Open mind for a different view: zooming out from that strictly Balearic island phenomenon focus for the sake of the bigger picture, Chris Coco & George Solar are all about hailing “Mother Earth” upon their return – widening horizons in order to assist finding a new approach towards the world we’re living in (& on). About time. Mother should I trust the government?
Channelling both their inner Larry Levan AND Lee Scratch Perry for that matter, the “left field dub disco with an Arab twist” sort of outcome made the boys smile more than once during the creative process – and that’s despite the fact that the higher cause in this particular case for sure is a rather serious one. “In my language, we call her Mother Earth” the voice keeps saying. There’s joy in repetition. And a bit of politics as well, of course.
So while we are at it with smiles, dance floor, politics, a more global approach from an Ibiza point of view and that slight desert vibe, the duo decided on beaming up the talented selector Sadeedo to the commando bridge for this universal mission: not only is it his very own father on vocals for the original – Sadeedo also shares remix duties with his Dubtropical buddy George Solar for the mandatory (and rather special) version excursion. A match made… on Mother Earth. Ibiza soil, to be precise. With a masterful mixdown crafted in London by Mr Coco himself on a really good day. That is precisely why “Mother Earth” is a proper balearic team effort for a better Pachamama. Global medication for the nation!
We’ve found our home from home. A new fortnightly residency at the iconicSpiritland in London starts on Sunday 20th February. It’s a daytime session starting at lunchtime. Beyond excited to play on the world class sound system and to meet friends old and new. We’ll have DJ’s the Chill Out Tent regulars Chris Coco, Matt Nearest Faraway Place and surprise guests. Superb food & drink of course. See you there…
He’s back, our ovine overlord of bucolic Balearic, the Chill Out Tent’s very own Chris Coco with the third edition of his now legendary #Sheepwatch mixes, this Sunday, the 30th May 2021 as part of our Edition #14 of the Chill Out Tent.
He sent this message via carrier pigeon from his secret highland pastures…
‘As everybody knows, sheep watching is a Great British Tradition that dates back to, well, the past, when the workers from our great cities would head out to the countryside to watch sheep and marvel at their animal woolliness. Here, Chris Coco continues that tradition, which is now baked into the mixed-metaphorical fabric of The Chill Out Tent, and creates a soundtrack both for the people watching the sheep and the noble beasts themselves as they go about their grazing and looking-after-the-lambs business. Musically you can expect emotional, slightly epic festival vibes. Think – lounging in a field in the sunshine with your mates, various types of alcohol, a small plastic bag, that you picked up off the grass just now, that seems to contain some sort of unidentified powdery substance, oh, and some sheep, obviously. Expect everything from ambient to Aretha to David to dub… And sheep, lots of lovely sheep…’
We’re adding to our video archive on YouTube again, some ‘Slow TV’ seasonal content this time. It’s ‘Sheepwatch’ with Chris Coco from our first edition of the Chill out Tent, a sublime ambient set, it’s a fine day…
The sheep 🐑 are back this Sunday 31/1/21 for Edition #10 of the Chill Out Tent, when Sheepwatch takes to the clouds ☁️ with a soundtrack of the cosmic festival variety from our man Chris Coco, beautiful music and bucolic ovine visuals make this a session not to miss. Check the recording of Sheepwatch Vol I from Edition #1 at the bottom of this page, it’s one of our favourites…
Edit – 6/2/21 – Here’s the audio of Sheepwatch II from Edition #10
This Episode… The Chill Out Tent’s Chris Coco is digging deep into the archives, looking to the future, but mostly staring out to sea as the sun sets on the horizon, remembering some magic created by the original sunset maestro – Jose Padilla.
Our curator in chief and super chilled DJ Chris Coco played an ambient, pre sunset set, up the hill, under a tree for the La Casella stream on The Chill Out Tent. He was sporting a fine, cosmic shirt and trouser combo too, it has to be said. Here is that very spacey mix.
‘Moments in Love – The History of Chillout Music’ was first broadcast in 2004, written and produced by Chris Coco of this parish for the BBC, it’s a documentary that tells the history of the music we now know as ‘Chillout’. Tracing its origins back in the experimental work of classical musicians like Erik Satie and Claude Debussy.
For veteran listeners & fans it provides a seminal playlist of evergreen classics, while for newcomers to the world of downtempo music it’ll provide an invaluable primer to the world of chill out and balearic.
