Squeaky Sneaker

Moving...

2010-03-06T15:34:00.002+00:00

Been here a year now and it's time to move on.

Our new address is Squeakysneaker over at Wordpress. Hopefully be posting more, inspired by the new look site. Hop on over and take a look.

Good bye, cruel Blogspot x

Nobody Beats The Drum - Grindin'

2010-03-01T21:31:00.002+00:00

I Had A Dream

2010-02-26T20:25:00.006+00:00

I'm driving along a coastal road, LA or Miami maybe. I'm in a Ferrari Testarossa, probably red. I'm wearing a pastel coloured flannel shirt, which is likely to be pink, maybe lavender. The setting sun is reflecting off the RB Aviators and I seem to have put blonde streaks in my hair. Are my trousers white? Deck shoes? Fuck what do I look like?

Fear of Tigers has featured a couple of times already on SS and I keep coming back to him, mainly 'cause he's brilliant. He lovingly wraps his tunes in synth and padded, squelchy, beats and yeah, it reminds me of the 80's, this much synthesiser has to, but I never liked the 80's that much, musically or sartorially. It's not nostalgia that draws me to FOT, it's the positivity in his music. It makes you feel like you're driving the flash car along the cliff top as the sun goes down. It's like opening the curtains on a sun soaked morning, hearing the birds chattering. It makes you feel better.

And his album was free...

Get on to him and tell him you love him. I told him on Twitter, but he hasn't replied...

This remix of Yes Giantess ' Ruins ' is top. Give it a listen. Then listen again and again...and again. It goes all Laura Brannigan 'Gloria' at about 2.45 then he just lets you have it.

Yes Giantess - ' Ruins (Fear of Tigers Remix)'

Anoorak - ' Nightdrive With You (Fear of Tigers Remix)'

Don't Get Paranoid With Me

2010-02-20T21:58:00.005+00:00

Today I attended a potatoe fair ( purchased Yukon Gold and Picasso, if you were wondering) and went hunting for fossils on Wenlock Edge. Some bright spark had used the best fossil yeilding rocks to build a wall, so of course now there isn't much wall left. Found some good amonites, if you were wondering.

Also listened to a tape...

This was on it.

That was my day...

That's Poppers O'Clock Then

2010-02-16T19:29:00.002+00:00

The build in this is properly monster

Wonderful

2010-02-14T17:46:00.005+00:00

When I bought my first tonne of wood, back in September, I thought that was a lot of wood. Four more tonnes later and I realise that it's not. I'm obsessed with wood (never thought I'd write that). Everywhere I go I'm constantly thinking 'ooh that would burn well' whenever I see a fallen branch or long stick. I can be found, staring at a pile of timber, working out in my head how I can get it home. I've travelled miles for it, through inches of snow. I have pallets delivered to the house and when I saw council workers lopping branches outside my house, it may aswell have been a naked contortionist troupe, the way I reacted. Wood is good (whole other meaning for any Yanks that might be reading this).

It's down to the cold and the fact that we've had a bloody cold winter. Out here, on the edge, it gets really really cold. There's no neighbouring houses, seeping warmth for a start. It's cosey in suburbia, or in a terrace. Loads of residual heat floating about. In the sticks, you've got to make your own heat. Hence the obsession with wood of any kind. Cold stone floors sting like they're hot first thing in the morning and after five months of winter the cold is in your bones and you feel like you'll never get warm again. I've never really noticed heating before, it's just a switch and something to do with a boiler. It's a lot more immediate when it involves hacking stuff up before you can feel warm.

That said - I've got a big fucking axe, so that's a plus

Chelley - 'Took The Night (Grum Vocal Mix)'

Wiley - 'Never Be Your Woman (Herve Re-Work)

Actual Phantom - 'Toy'

Gorrilaz - 'Stylo (Yuksek Remix)'

We Are Actually At A Rave...

