Controller Music

Henry Zoonka – Whip the Snake Promo Mix

mightyhumble — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 11:41:08 +0000

Our friend Henry Zoonka has plans afoot for a new club night. Here’s an excellent mix he did to promote it. Watch this space for an exclusive mix for Controller from Mr Zoonka’s ‘Whip the Snake’ partner in crime DCLCUD coming soon.

Controller Mix 005 – Spare (Well Rounded)

mightyhumble — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 09:17:00 +0000

Spare is a young Nottingham based producer making a blip on the radar of two notable labels: Wigflex and Well Rounded. We catch up with the bass starlet to find out what he’s got to say and wrangle him into to doing a mix for us.

CM. Please introduce yourself to our readers.
S. Hi, I’m Spare. I can make tunes and I can DJ.

CM. You hail from Nottingham (UK). What’s the music scene like there at the moment?What kind of sounds are big there?
S. There’s a good scene here, I’d say that the Mimm collective are responsible for bringing a scene together, as they are also involved in art, clothes, etc. For me, the Wigflex lot put on a bang tidy night. I’ll usually just pop around to see what they’re up to. A lot of house/techno and any variants of that are quite big here at the moment.

CM. How did you get into electronic music?
S. I just listened to it like I did anything else. But then I started listening to dubstep quite a lot and kind of kept an ear out for other stuff happening at the time.

CM. How would you describe your sound? What type of kit do you use to make music?
S. I wouldn’t really be able to give it a name without it sounding shit or silly (in fact, that’s probably true of every genre name ever), I’m sure someone will be able to categorize it for me. And as for the kit I use, well without giving too much away… I use a computer.

CM. How to go about putting your tracks together?
S. Usually I’ll have an initial idea of what I want to do and try and start at least a drum pattern or something. Sometimes I’ll come back to something I’d begun previously because I got bored of it the 1^st time around and/or fucked it up, then see if I can remake it without completely fucking it up. It varies…

CM. You’ve not had any official solo releases out yet, I know there some coming up though. Tell us what you’ve got coming out this year? When will they be dropping?
S. I have this EP with Well Rounded and then some other stuff in the pipeline, although I can’t give too much away at this point.

Spare – Spare Room Offence clip by Well Rounded Records

CM. How did the hook-up with Well Rounded come about?
S. Littlefoot sent Ash (Donga) a tune that I’d made as a possible contribution to a sampler he had planned, but then Donga asked me to send a few more tunes over and from that he managed to pick an EP out and send the other shit straight to the recycle bin.

CM. Which five tracks are really doing it for you right now?
S. To be honest I’ve been quite out of the loop to pick 5 recent tracks out which sounds a bit lazy, I know. I guess the tunes in the mix I’ve provided are really doing it for me right now. They do it for me all the time though.

CM. Which other producers do you rate?
S. Some of the usual suspects of some of that bass/stuff that doesn’t really have a name yet. If I began listing people I’d be here for some time. As far as Notts. is concerned, the Wigflex and Mimm have some producers between them and Neon Jung, Littlefoot and Erra are also rated…

Oh and obviously I’m supportive of Well Rounded!

CM. There’s been a big focus on house music here at Controller. What are some of your favourite house records?
S. I wasn’t ever up to scratch on house music but there are some tunes that I’d be able to pick out. “Pacific 202” by 808 State is definitely one of my favourites from growing up. “Battle for Middle You” by Julio Bashmore was obviously a big tune from last year. Floating Points has some tunes, too. There are probably loads of house tunes that I’ve heard that I wouldn’t be able to name off the top of my head.

CM. What are you hoping to achieve in 2012?
S. I’m hoping to get more releases under my belt and DJ a bit more; any festival organizers reading this wanna give me a free holiday? I’ll play records for you and I’m house-trained.

CM. Tell us about the mix you’ve put together for Controller?
S. I guess it’s a lot of the stuff that I’m into and the sort of stuff that I’d play out. Had a rough idea of the sort of tunes I was going to include and just took it from there, really.

