Tuesday, 23 June 2009
INTERVIEW: Octa Push [Iberian]
With the Portugese sound of Kuduro blowing up, with the scene's main exports, Buraka Som Sistema, going from strength to strength its currently a great time for Portugal's underground music network. Octa Push are a duo who fuse rolling drum breaks with sub bass in a particularly driving minimal style, eeking out a beautifully complex and forceful style all of their own.
Ahead of a couple of London dates and just after their performance in the Red Bull Music Academy tent at Sonar we tracked them down to an IP address to DL their exclusive Sonic Router mix and get the lowdown on what they do.
Sonic Router: Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?
Octa Push: We're Dizzycutter and Mushug, two brothers from Portugal, we've been making tunes for a while. In 2008 we started this live project [Octa Push] that fuses Garage with Bashment, Afrobeat, Techno and Dub.
Outside of music who are you? What do you do on the daily?
Dizzycutter is Leo a Web/graphic designer. Mushug is Bruno and he studies sound.
How did you first get into recording music? What was it that infected you to do produce?
We both started making tracks around 1997/1998. Dizzycutter used to play drums at a Metal and Hip-Hop band. The band split, and then he started building jungle tracks at home with some material from a friend. Mushug was younger, he eventually ditched his Sega Master System to make beats aswell.
What’s the big idea behind the Octa Push moniker?
It's about pushing octaves, not really underwater hockey unlike most people think.
How did you get into making music?
Last year we were talking about how it was stupid that we were both making music for a long time but we werent collaborating or taking it seriously. Then Conspira - one of the first portuguese crews pushing bass music - asked us if we could play a show at one of their nights.
We accepted and started making loads of tracks and found a really silly name. From that point it was on!
Whats you production set up like? Has it changed a lot since day dot?
We're using mainly Cubase, loads of VSTs and midi controllers, pretty basic and simple but we plan to extend it at some point with some hardware! Individually we started making tracks with a small keyboard and a 2 deck tape recorder. After that came Acid and Rebirth using a wack Hi Fi music system's speakers.
How did you first get into the dubstep sound? What was it that sucked you in?
There was this DJ ThinKing mix from 2004 that was really fresh. The music had lot's of space and bass. It's funny because we knew a bit of UK Garage and names like Zed Bias, DJ Zinc, Ed Case, The Streets before but took a while to see a relation between them and the particular sound from that mix.
Whats the scene like out in Portugal? Is it going strong?
Loads of wicked music coming from here, things are really taking off. It's great to see that there's actually a new portuguese sound shaping up, drinking from all the influences of different cultures that this country has/had!
What can we expect from you guys in 2009?
We've just finished a couple of official remixes, one for DJ Znobia and other for Debruit. There's also an original 12" coming out on Iberian Records, it features panamanian badman MC Zulu and cape verdean talent Toni Clean.
As for gigs, we just played Sonar and we're at fabric on June 26th. In July we've got gigs lined up at Cable and Glade Festival.
We're really happy how things are moving...
Your mix represents your live sets quite nicely… what are you using to mix your sounds together live?
We're using laptops, Ableton and MPD samplers. This mix was recorded only by one of us, so live we have an extra couple of arms and more things happening. More dynamic in general!
What can people expect when they come to see you?
Expect two guys pushing buttons while dancing like cavemen.
Have you got anything else you want to tell us, words of wisdom for our readers?
Always take care of your back if you dance like a caveman...
::
DOWNLOAD: Octa Push - MPDTAPE for Sonic Router
Tracklist:
Octa Push - Quebu Sabe
Octa Push - Kolokani
Octa Push - Sasquatch
Octa Push - Laika Likes It
Monkey Steak - Voodoo is Everywhere (Octa Push RMX)
DJ Znobia - Me Batem (Octa Push RMX)
Octa Push - Dubshh
Debruit - I'm Going With You (Octa Push RMX)
Octa Push ft MC Zulu - Baila Mundo
Catch Octa Push at fabric this Friday (26th June) alongside El-B and Hot City.
Link:
www.myspace.com/octapush
EVENT: Focus w/ Ikonika & Geiom
Ikonika and Geiom join Bristol regulars EFA and Pete Forsaken for a jam-a-lam at the Tube on the 26th... Bristol fam stand up.
Look out for EFA's EXCLUSIVE Sonic Router Mix coming shortly.
Link:
www.myspace.com/essentialfattyacid
PRE-ORDER: Ike Release vs. Hot City
The first 12" to be released on Infrasonics comes in the form of a split single between Chicago's Ike Release and London's own Hot City.
Read the full review here: http://www.residentadvisor.net/review-view.aspx?id=6306
Links:
www.infrasonics.net
DOWNLOAD: DeVille - Calippo Mix
Don't you hate the way European countries get everything we have but in like 5 different flavours that seem exclusive to them? Case in point: Banana and Chocolate Cornettos, Cola flavoured Calippos and the fruit rich Fitness Cereal that kept me super regular in La Herradura last month.
Anyway - Senseless honcho DeVille is back with a Summer selection featuring Joker and Ginz's refix of Basement Jaxx.
Ahoy.
DOWNLOAD: DeVille - Calippo Mix
Tracklist:
Instituto Mexicano Del Sonido - Cumbia (Tom Tom Club Remix) w/ Bun B - Pop it 4 Pimp Acapella
Coki & Benga - Night (Sonido Del Principe RMX)
Amadou & Mariam - Sabali (Dakunt & Stinj RMX)
Basement Jaxx - Raindrops (Joker & Ginz RMX)
Pacheko & Pocz - Zarbak
Shystie - Bad Gal Bass (Ill Blu Funky RMX)
Benga - 26 Basslines (Dubble Step RMX)
Sticky ft Marvin Brown - Jack It Up
Dizzee Rascal - Bonkers (Club Dub)
Buraka Som Sistema - IC19
Maxwell D & Lil Silva - Blackberry Hype
DJQ - Shottas (MR V RMX)
Stagga - Rockin Down The House
Lol Boys/Sukh Knight - Diesel Paint Job
Sasquatch - Kickboxer
Swindle - A Different World
Toddla T - Shake It (Donaeo RMX)
DJ Gregory - Block Party (DJ Spen Dub)
Untold - Anaconda
Iron Soul - Pressure Instrumental
Tempa T - Next Hype (Mosca RMX)
Roska - Climate Change
DeVille ft Violet - Click (Octapush RMX)
Metronomy - Radio Ladio (Radioclit RMX)
Madeira Limpia - La Lenta (Schlachthofbronx RMX)
Boy Better Know - Too Many Man (Heartless Crew RMX)
DeVille - Calippo / w Busy Signal - Step Out Acapella
Ghosttown - Greezy
Links:
www.senselessrecords.co.uk
www.bassraiders.net
STREAM: Lunice - Dazed Digital Mix
Turbo Crunk affiliate and one of the finest body poppers YouTube has ever seen, Lunice, has put together an exclusive mix for the peoples over at Dazed Digital.
