Anji was recently quizzed about favorite music by the Voices and Visions
website. You can read her responses, just below Rick Springfield’s, here.
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”
Change is a comin'
This may well be the final journal entry. We’re preparing to overhaul the site and I think we’ll probably axe the journal. We just don’t write in it very much. I already update the news and man the messageboard, so that doesn’t leave a lot of inspiration for the journal. Plus, those in the know already read my personal journal elsewhere…
Remix Competition Winners Announced
The Peace Love Productions remix competition of “Walk Away” has ended, and the winning remixes are all featured on Lovespirals’ SoundClick page. The Grand Prize Winner is SinQ, from Holland, with his “Don’t Look Back” mix, while Canada’s Bitstream Dream and Finland’s Funklovers produced the two Runner Up mixes. Lovespirals also selected a number of additional remixes as Honorable Mentions.
The Prizes for this contest included a copy of Ableton Live 3, Abelton Live Power, the Alien Guitars CD, the Dsound RT Player Pro & Stompin’ FX, plus the PLP Disco Tech Loop CD. Lucky winners!
You can also read a Side-Line story on Lovespirals PLP remix contest.
"Hand in Hand (1999 Mix)" featured on BeSonic
European music site, BeSonic, is currently featuring the Chill-Out Lounge Vol. 2 Jazz-Step version of “Hand in Hand” on their Music Recommendations page, along with a review by Jeza. Also available on BeSonic is the
Deep House remix of “Walk Away” by remix producers Sunburn in Cyprus.
Remixes
Man oh man there were a lot of remixes to listen to this weekend! First we whittled the 4 pages worth of entries to just 32 tracks, then down to 22 tracks, and finally to 8 tracks. Now we need to hone in on just one Grand Prize Winner and 2 Runner-Ups. We feel like American Idol judges! Ryan says he’s Simon and I’m Paula, but I think I’m a bit more like Randy… 🙂
Anyway, I’m planning to unveil the final announcement by Friday, which will hopefully include our having all pertinent mixes uploaded to our SoundClick page for everyone to check out!
Remix Contest Ends Soon!
The PLP “Walk Away” remix competition ends February 5th, after which
time all of the entries will be judged and a Grand Prize winner selected.
Lovespirals will host an mp3 of the winning mix and several runner-ups
on their newly launched SoundClick page. Plans are also underway for a remix CD highlighting a wide range of remix styles, so stay tuned for more news!
Free Holiday Music from Lovespirals
Italian indie music zine, Losing Today, is hosting a free download of Lovespirals’ wintry John Denver cover song in their Mp3 Today section . Download “Aspenglow” for your holiday listening pleasure.
Walk Away Remix
Wow, Peace Love Productions says we’ve already gotten 500 downloads of our remix files since Friday! I wonder how many actual remixes we’ll get? I wonder how many other people will try to illegally use our samples? I hope they won’t but I’m sure someone will.
Some people have already asked about posting the remixes on their sites. I think that would be cool. I guess I should get together a credits file to be posted with the mixes. I should ask DJ Puzzle about adding something to the remix site for folks to use.
Sounds like PLP might end up doing some kind of remix CD, if the entries are cool enough.
Lovespirals Remix Competition
PeaceLoveProductions is currently hosting a remix competition for Lovespirals’ recent song, “Walk Away.” Prizes include Ableton’s Live 3 and Live Power, Dsound’s RT Player Pro & Stompin’ FX, and PeaceLoveProductions sample CDs. The contest is being sponsored by Ableton, CoolBreeze, Time+Space, Muska & Lipman, DSound and MixMeister. For full details and remix files, go here
Lovespirals Move to SoundClick
SoundClick.com , reputedly the largest mp3 hosting site following the demise of Mp3.com, is now hosting an assortment of Lovespirals’ streaming and downloadable mp3 files. Hear them at soundclick.com/lovespirals
Mp3.com is DEAD: Long live SoundClick!
Gothic Jazz?
Just came across the funniest mention of us in a Devics review online.
Slow, teary-eyed gothic jazz was an inevitability as darkwave, dream pop, and shoegazing became further and further intertwined. Lovespirals’ “Windblown Kiss” of 2002 was heralded as the style’s official birth and fulfilled the lifelong dreams of darkwave and lounge lovers like myself by blending the melancholy, ethereal vocals of the former with the breezy, slow sway of the latter.
Even though I have heard one or two other people make similar mention, I can’t get used to the idea that anyone would still think we’re Gothic, in addition to Jazz. It’s just too crazy! Why not “Dark Jazz” at least? LOL.
Ha Ha! First Ryan invents “Gothic Trip Hop” (Flux) and now “Gothic Jazz” (Windblown Kiss). I suppose next we’ll be “Gothic Soul”? No… People can’t possibly try to lump our new music in with Gothic. Can they?