Voltage Festival is set to return to Transfo, Zwevegem on Saturday, August 18 and 19 for its fourth year running.
Over the last three years, the fledging festival has built a solid reputation as Belgium’s go-to event for experimental techno, house, and acid fans, all who flock to an old abandoned electricity plant to see their favorite artists perform on a set of indoor and outdoor stages. This year, Voltage has invited some of the most revered names in underground electronic music, including the enticing b2b pairing of Ancient Methods and Tommy Four Seven, SHDW and Obscure Shape, Phara and Border One, and Perc and Ansome, the latter of which will play a special live hybrid set. The bill will also feature performances from Rrose, Cosmin TRG, Chris Liebing, Inigo Kennedy, Headstrong (a.k.a. Clouds & Randomer), Kr!z, MPIA3 (Truss), Slam, Speedy J, SP-X (hybrid live), and many more.
This year will also mark Voltage Festival’s partnership party organization Nasty Mondays, who will help produce the event, with this year featuring three stages called Turbine, Anode, and Rotor. Turbine is the indoor component, situated in the center of the electricity plant, lending to a gritty industrial feel and vibe; Anode is the outdoor stage, located right under a sprawling power station and undoubtedly one of the world’s most unique festival stages; and Rotor is another outdoor stage focused on showcasing the beguiling array of emerging Belgian artists, showing the festival’s commitment to supporting the bubbling local scene.
You can find more information and tickets to Voltage Festival here, with the full lineup, aftermovie, and gallery below.
Lineup:
999999999 (live) Amotik Ancient Methods & Tommy Four Seven Boston 168 (live) Chris Liebing Cosmin TRG Headstrong (Clouds & Randomer) Inigo Kennedy Keith Carnal Kr!z [KRTM] & TWAN MPIA3 (Truss) Newa Perc & Ansome (hybrid set) Phara & Border One Rod Malmok (acid set) Rrose SHDW & Obscure Shape Slam Speedy J stranger & Remco Beekwilder B (live) Bion-x Cellini Endove Gaāl Goldfox J.KØPS Linear Straight Mainro Man Outta Space Nathaniel Nico Morano Ode Maen & Massaar Pastorr SIWEI (live) SP-X (hybrid live) spacid Tremenzz TRiXY
Swedish producer Toxe will release a new EP on PAN, titled Blinks.
In just a few years, Toxe has linked up with Staycore and Halcyon Veil, presented an A/V project with The Vinyl Factory, and scored KENZO’s FW 2016 prints presentation with close collaborator Mechatok. It consists of five new tracks developed over the past year and features original art by Jasper Spicero.
We’re told that it represents “a period of inward flux” for Toxe, fusing “a sweet juvenilia with a bustling and eager pensive tone to outline her tessellating sense of self just below the surface.”
It will be the Berlin label’s first release of 2018.
Tracklisting
01. Honey Island
02. Big Age
03. Perfect 2
04. Blue Warm Up
Blinks EP will land on June 22, with “Big Age” streaming in full via the player below.
Marcel Fengler will soon release the second part of IMF10, a three-part compilation series detailing the past, present, and future of his label Index Marcel Fengler (IMF)
IMF10 is a collection of exclusive originals and remixes created by some of electronic music’s most skilled producers, alongside contributions from rising talents who are set to shape the direction of the label for years to come.
Split into three parts, released throughout the first half of 2018, each volume consists of six tracks and encapsulates a different tone, aimed to highlight not only the versatile sonic constellation of the label but also the breadth Fengler enjoys exploring in his DJ sets.
Part one, available now, explores deeper and more hypnotic territory, as Alva Noto makes his debut for IMF re-working the Fengler classic “Sphinx,” alongside a new contribution from DIN, the collaborative project between Fengler and Efdemin—a welcome return with the project after a three-year hiatus. Elsewhere, friends Matrixxman (in collaboration with producer Riccardo Limiti) and Lucy also join the compilation crafting powerful originals, alongside Scuba with a rework courtesy of his SCB project, plus a new track from Slovenian’s Blaukoma.
