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out soon: Visage – Hearts And Knives [Blitz Club | Pylon Records]

May 24, 2013
 

Artist:
Visage

 

Title:
Hearts & Knives

 

Label:
Blitz Club | Pylon Records

 

Cat#:
BZCR012 | Pylon??

 

Release Date:
June 2013

 

Format:
CD, vinyl & digital

 

Tracklist:
01)
Never Enough

02)
Shameless Fashion

03)
She’s Electric (Coming Around)

04)
Hidden Sign

05)
On We Go

06)
Dreamer I Know

07)
Lost In Static

08)
I Am Watching

09)
Diaries Of A Madman

10)
Breathe Life

 

Info:
Founding fathers of the New Romantics and pioneers of the 80s sound Visage, return with a new album ‘Hearts And Knives’. “It has been 29 years since the last Visage album and during that period it often seems like we have all lived through several lifetimes” comments Steve Strange, the bands creative force and flamboyant leader singer. Visage began in 1978 when Steve Strange and Blitz Club partner-in-crime Rusty Egan joined forces with Midge Ure to create a futuristic, synthesizer-led group where style and fashion were matched by experimental but accessible music. The group was soon augmented with members of Magazine (John McGeoch, Dave Formula and Barry Adamson) and Billy Currie. They recorded their first single Tar with Martin Rushent at his Genetic Studio in 1979 (shortly to become the birthplace of the Human League Dare album).

Their breakthrough track “Fade To Grey” became a European hit and reached number 1 in eight countries in 1980. The band then enjoyed a series of hit singles “Mind Of A Toy”, “Night Train” and “The Anvil” coming from a pair genre defying albums, the eponymous “Visage” in 1980 and “The Anvil” in 1982. In 1981 Ultravox now led by Midge Ure took off and in 1982 Midge and Billy left to concentrate on what would become one of the biggest bands of the 80’s. In 1984 Visage made their 3rd album “Beatboy”. As the public face of the band Steve Strange shot to stardom throughout Europe he continued to be active in hosting club nights (The Camden Palace, Club For Heroes) and in the fashion world.

In 2010 Steve reconnected with Steve Barnacle and began writing songs once more. Some time later ex-Ultravox guitarist Robin Simon joined the equation, bringing not only a large slice of shared musical DNA (that “Visage sound”) to the project, but also his own distinctive style and ethereal musicianship. Vocalist Lauren Duvall was invited into the fold, adding not only her sultry vocal ability but a slice of the classic Visage glamour too. With the core members in place the picture slowly started forming and the band reached out (once again) to Martin Rushent. He suggested the blueprint for the album and had began working on the first tracks before his untimely death in 2010. The “Hearts And Knives” album is dedicated to Martin.

The album features collaborations and contributions from Dave Formula (former Visage and Magazine keyboard player) , Mick MacNeil (the former keyboard player and creative musical core of Simple Minds), 80s super producer Youth, Rich Mowatt and Logan Sky. The sound of Hearts and Knives is “classic Visage” but with modern songs and style. There is the odd tip of the hat to modern production values but the sound is 1980-1982 Visage. It’s Vintage keyboards and synthesizers all the way. There’s not software synths on this record! The production by John Bryan and analogue synthesizer collector Sare Havlicek is firmly rooted in the 80’s. Many tracks of the tracks are instantly recognizable as Visage (Moogs and the obligatory CR78 drum sound feature on several).

Visage (French for “Face”) has always been one part music to one part style & fashion. In 1980 the explosive combination of then futurist synthesizer music, fashion, make up & gender ambiguity set the blue print for the New Romantic movement and eventually the style template of the 1980′s. Visage was one of the bands to evolve out of the famous night club the Blitz Club, created and hosted by Steve Strange and Rusty Egan. Other bands included the infamous Spandau Ballet and Culture Club.

Innovative style, clothing and make-up continue to be central to brand “Steve Strange”. In a series of style looks for the album he has collaborated with designers Haus of Gaga, Sorapol, Mark Fowler and long time collaborator milliner Stephen Jones OBE. The first album cover in 1980 was shot by veteran music photographer Peter Ashworth in the Blitz Club. Peter returns to shoot the cover of the fourth album. The shot references the famous “Fade To Grey” white face & water motif now displayed on a mask created by Lara Himpelmann. The current day Steve Strange bursts through the mask in a blaze of sliver & red.

“Hearts and Knives” may have been a long time in coming but it is a purposeful statement of just where Steve Strange and Visage are at present. The past has been full of highs and lows but musically & creatively they are at a point where they can confidently present an album containing all the strands of their unique mix of music, fashion and style.

