Music
Seth Troxler – Boogybytes Vol 5. | Album Review
Friday, February 19th, 2010 | Album Review | No Comments
Detroit is under going a bit of a renaissance at the moment. As the once global dominant motor industry continues to crumble electronic dance music is once again becoming a prime export. Current number one export for Detroit on its third generation of techno models is Seth Troxler. He’s been making some great music over the last few years, injecting his weird and playful character into the house music genre which had become cold and processed in the years prior. Probably the most talked about thing with Troxler are his DJ sets. His hunger for the party and fun transfers directly to his sets taking crowds through musically unexpected but ultimately fun ”journeys”. His ability to read a crowd, react and then send them on an off guard curveball has seen him tear dancefloors up and win the hearts of many across the globe. So the announcement of him doing the next Boogybytes CD, a series that is known to give DJs free reign, has set big expectations from the chattering masses. Could Troxler capture and condense his peculiarities and unpredictability on to a small plastic disc? › Continue reading
Martyn – Fabric 50 | Album Review
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010 | Album Review | No Comments
This month’s latest fabric release is another milestone in their now long and successful career. The other month they were turning ten and this month they’re releasing their fiftieth compilation of the fabric series. And who have they bestowed this great honour of house and techno to? Martyn – a bloody drum n bass turned dub step DJ/producer that’s who. He has come to prominence over the last few years alighting dubstep circles with his well constructed deep productions, most notably his debut album Great Lengths being a lynchpin for 2009. So why have fabric handed over this landmark release to someone who sounds like they should clearly be on FabricLive? Well if you’ve heard Martyn DJ before then you will understand that no genre bounds him. His sets may have an urban feel with a focus on percussion and bass, yet they have this house and techno veneer of deepness and subtlety. It’s this cross pollination of sounds that has caught the eye of the fabric series. › Continue reading
Sebo K – Spirits | Single Review
Sunday, December 6th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Sebo K has been keeping quiet for most of the year with Spirits being his first release for Mobilee since his 2008 smash Diva. Two tracks come on the package, but they’re essentially the same track with two added options. Kind of like picking out the upholstery for a car except with Spirits you chose the hook. You can choose between the bongo-tastic drum version or the basic no extra cost strings and piano riff version. The main body of the track is warm classic house. Deep synth stabs and bulbous beats provide a typical 2009 house backing. On the strings and piano version the beats are a tad hollower to make room for the Strings of Life-esque riff. Its pretty catchy but a bit…well… Strings of Life. Strings of Life strings + standard deep house = meh.
But for the leather interior option, ie the Drums Version of Spirits you get some intricate bongo work from Max Moya. Sebo has beefed up the kick drum to make it punchier whilst Max Moya skits on top with some really infectious bongo rolls. It breathes some life into the track with the bongo skit making it highly addictive. Bongos plus deep house isn’t a 2009 invention, but it does bring out the tribal dancing instincts in you which win over the strings and piano combo any day.
Subb-An & Shelton – Musik EP | Single Review
Monday, November 30th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Subb-An and Shelton are the residents of Below – Birmingham’s only decent answer to house and techno. They’ve taken the typical UK dance music route – learn to DJ, start a night, make a few records, start a label. Subb-An has already put a few tracks out on Leftroom and Immigrant so its time for the duo to start a label. One Records is the new venture and its first release is by the duo themselves.
The inspiringly named title track ‘The Musik’ is roaring tech house with acid spat in its face. Industrial clinks and a round kick driven bassline open the track before short bursts of acid squelches wriggle in between the beats. Standard issue string sighs and a “Musik” vocal sample punctuate the track to add some contrast between heavy and light. It’s punchy with an infectious groove and will definitely play on the basic emotions of any techno dancefloor in the UK.
For the name of the B-side, it’s clear to see Subb-Ann and Shelton have clearly spent some time talking about the “concept” of the label to give their tracks these edgey clean cut names – ‘The Musik’ and now ‘The Vision’. Anyway, names don’t win prizes, it’s the music. ‘The Vision’ doesn’t really win any though. Deep basslines, clinkering percussion and spooky synth snippets create a warm and hypnotic house track which is well rehearsed for 2009. It’s produced well but it can so easily blend into the background with all the other deep house tracks of 2009. Not what you need if you want your label to make a splash on its opening.
