February 2008 Archives

The next month looks like it's going to be a belter of a month for good Electro releases. On top of Fleeced #3 there are new Spacebar Sentiments, Monotone and Breakin' EPs dropping too.

Veto says:
"Following two successful outings from Letroset and Debasser , Fleeced comes back at ya with a stunning 4 tracker featuring four of our favourite artists working in the field of cutting edge electro & techno. Ed Chamberlain is well known of course for his "Fixxy" series on Baselogic , and doesn't disappoint here with the immaculate production of "Porker". By way of contrast Lief Ryan brings a filthy slice of rave action, which samples cult UK comedy 'Spaced' to great effect. On the flip comes the great surprise of this EP, as Paul 'Damage' Bailey (better known for his hard-hitting and deviant techno production on labels like HOG & 1881 ) goes back to his roots and drops "The cutter", a stupendous gnarly electro track. 5% Nation of Casiotone rounds the proceedings off nicely with "Lo-tech divider", a typically detailed and bass-heavy dancefloor stormer, which is but a taste of things to come on his imminent Kracktronik single "Keep it simple, stupid". All in all a pretty fair round-up on what's hot in the current UK electro/tech scene..."

Nasty Colour is being firmly represented by 3 of it's resident Djs/Artists tonight. Dj Urbe, Dj Dro San and Dj Mem have all banded together and put together three great mixes that showcase a wide variety of Techno.

So this year, the day before February 29th is Leep Bleep: The Nasty Colour Marathon! Get your jack on, your groove going and back into it because it's a long three hour show and you best tune in.

Oliver Bondzio may be better known as half of Hardfloor. A group responsible for large swathes of Electronic Dance Music. He's also pretty damn good on his own though. The EP and the associated LP 'Straight Outta D-Town' that he released a few years ago was and still is a great LP. It touched upon many different sounds and styles and hasn't dated on us yet.

This is the first Dj Set I've ever heard of his or seen on the 'net for that matter. So I didn't know what to expect. What I found was that he likes good Techno. The whole 2+ hours of this mix is pretty solid track wise. From Jay Denham to older Richie Hawtin, Black Nation, Neil Landstrumm, a few old Swedish gems, and a few more Neil Landstrumm (6+ tracks at last count/estimate). Give 'er a go. It's well worth the download.

I wasn't aware of it until I did some digging on this very release that Cane is actually the Funckarma brothers. Which means I have yet another name to watch for. This is all getting to be a bit tedious.

It's a good thing I'm so good spirited and forget my name/alias complaints once I hear the tunes!

Two of the songs on this EP were originally on a Drop Beat EP in 1998. This is one of the Sutekh EPs I was never able to get in at the local shop so it's a huge treat for the good bits to be re-released.

"So soon" said the sarcastic jock who was really and actually impatient for it.

"yes"

...and a damn good thing too. if only Luke and crew were as prolific as the Donk Boys the world would find peace.

Mark Hawkins, the man, the machine, the mystery has decided that the more poeple hear his music the better. And what way to best do that? Give the older stuff away for free as 320kb/s downloads of course!

Keep in mind this is on top of the newest LP which has already been announced as freely available for download. So that's one LP and 15 EPs that you can now grab from Mark. Has generosity ever hit such a high water mark before? Probably, but we'll focus here for now.

I found this while browsing around with new Sutekh in mind. I'm glad I did the digging as I think out the the last two Sutekh EPs that I've been yammering on about this remix may be my favorite track.

I think it's time for another Sutekh LP.

Another week, another mitt full of tunes I rather enjoy. I've probably listened to this show about 25 times in the last 3 weeks. It's going to end up burnt for car rides any day now. I just need to get my ass in gear and fire up Nero.

From the Oddball to Jack and into the Broken Beat before you know it.

Luke's Anger has put together a wee web-site for his record label. Perfect timing I'd say. The first EP is out and now we all have an easy and convenient way to keep tabs on the second EP. The second EP of which I have no solid information on, but hope it doesn't take too long.

Bonus Round Records

A live recording from one of the guys responsible for my Bleep fetish.

It incorporates a good amount of back catalog and his newer stuff, both the .XTrak and Sines styles.

Download

Run by Ben Pest (keyboard player with Ninja Tune artists Pest), Panic Bridge is a gloriously genre-defying label that sucks up many elements of musical culture past and present, then spews them out in a torrent of dancefloor funk with a knowing smirk on its face. Sometimes so clever it's positively stupid, this is music for those moments when you need a record where people are going to go 'what the f**k was that?'...

Clever, fun and stupid (the good kind) this EP rocks. I was fortunate enough to get it during a previous pressing, but for those of you who don't have it it comes highly recommended.

Easy now!

For those of you find you don't enough Monday to Friday, 9-5 raving in...here's another slice of Bracket to enjoy. From breaks of yore to dub-step and hardcore, it's as Techno as you want it.

It's not a new mix by any means, both in that it was recorded a year ago and that it's full of 80's jams.

Acid just doesn't seem to be done right these days. That's why it's always a grand day when I stumble across a new release that is. The raw lines and anxious programs are in full effect with this double pack of acid done by some of the heavy hitters out there right now. I've already got plans in store for half of these and I've not even got it in the mail yet!

Lately, since Bleep went back to being weekly, I've not really had a chance to play records for the "just because" reason or even slap together a mix that doesn't have to used for Bleep.

Well I'm currently a month or so ahead on my Bleep mixes right now so after work today in a completely purposeless mix session I recorded this. It was a nice change knowing it didn't need to be recorded. it is also nice that it was though!

Tonight we have our second guest from Ireland. Chris Nesbitt, A.K.A. Dj Nez [Myspace] has put together a broken beat breakdown for us. A great variety of new and old to stress the connections that can be made just about anywhere. Context is king. Break out the Linoleum. We're going square dancing.

TJR doesn't seem to get much 'Techno' press from what I've seen, but he can rock it hard. His track on the last Tonewrecker for example...is bad-ass. When he digs into the old school acid I'm usually all over it as well.

This mix is more 'House' oriented and to be honest a good chunk of it wasn't really my thing, but you get to hear some of TJR's unreleased bits live and in action. I'm pretty keen on 'Logjammin' myself. I believe it'll be a future Catalyst release. I still need a confirmation on that though.

TJR on Myspace

Invariably, whenever I sit down and get ready to do one of my 'Influential Record' posts I almost always grab something to do with Neil Landstrumm. I usually check myself and move on to something else, but this time I let it slide. It's not a Neil release, but it is a remix of his.

Released in the late 90's, but still fresh --of course!-- today. It's a fine example of the sort of Techno I was eating up at that time --and still do really.

So here's a taste of this release. Unfortunately it's not been repressed, but it does seem as if it's easy to find on both Discogs and Gemm.

Jerome Hill seemingly has some unwanted vinyl. Shame on him for selling it, but some of you may be able to profit from this!

He's using Discogs as his sale management page so hit it up HERE for what's up for grabs. You should be able to contact him via the Discogs profile as well.

This broadcast was recorded live on 15.12.07 on Frequency Radio. It seems Electro sets are harder and harder to come by these days. Well, ones that haven't been tainted with what gets labeled as Electro right now by the powers that be.

As far as Bass Gun info and releases goes this is the last bit of what I've got on it all.

I really do like the format these guys have used so far. The original track plus remixes from their crew. I've said it often before for other releases on other labels, but this is the best way to do things right now. With so many complete fools only buying records that fit in their narrow slit it's the best way to lure people into seeing the light.

The original by Synapse is a pretty hard work-out. When I'm in the sort of mood that this song would fit it's usually because I'm soaked in sweat and going off somewhere dark. Another notable is the Dexorcist remix. It's got that old-school hardcore vibe to it that will work with just about anything you toss at it these days. Although to be fair the 5 tracks on this EP are far ranging enough to cover all bases so whatever your broken beat preferences are you'll likely find at least one track you dig.

Tonight's Bleep is something I recorded back in mid-December. I had that spate of guest mixes that only let up this week. So it's time to start working on the backlog of shows I recorded.

I don't think there'll be too many before the next guest mix though as One was sent in today and the Nasty Colour tribute with mixes by Dj Urbe, Dj Dro San and Dj Mem should be in soon as they're just as excited about it as I am.

