Bandcamp Friday - May

Reporting in with this month's offerings. I thought it was going to be a little thin on the ground as I didn't have much lined up, but I managed to get some done in time. In a surprise twist, it also features a fair amount of new releases too! Let's take a look.

Kicking things off with some DMX Krew - Ed from DMX pretty consistently drops New releases to the point where it can be tricky to keep up. I heard the first track from Return To Jupiter when it was up for pre-orders and I knew then I'd get my hands on it soon enough. This is Ed's second release on Peggy Gou's Gudu Records, the first being the equally nice Don't You Wanna Play? EP. It seems to be that when DMX makes stuff for this label he switches focus to pure instrumental, there's no cheeky playful vocal as seen on some other DMX releases here. The title track is the one that sold me - it very clearly takes heavy inspiration from Underground Resistance, especially the Galaxy 2 Galaxy material. The end result is this fine slice of retro-futuristic techno, bouncy and airy, it's a lot of fun to listen to.



Next up is Yaga, yet another artist that until now I'd only really had bits and pieces from scattered across miscellaneous compilations. My experience up until this point was mainly bits from Rhythm Of Snow - all pretty minimal, at the border of my taste in the genre, anything further is a bit too minimal for me. I don't remember exactly how Faded Photographs came onto my radar, but I do remember being entranced by the one preview track at the time No Matter What.

Now, having spent a fair bit of time with the whole album, I can happily confirm the rest is very much in the same vein. I've seen a lot of discussion from fans of Yagya saying that this vocal-oriented shift he's taken isn't for them, but I quite like it, granted it is my first real experience with it beyond his older works.

It's an album that is pretty antithetical to my listening habits, my usual MO is a set of speakers and my entire collection on shuffle all at once. Faded Photographs by comparison is a much more intimate experience, one that benefits greatly from immersing yourself completely in it. I was a little on the fence about it until I threw on a set of headphones and listened to it front-to-back, it all flows together in a lovely way.

That said, there are still tracks that stand alone, my favourite still being No Matter What, but I'm really liking the whole thing, you can spend a lot of time picking out the delicacies on repeat listens and I just adore the moments of melodic vocal flourishes. It can end up sounding a little same-y in parts, but I'd definitely give it a spin if you're in the mood for some quieter, introspective listening.



Third is a compilation I'd had my eyes on for a while, one I'd assumed wouldn't be available digitally due to the label, Musik Aus Strom, being defunct. Turns out it was revived in 2022 by one of the founders and has almost all its back catalogue available, with more planned to come!

The compilation in question, the punnily titled MAS Confusion is a goldmine of lesser known IDM vendors and if you're a fan of then sound, especially around the early 00's when this compilation released then it is certainly worth checking out. There are some early highlights: the opening track from Metamatics that I've talked about before is beautiful, and Adamn Johnson's tracks are almost perfect encapsulations of what makes the 'IDM' sound. My choice for today though is Xela's Streetlevel, a lovely bit crushed nostalgia trip that also embodies all things IDM. Xela has a pretty extensive list of releases too, if you like this one I highly recommend For Frosty Mornings And Summer Nights for more in the same style (in addition to the rest of this compilation of course!)



Finally, a last minute addition in Sachi Kobayashi. It's been a little while since I picked up any ambient, so I went looking through my past purchases to check up on some artists. I'd only had a couple EPs from Sachi Kobayashi, but I very much liked them all - turns out there'd been plenty of releases between mow and the last time I checked in so I was a little spoilt for choice. I went one up from where I last checked in, Weathervane, a release inspired by the surviving Weathervane after the Notre Dame fire. For me, Kobayashi is at her best on tracks like Symbol, very roomy soundscapes with a hint of melody carrying throughout. A lovely closer to the experience, Weathervane is an ideal jumping in point for Kobayashi's work and it is currently 'name your price' over on Bandcamp, so there is no price barrier to entry if you enjoy it.



And that'll be all for today, so much for 'thin on the ground' after all eh? Part of me is considering doing a full review of the Yagya LP, but I also put most of my thoughts into this post here (hence the length!). At any rate, I hope you've found something to pique your interest here in this slightly eclectic selection. I'll drop by again with more in due time but until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Random Handful

Peter Alexander - Contoy (1988) Swinging by with a handful of tunes - wasting no time in getting down with some of the latest from ThorHighHeels, a video producer with a unique aesthetic who also occasionally dabbles in the music world. Their work has that same effervescent, unserious feel that permeates their video content, as seen most prominently on the latest music release Skung with track titles like "FRAME RATE SINGLE DIGETS LETS GOOOOOOOOO". Surprising no one, my favourite from it so far is very much in the vein of Positive Yellow that I have posted before. The kind where Thor taps into that latent mutual love that we share for that very specific PS1 Demo Disc style sound: that weird hybrid every techy genre that was out there at the time - techno, jungle and the like. I do quite like the closing track as well, the aptly named PS3 Beat, a great twist on the masses of tunes out there that sample the PS1 and 2 startup noises.



One of the few times that Bandcamp's 'new from' feature has failed me, I only knew of this one because the artist in question sent out an info email with it on. Sense returns, his work I'm most familiar with is that certain kind of early 00's fragile ambient come IDM style stuff that is very pretty. But those albums I know are either 20 years old, or are coming close to it, so what does Sense sound like now? Well, I can't speak for his main releases, but the title of Grey Sky Dub kinda gives away the game for this latest one. Much more in the style of say, Swayzak in terms of tone and sound as we enter the world of dubby techno, this release is made up of "...a collection of various live jams over the years that we have restored and remastered" and it certainly feels like it. I don't mean that in a negative way, I do have a bit of a fondness for stuff that sounds like an extended jam session. Gathering sounds like you've just dropped into the middle of a set with how it starts, a little minimal for my tastes in all honesty - but I do sometimes like to take a deep dive into this world and that is especially true right now.



Speaking of, I was actually putting some Swayzak back in rotation actually, I haven't mentioned them much just because a lot of their stuff is pretty hard to find legally streaming - though the bandcamp is full of hidden gems and other gubbins too. Their debut is over there which is a great place to start, it does have a slightly different tracklist from the original release but even so it's a great crash course in Swayzak of the era - super long techy house stuff. Snowboarding In Argentina is a hefty chunk to get stuck into, even though its only 7 tracks the shortest of them clocks in at a still fairly hefty 7 mins 30. I've already posted my two all time faves from this album, but in reality the opening trio is a solid introduction to the sound. Burma Heights is probably the least minimal of the three, the massive squealing chords that back up most of it can get a little obnoxious at times but I'm kinda into it at the minute, and I just adore the smooth swimming sounds of the intro that are persistent throughout.



