DJ Die Young Remix Featured on Vice Blog

Just a quick post to let everyone know that DJ Die Young's remix of Zambri has been posted up on Vice's blog! Much congrats to Jamie, who has always been a solid remixer in the Basstown crew. His Teletextile remix was featured on XLR8R a bit ago, and his Frightened Rabbit remix went far within and beyond the Boston perimeter. Get a better feel for him over at his MySpace page.

Zambri - "Bang For Changes (DJ Die Young Mix)"

Eslewhere: the ReSolute 1+1 Anniversary

never go home.

This weekend marked the two year anniversary of NYC's ReSolute collective, who blew us away in March when they featured DJ Hell and Anja Schneider (among others) at a converted warehouse in Bushwick. Since then, there have been a handful of parties in that same location, and it was not only the home of their 2nd anniversary celebration but a special screening of Speaking In Code. Director Amy Grill was present, and it being my third time seeing the film, I have to say that it never gets old. Now living in Brooklyn, there are many scenes (sQuare loft, Thunderdome and various city shots) that make my heart leap with nostalgia for the community that still thrives at Make It New and related parties. It unabashedly exposes the very raw, human sides of Philip Sherburne and Gabor of the Wighnomy Brothers, which makes many feel incredibly honored to be able to view and understand the personal sides of these influential people.

But the music...the music!! San Francisco's Alland Byallo played a live set that completely rocked the house, and he was completely locked in to his controls. The hero of the night - or morning, rather - would be Alexi Delano, who played from 6am to 10:30 in the morning. There's little to say other than the set being absolute perfection, going hard and fairly fast for the entire morning. In many of these cases, people begin to filter out after 8 or 9 in the morning, but it's safe to say that there were just as many people there at 10am as there were at 7am. The crowd was really happy, and as far as I could see there were no fights or disturbances. Imagine being in one big, concrete room for 12 straight hours and being annoyed by absolutely no one...the bar never running out...the bathrooms never getting scary or gross.


Alexi Delano

ReSolute continue to conjure themed parties that really explore unturned stones in promoting events. Many of its regulars put their trust in Nektarios, Nikola and their partners to create not just an incredible line-up but an entire atmosphere that is safe, fun and mind-blowing.

Incyde Kicks Off Hot Flush Podcast Series

I'm not quite sure how old this is (though it is from 2009), but our friend Incyde kicked off the hot flush podcasts with his own mix. He not only runs the label with Scuba, but you can also catch him as a resident of DubWar (NYC) and often putting together and/or playing at Bassic in Boston. He also has a pirate radio show on Sub.FM and writes for Big Up magazine.

I guess you could say he's a busy guy...

Audible: Incyde - HotFlush Podcast 01

MySpace: Incyde

Dan Alcala Remixes Röyksopp

Dan Alcala has been a busy man. The Boston native is still stationed in New York, and has been working on mixes and remixes for the past several months. He received a lot of feedback for his track "Why So Serious?" which infused parts of The Dark Knight and techno. It was a smash at Make It New when he headlined last summer. Dan recently made a mix with his DJ crew, Rich Unkle Skeleton, which you can grab here. He's also made some strange YouTube videos. You can find just about everything on his MySpace page, but be sure to check out his latest - a remix of Röyksopp's "Tricky Tricky," which once again features Karin Dreijer Andersson (Fever Ray, The Knife) on vocals.


Audible: Röyksopp - "Tricky Tricky (Dan Alcala Remix)"
MySpace: Dan Alcala

Website: Dan Alcala

How Was Your Summer?

Make It New had an excellent summer and Basstown returns in October. This time, the party that brought you The Field, Gui Boratto, Lauren Flax, Diplo and others will take place at the Good Life in downtown Boston, providing two floors of complete chaos. Facebook event details can be found here.

In the meantime, Nate (formerly Etan but now Shuttle) has been touring the world with Passion Pit, including a late night television performance on Jimmy Fallon's gig, where they played "The Reeling." (This is the closest I can get to linking, since it seems to have been taken down everywhere around the Internet...). They've been attracting a good amount of press, and Basstown has been brought up here, here and especially here, where the Examiner took time to talk to Nate, specifically.

Make It New recently featured Mark Ingram for the second time, a good friend of the Basstown crew and local Boston DJ who has been making a name for himself. Premiering at the party during August of 2008, he returned as Sleekit last month, and we recorded the night. You can also grab both Baltimoroder and Die Young's opening sets.

Audible: Sleekit @ Make It New, 08.20.09

Speaking of opening sets, Resident Advisor has a very interesting feature up on the matter. Definitely a worthwhile read for all. Editor Todd Burns also conducted a great interview with Richie Hawtin, but I want to send you that way mostly because of the lulzy photo they accompanied it with. Hang ten!

One other miscellaneous announcement of significance - our lovely Lauren DeVain has moved from Gigolo Records in Berlin over to Sportclub Music, which features a roster boasting the likes of Axel Bartsch, Oddvar, Sian, Alex Niggemann and Gabriel Ananda.

