The Bladehouse crew is back with Bladhouse IV, offering another slice of the good stuff. Four differently styled out tools spanning from stripped house to peak-time groove and the occasional minimal bleeper on the B Side. Get your hands on this versatile dance-floor weapon as long as it‘s stocked. As Always: No Names - Let it Rip
BHO004 starts things off with a groovy, intuitive vibe on A1. A bumping Bassline dives Deep into hypnotic and subtle chord layers and a thriving shaky beat, perfect for open spaces and creating a lifted atmosphere.
A2 is a hidden stomper. Techy drum loops blend with dubbed-out pad shots, crafting a dark and moody rhythm that builds up to a climax, creating moments of anticipation and release.
The B Side is opened up by glitchy and gritty textures that evolve into a warm body of soothing groovy minimal with an intimate ambivalence. Use this to hypnotize crowds of any form and size.
B2 wraps things up with one more perfectly crafted mood swinger. Repeated percussions come together with a deep pad, gradually clearing up and welcoming mind-bending plucks and bleeps when the main theme kicks in. It creates a moody and meditative vibe with plenty of drive to keep you moving.
Search:dark beat
Fresh takes on 90’s jungle and atmospheric drum & bass by Finland’s ODJ Pirkka. Starting track ‘OMG’ combines soulful R&B vibes with blunt basslines, radical samples programming and hard hitting beats. DJ Sofa remixes ‘OMG’ into a dope Bristol style roller with infectious bassline and some hi-energy buildups and cuts. Flipside ‘Bookworm’ is an atmospheric roller with memorable sunrise synths and a sneaky dark section in the middle that slams you with a crazy reese bassline and some red hot amens. Lastly Msymiakos from Norway uses the supplied atmospherics to remix ‘Bookworm’ into an intricate and brooding drum workout.
- A1: Here Lies Love Feat. Florence Welch (Florence & The Machine)
- A2: Every Drop Of Rain Feat. Candie Payne & St. Vincent
- A3: You'll Be Taken Care Of Feat. Tori Amos
- A4: The Rose Of Tacloban Eat. Martha Wainwright
- A5: A Perfect Hand Feat. Steve Earle
- B1: Eleven Days Feat Cyndi Lauper
- B2: When She Passed By Feat. Allison Moorer
- B3: Walk Like A Woman Feat. Charmaine Clamor
- B4: Don't You Agree? Feat. Róisín Murphy
- B5: Pretty Face Feat. Camille
- B6: Ladies In Blue Feat. Theresa Andersson
- C1: Dancing Together Feat Sharon Jones
- C2: How Are You? Feat. Nellie Mckay
- C3: Men Will Do Anything Feat. Alice Russell
- C4: The Whole Man Feat. Kate Pierson
- C5: Never So Big Feat. Sia
- C6: Please Don't Feat. Santi White
- D1: American Troglodyte
- D2: Solano Avenue Feat. Nicole Atkins
- D3: Order 1081 Feat. Natalie Merchant
- D4: Seven Years Feat. Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond)
- D5: Why Don't You Love Me? Feat. Tori Amos & Cyndi Lauper
David Byrne & Fatboy Slim’s acclaimed 2010 album Here Lies Love receives its first-ever vinyl release to coincide with a new production opening on Broadway this summer. Here Lies Love is a double-disc song cycle – improbably poignant, decidedly surreal, surprisingly thought provoking – about the rise and fall of the Philippines' notorious Imelda Marcos. It was conceived by David Byrne; composed by Byrne and DJ/recording artist Fatboy Slim, AKA Norman Cook; and performed by a dream cast drawn from the worlds of indie rock, alt country, R&B and pop. Byrne's taste in collaborators is as imaginative as it is impeccable, including Cyndi Lauper (who recounts, to lighthearted disco beats, Imelda's courtship with Ferdinand Marcos), Steve Earle (as the power-hungry Ferdinand), Dap-Kings vocalist Sharon Jones (recalling Imelda's introduction into New York society) and Natalie Merchant (as spurned Imelda confidante Estrella, anticipating the onset of martial law). Along with vocals turns from such stars as Tori Amos and the B-52's Kate Pierson, Byrne works with rising indie rockers St. Vincent and My Brightest Diamond; New York chanteuses Nellie McKay and Martha Wainwright; and dance-music divas Róisín Murphy and Santigold. Byrne himself appears as the voice of imperialistic America on ‘American Troglodyte’, a send-up that wouldn't have seemed out of places in Talking Heads' True Stories.
Byrne originally envisioned this as a musical theatre piece, to be mounted in disco and nightclub settings, reflecting the globe-trotting Marcos' taste for such velvet-roped spots as Studio 54 and Regine's. In 2006, he performed work-in-progress versions to enthusiastic audiences at New York City's Carnegie Hall and the Adelaide Festival in Australia. While plans for a US theatrical production continued to evolve, he delivered this unique recording. The award-winning theatrical production eventually premiered at The Public Theater in New York in 2013, travelled to London’s National Theater for a sold-out run (2014–15), and was remounted at the Seattle Repertory Theater (2017).
