DJ Python will release Mas Amable, his second album, next month.
Mas Amable is Brian Piñeyro’s second album as DJ Python, following his 2017 debut, Dulce Compañia. It’s his first release since last year’s Derretirse EP on Dekmantel, and it once again arrives on Anthony Naples and Jenny Slattery’s Incienso. It features vocals by LA Warman and was mastered by Chris ‘CZ’ Wang.
“It’s too beautiful to embrace change and to challenge yourself to find something meaningful in it,” Piñeyro writes in a letter. “I love my friends and love is deep.” You can read the full letter here.
Piñeyro also records as Deejay Xanax, DJ Wey, and Luis. You can read more about his work in his XLR8R feature here.
Tracklisting
01. Te Conocí 02. Pia 03. Alejandro 04. oooophi 05. Descanse 06. ADMSDP feat. LA Warman 07. Juntos 08. mmmm
Mas Amable LP is scheduled for April 10 release on vinyl and digitally. Meanwhile, you can pre-order here and stream “ADMSDP” feat. LA Warman below.
Ana López Reyes will release her debut album as Nnux, titled Ciudad.
Reyes, a Mexican producer, composer, and keyboard player, wrote Ciudad during the last months of 2018 and early 2019 while living in New York. Across eight tracks, she blends synthesizers, beats, processed voice samples, ethereal vocals, and Mexican folk elements into compositions influenced by experimental music, electronic music, and pop. It captures a nostalgia for her hometown of Mexico City and the emotion of dealing with the absence of a loved one after a loss.
In 2017, Reyes put out Distancia, with music for brass and electronics. Her work is based on the digital processing of sound samples from field recordings, voices, and acoustic instruments, as well as beat-making and the use of synthesizers. She creates music that aims to be emotional and vulnerable while still being experimental and imaginative.
Tracklisting
01. Piezas 02. Parte 1: Y tu ausencia no es la muerte 03. Calles 04. Ciudad 05. Salida 06. Y aun así 07. Pasos 08. Parte 2: No se morirá el quererte
Ciudad LP is scheduled for March 20 digital release via Mexico City-based label VAA. Meanwhile, you can pre-order the record here, and stream “Piezas” in full below.
Yaeji has announced the release of her new mixtape, WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던, scheduled for April 2 on XL Recordings.
WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던 is the New York-via-Seoul producer’s first appearance on XL, following several outings on New York label Godmode. It comprises 12 unheard and previously unreleased studio cuts.
Accompanying the announcement is the release of lead single “WAKING UP DOWN,” which walks the line between DIY pop and club music, with English and Korean lyrics about the simple euphoria of young adulthood. Throughout the song, Yaeji, real name Kathy Yaeji Lee, celebrates the little things in life, small victories like staying on top of to-do lists, making home-cooked meals, and having empathy for others. In the end Yaeji, with the help of some friends in the form of “masters” of her daily tasks, achieves her final form as she reaches her goals.
The video, streaming below, is inspired by classic animé opening sequences. Yaeji created it with direction and further illustration by her close friend Annie Zhao, and additional production by Studio Yotta.
Later this year, Yaeji will hit the road to perform live across North America and Europe. She’ll debut an all-new live show featuring dancers, original choreography, and new stage production. You can see a full list of dates on the flyer below.
Tracklisting
01. MY IMAGINATION 상상 02. WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던 03. IN PLACE 그 자리 그대로 04. WHEN I GROW UP 05. MONEY CAN’T BUY (ft. Nappy Nina) 06. FREE INTERLUDE (ft. Lil Fayo, trenchcoat, Sweet Pea) 07. SPELL 주문 (ft. YonYon, G.L.A.M.) 08. WAKING UP DOWN 09. IN THE MIRROR 거울 10. THE TH1NG (ft. Victoria Sin, Shy One) 11. THESE DAYS 요즘 12. NEVER SETTLING DOWN
WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던 is scheduled for April 2 release on XL Recordings. Meanwhile, you can pre-order here and stream “WAKING UP DOWN” below.
