Sicaa is a DJ and producer with a background in sound design and a sonic identity that fuses cinematic elements with left-field hip-hop, bass music, and beat-driven styles. Following on from releases on Unlog, Highlife Recordings, and Exploration Music, Sicaa has turned his hand to Tokyo-based UK garage artist Prettybwoy‘s “Hansei” featuring Dufff & Dekishi.
Offered as today’s XLR8R download, Sicaa’s remix of “Hansei”—which was originally released on POLAAR’s Territoires Vol. 1 compilation—takes the bass-heavy, intense original and slows things down for a smoky, downtempo outing. Sicaa’s abstract atmospheres and lazy beats pair perfectly with the flow of the two MCs.
You can pick up the remix via WeTRansfer below, with the original and vocal mix available as an email download via POLAAR.
SXM Festival has announced the Phase 2 lineup for its 2017 edition, taking place over five days at various venues on the idyllic shores of Saint Martin.
Joining an already world-class bill that includes Ricardo Villalobos, Black Coffee, Âme, RPR Soundsystem (Rhadoo, Petre Inspirescu, Raresh), and Nina Kraviz, the phase two lineup additions include Audiofly, DJ W!ld, Doc Martin, Francesca Lombardo, Frank & Tony, Guti (Live), Julia Govor, Kate Simko, M.A.N.D.Y., Martin Buttrich, Moscoman, Richie Hawtin, Shaun Reeves, Skream, Sleepy & Boo, Sonja Moonear, Taimur & Fahad, and The Martinez Brothers.
You can find more information and tickets for SXM Festival here, with the list of already announced artists below.
SXM FESTIVAL LINEUP (Alphabetical):
Âme (Live) Amir Javasoul Andhim Atish Audiofly Bedouin Behrouz Black Coffee Blond:ish Bob Moses (Club Set) Chaim Crussen DJ W!ld Doc Martin Francesca Lombardo Frank & Tony Fur Coat Guti (Live) Honey Dijon Isaiah Martin Jade Jamie Jones John Acquaviva Jon Charnis Julia Govor Kate Simko Lee Burridge Lee K Lum M.A.N.D.Y. m.O.N.R.O.E. Maher Daniel Martin Buttrich Matthias Meyer Moscoman My Favorite Robot Nico Stojan Nina Kraviz Nitin Ostrich Nu Ricardo Villalobos Richie Hawtin Rony Seikaly Roy Davis Jr. RPR Soundsystem (Rhadoo, Petre Inspirescu, Raresh) Sebastian Mullaert Aka Minilogue (Live) Shaun Reeves Skream Sleepy & Boo Sonja Moonear Soul Clap Taimur & Fahad Tara Brooks The Martinez Brothers Thugfucker Vanjee YokoO
John Swing released his 10-track Assorted Moods LP just over a fortnight ago. It was, as the press release dictated, something of a “turning point” in Swing’s output, straying considerably further from his signature house and techno style to explore his other influences—including jazz, dub, funk, hip-hop and even some club music.
Swing’s earlier discography, a “work in progress” since 2009, is filled with various raw and powerful vocal-laden house cuts, ranging from classic and soul-drenched house to grittier Chicago sounds—check out “Don’t Want It” or “Groovin’ Jazz” for cases in point. Many of these tracks have landed through Relative, one of a collection of sub-labels to LiveJam, the parent label he co-runs with EMG and through which he released the beautiful Assorted Moods.
He has, however, continued to show the diversity in his influences and production capabilities through a range of other ventures, from house beats / broken tech label Warm Sounds, on which he releases as The Raw Interpreter, to the live-recorded techno project Appointment (together with EMG and The Analogue Cops). The depth of his musical vision is similarly striking in his latest experimental releases with Battista and EMG, together as Sperimentazioni Sonore, where the trio explore the limits of sonic waves expressed through a “Conscio” and an “Inconscio” mix.
Given the time of the LP and Swing’s refined spectrum of musical knowledge, it’s fitting that his submission to the XLR8R podcast series captures these various sides of his musical character; while raw and powerful house forms the basis for the 70-minute mix, it’s blended with various other genres, including, most notably, jazz sequences and cherry-picked funk and disco—to which the John Swing alias has not been closely affiliated until more recently.