Dev/Null's Summer Mix

Die Young: NEED TRACKLISTING
Dev/Null: oh
Dev/Null: for my mix?
Dev/Null: OK
Dev/Null: 1. NYOFB
Dev/Null: 2. NYOFB
Dev/Null: 3. NYOFB
Dev/Null: 4. NYOFB
Die Young: hahah
Die Young: ill post with a tracklisting at request and your myspace
Die Young: *tracklisting upon request
Dev/Null: you can put my email address if you want
Dev/Null: eh, I can type up a track listing I Guess
Dev/Null: gimme a minute
Die Young: doo iiitttt
Dev/Null: fuck yeah my laptop doesn't have wireless now for some reason
Dev/Null: even if I type it up downstairs
Dev/Null: no way to transfer it
Dev/Null: can you just say "email pete.devnull @ gmail dot com for tracklist/more info" or something/
Die Young: i gotta have a tl dude
Die Young: its kinda lazy if i dont
Dev/Null: no it's not
Dev/Null: you put up plenty of mixes w/o them
Die Young: live ones
Die Young: never premixed
Dev/Null: what's the difference?
Dev/Null: this was live
Dev/Null: in my apartment

HE HAS A POINT FOLKS.
Dev/Null rules. Mix rules.
Original remixes, old school, new school, hardcore, its all in there.

Audible: Dev/Null - Summer Mix 09

Virb: http://virb.com/bostonoldschool

Axel Bartsch Mix

Last month at Make It New, Bar 25 resident and founder of the Sportclub label Axel Bartsch played an energizing set of new and unreleased Berlin techno for the party people of Cambridge.

Earlier this month we released the recording of Volvox's opening set as the After After Mix, and now we are pleased to present you with the headlining set of the night.

Perfect for the sunny summer weekend! (We even made some nice art for your iTunes)

Axel Bartsch Live at Make It New July 9

If you take a one a day multivitamin after a night of drinking, you will not get a headache the next day

Here are a couple of great mixes from a Volvox and DSub, techno and glitch hop (although why does this term rub me the wrong way? There's gotta be a better name for the kind of stuff DSub is playing) DJs respectively. I was able to record these sets using the magic iKey device. I hope you enjoy.

Audible: Volvox - Make it New July 9th Set
Audible: DSub - July 10th Birthday Set

Setlists on request.

Collaboration Celebration

Mathew Jonson & Dandy Jack / photo: Reuben Sweeney

The latest podcast from Resident Advisor features Pisco Sour, a collaboration between Butane and Dandy Jack. In all honesty, I have yet to listen to it, but I was most interested in the interview, and particularly loved what Martin Schopf (Dandy) had to say about collaborations.

Q: You've continued your string of collaborations, play with Mathew Jonson at Mutek and here with Butane. Do you prefer collaborating to solo work? And are there any future collaborations we can look forward to?

A: Between two people there is always a challenge, mixed up between friendship, love and musical affinity. You go into something that could never happen in your dreams; it's an improvisation. This can be magic, but also a disaster. So you go to your gig, simply expecting full control or total chaos. In this case you are exposed to your partner and the public in a silent way, even if the sound is loud and unacceptable and you want to close your ears. There are not many people you are able to do this with.

You can read the entirety of it here, and download the podcast as well.


Mathew Jonson & Dandy Jack / photo: Reuben Sweeney

I'm happy to see his live Mutek set mentioned again. While I was unable to make it to Montreal after a perfect and long weekend in Detroit, I heard so much about their collaboration at Metropolis. Fortunately, it's all recorded, and now available here. Thanks to TNL for passing it over, and enjoy - Jonson starts things off with a slightly sped up version of his latest B-side, "When Love Feels Like Crying," which is a gorgeous and essential track for the mild and sunny summer we've been having in the Northeast.


Audible: Mathew Jonson vs. Dandy Jack, live @ Mutek 2009

Introducing: Secrets

A few weeks ago, the event Basstown is Dead put to rest the monthly residency at Great Scott. We're happy to say that reports of the death of Basstown have been greatly exaggerated.

Tonight marks the beginning of a new residency, Secrets, landing every other Tuesday in Jamaica Plain. The Milky Way Lounge has recently moved into glorious new digs at the Brwery Building, once home to Boston Beer Company (aka Samuel Adams) and now where they give brewery tours, the old Haffenreffer brewery has been reborn.

We're proud to be a part of such a tradition, and proud to bring three young and well-informed new resident DJs into the Basstown fold.

Will Lynch, aka Lynch is a contributor for esteemed blog Little White Earbuds. He's long been a supported of our weekly residency Make It New, but his regular show, Persuasion, broadcasts from 10pm-2am on Thursdays, exactly when Make It New takes place.

SarahJoy is his partner on Persuasion and a practicing DJ in her own right. During the Great Scott era, SarahJoy blew us away with a set at the now-legendary night The Revolution Will Be Feminized when she supported Lauren Flax--a night when out residency blew the power out of a city block in Allston.

Carrigan DB also had a radio show on WZBC 90.3fm, the most adventurous radio frequency in Boston. Her AM radio show, "The Following Aesthetic Reasons," was the first to bring techno to the morning commute. After a series of amazing house parties, she's a great host with a taste like none other.

These three will serve as the anchor of the new Basstown night, called Secrets. The opening party takes place tonight, with a candlelit photobooth, disposable cameras for the crowd and a cutting-edge DJ trio at the decks. Looks for special guests in the coming weeks, from Basstown and beyond.

