Before Irish imprint Hsuan drops a fresh EP by label head Arianna (available exclusively through Boomkat) on October 17, we’re treated to this edit of “So Real” by roster mate Kuei. Over drifty synth tones and disemboided vocal snippets, the multitasking artist drops a bit of rhythmic madness on his footwork-indebted rework. We noticed this one has been floating around the web for a little while now, but were smitten enough with “So Real (Arianna’s Juke Edit)” to give it a proper home as a free download.
Veteran experimental producer Markus Popp (a.k.a. Oval) has a new multimedia album on the way via German imprint Shitkatapult. Entitled OvalDNA and originally conceived as something that would be released before last year’s O—which happened to be the first Oval LP in nearly a decade—the record has been expanded into a two-part release. The first is a retrospective spanning the entirety of Oval’s lengthy career that also includes 12 previously unreleased tracks, while the second is a DVD that consists of, among other things, 10 bonus tracks, a documentary, a music video for the song “Glass UFO,” a 20-page booklet created by Popp and artist David Troop, and over 2,000 individual AIFF sound files taken from past Oval productions. OvalDNA won’t be released until November 25, but the artwork and complete tracklisting are below, along with preview clips of both discs. (via Resident Advisor)
01 Quito 02 Kasino 03 Tweakk 04 Australasia 05 Credit Line 06 Mare Fax 07 Heroci 08 Octaeder 0.2 09 70 kino 10 Alpen 11 Mersey 12 In + Love 13 Stealth 14 Gegenlese] 15 Savvy 16 Eigentlichen 2.0 17 Doku_Drama 18 Breeno 19 I 20 Flageo 21 Whypunkt 22 Instantan 1+2 23 Pockyrocky 24 IV 25 Op
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Bonus Tracks: 01 Esigh 02 Excel M 03 II 04 I 05 Glass UFO 06 II(2) 07 Story Mode 08 Latvia 09 III 10 Inwending
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Fledgling imprint No Stranger to Danger will drop its second release, a three-song EP by fellow Londoners Essi & Blocks, later this month, but today, the music hub is sharing that record’s title track for free download. “Down” is a fine example of the rhythmically challenging and sonically vibrant music the young UK duo produces, which is apparently created on what they call “a very cheap set up.” Hear more of what we’re talking about by listening to the rest of Essi & Blocks’ EP after the jump.
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Although the goings-on of the various members of the venerable Night Slugs crew are frequently documented on XLR8R, it’s been awhile since one of its artists put together an exclusive mix for our podcast series. Jam City (a.k.a. Jack Latham) is one of the youngest members of the Night Slugs stable, yet the London-based producer has already made quite a ripple in the bass-music pool with his Waterworx and Magic Drops EPs, not to mention his refix of Endgames’ “Ecstasy.” He’s currently putting the finishing touches on his much-anticipated debut album, which is slated for release in early 2012, but took a break from that to assemble this podcast. And although the mix does feature many of the elements which make Jam City’s production so unique (including unusual drum sounds, angular synths, and well-executed nods to acid house, grime, and R&B), this DJ session, which he’s calling Body Music, also offers quite a few curveballs. Rather than simply flexing all of his latest dubs, Jam City has chosen to dig deep, delving headlong into disco and ’80s electro-funk, particularly on the first half of the mix, which he’s titled Daytime Lover. The latter half, Into the Night, gradually works its way toward more futuristic club territory, particularly once he begins dropping a series of unreleased tunes. In total, Body Music may not be the Jam City-led journey we expected, but it’s nonetheless a thrilling ride. More importantly, it showcases the adventurous spirit of a young artist who will most likely be serving up plenty more surprises in the months and years ahead.
Daytime Lover 01 Jam City “Intro” 02 Change “Mutual Attraction” (Interjection Disco Dance Label) 03 Hard Chops “Dirty” (Survival) 04 Serious Intention “You Don’t Know (Special Remix)” (Easy Street) 05 Kurt Harman Project “Comin Back” (Prescription) 06 James T. Cotton “Press Your Body” (Spectral Sound) 07 East 17 Division “Textures” (Big Sound Works) 08 Bok Bok & Tom Trago “White Type R” (Sound Pellegrino) 09 Hieroglyphic Being “Fingerprints of the Gods” (Mathematics) 10 Chaka Khan “Earth to Mickey (CK Duet Space Rap Version)” (Warner Bros) 11 Art of Noise “Who’s Afraid of the Art of Noise? (Jam City Edit)” 12 Parris Mitchell “All Night Long” (Dance Mania) 13 DJ Spen “Disco Dreams” (Black Vinyl) 14 Earth People “Dance” (Champion)
Into the Night 15 Members Only “Volume 2” (Members Only) 16 Salamandos “We Invite You to Expand Your Total Self (Remix)” (Creme Organization) 17 Gwen Guthrie “Peanut Butter Prelude” (Garage) 18 Frozen Border “Frozen Border #3” (white) 19 Vincent L. Traques “Make Some Love” 20 Jam City “Make It Right” 21 Unknown “Sex (Extended Dub)” 22 Jam City “The Courts” 23 Jay R Revlon “Jungle Drums” 24 Helix “Drum Traks” (Night Slugs) 25 Hieroglyphic Being “Dreams de Illusionaries” (Spectral Sound) 26 Hectic Boyz “Hectic Anthem Instrumental” (white) 27 Jam City “He Watches Over Us All”
Here, Brooklyn-based band Body Language has its smoothly funky pop tune “Falling Out” transformed into a sparse dancefloor cut by San Francisco’s Honey Soundsystem. The DJ/production crew wraps synthetic strings, understated vocal melodies, roomy drum-machine rhythms, and other tasteful sounds around a deep bassline that propels the tune across its six minutes–making for a fine piece of late-night/early-morning house.