STREAM: Lunice - Dazed Digital Mix
Tracklist:
01. Lunice - Hip Pop
02. Lunice - Purp Walk
03. Lunice - Let's Go
04. Lunice - Hitmayne
05. Nicole Scherzinger - Whatever U Like (Lunice Remix)
06. Lunice - Wikiwiki
07. Lil' Mama - Lipgloss (Lunice Remix)
08. Lunice - Bring it Back
09. MeGusta - Mega Drive (Lunice Remix)
10. Lunice - Purple Drank
11. Lunice - Retardation
You can also kop his latest 3 track digi EP for free from his myspace page.
DOWNLOAD: Lunice - Out Of Touch
Link:
http://www.myspace.com/Lunice
DOWNLOAD: Zomby - The Lie (1000 Names Remix)
Slump-hop producer extrodinaire, 1000 Names, was drafted in to remix Zomby's smash 'The Lie' but for whatever reason this official remix didn't get used, so he's kindly offered it up to the interweb for a free download.
DOWNLOAD: Zomby - The Lie (1000 Names Remix)
Link:
www.myspace.com/1000names
Thanks to http://svetlanaindustries.blogspot.com for the heads up
Thursday, 18 June 2009
INTERVIEW: Warlock [Rag & Bone]
Warlock is one hell of a DJ, splicing styles and mixes mannerisms as quickly and stylishly as possible. His 'Out On The Lash' mix smacked the SR camp between the eyes when it was unleashed all those months ago and his genre blending really is nothing short of legendary.
Ahead of his Rag And Bone label's takeover of Room 3 of fabric this Friday we sat him down and he dropped some knowledge all over us as well as blessing us with our 11th exclusive mix.
Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?
Yeah I like to spin bass heavy gnarly music with a good sense of rhythm and funk. My usual set then comprises a mix of dubstep, bassline, fidget, minimal, ghetto, bmore and a fair bit of stuff that fuses a lot of those styles but hasn’t really got a name of its own yet.
Forward thinking cutting edge music I like to think, frontier business. I try to deny it but often there’s usually the odd old skool reference and the occasional hoover mooching about. After all, I’m an old raver at heart and I’m probably living out the hardcore continuum so that’ll explain it. I’m not averse to dropping some old classics in there too, acid house, electro, hardcore, 90s techno, the like.
So that’s me, I’m a DJ by default but got into producing some time after, making music along similar fronts. I’ve been ducking in and out of the music industry for a number of years. I’m currently out cause I’m co-running my own underground label Rag & bone, but perhaps I’m ‘in’ the industry, I’m not really sure. I’ve also got a regular show on Sub FM which I co-host with Noyeahno (archives here http://www.dubstepforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=59998
Outside of music who are you? What do you do on the daily?
When I’m not running the label or dj-ing I teach, music production, music industry stuff, DJing, In some ways I’m a bit sad because everything I do evolves around music but at the same time its wicked as I’m working in the area I like.
Whats the meaning behind the Warlock moniker?
I was about to start playing on a London pirate radio station and needed an alias. I went to a clairvoyant once and she said I used to be a Warlock in a past life and at the time so I thought yeah that fits. I’d been playing heavier darker music (no change there then) so it definitely seemed suitable. I don’t believe in any of that mumbo jumbo though. She must have had a tip off I was coming.
Funnily enough everyone thinks I grew up playing dungeons and dragons which I’ve never done in my life!! I’ve never really been into anything like that at all to be honest.
How did you get into making music?
The flashing lights and dark noises sucked me in. As a teenager I was an indie kid, was learning guitar and then acid house came along and completely fucked my head up. I was like “what is this stuff?” Sadly I’ve now demystified the aura of how on earth people make these incredible sounds and how a DJ could possibly blend 2 or more records together into one big long continuous soundscape but I still seek that same sense of “what the fuck? What is that? Where did that come from?”
I’d been DJing a few years before buying my first piece of kit, an Akai sampler. It was such a wicked machine, was a really good grounding and taught me a lot about making music with technology. It took me a few years to realise this is what I was supposed to be doing. I kept going round denying it, thinking yeah I must sort myself out with a proper job.
What’s your production set up like? When did you start producing and what was your set up like then compared to now?
My first sessions in the studio were with Asides and Optical and also Sebastian from Spiral Tribe. It was wicked working with them because they knew so much, but I’ve always been one for doing things myself and wanted to be more hands on, so I spent a good few years setting my own studio and learning the gear.
Not the quickest way of going about things but its how I wanted to do it. This was about 1995. Back then computers were just a small part of things, just a midi arranger. I started out working with an Akai 3000 sampler, 808 drum machine and a Sequential 6 track synthesiser. I still have all the gear and have combined the studio with Noyeahno’s which now means among other things there’s some fat analogue Roland synths in there too.
However that said everything is now done on the computer. I’ve always used Cubase since day one but have recently switched to Logic so its been back to the drawing board with having to re-learn everything.
You run Rag & Bone alongside Noyeahno. Can you give those who may not be so up on it a brief history?
Noyeahno is my other half and even before we knew each other we had both been playing similar music in similar places, so once we’d been together for a while it seemed a logical thing to set up a label. The focus has always been about releasing bass heavy dance music with some kind of funk, and which doesn’t really fit easily into one genre, kind of straddles the lines a bit, is original. And its always been about trying to sign big big tunes that rock a dancefloor.
