Umami by Murat Ses
Current mood: determined
Category: Music

Umami, meaning 'savory' in Japanese, is also the title of Murat Ses's seventh solo album (Clou Records clou-008) available at www.clourecords.com and www.muratses.com.

I was asked to record some vocals for Murat at the beginning of 2007 and I admit I had to look him up. Wikipedia lists amongst Murat's successes the Grand Prix du Disque for Danses et Rythmes de la Turquie d'hier à aujourd'hui with Mo--ollar, and describes Murat as the creator of the Anadolu Pop style, the name given to a highly successful and influential mix of Anatolian Music and Western elements. Anatolia, or Anadolu, is the Asian part of modern Turkey, a broad peninsula and one of the great crossroads of ancient civilizations. What is it with peninsulas? Here in the UK, the Celtic peninsulas are also great meeting places of cultures so I didn't feel out of place in Murat's scheme.

Murat's music has undergone some huge cultural shifts. In 1979 he migrated to Austria. A giant step into the middle of Europe's Germanic classical belt produced an experimental form of Anadolu Pop, a style he named Electric Levantine. Levantine, an imprecise but useful Franco-Italian Mediterranean term, refers to a wide mixture of cultures rather than a specific geographical location. According to Wikipedia, the main elements of Electric Levantine are "microtonal properties created on authentic Levantine scales, electronically produced instrument timbres and Western music".

I recorded some vocals and in November 2007 the completed CD, called Umami, arrived. I expected Umami to sound exotic, pleasing and somehow familiar. Wikipedia lists Murat's main influences as sixties psychedelic prog rock bands Pink Floyd and Traffic, the jazz organist Jimmy Smith, Eastern Mediterranean music, Levantine, and Central Asian cultures and music.

Wikipedia describes Murat as "the most important Turkish artist still internationally active and shaping today's independent electronic music scene". In 2007 an advertising agency decided to use the early 70s Mo--ollar song 'Garip Çoban', composed by Murat Ses, in PlayStation 3 commercials. It's not hard to see why. I've listened to Umami many times now. The relentless density of electronic music usually means I tire when I listen to a full CD. But Umami is light and refreshes constantly. Its 40:31 minutes fly by in no time. And it is terrific, with great original sounds and catchy tunes. There's a fascinating mix throughout. I was consulting my Glossary of Folk Instruments at Hobgoblin.com straightaway. For example, as far as I can make out there is Native American chanting, medieval shawm and electric organ playing on Tamiami Trail alone. It's hard to describe just how good it is, but when I checked out my co-collaborators I found they are all very talented people indeed with distinguished profiles.

Phil Gooch at www.macpips.com, small things that work indeed. When I saw I was credited on the opening track On Air, it took me a long time to identify that it's my vocal from Don't Know What I'm Doing. It works very well with the new country music sound that comes from Phil Gooch. I do like these synthesised acoustic guitar sounds with the dragged notes and rapid tempo. It is guitar playing but not as we know it. Taking the timbre of the instruments and making them play in humanly impossible ways sounds great to me.

Kawasaki "KCentric" Nelson (www.kcentricty.com) is a remixer, composer, artist, and multimedia aficionado, one of today's most creative unforgettable young talents (who has remixed my song Who Am I to Disagree?). His distinctive rap can be heard on On Air, Thru the Valley (I reckon he's doing the 'zoom zoom'), Fern Street (with Tomas Phusion) and Seagreen. KCentric also did the hip hop version of Right or Wrong.

The artist and musician Riyu Konaka at www.myspace.com/riyuhip does great fractured vocals on Umami and Right or Wrong.

Paris Afar Off, with its interesting Eurostar 'commuter' rap, and Levantine Daydream are brilliant, but my favourite track is Umami itself with that faintly disturbing Riyu Konaka vocal conveying some kind of tortured urban paranoia.

My own nasal northern English vocals can be heard in On Air, Levantine Daydream, Umami and Right or Wrong under my recording name The Hexyl Circle (www.myspace.com/thehexylcircle).

It is possible to identify all the vocal snippets eventually. All licences on Umami are Creative Commons Attribution 2.5, so spread the attribution. Here's the list of guest artists by tracks.

On Air features Colombian pop singer SilviaO (www.silviao.com), The Hexyl Circle, KCentric, Phil Gooch guitar and 4nsic (www.myspace.com/forensichiphop)

Thru the Valley features KCentric

Levantine Daydream once again Colombian pop singer SilviaO (www.silviao.com), and The Hexyl Circle

Fern Street - Tomas Phusion and KCentric

Umami - Acradian Burn (ccmixter.org/media/people/tachyon869), Riyu Konaka and The Hexyl Circle

Paris Afar Off features Tomas Phusion's Eurostar commuter rap and that Phil Gooch guitar

Right or Wrong features Tokyo poet and artist Bun Onoe, Riyu Konaka and The Hexyl Circle

Tamiami Trail features Tomas Phusion

Seagreen features Chris Rininger, KCentric and an artist called P.

Currently listening : Riiyu’s Album (Import) By Riyu Konaka

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Collaborations and Theatre
Current mood: recumbent

There's some great stuff going on at ccMixter.org, and at Poetrymonthly.com.

I am currently writing plays. Some of my stories had remained in a state of limbo for several years, and recently I decided they might work in a stage setting.

My spoof site Hold It Up For Ridicule.com goes from strength to strength, and moving it to a new host, Laughing Squid, was a great decision. My Life Writing blog, iandsmith.com, is still back at the old host, Powweb, and has been down for several days unbeknown to me due to some technical hitch with a script. Another site host saga is coming I think.