Nicolás Jaar has unveiled Cenizas, his first album under his own name since 2016.
Jaar recorded Cenizas, meaning “ashes” in Spanish, between 2017 and 2019, and it “represents” his “life and creative output” during this time. He mixed it with composer Patrick Higgins, with whom he has previously collaborated as AEAEA. It follows Sirens, his last album as Nicolás Jaar.
Earlier this year, Jaar released two records as Against All Logic: the Illusions of Shameless Abundance EP with FKA twigs and Lydia Lunch, and an album,2017—2019. You can read more about those here.
Tracklisting
01. Vanish 02. Menysid 03. Cenizas 04. Agosto 05. Gocce 06. Mud 07. Vacíar 08. Sunder 09. Hello, Chain 10. Rubble 11. Garden 12. Xerox 13. Faith Made Of Silk
Cenizas LP is out on vinyl and digitally on March 27 via Jaar’s own Other People. Meanwhile, you can stream “Sunder,” featuring Jaar’s own vocals, below, and pre-order the record here.
Eric Galaviz and Brian Varga, known respectively as Hipp-E and Halo, are back as H-Foundation, reinvigorated and inspired by the very interests that first brought them together over two decades ago. It’s been over five years since they last released and performed together, but with releases incoming on Halo’s own Muted Noise, Hipp-E and Halo are ready for another H-Foundation chapter.
H-Foundation’s early years lie in Chicago, where Halo worked at record store Hip House during high school. In 1999, he met Galaviz, originally from Denver, Colorado, and they began working in the studio together, both in their early teens and pushing a deep, smooth, and groovy sound that packs a real dancefloor punch. “…Halo had started writing music and I wanted to as well, he helped get me started on learning the MPC 2000 and just wrote some songs as we learned the MPC and they turned out really cool and so we wrote more and more,” Galaviz recalls.
The collaboration gained worldwide recognition for its dub-influenced sound, fuelled by tracks such as “Hear Dis Sound” and “Tonight.” In 2001, the pair made their debut at Fabric, and put out a special seventh edition to the London club’s mix series the following year. This opened the door to a residency and work with labels like Moody, Siesta, and Soma, further expressions of the duo’s timeless house grooves. They took a break towards the middle of the decade, returning in 2012 with a string of new EPs and another Fabric promotional mix.
The pursuit of their respective life goals—notably Halo’s Muted Noise and Hipp-e’s ROOTS company—eventually took them their separate ways, which gave them the much-needed break to reflect on their musical ambitions. But they’re now in the studio together, creating what they call “sophisticated, ground-breaking rhythms” which will be announced soon. There are bookings in Los Angeles and Detroit already in the diary, and they’re also set to play Altus Festival later this month alongside Rhadoo, Visionquest, and Derrick Carter.
Celebrating their latest reunion, Hipp-E and Halo have compiled a mix for the XLR8R podcast series, recorded in Halo’s California studio earlier this month. At just over an hour in length, it’s high in energy but filled with the more groovy selections from their timeless collection. In there you’ll hear Malin Genie, Lazare Hoche, and Eddie Richards, among many others. It precedes a new H-Foundation album and showcases what we can expect to hear them playing on the road this year.
What have you been up to recently?
We have both been continuing to work on solo projects, and we’re now working on several new projects for some great labels. Plus some exciting collaborations and remixes.
You’ve recently reunited. What’s driving the reunion?
Our mutual passion and direction of music. We feel we have a lot more to do because we have always seemed to bring out the best in each other. We truly do have magic when we flow in the studio and behind the decks; we are like brothers and after this break, we have a renewed sense of where we want to go musically.
How do you think the project will be this time around?
We are excited to reach the new generation and we’ve been truly grateful for long time supporters and support from some heavy hitter tastemakers that all feel it’s a great time to jump in and get this going again. We have pretty big plans and hope to capitalize on everything. We hope for that support to only grow.