2010-02-12T17:00:00.007+00:00

If you're young you won't remember The Hitman and Her (and if you ever went out on a Saturday night, you won't have seen it), Michaela Strachan and Pete Waterman filming late night shows from actual clubs. The show ran from 1988 to 1992, which is amazing really when you consider it just featured groups of pissed people dancing badly in clubs. Take That appeared on one show, also Kylie and Guru 'Bloody' Josh. Until 1992 they usually filmed in cheesy clubs in Bradford or Blackpool, where the people got hammered on Bacardi and Coke and danced around their bags. Clubs and clubbing were changing around them though. Rave was really taking off in the clubs, as were pills (twenty five quid a pop, but they'd last for hours), suddenly this whole Pete and Michaela in da club stuff didn't seem such a good idea. Suddenly it looked naive, aswell as naff.

I really wish they'd revisit this idea now. On ITV. After Extreme Cops With Guns and Dogs on The Streets At War

The Return Of The Sneaky Interview

2010-02-10T20:22:00.004+00:00

It's been a while since the last SS interview (thinking of questions is hard, ok). The last one was with Tom from Run Riot, spookily enough. Since we last spoke he has been a busy boy. There's been remixes on Skint, Ape Music, and Sound of Habib.There's his remix of Double 99s ' RIP Grooove' which spent a month on the DJ Download House Chart, getting airplay on Kiss FM, as one of the Breaks tracks of the year. Throw in some live performances and running a label of his own, We Are Live Records, and I'm suprised the lad can raise the energy to answer questions at all.

SS - What do you listen to, day to day? Are you listening to radio, I-Pod, is the music that you hear influencing you?

Run Riot - I do most of my listening on Soundcloud these days as there’s loads of exciting new music on there. I don’t listen to very much radio and I’ve never owned an iPod. I’m far more concerned about finding new music for my label and making my own instead. Occasionally I will hear something that influences what I do in some way but these are more often from the big players!

SS - What would you say is your most important piece of kit?

Run Riot - It’s got to be Cubase. It’s what I use to lay my tracks down. All the rest of my gear is pretty dispensable. Although I do love my Korg EMX – so DIRTY!

SS - I used to be a rock kid and didn't find it much of a jump from RATM, Queens of The Stone Age, et al to the more driving electro, breaks I'm into now. Can you see similarities between rock and dance (I see that your influences include Muse and QOTSA).

Run Riot - Definitely! There’s power and energy in both. They’re obviously pretty different musically but connect with people on the same level and are equally important to music. A LOT of my influences are rock bands. I usually take musical influences from rock and production ideas from dance.

SS - Will Justice ever make another record? (serious doubts in the Squeaky Sneaker Camp)

Run Riot - Let’s hope so!!

SS - What have you got planned for 2010?

Run Riot - Lots of live shows - I’ll be hitting the festivals again this summer, which I can’t wait for! Remixes - I’ve got some BIG name interest that I’m pretty excited about at the moment.

I’ll also be working on a couple of original EPs. I feel like I’m getting better all the time. Hopefully my output throughout 2010 will show this ;)

SS - How are things going with We Are Live? What's happening on that front this year?

Run Riot - Things are going great with the label. My latest release, ‘Take My Hand’, has just been released on it and it has had some great reviews. I’ve recently signed some quality artists and can’t wait to get their stuff out there. The label will release multi-genre electronic music, not just Breaks - basically anything I think is cool!

SS - What are your biggest tracks at the moment?

Run Riot - Plaza De Funk - Push n Pull
Audiohazard - First Contact (Karton Remix)
Far Too Loud - Bass Association
Loving Access Denied’s output at the moment too

SS - Roy Keane - the best man for the job?

Run Riot - Ha, nice research! Yeah, I think so... We’ve had a bit of a shit season so far considering we were one of the favourites to go up at the start. We’ve had far too many draws but there are signs that we are starting to perform now - fingers crossed for a surge up the table!

SS - In a similar vein, Ipswich Town have been bought up by a Middle Eastern business man and amazingly they've come to you to discuss signings. Who's on the dream list?

Run Riot - Cech, Tevez, Drogba, Terry, Rooney, Lampard, Ferdinand, Ronaldo, Giggs ...I’m sure they wouldn’t be too expensive!!

