"IF YOU WANT A VISION OF THE FUTURE, IMAGINE CRAP 808 SAMPLES STAMPING ON A HUMAN FACE- FOREVER"
We’ve been making noise about Laurel Halo’s music for some time here at AE - last year’s King Felix was among our favourite records of 2010. But with her new EPs Hour Logic and Antenna it feels as though she’s taken a significant step forward again. There’s been a lot of talk lately around the use of synth sounds more readily associated with the beginnings of electronic music, especially in the context of the current vogue for chatter around Retromania. But what set her music (and that of some of her closest contemporaries) apart are the themes it explores, most of which couldn’t have been approached in the same way any time but now. It’s especially concerned with notions of connectivity, the net, science and modern society, all delivered with real weight and excellent production. Hour Logic is particularly physically involving, its surface synth drones often accompanied by a heavy dancefloor undertow. It’s out now on Hippos In Tanks, and comes thoroughly recommended.
I recently interviewed Laurel for The Quietus, where we spoke about Detroit techno, science, and why her music’s not retrofuturistic. Read the interview here.
—-
Rory
Always Everything returned for our monthly radio show, live from the Hive, last night from 10-12pm - kicking off with some Bristolian house action from Baobinga, Vessel, Kowton, El Kid, Behling & Simpson and the like, with a brief diversion into Detroit-ish electro sounds about halfway through. And some excellent new music from AE favourites Laurel Halo and Hype Williams, George FitzGerald, FaltyDL, AnD, Vibezin and more. Paired with the usual banter for your listening enjoyment/endurance. The show’s available from the Hivemind website archive now, but we’ve handily reproduced the link below.
Download the show [right click, save as]
Oneida - Pre-Human [forthcoming Jagjaguwar]
Kuedo - Starfox (Illum Sphere’s Re-fox) [forthcoming Planet Mu]
Hype Williams - Rise Up [forthcoming Hyperdub]
Baobinga & xxxy - Barbakan [forthcoming Build]
Andy Stott - Tell Me Anything [Modern Love]
Vessel - Patina [Astro:Dynamics]
Kowton - Track Mute [unreleased]
El Kid - Construction No. 404 [Astro:Dynamics]
Emptyset - Altogether Lost (Behling & Simpson Remix) [Caravan]
Elgato - Music (Body Mix) [Hessle Audio] (033472 Edit)
Shed - Well Done My Son (033472 Edit) [Soloaction]
Goldwill - Blush [Wandering]
John Osborn - Epoch 4 [forthcoming TANSTAAFL]
Zomby - Natalia’s Song [4AD]
Laurel Halo - Hour Logic [Hippos In Tanks]
Floating Points - Peroration IV (feat. Fatima) [Brownswood]
4th Measure Men - Given (MK Dub) [FXHE]
FaltyDL - Jack Your Job [forthcoming All City]
Ossie - The Power Of Love [forthcoming Hyperdub]
Spatial - Corti (S-Max Remix) [forthcoming Schmorgasbord]
Lone - All Those Weird Things [forthcoming Wigflex]
Hodge - Conjecture [Pollen]
Call Super - Timora (Objekt Rework) [forthcoming Five Easy Pieces]
Model 500 - O.F.I (Space Dimension Controller Remix) [R&S]
Long Ago - A Relic [Transmat]
Model 500 - Info World [Transmat]
Addison Groove - It’s Got Me [3024]
The Other People Place - Let Me Be Me [Warp]
Objekt - CLK Recovery [Objekt]
Laurel Halo - Zoo Hypothesis [NNA]
AnD - Swing Me [forthcoming Project:Squared]
George FitzGerald - Reset [forthcoming Aus Music]
Pearson Sound - Stifle [Hessle Audio]
Emptyset - Altogether Lost (Peverelist Remix) [Caravan]
Zomby - A Devil Lay Here [forthcoming 4AD]
D1 - Subzero [Hessle Audio]
Appleblim & Geiom - Shreds [Berkane Sol]
Bass Clef - So Cruel [forthcoming Punch Drunk]
Bracket - Damage Limitation [forthcoming Brackout]
Vibezin - Vicious [forthcoming Keysound]
Guido & Baobinga - Ballin’ [forthcoming Build]
Angelo Badalamenti - Dub Driving [Interscope]
For anyone around in London next weekend, Friday 27th May, we’ll be hitting up The Nest for a rather fantastic line-up of bass-heavy stylings - particularly for the London debut (as far as I’m aware) of James AE, aka. XPLDR, aka. Jimitheexploder. He’ll be spinning tunes alongside XXXY, My Panda Shall Fly, Seams, Throwing Snow, Nightwave and Anthony C, and ‘tis but a fiver.
