Spring Jam #5

Quick, before the season finally does scamper off into summer (and before final-paper mayhem severely limits my posting abilities), here's my last contribution to our "Spring Jam" series. I hope it's not too long, or lopsided, or boring a compilation. Maybe it can even take your mind off work in the coming week or two (there's gotta be a day in there where you can close your computer and head for the lawn or the porch or balcony). In any case, ENJOY.

Tracklist:

1. Au - RR vs. D (from Versions EP, Aagoo 2009)

2. Cajun Dance Party - Colourful Life (from The Colourful Life, XL 2008)

3. Javelin - Mossy Woodland (from Jamz & Jemz, 2009)

4. B.C. Camplight - Lord, I've Been on Fire (from Blink of a Nihilist, One Little Indian 2007)

5. The Meters - Handclapping Song (from the compilation by Optimo, How to Kill the DJ pt. II, Kill the DJ 2005)

6. Karen Dalton - One Night of Love (from In My Own Time, Paramount 1971)

7. Ratatat - Gettysburg (from Classics, XL 2006)

8. Coyote Clean Up - toes 2 the nose (from Double Trouble Doo Doo Bubble, self-released 2010)

9. Diplo - Sarah (from Florida, Ninja Tune 2004)

10. The Folk Implosion - E.Z. L.A. (from One Part Lullaby, Interscope 2000)

11. Band of Horses - Plans (Grizzly Bear Cover) (from Friend EP, Warp 2007)

12. Owen Pallett - Flare Gun (from Heartland, Domino, 2010)

13. The Acorn - Flood Pt. 1 (from Glory Hope Mountain, Paper Bag 2008)

14. Tanlines - Bees (from Settings EP, True Panther 2010)

15. Danielson - Cast it at the Setting Sail (from Ships, Secretly Canadian 2006)

16. Harlem - Come Back Jonee (unknown 2009)

17. Magnetic Fields - A Chicken with its Head Cut Off (from 69 Love Songs, Merge 1999)

18. The Flying Burrito Brothers - Older Guys (from Hot Burritos! Anthology, A&M 2000)

19. Stereolab - Les Yper-Sound (from Emperor Tomato Ketchup, Elektra 1996)

20. Cass McCombs - Harmonia (from Catacombs, Domino, 2009)

...

FC

Spring Mix #4 (Now with artsy coments!)

It was late, I had just read a terrible book, I got a little over-inspired. I ended up writing this, which my barely functioning brain imagined as "a cool thing to read while you listen to this new awesome installment of our spring mix". This Volume III, by the way, is meant to be listened in the order in which it's presented, not necessarily in one session, but definitely as a whole. The text is here if you have time to waste.

As usual, this mix has as goal to please your ears with things you might not know or have heard in a different context. Hope you like it.

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1 - The Devil Made You High

Raoul Duke on the highway between LA and Vegas, late afternoon. No possible way to have clear thought. Just need to keep driving, fast. Wind in your face, sunset in your eyes. Keep Driving!

 2 - Gloria

Stopped to get gas, otherwise the red shark wasn't going to make it alive out of there. Everything looks old fashioned. Owner tells you this rest area hasn't been renovated since the late sixties, and laughs when he mentions that the fake chrome started peeling off in the mid-eighties. This, somehow, pulls you out of autopilot.

3 - African Nights

That nap on the back seat at the gas station lasted longer than expected. With the last few rays of light, eat kilometers off that empty highway, resorting to counting the regular lines on the road when  enumerating cars with Brazilian license plates becomes mildly amusing.

4 - World News

The lane next over is always faster
And you wait so long until you're so bothered
But right after you complete your merge
The lane you started in gets going
And while you wait for your luck to change
All you can think of is where you started

You don't like anything on local radio
So you fumble around 'til you land on NPR
And listen to world news
Well, a bomb went off in the parking lot
Of a newly opened sunni marketplace
And a cloud covers your car at just the right time
For you to see the dark on your face
in the mirror

(Local Natives, Self Titled, Frenchkiss 2010)

5 - Walkabout

Ended up where you wanted. Had a good night's sleep. Walking by the shore, god is sand annoying. Waves attack your hangovered brain like a swarm of blueberry monkeys, and you can't get that stupid song out of your head. Work, day not worth mentionning.