When and where was the mix recorded? It was recorded recently in my place in London.
What equipment did you record the mix on? Two turntables and a rotary mixer.
Did you have a specific mood/ idea that you wanted to express? Not really, just wanted to play something that followed the flavor of the album in some way.
How did you select the specific tracks that you wanted to include? I’ve chosen tracks that have elements that are in line with what I usually pick when I make music: house grooves, disco cuts, jazzy elements, and drums.
Your recent LP on your’s and EMG’s LiveJam Records saw you stray from your signature house and techno towards many of your other influences. Was this on your mind for the mix too? Sort of, I played records that usually sit more in my record bag rather than in my library, but yes I guess this mix follows up with the album’s mood but more in line with my house flavor.
What else have you got coming up, following this album? By the end of January I’ll release my first EP on Warm Sounds, featuring three tracks I made with a producer who’s never been heard of but will be soon. This also has got a new taste to it – I’d call it more “journey music”.
After this, there will be a new Vinalog EP on Relative plus more Relative and Warm Sounds releases before the summer…
Birmingham label Circular Jaw dropped its first release, Weighty Sound—a massive 22-track compilation featuring, among others, Corporal F, Yak, Arma, and FoxMind—at the end of 2015. Filled with minimal, bass-heavy grooves, the varied release is a calling card for the label and its artists and was the launching pad for the following three releases.
On December 22, Circular Jaw will round out 2016 with Weighty Sound 2, a 12-track compilation as sprawling as its predecessor. Built from a collection of chunky club cuts that once again take influence from the UK, Weighty Sound 2 flows through its 12 varied tracks with nice sonic coherence.
In support of the release, Circular Jaw has offered up Archa’s weightless “Efface” as today’s XLR8R download, available via WeTransfer below.
These days, though musical curation remains as fundamental as ever to their success, there is so much more to also keep in mind. Brand image, social media presence or lack of, release formats (with the resurgence of the cassette, as well as the vinyl), and many other intricacies factor into our overall impressions. It can be just as easy to fall deeply in love with an imprint that churns out a release a month as its counterparts that put out one cherished record each year. At the end of it all, it’s just got to be that certain je ne sais quoi that makes a label stand out; here are a list of labels that did just that in 2016.
Melliflow
With four splendid EPs in its debut year, Vera and Alexandra‘s Melliflow imprint is fully deserving of its spot on this list. However, given the absence and promotion around each release, and the vinyl-only format, it’s possible that Melliflow’s existence and subsequent inclusion may come as something of a surprise who do not maintain close ties with the vibrant Berlin music scene—though you’ll almost certainly have heard several cuts from its discography if you spent any considerable time partying in the city during the recent summer months. And those Berlin regulars will most likely have been familiar with the Melliflow name for several years following a number of parties at local institutions Club der Visionaere and Hoppetosse; but it is only in 2016 that this widely-known party-series evolved to encompass a label.
Having spent several months refining the label artwork—check it out to understand why—Vera and Alexandra inaugurated the imprint in May with Spacetravel‘s Time To Wake Up EP. In doing so, they also offered our first insight into the tight, minimal beats we can expect from Melliflow—no real surprise given their respective backgrounds in similar soundscapes as solo artists. The B2, titled “Magic Track” was particularly well received and played out.
Up next, in July, came the Daytona EP by AK41, the collaborative project of Romanian’s Dan Andrei and Serban Goanta (a.k.a. Kozo); before a fine double EP arrived from Italy’s And.rea (real name Andrea La Pietra)—an emphatic and varied third release that made many music fans stand up and take notice.
But it was the final EP, Z@P’s Sonic Utopia, that was perhaps the most impressive of them all. There had been much anticipation in the XLR8R offices after “D-04” popped up in Vera’s podcast earlier this year; though “Diamante” dropped and established itself as a contender for our track of the year. A fine release in what is a particularly strong quartet, Sonic Utopia capped a fine year for Melliflow and the ladies behind it.
Awful Records
A ragtag collective of 17 Atlanta-based artists working under the guidance of label founder, creative leader, quality controller, and evil genius Father, the Awful Records label has grown in stature over the last 12 months—pushing out genre-distorting content from artists including ABRA, who took us back to the future with her acclaimed Princess EP.