CM. What does a typical weekend in the life of Spare involve?
S. I usually get down on Friday but, like everybody, I look forward to the weekend; it’s usually spent deciding which seat to take.

Tracklist:

Spare – Makin’ ‘Em Seen – Well Rounded ( Forthcoming)
Donga & Blake – Grown Ups – Well Rounded
Kyle Hall – Kaychunk – Hyperdub
Skinnz – I Know – Well Rounded
Untold – No-one Likes A Smartarse – Hemlock
Bad Autopsy – Callback – Ramp
Joe – Claptrap – Hessle Audio
Lando Kal – Further – Hotflush
Youngstar – Trup V.I.P – New Deal
Mosca – Bax – Numbers
Manix – Special Request – Reinforced
Millie & Andrea – Ever Since You Came Down – Daphne
Nebula II – Seance – Reinforced
Shortstuff & Mickey Pearce – Tripped Up – Ramp
Manix – Feel Reel Good – Reinforced
Pangea – Won’t Hurt – Hessle Audio
Geeneus – Bad – Soulja
Jon E Cash – Do It – Black Ops
Rustie – Cry Flames – Warp
Wiley – Wreath – Earth 616
Hudson Mohawke – Thunder Bay – Warp
Zomby – Strange Fruit – Ramp
Acen – Trip II The Moon – Production House

Stream via Mixcloud | Stream via official fm | Direct Download

Links
Spare on Soundcloud
Well Rounded Records

Controller Mix 004 – Last Magpie (Losing Suki)

mightyhumble — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 10:06:00 +0000

Instalment four is here. We catch up with its creator Last Magpie to chat about making beats, getting released and having your debut sounds on a forthcoming DJ Kicks selection. Full tracklisting, streams and download links are at the end of the article.

CM. Tell us a little bit about yourself.
LM. I’m a Yorkshire boy and enjoy real ale and pies! I love living up north, it’s cold, gritty and real….

CM. How did you get into electronic music?
LM. When I was around thirteen at school, me and a mate came across Jungle and Ambient music somehow, I can’t remember as where I lived it wasn’t part of life and we were very under exposed to the whole rave culture that was happening. I had a tape from the Koln Warehouse in Germany and found it to be really hypnotic. Then I discovered Jungle and loved the mood and energy it had, as well as liking the usual kid’s music of course. From the moment I heard Jilted Generation by The Prodigy I was hooked.

CM. How long have you been producing? Did you start out DJing first?
LM. Yeah, I started DJing first. I was about 20 when I found out you could go to College and learn the skills to make the music I was playing. It never occurred to me that you could do that. I couldn’t even use a PC when I started but my enthusiasm got me a three month trial on the course, so I carried on from there.

CM. What kit did you make your first ever track on?
LM. It would have been Cubase. We had to recreate a Moby track using loops from the song and also programme the melodies from sheet music into the sequencer. It took me ages to do back then.

CM. What the thinking behind the name Last Magpie?
LM. I like to have lots of different styles in my music, like stealing bits from all the stuff I hear, like a magpie! It’s also got a Yorkshire ring to it. Jamie from Hypercolour said “It sounds like a real ale” I loved that!

CM. Do you have particular House producers or tracks that you love?
LM. From the old school – Atkins, May, Saunderson and all the crew from Detroit in that era. Their forward thinking and thought processes still inspire me. At the moment I’m feeling youandewan, DJ Rum, Claro Interlectro and Braille to name a few.

The Darkest Hour Is Just Before Dawn (Undercoat pt.2) clips* – 2nd Drop Records by DjRUM

CM. It’s recently been announced that No more stories. The title track from your forthcoming EP will feature in Maya Jane Cole’s DJ Kicks. How did you feel when you heard the news? It must be good to get those kind of props?
LM. Was good yeah, it’s my first release so it’s a great way for people to discover my sound.

CM. How did the release on Losing Suki come about? Did you literally just send them a demo or was there more to it?
LM. I’m mates with Ste Roberts who works for the label. I sent him some tracks just for him to listen to really and he got back to me saying they would like to sign them.