Does the world really need another Factory records compilation? At this point, the Mancunian label has been the subject of more than its fair share of nostalgic rehashing. That being said, the label’s catalog runs deep, with an influence that’s had a lasting effect on both sides of the Atlantic (and beyond). Nowhere was this influence more felt than on the post-disco ’80s dancefloor, where Factory’s cutting-edge singles stood out from the rest with their unique production (guided by the likes of Martin Hannett, Bemusic, DoJo, and Arthur Baker), cool aesthetics, and smart lyrics. Fac. Dance, the latest compilation to honor the label, assembles 24 of these cuts to make an essential release for anyone interested in the fertile moment between disco and house.
The compilation starts off strong with Section 25’s “Looking From A Hilltop (Megamix)” setting the tone. A rare b-side version, the megamix extends the song to eight minutes by accentuating the motorik rhythm with backwards segments, hypnotic banks of synthesizers, and dub sound effects. From there, it’s pretty much a grab bag of quality material, and, yes, some of it has been compiled before: Quando Quango is represented, as is 52nd Street, and A Certain Ratio. Yet Fac. Dance manages to balance out the more well-known material—like Quando Quango’s “Love Tempo” and 52nd Street’s “Express”—with tracks like A Certain Ratio’s darkly funky “Knife Slits Water (12″ Mix),” Quando Quango’s chugging “Atom Rock (NYC Mix),” and Jellybean’s “reconstruction remix” of 52nd Street’s “Cool as Ice.”
Fac. Dance isn’t all dancefloor fire. Included among the peak-time jams is a fair assortment of mellower material. Of these, Durutti Column’s “For Belgian Friends” stands out. Taken from Factory’s 1980 compilation A Factory Quartet, the track is a beautiful and breezy moment that wouldn’t be out of place on an early José Padilla mixtape. Similarly, X-O-Dus’ 1979 roots reggae b-side, “See Them A’ Come,” moves the compilation further away from prime time and into downright stoned territory. The result is a release that’s broad in scope but that feels focused due to the sheer quality of the material.
Yesterday, UK bass experimentalist and Apple Pips label boss Appleblim delivered the 290th DJ mix for FACT, and it’s a doozy. If we’re being totally honest, the podcast is actually a bit strange (what else would you call mixing Gas into David Sylvian into Tangerine Dream?), but strange has always suited the Bristol-based artist quite well. You can listen to the whole thing, as well as check out the full tracklist, below, and read FACT’s lengthy introduction for the mix here.
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Gas – Zauberberg track 1 (Mille Plateaux) David Sylvian – The Boy with the Gun (Virgin) Tangerine Dream – White Eagle (Virgin) Echo & The Bunnymen – Over the Wall (Peel Sessions) Human League – The Black Hit of Space (Virgin) Cocteau Twins – Blue Bell Knoll (4AD) Model 500 – Pick up the Flow (Metroplex) Loose Ends – Gonna Make You Mine (Ten Records) Touch – Without You (bassapella) (Garage Trax) Hanson & Davis – Tonight (Fresh Records) 52nd Street – Cool as Ice (Factory) Aphex Twin – a weird looking trivial pursuit style wedge thing (Selected Ambient Works 2, Warp) Black Light Smoke – Decisions feat. Suavecito – Scissor & Thread Behling & Simpson – Where the Oh’s (Applepips) Wedge & Behling – Stairwell (unreleased) October & Borai – Sticky Fingers (BRSTL 001) Behling & Simpson – Tape Hiss – (unreleased) Phat Chex – Git da Funk (unreleased) Crazy P – Changes (20:20 Vision) Paul Woolford – Pursuit (Halo Cyan) Axel Boman – Esteban Peligro (Al Tourettes & Appleblim mix) (Glass Table)
Finland’s Wolfhaus is affiliated with the party-starting Top Billin crew, but the duo’s moody output is a different look for the normally upbeat label. Take “Crossed,” a dour piece of bass music wrapped a fog of spacey atmospherics and featuring a staggered rhythm that alternates between ricocheting blasts of kick drums and a steady, dubbed-out groove. The track kicks off Wolfhaus’ new mixtape, Dubbed & Screwed Vol.1, which you can stream and download after the jump.
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1. Crossed 2. Don’t Rush It 3. Together 4. All I Want To Do 5. Purple Invaders 6. Same Again 7. One Hope One Quest 8. Street Activity 9. I Know That It’s You 10. Can’t Get No Sleep
Martyn-related excitement is already at a fever pitch this week, as his much-anticipated sophomore album, Ghost People, is finally dropping on Brainfeeder. (In case you missed it, the entire LP is still streaming here.) Yet the shape-shifting producer has elected to turn up the heat even further, assembling a brand-new mix for Resident Advisor. The podcast, which can be downloaded here, doesn’t have a tracklist, but purportedly finds Martyn deftly combining a variety of house, bass, and techno selections. The post also includes a brief Q&A with the veteran producer.
Whatever it is that you’re currently doing, stop it right now and go listen to the brand-new M83 album, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. You’ll find it, of all places, on Urban Outfitters‘ blog, along with a nice Q&A to read over while you soak in French synth-pop auteur Anthony Gonzalez’s truly epic, 22-song, double-disc album. You’ll find the music here, and look for the record when it drops on October 18 via Mute.