Here Lies Love has an effervescent disco feel, redolent of Fatboy Slim's own dance-floor anthems, with warm undercurrents of the Latin rhythms that have percolated through Byrne's recent solo work. The sunny arrangements act in counterpoint to the reality of the Marcos' increasingly repressive regime, reflecting the imagined inner life of the glamour-obsessed Imelda. Explains Byrne, "For me, the darker side of the excesses are, for the most part, a matter of record. A lot of the audience is going to come with that knowledge already. What's more of a challenge is to get inside the head of the person who was behind all of that, and understand what made them tick." Byrne offers no judgment and avoids the obvious – there is no mention of Imelda's infamous shoe collection.
Many of Byrne's lyrics are, astonishingly enough, constructed from actual Imelda quotes, including the project's title, the words that Imelda, now returned to the Philippines from US-assisted exile in Hawaii, would like to have inscribed on her gravestone. In addition to his new liner note, Byrne illustrates the story with archival photos. In a detailed preface, he reveals what drew him to this subject and the bumpy route he took to launch the project and, ultimately, record this album. The booklet is indeed a page-turner, just as Here Lies Love is a wonderfully old-school album that rewards start-to-finish listening. Once again, Byrne – beloved as musician, thinker and bicyclist-about-town – reveals the breadth and singularity of his vision.
The new production of Here Lies Love will premiere at the Broadway Theatre in New York City. Performances begin June 17, ahead of an official opening night on July 20. Tony Award winner Alex Timbers (direction) and Olivier Award nominee Annie-B Parson (choreography) reunite with Byrne (concept, music, and lyrics) and Fatboy Slim (music) to bring Here Lies Love to Broadway, continuing a ten-plus year collaboration on the project. Tom Gandey and J Pardo contribute additional music. Here Lies Love is produced on Broadway by Hal Luftig, Patrick Catullo, Diana DiMenna for Plate Spinner Productions, Clint Ramos, and Jose Antonio Vargas. The staging at the Broadway Theatre will transform the venue’s traditional proscenium floor space into a dance club environment, where audiences will stand and move with the actors. A wide variety of standing and seating options will be available throughout the theatre’s reconstructed space. The producers of Here Lies Love said, “As a team of binational American producers – Filipinos among us – we are thrilled to bring Here Lies Love to Broadway! We welcome everyone to experience this singularly exuberant piece of theatre. The history of the Philippines is inseparable from the history of the United States, and as both evolve, we cannot think of a more appropriate time to stage this show. See you on the dance floor!”
David Byrne’s recent works include the launch of Reasons to be Cheerful, an online magazine focused on solutions-oriented stories about problems being solved all over the world (2019); Joan of Arc: Into the Fire, a theatrical exploration of the historical heroine that premiered at the Public Theater in New York (2017); The Institute Presents: NEUROSOCIETY, a series of interactive environments created in conjunction with PACE Arts + Technology that question human perception and bias (2016); Contemporary Color, an event inspired by the American folk tradition of color guard and performed at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and Toronto’s Air Canada Centre (2015); Here Lies Love; Love This Giant, a studio album and worldwide tour created with St. Vincent (2012); and How Music Works, a book about the history, experience, and social aspects of music (2012).
Byrne curated Southbank Centre’s annual Meltdown festival in London in 2015. A co-founder of the group Talking Heads (1976–88), he has released eight studio albums as a solo artist and worked on multiple other projects, including collaborations with Brian Eno, Twyla Tharp, Robert Wilson, and Jonathan Demme, among others. He also founded the highly respected record label Luaka Bop. Recognition of Byrne’s various works include Obies, Drama Desk, Lortel, and Evening Standard awards for Here Lies Love; an Oscar, Grammy, and Golden Globe for the soundtrack to Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor; and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Talking Heads. Byrne’s work as a visual artist has been published and exhibited since his college days, including photography, filmmaking, and writing. He lives in New York City. In addition to 2019’s cast album for American Utopia on Broadway, Nonesuch has released eight other David Byrne records since 2003, including 2018’s American Utopia studio album and two versions of his musical Here Lies Love.
q C6. Please Don't feat. Santi White Santigold
Nomada Records proudly welcomes Detroit's legendary House and Techno producer Gari Romalis with "Detroit Hustle EP"; a four track release where we can enjoy the distrinctive and slinky Deep House and Techno energy that characterizes Gari Romalis' sound.
The A-side starts with "I'm Wonder Luc" a heavy weight opener where Gari catches us with punchy drums, warm pads, infectious sub basslines, catchy vocal samples and deep piano stabs. The following track is called "Floor Anthem (Ghost Mix)"; a nostalgic deep house beauty with Lush chords, chunky beats and catchy melodies.
