INTERVIEW: Kevin McPhee [nakedlunch/Idle Hands]

Having lost count of amount of times we’ve read or even described someone’s music ourselves as being subtle, it begrudgingly seems perfectly apt when describing the work of Canadian producer Kevin McPhee. Built from a different more placated mould, his work, which we’ve been hearing in fits and spurts since the 3rd quarter of 2010, is finally hitting shops at the beginning of the year. Releasing on two of our most revered imprints, the Irish [nakedlunch] and the Bristol based Idle Hands (which is soon to be a physical record shop just off Stokes Croft in the city centre, seemingly filling the void left by Rooted Record’s closure last month) stands him in good stead from the off but it’s the fragility and soul of his music on tracks like the as yet unsigned ‘Try’ and ‘This Feeling’ that really connect.

His drum work also shouts just as loud as his twisted use of vocal snippets and samples with the [nakedlunch] signed ‘Bridges’ being a great example of what we’re attempting to shout about. Constructed from homespun and self recorded samples it traverses a drum pattern not a million miles away from the work of Mount Kimbie, but focuses a little harder on the punch of the kick drum, using those bitcrushed scratches and ticks around it to frame the resonance of the low frequencies. A track like ‘House 44,’ not included on his mix - an introductory production showcase of 100% McPhee material – is a perfect example of McPhee at his percussive best, all insistent thump underneath whilst a swamp of textures takes over the top layers hypnotically.

He really has nailed his sound deep, almost oceanic sound palette and after a bout of complementary AIM conversations we shot him some questions, playing on our own interest in his background as much as his music and he delivered our 66th Sonic Router mix. Split, in McPhee’s own words, between “slower and faster tempo tracks,” it’s a perfect and concise showcase of a truly magnificent talent.

Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?

Sure, My name is Kevin McPhee, I am a producer from Toronto and I try to produce somewhat danceable music anywhere between the 110bpm to 140bpm range. I have releases forthcoming on [nakedlunch] and Idle hands early this year. I really enjoy collecting and playing vinyl and cutting dubplates.

Outside of music who are you? What do you do on the daily?

To be honest I don’t do too much. I buy too many records, drink too much coffee and look at too many pictures of obese cats. I also go to school full-time.

How did you first get into making music? What was it that infected you to do so?

I got into making music around the time I got my first guitar when I was 12. Rather than rely on others, I wanted to make tracks all on my own so I began experimenting with Reason and soon after I began to focus on sample-based production. It seems to have stayed that way ever since, however; I’m ever so solely attempting to move away from this approach to music production.

What’s your production set up like?

I use Logic, a turntable for sampling, a mic for recording percussion, a tape deck for adding some real stinky grit, and whatever guitar pedals I’m able to steal from my brother when he is not around.

How would you describe your sound?
Hmm, well for the longest time I felt I never had a sound, and the more I thought about trying to make things fit a “McPhee Sound” the more rigid my tracks became. Now that I don’t really focus on one set style anymore I feel like my sound is kind of coming together for me naturally.I tend to rely on vocals a fair bit, some may say too much, but I feel there is a lot one can do with vocals and I feel I can still get a lot of use out of them. That being said, I would like to begin to produce less vocal-driven tracks, as I feel that I’m at the point where I can produce equally interesting percussion-based tracks as well.

I’ve always had an interest in making tracks sound as organic as possible. I try to spend as much time choosing samples as I do arranging them. I feel it’s one thing to be able to make an interesting beat, but it’s another to be able to make one that sounds like a whole unit, that is, all the sounds compliment each other in such a way that it appears as though the beat is simply a loop cut from a previous recording.


Kevin McPhee - Get In With You -[nakedlunch]

You share an affinity to a lot of the more subtle producers out there. I can hear a bit of Actress’ muffles in ‘House 44.’ What kind of music do you listen to in your own time?

I tend to listen to a lot of electronic music, but I try to keep my mind open to everything. I only recently started listening to house so that has begun to take up a lot of my listening time as there is just so much great music out there. Once I started listening to dance music, I kind of pushed my previous musical interests to the side, I feel as though this wasn’t as beneficial as I thought it would as I began to take inspiration from only one source. Now I’ve slowly begun to take up listening to just about anything. Whether it be jazz, folk, or ambient music, I’ve learned that there exists merits to all genres, it’s just a matter of being able to push aside your initial inhibitions to get at them in some cases.

What is an inspiration for you?

As lame as it sounds, pretty much just other music. I’m not going to lie and say the wind on a crisp fall day helps me make music or something like that. I just tend to find music I enjoy, note what intrigues me about it, and then try to respond to it in such a way that appeals even more to what it is that I’d like to hear out of a song. Sometimes it works, usually it doesn’t, but I have fun regardless.

Whats your native Toronto like for music? Are there many likeminded peoples out that way?

To be honest, I don’t know much about what’s going on in Toronto, I mean, there is certainly a wide variety of nights, some focusing on the more dancefloor-oriented style of music, while others offer a wider range of sound, however, I don’t tend to go out often so I can’t give an accurate description of what’s happening here. There is certainly a large group of like-minded people here. They just may not be as vocal as others. I think that’s what really gave me the push to begin taking production seriously and actually send songs to labels. I’ve had such great support from everyone here and I can’t stress enough how thankful I am for having like-minded individuals backing what I’m trying to do.

Are there any producers you rate that the world should know about? Any peeps not getting the props you think they deserve?

Three producers come to mind (In no particular order): Klaus, XI and TMSV. These three guys offer a wide range of sound and I feel as though this year each one of these producers will get the recognition they truly deserve. Klaus offers a bizarre in-between of ambient yet horrible deep and emotive music. I try to include at least one Klaus piece in all my sets as he was really the first artist I interacted with that offered tracks that worked well with my own. For the longest time I would simply mix my own songs together, however, talking to him caused me to realise that there exists a lot of music out there that fits with what I’m doing. He’s had quite an impact on not only my Djing but how I approach production as well.

XI is just in his own world right now, you can hear just about everything in his music, yet it doesn’t sound forced or cluttered. He is taking previously established styles of music and flipping them on their heads, it’s really inspiring to see such a positive response to his music as it suggests that people are still interested in hearing complex yet still dance floor friendly (deadly?) music.

TMSV is giving the deeper side of dubstep a serious kick in its butt. I think I’ve wrenched my neck a few times just bobbing along to his simple yet hard hitting style of music. It’s cool to see that people are still down to hear dubstep that doesn't resort to clichés or mid-range drops.

You’ve got 12”s forthcoming on [nakedlunch] and Idle Hands. Can you tell us a bit about that and shed some light on what else people can expect from you in 2011...

Of course… the [nakedlunch] EP has been in production for a long time now. I think it was around this time last year that I sent them my first set of tracks (‘Get in With You’ was among them). Since then, I’ve tried to work closely with the label as I felt at that point in time I was only just beginning to explore what it was that I wanted to hear in my songs. Micky offered up great criticism (something people tend to try to avoid) and has had an enormous impact on every aspect of what it is that I’m trying to do with my music. The EP provides some slower tempo stuff (‘Bridges’) and more mellow tracks (‘Get in with You’). The LV remix is a great take on my track as they’ve created an upbeat interpretation that puts the vocal in the back seat and makes room for a seriously memorable bassline.


Kevin McPhee - Get In With You (LV Remix) - [nakedlunch]

After the [nakedlunch] release I’ve got a 12” coming out on the Bristol-based Idle Hands label, I had got in touch with Kowton back in the fall and sent him over a few songs. He put me in touch with Chris from Idle Hands and soon after he expressed interest in doing a release. I am very pleased with the tracks he chose as I feel they are a nice contrast to each other and are two tracks I feel that are really a lot of fun to mix, yet still work well on their own. Being that ‘Sleep’ was my first attempt at making slower tempo music, it means a lot to have others supporting it.

I feel that I am very fortunate to have my first two releases on labels that I had followed closely before I began to take producing seriously. The support given to me by both label owners and those I’ve met as a result of them have helped me become more confident in my music than I was this time last year. I hope people enjoy the releases as much as I enjoyed the whole process of making them.

Tell us a little bit about the mix you’ve put together for us…

Well the mix is just a showcase of my own productions. Although it’s a relatively short mix, I feel as though it offers up an all-encompassing approach to my music. I included both slower and faster tempo tracks as I feel that they exist as one style, rather than two separate entities. I made sure to incorporate a few tracks off both the forthcoming releases as mentioned above, and also some unreleased bits as well. Pretty much all the tracks in here are “exclusive” as this is really the first recording I’ve done and the first time most will have heard anything by me. I hope people enjoy it.

