Tag: electronic music

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Gold Panda Performing “Your Good Times Are Just Beginning”

nterestingly, 2016 may be among the busiest years of the British electronic music artist and producer’s career as his critically applauded third full-length effort Good Luck and Do Your Best, which was inspired by an extended trip to Japan with photographer and collaborator Laura Lewis was released earlier this year. That was quickly followed by the publication of the collaborative photography book, which had initially inspired the Panda’s third full-length effort, and then a surprise EP, Junes Kingdom. Wrapping up the year, the British producer will be releasing his second EP of the year Your Good Times Are Just Beginning on Friday through City Slang Records — and along with an original single, EP title track “Your Good Times Are Just Beginning,” the EP features remixes from renowned electronic music artists and producers Fort Romeau, John Roberts, and Daisuke Tanabe.

Now, the aforementioned EP title track “You Good Times Are Just Beginning” features a dusty yet warm and soulful production comprised of twinkling synths and piano keys, skittering and stuttering drum programming, a looped, jazzy horn sample and swirling electronics in a moody track that sounds as though it draws equally from drum ‘n’ bass, contemporary electronic music and jazz — all while seeming organic and improvised.

The recently released live footage shot by Robbie Knox, is comprised of the renowned British producer and electronic music artist performing at the Norwich Arts Centre and was edited by and features imagery from Gold Panda’s touring visual artist Dan Tombs, who has also worked with East India Youth, Jon Hopkins and Blanck Mass, and has spent the past year touring with, developing and refining the visual components of Gold Panda’s live visuals.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Swooning and Psychedelic Visuals for Boys Noize’s Equally Swooning and Urgent Single “2 Live”

Mayday’s latest single “2 Live” is an ecstatic and swooning, club banger which features layers of cascading and twinkling synths, tweeter and woofer rocker bass drops, propulsive and insistent beats are paired with a swooning and anthemic hook to create what may arguably be one of the Berlin-based producer’s most euphoric and lovelorn songs to date. Interestingly, the recently released music video, which continues Ridha’s ongoing collaborations with LIL INTERNET and SUSBOY follows a young couple as they explore the outskirts of Mexico City in the near future — and while the couple is desperately in love, the video explores what can happen when song love and virtual reality are combined. Ultimately, the result is a video that’s psychedelic and yet urgent.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Thoughtful and Gorgeous Sounds and Visuals of MOTSTA’s “Petrichor” featuring Sophie Lindinger

Dittrich’s latest single and EP title track “Petrichor” is a gorgeous and moody production in which Sophie Lindinger’s breathily ethereal and aching vocals are paired with a contemporary and slick production consisting of twinkling keys, layers of shimmering and buzzing synths, ominously swirling electronics, stuttering yet tweeter and woofer-rattling beats and a distorted vocal sample and reveals that the Russian-Austrian-based producer and artist has been experimenting with his compositional approach and his sound to incorporate organic instrumentation. And the result is a song that feels and sounds stately and cinematic while being dance floor ready — and interestingly enough manages to channel Octo Octa’s Between Two Selves and the aforementioned Bonobo, but wth a bracing, winter chill.

The recently released music video is a fittingly cinematic video that features footage of Lindinger pensively singing the song while looking out towards a rainy, cloud and fog strewn day; the sort of grey that envelops its environment; simultaneously, we view Dittrich walking around, day dreaming — all in situations in which men are felt to feel small and insignificant.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: El Dusty Returns with Another Swaggering and Hyper Modern Take on Classic Cumbia

Olivera’s latest single “La Chusa” is a collaboration featuring Camilo Lara and Toy Selectah, which as Olivera explained to Univision in a recent interview, derives its title “from a South Texas Chicano folk story about this owl [in some Spanish speaking countries lechuza means owl] with the with the face of an old lady that stands on top of your house and scares kids into acting good. When I was a kid I was petrified of it!” Sonically though the song is comprised of a classic and beloved Columbian cumbia track, Los Hermanos Tuirán’s “La cumbia de la cordillera,” a track that’s not only about a bird on a mountain, and note even remotely related to El Dusty’s title, but it has also been used by sound systems and global bass DJs in Columbia and elsewhere. Interestingly, the track is a buoyant and swaggering track, full of tweeter and woofer rocking beats and bass paired with a joyous and mischievously anthemic hook that will make you get off your ass and move.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Introducing the Cinematic Sounds and Trippy Visuals of Sudden Beach’s “The Beast”

Sudden Beach is Guren’s solo side project of sorts and as he explained to me by email, the music he has created with the project, evokes suddenly coming upon a beach while traveling on a desert road. The project’s first single “The Beast” reminds me quite a bit of John Carpenter’s retro-futuristic soundtracks and Pink Floyd’s “On The Run” as the single consists of layers of undulating synths, cascading shimmering synths and samples of children yelling and talking.

