Azari & III

Not got a whole lot of info on these guys but I am very much into the three tracks I have heard - all on an early 90s Chicago House tip. Think Jamie Principle, Blake Baxter etc. Their new EP entitled Hungry For The Power is out on I'm A Cliche records (Cosmo Vitelli's label). The title track with its sexy/camp vocals instantly grabbed me. A classic 808 beat, big funky bassline and some great synth work. The video is full of sex and violence so watch at your own risk!


Azari & III - Hungry For The Power

On the flipside is She's An Illusion and it's a real monster of a track. Dark smoke-filled warehouse business with a relentless one-note bassline, all manner of robo-voices and mad computer noises layered over a fat house beat. Get it at 20JFG. Reckless (With Your Love) was their previous single for Permanent Vacation records. It took a few listens to grow on me but now I'm hooked - a great driving house groove that works both in both vocal and instrumental versions.


Azari & III - Reckless (With Your Love)

YOU+ME=LOVE Compilation

I've uploaded a little mixtape I recently made for the special lady in my life. Songs about love and that, y'know? All the tracks have lyrics that make me think of her and/or us. She said it made her do a happy cry so it did the trick!

Tracklist:

Lenny Williams - Choosin' You (edit)
Eastside Connection - You're So Right For Me (edit)
Darcus - It's Got To Be Love (edit)
India - To Be In Love (album version)
Lee Garrett - You're My Everything
Marvin Gaye - I Wanna Be Where You Are
Breakwater - The One In My Dreams
Syreeta - I Love Every Little About You
Marvin Gaye - Come Live With Me Angel
Michael Jackson - I Can't Help It

That last MJ track never ceases to amaze me - so perfect.

Download: YOU+ME=LOVE.rar

Keenhouse - Civic Transit

I've been listening to Keenhouse's album Civic Transit quite a lot lately (thanks to my girlfriend for putting me on to it). It's a rather jolly affair of (mostly) vocal dance-pop with plenty of lovely synths. The tracks are quite varied in style but there seems to be a mixture of Synth-pop, French House and Electro-House influences, plus I reckon there's a bit of videogame music in there too. My favourite tracks are Starpower Outage, Revolution (which could be a Goldfrapp track) and The Rendezvous but I've not found myself skipping any of the others which is always a sign of a good album.





Fans of Valerie may recognise the album opener Deep In The Forest, which also kicked off the excellent Valerie & Friends compilation earlier this year. Keenhouse are also featured on another new compilation from Binary Records entitled LA Lights and their tracks are definitely the highlights of it. Non-album track Ari-es in particular has been one of my most listened to tracks recently.





Download Ari-es at Discodust
Civic Transit is £3.99 from Amazon
You can stream the album in full at last.fm

Hudson Mohawke - Butter

Hudmo's debut LP Butter dropped last month on Warp Records and it's hot! Sounding like not much else that's around at the moment, it's a crazy mixture of Wonky beats, US Hip-Hop and R&B plus more traditional Warp-style electronic experimentation, all covered in lush layers of dazzling neon synthesizers. You can read a short interview with him here where he talks about the album, some of his influences and his deal with Warp.

This track is blowing my mind right now:


Hudson Mohawke - FUSE

It can all get a bit messy and disjointed at times, but with so many ideas being thrown into the pot, even the weaker ones come and go pretty quickly. FUSE and Rising 5 are the stand out tracks for me at the moment, although there are some other great little songs amongst the madness. At only 20 years old, I think this guy has a big future ahead of him. Love that cover artwork too! Check out these free downloads from warp.net:

Hudson Mohawke - Rising 5.mp3
Hudson Mohawke - Butter Snips.mp3 (album sampler)

Floating Points - Vacuum EP

Some of the best House I've heard for a long time. Deep and warm, melodic and hypnotic.





Buy it at Boomkat.com

Joy Orbison

If you've not heard anything about Joy Orbison's Hyph Mngo already this year you must be living under a rock. A massive genre defying tune, now finally available digitally on Hotflush Records. The b-side Wet Look is also a stormer.


