Friday, April 30, 2010
Bank Holiday Bonanza
In celebration of their latest two (Saturday night) mix CDs and the fact that the curators of said mixes (DJ T. & Optimo) are both playing at Fabric next Saturday we have one of each mix plus a pair of guestlists for the night up for grabs.Both mixes are pretty tasty although it will probably come as no surprise to anyone who's been following the ill-ec-tro-nic for a while to hear that it's the Optimo mix that really sets our pulses racing. Optimo's proven track record of throwing seemingly incompatible tracks together but managing to make them gel so well and create a near constant party vibe is without doubt what's made them such heavyweights on the electronic scene and why their sets are the stuff of legend. Fabric 52 is no different and includes their usual mix of everything from punk-funk to techno; taking in disco, house and pretty much everything in between too.
All good DJs pride themselves with an ability to pick out tracks that other jocks aren't playing but Twitch & Wilkes must surely push these exploratory boundaries further than most; showing their tastes are not just vast and eclectic but that even when they select cuts that don't really stand up on their own, they still manage to find them a perfect place in amongst the stone cold killers.
So, in order to stand a chance of getting your mits on this tidy little package, just mail us at illectronic.blog(AT)gmail.com with your answer to the following question.
Q) What is JD Twitch's real name?
The competition closes at midday, Friday 7th May. If you are entering from abroad or are otherwise not able to attend the actual club night, please let us know in order that we can split the prize and give the tickets to someone who can.
The full lineup for next Saturday is available here and you can pick up the mixes direct from Fabric's website (the Optimo one isn't actually out yet but drops soon).
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tune In
The resurgence of 'the Basic Channel sound' in recent years is something which is often commented upon in both the media and in record store catalogue listings. The deep, dubby vibe and metallic synths that typifies the phenomenon seem to crop up all over the place these days be it as part of a track's accompaniment in either techno or dubstep circles or as the actual basis of the track for next generation BC / Rhythm & Sound / Maurizio-influenced producers such as Quantec or Deepchord / Echospace.While it's frequent for the imitators to be criticised for not reaching the high standards set out by the innovators or pushing the sounds into uncharted territories, there are an equal (probably greater?) number of people (myself included) more than happy to lap up these sonic variations and said fans are likely to take great pleasure from Deadbeat's Radio Rothko mix.
Despite only containing a small number of tracks actually produced by Mark & Moritz, Radio Rothko screams Basic Channel at you and merely fluctuates along this pivotal axis as the mix takes its course; never straying very far from the production 'rules' the pair used. Featuring a wide variety of BC-influenced tracks and producers both old and new, the mix leans to the mellower side of their sound and despite not being a BC-affiliated product it's perhaps the perfect counterbalance to Scion's earlier 'Arrange and Process' outing which delivers a much tougher dancefloor-oriented take on the template.
No takeaway today but Deadbeat's Magnetic North features on the mix and is available below for your viewing / listening pleasure. You can pick up a copy of Radio Rothko at the usual stores on either CD or download.
Deadbeat "Magnetic North" from the Agriculture on Vimeo.
Labels: Basic Channel, Deadbeat
Monday, April 12, 2010
Less Of My Lip
For today's post, I'm going to try and dispense with some of the usual hyperbole in order to try and keep things trim and concise for you guys as well as to help minimise the time I spend staring at the screen trying to think of suitably expressive ways of describing what your own ears will tell you anyway. There's also no real theme or connection between the tracks featured other than the fact that they're taken from releases which have tickled my fancy in recent weeks.Abstract elecronica seems to have all but died a death in recent years but as it played a big part in my formative electronic years, it's still something I have something of a soft spot for. For me it's certainly the melodic side of the scene that provides the interesting reference points rather than the overtly crazy 'drum kit falling down the stairs' experimental stuff. As is often the case with IDM producers, Tudor Acid's Merri Portland dabbles in both aspects and in parts it pushes me towards the limits of what I consider to be acceptable levels of 'challenging listening' but it also contains some interesting moments and wins brownie points for invoking a sense of nostalgia in me, hence gets a mention here.
Tudor Acid - Endangered Species // Tudor Beats Buy
Next up is a track from Prins Thomas' debut album. Filed broadly under the category of Space / Nu Disco, this isn't a genre I give a great deal of time to but on occasion it provides some respite from the the slightly purer form of electronics I usually favour. Prins Thomas is one of the scene's established stars and his self titled album provides a pleasant listen, throwing guitars and other 'real' instruments into the mix to deliver a psyched-out balearic vibe. Prins Thomas - Uggebugg //Full Pupp Buy
On a more electronic tip, Davide Squillace's Tutti Frutti 12" plays around with different doses of house and techno to deliver a pair of dancefloor friendly cuts. The title track is a percussive house number with a strong groove supplemented by a gasping vocal that forms the main hook. On the flip, Old Dusty Pictures reverses the house / techno quotas but again delivers a mid-paced offering perfect for shuffling along to. While neither of these tracks are particularly mind-blowing they are certainly pleasant and will most likely be worthwhile additions to a variety of DJ's tool kits given the flexibility that tracks of this nature provide in terms of building sets up or down or indeed helping to present a little breather from the anthems. 
Davide Squillace - Old Dusty Pictures // Hideout buy
Finishing off today is a track most definitely for the horizontally inclined. It's an entirely beatless affair coming from The Village Orchestra's back catalogue. It's lifted from his 'Outside the Circle Looking In' album which is itself a compilation of tracks completed over the last 8 or so years but having previously only being released in not so readily available environments (blog exclusive downloads etc). The album encompasses a variety of styles as is pretty much par for the course with TVO's production output but what's almost better than the great tracks on offer is the fact that he's giving it away for FREE!!! So what are you waiting for, head on over and bag yourself a copy!
Labels: David Squillace, Prins Thomas, Tudor Acid, TVO