And that'll do it for this slightly eclectic roundup of what I've had on over the past day or so, hope they appeal to you as much as they do me. It's a pretty wild selection, but then again these are wild times. Git a quiet tail end of the week so I may cue up a couple more posts as well, might be time to do the last instalment (for the time being) of the bite-sized bits. Keep an ear out but until then, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Finds I've Found

It's a wonder what you can do when you finally get around to tidying up. After looking over some of my notes and deciding 'This is getting silly, time to trim some of this down' I've spent the last couple of days gettign around to various albums and other media I've had on the list for a while. It's been very varied too - checking out the rest of Sugar Plant's work - a kind of indie shoegazy downtempo that I just adore for starters, to the more upbeat and (probably unintentionally) slightly vaporwave sounds of the later works of Hiroshi Yoshimura.

While neither of those are on official streamers sadly, I have been pleasantly surprised at the availability of some things on there - serving as a reminder to always check out BC even if it seems unlikely. Starting with another compilation find of mine with Calm who makes exactly the kind of tunes you'd expect given the name. Starting with one of the original tracks from 1998's Shadow Of The Earth - a slightly jazzy cut of late 90's downtempo. It feels a little reductive to call it just that, but it's cut from the same cloth as so many other 90's downtempo albums - but that's not intended as a slight against it, as long time readers will know it's a style I've got a lot of time for and can count many albums in my all time favourites that fall into that category. I've been enjoying my time with it, though I feel that this one is perhaps a little long in the tooth at a hefty 7 minutes.



There are a whole load of bonus tracks included on the BC release, including the one that was on the compilation that pointed me towards Calm in the first place - the Bossa Nova Sitting On The Beach. I've actually picked the track that comes before it, the potentially confusingly named Running On The Sand, which I assumed would be a demo version of the above at first glance (It kind of is in parts, but it was actually released as a single before the album!). I think I may like it a little more than the above one - the previous mix could feel a little generic in parts and despite being longer I feel like this one mixes up the variation a lot more too. It's got a slightly techy feel that's refreshing, but still admittedly very late 90's in execution in a way that I personally find really charming but that could just be my bias for this era of sound showing. One last thing before I forget too - there's also a Drum & Bass reworking of it on Calm's follow up album from 2001 too that's pretty great as well.



Another slightly obscure one to round out, a solitary release from an artist called Sora from label called simply Plop. It's another one I was passingly aware of again thanks to compilations, and one of the albums that I had just assumed would be tricky to get legit as mentioned at the top. It isn't the case though, thanks to a re-press from the folks at WRWTFWW Records, who have saved my bacon more than once.

Anyway, onto the album itself - its another one that is supremely up my alley in terms of sound, a real interesting mix of contrasting styles - delicate, almost minimal ambient with glitchy trimmings to highlight and little jazzy touches here and there to boot. It's been a real treat to dive into as it reminds me a whole lot of some of the stuff Mitsuto Suzuki put out for his solo work (who also gets glitchy form time to time, but that track isn't the best demo of that), as well as the the works of Kensuke Ushio, both the soundtrack work he does under his own name but especially the work he's done under the Agraph alias too. The featured track Revans does an excellent job of showing this off, the first couple of minutes are gorgeous and I just love those skippy stop-start vocal samples dropped in.



I need to properly spend a bit more time with this one, but it's a style I can really get into at times - tracks like Etude:Diagonal continue to play with those cut up snippets of vocals in a really fun way, but I don't think it's something I could just have on in the background - it almost demands to be actively listened to in order to pick out the intricacies. The album is at its best I feel when it merges all these styles together as on Traces - the smooth piano of the opening merges really nicely with the more melodic vocal cuts on show here, and the small jazzy flourishes here and there keep it feeling fresh, my favourite being the really bright sounding skips introduced around the 1:20 mark. Certainly one of the more accessible and less experimental tracks on the album along with Revans, so if you go checking out the full thing be prepared for things to get a little more out there. An interesting curio for sure and one I can see myself picking up sometime soon.



That's all for this time, as I mentioned at the start it's been a pretty productive week for clearing stuff off my 'to listen' lists, I just wish more of it were available on legit streamers. Still, I could always knock up another mixtape thing with them sometime soon as a kind of workaround, and I'm content to at least link to unofficial ones in the text like I have done here in the meantime. I'm a little busier this week so things may be a little quieter, but I'll be sure to be back as soon as I can. Until then, as always - Stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Algorithms!

I've for a long time voiced my issues with algorithms when it comes to discovering new music. Partly because I'm slightly jaded from every 'you might like' system not being as good as Grooveshark's (RIP), or at least as good as I remember it being with rose tinted glasses and all. That and getting stuck in a perpetual loop of 'Albums you might like' recommends from discogs too, though I will admit that they have gotten better with time. And that's really the crux of this post - I've changed my tune a bit when it comes to the algorithms, whether that be them getting better or me just having less time to take the deep dives that I used to I can't say. Here's a selection of tunes I've found via automated processes.

Ellsworth Kelly - Spectrum Colors Arranged By Chance VI (1951)

A lot of this music comes from Japan, and the reason for that is multi-layered. Firstly I've been on that kind of mode for a while so it's only natural the machines learn that and send similar stuff my way (see my previous posts on Rei Harakami et al), but secondly because it seems to be a big scene in the world of YouTube. And the reason for that is interesting in and of itself, word in the industry is that it's diabolically hard to license Japanese music for release elsewhere - though labels like Light In The Attic are doing their best to rectify that, I highly recommend their compilation Kankyō Ongaku: Japanese Ambient, Environmental & New Age Music 1980-1990. There are exceptions to this, most of Rei Harakami's work is easily accessible via Bandcamp now for one, but often things just get lost in the interim.

Enter Susumu Yokota - an equally prolific name in the world of Japanese electronic but unlike Harakami's works, a lot of his discography is not simple to get your hands on. The album I found via the 'rithms, Cat, Mouse & Me, is one such example: released in 1997 on the Harthouse label, never re-pressed or re-issued beyond the original releases in Europe and the US and the label is still around but has been defunct several times throughout the years - the first time being actually in 1997. And that's before we introduce the complications of Yokota's death probably making managing the rights a real headache. But enough background, onto the album itself! Credited to just 'Yokota' on the sleeve, it's a different flavour to the House and Ambient stuff I've posted of his before. Here we take a trip to the more downtempo side of things, some of these tracks are straight up Trip-Hop and I love Yokota's interpretations of the genre. The whole thing has this lovely late 90's feel that as you all know by now I really really love. I picked this track in particular for that very reason, for a little while we dip our toes into Drum & Bass territory and if you're at all like me and love Soichi Terada's D&B work - this one will be extremely up your alley. Taking a few cues from the like of Omni Trio as well, Few is packed with lush ambient pads backed with breakbeats, Yokota gives the tune plenty of room to breathe with extended breakdowns focusing on those delicious synths. I've been wearing it out for well over a week now with no signs of stopping.