On the flip Gari goes more deeper and techy with "Float On"; the hypnotic arp and chrod progression, the strong bassline and punchy drums make the perfect track to destroy dancegloors this summer. The B-side closses with the sey deep house sampled track called "Detroit After Dark".
- A1: Extrapolate 01 (Live)
- A2: Meep
- A3: Horn Please (Module)
- A4: Quango
- B1: E S.n
- B2: No Lines (Bodz Mix)
- B3: D R.m 32
- B4: Boot (Live)
- C1: Soaked
- C2: Skint / Soaked / Audio Forensic (Confused Machines Mix)
- C3: D R.m. 32 (Duff Mix)
- C4: Horn Again
- C5: Deep Water
- D1: Soaked (Black Lung Takes A Walk In The Peaceful Valley Mix)
- D2: Skint
- D3: Wasteman
- D4: Extrapolate 02 (Live)
Nice Coordinated Outfit is a journey through history to a time before the internet and social media and before inner city gentrification, when Fitzroy was the beating heart of Australia's avant-garde music and culture. Musically, it showcases the band's incredible range from deep minimal dub to bizarre electronica with elements of shoegaze and experimental noise.
Back then, High Pass Filter were the kings of the Fitzroy underground. Dark, weird improvisers who aimed for something new each performance. Whilst electric guitars and rock n roll dominated Australian airwaves and stages, High Pass Filter were pioneering a sonic revolution in the shadows. The band's indefinable sound saw them sharing lineups with artists from hardcore and punk luminaries like Fugazi and The Boredoms and to dub heavyweights such as Lee Scratch Perry and The Mad Professor.
Melts In Your Mind is the mercurial new LP by Healing Force Project, aka Italian producer Antonio Marini.
An amorphous, shapeshifting, intangible proposition, Melts In Your Mind represents Healing Force Project at it’s most fluid and alchemical yet, a melon-twisting amalgam of jazz, dub and acid house tropes mulched and rearranged in inimitable style. Seemingly live and erratic polyrhythms, liquid basslines and expressive roving keys combine with kitchen sink sample hits and rogue licks for a thrilling, constantly shifting, alive sound. It’s music that’s difficult to grasp on first or even fourth listen, and as such continues to reward on repeat. Rather than going somewhere, tracks just go, rarely repeating motifs but riffing on, digging into and working out.
Behavior Of Waves sets the scene discretely enough, a simple bass refrain that is eventually overcome with an urgent rhythm that stumbles over itself into a post-dub cavern. The title track resembles a scramble of disparate earthly sounds - lurking synthesizer, restless popping drums, West African balafon and a muted vocal sample - sucked into the same swirling black hole and dropped into another dimension, completely cohesive. Equator acts as loose-limbed palette cleanser, an unmoored drift gently driven forward by an insistent snare roll and improv piano stabs. Inharmonious Layer stands out on the record for being less reliant on samples and by it’s relatively predictable unfolding, a queasy acid lope from the darkest corner of a deviant dancefloor, while on Diaphonization Marini flexes his aptitude with drum sampling, a bouncing excursion in sampled loops interrupted by unironic jazz cliches, the product of an omnivorous lover of the genre’s high and low. Melts In Your Mind closes on the droning tambura, ethereal pads and scattered rhythm of Two Waves In The Dark, a suitably metaphysical and ultimately peaceful resting place for a record that challenges perceptions from the outset.
Marini has released records as Healing Force Project on Firecracker, Berceuse Heroique, Bedouin and most recently Beat Machine Records. He’s based in Treviso, Italy.
Melts In Your Mind was written, produced and mixed by Antonio Marini. It was mastered by Chris Wang. Art and design by Ginji Kimura.
Once again a work by Patrick Campbell-Lyons without Alex Spyropoulos, this time Songs Of Love And Praise showed a return to a more classic Nirvana sound. Campbell-Lyons revisited two of the most loved songs by the band, Pentecost Hotel from their debut LP and Rainbow Chaser from their second one. The album opens precisely with the amazing uptempo beat of Rainbow Chaser, which while sounding faithful to the original recording, it comes with a totally different approach on the arrangements. Campbell-Lyons states on the liners that he went for a step further in that field, and looked for a jazzy atmosphere. It sets the tone of the album: upbeat good vibrations songs that differ from the dark mood of the previous Local Anaesthetic LP and that besides these two songs revisited presents all new material.
Uplifted and positive, Songs Of Love And Praise gives what the title promises to take the classic Nirvana sound from their first three albums one step further with the collaboration of Bobby Harrison (Procol Harum, Snafu) Lesley Duncan, Maggie Bell and Sylvia Schuster (who had already played live with Nirvana at the time of their debut album).