6 - All Caps

Night again. Went through your old hard drive you asked to be sent from home. Some '60s Batman episodes still blow your mind, make you wonder who the hell came up with that stuff.

 7 - How They Kill You

Even though shady parts of Gotham City were supposed to make kids scared, that little walk outside after a late cheap dinner scared you more than any overdone makeup ever has. 

8 - Forge Of Vulcan

Half dreaming in the subway you took to get home quicker. Flickering hospital lights, alone in the wagon. The long alley of seats turns into the corridors of the Millenium Falcon, expecting to see Luke's head shoot out of the secret smuggling compartment anytime now.

9 - Rhododendron

Back home. Bed never seemed as fluffy, comfortable and welcoming. Daze out into sleep because of pure exhaustion.

10 - Baba O'Riley

Wake up, munch those lucky charms, sing in the shower, listen to a violin solo. Good day ahead, feel like a pirate.

11 - Never Say Die

Another kind of pumped. The coffee kicked in, you could run for miles. Well, probably not, but still. Get out, lock door, more sun. Walking swifly to newspaper stand, smile to the cute neighbour. 

12 -Take It Easy

Job's surprisingly tasteless, but the window lets you enjoy the sun. Hang out in the park during lunch break with some friends. Is that a dog chasing a squirrel? Realize how terrible some are at climbing.

13 - No Future Part III : Escape From No Future

Like Rex trying to climb a tree, realize that your efforts to improve your life have basically all failed in the past four years.

"So now at Rock Ridge Pharmacy I will be waiting for my man
But there is another down in the dungeon who never gave up the fight
And he'll be forever screaming sometimes I hear him say on a quiet night

He says

You will always be a loser now
You will always be a loser
You will always be a loser and that's okay"

(Titus Andronicus, The Monitor, XL Recordings 2010)

That's perfectly fine.

14 - Bankrobber

Or is it? Decide you're going to rob a bank. It ends up being a local convenience store. The loot also ends up being a pack of gum. What the heck, you still saved the price of a pack of gum and felt like a thief for 10 seconds.

Gum tastes terrible.

 

15 - Horny Hippies

"We were walking down the block when we thought the bomb went off
And our hearts nearly stopped at the sound
When we looked and we found that it hit some other crowd
I was glad it wasn't us, yeah I was proud
Cause I fall and I break just as easy as an egg
Yeah, my shell isn't as hard as it seems
When my insides gush out there's no telling what it's about
When it'll stop, when it'll seed, when it'll bleed
Yeah, I just stay in my home, in my home, in my home
Yeah, I just stay in my home, in my home, in my home
Well, I take a look outside at the pretty girls outside
But I can't make myself say "Hi" because I'm scared
Because I spend all this time all locked up inside
It's the only place I know how to bare
Cause you can go out and meet some girl you can't defeat
And you think that she must be the one
Until you're walking down the isle and she takes away your smile
Boy you wish you hadn't dialed before you wrung
Oh you should stay in your home, in your home, in your home
Oh you should stay in your home, in your home, in your home
Well they talk of your past, yeah they said it wouldn't last
But they're running pretty fast back on their word
It was gone for a while but it's coming back in style
Better run back where you're from and join the mass
Yeah we'll just stay in our home, in our homes
Yeah we'll just stay in our home, in our home" 

(The Dodos, Beware Of The Maniacs, selfreleased, 2006)

Walk back, read a book, go to bed.
 

16 - Star Sail

 Can't sleep. Try to bore yourself to oblivion. Watch the new episode of Dr. Who, which is obviously a bad choice. But who the hell comes up with this stuff?

17 - Jenny Ondioline

Finally fell asleep. Dream basically foreshadows the two-day road trip you've planned for your weekend, although most of it appears as if those kaleidoscope glasses you've been suggesting to toy companies finally became available. Weird sense of being on autopilot again. The surrounding scenery seems to be strangely repeating. "You'll never get off this road!", seems to be saying this smiling tree on the left. Never ending strip of tarmac ends up being the most mesmerizing thing you've seen since that time you stared at the white album spin on your turntable from Back In The USSR to Good Night.