As Guren explains of the video, “To feed the feeling of the music I’ve created, I’ve manipulated the footage taken from the cult documentary Koyaanisqatsi, the pictures of empty buildings without any human. I’ve added some sounds from the amazing Stranger Things, like human breath or playing children to this unmanned atmosphere and tried to emphasize to the past and the memory; to the life before the buildings were demolished. ”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Paris-based DJs Guido Minisky and Hervé Carvalho, electronic music act and production duo Acid Arab have developed a reputation for a sound that meshes Western electronic music, namely house and acid house, with Arabic arrangements and vocals — and for increasing collaboration with scores of Parisian-based musicians from across both North Africa and the Middle East. And as a result of their crowd-pleasing, genre meshing approach, the duo have been a name for themselves by playing the European major festival and club circuit to support several critically applauded EPs released through French label Versatile Records. Interestingly, as the duo of Minisky and Carvalho increasingly began to collaborate with locally based musicians, the duo four the need to make each song tell a story, which takes place in a world without barriers and domination.

The duo’s highly-anticipated full-length debut Musique de France is slated for an October 20 release through Crammed Disc Records and the album finds the Parison electronic music act collaborating with world renowned artists including Algerian keyboard player Kenzi Bourra, Syrian musician Rizan Said, who’s known for his work with Omar Souleyman,  Rachid Taha, raï fusion pioneer, Sofiane Saidi and gnawa musician/singer, Jawad El Garrouge — and a result, the French production and electronic music duo will not only further cement their burgeoning reputation for a globally-based genre mashing sound, it also finds them expanding upon it, as you’ll hear on “Buzq Blues,” the first single off the duo’s forthcoming album. The song has the duo crafting a slick production that features propulsive percussion, tons of kick snare, and skittering drum programming, cascading layers of synth stabs, gently buzzing synths, undulating electronics paired with gorgeous, Arabic instrumentation to craft a a trippy dance floor-friendly song that effortlessly bridges the incredibly modern with the incredibly ancient.

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Although little is known about up-and-coming Los Angeles, CA-based electronic music production unit and electronic music act The Dedbtz; they  recently collaborated with up-and-coming electro pop artist BRĒZY, who the Southern California-based production unit discovered on Spotify’s Weekend Buzz playlist and quickly reached out to collaborate with for their latest single “How Much I Need You.” Consisting of a buoyant and club-rocking production consisting of handclap-led percussion, layers of wobbling and shuffling synths, glitchy background electronics, tweeter and woofer rocking low end along with BRĒZY’s expressive vocals. Lyrically, the song focuses on a relationship between complete opposites that the song’s narrator recognizes is confusing and unusual and yet is something she feels inexplicably pulled towards — and in a way that’s both frightening and thrilling. Combined with the production, the song evokes the swooning confusion and self-doubt filled days of a newfound love in a way that feels and sounds familiar.

 

 

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Comprised of Kristin Henry (vocals) and Brad Boettger (production), Seattle, WA-based  duo NAVVI have developed a reputation for crafting brooding and propulsive electro pop; in fact, the duo have had their work appear on a compilation curated by renowned French electronic label Kitsune, and they’ve received press from a variety of media outlets including NME, Brooklyn Vegan, Impose, The Line of Best Fit and Jay Z’s Life+Times, among others. Building on the early buzz they’ve received, the Seattle-based duo will be releasing their long-awaited full-length debut Omni later this week through Hush Hush Records.

Now earlier this month, I wrote about “Close,” Omni‘s gorgeously minimalist electro pop first single thad the duo pairing Henry’s sultry and intimately with a sleek and hyper-modern production consisting of crisp, yet stuttering drum programming, ambient, swirling electronics, bleeps, bloops and boops, layers of shimmering and buzzing synths. and a propulsive groove while reminding me quite a bit of BRAIDS’ Flourish//Perish and Octo Octa’s Between Both Selves; in other words, the single possess a bracing and icy chill that belies an urgent and swooning Romanticism. Omni‘s second and latest single “What Reason Do We Need?” will further cement the Seattle-based duo’s reputation for crafting chilly and atmospheric electro pop as you’ll hear stuttering and skittering drum programming, swirling electronics, trembling bleeps and bloops and beeps and tweeter and woofer rocking beats paired with Henry’s sultry yet ethereal vocals. Sonically, the song reminds me a bit of Bear in Heaven‘s I Love You It’s Cool but with a plaintive Quiet Storm-like sensuality at its core.