SS - Can you make a cocktail?

Run Riot - Nope, but I can ask for one

Good lad. Thanks a lot to Tom for subjecting himself to the sort of GMTV interview technique we're famous for and frankly proud of.

You can get the Take My Hand EP here. I highly recommend doing so, 'cause it's aceness. You can also vote for Run Riot in the Breakspoil Awards and you should do that too.

Double 99 - 'Groove RIP (Run Riot Remix)

Everything Is Shit...

2010-02-09T19:06:00.002+00:00

...apart from this which is great.

Barretso - 'We Wont Stop (Kolt 13 Remix)'

Spring must be in the air, as I'm slipping out of my Dreamwave period and moving back towards the BANGERS again. Honestly, winter can just fuck off.

Two Door Cinema Club - Undercover Martyn

2010-02-07T20:08:00.005+00:00

We're loving TDCC and we're massively excited about their album, due out on the 1st March. Everything we've heard has been class, uplifting pop and that's what we like from our geetar based indy stuff.

A lot of video posts at the moment, I realise. Been caught up with some February gardening madness and though I maybe looking toned and healthy from it, it doesn't leave me much time for blogging. Back with something mammoth soon

The Maccabees Feat Roots Manuva

2010-02-04T11:17:00.001+00:00

Youtube Music Is...

2010-02-02T16:21:00.001+00:00

At The End Of The Rainbow...

2010-01-31T16:06:00.004+00:00

...you will sometimes discover a pot of gold. Or in this case, every Essential Mix from 1993 to now

Get Them Here

Loonies To Blow

2010-01-30T20:52:00.003+00:00

Sweet A-Trak remix of Drake & Birdmans 'Loonies To Blow'

The Vault

2010-01-30T15:37:00.005+00:00

If an alien emerged from his spacecraft and asked me to name five tunes that encapsulated my music taste I'd have to say...'Give me a week and I'll get right back to you. Don't go blowing up the White House or anything, alright?' After the week was over (in which time I imagine the alien standing, tapping his silver booted feet and steaming up his space helmet, considering if he should, while I'm away, take over the world and enslave humans for meat) I'd return with a little scrap of paper. This is what it would say -

1. Felix Cartal - Moss v Tree

2. Phones - Sharpen the Knives

3. Les Petit Pilous - Jolie Fille

4. Christopher & Raphael Just - Popper

5. Vitalic - La Rock 01

Then under that there would be a scribbled disclaimer saying something about the list being in no particular order, because lists scare the shit out of me. It means I'm commited to an opinion.

Todays Vault features number 3 (though it could be number 4 or 5. Don't fence me in, man) on the list. Les Petit Pilous have a new EP out very soon, and that's all the information I have on it. Their twitter says that they're putting the finishing touches to it now, but to be fair they've been saying that since November. There's some footage of Boys Noize playing a new LPP track out here, if you can hear it over the shouting, but other than that it's all very hush. I can't wait anyway.

As this the Vault though, I don't need an excuse to post my fave LPP track. 'Jolie Fille' was massive back in 2007. I remember having an almost religious experience with it and some fast strobe once, or I could have dreamt the whole thing.

Enjoy x

Les Petit Pilous - 'Jolie Fille'

News!

2010-01-29T22:08:00.001+00:00

It's The Music That You Choose

2010-01-26T17:02:00.003+00:00

We used to have a bi-annual trip to Shell Island, where we'd camp for a few days, drink loads and 'experiment' with various narcotics. Shell Island itself is a magical place, especially deep at night, when it has a light all of its own and plunging dunes which fuck with your depth perception, leaving you flailing down a sheer 20ft drop, which had looked like a nice little step down seconds before. You can build a fire, then sit for hours, staring into the jumping flames, listening to tunes, until the batteries on the ghetto blaster died. Good times indeed.

I tried a bit of Plan B (first album, when he was a little bit more angry...), around the fire one evening and to say it killed the mood would be understating it somewhat. Which goes to prove that it's not only the music that you choose, but when you choose it aswell.