Originally it was for our own productions which all too often were never clearly one style, but we’ve opened up the label to other artists to keep everything fresh. Over the years we’ve released music by Drop The Lime, Kanji Kinetic, King Cannibal, Blackmass Plastics, FZV, and more recently Excision and Stagga. We’ve always been about releasing 12” vinyl which we’re still doing, but it’s a difficult time at the moment with that format ever more under pressure. We are selling records but it can be difficult because the style of some of releases only sells on digital so it’s making us wonder if we should become purely a digital label.
We’ve always been under the radar in terms of this development that has been going on with the way consuming music has changed in the last decade but things seem to be reaching a point where even we are now feeling it. Pressing up vinyl is a costly process so one big fail can hit you really hard. It’s always good having that sort of pressure though because it forces you to make sure you don’t release any old shite, gives some quality control, unlike some digital labels out there. There’s more stuff out there than ever before (which is good), but if you’re prepared to commit to vinyl then you would like to think it has to be good.
We’ve been planning for ages to expand into the CD album market but again its another declining format so it’s a case of whether its worth taking the risk or not. For the long term future, it’s really difficult to say. The concept of a record label in the sense it has existed up to this point is dead. The future of consuming music is getting it for free. That’s how it is. That’s how it’s going to be. There was a really interesting debate recently organised by Music Tank which stated that in this digital age, anything that can be copied has zero financial value, and anything that can’t has immense value. Thus music has no value but an artist (which can’t be copied) is incredibly valuable. Doesn’t look good for the record labels does it?
I’m happy to embrace this but from a label’s perspective, we’re living on borrowed time. The only reason we can still do this for now is because the music has a niche status and there is still a certain cult appeal for the vinyl format. But yeah I’m actually positive about this. I’m in it for the long haul because I still get off on all the new music that comes through, and this flow of music won’t stop regardless of whether you can sell it or not. I’m just a bit unsure which way it’s gonna pan out though. Exciting times though... really exciting.
Your hosting a Rag & Bone room at fabric on the 19th June. What have you got in store for the punters?
I’m really pleased with the link up. We’ve got to program some of the artists that myself and Noyeahno really think are doing it at the moment. We’ve done club nights in the past where you get to curate all the best music you want to hear but because you‘re running around like a blue arsed fly you don’t actually get to appreciate it. So the Fabric night is gonna be well enjoyable. Everyone we have chosen is totally on fire at the moment, Stagga, Kanji Kinetic, Raffertie. Both myself and Noyeahno play a variety of styles, new and old and are quite versatile with how we play so we will both slot around the others to make sure there is a good flow to the night but still bang it out in our own way.
Musically it’s gonna be pure filth. Stagga has just got this totally warped take on dubstep right now. He’s got a real trademark sound at the moment which over the next year I’m sure your gonna get a lot of copycats for. Less typical for a dubstep producer, he’s actually got a good grounding in hip hop and so his music is fat as fuck, swung lo and super crunchy. Kanji Kinetic, well, again, he’s come through with a completely unique mash up bassline sound, which its unfair to call it bassline, because its as much that as it is bmore, hardcore and more. Man makes proper big belters of a tune. And Raffertie; yeah, utterly next level. It’s like he just emptied trash into a food blender and makes totally wrong but actually completely right fucked up shit as a result. There’s psycho basslines from hell, alluding to dubstep, 4/4 etc and then in comes a cheesy steel from some 90s dance hit. Its nuts, but the whole thing completely works.
What else is coming up on the label in 2009?
We’re really exited about the future releases. There is about 3 or 4 really exciting projects being lined up but because they’re not 100% locked down I can’t really say!!
And in terms of Warlock productions can we expect to be slewed anytime soon?
I’ve got a track coming out on Coin Operated in the next couple of weeks. Again it’s a label that’s on form at the moment. My track ‘Black Bag Of Doom’ (check da myspace) is on there which typically, and not by design, doesn’t really fit into a genre. Loosely its got a heavy uptempo grimey beat in there with some frenetic latin vocals, but I’m not totally sure what it is. Need an outside perspective on that one.
I’ve also got a remix about to land on the streets for Cynthia Stern and his Input/Output label from Sweden which is actually a cheeky remix of Follow The Leader. There was a quirky dubstep track of mine called ‘Click Clack’ which recently came out on Scan One’s Yellow Machines imprint too. But yeah I’ve definitely got to get back on it as I haven’t been too productive lately. I’ve been busy running the label, dj-ing and also had problems with my studio computer (which have thankfully been resolved) but to doubly compound matters I’ve just taken on the task of learning Logic. But its all good, I’m well itching to get a load of new ideas down. Soon come!!
Got any wisdom you’d like to impart on the interweb?
Don’t live in the past because you’ll be there when you die.
::
DOWNLOAD: Warlock - Sonic Router Mix
Tracklist:
1. Jannner - Beelzebub
2. De Niro - Babylon
3. Untold - I Can't Stop This Feeling
4. Howie B vs Casino Royale - Ramandanman Redub Dub
5. Ramadanman - Revenue (Untold Remix)
6. Dead Sound - Shuffle
7. NB Funky - Riddim Box
8. Whistla - 420 Lockdown
9. DJ Comix - 2 Kool 4 School
10. DJ Comix - Run Da Track
11. Kanji Kinetic feat Shifty Moova
12. AC Slater - No Party For Old Men
13. Cryogenix - Jungle Tribe
14. Stagga - Sick As Sin (Ultra V.I.P)
Links:
www.myspace.com/warlockdj
www.ragandbonerecords.co.uk
::
Catch Warlock and his fam at fabric this Friday
Friday, 12 June 2009
COMPETITION: Win Sin City 001 Promos
Thanks to the kind people behind Friday 19th's Medium vs. Sin City clash at Cable we've got 2 promo pressings of Sin City 001 to give away to you lucky people. The 12" features:
Coki & N-Type - 'Debt'
Benga - 'On The Edge'
Chef - 'Obama Bass'
Lost - 'Nack Back'
Crazy D - 'Flex Ting'
Just answer the following question with an email to be in the running.