Joy Orbison - Hyph Mngo


Joy Orbison - Wet Look

Buy them at Boomkat.com

Mayer Hawthorne

His "A Strange Arrangement" album recently came out on Stones Throw Records. It's a throw back to all things old and soulful. It's pretty good, going on the few listens I've had so far. The opening accapella of "Prelude" into the title track is beautifully smooth. The more upbeat tracks like "Your Easy Lovin'..." or "One Track Mind" I could live without to be honest. But what's really been doing it for me recently are the two free remixes available for download from stonesthrow.com.

Astronote's remix of "Just Ain't Gonna Work Out" keeps the retro soul vibe of the original but ups the bass considerably and transforms the beat from a light backing track to a heavy funk stomp. Classixx's version of album closer "Green Eyed Love" is far more radical. For a start, the instrumentation is almost completely electronic. There are lovely synth lines and apreggios drenched all over it. The bassline is thick and the drums have a nice analogue warmth to them. The extra reverb on the vocals just enhances the dreaminess of it all. Clearly I need to do my homework on this Classixx fellow.

Just Ain't Gonna Work Out (Astronote's El Camino Remix).mp3
Green Eyed Love (Classixx Remix).mp3

Stream "A Strange Arrangement" on Spotify
Mayer Hawthorne at Stones Throw

Gatekeeper

I mentioned Gatekeeper last year when they had four amazing industrial-electro-horror-disco tracks circulating the internet. They now have their first vinyl release due on Fright Records - a new label set up by Kompakt's Michael Mayer and Jon Berry. The four track EP entitled Optimus Maximus will be available on limited edition granite coloured vinyl from October 26th (and also digitally). There's a video for the title track, created by Tommy Boy (who was also involved in the amazing cover art). Watch the video below and check the Fright Records myspace page for more previews and info.

I-F Mixtape 1986

There's a great old mix by I-F (CBS / Intergalactic FM) on the Valerie blog at the moment. Never heard any of the tracks before but they're pretty much all awesome; from Italo to Electro Rap to Euro-Dance. Mixing is spot on too. My personal favourite:



I-F - Disco Mix from Tape 1986

Casiopea - Make Up City

I've been meaning to post this for ages; some 1980 style Japanese Jazz-Fusion from Casiopea that I picked up in San Francisco last summer. First sample track is the straight-up groover, second one has more of a 'shuffle' vibe to it. Nice synths and a healthy portion of noodles throughout the album.

Casiopea - Eyes of Mind.mp3

Casiopea - Make Up City.mp3

Casiopea - Make Up City LP

Baxter - Proof EP

Willy Baxter first caught my attention back in 2006 when I stumbled across him via Kelley Polar's myspace page. I really liked his music and I blogged a couple of his tracks over on 24:Hours, which lead to the Irish label seedyBurnR putting out his debut release, the excellent Aiming High back in 2007. He finally has another release out, the Proof EP under the alias "Baxter" on OMG! Records. It features 3 quality vocal tracks in a synth-pop/nu-disco style and a dreamy downtempo bonus. There is also a remix EP featuring alternate versions from Lifelike, Spirit Catcher and Idiotproof. Both releases are currently Beatport exclusives but they will be available at other net stores soon. Keep an eye out for his full album and a remix for the brilliant Tesla Boy, both coming soon on Mullet Records.

Baxter - Proof EP (OMG! Records)
Buy it at Beatport
Stream it on Myspace

Johan Agebjörn FACT Mix 76

Sally Shapiro producer Johan has put together one of the best mixes I've heard for a long time for FACT Magazine. It's an excellent example of the quality and variety of tunes from the 'nu-disco' genre. Mid-tempo pacing, plenty of lovely melodies, an appreciation of song based structure and smooth, no frills mixing.