 

Listen:

 

Trailer:

 

Buy:
Visage (CD & digital)
Amazon GER (CD)
Amazon UK (CD)
Beatport (digital)
iTunes (digital)
Amazon (digital)
more soon

 

Websites:
Visage
Blitz Club
Pylon Records

 
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out now: Esben And The Witch – Wash The Sins Not Only The Face Remixes EP [Matador Records]

May 23, 2013
 

Artist:
Esben And The Witch

 

Title:
Wash The Sins Not Only The Face Remixes EP

 

Label:
Matador Records

 

Cat#:
unknown

 

Release Date:
21st May 2013

 

Format:
digital (free download)

 

Tracklist:
01)
When That Head Splits
(Remixed by Maps)

02)
Deathwaltz
(Reworking, Produced by David Andrew Sitek)

03)
The Fall Of Glorieta Mountain
(Remixed by Lumbers)

04)
When That Head Splits
(Remixed by Woodpecker Wooliams)

05)
Despair
(The President Chews A Bind – Klad Hest rRemix)

06)
Smashed To Pieces In The Still Of The Night
(Remixed by Teeth of the Sea)

 

Info:
Online and free to share with your friends today, Esben and the Witch release the Wash The Sins Not Only The Face Remixes EP.

Featuring remixes and reworkings from the likes of Mute’s Maps, Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio), Klad Hest (BEAK>) and more – you can stream the EP on the widget below, which is also free to embed and share.

 

Full Track Streaming:
“When That Head Splits (Remixed by Maps)”

 

Listen & Free Download:
click here to open the widget

 

Websites:
Esben And The Witch
Matador Records

 
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out now: Takt Tick – Falling Dots [Phunkit Records]

May 22, 2013
 

Artist:
Takt Tick

 

Title:
Falling Dots

 

Label:
Phunkit Records

 

Cat#:
PHK029

 

Release Date:
18th March 2013

 

Format:
digital

 

Tracklist:
01)
Falling Dots

02)
Falling Dots
(Galan Reinterpretation)

 

Info:
Wonderful, we love it! The new Takt Tick is a real blast!

Splendid crispy and melodic Techhouse from a deep soul!

And with it Galan’s Remix, a hypnotic frenzy flavoured Techno Reinterpretation!

Simply brilliant!!

 

Listen:

 

Buy:
iTunes (digital)
Beatport (digital)
JunoDownload (digital)
Musicload
Amazon (digital)
more soon

 

Websites:
Takt Tick
Phunkit

 
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[News]: Mute Group announces two senior appointments

May 21, 2013
 

Mute Group announces two senior appointments

General Info (English):
The Mute group of companies is pleased to announce two new senior appointments:

Shirin Foroutan joins as global Managing Director of the Mute group.

Dick O’Dell joins as Head of Artist Management.

Both appointments are with immediate effect.

Founder Daniel Miller has said: “Shirin and Dick join Mute at a very important time in our development. After parting ways with EMI in 2010 and re-establishing our own independent record label, we have positioned ourselves for growth. We have strengthened the group’s leadership and are committing to expanding the services and support we are able to offer the artists, writers and producers represented across our label, publishing and management divisions. This is a very exciting time for us. With Goldfrapp and Erasure releases planned for 2013, plus remarkable talents such as Beth Jeans Houghton, Big Deal and Polly Scattergood continuing to develop, we are very well placed to take our next steps.”

As Managing Director of Mute Artists Limited (record label), Mute Song Limited (publishing) and Mute Management (artist management division), with responsibility for the offices in London, New York and Berlin, Shirin Foroutan will work closely with Daniel Miller and the senior team – Andrew King (Mute Song), Dick O’Dell (Mute Management), Mark Fotiadis (Mute USA) and Anne Haffmans (Mute Germany) – in overseeing each company’s day-to-day operations, development and the implementation of their long-term strategic initiatives.

Shirin Foroutan is a music and entertainment specialist who has spent her career delivering the strategic, production, legal and business services to some of the world’s most iconic events. Prior to joining Mute, she served as Senior Legal Advisor to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Ceremonies, a position she accepted after having served as Director, Legal Affairs (Ceremonies) of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Shirin Foroutan has also worked as Director, Legal Affairs of Live Nation Global Touring where she provided advice for some of the world’s most renowned and successful artists.

Says Shirin Foroutan, “It is a privilege to be joining the Mute team. Daniel Miller is a visionary whose commitment to nurturing artistic integrity, creativity and independence is unparalleled. The Mute team has always endeavoured to put artists, songwriters, producers and clients first. The team’s commitment is unwavering and the group’s longevity is proof of this. I’m thrilled to be joining a team with such rich history, and such a bright future.”