In the run up to the night, James has recorded a mix for God Don’t Like It, gathering together some of the best of the current crop of bass sounds, featuring the likes of Silkie, TEETH, Addison Groove, Kevin McPhee, Boddika and more. Check it out here.
Tracklist
Kevin McPhee – Get in With You (LV remix) [nakedlunch]
Mau’lin – Deeper Than the Sun [Ho Tep]
Boddika – Soul What [Swamp 81]
FaltyDL – Hip Love [Ramp]
Unknown Artist – Unknown [Analogue Solutions]
Head High – It’s A Love Thing (Piano Invasion) [Power House]
Thomas Bangalter – I Don’t Know Why [Roulé]
Maurice Donovan – Satisfied [ssssssss]
Funkystepz – Fuller [Hyperdub]
Champion – Loose Control [Hardrive]
Ossie – Tarantula [Lightworks]
Elgato – Music (Body Mix) [Hessle Audio]
DJ Qu – Babyluv [Strength Music]
Addison Groove – Minutes of Funk [3024]
Dark Sky – High Rise [Blunted Robots]
Desto – Glass Clouds [Ramp]
Silkie – Float [Deep Medi]
Alex Zen – Pimp Shoes [Berkane Sol]
S-X – Woooo (DJ Q Remix) [Butterz]
Teeth – Shawty [502]
And you can get tickets here, should you feel so inclined.
First update here for a while, a precursor to new things soon to come. In the meantime you can follow us on our monthly radio show, the latest instalment of which shall be soon to be available from these very pages.
However, an announcement for anyone within the Brighton area this weekend: Always Everything are going to be hosting the Green Door Store at The Great Escape this Friday (13th May), with a raft of bands and ourselves DJing at the end of the night. If you’re around in the city and fancy a drink get in touch - or if you’re in attendance at the Great Escape come and find our stage and watch some of the music we’ve got booked.
Headlining proceedings will be Planningtorock, the darkened electro-pop chanteuse who recently collaborated with The Knife and Mt. Sims for the Tomorrow, In A Year soundtrack and whose new album W, is a stark and intense listen, playing off a tension between grit and polish.
And we’re particularly excited to present the power duo of Laurel Halo and Gatekeeper. The former’s dreamlike, hazy pop has been a staple listen at AE as of late, her King Felix EP establishing her as a synthetic pop talent to rival her friends and labelmates Oneohtrix Point Never, Ford & Lopatin (nee Games) and Hype Williams. Her recent remix of Sleep∞Over’s ‘Casual Diamond’ sees her heading in a more dancefloor friendly direction - expect something well worth heading across for.
Chicago duo Gatekeeper (not to be confused with the Bristolian dubstepper), meanwhile, work a grinding electro/techno hybrid that finds them within a continuum that stretches forward from Detroit - the aquatic depths of Drexciya and mechanistic dreams of Model 500 - to the current obsession with synth revivalism. Their Giza EP is fantastic, beautifully creepy and well worth tracking down.
Also playing across the day are Chllngr, Idiot Glee, Woodhands, Admiral Fallow, Rachel Sermanni and Woodenbox. We open at 12:45, and Planningtorock plays at midnight - we’ll be on spinning our usual AE friendly mix of brain/body/booty styles after she’s finished.
For more info, check out The Great Escape’s website or drop us a line. See you down the front!