More Spring Songs For More Spring Moments

 This mix is organized in a fashion similar to the Spring Mix Numero Uno. To balance that, expect an unrelated but upcoming three-part heavy music mix.

photo : Fares Nasrallah - London, June 2009

JNCT

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Spring Jam #3

Image by Cyril Cante (Ethiopia, December 2008)

In the spirit of the season, and following Jeremy's lead, I've decided to go all out this time, and deliver a full mix instead of a skimpy single song. You should thank my colleague warmly for being such a dedicated tutor in all things regarding the passionate but complicated sharing of music over the internet. And, more simply, for setting such an illustrious example.

I have to admit that Jeremy's enterprise kinda hurt my music-geek pride, so there's also some intra-blog rivalry going on here. Since I couldn't match the quality of Jerem's mix, it being so friggin' fabulous, I went for quantity (of course). What, you'll tell me, but your mix is two songs shorter than Jeremy's! Ah yes. But you see, I've already made a SECOND mix, which I'll be posting soon (but not too soon: too much music kills the music).

So yes, here is a mix that was thought, compiled, and extensively listened to all in the spirit of Springtime. It's voluntarily hazy, at times a tad snappier, overall quite happy, but mostly deeply laid-back. I also went for a balance between synthetic sounds and more traditionally organic ones; between old and new (although this mix is more novelty-oriented, and the next one has more oldies); between classic and experimental.

"Shut your face!" as a particular Israeli tour guide from a recent Simpsons episode would say. Yes, ok, I'll shut up. Just listen to the music. I hope you like it, whether you're walking in the sun or dozing off in the shade, stoned or working out, in your room with the windows open or on your way to class. And I'm looking forward to debating my choices with anyone who cares.

Tracklist:

1. Tortoise - The Equator (from TNT, Thrill Jockey 1998)

2. Gonjasufi - Duet (from A Sufi and a Killer, Warp 2010)

3. Young Marble Giants - Include Me Out (from Colossal Youth, Rough Trade 1980)

4. Here We Go Magic - Collector (from Pigeons, Secretly Canadian 2010)

5. Cults - Most Wanted (from Cults 7" , Forest Family Records 2010)

6. Javelin - Lindsay Brohan (from No Más, Luaka Bop, 2010)

7. Sleigh Bells - Ring Ring (self-released EP)

8. Damon - Don't You Feel Me? (from the compilation by Optimo, Sleepwalk, Domino 2008)

9. Studio - No Comply (from Yearbook 1, Information 2007)

10. Lemonade - Lifted (from Pure Moods, True Panther 2010)

11. The Morning Benders - All Day Daylight (from Big Echo, Rough Trade 2010)

12. Robyn - No Hassle ft. Diplo (from upcoming album)

13. Moondog - Visions of Spring (from the compilation Dirty Diamonds II, Diamond Traxx 2004)

14. Keepaway - 5 Rings (from Baby Style, Lefse Records 2010)

15. Odd Nosdam - Top Rank (from T.I.M.E. Soundtrack, Anticon 2009)

16. Caribou - Odessa (Nite Jewel Remix) (unknown, 2010)

Peace out.

FC

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Return From The Blogosphere (And Back Again)

This blog is worth what it's worth. We have fun, hopefully you enjoy it, but there's some good stuff out there as well. Here's a music geek's selection:

BLOGSPOTS

http://sludgeswamp.blogspot.com/

http://orexisofdeath.blogspot.com/

http://psychedelicobscurities.blogspot.com/

http://tontonmahood.blogspot.com/

http://stonerobixxx.blogspot.com/

http://saturnschildren.blogspot.com/

http://ripplemusic.blogspot.com/

http://dunkel-inderholle.blogspot.com/

http://echoesof-the-past.blogspot.com/

http://insane-riez.blogspot.com/

http://nostalgae.blogspot.com/

http://mindjamsblog.blogspot.com/

http://timospsychedelicious.blogspot.com/

http://decrepittapes.blogspot.com/

http://mutant-sounds.blogspot.com/

http://01fragments.blogspot.com/

http://drawingmountains.blogspot.com/

http://silveradoraremusic.blogspot.com/

http://blazplavi-guitarmusic.blogspot.com/

http://sometime-world.blogspot.com/

http://musicalpairings.blogspot.com/

http://wefuckinglovemusic.blogspot.com/

http://experimentaletc.blogspot.com/

http://lo-filife.blogspot.com/

http://mapref41n93w.blogspot.com/

http://theplaylist.blogspot.com/

http://japaneserockforfuckssake.blogspot.com/

http://lucidmedia.blogspot.com/

http://earpussyhm.blogspot.com/

RANDOM GOODGOO:

