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Theo Parrish’s ultra rare Ugly Edits 12″s will soon be coming out on CD, with a 17-track selection on the way.
We’re suckers for records that come wrapped in artwork that amuses and amazes here at Juno Plus, and this week there were two that made is giggle in the shape of releases from the Mystery Meat and Public Release labels.
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Travis Stewart has been producing under the Machinedrum moniker for more than 10 years; in that time his sound has gone from IDM through hip-hop and ghetto house, but on Room(s) he takes the blueprint of the subgenre of 150BPM Chicago house known as juke (which has been an underground phenomenon for the past 10 years) and runs with it. Stewart certainly isn’t the only producer doing this; there are currently a number of second wave adopters of the sound, chief among them Chrissy Murderbot and Addison Groove. But where these producers take this sound and offer more literal recreations of it, with mechanical 808 patterns, stripped back production and ghetto vocal samples, Stewart takes the backbone of juke, and combines it with multitude of other contemporary influences and creates his most accomplished work as an artist to date.
Despite the album’s 150BPM plus pace (which is never anything less than a complete adrenaline rush, even during it’s more sedate moments), fatigue never sets in. This is primarily down to Stewart’s rhythm programming. While juke would typically utilise untreated drum machines, Stewart isn’t afraid to use organic drum samples. “Come1” for example contrasts euphoric piano chords with a freeform jazz rhythm; he gives the track just enough syncopation to give everything enough room to breathe, similarly, on “Lay Me Down” he employs clattering percussion and reverb in a similar fashion to Burial. Stewart also splashes an impressive palette of colour and texture across the album’s whole. His grasp of melodic balance is exceptional; any chords he employs in the tracks add just the right amount of emotional pull without negating their ferocity. On album opener “She Died There” gut wrenching strings echo from the gloom whilst a hopping breakbeat skips on top, on “Youniverse” an organ tone brings warmth while a relentless conga beat drives the whole thing forward, and even when he uses nastier synthetic elements such as the techno stabs on “Now U Know The Deal 4 Real”, they’re always given the right amount of melodic contrast.
His use of samples is what sticks out most. Although there is a liberal amount of pitch bending going on, Stewart always manages to keep it sounding fresh. “Sacred Frequency” for example combines neon melodies with a sample that cries out from beneath, creating an unseen darkness that adds incredible depth. Additionally, juke is notable for the overtly sexual nature of its lyrics and samples; Stewart avoids this. The vocal samples are both irresistible hooks and textural elements at once, under constant manipulation, and taking on a life of their own. The vocal on “The Statue” creates a dusty soul track with restless sense of urgency, while album closer “Where Did We Go Wrong” is the most sublime example, trailing the pitched down vocal off into infinity over a beatless soundscape reminiscent of Boards of Canada. It’s a rare moment of calm in an album that is, more than anything, an exhilarating joy to listen to.
Scott Wilson
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The arrival of Nebraska’s Displacement on Rush Hour is rich rewards for the Amsterdam based emporium’s faith in the producer’s clear talent. The label invested in properly releasing several EPs worth of music from Nebraska’s early days which were destined for MVE obscurity, having either gone out of print or failing to make it past the promo stage before the label folded. Both of those releases, Satellite Variations and Terrestrial Variations, demonstrated a canny melding of glistening disco elements with a rough, hewn approach to crafting house and techno rhythms – a near perfect fit on the RH release schedule.
In the subsequent new releases the producer – real name Ali Gibbs – has delivered for Rush Hour, this approach has been refined and improved upon, with the most notable example being his recent, and to date only, remix – of “Full Disco Jacket” by The Carter Brothers – which expertly added some snap to the beat and stretched out the brass hook with aplomb. Displacement arrives first on vinyl, brandishing eight all new Nebraska jams aimed at rewarding those who have already invested in Four For Four & A Weekend On My Own, the two RH twelves whose tracks will fill out the subsequent CD and digital release later this year.
Taking this into consideration, it’s perhaps best not to judge the eight tracks here on their merits as an album-shaped narrative, and instead focus on their potency. Furthermore, there’s always a danger in casting a critical eye on an electronic album’s success in delivering a similar kind of traditional LP shaped journey as a band. Whilst the final digital and compact versions of Displacement will make for adequate headphone fodder, Nebraska’s music is first and foremost geared for spaces with big speaker stacks and sweaty bodies.
Thus Displacement delivers an instantly rewarding urgency in sound from the very first moments of “Allahad” which deviates in feel, mood and tempo throughout until the last moment on the final track “Characteristics”. Here loose, pitch shifted floating keys and scuttering percussion permeates the sumptuous bed of Mid West chords. There is plenty to retian the interest in the six tracks sandwiched between across the two slabs of vinyl. “Phtalo Blues” operates from a similar template to the aforementioned Carter Brothers remix, but cranks up the pressure on the filtered strings to way past thirty, letting them smash you in the guts with their intensity.