Where and when did you record the mix?
We recorded the mix at Halo’s studio about two weeks prior to this streaming.
How did you select the tracks that you included?
When we did our pitch black series, old mix series, and when we have made mixes that are in the studio, the music we try to get on the project has to have a timeless feel. Some of our mixes we did 13 years ago are still fresh sounding and the tracks are able to stand the test of time.
Is there a wider concept to it?
Yes, our goal is to have this mix show a deeper groove side, while still keeping some energy and pace with timeless selections. The next mix from us will be a live set and will showcase more of what we do at the party.
What’s on your horizon for 2020?
We are working as much as we can in the studio, and we’ve started to take bookings again, we have had remixes of one of our most popular songs “Hear Dis Sound” with some great artists that will be out soon. We plan to do a new album this year for release in 2021. We are excited to get out on the road again.
XLR8R has now joined Mixcloud Select, meaning that to download the podcast you will need to subscribe to our Select channel. The move to Mixcloud Select will ensure that all the producers with music featured in our mixes get paid. You can read more about it here.
Tracklisting
01. Steve Lawler “12 Bottles” (Halo Varga Remix) (RAWthentic) 02. MOi “A1 A” (MOi) 03. Paulo, Oboe “Eloi” (Honne Music) 04. Alice Clark “Rocket” (Mihai Popoviciu Remix) (Decay) 05. Malin Genie & Per Hammar “Skull” (De Vloer) 06. Eddie Richards “Someday” (BLA BLA) 07. Tripmastaz “Game of Senses” (Bass Culture) 08. LOy “Ten” (Laate Records) 09. Lazare Hoche, Traumer “Belhara” (Lazare Hoche Records) 10. Floog “Suprapus” (Visionquest) 11. Giuliano Lomonte “Electric Eel” (Brouqade Records) 12. Superlounge “Tool #3” (Superlounge Records) 13. Jarau “Hypnotize” (Visionquest)
Yamaha has launched its new video series, Way Up, with a profile on JNR Williams.
The series will aim to introduce emerging artists, their music, and their creative processes to new audiences. For the first addition to the series, Yamaha teamed up with rising British talent JNR Williams to showcase how he makes music, his background, and creative inspirations, as he explains:
“I remember when I first started writing ‘A Prayer,’ it was on a little Yamaha keyboard that I bought from Argos when I was in college. Going back to the stripped back version takes me to that time, I love the rawness and the simplicity of the song in that form. Thank you to Yamaha’s Way Up series for bringing me back and reminding me of the writing stages of the track.”
The Way Up series will also include a panel where emerging artists from around the world can gather to talk about their experiences in the music industry, what it means to express themselves through their music, and how they progress their music. The panel takes place at the Yamaha Ginza Hall in Tokyo, Japan this month.
You can watch the video in full below, with more on Yamaha here.
Mirage is Boysen’s third album to be penned under his own name, following 2013’s Gravity and 2016’s Spells. As HECQ, he’s released nine albums since 2003.
Once again, Boysen has called on an array of musical guests including Anne Müller and Australian saxophonist and composer Daniel Thorne, for whom he wrote parts specifically, having heard his 2019 solo debut, Lines of Sight.
“I wanted to experiment with blending these recordings with one hundred percent artificial elements, often to points where an instrument becomes an abstraction of what it was and the musicians’ presence in the song is much more of an important DNA string in the song rather than an obvious layer,” Boysen says.
While on Spells Boysen made programmed pieces sound indistinguishable from human playing, with Mirage he set out to do the opposite and make the human touch unrecognizable, creating something of a mystery or a mirage.
“A lot of the elements and instruments you hear on the album are either not what you think they are, or exactly what you think they are but behave differently or they’re elements you definitely know but they are hidden, processed, or morphed into something else,” Boysen adds. “With Spells and Gravity, I was trying to hide the machines. On Mirage, I’m trying to hide the human.”
