There was no particular direction intended with Bleep Radio (as usual I guess), but what seemed to happen was I took a tour through the mid 90's. While not all of it is from that period, a lot of it at least has that feel to it.
Luke's Anger Tunes-Disgo Mix by Disgo
Luke just brought this mix to my attention. Sometime in the near future he is playing at a night in Glasgow called 'Scrabble' which is hosted by Dj Disgo; hence the mix of Luke's Anger tracks.
Si Begg has had a good few records behind him. I've always considered him more hit and miss than Mark does, but that's only because we're two different people with tastes that don't sync 100%. Regardless, even this mix is worth grabbing. I've got the sucker downloading right now. I think today my daughter is going to get a schooling in Noodles.
Founded in 1989 by Alan Herrick and Jenny Liang, Auricular began as a humble little record retail store in the Lower Haight neighborhood of San Francisco and slowly carved out a small niche for itself by offering in-store performances by Hafler Trio, Merzbow, Zoviet France and Nux Vomica.
"The store became kind of a central location for experimental and noise artists within San Francisco," assesses Herrick in retrospect.
"It may be due to the fact that we did not carry much major label material and were always willing to consign material from local artists or it may have been part and parcel of my tastes and intrigues."
Out of all this music and noise grew the offshoot label, Auricular Records, which began with the release of the first Auricular Audio Magazine on cassette, back in the days before DIY artists or labels had access to CD-R.
"The label started as cassette only releases focused on friends and family," Herrick says. "The first compilation releases was all locals who performed live together regularly. It was just another way to try to get some of the music out there to be heard. Quickly the label evolved from a handful of local artists to include tracks from artists all over the world on our releases. The money was tight then and CD production was expensive. I never had enough money to release anything in large quantities and cassettes were limiting but we did OK and got by."
In 1992 Auricular Records closed the doors of its retail shop and the label went into long-winded hiatus - until resurfacing two years ago with a fresh approach to experimental electronic music and releasing innovative material by a new array of artists.
"I decided after far too long to get back into it all and resurrect or revive the label and start working with artists and releasing my own material again. This resulted in instantly coming in contact with new people and starting to produce the largest number of releases I ever had to date. It is now 20 years from the dawn of Auricular Records and we have over 100 artists who have appeared on our label and over 70 releases, with many more planned."
On Discogs it says that "Auricular Records was a small independent music label dedicated to preservation and support, as well as distribution, of the works of world wide experimental music artists." Is this still the main perimeter - or have things changed?
"This is still the main perimeter. I re-focused efforts on Auricular Records several years ago with the intent of continuing to find new artists and to expose as well as reinstate work with some old friends and projects of my own.
"After a few years of diving back into the music scene I am discovering the things that have changed and what is working and not working so there's a change in perimeter - or, rather, a shift in focus. I am moving more towards more 'special edition' releases such as a CD that is accompanied by a book, boxed sets of art and audio, retrospectives and maybe some audio/video projects."
Herrick shrugs. "The whole idea of an independent music label has changed drastically in the past 20 years and I am still formulating how Auricular will evolve beyond this and still work within the perimeters we have in the past. In 2009 I started a sister label, Ambit Din, which aims to explore and provide a vehicle for release of a new canvas of sound art focused on field recordings and compositions that use field recordings and their main backbone."
Inspiration itself comes from some interesting sources in this particular case.
"I come from a very musical family and I can't recall a time in my life where music hasn't played a significant role. Musical composition, sound art and audio experimentation is all an extension of my palette of emotions. I've used sound to express a lot of things that would have otherwise gone unspoken, or things I do not have words for.
"I have experienced or utilized music in ways most people would use drugs, meditation, or spirituality and shared some very intimate relationships musically that could only occur as part of the creation of music. I wouldn't say I have been so much inspired to create music as much as compelled or driven by my own inner workings."
He goes on: "I was born is Middletown, CT, established along the western bank of the Connecticut River - which served as the original home of the Mattabesett Native Americans. It is probably most famous for Wesleyan University. I only lived there until age eight.
"Oddly enough, a major turning point in my musical education came at about age 10, while listening to a radio very late at night. I've no idea what the show was or who was broadcasting, however they played a piece of music by a professor from Wesleyan that had been entirely composed from the sounds of different types electrical switches turning on and off. This absolutely amazed me at the time and probably played a very significant role in my thinking towards the potentials of music and sound. I have never been able to to track that recording down since."
Herrick himself has made music with Big City Orchestra, Sense-Net, Concerto Infernal, Haters, Ultrasound, NU33.3X, Turntable Orchestra, and Amphead.