I've also discovered a lot of compilations this way - one I've mentioned very briefly in passing, Hamburgeins has given me a chance to once again open my borders to more minimal stuff. I'm incredibly picky when it comes to minimal as longtime readers will know - which often makes it hard for me to pin down why I like some tracks over others and this one is no different in that respect. At it's most base level its just a simple loop and a 4/4 for 8 minutes with the occasional vocal chorus - on paper it sounds like I wouldn't much care for it but it's probably one of my most listened to from the compilation, though it is an alias/group of Alexander Polzin so that might explain it a bit. I think it really captures that hi-tech smoothness that permeates that compilation, and maybe it's just the menial work I'm doing these days but it's been a great one to pass the time with.



And a roundabout one to play us out, and the oldest example of this here. This one's a cross-media tale - VA-11 HALL-A was first recommended to me by Steam thanks to my interest in any and all things with the 'Cyberpunk' tag. It was the artwork that caught my eye first of all, but like so many people's Steam accounts I essentially wish-listed it and promptly forgot about it. A few weeks later a streamer I follow mentioned they'd be playing it so I figured I'd tune in, and it was one of those moments where I couldn't stick around - not because of timezones or I had something to do - no, this was one of those times where I had to leave the stream because I knew I needed this in my life. The artwork, the music and of course the game itself absolutely nail their aesthetic and I'm having to stop myself from writing multiple paragraphs on it once again. Simply put: if you like Synthwavy stuff at all, definitely consider picking up VA-11 HALL-A or it's soundtracks - Garoad's music is impeccably twinned with it and makes the whole experience that much richer, it runs the gamut from full on synthwave club tracks, to borderline ambient and twinkling downtempo slow jams like this one. Absolutely gorgeous.



And so ends another weekly post, I'm going to try resurrect some old posts this weekend if I can make heads or tails of the spaghetti html with the new blogger layout, I may republish a couple of them as 'new' posts at some point during the week as well. Apologies for the re-runs in advance but I'll try and balance it out with new ones too! And as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Ilictromix: Matthew Prain (2014)

A re-post and archival of one of the series of mixes Adam sourced for us a long time ago. There's a couple more of these in the archives but I will spread them out between new posts! In the meantime, stay safe and enjoy the music. -CVF

This year I have been on a huge Drone/Ambient kick, so I'm really excited for this weeks Ilictromix! It comes to us from Matthew Prain a 23 year old Brisbane resident. I never knew that such moody dense music was coming out of Australia's scene, but after listening to his EP's and this mix my ears and attention are going down under. Also Surprising is how bright and cheery he is for how dark the material is that he puts out. I was introduced to his work after I fell in with the track "You Should Have Told Me (From The Beginning)" So I asked him a couple of questions and invited him to make a mix for us and luckily he agreed.

IL: So how did you get started and how long have you been producing? 

MP:  I started producing music in 2007, but I was really just messing around with pre-made loops and remixing Nine Inch Nails' songs at that point. I made some albums along the way under many lame pseudonyms until I finally got into film music in 2011.

IL: Minimalist and drone are some hard sub-genres to get into though what led you down that road? 

MP: I've always been interested in minimalist music where it's fairly repetitive in nature with only slight changes over time. The synthesizer I used in the EP (the Buchla Music Easel) was basically perfect for that style.

IL: So what are you listening to now then? 

MP: Lately I've been intrigued by the sounds of Death Grips and Tune-Yards, but my most recent favorite album would have to be Half-Eaten Guitar by Wyrd Visions - it's easily the most unique thing I've heard in a long time.

IL:  Oh you know how much we love Death Grips here! So then if right now you could work with any artists who would it be? 

MP:  I would have to say Phil Elverum of Mount Eerie, since I always go back to listening to his music at some point. Plus, it would be pretty cool to combine more electronic elements with his style of music...

IL: So how do you find inspiration for such dense textures and creating moody atmospheres? 

MP:  I guess the inspiration came from wanting to do an electronic album that was more personal and revealing, which I've always tended to avoid doing with most of my music. I was also inspired by Alessandro Cortini's solo albums to restrict myself creatively with using only a Buchla synthesizer, as well attempting to make it somewhat more performable live. Sound-wise, my inspiration comes from a combination of non-electronic artists like Mount Eerie and Wyrd Visions, and electronic artists like Tim Hecker, Andy Stott, and Boards of Canada.

IL: Oh ok that makes sense, So what Equipment are you using? 

MP: Apart from the Buchla Music Easel and a EHX Cathedral reverb pedal, I record with Ableton Live on a Mac. Tracks 2 and 4 were the only tracks that were multitracked while tracks 1, 3, and 5 were performed live in one take.

IL: If you could mail a letter to yourself 5 years ago what would it say? 

MP:  "You will stop listening to NIN in a few years time."

IL: Do you have a favorite flavor of Ice-Cream? 

MP: Chocolate easily, but sometimes vanilla depending on the mood. No extra gnarly toppings though - I like my ice cream to be minimal as well!

IL: So the EP is just stellar! Whats next for you? Rumors have it your going to sell out and make a Trap album? 

MP: I'm currently working on "Part 2" of Thoughts, so I can turn it into a complete album. The rumors are true - I'm planning on working with Kenny G to make a new style of trap music called "easy listening trap".

Tracklist: 
Andy Stott - Numb
Oval - Textuell
Boards of Canada - Reach For The Dead
Andy Stott - Execution
Tim Hecker - October, Part 1
Tim Hecker - October, Part 2
Aphex Twin - "Rhubarb"
Tim Hecker - Black Refraction

You can find more of Matthew Prain here: 

Soundcloud
Twitter
Website

-Adam

Digital Digging

I've been looking through my Bandcamp collection and Wishlist in prep of the upcoming Friday, where they're continuing the tradition they've had recently of waiving their cut of the sales for that day. I've been taking advantage of this because it feels nice to do, and also it turns out having a set date to get music on actually makes me actually decide on things instead of throwing them in the pile of "to get to". Anyway, here are the results of that perusal.

Yiannis Tsaroychis - Cafe "Neon" At Night (1965)
I don't even have that much in my Bandcamp collection but already its easy for things to get a little lost, take The Flashbulb's Love As A Dark Hallway, I picked it up some time ago but then never really mentioned it here. I think the main reason for that is that it was an album I'd loved from afar for a couple of years by the time I got it, so while it was new it wasn't 'new' y'know? To cut a ramble short definitely check out The Flashbulb, Benn Jordan is a fantastic musician and his work under The Flashbulb moniker is often a lovely mix of ambient sensibilities and fairly accessible IDM. I'd almost argue it's easier to introduce folk to the genre with Flashbulb (although now I'm writing this, that's not counting the more melodic Aphex Twin pieces!), all the key elements are there just not as face melty as some others. Pastorial Whiskers almost sounds like it could be something from Squarepusher funnily enough, especially the Hello Everything era with those swooping synths and jazzy bass guitar work. One last side note I do like how Benn included different album art for each individual track for this album, it's a nice touch, a shame most music players don't support it fully though.