N-Type's favourtie meal is:
A) Jacket, Beans & Cheese
B) Leg of Lamb w/ Mint Sauce
3) Pot Roast
Winners will be announced post Sonar.
::
Also you can check out the other side of the music programming, the drums and the bass aspect, from the Medium room right hurrr.
DOWNLOAD: Rockwell - DOA Mix
Tracklist:
01) ROCKWELL - MOLLOCH
02) SABRE - ASH
03) INSTRA:MENTAL - NO FUTURE
04) ROCKWELL - UNDERPASS
05) DATA - THE SPRAWL
06) ALIX PEREZ - IM FREE
07) OPTICAL + RYMETYME - WE ENTER
08) SPECTRASOUL - MIMIC
09) ALIX PEREZ + SURVIVAL - UNTITLED
10) DATA - KYUSHOJUTSU
11) JUNE MILLER - SHIMIZU
12) ROCKWELL - TRIBES
13) SPECTRASOUL - ORGANISER (RAMADANMAN REMIX)
14) ROCKWELL - STOWAWAY
15) ASC - ALCHEMIST
16) LOXY + RESOUND - OBLIVION
17) GREMLINZ + GOLD STAR - SEAN ROMAN
18) ROCKWELL - NOIR
19) JUNE MILLER – POISON THE WELL
20) CONSEQUENCE – TIMELOSS
Links:
http://wordpress.hyponik.com
INTERVIEW: s p a t i a l
Steeped in 2-step rhythm s p a t i a l's productions across his two 10" releases on his own Infrasonics imprint have earned him two Boomkat 'Single of The Week' acolades and a hell of a lot of interest. Choosing to stick closer to the shadows the fact that the anonymous musical craftsman chooses to name his tracks with purely numerical titles only adds to the cloak of mystery surrounding a producer and label about to blow.
With the first Infrasonics 12", a split release between American producer Ike Release and all around rave smasher Hot City, set for a release later this month we caught up with s p a t i a l, quizzing him in exchange for the 10th installment in our exclusive mix series.
Sonic Router: Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?
s p a t i a l: I produce music as s p a t i a l and run the Infrasonics imprint. The first two releases were my own material in a hybrid format that encompassed 10" vinyl and some freely downloadable/distributable creative commons tracks.
How did you first get into recording music? What was it that infected you to do produce?
Usual story I guess: raves -> decks -> samplers/synths. I've been messing around with sound for quite a while now but largely for my own amusement. I find it quite therapeutic actually, there's a reflection of my state of mind through engagement in the creative process which can be helpful as well as painful!
I'd actually tuned out of a lot of dance music for a while, but a few years back I found some material in Smallfish that rekindled my interest and had similar themes to ideas I'd been thinking about. That was the first Hyperdub 10" and The Bug thing on Rephlex, and a Tempa 12". I was keen to try an enforce some more clearly defined boundaries within which to produce and I could relate to the common threads in those records.
I'm pretty fascinated with sound at its most fundamental level and the psychological/visceral impact that it can have on us. There's an innate connection that's more obvious to me than with any other artistic medium. Bearing that in mind I guess it was a fairly obvious step to become immersed in production.
What’s your production set up like? Do you use software most of the time while producing or do you have a nice stash of synths and all that to play with?
I just use a laptop with soft synths, a sequencer and a sample library that I've collected. I have a couple of midi controllers, actually one is a Yamaha An1x but I never use it's sound banks. I had a full hardware studio a few years back I decided to streamline my setup. Now I've got a few bits of redundant kit hanging around.
Your music has heavy garage rhythms, how did you get into 2-step?
A mate of mine used to run a speed garage night a few years back, a lot of it was too glossy but some of the tracks had a nice 'grimey,' ravey element to them. I never really paid much attention to track details mind and I certainly wasn't buying that kinda material. When I started the s p a t i a l project, I wanted to have a sound that was very clearly repping the UK, but take in other sounds that influenced me along the way.
I've never really been interested in working with breakbeat loops (despite finding the results effective) and I find there's quite a lot of room to play with rhythm in a 2-step groove. You can play around the meter a little to get things sounding less regimented. I quite like the space to have implied or extra swung embellishments around the more accented half time beats.
Your productions are all titled in numerics. Is that a conscious decision to enamour people to take the music properly, without any hype or judgement clouding? Or is it something entirely different?
I really just wanted to keep the names neutral to fit with the minimal aesthetic of the design. Track names seldom mean much outside of the artist naming them. There's also a small dose lethargy and impertinence involved.
Ha!
So after 2 solo releases from you on your Infrasonics imprint we're expecting a split 12" from Hot City and Ike Release. Firstly, why the split single format? and Secondly what was it about their beats that appealed to you?
I'm keen to challenge the stylistic boundaries to some extent and I think it's more interesting to offer variety in a climate where it's increasingly difficult to justify physical releases, but not so much in an economic sense - more in terms of exposure. Actually, despite the relative cost ineffectiveness of nice design on short vinyl runs it's still something the I hold as a pretty core value, I want the releases to be desirable objects.
Hot City produces relentless, unselfconscious dance-floor bangers that neatly triangulate Hardcore, UK garage and jacking Todd Edward's style New York House. His material neatly encapsulates Occams Razor, and simplicity is something that always seems more easily obtainable when looking with hindsight at an elegant solution.
Ike creates an energetic hybrid of deep, glacial synthetic textures underpinned by solid subs and UK influenced grooves that I found very appealing. The British rave continuum is clear and present across both tracks but re-contextualised amidst a discerning European sonic palette. It's a very warm and optimistic sound.
What else have you got coming up - on the label and otherwise - that you can talk about?
I've done a remix for Badawi which should be coming out on a new label called The Index run by Raz and Dave Q (Dubwar NYC), it looks like an interesting series - the other mixes are by Shackleton, Headhunter and Cardopusher.
I've also completed another remix of a False Prophet track for a label that's being formed now. Both tracks are in the mix.
And I'm currently working on the next 10" of my material.
Can you tell us a bit - walk us through - some of your choices for the mix? Your production style seems to be very heavily detroited 2-step, yet your mix is incredibly varied. Does this represent a normal DJ set for you?
