Little Dragon to Release New Ninja Tune EP

Photo: Jakob Ekvall

Little Dragon will release Opening The Door, a new EP, next month.

Opening The Door follows the release of Drifting Out, a triptych comprising three takes on a central track, with contributions from Kelsey Lu, Yo-Yo Ma, and Jakob Koranyi; The Other Lover, a collaboration with Moses Sumney; and the release of their New Me, Same Us Remix EP which featured contributions from Midland, Octo Octa, Georgia Anne Muldrow, and Ela Minus.

The Swedish electro-pop outfit released New Me, Same Us, their latest album, last year, also on Ninja Tune.

Alongside the announcement, Little Dragon have shared “Frisco,” a bouncy minimal dance track about “renewal, letting out your full potential, and moving with the wave of change and life.”

The EP also features “Stay,” a collaboration with respected East Atlanta rapper JID, and “Peace” an ethereal, rhythmic song which features Swedish musician Stefan Sandberg, who contributes flute.

Opening The Door represents “being brave and moving forward into the unknown,” we’re told.

“We have so much new music to share, and it feels like we are finally opening the door and releasing it out from our bubble and into the universe,” the band explain.

Tracklisting

01. Stay feat. JID
02. Frisco
03. Peace feat. Stefan Sandberg

Opening the Door EP is scheduled for September 16 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Frisco” in full below and pre-order here.

Koreless is Back with a New Single on Young

Photo: Eloise Parry

Koreless is back with a new single on Young.

In July 2021, Koreless, real name Lewis Roberts, released his debut album, Agor. On “Droids,” his first new music since the album, he continues to push the boundaries of electronic music, taking his hyper-polished productions to new depths with a carefully designed soundscape that journeys through electro and techno. We’re told that it makes “the a beginning of a new phase” for the Welsh producer.

After a series of early releases, including his debut EP, 4D, in 2011, Roberts started working with the London-based label Young, releasing a collaborative work with Sampha and the Yūgen EP. And then he eventually turned his attention to Agor, which was over five years in the making, straddling the worlds of ambient and contemporary classical while not sounding like an example of either.

Tracklisting

01. Droids

“Droids” is available now on Young, with a full stream below.

Roméo Poirier’s Third Album is Incoming

Roméo Poirier will release his third studio album on Faitiche.

On Living Room, the Brussels-based producer, photographer, and life-guard develops a sound that’s both nostalgic and mysterious. Across 12 new tracks, plus a remix from Jan Jelinek, he draws on an ever-expanding archive of self-recorded loops, making another batch of sleek electro-acoustic music.

“I always resample myself, using fragments of a track to make a new one, as an ongoing process,” he explains. “The sound is evolving with me in parallel and the loops carry in their DNA all transformational stages, filled with previous tracks, sedimented.”

For the first time in Poirier’s music, the human voice enters, and the aquatic feel is because he uses a waterproof loudspeaker and a hydrophone to play back and re-record his tracks in the bathtub. 

Conceptually, Living Room reflects on the universal origin of human experience. “I liked the idea that a possible quest for a musician could be echoing the first encounter we had with language, in a pre-natal state,” Poirier says, “its prosody, melody, and tones, without being cluttered with meaning.” 

Originally a drummer from Strasbourg, Poirier released his debut, SURFACES, as a soundtrack to four of his favourite swimming pools. In 2020, he shared Hotel Nota on Sferic, based in Manchester. Before that, he put out Plage Arrière, an ode to eight Greek beaches, on Kit Records.

Tracklisting

01. Statuario
02. Neos Kosmos
03. Bespoke
04. Porte contre
05. Anna
06. Muscle de sable
07. Rotation séance
08. Le case degli altri
09. Visiona
10. Impression couleurs
11. Les grandes lignes
12. Superstudio
13. Muscle de sable (Jan Jelinek Remix)
14. Muscle de sable (Jan Jelinek Remix) (remixed by Roméo Poirier)

Living Room LP is scheduled for October 7 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Muscle de sable” and the Jan Jelinek Remix in full below. Pre-order is available here.

Pessimist Next on AD 93 with Hardcore and Jungle

Bristolian producer Pessimist will release a new EP on AD 93‘s Blue series.

