Articles
The eyes of the world have turned to the UK in recent years and have found some of the most exciting, genre-defying young artists to emerge from electronic music.
You can’t talk about electronic music without mentioning Detroit. That’s why in the second edition of Real Scenes, RA and Bench went to the city which birthed the genre we now call techno.
One of the most PROLIFIC PRODUCERS alive today, Mr. Duncan’s work in disco superduo RUB N TUG and DFA house revivalists STILL GOING would be enough for a lifetime, but add on the mysterious Japanese C.O.M.B.I. edits project and the Dr. Dunks cuts on aNYthing, and you’ve got a portfolio of the gods. Expect a HOT AND SLEAZY mix of DISCO, HOUSE, and SOUL with a FAST AND LOOSE style of DJing that relies as much on ready supplies of JACK DANIELS as it does on technical ability.
BUILDING YOUR OWN SOUND MACHINES
Do you like music? Do you appreciate toys? Have you always been fascinated by music machines? Well, if you answered yes to these questions then building your own synthesizers and audio effects devices may just be for you. Sure, it’s daunting at first, but with a little practice and self teaching, a newsgroup or two, and a good portion of Youtube research you will be off and going in not time at all and making sounds along the way. This is the world of “DIY” also known as Do It Yourself. More specifically, this is the world of Synth DIY, also known unofficially as a group of nerds for the most part singing or fingertips on soldering irons and straining our eyes looking at tiny parts and sometimes nearly invisible circuit board traces. But you may ask yourself, “Why build when you can buy?”.
INDONESIA’A EBBY (MELTINGPOD) IS EAST END’S FEATURED ARTIST FOR JULY
Commercial foray on one side, personal idealism on the other and nothing in between, right? Not for Ebby a.k.a Fabian Nusi
MIX OF THE DAY: KAORI aka Lady Something Different
For Japan’s Kaori Ozaki, AKA Lady Something Different, music has always been a major driving force in her life. A veteran of over 15 years, Kaori’s inception into clubland could be traced back to the music she grew up with.
Live recording of COMMONPEOPLE #1 @ 365 ECOBAR feat. Fritz Yonda - Raymond Mario - Ebby - Oki Koro
DON’T PANIC! @ 365 ECOBAR - Saturday, 11.06.2011
The VIDEO by Audible Visual Amplitude
Sad day for dance music: RIP kenny Hawkes, Darryl Pandy & David “Shizuo” Hammer
Nothing feels worse than waking up on a Saturday morning, checking your Twitter feed, and finding out that the dance-music community has lost yet another member. Or, in today’s case, by awful coincidence, three: the British house DJ/producer Kenny Hawkes, Chicago house vocalist Darryl Pandy, and David Hammer, aka DHR’sShizuo, who were all separately reported to have passed away. The news followed just days after obituaries for Martin Rushent, an engineer and producer known for his work with The Stranglers, Buzzcocks, and The Human League.
MIX OF THE DAY: FRITZ YONDA - June 2011
MIX OF THE DAY: “Jack In” on Essence Of Sound Radio by Levi Lyman
Stompy Exclusive Interview: 15 Questions with Frankie J
MIX OF THE DAY: HELLO MAY BY DANISH W.
You probably stumbled across this site wondering if Beatport.com sucks (or you already think it does). And if you are a lover of Beatport (and similar sites) you may not know that these sites have some huge complaints from the dance music community. Beatport itself has other complaints about it’s ugly hard-to-use interface. Critics have come down hard Beatport’s lack of usability standards being that it is completely built in Flash.
OKI KORO AS EASTENDMUSIC’S FEATURED ARTIST OF THE MONTH (APRIL 2011)
MIX OF THE DAY: EBBY (MELTING POD)
FRANKIE KNUCKLES INTERVIEW FOR CHICAGO’S 5 MAGAZINE
A video interview of Frankie Knuckles for Chicago’s 5 Magazine.
Check out these recent releases from our boy Raymond Mario.
DIGITALSIX RADIO SHOW ON HOMSES.NET
DIMITRI FROM PARIS GETS DOWN WITH THE PHILLY SOUND.
The French DJ has curated yet another compilation for BBE, this time focusing on vintage Philly disco. Dimitri From Paris will release his fifth compilation for BBE in May, entitled Get Down With The Philly Sound.
MIX OF THE DAY: KENNY DOPE SOUL TRIPPIN’
“Don’t send me electrohouse & minimal shit!!!))) This kind of stuff is dead now and was always ass stuff! And please don’t share with me your dj set’s or i will stop follow you. Only 320kbp mp3 or better wav or aiff. If i can’t download then don’t wait for my feedback. You think i have time check 1000 tracks each day?”
Should be pretty clear to you by now that I love Ultra Nate. She’s certainly on anyone’s shortlist of great House Music divas. She’s been through the mainstream wringer and the underground too.
BLACKCOFFEE SA’S MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Nathi Maphumulo, better known by those in the know as Blackcoffee, was named Male Artist of the Year in last weekend’s South African Music Awards for his stunning 12 track album Home Brewed.
ULTRA CHIC: ULTRA NATE RELOADED
Any reporter could interview Ultra Naté every week - or every day - and walk away with a great story. The legendary dance music diva doesn’t just have the personal charm and irresistible magnetism of aHollywood star, but the wisdom of nearly two decades of experience in the mess that we call “the music business” to fall back on.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: DJ STACY KIDD.
Stacy Kidd is a “House” hold name, but he is not done reinventing himself yet. Welcome the Soul Element!
J-BOOGIE X SANDISK PRESENTS.. WAKE UP YOUR PHONE
Another epic musical adventure from the renowned J-Boogie. Heavily saturated with past, present, and future sounds of soul, he takes you on a journey into hip-hop with a bird’s eye view. J-Boogie’s natural navigational skills through the universal language of music are un-paralleled.
NEON HITCH USED DEADMAU5 TRACK WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION IN “I CAN’T BEHAVE MYSELF” SONG
Neon Hitch released a song called “I Can’t Behave Myself” that featured an instrumental track called “Seeya Next Tuesday” by a popular electronic artist Deadmau5.
A MESSAGE TO DJS AND PRODUCERS WHO HAVE BEEN IN THIS GAME A LITTLE TOO LONG
You know that awkward kid who greets you with indefatigable enthusiasm and hopes for even a nod of recognition? The one who knows your achievements, who can recite every song in your discography, who sweats you a little too much? He treats you like a God and you can only shake your head in dismissal at what a lame he is. Well that kid is our future. And he’s going to kick your ass one day and leave you in the dust.
MIX OF THE DAY: PURPLE MUSIC PODCAST WITH ALFRED AZZETTO
Jamie Lewis and Manuela don’t just have good music on catalog, but are releasing some of the dopest cuts at a pace that approaches a frenzy. By time time I get one review for a hot track in print, a second is already climbing the charts. It’s sort of humbling when your ears can’t keep up with a label’s quality releases.
VINYLRECORDER T560: CUT YOUR OWN VINYL RECORDS
Fritz and Ulrich Sourisseau are self-proclaimed vinyl-cutting aficionados, based in southern Germany. Their latest venture is the development of a contraption that fits on to a Technics 1200 or 1210 MkII (as ‘industry standard’ as things get in DJing circles), and enables the user to cut their own vinyl discs.
HOW TWITTER TRACKLIST APP WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING
Richie Hawtin’s Twitter app announcement this morning hasn’t had much time to properly sunk in yet, but already I’ve been having some major thoughts about how the broadcasting of DJ tracklists in real time will change everything.