The Italians Antonio De Oto (A-TWEED) and Valerio Ebert (OLTREFUTURO) are the names beyond Echinopsis EP, the next release on Haus Of Beats. Three tracks with slow yet heavy tribal rhythms, dark, acid and hypnotic. Two deluxe remixes complete the EP, one by the master of rare rhythms, Toulouse Low Trax, working his usual magic, the second by the label associate Odøn, upping the tempo with a fiery electro take.
**Debut album from former 'Eighties Matchbox B Line Disaster' front man Guy McKnight's new band.** **ORANGE MARBLE COLOURED VINYL - VERY LIMITED!!** The DSM IV’s debut album, “NEW AGE PARANOIA,” is an impressive collection of stories, beats, guitars, and noise. The album seamlessly weaves together sobering but dream-filled songs that explore the ways in which our collective minds are influenced by mass media, entertainment industries, and social media. Formed by Guy McKnight of critically acclaimed and cult favourite The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster. The DSM IV has a dark sound that blends noise-rock, synth-pop and industrial, that delivers a unique musical experience. Their music is cacophonous and epic, featuring rich textures and melodic hooks that keep listeners captivated. The band’s powerful soundscapes, combined with their thought-provoking lyrics, create a mesmerizing atmosphere that both entertains and encourages introspection. The album prompts important questions about our society, such as what’s driving the normalization of a narcissistic culture that prioritizes personal desires over altruism. It delves into the ways in which technology, social media, and mass media shape our collective psyche and affect our relationships with ourselves and each other. The DSM IV’s music offers a timely and compelling commentary on these issues. The DSM IV is a band that creates music with a powerful message that resonates with people who feel that a kinder world is possible. Their songs are both nasty and nice, reflective and entertaining. With “NEW AGE PARANOIA,” The DSM IV has crafted an album that will captivate and inspire listeners, while also prompting deeper reflection on our society’s values and priorities.
Active in the mid-80’s and heavily influenced by the British post-punk dissonant style and the Belgian cold-wave melancholic atmosphere, The Ultimate Dreamers resurrected during the COVID lock-down, releasing a selection of good old demo songs on their “Live Happily While Waiting For Death” release. A dynamic impulse that brought them not only back on stage but also into the studio to work on new material. The magic is back!
The Ultimate Dreamers feel stronger than ever and enjoy uniting past, present and future on this exciting “Echoing Reverie” album, on which they reach a subtle balance between light and darkness: a poignant cold wave fusion of futuristic danceable dream pop with a retro noisy post-punk attitude with surrealistic introspective cynical lyrics dealing with fleeting life, melancholic solitude and other inner demons..
The new songs intelligently merge nostalgic cold wave chills and alluring poignant vocals with carrying basslines and irresistible danceable beats to become “less is more” addictive tunes that capture you in no time. If you like bands such as New Order, The Cure, Minimal Compact, Trisomie 21 or yet Section 25, “Echoing Reverie” comes highly recommended for a timeless dusk sonic experience at the crossroads of darkness and brightness.
See the magic operate and let The Ultimate Dreamers carry you in their echoing reverie…
The eccentric beat ambassador Alexander Skancke showcases his sound once more on his Quirk label, diving into spring with his debut LP, “Kingdom Couch”. The Norwegian has crafted a versatile yet cohesive body of work between 2020 and 2023, parallel to when he began attending sessions with a therapist. The 10 track double 12” traverses between meticulously arranged minimal moods, shuffling jazz rhythms and ethereal experimental textures. In its few years of existence Quirk has become a safe haven for a freedom of expression as Skancke and his affiliates share their wild side on the label, but the LP marks a milestone on the imprint and for Alexander himself whose lifelong dedication to sound has built towards this moment, utilising the vast influences has absorbed over the years.
“Therapy Session I” teases you into the LP, shimmering blissfully as it grows, blossoming into a dream-like world, tuning your ears for the trip you are about to encounter. Constructed upon slick jazzy drums is “Lost In Time” loosening your senses as the pulsating bass swallows up your train of thought. “Dumbo Move” blurs the lines perfectly between the atmospheres the Berlin based producer has captured within the album. Dark, mysterious and mind bending material in “Purple Lucy” a chugging sub heavy bass driving the track forward as precise beeps and bleeps whirr throughout. On a more playful note is the B2, “Extravagance” animated drum patterns converse with the elastic groove perfectly. Closing off the first vinyl is “Therapy Session II”, another extended exploration of otherworldly ambience, drifting deeper in the world of Quirk.
“The Magnificent Tree Hut” stirs consistently throughout, crisp percussion combined with the psychedelic vocal samples which continue to flash in and out. Transitioning now into “Therapy Session III” sophisticated sounds, enticed further into the full bodied experience by the storytelling sounds of a female voice. Your eyes begin to close and you wake up in a hazy club setting, immersed in the after hours; that’s the immediate impact of “New Dawn”, pensive and hypnotic as it rumbles quietly in the realms of the underground. At just over ten minutes long Alexander Skancke brings you down for landing with the final “Therapy Sessions IV”, transcending movements crammed full of raw emotion, floating you calmly
out of the seventh outing on the label, and the thriving talents finest work to date.
