One of my favourite albums of all times, Voodoo (Wikipedia). I remember going to the record store in January of the year 2000, when it was just released. I only listened for about 30 seconds in total in the store and I knew I had to buy it and rush home to listen to it.
It didn't leave my cd player until the summer. It really shook me up. Or maybe I was just in a post-adolescent phase where everything was heavy - probably.... but I was obsessed with this album.
To me, it's transcendent music. Sounds and arrangements which go further than just notes. It sounds mysterious and magic. Sometimes minimalistic, always organic, as if everything was played effortlessly and super laidback... To many women he was sex symbol only, and maybe it was the only way to market him properly and get the music out. At the same time it distracted from his musical geniality and artistry but it created a much bigger audience with all the female attention than if it was marketed as a funk/jazz album. In the end, the music won, and I am happy for him that he's awarded with many Grammys and still continuing to create great music, even if it takes a while... Many rhythm sections were brought up with this particular album, trying to play live what D'Angelo and his band had done on this album. Shifting the beats, playing with the "time". Generations of singers have been influenced by his singing and songs, I know a few who are still stuck on D'Angelo only.. and it's hard not to. And I am always getting mad of the teacher-kind-of -persons who talk about D'Angelo's poor lyrics. First of all, he's a musician and producer, not a lyric writer. He needs lyrics to communicate the music to the majority of people who only react to music if it has vocals and lyrics in it.. To me, Voodoo is about the rhythm, chords, feel, sounds... and there are lyrics as well..
My latest mix is now online. Venus Tunes Sessions is a monthly mix by Susanne Alt on Freak31, aired every first Sunday of the month at 19:00h. In addition, earlier Venus Tunes Sessions shows are repeated every Friday between 20:00-21:00 and Tuesday 21:00-22:00.Freak 31 has around 250 daily listeners (less during the week, more in the weekend) and a total of +10.000 listeners every month. In addition to Mixcloud and Hearthis, all mixes are also available as podcasts on Deezer and iTunes.It was in 2015 when I had my first official dj gig and since 2016 I started to perform regularly. This took place in Amsterdam's Skyybar, Floor17 and The Harbourclub Zuid... bit by bit, other places like Momo and W Amsterdam followed, leading to club bookings as a dj and festival bookings with Venus Tunes Live in the Netherlands and abroad. All of this in addition to my normal life as a musician. I love dj'ing as it adds another facet to my musicianship.Listen to all editions of the Venus Tunes Sessions where you like; choose your platform: Venus Tunes Sessions is a monthly guest mix by Susanne Alt on Freak31, aired every first Sunday of the month at 1900h. Streaming Dance, straight from Amsterdam. - One of my favourite albums of all times, Voodoo (Wikipedia). I remember going to the record store in January of the year 2000, when it was just released. I only listened for about 30 seconds in total in the store and I knew I had to buy it and rush home to listen to it. It didn't leave my cd player until the summer. It really shook me up. Or maybe I was just in a post-adolescent phase where everything was heavy - probably.... but I was obsessed with this album.To me, it's transcendent music. Sounds and arrangements which go further than just notes. It sounds mysterious and magic. Sometimes minimalistic, always organic, as if everything was played effortlessly and super laidback...To many women he was sex symbol only, and maybe it was the only way to market him properly and get the music out. At the same time it distracted from his musical geniality and artistry but it created a much bigger audience with all the female attention than if it was marketed as a funk/jazz album.In the end, the music won, and I am happy for him that he's awarded with many Grammys and still continuing to create great music, even if it takes a while... Many rhythm sections were brought up with this particular album, trying to play live what D'Angelo and his band had done on this album. Shifting the beats, playing with the time. Generations of singers have been influenced by his singing and songs, I know a few who are still stuck on D'Angelo only.. and it's hard not to. And I am always getting mad of the teacher-kind-of -persons who talk about D'Angelo's poor lyrics. First of all, he's a musician and producer, not a lyric writer. He needs lyrics to communicate the music to the majority of people who only react to music if it has vocals and lyrics in it.. To me, Voodoo is about the rhythm, chords, feel, sounds... and there are lyrics as well..