SOUTH AFRICAN TAXIS DRIVE SALES IN DANCE MUSIC
For discerning clubbers around the world the hottest sound in dance music right now is coming not from New York or London, but from the townships of Pretoria, South Africa. DJ Mujava’s “Township Funk” became the surprise global club anthem of last year, an instant favorite on dance floors everywhere, with its ear-popping mix of incessant, driving snare drums and retro electronic noises.
KERRI CHANDLER PLANS 3D HOLOGRAMS FOR DJ SETS
US deep house hero Kerri Chandler has always been the experimental type, and Southport Weekender in Britain has always been there with open arms welcoming his creativity to the DJ booth.At the 2006 event, Chandler played the keys to ‘Bar A Thym’ and some of his other hits using a laser string (see the video after the jump). Last year he went one better and shocked the crowd by mixing flawlessly using only three consecutive reel-to-reels.
Record stores are slowly dying off, but one marketplace is healthier than ever. RA’s Richard Carnes takes a look at how Discogs has changed the face of record buying.
INDUSTRY FOOTBULLET OF THE DAY: INTERNET RADIO
Last week, this handy infographic began to make the rounds. It purported to show how many copies of music in varying formats an artist would need to sell to make the equivalent of the USA’s minimum wage. Many artists and labels made a public display of sweaty hand-wringing in response to these giant pink blobs.
A SHORT INTERVIEW WITH FRED EVERYTHING BY AL VELILLA
A few weeks ago we had the oportunity to interview Fred Everything at the Om Studios about life,the Universe,San Francisco and his upcoming project in Om Records.
+ CHUCK LOVE: THE 5 MAGAZINE INTERVIEW
Chuck Love (website, facebook, ilike, myspace, twitter, discogs) is literally a one man band. From playing the flute to the drums and from the bass to vocals, he does it all in his live show while mixing songs. He also incorporates self-produced videos - and even adds his pet parrots to the mix.
Boxes. Mankind loves them. Territorial borders, city blocks, ring roads, skyscrapers, shopping malls, libraries, houses, sidewalks, restaurant patios, books, paragraphs, sentences, and these very words. Boxed.
STEVE ANGELLO HUMILIATES PARIS HILTON, DJS WORLDWIDE REJOICE
The princess of bottle service culture herself, Ms. famous-for-no-particular-reason, Paris Hilton, was publicly humiliated by Swedish House Mafia man Steve Angello in move that will leave DJs around the world cheering his name till the end of time. The LA-based diva turned up at the 1OAK party at Angello’s showcase at WMC on Thursday night/Friday morning, and found his music “was not even danceable and was frankly giving me a migraine.”
HE FANCY THINGS FAMOUS DJS GET
“Ooooh!” said Josh Wink yesterday at the Beatport Pool Party, “Look at my fancy headphones with my name all engraved on them. Aren’t they pretty?”
DIGI LABELS (IT’S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE!)
A few pointers, please feel free to add as I think we should get an IDIOTS GUIDE TO RUNNING A DIGI LABEL started as it seems a few people need one!
WMC INTERVIEW: THE MARTINEZ BROTHERS
At 17 and 20 years-old respectively, Chris and Steve Martinez are one of the most talked about duos in dance music circles. Even the New York Times got in on the action and proclaimed The Martinez Brothers as the saviours of New York’s house scene. US deep house god Dennis Ferrer has taken them under his Objektivity wing and given them a series of releases on his high profile label. It’s about high time we caught up with The Martinez Brothers to find out if the hype is well deserved so I met the brothers a few minutes ago for a quick interview in Miami.
For a minute, let’s put down our turntables and forget about music.
FATBOY SLIM CHECKS OUT OF REHAB
After a month in a UK rehabilitation facility, Fatboy Slim – aka Norman Cook – has checked out and returned to his home in Essex.
Denon DJ, a leading manufacturer of reliable, premium-grade DJ equipment, announces that it has completely revamped its website, www.denondj.com, launching a brand new interactive platform that offers professional and aspiring DJs a unique and informative online environment for learning about their craft, exploring the company’s cutting-edge products and more.
