Our Monthly Playlist selection of choice music and Choice Releases list from the last month.
Apologies, as I’m writing this from my bed in the Renal Unit of the Queen Elizabeth mega hospital, waiting on my weekend free pass for home and recovery in much more inviting surroundings. If you haven’t yet heard, I was rushed into Acute last Thursday lunchtime and ended up in the kidney specialist unit; prodded, tested, observed, scanned, observed more, biopsy and trialling various meds: some of left me pretty unfocussed and groggy. You get your own room, own shower and facilities, plenty of sockets and pretty good free WiFi, so it isn’t that bad a stay. Just waiting in limbo for action plans, lifestyle change advice and long-term medication. I will however at least try to get the site on some sort of regular track whilst all this is going on, but events may hinder this, and my state of health may make it impossible sometimes, but we shall see how it goes.
Saying all that, I’m able, or at least in a more awakened state to finish off the month with a revue playlist and selection of choice releases list from January 2026. This list includes both those releases I or my contributors (Matt Oliver and Brian ‘Bordello’ Shea) managed to feature and review on the site and those we just didn’t get the room for – time restraints and the sheer volume of submissions each month mean there are always those records that miss out on receiving a full review, and so we have added a number of these to both our playlist and releases list.
CHOICE RELEASES FROM THE LAST MONTH OR SO:
Elea Calvet ‘Spurious Transmutations’
Chosen by Dominic Valvona
Geologist ‘Can I Get A Pack Of Camel Lights?’
(Drag City) DV Link
Clémentine March ‘Powder Keg’
(PRAH Recordings) DV Link
DakhaBrakha ‘Ptakh’
Chosen by DV
Roc Marciano ‘656’
(Pimpire Records/Marci Enterprises) Chosen by MO & DV
Minor Dents ‘Sitting With The Fish’
EP – (Rose Hill Records) Brian ‘Bordello’ Shea Link
Reine des Lezards ‘Lady Coca-Cola’
EP – (Metal Postcard Records) BBS Link
Sis and the Lower Wisdom ‘Saints and Aliens’
(Native Cat) DV Link
Wilson Tanner Smith ‘Perpetual Guest’
(Sawyer Editions) DV Link
Tachube ‘Mincminc’(Inverted Spectrum Records/PMGJazz)
DV Link
Charles ‘Poppy Bob’ Walker ‘Double-Wide’
Album – (Castle Dome Records) DV Link
Leo Wolf ‘Veiled In Light’
(The Oldest River) DV Link
PLAYLIST:
Sis and the Lower Wisdom ‘Luce’
Tinariwen Ft. Sulafa Elyas ‘Sagherat Assani’
Reine des Lezards ‘I’m Made Up’
Robert Stillman ‘Reality Distortion Field’
Neo-Magics ‘Acid Tongue’
Clementine March ‘After The Solstice’
The God Fahim & Nicholas Craven ‘Bik Luster S’
Roc Marciano ‘Vanity’
Doctor Nativo ‘Chokolate Kakao’
Shabaam Sahdeeq, Es-K & General Steele ‘Top Tier’
Under The Reefs Orchestra/Catherine Graindorge ‘Banquise’
Occult Character ‘Her Name Is Terriible’
The Bordellos ‘Who Do You Think You Are? Paul McCartney?’
Geologist ‘RV Envy’
Sniff, Caneva & Hush One ‘Polo Jacket’
Fliptrix, Forest DLG, Coops ‘Freedom?’
Toni Geitani ‘Ya Sah’
Wilson Tanner Smith ‘Cherry Picking’
DakhaBrakha ‘Kosari Kosait’
Elea Calvet ‘Bad Joke – Transmutation’
Sweeney ‘Lonely Faces’
Cashell ‘These Things Take Time’
Foster Neville ‘Hob Moor’
Strangebird-Sounds ‘CALCITE’
Charles ‘Poppy Bob’ Walker ‘Winterhaven, 1978’
KatzPascale ‘GBTC’
Sonnyjim & Sebb Bash Kezza’
Minor Dents ‘Rituals’
The Monolith Cocktail Social Playlist #64: The Fall, Your Old Droog, DakhaBrakha, The Jam…
March 4, 2022
PLAYLIST/Curated by Dominic Valvona
The Monolith Cocktail Social is one of two long-running playlist series on the blog. Running in tandem with the Monthly Revue, which represents all the new music both I and the MC team have been listening to and writing about during the month, the Social is a cross-generational, eclectic imaginary radio show, where anything goes: featuring tracks from the last 50 or more years.
Volume #64 features tracks from a number of anniversary celebrating albums. Kicking off proceedings, ‘Jawbone And the Air-Rifle’ is plucked from The Fall‘s 1982 Hex Education Hour, and from the same year, I’ve picked ‘Just Who Is The 5 O’Clock Hero’ from on The Jam‘s swansong The Gift, and the title track from Sparks‘ Angst In My Pants. There’s also the title cut from The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy‘s 92 special, Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury, a gospel inspired southern roller from The Rolling Stones 72 opus Exile On Main Street and the title track from Faust‘s incredible So Far album.
In solidarity with our Ukraine friends, going through hell-on-earth at the hands of a raving despot, intent on reconquering the collapsed Soviet Union empire and a bit of Peter The Great’s grandiose plan, plus building a corridor to the Balkans, I’ve chosen some venerable, traditional and more contemporary tracks from the country’s artists (and choirs). Step forward the National Choir Of The Ukraine, Your Old Droog, Oleska Suyhodolyak and DakhaBrakha. I could resist including the Bee Gees beautified ‘Odessa‘ too.