Simon Baker – Moonblock / Mamaia Highway | Single Review
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
I do enjoy a Simon Baker release. Plastik released on Playhouse was everywhere in 2008 whilst X Y and Z was a fantastic follow up on Leftroom. Other than a release for 20:20 Vision in July we haven’t heard much from Simon Baker, until now. His latest release on MurMur is probably just to keep the “look at all the great labels I’ve released on” list ticking over. Fair enough. MurMur is a good label and Simon’s Moonblock is a great release.
Title track Moonblock is a pumped up houser with an incredibly contagious wiggling bassline. It doesn’t really let up for breath, it just grooves away blissfully unaware only occasionally breaking down with a splash of bossa nova. It’s catchy and very danceable, very much like Mamaia Highway the track on the other side. It’s got another great wiggling bassline that sounds like a computer crunching numbers on an old sci fi show; there are the staple bossa nova/carnival samples which bring a party vibe; and like Moonblock it just doesn’t let up. It’s these tracks which are becoming a staple on the London scene – continual rolling house come techno tracks which swish and release in such a way that they’re perfect for the club and a crowd up for some straight up dancing.
Semtek – Bells EP | Single Review
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
I’d say it’s a ballsy move to call a house or techno track Bells as there’s been some guy called Jeff from Detroit who’s been hammering his own version for the past 10+ years. But that doesn’t deter Semtek who’s put out the first release for Don’t Be Afraid – he’s obviously trying to carve out his own Bells niche. But names are names and that shouldn’t sway the music. So what does ‘Bells’ have to offer, well the main track named after the EP title is dark, moody and hypnotic. Its throbbing bassline gives the track some stripped back attitude whilst the 8-bit percussion adds an understated groove. Layered on top are hypnotic wobbling keys punctuated by some strange spoken words about Liverpool bells and a sporadic electronic motif. Quirky and a bit different to what’s currently doing the rounds – Semtek is definitely carving out a new Bells niche.
Mr G fills in the minimal gaps with a punchy remix of ‘Bells’. Bigger beats are incorporated with clattering percussion and a beefier bassline to turn it into a peak time stomper. However the less is more approach on the original seems to produce a more unique track compared to the very typical but very practical Mr G techno work out.
On the flip is more original Semtek. ‘Keys’ falls in a similar vein. Twinkling synths, 8-bit percussion and warm enveloping pads create a computerised wobbler. Whilst on the second part to the flipside is ‘Village’, an electro breakbeat robot coming straight out of 1984. More low tech sounds, sparse production and mechanical rhythms operate in an assembly line style. Both are put together well but aren’t as distinguished as ‘Bells’.
Ricardo Jefferson – Brutal Truth EP | Single Review
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Ricardo Jefferson – bastardised love child of Villalobos and Marshal Jefferson? – Probably not. But his latest EP does have an old school sound circa Marshall Jefferson’s time. ‘God of the Machine’ plods along in the wilderness with insect sounding shivers and spaced out synths. It has a disparate feel but it doesn’t really hit home with its point. The retro sound doesn’t really help its cause and the same can go for the rest of the EP. ‘The Egg Part One’ has classic 909 cymbals and squelchy acid riffs whilst ‘Persons Unknown’ uses drifting layers of melody and juddering sweeps. Both are a bit more interesting yet they still don’t give you any lasting memories.
The only track that stands up to be taken notice of is the title track ‘Brutal Truth’. A heartbeat break backs some epic echoing Orbital style keys. It’s simple yet so effective with the way it cycles through different patterns using the two main elements – drop the synths out, breakdown to the beats; thunder that wall of synth back in – instant winner.
Tracklist:
1. Brutal Truth
2. Persons Unknown
3. The Egg Part One
4. God if the Machine
Magda – Fabric 49 | Album Review
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 | Album Review | 1 Comment
Oh Magda, my how far you’ve come. Since your days as Richie Hawtin’s personal tea lady to now a heavy weight DJ with your own Fabric CD. A proper rags to riches story. On her path to stardom, Magda had put out She’s a Dancing Machine her first CD compilation way back in 2006 when clicky minimal techno was still fashionable. She earned some deserved applaud with her multi layered and intricately architected mix. It was mechanical, it was robotic, it was computerised, yet it clicked and jacked along dripping in synthetic funk. Magda had set her own bar high, the question is could she surpass it on Fabric 49?