Part two, out soon, takes a different route, focusing on the warmer and more soulful side of IMF and features an array of artists making their debut for the label. There’s FJAAK, a Shed remix of Vril, and Thomas Hessler. Vienna’s Arthur Robert—a new face Fengler discovered after he sent him tracks over Facebook—contributes a shimmering work.
Highlighting this section of the project is the first AZUR track—Marcel’s new side project. He explains: “I’ve always liked to be diverse with my music, but I also don’t want to confuse people. This is the reason why I decided to give my melodic and groovy side its own identity. My music under the Marcel Fengler name will go back to its roots and be more raw and rough in production terms.”
Part 3 focuses on the tougher end of the techno spectrum and features Marcel Fengler’s first original production in two years, a rare offering from Sebastian Kramer (aka Redshape), a prized Luke Slater re-work of Thomas Hessler, and Peter Van Hoesen.
The final digital package will be complemented by a DJ mix from Thomas Hessler comprised of tracks from IMF10.
Ahead of Part 2’s May 30 release, you can stream Shed’s remix of Vril via the player below.
“Shed is one of my absolute favorite producers since a long time. The way he’s handling grooves, melodies, and atmospheres in his productions is absolutely outstanding and catches me immediately. After we worked out a remix of a track from my album Fokus back in 2013, I’m excited to have him contribute to IMF as well. He’s influenced me a lot.” — Marcel Fengler
Part 1
01. Marcel Fengler “Sphinx” (Alva Noto Remodel)
02. DIN “Akustikkoppler”
03. Matrixxman & Riccardo Limiti “Speed”
04. Lucy “Sticks And Stones”
05. Somewhen “Dain” (SCB Expension)
06. Blaukoma “Iris Pattern”
Part 2
01. FJAAK “Ether”
02. Vril “Thronwagen” (SHDRMX)
03. Eric Cloutier “Hadal”
04. AZUR “With You”
05. Thomas Hessler “Senses”
06. Arthur Robert “Schwäche”
Part 3
01. Marcel Fengler “Phalanx”
02. Thomas Hessler “Perception” (Luke Slater Remix)
Jackmaster will be joined by local legend Lory D and DJ Red as Rome’s Goa Club signs off another successful summer season tomorrow.
Lory D recently released a series of five EPs all titled Strange Days on Jackmaster’s Numbers imprint, and this inspired the Rome-based promoters to bring them back for this closing party.
Located in Rome’s Ostiense neighborhood, Goa is a 700-capacity techno and house club with a dancefloor and a bar lined with sofas for lounging.
Previous closing parties have seen the likes of Raresh, Francesco Del Garda, Christopher Ledger, Smooky Margielaa, and more all perform.
The event takes place on Thursday, May 24, from 11.30 pm to 5 am. More information, including tickets, can be found here.
The latest release on UK label Love Story Recordings will be “Always On,” a new single from Puerto Rican DJ, producer, and Melon Bomb regular Daisybelle and Brighton-based producer, and engineer Rob Savage.
For fans of deep sun-drenched house, ‘”Always On” will undoubtedly please, fusing a funk-infused, low-slung groove with Daisybelle’s sultry vocals, and gritty Chicago-house percussion. The single also lands with a remix from Parisian Robsoul Recordings regular Joss Moog, who takes the original down a deeper, more loopy path, focusing on Daisybelle’s vocal, as he explains: “Daisybelle’s vocal really stood out for me on the original mix, and was the inspiration for my deep and funky take on the track.”
You can pick up Joss Moog’s remix below, with the record available here.
The latest release on UK label Love Story Recordings will be “Always On,” a new single from Puerto Rican DJ, producer, and Melon Bomb regular Daisybelle and Brighton-based producer, and engineer Rob Savage.
For fans of deep sun-drenched house, ‘”Always On” will undoubtedly please, fusing a funk-infused, low-slung groove with Daisybelle’s sultry vocals, and gritty Chicago-house percussion. The single also lands with a remix from Parisian Robsoul Recordings regular Joss Moog, who takes the original down a deeper, more loopy path, focusing on Daisybelle’s vocal, as he explains: “Daisybelle’s vocal really stood out for me on the original mix, and was the inspiration for my deep and funky take on the track.”