The “Kingdom Couch” is an amalgamation of Skancke’s undying passion and burning desire to create outside of the norm, this can be heard throughout this masterpiece and will undoubtedly inspire its listeners to search for the bigger picture.
Artwork: Johann 3000
Mastering: Mike Grinser, Manmade Mastering
repressed !
It takes a lot to achieve the status of legendary or era defining in dance music, its sands shift so quickly artists, genres and labels have often come and gone before you realise.
So it's with some pride and deserved justification that Yoshitoshi marks its 20th anniversary with celebratory remix packages of its most iconic tracks.
Already riding high in the Beatport charts with the success of the Uto Karem and Robosonic mixes of Eddie Amadors House Music, the latter of which has spent the past month in the overall top 5, the label now plans a one, two punch with the follow-up: Alcatraz seminal Giv Me Luv.
We thought long and hard about how we scheduled this 20th anniversary project, says label boss Sharam, little point launching big and then following up with a whimper so we deliberately chose Alcatraz for this difficult task.
But the challenge didnt end there; a massive record still deserves a massive remix and I think its safe to say we found the perfect woman for the job...
Step forward undisputed techno titan Nicole Moudaber who leapt at the opportunity to remix the track.
Ive got so many fond memories of Giv Me Luv, it was one of my favourite tunes from my formative clubbing days, recalls Nicole happily, so, when Yoshi mentioned the idea of me remix-ing it I just couldn't say no.
In fact I was so familiar with Alcatraz I was already awash with ideas of what I could, or should, do with it.
As I got into the mix one of those ideas just grew and grew, namely an extended breakdown that constantly builds; layering the memorable vocal to an intense pay-off and (hopeful) moment of real dancefloor drama. Nicoles humble description doesn't quite do the end result justice, which is a modern, masterful take on the classic.
Her iconic techno beats, dark twisted stabs and arrangement of that bassline drive toward the mentioned break, which will undoubtedly rival the fireworks of any impending NYE celebrations. In fact, expect this track to be THE soundtrack to many a dance floor come the all-important hand-over to 2015. And, just in case that weren't enough, Yoshi has also secured the skills of Tent Cantrelle to deliver the perfect deep house foil to Nicoles techno ferocity as Sharam concludes, We wanted a real slice of contemporary funk from the companion mix.
Yoshi is synonymous with exploring the line between deep house and techno, perhaps no more so than during its formative years, so this re-mix completes the package perfectly.
- A1: Om Mani Padme Hum
- A2: Bohemia After Dark
- A3: Companionship
- A4: Stoned Ghosts
- A5: Jay-Jay
- B1: Dijar
- B2: Con Alma
- B3: Ct & Cb
- B4: The Turk's Bolero
- B5: Talk Some Yak-Ee-Dak
- C1: Calypso Blues
- C2: Balafon
- C5: I'm A Fool To Want You
- C4: Insensatez
- C5: Invitation
- D1: Yah-Yah Blues
- D2: Serenata
- D3: Just Give Me Time
- D4: Birn To Be Blue
- D5: Sconsolato
Jazz music has more than its fair share of overshadowed figures that whilst contributing much to the music have little presence in its collective conscious. One such musician is the talented multi-reedist, Sahib Shihab. Born Edmond Gregory, as he was known before he adopted the Muslim faith in 1946, Sahib Shihab's music background shows a deep and significant evolution, influenced by Thelonious Monk, Dizzie Gillespie (his experience in Dizzie's band marked Sahib's switch to Baritone, the instrument he became most readily associated with), and above all by Charlie Parker's Bop. Had it not been for the post-war migration of many top American jazz musicians to Europe, it is quite likely that the legendary Clarke-Boland Big Band might never come into existence. Sahib, one of this musicians disillusioned with the politics and racism of the United States, accepted to join the band of Quincy Jones for an European tour in 1959. When the tour ended, Shihab he remained in Europe where he joined, in 1961, the Clarke-Boland Big Band. The collection 'Companionship', whose line up consists of seven elements which derives from this original band, spotlights the consummate musicianship and individuality of Sahib Shihab and is testimony to his special musical gifts - not only as a top-rank flautist and baritone saxophone but also as a composer. Furthermore, it provides a welcome reminder of the high quality of the Clarke-Boland Big Band's rhythm section, the lively style of vibraphonist Fats Sadi and the power and personality of two of the C-BBB's horn-playing stalwarts, Benny Bailey and Ake Persson. Here's a real rarity, surely