Yeah, if I've got enough time in a set then I like to mix it up. I enjoy playing with the energy levels and although you can do that within one tempo I much prefer to morph things stylistically if I can. The first track by Brassica is just killer, he's a very talented producer of various styles. His "Microvictories" album is very lush, organic electronica where's this track is just vibing!
Probably slightly confusingly, I prefer Dave H's A Made Up Sound moniker to the 2562 stuff. I do like the 2562 material but there's a rawness to the production with AMUS that just gets me. The Omar Funkyman track - hmm, that could cause trouble! In general, there's a lot of interesting Funky tracks around and that soca-esc rhythm is very danceable so that's why there's a healthy dose of that included. The Emvee track is sick! It's funny actually as I was in South America a few years back and started thinking about trying a take on the Reggaeton / Calypso when I returned. Missed a trick there!
I'd been into Disrupt's stuff from when Jahtari was a pure netlabel, before the Werk release, I love it and was glad to see the CD come out. Then there's a couple is more overtly Ravey tracks: a while back I was listening to some old mixes and I was really struck by the energy of that music. After that we're probably into the more expected 140bpm stuff. I really love that Kloke track, the James Blake bit is super addictive and a nice new slant on things and Untold is doing great work also.
I could rant on about all of the tracks really - that's why they're on there! Some of the older stuff is there because I've rediscovered it again recently and still find it so appealing, 2 Bad Mice makes me wanna dance around the room and Phylyps Track has an sonic intensity that parallels the intensity of FWD>> when it's firing.
You got any wisdom you'd like to impart on the internet?
Make your own damn media!
DOWNLOAD: s p a t i a l - Sonic Router Mix
Tracklist:
1. Brassica feat. Lakey - dumdadumdum (forthcoming on Highpoint Lowlife)
2. A Made Up Sound - Next (Subsolo)
3. Hot City - Setting me free (forthcoming on Infrasonics)
4. Omar Funkyman - Jani (Unknown)
5. Emvee - Glitch Dub (Wireblock)
6. D-Malice - Bad Habbits [Roska Mix] (Visions)
7. Drop the Lime - Hear Me [Buraka Som Sistema Remix (Unknown)
8. Disrupt - Riddim Grid (Werk Discs)
9. La Roux - In For The Kill [Skream's Let's Get Ravey Remix] (CDR)
10. 2 Bad Mice - Hold it Down (Moving Shadow)
11. Kontext - Plumes [Relocate Remix] (Immerse)
12. LAZARUS PROJECT - Aftermath Booty (Cease & Desist)
13. Hatti Vatti feat. Sara Brylewska - Different Music (forthcoming on Mindset)
14. False Prophet - Wake Up [spatial Rework] (forthcoming on Take Records)
15. Kloke - Aquarius (Entrada)
16. RSD - Green Hill (Punch Drunk)
17. Taz Buckfaster - Quack [Original Mix] (Ramp Recordings)
18. Quarta 330 – Sabacco (Hyperdub)
19. ERDBEERSCHNITZEL - Drehundangelpunk [spatial Rework] (forthcoming on Alt Recordings)
20. Ike Release - Jenova (forthcoming on Infrasonics)
21. Badawi - More Of The Same [spatial Dimension Intrusion] (forthcoming on The Index)
22. Clouds - Timekeeper (Ramp Recordings)
23. James Blake - Air and Lack Thereof (Hemlock Recordings)
24. Sully - Duke St Dub (Mata-Syn)
25. Basic Channel - Phylyps Trak (Basic Channel)
26. Untold - Dante (Hotflush Two)
Links:
www.myspace.com/spatialdubs
www.infrasonics.net
Thursday, 11 June 2009
DOWNLOAD: Eat Concrete Compilation
Eat Concrete have unleashed a free compilation of 11 tracks to celebrate the 11th release on the label, Enemy Earth's 'Interstellar Commute' album.
DOWNLOAD: Eat Concrete Compilation
Links:
www.myspace.com/eatconcreterecords
www.eatconcrete.net
DOWNLOAD: FaltyDL - To New York
FaltyDL's 'Love Is A Liability' album, due soon on Planet Mu, is incredible. It truly is one of those sheer loose yourself in the reams of energy long players and to celebrate those loveable rogues at RCRDLBL have nabbed an mpFREE from him.
DOWNLOAD: FaltyDL - To New York
Keep your eyes locked to your Sonic Router bookmarks for an exclusive mix and interview coming from Mr. DL shortly.
Link:
www.myspace.com/faltydl
Wednesday, 10 June 2009
INTERVIEW: Illum Sphere
Ryan Hunn has unknowingly been littering my interweb perusal for weeks now; whether in the form of emails from pals, online record shop e-shots, gig listings or flyers with his moniker on, his easily recognisable production moniker, Illum Sphere, has popped up everywhere. From the first moment you slip on your headphones to listen to his heavy, atmosphere-laced analog drums you’re sucked in. And sucked in deep.
With the release of his perplexingly moody first 12”, ‘Incoming EP,’ on Manchester’s Fat City label, we thought we’d pin him down and wrestle a little history out of him.
Sonic Router: Can you provide those who may not know you with a bit of background info?
Illum Sphere: I'm 24, based in Manchester, and run the monthly session Hoya:Hoya. My first release 'The Incoming EP' landed on limited wax back in April and has just landed on download from all the usual spots.
Outside of music who are you? What do you do on the daily?
I work a few days a week in the Fat City shop, which is cool cause you get the good stuff first! I'm also in the process of setting up a Hoya:Hoya record label, along the other head honcho Jonny Dub, which will launch with a 12" from myself and then will only feature artists that have played at the night or one-offs we've done. We're looking at releasing a comp next year featuring an exclusive from every artist who's played, including Dabrye, Ras G, Samiyam, FlyLo, Daedelus, Rustie, Mark Pritchard, Danny Breaks, Bullion, Paul White & myself, plus some up and coming Manchester peeps.
How did the name Illum Sphere about?
I didn't want to be releasing music under my own name, but because I've been DJing under my own name for a few years it was hard to pick an alias that people wouldn't laugh at! Not because the names were shit, but purely because my friends know me as Ryan, and I've never had another alias.