Elsewhere “Aitch Aitch” shows restraint, slowly graduating from the moodiness of its early moments into a track that compels via the rising chord shimmers and gentle piano tones. Tracks such as “You & I” and “The Cruives” expertly weave vocal samples into the Nebraska equation, with their hazy treatment lending the productions an subtle dash of hypnosis. “Patina” could quite easily transpose itself to the Direct Current series alongside the likes of Cosmin TRG and FaltyDL, its jagged placement of urgent synths and unannounced arrival of heaving chords amidst the click clack of loose drums marking it out as a real highlight on an album filled with them.
Tony Poland
Team Juno Plus is excited by the news that London based promoters BleeD are playing host to the first UK live performance of Estonian producer Maria Minerva.
The DJ controller market is sufficiently crowded these days to question any manufacturer’s motives to join this features-against-price arms race. But credit where it’s due to French manufacturers Mixvibes, who have stepped up with a unit that still manages to feel relevant, not to mention singular, in the current climate.
Ostgut Ton will release a three track sampler ahead of Marcel Fengler’s Berghain 05 mix, featuring new material from Peter Van Hoesen, Reagenz and Vril.
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There’s been a lot of debate surrounding “Sicko Cell”, chiefly around the identity of the (kind of) anonymous producer. The general consensus is that Joy Orbison is responsible, which would come as no surprise to anyone with a keen ear for his productions; “Sicko Cell” has much in common with “BB”, released on Orbison’s Doldrums imprint last year: stripped back 808 patterns, phased bassline, a demonically pitched down vocal sample and most tellingly, house inspired chords which ring out in the background.
Of course there is an equally valid argument surrounding the track: is it actually any good? The fact is that nothing quite like this has been released; although it comes from a similar angle to the juke inspired productions of artists like Addison Groove and Machinedrum, there’s an equal part to the track that has as much in common with the paranoid dub experiments of Hype Williams. It’s a track built around two competing energies, the rush of the “too much” vocal sample and drums, and the sludgy “cocaine powder” sample and bassline which alternately drags everything into its centre of gravity, but despite this it’s the way that the sample is turned into such an unlikely pop hook that really makes this track so effective.
For many though, the better track may be “Knock Knock”. The samples are cut into smaller pieces, and although that same sense of push and pull remains, the effect is a lot more self-contained, and together with the titular rhythm that never really lets up, creates an effect more suited to maintaining dancefloor momentum. It’s the contrasting warmer mood though, brought on by the sublime synth breakdown filling the track’s sparse production that will probably win most people over. It’s the perfect blend of the total euphoria of “Hyph Mngo” and his more stripped back work like “Wade In”; this restraint is something that suits him particularly well, and as such makes it one of his most balanced productions to date.
Scott Wilson
Full details have emerged of Glass Swords, the long awaited debut album from Glaswegian producer Rustie, which is due to drop in October through Warp Records.
British techno icon Karl O’Connor will release In A Syrian Tongue – his first solo EP under the Regis moniker in 10 years – via Blackest Ever Black this summer.
RBMA Radio are now streaming this excellent and totally unique live recording by Planet Mu and Pictures Music artist Rudi Zygadlo.
The Hunt, the quite enthralling debut release from Gretta Gunn, was notable for many things; the music was rich in variety despite being only three tracks deep, switching between gilt edged pop and noisy, defiant, industrial sounds and noirish squelch. Just as impressive was the presentation, with artwork that portrayed Gunn as an enigmatic superhero from cinema’s past surrounded by the some equally vintage typography. It arrived seemingly out of nowhere, released by Alphabet Set – a boutique Irish label known mostly for its bass leaning deviations.
Perhaps the most striking aspect was the complete lack of information regarding Ms Gunn, matched by a generally myopic response to what has become one of this year’s most enduring releases for us. In the time since The Hunt was released back in April, it seems this cloak of mystery and intrigue has remained around Gunn. With news filtering through of another release on the horizon, we deemed it the perfect moment to track her down and attempt to tease some further details about her murky past and her future plans, an endeavour that was met with some suitably interesting responses.
Doc Daneeka’s Ten Thousand Yen imprint has announced it will release a four track EP from Dutch newcomer Presk in September.
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This year has seen a tidal wave of analogue-informed revivalist jack tracks. It’s near-on impossible to head to a house night and not hear a dusty Trax record or at the very least a modern re-interpretation of one. There’s no denying the seductive qualities of that raw, hard-hitting production style, and this new wave of the old-skool has given us some truly interesting music, as well as some lazily re-hashed dross.
This latest entry on the Not Not Fun sub-label 100% Silk sees Sir Stephen (also of ‘Nintendo punk’ band Maniac Mansion) making his own claim on the early blueprint of house music with five pumping cuts. Every nuance and detail of the ‘88-’91 era is immaculately replicated, albeit with the beefier production values of the present day. This represents something of a departure from the norm for the boutique imprint run by husband and wife duo Amanda and Britt Brown – a shift perhaps signified by the new artwork template that adorns this 12″ and the concurrent release from Ital. Previous releases from the likes of Gillette, The Deeep and Maria Minerva have been informed by classic house and techno but dipped in fuzzy, lo-fi atmospherics, marking this as the most obvious release so far on 100% Silk, in that it wears its influences proudly – and loudly – on its sleeve.
