Gagarin “Hogmanay” (First Foot Mix)

Yesterday, February 4, Courier Sound released Phenomenology, a new EP by Gagarin.

Phenomenology is a collection of four individual pieces of music that are each based on or feature an event, sound, or “thing.” The opening track, “Learning to Fly,” is pulled from sounds made for an installation of the same name, and is a deep downtempo cut based around morse code; “Hogmanay” looks to the Scottish tradition of the same name via delicate ambience; “A Herd of Wrens” is directly inspired by the tiny birds that live outside Gagarin’s studio, a tribute of sorts; and “Holmbury Hillfort” is produced from recordings made on Holmbury, a Bronze Age hill fort, and includes mountain bikers as well as rain, alongside melodic lines drawn from the shape of the view of the South Downs in the distance.

Phenomenology is available now and can be purchased here, with a gorgeous alternate mix of “Hogmanay” offered as a free download via WeTransfer below.

Due to issues regarding the GDPR, EU readers can download the track here.

Tracklisting:

1. Learning to Fly

2. Hogmanay

3. A Herd of Wrens

4. Holmbury Hill Fort

Podcast 579: Clovis

Clovis—who operates under his first name—has had this mix on his mind for some time, but it took him until now to put something together; why risk sharing something that doesn’t feel completely ready? It’s a philosophy that he applies to his productions: barring a handful of track contributions to LesIzmo:r and BodyParts various artist compilations, he hasn’t released anything, though there’s plenty of material ready—or nearly ready, at least. “Sometimes, I think I tend to trick myself that the music isn’t really ready,” he told us in 2016, “I just have to get better at sending my stuff out to people; I’m pretty bad about that kind of thing.” 

Not too much has changed on a production front since that conversation, but Clovis has been anything but static. Born and raised in LA, save for a two-year stint in France, Clovis has relocated to Berlin where he’s become part of the furniture at Club der Visionaere; head down there any afternoon—or, better still, early morning—and you’re likely to see him spinning trippy minimal tunes or dancing to them. It’s a move he’d intended for some time: his sound—groovy, stripped-back, and intricate—is omnipresent across the European continent and he’s reaping the rewards of being surrounded by those who sing a similar tune. He was invited to play at Sunwaves 2017—the benchmark for those within these musical stylings—and is performing more regularly away from the German capital, particularly in and around Bucharest. Listening to his music, you can’t help but feel that it’s a matter of getting it heard above all else. 

His mix is a testament to this growing reputation. Tracks come from the masters of this scene—Rhadoo, Ion Ludwig, and Baby Ford—plus some lesser-known cuts and unknown little-publicized reworks and edits. Most have been released, some not, but you’re unlikely to have heard them all.  

What have you been up to recently?

I just got back home to Berlin after two months on the road in North America…toured most of the USA with a couple stops on the Mexican border and one in Vancouver, Canada. It was a long and fun trip with some great surprises and adventures, and nice to see all my family and friends over there. We hosted Ion Ludwig for a party in LA and had a nice week showing him around, including a road trip to the desert with my Mom and some friends; that was really fun. Two months away can get a bit disorienting though, so I’m happy to be back at home with the amazing crew of friends and crazies here in Berlin. One of the main reasons I moved here is that almost all my favorite musical peers and friends in the scene are here; it just feels right for the time being.

When and where was this mix recorded?

This was recorded in the lovely basement at the house of my good friends Matt Foley and Molly McElheny in Boston, who run Community Links and also the Reset Wednesday parties there. I recorded the mix on three CDJs, Technics, and a Xone 92, on my last full day in America before heading back to Europe. They have a great little mini-club like afterparty basement with one of the most comfortable DJ setups of all time and good vibes. Some choice mezcal helped during recording also. 

Is there a particular theme or idea behind it?