Tracklisting:

Friday Bridge: This Case Is Closed (Johan Agebjörn Remix)
40 Thieves feat Qzen: Don't Turn It Off (Brennan Green Remix)
Sally Shapiro: Miracle (Bogdan Irkük Remix)
Friendly Fires feat. Au Revoir Simone: Paris (Aeroplane Remix)
Dølle Jølle: Balearic Incarnation (Todd Terje Remix)
Bogdan Irkük: When I Dream Of New York
Fox the Fox: Precious Little Diamond (12" Version)
Glass Candy: I Always Say Yes (12" Main)
Datassette: Weather Conditions

DOWNLOAD
Grab it while you can, the link expires in three weeks.

Groovin' You Too

I suppose I should draw your attention to this new mini blog I have set up. There is a permanent link at the top of the sidebar on the left. I don't always find the time to write full posts/reviews here so the new blog is something I hope to update more regularly, albeit with less information. So if I hear a random good track somewhere I'll be posting a link to it there. I'll still be writing more in depth posts here too. You can follow the Groovin' You Too blog if you're a Tumblr member or you can add the URL to your RSS feed. You can also follow me on Twitter for updates and other music related talk. The all important links are below:

Groovin' You Too
Twitter Profile

Silkie - City Limits Vol.1

I dabble in Dubstep now and then, and there are some really fresh sounds out there if you look beyond the raft of ear bleeding basslines and synths out there. Silkie can certainly be placed in the 'artistic' group of steppers on the strength of his new LP "City Limits Vol.1" recently released on Deep Medi Musik. My only complaint is that it's a little long at 13 tracks and 75 minutes but it does contain a wide variety of sounds, styles and influences over the heavy basslines. These four tracks perfectly highlight the albums quality and variety (though of course, youtube never does Dubstep any favours).

Alan Wilkis - Pink and Purple

This new release from Brooklyn-based producer/multi-instrumentalist Alan Wilkis was one of the last promos I downloaded before being cut off from the world internet for a month after a recent house move. A crazy mixture of styles and genres (check out his influences at Owl & Bear) that somehow manage to come together to form a cohesive whole.

Starting out with the disco funk of Snuggle Up To Nail Down which is packed with catchy and infectious vocodered vocals and synth melodies layered over a bubbling bassline, lo-fi shuffling drum machines and more meaty percussion. There's even a top notch guitar solo in there; consider my interest piqued. The funk continues on N.I.C.E., this time leaning more towards the P-Funk era. The beat is thick and the bassline thicker, complimented with tight guitar licks, synth hooks and horn stabs.

Alan Wilkis - N.I.C.E.

Gotta Get You Back retains the heavy beat and bass combo but moves in a poppier direction. It reminds me of Jordan Knight's Give It To You (this is a good thing) both tracks using similar staccato rhythm patterns. Title track Pink and Purple is another catchy little pop number until 2m30s in, when we're treated to a small breakdown followed by a grin inducing synth and guitar solo climax. Dance With You manages to squeeze Gameboy sounding blips, synth-pop influences, driving rock and roll drums and guitars, a brief smattering of techno beats and the usual array of vocal and melodic hooks all into a jolly little 3 minute pop song.

Alan Wilkis - Dance With You

Closing track Time Machine is the epic 'serious' contribution to the EP. It hasn't clicked with me like the upbeat stuff but I do like the synths and I'm a sucker for those cheap sounding bossa-nova beatbox rhythms. Overall then, an impressive and varied release, so much so that it was tough to decide which tracks to post. Listen to the whole release on his Myspace page and buy the EP either direct from the artist or from itunes using the links below.

Alan Wilkis myspace
Alan Wilkis store
Alan Wilkis on itunes

Desire

Desire is the new project from Johnny Jewel of Glass Candy and Chromatics fame. They opened the show for Glass Candy and Lindstrom at the Italians Do It Better party at London's KOKO last Thursday and turned out to be the highlight of the show for me. Singer Megan Louise has a great voice, slightly reminiscent of Billie Ray Martin - she also played a bit of synth. Johnny Jewel was hunched over an array of electronic noise boxes and there was a live drummer. The backing track (and demo cd) contained more live instrumentation such as piano, saxophone and strings. The style is more melodic than Glass Candy and with an emphasis on 'song' as opposed to 'bass', although there are still a couple of nice upbeat numbers for the dancefloor, especially during the live show.