Illum Sphere came from browsing a list of old Sci Fi B-movies and novels that I found on some random website. I liked the way that the name is pretty ambiguous, mysterious and open ended, so it frees me up to make anything I want.
How did you get into making music?
I've only been making electronic music properly for about 2 years. I just started dicking around in Cubase with some M-audio synth. I have actually been making music since I was about 11, but back then I was more into instrumentation. My mate who lived round the corner from me had a killer set up in his attic, so we combined gear and used to record random shit with one cheap mic flown in the middle of the room. The stuff was kinda weird, but more guitar band stuff, playing electric guitars with violin bows and running them through random effects units etc. I've been meaning to dig out some of the tapes actually and sample some of the randomness!
The real switch came when I started getting into people like Dabrye. That feeling of being completely blown away by his 'sound' had a huge effect on my music making, and since then I've just been kinda doing what I've been doing.
What’s your production set up like? When did you start producing and what was your set up like then compared to now?
Ummm... I use mainly analog equipment: Casio SK-1, Moog Concertmate MG-1, Roland MC-303 as well as a random collection of Boss and Roland effects units. My flat mate has an MPC2000XL, but I rarely use it. I also have an MPD 24, and a few midi synths. I've only really just started to use midi, but I'm not really a fan. I have to process midi sounds so hard to make them not sound cheap or crap (in my own mind), but in my opinion, analog sounds piss all over midi.
I didn't use any midi at all on the EP, all audio. I also arranged all of the EP in a really old version of Cubase, but have now switched to Logic Pro, which is well better. I don't really sequence too much, most stuff is played live and roughly aligned, but Logic has just helped me create a better sound, in terms of sonics. I've just bought a load more gear, a random Japanese electric piano etc, as I'm getting into fucking around with equipment more. It really appeals to me as you can essentially create your own sounds than you can't get anywhere else, and I like that individuality.
Do you have any regular processes you go through when making music?
I drink a lot of tea and smoke a lot of cigarettes. That's the only regular process that occurs when I make stuff! I don't make stuff everyday, but go through phrases. I find it really hard forcing myself to make stuff and just end up getting frustrated, so I make music whenever I have ideas. This will sometimes happen on the way home from somewhere at 2am, for example, so I'll just get in, lay down as much as I have in my head, then come back to it when I feel I've got something to add to it. That's when I find things come together easier, it feels right and I make better music.
When did your love for hip-hop start, what drew you to the sound?
Ummm... I can't remember really. I'm by no means a hip-hop connoisseur, but used to listen to bits of Biggie, Wu, Nas and Dre when I was 12/13/14, but I was mainly into stuff like Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd at that age. I got more into hip-hop around 5 years ago: early Premo, Madlib, Dilla, Diamond D, Wu-Tang etc. But to be honest, I'm not a hip-hop head. I love Yusef Lateef, Alice Coltrane, Axelrod, Leroy Burgess, Jimi Hendrix, Augustus Pablo, Fela Kuti, Mulatu (the list could go on) as much as I love any hip-hop producer. Being from London too (I moved up when I was 11) we used to go to a lot of garage raves when we 16, so I've got as much love for hip-hop as I have for have for a lot of other types of music.
You’re currently lumped into this whole ‘wonky’ movement. A lot of beat makers have been (deservedly) very vocal of their disdain for the genre label. What are your thoughts on the tag?
I think it's a bit of a lazy naming of a genre that is probably broader than the taste and knowledge of whatever journalist named it. But, on the other hand, it does describe some of the music that's being made. To be honest, I tend not to like stuff that's 'wonky'… I like stuff that experiments. Rhythm is far more important to me than pulling a beat apart for the sake of 'swing'. Swing should be a natural thing, you shouldn't need to force it, not everything has to swing super hard. Also, I don't think my stuff's clean enough to be 'wonky', it's just essentially dusty electronic music. I don't really consider it 'beats' either, cause I don't make beats, y'know?
There are a lot of people who want to be beatmakers and that's totally cool, but I don't. I just wanna make music; fast, slow, happy, sad, beautiful, ugly, scary, comforting, whatever!
Illum Sphere - Murky (You Know)
You’ve played at Low End Theory – a club that from this side of the ocean at least feels like a US bass mecca – how did you link that? What was the experience like?
Yeah it was cool, man. They're doing good things out there! The West Coast hasn't got the sound system culture that we have here. On that trip I played a few shows, on systems that aren't as good as here. The thing about Low End is that the rig they have is the only one that really comes close to the ones we're used to here!
The policy is pretty similar to what we do at Hoya:Hoya: anything goes. It isn't a beats night, I was playing Turkish stuff, dub, grime and people dug it. It was nice to see so many people that I knew reaching too. People and friends from that scene and some I met for the first time.
I know your pals with Fly Lo. Is he a big inspiration for you to continue making music?
I know FlyLo, but we're not super tight y'know! We chat and chill occasionally and we've done some shows together... I do like his music heaps and it does influence me to some extent, but I'd say Dabrye, Ras G and Dilla's music inspires me more than anyone else currently producing music.
Who else inspires you?
My friends! We're surrounded by a lot of creative people here in Manchester, artists, DJs, wicked club nights, producers, designers etc, you never have to really look too far to get inspired. Also my family! M little brother is 12, and he's getting pretty sharp on the production, and it's inspiring, but kinda frightening as he's gonna be well better than me probably by the time he's 15!
Your debut 12” is out now on Fat City. What can the record buying public expect from it?
Ummm... something different, I hope! It's sinister, dense, dusty and musical, so I've been told, so hopefully people will dig it.
What else have you got coming up this year?
A remix of Kidkanevil's 'Real Wild' drops next month (that got me my first Radio 1 play on Mary Anne Hobbs' show). In late July, early August, me and Mono/Poly have a split 7" dropping as part of the Fat City producer series. Then probably a 12" to launch the Hoya:Hoya label, and some more releases on various labels, some well known, some not so well known!
Any pearls of wisdom you’d like to drop for us?
Hug everyone.
Link:
www.myspace.com/illumsphere
http://hoya-hoya.blogspot.com
::
Download Hunn's latest mix for Hoya:Hoya: HERE
It includes: "some ufront MF Doom, Flying Lotus, Samiyam, Ras_G, Dabrye, Mike Slott and Bullion cuts as well as some rare old shit and some faves from the club over the past year!"
