We decided on that very evening to look for the master tapes, and see if there might be a EP or maybe even a whole album in our vaults. “Upon listening to the found Test Pressing from 1995, we both had a strong feeling that there was something about a couple of the tracks that felt strangely right – more right than it probably felt ever before. I’ll let Peter & Richard tell it from here. From archaic Atari ST-1040 and AKAI S-1100 Sampler, to the DAT machine technician performing the precision-surgical work of a Swiss watchmaker, to securing a near-impossible sample-clearance from the estate of late Brazilian Bossanova pioneer Antonio Carlos Jobim. It was a cosmic convergence of sorts, something greater than merely luck or even art that made this discovery turn into a reality. Peter and Richard had not created or released new Kruder & Dorfmeister music in over two decades.Īs the fairy-tale goes, back home in Vienna the fellas randomly stumbled upon a vinyl test pressing of their mythical, long-shelved debut full length LP from 25 years ago. Though they continued to periodically perform DJ sets around the world, the producers both branched out to other projects like Tosca and Peace Orchestra. Cinematic, atmospheric, seductive, hands down some of the sexiest music ever made, the effort cemented their legacies as luminaries. But it was their quintessential The K&D Sessions, a 1998 double-disc chock-full of archetypal remixes that truly changed the game forever. In 1993, the pair debuted with EP G-Stoned, a groundbreaking, smoked-out affair three years later they forwarded the finest volume of the enduring DJ Kicks series. In 2020, K&D are unequivocally living legends as the kids say, they are a whole VIBE. Peter Kruder and Richard Dorfmeister need no introduction – really, they wrote the book on jazzy, dubby downtempo, avant-garde Bossa-beats, and terpene-soaked trip-hop, giving birth to lounge lizards, Leisure-Suit Larrys, and thousands of imitators still going strong. A major soundtrack to my personal coming of age, and trust I know I am not alone. Austrian producers Kruder & Dorfmeister were the iconic duo who handed me the keys to the electronic kingdom. In my halcyon days going to college in late 90’s Burlington, Vermont. Upful Life’s 20 Favorite Records of 2020 ! Thank you for lifting me up and inspiring this work! If you are so inclined, please consider donating/supporting on PayPal or Venmo. This is a labor of love! I feel the love in abundance and love y’all back, maybe today more than ever. Incredible record that became one of my favorites after last calendar year. Lastly, I humbly ask forgiveness/mulligan for omitting Neal Francis- Changes in my 2019 feature. I am honoring this art and your sacrifice with this here passion project. This piece is dedicated to 2020: the dearly-departed and everybody who suffered a loss or struggled mightily, and to those who rose up in the face of adversity to survive – even thrive, however they had to do so. If you are reading this and still have your sanity, health, happiness, or even your job, give thanks. Hopefully, readers will find a few of their faves included, among a handful of new discoveries, and maybe a couple of surprises, too. Sometimes, the absence of words or lyrics offers me a certain vibrational frequency or intangible inner peace, I suppose. With a smattering of selections that run the gamut across genre, generation, and geography, 2020’s feature leans slightly back toward instrumental-based music. Each release includes a clickable link to stream/purchase, and I tried to lead with Bandcamp URLs whenever available. Since the album format is no longer necessarily king, I added in seven hot singles or 7”s, and then five live concert records as well. The second twenty selects could just as easily have made the first batch. Then another 20 recommendations/honorable mentions for good measure. What follows are my 20 favorite 2020 records, with detailed reviews attached. With all this time on our hands, no touring or festivals, I made it a point to dig a little deeper, to venture farther off the beaten path, and reach further into the abyss than maybe ever before. Plenty of high-profile blogs and major magazines are feting both records in their year-end wraps, but you will not find either included here. There are 2020 albums lauded in the press (Fiona Apple – Fetch the Bolt Cutters) and among my people (Phish – Sigma Oasis ), no doubt tremendous releases from beloved artists. Just a collection of works that resonated with me most, during this complex and confounding revolution around the sun. This is decidedly not a “best of”, nor any measure of merit, popularity, sales or success. Merely one guy’s personal tastes and preferences, in no particular order or ranking. The same disclaimer applies as in the past: these are * my* favorite albums. Welcome to the 4th consecutive ‘Favorite Records of the Year” feature on Upful Life.
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