SCRATCH LIVE VERSION 1.9.0 FINAL: AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD
Here is the latest press release from Rane/Serato about the final 1.9.0 release of scratch live, tons of new features and a little feeling that this is almost done, we just hope they’ll keep adding up features.
By stitching music together in a narrative, and using it as a tool to work his dancers, rather than just playing a night of unrelated records, Francis Grasso founded the craft of modern DJing. He taught the first generation of New York’s disco DJs, he dated Playboy bunnies and he spent more than his rent on drugs. After a youth spent at full throttle he retired to a reclusive existence, and died in March 2001 a few days short of his 53rd birthday.
My first Mecca when I started DJing and collecting music was Trackmasters in Romford; a great place, run by an awesome guy with a solid knowledge of dance music; it was purely the digital revolution that killed them off. All across the UK, independent music stores are closing at an alarming rate, as the buying habits of the general public have changed remarkably, and the shift from CD to digital is now obvious for all to see.
GET THEM OFF YOUR DOG - PEOPLE AS FLEAS
Perwanal Saatchi & Saatch i in Jakarta, Indonesia, has taken interactivity and creepy-crawliness to a new, flat level with the creation of this massive “floor sticker” in an Jakarta shopping center .
PARAMOUNT BAR BY TOM DIXON (LONDON)
Renowned English interior designer Tom Dixon is behind Paramount, London’s hottest new venue located on top of city landmark Center Point tower. The bar’s aesthetic is a blend 60s retro and futurism, articulated through the use of hard-edged materials like concrete and stone to create a kind of space-ship meets super-club. The star of course, is the spectacular view, which is only enhanced by Dixon’s clean, modern interior.
LUCIEN FOORT – THE SHAME [STEREO SUSHI]
After 14 uber cool album releases, and many years of playing the world’s finest crowds in some of the most exclusive clubs it’s time for Stereo Sushi to step into the singles market. This label is all about bringing fine House music to the world and the first release comes from the Dutch DJ and producer Lucien Foort. The track is entitled The Shame and there is nothing a Shame about this track. The nice guys at Stereo Sushi have supplied you with 6 mixes on this track, Warren Clarke, Baggi Begovic, Funky Soldiers and of course the Original are all featured.
Is the music industry in serious decline or is it booming? Well… both.
THE HELVETICA MOLESKINE & THE ROLAND SH-09
I’ve got a little something this week for both typography enthusiasts (because I know there are so many of you out there) as well as fans of vintage synthesizers. Strange bedfellows to be sure, but I figure both groups of people are equally obsessive… so maybe there is some overlap after all. To be fair, a cool notebook is useful to all humans interested in writing things down, so the appeal widens a bit with that one.
7 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF GETTING A MUSIC JOB
CATES & DPL - NEW RELEASE ‘THROUGH THE WEEKEND’
The debut from Om’s new dynamic duo – a journey through all things electronica – full of driving rhythms, lush atmospherics, and stunning synths! When two talented forces come together unifying their knowledge of everything music – something special happens; enter Cates&dpL. With backgrounds in the industry as both musicians and as tour management, Jon Cates and David Lind have grown and developed together to push the envelope with their unique sound.
When it comes to blends and mash ups, DJ Zeph reigns supreme. From the infamous duo Zeph & Azeem as well as being the production house of the critically acclaimed L*Roneous ‘Dreamweavers’ album, Zeph has been staying busy rocking shows on Technics around the bay area and beyond.
HEY GUESS WHAT!!! We spent the entire day at work searching the words “made guitar” and “built guitar”!
Iconic retro brands possess strong currency right now. The latest hails not from the annals of fashion or apparel but from the world of toys - we’re talking about LEGO, the multi-colored building bricks that we all grew up with.
J-BOOGIE & BEATSAUCE ON BROOKLYN RADIO | REVOLUTION OUT NOW!
