Hardly two months after dropping his debut EP, promising Canadian house producer Jacques Greene will let go of another small collection of his music, once again via LuckyMe. The forthcoming 12″ will feature one new track, “Another Girl,” in addition to remixes of two tunes from his debut EP, The Look. UK producer and Doldrums signee Braiden gives us his version of “Holdin’ On” while Detroit techno producer Mark Flash (of Underground Resistance) transforms “The Look” to fit his own mechanical aesthetic. But if you grab the digital version of the single, you’ll also be treated to remixes from the ever-busy Machinedrum and Glaswegian newcomer Koreless. You can check out the artwork for Jacques Greene’s “Another Girl” 12″, along with a preview of its tracks, below, before it’s released on March 14.
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "soundcloud" and source: "<embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="81" src="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F11335897" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%">".
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "facebook" and source: "<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.xlr8r.com%2Fnews%2F2011%2F03%2Fjacques-greene-release-another-g&layout=standard&show_faces=false&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=35" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:35px;" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>".
The Parisian duo of Pentile and edit maven Pilooski admirably pump fresh blood into mutant disco on their debut album as Discodeine. “We dance to organized noise,” sings Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker, keenly, on Discodeine‘s lead single, “Synchronize.” Backing Cocker’s claim is a nimble, Moroder-disco melodrama of pulsating synth riffs and orchestral flourishes. This is ripe, modern disco that’s commercial enough to lure suburbanites into Target and skeezy enough to entertain smack addicts (as seen in the tune’s music video).
But oddly enough, “Synchronize” comes across as a coldly calculated attempt at pop fame on this album, as the duo mainly indulges in synth-disco experiments. Unfortunately, a few disposable misfires sap the album’s momentum, such as the twee steel-drum jam “Falkenberg” and the twerpy, wonky synth workout “Relaps.” Guest Matías Aguayo delivers a brief moment of welcomed sleeze on “Singular” by slithering his hissed vocals around an otherwise generic, robotic groove that plods along at a treadmill pace. What saves this album are Discodeine’s departures into the ambient realm: An ethereal harp melody opens “Antiphonie” before it’s broken up and looped into a mesmerizing machine groove; the 10-minute closer, “Figures in a Soundscape,” beautifully places a sad guitar drone that hovers while a snake-charming synth riff emerges and melts away the minutes. Those two tracks possess an adventurous sensibility that’s sorely needed in the DFA disco age, a time when ironic quotation marks are placed on too many grooves.
In the midst of working on his “seance” (read: cover/remix/etc.) for Matthew Dear‘s forthcoming Slowdance EP (pictured above), Brooklyn’s soulful lo-fi specialist How to Dress Well must have taken a break from his old-school R&B obsessing and nursed a little itch to hear some poignant ’80s pop—namely, Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away.” Singer/producer Tom Krell didn’t exactly steal from the classic song, but you can hear some distinct similarities in both vocal performances. As it happens, Krell’s song may even reach loftier heights of heart-wrenching emotions; from a distant and hidden place he mumbles unintelligible stanzas with his patently injured falsetto while strangely crisp synths swell and sink around shuffles of distorted noise. You can hear more versions of “Slowdance” from the likes of Todd Edwards, Nicolas Jaar, and Bear in Heaven, among others, when Matthew Dear’s EP drops on April 5.
Just in case you didn’t get all the Ramadanman-related information you could handle in our recent cover story, yesterday FACT posted a lengthy Q&A with the widely lauded young UK producer. As it turns out, we won’t be able to call him Ramadanman much longer, as the man born David Kennedy is officially making the shift to his other artist name, Pearson Sound. While speaking with FACT, Kennedy discusses the name change, along with other topics such as his new FABRICLIVE mix CD, white labels, his history as a producer, and his work helping to run the Hessle Audio label. Go here to read the full interview.
FABRICLIVE 56: Pearson Sound/Ramadanman will be released on March 21.
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "facebook" and source: "<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.xlr8r.com%2Fnews%2F2011%2F03%2Fread-facts-interview-ramadanman&layout=standard&show_faces=false&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=35" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:35px;" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>".