a desert island disc. This double album has it all from frantic banging percussive workouts to modal numbers to beautiful ballads. It's a staggeringly good piece of music and worth every penny of the price tag it commands. Let's have a look to the most significant pieces. Francy Boland's "Om Mani Padme Hum", taken from a Tibetan prayer, shows Shihab in exuberant mood, playing against a vigorous percussion background and making dramatic use of his special technique of combining voice and flute. Boland contributes an incisive, effervescent solo. "Bohemia After Dark", a classic original by bassist Oscar Pettiford which he first recorded back in August 1955, finds Shihab in exultant form on baritone. "Companionship" has a Bossa Nova beat and features Bailey on flugelhorn and Shihab on flute, playing with a limpid, floating sound. Bailey's minor-key original, "Stoned Ghosts" was, he says, inspired by listening to some music written by Bela Bartok before he emigrated to the United States. The piece has an infectious back-beat pulse and showcases the superb walking technique of Jimmy Woode. In "Con Alma" Shihab's mellow flute set against a churning 12/8 beat in this stylish Boland arrangement. Woode's performance of the superb Mei Torme ballad, "Born To Be Blue", reveals his great affection for the song. "lt is the perfect combination," he says, "a beautiful melody married to a great lyric. I really love that tune." It is a song of rueful resignation, putting a brave face on the blues. "Balafon" is an up-tempo Francy Boland original written for the French mime artist, Marcel Marceau. The rhythm section really cooks on this track with Kenny Clarke's cymbal work outstanding. Boland's solo here is notable for its neat, left hand punctuations. "Calypso Blues" has been written by Nat King Cole and Don George. lt tells the wry and wistful tale of a Trinidadian in New York desperately homesick for the land where everything 5 so much cheaper (in New York "a dollar buy, a cup of coffee and a ham on rye") and the girls more natural than the artificial, painted beauties of New York. Woode's composition, "Sconsolato" is a haunting theme in A minor and it brings to a close a truly fascinating album. This is dynamic music played with vigour, verve and vitality - and it is an enormous pleasure to rediscover it. A shadowy fugitive from his home in the land of jazz, Sahib Shihab remains a true unsung figure, worthy of more attention. With his equally expert technique on Baritone, Flute, Alto and Soprano saxophones and his capacity to adapt easily to a variety of musical settings. His warm, individual, singsong sound in improvisation and his unusual and interesting compositions mark him out as a hidden treasure in the dusty corners of jazz archive.
Very few electronic music artists can boast of spanning a wide musical spectrum as the UK producer Calum Lee aka Paleman / Fresnel Lens.Always emphasizing the percussive side (advantage of being a jazz drummer), and always with an innovative spirit, the releases of this authenticsound designer oscillate between the most abstract / experimental electronica and minimalist club focused techno, from atmospheric andintrospective works to the sickest dubstep / bass music.
As at 30D we declare ourselves absolute fans of Calum's music, we had a clear obligation to ask him to join our catalogue, specifically for the EyesHave It sub-label (we had especial interest in his interpretation of broken, dark and industrial techno). His answer was direct and unmistakable:"I've sent you a lot of pieces that fit with your label vision and the imagery that we love.. I've been studying existentialism a lot recently, so thesetunes are a reflection of my headspace at the moment!".
A true declaration of intent!And here it is, five perfect examples of obsessive tribal madness, overexciting synthetic broken beats and a lot of rawness. A pure musical gem.
Grey Vinyl
Lobster Theremin continue a string of euphoric, rave ready techno and trance cuts with a release from Germany’s Rove Ranger that’s hard, fast and effective. Straight off the back of his latest release on ravey UK imprint 10 Pills Mate, and his incredible track ‘Stutenlove’ on Lobster’s PLUR Compilation Volume 1. Rove Ranger is the dancefloor gift that keeps on giving. ‘
Opener ‘1998’ conjures up earlier release Rave Memories, with loopy, psychedelic, thundering 140+ techno, hurtling us from acid car ride into full flight across a sunset-burnt sky. Hefty percussive techno with an old skool sound, waves or rave drift over pacey heat and compelling kicks. Then we arrive at ‘101010’. 100% warehouse body music on this driving title track. Organic, clinking, clattering shell percussion clops over a dark, endless beat. True Berlin warehouse spirit channelled into the machine.
