August 2011

They’ve topped Soundcloud’s Edit chart with every upload, produced incredible mixes which have maxed their download limit within hours and been championed by everyone from Greg Wilson to Hudson Mohawke, Bill Brewster to Jackmaster. Slow It Down may be all about dropping the tempo but their rise to edit fame has been anything but sluggish. This week we were finally treated to a preview of their own original work, and to say it lit up our inbox would be an understatement. Teaming up with jack of all trades, Rob Etherson, this minute long clip is so groovy we actually locked our legs trying to do The Hustle while listening to it.

You can’t say those Chungo Bungo lads aren’t good to us. Having recently caused it at Aberdeen’s Snafu for a proper Reggae takeover they’ve finally released a live recording of the night which really captures the feel-good flavour of the Chungo Bungo experience. Hosted by the main man MC, Eazi Riddim, the guys describe the set as a ‘proper CB session’ and by the sounds of it, it went well and truly off. With big basslines, skank-ready selections and super-fat dubplates, you have officially just found the soundtrack to your next ‘smoke’ session.

Incase you hadn’t noticed, Soma celebrate 20 years of releasing quality club music this month. Glasgow’s premier dance label and one of the finest purveyors of House & Techno in the world are responsible for more bonafide tunes then you’ve had hot dinners, so reaching this landmark occasion is a big deal for the entire industry, not just the Pressure devoted, Slam worshipping underground. Ever since launching in 1991, the label has strived to unearth the hottest new talent and push it in only one direction: up. Think Daft Punk, think Silicone Soul, think Joris Voorn and you realise just how many quality artists they’ve unleashed into the world.

A bit of a curve ball this week for our Local Hero award, but completely justified. As it stands we’re still very much beginners in Scottish Hip Hop, it’s something that so far has passed us by. But when we heard Paisley’s Konchis & Physiks team up on new track ‘Persystem’ we were immediately hooked. With the type of beat that could easily have featured on 2001 (think a more introspective ‘Still Dre’) and fierce rhymes telling it as it is, we reckon Konchis & Physiks are set to take it next level.

It’s been another big summer for Sunday Circus. Having just celebrated their 4^th birthday with Crosstown Rebel’s star Jozif as well as featuring at both Rockess, Sonar and T In The Park, the nomadic party collective are no doubt feeling excited with not only what they’ve accomplished but what lies ahead. Of course Sunday Circus have always pushed the boat out (quite literally in some cases), taking punters to the less obvious venues around Glasgow and showing them a good time. This Sunday they return to one of the city’s most exciting and promising new venues, Chambre69 where they will showcase the return of DC10 resident Dyed Soundorom.

Having just finished listening to Glasgow-based producer Voltergeist’s latest album ‘Burnt & Buried’, we are left mesmerised and a little stunned. Electronic music is certainly most poignant when it is completely organic, from everyday sounds, objects and experiences to the wildest reaches of your own imagination, it is when you recognise endless possibilities that you start to create them. When inspiration hits you right, you can create the type of music which is instantly yours and it is here on ‘Burnt & Buried’ that those boundless influences have come together so perfectly.

It’s that time of the week again when our friends at We Love… make us insanely jealous with their tales of superstar DJ’s, late nights and too many vodka limones. Incase your new to Synth, we are primarily all about Glasgow, however this summer we’ve been pen pals with one of the greatest club events on earth – We Love…Space Sundays. Each week we’ve been giving away tickets to this monumental party as well as bringing you exclusive footage, interviews and mixes directly from Ibiza.

You may have only recently found The Shimmy, and that comes as no surprise. Speaking with one of the head promoters on Saturday we were surprised to hear that the free-spirited House & Techno collective had been putting on underground parties in Glasgow for many years. Established through word-of-mouth and often using secret locations, each event was treated more like a get together for an extended group of friends then an all singing, all dancing club night. It was only recently they emerged from the underground to bring that ethos to the masses. Still maintaining their seductive allure, they have thrown parties with likes of Kaiserdisco at the Art School, invited curious clubbers to discover city centre basements and maintained the mystery with free-ticketed outdoor gatherings. Promoting a truly hedonistic party vibe, they invite people to sport top hats and leave the working week behind. After all, what happens at The Shimmy stays at The Shimmy.

There can be few greater success stories in Glasgow clubbing then the advent of iAM. As we’ve mentioned time and time again, our fair city (although thriving with activity almost every night of the week) can have a tendency to over-kill. There’s no doubting Glasgow has an extreme thirst to party, whether it’s the continually disappointing weather which drives people, the foundation set by such great institutions as Optimo or just an instinctive urge to drink for Britain, there is but always something happening and somewhere to go. While the choice can benefit the pro-active clubber, some of the nights can lose out through too much competition; which is why when iAM took up weekly residency at Glasgow’s famed Sub Club there were understandable reservations.

