Onra - Chinoiseries

French Vietnamese MC and DJ Onra did some crate digging on a recent trip to Vietnam. The result is ‘Chinoiseries’, an instrumental hip hop album like no other. Each of the 32 tracks are constructed around vintage vietnamese pop records and clock in between 1 and 2 minutes.

Unlike Moby, who was given a box set of bluegrass and slave song recordings at a dinner party, and went on to pillage his way to advertising heaven with ‘Play’, Onra has managed to maintain the pathos of this source material.

You don’t feel like he’s simply sampling a bit because it sounds cool, instead you are treated to a recontextualised sound of the far east. Incidently, it sounds cool.

THINK: The Moby it’s okay to like
LISTEN: Onra’s myspace and side projects
BUY: Onra’s ‘Chinoiseries’ at Boomkat

Just A Band - We Are E.P.

Continuing with the French theme, Just a Band have released a bangin’ EP, ‘We are.’ It features three Just a Band tracks, and a remix of ‘We Are’ by The Shoes. I’m not sure whats going on at the moment, but French artists are taking over my iPod.

While Just a Band will inevitably draw Daft Punk comparisons, they have a rougher aesthetic aimed at the dancefloor, not your local hit radio station. Just a Band they may be, but their output is far from ordinary.

And while I’m on all things French:
BUY YOUR OWN DAFT PUNK HELMET!

THINK:  French Electro House.
WATCH: Just a band in Action
LISTEN:Just a band’s Meh-space
BUY: ‘We are’ from Beatport