Like you mentioned, I’ve been thinking about an XLR8R mix for a while now, and originally I wanted to do something really broad with a variety of styles and tempos, something representative of my wider music tastes; a journey for home listening. In the end, though, I decided to record something more spontaneous that is more representative of how I play out at parties, or what I think a condensed version of an ideal night might sound like, with a mix of old and new as usual. I did one take the week before that I wasn’t so happy with, and had a gig out of town in between. Once I got back I had one afternoon to quickly go through some different ideas and tracks and record in one shot. I’ve tested the result on a few friends to good feedback and decided I’m pretty happy with it, which is rare since I tend to over-analyze any recording of myself.

How did you choose the tracks that you included?

As always, it’s a distillation of what I’m into and playing these days, with newer artists and records I’ve found recently, older ones I’ve kept in the rotation, and things I had picked out almost at random even a few hours before recording. I like a lot of different dance music and I like to go different places while playing, so the challenge is always how to fit everything together so that it flows nicely and makes sense to me. I think there is a good coherence here while I manage to take some risks and not stay stagnant on one energy level or style. The third CDJ was essential for doing some on the fly edits and creative mixing and layering. Thanks to Tom McKeon for providing it in Boston! Finally, I always like a gentle intro and a soft landing with any mix I’m recording for this purpose, which you’ll also find here.

What’s next on the horizon? 

I’ve had a bit of a rough start to the year with some canceled gigs and postponed dates, but getting back in the grind soon enough. The calendar is looking good through spring and I’m looking forward to visiting some new cities like Budapest in March 8, and going back to favorites like Wildt in Prague on February 16. I am already planning another US and South America trip in June as well. Apart from travel, I’ll be making some new music in friends; studios in Berlin and with Matt we’re in the early stages of starting a new label that will be called Understory, to release some nice stuff I have from friends that still hasn’t found a home, and hopefully some of my own music as well. Other than that, I can’t wait for spring & summer to roar back into Berlin and CDV season to start!

Tracklisting

01. Ahu “Ascosmic” [Shahr Farang]

02. Thomas Fehlmann “Window” [Kompakt]

03. Pandilla LTD “Triangulum Australe” [Pandilla Ltd]

04. Pressure Point “Transmission” [Telharmonic Texture]

05. Yone-Ko “War People” (So Inagawa Industrial Remix) [Mussen Project Records]

06. Modbox “Halo Effect” (Topper Remix) [Castanea Records]

07. Doctor Rockit “Cameras And Rocks” [Clear]

08. Ma.To “Piris” [Sukhumvit]

09. Social “Social 004 B1” [Social]

10. Sioul & Gab Jr. “Mr. President” [Swap White Ltd]

11. Coordinates “Sinking” [Sub Static]

12. Paradroid “Spectral Coloured Diamonds” (Fym Remix) [Boogizm]

13. G76 “Lights Out” (Denis Kaznacheev Remix) [Castanea Records]

14. Ghini-B “UK’s Morning” [Bleu Nuit]

15. Rhadoo “Om Neom” [Nervmusic]

16. Brett Johnson “Get Up” [Mesilla Valley Madness]

17. Ion Ludwig “Trelik 032 B2” [Trelik] (Unreleased)

18. Julian Alexander “JANC6” (Ferro Remix) [SlapFunk Records]

19. Lorenzo Chiabotti “Stratonautica” [Outer Place Records]

20. Baby Ford “All Set” [Perlon]

21. Nightdrivers “Ready To Glow” [Bosconi]

22. Shinichi Atobe “So Good, So Right” [DDS]

23. Altitude “Infinite Possibilities” [Irenic]

24. Move D, Pete Namlook “Schmock!” [Fax +49-69/450464]

25. Micawber “F7” [Sylphe]

26. Yard One “Hexad” [Tactics]

27. Theo Parrish “Solitary Flight” [Sound Signature]

28. Jan Jelinek “The New Anthem” (Edit) [Audiosphere]

Due to issues regarding the GDPR, EU readers can download the podcast here.

Hyperdub Details Debut Mana Album, ‘Seven Steps Behind’

Hyperdub will release the debut album of Mana. 