Artists who have previously been in the background of the collective also came to the fore, with drops from Ethereal and Lord Narf, who brought a wonderful sound and aesthetic with her video for “Leave Yo Azz Alone,” revealing her ability to channel something that reminds one of Lisa LeftEye’s effortless sparse, skeletal lyricism.
The tight-knit, self-taught crew is clearly focused on maintaining a DIY attitude to all aspects of production, as they continue to switch roles creatively in support of each other’s projects—from engineering to design. It is this attitude, coupled with each artist’s individual style, that has brought the label such success. Nothing feels formulaic or forced, contrasting much of what is coming out of Atlanta today or in the past couple of decades, comparable only to the outsiderism of artists like Andre 3000, or Cee-lo Green.
трип
Nina Kraviz’ трип (pronounced “trip”) project has been around since 2014, inspired by her life as a touring DJ—and sparked as she began preparing records for her 2015 DJ-Kicks release. As she told Resident Advisor in a recent exchange, she started it as a body to represent records that possess that common “feeling” or “texture” that run through all the records that she plays and collects, old and new. 2016 saw the label gain widespread recognition as it became an increasingly important part of Kraviz’ career—running in parallel to and perfectly complimenting her commitments as one of the world’s most celebrated DJ and producers.
Scan through the discography, and it’s not easy to pinpoint this common “texture” to which she refers. Sourced almost entirely from a close-knit crew of artist friends from far and wide, much of the music is warped and, well, trippy—more attuned to a seedy after-hours material rather than the traditional club environment. Of course, Kraviz’ profile has brought the label great levels of attention, but that only goes so far: there is, without doubt, a certain quality to the imprint that has started to shine through over the past 12 months.
High Focus Records
Formed in 2010, Brighton-based UK hip-hop label High Focus has rewritten the rules of what labels representing British rap and hip-hop are capable of. 2016 saw the label grow considerably, showing us that an entertaining offering can come from outside of the UK’s major cities. Besides a string of sold-out events across the country, there was Ocean Wisdom’s CHAOS 93‘s LP which debuted at #10 on iTunes globally on the day of its release.
Giegling
Once again, it just wasn’t possible to overlook Giegling for this year’s list. Year upon year, the Weimar-based collective prove themselves as one of the world’s finest underground imprints—although, on the surface, they do very little. Releases, infrequent and sporadic at best, are rolled out without any publicity; the only way of knowing when a Giegling record drops is via the label’s homepage or when those who snag a vinyl make sure all their friends are aware of their achievement. Take Prince Of Denmark’s recent €100 box-set, titled 8, for example: first pressings sold out within weeks, with absolutely no audio samples or information about the release.
And herein lies the key to Giegling’s success: quality. As with the majority of the labels on this list, Giegling sits here because it has its own individual identity, fronted by a unique and pleasant sound aesthetic that is ensured on each and every record that leaves the doors. As with 8, you can buy a Giegling record without even hearing it; you just know that it’s going to be good. Check out the label’s other 2016 releases for proof in point, including, of particular note, Leafar Legov’s Talk and DJ Metatron’s stunning 2 The Sky.
Diagonal
Oscar Powell’s Diagonal imprint is acknowledged for disobeying the unwritten rules of electronic music. This definitely plays to the label’s advantage as every release is taken from a smorgasbord of artists and genres. What to expect? It could be anything from downtempo, electro, noise, and even certain strands of pop.
The label had a great 2015, and 2016 was no different. The UK label finished off last year with an average of a release every other month—among which were full-lengths from Russell Haswell and Not Waving. This year featured a whole breadth of styles, which included some pacy electro from Container’s Vegetation EP; Ancient Methods and Cindytalk teamed up to create some rough-round-the-edges EBM as In The Mouth Of The Wolf; and label boss Powell came through with some post-punk-meets-industrial jams.
Mord Records
Bas Mooy’s Mord label has managed to fit in a lot in a very short time. From its arrival back in 2013 until now, it has amassed over 30 EPs, a couple of box-sets and two LPs. While the roster may feature some big name artists, Mooy revels in providing a platform for emerging artists. However, 2016 seemed like the Rotterdam label boss wanted to focus on shelling out material from the veterans—Oscar Mulero, Neil Landstrumm and old label buddy Radial were just some of the big names all let loose on solo EPs.
