Friday 31 October 2008

Halloween

Halloween is a weird one in the UK. A few years ago (well, actually more like 20), it barely existed, with the Brits snobbishly looking down their noses as their US counterparts and prudishly eschewing what is essentially a bit of fun for kids at one of the darker moments in the year. Admittedly, there are sad gangs of hoodrats who will use it as an excuse to up their mug-rates and rob the elderly of their winter fuel allowances, but to be honest they would be doing that regardless of having a festival to pin their offensiveness on.

More of a bother for me (when I was a city dweller that is), was the fireworks 'season', which in recent years has expanded exponentially from a solitary weekend a year, to a 6-week long 'Tribute to War', with an almost constant barrage of explosive noise & light running throughout the night time hours around this time of year. I'm sure it's no big deal if you don't have pets, but for the more easily spooked, it can be a proper nightmare.

Since moving to the ends of the earth (remote, rural, can still see stars in the sky), fireworks have become someone else's pursuit. However, a couple of years back we found ourselves strangely seduced by 'The Big One', as sold by our local farm-machinery-repairists. Now this is a truly macho world, where engrained greasy palms and knowing grimaces meet every ignorant inquiry, so we knew they would take pride in selling their own brand fireworks.

Happy with just the single item, that night I wandered into the paddock outside the house on an inky black night, leaving my wife & our two dogs huddled inside the rear porch. With the 'bomb' angled away from me and with my arm extending beyond it's own socketry to touch the blue fuse, I ran screaming back to the porch, stumbling across the bumpy terrain and turning back just in time to see a hiroshima-style detonation and the sound of widespread panic amongst the sheep community. Ginergly I tip-toed back to peer into what I was sure would be a deep and smouldering crater, and shone the torch into the neighbouring field, where, 20 sets of accusing eyes stared back at me from the furthest corner where the sheep had fled to. This year it's a sparkler for me - and not from the local farm-machinery-repairists either.

Thursday 30 October 2008

Frogs in Socks


I first came across these guys as a result of the 'White Lightning' remix contest I ran earlier this year (their mix is scheduled for release in a couple of weeks), and since they won that contest from a pool of 200 submissions, things have been developing nicely for the boys.

They recently entered and won the Raw Talent contest for up & coming DJs in iDJ mag, and they've been good enough to let us feature their excellent mix right here on the blog.

Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD FROGS in SOCKS MIX [OCTOBER 2008]


1. John Williams - Indiana Jones Theme
2. Claude Von Stroke - Peanut Butter Jelly Time
3. Thomas Schumacher - Pink Boots
4. Underworld - Holding the Moth (Jesse Rose Remix)
5. Smash TV - Locomotive Breath
6. TG - Revox
7. Style of Eye - The Big Kazoo
8. Hot Chip - Shake a Fist
9. Style of Eye - Fick
10. Lee Jones - Aria (Tiger Stripes Remix)
11. Natural Rhythm - Mumble Mouth (Style of Eye Remix)
12. Deadset - Brazil '70
13. Daniel Steinberg - I Like To Be (Frogs in Socks Edit)
14. Worthy - Work the Walls (Frogs in Socks Edit)
15. Noze - You Have To Dance (Frogs in Socks Edit)
16. Daniel Steinberg - Cobra Limbos
17. Matt Tolfrey - Enter the Madhat
18. Buckley - Block Party
19. The Whip - Trash


Zodiac Cartel - Robots / Klappyn is *HERE*

Beatport

Zodiac Cartel - Robots / Klappyn [UAA015]
OUT NOW :: Exclusively at Beatport
DIRECT LINK

SELECTED PRESS QUOTES
"Pure class from one of the underground success stories of 2008!" K1 [iDJ Magazine]
"A massive find for this year, Zodiac Cartel goes from strength to strength with their first single-proper for the excellent U&A imprint & it's a BEAST!" [DJ Magazine]
"This is up there as one of the best single releases so far this year. I’m not calling it the best, but by god, it’s close." [In The Mix Magazine]

Zodiac Cartel - Robots (MP3 SAMPLE)
Zodiac Cartel - Klappyn (MP3 SAMPLE)