Austin’s Insect Records is getting ready to release a massive compilation of forward-looking funk and soul tracks made by over 20 producers from around the globe, and this sample-heavy jam is its flagship offering. “Didn’t Wanna DJ” is LA beatmaker P.U.D.G.E.‘s contibution to Starship 27 Vol. 2: Lift Off, which is squeezed in between tunes from the likes of Dibia$e, House Shoes, Devonwho, Dâm-Funk, B. Bravo, and Ras G, among many others. The boom-slapping tune steadily rides a few psychedelic samples—lifted from an obscure Indian record no doubt—for the entirety of its nearly three-minute runtime, with just enough space left in the mix for aggro bass tones, warbling space noise, and the occasional drop of silence. You can check out the artwork and full tracklist for Starship 27 Vol. 2 below, before it drops on March 29.
1) Intro 2) A-Llive – Didn’t I 3) Jordan Rockswell – Air 4) Dibia$e – Attention 5) Flame Brown (a.ka. Waajeed) – Blues & Pants 6) J1 – Slang Talk 7) House Shoes – Castles 8) P.U.D.G.E. – Didn’t Wanna DJ 9) C.F.C. (J.Bizness & Ayiro) – Reason 10) I-Ced – Westcoast Rock 11) Black Spade & Coultrain – B Wit U 12) Eric Lau – 8001 13) F.A.M.E. – Superfuturisticfunkalatapus 14) Dâm-Funk – I Don’t Just Do Beats 15) Devonwho – Somethingelseagain 16) B. Bravo – Midnite 17) Kone – Funk 3481 18) Computer Jay – The Slapper 19) Ras-G – Try-Angles 20) Outro 21) Nofrendo – Deepspace Heartache (Digital Only)
Now that we’re into, oh, maybe the 653rd installment of Asthamtic Kitty’s ongoing Library Music series, things are starting to get a bit more interesting—conceptually speaking. (It’s actually only up to the 13th volume, but that’s still a lot of library music.) Musician/producer Leb Laze (who moonlights as Prefuse 73’s live keyboardist) ran into some problems with his MPC-2000 when working on the tracks for his forthcoming installment; it began to “uncontrollably spit out all of the sounds that are loaded in it in their unedited, raw form, over and over and over.” Taking the opportunity as a chance to make proverbial lemonade, Leb Laze harnessed the sampler’s sound vomit, turning its randomness into what will be released as Music For Troubled Machinery on March 29. “Toxic Knock (A)” comes from that offering, and sounds almost exactly like the artist described it: Underneath the swelling synth tones, lilting low-bit atmospheres, and smooth electronic grooves, a piece of music-making gear teetering on its last leg writhes and wriggles in a frantic dance of uncontrolled sound bytes. But the way Leb Laze handles the music, you’d have no idea anything was going wrong in the track without some previous explanation.
Late last year we shared with you a collaborative remix by Joe Goddard of Hot Chip and burgeoning UK MC Ghostpoet of “Trumpalump,” originally by another newcomer to the MC game, Kieren Dickins (a.k.a. Dels). Now, months and months after that first taste, the growing artist has given us news of the release of his debut LP on May 24 via Big Dada. The 11-song offering, called Gob, will feature production work from the aforementioned Hot Chip affiliate and fellow UK musicmakers Micachu and Kwes, along with guest vocals from Roots Manuva, Elan Tamara, and Goddard. Before Dels’ album drops, you can check out the artwork and tracklist, below, and if you’ll be in attendance at SXSW this year, make sure to catch Dickins’ US debut during the festivities.
1. Hydronenburg 2. Trumpalump feat. Joe Goddard 3. Shapeshift feat. Joe Goddard 4. Moonshining 5. Eating Clouds 6. Melting Patterns 7. Capsize feat. Joe Goddard and Roots Manuva 8. Violina 9. DLR feat. Elan Tamara 10. Droogs 11. GOB feat. Elan Tamara
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "facebook" and source: "<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.xlr8r.com%2Fnews%2F2011%2F03%2Fdels-release-full-length-album-m&layout=standard&show_faces=false&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=35" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:35px;" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>".
House veteran and head of the Objektivity imprint, Dennis Ferrer, has announced that he will be joining forces with NYC’s Martinez Brothers to form a new crew that will exist under the name NeuWave Renegades. Inspired by the hip-hop crews of days past, NeuWave Renegades will be a collective of DJs and producers that centers around Ferrer and the Martinez Brothers but could include any number of friends and collaborators. In traditional hip-hop crew fashion, performances under the name will incorporate a number of different contributors depending on the night and as Ferrer says, “it might be the brothers, it might be me, you don’t know what the fuck you’re gonna get. It’s not about the individual, it’s about the concept.” As long as the concept has something to do with pumping out the tasty mix of soulful and techy house its members have come to be known for, then we really can’t disagree. The crew has a 12″ in the works for later this year and a few appearances planned in the coming months along with an Ibiza residency. Ferrer shared more of the NeuWave Renegades story and plans with Resident Advisor in a short interview which you can read here.