Blue 09 compresses two club-ready tracks of “hardcore / jungle techno done my way,” Pessimist, real name Kristian Jabs, says.

Jabs’ earlier releases have landed on Ilian Tape, Blackest Ever Black, and his own Pessimist Productions. For more information on Jabs and his work, check out his XLR8R podcast.

“These are two tunes for the dancefloor,” Jabs says. “No messing around, straight to the point.” 

Blue 08, the previous edition in the London label’s series, came in the shape of a compilation featuring Sapphire Slows, Mucho Sueño, and more.

In September, AD 93 will release the debut album of Coby Sey.

Tracklisting

01. MDZhB
02. Danger

Blue 09 EP is scheduled for August 26 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Danger” in full below and pre-order the EP here.

Podcast 761: Force Placement

Jason James, better known as Force Placement, is a DJ-producer based in Los Angeles, and a bastion of the local electronic music community. He is a founding member of The Black Lodge, an intimate monthly event based upon the exploration of esoteric electronic music. As a resident DJ, James has become known for his versatile and energetic performances that run the gamut from soulful and cerebral house to mind-bending acid techno. The platform has become a label, though James has released the majority of his music on labels like 100% Silk, Private Selection, and Lost Soul Enterprises.

James’ journey into music began at the age of 12 when he started collecting CDs and tapes after hearing the otherworldly sounds of Aphex Twin and The Chemical Brothers on the radio. A few years later, he began attending drum & bass raves and bought his first pair of decks and taught himself how to mix. Around this time, he also started making beats on FruityLoops, inspired by Dieselboy, Plaid, Boards of Canada, and Photek. The Black Lodge, founded in 2015, was a platform for him to meet like-minded people and simply play out his favorite records.

For this week’s XLR8R podcast, James has delivered a studio mix full of his favorite mutant strains of electronic music, coming from the likes of Ben Pest, Sons of Slough, and Arsonist Recorder. (There’s also a taste of his own upcoming EP on EVAR Records.) It’s meticulously created but also free-wheeling and hard-hitting, which is perhaps a reflection of his own love for punk music. Press play for just over an hour or future funk, kinetic acid, and stuttered kicks from one of the best in the game.

01. What have you been up to recently?
I’ve been staying busy with gigs and trying to finish some new music. I just started a new DJ residency with a local crew called Into the Woods, and I’m excited about it! I’m also juggling a few side projects right now. I play drums in a couple of hardcore punk bands and I have a harsh noise project called Nu Sire. 

02. What have you been listening to recently? 
Lots of ’80s hardcore punk and death metal. I’ve also been jamming to Quelle Chris a lot lately. 

03. How did your first releases come about? 
My first vinyl release came about after I met Jay Caston (a.k.a Aschof Mal) at a Black Lodge party sometime in 2016. I was already a huge fan of his label, Material Image. I sent him some rough ideas for tracks and a year later he released my Sometimes It Seems Like EP. 

04. When and where did you record this mix? 
I recorded this mix in early July 2022 after spending a month or so gathering material. It was recorded in my kitchen on two CDJ 2000s and a DJM 900 mixer. 

05. How did you go about choosing the tracks you’ve included? 
Lots of late-night digging sessions on Discogs and Bandcamp!

06. How does it compare to what we might hear you play out live? 
The vibe of the mix is pretty close to what I normally play at gigs. It’s a snapshot of what you might expect to hear during one of my sets. 

07. What’s next on your horizon? 
I have a new EP dropping soon on EVAR Records. I’ve also got some fun gigs planned for winter. Other than that, I’m just working on finishing new music!

XLR8R has now joined Mixcloud Select, meaning that to hear the podcast offline you will need to subscribe to our Select channel to listen offline, or subscribe to XLR8R+ to download the file. The move to Mixcloud Select will ensure that all the producers with music featured in our mixes get paid. You can read more about it here.

Full XLR8R+ Members can download the podcast below. If you’re not an XLR8R+ member, you can read more about it and subscribe here.

