Representing the Southern portion of the Green Ova collective, Austin’s Western Tink and Arkansas’ Pepperboy bring the world Bubble Boyz, a collaborative project featuring crew regular Shady Blaze and a cadre of up-and-coming producers. While brief at 31 minutes long, Bubble Boyz represents the best that Green Ova has to offer in its vivid street and eviscerating, lofty production. Greev ova all day.
You’ve probably heard Cashmere Cat’s remix of Miguel’s “Do You”. You’ve probably heard people talking about this whole Jersey club thing, whether they’re dissecting stuttered kick drums or making an uncomfortable passing reference in a trap think piece. You’ve probably listened to songs by DJ Sliink, Trippy Turtle, DJ Kiff, Uniique and the rest of the gang. Now it’s time to listen to DJ Sliink’s edit of the former. It’s predictably excellent. We will be playing it constantly on full volume in the proverbial office for quite some time. Enjoy.
Way back in 2012, West Coast beat maven Devonwho released the two part Perfect Strangers tape, a didactic mixture of club influences and psychedelia-tinged hip hop production. Feeling that Perfect Strangers deserved an official release, Portland label Dropping Gems has taken it upon themselves to re-release the tape on cassette and to draw from their wide net of Pacific Northwest-based producers to include six ( ! ) brand new remixes. Devon has worked with Dropping Gems in the past through his cerebral Wires For Salu nom de plume and Perfect Strangers represents the fullest manifestation (to date) of both artist and label’s collective vision. The cassette/digital re-release is set for an August 13 drop, but you can pre-order both here. To celebrate the re-release, we have been gifted the opportunity to premiere a remix of “ghostpt2” from Seattle-based producer Denley. Whereas Devon’s music generally inhabits a rather subdued context, Denley blasts “ghostpt2” into space, giving it the sort of bombastic sheen we’ve come to expect from producers like S-Type, or even DJ Toomp. It’s a departure from the original’s intention, but Denley’s triumphant synth work gives the remix enough legs to operate as a truly large reinvention. Stream/download below the remix below and be sure to pre-order the cassette!
I was not alive to witness the heyday of pirate radio. I actually live around 6,000 miles from the Anglo-urban locales where it has thrived over the previous two and a half decades. I have never been to an ‘ardkore rave or a jungle soundsystem event. I have never ridden a London nightbus and I have never been to FWD>>, nor have I been to Plastic People. Nevertheless, I feel a surprisingly close and romantic connection to the aforementioned events and, more importantly, sensations attached to said events. Through forums, books and articles; pirate radio archives, Youtube playlists and, more recently, Rinse.FM, I have managed to attain an odd sense of surrealist attachment to the breakbeat-based sounds of London and Bristol. I also know that I’m not alone in this. Countless Americans like myself have become (unsurprisingly) disgusted with out own fickle mainstream and have found solace in the populist nature of hardcore, or the rebellious anger inherent in jungle. And that’s why Four Tet’s “Kiss FM” hits so close to home. Obviously, it’s an incredibly immersive, forward thinking track, but it also gives a sense of, albeit falsified, intimacy to a scene that has had a lasting impact with regards to both fandom and lifestyle. It’s the same feeling I get while listening to Paul Woolford’s Special Request alias, or old Slimzee broadcasts. Next month, Digital Mystikz and Kahn will be performing in Los Angeles and I hope to attain that same feeling, regardless of its authenticity. Mr. Hebden’s next album, Beautiful Rewind, will be out “soon” on his own Text imprint
“I Can Tell (By The Way You Move)” has been floating around in rip form since at least January, but today it’s hit the web, albeit with no further info than a “forthcoming…” note on the Soundcloud upload. Like his Hotflush label boss Scuba, Fitzgerald’s music has been getting brighter and more “big room” oriented for the past few releases and “I Can Tell (By The Way You Move)” will probably end up representing the apex of that trend. It’s a Summer tune out and out that will most likely see an “Au Seve” like rise through the web/festival/BBC circuit into the workout playlists of bros across several continents. Hopefully Fitzgerald doesn’t lose his love for both production and performance as Bashmore has though. “I Can Tell (By The Way You Move)” will most likely be released on Hotflush, although the long wait between the debut and today’s unofficial seeming preview might be a sign that the track is signed to a larger label… anything is possible in our post-“Latch”/”Need U” world.
With a few collaborative releases under their belts already, New York tandem DJ Spider & Marshallito are set to release their next 12″ to Will Bankhead’s ever-growing The Trilogy Tapes series. The Deadly Structures EP has not been pegged with a release date just yet, but today we received “A1” courtesy of Soundcloud and if you remember correctly, have already caught glimpses of “A2” and “B2”. “A1” continues the duo’s streak of jilting, endearing techno that is equal parts populist and unremittingly experimental. This is certainly one to check back for in the next few weeks as Trilogy Tapes vinyl always seems to disappear quickly.
Following the release of January’s Show Me The Future Vol. 1, the illustrious Friends of Friends imprint will release a second volume of their introductory compilation series on August 12. Whereas Vol. 1 touched on the confluence between hip hop and dance music via artists like Dreams., Kid Smpl and Ryan Hemsworth, Vol. 2 trends in a decidedly house/techno direction, featuring the likes of Octa Octa, The Cyclist and Coyote Clean Up. For our first taste of the comp, we’ve received The Cyclist’s “Daisy Spiral”, by far the most direct, hard hitting track we’ve received from FoF, or even its dancefloor friendly sister label Young Adults. The Cyclist has built a reputation for releasing lo-fi, often un-danceable techno on Leaving Records, but “Daisy Spiral” walks the line between reverent Chicago house and the analogue techno manipulations of fellow Brits Surgeon and Kowton. If clunky, metallic British techno isn’t really your thing, then “Daisy Spiral” should have enough funk to delight. On the other hand, if the Chicago house revival comes off as derivative and boring, then “Daisy Spiral” should offer enough in the way of gritty sonics to keep you engaged. Overall it’s an impressive outing that represents a new direction for both artist and label. Hit the jump to check out the full Show Me The Future Vol. 2 tracklist and stream “Daisy Spiral” below.
First off, if you don’t read Southern Hospitality religiously then you’re slipping. Whether they’re putting on for Sinjin Hawke well before most of us caught on or compiling the best of Kevin Gates, the London-based publication is at the forefront of everything club-oriented. Recently, SH extended itself further into the label realm, releasing an EP made up of remixes of songs by rising Dallas duo Yung Nation. Among the producers enlisted was Murlo, one of the more interesting purveyors of the dissonant instrumental grime sound preferred by producers like Slackk and Visionist. Falling somewhere between futuristic grime, classic garage and mid-2000s Southern rap, Murlo’s take on “Shawty Wassup” retains the sing-song flow of the original, contributing fleeting vocal stabs and a vibrant minimalist aesthetic. It’s no surprise that SH is on top of both of these artists and their stamp of approval is as valuable as any, so jump on the bandwagon quick or fall in the dust. Slick Shoota, Suicideyear, Krueger, DJ Tricks, Wreck Tech and Kaptain Kadillac also contributed remixes to the EP.
Take the following with a grain of salt because the to be mentioned individual is one of our absolute favorite DJs and general curators/label bosses: Samo Sound Boy has never impressed us with his production work. Neither 2011’s Shuffle Code EP (on Trouble & Bass) or last year’s acid drenched 5 Dollar Paradise (on Body High) really piqued our interest, especially when juxtaposed with Samo’s extensive knowledge of the American dance music lexicon and prodigious command of the DJ booth. As much as we attempted to embrace both of the aforementioned EPs, they both came off as a little too derivative and dry, lacking the adventurous spirit of a Floyd Cambpell or the pure technical abilities of a Jerome LOL. That being said, “Spirit Tool” has absolutely knocked us off our feet. Relentlessly driving and positive, Samo’s latest is the exact type of track that he so often utilizes to obliterate Los Angeles dancefloors. A slinky yet simple melody enraptures as the rhythmic elements heave and kick with a hedonistic freedom that has come to define the Body High sound. It’s pointless to make predictions, but if Samo can continue in this form on the production front, he can and will be one of the most dynamic forces in Transatlantic dance music.
Astral Plane guest mix alumni Stavrogin recently connected fellow Brits Desimal and Kamran Khan on “Frqncy”, a subtle, beatific number that sees the London-based producer continue to advance his already unique sound palate. Stavrogin and Desimal weave homemade-sounding percussion and droning synth work around Khan’s longing vocals, resulting in both nostalgia and dream-like realism. The song is as-of-now unsigned, but that should change soon. If y’all label people were smart you’d snatch “Frqncy” up right now!
The Astral Plane 