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "facebook" and source: "<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.xlr8r.com%2Fnews%2F2011%2F02%2Fdennis-ferrer-and-martinez-broth&layout=standard&show_faces=false&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=35" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:35px;" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>".
Before the physical release of a new EP from Gold Panda, called Marriage (pictured above), via Ghostly on April 6 (it’s out digitally now), the UK’s creator of emotive, techno-influenced soundscapes is offering those five tracks to be heard in full. Below, you can stream the producer’s original single, along with remixes from the likes of burgeoning tunesmith Star Slinger, Anticon’s own creator of precious beats Baths, lo-fi experimentalist Forest Swords, and newcomer Halls. And don’t forget about the lovely video we posted for Gold Panda’s “Marriage” song, which you can watch here.
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "soundcloud" and source: "<embed allowscriptaccess="always" height="225" src="http://player.soundcloud.com/player.swf?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Fplaylists%2F607841" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="100%">".
XLR8R Couldn't find the embed function for type: "facebook" and source: "<iframe src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.xlr8r.com%2Fnews%2F2011%2F03%2Flisten-gold-pandas-marriage-ep-r&layout=standard&show_faces=false&width=450&action=like&colorscheme=light&height=35" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:35px;" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>".
It’s hard to believe that more than a year has passed since Uproot Andy was profiled in the pages of XLR8R. In the often-nebulous, internet-driven world of tropical bass music, the NY-based DJ and producer is basically what passes for a veteran presence. In recent years, he’s released both original productions and remixes on labels such as Bersa Discos, ZZK, Dutty Artz, and Ghetto Bassquake. Last year’s remix of Los Rakas’ “Abrazame” was a certifiable summer jam, and the Que Bajo?! party that he puts on with tropical co-conspirator (and Dutty Artz crew member) Geko Jones is the spot in NY for upfront, electronically minded tropical and Latin dance music. Apart from that, Andy is currently at work on a proper debut album, but we finally convinced him to turn in an exclusive mix for the XLR8R podcast, right before he hopped on a plane to Colombia for a string of DJ gigs. As expected, his podcast traverses the globe, weaving together bass-heavy Latin re-edits—many of which are unreleased and of his own creation—with UK funky, dancehall, ghettotech, and plenty more indescribable points in between. For those of us muddling through the chilly final throes of winter, Uproot Andy’s mix is more than capable of heating things up until spring arrives.
01 Uproot Andy/Florence Stamp “Axe Chop riddim/Satisfied” 02 Malente & Dex “In Nightclubs” (Exploited) 03 Zinc “Number 1 Girls feat. Benga and Sweetie Irie” (Bingo Bass) 04 A.J. Holmes & the Hackney Empire “Fraudian Slip (Uproot Andy Remix)” (Ghetto Bassquake) 05 Velour “Kick It Till It Breaks” (Night Slugs) 06 Tim Dolla “Switch (Sheeqo Beat Remix)” (Cool) 07 Matt Shadetek “This is Love” (Dutty Artz) 08 Oscar Neves “Mabele (Uproot Andy & Geko Jones Remix)” 09 Four Tet “Sing (Mosca Remix)” (Domino) 10 Antony Santos “Vete (Uproot Andy Remix)” 11 TNT “Hot Gyal” (T&A) 12 R1 Ryders “Hydraulic” (R1 Ryders) 13 Kano “Get Wild feat. Aidonia & Wiley (Redlight Remix)” (Bigger Picture) 14 Schlachthofbronx “Chambacu” (Mad Decent) 15 Warrior One “Lord of Bashy (Douster Remix)” (Mixpak) 16 HeavyFeet “Are You Dumb? feat. Miski (Dre Skull Remix)” (Stamp! Beats) 17 Myrryrs “Feel U (Clicks & Whistles Remix)” (Discobelle) 18 Ku Bo “Sumanita feat. Daniecell” (Man) 19 DJ Godfather “Ayo Technology” (Databass) 20 Canblaster “Thunderdome Got Crunk” (Sounds of Sumo)