The answer – no, at best on par. The mix follows the same recipe of synthetic funk, robotic rhythms and mechanical beats. The only difference is for Fabric 49 she stays caught on the same jittery electronic theme rather than providing contrast and texture exploring the techno genre. On Dancing Machine she moved from abstract sounds, to funky rhythms, to dark pummelling techno with ease. But on Fabric 49 she stays firmly locked on the same groove throughout. › Continue reading
Dixon – Temporary Secretary | Album Review
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
I’m a big fan of Dixon, his ability as a DJ and producer is often unsurpassed and his taste in house music and beyond is often faultless. Dixon’s last outing on a compilation mix was with his Innervisions buddies Henrik Schwarz and Ame. The resulting CD was a masterpiece which knitted together an intricate composition of varied sounds that had a common minimal style to them. The complexity of sounds and the fluidity of the mix made it such an interesting and pleasurable listening experience, which dare I say made it a timeless CD. It’s that winning combination which Dixon has tried to emulate on his solo effort for Temporary Secretary.
The track selection on Temporary Secretary definitely reflects a similar approach that features on The Grandfather Paradox. He’s used tracks which revolve around a house come 4/4 base yet they all have their own diversely individual sounds. Dixon craftily blends each track with such flow and smoothness that the whole mix simply glides.
There’s no rushing this CD with things starting in carefully measured amounts. Fever Ray’s If I Had A Heart sets a deep warm tone with its multi layers of vocals and melodies. From there he melds into the spooky whistles of Roland Bocquet’s Exotique before slowly layering in the vibrating motif from Ame’s Tube Beats. It creates a fine build of tension before brilliantly releasing into a medley of Jazzanova’s Let Me Show Ya and Daniel Paul’s Something About You. Quite a mouthful to describe and that was just for three of the four opening tracks. › Continue reading
Cassy – Simply Devotion | Album Review
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
When someone says ‘Cassy’ you can’t help but think of productions which combine deep, restrained grooves with slow burning minimal movement. And whilst her outing on the first Panoramabar mix showcased a minimal palette with some panache, I have, infact, seen her bang out a pretty full on techno set in the UK, so wondered which way she would take this, her next mix…
Well, this effort for Cocoon completely reflects her production tendencies utilising deep grooves, controlled progression and all done with the urgency of a tortoise, with only one slight difference – a healthy presence of the more soulful side of house which is currently in vogue.
That is no bad thing, however. Quite often, the stripped back sound can get so reduced that the overall progression and atmosphere of a mix can quite easily drain out the bottom like a leaky bucket. › Continue reading
Radioslave Fabric 48 | Album Review
Sunday, September 20th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
House and techno lovers on a fabric subscription can breathe a sigh of relief after the Toddla T FabricLive release because the urban sounds of bashment and dancehalll make way for the hypnotic rolling beats of Radioslave. No stranger to the scene Radioslave has been consistently producing quality house and techno for a very good proportion of this decade. Initially starting life as a partnership between Brightonians Matt Edwards and Serge Santiago pumping out cheeky re-edits and bootlegs of pop songs. The Radioslave name has evolved some what over the years. A major milestone was when Serge Santiago went his separate way to leave Matt Edwards flying the moniker solo. And it’s precisely there where the Radioslave name veered off path into the dark and murky undergrowth. Out went the happiness; in came the dark and deep sounds. One thing that Matt Edwards was not afraid to do on his tracks is take his time getting to the point. His productions could wind and meander for minutes upon minutes leisurely strolling through the audio scenery making sure you had time to pick up on the slightest of details.
This nonchalance has transferred on to his offering for Fabric 48. The intro to the mix is literally spread over the first three to four tracks. Now that might sound tedious to listen to, and it would be was it not for the fact that this is a Radioslave production. The eerie whirring of Michel Cleis’ mix of Baeka’s Right At It murmurs the start of the mix. It gently bubbles to its crescendo of shakers and wood block rattles. For your standard mix this would be a logical place to drop in to some big ass beats and bass to get the mix fully going. Not Radioslave. He launches into his own track DDB, a heavy marching kick/clap combo which arrogantly makes itself known. › Continue reading
Jay Haze – Fabric 47 | Album Review
Sunday, July 12th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
For Fabric’s 47th installation of the CD series, they’ve brought in the colourful character that is Jay Haze. Known for telling it like it is and literally coming from the streets of Philly (according to the press release he was homeless a couple of times), Jay Haze has mixed up an honest borderless mix that is full to the brim of soul and deepness. The mix predominately skirts around the house and tech house domains but there are wide and far reaching influences on the sound from Jazz, Funk and Disco to Hip Hop, Reggae and Dub. All of this is effortlessly blended together by Jay Haze.
