Back in the early to mid-1990s, when MTV was in the throngs of precipitating the Reality TV Devolution, you could still catch a music video or three an hour if you were lucky. I must confess I was hooked on 'The Real World,' and the idiocracies of guys like Puck now look tame in comparison to all the other reality show douchebags and drama queens who have clogged up cable and network TV with their verbal diarrhea, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Having said that, I do have my guilty reality pleasures, Shahs of Sunset being one of them. Yes, it's that bad.
By 1997, I had moved on to VH1, which actually still had full-hour blocks dedicated to music programming. That was the year they debuted the legendary rockumentary show Behind the Music, which became famous for mining all the decadent Spinal Tap-esque rock 'n' roll lifestyle excesses, overdoses, downfalls, and rehabs that self-parody and cliché could afford.
As a nocturnal being, I was naturally drawn to VH1's Insomniac Music Theater, which ran past midnight into the wee hours. Though the programming was dominated by a lot of '90s Alternative,' grunge, heavy metal, surf-punk, and other noisy stuff, you could occasionally check out some new music that slanted towards the eclectic. That's where I first heard the pop-luck stylings of Cornershop.
'Brimful of Asha,' from the 1997 LP When I Was Born for the 7th Time, is arguably Cornershop's best known track. It's a 5 minute-plus pure pop gem, and in fact its subject matter, so brilliantly conveyed by the perma-grinned shimmying teeny-bopper in the bubblegum-flavored technicolor video, pays homage to the venerable 45-RPM vinyl record single, old radio stations and broadcasts in India, and the greatest Indian 'Playback Singers' of the Bollywood film industry, including Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar, and the namesake of the cut, Indian pop legend Asha Bhosle (and Lata Mangeshkar's sister). In addition, the song namedrops other music icons of yesteryear, including French singer Jacques Dutronc, T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan, and two legendary music labels, Argo Records (Jazz), and Trojan Records (ska, rocksteady, dub, reggae).
The song is a near perfect blend of East-West musical traditions, reflecting cultural intersections in the life of Tjinder Singh (Guitars, Lead Vocals, Lyrics), a Brit of Punjabi Sikh heritage and one of the co-founders of Cornershop (Co-founder and Guitarist/Keyboardist/Tamboura Player Ben Ayres is the only other remaining original member). In this song, like many other Cornershop tunes, Singh moves seamlessly between English and Punjabi vocal phrasing and Eastern and Western instrumentation, mixing elements of lo-fi, rock, electronica, psychedelia, dream pop, and world fusion.
I've attached a copy of the video, which is over a minute shorter than the LP version. You can also check out the Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim) remix, which is easily accessible over the interwebs.
1. Brimful of Asha (Single Version, from the 1997 LP When I Was Born For the 7th Time)
'Sleep On the Left Side' is my 2nd favorite track on When I Was Born for the 7th Time, and it's the leadoff cut from the album. It sets the mood of the rest of the LP, with its quirky accordion flourishes, droning basslines, swirling keyboards/synth, orchestral touches, impressionistic lyrics, and hypnotic groove. 'Left Side' is another colorful, retro-inspired video, a sort of companion piece to 'Brimful of Asha,' one that's also about a minute shorter than the original LP version.
2. Sleep on the Left Side (Single Version, from the 1997 LP When I Was Born For the 7th Time)
Cornershop - Sleep On The Left Side on MUZU.TV.
Cornershop resurfaced in 2002 with the LP 'Handcream for a Generation.' During the hitatus, Singh and Ayres pursued side projects, including a collaboration under the name Clinton. 'Handcream' was a worthy followup to their previous LP, though not as artistically daring or commercially successful.
It was not til 2009 that the pair reunited for what amounted to a 7 year hiatus from Cornershop, with the LP 'Judy Sucks a Lemon For Breakfast.' And since then, they've gotten back in the Cornershop groove, releasing two more full-length LPs, 2011's 'Cornershop and the Double-O Groove Of,' and 2012's 'Urban Turban (The Singhles Club).'
I've selected my fave track from 'Double-O,' which is in essence a concept album featuring the collaboration with virtually unknown British Indian pop-folk chanteuse Bubbley Kaur. The festive name aside, 'Topknot' is an irresistible slice of Bollywood-meets-Bhangra-inspired Punjabi dance pop, with Kaur's exuberant vocals soaring above a solid mid-tempo groove.
3. Topknot (Featuring Bubbley Kaur), 2009, from the LP 'Cornershop and the Double-O Groove Of'
'Urban Turban (The Singhles Club)' really is a remarkable album, especially considering that although Cornershop have not really altered their sound all too much since their mid-90s debut, always comfortable with the hodge-podge of East-West instrumentation and in exploratory mode when it comes to genre-hopping, the LP's sound is very contemporary, in the sound of 2012. What this means is that Cornershop must have been well ahead of their time in mixing it all up back then, so much so that, with just minimal tweaks, Urban Turban could have premiered as a mid-late 90s Cornershop release!
My fave tracks run the gamut of diverse sound pastiches on Urban Turban. The icy electro-synth gallop of 'Non-Stop Radio (Extended Play)' featuring some quirky wordplay from French vocalist Celeste, is accompanied by a brilliant 80's style throwback video! 'Beacon Radio 303' (featuring Rajwant) sounds like Bombay met Dr. Dre and made sweet love on the dancefloor, while 'Milkin' It' is pure space-electro hip-hop featuring the MC stylins' of In Light of Aquarius paying tribute to a who's who of influential hip-hoppers and legends. This is also accompanied by a great clip, shot low-tech home video style, in and around Oakland, CA. Finally, there's the rolling, dream pop head-bopper 'Something Makes You Feel Like,' featuring French actress and indie-popper Soko.
4. Non-Stop Radio (Single Video Version and Extended LP Version), featuring Celeste (2012, from the LP Urban Turban)
5. Beacon Radio 303, featuring Rajwant (2012, from the LP Urban Turban)
6. Milkin' It, (Single Video and Extended LP Version) featuring In Light of Aquarius (2012, from the LP Urban Turban)
7. Something Makes You Feel Like, featuring Soko (2012, from the LP Urban Turban)
In closing out this post, I'll leave you with the Cornershop song that arguably started it all. After their early independently released material impressed ex-Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, who was just launching his Luaka Bop world fusion label, the band was signed to Luaka and released its 2nd LP, 'Woman's Gotta Have It.' The opening and closing tracks on the LP (6 A.M. Juliandar Shere and 7:20 A.M. Juliandar Shere) are companion pieces sung (and chanted) by Singh in Punjabi with a compression effect, backed by Indian instrumentation, and evokes a mystical vibe. The official video single clocks in at more than 2:30 shorter than the epic original, so I've attached both for your listening (and viewing) enjoyment!
8. 6 A.M. Juliandar Shere (1995, Video Single Version and Full LP Version, from the LP Woman's Gotta Have It)
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