CM. Several of your tracks have a dub influence. Are there any particular producers or artists that you draw inspiration from?
LM. The Rhythm & Sound label has always made such good dub records and they have such atmosphere to them. I always had a good time down at Subdue in Leeds with the Iration Steppas hosting great sound systems from around the world. For me sub is a key element to music, I like the way it be emotive through power and frequency control.

CM. What’s on Last Magpie’s stereo right now?
LM. Feeling the Drive soundtrack, some nice 80′s sleaze feel to it.

CM. What have you got coming up in the next couple of months?
LM. Working on a new EP for Losing Suki, then I’ve got my debut at Wax On to follow suit…

Tracklist:

1. Chromatics – Tick Of The Clock – Italians Do It Better
2. Efdemin – Shoeshine (Deadbeat Mix) – Dial
3. Omar S – Gunup Runup – Scion Audio/Visual
4. XI – Immunity – Orca Recordings
5. Gerry Read – Roomland (youandewan remix) – 2nd Drop Records
6. Last Magpie – Leeds Syndrome – Losing Suki
7. Rivet – Slant – Naked Index
8. DBridge – For Tonight – K7 Records
9. Claro Intelecto – Contact – Ai Records
10. Scuba – Flash Addict – Hotflush Recordings
11. Tom Eales, Delta 7even ft. Ella – Illuminate (Lo-Tek Remix) – Stripped
12. Cuthead – Brother – Uncanny Valley
13. Placeholder – Don’t You Know (Jakob Korn remix) – Space Hardware
14. DJ Rum – Turiya – 2nd Drop Records
15. Last Magpie – True (Whatever)
16. Last Magpie – No More Stories – Losing Suki

Stream via Mixcloud | Stream or Download via official fm | Direct Download

Links
Last Magpie Soundcloud

Last Magpie – No More Stories E.P will be released on Hypercolour Records imprint Losing Suki in March. Listen here

Controller Music Mix 003 – DJ Secondlife – Lo Note UK

mightyhumble — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 22:41:00 +0000

For part three of the exclusive Controller mix series we lockdown Anyguy & DJ Secondlife. The incredibly busy duo behind record label, clothing brand and & party outfit - Lo Note UK. South London based Lo Note is a fresh faced label on a serious mission which just falls short of world domination, but only just! With one showcase sampler and 12” from Pusherman under their belts, a slew of new artists, quality garms and plenty of releases prepped and ready to drop. 2012 looks big for Lo Note.

CM. The label is run by yourself and DJ Secondlife. How did you two meet and what made you want to start a record label? Who does what?
AG. I had the idea for Lo Note UK about 3 years ago or so, and it was originally simply an outlet for my own graphic design and a way to push myself as a DJ. I printed some pretty swag tees and wasted a lot of cash – but I also learnt a load in the process.

I always wanted to start putting out music at some point – it’s always been a huge part of my life, but it wasn’t ‘till Charlie got involved a year or so ago that we really worked at getting some tracks out there – going through the process of getting in touch with distributors etc.

There’s a lot more to running a label than one thinks – certainly more than we thought haha, and there’s even more to running a brand that incorporates clothing and events! We split the workload as it comes – time permitting.

SL. We’ve both been into music and DJing for quite some time now, but the record label really started because we were getting sent some really good music by friends and people we knew or had met that was never going to come out, and we thought, “why not put it out ourselves?” We didn’t really know too much about how to go about it, or have much of ‘plan’ for the label, but that has grown with time and we now definitely have a feeling for where we want to go with it, and how to go about achieving those goals.

It’s all been a bit mad really – I’ve been buying vinyl since I was 12 years old and when I started buying records all those years ago I never thought for a minute that I would one day been involved in running my own label that was putting out vinyl. It’s massively rewarding – having complete creative control over the process from deciding what to release to how that finished product will look is both exciting and very satisfying!