Chris talks to many innovators and pioneers of the chillout scene and some of its fans who explain what the music means to them. He chats with: Mixmaster Morris, Paul Morely, Laura B, Brian Eno, Dr Alex Paterson, Edgar Froese, George Evelyn of Nightmares on Wax, Rob da Bank, Jon Sa Trinxa, Jose Padilla, Sally Rogers, Phil Mison, Pete Lawrence, DJ Ravin and Sam (Zero 7) Hardaker.
With a rare and exclusive interview with Jose Padilla, the man widely regarded as the spiritual father of chillout whose legendary session tapes soundtracking the setting sun over Café del Mar turned into the hugely successful compilation series, the programme traces the path of this music through the electronic experiments and dub reggae of the 1970s, the beach bars and Balearic sound of Ibiza, up to the eclectic sounds of today.
‘What has now become known as chillout music is really music for listeners and lovers of music. This music seems very much about something you really listen to and enjoy, and I do feel that people who dismiss it as bland have really not listened to it properly.’ Paul Morley former member of Art of Noise
‘It is perfect for home listening, as background music, as lifestyle music, as driving music and it sounds totally right in beautiful settings. The best of its kind is often music that is heartfelt and isn’t fashion led, and it is often driven by melody and harmony. It can slow us down to the speed of life and send shivers of pleasure down the spine too. If that doesn’t have a positive message, what does?” Pete Lawrence, Founder of The Big Chill
‘You have the best screen on the planet…you have the sea, the sunset, the people. At Café del Mar the people are relaxed and chilled, you can play with their emotions. You just flow with the energy and you can take them to a point emotionally where you actually make them cry’. Jose Padilla, former resident DJ, Café del Mar – the spiritual father of Chillout.
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Tracklist
AT THE RIVER – Groove Armada PORCELAIN – Moby RED DUST – Zero 7 ALBATROSS – Chris Coco SOFT – Lemon Jelly A SPECIAL MORNING – Ralph Myerz and the Jack Herren Band ALPHA BETA GAGA – Air GYMNOPEDIE NO. 1 – Erik Satie FALLING – Chris Coco MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS – Brian Eno DISCREET MUSIC – Brian Eno PHAEDRA – Tangerine Dream SCIENTIST DOCTOR DUB – King Tubby/Scientist WORKING GIRL – Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry MOMENTS IN LOVE – Art of Noise IL PLEURE – Art of Noise ENTRE DOS AGUAS – Paco de Lucia VANGELIS – Love Theme from Bladerunner ADIOS AYER – Jose Padilla BAREFOOT IN THE HEAD – A Man Called Adam CONCIERTO DE ARANJUEZ – (Adagio) Joaquin Rodrigo PACIFIC STATE – 808 State A HUGE EVER GROWING PULSATING BRAIN THAT RULES FROM THE CENTRE OF THE ULTRAWORLD – The Orb LITTLE FLUFFY CLOUDS – The Orb ELVIS ON THE RADIO: STEEL GUITAR IN MY SOUL – KLF NIGHTS INTERLUDE – Nightmares on Wax PIPES & HONOUR – Nightmares on Wax UP WITH PEOPLE – Lambchop (Zero 7 mix) LOVELY DAY – Bill Withers MAKING MUSIC – Chungking YACHTS – A Man Called Adam THE GLASS BEAD GAME – Thievery Corporation IN THIS WORLD – Moby I HAVE SEEN – Zero 7 UNIVERSAL TRAVELER – Air
We did an interview with the Nearest Faraway Place blog about the Chill Out Tent, our inspiration and some plans for the future. Worth a look if you’d like to know where we’re coming from and where we’re going…
This radio interview that Chris did with Dave Howell on Music for Beaches is another chance to hear the Chill Out Tent story...
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Chris drops the next in his series of Music For… EPs. This time he takes a more enlivening, electronic approach to spark some imagination.
South London’s finest SONLIFE remixes Coco’s bubbling slow house track Music As A Foreign Language into something deeper and darker. Paul Hartnoll (of the Orbital brothers), Lol Hammond (ex Drum Club) and Coco give us an uplift with a track from their Film Music EP and finally Ibiza-based wunderkind Antonio Prosper brings us down with the perfect Landing. Enjoy and let your mind flow free…
The Chill Out Tent 