Archive for May, 2009
Madlib & J.Rocc @ Deviation, Fabric Review
Sunday, May 31st, 2009 | Event Reviews | No Comments
Here at EarPipe we do like to venture off the house and techno path every so often, so last Tuesday we headed down for the delayed Madlib & J.Rocc gig for Deviation. After missing his flight the previous week, the anticipation for Tuesday’s gig was at swine flu fever point. Getting into Fabric at 11pm the crowd had packed into Room 1 to get the best view and sound for Madlib’s arrival. Keeping the crowd warm was original Beat Junkie member J.Rocc. He was dropping funky classics such as Apache and They Reminisce into deeper stuff from Dilla and MF Doom. He even dropped Beastie Boys Paul Revere which had my guts rumbling like nobody’s business. For the best part he had the crowd eating out his palm.
Towards the end of J.Rocc’s set Madlib comes out and MCs live over loads of Madvillain and MF Doom stuff which sends the crowd berserk. J Rocc DJing and Madlib MCing, things look like › Continue reading
Norman Jay Returns to East Village for Prologue
Sunday, May 31st, 2009 | Event Preview | No Comments
The 6th June sees the return of Norman Jay to the East Village basement. Initially a quirk booking for Prologue, Norman Jay seems to have made his impression with repeat bookings and a packed out basement everytime. Normally I scoff at the thought of going to see Norman Jay. Past Carnival experiences, whilst fun, conjure up memories of cheesey dance music played off a double decker bus. I actually quite like the double decker part, but the thought of paying money to hear those tunes didn’t really bode well. But alas one fateful evening i was dragged kicking and screaming down to the East Village basement, where I quite humbly ate my words. Norman Jay for the first time in ages showed me the soul of house music. There was funk, there was soul, there were vocals. House music like it used to be!
As a little warmup, we’ve got a couple of sets from the last Prologue party. The first comes from Matt Tolfrey, ex Nottingham faithful turned record label owner. This guy is a solid solid DJ, download his set here
The second set comes from the very capable hands of Prologue resident Paul Louth, download his set here
enjoy.
Prologue @ East Village 6th June
Norman Jay (Goodtimes)
Jim Masters (Hi-Tek-Soul)
Paul Louth (4Four)
+ Guests
£8 Tickets/ £10 door.
Surgeon and Aux88 Balance Promo Mixes
Thursday, May 28th, 2009 | Event Preview, News | No Comments
So here are the final two mixes from this Friday’s Balance night at Cable in London Bridge.
The first is one of Birmingham’s finest. Surgeon has been tearing up dancefloors across the UK and further for the best part of two decades and is one of the figureheads of the British techno scene. Generally sitting towards the tougher end of the sound he’s often been compared to Detroit’s Jeff Mills. This mix taken from Shanghai last week will no doubt show what the man can do. Download here or listen below:
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The other mix comes from Detroit based dancers turned techno producers Aux88. They make their first appearance in the UK for quite sometime, so their show this Friday is sure to be a special one. Check out their classics mix with the legendary Model 500 to get a taste. Download the mix here or listen below:
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Buy your tickets from Ticketweb, we heard on the grapevine they’re going quickly so get em quick!
29th May – Balance at Cable, London Bridge
http://www.balance-club.co.uk/
SURGEON [LIVE]
AUX 88 [LIVE]
BEN SIMS
LUKE SLATER
GUY CALLED GERALD [LIVE]
JIM MASTERS
BILLY NASTY
ELECTRO ELVIS & LULA
ALEX DOWNEY
One Week To Go One Balance Mix To Go: Billy Nasty Dub Step Mix!
Thursday, May 21st, 2009 | Event Preview | No Comments
Forgot to post this up the other day. But here it is, better late than never.
The latest in the line of promo mixes for the forthcoming techno night Balance comes from Billy Nasty. He delivers a gut wrenching dub-step mix to show you his his slower side. Billy is on the Balance bill along with Aux88, Surgeon, Ben Sims, Luke Slater and A Guy Called Gerald, all of whom I’m sure will test Cable’s soundsystem to the limit.
So listen to the mix here:
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Or download it from here
Then buy your tickets for the 29th May right here
29th May – Balance at Cable, London Bridge
http://www.balance-club.co.uk/
SURGEON [LIVE]
AUX 88 [LIVE]
BEN SIMS
LUKE SLATER
GUY CALLED GERALD [LIVE]
JIM MASTERS
BILLY NASTY
ELECTRO ELVIS & LULA
ALEX DOWNEY
Yet Another Bank Holiday! Earpipe’s Guide to Completely Waste it Away!
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 | Event Preview | No Comments
- Photo by Vickie Parker
My god, this weekend is so packed that there is hardly any room to manoeuvre for hangovers. But even though we know of the impending doom that is likely to happen next week in the form of an almighty comedown we’re still going to give you our low down on what seems fun for the short term.
If you’re starting things early then new club Cable in London Bridge has their opening night on Thursday. Will Saul, Dave Congreve and the Disco Bloodbath fellas will no doubt be cracking open a bottle of bubbly in celebration.