Dick O’Dell entered the music industry with the establishment of Y Records which formed around the time that Daniel Miller started Mute. Y Records had many successes, including The Pop Group, The Slits, Shriekback and Pigbag.

O’Dell then transitioned into managementworking with artists such as Gang of Four, William Orbit (with whom he founded legendary “dub house” label Guerilla Records and nurtured his career as a remixer and producer), Leftfield, two time Mercury Award and Brit Award nominee, Bat for Lashes, and most recently, Beth Jeans Houghton.

Says Dick O’Dell, “Daniel and I have known each other for years and have always wanted to work together. The creation of Mute Management gives us the opportunity to combine my wealth of management experience with the Mute ethos to develop a benchmark management company.”

 

Group Info (English):
Mute Artists Limited is the recording label originally founded by Daniel Miller in 1978 with the release of his own 7” – The Normal ‘TVOD/Warm Leatherette’. Since 1978 Daniel Miller has signed and developed an amazing array of innovative artists, including Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Depeche Mode and Moby, and shown long-term commitment to numerous highly influential musicians and songwriters. With a current roster that includes long-term Mute artists such as Goldfrapp, Erasure, Liars, Can, Laibach and Cabaret Voltaire, alongside newer signings such as Josh T. Pearson, Big Deal, Polly Scattergood, Apparat, Cold Specks, Diamond Version and Maps, Miller has ensured that the guiding spirit behind the roster has always been one of artistic freedom and creative exploration.

Mute Song Limited began in early 1982. Its initial signings were artists on the Mute label but since then has branched out to represent composers and songwriters from across the musical landscape. With a catalogue of over 15,000 songs, the roster currently includes Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, who Mute Song Limited have worked with for over 30 years; Max Richter, who recently won the Music & Sound Award for Best Synch; Bob Geldof; Swans and Underworld (winner’s of the 2012 Q Award for Innovation in Sound in recognition of their contributions to the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony).

Mute Management was established in 2010 and currently represents Liars, Beth Jeans Houghton, Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr and Holograms.

Mute US / Mute Corporation is the recording and management division based in New York. In addition to the Mute label roster, the US office works with artists such as the Grammy nominated M83 whose recent single Midnight City attained RIAA Platinum status, The Knife, Moby, Junip, Moderat, Gonzalez and Soulsavers.

Mute has offices in London, New York and Berlin with a recording studio in London.

 

General Info (German):
Die Mute Gruppe freut sich, zwei neue Mitarbeiter im Führungsteam anzukündigen.

Shirin Foroutan verstärkt das Team als Global Managing Director.

Dick O’Dell wird Head of Artist Management.

Beide Anstellungen sind ab sofort wirksam.

Mute-Gründer Daniel Miller dazu: “Shirin and Dick join Mute at a very important time in our development. After parting ways with EMI in 2010 and re-establishing our own independent record label, we have positioned ourselves for growth. We have strengthened the group’s leadership and are committing to expanding the services and support we are able to offer the artists, writers and producers represented across our label, publishing and management divisions. This is a very exciting time for us. With Goldfrapp and Erasure releases planned for 2013, plus remarkable talents such as Beth Jeans Houghton, Big Deal and Polly Scattergood continuing to develop, we are very well placed to take our next steps.”

“Shirin and Dick verstärken Mute in einer wichtigen Phase der Entwicklung. Nach der Trennung von EMI 2010 und der Re-Etablierung von Mute als Independent Record Label, haben wir die Weichen Richtung Wachstum gestellt. Wir haben die Führungsebene verstärkt und werden die Dienstleistungen weiter ausbauen, die wir unseren Künstlern, Komponisten und Produzenten auf den Ebenen Label, Publishing und Management anbieten können. Es ist eine aufregende Zeit für uns. Mit neuen Alben von Goldfrapp und Erasure, die beide noch dieses Jahr erscheinen, sowie vielen jungen Talenten, unter anderen Beth Jeans Houghton, Big Deal und Polly Scattergood, freuen wir uns auf die nächsten Schritte.“

Als Managing Director von Mute Artists Limited (Record Label), Mute Song Limited (Publishing) und Mute Management (Künstler Management Abteilung) und Verantwortung für die Büros in London, New York und Berlin, wird Shirin Foroutan eng mit Daniel Miller und dem Führungsteam um Andrew King (Mute Song), Dick O’Dell (Mute Management), Mark Fotiades (Mute USA) und Anne Haffmans (Mute Germany) zusammenarbeiten.