You can pick up Joss Moog’s remix below, with the record available here.
The EP, titled Mescla, follows on from Binary Digit’s 38490 Electronics, a warped collection of acid, with five mind-bending electro cuts. From the hyperactive robotics of opening cut, “Director,” to the deep intoxicating grooves of “Qwerty” and the closing cut’s subtle jazz licks, Mescla is sure to turn some heads in the scene—and set some bodies moving in the process.
In support of the release, Dream Ticket has offered up a full stream of the mind-bending EP cut “Qwerty,” available to stream via the player below.
You can pre-order the release here, with “Qwerty” streaming in full via the player below.
Ada Kaleh is set for his first release of the year, namely Nedesluș….it în amurg.
The EP features three pieces designed in Ada Kaleh’s distinctive and, at times, peculiar style. It follows a busy 2017 for the Romanian DJ-producer, during which he shared his Palatul de Cleștar LP via R&S Records, among several other EPs.
In support of the release, which lands today on Ada Kaleh Romania (the label’s seventh release), you can download “Morgana avidoma” in full via the button below. We’re told that the track is what spawned the other two that are featured on the vinyl.
Experimental bass music production duo SHADES (a.k.a Alix Perez and Eprom) will release a debut album in July, titled In Praise of Darkness. In support of the announcement, the duo have shared the menacing “The Saga,” the album’s first single.
Representing both sides of the Atlantic, SHADES is the creative meeting of minds of Alix Perez (UK) and Eprom (USA). Since their inception four years ago, they have released four EPs including the most recent Night of the Dreadless Angel (2017) in which they collaborated with Ivy lab, and their self-titled debut Shades EP (Alpha Pup, 2015).
Ross From Friends is the latest signing to Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder, but you probably already know that. The 24-year-old, real name Felix Clary Weatherall, has made quite a name for himself since he first set tongues wagging with 2015’s “(Talk To Me) You’ll Understand, a hazy lo-fi number with woozy synths and classy vocal samples. It’s racked up close to four million Youtube plays alone. Former British Prime Minister was even caught humming it after his July 2016 resignation speech. It really was that infectious.
Clary Weatherall is born and raised in Colchester, United Kingdom. His affiliation with music came through his father, a local DJ with a penchant for ’80s Hi-NRG and Italo disco—and it wasn’t long before Weatherall’s experiments began. He divided his time between making music in bands and solo work, operating under a slew of different aliases, before becoming Ross From Friends in 2012. He’s given various different explanations for his adoption of this alias.
A first release came in 2015 and set the tone for things to come. Released via South London label Breaker Breaker, Alex Brown featured three sample-laded, rough-edged house cuts; but it wasn’t until the “(Talk To Me) You’ll Understand” that he really broke through. It took him over six months to produce, drawing inspiration and an endearing sense of melancholy from a series of unfortunate changes in his life. “There was quite a lot of emotion genuinely put into that song,” he said in a previous interview. He’s since gone on to perform a three-man live show in clubs across the world, while sharing music via Lone’s Magicwire, Molten Jets, Lobster Theremin, and, most recently, Brainfeeder—distancing himself a little bit more from his original lo-fi sound. With a debut album in the works, XLR8R caught up with Clary Weatherall as part of our 20 Questions series.
Ross From Friends will be performing at this year’s Parklife Festival, taking place on June 8 and 9 in Manchester, United Kingdom. Also on the bill are Four Tet, Peggy Gou, Mall Grab, and many more. More information can be found here.
1. What have you been up to recently?
I just got a Nintendo Switch so I’ve been rinsing that a whole load recently. Just got Zelda so I think that’s gonna start consuming my life.
2. You just released on Brainfeeder. How did the relationship with the label come about?
I think someone showed FlyLo some of my tunes in like 2016 and he got in touch over Twitter. We were chatting for a pretty short time then he asked me to release music on his label. It felt like I was being proposed to.