Any words of wisdom, for our readers?

It’s very easy to sell yourself short and simply settle when it comes to releasing/producing music. I think more people are concerned with simply getting their music out than they are with trying to use the process of releasing music as a way to improve your overall knowledge of production or how to conduct one’s self when it comes to promotion. I feel as though it is better to wait and approach a label you can see yourself on, rather than offer a lack-luster product to anyone who’s willing to listen - or even worse, having great music that goes unheard simply because it was never given the opportunity to be heard. That being said, there is always a chance to change things. I feel as though you are only as good as your last production, so people should always aim to improve upon what it is that they are doing. Don’t simply sell yourself short for instant satisfaction.

::

DOWNLOAD: Kevin McPhee – Sonic Router Mix #66



Tracklist:

Kevin McPhee - I Will [???]
Kevin McPhee - Try [???]
Kevin McPhee - Sleep [Forthcoming Idle Hands]
Kevin McPhee - Bridges [Forthcoming [nakedlunch]]
Kevin McPhee - Sucre [???]
Kevin McPhee - Be [???]
Kevin McPhee - This Feeling [???]
Kevin McPhee - Get in With You (LV Remix) [Forthcoming [nakedlunch]]

Link:
http://soundcloud.com/kevinmcphee

RECOMMENDED: FaltyDL - Hip Love/Jamie XX Remix [Ramp]

It’s deceptively easy to get swept away in the constant barrage of new material coming from the post-garage/dubstep/UK-bass axis. Individual stand out pieces of music often end up fading into the background in favour of an unbroken mass of newness. The end result is a feeling of quantity over quality, or at the very least a serious case of split attention span. That feeling has escalated over the last couple of years as the scene’s increasingly gone global and split off into a thousand different strands. But once in a while something comes along that forces you to sit back and take stock for a little while, or holds your undivided love and attention for long enough to ignore the masses of sound streaming past on either side.

Drew Lustman’s music under his FaltyDL moniker is one of those rare things. Nothing he’s released thus far has fallen below the ‘utterly essential’ benchmark, largely because it so rarely stands still. Rather than remaining content to churn out 12” after 12” of re-arranged but essentially identical sounds, everything he’s put out so far - from the US/UK hybrid garage of Love Is A Liability to Endeavour’s restrained house experiments – has stood totally apart from its predecessors. In essence, Lustman is one of the very few musicians operating within this sphere that use their influences like gene pools to draw upon for individual flashes of inspiration, rather than allowing them to restrict the breadth of their ambitions.

That’s the reason he appears to be so strikingly original – with only a love of Luke Vibert and early breakcore binding everything together, his shifts between tempo passing those sounds through various different filters: house, garage, dubstep, electronica. ‘Regret’, his forthcoming contribution to Hotflush’s Back & 4th label compilation, is one of the most sophisticated examples of that approach so far. After allowing a bass-less breakbeat to gather momentum and intensity over a backdrop of swelling ambience, Lustman finally allows all it’s pent up tension to release in a deft two-step groove. It’s both utterly energizing and curiously relaxing, as though by suspending hyperspeed drums in mid-air he strips them of their grounded, floor-filling effect. It’s a similar trick to the one used by ambient junglists like LTJ Bukem and Source Direct - accelerating breakbeats to the point at which they’re faster than the body’s metabolism; when, as Simon Reynolds writes, “rhythm itself becomes a susurrating, soothing stream of ambience.”

And Lustman certainly deserves to be ranked at the same level as the pioneers. He’s not merely regurgitating his influences - he’s remoulding them into the shape of a unique and exciting cross-Atlantic narrative. His new single ‘Hip Love’ for Ramp (his last before fantastic new album You Stand Uncertain is released on Planet Mu) is ample evidence of that, as it’s probably his finest single track so far. Once again set around rapid-fire programmed beats that form a curiously downbeat backdrop, he playfully sets shards of brass and a yearning vocal sample to ricochet across its surface, occasionally colliding in glorious flashes of harmony. The end result is at once exhilarating and exhausting, and imbued with more emotion (both implicit and explicit) than almost anything yet to have emerged from the fray surrounding dubstep. Yeah, it’s that good.

On the flipside, Jamie XX’s remix would always have struggled to match the stunning original, and it’s to his credit that he doesn’t attempt to. Rather, he builds an entirely different sort of track around it base elements, a thick drumfunk that swings unsteadily back and forth before dropping to the floor. It’s a surprisingly unique take on bass-heavy floor music, and bodes well for his upcoming Gil Scott Heron remix album.

Words: Rory Gibb
Out: 28th February 2011


FaltyDL – Hip Love [Ramp]

Link:
http://faltydl.com

RECOMMENDED EVENT: Bloc Weekend 2011

Bloc Weekend 2010 was a real eye opener. Through friends you hear the ruminations of one of the weirdest most absurd sounding festivals in the calendar, and what you get is exactly what you imagine, a hardstyle no messing tribute to the multi-national elite of electronic music set in, well, set in a 1960s hardstyle holiday park. The novelty of raving in Butlin’s never leaves you, but it’s the quality of the programming that keeps you grounded amongst the colour, indoor burger king and giant Bob The Builder statues. Last year’s festival was a true test of personal intensity with highlights too numerous to attempt to recall.

This year the party returns to Minehead on the 11-13th March with a lineup that really does read like a roll call for inventive futurist musicians in 2011. Topped by Aphex Twin and Magnetic Man, two acts that given the notoriety of the former and the chart success of the latter need no introduction, the festival boasts stages from likeminded people and kin like Bleep.com, Resident Advisor, Numbers, Subloaded, Plex, Outlook Fesitval and Mary Anne Hobbs featuring all manner of names from Moderat and Four Tet to Jamie XX, Roska, Shackleton and so many many many more.
Without echoing the epic lineup for this year’s festival we urge you to go here and see what your missing.

It really is more than alot.

The Bloc team have also uploaded a selection of audio content from Blocs gone by to their particularly functional site. Recommended listening goes to Pinch’s ’09 set, Model 500’s set from last year and the brand new and exclusive Venetian Snares track, ‘There Now You Have Syphilis’ which you can stream here:





Link:
http://www.blocweekend.com

RECOMMENDED: 2562 - Aquatic Family Affair/This Is Hardcore [When In Doubt]

Over the last two or three years there really hasn’t been someone whose command and deployment of rhythm has so completely enthralled me as much as the man behind 2562, Dave Huismans. His music, whether under the aforementioned numerical postcode guise or his more heavy handed house orientated moniker, A Made Up Sound, always brings a pang of excitement and that palpable thump to any soundsystem its played on. Whilst other producers might choose to experiment more with the lower frequencies, relying on drawn out 808 kicks or tremulant low end to work the soundsystem, Huismans just further hones his craft, working overtime on his drum lines. Bringing the bump and snap like no one else, his tracks under either name are instantly recognisable.

‘Aquatic Family Affair’ and ‘This Is Hardcore’ are the first beats under the 2562 moniker to surface since Huismans’ last album under the name, 2009’s Unbalance – if you overlook his ‘The Wind Up’ track on Modeselektor’s Modeselektion Vol 1., which we are doing here to create some kind of elemental form of drama. They’re also the first 2562 material to not be housed on Pinch’s influential Tectonic imprint, with Huismans’ instead birthing a brand new label subjectively called When In Doubt, for the release of this single – 300 ltd edition blue vinyl 10”s. It's reportedly a prelude to a brand new 2562 album coming later this year.

‘Aquatic Family Affair’ should really be trademarked; it’s slamming kick drum, swung snares and chord interplay is classic 2562: his synths sirening up and out of earshot in the drum heavy breakdowns before he lets his hi hats fly and the beat rolls out again. His measurement and attention to the dancefloor make the rhythm omnipresent, its broken shuffle is destined to push your shoulders out at regular integers as the dry top on the kick drum works your ears perfectly, its base hitting you roughly in the chest. ‘This Is Hardcore’ is an ultimately darker beast, built on a brooding kick drum/bass stab pattern. Loop sampling keys and vinyl atmos in a similar manner to the way Addison Groove does on tracks like ‘It’s Got Me,’ gives it that eerie, anxious edge which suits the power and mannerism of the drum line to a tee. Huismans’ balances out the weight of the bass parts with little percussive flourishes and it’s those shakers and fills that keep popping out on repeat listens.