"Most recently I've worked with a close friend and very talented composer, Brent Goodbar, on a project called G:NOME. I've also worked recently with Space Gambus Experiment - a project out of Malaysia - along with collaborations with Math Lewis of Noisepsalm and also collaborative efforts between Nux Vomica and Voice Of Eye," he says.
The man has been producing music and interacting within the music industry for quite a long time now - so what's most changed in the electronic/experimental music related music industry over that period?
"What hasn't changed?" He quips.
"Our medium for recordings, our production methods, our distribution models have all changed. Each of these has changed so drastically that it's difficult to say what has changed the most. Technology is the number one thing that has changed, probably. The advances in computers, access to bandwidth, storage, software, and media have all had profound effects on every single aspect of the music industry from what makes and artist to how and album is created or purchased. It just keeps on going and going doesn't it? I'm not sure I can foresee anything in particular happening, I just know it sure isn't going to stop!"
Motivation is another matter that's connected. "Most likely the constant change and the absolutely huge amount of music I haven't heard yet keeps me motivated. The other primary motivating factors are the artists themselves, and the friends and family we have built along the way."
In his own studio productions things have also changed.
"I switch things up a lot depending on mood and project. Logic Pro is my number one studio software environment - after years of frustration and irritation with ProTools, I hung it up, turned to Logic and never looked back. Other apps I utilize fairly extensively for sound creation, at the moment, would be Reason and Gleetchlab 3. The Mac is essential - it keeps the sounds, mixes, produces, rips, communicates, and distributes. It is my most important tool in the studio for productivity as well as during downtime when it's time to relax and enjoy and explore things."
Which current crop of artists and labels are grabbing his attention?
"I've been very heavily into net labels lately - I've been following, and really enjoy, Justnotnormal, and/OAR, Wandering Ear, and Feedback Loop to name just a small few. This is just a small list of a large number of labels and artists who are out there creating music for themselves, pushing boundaries, doing unique things with sound and audio production and turning out some truly interesting material that provokes and intrigues."
Describing your own music is something a lot of artists are loathe to do and Herrick seems bemused by the notion. "This question was so much easier to answer when there were five genres of music," he suggests, "but now we have 45,000 ways to say the words 'techno' or 'alternative'. My work has always fluctuated between noise, electronic and ambient - I am going to stick with 'SoundArt'. I've always liked the ring of it and it encompasses, to me, a wide range of styles and possibilities."
How about if we pose the same question for Auricular?
"Auricular has always been a bit more diverse and I keep it that way because I like it to showcase and reflect all the different styles of music I enjoy or my curiosity is piqued by. The idea of Auricular has always been to showcase the unusual or unheard. In the process we have unearthed brilliant pop, grand noise, incredible electronica, and some unclassifiable and indescribable material. There have been several times I've said 'This doesn't fit in with our imprint' - then the release is out or a track is on a compilation and sure enough it fits right in."
Herrick smies. "I'm very happy with what has happened with Auricular. I've met some incredible artists and come in contact with wonderful people over the past 20 years and I wouldn't trade those relationships and experiences for anything. Auricular has constantly evolved over 20 years and I want to keep it evolving. Right now I'm struggling with the direction to take it in from here and repeatedly I see it moving from the audio realm into the multimedia realm. Whether this happens, only time will tell."
What's next through Auricular?
"Auricular will be releasing some new artists, most of whom have appeared on recent Auricular Audio Magazine compilations. There are upcoming CD releases planned by Rhedcerulean, Noisepsalm, Nux Vomica, Andrez Bergen and old label veterans Big City Orchestra - which features Phil Knight of The Legendary Pink Dots. I have a retrospective 10-year audio, video and curio boxed set planned for Minmei Decelis' project, My Boyfriend The Pilot. I've been working with the very talented The Amber Tapes, from the UK, to release a CD with an accompanying book of his visual art that correlates to the audio works.
"Recently we released the first in a series of collaborative recordings between Nux Vomica and Voice of Eye as a dual effort between Conundrum Unlimited and Auricular Records. There will be several more recordings coming out in that series. I have been working furiously to remaster all 12 of the early Auricular Audio Magazines to offer as a CD box set, however this project may be put off until the 25th anniversary and be much more involved to include book, video etcetera."
Any upcoming Alan Herrick productions/collaborations/events we should know about for 2010?
"I am hoping to be able to work with Brent again on a new G:NOME release and I hope to continue collaborations with Math of Noisepsalm. I'm sure we will have some new Nux Vomica material and we are hoping to start working on some soundtrack work to some old silent films very soon - I'm going to be vague so as not to give away too much on that project."
CDs are a disappearing facet of the music industry, and a fair amount of people in electronic/dance music circles are cutting back on vinyl these days because they say it just doesn't make back the money invested.
"I don't think I've ever made back money on any release I have ever done on CD. It's more and more difficult to sell through downloadable distribution and make any money at it. The proliferation of net labels and free distribution of music can certainly keep a music consumer pretty happy - I am a huge audio junkie and can barely keep up with what I can get for free online. I have almost ceased purchasing music and I should be a person who stands up and supports the small labels trying to make a go of it.
"The music industry is in a state of reinvention and all labels, major and small players, are wondering how things will pan out. Not making the money back will certainly curtail or limit what I do with Auricular and my own music projects but, in the meantime, I am not going to stop doing it. I stand behind the audio I find and manufacture and distribute. The Auricular family of artists is a fantastic group of people and I'll always try to find a way to keep working with them and others moving forward regardless of the bleak finances involved."
Is vinyl dead?
"I see it making a comeback these days,even if within a small subsection of humanity. I'd love to be able to say it isn't dead because I truly love vinyl as a medium for audio more than any other out there. I could probably embark upon a lengthy and insane-sounding diatribe on this but will spare you. I do not think vinyl is dead per se, I do think our model for recording mediums and distribution is in great turmoil and almost any medium is close to dead. It is a shame to say the MP3 is our strongest option these days. Technology has finally given people the ability to create pristine multitrack recordings in their own home with next to no cost involved and a very small learning curve yet we distribute these recordings in a format that sounds worse than an ill-tuned FM radio. I am still baffled by this. I am going to keep my room full of vinyl until there's not a stylus left on the planet."
Is digital download really the future of music?
"I'm not sure... I could not have even imagined it as a possibility 20 years ago so I am pretty sure I can't imagine what is to come. It's a good bet the folks who listened to the first wax cylinders could not have even fathomed an 8-track of Foghat being snapped into the car deck. I think we have a long way to go with downloadable music and it is certainly still in its infancy. We will hopefully see leaps and bounds in quality as technology and bandwidth permit. It may not be the future, but it's our immediate present and near future."
Lastly - how does Herrick like his mushrooms cooked?
"Grilled, with shallots and red wine, and a pinch of salt."
Another Slidebar release hot on the heels of the recent Blah Blah Blah remix EP. A killer little various artist EP with a bunch of names that have been MIA for a while and one that's recently been popping up!
Today's Bleep was supplied via recent guest Psychomantix. Tastendrükka being a friend of his. This set is something you don't hear too often. I don't even really know how to describe it. It's definitely harder than I usually go here, but I felt it none-the-less.
It's a live-set that he put together using a bit of kit both hard and software. Here's the grocery bag for those who dig that sort of thing...
Recorded live at E-lectribe, in Kassel, Germany. One of my best gigs in ages, great organisation, great location, great soundsystem, great music and great people! Went and hung out at the Local House/Techno radio station "Minimal City Radio Kassel", whilst Louis Osbourne rocked it out on the decks playing tracky house classics. Did a small interview in German with Michael, the radio host, which was a lot of fun and drank a few beers & some sickly kind of cherry schnapps with some of the other people hanging out there. It was the perfect pre-club hang out!
Two of the three TSR fellows were supposed to play in Germany (for Cynthia Stern's night I believe), but due to Iceland feeling like they need to share their ash-clouds there were of course canceled flights.
The comfort-of-home rehearsal mix that Tomas and Fredi had ready to go was recorded, which was very clever of them. It was even more clever to send it over to me to share.
Thanks guys!
While cruising the Internet, Livesets in particular, I stumbled across a two part Jerome Hill set. It's a recent recording of him down in his second home in South America. I believe I have a friend who is sending up a recording (better quality) of another party as well. Be patient.
Like most weeks this was a matter of grabbing things and seeing what happens. This week feel as if I didn't do Bleep justice though. One or two weakly chosen mixes is enough to irritate me to no end. I may have to do a new Electro mix soon to bring myself up out of my funk.
This week on SFS we have a guest live set Bulgarian expat MANASYt, who is now residing in London.
read on...
One of my favourite German record labels over the past five years has been Kitty Corner, through which Paul Birken, TSR, Luke's Anger and Mark Hawkins have released some scintillating vinyl.
It's run by Axel Sohns who also runs subsidiary label Slidebar Recordings (with way cool artwork by frequent Fun in the Murky commentator Marcin Markowski), and he makes exceptional music himself - making the man prime fodder for one of our completely self-indulgent Q&A sessions.
Tell us all about Kitty Corner and how the label got started - in 2006, right?
"The concept existed a bit longer, but the main problem was getting the financial base - so finally, in the middle of 2006, my label project was ready to be realized. The first question was what to name the label. It was really difficult to find a unique name in the wide range of labels that exist these days, so I started to type in random words in an English dictionary... and after a while I found Kitty Corner. It sounded really amusing, so I asked some friends about their opinion, most of them were really into it, and KCR was born. The next step was to find the right distributor. The first release was planned with another artist, but after some negative replies from distributors I decided to ask Mark Hawkins to do the first release; after that I got in contact with Possible Music Berlin and worked in cooperation with them until the end of 2008. Since the beginning of 2009, KCR and my other label Slidebar are distributed by deejay.de."
How about Slidebar Recordings - what's the difference?
The idea behind Slidebar Recordings was to start a label which is more open minded and a platform for experiences. Another reason was to release more 'various artists' projects, and of course records at a faster pace; I think it doesn't make sense to release every month a new record through KCR. With two labels, it's easy to split projects and plan out in advance."
What inspired you to start making your own music?
"I came to electronic music through a Frankfurt-based radio station called HR3. There was a show every Saturday with well known artists like Sven Väth, Chris Liebing and Pascal F.E.O.S. This was really essential stuff and I listened to my recorded tapes for weeks - because MP3s didn't exist at this time and it was even really difficult to get DJ mixes.
"After a while I started to collect records and that made it possible for me to choose the stuff directly that I wanted to hear. I bought most of my records at Klang-Art in Wiesbaden - but unfortunately it's been closed now for 4 years - and at Overdrive in Mainz. After a while collecting vinyl, I got Proppellerhead's Rebirth from a good friend. Some will laugh. Of course it's a really simple program without much variation, but in the beginning it was a lot of fun. I think this was the point at which I made the decision to produce instead of just mixing."
Where were you born, and what's it famous for?
I was born in Wiesbaden in Hessen, a city near Frankfurt, but I live in a province called Rheingau. It's well known for viniculture and lots of taverns along the river Rhein, and of course the beautiful countryside. I'm not a fan of large cities, so I'm really glad to live there, but I think this is mostly habit."
I noticed you've worked under the name Escope. Any other under groups/aliases?
"Escope was my first pseudonym when I started making music; after a while I changed to my real name. I also had some gigs in Frankfurt with my mate MonoPascal as Symphonic [ctrl] Error. It's always a lot of fun to play back-to-back with him and I can imagine doing this more often."
Running the labels or your own production work: which avenue gives you the most satisfaction?
"Both are a lot of fun and it's always a pleasure to work together with other artists who support my labels. I try to keep everything on a friendship-based level instead of strictly business, because it's not in my interest to work with music like this. Unfortunately, however, producing music is currently ranked beneath my day job because my job eats up a lot of time and it's really difficult to find the right motivation during the week. Mostly I try to be creative on weekends, but I hope better times will come soon."
You've been producing music and interacting within the music industry for quite a long time now. What's most changed in the electronic music related music industry over that period? Or at least in the Frankfurt techno scene?
"What's changed most, and I think this is what everyone would say, is the switch to the digital medium. Of course it's a relief for DJs to rock up to clubs with only a notebook with lots of music uploaded on its hard drive, instead of a heavy crate jammed full of vinyl - with a smaller music collection.
"But a classic DJ for me is someone who mixes real vinyl. Another reason for me to prefer the black gold is to that feeling of holding something in your hand, which has personal worth for me, and of course I like the analog vinyl crackle. And as callous as it sounds, MP3 is worthless so far as I'm concerned and I would never pay for an immaterial digital file to save it on my hard disc. So of course it's bad when good tunes are only listed in digital stores.
"But the worst phenomenon is the creation of the mass of Traktor DJs out there. Every second guy who listens to electronic music has a drive to be involved in the techno scene, so many people just stop listening only to the music; instead they start to produce and mix try to be famous without any of their own ideologies. Sure, it keeps the music alive, but this makes it more difficult for every newcomer to establish oneself in the scene - and a lot of talent disappears in the wide range of hobby-musicians.
"The internet has done a lot to contribute to this. It has never been so easy to get lots of tracks and music software for free. Just start a sharing program and after one hour, here you are: The new star in the sky.
"The party scene has also changed. This is really sad. I remember a time when there was a kind of spirit and parties were something special for the night... Today it's more a selfish thing and the community feeling is totally lost, a reason why I rarely visit parties in my region anymore. Another Important thing is the kind of music which is played here. Everywhere is the same sound - the DJs play mostly a constant line without any highlights in the sets; this is not only boring but also it sounds like they play only two tracks for the whole night."
So what keeps you motivated?
"Sometimes I ask this myself this question, but when I look at the market there are a lot of labels which stopped releasing or changed their styles, so it's also a kind of job for me to keep this genre of music alive; what I like myself, I mean. There can be no talk of making money - I mean the times are over to live only on pressing-up vinyl - but so long as people like and buy the releases and I get positive feedback, I take this as my motivation to go on."
What do you foresee happening with the music we care about in 2010?
"This is a difficult question but I think that the speed with which the music turns up and it will get away from the ass-shaking 'clacker' sound. I noticed that there's new hype in development with the current Advent/Industrialyzer sound. So many hard techno and minimal DJs changed their BPMs to meet somewhere in the middle, and a lot of producers are starting to copy the sound. This reminds me a little bit to the 'Schranz' hype from 2000.
"What I hope, for the future, is that this stereotype thinking in genres throttles itself and all different styles of electronic music will find themselves together. I mean it's totally sad that the UK sounds like dubstep didn't find their way to West Germany, but nobody knows what the future holds in stores."
What gear/software are you making most use of in the studio at the moment?
"Currently I'm learning the ropes of Ableton Live in combination with Native Maschine and the Komplete stuff; I also use some hardware from time to time, especially the DSI Mopho and Nord Modular, but my midi interface is currently broken so my production setup is limited to software use only."
Which part of your studio is the most vital facet?
"I know what I need as a part of my studio - and that's a pack of cigarettes near my keyboard. It's strange because normally I don't smoke during the week, but when I sit in front of my gear I smoke like a chimney. That keeps me motivated."
Which current crop of artists and labels are grabbing your attention, and why so?
"Oh there is a lot of stuff I like, but currently I'm listening a lot of dubstep and little bit breakcore from artists like Ebola, Kid606, etc - and, of course, my classic records themselves, most of them from the middle of the '90s with my all-time favourites by Paul Birken, Cristian Vogel, Audiovoid, Chris Sattinger, DJ ESP, Distorted Waves of Ohm, Unit Moebius, and Crystal Distortion."
If you were pressed into a corner and forced to confess under great duress, how would you define the sounds/styles you're currently making?
"I'd say there's no special sound that I follow. Usually when I start a track I don't have a specific idea of it's supposed to sound or be; it begins mostly by playing around with my synthesizers to explore new tones - which is an important production process in my tracks. Back to the question: When I have to define my sound, it's just techno with experimental influences."
Back to the labels - how do you feel about the course of Kitty Corner four years later? Did you achieve what you set out to do with the imprint, and what direction would you like to take from here?
"Difficult question. Quite honestly I have no idea which direction it'll take, but for sure you have to move on with the times, so it's no secret that the sound will change in the future - but I can say that I will remain faithful to myself. I only release what I like and I don't want follow the current hype or trend to boost the number of sales. I prefer the tunes which pump in the club to freak out to, instead of the click-clack sound... So I'll still keep this angle up for sure."
What's currently afoot with the two labels?
"I don't like to plan too much in advance; doing that only adds stress to hold to deadlines! [laughs].
"At the moment Slidebar 03 is in stores with no one else than Little Nobody as Funk Gadget - it's a remix project with some great artists like Si Begg, Dave Tarrida, Paul Birken and Patrick Pulsinger, who all make the EP really different in style so there are tracks for everyone. Slidebar 04 is also planned as a various artists release - it will be with Lief Ryan, Doshy, Nino Fight & Smees, Jesse Hall and Kid606. It sounds like an amazing compilation! KCR, since the last release, has had a little break - but will be back in the near future with Subhead's Jason Leach."
Any upcoming Axel Sohns productions we should know about for 2010?
"At the moment nothing special is planned, but when I have something that's worth releasing - and I'm satisfied with it - there could possibly be a track or two in the near future. We'll see..."
Lastly - how do you like your mushrooms cooked?
"I like my mushrooms in a white wine cream sauce with garlic and garden herbs, and as a side dish a baguette."
The original never really caught my ear, but two of the remixes on this EP have held my interest. Both the Schatrax and the .xTrak remixes hold their own.
Michael Forshaw has decided to stop pissing around and finally release some more noise. It's everything that that is loved by his fans. It has the grit, grime and grunt of all his previous work, but it also has a more refined --ha ! Forshaw...refined!-- sense of old-school rave that we got a taste of on his Blackpool Rock Ep in 2007. This is a great EP.
I was asked about playing stuff along these lines at something in Toronto in May. To get myself into the spirit of things I piled up a stack of wax and began to play.
After several weeks of impatient waiting a small order arrived while I was sleeping the day away.
The real SFG # 17 is here. Mark has concocted his own version of the Acid Mix for us in this one. You'll notice straight away it's a no holds barred banger.
Marcin has met up with Andrez and they've hatched a plan to release a mitten full of Marcin's tracks. I know I've told Marcin that his stuff is good and finally a wider audience get's to check it out. I suggest keeping an ear open for more in the future too.
When I was five-years-old, I went to the late lamented Gardiner toy shop and bought a toy robot with the money my Nan gave me for my birthday: a made-in-Japan, wind-up tin carouser whose major identifying feature was a big 'W' emblazoned across his chest.
Just occasionally I still wonder what that 'W' really meant. Is it some secret identity or code? 'W' for 'Wind-up'? An honest Jenglish mistake, like Wobot? Nothing earth-shattering at all?
I still have old Dubya. He's like Old Yeller, but never bites. He's rusty, missing his arms, and has been deconstructed several times, but he still works when you tweak the metal key that's stuck above his right foot.
He sits proudly atop the mantle next to my desk, having returned to Japan from Australia nine years ago. We even found his mint-condition, spitting-image double at the Yokohama Tin Toys Museum, which was a bit unsettling for us both.
It's Dubya's fault my childhood infatuation for robots moved on from the Cybermen and Daleks in Doctor Who and the Cylons from the original series of Battlestar Galactica, on into giant robot mecha-action anime - starting with gems like Mazinger Z and Tetsujin 28-go (better known outside Japan as Gigantor).
Some things don't change, like my penchant for things robotic - no real surprise then that the name of my new Little Nobody vinyl EP through IF? is 'Robota'.
However there's another trace element influence here. Nope, it's not related to the project by Star Wars art director Doug Chiang - I only just discovered that today on Google while doing hack research for this piece - nor the freaky 'educational and therapeutic devices' promoted here. It isn't even a wayward misspelled homage to Styx's 1983 classic 'Mr Roboto'.
Instead I nicked the name off Wikipedia.
Yep, you read right. I was checking out the entry on robots and the origin of the word, and deep in there I discovered this pearler: "The word robota means literally work, labor or serf labor, and figuratively 'drudgery' or 'hard work' in Czech and many Slavic languages. Traditionally the robota was the work period a serf had to give for his lord, typically 6 months of the year."
Being a lazy git myself with an eye forever on the couch, I decided to call the track 'Robota'. Nothing deeper than that, I'm afraid - though we can always pretend otherwise and toot some people's horns.
For this baby I originally shanghaied into the arrangement Japanese producer Toshiyuki Yasuda - one of Si Begg's favorite musicians who'd just finished working at the time with Señor Coconut, a.k.a Atom Heart - to do his bloody brilliant robot-style vocoder vocals as Robo*Brazileira.
"Robo*Brazileira is my singing alias, a fictitious Brazilian robot," Yasuda patiently explained to the unenlightened (in this case myself) at the time. "For me, the robot is one view-point with which to see ourselves as humans. To see us more cautiously, I think I must have external eyes."
With an attitude and moniker like that I had no real choice but to get the laddie involved.
Then to do their own wind-up remixes of the original combo we first lassooed in the insanely respected Mr. Steve Stoll - a man who's released motorized techno over the years on labels like Proper NYC, NovaMute, Djax-Up-Beats and Harthouse.
I was a huge fan in the '90s and first interviewed him just over a decade ago (along with a more recent chat for FITM here); fact is that the guy continues to steer my personal techno inclinations pretty darned effectively and I love his drums - both real and programmed.
We also got on board the irrepressible Dave Tarrida, whose output through his old label Sativae and since then through Tresor, Musick, Neue Heimat, Dancefloor Killers and Feinwerk has been my repeated refill cuppa tea for years; his recent stuff continues to kick my butt about, and he nicely hit me up with some canny comments last year for the FITM piece on digital downloading.
Rounding out the remixing troupe is Germany's Cem Oral (a.k.a Jammin' Unit/Ultrahigh/4E), a man we also previously featured in Fun in the Murky - here - and the erstwhile genius behind Cube 40's 'Bad Computa' and Air Liquide's 'Robot Wars'.
