Music Submissions Roundup: August
A selection of our favorite music submitted by XLR8R+ members last month.
Music Submissions Roundup: August
A selection of our favorite music submitted by XLR8R+ members last month.
Needless to say, we’re excited to present this month’s submissions from our XLR8R+ members. This edition is notable for its sombre mood. From Kendl’s “Felt” and Peter Vogelaar’s “Felicity Breathes,” to “Lo Seen’s “Say It,” and SASA’s “Yes They Can Say Love,” these submissions broadly favour contemplation.
And if you turn up the temperature a notch, moving towards brtrnd’s sublime breakbeat science, Inertya’s “New Dawn,” and Corduroi’s “Slingshot,” you’ll find rich emotion everywhere. Fans of cinema will possibly pick out Fatwires’ brooding guitar jam. Of all the submissions, MSTRBLSTR’s heady acid track is the most overtly club-ready. There’s something for everyone, so take a rummage around yourselves.
Editor’s note: we’ve made a point of linking each artist’s name to their social media page, or a place where you can buy their music, and we encourage our readers to support these independent artists by buying their music. Let’s keep independent culture alive.
For those unfamiliar, XLR8R+ is a member-supported music community and curated music experience. Every month, you will get three exclusive tracks—sometimes more—by a wealth of amazing artists that XLR8R has supported over the years, as well as access to the member’s area where you can submit tracks and DJ mixes to be showcased in this feature series and to the XLR8R+ community, as well as exclusive editorial content, mixes, FREE passes to music festivals and events, playlists, and more. You can find out more here.
Zeb Samuels, Byron Wallen & Marc Cyril “Positive Spirit”
London-born multi-instrumentalist Zeb Samuels has released his latest single, “Positive Spirit,” on Deep Heads. It features Marc Cyril, who has worked with Joss Stone, on bass, and Byron Wallen on trumpet and flugelhorn. Inspired by artists like Boards of Canada, Robert Glasper, and LTJ Bukem, it’s a soulful jazzy soundscape that draws you in, made for open spaces as the listener gazes at the stars. “I feel like this is a track that is an unveiling of a new light and embodies positivity amongst the dark times that we have encountered recently,” Samuels says.
C_Ben “Bloom Me“
C_Ben, from Mexico City, began making music out of nostalgia for rave parties. We don’t know anything more about them, but “Bloom Me,” a new track, came from trying to be simplistic and focusing on just letting it flow.
AKWIUS “Clever Girl“
AKWIUS is an electronic musician based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His music is a bass-focused hybrid of rave and post-rave theories, and it explores moods of the current dystopian utopia from a Mexican-American perspective. His most recent release is Clever Girl via Upper Realm.
Afar “The Needed Break”
Afar, from Australia, is the alias of Matt Gibson. Gibson is a fan of many styles of electronic music but uses the Afar name for his deeper, heads-down productions. We’ve previously featured “Division,” a killer dub-house cut from his first batch of public productions. “The Needed Break,” a new track, is similarly memorable, with lush vocals and broken beats.
Clinamen “Perto“
Clinamen is a project from Bydgoszcz, Poland, headed by solo artists Jakub Ziolek and Krzysztof Ostrowski. For The Tropisms Of Spring, out on Poland’s Brutality Garden, they delivered a serene album of ambient and glitch, with rich vocals and intelligent songwriting. It was recorded between January 2018 and November 2019. “Perto,” the fourth track, is a delightful piece of upbeat electronica.
Kendl “Felt“
Jesse Kendal, also known as Kendl, is an Australian electronic musician who creates electronic music with a natural, emotionally charged flow. Having grown up in a musical household littered with instruments, Kendal found solace in music at a young age. Instead of learning how to read sheet music, however, he was more intrigued by freely playing instruments and allowing his imagination to create beautiful sounds and textures. It was a way to help him manage his anxiety throughout childhood. This approach has directly shaped his sound and the way he writes music today. Since debuting in 2017 with his debut EP, Colours, Kendal’s music has accrued millions of streams. Dreamlike, Kendal’s latest EP, landed in August and it featured “Felt,” a delicate soundscape with the most serene of openings.
brtrnd “2176a“
brtrnd, pronounced “Bertrand,” is from Montreal, Canada and has been producing electronic music for six years. For the past three, he’s been inspired by techno, house, and other types of dance music. In his upcoming album, mattered, he draws inspiration from artists like Myrryrs, Ouri, Pascäal, Andy Stott, and Shlohmo. He started working on it at the onset of the pandemic and has since developed it into a work with a consistent theme. “2176a,” an engrossing breakbeat jam, is the first taste. Read more about brtrnd here. The album comes out on London label Ware.