It's a similar tale with this next album actually, maybe even a longer one than the above. I first fell in with this one back on Grooveshark of all places, back when it would have been a new release in 2013. For all it's flaws I did really like its recommended system, it was better at showing you new stuff than Spotify at any rate which at least for me gets stuck in a loop of the same few albums and tracks, but I'm digressing again. It's been a while since I listened to it properly, the one album is very much lost in my usual MO of shuffling everything I own. Which is a shame because its a very slickly done slice of Ambient and IDM and is totally in line with that techy sounding vibe I've been after lately. There's definitely more than a bit of Burial influence on here and it sounds a lot like there's a touch of Moderat as well, especially the II album, they were only released a few months apart actually! It can get a little long in the tooth for me on some days, but as you might expect with my recent techy kick I'm very much into it today.



Third verse same as the first! I was a long time admirer of Soichi Terada's work on various soundtracks but his solo work was at that point either only on vinyl, out of print or just tricky to get hold of. Thankfully that's changed in recent times and a compilation of his various solo pieces is now easily grab-able on BC, Sounds From The Far East is essentially a 'best of' of Terada's House works, as much as I love his Drum & Bass from Ape Escape he has a real knack for the slower tempos too. Part of the reason I love Terada's work so much is that it sounds like he has so much fun when making them, something you can hear in the production and is reflected in the album art for this comp too. It's an unfortunate casualty of the digital version having a different tracklist curse, but it's not too hard to find the missing / replaced tracks out there if you're so inclined like I was. There are a ton of tracks I could pick but I went with one of my favourite deep house bits in Purple Haze which wastes no time getting into the swing of things, and is full of the hallmarks of Terada's sound of this era: sweeping synths, big kicks and bouncy basslines.



Something new (to me) to wrap up, once again making me further amend my "I don't like minimal" sign to say "I don't like a lot of minimal" (although this is technically tech house but the point stands if you give it a listen!) I checked out Swayzak based off the electro-poppy State Of Grace and I Dance Alone, and was greeted with this and similar tracks instead. I was surprised for sure, but then again this isn't the first time I've seen an artist make a dramatic 180 in sound. I've yet to take a proper dive in but I have found more than a few tracks to catch my ear that are once again scratching that techy itch I have. Low-Rez Skyline is fairly sedate which makes for really good at-the-computer music, there's a lot of little flourishes and switch ups throughout that keep things fresh and interesting for me. It echoes of one of my other favourite Tech/Deep House pieces: Marshall Jefferson's Mushrooms remixed by Salt City Orchestra, albeit minus the absolutely stellar spoken word element. If you asked me originally I'd say that Skyline could benefit from that type of treatment too, but now I'm not so sure. It's a little lengthy at almost 10 minutes, but that makes it one of the shorter tracks from this album, I could see that being a deal breaker for some and on paper I would include myself in that, but I'm only now beginning to feel it growing stale after my fourth or so listen in a row when prepping this post.



And that'll do us for today. Stay tuned this week as both mine and coincidentally the blog's birthday come up on Saturday, I don't know what if anything I'm gonna do yet but I hope to come up with something. There'll be certainly no party this year that's for sure. And on that note, as always, stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

We Are All Connected

If you'll allow me, I'm going to indulge once again in the slightly more niche ideas I've been kicking around in my head. I've been thinking a lot about the concept of fan-works and the inspiration they offer. Fan-works are usually visual art, but sometimes they cross over into audio as well which is what we'll be talking about today, but first a bit of background.

It should come as no surprise to some readers that I am a big fan of Serial Experiments Lain. It's a series from 1998 that only seems to have gotten more prophetic about technology with age and has some incredibly visceral visual depictions of mental disorders that I really resonated with. Anyway, Lain has potentially the most fan-made music out of any fandom I actively follow, which is equal amounts surprising and expected really, and it runs the gamut from a Bootleg remix of the show's opening theme, that was then remixed again by one of the musicians responsible for the series' music, to the usual affair of 'inspired-by' compilations. And this was all before the landmark choice to make Lain "Open Source" until 2028, making the creation of fanworks not only easier, but essentially officially sanctioned. That is an incredible choice, and one very fitting for the source material.

As mentioned before though, people have been making fan works even before that point, and I'm going to talk about a few of them here. First off; I'm Real, I'm Here from Echochamber. This release is a perfect starting point as it doesn't lean very heavily on referencing the source material, making it very accessible if you're unfamiliar. But also playing into my initial point, it's a great fan work because it is very much evokes the atmosphere of the source material but with a more modern and personalised by the artist twist. I'm Real, I'm Here runs through a whole host of moods, from full on hip-hop, straight up Vaporwave and to Minimal House pieces like the one I'm going to post. I listened to it straight through for my first time and the whole experience flows together supremely well. Gorgeously lush in parts, intensely claustrophobic in others, it would definitely be my most recommended LP to check out from this post.



It's a very well balanced LP, despite spanning a ton of genres it never feels like it's particularly weighted one way or the other, save for the more hip-hop influenced pieces. I'm keeping it on he more accessible side for now with another one of my favourites which transports me back to my very short lived Progressive House phase. It's odd for me to describe a tune like this as nostalgic, but that time I was into Prog House is only getting further away! As above there's no obvious nods to its inspiration material here, which is a bit of a blessing as it lets me focus on the content itself. Occasionally when tracks like this come on I begin to vibe with them in an extra special way, a way that reminds me why I love electronic music and more specifically the myriad of House-y offshoots. This one in particular is excellently crafted; I adore that sweeping intro, there's not a single element out of place throughout, and to boot it doesn't suffer from having 3+ minutes of 4/4 tacked onto the front and back like some Prog House tunes in my library.



It's no surprise that such a surreal and psychological series like Lain, that also is steeped heavily in technology attracted the more... extreme side of electronic music genres. We're not going to dive straight into the deep end yet however. Let's talk about the self-published compilation Subhuman. True to the Dōjinshi format, Subhuman was available in limited supply from a comic market on December 30, 2009 (and I think from the label's site in limited quantity too?). Despite this the compilation is not incredibly difficult to get your hands on, and it's definitely worth a look. The opening track, fittingly called 'Depersonalization', is a lovely slice of dark and gloomy IDM tinged trip-hop. The breakdown at about 4 mins in is absolutely delightful.



I'm totally betraying the opening sentence of the last paragraph though because I'm not posting the more abrasive tunes from this comp. Tracks like "The Accelerator" for example have Current Value style hard Drum & Bass as the dish of choice, but the artist behind that track and the Compilation at large; 3x6, also has a more traditional drum & bass appearance on this comp. Both I'm Real, I'm Here both sport samples rom the series scattered throughout (though none of the tracks I've picked do!), on paper I'd be inclined to call this a little on-the-nose but in practice it works incredibly well; none of the samples feel forced or shoehorned into make it more of a fan-work, operating more like a knowing wink to those who know the source material. One last thought here: truth be told I remembered this as being one of my lesser liked tunes from here, but something about it is just hitting slightly different today.