SELECTED DJ QUOTES
"That's one nasty track boys! Full support!" [Kissy Sellout (Radio One)]
"Klappyn is great thanks dude! :)" [James Zabiela]
"I will be playin' both of these monsters!" [Will Bailey / Twockers]
"Really like the Klappyn track. Many thanks." [Crookers]
"Both these tracks are dope; really feeling Klappyn though. Cheers for that, keep em coming" [Trevor Loveys (Dubsided / Frontroom)]
"Another great release for the "Zodiac".. Klappyn is my favourite, reeeeaaally sick!" [Mowgli (Southern Fried)]
"It doesn't really get much better than this does it??!? Amazing tunes, as if that needed to be said." [Dopamine (Lot49 / Title Fight)]
"Klappyn is the sh*t for sure!" [The Bulgarian (Potty Mouth Music)]
"Liking the groove on Klappyn and it really builds nicely. Top stuff" [Lee Mortimer (Wearhouse / Dubsided)]
"Very dirty mate, the way we like it! much use to follow ... " [Lee Coombs (Lot49)]
"This is farkin' sick mate :) Big support from us on this one :)" [The Aston Shuffle]

This is a huge priority for the label, so show us & the ZC some love & grab a copy today,
sHack




Monday 27 October 2008

TOUR DIARIES : A Festival Frenzy down under (part one)

This is the first in a new 3-part serialization on the Manifesto of the Elite Force Tour Diaries dating back to a particularly intense 13-day trip to Australia, earlier this year (2008). Hope you enjoy the ride ....



For a number of months I'd been eying my growing itinerary with a mixture of shock & awe - with each successive week the portfolio of shows grew & grew, gently pulsating with the promise of the unfathomable. When I know I have a major overseas trip coming up, I tend to go into a low-key kind of denial bourne out of a reluctance to face the reality of what's to come, and it's only in the day or two before I actually leave, when I have a paper copy of the itinerary in my hand, that the truth starts to bite. I'm also a late packer. I like to hold out on assembling any kind of luggage or clothing until there's only an hour or two to go, and then I go in hard, but this also contributes to the sense of denial that takes the edge off being away from home until the eleventh hour.


My agents in Australia invited me to join the touring Future Music Festival this March, and I had no reservations in accepting; after all, the line-up included legends like the Chemical Brothers, John Digweed & Sven Vath, and whilst I knew I'd be low down in the food chain as far as set times & stages went, these opportunities don't come around very often & I do genuinely cherish the opportunity to absorb the music from other people's worlds. In the past when I've headed down under, it's been for a series of club shows at relatively underground venues, and whilst I've enjoyed those in the past, this did present a different kind of challenge - what I hadn't expected was that I would end up effectively doing the festival _and_ the club tour over a 10 day period.



Towards the end of the trip I would rush through a hotel lobby, eyes glazed, dragging my heels, shoulders hunched, and in the background I was conscious of the constant hushed babble from people who'd heard about 'that guy with the crazy schedule'. In fact, I began to feel like a benchmark against which others were judging their own capacity to 'crack on' (if that guy's still standing ... etc .... ), but then I would argue "there's always Sven Vath".


The first weekend.
Having arrived on the Friday in Brisbane after the long haul from London to Hong Kong and to Sydney, I didn't have a show, and it gave me the one opportunity of the whole trip to meet some of the other performers. A fine evening in the company of Aesop Rock, Chicks on Speed, Marcus Schultz, Datarock & all, quickly reached bucolic heights, added & abetted by the unlimited flow of local reds & whites, but everyone had converged on Brisbane from an assortment of global locations & early nights were the order of the day.

The 36-hour smackdown began the next day as we were ferried out to the racecourse where the Festival was sited. First impressions were that it was an odd layout - the main arenas were within the central core of the track, whilst the remaining stages were scattered around the outside of the track, and in our case, most bizarrely, at the very top of the grandstand inside a room that invited comparisons to a village hall or function room for a wedding.


The festival spirit seemed way distant up there, and the spirit of disenfranchisement from the rest of the event was beyond question. I was due on after local heroes 'Vinyl Slingers' who were cooking up a storm with their noise-strewn live breakbeat 'orchestra', and for me it meant a good clean changeover would be essential to hold onto at least a core of the people gathered in the room. Unfortunately for me the sound engineer was not entirely clear on the concept of the continuum of music that club culture thrives on, and rather than focus on the incoming set being up & running first, he elects instead to start packing away drum kits & microphones, and even more bizarrely, it transpires he's put a CD of his own music on through the PA.

A bout of shouting & gesticulating follows, but it's a good 5 minutes before anything resembling a decent sound is flowing from the speakers again, by which time everyone has left the building.
After a hard fought 2 hours I do manage to win over a healthy throng of random passers-by, and no sooner have I handed over to my good friend Tom from Evil 9 that I'm spirited away to do a second set at Area 21, a vodka bar who actually have a really decent soundsystem and situate their DJs up in a precipitous crow's nest above the bar. I take the music down a notch for this one and enjoy playing a fidget-laced house set, which bumps rather than grinds.