Two heavyweight cuts that suggest 2562’s prevalence, when the wider internet was loving off more on A Made Up Sound, was never in doubt.

Words: Oli Marlow
Out: 7th February 2011


2562 – Aquatic Family Affair [When In Doubt]

Link:
www.myspace.com/2562dub

RECOMMENDED: LHF – EP2: The Line Path [Keysound]

LHF are a shadowy organisation at best and to be honest, that’s just the way we like it. Comprised of a production crew that’s about seven members strong, they keep it tight and have built a world of their own that seems both far-reaching and contained in itself all at once. Describe rather eloquently by Keysound boss Blackdown as sounding like “Sun Ra's hijacked Rinse FM and is using it to communicate with the heavens. Buried inside one corner of the LHF collective is a junglist fighting his way out: these guys have got drumz. Then there's another part of them that is lost in LA, their wonky beats falling off of the grid.” The Line Path EP is split between producers Amen Ra and Double Helix, two of the group’s core members.

Double Helix keeps the bumping rhythmic dubstep patterns going like on the previous EP, Enter In Silence. The horn samples give ‘Chamber of Light’ a Wu Tang shaped shadow when they hit, well Wu Tang if they also featured Mala on the buttons, plus the drums and the deployment of space are as infectious as ever. Double Helix has got a way with programming that really gets things bumping, tablas, woodblocks and all manner of percussive nuggets just keep rolling. On his second cut, ‘Bass 2 Dark,’ bursts of jabbering bass synths hit out of the rhythmic shuffle and gloriously.

Amen Ra’s track ‘Candy Rain’ sounds like it could be taken from the Brainfeeder stable, it’s got a similar de-tuned, warped and melted vibe that a lot of Samiyam’s work showcases. The unlikely coupling of what sounds like an accordion (or a synthesized version of it), steppy rhythms and the warm, lazy bass tones give the track a bright if lilting funk. It’s undoubtedly an EP highlight rounding the thing off with a techy dystopian vision on ‘Trifle;’ all dusty driving synths and gritty textures played like the soundtrack to a sci-fi race scene set in the ruins of Detroit.

Words: James Balf
Out: Now



Links:
www.myspace.com/raizms
www.myspace.com/helixier
Facebook Group

::

TOMORROW NIGHT: Keysound Recordings rush the Boiler Room:



Dusk & Blackdown ft Maxwell D
LV ft Joshua Idehen
Amen Ra (LHF) btb Vibezin

Watch it live here this Tuesday from 8-11pm.

http://boilerroom.tv/live

RECOMMENDED: xxxy – You Always Start It/Ordinary Things [Ten Thousand Yen]

Fifth in the series of colourful 10” from Doc Daneeka’s Ten Thousand Yen label comes xxxy, whose white platter lands hot on the heels of Didz & Chico, C.R.S.T. and Julio Bashmore. The two tracks from the Manchester based producer have been floating around for some time, in fact the A-side, ‘You Always Start It,’ closes his instalment in our mix series, published way back in December ‘09. He’s also had releases for the likes of Infrasonics, Formant, Fortified Audio and was one of the producers highlighted on fabric’s Elevator Music compilation. Dude’s definitely got a way with bleeped-out, rushing garage infused house variants, and that’s what gets showcased here.

It’s the building pads over the ‘dubstep’ drum patterns that get ‘You Always Start It’ moving. Choppy vocals and relentlessly energetic synth squiggles come to a head with the pads in a crescendo that should make your hairs stand on end. Things get slowed down to a house pace for ‘Ordinary Things’ but the vibe is similar, rushing synth bursts, bleepy arpeggios that sound like Mario having a psychedelic meltdown after to many mushrooms and chopped up vocal ticks that bounce back and forth while a 4x4 kick roots it to the floor. It’s all pretty functional, there’s a thickness to the production that marks xxxy out, especially when you consider the shelf life of both these cuts at this time plus, it sure as hell works as a joyous dance floor pick me up.

Words: James Balf
Out: Today



Links:
http://tenthousandyen.bandcamp.com/
http://soundcloud.com/xxxy

INTERVIEW: Royal T [Butterz]

Grime has been finding its feet again recently. Whilst the pop charts have been under an onslaught of 4x4 electro house beats with emcees riding the pulse, the underground roughness has always been there, bubbling under the surface and exploding out in peaks. Making some incredibly notable noise right about now a new wave of producers are coming through and taking back the scene; sounding fierce and releasing physical product. It’s all pretty refreshing to see the coverage the resurgence is getting with players like Butterz crew Elijah & Skilliam leading the charge from the regular slots on Rinse FM.

Releasing music on the Butterz imprint is Southampton based producer, Royal T. He caught a lot of people’s attention last year with his beat ‘1UP’ on No Hats No Hoods, a track that samples Nintendo’s pixelated flagbearer Mario, had a top quality vocal by P Money and even got spat on by Dizzee Rascal live on radio. After releasing a couple of other soundsystem heaters like ‘Beat Fighter’ and his ‘Hot Ones Remix’ he’s about to roll out the Orangeade EP on Butterz.

Bringing the rave back to grime T is taking his sound back to the dancefloor rather than the mixtape, putting down his gaming controllers and making some hyped-up-funk-infused grime beats that hit hard. With other remixes floating around for the likes of TRC and Wiley, that have a serious flex to them, building heavily on the garage vibe, he’s proving that he’s no one trick pony, showing he’s adept at tackling different approaches with vigour.

We caught up with Royal T, grabbing the chance to premiere his new ‘Special Stage Mix’ (aka Sonic Router Mix #65) as we did it...

Tell us a little about yourself, where are you from what do you get up to on the daily?

I'm Mark Taylor, also known as Royal-T and I’m a Grime producer from Southampton, England. I can't swim, I’ve never watched a Star Wars or Lord of the rings film in my life, I love my football, my beer and I will kick your arse at FIFA if need be.

What got you into grime in the first place?

This question's always hard for me to answer because I always struggle to think of a definitive moment. I feel like I’ve been listening to grime all my life. My earliest memories of listening to it was from stealing random garage and Sidewinder tape packs from my brother’s bedroom when he was out - also I was one of the first people in my primary school class to have the first So Solid Crew album, I walked into the playground thinking I was some gangster. I took the typical garage into grime journey of listening before really understanding what grime even was. I was always that 'go to guy' for all the grime music at school on our Nokia's sending random tunes through bluetooth.

How did you get into making music, did you jump right into grime beats or have you dabbled elsewhere?

My Uncle gave my brother and me a copy of Fruity Loops 3 when we first got our computer. I've never been musically trained or anything, I didn't take up music for my GCSEs so I've basically orchestrated everything I’ve ever made just from ear. I've been making grime beats ever since I started. There's been times in the past where I might have experimented with tempo or styles but even those tunes had that grime influence.

What’s your production set-up like?

I just make and mix down tunes in my bedroom. The process from bedroom into bedroom/studio started from when I got a part time job. I saved up to buy some big monitor speakers, a MacBook, some decks and everything else and that's all I’ve been doing since. I installed Windows on my MacBook and use that side just for Fruity Loops. My Dad and me constructed some little workspace for myself with everything I need on it. I bought a double bed recently and now I practically have no walking space in my room at all. It's all good though, it's for the music but I no longer have any space for activities (step-brother’s joke).

How do you go about laying a track down?

Most of the time I have an idea or an influence in my head already, so I’ll try to put that into Fruity like putting ideas from pen to paper and then just go from there. It's just like finishing a painting by colouring over a drawing I’ve made. The time it takes for me to finish a track varies but it means I can come back to the project a few days later with completely fresh ideas. On the new Fruity you can see how long you've spent on a project and most my projects average out at about 8 hours when finished now. That does includes all the time for mix downs and for all the time I’m not even making the tune and just browsing the internet or playing Football Manager with Fruity Loops open.

Where are you getting your inspiration from right now?

I'm only really going through old CDs I’ve found in my house at the moment, like loads of old school garage compilations, Oxide and Neutrino's first album and a lot of Mike Skinner's material. My mum even came and sat down with me the other day when I was making a tune, telling me the bits she did and didn't like. She's my greatest critic; she'll tell me if she doesn't like a song I’m making. A good indication of knowing whether she likes a tune or not is that if she ain't dancing to the beat when she comes in the room, hoovering or cleaning, it's probably not that good.