http://www.captaincrawl.com/

http://foodgawker.com/

http://fortyseveneffects.blogspot.com/

http://spacerockreviews.blogspot.com/

http://www.casperelectronics.com/

http://krautrockgroup.blogspot.com/

http://chroniques-electroniques.over-blog.com/

http://pruned.blogspot.com/

http://www.idmbreakingnews.com/

http://gorillavsbear.blogspot.com/

http://www.electronicpeasant.com/

Don't waste to much time on the internet. And don't do anything illegal. Duh.

And Call your mom. Now. Yes, you there! Just pick up the phone and start dialing! Otherwise azur apologetic monkeys will invade your house. Right this instant. Chopchop!

Edit, about 4 minutes after posting this: 

 http://www.fastnbulbous.com/lucky09.htm
serious man here. I don't think I've seen anyone do anything remotely close to this.
Honestly:

A.S. Van Dorston,

hear me out: 

I'm impressed.

Spring Jam #2

Inspired by my attorney's previous post, here is my attempt to present another few songs worthy of your springtime ears. Flavio, I hope you won't mind me taking #2 of this Spring Jamz series.

Spring: (noun) the season after winter and before summer, in which vegetation begins to appear, in the northern hemisphere from March to May (some random dictionnary)

"Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!"  - Robin Williams

"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold:  when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade."  - Charles Dickens 

"Now every field is clothed with grass, and every tree with leaves; now the woods put forth their blossoms, and the year assumes its gay attire." - Virgil

it's springtime, friendz

Now that Rob, Chuck and Viggy have contributed to this article for inspiration, here is the result of a fair amount of brainstorming for a springtime mix (that's right, a whooping 18 songs for you guys) 

1. The Seatbelts - The Egg And I (Cowboy Bebop Soundtrack - Blue Note, 1998)
2. Dum Dum Girls - Jail La La (I Will Be - Sub Pop, 2010)
3. Lightning Dust - The Times (Infinite Light - Jagjaguwar, 2009)
4. McLusky - Balbo's Theme (McLuskyisms: B-Sides - Too Pure, 2006)
5. Vampire Weekend - Walcott (Vampire Weekend - XL, 2008)
6. Animal Collective - Grass (Feels - Fat Cat, 2005)
7. Loopdrop - Siempre Azul (A Rocket Girl Compilation - Rocket Girl, 2001)
8. Boards Of Canada - Peacock Trail (The Campfire Headphase - Warp, 2005)
9. Sinoia Caves - Naro Way (The Enchanter Persuaded - Jagjaguwar, 2006) 
10. Bibio - Mr. & Mrs. Compost (Vignetting The Compost - Mush, 2009)
11. The Mountain Goats & John Vanderslice - Emerging (Moon Colony Bloodbath - Cadmean Dream, 2009) 
12. Eels - All The Beautiful Things (Hombre Lobo - E Works/Vagrant, 2009)
13. Millionyoung - Hammock (The Chillwave Mix - Musical Parings, 2010)
14. Les Savy Fav - What Wolves Would Do (Let's Stay Friends - Frenchkiss, 2007)
15. Real Estate - Beach Comber (Real Estate - Woodsist, 2009)
16. The Black Angels - Empire (Passover - Light In The Attic, 2006)
17. The Asteroid #4 - She's All I Need (These Flowers Of Ours - The Committee To Keep Music Evil, 2008)
18. My Bloody Valentine - Soon (Loveless - Sire Records, 1991) 

It's way too late for me to explain even just some of those choices. I'm quite happy with the list though. Hope you enjoy!


JNCT


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Spring Jam #1

Making springtime music is a delicate art: songs need to evoke the buoyancy of green leaves, budding flowers, and a newborn sun, without flaring up with 100-degree heat, poolside dancing, and scorching barbecues. A perfect springtime song will be happy, sure, and announce the summer craze; but it's got to retain just enough melancholy - or, at the very least, restraint - to suit the last cold and rainy days of the season (writing from France here - apparently NOT Massachusetts).