Tracklisting

01. Force Placement “Lycanthrope” (Private Selection)
02. L.F.T. “Red Pyramid” (Mechatronica)
03. Sons of Slough “I Can’t Hear The Stereo” (Sprüngcartellwachs)
04. Alonzo “Animal Control” (Cultivated Electronics)
05. Fleck E.S.C. “Hot Bath” (Science Cult)
06. Keith Tucker “Other Worlds” (Mechatronica)
07. Rise Black “El Clarinete De Gitano” (Science Cult)
08. Die Essenz “Du Magst Das Nicht” (Alma Electronica)
09. Thousand Order “Entry Code” (International Chrome)
10. D. Strange “Drapetomania” (Subsonic Ebonics)
11. Arsonist Recorder “Heat Seak” (Science Cult)
12. Go Hiyama “Unchance Operation” (Mord)
13. Shun “Bizarre” (CPU Records)
14. Ben Pest “The Team” (Dionysian Mysteries)
15. Steve Allman “Master Future” (Avoidant)
16. Psyk “Down” (Non Series)
17. Michael Claus “Paranoia” (Unreleased)
18. Force Placement “Upsetter” (EVAR Records)

Brian Eno to Release New Album Inspired by Climate Emergency

Brian Eno will release his 22nd studio album, FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE, in October.

Eno made the album at his studio in West London, and he sings vocals on the majority of tracks for the first time on an album since 2005’s Another Day On Earth.

All 10 tracks are inspired by the climate emergency.

“Like everybody else, except, apparently, most of the governments of the world, I’ve been thinking about our narrowing, precarious future, and this music grew out of those thoughts,” Eno says. “Perhaps it’s more accurate to say I’ve been feeling about it…and the music grew out of the feelings. Those of us who share those feelings are aware that the world is changing at a super-rapid rate, and that large parts of it are disappearing forever…hence the album title.”

Alongside the announcement, Eno has share “There Were Bells,” written by Eno for a performance by him and his brother, Roger, at UNESCO World Heritage site, the Acropolis, in August 2021. It was hot in Athens on the day of the concert with wildfires raging just outside the city. The video, streaming below, provides a poignant reminder of the current climate emergency.

“These aren’t propaganda songs to tell you what to believe and how to act. Instead they’re my own exploration of my own feelings,” Eno continues. “The hope is that they will invite you, the listener, to share those experiences and explorations.”

Tracklisting

01. Who Gives a Thought
02. We Let It In
03. Icarus or Blériot
04. Garden of Stars
05. Inclusion
06. There Were Bells
07. Sherry
08. I’m Hardly Me
09. These Small Noises
10. Making Gardens Out of Silence

FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE LP is scheduled for October 14 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “There Were Bells” in full below and pre-order the album here.

Download: O’o “Touche” (Coco Em Remix)

Coco Em has remixed “Touche” by O’o.

Coco Em’s remix of “Touche” is available on the EP of the same name, which is available now and also features the original cut, an acapella version, and a remix by Eat My Butterfly.

Coco Em’s remix, which is being offered as a download to XLR8R+ subscribers below, flips the organic electronics of the original and refits it with a dancefloor framework. Across the six-minute runtime, the Nairobi artist ingrains the track with darker elements whilst still retaining the original’s melodic backbone, adding veil of percussion and synths for good measure.

One of Africa’s most exciting DJ/Producers, Coco Em’s crafted a reputation that has expanded into global territory such as Switzerland, Canada, and the US, pushing Kenyan house, old school kwaito, kuduro, and lingala, from the north-western part of Congo. You can find her XLR8R Podcast here.

Full XLR8R+ Members can download the “Touche” remix by Coco Em below. If you’re not an XLR8R+ member, you can read more about it and subscribe here.

Mount Kimbie and Actress Collaborate on New Single

Actress, real name Darren Cunningham, and Mount Kimbie’s Kai Campos have teamed up for a single for Ninja Tune.

Featuring Cunningham’s familiar distorted elements, mixed in with Campos’ hypnotic melodies, “AZD SURF” makes for a seamless collaboration.   

For Cunningham, a singular voice in British electronic music, “AZD SURF” is his first new music since the release of his 2020 album, Karma & Desire, which saw guest collaborations from Sampha, Zsela, and Aura T-09.