Phondupe “Arma“
Phondupe, from Sydney, Australia, has submitted “Arma,” a slow-burner taken from his forthcoming debut album, ONYKIA. The track casts a trance through its ethereal synths that ebb and flow. Angelic Japanese field recordings float through the track. It was recorded by Phondupe himself at Teshima Island, Japan.
Orli “Hoard Of The Wizard – Beast”
Of Italian and Romanian descent, Orli, real name Orlando Stefano Tosi, is a rising name whose sound is becoming appreciated across Romania and increasingly beyond. He’s the owner of the newborn LORI Records and a resident at Goa Club in Rome, a temple of the Italian electronic music scene. His productions are based on sounds from the ’90s and early 2000s, mixed with minimal house influences. Darkness, mystery, and surrealism are key to his music, he says. “Hoard Of The Wizard – Beast,” a slick hypnotizing cut for DJs, forms part of the recommended TRASMISSIONE DIGITALE, a series of 15 tracks influenced by ’80s horror cinema.
Paul Visonhaler “Lethal Silence of Centuries“
Paul Vinsonhaler is a film and media composer living in Memphis, Tennessee, and we’ve featured his work before. Vinsonhaler’s musical work focuses on sound design, dynamics, and sonic experimentation, and it blends the lines between classical minimalism and modern music. “Lethal Silence of Centuries” is a brooding jazz track, and one of his latest works.
MSTRBLSTR “Are We Living In A Simulation” (Fractal Mix)
Originating as an improvisational acid house and techno artist during the 1990s, MSTRBLSTR learned to move crowds at illegal rave parties held in shady warehouses, and at full-moon parties in the Arizona desert. He’s now based in Queens, New York, where he has a studio of hand-built gear that he uses to produce music to “work its way deep into your mind and make your body move,” he says. The track he’s presented is a pumping acid remix of his own “Are We Living In A Simulation,” out on Toy Opulent.
Inertya “New Dawn“
Designed to feel equally at home on the sub-heavy sound systems of haze-swamped warehouses and the intimacy of living room hi-fi setups, Inertya‘s music draws on both the visceral energy of dancefloors and the technological thoughtfulness of modular synthesis. Anthemic techno and delicate experimentalism melt into each other in precisely constructed tracks, which stylishly transcend electronic genre boundaries. This multi-faceted approach to production is second nature for Inertya, real name Falk Morawitz, who has a decade of diverse musical experience under his belt, spanning straight-up rave-ready techno, abstract experimental sound art, and evocative, other-worldly soundtracks. “New Dawn,” available now, is one of his latest productions, available on First Light Records.
ATM<O>S “Sinusoide“
A T M﹤O﹥S is an ambient project from Mexico City. There’s no other public information about them, but their self-titled debut album came out on Unos Quantos, a small Mexican label, over the summer. It comprises four gorgeous cuts that sound like a film score without the film. “Sinusoide,” a dreamlike sequence, is the pick of a sublime bunch.
Richie Gigabyte “Missbehavin“
The aim of Richie Gigabyte, from Brooklyn, New York, is simple: to take elements of sound often foreign to each other and blend their worlds into something beautiful. “Missbehavin” features ‘90s hip-hop beats with ENKi’s lush vocals. It’s one of Gigs’ latest productions, and we can expect more soon.