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Comprised of Jonas Ronnberg, the co-owner of Northern Electronics who’s known for recording caustic techno under the moniker of Varg, as well as his involvement in renowned experimental acts Ulwhednar and Dard A Ranj Fran Det Hebbersalska Samfudet; renowned Swedish composer Erik Enocksson, who has scored a number of independent productions including an orphaned soundtrack to Apan, which was re-mastered and re-issued by Posh Isolation Records last year; Frederikke Hoffmeir, the mastermind of highly-regarded industrial and experimental electronic act Puce Mary;Vit Fana’s Ossian Ohlsson, who has appeared on a number of Northern Electronics and Posh Isolation compilations; and Loke Rahbek, co-founder of Posh Isolation and member of Damien Dubrovnik, highly-regarded act Lust For Youth — and for recording with Croatian Armor, Body Sculptures is an All-Star side project of renowned Scandinavian experimental electronic and electro pop artists.

Last year marked the act’s live debut, a set at the Berlin Atonal Festival and the release of their debut effort together, The Base of All Beauty Is The Body. And June 3, 2016 will mark the release of the act’s highly-anticipated sophomore effort A Body Turns to Eden.The album’s first single — and album title track — “A Body Turns to Eden” will further cement the act’s reputation for crafting stark and uneasily tense music as background electronic buzzing is paired with slowly unfurling and churning synths, minimalist beats in a song that only partially unfolds and reveals itself to its listeners.
 

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The combinations of acoustic and electronic instrumentation, the soiled traces of genre, and the mixed modes of experimentation, are here pitched as an eternal requiem, letting the play between the project’s orthodox and unorthodox methods reflect a sharp fatalism. Each song presents familiarity and intimacy within an aura of claustrophobia. And as if out of a cruel awareness of this fact, unease blooms into a comforting form. A Body Turns To Eden is an essential piece for anyone with interest in Scandinavian electronic music today.

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Psychedelic Imagery and Brian Eno Channeling Sound of Los Angeles’ Stefan Weich

Los Angeles, CA-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Stefan Weich specializes in a dreamy exploration of traditional music structures, alternate guitar tunings and analog synthesizers under a number of monikers, including Das Bowls, Chicle, Couch Baby and others; […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Brian Eno’s Gorgeously Ambient Cover of The Velvet Underground

Wap More than enough ink has been spilled throughout Brian Eno’s nearly 50 year musical career, so delving deeply through his backstory will largely be unnecessary and beyond the scope of this particular post. But […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Hanging Out on the Streets with El Dusty, MLKMN and Happy Colors in the VHS-Styled Visuals for “We Out Chea!”

Corpus Christi, TX-based producer, DJ and electronic music artist, Horacio Olivera, best known as  El Dusty has a long-held reputation as the pioneer of a revolutionary, new subgenre that he’s dubbed “nu-cumbia” as it possesses elements of […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

William Phillips is a London, UK-based electronic music artist/producer and songwriter, best known in electronic music circles best known for his solo recording project Tourist — and as the cowriter of 2015 Grammy Award winner for “Song of the Year” for Sam Smith‘s mega-hit “Stay With Me.” Adding to a breakthrough 2015, which resulted in a rapidly growing international profile, Phillips played at Coachella and Pitchfork Festival Paris, toured throughout the European Union and North America, made mixes for BBC 1‘s Diplo and Friends and i-D Magazine, as well as seeing praise from a number of major media outlets including Pitchfork, FADER and several others.

After releasing a number of EPs, Phillips will be building upon his breakthrough 2015 with the long-awaited release of his full-length debut U, slated for a May 6 release. As Phillips explains in press notes: “This is an album that reflects on a relationship I had with someone. I called it U as the word ‘You’ looks a bit accusatory, and the tone of this album certainly isn’t bitter, ‘U’ is a shape that is balanced but also incomplete, I thought it was a nice visual metaphor for a failed relationship.

I wouldn’t describe this record as mournful or sorrow filled, merely a reflection on my first relationship. I’ve always recorded a lot of my life through my phone, whilst writing the album I found a huge number of recordings that I had made whilst being in that relationship, so my ex’s voice is all over this record. Also the sounds of the places we lived and visited together form prominent backdrops to the music.

I don’t know how to describe it sonically, it’s not really body music, it’s just a story told through different tempos and sounds. I’m not channelling any specific scene or sound, just my thoughts and feelings. I don’t really understand the term ‘electronic music’ but I suppose if pressed I’d call it that.

