Dystopian Dance Party

Author: Callie

  • Jheri Curl June: Circle City Band’s “Magic”

    Jheri Curl June: Circle City Band’s “Magic”

    This is gonna be a short post because I can barely find a damn thing about this group except for the fact that they are a “Mid-80s Boogie-funk Band from Indiana,” according to Discogs, and that they were founded and coproduced by a man named Stanlee Paul whose real name is, get this, Paul Stanlee Thomas (not to be confused with Paul Stanley.)

    Circle City Band only had three singles spanning from 1983-1985 until 2012, when Luv N’ Haight put out an album including remastered versions of their singles and previously unreleased tracks. Thank God they did, because 1983’s “Magic” is one of the funkiest deep tracks I’ve found, with zapping synthesizers and rumbling drums that could only originate in the bowels of the Midwest.

    Hear the magic of Jheri Curl Music on our playlists here:

  • Jheri Curl June: Masayoshi Takanaka’s “Chill Me Out”

    Jheri Curl June: Masayoshi Takanaka’s “Chill Me Out”

    We have talked about City Pop and its proximity to Jheri Curl Music before with Hitomi Tohyama’s “Wanna Kiss”. Today we are featuring Masayoshi Takanaka, a jazz fusion legend, guitarist, composer, and producer who is influential in the City Pop genre. He is also known for playing with outrageous, custom guitars. Here’s a picture of him playing a huge red surfboard-shaped guitar:

    “Chill Me Out” from 1982’s Saudade is a perfect way to cool down on a hot summer evening, with the tinkling synthesizer that hits like ice cubes in a drink on a hot, balmy day. I also love the spoken word part that’s a conversation between Takanaka and session bassist T.M. Stevens, culminating in Takanaka shouting “CHECK IT OUT” and then ripping into a guitar solo.

    Oh, by the way, Randy Jackson also appears on this album. You know. THE Randy Jackson of Journey and “it’s a no from me dawg” fame. Unfortunately, I did not figure out which songs he appears on, but Discogs lists him as a background singer on the album.

    “Chill Me Out” definitely deserves a spot on your cookout playlist this summer. If you don’t have one yet, may we suggest our own here: