HOVATRON Lowriders Mixtape 003

Think Canada, lasers, fluorescent colors, synth funk, science fiction, explosions and you’ve roughly got an idea of what to expect. The third installment of our mixtape series comes from Montréal’s Hovatron. As one of the co-initiators of the Turbo Crunk nights, Hovatron brings crunked up acid infected beats dripped in skweeeing synths with an hint of techno and pop music. Doesn’t make much sense? Well… it doesn’t! His sound is that unique!  The mix consists of solely his own tunes and remixes. Lots of new stuff in here which have never been heard outside of the club. Interview and Tracklist can be found after the jump.

Download here

Stream:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Read more »

RHYTHM & SOUND No Partial

March 12th 2010 by SIMcommander | Tags: , , , , | Tweet this post

One of my fav bass outfits of all time is Rhythm & Sound. Founded by the Basic Channel / Chain Reaction innovators Mark Ernestus & Moritz von Oswald they have created an essential back catalogue for bass heads. All their releases on Burial Mix, PK and Rhythm & Sound have created an oeuvre on it’s own. The bring-back-to-the-essence concept purifies the reggae set-up of the drum and bass section and is then covered with some minimal keyboard/guitar dubs. The releases were published as rhythms in the dub tradition with version tracks on the flip and voiced ones on the A-side. At first it was done by Paul St. Hilaire (aka Tikiman) and later also collabs with some veterans from the Bull Wackies back catalogue, amongst them Jah Batta, Choson Brothers, Love Joy, Jennifer Lara and Cornel Campbell. The latter voiced some of the most memorable tracks of Rhythm & Sound: King of My Empire
At the moment the are re-releasing their first track No Partial that is out on PK. Earlier released as PK006 (as a split with The Wailers Band) and later on CD and recently on a R&S compilation.
It doesn’t get more pure then this.

1000NAMES Illuminated Man preview

March 11th 2010 by Yang | Tags: , | Tweet this post

We keep posting about 1000names that we’re almost running out of pictures of them! They’re just that sensationally good and here’s a little preview of their debut album due to drop in April on Black Acre. Beats from outer space……

Right here

NON PERSON Mix And Interview

March 11th 2010 by CocoBryce | Tags: , , , | Tweet this post

Finland.. There are over 3 times more people living here in the Netherlands than in Suomi, yet in comparison there seems to be so much more good & innovative music coming from the Land Of A Thousand Lakes these last couple of years. They even invented Skweee over there!! To be honest, I hadn’t heard of Non Person before stumbling upon this here interview which I scooped from the Sonic Router blog, but I saw mr Mesak himself tipping him on Twitter, so I figured it’d be well worth your time to check this out. He’s got a release in the pipelines on Clouds’ Channel Zero imprint with whom he’ll be doing a collabo live set soon as well. Click here to go to the download page. Read the interview after the jump.. Read more »

IKONIKA Idiot

March 10th 2010 by Yang | Tags: , , | Tweet this post

If this new EP of Ikonika is any indication of quality for her debut album have Contact, Love, Want, Have, then we’re in for a real treat. Idiot starts out with her signature off-beat 8bit melodies but instead of being combined with halfstep rhythms the melodies are paired with some powerful soca drums. The result is a hybrid funky roller which will hit the dancefloors with devastating effects. On the flip is a remix by Altered Natives who we all know from the incredible funky anthem Rass Out. The remix isn’t a new hit in the making but  it’s still a nice extra if you’re into dark broken beats.

Idiot

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Idiot (Altered Natives remix)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

JAMES BLAKE The Bells Sketch

March 9th 2010 by SIMcommander | Tags: , | Tweet this post

Again another James Blake, now for the Hessle Audio label. Like the Pembroke on Brain Math he works a lot with revers play of samples to suck you into track which he does on the title track The Bells Sketch. It’s light as thin air but it also feels intense by the sampled bells (?) and the swirling synths with this nodding beat in the back.
On Buzzard & Kestrel he uses beautiful organic (kitchen sink comes to mind) sounds to construct a swinging soul tempo (which has the Matthew Herbert feel to it) covered with beautiful timed voices. It such rich and dense, though subtle music you can only long for the spring breaks into sunshine and lambs in the meadow….Noticed an announcement that James Blake will be releasing on the R&S label. Listening to Give A Man A Rod give you an idea what that would sounds like. Give A Man A Rod starts with an even more uptempo housy tempo but with an vintage blanket on top. It’s really hard to describe how warm his sound feels. Even after the break when it falls in to this thick organ sound it stays miraculously soulful.

GONJASUFI A Sufi and A Killer

Part of the Los Angeles music scene (Brainfeeder ao), and aided and abetted here by producers The Gaslamp Killer, Mainframe and Flying Lotus, Gonjasufi stands strong despite his impressive helping hands. His dominant voice and ditto sound ideas are (lucky for him and us) all over the record. He moves music wise, somewhere between freak-folk, retro-hippie, orientalism, and abstract beats and it is tempting and dearing as hell. The electro-acoustic dominance together with the treated voices makes it kinda vintage but through the drums and bass it stays within the present. The sounds and songstructures stroll between psychedelic hypnotizing near madness which places him in the centre of his influences: San Fransisco seventies; Beatles; 22Pistepirkko; all these Mush kinda west-coast folk-hip-hop and as last: dub.
Listen here

BFLECHA Ceja De Carnival / Kosmic Lovers

March 9th 2010 by SIMcommander | Tags: | Tweet this post

Mweslee, the Spanish Beat juggler, starts a label called Arkestra Discos and gives the first to fellow country woman Bflecha. A very strong debut with the floor killer Ceja De Carnival. It has this pointy push covered with Bristol mayhem. The flip is Kosmic Lovers is a mad mad haunting Spanish riddle over this ‘purple’ sound.

Ceja De Carnival

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Kosmic Lovers

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

AIRHEAD / JAMES BLAKE Pembroke

James Blake proves again how magically his electro-acoustic infected sound fits the contemporary musical spectrum. His handling of samples (reverse play) the organ, voices, are intriguing and delicate. On both Pembroke and The loin we hear the Blake treats which makes you wonder what exactly the role of Airhead has been. This record moves perfectly inbetween the early dubstep sounds and the stuff that we hear on Fat City and All City labels but the organic feel is so refined it stands easily on it’s own in the field of abstract beats.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

ROBOT KOCH Death Star Droid Remixes

Robot Koch released a while a go his debut album Death Star Droid, a very exiting and diverse album. Robot Koch asked some people to remix tracks of the album. My personal favorite Gorem Sen is remixed by Loops Haunt, Shlohmo, Body Language, Talen, Phono O, Beat Laden but there are also remixes from other tracks by fLako and Blue Daisy. As you see it covers our fav artists quite well! It contains also two brand new tracks, one called Blind (feat Grace) with a nice wobble over a soulful track. The other one is New Day which is a collab with Body Language. The Loops Haunt cover is my fav. Last week he played it during his live set and I was blown away, ran into him and was like I need that hip hop ish track. Turned out I have it, it was Gorem Sen…. The video-clip of Blind contains sampled material from Maya Deren, Man Ray and Luis Buñuel.
Gorom Sen (Loops Haunt remix)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Gorom Sen (Shlohmo remix)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.