AND if you so happen to be Manchester based, get your sen along to the next Hoya:Hoya featuring Ikonika and the one Alex Nut:
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
VIDEO: RSD - Good Energy [Punch Drunk]
Forthcoming on Punch Drunk. Music and Visuals by Rob Smith.
Link:
www.myspace.com/dubrockers
www.myspace.com/punchdrunkrecords
DOWNLOAD: Hubert Daviz - Sketches
Damn. The collective behind Kwatro keep doing this; unleashing free downloads of impeccable quality that is. Each recent beat tape has carved its own path into my headphones, working my neck like crazy and getting me wondering where in shit they're coming from.
The latest one comes from the homie Hubert Daviz who's beat 'Sketches' have been spun together by Illaz into a classic tape format i.e. 15 mins over 2 sides of virtual cassette.
Relaxed heat for your Tuesday lunchtime.
DOWNLOAD: Hubert Daviz - Sketches
Links:
www.myspace.com/hubertdaviz
www.kwatro.info
Monday, 8 June 2009
DOWNLOAD: Simbad - Supercosmic Revolution Vol. 1
I like Simbad. He used to roll through the old office in the Cargo arches all the time, asking questions about what was on the stereo and linking promos,;so when he unassumingly hit me with a link to his new mix for Brainfeeder I was understandably impressed.
As should you be...
DOWNLOAD: Simbad - Supercosmic Revolution Vol. 1
Links:
www.myspace.com/djsimbad
PRE-ORDER: Mordant Music - Picking O'er The Bones [Mordant Music]
New compilation CD from Mordant Music featuring much overlooked tracks from the Godfather of skeletal dubstep, Shackleton.
Read the full review here: http://www.factmagazine.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2719&Itemid=84
Link:
www.myspace.com/mordantmusic
Sunday, 7 June 2009
DOWNLOAD: Bun Zero - MTV Brazil Tranquera Mixtape
Tranquera just won big with a mix from Sub.fm's Bun Zer0.
Don't sleep.
DOWNLOAD: Bun Zero - MTV Brazil Tranquera Mixtape
Tracklist:
01. Pinch “New Dayz” Unreleased
02. Random Trio “Scanner” Unreleased
03. Egoless “Earthlings” Unreleased
04. Bruno Belluomini “White” Unreleased
05. Untold “Just For You” forthcoming Hotflush
06. Ramadanman “Tempest” Unreleased
07. Headhunter “3 Mad P’s” forthcoming Tempa
08. Von D feat. Warrior Queen “Moon Eclipse” Unreleased
09. Saviour “Chronophobia” Stainage Dub
10. DJ Madd “Reasonz” forthcoming Boka
11. Vaccine “Electrolyte” Unreleased
12. BunZer0 “Maja” Unreleased
13. DJ JSL “Yellow Bird (Unfinished) Unreleased
Link:
http://bunzer0.blogspot.com
Friday, 5 June 2009
DOWNLOAD: MLR - Celebrated Scenester Mix
In illustrious celebration of the traffic marker we reached this week - hold tight 20,000 seperate visits - I fully intended to give a mix out, done by my fair hands as a present to you, the readership. And whilst its been up and twittered to death for a week or so prior I still wanted to commemorate this moment with something... so here it is: the promise I've broken to myself by featuring my work on a blog that's fully supposed to be about how great other people are.
Special thanks to Radio Magnetic for packaging it up nice as a podcast and uber special thanks to everyone who's said nice things about the blog.
More soon come.
DOWNLOAD: MLR - Celebrated Scenester Mix
Tracklist:
1. Wollom – Serenade (CDR)
2. Joe – Rut (Hessle Audio)
3. Various Production feat. V.E.X. – Ramp (Various)
4. Gemmy – BT Tower (Planet Mu)
// s p a t i a l – 90121 (Infrasonics)
5. Joker & Ginz – Re Up (Kapsize)
6. 2562 – Embrace (3024)
7. Martyn – Vancouver (3024)
8. Ramadanman – Ofal (Soul Jazz)
9. Zomby – The Lie (Ramp)
10. Zomby – Aquafresh (Hyperdub)
11. Joker – Do It (Kapsize)
12. Kotchy – Check Out My Keychain (Civil Music)
13. Ramadanman – Blimey (Hessle Audio)
14. Pangaea – Bear Witness (Hotflush)
15. Cooly G – Love Dub (Hyperdub)
// Ital Tek – Octa (Planet Mu)
16. Phaelah – Isolate (Surface Tension)
17. Peverelist – Clunk Clip Every Trip (Punch Drunk)
// Toasty – The Knowledge [Untold Remix] - Hotflush
Direct download link here (via Mediafire)
Link:
www.myspace.com/myleftretina
Thursday, 4 June 2009
READ: Sonic Router Monthly 003 - June
The 3rd installment in the Sonic Router Montly is live now over at The Quietus.
Click quick and you could win one of three copies of Tectonic Plates Vol. 2.
READ: Sonic Router Monthly 003 - June '09
EVENT: Medium & Sin City @ Cable
Medium are combining with N-Type's Sin City label for a smash down at Cable and in promotion of it Medium's own Tasha has done up a mix ahead of the event.
DOWNLOAD: Tasha - Dubstep Flex*
Tracklist:
1. Instra:mental – Tramma – Non Plus+ Dub
2. Sigha – On a strip – Hotflush
3. Joe – Grimelight – Hessle Audio
4. Ramadanman – Kablammo Eleven – Soul Jazz
5. Pangaea – Bear Witness - Hotflush
6. Joe – Rut – Hessle Audio
7. TRG – They Know (TRG Berlin Wall VIP) - Immerse
8. Ramadanman – Revenue – Hessle Dub
9. Untold – Dante - Hotflush
10. Instra:mental – Futurist – Naked Lunch
11. Kontext – Plumes (Relocate Rmx)
12. Breakage – Rain – Digital Soundboy
13. Compound One –Get Loose – Compound One
14. SP & Joker D – Future – Tempa
15. Breakage – Together – Digital Soundboy
*This mix was originally put together for Nerdbanite
Links:
http://www.myspace.com/mediumbeats
Monday, 1 June 2009
PRE-ORDER: Gravious - Futurist EP [Highpoint Lowlife]
Sci-Fi has been an inspiration for many electronic artists, from Kraftwerk to Herbie Hancock and even El-P every one of them has been influenced by the the use of machines to make sounds. One group who were hugely indebted to the sound were the pioneers of the second wave of Detroit techno, UR. They had a throw back futurism sound that somehow managed to sound like the point were the unknown and the past combined. You can hear this in tracks like ‘Hi-Tech Jazz’ where the sounds are not from this world but the funk and soul is firmly grounded.