Mana is the alias of Daniele Mana, formerly known as Vaghe Stelle, with releases on Other People, Danse Noire, and Gang Of Ducks. His 2017 debut EP for Hyperdub, Creature, was a taut, evocative suite of beatless, almost neo-classical electronics, and since then his music has “caught an alien virus and started hallucinating,” the label explains. On Seven Steps Behind, the borders between reality and the weird have collapsed on each other, and with each listen through its zigzagging course, you’re rewarded by its strange twists and turns.

We’re told to expect an electronic album that doesn’t always sound electronic; a great deal of the record has been created to sound like prepared pianos, harpsichords, cellos, and flutes. At other times, sampled acoustic instruments and specially recorded sessions have been processed through software and careful editing. Mana’s singing voice also makes its debut here albeit adorned by abrasive effects. 

Tracklisting

01. Risk Taking 

02. Myopia For The Future 

03. Talking : Choking feat. Yendry 

04. A Note To The Limits 

05. Swordsmanship 

06. Leverage For Survival 

07. Symphony Of Regulation 

08. Solo 

09. No Body 

10. Instinction 

11. Soaking In Water 

12. Seven Steps Behind 

Seven Steps Behind lands on April 5, with “Solo” streaming below.

Futurepast Welcomes MGUN for Three-Track EP

MGUN (a.k.a Manuel Gonzales) is up next on Futurepast with The Nerve. 

We’re told that the Detroit artist, real name Manuel Gonzales, offers a fresh take on his roots with three new tracks that escape the usual categories. “No two subsequent bars are identical, simultaneously reflecting and satisfying our curiosity,” the label explains. 

Gritty drums and panned-out synth sequences in “The Nerve” result in a suspenseful energizing step. “Snap In,” with its funky, reverb-soaked highs and hefty breakbeat, demonstrates MGUN’s talent for folding in his electro and hip-hop influences. “Intent” recalls a dreamy, vintage slideshow projector, misplaced memories lining up in a heartfelt procession.

Belgian artist Davy launched Futurepast last year with his own The Long Now ‎EP as an interpretation of the future inspired by sounds of the past. 

Tracklisting

01. The Nerve

02. Snap In

03. Intent 

The Nerve EP lands March 6, with clips below. 

Tommy Four Seven Details Sophomore Album, ‘Veer’

Tommy Four Seven will release his second album, Veer, on April 5 via his label, 47.

The 10-track album is the UK artist’s first full-length solo record since 2011’s Primate on CLR. Since then, as one half of the electronic duo These Hidden Hands, he has released two albums:These Hidden Hands in 2013, and Vicarious Memories in 2016. 

We’re told that this album sees him further refine his disruptive take on techno, pulling the listener deep into its fractured rhythms, textures, and cinematic electronics. It gives a nod to sci-fi nostalgia, conjuring memories of flickering 35mm film, desolate poly-synths, and existential threats. 

It will be 47’s 20th release and first long-player.

Tommy will embark on his album tour from March 2019 with tour dates  here. 

Tracklisting

A1 / 01. Dead Ocean 

A2 / 02. Radius

A3 / 03. 2084

B1 / 04. The Virus 

B2 / 05. Neuromorph 

C1 / 06. Feed

C2 / 07. Aphelion 

C3 / 08. X Threat 

D1 / 09. Protocol 9 

D2 / 10. Colony

Veer LP lands April 5 via 47, with ” 2084″ streaming below. 

Premiere: Hear a Menacing Track From W3C

March 1 will see the release of W3C‘s Event Horizon EP.

The new EP marks his return to Infinite Machine, following 2017’s widely-acclaimed State Of Absolute Alienation EP. Like that EP, Event Horizon is a confounding and otherworldy collection of tracks, an EP that, as W3C explains, “portrays a trip into a very distant and completely alien region of space in which many of our preconceptions are turned on their head—especially those of what the UK sound is and what you can potentially do with it.” Across the EP’s eight tracks, W3C flips the UK sound on its head and takes the listener into an alien world of deconstructed bass grooves and sonic terrain full of disorienting, metaphysical sound design.