Minutes after I leave the stage I'm rather surreally thrown into a car with Roger Sanchez & his management en route to the airport for a flight to Sydney. He's had a good mainstage set in the setting sun, and the mood is distinctly upbeat as the warm glow of suburbia whistles past the blackened windows and we make our flight with time to spare.


[ .... to be continued .... ]

Kid Blue : Autumn Promo Mix 2008




DOWNLOAD : Kid Blue's Autumn Promo Mix (2008)

Tracklist:

1. Lee Coombs & Uberzone - Right Now – Lot49
2. The Fat Conductor – Heavy – Promo Records
3. Rene Van Munster – Phonesmack (Riva Starr Remix) – Secure Recordings
4. Hyperion – Gotta Hold It (Calvertron Remix) – U&A
5. Adam Shaw – Engage – Cr2
6. D-Unity – Shake It (D-Unity’s Shaker Mix) – Beat Therapy Records
7. Tom Neville – Dance Moves (Tom Neville’s Locked In The Garage Mix) – Love Minus Zero
8. Beckers & Hatfield – Keep On (Velkro + Ido Ophir Remix) - Sprout
9. Merka – Another Place (Kid Blue Remix) – Fat!
10. Dylan Rhymes – I Am Sweet (Hyperion’s Into The Sun Remix) – Lot49
11. Ido Ophir & Miki Litval – Shnorkel (Dousk Remix) – eVapour8
12. Lee Coombs – Control – Lot49

Friday 24 October 2008

The Music Industry - A Beginner's Guide




www.bemuso.com

This is a great site for those of us taking our first tentative steps in the music industry - it has clearly explained guides to royalties, licensing, publishing, copyright and so forth, as well as some interesting (if slightly old) articles and a useful list of FAQs. It's not aimed specifically at dance music, but it's a good starting point if you don't know your PRS from your OMG WTF.

Thursday 23 October 2008

Soundcloud vs. Bandcamp

Sick of paying 50% to Beatport? Do it yourself with Bandcamp. Perhaps. Videos at the link below.


I hope to hell Soundcloud have an answer for this as I find the domain name Band Camp just a bit ... camp and the SC guys seems very good at pushing forward.

Wednesday 22 October 2008

Broombeck strikes with 'White Lightning'



We've featured a Broombeck mix on the blog before, and now it's time for a preview of the fat-ass technotic reworking of Elite Force's 'White Lightning', scheduled for release on U&A next month :)

Monday 20 October 2008

Monkey Business in the Steel City

It's Monday morning & I feel 'familiar'. Smashed & creaky, laced with aches & bruises, but warm in the afterglow of what's gone before. Many, many times before.


If I'm honest, I've forgotten how many times I've headed up the M1 to play at Urban Gorilla. Despite never having been offically named as a 'super resident', I must have played for them as often as anyone over the years, although during this time we'd never had the opportunity to play one of our Elite Force Vs Meat Katie b2b sets. Until now.

I'm always unsure as to whether to kick these sessions off myself or defer to the might of the little guy, but the excellent Adam Connell had set things up a little deeper than normal, which allowed for more of a gradual build into the night (and it hadn't been that quick to fill up, so we wanted to pace the night). After a toss of a coin (I lost) Mark decided he'd begin, saying "I have an idea where to go with this" ... so, intrigued, I stood back & watch him light the touch paper. However, rather than the fuse ticking down over the agreed 30 minutes or so, he simply stepped up and smashed the fuck out of it straight off the bat, and within 4 tracks was playing as peaktime as it's feasible to get.




I love doing these sets with Mark to be honest - they keep you thinking on your feet and often throw strange, curved shapes into the flow of the night which take you off on ever wilder tangents, but despite this fact I think we both have a feel for when to rein it back and keeps the beats on lockdown for a while. The hours flew by, and before we knew it, the house lights were up & all around us was carnage, not least of all behind the booth where a gaggle of us had somehow seen off two bottle of Jack Daniels. Before I could holler "Oi, Pember, Behave!", he'd sequestered a third from the barman, and we polished it off during a lock-in that saw us emerge, stupified, into the cold steel morning at beyond breakfast time.

Crookers : On the Mix (Oct '08)




I have to say I haven't been the biggest fan of the Crookers - sure, a year or so ago when they were windin' up more of a baile sound, it was real fun dropping the odd track in sets, but in the past year there's been too much f*dget heading into cartoon buffoonery territory, which ultra-abrasive and groove-free productions (if you thought the Metallica album sounded bad, then try Trevor Lovey's 'Maximization Nation' for size - deliberately ironic I know, but oh dear on the ear).