Shirin Foroutan ist von Haus aus Juristin. Ihr Werdegang umfasst Stationen im Bereich Strategie, Produktion, Recht und Wirtschaft bei einigen der profiliertesten Events weltweit. Vor Mute arbeitete sie federführend als Rechtsbeistand bei den Zeremonien der Olympischen und Paralympischen Spiele von London 2012. Vorausgegangen war bereits die Leitung der rechtlichen Angelegenheiten der Zeremonien der Olympischen und Paralympischen Winterspiele von Vancouver 2010. Zuvor hat Shirin Foroutan die Rechtsabteilung bei Live Nation Global Touring geleitet.

Shirin Foroutan sagt: “It is a privilege to be joining the Mute team. Daniel Miller is a visionary whose commitment to nurturing artistic integrity, creativity and independence is unparalleled. The Mute team has always endeavoured to put artists, songwriters, producers and clients first. The team’s commitment is unwavering and the group’s longevity is proof of this. I’m thrilled to be joining a team with such rich history, and such a bright future.”

“Es ist mir eine Ehre, das Mute Team zu erweitern. Daniel Miller ist ein Visionär, dessen Engagement für künstlerische Integrität, Kreativität und Unabhängigkeit beispiellos ist. Mute hat stets die Interessen und Bedürfnisse seiner Künstler, Komponisten und Produzenten an oberste Stelle gesetzt. Die Hingabe der gesamten Gruppe ist unerschütterlich – und ihr langjähriges Bestehen bester Beweis dafür. Ich bin begeistert, einem Team mit einer so reichen Geschichte und leuchtenden Zukunft anzugehören.“

Dick O’Dells Weg in die Musikbranche begann mit der Etablierung von Y Records, das etwa zur gleichen Zeit entstand wie Mute. Zu den bekanntesten Künstlern auf Y gehören The Pop Group, The Slits, Shriekback and Pigbag.

Später ging O’Dell ins Management und arbeitete mit Künstlern wie Gang of Four, William Orbit (mit dem zusammen er das legendäre “Dub House” Label Guerilla Records gründete und eine weitere Karriere als Remixer und Produzent begann), Leftfield und den zweifachen Mercury Award- und Brit Award-Nominees Bat for Lashes. Zuletzt übernahm er das Management von Beth Jeans Houghton.

Dick O’Dell sagt: „Daniel and I have known each other for years and have always wanted to work together. The creation of Mute Management gives us the opportunity to combine my wealth of management experience with the Mute ethos to develop a benchmark management company.”

“Daniel und ich kennen uns seit Jahren und wollten schon immer zusammen arbeiten. Mute Management gibt uns nun die Gelegenheit, meine langjährigen Erfahrungen im Managementbereich mit dem Mute Ethos zu kombinieren, eine der führenden Management Firmen aufzubauen.“

 

Group Info (German):
Mute Artists Limited ist das Label, das von Daniel Miller 1978 gegründet wurde, um zunächst seine eigene 7-Inch Single – The Normal “TVOD/Warm Leatherette” – zu veröffentlichen. Seit dieser Zeit hat Miller eine stupende Zahl an innovativen und einflussreichen Künstlern unter Vertrag genommen, unter anderem Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Depeche Mode und Moby. Das aktuelle Roster enthält altgediente Mute Künstler wie Goldfrapp, Erasure, Liars, Can, Laibach und Cabaret Voltaire und jüngere Signings wie Josh T. Pearson, Big Deal, Polly Scattergood, Apparat, Cold Specks, Diamond Version und Maps. Der Geist von Mute ist und bleibt einer der vollkommenen künstlerischen Freiheit und Kreativität.

Mute Song Limited wurde 1982 gegründet. Frühe Signings waren zunächst vornehmlich Mute Künstler, bis heute repräsentiert der Katalog jedoch mit mehr als 15.000 Werken eine Vielzahl an Komponisten und Songschreibern aller Genres. Der aktuelle Roster beinhaltet Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, mit denen Mute Song seit mehr als 30 Jahren zusammenarbeitet, Max Richter, der zuletzt den Music & Sound Award in der Kategorie „Best Synch“ gewann, Bob Geldof, Swans und Underworld (die in Anerkennung ihrer Arbeit für die Eröffnungsfeierlichkeiten der Olympischen Spiele von London unlängst den 2012er „Q Award for Innovation in Sound“ gewannen).

Mute Management wurde 2010 etabliert und vertritt Liars, Beth Jeans Houghton, Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr und Holograms.

Mute US / Mute Corporation ist die Recording- und Management-Abteilung mit Stammsitz in New York. Neben dem weltweiten Mute Roster, arbeitet das US-Büro zudem mit den Grammy-nominierten M83, The Knife, Moby, Junip, Moderat, Gonzalez und Soulsavers.