Rounding us out for today I will now take a dive into that extreme side! The final compilation I'm talking about is La-Incarnation, from Otherman Records, a tiny (seemingly defunct) netlabel from Japan, who in their own words are "Leading Japanese Breakcore Scene". This one is the real mixed bag of the bunch, I can't recommend it as easily as the other two as it is often a challenging listen, but I still like it (it's also name your price if you want to scoop it for free). It's taken me a good while to narrow it down to a couple of songs actually, trying to strike a balance between a good demonstration of that atmosphere and not being too experimental. First example is fairly tame, what I really like about this album is that it feels very distinctly like when you used to stumble into weird websites way back when; full of strange screen-names and site-specific slang. There's plenty of Chiptune on this compilation but this might be my favourite example, the smooth intro giving in after a minute or so to slightly glitchy bleeps and bloops that are straight out of a Keygen song only cements that technology fuelled atmosphere.



The intro and main body having wildly different flavours is a trend in my picks, at the risk of spoiling the experience it's why this one won out. It reminds me an awful lot of when I first listened to Clark's The Autumnal Crush, specifically being completely blindsided by the sheer intensity of it. If you're playing the song as you're reading this you've probably raised an eyebrow. "Intense?" I hear you say "Seems like it's just a regular downtempo type tune" and you would be right, but there is a sudden switch up after about 3 minutes that certainly lives up to that breakcore quote the label said initially. It's definitely an experience that is better if you're NOT expecting it like I wasn't on my first listen but I couldn't really talk about it without spoiling. On some days it really hits something inside of me and it's incredible, other days I have to reach for the skip track button when I remember that part approaching. Today I can appreciate them both in their chilled and face melting moods respectively.

Tune In, Drop Out

Postponing another post as I needed to get this out ASAP. Some of you may remember how much I love Miss Kittin's compilation/mixtape thingy Radio Caroline, Vol. 1, I've posted about it plenty in the past! It's finally made it's way to digital distribution (as have a lot of her mixes) via bandcamp, which I was surprised at because I thought it'd be a licensing minefield. I long ago picked up a second hand physical version anyway but it's nice to see it accessible like this.

Radio Caroline a real treasure trove of rare tunes, myself and Kittin's music taste sometimes clash, I've listened to a few of her other compilations like this and none of them have quite gripped me the way this one has. It's not just the track choices either, Kittin injects a little bit of uniqueness to the compilation/mix by overdubbing herself musing in spoken word about a variety of topics, it makes the whole thing feel a lot more personal and twinned with the excellent track choices you really get a feel for her personality through it. Let's get right in.

It doesn't take long before we hit a highlight, after a brief intro we hit the gorgeous melodic IDM of Delarosa & Asora, this track is one of many that made it onto my 'must pick up' list off the back of this compilation (though unfortunately some are a lot harder to come by than this) it really sets the mood for things to come, even down to the little spoken word interlude from Kittin towards the end as it mixes out into the next track. I may yet write a full Retro Review of this compilation because it totally deserves it, and being a mix it might be a little disjointed with me just picking my favourites. That said, listening to it in prep for writing this, a lot of the tracks stand pretty well on their own, the only giveaway they're from a mix is usually on the outros and not the beginnings which is a testament to how well the tracks are picked.



Back to the rarities, here's one that pretty much only exists on this compilation. It's another one of those instances where mine and Kittin's music taste doesn't quite align, but where I would become quickly bored by tunes like this in a regular mix, Kittin's spoken word gives it a little edge that keeps it fresh and the best part is how effortlessly it's put in there, Kittin's voice doesn't seem like an out-of-place addition, you could almost mistake it for being part of the studio track. And bonus points for the absolutely gorgeous mixing out into Marshall Jefferson vs. Noosa Heads' Mushrooms (Salt City Orchestra Out There Mix), which is one of my favourites of all time, never mind from this mix!



Keeping things rare with a piece from Plaid alias Repeat, and you can definitely hear the Plaid influence in there once it's pointed out, though it is very different from their usual melodic semi-IDM style. This is again another one of those tracks that would have been super obscure were it not for this mix, this isn't Kittin flexing on how many rare records she has in her collection though, it's something a little more wholesome. I know I'm repeating (ha!) that point a lot but it bears doing so: part of the reason I got into blogging and the reason I adore mixes like this is that you get to shine a light on so much stuff that you enjoy and hopefully others will as well.



Saving my all time favourite for last. If we wanted to talk about flexing rarity this would be the track to do it on. Taken from Walking Endustries one and only EP called "Relaxation II - The Era Of 'Mental Hip Hop", of which there are only 500(!) copies. This record has been a great source of pleasure and pain for me, between Radio Caroline and another compilation I had a total of two tracks from it and they were both super gorgeous. I saw rumors a while ago now that it was going to get a digital release but nothing seems to have materialised yet. After literally years of fruitless searching I finally got my hands on a copy (digitally that is) not too long ago and it's everything I could have wanted. I love the inclusion of Makkee on this mix, it stands out amongst the minimal and house we've heard so far and is generally just a lovely slice of Hip Hop. What really makes it complete though is that tempo switch up in the latter half, kicking in at around 3 minutes in, and it's subsequent mixing out into the final track [Kinesthesia - Flicklife (µ-Ziq Mix)]. I could have written the whole article on this track alone, but the whole compilation has been an incredible chapter in my music listening history and I cannot recommend it enough. Especially now it's super easy to get your hands on via bandcamp.



Be sure to check out the full thing on Bandcamp! I skipped over many a track, including a couple favourites not mentioned here (If you've been reading long enough to know my taste you might be able to spot them! ). Worth noting if you love a bargain like me, Kittin is currently offering a coupon code to get 80% off anything from her bandcamp (until July 16), the code is "happybd" (minus the quotes). Get out there and support your favourite artists!

Cross Section

Apologies for the slight delays recently, I've been on a bit of a roll with restoring a bunch of blog posts (over 600 republished as of writing!) but unfortunately we're hitting the era where a lot of the posts either have broken soundcloud links b/c they've been taken down (Which I am still republishing, just with a note that they're broke) or even worse have no formatting which makes it an absolute headache to fix the links. Here's a screenshot so that all of you can share my pain as well:

Yeah. So I thought I'd return to form with this original post as I just talk about the kinda stuff I'm listening to as of late. Let's get right in, my techno itch came up something fierce a little while ago as you might have notice from the High Tech Dreams mixtape I did a little while ago, I used that as a springboard to dive further into the work of Mijk Van Dijk. Van Dijk's stuff has been hit and miss with me in the past but the hits have been incredible hits. I chose the album 'Teamwork' as I hadn't yet heard anything from it, as the name suggests it's an album of collaborations, each track is Mijk with another producer. I picked the opening track with Humate (who I'm slightly familiar with from Love Stimulation) so it was looking to be a good time. I love that intro something fierce; partially the gorgeous synth accompaniment that is very Van Dijk, partially the nostalgic if a little cliché Tomb Raider samples that make up the backbone of the track.