Anyway, always up for hearing what the group leaders are up to, here's a new mix from the Italian duo - make up yer own minds :)


Crookers on the mix from BBC Asia.

1. Brand New - Beastie Boys
2. Jags Klimax ft. Sarbjit - mama so proud crookedit
3. Unknown - Crookers
4. Mujava - Township funk Original + C KKOMPANY -Speaker Bajae +Crookedit
5. Kids - MGMT , Soulwax rmx
6. Jah Jah Me No Born Yah - Cornell Campbell
7. The Cut - Benga
8. Moneymaker - Dj Deeon feat. Dj Funk
9. Tigerstyle+Pelao - Isa GT feat. Crookers
10. Under The Sun - Herve mix
11. GNG BNG - Flying Lotus + DES_C - NACHNA HONDA
12. Joan of Ark - Crookers Pimp My Ark mix

Saturday 18 October 2008

Traktor Pro




Finally! Cover artwork support in the new update (or in this case of Native Instruments it's called Crate Flick, whatever) ... my last complaint about digital DJing – browsing for music – is now sorted out. Minisite with videos of the new interface here.

Although my favourite new addition ... Mulholland Drive :)

Friday 17 October 2008

Alex Metric : October 2008 promomix




DOWNLOAD ALEX METRIC MIX
New throwdown from breaks producer Alex Metric :)

(sorry Alex!)


Tracklisting:

Golden Bug - I can't stop

Sebastian Davidson - Let your body go (Bart B More Mix) - Sick Watona
Thieves Like Us - Drugs In My Body (Just A Band Mix) - Kitsune
Autokratz - Stay The Same (Alex Metric Mix) - Kitsune
Treasure Fingers - Cross The Dancefloor (Alex Metric Mix) Fools Gold
DJ Rush - Muthafucking Bass (popof remix 1) T:Classix
Bloc Party - Mercury (Herve Mix / Alex Metric re edit)
Alex Metric - Caller - Marine Parade
Golden Boy - Golden Bullets - ?
Junkie XL - Cities In Dust - Artwerk
Alex Metric - Gusto (demo) Marine Parade
Alex Metric - Deadly On A Mission (Alex Metric Mix) - Marine Parade
Subs - Papillion (Shinichi Osawa Mix)
Adam Freeland - Hate - Marine Parade
The Kills - Cheap n Cheerfull (SebastiAn Remix)

Thanks to the guys at breakzlinks
Alex Metric @ Myspace

Thursday 16 October 2008

Get over it!



There are certain rules to techno that can't really be changed. Downbeat kick drums, off beat hi-hats. Fine. They define the genre. But with 8 million VST plug-ins in existence, most of them free or pirated or just there to buy ... a few points need to be raised.

1) Bit reduction, decimator plug-ins. OK, the Logic Bitcrusher was cool when it first appeared. Back in Logic version 4.0 circa 1999. Because it was different. At the time. It's not cool now. Stop fucking using it unless it's part of a sound design tweak, you dig?!

2) Minimal. 808 congas going dookie-dookie-dookie-dookie on Q24th / triplet timing. Adam Beyer did it first to my knowledge. That should've been enough.

3) White Noise. Through filters. Yawn!!! I love a good shot of the white stuff, but don't people realise you can run this shit through distortion pedals?!

introducing ... dustbowl


Tuesday 14 October 2008

Vandal on the Mix (Oct '08)



DOWNLOAD VANDAL MIX (Oct 2008) (YSI)

Circuit Freq 'Black Chrome' (Vandal Remix)
Joe and Will Ask 'Warm It Up'
Modeselektor 'Suckerpin'
Rex The Dog 'I can See You' (Oliver Huntemann Remix)
Butch '1000 Lords' (Popof Remix)
Alex Metric 'Deadly On A Mission'
Shadow Dancer 'Cowbois' (Dilemn Remix)
Lee Coombs 'Control' (10 Rapid Remix)
Boys Noize 'Lets Buy Happiness' (Proxy Remix)
Dilemn 'Brazen Boogie' (Blende Remix)
Raw Man 'WarGame' (Vandal Edit)
Chemical Brothers 'Golden Path' (Ewan Pearson's Rave Hell Dub)

Monday 13 October 2008

Lovefest 2008 (Part Two)



The Opening of Vandal's set at Lovefest, 2008

Well it's been a week since I was about to board a flight back from San Francisco, after what really was an excellent weekend. I don't want to ramble on about it at great length as I thought I'd just let the videos do the talking (thank fuck ... sighs of relief coarse through teh intraweb).... plus, ever since then I've been suffering with a severe dose of sinusitis.



I filmed this myself at the end of my set ...