Some news from Mike Simonetti's blog: "the desire lp is done being mastered, and on it's way to the pressing plant. we should have these in the store in a little over a month." That was already 2 weeks ago so I'm not sure if the cd I bought at the show is the full album or another demo. What I do know is that it's great - I've listened to it at least once a day since the gig. For now though, show them some love at a live show or on myspace and enjoy this track from the cd.

Desire - Don't Call.mp3

Desire on Myspace

Nite Jewel

I can't stop listening to this song. And when I'm not listening to it, I'm singing it in my head. A beautiful, amazing record. I found it on the new Milky Disco 2 compilation from Lo Records (not as good as the original or the digital only Milky Disco 1.5). It also came out as a 12" on Italians Do It Better. Taken from the Good Evening LP, which is just as great from start to finish. Buy it direct from the artist for maximum satisfaction.

Nite Jewel Myspace | Nite Jewel Website

Colin McNeil - Cantina

A lost gem from my vinyl collection, the b-side to the Monsters of the Deep 12" on Ritual Recordings. A lot of Techno/Tech-House from this period (2001) hasn't aged well but I think this still has some interesting sounds, a healthy amount of funk and a slightly Detroit influenced groove to it. Can't tell you much about Colin McNeil I'm afraid, though all of the releases on Ritual Recordings were from him. So just sit back and enjoy the music with this one, pitched down slightly for your listening pleasure!

Colin McNeil - Cantina.mp3

Karin Klark - In The Night

Love the SNES sounding synth hook and the guitar solo in the third minute of Karin Klark's "In The Night". Sourced from the new Flemming Dalum mix entitled "Italo Magic". It's full of obscure tracks and as ever, it's mixed and sequenced flawlessly. Get the mix, full tracklist and some cool cover scans from a selection of the records he used over at the Robots for Robots forums here.

Deep House Mix 27-04-2009

Here's a little something I put together this afternoon.
Selected and mixed LIVE using Vinyl and Serato.

acidbearboy - Deep House Mix 27-04-2009

Tracklist:

Bogdan Irkuk aka Bulgari - Everything is Changing
Trentemoller - Le Champagne
Dolle Jolle - Balearic Incarnation (Todd Terje Extra Doll Mix)
Circlesquare - Dancers (Russ Chimes vs. Anoraak Remix)
Grace Jones - Williams' Blood (Yam Who? Electric Dub)
Metro Area - Orange Alert
Andy Stott - Talk Touch
Nick Holder - Paradise '98
Model 500 - Starlight
Ame - Engoli
Brendan Moeller - Dynamo
Quantec - Circular


I realised I didn't post my last mix here, no idea why, but it's also available to download from Soundcloud so grab it if you haven't already. Lot's of synth, some chunky but funky house and a rather French influence.

acidbearboy - mélodie superbe de synth mix 27-01-2009

Tracklist:

Sebastian Tellier - Kilometer (Aeroplane's Italo '84 Remix)
Bottin - No Static (Main Mix)
Shirley Lites - Heat You Up [Melt You Down] (Gerd 4lux Edit)
Metro Area - Erodyne
Bogdan Irkuk AKA BULGARI - When I Dream Of New York
Kish Mauve - Loose Control (Fred Falke Remix)
Anoraak - Night Drive With You
C-Mos - Calling All Cars
College feat. Anoraak - Fantasy Park (Moulinex Remix)
SymbolOne - Love Juice (Danger TV Remix)
Fear of Tigers - Study Hard Drugs School
Together - Together
Fred Falke - Love Theme
Cut Copy - So Haunted (Knitelife's Sun-Soaked Reprise)
Sneak Thief - My Sullen Mistress
Professor Genius - Down There
Octogen - Influential Perfection
Entertainment - U 1988 (Kruton Remix)
Discodeine - Joystick
Amplified Orchestra - Zweap
The Beat Broker - Cactus Cooler
Michael Mayer & Reinhard Voigt - Transparenza
Blackbelt Andersen - November
Defender - Bliss