But now on to the real weekend. Friday sees the French grand master Laurent Garnier debut his live show in the UK at matter. Things kick off early with the live show starting at 7pm and running through till 9pm. That’s then followed by a pretty monstrous line-up consisting of DJ sets from Garnier, Francois K, Yousef, Norman Jay, The Unabombers and Chris Coco. Not a bad way to start a weekend eh? Get your tickets from the following links: Live Show only or Combined Live/Club tickets here or Club night only tickets here
If a trip all the way out to Greenwich is too much (and I don’t blame you) then maybe a trip to East Village where everyone’s favourite Romanian DJ, Pedro of a:rpia:r fame is manning the decks in the basement. He’s sure to have things bumping with his blend of techno and house. Moving on to Saturday and there is one event which is sure to be a complete roadblock. › Continue reading
Some Fun Things Been Happening Over The Last Couple Weeks | Secretsundaze, Eastern Electrics and Superfreq!!
Sunday, May 17th, 2009 | Event Reviews | No Comments
- Image by Paul at Vision7Media
This weekend has been relatively quiet (and a little wet) so I’ve had a bit of time to tell you where I’ve been. First, two weeks ago was yet another bank holiday weekend and the Sunday was set as the big night since Saturday was reserved for watching a fat Manc get decked by a cheeky chappy Phillipino. Anyways Secretsundaze started their summer of events with their opening party on the THAT terrace out in the middle of nowhere (well no where in Greenwich with no Jubilee line). It was touch and go whether the weather was going to be good but Mother Nature for once pulled through and the terrace was to be blessed with sunshine all afternoon. Sunshine, drinking and outdoor dancing is just a great combination. The crowd were really up for it and despite some pretty shaky mixing, apparently due to some technical difficulties, the party still went off. Brothers Vibe did a great job of changing up gears from evening to night whilst Melon was knocking out some great grooving house beats. Move D early on was good but maybe a little too deep for my liking. Being tired and hungover whilst hearing some laid back deep grooves can make one a little sleepy however it did go well with the sunshine and glamorous crowd. So despite the awkward location and shaky mixing Secretsundaze was in my eyes a success. › Continue reading
Bruno Lawton – Shakin’ Down | Single Review
Thursday, May 14th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Bruno Lawton co founder of Mixtape records launches into a barrage of filter funk techno for his first release on the label. Shakin’ Down struts that classic funky techno feel using filtered guitar stabs and the occasional brass sample. It’s nothing groundbreaking on the techno front but it’s sure to crowds bouncing. The remixes on this release come from Angel Alanis and Gus Brown. Alanis slows the pace down and strips it down to the basics. He jigs the beat keeping it a little off centre and explores the brass sample a bit more. The result is a fun and interesting interpretation. On the flip Gus Brown has torn his balls off and splattered them at the wall. The already pounding beat from the original has been replaced with an even punchier beat and all the loops have been drawn in and made sharper. If its nutty funky techno for the roid rage then you can’t really beat this.
Tracklist:
1. Shakin’ Down (Original Mix)
Elastik Trickery/John Rowe – Rig Ma Roll Ep | Single Review
Thursday, May 14th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Its precarious times for the folk of Newcastle as they watch Alan Shearer guide the football team over a tight rope of relegation or survival. If the team does get relegated to the Championship at least the lads can go out on the town and listen to some pretty full on techno if this release by Testin Out records is anything to go by.
Testin Out’s fourth release comes from some of Newcastle’s stalwarts Elastik Trickery and John Rowe. Apparently both acts have been bowling about the North East with the techno sound for sometime. Although I’m a bit naive with the Newcastle techno scene, I just thought they drank brown ale and got semi naked at football matches.
That said Elastik Trickery’s O Beberrao De Tanners is far from semi nakedness on the terraces. It is in fact a pumped up funk fuelled monster. The scatty loops and jittery samples over funk ladened techno beats give this track plenty of energy which wouldn’t see it go a miss in sets from Sims right through to Wiggle. The other track from Elastik Trickery called Ego goes down the noisy electro route. Raw synths whip and whoop over pumped up beats. Some may like it, but it was too rough for EarPipe’s delicate ears.
John Rowe however tones things down a bit. Pigdog has an old school prog vibe to its sound. The driving bassline and subtle percussion send me back to a John Digweed moment circa 2002. And that’s no bad thing. However John Rowe could have slipped in a few more noticeable breaks in there. John’s second track Closed however veers from the linear path of Pigdog. Ballsy beats and basslines have a heavy impact which makes the slight breaks in sound ever more prominent. The fans of the heavy Pryda sound would like this.
Tracklist:
1. Elastik Trickery – O Beberrao De Tanners
2. Elastik Trickery – Ego
3. John Rowe – Pigdog
4. John Rowe – Closed
Madlib and J Rocc At Deviation Rescheduled for Tues
Wednesday, May 13th, 2009 | Event Preview, News | No Comments
Just got word from Fabric that the Madlib/J Rocc gig at Deviation tonight has been rescheduled for Tues 19th May. All tickets are still valid for the night and they will provide a refund for anyone that wants one.