For example the opening six or so tracks, Jay Haze has touched on Hip Hop with his track Awakening, which quickly runs over to deep house with an exclusive track on TuningSpork from Lil Dirty Ghetto Bastard, › Continue reading
All This Summer Dancing Meant I Forgot to Tell You About These Albums
Sunday, July 12th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
June to July has been a particularly lost couple of months. Mainly due to being found on various dancefloors in the UK and abroad. But as I stumble between the parties with that crazed ‘I Need Crack’ look I have been listening to a few good albums that came my way. The moment may have passed for most, but I’m still going to tell you anyway.
Robert Hood – Minimal Nation
When I said the moment might have passed I wasn’t talking about the one back in 1994 when this seminal classic was released. Instead I’m talking about Robert Hood and Planet M’s decision to re-release Minimal Nation to another generation of techno lovers and re-school the kids on where manipulating a minimal set of elements comes from. › Continue reading
Miss Kittin & The Hacker – Party In My | Single Review
Monday, June 29th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
From the album 1000 Dreams we gave Party In My Head a conservative thumbs up. We thought that Miss Kitten’s vocals had been layered with the Blondie/Moroder style disco synths just right. So its good to see that the Thieves Like Us run with the disco bit and churn out a great strutting piece of NYC disco funk. The vocodered vocals sit with the natural percussion and funk lines. So much so that it far surpasses the original.
Kiko on the other hand is at the other end of the spectrum. He’s gone for a brash whirring remix with rough electronic synths and stern marching beats. It’s noisy and in your face so it’s totally made for the big rooms. That leaves Mr Pauli’s remix. He’s gone with the 80s synth pop influence on the original and taken that to town. Think shoulder pads, Miami Vice and those great 80s electronic tom toms. I was confused at first, but the retroness has its charm.
TRACKLISTING:
A1.Party in my Head (Original)
A2. Party in my Head (Mr Pauli Remix)
Radioslave – 3 Snapshots: Tokyo Free CD | Album Review
Saturday, June 27th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
Ever been to Tokyo? Me neither. 3, those mobile phone people, hope to give you the inside scoop on Tokyo and other locations with their 3 Snapshots series. But why are they doing it? Well, it promotes their new INQ1 phone which allows you to hook up to all kinds of new fangled social media things like Facebook, Flickr and Skype. So what’s Radioslave got to do with all of this? I’m not quite sure myself. From what I can gather he likes Tokyo, he says it’s great for shopping and has the “sickest” clubs in the World. Tenuous link to do a mix – yes maybe, but it’s a free CD from Radioslave which come few and far between when you pay for them. So stop your moaning.
It’s been two years since the last mix from Radioslave and it seems as though he has turned another page in terms of style; previous years saw Radioslave put out the darkest, heaviest and most hypnotic records on the market, whilst before that he was making cheeky pop bootlegs with old production partner Serge Santiago. › Continue reading
Geddes & Alex Jones – Tubular | Single Review
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Geddes and Alex Jones team up on the latest MurMur release for another slice of deep house action. Tubular has some great beats. The only way I can describe them is that they sound like big bubbles that rise up inside a water cooler bottle. Kind of that bassy tubby sound, ya get me? Geddes and Alex Jones then sprinkle a few hi hats and vocal snippets to give you another simple yet hypnotic slice of deep house; however its not Geddes and Alex Jones who are the stars of this show. It’s Lauhaus who turns out a remix which retrofits the hypnotic vocal snippets over a far hookier bassline and shuffling up beat rhythms. I’m pretty sure he’s done something similar on his own productions, but like they say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Tracklist:
1. Tubular
2. Zeiss
3. Tubular (Lauhaus remix)
Monika Kruse – Changes of Perception Remixes Part 2 | Single Review
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009 | Single Review | 1 Comment
Bright techno stars Erman Erim and 2000 and One are called up for Monika Kruse’s second batch of remixes from her latest artist album Changes of Perception. New comer Erman Erim was charged with the task of reworking Don’t Come Close. He keeps the eerie darkness of the original but exacerbates the melody with its big plunging keys. The slowly unwinding melody gives the track a great progression in a prog way of yore.
