Recorded in his home studio in London, Jay Chakravorty (a.k.a. Cajita) is set to release Tiny Ghosts on April 22. The album includes a multi-dimensional sound including synths, banjos and clarinets. We asked Chakravorty to make MAGNET a mix tape, and below is the awesome one he came up with.
Scott Walker “It’s Raining Today”
Scott Walker has a beautiful, “Sunday afternoon” type of voice. This was the first song of his I ever heard, and it’s still my favourite. Wally Stott’s orchestration and arrangement here are incredible—the hanging strings and sudden glissando going into the middle section give me shivers every time. Video
Sufjan Stevens “The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!”
Honestly, I don’t know how anyone could not love this. The beautiful soft vocals, the melodies, the counterpoint, the little nod to Steve Reich in the breakdowns. So good. Video
Baths “Lovely Bloodflow”
I came across Baths a few years ago on a YouTube trawl, so I feel like he is my personal discovery (even though that’s clearly not true). Insanely inventive beats, some classically influenced piano, a vocal line that’s funkier than it has any right to be and a video featuring a dying samurai and some white-faced weirdos in a forest. Pretty much perfect. Video
Ólafur Arnalds “Near Light”
This is taken from Ólafur Arnalds’ live album, Living Room Songs, which is, as the title implies, a collection of live songs recorded in the Icelandic composer’s living room. This tune features, alongside a string section, Arnalds’ mother and sister on synths and drum loops, because, why not? Video
Peter Broderick “And It’s Alright (Nils Frahm Remix)”
The original version of this song is featured on Efterklan collaborator and all-around awe-inspiringly talented musician Peter Broderick’s 2008 acoustic album, Home. This remix, by modern-classical pianist (and amazing electronica producer) Nils Frahm, strips away the original’s guitars and replaces them with twitchy beats and a glitched out Rhodes. The constantly building, swirling analogue synth line at the end is one of the most blissful noises I’ve ever heard. Video
Dusty Springfield “Breakfast In Bed”
“Sad” and “sexy” are two emotions that you would think are impossible to combine in a song. But this manages to meld the melancholy of a broken heart with the lusty appeal of the titular “Breakfast In Bed.” Oh, and check out the ride cymbal toward the end. It’s pure funk. Video
Sean Carey “In The Stream”
So, Bon Iver’s percussionist came out with a solo album a few years ago, and it’s incredible. The vocal melody in this tune, over the sparsest of accompaniments, is a constant source of envy to me. Video
King Creosote & Jon Hopkins “Bats In The Attic”
Jon Hopkins is a classically trained pianist and producer who writes some of my favourite electronic music. His use of reverb alone makes me green with envy. King Creosote is an absurdly prolific Scottish singer/songwriter with a penchant for melancholia. In 2011, they put out a collaborative album that is beautiful, subtle and altogether quite lovely. Video
Elbow “Scattered Black And Whites
Elbow singer Guy Garvey writes the best lyrics in modern pop/rock. That’s a bold statement, but I think it’s true. He builds up lyrical snapshots of times and places by picking the perfect moments—a seemingly oblique memory or turn of phrase—to hone in on. This song is the closer on Elbow’s debut album Asleep In The Back, and it’s a beautiful paean to home. The line about “disjointed tales that flit between short trousers and a full dress uniform” gets me every time. Video