Ahead of the release, you can pre-order the EP here with “Lucid Dream” streaming in full via the player below.

Dis Fig Announces Debut Album, Shares Single

New Jersey-born, Berlin-based Dis Fig, real name Felicia Chen, has announced her debut album, PURGE.

Chen has made her name primarily as a DJ over the last few years via brutalist, confronting sets, and PURGE will be her first solo release proper. The LP will land via New York label PTP in March and, according to the press release, explores Chen’s “own vulnerability through varying degrees of noise, vocal migrations, and orchestral composition.” “PURGE is about confronting the feelings which you have been avoiding. Consciously or subconsciously,” says Chen. “Feelings you want to be feeling or ‘should’ be feeling but you can’t because your body won’t let you. Because maybe it knows it’s not safe for you.”

PURGE will be released digitally and on cassette on March 15 and can be pre-ordered here. You can find a stream of the album’s first single, “Unleash,” below, along with the artwork and tracklisting.

Tracklisting: 

1. Drum Fife Bugle

2. Alive

3. Watering

4. U Said U Were

5. Unleash 05:11 

6. The Hermit

7. Purge

8. WHY

9. I Am The Tree

RY X Returns with Sophomore Album

Ry Cuming, better known as RY X, will return with his sophomore album, Unfurl.

The 13-track effort follows the Australian singer-songwriter’s 2016 album debut, Dawn. We’re told that he now honours and expands on his vision with this second album.

Between its rippling beats, mellifluous guitars, poised piano, and questing vocals, Unfurl does what its title suggests: develops from Ry’s previous work, blossoming in delicate new directions while holding firm to its roots.  “I think my mission statement was simply to remain vulnerable and to capture that within this album,” says Ry. “The inspirations change each time, and I always want to allow that process to be free, to draw on new ideas and sounds and instrumentation. But what feels consistently important to me is keeping a sense of rawness and honesty in the work.”

Raised in the coastal community of Angourie, off Australia’s east coast, Cuming left home at 17 with a surfboard and a grunge obsession. Travelling to Costa Rica, Indonesia, Stockholm, London, Berlin, and Hollywood, he explored a passion for many forms of music, from Indian Ragas and African Jazz to the swells and tension of techno and more experimental electronic music, which led to two collaborations: one with Frank Wiedemann under the name Howling, the other with UK DJ Adam Freeland and California producer Steve Nalepa as The Acid. 

Tracklisting

01. Body (Ambient)

02. Untold

03. Bound

04. Body Sun

05. YaYaYa

06. Coven

07. Hounds

08. Foreign Tides

09. The Water

10. Mallorca

11. To Know

12. Sun (Ambient)

13. Fumbling Prayer

Unfurl LP lands February 15 via Infectious, with “Bound” and “The Water” streaming below. 

Daniel Avery Announces ‘Song For Alpha: B-sides & Remixes’

Daniel Avery will present a collection of B-sides and remixes of his sophomore LP, Song For Alpha, almost a year to the day after the album’s release. Across 23 tracks, Avery showcases cuts from the album’s writing and recording process and invites a number of his contemporaries to rework his original material. 

Produced solely in Avery’s London studio, the lengthy recording process for Song For Alpha spanned some years as Avery continued to tour and collaborate as a producer. He was left with over 100 tracks, some of which were eventually distilled into the album. This new package sees him share several others that arose from these sessions. 

Meanwhile, the collected remixes span a spectrum of new and established names. Jon Hopkins, Actress, and Four Tet each contribute typically bold reinterpretations, the latter originally released as a limited edition 12″ at London festival Field Day. 