Since 1993, Beatsauce radio has been holding down the airwaves of the SFC with resident djs J-Boogie, Wisdom and Raw B every Sunday evening. Known for their innovative shows showcasing the who’s who in hip hop, ticket giveaways and a long list of guest appearances including the likes of Common, Gangstarr, KRS-ONE, J5 and many more.
GOOGLE PHONE - WORLD’S FIRST ANDROID PHONE
Drum roll please…..introducing the G1, the new Google phone - one of the most hotly anticipated gadgets to hit our techno-hungry world in the last few years. The world’s first Android phone, the G1 has been developed so users can have the Google ‘instant’ search experience on their phones.
Kero One is my homie! He makes beats, writes raps and likes dope kicks. Continuing with the Mushroom Jazz 6 head space, Kero is the man behind track 4, Groovin,’ which is one of my personal favorites.
DJ SNEAK LIVES THE TRUE-SCHOOL HOUSE LIFE.
“I have this campaign going right now, with T-shirts and things that say i’m a house gangster,” DJ Sneak says over a shaky phone connection from Amsterdam, where he’s in the midst of a tour to promote a new release…
In the digital age of music, Turntablism has long remained a bastion of the analogue, a smoky backroom where arguments over white labels, pick-ups and the merits of the ‘S’-shaped tone arm are the order of the day. Only recently has the turntable been dragged into the digital spectrum, beginning with the CD models ten years ago and being followed now by the emergence of hard-drive based decks.
The Rub’s own Ayres, Cosmo Baker and DJ Eleven have selected 2 hours of their favorite songs of ‘08, combining them in a nice dj mix that i think everyone will enjoy.
Our team found it over the internet and we think that its quite cool stuff to show it off to others. We’ll try to keep it update every week.
A hybrid of social networking sites and blogging, Twitter has exploded in popularity over the last few months, and now it seems that everyone is twittering on about something or other.
FLUENTIAL RE-FLEXES IT’S MUSICAL MUSCLES
Fluential is back after a 3 year hiatus. It’s been hanging in the shadows patiently (some would say in re-hab) waiting to bounce back and mess up a few dance floors once again.
DON’T PANIC! - OFFICIAL TRAILER
Yes, it’s final words has been spread out. The official trailer for the 1st Jakarta’s Most underground Jackin House music party is released!!
TSUBA LAUNCHES VINYL ONLY OFFSHOOT
The London based house label Tsuba, known for output from artists such as Peace Division and David K kick off a special new sub-label, Tsuba Colours. Each release will be shrink-wrapped, feature artist-chosen coloured sleeves/vinyl and artwork and will feature material from artists known mainly for vinyl-based exploits, in a celebration of the precious format.
NOISE REDUCTION (THEORY + PRACTICE)
OK, a real quickie here for you guys. I was checking my email this morning, and came across what I thought was just another spammy update from Sony for Soundforge users. And while it kind of was that, it also happened to contain this very useful little article on Soundforge 9’s newer noise reduction features.
Pet Shop Boys have announced that their new album, ‘Yes’, will drop on March 23.
INTERNATIONAL MUSIC SUMMIT MARKS 1ST ANNIVERSARY
The INTERNATIONAL MUSIC SUMMIT returns to Ibiza on May 27-29 2009, after an incredible response to it s inaugural event. The IMS has been created by six leading professionals to help re-set the agenda for electronic music culture, at a time when the industry needs it most.
Soon-to-close London venue The End is already anticipating issues that may arise on its last ever party, taking place on January 24. The club has issued advise to punters hoping to get in on the door on the big night.
Motown Records is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
RAASHAN AHMAD FEAT. GIFT OF GAB ‘STICK EM’
I was digging through my itunes library yesterday and came across this little mixtape gem from Raashan Ahmad’s ‘Bootlegs, B-Sides and Rarities’.