CM. What were you doing before?
SL. I was, and still am, doing a full time PR job. The reality is that at the moment I need regular income to finance this project. We hope and believe that at some point in the not too distant future Lo Note will be turning over enough that we can work on it full time and pay ourselves a salary. We are both young and incredibly ambitious. We want Lo Note to be an internationally recognised brand and will do everything we can to make that so. I won’t be happy ‘til we have the LNUK Lear Jet on 24/7 standby lol!

AG. I was at university for a bit. I’m now living in London doing… another university course.

CM. So as well as the music side of things, Lo Note is also a clothing brand. Tell us about that? Why did you decide to work on developing both from the outset?
SL. I think one of the reasons we decided to do both was our desire to create a ‘brand’ as much as just a clothing label or a record label. We both like the same sort of clothes, music and parties and wanted to capture that under the umbrella of a brand. We see Lo Note as a lifestyle thing – If you like our clothes then you will enjoy our music, our events etc.

AG. Yeah, I’m with Charlie – it’s a brand thing. We’re trying to offer people a proper package here…

CM. The Lo Note ‘sound’ is pretty diverse overall. Although I’d say there’s a house/UK funky undertone in lots of the tracks I’ve heard so far. Is that a conscious decision? How do you go about choosing what music to put out?
SL. We’ve said from the start that the criteria for the label is simply that if we like it enough to commit to pressing it to wax, then we will put it out. We definitely did not start out to create a “house” label or a techno label or whatever, because that limits what you can do and what you can put out. One of the most enjoyable aspects of Lo Note is the freedom to do what we want, when we want and I think that is reflected in the diversity of our forthcoming releases.

I don’t really believe in categorizing music if I can avoid it to be honest and without resorting to cliché, the reason for that is that I don’t find it very helpful. It’s interesting that you feel there is a UK funky undertone because I genuinely don’t see that. It’s a bait term but I would say that “bass music” is the best way to describe the sound because that doesn’t place any restrictions on the music other than it being bass heavy, which is a characterizing element. I think categorizing “the Lo Note sound” more specifically than that is a bit pointless because it can’t really be done!

CM. At Controller we’re fans of house music loaded with bass. Can you give us three tracks you love that fit that criteria?
AG. Haha! I find this kind of question really difficult if I’m honest – talk about putting us on the spot! I always had a soft spot for that Booker T edit of Bizzi’s Party – got that driving sub that always goes down well in the dance. I’m going to be true to my roots on the next one – it is 4×4, but undoubtedly own more to speed garage and grime – DJ Narrows – Saved Soul (I can never remember which mix is my favourite…) and finally – a definite speed garage / house classic, for me anyway, Front Line – Countdown. I’ve never knowingly listened to this and not wanted to go out partying.

CM. What about classic house. Any gems you’d like to share?
SL. I have to hold up my hand and say that I have no real knowledge of classic house music at all! Does Mojo – Lady count? I always rated that tune lol!

My musical route to this point hasn’t really involved much classic house to be honest – I got into dance music through drum and bass. Before I discovered dance music I was a hip hop guy. I bought decks initially just to scratch – I wanted to be a battle DJ and win the UK DMC championship! Then I discovered raving and yeah, the rest, as they say, is history!

I have actually heard a lot more house music in the last few years, mainly by going to parties like Standard Place and I really like a lot of what I hear I just have no idea who it’s by!

CM. What’s on the stereo at Lo note HQ at the moment?
SL. South London Ordnance is making some sick beats at the moment and getting a lot of attention and rightly so – his beats are just ill and he has a unique sound which he can call his own – no mean feat in this age of 808 imitators etc..

Last Japan is making some wicked stuff – his production is tight as fuck and he has got a lot of different styles locked down. We are really excited about his forthcoming release on Lo Note, it’s huge!

The new Artifact release on Deadplate, with a Graphics remix on the flip, is really dope. Deadplate is an up and coming label with some really good releases lined up this year.

Away from straight dance music I listen to quite a lot of hip hop/beats stuff as well and two guys who are making really heavy electronic beats at the moment are Elan and heRobust. Elan has released on Modeselektor’s 50 Weapons label and just makes amazing stuff. heRobust is on a similar tip and has an album coming out soon that I am really looking forward to checking.

AG. We just got some new Visionist beats in you know, and they’re absolutely fire. He had a big year last year and we’re looking forward to seeing more of him about soon – very creative guy. I’ve been listening to that new Locked Groove stuff on Hotflush a lot actually, as well as the new Tessela and Hackman collabs – those are outrageous, very polished production from the boys.

CM. For an emerging label Lo Note is already affiliated with and repping a decent no. of artists. How did you hook up with these guys? Did you know them before you heard their music or vice-versa?
SL. Marco (Last Japan) actually hit us up because he had seen our tees and wanted to wear them in a music video he was gonna be in. We went to meet him with a bag of tees and just got on straight away. He’s a similar age, into the same sort of stuff etc so we just started hanging out, going to nights and stuff. We spoke about the possibility of releasing a tune of his and he was keen, then he sent us Tactics and we were like “we have to release this!”

We are big advocates of meeting people face to face where possible, whether it’s producers, distributors, mastering people etc. It can’t always be done with people living in all parts of the country and the world, but we try to if we can. You can learn a lot about people by meeting them in person that you wouldn’t if you were just sat behind a keyboard and the same goes for them and us!

AG. In terms of hooking up with people like Alix Perez and Mosca etc., it was very much a case of just reaching out to other creatives and seeing if they wanted to get involved. Those guys especially were really forthcoming, and it was great to be able to work with some people whose music I’ve personally been a massive fan of from day one and who essentially represent what lies at the crux of LNUK – new sound and creativity, not to mention an eye for a good tee!

CM. Lo note has a strong visual aesthetic. Who’s responsible for that? Do you see it as a direct representation of the music or more of an enhancement?
SL. I think we are both into a similar style of quite minimal, clean aesthetics which is reflected in the clothes and the record artwork. There isn’t a direct correlation between the sound and the aesthetic, I think the design takes its lead more directly from what we are trying to push with the brand as a whole, which is a clean, crisp and well executed product be it a record, a tee or an event flyer.

AG. I handle all the design work at LNUK – and yeah like Charlie says, the general vibe is one of crispness and attention to detail. You could probably draw parallels between the design work and the music – and the two do bounce of each other to a certain extent, but it’s more really about the brand as a whole.

CM. Which other labels to do respect both visually and sonically?
SL. In terms of record labels, I think that Swamp81 and Night Slugs are sick. Everything about both labels is just so on point. It’s like when you hear a Swamp tune, or a Night Slugs tune, you know that it is a Swamp tune or a Night Slugs tune. And yet they both release such a diverse range of sounds, tempos etc.

The artwork for both labels is ill too. Swamp has quite a gritty vibe that incorporates graphic design and the artwork of Ashes57, and is a vibe that is very clean and well executed. Bok Bok’s graphic design for Night Slugs is just sick. It’s a very different tip, more of a futuristic vibe with sharp edges, colours and patterns and I really dig it.

In terms of clothing brands, Norse Projects has been a big influence on what we do. Their execution is so crisp – from the clothes, to the website to their look books. Everything they do is sick. Norse manages to be both smart and casual, incorporating elements from menswear, streetwear and outwear to produce really excellent clothes and an aesthetic that I really like.

In terms of UK brands a recent addition to the landscape, and one which we at Lo Note have a lot of respect for, is Enclave apparel. They released their first drop towards the end of last year and just came with the realness from the word go! Their execution is very slick and professional, with a minimalist aesthetic which incorporates some graphic design, but essentially its simple, smart clothes for the street.

CM. Tell us a little bit about the mix?
SL. I hadn’t thought about this but the mix is actually completely made up of tracks produced in full or in part by people from the UK, which I think highlights the strength of the UK dance music scene at the moment if that wasn’t already quite obvious! It’s quite an upfront mix with some big tracks that have been setting the clubs off in recent months included, balanced with some unreleased stuff by exciting producers coming through like Graphics, South London Ordnance, Ziro and of course Pusherman.