The uplifting ‘In My Mind’ is a proper chunky club pumper, blending lush vocals, squelchy bass lines and housier elements. The peak of euphoria and a nostalgic trip back to 90’s fusion dance music. Rounding out the EP on a eurorave tip, ‘Schaltkreis’ launches down a swirling, mesmerising wormhole. Pulling together urgent trance-synth stabs, racing pulse drumwork and crushed production taking us headlong into the abyss
Fresh from DOTT’s “Puppy Luv EP” and Rudoh’s “Vinland In Space EP”, Jugaar Records is back and this time with a full-length, double-pack vinyl, and digital compilation bringing together friends from Asia and Europe. The record is testament to the healthy place the Asian electronic music landscape finds itself in and those intrepid producers who are willing to explore new scenes and sounds. It's energy-crew from the off - with UK beatmaker Joe Koshin’s “Astro Wax”, a techy electro work-out that conjures images of futuristic cityscapes and dense urban mazes. Up next, Pakistan-born and label co-boss Rudoh maintains the electro vibe with cut-up hip-hop vocals sprinkled on top of a pulsating bassline in his “KOF”. His records are being picked up by global tastemakers from Emerald to Roza Terenzi to DJ Masda. Don’t sleep!
Moving to the B-side, German-born, London mainstay Voigtmann shuffles and deals a steppy drum pattern and intricate synth-work, with a bassline drenched in that particular brand of funk to get the party going even at the most ungodly hour. Observatory resident Nic Ford closes this disk with an ambient excursion that summons spiritual rave voices from the deep laid atop a lilting synth loop. It’s typical of his ambient performances which have gained much notoriety in Vietnam of late.
Opening the second record is Egyptian gem Hassan Abou Alam whose recent outings on Naïve and Banoffee Pies have gained him much and well-deserved attention. Here, his “Gloom” combines twinkling IDM modes with heavy sub bass experiments primed to stop the most idiosyncratic dancefloors in their tracks. Up on C2, the Version, 3024 and Phonica Records graduate Yak adds breaks to the equation. His “Disk Full” brings together a haunting gated synth and razor-sharp beat programming to devastating effect. Melbourne based, Salt Mines Records honcho Shedbug concludes this side with his hopeful “A Lil Piece” whose soaring synth line will hit all the right emotional chords at all the right times.
On the final side Bangkokian Chalo reminds us why he is one of the masters of this increasingly fully formed scene. His Depth Charge is a muggy dub-laden, electro jam capable of rattling the weightiest sound systems in some of the most twisted raves at the end of some of the darkest Sois. The record is completed by New Delhi linchpin and Boxout.fm resident Monophonik, whose techno/electro “Tumbi” journeys out of the night into a euphoric sunrise moment that will be setting the dancefloors alight come festival season.
As the artwork on the EP depicts, "Darkest hour before dawn" is a dusky scenario representing the Dutch environment known as "the polder" in the lower lands. It questions all kinds of actions taken or not taken to protect, restore, conserve, innovate, or modestly leave the landscape to its own more murky outcome. The darkest hour, full of gloom, will be available around the spring equinox?
Portrait of tracks separately:
"Darkest Hour before dawn"
Is this piece supposed to be an ode to the ancient Dutch hardcore movement, that once and probably only then would be experienced to such intensity or is this still maybe just a little near reminder of it? Anyway starts this unlit track slowly and remains that way but maintains a fat-pumping pulse, possibly reminding of a soldier walking a death march. Settling up those launch pads further down the piece, near the bridge for shooting off some drum-fire 909 snares as if it rocketed. Then, suddenly, the extended delay of that snare turns into a psychedelic drone beside, attending to, or paranoidly chasing comrades soul in his journey throughout and above like a trustful partner?
Arp's LFO that is out of sync with the beat and is being outpaced by it seems to slow everything down even more; meantime creating a pulling, buggy-like effect to the due of all this.
The ascending and descending ghost-pad drawing into the grid of the (tone) key, thereafter parking in them for a while and cycling out again, creating a spatial flow of disturbance and anxiety.
Finishes it with a mountain-big reverberation of organized destruction and chaos. What at first sight seems like simply an innocent route appears to actually be a bit more complex one.
"Lovely memories"
The quite monotonous structure of Lovely memories catchy and groovy song is scanning through your brain files; revisiting, memorizing, and purposely lacking these few "dots above the I" that in some cases you'd gladly be feeling like to square fit it in yourself, of course, when necessary. Connecting the puzzling, dazzling flashbacks together to finally wrap up and perpetuate the pictured events for good, leaving traces of melancholy, loveliness, and perhaps even faith to it.
"24 hours"
Dinginess of 24 hours supposes to be felt in the guts.
The beat, steady with that snare on the 4 & 12, might not be one of the greatest inventions. However, the TR-08's drum line here lays a solid and fertile foundation for a reasonable house track.
Slightly detuned synths weave a scarf pattern around your upper body, and the lower layers carry a warm blanket for the underbelly, providing you with that cozy sense of consolation. Acidy pokes wring itself sneaky and penetrable around, slicing through the song's already solid flesh. Therefore, balancing its bitter sweetness throughout with these soft-hard saw-tooth drops of sourness.
"24 hours" conveys a dispatch or intercommunication that there is little time left to take actions/charge to fix and restore. Something big is about to come if it hasn't arrived already...
"At night"
This remarkable story is a bit out of ordinary.