Gravious has pulled off a similar feel on the ‘Futurist EP.’ The first track with it’s UR nodding name, ‘Jupiter Jazz’ skips and builds with deep bass, bleeps, emotive pads and machine funk that truly blossoms with texture when the swirls and chiming open hi hats take over transporting it to a dance floor set somewhere between the Green Hill Zone of Sonic The Hedgehog and bar in the first Star Wars film.
‘Vultures’ is a little bit of a shock after the colourful vibes of the EP opener, rolling out a dark bass evolution under open snares and tortured chants. When listened to in succession ‘Vultures’ contrasts the tracks it intersperses so perfectly, providing a whole heap more impact whilst showing that Gravious isn’t all swooning jazz leads and complicated chord sequences by relying solely on bass frequencies and drum pressure to drive the track home.
The finale, ‘World of Tomorrow’ is like a subtle, mellow version of the first track, full of emotive strings tweaks, bleeps and the kind of bass that hits you like a wall of stale air in the dance. Like the soundtrack to some dystopian winged car advert it rushes and swings in much the same way as the output of Brackles and Shortstuff and if their recent spike in profile is anything to go by this producer seems set for great things.
Words: James Balf & Oli Marlow
Link:
www.myspace.com/gravious
PRE-ORDER: Joker & Ginz – Purple City/Re-Up [Kapsize]
Joker’s Kapsize imprint has grown from strength to strength since its inception last year, whipping both dubstep and grime heads up into an excited fury whilst managing to draw in a whole heap of those Alex Nut excited hip hop heads with the last platter ‘Do It’ b/w ‘Psychedelic Runway’ – which coincidentally was Joker’s first release to achieve that saturation level of BBC Radio 1 recognition.
The young Bristolian’s collaborations have always been special; the squall of the manic synth led madness of ‘Play Doe’ (KAP002) with Rustie was a true meeting of minds but now, for his latest offering, he’s not letting up, hooking up with 30Hz of The Body Snatchers who appears here under his Ginz moniker. ‘Purple City’ rolls with snapping crunk fuelled drums and electro bongos before the synth hooks sing at you like a crooning robot, whose tortured circuits ooze raw soul, before the bass line pumps energy into every orifice possible with its sub low growl.
Flip it and you get ‘Re-Up’ which for all you educated watchers of The Wire will know is slang for a stash re-stock, and I’ll be damned if it doesn’t explode out of the blocks like a morning bump. The orchestral build up atop the crisp snapping percussion that ushers in the bass drop is a pure fire spin back moment. Pulsing with the kind of high-octane bass pressure and the kind of hooks not heard since ‘Gully Brook Lane’ or ‘Grimy Princess’ this one has been working dance floors into a frenzy and is still showing no signs of slowing up.
Words: James Balf
Link:
www.myspace.com/thejokerproductions
www.myspace.com/30hzverticalsound
Friday, 29 May 2009
DOWNLOAD: 3 x Martyn Guest Mixes
Dutch master of the dance Martyn has upped 3 guest mixes he did for radio promotion around his album release to his 3024world blog. Included are mixes used on Rob Da Bank and Gilles Peterson's Radio 1 shows and James Mountain's Ministry of Sound show.
DOWNLOAD: 3 x Martyn Guest Mixes
SIDE NOTE: Read our interview with Martyn, which we conducted for the Sonic Router Monthly on The Quietus, here: http://thequietus.com/articles/01651-sonic-router-002-a-dubstep-column-for-may
Links:
www.myspace.com/martyndnb
DOWNLOAD: L-Vis 1990 - FABRICLIVE Promo Mix
Night Slugs resident L-Vis 1990 has hooked up a mix ahead of his appearance in Room 2 at fabric next friday (05/06).
DOWNLOAD: L-Vis 1990 - FABRICLIVE Promo Mix
Tracklist:
1. Untold – Anaconda (L-vis 1990 Chopped n’ Screwed Mix)
2. Christian Martin – Elephant fight (Justin Martins Jungle Remix)
3. Crystal Fighters – Exatic Truth (L-Vis 1990 Remix)
4. Boris Rush – Miami Push (Franky Rizardo Remix)
5. Uncle Bakongo – Maasai
6. Emvee – Glitch Dub
7. Zinc – Pimp My Ride
8. L-Vis 1990 – United Groove
9. Lil Silva – Different
10. L-Vis 1990 – Compass
11. Justin Martin – My Angelic Demons
12. Diplo & Laidback Luke – Hey! (L-Vis 1990 remix)
13. L-Vis 1990 – Come Together
Link:
www.myspace.com/lvis1990
::
PRE-ORDER: King Midas Sound - Dub Heavy Hearts and Ghosts [Hyperdub]
New 12" from The Bug's alias on Hyperdub, King Midas Sound.
Full review here: http://www.residentadvisor.net/review-view.aspx?id=6161
Link:
www.myspace.com/kingmidassound
Thursday, 28 May 2009
COMPETITION: Win Tickets to Why Not?
Thanks to the kind folk at Ammunition we've got the chance for 3 of you and a one of your buds to head along to Why Not? on the 12th June at the Arches.
Sets on the night from Shy FX (dubstep set), Appleblim, Headhunter, Ramadanman, Oneman, Youngsta, Chef, Alex Nut and so many more (full lineup here).
Simply email us your answer to the question below to be in the running for a pair of tickets.
Which London venue has Why Not? NOT been previously held at?
A) Mass
B) Scala
3) Ministry of Sound
Link:
http://www.whynotdubstep.com
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