Not to play out the High Tech Dreams post again, but I recently replayed Ape Escape 3 for a slice of nostalgia and the soundtrack still holds up incredibly well. It marks the return of Soichi Terada after being absent from the sequel, I always want to describe his soundtracks as suprising given the subject material. They're cutesy games form Japan about catching monkeys, I certainly wouldn't expect it to be home to some absolutely gorgeous Drum & Bass and House, but I suppose that's what you get when you bring an electronic musician in as a composer (And I am not complaining at all!). Gorgeous skittering beats, lush synth pads and a surprisingly thick bassline are the order of the day here, with the fittingly titled Eversummer Island. It cuts off abruptly as do most of these OSTs, mostly because I think they're designed to loop back into themselves.



A recent addition to my listening repertoire, Swayzak were supposed to appear in some form in that High Tech Dreams mixtape mentioned above, but were cut last minute. Currently making me eat my words a little as so many other bands have with my "I don't really like minimal" stance. They also cross over into the world of electroclash a bit in the early 00's which as you all may know is essentially scoring a critical hit on me (Doubly so when one of their works is a collab with Nicola Kuperus of ADULT.). A little lost on where to begin I jumped in on 2000's Himawari which is a suitably high tech treat. I chose State Of Grace to best represent this, I can see how people would lump this in with electroclash, there is a kind of Fischerspooner-esque style to the proceedings, and even some German thrown in there toward the end to suggest that Euro vibe of labels like International Deejay Gigolos. It sounds surprisingly modern for 20 years old now, though Kirsty Hawkshaw Of Opus III fame on the vocals is a bit of a throwback for sure. At least in that department I will say it's a least a little early-mid 00's, regardless it's an all around solid production.



-CVF

Ilictronix Podcast: Button Mashin' D&B, Breakup Playlists Continued

"Claude brings some Video Game DnB. Adam goes through another breakup and continues his breakup playlist "cuffing season edition" "

We are live for this week! I one again revist the world of videogames, with an initially unintentional (but then I made it so) focus on the world of Drum & Bass and all it's flavours. We cover a whole bunch of ground in this episode; from old school breakbeat to liquid funk and even a little bit of breakcore in there too. I couldn't have contrasted more with Adam's choices this week but more on that as we get to it.

I appreciate that these episodes blur the lines with what the show's about, and that it might not be for everyone given the subject matter, but as mentioned last time it came up games played an integral part in my electronic music journey and continue to do so to this day! I also tried to keep it fairly varied in terms of the audio, even though we're mostly dealing with Drum & Bass this week, I tried to bring a selection of flavours from a selction of sources; we have fan works, independent works, and dedicated composer's work too. Though saying that my intro choice for this week breaks that trend, as teased (off-mic) last week I have recently picked up a bunch of quite obviously Rustie and Hudson Mohawke inspired stuff I am still absolutely in love with. Major shout-outs to OCRemix this week, with two of the tracks for this week coming from albums hosted on their site (of which you can find links to in the show notes!).

Adam's choices for this week are very much considered, and once again I very much appreciate having him on the podcast (and as well for editing and uploading it of course). We touch on many things ABOUT music in his section of the show, which is something we've talked about a little in previous episodes where we discussed how we listen and why (or why we think) we do that. And honestly I really enjoyed it, part of what makes ilictronix what it is is not just the electronic music component, but the passion as well, and you can hear as Adam talks us through his choices this week that each one has been carefully considered and has its place in the listing. Perhaps a little bit deep for a show where we mainly just talk tunes in a casual fashion but I feel its an important aspect of the musical experience, and I definitely would rather have it this way than us just talking about dancefloor bangers back-to-back (even if we do from time to time!). Tracklist and the show notes below as per usual!

Tracklist:
Intro:Louis Futon - Shoulda Known (GANZ Remix)


Claude’s picks:
Rom Di Prisco - Quantum Singularity
Flexstyle - Unstoppable (Critical Hit!)
0edit - Impetus
Toby Fox - Your Best Nightmare
Zircon & Jillian Aversa - The Search For Ambrosia (NYC Streets)


Adam’s Picks
Arca - Brokeup
Calibre - Addict
Other People Place - You Said You Want Me
Kraftwerk - Computer Love
Basic Channel - Lyot Remix
Outro:
Thom Yorke - Truth Ray


SHOW NOTES:
Shoutouts once again to OCRemix for doing what they do and providing a ridiculous number of albums and remixes over on their website. Two tracks I talked about this week are taken from their albums, the first being Flexstyle's Unstoppable (Critical Hit!) which you can find on the album ARMed And DANGerous, which is available for free here!. The second is from the Deus Ex themed album I mentioned, it's my favouirte of the OCRemix albums I have for a variety of reasons, all the tunes are excellent for a start but it also includes several different cover designs so you can customise it further, even printing it out if you wanted to make a jewel case out of it. The second track I talk about is Zircon & Jillian Aversa's The Search For Ambrosia (NYC Streets) which is available on the album Sonic Augmentation, which is also available for free here!

I do own it through Steam, but if you have no desire to pick up the game, or just want to throw a bit of money his way, you can find the Undertale Soundtrack on Toby Fox's bandcamp here. I would reccomend giving it a look, aside from that breakcore example I played there are some really good tunes on there, and some really beautiful chiptune-style pieces too.

Finally, Ed Harrison's new 0edit bandcamp is here, the Neotokyo soundtrack is split into two albums; NSF and GSDF, I can wholeheartedly recommend both. I have yet to check out his other solo release but I most definitely should given how I've fallen back in love with the Neotokyo stuff.

Ilictronix Podcast: Down With The Sickness

"Claude explores the genres and artists he has mentioned in passing during previous episodes. Adam is sick and shares a bedridden playlist."

We can't catch a break these past couple weeks, between weather delays and various inconveniences last week we had our fair share. This week has it's own flavour though, as Adam is besotted with some kind of dreaded lurgy. Still it served as good inspiration for his selections this week, opening with the incredible vintage Clark with Slow Spines from Empty The Bones Of You. We soon hit my patch tho, which this week is loosley themed around artists I've mentioned in passing or have otherwise overlooked in the past episodes.

Peaches to start with, I was originally going to say in the episode that I didn't think she'd done anything since but a quick look at discogs quickly proved that wrong (though it kept I Feel Cream's reputation as the 'cleanest' Peaches album though. Still goes hard even coming up on 10 years later. Rex The Dog also makes his first appearance, I sum up my thoughts on the album pretty succinctly in the episode, but the short of it is that it's a quality bit of house that suffers (only slightly) from being cut down slightly from the OG versions of the tracks. Ladytron also appear, think it's their first time too which is surprising for how much I like them. My pick for this week comes from their later works, but I touch on their history while discussing. Adam also drops some extra knowledge about one of their albums that I didn't know.

Rounding out with Modeselektor (who I think I have mentioned before, but again not this album). Miss Kittin also makes her first solo appearance too, which would have been really fitting had I chosen something from her first album I Com but I went with the second Batbox instead. Most of what I said for I Com applies to this album too, they're full of gorgeous breakdowns and of course Kittin's trademark vocals.

