yho45 - corrosion

The forty-fifth edition of YHO is all about the Basic Channel organisation and its output.  Ten compact discs (a little perversely) have been selected from its catalogue and considered carefully.  This sound survey takes in releases on the Basic Channel, Chain Reaction, Burial Mix and Wackies labels.  In addition to the actual Basic Channel/Rhythm & Sound production partnership this overview also features titles by Vainqueur, Various Artists, Hallucinator, Vladislav Delay and Love Joys.  The strikingly beautiful covers were designed by Per-Christian Hille.

This issue of YHO can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.

yho44 - deliberately

The forty-fourth edition of YHO is very much about the Make Up and their untouchable gospel yeh-yeh dance sound/stance.  These may seem random ruminations, but were in fact particularly prompted by:

• Ø  Ian F. Svenonius’ Supernatural Strategies
• Ø  The Fallen Leaves’ If Only We’d Known
• Ø  Chain and the Gang’s In Cool Blood
• Ø  Ghetto Brothers’ Power Fuerza

These meditations on the Make Up feature Douglas Hart’s scholarly study of the pea coat and its aesthetic and social significance.

This issue of YHO can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.  

yho43 - rebound

The forty-third edition of YHO is about reissues.  It starts at that point in the 1990s when compact discs were in the ascendancy and, as the decade developed, there emerged a number of labels which were making lost sounds available again that could claim to be changing lives, making us look at the history of popular culture in an entirely new way, rather than reassuring us with what we already know.  And they provided an all-round enriching aesthetic experience.  These reissue labels, helmed by enthusiasts determined to transcend niche interests, provided us with great music, sure, but also with their own collection of visionaries, scholars, characters acting as compilers, annotators and designers worthy of their own hagiography.  This is a celebration of four of these organisations, their activity, and certain specifically significant releases: Blood and Fire, Kent, Soul Jazz and On-U Sounds.  It is dedicated with special affection to Steve Barrow, Ady Croasdell, Stuart Baker and Adrian Sherwood, with a tip of the hat to Roger Eagle and Dave Godin. The cover was beautifully designed by Per-Christian Hille.

This edition of YHO can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.  

yho42 - Chrome Extra

“We’re 1990’s pop,” sang The Prats, aligning themselves with the future.  But what did The Prats imagine pop music would be like, ten years on, in 1990?  And how do we think pop music sounded in 1990? 

Chrome Extra, the forty-second edition of YHO, tackles the issue of 1990’s pop, with the help of a cassette tape unexpectedly rediscovered after 20-odd years in storage.  It is the snapshot of a moment, but what story has it got to share?  What secrets can it reveal?  What connections does it suggest?  What is missing from the tape?  The answers to these questions, and a whole lot more, will unfold when you read Chrome Extra. 

This edition of YHO can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.

As a bonus, there is a lovingly put-together YouTube playlist available here which approximately recreates the cassette’s contents.   

yho41 - so amaze me, so amuse me

The forty-first edition of YHO is all about the glee and ache of The Sea and Cake. And if you believe that ...

This issue can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.

yho40 - Time and Chance

The fortieth edition of YHO begins with a list unexpectedly found at the back of a book of short stories by Courttia Newland.  This triggers, shall we say, a spate of meditations on matters musical and literary that takes in the novels of John Murray and the music of 4hero, Nicolette, Young Disciples, Terry Callier, Charles Stepney, Two Banks of Four, Ursula Rucker, Krust, Smith & Mighty, and many more.  It finishes with the suggestion Courttia Newland should write a story inspired by the day the photo was taken for the cover of Carroll Thompson’s Hopelessly in Love.  But how do we end up there?

Well, the solution would be to take a look at this issue of YHO which can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.  

yho39 - presentiment

The thirty-ninth edition of YHO features the results of a Mo’Wax listening project.  The idea was simply to take the ten greatest full-length sets the label put out, play the compact discs, and contemplate.    

The artists featured in this project are:

• Money Mark
• Andrea Parker
• Major Force West
• Blackalicious
• Attica Blues
• Divine Styler
• As One
• Urban Tribe
• David Axelrod
• Parsley Sound

The covers for this issue were beautifully put-together by Per-Christian Hille. 

And this edition of YHO can be downloaded here as a PDF, free for all.