It’s been a bit quiet on the AE front lately, a case of life getting in the way as usual (work/studies have a habit of doing that).
But last Thursday I hit up the Hivemind airwaves once again, this time on a house music tip appropriate to the sunshine blasting through the windows. There have been some really quite special house records released/reissued lately - particular props to K-S.H.E’s (aka. Terre Thaemlitz in yet another guise) Routes Not Roots and Rick Wilhite’s beautiful Analogue Aquarium (from which I played two tracks this time).
The show’s now available to download from the Hivemind.fm archive or direct download here. I’m pretty happy with this one, lots of good tracks, summer-ish vibes.
Tracklist:
Rick Wilhite - Blame It On The Boogie [Still Music]
Anthony ‘Shake’ Shakir - Detroit State Of Mind (Space Dimension Controller Remix) [Rush Hour]
Outboxx - Blueberry Lemon [forthcoming Well Rounded Housing Project]
Kassem Mosse - Untitled B1 [Workshop]
Julio Bashmore - Father Father (Instrumental) [Futureboogie]
K-S.H.E. - Double Secret [Skylax]
Steffi - Sadness [forthcoming Ostgut Ton]
Lowtec - Looser [Nonplus+]
Tin Man- Nonneo (Donato Dozzy Remix) [Absurd]
Rick Wilhite - Deep Horizons [Still Music]
2562 - Intermission [When In Doubt]
Vessel - Nylon Sunset (Peverelist Remix) [forthcoming Left_Blank]
LV & Josh Idehen - Melt [forthcoming Keysound]
Brackles - Glazed (Martin Kemp Remix) [free download]
Jacques Greene - Another Girl (Braiden Remix) [LuckyMe]
Ricardo Villalobos - Easy Lee [Playhouse]
Eskmo - We Got More (Throwing Snow Remix) [forthcoming Ninja Tune]
Kowton - Looking At You [forthcoming Keysound]
Hyetal - Diamond Islands (Boddika Remix) [Black Acre]
Becoming Real - Closer (Jam City Remix) [Cold World Industries]
Pangaea - Inna Daze [Hessle Audio]
Hardrive/Pearson Sound - Deep Inside [Night Slugs White]
George FitzGerald - Silhouette [forthcoming Aus Music]
Blawan - Kaz [R&S]
Frankie Knuckles & Jamie Principle - Baby Wants To Ride [DJ International]
Andy Mac - Asteroid Belts [forthcoming Punch Drunk]
Neat & Submerse - Closer (FaltyDL Remix) [Airflex Labs]
2562 - Cheater [When In Doubt]
Milyoo - Kazaduon [forthcoming Saigon]
Hyetal - Searchlight [forthcoming Black Acre]
Hype Williams - Break4love [Hippos in Tanks]
Knowing Looks - WNCL004 Mash [West Norwood Cassette Library]
Addison Groove - It’s Got Me [forthcoming 3024]
Peverelist - Dance Til The Police Come [Hessle Audio]
Andy Mac - Everytime [forthcoming Punch Drunk]
Kode9 & The Spaceape - Bullet Against Bone [forthcoming Hyperdub]
Addison Groove - Work It [Swamp81]
Back again the first Thursday of May, 6-8pm GMT. More freshness incoming.
—-
Rory
Following the meeting of minds that was Xiu Xiu, Former Ghosts and Mount Kimbie, Qu Junktions are hosting the latest installment in their Mountain series this Thursday. Split between Arnolfini and Start The Bus, Kevin Martin’s (of The Bug/Techno Animal/God fame) King Midas Sound collides- in a sombre, solemn kind of way of course - with new age synthesist du jour Dan Lopatin AKA Oneohtrix Point Never, whose Returnal is quite rightly regarded as one of the albums of 2010. Over in Start The Bus afterwards, I’ll be warming up for Lopatin’s more joyful incarnation with Joel Ford as Games (now operating under the very businesslike Ford & Lopatin). Some excellent programming on Qu Junktions part, the bill connects the dots between supposedly disparate scenes quite exquisitely.
—-
Simon
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