Mute hat Büros in London, New York und Berlin und ein Tonstudio in London.

 

Websites:
Mute Artists
Mute Song
Mute UK & USA @ Facebook
Mute Germany @ Facebook
Mute UK @ Twitter
Mute USA @ Twitter
Mute Germany @ Twitter

 
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out now: Sound Of Science – Hydrodome [Disco Command Productions]

May 21, 2013
 

Artist:
Sound Of Science

 

Title:
Hydrodome

 

Label:
Disco Command Productions

 

Cat#:
DCPD001

 

Release Date:
01st May 2013

 

Format:
digital

 

Tracklist:
01)
Hydrodome

02)
Hydrodome
(Daniel Myer’s White Noise and LFOs Remix)

03)
Hydrodome
(John Von Ahlen’s Deep Remix)

04)
Hydrodome
(Northern Kind Remix)

05)
Hydrodome
(Julian Beeston’s Beest Remix)

 

Info:
Sound of Science is a transatlantic duo comprising Tom Carpenter and Jason Huffman. Hydrodome features the vocals of John von Ahlen (Parralox, Sound of the Crowd).

Tom is the man behind Analogue Solutions and has been building synthesisers for over 15 years. He has supplied synths to people such as Trent Reznor, Martin Gore, Vince Clarke, Phil Oakey, Daniel Miller, and many more. The designs are directly influenced by his love of electronic music. Jason is an analogue synth wizard, composer and a lover of all things that make noise. He also produces the legendary Rezfilter videos (see YouTube) that highlight these excellent synthesisers. Together they have pooled their years of combined experience of songwriting and sound design to produce real songs using real synthesisers.

They are currently working together on several exciting new songs and projects that will appear in the not-too-distant future.

 

Listen:

 

Full Track Streaming:
“Hydrodome (Julian Beeston’s Beest Remix)”

 

Video:

 

Commercial Streaming Services:
Spotify
Rdio

 

Buy:
SOS @ Bandcamp (digital)
iTunes (digital)
JunoDownload (digital)
7Digital (digital)
Amazon (digital)
djshop.de (digital)
more soon

 

Websites:
Sound Of Science
John von Ahlen / Parralox @ Facebook
John von Ahlen / The Sound Of The Crowd @ Facebook
Sound Of Science @ Facebook

 
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out now: Kobosil – RK3 [not on a label]

May 17, 2013
 

Artist:
Kobosil

 

Title:
RK3

 

Label:
not on a label

 

Cat#:
none

 

Release Date:
21th May 2013

 

Format:
vinyl

 

Tracklist:
A1)
Plant 5

A2)
Emil

B1)
Less

B2)
Think And Think

 

Review (4 of 5):
WFT…. great release….

 

Listen:

 

Video:
“Think And Think”

Video created by the29nov films.

 

Recommendation:
Kobosil remixed Barker & Baumecker for Ostgut Ton

 

Buy:
Hardwax (vinyl)
clone.nl (vinyl)
Juno (vinyl)
deejay.de (vinyl)
decks.de (vinyl)
HHV (vinyl)
more soon

 

Websites:
Kobosil

 
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25th May 2013 CANCELLED: Staub 003 @ Pommes:Bude, Berlin

May 17, 2013
 

STAUB

 

Event:
[Staub 003]

 

Date & Time:
25th May 2013 at noon CANCELLED due to weather forecast

 

Line-up:
a secret that will be a secret until … the party ends

 

Location:
Pommes:Bude, Berlin (Germany)

 

Admission fee:
5 EUR

 

Info (English):
STAUB Open Air – raw, mystical, vast: techno.

A party where lineups are a thing of the past and techno is left to its devices narrating a musical journey.

A party where the audience gives in to the surprise of uncertainty, carried by carefully selected artists and newcomers.

 

Event @ Facebook
Event @ ResidentAdvisor

 

Info (German):
Sommer, Techno, STAUB.

Ganz der alljährlichen Berliner Open Air-Tradition verbunden, findet STAUB dieses Mal an der Neuköllner Sonnenallee an einem Samstag unter freiem Himmel statt.

Trotzdem bleibt das Wichtigste die Musik und wir haben wieder ein vorzügliches, verhülltes Line-up.

Für Verpflegung in jeglicher Hinsicht ist gesorgt und es sind alle notwendigen Vorkehrungen für Regenwetter getroffen, damit STAUB nicht schlammig wird.