You’re really bringing back that skippy ravey grime vibe with a load of your tracks, there are some garage influences creeping in, some nice 8-bar switch ups and some tough twisted drops. Is it something that you thought was missing when you first started making beats?

Yeah in the last couple of years I felt that there really was a lack of danceable or club standard grime tunes about, it’s just iPod music for teenagers - nothing really musically stood out and everything was about the MC and his mixtape. To breakthrough as a producer it used to be all about how many vocals you could rack up. Due to my location this was nearly impossible for me because I could hardly meet MCs or be introduced to anyone as I literally came in the scene on my ones. The only people who would listen to me and my music were DJs. So I was making music for them to play and I adapted my sound to something no one else really was making at the time. I took a bit of a shortcut but it paid off eventually.

Your new EP, Orangeade, is out right now; tell us a bit about those tracks...

‘Orangeade’ is just me having complete fun with grime without having to parade it as dubstep or ‘trap music’ in disguise. I just made the grime I think we all used to and still do love to hear. I made ‘1UP,’ ‘Hot Ones,’ my ‘Air Bubble Remix’ [original by Terror Danjah] all with the same vibe. It was my sort of statement to the scene about us nearly forgetting our sound. ‘Orangeade’ came about because Teddy mentioned on Twitter that 'the best grime tune around at the moment is Gucci Mane's ‘Lemonade’ instrumental.' I just thought 'eff this' and ‘Orangeade’ was born.

Your remix of TRC’s ‘Oo Aa Ee’ is too much, what made you go for that garage flex? It’s a pretty interesting meeting of minds when a bassline producer makes a grime beat then a grime producer flips it into a garage track...

Thank you. Well, DOK made a really good grime remix so me making another grime remix wasn't really going to achieve anything. At that time I’d been making loads of garage drum patterns, messing around with swing and thin cut drums. Now, going on with what I was saying about the grime sound progression, I notice that people are starting to clock and re use the 2-step formula which I’m completely happy with, but I’m just enjoying doing the complete opposite every time. I like to think people attach music to memories so I want to make tracks that not only make you nod your head, but take you on a little journey at the same time.

You’ve had some bangers with the OGz (P Money, Blacks, Little Dee, etc), ‘Hot Ones’ and ‘1 Up’ where big ones for me. You’ve got some good chemistry together. What’s it like working with them and have you got more in the works with those guys?

I've been in contact with Blacks for a while now. He was the first well known MC to really listen to what I had to offer musically and he stuck by me. My first time having anything played on Logan Sama's show was a Blacks vocal. I had only spoken to P Money once or twice before he vocalled ‘1UP’ and I’m so pleased to see him go further, he deserves it. We both have the same ideas and focus on how we want our songs to sound like. We have tons of tunes on the way. Otherwise there are plenty of sets you can download with him spitting on my tracks.

What other MCs are you feeling right now?

Someone who has stood out for me recently is Merky Ace. I think he's sick. We have a tune together pending release which should be about soon. He should have a huge year I hope, along with Kozzie and the rest of the MCs that have had a buzz in 2010 and I always look forward to hearing any new MIK material too. I always carry his vocals in my DJing playlists.



Talk to us about Butterz, how did you get involved, what tracks got their attention and what’s it like working with those guys? There seems to be a cool community vibe to it all with producers hooking up for collaborations and remixes all the time.

The first time I ever got any sort of radio play with my music was around 2 to 3 years ago on a University Radio Station by two students who go by the names of… you guessed it, Elijah and Skilliam. They played my old ‘World War 4 Remix’ that I made ages ago. Elijah was the first person I sent ‘1UP’ to and he aired it on radio before anyone else did so I actually owe a lot to them both for their support. I think he still has that e-mail somewhere. We've stayed in contact the whole time exchanging ideas and just working really so it was only right somewhere down the line that we were bound to have some sort of project together. The funny thing is even after a nice 2010 we haven't even got started!

You’ve remixed Yasmin’s ‘On My Own’, it’s got to be one of the first commercial grime remixes to appear in god knows how long. How did that come about and what was it like messing with that kind of music compared to what you’re normally used to?

I was really proud to see the reaction it got by the people on twitter, soundcloud and everywhere as there were some cool names on the other remixes but my track achieved more hits in two days than any of the other remixes did in something like a month. It was great to finally work on a track with a female vocalist officially as I’ve always been too lazy to write tracks with vocalists before. The great thing is I didn't have to change my sound to get it heard. I kept it true to my sound and how I would have liked to make it and its bloody great to see it get recognition from other audiences.

There is a sick mix you’ve done of Wiley’s ‘It’s Wiley’ floating about right now that’s sounding large. You’ve got that garage rhythm going on and a load of cheeky bits that flip old Wiley signifiers back into the mix. How did that all come together?

Elijah got into contact with Prodigal, who did the original, about getting a remix sorted by me and I was a lucky git and got the acapella. I actually started the tune on Christmas day too. Unfortunately Father Christmas didn't bring me anything to keep me occupied that day and there's only so much enjoyment I could get out of Shower Gel and Deodorant combos. I really wanted to push the boundaries again and almost make it a tribute to Wiley and the Eski era. I was listening to a lot of old Wiley sets and the famous Wiley ‘Grimetapes’ collection in preparation where he was spitting on a lot of beats you wouldn't normally hear him on, like some nice old school dark garage, 4x4 and early grime stuff and it had been a while since I’d heard him on anything like that so i thought 'why not?'. It's really set the pace for 2011 for me.

What releases have you got on the horizon?

I've got the ‘Orangeade’ vinyls floating about now and the digital version will be due around the end of January. The Yasmin remix will be getting a release with the original single and the Wiley remix will be getting a full vinyl release scheduled for early February hopefully. Then onto the next few months I have some unreleased Butterz material to unleash and I have a couple of tracks with P Money and Blacks on my hard drive begging to be heard. I cannot wait for everyone to hear them.

Any words of wisdom, for our readers?

Stay focused on what you want to achieve and do whatever it takes to get to your goal. If you want to be able to move forward, sometimes, the simplest way to take the first step is by changing your whole outlook. As soon as you're able to accept that you may not always be right, you'll already be on the right track.

Oh and Nando's is overrated, don't believe the hype.

::

DOWNLOAD: Royal T – Sonic Router Mix #65



Tracklist:

0. Sonic 2 - Emerald Hill Zone
1. Royal-T - Chaos Emerald
2. JME - Shut Up And Dance
3. Royal-T - Shut The Funk Up
4. Royal-T - Bounce
5. Spooky - Spartan (DOK Remix)
6. TRC - Oo Aa Ee (Royal-T Remix)
7. S-X - Woooo Riddim (DJ Q Remix)
8. S-X - Woooo Riddim (Royal-T Remix)
9. D Double E - Bad To The Bone
10. Oxide - Nuff Of Dem Watch Me (Instrumental)
11. Wiley - It’s Wiley (Royal-T Remix)
12. Royal-T - Orangeade VIP
13. Swindle - Mood Swings
14. Yasmin - On My Own (Royal-T Remix)
15. Mr Slash - 1999
16. Royal-T - Royal Rumble
17. The Streets - Skills On Toast

Words: James Balf
Photo: Rob Vanderman

Links:
www.myspace.com/royaltbeats
www.twitter.com/royaltmusic

RECOMMENDED: Surf Kill

Anyone who’s followed Belgian producer Dynooo, either through his music or though his social networking, will know that there’s a strong aesthetic that runs through him. Posting as many animated gifs as he does snapshots of 70s style home living, there’s a strong sense of looking back to create his art. Its homespun and always rich in colour; take the artwork for his Gum Dragon EP - which caught out ear back in April - it’s an almost symmetrical collage built out of patterns, textures and photographs of forests that invites your eye in further with its layered sense of depth.

A few months back we got wind of a new label project Dynooo set up with a crew of likeminded people. Called Surf Kill, it came to life with a split single from Dynooo and Cupp Cave, a fellow Belgian producer whose tracks on Dynooo’s SR mix stood out masterfully. Delightfully messy, it was awesome; full as much of stumbling drums and synthesized swirls as boogie and funk it was a tight statement of intent - in keeping with what the world knew of their music. Surf Kill 002 however, was a handmade monochrome zine crafted by Dynooo. Only 50 were made.