How on earth (or indeed off it) couldn't I include him here?
Finally, I indulged in a wee bit of the tyranny-of-distance e-mail mud wrestling thing, this time between Tokyo and Sydney, as me and fellow Aussie Simon Nielsen (DJ Hi-Shock of Elektrax notoriety) did the final mix.
There's a ripe possibility we'd together like to intimate that this record is machine-based disco-funk-tech for the next decade - the promo propaganda sheet says precisely that - then suggest you should hop online and order the wax now, since it's available from today (surprise, surprise)... but the fact remains that none of these musos, who are also mates of mine, would be so pretentiously narcissistic. They're cool individuals with a great sense of humour and a definite interest in music for music's sake.
So instead, for shameless promotional reasons of a more ulterior bent, I gathered together all the boys involved in the vinyl remixes and bounced around some silly robot-related queries. Far from earth-shattering, completely self-indulgent and occasionally obscure, this reads as follows:
What do you really think of robots and robot culture?
"I think we Americans need to embrace our robot brothers and welcome them into this country," Steve Stoll espouses. "I never get mad when I see a hard-working robot having success; I mean isn't that supposed to be the American Dream?"
"I think I have a old fashioned view about robots," says Cem Oral. "The friend of man, the enemy from outer space and such is more my cup of tea than robots doing the industrial jobs of man. Robot culture? Tell me more about it."
"Robot culture may include our wishes or desires rather than real future," muses Toshiyuki Yasuda. "So it's good to be fantastic and dreamy even if they have useless functions like singing."
When Dave Tarrida thinks robots, he thinks Japan. "I love Japanese culture in general, with all the gadgets, technology, etc, and robots have always gone hand-in-hand with this," he says. "There's nothing better than heading into their toy stores and checking out the robots and anime figures!"
In a war of robots, which one would win?
Stoll: "The shiny ones with big meaty claws."
Oral: "If you mean man against machine, I think man because there still hasn't been a robot created instilled with the will to live and energy through belief. But who knows..."
Tarrida: "My money is on the robots."
Yasuda: "No war please."
Why do boys often obsess about robots?
"Because they do what you want and they are strong. Definitely a power thing," Oral says.
"I am actually obsessed with analog synths, so perhaps it's a similar obsession to want to control/program things - but mostly I think it's because boys have too much free time," muses Stoll.
"Robots have various aspects that boys love: They could be vehicles, arms, servants, friends..." Yasuda ponders.
"We all love the futuristic escape from reality - but the make believe is slowly becoming the reality," adds Tarrida.
What's your favorite robot (character or toy)?
"Armitage the Third, the sexy robot that could bear children," suggests Stoll.
"The one from the original 1951 version of The Day the Earth Stood Still. A 'good' against 'evil' one. I was eight years old when I saw that movie and I got very, very inspired!" (Oral)
"Mazinger Z, from my youth. It was the first real robot animation I ever saw." (Tarrida)
"Of course my fictitious Brazilian singing robot Robo*Brazileira."
What's your favorite law of robotics as suggested by Isaac Asimov :
1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey any orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.
Stoll: "I think most robots are against Asimov's 'Laws' as they take all the fun out of being born robot."
Tarrida: "I'm down with all three."
Oral: "Law number 4: A robot must switch off by ORAL command."
Yasuda: "There must be a loophole in there, whether I like it or not."
Do robots actually need laws?
"Don't think so. They're limited by their programming." (Oral)
"Maybe not. Limitation instead of laws would be enough, but the idea itself that laws are needed is interesting." (Yasuda)
"We all need law, right?" (Tarrida)
"I've always thought robots should be free to run ape-shit through the streets, with big flaming red LED eyes and flailing metallic fists; I mean that's what they do in the wild, so who are we to put restrictions on them?" (Stoll)
What's your preferred robot-related movie?
"Maybe Metropolis, the original robot movie." (Tarrida)
"I haven't watched too much robot porn, but the few I have seen are pretty good." (Stoll)
"2001: A Space Odyssey. 'Daisy' was sung by a robot!" (Yasuda)
In the original Astro Boy (鉄腕アトム ) our hero shoots a cannon concealed in his buttocks and in Mazinger Z, Aphrodite A (アフロダイ) fires missiles from where her breasts should be. Which part of the human anatomy do you think makes the best weapon for a robot?