2000 and One head down their tried and tested route of chunky house and make ‘When I Woke Up’ their own. They inject some ballsy beats and a rumbling intermittent bass groan to create a surprisingly slow and smooth house track. It is however a bit thin on the ground with progression but I’m sure the bass groan makes up for it on a large system.
Tracklist:
1. When I Woke Up (2000 And One remix)
2. Don’t Come Close (Erman Erim remix)
Miss dicA – Freak EP | Single Review
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Miss dicA is Barbara Tampiér, an Austrian producer and DJ who now lives in, you guessed it Berlin. Her Freak Out EP is self described as Electro-Techno-Trash and I can’t say I disagree. Freak Out uses trashy synths over high riding percussion and some farty electro basslines giving you a scatty electro-techno-trash workout. Freak’n Proud pines for a techno sound but keeps it intensely trashy with wave after wave of throbbing acid synths; whilst Freak In restrains itself with spindly electronic keys and whirring acid lines. It’s a good release but I can’t help think it sounds a lot like Miss Kitten and DJ Hell. But that’s no bad thing.
Miss dicA – Freak EP is out now
Tracklisting:
A1 Freak In
A2 Freaky Stars
B1 Freak Out
B2 Freak’n Proud
LTJ Bukem – FabricLive 46
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009 | Album Review | No Comments
We don’t really cover too much Drum n Bass on here. But that’s not to say we don’t like it. The problem has been, in our own honest opinion, a lack of decent drum n bass. Well probably not lack of, just its been pushed to the side whilst all the kids have been going made for the noisy jump up sound ala Pendulum et al. Which is fair enough. Its noisy, its mental its what kids love. For grumpy folk like us at EarPipe we’re more accustomed to the oozsing liquid sounds of drum n bass. Hence why we’re giving LTJ Bukem’s FabricLive mix the big lighter cru thumbs up.
It’s been a long time coming for LTJ Bukem to do this CD. But by god it was worth it. So what has the godfather of liquid drum n bass dished out on this mix? Basically 70 minutes of smooth luscious grooves and layers over itching, rolling percussion. You’ve got rolling pianos, soaring synths, luscious melodies and my personal favourite, double bass basslines ala Breakbeat Orchestra style. I can’t really give you any details of its credibility in drum n bass terms, but it is definitely the best D&B mix from FabricLive since High Contrast and Marcus Intalex. Nuff said, innit.
Buy LTJ Bukem – FabricLive 43 on CD
Tracklist:
01 Greg Packer – People’s Music
02 Tidal – Impressions
03 Furney – Eerie Indiana
04 Villem – Inflated Tear (Madcap’s Remix)
05 Paul SG Ft Eros – Forever
06 Paul SG Ft Caine – Lay Down
07 Paul SG Ft Andy Sim – Sweet and Fresh
08 Locksmith – 2 Minds
09 Specific – Time
10 Furney – Jambaleno
11 Phatplayaz – Fact Of The Unknown
12 Furney – Rhodeo Drive
13 Eveson – Kodama
14 Furney – Fearz
15 Tayla – Turn it Around
16 Locksmith – I’m Not Where You Are
17 Furney – Rhodes For D
18 Syncopix – So In Need
Shlomi Aber and Kenny Larkin – Sketches | Single Review
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009 | Single Review | No Comments
Sketches the latest release from Shlomi Aber, with a little help from Kenny Larkin, is another corker filled with obvious ideas. The release comes in two flavours. The Shlomi Aber flavour is a funked up jack hammer with a ballsy bassline and toe tapping jazz percussion. It’s a definite corker with the looping techno bassline and scatty percussion. The only problem is that there is a massive influx of this kind of techno. But don’t let that detract from how infectious and fun this track really is.
Kenny Larkin’s flavour spends most of its time leaving you on the edge using a meandering swirl of half drops, swooshy synths and throbbing basslines in a kind of Moodymann Shades of Jae kind of way. It’s a great way to build tension and is probably my favourite of the two.
Tracklist:
A1 Sketches (Shlomi Aber Version) 7:35
B1 Sketches (Kenny Larkin Version) 10:05
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