Anji recently unearthed a “bootleg” mix of the classic Christmas song, “The Little Drummer Boy,” created by Ryan in 1999. This drum ‘n’ bass track featuring Gabriel D. Vine, of Monkey Bars, has never before been released! A 128k mp3 will be available to download for your holiday listening pleasure only at MySpace.com/Lovespirals
All posts by Anji
Relax was, well, relaxing!
Sunday night over at the Kitsch was pretty mellow and fun. The bar has a nice vibe and nobody ever gives attitude, which is great. It was my first time DJing to a live club audience, even though I’ve been a radio DJ for years, so I was a little bit nervous. Once I got going though, I was totally in the groove. It was fun mixing from old school jazz to new school downtempo, then into classic soul and on into contemporary deep house. Its always great to hear your favorite tunes blasting on a good sound system, too. I was particularly grooving to Diana Ross’ “Brown Baby.” Anyway, Kristina B. was way into both of our sets and said we were welcome back “anytime” so I’m sure we’ll set another date early next year, for those who were too busy with holiday plans to make it out this time!
E-mail List Elves
It’s great that the site has been redesigned so that the email list automatically updates itself when people join. Just about every day since the change, someone has joined. Even still, there are hundreds of folks on the old email list that I’m making sure don’t get left behind.
I think I’ve recreated our email list probably a half dozen times since I joined the band in 1999. I’ve done it so many times before that I feel like I’ve memorized some of these people’s contact info, even though I don’t know them personally.
Last night I was fricken dreaming that I was updating the email list… If only I had woken up to find that little elves had done all the work for me!
Looking Goo-ood!
Man, the site is looking awfully sharp if I do say so, myself! After a heavy 2 days of geeking out, everything has come together just as we envisioned. We really needed a good first page, but when we first changed the site over, we still weren’t sure what we wanted. Now we’ve got a pretty nice balance of image and content, with an emphasis on all the basic things any first time or returning visitor would want to find. We even have a link to the previous incarnation of the band, to make it easier on old folks looking up the band for the first time in a decade. 😉
Ryan and Anji DJ set @ Relax
On Sunday December 12, come listen to Ryan and Anji deejaying a set of old school jazz, soul, and downtempo for Relax @ Kistch Bar, located in Costa Mesa, California. Relax starts at 10 PM and admission is free. See www.kitschbar.com for directions.
Always evolving
Looks like we updated the site yet again! Seems like there’s always something new we want to try out. Sometimes we bring back something old that we miss, but with a new twist — like this blog! Now ya’ll can comment on things, if you feel so inclined. We’re still in need of some new band photos, as Ryan and I look quite a bit different than we did back in the Windblown Kiss period, but it looks like we’ll be hooking up with our favorite photographer, Susan Jennings, early next year. It’s not as far away as it sounds…
Ryan and I have already made a New Year’s resolution to stay in better communication with our fans, and part of that will be accomplished by sending out newsletters more often. We get people signing up to the newslist every week, but it’s been months since I’ve sent one and I do feel a little bit bad.
We’ve also set up an RSS feed of our news page, and I think we’ll have one of the journal soon, too. Looks like we haven’t added that link to the site yet, though. I’ll have to pester our code monkey. Heh heh…
"Love Survives" Garners Garageband Awards
“Love Survives” has been showered with Reviewer Pick Awards at Garageband.com this week, including top 3 awards in the categories of Female Vocals, Lyrics, Keyboards, Bass, Melody, Production, and Mood, as well as “Best Love Song,” “Best Feel-Good Track,” and “Coolest Chill-Out Track”. Check out the dozens of awards and reviews of “Love Survives” plus other Lovespirals songs at http://www.garageband.com/artist/lovespirals
Walk Away (SinQ Remix)
I’ve felt the dizzy heights
Don’t wanna take the fall
Well, I’ve climbed and seen the sights
Just wanna take it all in
Then walk away, yeah (x2)
I’ve come close to the fire
Nearly burned my hands
I won’t be lifted higher
To be dropped to the sands
No
No, I’ll walk away
Find my own space
I’ll hide away
Til I feel safe again
Maybe I’m acting scared
See, I been hurt before
And my old heart just ain’t prepared
To take a chance any more
No
I’ll walk away
Find my own space
I’ll hide away
‘Til I feel safe again
I’ll walk, I’ll walk away
Again
Find my own space
Again
I’ll hide away, til I feel safe again
I’ll walk, I’ll walk away
Ooh
– By Anji Bee (BMI)
Synerdata Lovespirals Feature
This month Synerdata Radio is hosting a 2+ hour streaming radio feature on the history of Lovespirals and Love Spirals Downwards in 160kbps mp3 format. The show includes 2 cuts from every album, plus unreleased and demo tracks, as well as numerous interview clips of the band members taken from various sources, compiled and hosted by Anji Bee. The show is in medium to heavy rotation on both the main feed and the “secret hidden underground” feed, so keep an ear out for it!