I DJ using Serato and 1210s, as well as the odd bit of vinyl. The mix is recorded live in one take (so excuse the odd crackle lol!) As someone who is a DJ who doesn’t produce I think it is important for me to try and showcase my skills as a DJ when I can and I put a lot of thought and effort into making sure that the transitions sound good and the mix flows nicely. Overall I am very happy with it – I think it gives a good idea of the type of stuff I like to play as well as showing my skills as a DJ.

CM. What have you got coming up this year?
SL. This year is gonna be a big year for us hopefully. We just want to keep growing the brand. We have some great releases lined up, we have a new range of clothing that is being prepared as we speak and we have some wicked events lined up. Watch this this space

Tracklist:

Unknown artist – Black Ice – Unreleased
South London Ordnance – Crow’s Nest – Forthcoming Audio Culture
Bodikka – Up and Dance – Unreleased
Ziro – Oni - Unreleased
Pusherman – Shake It Off – LNUK Records
Untold – U-29 – R&S
New York Transit Authority – Off The Traxx – Lobster Boy
Bok Bok & Tom Trago – Vector – Sound Pellegrino
Vince Watson – Sequential (Paul Woolford Remix) - Bio
Untold – Little Things Like That – Clone Basement Series
Zed Bias – Stubborn Phase – Swamp81
South London Ordnance – National Express – Unreleased
Bok Bok & Tom Trago – Lil Ma Bonus Beat – Sound Pellegrino
Sigha – Let Me In – K7 Records
Graphics – Crubside – Unreleased
Zed Bias – Music Deep Inside – Swamp81

Stream via Mixcloud | Stream or Download via official fm | Direct Download

Links
Lo Note UK Facebook
Lo Note UK Blog

Pusherman – Shake It Off EP (b/w Wachs Lyrical Remix) is out now on 12″ and Digital. Listen here

Locked Groove – Rooted EP (Hotflush)

mightyhumble — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 08:05:00 +0000

Debut release from Belgian newcomer Locked Groove aka Tim Van de Meutter. Expect more for this 23 years young producer in 2012 through Tiga’s Turbo label.

Locked Groove – Rooted EP

Format: 12” Vinyl, Digital
Release date: 16 January 2012
01. Rooted
02. Drowning
03. Change

Hotflush Recordings
Locked Groove Soundcloud

There are also a couple of unreleased tracks floating around on the net to check out:

Locked Groove -The Queenliest Dead that Ever Died so Young

Locked Groove – Moods

Fresh heat – South London Ordnance

mightyhumble — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:37:00 +0000

I’d love to have detailed information to share about South London Ordnance but I simply can’t get hold of any! I discovered their music during a last night Soundcloud foray and was instantly excited by the brooding, bass heavy, distinctly UK sounding house music that came from the speakers.

So I contacted this clandestine producer for information to include in a post. The reply came but SLO is staying tight lipped for now! What I can divulge is he/she is from South London as you’d expect and releases are coming in 2012. I also suspect he/she is connected in some way to Lo Note UK. Although that’s just a personal hunch. I expect we’ll be hearing more for SLO though. Especially when DJ’s like Mosca are already dropping their tracks in guest mixes for Mary Ann Hobbs on Xfm.

South London Ordnance – Slow Dance [club edit] (Unreleased)

South London Ordnance – Chase Scene (Unreleased)

South London Ordnance – Crows Nest (Unreleased) [Mosca Guest Mix For Mary Anne Hobbes on XFM]

Review: GoldFFinch – Point Of Entry/Arabian Prince (877 Records)

mightyhumble — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 10:49:33 +0000

Out Monday. This is only the forth release from Belgium duo goldFFinch. Although these relative newcomers have already chalked up some impressive releases on Airflex, Saigon, Numbers and garnered strong support from the Rinse FM camp.