Mingling amongst that lot are eclectic tracks from Pugh Rogefeldt, Dennis The Fox, Wau Wau Collectif, OKI, Solid Space, Life Pass Filter, Jim Ford and many others…
THOSE TRACKS IN FULL ARE:::
The Fall ‘Jawbone And the Air-Rifle’
The Jam ‘Just Who Is The 5 O’Clock Hero’
Pugh Rogefeldt ‘Love, Love, Love’
Dennis The Fox ‘Piledriver’
Yesterday’s Children ‘Sad Born Loser’
Rarelyalways & Hanni El Khatib ‘Manic’
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy ‘Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury‘
National Choir Of The Ukraine ‘Sviatyj Boje’
Cold Specks ‘Winter Solstice’
The Rolling Stones ‘I Just Want To See Your Face’
Wau Wau Collectif ‘Yaral Sa Doom’
Sven Wunder ‘Magnolia’
Georgia Anne Muldrow ‘Ayun Vegas (Ft. Ayun Bassa)’
Your Old Droog ‘Odessa (Ft. Billy Woods)’
La La Lars ‘Haxa’
Heshoo Beshoo Group ‘Emakhaya’
Fabrizio De Andre ‘Primo Intermezzo’
Sparks ‘Angst In My Pants’
Oleska Suyhodolyak ‘Gutsul Kolomyika (Dance-Song)’
OKI ‘Yaykatekar Dub (Love Dub)’
John Lurie ‘AI AI AI AI’
Sourakata Koite ‘Kano’
Solid Space ‘Radio France’
The Primitives ‘The Ostrich’
DakhaBrakha ‘Vynnaya Ya’
Mike Cooper ‘Boogie Boards And Beach Rubbish’
Robert Wyatt ‘Heaps Of Sheep’
Lua ‘Pozzanghere e Sigarette’
Life Pass Filter ‘Queen Ghat’
Faust ‘So Far’
Lonnie Holley ‘Crystal Doorknob’
The Blue Angel Lounge ‘Bewitch My Senses’
palliatives for dirty consciences ‘breakthrough’
Brigid Dawson And The Mothers Network ‘Ballet Of Apes’
Jim Ford ‘Point Of No Return’
Bee Gees ‘Odessa (City On The Black Sea)’
Monolith Cocktail Social Playlist #XLVII: Ennio Morricone, Art Decade, Voilaaa, Kahvas Jute…
July 15, 2020
PLAYLIST/Dominic Valvona
Welcome friends to another one of Dominic Valvona’s eclectic/generational spanning playlists; the Monolith Cocktail’s imaginary radio show. In practice this amounts to Dominic picking whatever he sees fit, including tributes to fallen idols and tracks from recent reissues. This month’s edition pays a small homage to the late Italian deity of soundtracks and composition, Ennio Morricone. Joining him in on this journey is Art Decade, Voilaaa, Kahvas Jute, Tono S., Pharoah Sanders, Electric Eels, Faris, VED, Abel Lima, The Staple Singers, Jerzy Milian and twenty-three other eclectic choice artists.
Listen how you choose, but each playlist is curated in a special order.
As usual, for those without Spotify (or boycotting it, pissed with it or whatever) you can find a smattering of videos from the set below the track list.
Track List:
Mike James Kirkland ‘What Have We Done’
Voilaaa ‘Manu ecoute ca…’
Pharaoh Sanders ‘Farrell Tune (live In Paris 1975)’
Tono S. & DJ Metys ‘Recept Na Uspech’
Lord Finesse with Sadat X and Large Professor ‘Actual Fatcs’
Weldon Irvine ‘Love Your Brother’
Ted Hawkins ‘Sweet Baby’
Tripsichord ‘The New World’
Kahvas Jute ‘Shes So Hard To Shake’
Country Weather ‘Boy Without A Home’
Orangutan ‘Chocolate Piano’
Jessamine ‘Inevitably’
Electric Eels ‘Sewercide’
Indianizer ‘Mazel Tov II’
Hypnotuba ‘Hubbubuzz’
Art Decade ‘Delta’
Ndikho Xaba ‘In Praise Of Women’
VED ‘Sture External’
Faris ‘Oulhawen Win Tidit’
Velvett Fogg ‘New York Mining Disaster 1941’
Group 1850 ‘Hunger’
Pisces ‘Oh Lord’
Yanti Bersaudara ‘Pohon Kenari’
DakhaBrakha ‘Vynnaya Ya’
Abel Lima ‘Aonte’
Ennio Morricone ‘Arianna’
Marva Josie ‘He Does It Better’
Gryphon ‘Mother Nature’s Son’
Robert Lester Folsom ‘Ginger’
Quiet World ‘Star’
Minami Deutsch ‘Sunrise, Sunset’
Uniting Of Opposites ‘Ancient Lights’
Jerzy Milian ‘Hausdrache’
Ennio Morricone ‘The Chase’
The Staple Singers ‘Washington We’re Watching you’
VIDEOS:
Hi, my name is Dominic Valvona and I’m the Founder of the music/culture blog monolithcocktail.com For the last ten years I’ve featured and supported music, musicians and labels we love across genres from around the world that we think you’ll want to know about. No content on the site is paid for or sponsored and we only feature artists we have genuine respect for /love. If you enjoy our reviews (and we often write long, thoughtful ones), found a new artist you admire or if we have featured you or artists you represent and would like to buy us a coffee at https://ko-fi.com/monolithcocktail to say cheers for spreading the word, then that would be much appreciated.
Monolith Cocktail Blog 