Archive
Synkro announces debut album ‘Changes’, shares title track
Having forged his career in the dubstep era, with nearly 40 releases to his name, Synkro AKA Joe McBride has always resisted easy classification – his music winds together such diverse influences as Boards Of Canada, dBridge, Burial and Oneohtrix Point Never, whilst still remaining utterly unique.
His recent, lauded work with Indigo under the Akkord name set pulses racing with what Resident Advisor described as the duo’s “ fiercely technical take on dance music, one that you could dance to or simply admire in all its steel-plated glory”. Fittingly, ‘Changes’ acts as a soothing balm after the intense workouts that Akkord music incites – from the lush pads and rolling arpeggio pulse of the intro, to the understated dubstep meets ambient/balearic glory of the title track to the more muscular ‘Let Me go’ – awash with cavernous, soulful vocals and melancholic strings, to the epic, hymn like D&B ballad ‘Body Close’ featuring the dulcet vocals of Lyves, Synkro once again proves his effortless ability to create cinematic textures and surreal sonic vistas in long form.
Scheduled for release on September 18, preview the title track below.
J.E.T.S. – New EP ‘The Chants’ Out Now
J.E.T.S. sophomore official release, their highly anticipated debut on ULTRAMAJIC see’s the two artists display an approach to production that deals in the paradoxes and ambiguities of both studio songwriting and raw live performance; a somewhat soothing amalgamation of disproportion. But also weirdly right, evident that despite Edgar and Stewart’s careers sharing striking parallels, they have know each other for…well forever.
The 4-track EP reassembles a long-scattered sketchbook of songwriting confidence that the pair have filled with drawings of cosmic rhythms, experimental sounds and other analogue obsessions.
“Our first record was more of us finding out space and creating a new environment of sound to work with. This release was much more about exploring the building of our creation”
“U-N-I’s’” colour and pallor coming as much from the soulful palette of Jamie Liddell’s vocal performance as the dirty turps the pair washed their synthetic brushes in.
J.E.T.S. production finesse, awash with a delicate nocturnal mood as analogue drums meet colorful chords against a nightscape of glossy darkness.
We spent a lot of time on the sounds, which were mostly from digital hardware sources. We also focused on the recording process more than ever, as we mixed the record on mastering equipment and experimented with bouncing parts onto tape.
The sounds that often many attribute to Jimmy or Travis as solo artists are slowly transpiring to be the opposite, their respective contrasting styles not only behaving with vibrant influence over one another but in turn establishing an exciting benchmark in electronic music songwriting.
Also check out J.E.T.S. in this Mix Mag and Resident Advisor feature.
Max Cooper: Emergence AV & May 2015 Roundup
Following his critically acclaimed essential mix and recent Artefact EP, Max Cooper’s A/V show Emergence has moved to exclusive bookings with LittleBig.
- Emergence – new A/V show
- New EP artefact
- Ableton feature on emergence story and tech
- Essential mix
Max Cooper launched his Emergence live AV show at the end of 2014. The show is a culmination of work with different visual artists, musicians and tech specialists which build the content and performance system that allows Max to tell a live audio/visual story about the emergence of the reality we live in from basic underlying natural form. Starting from the structure of the primes, right up to life in the capitalist machine and beyond.
Max Cooper’s Emergence AV show is available for bookings from October 2015.
Max Cooper presents EMERGENCE – trailer video from Max Cooper on Vimeo.
Max featured in an Ableton article ‘Beautiful Data‘ which talks about his Emergence AV set and how it works.
Max Cooper has recently collaborated with Tom Hodge on a piece, called Remnants from their new – Artefact EP. Video made by Nick Cobby
In February, 2015, Max was invited to do a BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix, which includes some unreleased material from his favourite artists like Nils Frahm, Lusine, Tim Hecker and Rob Clouth. The mix also contains some of his new work, some unreleased, and two tracks from his new EP with Tom Hodge
Eskmo live at NPR’s ‘Tiny Desk’ concert
Eskmo was recently invited to perform live for NPR, delivering two tracks from his latest album ‘Sol’ entitled ‘Blue & Grey’ and ‘Can’t Taste’. Utilising various objects and electronics, his engaging live show is demonstrated in a brilliantly relaxed setting. Read the full details of the performance here.
