriented songs, like the swinging gem "The Legend Of Ruby Diamond", the powerful "Refuse To Be Loose" (what a beat!) or the smooth sexy "Nobody Does Me"... On the trivia part, it's fun to hear that her "Baby's Got It Bad" is actually Michael Jackson's "Got The Hots". Copyrights, anyone?
Links: http://www.siedah.com/
What's hot on the web side? Awa-net surfed for you and found this:
DIAGONALE
With the decline of record companies and the easy access to the internet, underground labels flourish everywhere on the web. This is a kind of revenge toward a system that ignored artists through the years, like the punk revolution in 1976. Diagonale Music is a kind of label created by Kevin Shakey (see our interview above) and Matt Reen to release their own side-projects, in order to gain more and more freedom in their music.
Wotnot and Ted Melvins are the first ones on the list.
Feel free to visit Diagonale, listen to their artists and, why not, submit your own work. Who knows?...
Links: http://www.myspace.com/diagnoalemusic
http://www.myspace.com/matthreen
http://www.myspace.com/kevinshakey
email: awamail(at)hellokitty.com
Awaken main sites: www.awaken.be
© AWAKEN-Awanews-
[downloadable pdf version here]
Dear friends, fans and passing smiles,
time is time, time is passing by, every year it's getting shorter... so, time to...
Artists sometimes say very smart sentences, with or without knowing.
It's rock'n'roll philosophy time!
An audience is like a dame. If it ain't sincere, it's over. (Frank Sinatra)
What are the hottest news in Awaken's Universe?
Awa-news library
From now on, all issues of Awa-news are stored on It's Oh! Music site! Complete your collection now!
Links: http://its-oh.web2.jp/blog/yukineko/?page_id=156
Our interview:
MUZ: I'm a big fan of Awaken!
If you like to put labels and stickers on the music you listen to, I wish you good luck when it comes to define the style of Muz. Like some early King Crimson or late Talk Talk records, Muz doesn't seem to follow any rule and takes you where you least expected. It can make his albums sometimes difficult to understand, but when everything seems to have been said in music, they're suddenly refreshingly challenging. The newest one is Hidden Tracks, and is, believe it or not, easier to access for newbies.
-Nice to meet you, Muz. Please use three words to introduce yourself.
-Muz: Virtual musician contemplative.
-What brought you to become an active musician?
-Muz: Probably some old vinyl or tape, plus my curiosity to all possible way to express myself (but music is not the older thing I wanted to do for that).
-Your music is rather complex and rich. Where are your limits, if you have any?
-Muz: My limits are just the borders of my imagination... and of course my interest and/or my capacity to use some instruments and my voice (that I don't like to much).
-Among your work, what is the piece that you think represents you the most, and why?
-Muz: I don't know. Most of my songs were made to be a part of an album (I like to think that an album is not just a compilation of mixed pieces). But I can say that one of my favorite songs is "Slumber Party" because it's a good glimpse of my "style".
-Any song you’re ashamed of, and why?
-Muz: I think all my worst songs are already erased, some pieces are not good but there are like a cogwheel of the machine...
-If you had a magic wand, in what band would you play right now?
-Muz: Any. I want to be free to work my own thing even I think it will be nice to work with others people.
-What would you say to Awa-news readers who might not know you, to convince them to listen to your albums?
-Muz: Go listen to my music morons! :) No, seriously, I can just say that I try to made a "contemplative music" even it's sometimes more odd than contemplative. It's essentially an instrumental music (but I sing too since few time) and I try always to vary any of it's component, without to forget that it is made for listening and not just playing.
-Have you tried to record some covers and if yes, which ones?
-Muz: No never. Maybe I should do that...
-Last but not least, would you openly admit that you are an Awaken fan?
-Muz: Yes for sure, I'm a big fan of Awaken!
Links: http://www.jamendo.com/fr/artist/MUZ
What's hot on the web side? Awa-net surfed for you and found this:
M!OSAIC:
"Find Out Your Missing Pieces In Our Show!"
The indie music scene is no longer only a counterpower from angry musicians against the establishment, it kinda became an establishment in itself. The scene grew up thanks to the arrogance and contempt from profit-only-based record companies. Indies labels became what majors are not anymore: companies that search for the balance between art and profit.
The indie scene not only has labels, but also distributors, shops (the wonderful CD Baby) and online radios. M!osaic is not "just one more indie online radio", it is a unique site focussing on the Vietnamese music scene with news, articles, reviews, interviews, a user-friendly interface and, last but not least, that avoids the annoying gossip that spoils medias nowadays.M!osaic started in 2007 through channels like Yahoo!360 (famous among Vietnamese people) and is now running on its own. Their slogan is appealing and promising: "Find Out Your Missing Pieces In Our Show!".
So, how about a visit to M!osaic to discover more about Vietnamese music and, why not, find out your missing piece?
URL: http://www.m-mosaic.com/
What happened on November some years ago?
Let's jump into Awa-news' time machine...
22/11/1988: Pink Floyd release Delicate Sound of Thunder, their first live album since 1969 Ummagumma.
25/11/1974: Nick Drake lets the needle do the damage.
27/11/1959: Simple Minds' guitar player Charlie Burchill comes to Earth. The picture doesn't show Mr Burchill, but the unexpected power of his wild guitar soli on the audience.
You like Awaken? You *will* like this album:
GENESIS, Wind & Wuthering (1977)
Links: http://www.genesis-fr.com
email: awamail(at)hellokitty.com
Awaken main sites: www.awaken.be
© AWAKEN-Awanews-
[downloadable pdf version here]
