...Clutchy Hopkins, Saddleback, Aktuala...

For those of you who don't know, I work 12 hour shifts. During those long stretches of time, I think quite a bit about future artistic projects and I get to listen to a ton of music. So, that's a big part of the reason why music is such an inspiration to me, as well as, a large factor in my creative process. That being said, here is some stuff that I've been enjoying this past week.

...Clutchy Hopkins...

A few months ago I heard some music by this guy, Clutchy Hopkins. After listening to a few songs, I was really impressed with his mellow jazziness and organic beats. It didn't take me too much digging around to find out that this "guy" is surrounded by a fog of mystery. There are a couple of different stories out there as to who Clutchy Hopkins is. Some people feel that he is a guy from back in the day, who was interested in world rhythms and created these recordings with some help from his friends. To get a couple examples of these stories check out here and here. Others believe that "Clutchy Hopkins" is actually a pseudonym used by an already well known artist. In fact, some people believe that DJ Shadow may be involved in this project, or maybe even Madlib. Regardless, this is some chill jazzy music with some great beats, and it's fun to put on and let my mind wander. As prepostorous as some of the stories may seem, I love the mystery surrounding the music, and I would love to believe that some crazy old guru dude, from the 70s, was putting this sort of stuff out and that somebody just happened to stumble upon it at a rummage sale. Maybe it just gives me hope that there is still great stuff out there that nobody has heard.
These two tracks are off The Life of Clutchy Hopkins album.

"Clutchy Hopkins: 3:25"

"Clutchy Hopkins: 3:26"

...Saddleback...

I had come across this name several times before, but for some reason or another, I had never checked this "band" out until this past week. I say "band", because it's actually just one guy- Tony Dupe', who hails form South Wales. These tracks are from his 2007 album Night Maps, which is a must hear, if you're into this sort of thing. On it, he combines post rock with textures of jazz and even some classical. I especially like the bass lines that he uses, along with the jazzy drumming. Check it out.

"Saddleback: Pushing Upstream"

"Saddleback: Singing Scribbles"

...Aktuala...

Finally, while checking out some music blogs this past week, I discovered Aktuala. If you would like a little more info about them you can take a peak at their wikipedia page. Basically, they're a 70s era group of musicians from Italy, who made world influenced jazz, which, at times, was infused with a hint of psychedelia. I know that those genres can be a little off-putting to some, but, in my opinion, this is a good example of how, when done correctly,those categories can produce some really beautiful, hip, music. You can find these songs on their album Tappeto Volante.

"Aktuala: Flash"

"Aktuala: Waruna"