Infinite Machine
A label based in Montreal and Mexico City, Wolf’s Infinite Machine has been a regular fixture on XLR8R’s pages since 2012, and each year the label grows more confident in its mission to push electronic music further into the dark recesses of the club. Each release that siphons through the Infinite Machine is at once intense, brutal, and, at times, hauntingly beautiful; it’s confounding music that bucks trends and expectations at every turn.
Standout releases from WWWINGS, Ziúr, Galtier, Tomás Urquieta, and Abyss X made 2016 a banner year for Infinite Machine, and the ace up its sleeve was the consistency in its high-quality output—an astounding achievement when you consider the experimental, forward-thinking music it’s pushing.
Northern Electronics
Northern Electronics was birthed after a chance encounter between label heads Abdulla Rashim and Jonas Rönnberg (a.k.a. Varg) in 2013. In just four short years, the pair of young producers forged a singular sound rooted in drone, ambient, techno, and the melancholic landscape of their Scandinavian home. With its shadowy sound aesthetic and equally suggestive art by designer Jonas Bard (Böfüms), Northern Electronics is one of the most distinctive labels in modern electronic music.
Following on from a standout 2015, Northern Electronics this year proved it’s only going going forward with notable highlights including mind-bending albums from Ulwhednar, D.Å.R.F.D.H.S., Lundin Oil, Isorinne, Lorin, and Vit Fana, alongside label compilation Scandinavian Swords II and EPs from Acronym, and label heads Abdullah Rashim and Varg.
Stones Throw
Year after year, LA-based label Stones Throw continually impresses. For a label 30 years into its existence, it would be easy to sit back and bask in the glory of releasing some of the beat scene’s most forward-thinking, seminal albums (J Dilla’s Donuts and Madvillain’s Madvilliany, for example) and slowly fade into obsolescence. 2016, however, was one of the label’s strongest in recent years, bookended by the enticing pairing of Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge (a.k.a. KnxWorries), Mndsgn’s funk-filled Body Wash, and Samiyam’s sprawling Animals Have Feelings.
Galdoors
In an interview with us earlier this year, Neil McDermott (a.k.a. Junes) explained what him and brother Ian (a.k.a. Tames) are aiming for with their Galdoors imprint: “We never tried to come up with a sound that Galdoors would have, but we knew it would be a bit more subdued. Stripped-back, tracky cuts for the dancefloor.” Established back in 2013, the label seems to have really hit its stride this year. After a small break from putting out tunes, they came back stronger than ever in 2016, with three essential releases: Junes’ Trails EP is brilliant techy ammunition for the dancefloor, Leif’s Macro Beat is diverse and brilliant, and most recently Duckett’s Stories Of Data Loss is a label debut of anthemic proportions.
A hot tip forfans of the label: tune into the Galdoors monthly KMAH Radio show to hear what’s doing the business at HQ.
Cabaret Recordings
Run by DJ Masda and So Inagawa, Tokyo’s Cabaret Recordings has quickly become one of the definitive strongholds of a new generation of house and techno producers. What began as a party in the Japanese capital during the ‘00s evolved into a label in 2013, and is today firmly rooted as a reliable source for stripped-back club tracks. This year alone, Evan Baggs collaborated with Katsuya Sano as Ekbox, Binh teamed up with Masda as Onigiri, and TC80 dropped a double pack on the imprint. As time goes on, it seems the Japanese co-owners grow more certain in their tastes, and Cabaret goes from strength to strength.
Regelbau
The Regelbau family stamped themselves out as one of the most promising new additions on our radar this year. A group of young Danes based in the city of Århus who were drawn together by a mutual love of electronic records, are now between them all responsible for a multitude of imprints—Help Recordings, No Hands, 2 Bit Recordings, and at the heart of it all, Regelbau.
At the core of it are C.K., Manmade Deejay, DJ Sports, and Central. Their musical output varies widely, but tends to be jolly, slightly left-field leaning house, pouring out thick and fast under numerous aliases. It’s a strategy and aesthetic that certainly keeps things interesting.