“Surf Kill is a label me and some friends started,” Dynooo told us after we got all excited when he brought word of new projects and started hassling him on email. “I guess you could say we offer an alternative approach to music and presenting it: we print and design our own cover art, put out zines and create visuals filmed with VHS cams. DIY has always been the ideology.”

“As far as genres, there's nothing we won't do, he continues. “The first release was kind of on some bass music; deep and synthy offbeat stuff. Distributed worldwide by Rush Hour we're lucky to say it near sold out. We've just now added two upcoming geniuses to our roster (Munch Room and the unknown Ssaliva), each bringing forth rather minimal, feel-good as well as desolate soundpieces.”

Dynooo’s words definitely hit the nail on the head. Munch Room’s self titled mini album (SK004) is incredibly moving. Like a study of drawn out tones and processing it’s a beatless collection of sonic ideas. From the bit crushed, engine deep rumbles on ‘Toyota Dreams,’ woozy keyboard tones on ‘Hoop Girl’ to the awkward, juttering noise of ‘Cross Colours’ it all has an unweilding charm. Like a fuzzy un-hyped experiment, that actually has production value.



Meanwhile SK003 is a 22 track album project called Mercury Coast by the anonymous Ssaliva. Sharing an affinity to the early Bibio albums, where it was just endless torrents of guitar loops, Ssaliva’s work feels furiously DIY. The tone of the guitars is at times choked by the recording equipment, but the intent of the loops really grows out of that. You know how a lot of people (myself included) describe Actress’ music as sounding muffled and scuffed, as if your outside the club listening to the rhythms through the walls? It’s that same kind of thing here and tracks like ‘Laps,’ ‘School Rave,’ ‘Witchrack’ and ‘Red Sky & White Floor’ seem to shine out amongst the roughness, their droning voices amplified again by the space and static they employ.



Words: Oli Marlow
Out: Both albums are available now via Surf Kill

Link:
http://surfkill.tk

RECOMMENDED: XI – Gamma Rain/Medicate [Orca]

We’ve been down with XI for some time over here at SR. The producer from Toronto last year released music under the two lettered moniker on Immerse, Surefire Sound, Formant and Surface Tension as well as commemorating the very first plate for Orca Recordings – on which he returns for this, the label’s first release of 2011. Also working under the Ultragamma guise on some more contorted pseudo hip hop/electronic stuff it’s been his heavier handed tracks like ‘Ghost’ and ‘Slippin’ that have had the most impact up until this point, but here he takes a slightly more colourful side-step with the two cuts on offer. In some ways it’s a natural follow up to Orca’s last outing, the fantastic ‘Phoenix’ by Hyetal, but hands down this is XI at his most supple and funky.

Sitting somewhere in the micro-bubble that connects the dots between the shiny boogie friendly house of recent Night Slugs outings from the likes of Jacques Greene and Optimum, the aforementioned Hyetal and the flexible Sepalcure on Hotflush, ‘Gamma Rain’ hides a whole heap of brooding melancholy funk thats brought on by shimmering synths and expertly cut up jazz loops. Paired up with some seriously flexible wood carved garage beats this one really hits home hard – a low key anthem in the making. Then we get ‘Medicate’, which doesn’t quite hit those highs moving instead in deeper more spacious circles it’s got a subtle vibe to it but harbours plenty of weight. The colour and personality running through it sounds like the soundtrack to orbiting the earth in the Mir space station while playing zero-g pong.

Highly addictive.

Words: James Balf
Out: 31st January 2011

XI – Gamma Rain [Orca]	XI – Medicate [Orca]

::

XI was also named one to watch for this year earlier this week by FACT. Check his minimix and interview here:



Tracklist:

XI – Medicate
XI – Nitelite
XI – Gunnery V
XI – ArmourHP
XI – Virtualayz

Link:
www.myspace.com/xidubs

DOWNLOAD: Jams F. Kennedy - A Heart-Breaking Work of Swagger & G Ness

Nepotize this: Earnest Endeavours are a transatlantic crew loosely based in London. Stretching over the Atlantic the core has secondary bases in New York and Los Angleles. They launched their conjoined aesthetic a few months back in fine fashion with the debut London performance of Nosaj Thing’s AV show and the first performance from Free The Robots (you can watch video footage of the event here).

Ahead of their second event, a double header featuring a gallery show from Kutmah – a DJ, producer and artist who whilst incarcerated regarding immigration issues made works of art armed with nothing but a short pencil and prison ID card – and an aftershow party featuring Kutmah, Dorian Concept, Teebs, the reason for this post: Jams and more (for more info on the party, which is tonight btw, go to the facebook event here), EE have unleashed their very first mixtape.

In their own words:

“Earnest Endeavours are proud to present the first audio outing on the label. An Earnest Endeavours mixtape, curated & mixed by the Patchwork Pirates. A Heart-Breaking Work Of Swagger & G Ness arose from a shared love of beats, bass and rap. Mixed by Patchwork Pirates in LDN, laced by Jams F. Kennedy in NYC and engineered by Bobby Evans in LA. The limited edition CD is packaged in a hand screen-printed heavyweight recycled board sleeve with full inlay. Start as you mean to go on…”

What you get, is a impeccably segued selection of drum heavy beats and some super fine lyrical ammunition delivered in Jams’ trademark drawl. The punch of the project is the new Widows material - the group Jams and Bobby Evans (both formerly of rap outfit Brother Reade) formed from performances with just two drum kits and a couple of microphones. Its completely stripped back and in the vein of Foot Village its pure, pounding skin laced with some gratuitously loveable emceeing.

“Rap, since the beginning, has never been a sound. It was always a method. It never requires more than two steps. 1: Listen to the wildest new music where there are people there to hear it. 2: Interject vocally." Jams F. Kennedy

DOWNLOAD: Jams F. Kennedy - A Heart-Breaking Work of Swagger & G Ness



Tracklist:

01. Intro – Jams F. Kennedy
02. Drama – Widows
03. Jams vs. Gemmy – Jams F. Kennedy
04. Don’t Start None (Boom Bip Remix) – Widows
05. Jams vs. Hudson Mohawke – Jams F. Kennedy
06. Find Your Way – Superisk
07. Jams vs. Guido – Jams F. Kennedy
08. Issey Miyake – Salva
09. Move – devonwho
10. Jams vs. Dizz1 – Jams F. Kennedy
11. LAX – Widows
12. Jams vs. Bobby Valentino – Jams F. Kennedy
13. Live & Direct – The Works feat. Jams F. Kennedy
14. Jams vs. B Bravo – Jams F. Kennedy
15. Us – Nosaj Thing
16. Room Temperature Liquid Plastic – Mushen
17. Jams vs. B Bravo – Jams F. Kennedy
18. Oil Fields – Mono/Poly
19. Orchid – Widows
20. Jams vs. Juice Aleem vs. Si Begg – Jams F. Kennedy
21. Orion’s Belt Buckle – Free The Robots
22. Mahjongg – Charles Trees
23. Jams vs. Flying Lotus – Jams F. Kennedy
24. Why Like This? – Teebs
25. Unsigned Hype – Widows
26. Glut – Ramadanman
27. Step 2 Funk – DVA
28. 7.62 – Widows
29. Outro – Jams F. Kennedy

For more info on the gallery show go here. For more info on the aftershow party go here.



Links:
www.earnestendeavours.com

RECOMMENDED: Royal T – Orangeade EP [Butterz]

With a few strong 12”s already under his belt, including the ‘1UP’ 12” on No Hats No Hoods, Royal T seems to be making all the right moves; ‘Beat Fighter’ and his ‘Hot Ones’ remix have barely left the bag since they dropped. His latest offering, ‘Orangeade,’ has dropped on Butterz, an instrumental grime label run by Rinse FM DJs Elijah & Skilliam. They’ve had a hell of a run lately with beats from TRC and DOK, plus the much called for hard body release of the sublime ‘Wooo Riddim’ by SX, so it’s no surprise that the title track is a forthright, rhythmically skippy grime weapon that bangs hard with enough intensity to keep dance floors alight. Atmospheric pads and synth whines shuffle in and out of the bumpy beats and big bass tones to great effect on the title track; it oozes that typically British vein of hyper-funk that people like Terror Danjah excel in.

‘Whistle Song’ sounds reminiscent of Beatie Boys’ ‘Alive,’ it’s melody makes you want to sing “dip dip dive, so-socialise, open up your ears and clean out your eyes” but it’s probably more like what would happen if Daft Punk drank to many pitchers of orangeade and whipped out on talk-box whilst on a three day tour of Bow, E3. Loosely translated that makes it a banger.

