Brain Food

(FUNKY BREAKS)

Sometimes lost in the constant analysis of messages and trends in music is that it is always good for the listener.

Perhaps you're not all familiar with the studies done regarding the so-called 'Mozart Effect' from the 1990's. Essentially, scientists gave three study groups the same set of questions testing spatial reasoning (an IQ test) after they listened to 10 minutes of (a) Mozart, (b) 'soothing sounds,' and (c) silence. What they found was that the group that listened to the Mozart performed better. This created a lot of fuss and got a lot of attention, one state even started handing out Mozart cassettes to mothers after all childbirths to get those babies a brain boost.

Well, the fall-out showed that the Mozart Effect wasn't really all it was cracked up to be. The IQ boost lasted only a short amount of time and it was actually just the audio stimulation (not the sounds of Mozart specifically) that subjects were responding to. Furthermore, Mozart didn't turn the universal crank of subjects. People responded better in further testing to music that they enjoyed. So, take it from Shadow Shogun folks, if you're always listening to dope music, you WILL become smarter, for a time at least. Book it.

Now, I personally like something a little funky. I like something a little jazzy. I like something with boom bap and dope basslines. Someone who ties all these things together is Tru Thoughts & Ninja Tunes rep Bonobo. His album, Black Sands, is at or near the top of my list for the best of 2010 and I would highly recommend it. Self-produced and often self-instrumented, Bonobo makes music I would define as ethereal (for lack of a better term), combining the abstract with the soulful. Go out and listen to his stuff, I can't stress that enough. He's dope.

The mix I've found for you today, however, isn't all that ethereal or abstract or whatever other vague term I can come up with, it's some funky world music bangin' ass shit, and I'm happy I've finally found something that he has mixed for you guys and gals. So get the music to your speakers and enjoy the mental upliftment, because if you enjoy this while ya listen, it will boost your IQ. It's science.

Download, listen, love...

Bonobo - In the Mix (The Rinse 2005)
(tracklisting in comments section)

PS - The Shadow is officially 200 posts old. It's a celebration bitches.