Indeed it’s hard to listen to “Move That Body” and not hear Inner City chart-topper “Good Life” stomping away in a slightly different key, while “Milk N Honey” captures the DX7 organ notes of Crystal Waters’ “Gypsy Woman”, and “Public Style” could easily be a love letter to Robyn S. There’s even a brief stint in classic electro on “NY Boogie”, executed with all but the “break!” intact. At some point you have to step back and say that these tracks, whilst familiar, still manage to kick it. If imitation is a form of flattery then Sir Stephen is clearly in thrall to the good old days, and he’s certainly not bastardised the sound in any way.
Oli Warwick
The New York club night Let’s Play House overseen by Runaway don Jacques Renault and Juno Plus North Atlantic correspondent Nik Mercer will launch a new record label endeavour in September.
Highly touted producer Emika will release her eponymous debut album via venerable British label Ninja Tune in October.
London based Pictures Music began life in 2010 with a dubstep and garage infused EP from fast rising trio Dark Sky. This was closely followed by the Tourist EP from Seams, filled with colourful and minimal electronic tones in the vein of Four Tet or Gold Panda, and the debut release from Chairman Kato, a more claustrophobic EP of expansive bass-filled techno. These three releases couldn’t have been any more disparate, and quickly set out the label’s position as one that was not going to settle releasing one style of music. The release of Koreless’ 4D/MTI single, championed by Gilles Peterson and Jamie xx, saw the label propelled into the consciousness of a much wider audience.
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Being the most accessible and fully formed track from Mount Kimbie’s debut LP Crooks and Lovers, “Carbonated” is an obvious choice for release on an EP. With its breathy sidechained intro, understated organ tones and R&B vocal, it has already found its way into the hearts of many. Utilising a formula that is fast being used by a multitude of other producers, it would have been easy to go down the safe road and get some big name producers working in a similar field to remix the track into more dancefloor friendly versions. Wisely Hotflush have taken the more interesting route and grouped it with some of the most avant-garde remixes they’ve ever released.
The unreleased tracks from Mount Kimbie themselves on the EP also reflect this; “Flux” actually begins as a more ambient number but unexpectedly erupts into life with an 808 cowbell, leading into a sea of cut-up vocals, whilst “Bave’s Chords” is like classic Four Tet, utilising an eastern string sample to great effect. However, it’s the remixes that really surprise. Klaus remixes album cut “Adriatic”; seemingly none of the original’s folky groove remains, with the recent R&S signee turning the track into an ominous, expansive wasteland with a lurching beat and monstrously pitched down vocal samples. It’s curiously like one of those pop tracks slowed down by about 3000 per cent; the structure and feel of dubstep is there, somewhere, but stretched out to infinity.
Airhead, a member of James Blake’s touring band, creates a similarly eerie take on “Carbonated”, taking the intro and extending it to the point of breaking before it explodes into a brief blast of guitar fuzz. It maintains the same kind of rhythm as the original, albeit stripped right back, but the inclusion of guitar creates a musical result more resembling the kind of music coming out of Bristol in the mid-90s than anything else being produced now.
The final remix of “Carbonated” comes from Peter van Hoesen, who again leaves very little of the original, creating a remix that seems to be more inspired by, as opposed to being a reworking of the track itself. As such, it is better judged on its own merits; percussively it treads a fine line between a 4/4 techno beat and something more shuffling, as it weaves its way around a snarling bassline whilst giving the original vocals a shimmering quality that adds an expansiveness to the original track’s introspective nature.
Scott Wilson
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There’s not much to find out about Clams Casino at this very early stage in his career, other than the fact that he’s supposedly produced for Soulja Boy and Lil B amongst others. However there’s enough detail in the music on his first release proper to keep you entertained without any concerns about context. As the rapper credits might suggest, hip-hop provides something of a starting point for the Rainforest EP, but it stops at the beat and the tempo. Indeed those rhythmic elements tick away reliably throughout the tracks, while the immersive melodic content yowls and groans to fill in the space in magnificent fashion.
There’s something undeniably post-rock about the constructions, where distended vocal murmurs flit around minor chord progressions played on bombastic samples that echo up into space, something akin to the atmosphere Sigur Ros can craft around themselves. What’s even more remarkable is just how long each three-minute track feels as it progresses. The “Rainforest” title is an apt one, which is explicitly demonstrated on the equally fitting “Treetop” with its insect chirrups and tweets. Really though the whole EP huffs and pants with organic intent, perversely aided by the budget drum beats that play second fiddle to the wildlife.
Naivety is certainly the key with this record. Any sense of over-production would tarnish the natural charm the tracks purvey, which makes you wonder how Clams Casino’s career will progress from here. If he were never to learn any more about the mechanics of music making, you could imagine he would still turn out arresting and emotionally rich EPs like this one.
Oli Warwick
By now you will have fully soaked in the exciting news that we’re bringing the excellent John Talabot over in September to DJ at our second birthday shenanigans in Dalston. We’ve been itching to let it loose, but thankfully there’s been plenty of quality – if somewhat mysterious – music out this week to keep us occupied.