The return of the ‘Devil Mix’ concept is a welcome one, especially when it’s done as well as it is on ‘Music Please’. In the hands of the likes of Zomby, Untold and more recently Logos the beat less version, a more restrained and twisted instrumental - pioneered by Wiley - is an inspired creation. Royal T coins it in here, morphing the hyped up synth leads into a pent up hypnotic gem that just keeps on brooding.

Words: James Balf
Out: Now, direct from Butterz


Royal T – Orangeade featuring OGz (P Money, Lil Dee and Blacks)

Links:
www.butterz.co.uk
http://royaltmusic.tumblr.com

COMPETITION: Win Bleep's Top 100 Tracks of 2010

Our podcast hosters and those all round good dudes over at Bleep.com just announced their Top 100 tracks of 2010.

According to their HQ:

“Putting together The Top 100 Tracks of 2010 was a labour of love for Bleep. An opportunity to showcase the music that has turned us on in the last 12 months and put across our take on the year’s best music. Through a process that included the whole team and contributions from our friends and partners the massive amount of great music that was released in 2010 was whittled down to just 100 tracks.”

They’re offering an incredibly unique download opportunity for the public to buy these 100 tracks in high-quality, DRM free MP3s for just £30. The list spans Bleep's wide-ranging hand-picked catalogue of music and includes critically acclaimed artists from the last 12 months such as Brian Eno, Caribou, and James Blake.

You can check the full list of tracks here. And you can also read our thoughts about why James Blake’s ‘CMYK’ got included right here too.

“When it drops it explodes like a paint splash on canvas, eclipsing whatever it bursts out from with ease. - Oli Marlow”

As a token of good will for the new year, Bleep have kindly offered Sonic Router the chance to give away one of these download bundles for the price of an email. So electronically ping us your answer to the below question by this time next week to be in the running.

Q: Which Untold track did James Blake remix to astounding effect back in 2009?

Links:
http://bleep.com

READ: SRQ017: Braiden

The 17th edition of the Sonic Router column of theQuietus focuses on Rinse FM DJ, Braiden. With his debut release, 'The Alps,' now sold out release on Joy Orbison's Doldrums imprint and a steadily building reputation as a selector we treated him to lunch on a snowy afternoon last December and sat eating quietly as he monologued...

"UK music is so based on rhythm, you know what I mean? You look at a lot of drum and bass, UK funky, dubstep etc and a lot of those genres would look down on 4x4 music because it's one rhythm – which is totally missing the trick – but, they would say that. And a lot of it is rhythmically focused but it doesn't have any atmosphere to it, or doesn't really experiment with the emotive qualities of the music. You get that a lot more in techno - I think sometimes you get that too much in techno - but it's very much about the atmosphere and the sounds made, but they don't do anything interesting rhythmically. That's what I'm trying to bring together: something that is emotive, in an interesting headspace that does a lot for the mind but is also rhythmically interesting." - Braiden

READ: SRQ017: Braiden


Braiden - 100% Braiden Mix for Mary Anne Hobbs (July 2010)

Link:
www.stevebraiden.com

INTERVIEW: Randomer [Super]

Randomer’s music bangs; and it’s a testament to his artist name and personality that his music can bang in such different measures. His early work on Hospital Records offshoot Med School trod a darker more rolling jungle sound set (hence the release on a d&b affiliated label) but his newer stuff – including collaborations with Fife and Adverse – seems to be on more of an energetic house tempoed carnival kind of tip. His recent work on Soul Jazz and Brighton label Tru Thoughts has been of the highest quality, those glossy, high energy, full clip kind of tracks that unleash themselves across any dancefloor. Catching our attention from the off, they’re measured to perfection, with thick stabbing FM bass and at times (‘Zabu’ put out on Tru Thoughts is a case in point) the melodic emphasis is simply stunning.

With a release out on Raffertie’s Super imprint this week, a release that features a couple of collaborations and remixes from HomePark and Greymatter (previews of which are embedded below), we figured it high time that our geographical bedfellow Randomer took the reigns of our mix series, so we set him the task of curating our first mix of 2011. Now we get to bask in the results...

SR: Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?

Randomer: My real name is Rohan and I’m from north London. My first release was in 2008 on Medschool and since then I’ve had music put out by a variety of labels such as Hospital, Soul Jazz, and Tru Thoughts.

Outside of music who are you? What do you do on the daily?

There isn’t really any outside of music to me. I decided to concentrate on music production full-time about a year ago and have been lucky enough to get by so far, with short spells of teaching music to help me along. I spend most days from waking to sleep working on writing music or discussing it with my flatmates who also write.

How did you first get into making music? What was it that infected you to do so?

I’ve been making my own music in one way or another since I first picked up the guitar aged 12, and started making electronic music at the age of 15 on Cubase and Fruity Loops. I couldn’t honestly say what made me write music, I’ve just always been more interested in making my own than learning other peoples. I think it was my first proper experiences of rave culture (both chemically and physically) in my late teens that made me so passionate about writing electronic dance music.

What’s your production set up like?

I use Ableton Live on a PC which I recently switched to from Cubase - the workflow in Ableton is amazing, it really suits the intuitive way I go about writing music. I have Mackie HR824 monitors and a large midi keyboard also. Occasionally I play live bass or guitar on my tracks and I’ve been saving up for a decent microphone to record more live sounds.

How would you describe your sound?

My sound is pretty random. I mean at the time of thinking of the name ‘Randomer’ I have no idea what came through my head, but I’ve stuck with it because it seems to suit my music. I write in a really intuitive way, usually depending on how I’m feeling on the day and what is inspiring me then will dictate the music that I come up with.

My music from one track to the next can be pretty bi-polar. I think the two most prevalent things that determine how I sound, are a kind of quirky, tongue in cheek energy and a deep, dark and sometimes aggressive vibe. It’s those parts of my personality that compete with each other to come alive in my music.


SPR003 : Randomer & Adverse – Alizé

I remember getting a zip of the tunes you did with Fife (that ended up on the Soul Jazz 12”) and it was a departure from that Med School tip – only one of the files worked and I was gutted not to get both haha – it was such a pleasant surprise to hear something on much more of a soca tip. Do you listen to a lot of that type of music?

I listen to all kinds of stuff from all around the world, old and new. Discovering other sorts of music is another thing that makes it all worthwhile. Whether I was listening to soca or not at the time I don’t remember, but what I do know is that there was a lot of sun in 2010 in London and that seemed to have quite an effect on what I was writing at the time.

As my discography is a little disjointed it can be sometimes be hard to work out how the Medschool and Soul Jazz stuff fits together, but they’re all basically part of this two-sided thing that I elaborated on in the last question. This may have hindered me commercially a little as it can be hard for first listeners to pinpoint where I stand, but it also has the advantage of giving me distinctiveness. And excuses the fact that I called myself ‘Randomer’...

You share an affinity to the kind of impact that Untold unleashed with his eski sounding Stop What You’re Doing era work. What are the really important elements to your music? i.e. Bass, melody etc and why?

Jack is constantly pushing the boat with his production and everything he comes out with I find inspires me, so I’m glad that my work comes across with an affinity to his.

I love percussion. Sometimes simple stomping rhythms do it for me, but I also like complex cross-rhythms and syncopation. Melodically, I have perhaps gone too far in writing overly complex melodies in the past, due to my background in jazz improvisation, so I’ve recently been simplifying things to give some more coherence. It’s a balancing act.

Your beats have been picked up by the DJ elite, from Ben UFO beyond, do you feel comfortable making music for dancefloors?

I enjoy the limitation of writing music that has to be mixed by DJs. It means you have the challenge of being as creative as possible within a fairly rigid structure. I don’t want to repeat what has been written thousands of times, but you can’t put across in words how great the collective experience of a properly tuned soundsystem with a good crowd and skilled selector is.

What is an inspiration for you?

Other people’s music. Although I did hear this street cleaning machine while walking down Wood Green high street the other day that made the sickest sound. And there is this broken fridge in the Tesco express in Hornsey that makes the DARKEST synth noise.

I read that you consider yourself something of a synth geek? What is it about them that you can loose hours in/on do you think?

I’m a music geek. Synth is part of it. I really enjoy making weird sounds from scratch, its proper satisfying when you spend hours warping a sound until you create something that you’ve never heard before. But it probably ends up being so weird that you could never use it in a tune.