Sebastian Fuentes “Los Días Después“
Sebastián Fuentes is a music producer, raised in Mexico City but currently working on getting his Philosophy degree at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. He learned guitar and keyboard at an early age, and he’s added to this a love for creating melodic sequences from synthesizers. It’s not until recently, however, that he’s decided to present his own organic and somewhat melancholic atmospheres. “Los Días Después,” meaning The Days After, is the third track on Unas Por Otras, his new EP. It’s an invitation, he says, to his own delicate dance.
Peter Vogelaar “Felicity Breathes“ feat Deaf Joe
Inner Creatures is the second album from Irish producer and bass player Peter Vogelaar, and it nods in the direction of Four Tet, Bonobo, and Caribou. The title alludes to the introspective nature of crafting a body of work, not just the moments writing but those reflecting.
Although at home with emotive instrumentals, Vogelaar has a knack for bringing guest vocalists into new territories, pulling in the likes of Sacred Animals, Ken Lally, and Katie Kim. Vogelaar has also teamed up with fellow Irishman Deaf Joe on “Felicity Breathes,” creating a gem of downtempo “folktronica,” as he labels it, that laments the over-analytical demise of a relationship.
“I had the beat track on my headphones for a few months, and knew it was special, I loved it and waited and waited until the right melody clicked in my head,” Deaf Joe says.
Corduroi “Slingshot“
Austin, Texas-based producer Corduroi has previously created a soundtrack for the University of Texas fashion show and collaborated with the prestigious arts and entertainment group Meow Wolf. On Mazie, his new album, he integrates elements of electro, jungle, house, IDM, and techno, using a wide array of modular gear. It’s dedicated to and named after his grandma Mazie, who was the driving force of love, empathy, and care in his family, he explains. Close your eyes and you’d think it was Ilian Tape.
SASA “Yes They Can Say Love“
SASA is the latest project of Orlando-based DJ-Producer Stereo 77. It sees him trading his usual style of Caribbean beats and breaks for a vividly romantic sound inspired by a love for ’70s fusion jazz and ambient compositions. Separation, a new record, blends field recordings from various cities with rich live instrumentation. “Yes They Can (Say Love),” the most ambient of all four tracks, is a dreamlike trip built on layered sounds from vinyl records and warm synths. There’s additional production by Jorge Collazo, a friend and secret weapon of Filtered Deluxe Recordings, the label behind the release.
Lo Seen “Say It“
Lo Seen is a producer from Saint-Petersburg, Russia who has recently moved to Berlin, Germany. His contemplative electronica is heavily influenced by UK bass vibes. Say It is Lo Seen’s first release of 2020, and it comprises three tracks: “Hope you’ll Be,” “Take Me,” and “Say It.” We’ve chosen this title track to showcase here. Expect tender vocal cuts with a powerful low end. Music for the mind and the body.
Fatwires “Strings Of Dread“
Over two decades, Germany’s John Eckhardt has delivered an unusual cosmos of bass music through a variety of collaborations and solo projects. Most recently, he became Fatwires on The Wicked Path, releasing nine organic beatscapes centered by raw bass guitar. Expect rich, cinematic soundscapes, embedded in rugged percussion that won’t settle for a single style. “Strings Of Dread,” the second track, sounds exactly as it says.
Peter Spacey “Morning Haze“
Peter Spacey, a beatmaker, DJ, and audio-artist, has shared a live performance video for “Morning Haze,” filmed on an outdoor balcony in a secret garden during sunrise. It’s the first video of an upcoming Spacetagon Sessions series, where he’ll play original music in different magical places. The track is available now, demonstrating Spacey’s traditional jazz background. Expect hazy, lo-fi beats.
ASOY & RASEC “Coffee In Karthadastim”
ASOY is a mysterious London-based project ready to deliver a body of music that looks to explore the frequency spectrum using his machines, he says. Expect a journey into sound, destination unknown. We know nothing more, but with its playful house vibes and warped sound design, “Coffee In Karthadastim” is worth a listen.
Tima Fei ‘A Change of Pace’
Tima Fei has been a staple to Chicago’s dance music scene for years. This season, he’s released “A Change of Pace,” a deep and dark piece of experimental sonic art featuring tracks from Laraaji, Matthewdavid, Alex Augier, and more. It’s dubby, distorted, and driving all in one.