Alex Smoke: Stauner EP For Optimo Trax
Stauner EP out now on Optimo Trax.
A1) Remembered II A2) Pax AA1) Stauner AA2) DivinationBrendon Moeller Clash Mix
Recently, Brendon Moeller has found himself hemmed in by icy blasts. Rather than let this time go to waste, the producer utilised the seclusion as a blank canvas to draw on.
The mix was put together using Ableton and a UC33e controller in my basement studio in upstate NY. We’re experiencing a particularly hardcore arctic blast the last few days and I think the content reflects the landscape and mood. Be on the lookout for this upcoming release
WATCH: Exclusive audio/visual transmission from Sculpture
Ahead of one of their all-encompasing, mind-unlocking, dance-starting, cortex-melting, immersive psychedelic events in Hackney, John Doran from The Quietus talks to the audio visual masters of (un)reality, Sculpture.
Sculpture have also put together this exclusive video edit from their February Cafe Oto show.
Oto 190215 from Sculpture on Vimeo.
8 Years Of Fachwerk EP + Album
Founded in 2007 by Mike Dehnert, Fachwerk is one of the key imprints for heavyweight techno. Ahead of their 2 x 12″ ‘8 Years Of Fachwerk’, scheduled for release in June, the Berlin based imprint will release a 4-track ‘Before 8 Years Of Fachwerk‘ EP, scheduled for 30th March featuring cuts from Mike Dehnert, and recent Littlebig artists, Sascha Rydell and Roman Lindau.
Paul White: Visits the Seagull Mansion EP
Paul White’s debut for R&S Record, Shaker Notes, saw him move away from the free-wheeling hip hop he made his name with, and into deeper and more emotionally compelling territory. The psych rock, jazz and soundtrack obsessions he hinted at on that LP are brought into brilliant focus on this new EP. Paul White’s Seagull Mansion is a loose group of South London musicians, including regular foil and 22a label head Tenderlonious and sister Sarah Williams White, who created this illuminating pair of covers of songs from Shaker Notes in a Lewisham garden.
‘Running On A Rainy Day’ is the revelation, a heart-breaking balearic pop gem gorgeously rendered, while ‘Honey Cats’ spaghetti western trip drags you further into their world and beyond. The session was beautifully filmed: watch the videos at: tinyurl.com/seagullmansion
New track ‘Walk Talk Feel’ features rising Australian talent Jitwam, whose otherworldly jazz vocal is a perfect match for the rock-solid 7/8 rhythm. Plus there’s a bonus track for the heads: ‘Follow It Through’ shows Paul White experimenting with the cutting edge of hip hop production once again.…Visits the Seagull Mansion marks the start of a busy year for Paul White as he readies music with Open Mike Eagle, Danny Brown, Jamie Woon and his new group Golden Rules (with Florida MC/singer Eric Biddines) among much more. For now though, let’s take a stroll through the corridors of the Seagull Mansion…icJazzFolkRockBeat
A Good Year for Call Super: 2014 Round-Up
Seaton’s 12” ‘The Present Tense’ was the launching point for him in early 2013, on Fabric’s in-house imprint, Houndstooth. This was then followed up with two highly regarded releases — Black Octagons and Depicta/Acephale II. His most commemorated album ‘Suzi Ecto’ is his 5th release on the label which came out in September, 2014.
All in all, 2014 was a good year for Call Super. You will find him featured in The Wire’s Top 50 Albums of 2014 , #1 Album in XLR8R, #01 album on Juno Download, 16th best album in RA and 17th in Dummy Mag, not forgetting his 10/10 album review in Mixmag.
