Photek “No Agenda”

Upon first listen to Photek‘s forthcoming DJ-Kicks mix, it may sound as if Photek and Pinch’s “M25FM” transitions directly into “Dead Eye,” a 1994 cut from Baby Ford and Eon. The compilation tracklisting, however, indicates that this tune, “No Agenda,” is actually crammed somewhere between the two. On DJ-Kicks, Photek mixes in and out of “No Agenda” deliberately and creatively, sprinkling in only parts of the tunes’ arpeggio, synth stabs, and blips, never quite introducing the full force of the track. With its big, four-on-the-floor kick and thick bass, the song does pack something of a wallop, despite its slowish tempo and introspective vibe.

No Agenda

Night Slugs to Drop Helix White Label

Though Georgian producer Helix has only recently been showing up on XLR8R‘s radar, he’s rapidly been making a name for himself, and will soon drop his first single via the illustrious Night Slugs label. “Drum Track” will arrive as a white-label 12″ (artwork above) on March 12, with a vocal version of the tune on the flip courtesy of grime MC Flirta D. Before the record drops, you can stream radio rips of the music below.

“Drum Track”

“No Hooks No BS (feat. Flirta D)”

KP & Envyi “Swing My Way (Balam Acab Remix)”

Let us preface this post with a note that this certainly isn’t the first time a producer has given away their remix of KP & Envyi’s 1998 hit single “Swing My Way,” but, hey, we’re always down to check out new treatments of the R&B group’s soulful vocals. Young producer Balam Acab recently offered his version of the tune via Twitter, and it’s pretty much what you’d expect from the talented artist: aquatic samples mingling with pitched-down, slowed-down singing and a beat that sounds like Neptune’s G-ride scraping the bottom of the ocean floor.

Swing My Way (Balam Acab Remix)

Lemonade “Neptune”

Well, the news has finally arrived: Brooklyn trio Lemonade will release its second proper LP, Diver (artwork above), on May 29 via True Panther. “Neptune,” which we first heard in its live form back in September, is the forthcoming record’s lead single, and finds the band further polishing the kind of tropically informed, R&B-tinged synth-pop we got to know on 2010’s Pure Moods mini-album. The single is scheduled to drop next month—accompanied by remixes from Mike Simonetti, Jacques Renault, and Sinjin Hawke—and Lemonade has a set of live dates coming up with Neon Indian throughout North America, all of which you can check out after the jump, along with the complete Diver tracklist.

Diver
1. Infinite Style
2. Neptune
3. Ice Water
4. Eye Drops
5. Whitecaps
6. Vivid
7. Sinead
8. Sister
9. Big Changes
10. Softkiss

Tour Dates:
March 8 – Snacks @ Voyeur – Philadelphia, PA
March 14 – Brooklyn Bowl – Brooklyn, NY
April 20 – Echo – Los Angeles, CA
April 24 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA *
April 26 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR *
April 27 – Neumos – Seattle, WA *
April 28 – Venue – Vancouver, CAN *
April 30 – The Starlite Room – Edmonton, CAN *
May 1 – The Republik – Calgary, CAN *
May 3 – Pyramid Cabaret – Winnipeg, CAN *
May 4 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN *
May 5 – Majestic Theatre – Madison, WI *
May 6 – Magic Stick – Detroit, MI *
May 8 – Phoenix Concert Theatre – Toronto, CAN *
May 10 – Cabaret Mile End – Montreal, CAN *
May 11 – Paradise – Boston, MA *
* = w/ Neon Indian

Neptune

Berghain Launches New Imprint

Famed Berlin nightclub Berghain is launching a new imprint to accompany its Ostgut Ton label, which has been releasing music primarily from Berghain-related acts since 2005. The new label has been dubbed Unterton, and will specialize in releasing remixes of music that previously appeared on Ostgut Ton. The first offering from the label comes out on April 2, and will include two remixes from last year’s Leaning Over Backwards album from Tobias. The title track will be getting the remix treatment from Efdemin, while Ricardo Villalobos & Max Loderbauer will be supplying a remix of “Girts.” Maintaining a no-frills approach, each release will be presented in a white-label format, with no additional artwork. Given Berghain’s storied history and unparalleled reputation, they’re likely thinking the music can speak for itself. (via Juno Plus)

