Berlin purveyors of all dance-friendly music, Get Physical, move further into the future with the release of their own iPhone Touch Mix. Featuring 18 club-ready tunes from Booka Shade, DJ T, and Patrice Baumel, to name a select few, the application allows you to crossfade tracks, apply a variety of effects, and use the touch screen to “scratch” at will. Now all would-be DJs can hone their skills on the go! More info and a link to download the app can be found here.
Emerging out of the hiss, a bright, four-note phrase repeated as lackadaisical percussion beats a lazy tattoo while low-frequency, almost bong-like gurgles simmer beneath it all. With secondary percussive elements, banjo, and cello incorporated into the piece as well, “Salvador” has the feeling of a Dirty Three track, only more stoned.
Lokai’s Transitions is out now on Thrill Jockey.
In our latest issue, Cooly G, Geeneus, and Roska—the trifecta of London artists leading the charge for UK funky—are already onto the next thing… Funkstep? Dubbage? Who cares what you call their newest mutation of beats and rhythms? On our side of the pond, FaltyDL and Dev79 & Starkey also take bass in wildly new directions. As well, the latter two lead off our Philly City Special, where we go deep to uncover the city’s hottest clubs, eateries, and unique spots, while checking in with Mad Decent, Cold Cave, Space 1026, and more!
For fans acquainted with Múm’s earlier works, Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know might seem an anomaly—the album’s opening tracks ditch the Icelandic band’s previous glitch-and-lullabye IDM for plain, old-fashioned indie pop. With shades of St. Vincent on “Sing Along” and “Prophecies and Reversed Memories,” the slow-motion soundtracks of Finally We Are No One and Yesterday Was Dramatic, Today Was OK seem far removed from the Múm on this record. It’s not that Sing Along to Songs You Don’t Know is a bad record, but Múm’s latest LP runs by a well-worn playbook, one that costs them their previously unique sound.
Could there be a better MC to survey Philly’s DJ scene than Spankrock’s Naeem Juwan? We think not. As part of our Philly City Special, we had Naeem choose his five fave local selectors.
Dave P
Once Dave actually learned how to blend records together, he became the best DJ in Philadelphia! Actually, he has always been one of the best, introducing us to the best new indie dance music around the world. He would bring us England’s new stars before England even knew they were stars.
DJ Sega
I was first impressed by this young Philly DJ by his Baltimore club selection, and then when I found out he produced most of the songs he played, I was blown away. I think he may have been the first to make Headbanger’s Ball club anthems.
DJ Siyoung
Known best as the DJ for Philly’s favorite rap group, Plastic Little (after State Prop, of course), Siyoung has been holding down dancefloors with his extensive knowledge of what’s new and old in hip-hop, R&B, and the blogosphere.
Brendan BringEm
Philadelphia has always had some of the best selectors in America when it comes to hip-hop, reggae, and soul, but we have lost many to other cities. DJs like Rich Medina, Cosmo Baker, and Low B always showed how deep their crates went, and were never afraid to play exactly what they wanted. Brendan is one of the last of these Philly men standing.
Gregg Foreman, Russ Alexander, The Brothers Gieda
This collective hosts Turnaround vs. Immediate, a soul party named after the late-’60s soul label Immediate Records. This party has been going for longer than I even lived in Philly, and it has always been one of my favorite parties to go to.
Canada’s dancehall-indebted beat maker Poirier has followed up his latest EP for Ninja Tune, Run the Riddim, with a new mix that deftly blends the DJ/producer’s beloved genres of soca, UK funky, dancehall, kuduro, and electro, among others. Entitled Karnival Mix, the 10-track quickie serves as an introduction to his upcoming new party KARNIVAL v.1 that kicks off the beginning of October at Club Soda in Montreal. The mix is available for free download here.
Who: Neon Indian
Where: Austin, Texas
Strange and interesting things are at work in the mind of young Texan producer Alan Palomo. With his latest musical guise Neon Indian, Palomo has transformed his love for sweet-toothed synth hooks and straightforward dance beats into a burnout’s wet dream—comforting and warped pop tunes packaged with hazy nostalgia and lackadaisical vocal melodies. Palomo also operates under another alter ego, the robust and clear-headed VEGA, delivering disco-house with a treasure trove of club-ready sounds. His work as Neon Indian is more personal, as heard through the psychedelic electro of debut long-player Psychic Chasms, a more apt soundtrack for the nonsensical conversations of late night afterparties that continue well into the quiet, reflective mornings after.
Listen: “Terminally Chill”
It takes something special to make interesting electro-house in today’s jam-packed, ever-evolving electronic music environment, but Berlin’s Magnum 38 has managed to do so in a big way. His latest EP is comprised entirely of noise-influenced electro that takes its emotional feel—not to mention plenty of samples—from the almighty doyenne of nightlife, Grace Jones. “Slave” utilizes cut-up vocal samples from “Slave to the Rhythm” above a crunchy, hissy beat and some surprisingly ethereal backing synths. Though some of Jones’ fans might not appreciate the reworking of her clarion voice, many more are sure to be blasting this beast into the winter.
Wow! Australia’s Toecutter incorporates a Kool And The Gang sample into a filter-house track par excellence, then Flight Facilities reverse the process, using the original source material and pumping it up into a beardo-disco number that actually improves on Kool & The Gang’s “Tonight,” a near-impossible feat. Be prepared to hear this throughout the fall—it is a total scorcher.