At night appeared in the artist's dream just the night before his sick father was raised from death in the hospital and got just another year to live before actually passing away completely and anyway. ; ))
And thus also dedicated to the man.
- A1: Report From The Frontlines
- A2: Ask Believe Feel Receive
- A3: Lost In Solitude
- A4: Art Is The Only Real Translation Of Living For Me
- B1: We Belong To Never
- B2: Pain
- B3: Superrare
- B4: We Want To Feel Love
- C1: Musik Ist Meine Sprache
- C2: Equalista
- C3: Mirrors
- C4: Skin
- D1: Free
- D2: Still Feat Pascal Schumacher
- D3: Afterhour
ENARCHY is the debut album by Leipzig-based producer and singer Maria die Ruhe. It is the result of a deep and thorough look the
artist took into both her own inner workings and the world around her. In 14 tracks, she explores different types of energy,
oscillating between head and heart. Final destination of this sometimes painful process of self- exploration is the embodiment of
her own power and creativity; the realization, that she manifests her role as catalyst, healer, and fighter for freedom and equality
by reporting on her experiences. These songs are about nothing less than that. And you can also dance to them.
In a musical sense, Maria surpasses herself compared to previous releases. She is bolder, more explorative and dissolves genre
boundaries. Acoustic instruments like the cello and the piano unite playfully with electronic beats. Her expressive voice speaks and
sings from the lowest lows to the loftiest heights. Her self-disclosing lyrics communicate the deepest messages of the soul. One can
tell right away: something is at stake here, this is about a real human living through something real, and now reporting from the
front lines of the human experience.
With lines like „Things are changing all the fucking time“ (ENARCHY) she posts a reminder for the current zeitgeist and the resulting
global uncertainty. „Some things need to be destroyed before they can heal“ is a demand for openness towards change, even if it is
challenging, requires energy, and leaves behind some scars.
In ART IS THE ONLY REAL TRANSLATION OF LIVING FOR ME, Maria uses sentences like „I’ve been trying to please you, I got headaches
and I still don’t fit“ to express her desperation with existing structures of injustice and the lack of livability of the artist lifestyle.
„Ah, you’re an artist - and what do you do professionally?“ Everyone loves music and art! When, o when, will the understanding
follow that there need to be people who make this art as a central part of their lives?
Frustration takes turns with hope and a growing acceptance of the self. In EQUALISTA, Maria discusses antiquated conditions like the
inequality between the sexes in a kind of manifesto, with a simple proposal for solution: „Let’s both be selfish and raise our
energies, to create a whole world with all the things we need.“
In WE BELONG TO NEVER, Maria sings about the everyday horror of toxic relationships. Lines like „Disengagement and rage, I’ve become such a slave.“ express the despair of the emptiness that results from a lack of affection. She also describes treacherous
narcissistic manipulation: „You cut me small just to feel tall.“
In SKIN, she confesses: „I’m not as enough as everyone else.“ and describes the long and painful way from rejecting her own body
to loving herself unconditionally. „I hate what I feel, while I pretend to be free“ means she doesn’t want to be reduced down to
her body, doesn’t want to be seen as an instagrammable, thoroughly designed product; she wants to be acknowledged as an
individual.
In LOST, she poses a question that many are currently forced to ask themselves: „What do we do with all this solitude?“ Maybe
making use of the reclusion by exploring the shadow self. „Can you cope with the truth?“
The conclusion: energy is being freed up through the means of self-experience and living through the personal darkness -
ENARCHY. The realization: every human being is self-determined and should simply do what they feel. It is everyone’s right to
choose their own life’s path. Here, intuition serves as a signpost. This is both feminine and strong.
ENARCHY celebrates an embodied anarchy by working through the personal shadow and the genuine, healthy integration of the
struggle survived - not as a destructive rebellion, but as a testament of shameless, joyful self-empowerment.
„In the end, I want to be alive, because in reality, I’m free.“
The inaugural release on Groove Culture’s new Deep imprint comes courtesy of Berlin-based DJ/Producer and fresh-faced talent Luca Olivotto. For his Groove Culture Deep debut ‘Floating Memories’ Olivotto hits with three delectably deep tracks that each have their own distinctive flavour.
Up first, ‘Maybe’ takes the full A side, a groove-laden, energetic old school house track with nods to king Kerri that is certified prime-time dancefloor business. On Side B you’ll find the title track ‘Floating Memories’. As its namesake suggests, melodic synths, luscious pads and groovy stabs sparkle atop a punchy driving beat.
Closing out proceedings ‘Dark Flow’, the perfect opener to set the atmosphere of a dancefloor... A warm, deep and beautiful journey full to the brim with sweeping chords, subtle vocal snippets and delicate top lines.
An essential EP for any Deep House lover out there that really delves down into the essence of the genre.




