Mount Kimbie released their third studio album, Love What Survives, in 2017, which featured collaborations with James Blake, King Krule, and Mica Levi. Since then, Campos has curated a DJ-Kicks mix, delivering snapping electro and pounding techno through the same experimental lens as Mount Kimbie’s studio work. 

In 2018, Actress and Mount Kimbie performed a rare NTS show together as part of a Mount Kimbie residency in 2017.  

Tracklisting

01. AZD SURF

AZD SURF is available now. You can stream it in full below and order it here.

Manchester’s Rainy Miller Unveils Second Album

Photo: Callan Dooly

Rainy Miller will release DESQUAMATION (Fire, Burn. Nobody), a new album, on HEAD II.

Musically, DESQUAMATION is a departure from the Manchester artist’s earlier releases, including his Armor II EP with Blackhaine, on his own Fixed Abode label.

Instead of blissed out ambient and heady beats with pensive lyricism, the release builds on “immersive maximalism” and a “distinctive new musical ground,” we’re told. All 10 tracks are said to be “fiery, intricate, and dense,” stretching across contorted pop and laconic drill with gritty, thought-provoking bars. They put life in modern Britain under the microscope, while delving into self-reflection, angst, trauma, and growth.

Miller is a Preston-born producer who works closely with the likes of Blackhaine, Space Afrika, Iceboy Violet, and Moseley, who feature across the record. He started out making music as a teenager on a digital audio workstation, using his ear for everything, before releasing 2019’s Limbs, his debut album of hazy bedroom pop and hip-hop, on which he fused fragile vocals with smooth, moody melodic beats.

HEAD II is the label of The White Hotel.

Artwork comes from Alex Currie.

Tracklisting

01. ii, Preface Benevolence
02. A Fiesta Mk V Burns, On The Highway
03. Breathe, Sigh
04. Do You Have Any Sympathy Left
05. July iii
06. Misery Is As Misery Does
07. 2 Live < feat. Rose A
08. > Is 2 Die
09. Way Out feat. Blackhaine + Moseley 
10. These Four Walls 

Desquamation (Fire, Burn. Nobody) LP is scheduled for November 2 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Misery Is As Misery Does” in full via the player below and pre-order here.

Sam Gendel Next on Leaving with New Album

Sam Gendel will release a new full-length on Leaving Records.

The bulk of blueblue was recorded in isolation in a makeshift studio built in a cabin floating atop a tributary of Oregon’s Columbia river. Having sketched out a set of guitar melodies, Gendel recorded the album in five weeks, during which time he became well-acquainted with the river’s tidal rise and fall. This organic rhythm, which each day lifted the house to meet the horizon, later setting it down gently upon the riverbed, permeates the record.

We’re told that the record is “mesmerizing, evocative, and sonically idiosyncratic.”

In keeping with its name, the release conveys, through repetition and deviation, Gendel’s devotion to a certain “nostalgic and quasi-psychedelic” mood. Each track correspond to a pattern within sashiko, a traditional style of Japanese embroidery.

Integral to the feel of blueblue is Craig Weinrib’s kit work. Gendel and Weinrib collaborated long-distance during Gendel’s time in Oregon, with Gendel sending Weinrib half-finished songs, giving him the freedom to record percussion.

Across a dizzying slate of solo releases and collaborations, Gendel has amassed a reputation for his prolific output, which is indebted to jazz and hip-hop.

Tracklisting

01. Tate-jima (縦縞, vertical stripes)
02. Tate-waku (竪沸く, rising steam)
03. Hishi-igeta (菱井桁, parallel diamonds or crossed cords)
04. Shippō (七宝, seven treasures of the Buddha)
05. Toridasuki (鳥襷, interlaced circles of two birds)
06. Fundō (分銅, counterweights)
07. Kōshi (格子, checks)
08. Amime (網目, fishing nets)
09. Uroko (鱗, fish scales)
10. Hishi-moyō (菱模様, diamonds)
11. Kagome (籠目, woven bamboo)
12. Nakamura kōshi (中村格子, plaid design of the Nakamura family)
13. Yarai (矢来, bamboo fence)
14. Yoko-jima (横縞, horizontal stripes)

blueblue LP is scheduled for October 14 release. Meanwhile, you can stream “Tate-waku (竪沸く, rising steam)” in full below and pre-order here.

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