More footage to follow - I did a bit of a video documentary piece for some cool people whilst I was out there, so hopefully we'll host that shortly too. A big shout goes out once again to Syd and all the revellers for putting on such a spectacular show as this aerial shot shows.


All I can say is Bring On Burning Man, 2009 ... I will almost certainly be there next year for the first time & judging by what I've seen, it's rather akin to what happens when Lovefest goes feral. Watch this space ....




Rennie Pilgrem, closing out the Opel float




Dan F - Rendition [Disuye]

“Dan F has pushed limits, changed landscapes and delivered a sound that is new, that is heavy, and that is the future”. So says rapper and lyricist Bisc1 of Dan F, and his new album Rendition which was released in July. And while Bisc1 may be forthcoming, finding suitable terms to describe Rendition is at best extremely difficult. It would be easy to resort to a range of clichés, but to do that would undermine the colossal effort and thought that’s been poured into the release.


Rendition contains political messages and short stories expressed through a convergence of styles that covers rock, electronica, hip hop, industrial and chill out. And with its straight rhythmic structures, sub-five minute song lengths and a lack of abstract melodies, it’s an album that’s accessible too. Throughout the 15 tracks of this largely instrumental longplayer, heavily altered voices peer through the mix, giving the listener encoded snippets of information that guide you through the stories.

Rendition is riddled with a low pathos akin to Massive Attack’s seminal 1998 release Mezzanine. It’s bad guys crossing paths in Hong Kong’s alleyways. It’s the frustration of seeking solitude, and being unable to find it. It’s bass bins, a perfect sine wave, and the trash of white noise on a broken mono television. Built with precision, Rendition belies Dan F’s huge depth and breadth of influential listening. It quite literally does not sound like anything else available today. And despite being entirely produced by electronic means, it doesn’t sound electronic. It’s a record for night time listening. It is a record that will change the way you think about electronic music.

As well as the aforementioned Bisc1 from New York, Regurgitator frontman Quan Yeomans also provides lyrics and vocals on Follow the Sines. “He did a brilliant job”, says Dan. “I’d done several projects for Quan over the years so I decided to ask him if he’d feature on one of my tracks. He took what I thought was a so-so instrumental track and turned it into what it is now. He spells the meaning of the song out in letters ten feet tall… he’s got more musical talent in his hair-cut than I have in my entire studio.”

Bisc1 features on the tracks The End Of It’ and White Wall, and he met Dan F through a mutual friend several years ago while visiting Hong Kong. As Bisc1 describes it, “We made a tune or two, the energy was right, so we made more.”

N44982 opens the Rendition journey by taking you into an industrial, back alley world with snippets of passing sounds over the low hum of a big city. Right On is all machine beats injected with sampled, edited cuts of guitar. A two-note bassline holds it all together, murmuring in the background and expanding into melody as the tune progresses. White noise is a surprisingly well-used feature throughout the album and is used with particularly judicious effect on Incidental. This is the closest thing to rock on the album, except for the mechanical typewriter holding down the rhythm until the whole song is interrupted as if by an ill-tempered neighbour fumbling a jack from an amplifier’s input port. Programmed guitars feature and are augmented by textural back-up including harmonics, string and pick up noise.

The album flows as a coherent musical statement, despite the surprise turns in energy levels and intensity: just when you think it’s an electronica-meets-rock album, it morphs through the back-to-back vocal tracks, Follow The Sines and The End Of It followed by the super dark electronic number Frag. And from the end of the last words to flow through Bisc1’s mic on White Wall, Leaves enters like a storm building, crescendo-like in its intensity, threatening to break loose but being held back. Anticomm marks a step-change from the intensity of the prior tracks. Here downtempo overdriven bass, topped with a gorgeous melancholic piano and industrial beats is perfectly placed.

Sand Pit starts a slow burn of driving, static filled purpose, backed by a looped guitar sample that is expansive as it is metallic, while Where Are You opens with a Chinese violin before clouds of apple-green cover and then briefly open, revealing downtempo perfection rarely seen. The static interjects only occasionally here, and a numbing sensation takes over. Dead Air Space takes you back up into a half muted scream and the second to last track entitled ______ is the comma in the sentence, the chance to breathe in, a pause before the ending of Next.


“I’m looking outside of what club music offers to find those themes and concepts I need to make music, and I’m not concerned if anyone else gets them but me. Others will I’m sure, ‘cause my stuff is not exactly way out there … but if anyone does follow what I’m doing that is now a bonus, not the goal.”

Rendition is available now through http://rendition.disuye.com/, through either digital download or mail order CDs and box sets. There are links to torrent sites offering the exact same files officially, for free over P2P.