Lynch and SarahJoy combined forced to make the first promotional mix. Here is the set-list:

Sound Stream - “Live” Goes On [Sound Stream]
Nekes - Cristal (Sascha Dive Remix) [Oslo]
Masomenos - Travel Master [Welcome to Masomenos]
Christian Burkhardt - Doubledub [Raum… musik]
Jus Ed - Yo, This Shit is Hot! [Underground Quality]
Kreon - Jauce [Cécille Numbers]
Matthew Styles - Palladium [Horizontal]
David Pher - Harare [Glueckskind Digital]
Delano Smith feat. Diamond Dancer - A Message For the DJ [Still Music]
Black Jazz Consortium - New Horizon [Soul People Music]
Melchior Productions Ltd. - Water Soul [Perlon]

Enjoy:

Lynch and SarahJoy - Secrets Promo Mix

Dave Siska's "Distant Lights" Mix

On a more personal note, I wanted to extend my apologies for not blogging much music lately. It's been an incredibly busy summer working and living on the beach (Fire Island), and you can imagine that there isn't much techno going on out here. I've missed Richie Hawtin, Claude VonStroke, Daniel Bell and have/will be missing a few House 'n' Home & Bunker parties. Believe me, it's no easy task, but thanks to mailing lists, FTP servers and having great friends, it's been easy to keep up with the Internet on hand. (When the beach is your front yard, though, it's easy to forget that it's there altogether!)

As of late, I've been revisiting Marc Houle's Bay Of Figs and enjoying new tracks by Deuce and especially the new Planetary Assault Systems release, Temporary Suspension. Oh, and the new Holger Zilske album is slowly but steadily growing on me. Of all of these things, Luke Slater's "The Watcher" - from Planetary Assault's 2LP promo for Temporary Suspension is hands down the winner of my concrete heart. I'll be featuring it in the near future, but be sure to check out the excellent feature on Resident Advisor with Mr. Slater himself.

But before I go, I wanted to leave you with a beautiful mix by Dave Siska, with thanks to JD Harrington for passing this along my way. It's titled Distant Lights, and I will let the mix speak for itself. I personally love where it goes past the 30 minute mark as well as the beat's ressurrection around the 42 minute mark. Gorgeous. Tracklist is below - enjoy!

My Bloody Valentine – To Here Knows When [vermilion endloop] 1991
Tim Hecker – Blood Rainbow – Harmony in Ultraviolet (Kranky) 2006
Vainqueur – Elevation [Original] – Elevations (Chain Reaction) 1997
Substance – Plate Element 3 – Sessions (Chain Reaction) 1998
Motor – 7 (Audio.nl) 2000
James Ruskin – Below – Further Design (Blueprint) 1998
Marcel Dettmann – A Req [T++ remix] (MDR) 2006
Marc Ashken – Roots Dyed Dark [Skream remix] (Leftroom) 2007
Burial – Distant Lights (Hyperdub) 2006
Porter Ricks – Nautical Dub [extract] – Biokinetics (Chain Reaction) 1996
Benjamin Brunn – Up the Escalator (Binemusic) 2005
Stephan Laubner – Portside Waves (Perlon) 2000
Convextion – Solum Ferrum (downLow) 2006
Exos – Orangeblue – U Can’t Stop Time (Statik Entertainment) 2003
7th Plain – Pearl – TEEX 3 (Volume) 1994
Pub – Summer [Arovane AMX 4] (Vertical Form) 2000

Audible: Dave Siska - Distant Lights mix
More Info: Sonic Sunsets

Raster-Noton @ Make It New

Once again, members of Raster-Noton graced our Middlesex Lounge for a very well-attended night of experimental electronic music. This year, we caught a lot of it on video, as well as photographs. You can view Ricardo DeLima's shots here, and Byetone bits below. Alva Noto video to come in a bit...

"The Twist (DJ Die Young Dub Edit)"

It's exciting as hell to see talent grow in Basstown. One-time Basstown resident DJ Etan has now become Shuttle and is proceeding to take over the world, while other residents are starting to come into their own as well.

Each one has a unique style. Volvox plays dark bombast, Mistaker plays bumping and wild while DJ Die Young plays with a euphoric bounce. Each Make It New resident also has their own style, but that's a whole nother post.

When I encountered the music of Frightened Rabbit during a news story for the Weekly Dig, it really blew me away. Heartfelt and true, with a lyrical knack that goes right to the brain. In July, they return to the US for a series of gigs that includes the Pitchfork Music Festival.

One song, though, "The Twist," really caught my attention. It sounded like a dance track, and just needed a heavier kick and an extended edit.

Enter Die Young.

An all-around great guy, Jamie's remix style always has a generous upbeat and can really get a crowd riled up. From "In a Big Country" to his work with Dopamine recording artists Hooray For Earth, there's something distinctive about his work.

Here he stamps a beat on Frightened Rabbit's "The Twist," gives it an excellent intro and a rabid arc that would get any informed room completely wild.

"I need human heat!"

Enjoy.

Audible: Frightened Rabbit - "The Twist (DJ Die Young Dub Edit)"
Purchase: iTunes - DJ Die Young & Baltimoroder
MySpace: DJ Die Young
MySpace: Frightened Rabbit

Ohhhhh BABY

Make The Girl Dance "Baby Baby Baby" ( official video )
Uploaded by placeblancherec. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.

I am fairly certain I would not love this song as much as I do if there weren't beautiful, naked French women involved in it. As a hetero female, I can only wonder what the guys think.

Anyone care to chime in?