Are there any producers you rate that the world should know about?
Blawan has some fire coming this year. He’s got ridiculous skills. Also I hear something about there being a militant gabba collective called Hornsey Terror Corps that will be making waves.

You’ve just put out a 12” on Raffertie’s Super imprint. Can you tell us a bit about that and shed some light on what people can expect from you in 2011...

The release on Super is a pretty quirky collection of dancefloor tracks that I wrote during some sunny and probably hungover days. ‘Alizé’ has a bit of a vintage 2-step feel with cut up vocals and some bouncy synths and ‘Five’ is a bass heavy stomper with some marching band stuff going on.

In 2011: I have a collaboration I did with Foamo last year which is coming out in late Jan / early Feb on Fat!. Remixes in February for Marla and the Nightshifters artist Magnum and following that there will be some more stuff with Super, and later in the year I’ve got some tough dark vibes coming out but must remain hushed about which labels as it is still a bit secret.

Tell us a little bit about the mix you’ve put together for us…

The mix I’ve done represents where I am at musically at the moment. It’s a mixture of UK bass music, house and techno, a bit of a musical journey. One tune I had to put in the mix is the opening track.

I found it on my laptop desktop and had thought Joe had left it on there but he denies this, and there’s this strange vibe to the track – the whole thing is a bit mysterious.

I have included some exclusives which are so fresh that I have to keep the artist names secret for now, I’m sure you will found out what they are and who wrote them in the next few months.

Any words of wisdom, for our readers?

Work hard, play hard, take the piss.

::

DOWNLOAD: Randomer – Sonic Router Mix #64



Tracklist:

Jason Havelock - The Fusion
Olantunji - Jin-Go-Lo-Ba
Cristian Vogel - Bopx Bocx Variant 1
Batida - Puxa (Randomer Re-edit)
Green Velvet - Pursuit
Gregor Salto - Just for Fun
Manare - Voodoo
Talk - Holy Mountain
Apster Firebeatz - Cencerro
Dj Gregory & Gregor Salto - Vem Rebola (Instrumental)
A Made up Sound - Rear Window (Shattered)
? - Lavender
? - Lost Everything
Blawan - Bohla
Randomer - Brunk
? - Obtuse (VIP)

Links:
http://soundcloud.com/randomer
www.facebook.com/rohanrandomer

RECOMMENDED: Dro Carey – Venus Knock EP [The Trilogy Tapes]

Dro Carey is a young Australian producer who is undoubtedly one to keep an eye on this year - his blend of haunted hip-hop is really on point. His debut 12”, the Venus Knock EP, is a super limited affair for The Trilogy Tapes so get in quick if you like physical product, if you miss it, don’t fret. Theres already talk from Ikonika of picking him up for a release on her and Optimum’s Hum & Buzz label. The EP shows Carey flexing his muscles and knocking out some seriously twisted mutations – imagine a heavier variant of the ghostly R&B of How To Dress Well or Hype Williams playing off the computer funk of Actress or 10-20 and the twisting bass heavy drum machine/sample workouts of DJ Rashad then you’ll be somewhere close.

Starting with a strong opener, the brooding ‘Get Rid Of This Guy,’ Carey takes rolling 808 drum patterns and plays them off a menacing sluggish synth tone. Along with the infectious chopped vocal motifs it’s a real winner. Quick on its heels is the booming title track; whose bass punch hits holes in your chest, as the angry buzz swoops into earshot through a post-industrial haze it all becomes a little bit more sinister.

Flip the wax over for the slow motion smudge of ‘Dead Keys’, which feels like its come fresh off the set of a horror film with a scene set in a Chicago house club, the vocal hits twisted in and out of shape against the creeping backdrop. While the closer ‘Glitter Variables’ sounds like a submarine in trouble sampled and chopped into the form of a lost Dance Mania record.

A super solid EP all round.

Words: James Balf
Out: Now



Links:
http://drocar.tumblr.com
www.thetrilogytapes.com

DOWNLOAD: Hackman & Jamie Grind - Saw The Light (Mista Men Remix)

The Footwork EP on Glasgow's Fortified Audio imprint, out digitally today, marks the debut solo release for Yorkshireman, Jamie Grind. After releasing on Spatial's Infrasonics label with the resplendent 'Balloon' and 'If You Want' on a split 12" with Irish producer Gon, Grind has been a staple in our Hivemind FM sessions, often providing a melodic respite to the overloaded drum workouts we're prone to.

Featuring 4 tracks, including the constant drum machine trickle of 'Without You' whose high pitched percussion line bubbles over snatches of Grind's 2step blessed drum lines, the EP shines thanks to a collaboration with fellow Leeds resident, Hackman. Called 'Saw The Light' its more subtle than the other three tracks, peeling off in tangents, before the snatched vocal merges with the roughened bass line, creating an emotive house tempoed workout that gets better with each listen.

To mark the passing of the EP, we've been bestowed the honour of passing out the Mista Men refix of that Hackman collaboration. In the Doncaster trio's patent leathery style (check out their recent SR mix) they focus a little more on the interplay between 4x4 pulse and the bass, splicing apart the tunes melody whilst managing to retaining the same kind of harmonic linearity.

DOWNLOAD: Hackman & Jamie Grind - Saw The Light (Mista Men Remix)



Links:
www.myspace.com/jamiegrindmusic
www.myspace.com/fortifiedaudio

READ: Trap Magazine #002

The 2nd issue of Trap Magazine should be in shops and on streets (not literally, though if it is, pick it up and read it) now. Harbouring an interview, penned by yours truly, with SBTRKT, a chart from Hessle Audio and selector general, Ben UFO, and assorted reviews it also features accomplished interviews with Jammer and Mumdance, Spectrasoul and Logan Sama and more.

You can read it online below, but grab a physical copy if you can. The paper quality is gorgeous.



Link:
www.trapmagazine.co.uk

STREAM: Sonic Router x Hivemind.fm 09.01.2011

Sonic Router on Hivemind.fm
Hosted by Oli Marlow.
Bi-weekly/every 2nd & 4th Sunday of the month // 10pm -12am

The first SRxHM session of 2011 aka The Honeydew Confidential.

Yes - I was a little over excited.

STREAM: Sonic Router x Hivemind.fm 09.01.2011

Tracklist:

1. Kidstreet - Out Loud (XI Remix) [unreleased]
2. Portrait - Because [unreleased]
3. vood - Summer [Free via Bandcamp]
4. George Fitzgerald - Don't You [forthcoming Hotflush]
5. Wascal - Stork [forthcoming TTKK]
6. Trim - F64 [Monkey Features]
7. Gremino - Ruffness [Car Crash Set]
8. Wiley - Bow E3 (King Cannibal Remix) [Big Dada]
9. Gremino - Silver [Car Crash Set]
10. XI - Nitelite [free from SonicRouter.com]
11. Randomer & Adverse - Alize [Super]
12. Bad Autopsy - Gin Mixer [forthcoming Ramp Recordings]
13. Addison Groove - Footcrab VIP [free from Swamp81]
14. Shackleton - International Fires [free from XLR8R]
15. simon/off - Start The Pressure [unreleased]
16. Jamie Grind - Without You [forthcoming Fortified Audio]
17. XI - Medicate [forthcoming Orca]
18. Hyetal & Baobinga - Trouble [forthcoming BUILD]
19. Mickey Pearce - Whats Mickey Talkin About [forthcoming Blunted Robots]
20. Zoltan - 4am [free via Freshmore http://soundcloud.com/freshmore]
21. Toddska - Gal From England [forthcoming Girls Music]
22. Jamie Woon - Night Air (Deadboy Remix) [free from Numbers]
23. Contakt - Not Forgotten [forthcoming Local Action]
24. Jacques Greene - Holdin' On [forthcoming Lucky Me]
25. Hackman - Bam Bam [forthcoming PTN]
26. Randomer - Five [Super Recordings]
27. Jamie Grind & Hackman - Saw The Light [forthcoming Fortified Audio]
28. Jera - Another One (Mista Men Remix) [unreleased]
29. Hyetal & Baobinga - Anything For Now [forthcoming BUILD]
30. mlr - Knuckle [unfinished & unreleased]
31. Mosca - Tilt Shift (Julio Bashmore Remix) [forthcoming Fat City]
32. Kowton - She Don't Jack [forthcoming Idle Hands]
33. Bad Autopsy - Gin Mixer (DVA Remix) [forthcoming Ramp Recordings]
34. Niaggra - Travesti + Palmeiras AV [Ltd CDR from Dromos]
35. FaltyDL - Hip Love (Jamie XX Remix) [forthcoming Ramp]
36. Kahn - Like Used To [forthcoming Punch Drunk]
37. Sentel - Bones [unreleased]

Direct Download (Right Click/Save As)

Link:
www.hivemind.fm

DOWNLOAD: Rudi Zygadlo - Don't Distrub The Beats

Rudi Zygadlo’s Great Western Laymen album, released last year on Planet Mu, was something of a triumph that saw him mix weighty low end with his own brand of whimsy, borderline operatic song writing. Tracks like ‘Resealable Friendship’ start in full choral effect before Zygaldo unleashes the best synthesized parts of the 1980s all over his simplistic drum patterns. His bubbly instrumentals came across completely different, fully harnessing the luminescence of skweee with a distinctly layered approach to production.