This one's for the Shell Island Massive - may we get there again sometime

Plan B - 'Stay Too Long (Pendulum Remix)'

Dada Life

2010-01-25T21:28:00.004+00:00

Favourite mix of the year so far, opening with my favourite tune of the year so far. Mighty

Dada Life - 'January 2010 Mix'

The Subs – Mitsubitchi
Yolanda Be Cool – Afro Nuts (Douster Remix)
Honorebel feat Pitbull & Jump Smokers – Now You See It (Benny Benassi Dub Remix)
Nouveau Yorican – Boriqua
Cajmere – The Percolator (Dada Life Guerilla Fart #TBA)
Dada Life – Love Vibrations (D.I.M. ReLove Mix)
Crookers – Remedy
Fake Blood – I Think I Like It
Dan Black Feat. Kid Cudi – Symphonies (Dada Life Remix)
True Pseudo – Freaking Me Out (Designer Drugs Remix)
MVSEVM – French Jeans (Dada Life Remix)
Far Too Loud – Bass Association

The Subs - Mistubitchi

2010-01-24T18:12:00.001+00:00

2010-01-22T20:52:00.003+00:00

Great remix for you today. We've never hidden our admiration for Ellie Goulding and now that everyones jumping all over her (so to speak) we can't just abandon her. Here at SS we just hope that some marketing 'genius' doesn't get hold of her and try and change her image - sex her up and fuck it up. Leave her and her drum alone, eh. This is hot from the guys at Neon Gold, a remix of 'Starry Eyed' that goes bonkers with the house piano and is genuinely uplifting. This is obviously going to be huge

Ellie Goulding - 'Starry Eyed (Russ Chimes Rmx)

2010-01-20T20:23:00.006+00:00

Buddhists have a term 'being in the moment', to describe when we are fully aware of our experience, rather than robotically feeling stuff though habit. We often live life in the past or racing into the future, but rarely experience the now.

I had a now moment today. driving a half ton of wood home, through snow covered hills. Deadmau5 'Soma' was on the stereo, there was mist hanging to the hills, as evening fell and I realised that this was one of those moments that would look great in the Movie of my Life. Perfect sound track, perfect scene and of course a handsome mother fucker in the lead role.

Of course, once I realised that I was in the now, pow!, I wasn't anymore. That's the thing with Buddhism, it's very frustrating. I gave up on Enlightenment when I found that not only did I have to give up desire, but wanting to give up desire was in fact a desire...Taking the piss a bit there I reckon

An Average Day At My House...

2010-01-19T15:57:00.001+00:00

This is how we roll

Fear of Tigers - I Can Make The Pain Disappear (video by Dream Boat) from Dream Boat on Vimeo.

2010-01-12T19:08:00.004+00:00

News comes to us of a new club opening in Manchestah. New Order's Peter Hook and Ben Kelly, who designed the original Hacienda, plan to start up the Factory Club (or Fac251 as I heard on Radio 6) in the old Factory offices. Speaking on Radio 6 Hook said that he wanted to open the club to give himself something to do 'in his dotage' and that they chose the Factory office 'because it's full of some lovely memories'. The building has previously been the venue for Paradise Factory and until recently the Warehouse Project. Hook plans to use all three floors of the venue, with the middle level hosting a club and the lower level used as a 'gigging venue' with a capacity of 350. There's a provisional plan to open the clubs doors on Jan 29th, with Hook himself playing live, along side a guest band.

More news as we get it

Hurts - Blood Tears and Gold

2010-01-11T17:30:00.006+00:00

Ok so this lot are going to do exactly what it says on the tin. We're not going to get colour video for a start (maybe stretch to sepia for the next one?) We're not going to get any funky disco, or a hammering electro number. There's a moment in the vid where the lead singer sneer/snarls the lyric and I find that fascinating. It marks the whole thing apart. Hurts are not Right Said Fred. Better learn to live with it...I think they're ace. And how cool do they look, eh?

2010-01-11T06:15:00.002+00:00

Tape picture by iri5

More on Iri5 later