Check out our Labels We Love entry on the imprint for a clearer map of the Aarhus family.
1080p
Over the past couple of years, Vancouver has exploded as one of the most fertile locations in house and techno music. With imprints like Mood Hut and Pacific Rhythm holding it down, the Canadian city has become one of the most talked about in 2016. At the heart of it all is Richard MacFarlane’s 1080p.
What began as largely a cassette and digital imprint has to our delight also made it onto vinyl this year and last. Its sound is varied, yet somehow always quite distinct—deep, retro style house music, as well as some quirky techno sounds; on the whole, some of the most exciting new productions out there. Through 2016, Jayda G, Khotin, Riohv, J. Albert, Sasha Jan Rezzie, and many more fresh acts released via 1080p (with roughly a new 12″ every month on average), in arguably its best year to date. Here’s to many more.
DisDat
2016 saw NYC’s ReSolute event series continue its dominance over the city’s house and techno scene, with superb bookings all year long from the likes of Zip, Mathew Jonson, Sonja Moonear, and the [ar :pi:ar] crew, as well as deserved success for the party’s residents like Lauren Ritter (who released a blissful debut EP on Lee Burridge’s All Day I Dream label).
But what delighted us even more than their always impressive parties was the founding of ReSolute’s new imprint, named DisDat. The vinyl-only label kicked off with two outstanding VA’s this year, both of which perfectly emulate ReSolute’s melodic-meets-minimal sensibility. With the first record containing a track from Zendid along with an emotional and acid-tinged number from S.A.M., we were already sold on DisDat. The mesmerising funk of Barac’s “Ordinary Conversations” on the second 12”—coupled with cuts from Vincent Lemieux and Melchoir Productions—solidified DisDat as one of the most exciting new labels of the year.
Aus Music
For Will Saul’s Aus Music, this year was bound to be a good one. The label celebrated its 10th birthday over the summer—a momentous achievement that marked 100 releases. Without forgetting that AUS has helped establish the careers of artists like Bicep, Dusky, Huxley, and Marquis Hawkes—while cementing itself as one of the globe’s key sources of eclectic, bass-heavy house music—its birthday year was perhaps its best yet. The label not only brought its core artists back for a slew of albums and EP’s (Youandewan’s There Is No Right Time was especially fantastic), but Aus also had several new and unexpected signings from the likes of Cassy, Paul Woolford, Tom Trago, and more. If nothing else, 2016 proved that Aus has the most important quality in a label: the ability to reinvent itself while still staying true to its original vision.
Rhythm Section International
Bradley Zero’s Rhythm Section International has carved an interesting niche in the modern club climate. Each release is subtle enough to warrant extended home listening, while also packing enough punch to move bodies on the dancefloor. Although its discography ranges from jazz-tinged house to RnB, hip-hop, and loose drum workouts, there’s a warmth and emotion running throughout—a hard-to-place feeling that emits from each record.
In ‘Under The Radar,’ a new four-part web series by Point Blank, R&S Records A&R and Point Blank instructor Sam Willis (a.k.a Primitive World) chats through a few somewhat overlooked music production hardware pieces and explores what they are capable of. Each of the pieces detailed can be found online for small costs and could make a big impact on your tracks when utilised well.
In the first instalment of the series, Willis goes in on the Korg Electribe ES-1, a small-yet-powerful sampler that can be used for production or as a live tool to great effect.
Check out the video in full below, with more on Point Blank and its courses here.
In a product category that rarely sees much in the way of notable innovation, AIAIAI’s TMA-2 Modular Headphone System brings with it a significant new twist: the ability to functionally customize the headphones to one’s own needs. By letting users choose from a host of given parts—ear cups, drivers, cables, and headbands—the rather bold approach has resulted in perhaps the most flexible headphones around. The TMA-2 is particularly ideal for users who spend their lives on the road, and require headphones that perform well in different roles: studio headphones for extended production sessions, DJ headphones for monitoring in crowded club environments, and a decent set of cans for simply listening to music.