I have zero interest in beats and scenes, I’m much more interested in stories. I feel as though this is the biggest lesson I learnt whilst writing this album, that I don’t write music to express myself but to enrich myself. It wasn’t until finishing this album that I could truly feel at peace with that chapter in my life.”

U’s second and latest single “Run” is a slickly produced track consisting of a spectral and distorted looped vocal samples paired with layers of shimmering and cascading synths, swirling and undulating ambient electronics, tweeter and woofer rocking beats that sonically draws from house music while possessing a swooning wistfulness at its core; in fact, on some level, the song feels like a bittersweet sigh. There’s a clear sadness of a relationship ending or being irrevocably altered and yet at the same time, there’s the recognition and acknowledgement that at the very least you experienced a wonderful period of sweetness — and for that you should be grateful.

Phillips will be on tour throughout major festival season — and it’ll include a set at the inaugural Panorama Festival. Check out the tour dates below.

Tour Dates: 

05.07 – Dublin, Ireland – Academy Green Room
05.09 – Glasgow, Scotland – King Tut’s
05.10 – Manchester, England – Deaf Institute
05.11 – London, England – XOYO
05.12 – Brighton, England – The Haunt
05.20-22 – Gulf Shores, AL – Hangout Festival
05.25-30 – Lake San Antonio, CA – Lightning In A Bottle
06.11-12 – London, England – Field Day
06.17-20 – Dufur, OR @ What The Festival
07.02 – Amsterdam, The Netherlands @ Pitch Festival
07.15-17 – Louisville, KY @ Forecastle Festival
07.14-16 – Scranton, PA @ Camp Bisco
07.22-24 – Oro-Medonte, ON @ WayHome Festival
07.22-24 – Seattle, WA @ Capitol Hill Block Party
07.24 – New York, NY – Panorama
08.06 – Oxfordshire, UK @ Wilderness Festival
09.10 – Isle of Wight, UK @ Bestival

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

Electronic music artist, multi-instrumentalist and producer Grant Eadie and his solo recording project Manatee Commune has received regional attention across the Pacific Northwest and a growing national profile for a carefully and organically molded electronic sound that pairs natural overtones extracted from field recordings with slick and nuanced electronic production.

Eadie’s soon-to-be released EP, Thistle, slated for a February 26 release marks two new developments in the young producer, multi-instrumentalist and electronic music artist’s career — it’s his first release through renowned Brooklyn-based label Bastard Jazz Recordings, the label home of Illa J, Lord Echo and several others; and the effort is the result of Eadie radically changing his songwriting, production and recording process as he  opened his studio and gear to friends, collaborators and loved ones, gaining inspiration from the energy of each of those interactions. As Eadie explains in press notes “Learning how to share my creative process with my friends completely revolutionized the last of year of music for me. Inviting those I trusted and loved into my studio to spend even just an hour talking or jamming opened fountains of inventive energy for me, especially from the ones who lacked any musical knowledge. I soon found myself incredibly inspired by the originality of even the smallest interactions with people, and so I pointed my field mic at anyone who had a story, a melody, or a stumbling beat they had been absentmindedly drumming, all in the hopes of capturing their individuality and framing it with my ever expanding insight into audio production.”

Thistle’s first single “Clay” pairs a stuttering yet breezy and coquettish production consisting of twinkling and chiming percussion, a looped flute sample, layers of shimmering synths and swirling electronics with Marina Price’s flirtatious and sultry vocals to craft a song that reminds me quite a bit of Sylvan Esso — but bouncier and slightly more dance floor friendly. Considering the Arctic weather we’re soon to have in New York, “Clay” is a brief yet lush and necessary blast of summer.

Catch Eadie live throughout March and April as he tours the Pacific Northwest with Blackbird Blackbird and Chad Valley. Check out tour dates below.

Tour Dates 

3.3 Bellingham, WA Wild Buffalo (EP Release Party)
3.10 Portland OR, Mississippi Studios ^
3.11 Seattle WA, Nectar Lounge ^
4.19 Tucson, AZ Club Congress *
4.20 San Diego, CA The Hideout *
4.21 Los Angeles, CA The Echoplex *
4.22 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst *
4.23 San Francisco, CA Social Hall *
4.30 Vancouver, BC Alexander *
^ with YPPAH
* with Blackbird Blackbird & Chad Valley

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Check Out the Retro-Futurist Visuals and Sounds of Holy Ghost!’s “Crime Cutz”

With the release of their 2011 self-titled debut, 2013’s Dynamics through renowned indie dance label DFA Records and their 2015 self-released remix album, Work For Hire, the NYC-based electro funk/neo-disco production and artist duo Holy Ghost!, comprised of […]