Call it coincidence, or perhaps special inclinations on the part of bloggers and critics, but there've been a lot of excellent springtime songs circulating around the internet lately. Actually, all the songs I'm about to review in this post and in the following have already been featured on countless blogs and other Pitchfork-y derivates (that's where I got them, duh). Probably even better reviewed. No matter, though, I feel like indulging in the springtime frolic, even vicariously, from behind my computer, in my dark Parisian apartment. Gotta give me that.

Enigmatic production duo Javelin were responsible for "Vibrationz," last summer's shiniest piece of retro groove, and rightfully voted one of 2010's most promising acts by Pitchfork readers in December. Newer tracks are floating all around right now, some super weird ("Oh Centra!" and its over-pitched rap…), others just ridiculously cool, and all warmly recommended. I have a personal crush on "Lindsay Brohan": it's sunny, and, like "Vibrationz," has this unbeatable blend of laid-back groove and sharp, glossy synths - guaranteed to win over even the toughest of skeptics. Beyond its hardy-har title and its hilarious vocal samples, what makes "Lindsay…" awesome are its choppy, sluggish beat and hazy synth/guitar jingles. Like the brainless trickster kid sampled at the beginning of the song says it, "It's kind of silly if you ask me, but what the heck." Well, personally, I just wanna high-five him and his long-haired bros, and go get myself a beer.

FC

Hear/Download "Lindsay Brohan" and "Vibrationz" (via Everybody Taste)

IF YOU WANT EPIC (YOU'VE GOT IT)

I know I use this word too much, but seriously. It's been a long time since something has hit my brain so violently, and I already forgot how I ended up finding this. Whoever posted this on the internets, many thanks.

"This" is Torche's self titled from 2005.

The cover is glorious, and is beautifully appropriate for their psychy flowerpowered apocalypse of sound.

Finding their myspace, you notice they play Rock/Rock/Rock (arguably my favorite combination) and describe themselves as "total hipsters!". If you've been reading this blog, you probably know us personaly and are aware of our mild obsession with hipsterdom. Hence, this band is getting better by the minute.

To top the "trivia" section off, not only do they have great taste in eye/headware, but they also baptized their genre of music as "thunder pop" (dixit Allmusic), which is, as my grandma would say, "the fucking shit".

But wait, what exactly do they play? From what I've told you already, it's violently epic thunder pop rock/rock/rock psychy flowerpowered apocalypse, and that's kind of nonsense. But to be honest, the first comparisons that came to my mind were a "doom version of Titus Andronicus", "Om with a guitar and a recent fascination for psychedelic pop" or an "Isis that I can actually listen to because the singer doesn't sound like a dying panda"... They dared mixing down tuned heavy riffing with melody instead of the usual difficult to digest barrage of aggression, giving "doom" a whole new dimension: one where the epic can not only be achieved through bone-crushing grooves and a pounding rhythm section, but also through soaring harmonics, the two of which blend in a surprisingly enjoyable fashion. Clocking in at 6 seconds above the half hour, this is a short record, with most songs under 2:30 (yet another feat from Torche: being able to condense the epicness in the super-effective punk/early 60's pop format).

You want epic? Forget Mogwai, Isis, Pelican, Godspeed You Black Emperor and other moody post-rockers. No, more than that, Torche any memory you might have of them and enjoy the fact that some bands still actually try things that sound pretty dumb (beach boys with pelican? what?) and manage to blow your mind with it. To quote my friend from the bay, this stuff is hellaheavy. It's also hellacatchy: the perfect spring album.

Torche

Self Titled (2005), Robotic Empire Records

Just so you know, their 2009 follow up is titled Meanderthal.

...

There might be a few things wrong with this record. First of all, the production isn't perfect (it's not bad either), and if you listen to this on decent headphones, there is some mildly enjoyable Jesus & Mary Chain bacon frying style distortion - some people like it, I on one hand like my heavy loud and clear (probably purposefully overdriven - meh).

Second, the songs will probably get old quite quickly. Only time will tell. What I can be certain of though, is that this is going to be a Torche week, and that you should give this album a try.