In a year when Aphex Twin returned from a long bout of self-imposed isolation (amidst huge fanfare, no less), it’s interesting that another producer essentially beat him at his own game. Granted,Call Super isn’t exactly a Richard D. James soundalike, but there’s no question that Aphex Twin’s legacy is present on the Berlin-based producer’s debut album, Suzi Ecto. Again, the similarity isn’t so much in Call Super’s musical palette (although there are some obvious parallels to be drawn, particularly in the album’s sharp percussive strokes and serene, vaguely Eastern melodies), but in his willingness to embrace unorthodox rhythms and the obsessive way he approaches the construction of his tracks.
Shawn Reynaldo, XLR8R
Best Articles, Reviews & Interviews of 2014:
The Wire’s Top 50 Albums of 2014
Dummy Mag The 20 best albums of 2014
Juno Plus Interview: A different vision
RA Mix (below)
New Label New Music : Untold’s 2014 Roundup
2014 was a landmark year for Untold, as he released his critically acclaimed debut album ‘Black Light Spiral’, began performing live for the first time and gave away his ‘Echo In The Valley’ ambient mixtape at the years close.
‘The apocalypse never sounded so appealing’ was how SPIN described ‘Black Light Spiral’ whilst awarding it their album of the month with a 9/10 review, which proceeded equally positive reviews from Pitchfork (7.6/10), Resident Advisor (4/5), Mixmag (8/10) and more – following this, the album also featured high on the end of year lists from FACT (23rd) and Crack Magazine (16th) amongst others.
To coincide with the album release Untold also debuted his first ever live show, playing across Europe, North and South America and Asia for such iconic promoters and venues such as Berghain, Bloc, Dekmantel, Output and more. Towards the end of 2014 Untold released ‘That Horn Track’ on Bleep / Warp backed with a Marcel Dettman remix after the track became a stand out on the previous Bleep:10 compilation and warranted its own release.
2015 has already seen Untold release his first dance floor 12” of the year in ‘Doff’ which sold out in a matter of days. As he plans to release his follow up album before the end of the year he’s reimagined his live show and will be launching it across the UK, North America and Japan in the first half of 2015.
Selected Recent Discography
Doff / Phive – Hemlock Black
Released: Jan 2015
That Horn Track – Bleep / Warp Records
Released: Oct 2014
Black Light Spiral – Hemlock Recordings
Released: Feb 2014
Recent Press
Red Bull Music Academy lecture (Tokyo, Sep 2014)
Eskmo returns with new album ‘Sol’, and lead single ‘Mind of War’
Expanding his extensive discography, Brendan Angelides returns from his hiatus to deliver a new full length album entitled ‘Sol’, on the ever reliable R&S offshoot ‘Apollo Records’. Inspired by our life giving planetary body, “SOL” is a masterful meditation on human emotional plane as effected by planetary bodies. Angelides has delivered perhaps his strongest musical statement yet, with an epic grandeur bearing the traces of Angelides’ recent work composing orchestral pieces for live performance with the LA based Echo Society.
From the moody cinematic opening of SpVce and exhalting synth melodies of ”Combustion”, to the touching delicacy of the watery ballad Blue And Grey to ”Mind Of Wars tromping existential digi-funk, the heartbreaking piano paen of Tamara, to the snarling drone saturation of the title track, to the beaming, epic euphoria of The Sun Is A Drum its clear that this is a record that is a truly cinematic experience.
Listen to ‘Mind of War’ below.Sculpture’s new ‘Mix Series’ Release on Software Label
Mixware is a mix tape series compiled by Software artists. Featuring new, old, and unreleased material alongside remixes, edits, and archival material, Mixware welcomes free explorations by the Software crew. Each Mixware installment is available as a free download and limited edition cassette.
Following Napolian’s Road To Incursio from earlier this month comes the second Mixware release courtesy of madcap audio-visualists Sculpture. The duo of Reuben Sutherland and Dan Hayhurst compiled the material for Video Plot from recordings of their live performances around the release of their album, Membrane Pop, in March 2014. Reuben’s kaleidoscopic animations coalesce with Dan’s frenetic unspooling of sonic detritus in gleeful, ecstatic levels, encapsulated (miraculously) in Video Plot.