Veranstaltung @ Facebook
Veranstaltung @ ResidentAdvisor

 

Websites:
Dust

 
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[Download]: Jon Hopkins – Open Eye Signal (Nosaj Thing Remix)

May 16, 2013
 

Artist:
Washed Out

 

Downloadable Tracks:
Open Eye Signal (Nosaj Thing Remix)

 

Related Release:
album “Immunity”

 

Label:
Domino Records

 

Websites:
Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins @ Facebook
Domino Records
Domino Records @ Facebook
Domino Germany @ Facebook

 
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out soon: Jon Hopkins – Immunity [Domino Records]

May 16, 2013
 

Artist:
Jon Hopkins

 

Title:
Immunity

 

Label:
Domino Records

 

Cat#:
WIGCD298 | WIGLP298

 

Release Date:
03rd June 2013

 

Format:
CD, vinyl & digital

 

Tracklist:
01)
We Disappear

02)
Open Eye Signal

03)
Breathe This Air

04)
Collider

05)
Abandon Window

06)
Form By Firelight

07)
Sun Harmonics

08)
Immunity

 

Info (English):
The first sound on Immunity is that of a key turning, unlocking the door into Jon Hopkins’ East London studio. It’s followed by the noise of the door slamming, then footsteps, and then finally the crisp, clipping rhythms and pulsating bass of ‘We Disappear’ emerge, signposting the most club-friendly music Hopkins’ has made to date. So begins a confident, dramatic record defined by this acute sense of physicality and place; a bold statement after the quiet, intimate Diamond Mine, his Mercury-nominated 2011 collaboration with King Creosote.

Until now, Jon Hopkins has been an elusive character, known to most as an expert producer, Ivor Novello-nominated composer of film scores, remixer and long term collaborator of Brian Eno and Coldplay. Yet as Hopkins freely admits, the fact that his solo albums to date (Opalescent, 2001; Contact Note, 2004; Insides, 2009) have been rather overshadowed by his work with others has meant that he’s been able to quietly develop his own identity, style and sound. Some of the ideas for Immunity have been in his mind for a long time, but there’s never been a rush to get them out there. It’s part of his mission to make music that feels as natural and unforced as possible.

Yet from the moment you hear that key turn in the lock, Immunity announces itself as a powerful, multi-faceted beast, packed with the most aggressively dancefloor-focussed music Hopkins has ever made. Initial indications suggest his first foray into riffs and grooves is paying off. See first single from the album, ‘Open Eye Signal’, where a high pressure hiss gives way to burbling, insistent rhythm – a chrome express train accelerating through a sunlit landscape. The track got its first outing courtesy of Apparat at a DJ set in Japan on New Year’s Eve – an email from the German musician informing Hopkins that the room had erupted made for a great late Christmas present. Or ‘Breathe This Air’ with its graceful build and huge contrasts in mood via uppity rhythms, mournful piano notes, and stirring choral drones. And then there’s ‘Collider’, the album’s peak and the track that Hopkins says is the best he’s ever written. A ten minute techno monster, ‘Collider’ is underpinned by a constant, pounding bass pulse and a sinister texture that could be a harshly taken breath inside a gas mask. The towering central riff makes for a mournful, dystopian aesthetic, cinematic like black rain over neon. Yet the bleak euphoria that suggests a knees-up at the end of the world is only half the story – the compelling 4/4 rhythm and hint of a human vocal give this a massive twist halfway through.

Hopkins deliberately structured Immunity with this colossal banger in the middle. The whole album, therefore, works as an idealised soundtrack to a massive night out, peaking with a huge, lost-in-the-moment climax that feels like more than mere hedonism, warm endorphins swilling around the mind. This desire to create dancefloor-focussed music that was a step up from the slower tempo ambience of his previous solo albums was largely inspired by months spent in clubs and at festivals touring Insides. This gradual absorption of anything from the futuristic oddness found at LA’s Low End Theory club night (at which he has made several live appearances) to sterner European techno seeped out in the studio, shaping his mission to find new melodic routes through what were for him uncharted rhythmic territories.

What makes Immunity so intriguing, however, is the methods Hopkins used to do this. A curse of contemporary clubbing is the audible strain of laptop-DJd and computer-made MP3s through powerful PA systems. Hopkins, on the other hand, went out of his way to make music that sounded like physically built things with layer upon layer of depth, a long way from the cold CGI artifice of much entirely computer-derived electronica.

This desire to use physical, real-world sounds (anything from tapping a piano and drumming on the desk to a two quid tambourine and salt and pepper shakers) as the basis for many of Immunity’s rhythms also comes from Hopkins’ frustration with the ubiquity of certain synthetic drum machine samples in much contemporary dance music. In the corner of his studio sits the piano that he has had since he was eight-years-old, and the instrument features throughout the more nostalgic second half of Immunity… but not always as you’d expect – Hopkins also uses it to explore new methods of sound generation. On ‘Form By Firelight’, for example, the pedals provide the beat, and the strings are struck for chiming tones.