Claude Von Stroke – Fabric 46 | Album Review
Saturday, May 9th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
For many Claude Von Stroke divides opinion, there are those that think his wonky sound is the best thing since sliced bread whilst there are those that won’t give him the time of the day due to tracks like Whistler. For me, I sit on the fence like Switzerland. Von Stroke’s music can be a bit dubious at times, but you got to give the man some respect for genre busting sound of Whos Afraid of Detroit. What I do like about Von Stroke though is his whole approach to the scene. It all just seems like a good bit of fun for him which he doesn’t take too seriously at all. And in the process he’s helped create this wonky sound that straddles house and techno, he’s made some fantastic tunes and obviously some which are corny. But in his defence all the corny ones have had their comedic charm. I mean who in their right mind makes a breakbeat remix of Peanut Butter Jelly Time if they’re not dicking around, even his Fabric CD starts with him and his mates just laughing for no real reason.
Thankfully however Von Stroke doesn’t go absurd on the comic front for Fabric 46. Instead it locks into a wonky groove travelling through all sorts of styles with just the right sheen of Von Stroke humour and quirkiness. He gently › Continue reading
Ben Sims Balance Promo Mix
Wednesday, May 6th, 2009 | Event Preview, News | No Comments
Only a few weeks to go until Balance kicks off the first time at new club Cable in London Bridge. As part of the build up to this colossal balls to the wall techno night the folks at Balance have been releasing sets from the DJs on the lineup every week. This week sees the turn of devilishly quick British techno DJ Ben Sims. Not much more needs to be said really.
AUX 88 (Detroit) live – UK exclusive
Surgeon – London debut for new live /av show
Luke Slater (Planetary Assault Systems DJ set)
Ben Sims (Split/Theory)
A Guy Called Gerald – live
Jim Masters (Base/Hi-tek-Soul)
Billy Nasty (electro set)
Electro Elvis & Lula (Wang)
Alex Downey (Split)
Stream it or download it from here
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Louderbach – Autumn | Album Review
Wednesday, May 6th, 2009 | Album Review | 1 Comment
Troy Pierce’s alter ego Louderbach drops his second album with a little vocal help from post-punk singer Gibby Miller. The duo have been recording tracks together on and off for the last few years ever since their first meeting in New York during 2001.
Their latest offering, Autumn alludes to Troy Pierce’s dark more minimal side. The tracks are deep, abstract and have an off colour feel. Strange and eerie dominates the album which is coupled by Miller’s often chilling vocal inserts. On Seems Like Static Miller’s calm vocals provide a sinister vibe over Troy’s mechanised beats. And on So This Is Control, Miller’s vocals again provide an unnerving eeriness to the track, perfect for those haunting synths.
For the tracks where Miller’s vocals › Continue reading
DJ Hell – Teufelswerk | Album Review
Saturday, May 2nd, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
DJ Hell needs no introduction but if you must know the man pioneered the electroclash sound which came out of Berlin during the mid nineties. He runs the infamous DJ Gigolos record label and is a general all round German oddball.
Personally I’ve never been that into DJ Hell’s sound. It was often too industrial and raw. However his latest album Teufelswerk has managed turn my opinion. Teufelswerk in German means “devil’s work” and there is definitely some sinister evil sounds. The album is sixteen tracks split across two CDs. The first CD clearly labelled Night for Hell’s nocturnal stylings is eight tracks of raw, industrial techno beats crossbred with crunchy acid laden synth lines. Electronic Germany has a certain Kraftwerk feel to it with the low bit electronic synth lines and robot vocals. Whilst The Disaster uses an array of slowly unwinding synth layers to produce a purely sinister sound. Friday, Saturday, Sunday closes the CD with a complete mind fuck track with whirring sirens, off beat keys and a punchy rhythm. It sounds mental, but it’s actually restrained with a great flow and is probably the best track on the Night CD. There is also a celebrity cameo from P Diddy who spits his opinion in your face over classic 909 beats and eerie melodies.
Miss Kitten & The Hacker – Two | Album Review
Friday, May 1st, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
Miss Kitten is another artist who I find chalk and cheese. On one hand she’s come out with some great electronic tracks yet on the other she’s come out with some cheese melody laden tracks where she insists she must sing over. Her latest offering with The Hacker is no different.
On this album the duo aim for a futuristic space aged sound dipping into the cyber-pop and techno territories. Ironically the sounds they use have an old school feel to them with Moroder synths, 80s synth pop melodies and electrobreak beats. Headline track 1000 Dreams has a great synth pop hook to it and Miss Kittens vocals balance the track out with the soaring futuristic strings. It’s slightly corny, but it’s catchy so I’ll give her that.
Then you have Pppo, a mechanical chugging electroclash track. It has some great muted beats with spacey sonar bleeps and mechanical valve noises. Add to that some nicely placed vocals from Miss Kitten and you’ve got yourself a good stripped back bleepy number.
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