MySpace: Make The Girl Dance

Oliver Huntemann : H-3

I truly love this record, but am having the most difficult time writing about it. "Lousy Night" is the best on the album, but I was just listening to the minimal build of "Dauerplus" and daydreaming about the upcoming DEMF: Movement festival. The track put my brain right at the many drops I'll be raising my arms to, and while it only runs at an average 8 minutes the song itself seems much longer.

Huntemann has been producing tracks on his own, though he is more often associated with Marc Romboy and Stefan Bodzin as, I believe, Rekorder. This collaboration features many other producers, but Huntemann has been standing apart as having a very whole sound. I've listened to "Lousy Night" so many times, and I can close my eyes and imagine it in a tiny lounge, a mega club, an outdoor festival...maybe even on a jog. Either way, it's such a versatile track, and the entirety of H-3 has a good grip on teetering into the commercial realm (that is to say, not being too heady/keeping the audience enthralled) but keeping a dark, concrete walled edge to his music.

You've heard his track "2Beloved" so many times at Make It New, and it's worth looking into his releases past and present for a great scope of what Ideal - a very underrated label - represents by what it has to offer.

Audible: Oliver Huntemann - "Lousy Night"

Purchase: Oliver Huntemann - H-3

MySpace: Oliver Huntemann

Fabric46 : Claude VonStroke

I never imagined to be listening to Bootsy Collins in a techno mix, but that's the beauty of the genre. Claude VonStroke, one of the most successful DJ/producers in America, is featured for Fabric46, and delivers a set that highlights the best of his labels (Dirtybird, Mothership) along with personal favorites. It was the first time I ever heard Voodeux's "Just A Spoonful" - a new track from hometown hero Tanner Ross' upcoming Mothership LP, The Paranormal. Also, while I'd like to think I'm not a total newb, I am impressed that his tracklist often includes doubles - something I simply don't see often enough. Cleveland-born, Detroit-raised and San Francisco-based Barclay Crenshaw (Claude, ppl) is the kind of man that has held many jobs, acquired many skills, and is steadily sliding himself into legendary status as he gets older and continues to make and release and represent top-notch electronic music. His DJ mixes are more like a syllabus, giving listeners at least a handful of new artists to listen to or ideas to consider for mixing. "I picked the best music I could find," says VonStroke in a press release, "and put it together in a creative way that fully represents my sound and personality."

Tracklist: (Artist - Track - Label)

01 Ekkohaus Ft. R. Wurz –  Cry Baby – Morris Audio

Ekkohaus Ft. Mensa – The Healer – Morris Audio

02 Claude VonStroke & Bootsy Collins -  Yabadabadooza- dirtybird

03 Rob Van Valen – Trampen – Frankie

04 Holger Zilske – Mes Yeux - Playhouse*

05 Detroit Grand Puhbas Big Onion (Joakim Remix) - Pokerflat

Roman Salanger - Galaxius – Lucent

06 DJ Deeon – Shake It – Databass

Isomer Transitions - Downtime in the Hangar - Moongadget

07 Stimming - After Eight – Dynamic

08 Peter Lauer - Free Entry for Girls (Robag Whrume’s Drikkibass Remix) - Punkt

09 Voodeux - Just A Spoonful – mothership

10 Italoboyz – Bla Bla Bla – mothership

11 Varislove feat DOP. - Inside Ways (Boris Werner. Remix) - Supplemental Facts

12 Kiki – Immortal (Instrumental Dub) – BPitch Control

13 Xpansul & Daweed  - Pilsnerd – True Type

Marc Houle – Dirty Dirty – M_nus

14 Dinamoe – Maceo – Alpaca

Clara Moto – Silently Ft. Mimu - Infine

15 James Braun - Symphonia – Tartelet

16 Donk Boys – One Tooth Missing - Frankie

17 Robag Whrume - Guppipepitsche –  Freude Am Tanzen

18 ICS – Espagnol – dirtybird

19 Markus Schatz - Running – Highgrade

Catz ‘n Dogz – SF - mothership

20 Marc Miroir - Kraft – Paso Music

21 Stimming  - One Weekend - Dynamic

22 Claude VonStroke - Aundy – dirtybird

*Audible: Holger Zilske - "Mas Yeux"

Label: Fabric

MySpace: Claude VonStroke

Louderbach : Autumn

Opinions are not fact, but it's safe to declare that dark techno + vocals - merging the full-band sound of Joy Division with modern technology - can sometimes be a huge, cheesy disaster.* Fans of Bauhaus, Coil and Richie Hawtin are in good hands in regards to the new Louderbach release. The follow-up to their 2006 LP, Enemy Love, Troy Pierce and vocalist Gibby Miller have collaborated to bring Autumn just in time for summer. Intensely dark but delivered with a brightening crescendo, the album works best as one long mix. Ultimately, that's what it is, but given the song structures the tracks work on their own as well. The opening title track is a bit hard to digest the first time around, with its saturated minor keys and adjusting to the onset of vocals on a minimal techno album. By the time you reach "Notes," however, the album has a steady grip and smooth amalgam of vocals and synths. "So This Is Control" has a gorgeous laid-back attitude. At times, Autumn is the angelic companion to Pan Pot's Pan-O-Rama. While both records are certainly dark, there is a comparable and uplifting tone to many of the minimal/housey tracks on Louderbach's latest.

Audible: Louderbach - "So This Is Control"

Purchase: Louderbach - Autumn

MySpace: Louderbach

Label: Minus

*see also: Black Strobe's Burn Your Own Church

Hawtin & Co. Unleash Twitter DJ App

Say what you will about Traktor, but the software's existence has come a long way in the last decade to push forward the hybrid performance of a DJ and live set. Upgraded and developed over time, the Traktor Pro has been running on its own legs for a while now, and the introduction of a plug-in (of sorts) that is set to revolutionize the relationship of DJ and audience is due.

Enter the Twitter DJ app. Essentially, Traktor communicates what the DJ is playing during his set and transmits it to the public via social media tools that are widely used, updating it every 30 seconds. The best choice for such a platform is Twitter, where even on the dancefloor you can check your incoming "tweets" to tell you exactly what Richie Hawtin, Dubfire, Digweed or the many other DJs who use the program are spinning. While this is a great way to further insight on how a DJ builds a set, track by track, from start to finish, the greatest benefit is to give instant credit to the lesser known artists that are being played. "The Twitter DJ application would not only drag the likes of GEMA*, PRS** and SOCAN*** kicking and screaming into the 21st century," says Hawtin, in a press release, "but make sure the real artists get paid instead of performance payments simply being carved up between the Madonnas and U2s of the world."

Richie tested this out last night at a gig in Rotterdam, and I was fortunately already following him on Twitter but didn't realize why I was getting updated tracks until the press release was sent out today. Once this becomes more popular, it could be an excellent tool, but it would be good to stay careful of how many different feeds one subscribes to so that way your Twitter homepage doesn't end up look like nothing more than a Last.fm feed.

Twitter: Richie Hawtin

* a German music publisher's association
** these guys

*** a Canadian music publisher's association

Lazersword. I am excite.

Saturday, April 25th

Basstown Presents

LAZER SWORD

Great Scott

with guests

Pandai'a
Skunk
D-Sub
and Residents Die Young & Volvox

9pm - 2am / 21+ / $7


Lazer Sword have been garnering great attention from the likes of XLR8R and other major contenders about their unique blend of electro, dubstep, hip-hop and even new age music. With gigs coming up in New York, Los Angeles, San Francsico and San Diego, their Boston date is a relevant part of their recent popularity.

Pandai'a (Bassic) and Skunk (23 Sound) have been an important part of the Boston underground for some time now, and while Basstown has had the Bassic crew come in and work their magic before, having these two particular talents highlight their own goods is a special treat. Also included is D-Sub from Subliminal Sessions and our residents Die Young and Volvox on the decks.

Free Music:
LAZER SWORD BBC RADIO 1 MIX
LAZER SWORD XLR8R PODCAST
Tea Leaf Dancers (Low Limit Remix)

Speaking In Code premieres at Somerville Theater this Thursday!

Finally...the wait is over.

For years, Amy Grill and David Day have worked with their savvy cameraman to create what will be the most important film in electronic music. Much like The Ambient Century was to techno via the book industry, Speaking In Code - a full-length documentary - will be a historical part of the musical timeline. Filmed around the world, with strong foci in Boston and Berlin, the movie is a rush of laughter and tears and leaves many with a feeling of catharsis. "That's my story too!" said one at a recent film festival in Boulder. But this Thursday, the Boston premiere will be an epic event considering the close-to-home in both address and heart locations for many of the folks that will be filling up seats at the Somerville Theater. Recognize anyone from the movie poster?

You can view the trailer below, and order your tickets (with no additional charges) online here.



Site: Speaking In Code
Tickets: IFF Boston / Speaking In Code
Facebook: Event Page

2 Deep

GummiHz - Los Los (D'Julz Mix) [Mobilee]
A standout deep down track from Anja Schneiders' Mobilee Records.
This track took a hold of me two weeks ago and still hasn't let go.

www.myspace.com/anjaschneider
www.myspace.com/d_julz

New Matters & Dunaway Music Video

Social networking is the bane of our culture, but we are all addicted to it. With that major statement aside, a positive aspect is that it allows us to find things as soon as they are posted. Our friends Andre and Tom of the much-loved Boston duo Matters & Dunaway - whom Basstown has booked with The Field's premiere Boston performance (July 2007) and partnered with for other events - finished a music video for "Dystopian Dream," and before they could say "Hey Vicki we made a new vi..." I've already got my pointer hovering over the "Publish Post" button. Gotta love technology.

 Be sure to check out their MySpace to hear more and pick up their latest release.

MySpace: Matters & Dunaway

Minimal According To Magda / Bunker Brings Ben Klock

I got an interesting e-mail from Beatport today. Not exactly a chart, Bp proclaims Magda the "undisputed queen" of minimal techno (hey, I'm not arguing this), and attached a list of nine tracks which she feels provide a strong definite to the question: What is minimal techno?

1. DBX/Daniel Bell - Beat Phreak
2. Plastikman - Plasticity

3. Bruno Pronsato - Open Your Eyes

4. Eight Miles High / Roman Fluegel - In This Place

5. Basic Channel - Phylyps Track II/II*

6. JPLS - Combination 03

7. Studio 1 - Gold

8. Farben - Live At the Sahara Tahoe

9. Jens Zimmermann - C30*

*such a goddamn good song

I don't disagree with Magda's list. These are all classics and at least half of those mentioned are of legendary status now that minimal techno grows and grows in popularity. One artist worth mentioning here is Ben Klock. Lately, Boston's Make It New and NYC's Bunker have had some incredible guests over the last few months, but Ben Klock - whose recent album, One, has been released on Ostgut Ton - has me most excited. This Friday he'll be joined by an incredible lineup in Brooklyn for the April installment of Bunker. Below is the first track from his new album, which you can purchase here. If you've got good headphones, this will be a moment of pride for spending that large chunk of money.

Audible: Ben Klock - "Coney Island"

MySpace: Ben Klock

Website: Bunker

erc cltr fr mnml ssgs

The most recent of the mnml ssgs podcast is brought to you by Eric Cloutier, a New York DJ who graces Bunker's lineup on a frequent basis and throws his own deep techno night at Oulu Lounge in Williamsburg. He's played Midweek Techno and has an impeccable taste for electronic music that is as pure and sincere as it comes. This most recent mix can be summed up in two words: patience and diligence. He'll be playing the front rooom at Bunker this April when Ben Klock (yes!) comes to the Northeast, but in order to understand the music he really loves, check out the podcast (linked below).

In about a week, the tracklist will be released on the site along with an interview with Eric, so keep your eyes on Basstown's Twitter and we'll let you know. In the meantime, enjoy!

Link: mnml ssgs mx22: eric cloutier

Tales From the Dark Side

Within the last 24 hours, this is the best photo to surface from Saturday night, where half of Basstown got together at a warehouse in one of Brooklyn's most industrial parts to bring DJ Hell in for a very special night of pre-WMC celebration. The party featured two rooms, appropriately titled Heaven and Hell. In the lighter room, Anja Schneider headlined along with Connie, Elon and Jeremy P. Caulfield. The International Gigolo showcase in Hell featured John Selway, Peter Kruder and, of course, DJ Hell. Incredibly well run, the party actually started around 11pm and was still going rather strong in the Hell room while Elon was on for Round 2 by the time Volvox and I packed it in around 9:30am. A total success.

As for video, we're waiting to see what pops up on YouTube as well, but the best to emerge is embedded below. Whether you were there or not, Hell's upcoming album Tufelswerk encompasses the energy of that night, and you can expect to be wowed by the Dominator himself, who has not put out an album since NY Muscle in 2003.



MySpace: DJ Hell

Dubstep and Some Bmore Laughs

I have been gravitating towards dubstep lately and I think it's a reaction to the waves upon waves of same-y sounding electro tracks that have been coming out over the last year. It seems that a lot of producers are using the same sound construction kits, the same bass patterns, and the same triplet style and frankly, I feel that the genre has gotten stale. Now I'm sure someone will point me to people pushing it in the genre and that's great.

However, the reason I got into electronic music in the first place is because it sounded so alien to me as young kid growing up in a little cowtown so far removed from the city and so insulated from anything that wasn't a mainstream radio hit.

I have a feeling a lot of people share the same experience, but when you hear something new and you can't imagine how it was made, it can be very thrilling.

I imagine it was the same way for kids who heard Herbie Hancock's Rockit or Grandmaster Flash and were thinking to themselves, "What IS this sound and how was it made and can I make this sound myself?"

The point I am getting at is that Dubstep pushes a lot of boundaries in terms of sound, style, tempo and rhythm. I feel that the people playing it rely less on scouring a few blogs for new tracks (I'm certainly guilty of this) and dig a lot deeper to find something new and interesting. And I deeply respect this dedication.

So that said, I'd like to post a mix by the local Dubstep hero Pandai'a. She and her crew at Bassic have really been carrying the torch for this genre and they are doing a great job at it.

Here is Pandai'a's first studio mix.

Tracklisting:
1. Breakage - Rain - forthcoming Digital Soundboy Recordings
2. Pangaea - Mosaix - Hotflush 2
3. HxdB - Invisible Touch - forthcoming Formant Recordings
4. Hellfire Machina - Three Prayers to Buddha - unreleased
5. Untold - Discipline - Hemlock
6. Vaccine - Thou Shalt Always Mute the Vocal Channel - unreleased
7. COTK - We Are the Glitch (DJG rmx)- forthcoming Blipswitch Digital
8. Scuba - the Upside (Martyn's down mix)- Hotflush Remixes
9. HxdB - Moneyshot - forthcoming Surface Tension
10. DJG - Twenty Four - forthcoming Pushing Red
11. Headhunter - untitled - unreleased
12. Scuba - Tense - Hotshore
13. Untold - Dante - forthcoming Hotflush 2
14. Headhunter/ Luke Envoy - untitled - unreleased
15. Jakes - Nyabingi - unreleased
16. DJG - Obsessed - forthcoming Lo Dubs
17. Mount Kimbie - Vertical - Hotflush Recordings

Link: Pandai'a Studio Mix

As a bonus, I'm including my Bmore remix of Yes's Owner of a Lonely Heart which is widely considered their worst song! This was partly done as a laugh and partly done to see if I could pull off remixing in a genre that I really enjoy hearing out at any time.

I hope you enjoy: DJ Die Young - Owner

Calvin Harris Is Not Alone

We brought you the best we could, at the time, here, but NOW we bring you...a full, mixable track.

Gorgeous.
Song of the summer.
Anyone who didn't like Calvin Harris will now.

That is all!