How It Looks
The TMA-2 follows in the tradition of what has become the AIAIAI house style: clean, unadorned minimalism; it is the low-profile, Scandinavian entry into an extremely crowded headphone market. Ear cups and headbands range from smaller, more portable components designed for crowded subways and leisurely dog walks, to bigger, cushier parts geared towards sustained comfort over longer mixing sessions. Materials range from matte plastic to memory foam, and cables can be ordered in the standard or coiled varieties.
The experience of buying the TMA-2 headphones is, clearly, a bit more involved than your standard headphone purchase. While our review allowed us access to a bunch of available parts together in a single box, the consumer experience has buyers choosing their parts online using a cool web-based configuration tool that provides clear, thorough descriptions of all the parts and their prescribed applications. There’s enough here for enthusiasts to dig their teeth into, and for the rest of us, “presets” based on genre, function, and desired use case (All-Round Preset, Monitor Preset, Young Guru Preset, etc). Everything comes in an IKEA-style flat-pack packaging, and it should be noted that slotting all of the components together is far easier than anything from the Swedish furniture megastore. To take a bit of the pressure out of the process, there’s also a 30-day return policy, should your creation not live up to expectations.
How It Plays
Clearly, the sound of your particular TMA-2 headphones will depend largely on your component choices. The standard $145 “All-Round” preset is based on AIAIAI’s own TMA-1 X headphones, and things go up from there to nicer materials and components.
Of course, there’s a direct relationship between cost and quality: specific ear cups are designed for use with particular drivers, and the cost can add up considerably when you start plucking these multiple fruits from the upgrade tree. You can switch from the standard on-ear cups to the over-ear variety to increase bass, for instance, and pairing these with a brighter driver helps to compliment that bass with more detail in the higher frequencies.
The combinations here are technically in the hundreds, but will ultimately boil down to far fewer than that for most users. The H03 headband, labeled as “high-comfort,” has more padding than the H02 headband; the C02 cable uses a sturdy, nylon housing that’s geared towards reliability and durability in the DJ booth. Perhaps one of the most interesting factors here is the way in which the different bands adjust the fit of certain cups to your particular head; finding that happy medium between the snug fit that almost always improves sound quality and isolation, weighed against the pressure it puts on your ears and cranium over the course of long sessions, can make all the difference.
The Bottom Line
The folks at AIAIAI have come up with a smart, innovative concept with the TMA-2, and deserve a great deal of credit for doing so. The company has honed in on one of the most significant cultural trends in the world of music production—namely, the move towards modularity, customization, and upgradability—and pushed into new territory for one of the most central commodities in the lives of music producers, DJs, and listeners. It’s a particularly appealing opportunity for those who find themselves traveling between gigs, or who simply want less clutter in their lives: the TMA-2 can transform fairly easily from commuter headphones to studio, DJ, or “deep listening” cans, and back again.
Dutch producer Bas Bron (a.k.a Fatima Yamaha) has been producing quality releases under numerous aliases for more than a decade now. However, it wasn’t until the 2015 reissuing of his fourteen-year-old track “What’s A Girl To Do” on Dekmantel that his work became widely appreciated.
Tracklisting:
A1. Araya A2. Piayes Beach Bar And Grill B1. Romantic Bureaucracy
Araya EP is scheduled for February 7 release, with snippets streamable below.
Raresh‘s Metereze imprint will release the debut LP of Bucharest’s Sublee.
Indeepsum consists of six tracks, and will be the label’s seventh release—following on from the likes of Melodie, Dubtil, Barac, and Limpid, no name a few.
Tracklisting:
Yet Again Space Dive Mimistake Road to Frequensea Entre Rumbletrouble
Indeepsum is scheduled for December 24 release, with snippets available to stream here.
Time Warp Festival will return to the Maimarkthalle, Mannheim on Saturday April 1, 2017.
The line up for 2017 will be announced at the beginning of the new year. The program, according to the press release, will feature “some of the world’s most respected and talented techno and house music artists.”
Information:
Time Warp 2017
Saturday, April 1, 2017 Maimarkthalle Mannheim, Germany 8:00 pm to 2:00 pm
Tickets:
Early Bird Tickets: Sold Out First Release Tickets: 65 € plus commission Second Release Tickets: Available soon Backstage Premium Tickets: Available soon