ROGER SANCHEZ RELEASED RENAISSANCE 3D!
In a day and age where mix compilations are a dime a dozen, Renaissance decided that something needed to be done to set them apart - welcome the 3D concept. The idea is simple….get an established and respected dj/producer to mix three discs: Club, Studio and Home, each depicting a different side of the artists’ musical repertoire. Following up the highly acclaimed releases by Satoshi Tomiie , Faithless and Tom Middleton, the legendary Roger Sanchez steps up to the plate giving us a rare insight across the spectrum of his musical life. Whether it’s hosting and playing legendary 7/8 hour sets at his ‘Release Yourself’ parties in Pacha, Ibiza and around the world; compiling and mixing an annual compilation of the same name, or producing as himself or the S-Man, there’s no question Roger Sanchez is one of house music’s most revered ambassadors.
VERY RARE QUICKFIRE INTERVIEW WITH DERRICK CARTER
Ok as you will probably know Derrick Carter rarely does interviews as his busy life dosent give him much time. So in preperation for the forthcoming Baker Street Label parties I managed to speak to the man himself and set him a challenge….
House Master No.3 comes in the guise of Dennis Ferrer, an artist known first and foremost as the New York producer and remixer with the Midas touch. He burst into the house scene with his seminal 2003 hit ‘Sandcastles’ a collaboration that he did with Jerome Sydeham that set his standard.
This sound of the bar scene is perfectly captured in bargrooves due to its unique selections. This is the fourth release in this new series specially designed for the long winter months. bargrooves ‘Over Ice’ brings you a smooth taster of the deeper more down tempo sound of the bargrooves label as well as uplifting vocal and deeper mixes. This is a perfect selection to chill out, get ready for a party or play anytime on your ipod.
After many years of delivering music to the masses in high quality mp3 format, House music’s #1 download source has just stepped up its game yet again!
ERIC MORILLO, BUSTED….REALLY!?!?
So another one bites the dust…..or sniffs the dust and totally gets busted with possession of the dust at the airport so they say.
What a load of freaking bollocks..
On 31st January, ATFC will be joining the elite ranks of DJ’s who have showcased thier skills on the No.1 dance music radio show worldwide, Radio 1’s The Essential Mix.
Kraftwerk co-founder Florian Schneider has left the legendary electronic band, after speculation which first emerged last year.
After weeks of this and that, the last four finalist of Heineken THIRST will be kicking each others ass for the ultimate title at X2 Club on January 9th.
DEFECTED RECORDS 10TH BIRTHDAY
Defected is 10 years old on Jan 24th. It is widely known as the label that brought many of clubland’s best remembered underground classics with unforgettable tracks such as; Cleptomainiacs ‘All I do’, Soulsearcher’s ‘I Can’t Get Enough’, Ferrer and Sydenham ‘Sandcastles’, Fish Go Deep ‘The Cure and the Cause’ and KOT ‘Finally’.
TOM MIDDLETON TO RELEASE ‘REMEMBER TO LOVE’
Tom Middleton steps up once more to release his homage to the past 20 years of house with his new single ‘Remember the Love’ featuring remixes from Soul Avengerz and The Presidential Sounds.
SOUTH CENTRAL REMAKE JOSH WINK CLASSIC
South Central marks the North American release of its debut CD The Owl Of Minerva with a little treat dance music fans across the world will wanna have! Yes, it’s Josh Wink’s timeless 1995 smash “Higher State of Consciousness” beaten to a dizzying pulp by South Central. The best part? The track is FREE for you to download and share with your friends. Be sure to check out the brand new video below for the complete experience.
DJ Sneak will be delving into his crates as the next in line for the Back In The Box album series.
JOSH WINK ANNOUNCES NEW LP ‘WHEN A BANANA WAS JUST A BANANA’
Philadelphia-based DJ and producer Josh Wink today announced details of his fourth studio album titled ‘When A Banana Was Just A Banana’.