Groove Armada Preps New EP for Hypercolour

Big beat outfit Groove Armada, a ubiquitous presence at the massive raves and festivals of the late ’90s and early 2000s, is not only still crafting new music, but the duo is making a rather surprising move to Hypercolour for the release of its forthcoming No Knock EP. The four-song EP touches on old-school house sounds and retro funk, but has a modern vibe that’s in line with other releases from the label. The record is set to drop later this month, but the artwork can currently be viewed above, while the tracklisting is below.

A1. Oh Tweak To Me
A2. Stevie Latenight
B1. There Was Rhythm
B2. LUV 91

Parisian “Heavy Petting”

About one minute into “Heavy Petting,” Parisian floods the mix with an overwhelming bass synth and diverts attention away from the rest of the ambient, downtempo swoon that makes up the rest of the song. It’s a potentially obnoxious move, but just like naming a song “Heavy Petting,” there’s a provocative allure to the action. After several listens, the ringing synths and woozy vocal samples come in to focus and prove the St. Louis beatmaker’s production to be indeed memorable, if not tasteful.

Heavy Petting

d’Eon Announces Debut Album, Shares Free Mixtape

Montreal-based musician and Grimes collaboratord’Eon has just recently come out of a lengthy quiet spell with the announcement of his debut album for Hippos in Tanks and a free mixtape, to boot. The forthcoming LP is called, well, LP, and features 14 tracks by the multifaceted artist which seem to be influenced by elements of religion and modern technology. Before the record arrives on June 5, you can check out its artwork and tracklist, along with a free mixtape of instrumental keyboard music that d’Eon collected between 2003 and 2012, below.

1. Annunciation
2. Now You Do
3. Virgin Body
4. Transparency pt. II
5. My iPhone Tracks My Every Move
6. Signals Intelligence
7. Gabriel pt. I
8. Century By Century
9. Gabriel pt. II
10. I Don’t Want To Know
11. I Look Into The Internet
12. Chastisement
13. Transparency pt. IV
14. Al-Qiyamah

Soft Metals “Eyes Closed (Copy Remix)”

Portland synth-pop duo Soft Metals is preparing to release an EP collecting remixes of tracks from the group’s self-titled debut, which was released last summer on Captured Tracks. Here, remixing duties of album standout “Eyes Closed” have been handed over to fellow Portland producer Copy, who trims the original’s cold-wave leanings and magnifies its house vibe. Copy’s handiwork doesn’t take the edge off, though, as the raw synthiness of the source material remains prominent in this new version. The Remixes (artwork above), which features efforts from Xander Harris, VALIS, and more, drops on May 15 via Sweating Tapes. In the meantime, you can stream the EP in its entirety, after the jump.

Eyes Closed (Copy Remix)

Stream the Debut Release from New Label West In Dust

West In Dust, a new label based in Oakland, CA, is readying its debut release, a 14-song collection of tunes on the stonier side of bass music. The compilation (artwork above) will be released at the end of March, at which time it will be available for download. Until then, the upstart imprint is streaming all 14 tracks from West in Dust 2012 in their entirety. West In Dust is the brainchild of two Bay Area producers, Rave Deep and Glenn Jackson, and will be releasing new material from Placeholder and Medla, who both appear on the comp, in the coming months. You may recognize Glenn’s name from his rather frequent XLR8R bylines, as he is one of our trusty editorial interns, although he did no lobbying for this post and hadn’t even mentioned his new project to the rest of the staff before it appeared in our inboxes. Granted, with the quality of tunes on West in Dust 2012, that kind of behind-the-scenes lobbying wasn’t even necessary.

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