--------------------------

EDIT

I have posted a longer version of this arcticle on my own blogger. If you want to read some more background on the man and his nocturnal habits, go here.

Sunday 12 October 2008

Parklife 2008

I had plans to do a bunch of stuff early in the morning, right up until the deadline loomed. I figured we needed roughly 45 minutes to make our way from our house to the front gate, flash a ticket, get a wrist band, stroll to the stage, and catch the first set of the day. When the alarm went off I caught it on the first ring and thought, “I am tired”. The snooze function was the answer, but mine is set for five minute intervals, so no sooner do you drift off, than it comes back on, annoying you like every morning you’re forced to submit to its familiar tone. So I turned it off. We didn’t do anything but lie in and enjoy a Saturday morning, 8 October, the morning of Parklife 2008 in Brisbane.

The lineup wasn’t the greatest in festival history, but there were enough winners on the list to entice me shell out all those dollars on a ticket. Who can really remember what you paid for a ticket when you’re standing in line, lathered in sunscreen, anticipating the day’s beats?

So we eschewed our plans for the morning, got let in late to the venue, strolled across the joint via the bar and caught U&A recording artists Hyperion on the Air stage. Max’s rockstar hair was visible from over 100 paces, and because they were on first, the volume was down a ways. We stood by the speakers a little way back and got the full effect of the first beats of the day square in the middrift. Re-edits of old Chemical Brothers tracks were mixed nicely with Hyperion originals and fresh tracks from the U&A and Lot49 labels. Really solid stuff to start off with, and by the end of their hour, the crowd had built to around 200 punters, who were baying for more. A shame they weren’t on earlier, because their fare was just right for a daytime festival in streaming sunshine.

Dropping it down several notches were Dubdoubt over on the Earth stage. A seven piece song-based reggae and dub outfit, heavily influenced by the Jamaican realm of the genre. I could have gone equally for some minimal tech, but reggae was the best offering on the bill for our tastes at the time. We ran into Butterz (Payback Project) who told of his so-so half hour opening the Ku stage and the stoke of being on the bill.

Back at the Air stage, we were thoroughly underwhelmed by Grafton Primary first, and Bagraiders straight after. Poorly executed, scene-y, commercial and utterly lacking in groove, soul or creativity. But the punters were mad for it! We stuck it out and were rewarded for our patience with Yuksek.

Playing from a MacBook Pro and what looked to be a 16 channel desk with a bundle of outboard boxes, Yuksek tore the dancefloor apart with his enthusiasm, infectious fast mixing and selection of tough festival tunes. I have his remixes of Siriusmo and Detect and will definitely be listening to more of his work of the back of this performance. A real find.

The latter part of the festival was shaping up with some pretty heavy beats, so we set off to catch Melbourne-based band The Bamboos for a change in tempo and styling. A live funk and soul workout with Kylie Auldist on vocals for seven or so tunes. The tightness and fluency of the band was unmatched for the day.

Sun going down now, risk of serious sunburn deceasing, beer still flowing, mind wandering a tad aimlessly, need girlfriend for support and direction to next artiste…

The enduring mind’s-eye image of the festival is the Soulwax drummer laying into his left-side crash cymbal with his full arm. Wielding the stick with his shoulder, not using good technique at all, but banging fuck out of that bronze disc in a proper rocknroll fashion. Incredible music, played with a ferocity and rock ethos that works whether the crowd is assembled for a dance fest, rock fest or for any old reason. Max saw the whole thing from three meters away, side of stage, the bastard.

Back again to the Air stage next for the driving elec-tech house of Jesse Rose. He built his set from the start, nothing showy, no flailing of the arms. The congruency of his rhythm selection was there, building and grinding relentlessly to the next tune, layering new loop over new loop, giving enough to make you bob on the spot and straining for the next tune. Fucking solid music. Where’s his album?

To be honest, I had a few too many beers by the time Jesse Rose adjourned, and I do recall being present for Peaches and 2manydjs, but couldn’t tell you if either were any good or not. I came back into full consciousness as Plump DJs, those little rascals, took the stage for the final set of the fest, back at the Earth stage, where we’d enjoyed those reggae sounds hours before.

After who knows how many times I’ve seen those guys, they’ve yet to disappoint. I’m not a great fan of their latest, Headthrash, but they’re so much bigger than that album. Deejays at their core, and built for festivals, the Plumps delivered a set of electric funk and breakbeat. Don’t really use that ‘B’ word that much these days, given the distinct lack of quality in the genre, but it is still there if you look for it. By my reckoning Lee and Andy Plump have been looking a lot.