Currently listening : Bryars: Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet By Gavin Bryars Release date: 10 August, 1993

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Friction Fiction 43
Current mood: bouncy
Category: Music

It's Wednesday September 12th, and I just posted a new show. I put this show together around two poems I've had published at Surprising Stories.com, and Bewildering Stories.com: The Aura Seekers, and The Righteous Wrong. I wrote them back in May.

The Aura Seekers is all about self-centered people who think a lot of themselves. The Righteous Wrong puts the boot in too. It's all about people who justify doing really bad things by disassociating themselves from it. Two pitiful views of humanity.

So I needed some better views for balance.

Tom MacNiven's great song Moment, "captured in a moment of fleeting affection, love you like a smile in the rain" analyses a brief state of consciousness. Tom's song is a sun lamp in the middle of my dark room.

Martin McLaughlin's beautiful song Goodbye is also about the "right here right now." I love this song: "What if time stops right here right now?"

Virginia Evans haunting Little Bird is all about things no one can see, but have to believe in. The "triumphant fool" who loses friends in her poem Argument should have listened to Stefan Picard's warning to slow down in Slow Dance.

And finally, Plastic Dave's observations about drinking habits in El Presidente rounds off the picture of humanity.

Currently listening : Let It Be By The Beatles Release date: 25 October, 1990

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A New Show Looms
Current mood: awake
Category: Music

The boring administrative procedures and tangle of wires that is Friction Fiction must mean a new show is slowly making its way from the tiny studio with the squeaky chair to face the world. I think it will be a very good show indeed.

Currently listening : Hacienda Classics By Various Artists Release date: 03 April, 2006

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Friction Fiction 42
Current mood: blah
Category: Music

Show 42, with music: Snow Globe and Take One by Jimmy G, Some Things Will Never Change, and Collide by Ayewrite, Natchoongi Breaked Dub Rmx ft Salman Ahmad by Antony Raijekov.

Poetry: I read The Insurance Claim by Peter Asher from Poetrymonthly.com, and a new story, No Slowing Down. I read my bridge poem, Tacoma Narrows Syndrome. This is a poem about a man who warns people when bridges aren't safe. I wrote it in 1996.

frictionfiction@libsyn.com

Currently listening : Dimanche a Bamako By Amadou & Mariam Release date: 02 August, 2005

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Next Show Details
Current mood: busy
Category: Music

Friction Fiction - powerful internet broadcasting.

The next Friction Fiction show will have two great songs each from Jimmy G, and Ayewrite, plus the best electronic and computer generated music from Antony Raijekov at ccMixter.org.

New poetry from Peter Asher at www.poetrymonthly.com. A new flash fiction story from me, No Slowing Down, and a poem I wrote years ago about bridges collapsing, Tacoma Narrows Syndrome.

Additional music by Ghost and Steedie.

Can you wait?

Currently listening : Djam Leelii By Baaba Maal and Mansour Seck Release date: 03 November, 1998

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Coming Soon Friction Fiction 42
Current mood: ecstatic
Category: Music

Friction Fiction. The podcast show that never sleeps, takes holidays, or prunes things in the garden. Show 42 is coming soon.

Currently listening : Proxima Estación: Esperanza By Manu Chao Release date: 05 June, 2001

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Friction Fiction Featured on PodfinderUK
Current mood: awake
Category: Music

Currently listening : Firin’ in Fouta By Baaba Maal Release date: 24 October, 1994

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New Hexyl Music Collected Under One Profile

Hi everyone, I now have 36 minutes of music on my Hexyl Circle profile www.myspace.com/thehexylcircle, which in no small way makes up my second CD, call it, Some Day Soon:

1. September 73 (without the spoken intro but with 25 secs of silence instead, sit back, relax)
2. Who Am I To Disagree? (ft MiNiMaL_aRT) the remix knocks me out.
3. Whatever It Is I Want It - I just visited the Beatles houses, see iandsmith.com for photos.
4. Not Strong Enough (ft MiNiMaL_aRT) this amazing remix smooths my melody into a new groove.
5. I'm Not Strong Enough - the original. Not supposed to be here, but Myspace won't let me delete it.
6. Some Day Soon - you might have heard it on my other profile. Here's what they say: "'some day soon' is just beautiful, the guitar playing is wonderful, the lyrics are pure poetry and the melody just blows me away with its dynamics...
...great one!"
7. Don't Spoil It - Plastic Dave wrote the verses and recorded voice, bass, drums, and sublime banjo.
8. Looking Back - new song looking back in time, it's never nice.
9. New Blue Jeans - this grew into some kind of morbid jazz blues.
10. Who Am I To Disagree - the original.
11. Don't Know What I'm Doing - Bombero made a great final track out of my wobbly dirge.

Download, sit back, headphones on for the full squeaking chair surround sound effect. No expense has been spared in the recording of this material.

Currently listening : People Help the People By Cherry Ghost Release date: 02 July, 2007

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Thanks For Comments on Friction Fiction 41
Current mood: cheerful
Category: Podcast

Many thanks for the great comments on Friction Fiction 41 (Midsummer) from Tom MacNiven, Countryside, and all. Much appreciated.

If you haven't listened, you haven't missed it yet. It runs when you go to my profile.

The show has my poetry and music from CDK, Squid Ink (Plastic Dave), a great collaboration between Squid Ink and The Hexyl Circle (that's me), Tom MacNiven, and Countryside.

Additional music by Alphasound, Penston, DJ Rkod, Michael Wenz, and Bombero.

Currently reading : Tony Blair: The Wilderness Years By Ian Duncan Smith Release date: 13 May, 2005

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