This two tracker for 877 Records sees them further refine their dancefloor aesthetic. Carefully blending House, Techno and UK bass flavours to create a heady mix, heavily laden with 808 sounds. Neatly underpinned with round bass and wantonly punctuated with vocal snippets. Both tracks stand up equally well. Although personally I’d suggest heading straight for Arabian Prince if you want maximum dancefloor devastation.

For more goldffinch check their soundcloud page and keep an eye on 877 Records. Definitely a label to watch in 2012.

Title: GoldFFinch – Point Of Entry/Arabian Prince
Release date: 16th January 2012
Label: 877 Records

GoldFFinch – Point Of Entry

GoldFFinch – Arabian Prince

Controller Mix 002 – James Fox (TAKE / Well Rounded)

mightyhumble — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 09:06:00 +0000

South London-based producer and DJ James Fox delivers the next instalment in our fledgling mix series. A journey through the deeper echelons of bass tinged house including an exclusive first listen of his remix of ‘What Matters’ by Hackman & Bluto, forthcoming on Deadplate in the new year. To accompany the mix we caught up with James for a short Q&A.

CM. What’s your name? Where you from? What you on?
JF. My name is James Fox, I’m originally from Manchester but I currently live in South London. I’m on nothing stronger than a flat white.

CM. What would say are some key influences on the development of your sound over the past five years?
JF. I suppose the key influence since then was moving to London – there’s a unique blend of music here and you just absorb it when you go to clubs or record shops or listen to the radio or whatever. I’ve also got (a lot) better at using the tools I make music with…!

CM. In my recent interview with Donga I asked about him about Dubstep. Did the whole Dubstep thing influence you, your music or your production style in any way?
JF. I was pretty late on Dubstep really; although I had heard bits and pieces that I was feeling, for whatever reason it took me a while to hear it in the right environment (big speakers, dark room) so by the time I was able to appreciate it properly, it had already peaked. I can definitely identify with certain aspects of that classic Dubstep sound (deep vibes with lots of space, lots of bass) so I kind of wish I’d paid more attention at the time really.

CM. For me your track ‘New Jack Swing’ has a Metro Area vibe to it. Are you a fan of that groove driven Detroit sound? If so, can you give a few personal favourites?
JF. Interesting that you say that, I’m a massive fan of Metro Area! I’m not an authority on Detroit at all, but if we’re talking house music that’s raw and soulful then these are all favourites of mine:

Norma Jean Bell – Dreams – Peacefrog
Dennis Ferrer – Transitions – Defected
Jill Scott – I Am Soul (Roy Davis Jr Remix) – JMR Records
Chez N Trent – The Choice – KMS
4th Measure Men – Given (MK Dub) – FXHE

CM. When you released ‘New Jack Swing’ on Well Rounded last May. It garnered support for DJ’s across a variety of different genres. Were you surprised by the broad appeal of that release?
JF. Yeah, I really was. I wrote it really quickly just messing about in the studio, but when I passed it to a few well known DJs and they all caned it, I thought I might be onto something. People still come up to me now and talk about how they love the track; I’ve heard stories about it getting a rewind at Outlook festival this year which was pretty cool – can’t think of many other deep house jams that get rewinds!

CM. What was the starting point for that track? Did you find the vocal first and build the track around it or vice versa?
JF. I think I wrote the chords first, then I was flicking through my acapellas folder and it just clicked. Then I added some simple drums and bass. The whole thing was finished in a few hours.

James Fox – New Jack Swing [Well Rounded Housing Project]

CM. If you were able to work on a music project, where money was no object, what would you like to do and who would you work with?
JF. I probably have at least one horrendously overblown concept album about something or other in me. Let’s say it would feature Rhythm & Sound on production, Andre 3000 & Beth Gibbons on vocals and the RZA on beats. I would play the triangle.

CM. When you’re not DJing, producing music or working. What do like to spend your spare time doing?
JF. I’ve been trying to force myself to get back into reading books rather than wasting all my time on the Internet. Currently going through the works of Cormac McCarthy, on ‘Blood Meridian’ at the moment. That and sleeping.