Hopkins’ intent throughout was to be open to the world around him finding its way into the music, wherever he was. These happy moments of unintended creation included the reverse alarm of a lorry outside his Bow studio hitting a certain note during a recording session, serendipitously leading the chord sequence down a different path. The whistle and pop of fireworks emanating from the nearby Olympic Stadium were captured and slowed down, to sound like the echoes of a distant battle. Life and grit came from actively boosting things that aren’t supposed to be there, such as the rattle of window frame at every kick drum hit. This method of looking inside the music for interesting details to pull out and tricking the brain with technically incorrect recording methods might have most studio engineers tutting, but here helped to create a mangled reality. In Hopkins’ studio everything can be melodic, and nothing is wasted.

With this sense of place, Immunity is also a sketch of real experiences and memories absorbed by Hopkins over his thirty-three years. These he now tries to reflect and respond to in his music. This might be the quest to recapture the sound of a perfect chord made by water running through pipes in a New York hotel room, or the light reflecting off the surface of the Thames at certain times of the year, the random patterns of nature. This not only makes the album deeply personal to Hopkins, but is key to one of his main inspirations in recording it – the desire to slow down or alter the brainwaves to help us reach different states of mind, whether via hypnosis, music, or drugs.

Self-hypnosis is a longstanding personal fascination that Hopkins wanted to bring into his music, yet it was only on Immunity that he felt he had the technical ability to actually try and make it happen. The quality control that decided whether or not tracks were finished was to come into the studio in the morning, and if the track started sending him off into another world, it was done. Similarly, when it seemed that Immunity might be ready for mastering, Hopkins tested it by lying on the studio floor, hitting play, and seeing where his mind ended up. With a stated aim to see if this music might have a similar effect on those who encounter it, Immunity feels like the accompaniment to a journey of creativity, a trip inside Hopkins’ mind.

That keys-in-the-lock recording that begins the album might usher the listener into the studio to be present at the moment of the music’s creation, but it has a counterpoint in the thrilling album closer, and the song that gives the album its name. ‘Immunity’ is built around rhythms that creak and mutter like the workings of an old watermill joined by a simple, elegiac piano part and indecipherable vocals by King Creosote, as if to paint an inverse to the techno tumult that dominates the album’s first half. The very natural-sounding rattle and dying piano notes at the record’s end show just how far we and Hopkins have come on one of the most human electronic albums you’ll hear this year.

 

Info (German):
Schon die ersten Töne von Jon Hopkins neuem Album IMMUNITY katapultie-ren uns in andere Sphären und genau so wollte es der 33-Jährige Jon(athan) Hopkins: In eine andere Welt soll der Hörer von IMMUNITY möglichst schnell abtauchen, im besten Fall in die des Produzenten selbst. Der Sound ist es, der IMMUNITY als das clubtauglichste Album kennzeichnet, das Hopkins bis dato aufgenommen hat. Ein fettes Statement nach dem Mercury-Prize-nominierten “Diamond Mine”, einer Kollaboration mit King Creosote, die doch so ganz anders war.

Jon Hopkins ist nur wenigen ein geläufiger Name, denn er arbeitet sowohl als Komponist für Soundtracks, wie den Ivor Novello-nominierten Score von Mons-ters, wie auch als Produzent, etwa für Coldplay und Brian Eno, eher im Hinter-grund und Hopkins gesteht ein, dass seine Arbeit mit anderen Künstlern seine Soloalben (Opalescent, 2001; Contact Note, 2004; Insides, 2009) bislang deut-lich überschattet haben. Dies gab ihm jedoch die Möglichkeit, seine eigene Identität, seinen Sound und seinen Stil ganz allmählich zu entwickeln. So schwirren einige der Ideen für IMMUNITY schon seit Jahren in Hopkins Kopf herum. Jetzt endlich nutzt er die Gelegenheit, sie mit uns zu teilen.