"I personally have always liked butt cannons, but only as a secondary weapon to the trusty titty pistol." (Stoll)
"Haha, well you mentioned some parts. I would add the rectal flame thrower." (Oral)
"I'm still a fan of the fist. You just cant beat an old fashioned punch." (Tarrida)
"Eyes!?" (Yasuda)
Is it possible for a robot to have a sense of 'music'?
"Of course - as robots become more human like, they must take on what humans feel." (Tarrida)
"Sure." (Stoll)
"Maybe. Humans have definitely a sense of robot in the music." (Oral)
"Yes! It may be an additional function but it often occurs that kind of useless things turn out to be very popular features." (Yasuda)
Why are robots necessary?
"To do human work. That was the idea of automation." (Tarrida)
"They wouldn't be necessary in a world where people got up off their lazy asses. I hate lazy people with their robot butlers and fancy sexbots. By the way, I only like sequencers with knobs and I also hate midi and fuck Protools. I also hate when people download tracks illegally, and then blame their robot for doing it when they get caught." (Stoll)
"I think they're definitely not necessary. In my opinion they belong to the Industrial Revolution and therefore lead nowhere but self destruction for mankind. But on the other side we're lazy and love our little helpers and seem to be willing to pay the price - it's a Faust thing." (Oral)
"Not necessary." (Yasuda)
What kind of robot/automated helper is essential in your life, and why so?
"The cruise control in my car on long road trips." (Stoll)
"Hmm, the only servo motors I can think of are in the hideaway lights of my 1968 Cougar..." (Oral)
"My Mac." (Tarrida)
"Not essential." (Yasuda)
Describe your remix of 'Robota' in 21 words or less.
"Automated dance music for humans, and robots if they like." (Tarrida)
"Rrrraaaaaawwwwwwwkkkkkkkk. That's robot-speak for 'techno'." (Stoll)
"A more mechanical-sounding perspective of the iron made friend. Inflexible but funky!" (Oral)
What angle did you choose to take in the remix you did, and how do the Robo*Brazileira vocals sit with that interpretation?
"I just thought 'If I were a robot, how would I sequence this?', and it seemed to work." (Stoll)
"I cut out the words robotica and dance; why cant robots dance too?" (Tarrida)
"Hmmm." (Oral)
What do you think of the record's artwork by Marcin Markowski - and is this your style when it comes to robots or are you more serious-minded?
"The artwork is catchy!" (Yasuda)
"I like robots that look like they want to rip off your arms and smack you around; Markowski kicks ass!" (Stoll)
"I think they are half of the concept and I really like them. Serious-minded is something that should be avoided like a disease." (Oral)
"I love it, the green really stands out, it's a really striking image." (Tarrida)
What do you think of the over all record musically?
"It's a great mix of versions, important for a remix package." (Tarrida)
Is vinyl a bit old fashioned for a release that's focused itself around a sense of the 'future' - or can robot iconography and ideology be suitably retro as well?
"Robots make records, so I think it works fine." (Tarrida)
"Edison cylinders are old fashioned and hard to beat-match with. Vinyl is still viable and now unprofitable." (Stoll)
"The vinyl sound fits that kind of music very much, I think!" (Yasuda)
Why are records important these days, anyway?
"For their bigness!" (Yasuda)
"Sorry, they're not. Vinyl isn't handy, it's heavy, gets scratches, eats up your space at home, costs a fortune, needs oil... BUT IT SOUNDS BETTER THAN ANYTHING WE GOT YET." (Oral)
"It's good to lift heavy stacks of vinyl to stay in shape, but remember to bend at the knees. I recall changing apartments in New York and the movers saying 'What the f**k do you have in these boxes?!'." (Stoll)
"There's room for both vinyl and digital in this world." (Tarrida)
Would robots prefer to play wax or digital?
"Of course robots have access to both the Internet and a built-in player!" Oral laughs. "To please his master he's able to DJ with several decks simultaneously."
"The record would be nice for the contrast, " hankers Yasuda, while Tarrida is more the realist here: "Pre-2005 robots would play vinyl, and post 2005 would play with Serato..."
And Stoll is right on the money.
"All serious robots listen only to Morton Subotnick - Google him, kids - on vinyl," he says.
"I should also point out that they only use audiophile turntables that're synchronized to the earth's exact rotational force. By the way, robots are seriously offended by Kraftwerk's portrayal of them and have openly vowed to destroy Florian; that's why he left the band." (Stoll).
For what it's worth, 'Robota' is out now via Prime Direct in the UK.
Another March. No highlights this month. Another tough month in terms of finding good stuff to pass on to you all. It seems like it may be picking up a little bit though. Which is good.I yearn for new vinyl.