Adam's selections for this week are the most eclectic they've been so far, which is only fitting given his predicament. I must say they at least flow together very very well, which is something I always try to implement in mine. Saying that they are also essentially the sequel to his scrapped super depressing winter selections from last week which would have been nice to hear, if a little bleak back-to-back, it's nice to hear something other than garge piano stabs for a change too (I joke, I joke). I owe Adam thanks anyway for soldiering on despite being gravely ill, and for getting the episode edited and uploaded on time to boot! Tracks and a singular show note after the linebreak:

Tracklist:
Intro:
Chris Clark - Slow Spines

Claude’s picks:
Peaches - I Feel Cream
Rex The Dog - Bubblicious
Ladytron - Destroy Everything You Touch
Modeselektor - (I Can't Sleep) Without Music
Miss Kittin - Play Me A Tape


Adam’s Picks
Kemikal - Graffiti
James Blake - Overgrown
Galcher Lustwerk - Idhouse
Total Art Of Percussion - Wuhan Wuchang
Juan Atkins - Riod

Outro:
Ellen Allien & Apparat - Way Out


SHOW NOTES:
Adam linked me to his little slice of childhood fever-dream trauma (that made him become one with electronic music) turns out it was a clip from Superman III of all things, so now both you and I are clearer on what exactly he was on about.

And with that, we'll see y'all next week, where we'll be bringing you more selections, same time same channel!

-Claude Van Foxbat

Ilictronix Podcast: Tech (And Relationship) Issues

Claude and Adam discuss and play their favorite tracks of the week. This Week Claude shares a user submitted track from Dispak and shares cuts from Apparat, Modeslektor and Wisp. Adam processes a breakup and shares a comforting playlist

This week's ilictronix podcast is now live! I carefully skirt the idea of just using cuts from my Cyberpunk playlist once again, instead focusing more on a specific 'techy' sound. I don't mean techno by that, and I hope my classification becomes clear after the first couple of songs. Opening with Squarepusher's deliciously smooth Plug Me In, before sharing a submitted track and diving deep once again into the semi-obscure of my collection with a host of Aphex Twin bootlegs from Wisp. Adam changed up his selections last minute in response to the situation mentioned above, nothing like the super depressive Gloomy Sunday playlist we used to make; Adam takes us on a tour of his mind and share some audio-based comfort during his trying times. An interesting (if unfortunate in terms of circumstance) methodology, always interested to hear what he comes up with and this week was especially good in that regard. We had some slight technical issues during the first few songs, but thanks to our method of locally recording our inputs we've managed to work around it with little to no other issues! Tracklist and show notes follow as always:

Tracklist:
Intro:
Squarepusher - Plug Me In

Claude’s picks:
Dispak - Koshkina
Apparat - Get Out Of Your Krib
Modeselektor - Don't Panic
Aphex Twin - Z Twig (Reworked By Wisp)
Ben Prunty - Mantis (Battle)


Adam’s Picks
Drexciya - Aqua Worm Hole
Basic Channel - Q Loop
Mala - Alicia
Millsart - Gamma Player
Fingers Inc. - Can You Feel It

Outro:
Golden Donna - Should


Show Notes:
A lot of show notes this week, starting off with Dispak's EP that I talked about as my first selection You can pick up their EP on bandcamp, the EP also has the full description I was trying to read when talking about the EP (only to be foiled by my internet dying as it was loading). It's a short one at 3 tracks, but if you enjoyed the sounds of Koshkina or any of my other choices this week I highly recommend checking it out.

I was slightly wrong about the Wisp Reworks of Selected Ambient Works 2 they were actually released way back in '04, but on a now-defunct net-label called TavCOM Records. It's not a high quality release, the tracks vary from 128-192kbps but they're still a nice listen. I managed to find the arcive site where I'm pretty sure I originally picked the EP up from. At any rate, you can find the link here to grab the EP if you so choose (It's a direct download of a .zip).

And finally, as mentioned on the show, you CAN get FTL's soundtrack from Steam, but if you want it in 320/FLAC I'd recommend buying it from Ben Prunty's Bandcamp, where you can ot only find his soundtracks for FTL and Into The Breach, but his other music projects too. As mentioned on the show, the FTL soundtrack is well worth picking up, and even comes with extra goodies like the notes from Ben himself about the tracks. And also be sure to get the expanded FTL: Advanced Edition Soundtrack too, it's a handful of extra tunes Ben did for a big update for the game and is well worth your time if you've enjoyed what you've heard so far. it's a name-your-price release so you can scoop it for free if you want also.

The SubmitHub Roundup, Vol. 4

The submissions train keeps on rollin' on, and it continues to keep exposing me to stuff I wouldn't have otherwise gone out to hear. This one came to me billing itself as minimal which I normally shy away from cos it doesn't tend to be my bag, but I gave it a go and was rewarded in due course. I was digging the intro from the get go but I wasn't expecting the vocal side of things to crop up and that only made me fall harder given my well documented love affair with treated vocals. It makes to whole thing feel like a hazy half remembered retro experimental tune a la Laurie Anderson. Which I suppose is only fitting given the cover art:



I was surprised more folks hadn't jumped on the sadboy electronic train after James Blake started to get big (or maybe they did and I just didn't hear any of it). There's certainly a little bit of Blake on display here for sure, though packaged with some more uplifting electronics for accompaniment rather than the disparate, cold touches as heard on The Wilhelm Scream and such. I do think that some of the slight vocal distortion would worked well here too, but at the same time that might have made 'em fade too much into the background, might be somethin' t experiment with in future either way!



Rounding off with even more hip hop stuff. I've always liked some brass in my hip hop ever since I heard Gorillaz's Rock The House, and Teddy Bear delivers in spades. And the artwork is on point again too. No idea if it's sampled or original but either way it'd feel right at home on a Mr. Scruff production, and the final hurrah starting around 2:30 brings about the end in spectacular fashion.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Tips And Tricks

Remember how I was saying that I had a real soundcloud drought going on? Well I found a couple workarounds for that. Sure, a lot of shit may be locked behind soundcloud go now meaning you only get 30 seconds or so of material, but there are some cool folks out there that have yet to fall to the wave of it.

Take Four Tet here, now I should say that I can never make my mind up about Four Tet, like Plaid and so many others it tends to be hit and miss with me. And when Oneohtrix Point Never gets to rework something now that is *very* hit and miss given his usual styles and all. But the ed result is actually pretty nice even if it doe stake a while to get going.



Now the second trick that's helped a whole lot. Instead of going after the usual spate of artists, go diggin' in your library for semi-obscure techno producers and see if they're still kicking. Luckily for me, Mijk Van Dijk is, here with a remix of Billie Ray Martin. It's kinda funny too, in a world where soundcloud is limiting people to 30 secs of songs, here Mijk is calling a 6 minute slice a 'snippet'. The tune itself is very nice, chock full of bass but still quite minimal, which is a tad unusual for me, but then again Mijk has always been one of the few minimal folk who I dig.