JNCT

...

We Are Motorhead. And We Play Rock & Roll!

3.5 hours before a local epic morning event based on egghunts, but with an extra k (that's right), I am terrified to realize I haven't written much on this blog lately. I could say I've been working a lot, but that would be lying to everyone, myself included.

In order to fix this, here's a healthy slab of Rock & Fucking Roll.

Motörhead

Better Motorhead Than Dead - Live At Hammersmith

2007, Steamhammer Records

When thinking of badass people in Rock & Roll, few names stand a real chance. Lemmy is undeniably one. After being a roadie for Hendrix and a guitar stint in little known band Sam Gopal, he's hired by fellow Londonian spacers Hawkwind to replace their bass player. Finding the Rickenbacker bass model that would accompany him for the rest of his carreer in an abandonned van, Lemmy (a nickname supposedly acquired because of his tendency to ask "Len'me a quid' 'til Monday") Kilmister (his real last name - I said badass) took the job. And bloody 'hell did he do it well. 1973's Space Ritual, mentioned before on this blog, is pretty much the musical equivalent to Isaac Asimov's Foundation: epic, extended, fucking awesome. Some people advertised it as "88 minutes of brain damage": sounds like 88 minutes of pure bliss to me, even after 4 years of regular listening. And it's mostly driven by Lemmy's dirty, extremely recognizable trebly-overdriven bass sound that he still uses today.

Today, you ask? But 1973 was 37 long years ago...

No. He's still going. 

After being kicked out from Hawkwind for prefering speed to acid, Lemmy took two songs he written for them (Motorhead and Lost Johnny) and decided he'd form his own band. One he wouldn't be kicked out of (it seems to have been a trend in his early days).

Teaming up with members from the Deviants and the Pink Fairies (which you should also check out), he decided his band was going to be called Bastards. Of course, one might imagine the lack of motivation from record companies to sign a band called Bastards. Agreeing to change the name to Motörhead (american slang for speed-inclined characters), Lemmy stabilized the lineup to Philthy Animal Taylor, Fast Eddie Clark and himself. From 1979 to 1982, this trio would come up with one of the main reasons why the eighties maybe weren't that bad (musically). This reason comes in five parts. Five record parts...

- Bomber, 1979

- Overkill, 1979

- On Parole, 1979

- Ace Of Spades, 1980

- Iron Fist, 1981

(which you should all listen to)

Of course, since 1981, Motörhead has issued album at a rate of one every two years minimum. They've had some mild moments, like most mid/late 80's rock bands, where reverb just seemed to take over the entire drum kit and make the band sound like it was playing in an aluminum bathroom, and they've had some more modern successes. After issuing Inferno in 2004, Motörhead went on their regular worldwide tour, passing through Hammersmith in Lemmy's native England. There, someone had the brilliant idea to record their set (and even a little bit of Zappa's Dirty Love signifying people had to leave at the very end), which included a healthy selection of old songs, new songs, and stuff from the middle, all revamped to their current sound (i.e. massive/without reverb on drums i.e. better).

I've read somewhere that Motörhead only really plays one song, with different lyrics/tempo/variations. I guess that's where taste comes in, because myself and a cohort of fans (random mildly related fact: Lars Ulrich is the head of US Motörheadbangers, their official fan club) will agree to say it doesn't matter. Consistency is as impressive as originality, and it doesn't get much more consistent than Motörhead. They'll occasionally blow your mind with something completely different (like Inferno's "Whorehouse Blues", a two acoustic guitars/harmonica/voice piece), however as stated earlier Lemmy is badass: this involves some amount of ridicule/awesomeness, as in chosing to do the same song for 35 years +, and not planning on stopping anytime soon. For Lemmy, it also involves still drinking JD/coke at any point spent awake, chain smoking, and being unable to receive blood because his organism got used to having blood with a massive amount of impurities in it that it wouldn't function without them. Oh, and getting a ridiculous amount of girls.

Better Motörhead Than Dead?

Yes.

You Know I'm Born To Lose

And Gambling's For Fools

But That's The Way I Like It Baby

I Ain't Gonna Live Forever!

(Ace Of Spades, 1980)

JNCT

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