Vom ersten Moment, in dem die Bässe leise aus den Boxen blubbern, es aus allen Ecken britzelt, glucks, zirpt, blingt, schlurft, schleift und atmet, entwickelt sich IMMUNITY zu einem starken und vielschichtigen Album, vollgepackt mit den besten Sounds, die Hopkins je produziert hat. Vor allem “Open Eye Sig-nal” ist ein Track, der Hopkins den Ritterschlag verleiht : Kurz nach dem Jah-reswechsel erhielt er eine Mail von Sascha Ring alias Apparat, der ihm berich-tete, dass die Gäste einer japanischen Silvesterfeier nahezu ausgerastet sei-en, als er den Song kurz nach Mitternacht spielte. Aber auch nach “Open Eye Signal” verliert das Album nicht an Intensität, energetisch geht es immer weiter bergauf, bis zu einem imaginären Gipfel. “Collider” gibt sich monton, scheppernd und drängend. Ein düsterer Track mit beklemmender und doch euphorisierender Wirkung. Ein phantastischer Kontrast zum darauf folgenden “Abandon Window”, das den Beginn eines ruhigeren, wieder an Score erin-nernden, Teil des Albums markiert.

Was IMMUNITY so faszinierend macht ist die Methode, die Hopkins beim Pro-duzieren verwendet. Schicht für Schicht baut er die Sounds auf und mischt sie mit Geräuschen aus dem Alltag. Herausgekommen ist ein Sound, der echter und rauher klingt, als alles was sonst aus den Boxen eines Nachtclubs dröh-nen könnte. Das Feuerwerk im nahen Olympiastadion wurde ebenso Teil des Albums wie ein am Studio vorbeifahrender LKW, plätscherndes Wasser in ei-nem New Yorker Hotelzimmer oder Lichtreflektionen auf der Wasseroberflä-che der Themse in London. Die Kombination aus komponierten Arrangements und dem was um ihn herum geschieht, ist einzigartig. Für Hopkins ist alles Me-lodie, nichts ist überflüssig. Das macht das Album nicht nur sehr intim und per-sönlich, es ist auch der Schlüssel zum Verständnis der Aufnahmen: Hopkins wollte seinen Bewusstseinszustand statt durch Hypnose oder Drogen mit Musik verändern. Mit Selbsthypnose hatte er bereits seine Erfahrungen gemacht, der Trip sollte auf IMMUNITY aus dem Geiste der Musik wiederholen. Jeden Morgen, wenn Hopkins ins Studio kam, hörte er sich die Tracks an und wenn die Sounds ihn in eine andere Welt beförderten, war es gut. Ganze Tage ver-brachte er auf dem Fußboden des Studios und reiste durch die Tracks, bevor sie final gemastert wurden. Man kann das leicht zu Hause nachmachen und bemerkt sehr schnell, von was die Rede ist.

Einen krönenden Abschluss eines nichts weniger als bewusstseinserweitern-dem Album ist übrigens der Track “Immunity”, der dem Album zu recht seinen Namen gab. Den Track hat Hopkins mit einem elegischen Piano und zärtlichs-tem Gesang von King Creosote um das Klappern und Knarren einer knorrigen Wassermühle arrangiert. Techno kann auch traurig sein, vor allem dort, wo dieses wundervolle Album seine letzten perlenden, knarrenden, gluckernden, schluchzenden, flirrenden Töne aushaucht. Großes Kino Mr. Hopkins. Wir ver-beugen uns tief!

 

Listen:
“Open Eye Signal”

more soon

 

Trailer:

 

Video:
“Open Eye Signal”

 

Free Download:
“Open Eye Signal (Nosaj Thing Remix)”

 

Buy:
Domino Shop (all formats)
Amazon GER (CD)
Amazon UK (CD)
Amazon UK (vinyl)
Amazon US (CD)
Amazon US (vinyl)
Rough Trade (all physical formats)
WOM (CD)
WOM (vinyl)
iTunes (digital)
more soon

 

Websites:
Jon Hopkins
Jon Hopkins @ Facebook
Domino Records
Domino Records @ Facebook
Domino Germany @ Facebook

 
h1

out now: Markus Suckut – SCKT02R [SCKT]

May 11, 2013
 

Artist:
Markus Suckut

 

Title:
SCKT02R

 

Label:
SCKT

 

Cat#:
SCKT02R

 

Release Date:
April 2013

 

Format:
vinyl

 

Tracklist:
A)
Scoria
(DVS1 Remix)

B1)
Strength
(ROD Remix One)

B2)
Strength
(ROD Remix Two)

 

Info:
2nd remix package with new versions by DVS1 and ROD. vinyl only

 

Listen:

 

Video:
“Strength (ROD Remix One)”

Video created by the29nov films.

 

Special:
Clubberia Podcast 169

 

Recommendations:
SCKT0R1
Markus’ album “DNA” on Figure

 

Buy:
deejay.de (vinyl)
Spacehall (vinyl)
decks.de (vinyl)
Juno (vinyl)
clone.nl (vinyl)
HHV (vinyl)
more soon

 

Websites:
Markus Suckut
SCKT

 
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