-Claude Van Foxbat

The SubmitHub Roundup, Vol. 1

It should come as no surprise to frequent readers that I sometimes meander when it comes to getting things done. Whether its making posts to remind me that I still need to check out certain artists, or even posts in general sometimes I wouldn't exactly say I have an amazing track record. But alas, the soundcloud drought was getting to me and I was itching to find new ways of finding things, enter an email I got back in may.



Submithub is the name, and cutting out my legwork is its game. Instead of crawling soundcloud feeds we get people coming to us, which can be a bit of a burden but it's been smooth sailing so far. Serving up the first proper submission was the above, which is giving me that early Pretty Lights hip hop style nostalgia, and will feel right at home between the other "You"'s in my collection from Bibio and Gold Panda.

One thing I'm also learning to be is less cynical. It kinda naturally happens after years of email bombardment for whatever promo list has scrubbed your deets that week. Having a visual helps (even if it is still, and it's also I'm a massive sucker for the old cyan/magenta scheme). Not too hot on the treatment of the vocals here but I'll be damned if the frantic piano stabs and noodling around 2:10 don't take me right back to the early 00's dance days.



You also get treated to some pretty unusual stuff too, and not in a bad way either. Much like me father before me I do like for there to be some strings in my electronics. It's something we've covered a little before, Admittedly it's usually in the form of Venetian Snares' Rossz Csillag Alatt Született or SomethingALaMode which we covered way back in 2010. Certainly wouldn't mind more experimentation with the sound, moody Trip Hop and strings are a match made in heaven.



And there you have it, as such expect more frequent updates with this kinda thing now that I am free of the shackles of soundcloud digging. Expect the usual programming with a few of these sprinkled through out, now to see about sorting the next big project - the site redesign, stay tuned!

-Claude Van Foxbat

Techy

Apologies for the last couple cop out posts, I've been (and still am) hecka busy. But I thought I'd at least try make a proper post for once this week so here we go. Feeding my journey in animating is this lovely bunch of songs right here:

Atelier Olschinsky - A.D. 2099 - 2311 (01)

I've been re-living memories of the late 1990's when I decided to go track down the PS1 Ghost In The Shell game. Tuns out it has a whole album of late 90's techno goodness alongside it stocked with some familiar names. I must admit that before this I wasn't big on Beltram. Of course I knew OF him, but as I can remember I'd heard a few things a long time ago and not dug it, but tastes do change. If I can find some more tunes like this in his catalogue, I can have my techno itch scratched for years to come.



Ellen Allien now, I wasn't too hot on the minimal parts of Dust, but I do adore track 4 Sun The Rain. Maybe it's my weakness for processed vocals speaking, or even my recent love of more downtempo songs but I cannot stop looping this while I work, it helps the tedium of keyframing go by that much quicker.



Revisited Autechre's Anti EP too, and while Flutter is by far and away the standout track, both in terms of sound and the whole concept behind it as a protest song, the other two songs on the EP have their own merits. This one for example sounds like it could easily be a prototype for Amber (which came out that same year, and is the Autechre boys' most prolific album.) Especially on the outro, which caps the song off nicely.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Down In The Dumps

Saw Stenchman on twitter lamenting his music career recently. We can't have that now can we? as a staunch supporter of all things stinky I had to do something about it, so how about another plug for the stenchman? He's recently put a lot of stuff for free download on his soundcloud so feel free to get your mitts on it; here's some choice ilictronix endorsed samples. Get out there and support the man!



-Claude Van Foxbat

Morning After

Went out again didn't I, and had some time to reflect back on things on my stroll through town. Have a mixed bag of some post-night out musical accompaniment courtesy of me.

Edward Hopper - Summer Interior

More Sneaker Pimps remixes, and another example of a mix I like more than the original from Becoming X. Fold injects Roll On with a much more sinister trip hop vibe than the original, no doubt helped by Kelli Dayton being on point as usual.



Golden Boy's only full length is still pretty special, the collab between him and Kittin is a bit of a rarity, but is a mainstay in my library because I never tire of it. Here's a real sedate minimal-y number from near the end of the LP, it's grown on me with time for sure.



And finally Skream with a standout piece of dubstep from the early days of the scene. His debut album; Skream! is chock full of classics, but as the sun started to catch up with me there was only one song that fit. Still one of the finest instrumentals out there, got an awesome vibe that is almost unmatched.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Yet Another Mix

Went soundcloud hopping again only to find Clark had dropped a mix on my birthday for the tenth birthday of the Little Big Agency. Like Plaid's I posted not too long back, this is a pretty eclectic selection, maybe even moreso than theirs. Regardless it's a solid mix and gives a nice insight into what makes Clark tick and feeds into his unique style of muical grit. Tracklist below as ususal!



Tracklist:
The Field - No. No…
Jon Hopkins - Collider
Alex Smoke - Dust
Simian Ghost - Echoes of Songs (Luke Abbott Remix)
Tim Exile - 31022013
Holly Herndon - Chorus
Emika - 3 Hours
Dopplereffekt - Gene Silencing
Letherette - Restless
Hubie Davison - Mannequin Move
Dinos Chapman - Untitled #1 (Live In Moscow)
Wesley Matsell - Future Beacon
Clouds - Consciousness
Physical Therapy - Huminbeen
Jimmy Edgar - Mercurio
Planningtorock - Human Drama (Paula Temple Remix)
Akkord - Conveyor
Dadub + Retina.it - Kykeon
Clark - Superscope
Stellar Om Source - Polarity
Objekt - Agnes Demise
Kommune1 - Kronos
LFO - Butterslut
Call Super - Black Octagons
Laurel Halo - Chance Of Rain
Visionist - Snakes
Truss - Redbrook
Mouse On Mars - Spezmodia
Jam City - Worst Illusion
Slava - Better
Ikonika - You Won't Find It There
ADULT - Idle (Second Thoughts)


-Claude Van Foxbat

An Hour Of Plaid

Came across this on my soundcloud feed again, and I paused. I've heard most mixes from artists I follow, certainly a fair share on Warp too. But Plaid never really seemed the type to do that kinda thing, then I hit play. It's eclectic mix befitting their output, and unlike the Nightmares On Wax mix I posted a while back it actually has a tracklist! Check it out below.



Tracklist
Mast - Ascen
John Wizards - Muizenberg
Music Box - November
Saget - Satellite
Max Cooper - Impacts
Mr. Oizo - Flip Bat
Wesley Matsell - Total Order Of Being
Lover Over Entropy - Groundswell
Atom™ - Ich Bin Meine Mascine
Rain Dog - Regolith
Arovane - Vraill
Sevendeaths - All Night Graves
Edoc - I Don't Know What Is Happening
Visonia & Dopplereffekt - Die Reisen
Shatter Hands - Knifin Around
Pause - Sink
Lazlo - Turning Tide


-Claude Van Foxbat