Since Spells, Boysen has collaborated with cellist and composer Sebastian Plano on the music for David O’Reilly’s video game “Everything.” In 2019, he contributed to the Brainwaves project alongside Michael Price and Högni Egilsson in collaboration with a team of scientists at Goldsmiths University, London, linking states of consciousness and music.
Braille is back with Too Much, out March 27 on Scuba’s Hotflush.
Too Much comprises five cuts of UK-inflected house and electronica, ranging between the hyperactive breakbeats of “Constellation Conversation” and the laid-back vibe of “Got A Job.” We’re told that it features “a signature Braille range of styles” and thematic features of vocal hooks and classic dance inflections.
Braille, real name Praveen Sharma, is one half of Sepalcure with Machinedrum. The project launched in 2011 and returned to Hotflush last year with Stand Still, Braille’s first solo outing in five years.
Tracklisting
01. Too Much 02. Got a Job 03. Constellation Conversation 04. Branzino 05. Do it Right 06. Constellation Conversation (160 edit) (Bandcamp Exclusive)
Too Much EP is out March 27 on Hotflush Recordings. Snippets will be added as soon as they’re available.
Pakistani-American avant-composer and Dawn of Midi drummer Qasim Naqvi has announced Beta, a new record to be released as a limited edition clear vinyl for Record Store Day 2020 on April 18.
Beta serves as a sister release to last year’s six-part modular synth suite Teenages, and comes as a series of experiments chronicling Naqvi’s understanding of writing for this type of instrument and the growth of the instrument itself.
“Beta is a prequel to the story of Teenages,” Naqvi tells XLR8R. “At the time, I had the most basic elements of a modular synthesizer—one oscillator and a random voltage generator which is a module that releases sporadic currents through the system. Ironically, this component provided a lot of warmth and humanness to the music, a kind of fallibility. I fed simple melodic ideas and rhythmic patterns into this bare bones setup and observed the responses, while occasionally guiding the music in other directions. It was like a diagnostic test. At the time I felt that this music was underdeveloped but listening back, I think the Beta tracks add an interesting dimension to the entire Teenages arc. They’re the zygotes.”
The record’s B side is a live performance of the track “Teenages,” which was recorded live in London in February 2019. “I had performed this work just a couple of times and this particular one was special. There were microphones up everywhere and you could hear the room bleeding into the sound of the synthesizer,” says Qasim of the performance.
Erased Tapes adds: “If Teenages captured the sound of electronics living, breathing, and mutating of their own accord, Beta rather describes the moment they came to life.”
Tracklisting
01. Roll Program 02. Matic 03. Ctaphone 04. Onna at Pulse 05. Teenages Live
Beta EP is out on April 18 as a limited edition clear vinyl. Meanwhile, you can stream “Matic” in full below.
Mndsgn’s 2013 EP bed is getting a first-time vinyl pressing with the Los Angeles-based artists’ Mndsgn Limited imprint. The exclusive Vinyl Me, Please magenta 12″ version is available for pre-order for members and all pressings will come with the original artwork from Deleon.
Mastered by Jonwayne and featuring Anna Wise on vocals, the EP is from the era of Mndsgn’s career right before he signed to Stones Throw and embodies many works he would soon release with them. Mndsgn, real name Ringgo Ancheta, first released the EP on cassette but it has long been sold out in that format.
In February of this year, Mndsgn ran a first-time LP pressing of 2013 album ObliqueKitchn on Mndsgn Limited. He also pressed up 2011’s NoMaps for a first vinyl run in October of last year.
Tracklisting
01. laps 02. try this peppermint soap 03. Bed 04. on (paralysis) 05. betweens 06. look at your face 07. legwarmrs 08. g ‘maury (heavenly)
Order a 12″ magenta copy of bed from Vinyl Me, Please here, or grab a regular pressing from Fat Beats here, if you don’t have a membership with VMP. Meanwhile, stream “try this peppermint soap” below:
