Monthly Archives: April 2011
29/04/11 Jay Shepheard & Matthew Burton – Retrofit #5 [RETROFIT 5]
Jay Shepheard & Matthew Burton – Liberal Zee
“Liberal Zee” from the latest installment on Retrofit has been informally named “that track with the live bass.”
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If you aren’t acquainted with Retrofit yet it is one to watch out for. I personally have picked up every piece since the label was created and I’m awaiting #5 now. In my perspective Retrofit is the culmination of sounds that take a look back and and a greater look forward in regards to dance music; meaning the sounds of the past are reinvented and revamped. The label isn’t really about laying old samples over new tracks it’s more about laying the influences of the past and present into the robust sounds of the future. And the tracks are true to the labels name; they are really good for mixing in with records of yesteryear. In one of my own mixes (Jackin’ Basement Brew) you can hear Chez Damier’s untitled track on KMS 049 from back in ’93 mixed in with “Movin’ In” from Retrofit #1 as if 17 years never passed. I have a feeling these tunes will withstand the test of time, they will continue to resurface again and again in the future.
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Here are samples of the rest of the EP. (These mark a new turn for the label, they are the most minimalistic by far).
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“Just You”
“Merked”
“Just You” (Matthew & Kates remix)
This release is available digitally as well —> Digital [Retrofit 5]
Tags: Jay Shepheard, Matthew Burton, Retrofit
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- Posted under digital release, vinyl release
25/04/11 The Phenomenal Handclap Band Soundsystem @ Mesa
Over at Mesa this Wednesday (April 27th) the Phenomenal Handclap Band SOUNDSYTEM will be guests at Scotty Coat’s summer season residency. The 8 person band will leave their instruments at home and instead put their records to good use. The band’s live act is known for their enveloping stage presence and eclectic blend of disco, rock, soul, and psychedelia. Granted their DJ set won’t have the bonus entertainment of watching live musicians but if the music selections for their DJ set is anything like their musical selection for their blog my best guess is their DJ set will be something definitely worth hearing. I’ll be hoping to hear them play some of their own tunes as well. One of their biggest tunes and one of my favorites, “You’ll Disappear,” has got some great remixes by Prins Thomas and Jaques Renault. Mesa is rarely a dancing spot but I hope they drop this one and people really let loose and get down.
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Full length remix of “You’ll Disappear” by Jaques Renault.
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Mesa is located at:
725 Baker Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
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Tags: Jaques Renault, Mesa, Scotty Coats, The Phenomenal Handclap Band
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- Posted under Events
24/04/11 Brawther – Do it Yourself EP [SECRET 001]
A1 Spaceman Funk (Deep Club Mix)
A2 Do It Yourself (Alternative Mix)
B1 Spaceman Funk (George Fitzgerald Mix)
Brawther is a fairly recent addition to the many blips on my radar, and I have to say that blip is quickly becoming one of the more noticeable ones. Also the label Secretsundaze is new to me, from what I understand they have been inactive for three years now and I’d say Brawther is a proper choice for the first return pressing.
While I was listening to the EP on Brawther’s soundcloud I heard the sample “awwwww shucks” in the first track; I immediately paused the song and searched for the original by First Choice, “Let No Man Put Asunder.” I just couldn’t help myself and I ended up listening to it the entire way through. I had to, the original is just that good. And I got to say it’s ironic that I just wrote an article about how First Choice’s “Love and Happiness” is sampled by Ron Hardy and Rick Wilhite and, now, in this case First Choice’s “Let No Man Put Asunder” is sampled by Ron Hardy in “Baby, Baby, Baby, Aw Shucks” and now in Brawther’s forthcoming EP.
Tags: Brawther, Secretsundaze
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- Posted under vinyl release
22/04/11 Buzz Compass – No More Hits Vol.12 [NMH 012]
I always smile when I see a release from No More Hits in the flood of e-mail notifications in my in-box. The label proprietor has a soft spot for those blissful nostalgic tunes and the artist on the twelfth installment starts things off on that exact note.
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A1 is an edit of Patrice Rushen’s “Forget Me Nots,” a solid straight forward cut with some added FX.
“Forget Me Nuts” [not a typo!]
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A2 gets interesting with “in the thick of it” style editing. This one builds around a sweet head jerking loop and keeps the energy moving with only quick reverse effects and EQ drops as breaks in the track.
“Carland”
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B1 stands out by far, this one makes the 12″ worth it. This one feels like the electronic arrangements are twirling around you. Further into the track a one of a kind playful synth is introduced and it bubbles along side nicely with the tracks funky bass line.
“The Sun”
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B2 is along the lines of the jazzy numbers Buzz Compass is known for. This one goes downtempo and really shines, perfect lounge music.
“Honesty”
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Want more on No More Hits? Check an article featuring the last release [NMH 011] by Nicholas Iammatteo here.
Tags: Buzz Compass, No More Hits
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- Posted under vinyl release
12/04/11 Demand Deeper Dance Music (Love and Happiness)
Clockwise from top: Al Green, Rick Wilhite, the girls from First Choice, Ron Hardy.
When music is really hitting the spot, when it’s truly sinking through the thick callus built up from over exposure, you might agree it feels like it materializes out of thin air the first time it reaches your ears. The feeling experienced when hearing something unexpected is a rare one and although it feels like you were blind sided with originality, most all music takes a long and arduous path through the bowels of musical lineage to reach your ear.
Deeper dance music: it’s about history; it’s a vocal cut, a guitar riff, a drum track, a classic groove that moves people in its original form and is then re-envisioned to move people in an entirely different way. It may sound corny but an old saying that was never intended to describe dance music really gets the point across:
something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue
Continue reading this article ›
Tags: Al Green, First Choice, Love and Happiness, Rick Wilhite, Ron Hardy
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- Posted under Dance Music Articles
03/04/11 6th Borough Project – One Night in the Borough Pt 1 [DOG 016]
“Find a Way”
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“Iznae”
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“If The Feeling’s Right”
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“Changin”
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6th Borough Project is known for its’ exploration into forgotten soul, funk & disco. It isn’t in the “edit” camp, it’s more about constructing complete reinterpretations from just a few borrowed measures of an original. It makes for a really distinguishable sound, the kind of sound you know came from the group or from respected peers in the scene who are tapped into the same stream.
This one caught my eye for a couple of reasons. The first being that Delusions of Grandeur went for a fresh aesthetic design and the second being that 6th Borough Project, aka Craig Smith & Graeme Clark, were the first to turn me onto slowmo house and disco. An earlier track called “Slow Down Baby” by 6th Borough was the first to take me down to such a low tempo and still rock my body. At a time where I was all about higher tempo tech house, (the likes of Cadenza, Material Series, and artist’s like Kreon & Lemos), this track changed my perception entirely. I took the track title quite literally; I slowed down and shaved around ten to fifteen BPM to the records I was buying for a good amount of time. I was loving the fact that my mind could keep up with my body and the beat while dancing.
This present release has fully cemented my appreciation for the collaboration known as 6th Borough Project. Seeing artists move across the spectrum into different feelings of dance music is something I love. I first listened to this release on a hot March day and was taken away to dreams of a kicked back party under the sun. It’s not what I expected from them and that is precisely what took me over the edge. Smith and Clark ventured out of their successful formula and into some of the more lethargic summer grooves of house music on this release. Not to worry though, they still threw in one of their signature slowmo chuggers for good measure (If The Feeling’s Right) and it definitely hits the spot. My personal favorite track of the release is the melancholic groove “Changin.” When I hear this track I personally find myself in a moment of bittersweet bliss were my thoughts are at odds; pleasure is competing with the fact that the moment will pass and only be a memory. No biggie though, I ordered the vinyl and I can replay that moment over and over again now 🙂
Tags: 6th Borough Project, Craig Smith, Delusions of Grandeur, Graeme Clark
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- Posted under vinyl release
Habituate 