Mike’s in Manchester this weekend playing at one of favourite Northern Quarter hang outs; Common Bar. Fridays are now Freitags down on Edge Street and they keep pulling out the stops with their bookings showcasing local talent and fresh DJs from across the world.

This is a rare opportunity to see Mike play in the intimate surroundings of Common so be smart and ensure you attend and receive your Freitags fix of this months disco delivery.

It all starts at 9pm and it’s two English pounds to get in.

You can follow Freitags on Twitter or join them on everyone’s favourite stalking site Facebook.

The author that brought us essential reading, Love Saves the Day, is giving us the opportunity to learn more about the mysterious yet enchanting character of Arthur Russell, while simultaneously exploring the context in which his life and music developed. I strongly recommend any books or articles by Tim Lawrence. He masters the perfect balance among academic writing, painstaking research and accessible narrative.

“Hold On to Your Dreams” is the first biography of the musician and composer Arthur Russell, one of the most important but least known contributors to the downtown New York music scene during the 1970s and 1980s. With the exception of a few dance recordings, including “Is It All Over My Face?” and “Go Bang! #5,” Russell’s pioneering music was largely forgotten until the release of two albums in 2004 triggered a revival of interest, which gained momentum with the issue of additional albums and the documentary film Wild Combination. Based on interviews with more than seventy of his collaborators, family members and friends, “Hold On to Your Dreams” provides vital new information about this singular, eccentric musician and his role in the boundary-breaking downtown music scene.

Tim Lawrence traces Russell’s odyssey from his hometown of Oskaloosa, Iowa, to countercultural San Francisco, and eventually to New York, where he lived from 1973 until his death from AIDS-related Complications in 1992. Refusing definition while dreaming of commercial success, Russell wrote and performed new wave and disco as well as quirky rock, twisted folk, voice-cello dub, and hip-hop inflected pop. “He was way ahead of other people in understanding that the walls between concert music and popular music and avant-garde music were illusory,” comments the composer Philip Glass. “He lived in a world in which those walls weren’t there.” Lawrence follows Russell across musical genres and through such vital downtown music spaces as the Kitchen, the Loft, the Gallery, the Paradise Garage, and the Experimental Intermedia Foundation. Along the way, he captures Russell’s openness to sound, his commitment to collaboration, and his uncompromising idealism.

(Excerpted from www.timlawrence.info)

One such example comes from Australian Darcy McDonald, who’s mix we came across from the many submitted to our Sound Cloud account and one we very much enjoyed listening to over the last few weeks. After bouncing a few emails back and forth here’s what Darcy has to say about himself and his mix:

I’m Darcy, I hail from a small coastal town in the south west corner of  Australia.

Like most people, I was influenced by my parent’s musical tastes which included the likes of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Pink Floyd and Jefferson Airplane to name a few…and later in my teens by English progressive rock bands like Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and course Led Zeppelin and Sabbath.

Then in the early nineties I heard a track called Voodoo People by the Prodigy which opened up a whole new world of electronic dance music.

I taught myself to DJ in 1998 by reading ‘How to DJ’ guides on the internet and soon started playing at local house parties, bars and clubs in the southwest.  I still have a weekly residency at those same bars.

I have many influences musically but dj wise some of my new influences are; all the fantastic mixes I’m hearing courtesy of blogs and disco music sites like this one, Tim Sweeney, Greg Wilson and the original Cosmic Disco DJ’s i.e. Daniel Baldelli and Beppe Loda.

I have bought and played many genre’s of music, from Progressive House to Breaks, Chicago house to Fidget but I had become really bored with the current music and stopped buying records altogether.

Then about three years ago I heard a show called BeatInSpace over the internet. It was awesome, music that was completely fresh to me, different styles like disco, nu-wave and electro rap played together, the music sounded fun again and I was hooked!

At the moment I love playing a mixture of old and new tunes from slow cosmic disco to dark Italo-Disco and Nu-Disco, Nu-Wave to E.B.M. industrial style tracks and also proper Electro Rap. I also currently have a soft spot for Krautrock.

Peace

And there you have it. No doubt like many of us Darcy has found a path that’s similar to many. Keep searching, keep listening and there’s always something out there to keep you inspired whether it’s a production from 30+ years ago or the latest pre-release. Here’s Darcy’s mix…

Darcy – Off The Shelf Disco

• SLEEZY MCQUEEN – ANNA DUE (COLES VOCAL MIX)
• MORTEN SORENSON – START SOMETHING (40 THIEVES MIX)
• KLEIN AND MBO – DIRTY TALK (GREG WILSON EDIT)
• ANTHONY MANSFIEL AND TAL M KLEIN – LAND WAR
• AJELLO – DOLPHY
• MARCO AND ORPHEO – MACH 4
• NEIGHBOUR – ROBODICK
• PETSHOP BOYS – I’M IN LOVE WITH A GERMAN FILM STAR 
(MARK REEDERS STUCK IN THE 80’S MIX)
• PLASTIQUE DE REVE – LOST IN THE CITY
• DIRRTY HAZE – LAZER SEX
• COLM 111 – TAKE ME HIGHER
• CRIMEA X – 10PM
• DEN HAAN – RELEASE THE BEAST
• DOVES – KINGDOM OF RUST (PRINS THOMAS DISKO MIX)

I’ve recently set up a little blog for photograph’s that I take out & about.

Check it out Message From the Future.

First set are some snaps from Cosmic Disco’s favourite Floridian Theme Park ‘Epcot Center’.

Laters.

I’ve recently put together a little mix of Italo and Eurodisco for our very good friends at El Diablo’s Social Club which is currently up on their blog for your aural consumption.