And then it was over. 10,000 people wandering out of the Brisbane City Botanical Gardens, leaving a sea of crushed plastic schooners, empty goodie bags and the odd wallet.

I wonder if I should go see Underworld on January 3?

Thursday 9 October 2008

Daniel Carro : October Mix




Brand new mix from new face Daniel Carro for you - better known as one half of the Hijack crew.

DOWNLOAD MIX

Tracklist:

1. Daniel Carro - My Way Of Life
2. Christian Martin - Elephant Fight ( Justin Martin's Jungle Remix )
3. Rhythm Code - Rise feat. Simone Denny (Popof Remix)
4. Butch - Mushroom Man
5. Audio Bullys - Flickery Vision ( Idiotproof Remix )
6. Filthy Dukes - Tupacrobotclubrock ( Oliver $ Remix )
7. Martin Brothers - Dum
8. The Ooh Wows - Goody Bag ( The Bulgarian Remix )
9. House of Stank - Make U Jack feat Blakfred ( Santiago & Bushido Remix )
10. Yankee Zulu - Head Bob ( Hipp-E Remix)
11. Jesse Rose & Action Man - Take It To The Club
12. Destroy Disco - Fly Or Bounce ( Bart B More Rerub )
13. Chris James - Torcida
14. Idiotproof - Gorilla ( Siriusmo Ass Of The Baboon Remix )
15. Fine Cut Bodies - Beaver Blink ( Zodiac Cartel Remix )
16. Content - Tribute

For More Info :: Daniel Carro MYSPACE

Jack the Joint : The Final Mix

With the Jack The Joint remixes being released this week on Beatport, I thought I'd share with you the second of Zodiac Cartel's two mixes of the track ... this time the deeper 'Flowin' mix, which has been finding favour with the likes of Sasha & Zabiela over recent weeks.

Wednesday 8 October 2008

Bleek's Artist of the Moment: Hybrid




Welcome to Artist of the Moment; what does this column entail? I’ll update each fortnight with the latest artist of the moment (In this case, the artist that I seem to listen to the most over that period of time)
Who are the ones this week? Hybrid.

Look, I’ll say this; I stopped listening to Hybrid for a while. No new material and more focus on touring the world meant that other artists had to fill the void left in their absence. They’re back with Formula of Fear, a single leading into the eventual release of their new album.

Why are they the artist of the moment? Formula of Fear is exactly what I love about Hybrid. It made me jump back in time and listen to their debut LP, one of the greatest albums ever produced – Wide Angle. It also made me fire up Morning Sci Fi (Their second LP) and I Choose Noise (Their third LP). All of which hold each to their own unique styles, but still retain the fantastically vast sound that Hybrid presents.

Upon looking back, I also noticed how much influence Hybrid actually had on my work and I’m sure they’ve done wonders for other artists. Our very own Elite Force holds them in high regards and so do a lot of other notable artists. They hold the benchmark for what is capable out of the Electronic music scene (And all of its little babies).

Formula of Fear is available from DJDownload, Beatport and good Digital Distribution

Tuesday 7 October 2008

Dilemn vs Pirate Robot Midget









Artist: Dilemn vs Pirate Robot Midget

Release: Brazen Boogie (+ Blende Rmx) w/ Hey France

Label: Big Splash Records


The second release for Big Splash is a versus between Dilemn and the catchily named Pirate Robot Midget. First up is Dilemn in fine form with the electro rocking 'Brazen Boogie' which finds a solid groove early with disco samples and vocal bits galore. It tricks out nicely with glitched turnarounds and a thoroughly distorted digital low end that keeps the pace brisk enough for club and big party play alike. This is the sort of bumping tune that puts a new label on party jocks' radars at first listen. Definitely one that'll fit well in a variety of boxes and work for taking a crowd in a number of directions.


Blende pushes the rub further into the digital distortion with a more twisted and darker interpretation. Gone is the disco vibe, replaced with a tougher electro feel that peaks at the second phrase. And that's where I'm hooked. Blende adds a menacing kick beneath the deconstruction of the original with an almost manic touch to drive the track to the rinse. At just under five minutes, Blende's mix leaves this listener wishing for further exploration of that tougher sound. But damn, all in all, it's a runaway banger that steals the show.


The Pirate Robot Midget 'Hey France' cut is a slower tempo number with heavily eroded beats and a disco feel that gets deep in all the right places. It keeps to the tracky side and finds the bulk of its strength in the effects treatment of its parts. It approaches the dance floor from an entirely different angle than the Dilemn track it's pitted against, but it works well on that other level, nonetheless.