Also included are reworks from Giant Swan, Manni Dee, Mor Elian, Inga Mauer, and Anastasia Kristensen. Close friend and occasional DJ partner HAAi premieres a brand new remix, as does Avery’s studio neighbour and collaborator as PSSU, Richard Fearless. Meanwhile, techno acts Surgeon, Luke Slater, and Patrick Russell apply their individual sensibilities. 

The collection is set for digital release on April 5 on Phantasy worldwide and Phantasy/Mute in the US & Canada, with new track “Under The Tallest Arch” streaming below. 

Pre-order is available here. 

Tracklisting

Part 1

01. Think About What You Love

02. Glass

03. Under The Tallest Arch

04. Radius

05. Hyper Detail 

06. The Gait Of A Man I’ve Never Met 

07. Memory Loop

08. AQPAN6102

09. Time Marked Its Irregular Pulse In Her Eyes 

Part 2

01. Slow Fade (Actress Remix)

02. Glitter (Anastasia Kristensen Remix)

03. Quick Eternity (Four Tet Remix)

04. Hyper Detail (Giant Swan Remix)

05. Time Marked Its Irregular Pulse In Her Eyes (HAAi Remix)

06. Fever Dream (Inga Mauer Remix)

07. Glitter (Jon Hopkins Remix)

08. Diminuendo (Luke Slater Remix)

09. Citizen // Nowhere (Manni Dee Remix)

10. Stereo L (Mor Elian Remix)

11. Projector (Obscure Shape & SHDW Remix)

12. Diminuendo (Patrick Russell Remix)

13. Days From Now (Richard Fearless Remix)

14. Radius (Surgeon Remix)

Daniel Avery Announces ‘Song For Alpha: B-sides & Remixes’

Daniel Avery will present a collection of B-sides and remixes of his sophomore LP, Song For Alpha, almost a year to the day after the album’s release. Across 23 tracks, Avery showcases cuts from the album’s writing and recording process and invites a number of his contemporaries to rework his original material. 

Produced solely in Avery’s London studio, the lengthy recording process for Song For Alpha spanned some years as Avery continued to tour and collaborate as a producer. He was left with over 100 tracks, some of which were eventually distilled into the album. This new package sees him share several others that arose from these sessions. 

Meanwhile, the collected remixes span a spectrum of new and established names. Jon Hopkins, Actress, and Four Tet each contribute typically bold reinterpretations, the latter originally released as a limited edition 12″ at London festival Field Day. 

Also included are reworks from Giant Swan, Manni Dee, Mor Elian, Inga Mauer, and Anastasia Kristensen. Close friend and occasional DJ partner HAAi premieres a brand new remix, as does Avery’s studio neighbour and collaborator as PSSU, Richard Fearless. Meanwhile, techno acts Surgeon, Luke Slater, and Patrick Russell apply their individual sensibilities. 

The collection is set for digital release on April 5 on Phantasy worldwide and Phantasy/Mute in the US & Canada, with new track “Under The Tallest Arch” streaming below. 

Pre-order is available here. 

Tracklisting

Part 1

01. Think About What You Love

02. Glass

03. Under The Tallest Arch

04. Radius

05. Hyper Detail 

06. The Gait Of A Man I’ve Never Met 

07. Memory Loop

08. AQPAN6102

09. Time Marked Its Irregular Pulse In Her Eyes 

Part 2

01. Slow Fade (Actress Remix)

02. Glitter (Anastasia Kristensen Remix)

03. Quick Eternity (Four Tet Remix)

04. Hyper Detail (Giant Swan Remix)

05. Time Marked Its Irregular Pulse In Her Eyes (HAAi Remix)

06. Fever Dream (Inga Mauer Remix)

07. Glitter (Jon Hopkins Remix)

08. Diminuendo (Luke Slater Remix)

09. Citizen // Nowhere (Manni Dee Remix)

10. Stereo L (Mor Elian Remix)

11. Projector (Obscure Shape & SHDW Remix)

12. Diminuendo (Patrick Russell Remix)

13. Days From Now (Richard Fearless Remix)

14. Radius (Surgeon Remix)

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