Point your browser here

There are tracks from Cat Gang, Klapto, Digital Emotion and plenty of other poppers inspired top’s off merchants so go, get stuck in and check out the other superb mixes on their blog (including a tremendous mix from our very own Baggy).

Myself and Simon’s lowdown and dirty El Diablo’s Bank Holiday Backroom set should also be appearing in the not too distant future on the Frequency Without Control blog.

Hope you enjoy the mix.

x

The stems and parts can be downloaded HERE to remix and re-edit with the best efforts to be released by We Are Woodville so get cracking as the deadline is January 1st 2010. Email your entries to ben at recordlabelservices.com

Listen to the original version HERE and find out more about the majestic Flash Atkins HERE.

Held at Nelson’s in the stunning surroundings of Hebden Bridge, it’s a night about music and drinking fine ales. Something we very much have an interest in.

Kicking off with the first party on 21st November if you based in Manchester you can get the rave train from Victoria Station (Or stay on and wake up in a field on the Sunday) and no doubt access from Yorkshire is equally a doddle so make sure you show some support and get yourself out to the sticks for something different.

Hebden really is a lovely part of the world so we recommend making a day of it and get your hiking boots on, go for a trek in the afternoon, head to one of the many quality pubs for some pre-Duende grub then finish off with a good few jars whilst soaking in what will be some truly mindblowing music as Cosmic Jane takes control at Nelson’s. We’ve heard the soundsystem is a cracker as well…

Highly recommended!

UPDATE – We have just been informed that the FOX and GOOSE BEER FESTIVAL!!! is in Hebden Bridge that very weekend so it’s going to be the place to start the night, that’s for sure…

Ian has been producing his own material for a number of years and are very pleased to inform you that Ian’s first mini album is now available to purchase, containing 6 tracks of atmospheric and melancholic deepness. Ambient, Experimental, Industrial, Deep House. Musique concrete as Ian himself puts it!

This album is now available via Godspill. Head over and click on the CD Player for soundclips.

In additional, Ian now hosts a new show on the mighty Intergalactic FM called SEER Radio which airs every Friday at 21:00hrs CET on IFM3, focusing on Experimental, Exotica, Ambient and Electronic music. Make sure you pop across and add to your bookmarks.

For previous shows click HERE and for info and tracklistings of previous shows, click HERE.

By the late 1970’s, as musical technology such as synthesisers, sequencers, and drum machines became more accessible, so white rock musicians previously limited by the guitar-bass-drums format mined this expanded sonic palette to evolve a stark and angular form of dance music. Of course, Kraftwerk were the pioneers of what was dubbed ‘Synth-Pop’ (Personally, I’d call it Electro-Dance), but as the 70’s became the 80’s, many others followed suit, with even ‘Real’ instruments given a synthetic makeover.

This development probably peaked around 1983, when musicians were still using the technology rather than the technology using them. But as the 80’s wore on, that situation was sadly reversed: as far as I’m concerned, the death knell sounded when samplers had become cheap and powerful enough for any fool without an ounce of musical imagination to sample a few bars of other people’s music, loop it, and then rap over the top.

Despite that, a great legacy has been left: there are plenty of tracks that have become classics of the kind (New Order’s ‘Blue Monday’ immediately springs to mind), but here I’ve put together some perhaps-less-well-known-but–equally-good-if-not-better-in-my-opinion material.

Wilberforce – Rise of The Machines

• The Associates – Grecian 2000
• The Blue Nile – Tinseltown In The Rain
• Bryan Ferry – The Chosen One
• The League Unlimited Orchestra – Hard Times
• Propaganda – The Murder Of Love
• The Thompson Twins – Love On Your Side
• Scarlet Fantastic – No Memory
• Scritti Politti – Absolute (Version)
• Soft Cell – Torch
• Simple Minds – Thirty Frames A Second
• The Tom Tom Club – Wordy Rappinghood
• Yello – I Love You
• Japan – Life In Tokyo
• King Crimson – Sartori In Tangier
• Fashion – Streetplayer-Mechanik
• Visage – Night Train
• The Eurythmics – This Is The House
• The Lotus Eaters – You Don’t Need Someone New
• Robert Palmer – Looking For Clues
• John Foxx – Europe After The Rain
• The Cars – Heartbeat City

Firstly, Harvey’s been in the studio most of the month, so expect the first fruits of his labour very soon.

Next, after the vinyl success of Rocha, International Feel are releasing ‘Hands of Love’ digitally via Beatport on 26th October and then on Itunes and other digital stores two weeks later. For the collectors amongst you, on November 2nd, they are also releasing a very limited edition of the ‘Hands of Love’ Mugwump remix, on one sided, hand stamped vinyl – once gone, it’s gone, so if you want to grab a copy, get your order in now!

Finally, an interesting little twist regarding future releases…

Hopefully, by now, you’ve all grasped that International Feel love to release quality music with great remixes and amazing artwork and whilst this is great for a lot of the ‘DJ-friendly’ stuff they have in production, the label is also keen to diversify and become a home for more one off’s/weird little curios, that don’t fit into any particular category.

Therefore, in addition to our main releases, International Feel are going to start releasing some very limited edition music (200-300 copies) on transparent vinyl with the catalogue number ‘EFEEL’. These releases will only have the International Feel Logo and catalogue number on the labels, so each release will, in effect, be totally anonymous (although if you look hard enough there will be a small clue on the label).

This will give producers the chance to have total freedom without any genre based bullshit and allow them to release really interesting music without any boundaries.

The first EFEEL release will be coming soon and as to who it’ll be…….well, Harvey’s been in the studio, Rocha’s back in the studio and so has…….(you get the idea!)

For those of you still to grab hold of a copy of this essential release, get one quick from the likes of Juno.