Video Plot will be available on Halloween 2014 as a free digital download and in limited cassette form with a hand-stamped, hand-numbered case. A video of projections performed by Sculpture accompanies the release.
Sculpture Boiler Room London Live Set by brtvofficialBrendon Moeller ‘Works’ Interview for Electic Duluxe
From dodging conscription in South Africa to an ecstasy-fuelled awakening to house music, New York-based Brendon Moeller opens up about his journey into electronic music production, his new live show and the making of Works – his new LP for Electric Deluxe. Read here
Vladislav Delay: 4D Sound, Future Music and ‘Visa’
Sasu Ripatti aka Vladislav Delay has had a busy few months in the lead up to the release of his new album ‘VISA’. Along with shows at River King – Paris, Unsound Festival – Krakow, 4D Sound experience – Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) and SuperMassive – Helsinki, he’s been receiving press attention from across the board. See below for the latest.
- Vladislav Delay’s 4D Sound set was a musical highlight of the ADE week, states Joe Muggs from FACT: “I’ve spent the previous few hours frothing about how apocalyptically mind-blowing the Vladislav Delay show was.”
- He recently had a front-page feature with Future Music, discussing his studio set-up, vast array of synths and creative process.
- A 2hr mix of Jazz, coupled with an in-depth interview with the UK based Inverted Audio (listen below)
- Strong support from Resident Advisor, Truants and FACTMag:
- 4/5 review (Resident Advisor)
- “Visa’ could well end up being the finest ambient record of the year” (Truants)
- “one of his most stunningly evocative releases to date” (FACTMag)
Emmanuel releases on ARTS & Monnom Black
‘Mentality’ is Emmanuel’s newest dancefloor workout that has been doing the rounds for a while now and is certainly hard hitting, as is expected of his productions nowadays. A welcome return to his own label ARTS after releasing a host of strong EP’s from other artists over the course of this year.
The title track is finding it’s way into a lot of DJ’s sets currently with the likes of Rodhad and DVS1 giving it full support. The B side ‘Scenario’ is a more restrained track and showcases the deeper side of his production. Check the video for ‘Mentality’ here:
With the release of ‘Vyper’ on Dax J’s UK label Monnom Black following swiftly after the ARTS release it’s a really strong end to 2014 for Emmanuel who started the year with his release on Deeply Rooted House aswell as Enemy Records in the Summer. Here previews of the new EP here:
To round things off nicely we’ve got a fast paced hour long podcast from Emmanuel on Modular Expansions to check out here, full of new and unreleased tracks to get stuck into…. Great stuff from him here once again:
Synkro’s ‘Transient EP’ and Boiler Room Upfront mix
Synkro’s output has been extensive and wide reaching since his initial releases in 2007, planting his roots firmly into the lineage of bass music with an amalgam of modern reconfigurations. This November, he returns to Apollo Records with a new EP, and in celebration, Boiler Room have hosted a new mix in which he draws primarily from his own catalogue, germinating in tempo and navigating from ambient junctures towards 2-step, closing on the half-time cinematics heard on the title track of his latest EP, ‘Transient’.
Machinedrum releases Vapor City Archives
Electronic music’s Renaissance man Travis Stewart, better known as Machinedrum, brings his Vapor City project to a close with this final chapter in the sprawling epic – Vapor City Archives. Paying close heed to the spirit of the Vapor City community he forged and nurtured, Stewart chose to announce this new record via the global community created when he invited listeners into his personal dream world dubbed “Vapor City”.
Constructed around his vision of an imaginary city with fully-realized districts, the year-long Vapor City project was founded upon Machinedrum’s critically acclaimed album of the same name and supplemented with a worldwide live tour, a string of satellite EPs, remixes and free download drops to subscribers to the Vapor City Citizenship programme. This final installment sees the talismanic producer deliver 10 brand new, exclusive productions alongside fresh artwork from the project’s art directors: LuckyMe’s Dom Flannigan and Éclair Fifi.