Since his album release Rudi’s been on something of a mission, performing his gloriously peculiar brand of music in front of people. Come January 17th he’s giving out two tracks that in his own words are “essentially reworks of ‘Filthy Logic’ and ‘Manuscripts Don’t Burn.’ I can’t really justify physically releasing them so here they are free of (obligatory) charge,” so we quickly caught up with him to learn us and you a little bit more about his forthcoming music.

SR: What have you been up to since the album release? How are you finding performing your music to people?

Rudi Zygadlo: Touring, somewhat sporadically, which has been bizarre. And I suppose it’s been a maiden voyage, having never really played live or otherwise before the release of the album. It's really a gratifying experience, having people appreciate your stuff live and recognizing the sounds you made whimsically in your bedroom.

What’s the deal with the new material? Is it a departure for you?

The next release is certainly a development. Hopefully a maturation of the sounds you have heard on Laymen but in some cases, a simplification. I found producing the first album a fairly painless and fluid process. Most of the tracks took a day or two pen and the most burdensome part was writing lyrics. That has since changed. I guess on Laymen… I put all my ideas out there hurriedly and excitedly. Now the task involves trying break new ground and not repeat myself.

Alas these, two tracks are covers of myself, haha.


Rudi Zygadlo – Kiss the Braille Mirror

Why give this out for free?

Yeah so ‘Don't Distrub the Beast’s' are reworks of Laymen tracks, ‘Filthy Logic’ and ‘Manuscripts Don't Burn.’ I wanted to give those of you who supported me and enjoy my music something to hear while I finish and get round to releasing new material.

What else is coming up for you in 2011?

I am planning a release this year on Mu - the material is pretty much finished - a bunch of new songs and some instrumentals.

::

You can download the tracks from Rudi’s tumblr from the 17th January 2011: rudi-zygadlo.tumblr.com/music

DOWNLOAD: V/A - EP 1 [TAKE]

2010 was a strong year for a lot of people, it also unearthed a treasure trove of new artists and interesting tasters available in cyberspace for the price of your curiosity. Judging by the glut of free music over the festive period alone (Addison Groove’s ‘Footcrab VIP’, Numan’s free album and Skream’s collated Freeizm series) this year should well prove to be just as big for many artists and developing imprints. TAKE Records are an outfit we’ve taken a shine to recently, we profiled one of their artists, James Fox back in January of last year, and we’re happy to tell you that they themselves have uploaded a free EP featuring 4 tracks from upcoming TAKE artists.

“With the free EP we basically wanted to give a little taster of what the label is about, and to remove the obstacle of price so that curious folk could easily find out,” label man Rick Grant told us. “We like to think the package showcases our preference for deep, (hopefully) exciting music, whatever the genre, our desire to unearth and develop new talent (Colo, for example, had never released a record prior to this project), and a passion to present the material in a cohesive and consistently desirable way.”

“In terms of what's next for TAKE, the fourth release will be an EP from Jack Dixon and Robin Card, and should be available within the next couple of months. We're really pleased to have Jack involved with the label - we feel he has the potential to make a bit of a name for himself in 2011, and he's a sterling chap to boot. That aside, we would dearly love to put on some sort of label night - we've had such an incredible spread of artists involved so far that it would be amazing to try and get them all under one roof.”

DOWNLOAD: V/A – EP 1 [TAKE] (DL will start automatically)

Tracklist:

1. Colo - Twentysix
2. James Fox - Found A Way
3. Jack Dixon - Wrong Number
4. Mr Lager - Singularity

Link:
www.takerecords.co.uk

RECOMMENDED: V/A - Skweee Cruise [Poisonous Gases]

The Poisonous Gases camp from America just upped a new compilation to their bandcamp page. Entitled Skweee Cruise the 18 track collection listens like a veritable whose who of synthetic electronic funk, with outstanding contributions from Myor label boss Coco Bryce, our good buddy Boss Kite, the incredible Slow Hand Motem, the innovator himself Daniel Savio and... um... yours truly - with a tongue-in-beat I made some time ago for Slugabed called, 'Greg Says...'

Available digitally for under $10 US dollars the album is also seeing a physical release across 2 x 12"s which you can pre-order now for $19. The LP version promises to be shipped on or around the 21st January.

RECOMMENDED: V/A - Skweee Cruise [Poisonous Gases]



Link:
www.poisonousgases.com

RECOMMENDED: Instra:mental – Zones [Semantica]

2010 was one hell of a year for London duo Instra:mental. Alongside spearheading the Autonomic sound’s drastic, frequently stunning reinvention of drum ‘n’ bass, alongside labelmate/collaborator dBridge and the likes of ASC and Consequence, their output away from 170bpm continued to broaden into slo-mo house, synth-driven electro and minimalist dubstep forms. To be fair, on initial inspection that might seem par for the course in the current bass landscape: if there’s been one overarching trend during the last couple of years, it’s been the distinct absence of the strict limitations dubstep once imposed on its producers. But very few have managed the transition between styles with such flair.

I suspect it’s in part due to the shapeshifting nature of the Autonomic sound they developed. Much like the process that transformed UK garage into early dubstep, it’s predominantly characterised by peeling away extraneous layers, leaving progressively fewer elements to work alongside one another: literally stripping dance music down to it’s barest essentials. Fused with the hefty Detroit techno influence at play in ‘Watching You’ and the Drexciyan depth charge of ‘Futurist’, in 2010 that spacious template spawned house so deep it was practically subaquatic (‘Let’s Talk’), acidic electro (‘Voyeur’ and Boddika’s ‘Boddika’s House’) and an expansive Fabriclive drum ‘n bass mix. In sheer breadth of vision, it’s pretty safe to say that Instra:mental embody a certain mongrel state of health in UK bass – one that finds kindred deconstructionist spirits all the way from Swamp81’s juke-tinged 808 workouts to Peverelist’s rolling, junglist grooves, via widescreen innovations from the likes of Kowton, Hessle Audio, Ostgut Ton and Kassem Mosse.

The duo’s latest release Zones (strictly their final 12” of last year) is a seriously limited preview of two tracks from this spring’s full-length album. And if this pair are anything to go by it’s a pretty unique proposition; advance reports have already confirmed a move away from drum ‘n’ bass tempo to a varied region between 100 and 140 bpm, and Boddika’s upcoming Swamp81 release is pure synthetic electro. Both ‘Love Arp’ and ‘Sun Rec’ slot neatly alongside, and offer a tantalising taste of what’s to come in April. ‘Sun Rec’s fusion of shattered percussion and pure eighties synthesis seems tailor made to attract adjectives like ‘lush’ and ‘sumptuous’. It’s a slow and considered trip through arpeggios that drift and cascade like the spray around a waterfall, discovering a groove that’s perhaps a little too unstable for easy dancing but which through a good system transforms into a beast both hulking and deceptively sensitive.

‘Love Arp’ is even better. Occupying a similar retrofuturistic space as much of Instra:mental’s recent output, it’s reminiscent of nothing so much as a vision of 2011 as imagined by the population of the late seventies: gaudy and polished to a high sheen, but with the tiniest hint of grit running beneath the surface. It’s neither entirely fatalistic (like the terrifying police-run London of ‘No Future’) nor wholly utopian (‘Watching You’s paean to finally requited digital love), but sits somewhere comfortably in between. In the end, it’s not so far off what the real 2011 might sound like, were it that easy to simply package a year into four minutes of music.

Words: Rory Gibb
Out: Now (limited to 300 vinyl copies. No digital)

Link:
www.myspace.com/instramentaluk