September 2011

Shame on us. This the first time we’ve featured Rustie in our Local Hero feature and for that we apologise. Featuring on his forthcoming album ‘Glass Swords’, ‘Flash Back’ is a gleaming vision of the future (which is quite ironic considering its title), channelling a hyper-sonic mixture of chugging, industrial bass and chrome reflective synths. Make of that what you will.

‘Dance – Noise – Delirium’. Something you should expect every time you step onto the dancefloor but quite often so rarely find. This however, was exactly what RPZ were offering during their time at the Art School and this is what RPZ managed to consistently deliver. Was it their eye popping visuals? The retro-chic appeal of their erotically charged flyers? Or was it the downright filthy electronic music they played? Actually, it was a combination of all three. During the last decade, Thursday night at the Vic Bar was a melting pot of hedonism and expression. Find yourself surrounded on the chequered dancefloor by uninhibited art students, the air splintered by razor sharp lasers and the walls adorned with highly suggestive visuals and you could easily find the escape the aforementioned tagline promised.

As an artist, you should always have a special relationship with your label. There should be a mutual understandment and a shared passion for sharing your music, each release should be doted on like a small child. After all, if a label isn’t going to give you the support you need, then why bother in the first place? That’s why it’s so reassuring to see London-based House imprint Lost My Dog putting the spotlight on some of their most influential artists and giving them the opportunity to explore and expose their sound in a new full-length series called 'Family Affair'.

Let it be known – we are in love with this song! Obviously we’ve touched on ‘Right Hand Red’ before, but after getting lost in this remix over the last few days our love is now fully consummated. The original was already a strong favourite with us over the summer and with Barrientos now giving it the ‘Paradise’ touch, we can see this resurfacing next year as an official sunset anthem. Simply stunning.

“Two words – pure vibes�. That’s how James Whelan, one half of Glasgow’s easy-skankin reggae collective, Chungo Bungo describes their parties. And after walking into a packed Courtyard on a sunny day in mid-July those two words seem pretty accurate. It’s early afternoon, and bass is already rumbling from the ridiculous sound system that towers high above the bopping heads. James, and his impossibly positive companion Ian MacKinnon (aka Chungo) are taking it back to their roots with a one-off summer special, hidden deep within Glasgow city centre. The summer of 2011 has already proved to be hideously wet, but today the sun is shining, perhaps an indication of things to come.

Deadly Rhythm really have their priorities in order. The bass-driven collective are not only booking artists who sit right at the cutting edge of modern club music, but they are also bringing you these artists for free. Following three highly successful parties in which the likes of Martyn, Instra:mental and Koreless all levelled the dancefloor, they now bring you one of Rinse FM’s most highly respected and outright talented DJ’s, Alexander Nut.

Over the last few months or so there have been a few tracks which have just refused to go away. Dynamode’s ‘Right Hand Red’ is one of them. Deep in July, while we were enjoying fleeting moments of summer sun, this track kept us wrapped up in Balearic bliss, dreaming of turquoise oceans and Mediterranean skies. With reflective chords and a deep-grooving bassline we found it hard to ignore its hypnotic charm and wistful nature.

Throughout the summer of 2011 we’ve been bringing you some incredible content from our pals at We Love…Space Ibiza, delivering exclusive news, interviews, mixes and footage from arguably the world’s best club and one of the island’s most extravagant events. Finally, fifteen weeks on since the summer sprang into life; we’ve reached the end of the road and We Love’s monumental closing party. And yes, we do have tickets to giveaway…

So, summer’s officially over then, the nights are getting longer, the weather is getting progressively worse and that bastard, winter is probably preparing to dump its big white load on us again. The outlook may be grim, but if there’s one thing that can be said about the darker months, it's that the willingness to party becomes almost insatiable. Afterall, what else have we to look forward to? So, with that in mind, Glasgow’s most generous party starters, Mixed Bizness have kindly offered to give away two free tickets to this month’s How’s Your Party? featuring none other than Jack Beats.

So obviously we spelled out just how much we love Jinty’s ‘Bleu’ in last week’s Local Hero segment, but after a week of living with it and playing it out, we didn’t realise just how much. For us ‘Bleu’ is a breath of fresh air amidst the artificial gleam of modern Hip Hop. With an atmosphere reminiscent of DJ Premier or even, (dare we say) Jay Dilla, Jinty has really captured the ‘live’ element of quality Hip Hop instrumentation.

We almost feel sorry for the influx of impressionable freshers this week. Arriving in a new city, often far from home and facing the daunting task of making new friends, they must also battle through a wave of android like promoters who insist they have the best night in town. But midst the empty promises, pointless gimmicks and relentless drink promotions there is one freshers party which offers something a little different. Year in, year out Subcity Radio welcomes the new batch of fresh-faced students with the type of event that can steer them away from the misleading appeal of endless bar crawls and sticky dancefloors. The curious will most definitely be rewarded as breaking away from the mainstream can welcome you to Glasgow in an entirely different way.