We’ve always been intrigued by Sei A’s dark, involving sound. Some call it gothic Techno, but truth be told, there is no defining label. As with this stunning remix of Moby’s recent single ‘Lie Down In Darkness’ you can easily identify elements of Dubstep, Trip Hop and stripped-back Garage. Whether Sei A welcomes such wild speculation is completely irrelevant – to him its probably just ‘music’.

It’s not over yet. Summer may be slipping through our fingertips at an alarming rate, but there are still a few big nights in Glasgow to be had before the onslaught of Freshers. This Saturday Oh My Days! launches at the increasingly popular La Cheetah basement where promoters Martin & Euan hope to share their passion for the more lively sound of underground bass music. Flying in directly from Paris will be 19 year old Valentino Canzani aka French Fries, a man who has been shaping his sound for only a few years, but is already turning heads.

And so summer 2011 marches on, and I use the term ‘summer’ lightly as if you’re currently residing in the UK, you’ll be aware that we have infact been cheated of a whole season this year. Thankfully in Ibiza however they don’t have that problem and the sunshine isle is of course in full swing.

It’s always reassuring when a producer is willing to give away such quality music for free. In the past you may have been sceptical of such blasé promotion but during the current climate of illegal downloading and falling music sales, a free release can instantly capture an audience you might otherwise have missed. And that is exactly what happened when we featured Holobeams and Broken Machines in our Local Hero segment last week. Intrigued by the beautiful ‘Four’ we decided to investigate the entire EP as a whole. Needless to say we were instantly rewarded.

In 2011, Dubstep has gone stratospheric. No longer is it the underground movement that once made it the most exciting new dance music on the planet. No, today it is towering high amidst commercial giants, topping charts and filling amphitheatres, Dubstep has become unequivocally mainstream and nothing can stop it. But what about the purists? The originals? The people that were there from the start? What do they do when the music they love has been pilfered by rat-like, bandwagon-jumping, mosh-masters like Skrillex? They of course take it back under, do-how-they-do and plough straight on – regardless of who might be bothering the top ten. Glasgow’s own Kid Robotik is one such purist, primarily playing Dubstep known as ‘Tearout’, he describes the Skrillex adaptation of the sound which has become so popular as “not 100% on�.

So we have to say, the competition for our Local Hero award is getting stronger week on week, but after a surprise release by Barrientos on Tuesday night we felt it was only right he take the crown on this occasion. We spelt out just how much we love the Sky EP as a whole yesterday, but it’s the dreamy, sun-drenched ‘Chicago’ which brought us to our knees. It’s all about that piano line…

In some ways we’re actually quite annoyed at 21 year old bedroom producer Ivan Hall Barrientios - even though each one of his productions have seared giant holes in our speaker stacks and claimed more Local Hero awards than we care to mention, it appears when it comes to releasing music he likes to take his time. Frustrating yes, but who are we to rush him when the quality is this good?

Its pot luck whether the British summer produces good weather, that’s why some promoters who bravely opt for the al fresco experience can be understandably on edge as their prospective date nears. Thankfully however, as is the case in Glasgow anyway, daytime parties come equipped for all eventualities and with an indoor equivalent to the open air dancefloor almost becoming a legally required alternative, everyone can arrive safe in the knowledge that the party will go on. So, this Saturday, come rain or shine, one of Glasgow’s finest House & Techno factions will take to the Clydeside waterfront for ten hours of beats, grooves and basslines, in a shake-down that is shaping up to be something of an epic.

So we’re back from our week of madness in Ibiza. As always, the addictive blend of partying throughout the night at some of the world’s best clubs and soaking up the sunshine on some of the world’s best beaches has left us with a severe case of the post holiday blues. There is simply no where like it in the world, and apart from the blatant hedonism, it’s the unique atmosphere which keeps us coming back time and time again. For four months of the year you get to experience what it would be like if the weekend never ended…and trust us, it's a beautiful thing.

If there’s one particular local artist who has had us gripped from the very start, it would have to be Monopunk. Surfacing only late last year under his progressive guise ‘Dajosm’, his tunes immediately had us bouncing about the studio in a fit of bass-gurning athleticism. While we have to admit the sounds of his big room, hands-in-the-air material proved particularly addictive, the advent of the Electro-obsessed Monopunk proves Dave Smith has the skills to transcend any up-for-it dancefloor. With the release of the highly popular ‘Expo EP’ proving popular among both tech heads and bassline fanatics alike it was only right he follow it up with something equally as damaging.