Love,
Us

Audible: Calvin Harris - "I Am Not Alone (Extended Mix)"

Hearthrob DVD: Unlimited Pleasure/Pain

Spring 2007 was a turning point for the Boston nightlife scene, and a breeding ground for many of the friendships that came to form what became Basstown. At the core was Hearthrob, a dance party that was more like a religious gathering every other Tuesday at the Middlesex Lounge in Cambridge. In addition to the memorable photos and guests that came out of those nights, a DVD made by Bloodsugar, mixed by Baltimoroder and curated by the whole team encapsulated the visual and sonic marriage that made everyone lose their fucking minds. Now out of print, you can watch it here.

MySpace: Hearthrob

the tape is like custom made for blunt rides in suburban hellholes

Coralcola has released his first EP called 747. Good thing we have mp3 copies, because the only other way to get this release is on tape, which makes it a great burn run album, since the only way anyone listens to tapes anymore is in their mom's old Plymouth Breeze.

Here is a link to the whole EP. It sounds like the 80s filtered through Coralcola's weeded brain (it's a zip file): Zshare Link

I recently played in the courtyard of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum for 'Carnevale' on Feb. 19th. Let me tell you how stunning and special it was to play for people in that courtyard. No one ever really gets to step foot in the there besides the groundskeepers, the sound was incredible because it reverberates crisply up and down the walls of the building, and the scenery is just amazing. Check it out:



It looked like a straight up movie set, and yet it is a real place.

I recorded the set and opened with a Coralcola track, so I wanted to make sure to share this with everyone:
Tracklisting:
1. William Basinski - Dlp1.3
2. Coralcola - Sleep is for Dreamers
3. Loco Dice - M Train to Brooklyn
4. The Tape and RQM - Luvely (Kalabrese Remix)
5. Dflex - Waltz (Dave Aju Remix)
6. Some track KC gave me that I play all the time
7. Clara Moto - Silently feat. Mimu
8. Daniel Steinberg - I Like to Be
9. John Tejada - Turning Point
10. Popnoname - Touch (The Field Remix)
11. Code 718 - Equinox (Henrik Schwarz Dub)
12. Paul Kalkbrenner - Square 1
13. Minilogue,KAB - That's a Nice Way to Give Feedback (Wighnomy Brothers Remix)
14. Marco Carola - Drumming
15. Luomo - Tessio (Stimming Remix)
16. Dop - Blanche Neige
17. Four Tet - My Angel Rocks Back and Forth
18. Max Cooper - I
19. Dana Ruh - History of the Sun

Download link: DJ Die Young - Live at the ISGM 2

Joee Irwin Will Pump You Up To Party

Our friend Joee Irwin just completed a very special mix for Nicky Digital. "This is my interpretation of going out, and staying out all night," he says. "From the first train ride, to one party leading into the next, passing people and faces along the journey, as things get cloudy and regretful, before closing on a pillow with thoughts and memories that fade into dreams."

The tracklist is well done and executes the concept a bit better than Moby's Last Night, which is a concept album about an all-night bender. Moby had said it's basically "a love letter to dance music in New York City...In making Last Night, I essentially tried to take a long 8 hour night out in New York City and condense it into a 65 minute long album."

While Irwin's mix is not chock full of original material, the atmosphere and mood that he aims for is reached, and appeals to the more heady techno lovers. Music lovers who digested Last Night and appreciated it for what it was might find these boots a little hard to fit into, but there's faith that those who found the album to be lacking will dance to this mix all night long.

Link: Joee Irwin Pre-Party Mix @ Nicky Digital

The Orb's Gorgeous, Godless America

The Orb is legendary. They have been around for at least 20 years, and have had releases on a wide variety of labels. To name a few, there's Island, Polygram, Deviant, Ultra, V2 (Japan), Cooking Vinyl. My personal favorite hails from the Kompakt Extra series, which is better known as the Speicher series. Their 1991 release of The Orb's Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld is as classic to electronic music as we can get without reanimating Beethoven and having him edit their music. Not that it's laden with strings, but it's as essential to own as it was to get your hands on the GAS box set when it came out last year.

Lately, I've been in a "Speicher mood," and while all of the music is dark and expansive, it's still a very positive experience. It's just a mental state where almost anything else is unlistenable. Before it passes, I find myself going back and back again to Speicher 33 (we're up to 63, for what it's worth), which features The Orb with "Godless America / Gorgeous" - enjoy.

Audible: The Orb - "Godless America / Gorgeous"
MySpace: The Orb

Tonight: Hostage in NYC & Make It New in Boston

The name Hostage started buzzing around when Volvox and Die Young spun "Blockhead" during a Basstown residency in the spring of last year. Since then, we've been waiting for him to come out to America, and finally that wait is over. While he isn't hitting the Boston circuit, he has visited a handful of spots around the country, landing him squarely in New York City tonight! With the latest release of Shake It - an EP that features remixes by AC Slater and Acid Jacks, along with three other originals - his name has become more widespread, and he is destined for bigger things in 2009. Somewhere between Drop The Lime and Berlin techno in style, "Shake It" is pretty anthemic all across the board despite its title making h8rs predict 5+ minutes of pure electro. "Leathered" is also one of the better tracks, and reminiscent of Proxy at certain points. Overall, it's obvious his taste is vast, and we can only expect more from him.

Audible: Hostage - "Shake It"
MySpace: Hostage

+++



Much like every Thursday in Boston, the Middlesex Lounge is going to feature some of the best techno in the world. Our own little version of Berghain, tonight's edition is a farewell to Doria Grace, who is leaving our transient city of Boston after being a hardcore attendee of all things Basstown and beyond. Come for hugs and drink. Joee Irwin recently called us "Boston's premiere techno party" - excellence. You can read about it here (as well as download some sets) at Palms Out Sounds, who are putting on the Hostage show in NYC tonight (small world, yo).