Chances are, if you were a student in Glasgow between 2008 and 2011 you would have experienced Thursday night at the Art School. In those three short years, student clubbing started to change and along with the likes of Killer Kitsch, weeknight partying started to reclaim its credibility. Standing proudly like a bastion to sub-rumbling bass, the Art School and Mixed Bizness Thursday’s gave people a real alternative, laying the groundwork for the many thriving nights that we know and love today. Where else could you hear Dubstep on a week night in 2008? Where else could you find Art students, curious casuals and Hip Hop baggies mixing in the one place? Mixed Bizness opened it right up, and if like us you were a Thursday night regular, then most of your praise should be directed towards Boom Monk Ben.

The last decade of club music has probably been the most exciting in living memory. New genres have risen, old ones have been revitalised and some have fallen by the wayside. But what I perhaps find most interesting is the very recent popularisation of late 90’s RnB an early 00’s Hip Hop. There is no doubt that during the period of between 1998 and 2005, ‘urban’ music (as some may refer to it) reached an almost unfathomable peak. For the first time Hip Hop was selling out stadiums in the UK and artists like Eminem were appearing in their own movies. Commercially the sound was massive.

Following on from the sonic bliss of the ‘Satin Panthers EP’, Hudson Mohawke returns with a series of unofficial remixes for a select group of RnB megastars. If you’ve been paying attention to his Soundcloud over the last month you will have heard fresh takes on Aaliyah, Keri Hilson and in this case, Janet Jackson. Taking the track ‘Pleasure’and giving it the signature booty-bouncy flavour he has become known for, this will undoubtedly get the girls on the floor and begging for more. Props to Pleasure Principle for putting this out...

Autumn may be creeping in here at grey old Blighty, but over in Ibiza there is still one month of solid summer to enjoy and the ever exciting prospect of this season’s closing parties. We’ve been reporting directly from Space Ibiza over the last few months as our friends at We Love… keep us up to date with exclusive content from their legendary Sunday night extravaganza. With any luck we're going to have a couple tickets to giveaway for the last party of the summer, so keep your eyes peeled.

You might not have noticed through the conjestion of Facebook, but there is a bit of a buzz forming around the launch of Filthy Fridays. Head onto their event page and you’ll find a wave of support from people who have been hankering for a night solely dedicated to Dubstep. As we know, such a concept has been tried and tested in Glasgow  to wavering results - for some people a whole night of sub bass can get a bit monotonous. However, as Dubstep claimed its first number 1 in July, there is no doubt the genre is soaring in popularity. Certainly, there is no reason why such a night shouldn’t be a consistent success and promoter Ross Boyle believes the time is right to give it a shot.

We mentioned on Monday how September is one of our favourite months of the year. Not only do the promoters pull out all the stops but Subcity Radio finally returns to broadcast! There’s no need to stress how pivotal Subcity is to the Glasgow club scene, such influential names as Optimo, Mungos Hi-Fi, Boom Monk Ben and Pro Vinylist Karim all had their time at the station, nurturing their talent and giving them a medium to share the music which shaped their lives. Subcity is an opportunity for friendships to form, plans to be made and most importantly getting your sound out to the masses…

There can be few more instantly recognisable characters on the Glasgow scene than Muck’s PMcQ. Over the last two or three years he has become somewhat of an icon for dancefloor frivolity, refusing to be counted as just ‘another DJ’. Paul McQueen is someone who understands it’s not enough to just play records anymore; any half-enthused hotshot with a laptop can do that. These days it is all about charisma, energy and giving it a 100% - something that Paul does on every occasion. See him bouncing about the booth half naked willing people to join him and you’ll understand the difference a little passion (and madness) can make. But let’s not get our wires crossed; Paul may act the fool on occasion but it’s his skills as a DJ which have got him where he his today.

September could well be our favourite month of the year. As students filter back and people return from holiday the parties tend to kick up a gear and the promoters go all out to make you dance. Forget that preposterous season which was masquerading as 'summer', we officially have the night back. So, with that in mind it comes as no surprise that one of Glasgow’s most revered and forward-thinking monthlys have organised a party of bi-winning proportions.

Glasgow, Grobbie is coming for you. We’ve been keeping an eye on the Aberdonian native over the last few months and to say we are impressed would be an understatement. New track ‘Man In Flux’ embodies everything that is exciting about modern bass music – blurred boundaries, melting genres and a big step into the unknown. Adopting heavy bass, broken beats and a reflective undertone this is just a taster of what the Tuff Wax producer has up his sleeve.