CM. Your Controller mix features an exclusive premier of you remix of the Hackman & Bluto track ‘What Matters‘ (Forthcoming on Deadplate). How did that hook up come about? When does that get released?
JF. I met Alex who runs Deadplate (as well as the excellent Daily Street blog) earlier in the year; I did a guest mix for the site and that seemed to go down pretty well, so he asked me to do a remix for his new label. I think it should be out early(ish) next year.

CM. You described this mix for Controller as a ‘deeper selection’. What inspired that decision? Are there any deep house producers you’re particularly feeling at the moment?
JF. It seems as though recently without really thinking about it I’ve been buying and making music much slower than before – 126bpm feels far too fast now. There seems to be a lot more space and groove when you go slow. I also wanted to make a mix that would work on headphones as well as it could in a club, and this is the result. At the moment I’m really feeling people like Soulphiction, Axel Boman, Floating Points, Behling & Simpson, Genius Of Time, Maxmillion Dunbar, Nick Hoppner, pretty much anything on Rush Hour, etc.

CM. What other releases have you got coming up?
JF. My remix of Jack Dixon & Robin Card is due out very soon on TAKE Records (audio below). After that will be the Hackman remix early next year, then we’ll have to wait and see – hopefully some original stuff, including a few interesting collaborations I’m working on right now.
Jack Dixon & Robin Card – Leave (James Fox Remix)

Tracklist

Radiohead – Little By Little (Caribou Remix) – Ticker Tape
Maxi Miil - To The Next – Rush Hour
Nicholas & Simoncino – Unknown – Quintessentials
Radique – Pharaohe – Musique Risquée
Nebraska – Ras El Hanout – Rush Hour
Gadi Mizrahi – Oh Love – Spectral Sound
Behling & Simpson – Left Behind – Futureboogie
Genius Of Time - Houston We Have A Problem – Clone Royal Oak
Andreas Saag – The Message (Summer Mix) – Rebirth
Mic Newman – Recorded In The Garage – Murmur
Trickski – Point Zero – suol
Steffi – Yours (Dub Version) – Ostgut Ton
Steffi - Yours (Acapella) – Ostgut Ton
Shonky – Korg M1 – Spectral Sound
Untold – Bones (Joe Remix) – Hemlock
Hackman & Bluto – What Matters (James Fox remix) – Forthcoming Deadplate
Beaumont – Tokyo – Kinnego

Stream via Mixcloud | Stream or Download via official fm

You can find more mixes and productions by James Fox on his soundcloud page

Recommended Releases

mightyhumble — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 09:00:00 +0000

Here’s our round up of recommed releases from the past couple of weeks.

Boo Williams – Home Town Chicago (Another Day Records)

First ever reissue of the classic album by the Chi-town legend.

Boo Williams – Home Town Chicago by anotherdayrecords

SCB – Mace / Overlay [SCB003]

Berlin based UK producer Paul Ross delivers more groove led dancefloor action under his SCB guise. Mace is the stand out track here.

SCB – Mace / Overlay [SCB003] by Hotflush

Untold – Little Things Like That / Bachelor’s Delight (Clone Basement Series)

Firm and ample dancefloor rhythms from Hemlock label boss Untold.

Clone Basement Series 010 Untold – Little Things Like That / Bachelor’s Delight by clone records

Kowton – Dirty Little Bomb [b/w Rivet Remix] (Teal Recordings)

The orginal is classic slo-mo burner. However, we recommed hearding straight for the cheeky remix by Rivit

TEAL004 – Kowton – Dirty Little Bomb (b/w Rivet Remix) by TEAL Recordings

New House and Techno Label – brstl

mightyhumble — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:21:27 +0000

‘brstl’ is a new Bristol based label dedicated to house and techno by local artists. Their first release is a two track, limited press vinyl only affair from October & Borai (TANSTAAFL / Apple Pips). Available now via Idle Hands and other selected retailers.

October + Borai – Left Out

October + Borai – Sticky Fingers