3. Is it true that David Schwimmer is suing you for defamation?
Haha, I wish! That was a prank article from Mixmag, I had no idea they were going to do that. The thing is now if the TV show did actually sue me for defamation, it’d be a proper boy who cried wolf scenario, I think.
4. What’s your connection to Friends as a show—or was it just a whim?
The reason I chose the name was because there was this TV in the studio where I was making music that had a DVD of Friends jammed in it and it was stuck on. So every time I made music, the TV show Friends was constantly playing while I was recording. If you listen carefully you can hear some of Chandler’s sarcastic quips in the background of my tracks where the mic picked it up.
5. Do you read record reviews of your music?
I really try not to. Even whether it’s positive or negative, it always seems to have some kind of influence on me. I feel it’s better to try and cut myself off from that world and remember the reasons why I make the music.
6. How much of your online goofy persona a reflection of you personally?
Yeah, it definitely is a massive part of myself. Quite a lot of the time I try not to take things too seriously.
7. What was the last book you read and why?
Nicholas Pileggi “Wiseguy.” That was the last book I actually finished, and that was a few years ago. I’ve got about five other books I’m reading, but I feel like I’ll never actually get to the end of them. I read “Wiseguy” just because I’m super into 20th Century mobster stuff. It was the book that became Goodfellas.
8. How do you feel about London as a city, speaking generally?
Yeah, I like it. It’s super convenient, there is loads you can do and all of my friends live here. I always think about moving abroad but I have everything I love in one place, so I think I’ll stay here for the foreseeable future.
9. What do you get up to on weekends, when you’re not playing?
Usually just seeing my friends as much as I can really. Going down the pub, chilling out.
10. If you could have dinner with any musician, alive or dead, who would it be?
Probably Michael Jackson. I’m a huge fan of his music, like everyone is, I’m sure, but to see what he’s really like on a personal level would be wicked.
11. Besides music and skating, do you have any other hobbies?
I haven’t skated in so long so I feel guilty for calling that a hobby anymore, unfortunately. But I play five-a-side football in London every Thursday, that’s always a hoot.
12. How much time do you spend in your studio per week?
I share a studio with John, the saxophonist from the live show, so we divide up the days throughout the week. But when it’s my turn, I try to spend as long as possible in there. Like 20 hours or something stupid like that. When I’m making tunes it feels like I could stay up for days but I just have to tell myself to stop after a certain amount of time.
13. What’s your favorite place to visit on tour?
One place that really stuck out for me was Florence, Italy. I’ve only been there once, and we had the opportunity to walk around for a few hours or something but it was beautiful. Definitely going to visit again.
14. What music are you listening to at home right now?
I’m rinsing the new Jpegmafia album, Veteran, at the moment. Such an expressive, genius album.
15. Who do you show your music to before you release it?
I always get well excited when I finish something so I’ll be playing it at home. But I usually send it straight to my girlfriend, John and Jed from the live show and my manager Simon.
16. Do you think deeply about where you’re going musically?
Yeah definitely. I always have a vision in my head that I’ll be like 40 years old and have released like 10 albums or something like that. I always like to progress and experiment, try new things out and challenge myself. It keeps it interesting for me.
17. What’s the last thing that made you laugh and why?
The last thing that made me laugh was Peep Show. I’ve just binge watched that show for the past, like, 10 years. I don’t know how but it always just reliably makes me laugh out loud, even when I’m completely on my own.
18. Do you have a favorite album of all time?
I always seem to have a top three in my head that hasn’t changed in the past five years or so, in no particular order:
Madvillain Madvillainy
Michael Jackson Thriller
The Smiths The Queen Is Dead
19. What’s next on the production front—can we expect anything in a longer format?
I’ve actually just finished putting together my debut album. It’s been an absolutely grueling process, and a proper look inside myself. I’ve loved it and hated it. But now it’s finished I want to try and make another one all over again!
20. What can you tell us about the album?
My debut album is a real culmination of everything I’ve been working towards after making music for so many years. I spent a really intense amount of time just obsessively trying new ideas out until I created something that I was satisfied was a step beyond what I’d made before. It was a super intense and horrible process and I can’t wait to start making another one!