The Ostcode brethren seem to be all goggley eyed over the B-side of Paul's newest on Axel's Kitty Corner label. I, however am quite keen about the A1 cut 'Banshee Cut'. I can see it quickly being delegated to that stack of records that sees inordinate amounts of playtime. it's got that veneer of dirt across it that Paul has been fond of lately, but it's a genre-bending monster that I am already imagining with all sorts of oddball stuff.

It gets girlfriend approval too. So you know it's gotta good.

Axel of Kittycorner has just informed me that Paul is signed up fora remix on KCR 06. So on top of this EP there'll be a remix on the next release. The next release being from Axel Sohns with an additional remix from Dj Ze Mig L as well.

Nothing new here, but I did only just recently stumble across it. Some well done bump funk, Chicago influenced house. If you like Johnny Fiasco this will sit in your lap and wiggle.

Here we go with another Bass Gun release. It was less than two months ago when 01 and 02 both came out simultaneously.

Don't pay attention to the selfish title of this EP. The amusement is all ours.

The rapid fire beats in this one is not generally the assault I like, but the almost excessive use of bass stabs and Eastern sounding wood winds more than make up for it by giving the tracks personality of their own.

I'm all over the Darkmode, Smashback and Synapse mixes on this EP.

Roar! The Donks follow up the Karaoke destroyer EP "Sing Along With" on Floppy Funk with another jackin 4-tracker. This time presented to you as a nutricious meal. Hehu! "Poing poing" is a deep bowl of rolling aquatic minimal house. Seasoned with sharp-as-knives percussion, klonks, owl-like bleeps and the obvious cut-up biz, this is full-on for the mini (M-nus) heads. Poing! Next up is the main course, "Hoppetoss". A spicy tech dish that grooves totally in its own league. Bim-ba-bam, a-a-ah, oh, that stupid noodling hook recalling "Geht's noch". Still hungry? Flip for "Acid Boys Horses Girls" as the boys take on a beefy slab of acid house. Slow, dirty and gritty, with just enough phat to make it succulent! Nice. Watch yourself for the freaky parts (features the demented vocals of Martin Donk). "Bladen Bus" is the busy little dessert that finishes off the EP. A cute, but brutal (whole grain), Chicago house onslaught. Loosen your belt and throw those funny fists in the air! Till next time - eat your greens and party on boys, girls, and horses... :)
source: Word and Sound

Although every Donk Boy EP I've listened to was heads and shoulders better than most of the noise out there I find each EP has one track that is the stand out. For the Hoppetoss Ep it's the 'Acid Boys' track (A1) which has Martin on vox rockin' it out in a old school DBX/Green Velvet manner. Don't let it fool you into ignoring the other three tracks though. They're all welcome additions to the box of puzzle pieces.

Three of the tracks on this EP were kinda over the top for me. Well done, but not my thing. They sorta reminded of that electro house crap, but run through a fuzz box or something. 'Deadly B' however, sits very well. Raw, dirty, energetic and has enough variation to keep feet on the floor and fists at least raised.

There is a hefty amount of Techno territory covered with this digital EP. All four tracks will sit nicely in a variety of House, Electro and Techno styled sets without any clash or complaint from the tracks around them or the people being aurally aimed at.

Pigeon holing yourself into a sub-genre, no matter how broad it seems now is only one of the many ways to find yourself playing and listening to boring music. Vadz' stuff --as I've mentioned in the past-- is just quality 'Techno'. Different ideas and sounds are explored. Some work and are used and expanded on while others are evolved past. In other words I will once again admit to being a fan of Vadz' work. Whatever it is he's trying I know I'll probably enjoy it.

11 of the top 12 downloads this month were Bleep Radio shows. That is fantastic. Most of the site numbers are up as well. That too is fantastic.

Now if only I could find the time to finish up the template conversion from the old design.

Another month done. Some projects on the go. Expect more of the same and 1 or two new audio bits that are underway. The Dance Mania Mini Mega Mix Project is the one I can mention (and urge you all to take part in) while the other is a sort of secret thing that only the people I call up know about.

Carry on..