Once again experimenting in soundscapes between footwork (“Safed”, “Only 1 Way 2 Know”), hip-hop and jungle/drum&bass (“More Than Friends”,“Boxoff”) to forge a unique sound that he has come to own, Stewart creates a subtle homage that nods to the past while staying firmly future-facing.
VIDEO: Paul White’s Running on a Rainy Day
Remix of Monoloc’s ‘Things’ – Things EP
Recent remix on CLR imprints, Monoloc EP
Listen here.
Clark’s self-titled album out on Warp
“An essential opus” – Drowned in sound
” Clark’ is a striking album not only in its emotional and thematic scope, but also in its sheer cinematic propensity’ – Hyponik
“ This and the album’s closer, “Everlane,” seem to mourn the fading memory of highs gone by; it’s a safe bet that listeners coming to the end of this exceptional album will, in that moment, feel the same way.” – XLR8R Pick – XLR8R
Exclusive Sawlin Slam Podcast
Sawlin put together an exclusive live set made up of mostly his own unreleased material for Slam.
Call Super mixes for RA, Boiler Room, speaks to The Quietus & FACT
Fresh from the release of his well-received debut album ‘Suzi Ecto’, Call Super has mixed the 435th episode of Resident Advisor’s prestigious podcast mix series, with the website describing him as “one of [their] favourite new artists.” Providing a list of where he first got or heard each record, rather than a conventional tracklist, we’re still searching a few of the tracks out ourselves, but can disclose that the mix covers the gamut of house, techno and electronica over an hour and a half. Read a short interview and download the mix on Resident Advisor.
He also discusses the origins and meaning of some more of the wax in his record bag with FACT TV (recorded just after he’d played our Record Store Day party at Phonica early this year). Watch the interview below.
If you’ve time for an in-depth read, you really should head to Rory Gibb’s interview with Call Super for The Quietus. We actually found out lots about the genesis of the ‘Suzi Ecto’ album from this interview, that we didn’t even know ourselves!
And if you’re still in need of more Call Super musical goodness, you can check out his most recent Boiler Room session, which took place on a lovely sunny day in London! Watch/listen to it below and find an actual tracklisting for it over on theBoiler Room page. (Houndstooth)
Vatican Shadow and The Haxan Cloak to rework Δkkord’s HTH020 EP
“We’re incredibly excited to announce that two of our favourite artists, The Haxan Cloak and Vatican Shadow, have each dismantled and entirely reconfigured Akkord’s HTH020 EP. The results are breath-taking – powerful and utterly ferocious – and will be released on the HTH030 both on 12″ and digitally on 17th November.” (Houndstooth)
Tri-Angle Records’ The Haxan Cloak dissected elements from all four tracks on HTH020, reassembling them into a 10-minute masterpiece, a wall of sound that defies classification. Meanwhile, fabric’s Room 2 inspired Hospital Productions label boss Vatican Shadow assembles parts of ‘Typeface’ and ‘Greyscale’ along with his own sounds, to create an intricate, ominous techno trip. Mastered by Matt Colton at Alchemy and pressed on 180g vinyl, the HTH030 12” is a companion piece to the HTH020 EP, with a reversed colour scheme, debossed cover with postcard insert. (Houndstooth)
Clouds Compilation on Turbo ‘…I Care Because You Don’t’
Recent curated compilation released on Turbo , ‘…I Care Because You Don’t’ is out now, and has been labelled “hardcore Scottish hooligan techno.” in Clouds’ own words.
Heir apparent to the UK techno throne, Clouds have been gaining credibility with each release. With their LP Ghost Systems Rave, 12″s on Fifth Wall and Soma, and their latest Tannhauser Acid Works EP, they’ve reached beyond the warehouse and into the wild apocalyptic rubble of po-mo UK hardcore.
Their lead track Blood Skating is an industrial blitz of terror-beats, laced with a haunting, Aphex-grade vocal pad. It sets the tone for this incredible release, which they’ve A&R’d out of thin air, apparently from their mates in Dundee, Perth, and the surrounding mud-lands. (Turbo)
The compilation is trending #1 in the Techno Chart on Wavo.