Anji Bee hosts show on Synerdata Radio
Synerdata Radio is streaming “The Lovely Ladies of Electronica with Anji Bee” featuring female fronted electronica and personal commentary. Anj’s show is in regular rotation in the Synerdata Radio programming beginning Monday May 24th.
Editor’s Pick on CNET’s Download.com
Lovespirals are now CNET’s new music.download.com. In fact, we were the editor’s pick on 5/6/2004, with the following editorial commentary:
The smooth grooves conjure comparisons to Portishead and Everything But the Girl. Combining jazzy torch-song vocal stylings with modern trip-hop sounds and rhythms, Lovespirals craft an infectious and exotic down-tempo sound that you might hear playing in an upscale New York club or Parisian underground lounge.
Lovespirals 2004 Biography/Discography
We’ve been sending out demos of some of our new dance and downtempo tracks to various labels, just to see if there’s any interest for compilations, singles, or even a full album. This is the latest bio to go along with the the tracks:
Since 1999, producer/musician Ryan Lum and singer/songwriter, Anji Bee have made an unlikely marriage of dusty vinyl classics to sparkling new CDs, informed by a lingering affair with Jazz. Familiar, yet exotic, the sounds and styles of this creative duo guide modern electronic composition in a more organic direction, forsaking simplistic sample loop based production in favor of traditional song writing and performance.
The interplay of Bee’s sensual vocals and Lum’s emotive guitar playing – given equal importance with the beats — illustrate their love of melody in song craft; something all too often missing in electronica music. From track to track, and even within each tune itself, the duo culls their favorite aspects of music past and present – those most beautiful, soulful, haunting, or groovy – to create their own unique flavor; fresh and tasty.
Lum and Bee, working under the moniker, Lovespirals, have released various compilation tracks, downloadable singles, and even an album, Windblown Kiss (for indie Projekt Records), and have also performed all across North America with a semi-live set featuring guitar, sax, and vocals over a backing track on laptop. Lum has also appeared in Los Angeles and San Francisco clubs with traditional DJ sets, often including dub plates of their material.
If you are seeking music for the mind and soul, as well as the body, then Lovespirals are for you.
And while I’m at it, here’s our current discography:
DISCOGRAPHY:
(2000) Claire Voyant – Time Again – Metropolis Records “Bittersweet (LSD Mix)”
(2001) V/A – Chill Out in the City – Water Music Records “Beatitude”
(2001) V/A – Chill-Out Lounge v. 2 – Water Music Records “Hand in Hand (Radio Edit)”
(2001) Lovespirals – Ecstatic EP – MP3.com
(2001) V/A – Excelsis v.3: A Prelude – Projekt Records “Aspenglow”
(2002) V/A – Mondisk: A Celebration of 13 Years – Monitor Records “Hand in Hand”
(2002) Lovespirals – Windblown Kiss – Projekt Records
(2002) V/A – The Arbitrary Width of Shadows– – Hot Topic “Dejame”
(2002) V/A – A Dark Noel – Hot Topic “Aspenglow”