Dilemn - Brazen Boogie

Dilemn - Brazen Boogie (Blende Rmx)

Pirate Robot Midget - Hey France


http://www.myspace.com/bigsplashrecords

Elite Portal


Monday 6 October 2008

Lovefest 2008 (part one)



Syd Gris smashing it hard on his own Opel Float

I really didn't know what to expect from the San Francisco Lovefest, although having played at a number of parties on this West Coast haven-of-lunacy in the past, I did have an inkling. That being said, the parade, coarsing through the streets with 28 floats all kickin' it full bore really did take me by surprise. In fact, it seemed to take the organizers by surprise too, given that it was way bigger than any of it's predecessors, and by the time we reached our finishing point outside City Hall, the sheer weight of numbers was immense.

One of the most exciting aspects of it from my point of view were the number of kidz out on the street, partying like seasoned pros, and in a country that sadly bans under-21s from enjoying these kind of sounds on a regular basis, it's a rare opportunity for them to experience a cracking day out ... and all for free.

Hope you enjoy some of the video footage I grabbed on the day ... I think it captures the energy of the day pretty well :)





Elite Force from the booth on the Opel Float (part one)

More to follow in Part TWO ...

Friday 3 October 2008

Koma and Bones - Hit Me / Guns, Guts and God


Artist: Koma & Bones
Release: Hit Me w/ Guns, Guts, and God
Label: Burrito
Release Date: TBC

After an extended sojourn in straight kick country, Koma and Bones continue the peak of their last couple of Burrito offerings and return again to the broken beat with a huge release to satiate the faithful. The Burrito boys follow up ‘Body Count’ by delivering a big room party number, aptly titled 'Hit Me'. It’s backed with the heavy groover, 'Guns, Guts, and God', that itself is more akin to their recent Lot49 remix, or their output from last year.

From first listen, ‘Hit Me’ immediately became one of my favourite tunes of the past few months. This is big party, straight rave madness with extended breakdowns that’ll turn crowds upside down in anticipatory frenzies. I cannot say enough about the breakdown - it’s just a baller, boastful set up to a hammer of an electro breaks phrase. The peak of which incorporates a huge siren, a monster roller low end and pattern work galore. The female vocal sample repeats ‘Hit Me’ and the tune certainly obliges with the high calibre toughness Koma and Bones are notorious for. Guaranteed to hit the dancefloor with a wallop as hard as a bathtub comedown after three days on the grind.

‘3G’ continues the welcome transition back to what we find on the A side. This is to say, it works as a genre-toggler, and is quite the effective track for shifting gears or just simply getting dirtier with the basslines. It further subdues the boys’ occasional penchant for abrasive elements (the likes of which climaxed round ‘Skyscraper’) and keeps things squarely in a dancefloor friendly context. This is low slung, distorted bassline business that refrains from peaking out completely, choosing instead to bang out with the crushed overtones and relentless drum programming that makes up the bulk of this track. Solid stuff.



Koma and Bones - Guns, Guts, and God

Thursday 2 October 2008

Mind-expanding sounds : Fine Cut Bodies (01/10-08)




Title: Kvark Depo 005

By: Fine Cut Bodies
Date: 01/10/2008 , 00.00-01.00 (CET)

Radio: MR2 Petofi
Region: Internet + air in Hungary

"Kvark Depo" (Quark Depot) is Fine Cut Bodies' weekly radioshow on hungarian national radio station called MR2 Petőfi. The show covers contemporary electronic music including dancefloor genres, like house, breaks, electro, techno, minimal, disco and more leftfield mixes like experimental electronics, dub, downtempo, etc...

tracklists, listening, more info on the show: http://www.chi-recordings.com/angol/audio_radio_kvarkdepo.htm

Download it here:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/19723009b1414053

01> Crookram - Hostile - Budabeats-BUBE002

02> Miller + Fiam - Tired Neighbourhood Bird - Expanding-ECD2406

03> Martin Stimming - Senseless Being - Cashcow-CCR002

04> Square One - High Rise (Deepchild's lil' mo' booty dub) - Freerange-FR062
05> Shur-I-Kan - Half Step - Freerange-FR025
06> Kahuun - Trampoline - HiFi Terapi-HIFI006

07> The Vogado Projects - Never Come Back (ACME remix) - Fluid Ounce-

08> Subjekt - Be My Chicago (Gerd's 4 lux remix) - Freerange-FR038

09> Martin Buttrich - Mr Medicine Man - Four Twenty-FOUR14

10> James Din A4 - Mit 66 Jahren - Compost-CPT2753

11> Christian Prommer's Drumlesson - Trans Europa Express - Sonar Kollektiv-SK162CD