New Calvin Harris Single On Radio 1

Last Friday, Pete Tong gave the new Calvin Harris single, "I'm Not Alone," a proper spin. Apparently the track has been appearing and disappearing faster than you can shout "I CREATED DISCO, YO!" really, really fast. Here we have a radio rip of the track, so expect to hear some Pete Tong commentary.

All in all, the track is short and sweet and like any good ear candy has an explosive center. The climax is similar to some of the finer moments on Deadmau5's Random Album Title from last year, but the vocals are rich and the dance floor accessibility is at a maximum. Plus, this makes for some really sweet remixes to come.

Have we also mentioned how much we love Coralcola? We do <3

Audible: Calvin Harris - "I'm Not Alone (Radio Rip)"
MySpace: Calvin Harris

Stimming To Release Full-Length Album In March

Stimming - one of our favorite producers - will be releasing his first LP this year on Diynamic records. We'd recently posted about the Obama victory (Tuesday!) and included a great Stimming track (here), but an 11-track powerhouse from one of the most diverse producers to come out of Germany (Hamburg, actually) is a very very very early '09 Christmas. March 16th, to be exact.

Here is the update from Resident Advisor:
The Hamburg producer had a big 2008 with tracks on Buzzin' Fly, liebe*detail and Freerange, but he's set to return to his original home of Diynamic for the album, entitled Reflections. All of the eleven tracks featured are unreleased, so long-time fans will be able to enjoy the album as a discrete object without any prior connection to the tunes.

Like much of his previous work, the album is full of field recordings that complement the colourful boompty grooves, but there are still quite a few shocks in store: On "The Loneliness" for example, Stimming indulges his passion for live instrumentation yet again as a harmonica makes an appearance to accompany a Tom Waits-esque vocal. Each and every track has a respective story behind it, which Stimming used to inspire the final music. With titles like "The Kiss" and "Song for Isabelle," you can guess that there's going to be a fair amount of techno-emoting on Reflections.

Tracklist
01. Sunday Morning
02. After Eight
03. Song for Isabelle
04. Fruits of Life
05. Silver Surfer
06. One Weekend
07. The Loneliness
08. Tel Aviv Calling
09. The Beauty
10. Sleep On
11. The Kiss

So...Tom Waits meets techno, hmm? I'm interested...

MySpace: Stimming

Fever Ray's Just Begun

It's no surprise that Fever Ray is an incredible album. The new solo project from Karin Dreijer Andersson, better known as one half of The Knife, is coming out in mid-March on Rabid Records, where The Knife was putting out their material before being signed to Mute. There will most likely be a unanimous affinity towards this record for all Knife fans, but it has a slant all its own that makes it stand apart from previous works.

The album is closest to 2006's Silent Shout in terms of imagery. The pop-heavy sounds that saturated their The Knife's first two records were mostly put to rest with the masterpiece that put Karin and her brother at the tip of everyone's tongue over two years ago. Here we see what Karin has been up to since, and her siren vocals and haunting synths are in full effect.


If I Had A Heart from Fever Ray on Vimeo.

The video for "If I Had A Heart" - the first single from the album - needs several viewings, and only the bold will dare to interpret. In addition to that, there's a pretty good remix of the track by Fuck Buttons streaming on Stereogum, which you can find here

To give you a wider sampling, here is a track called "I'm Not Done," which is another stand-out from the forthcoming debut.

Audible: Fever Ray - "I'm Not Done"
MySpace: Fever Ray

Sonolmoss Makes Really Good Hip Hop

Sonolmoss makes pretty wintery music. Although, since it is actually winter and its doing that rain/snow combo that always soaks your feet through by the time you get home, I am associating this music with the the feeling of finally getting back to your (hopefully) warm and toasty room, and basking by the light of your desktop PC of choice. However, if it was spring out, maybe I'd call this 'Spring-ish' music. Either way, this is touching stuff. The music is halting, stutter stepping hip hop with great texture and no bombast to be found. Plus it's better than Flying Lotus. You heard me.

Tracks:
Sonolmoss - Dream Bear (zsharesux)
Sonolmoss - Sit Still Assile (zsharesux)



You can get all sorts more here: Download
Myspace: Sonolmoss
He's got a blog too: Sonolmoss at Blogspot

NOW BOARDING: Air France

words by David Day

We first heard about Air France from the crazy folks at Revival Boston, the every-so-often Tuesday/Monday night party at the Middlesex Lounge. They founded a Facebook group called, funny enough, Bring Air France to Cambridge. Naturally, a parade to the blogs followed. We thought we'd join the cacophony inside the Hype Machine chamber and post a link to Collapsing at Your Doorstep, the insanely pretty song from this Swedish duo.



It's equal parts Boards of Canada, the Avalanches and dreamstuff harvested from the mind. Like The Field or Lykke Li or, shit, every other thing that has ever come from Gothenburg, expect Air France to win a sweeping amount of critical acclaim in 2009. (We're not sure how Guardian music maven Alan McGee missed them, but at least he picked up on Pantha du Prince)

Audbile: Air France - "Collapsing at your Doorstep"
MySpace: Air France