Find them at basement nights and warehouse one-offs reaching from New York to Montreal and overseas Berlin, a collect of conneisseuring clubbers. Void of tasteless vagabonds and cheap standards, looking to give credit where credit is due. The recent flood of clichéd counterfeits has made most music better left unsaid, but it's the rumours looping in our head and tugging at our ego that gives us the need to shine light. A compulsive urge to spread from one ear to the next, to draw a line between bottle service cogs and what is honestly the cutting edge of electronic dance music. There's no room for Vegas roller coasters or casual chit chat, just Night Rumours worth spreading.
ON THE STREET
Massimiliano Pagliara
Magic Serials
Live at Robert Johnson; 2013-02-11
PLAYRJC023
"Live at Robert Johnson is a very special label. The club in Offenbach, Germany is one of the best in the world and features world-class residents. From Dixon to Roman Fluegel to Portable, each selector brings a unique sound to the table and label. This release features Berlin’s Massimiliano Pagliara, Magic Serials is a three track EP which takes you on a journey of melodic tones and deep, analogue sounding grooves. The release has a lot of classic sounds going for it with plenty of Roland samples going on. 'JP4-808-P5-106-DEP5' has some nostalgic acid keys in the background and lush, arpeggiated tones at the forefront. 'MS20-707-M/P-P6-SPX90' digs deeper with a more driving bass line and teasing keys that’s well worth an exercise on the dancefloor. 'LM2-JP4-106-606-BL-303-SDE2000-P6-TX81Z' is the slow burning, uplifting track of the EP. It also features lovely synths and a moving bass line which I can see would play beautifully during the sunrise, on that system, on the Rhein River in good ol’ Offenbach." – Kevin Rodriguez
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THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE
Doc Daneeka
Sketches of You
2020 Midnight Visions; 2013-03-04
MVIS234
"Welsh tunesmith Mial Watson, aka Doc Daneeka, sets a strong pace for the year in his 2013 debut EP Sketches Of You. A release that cleverly blends the boundary between heavy bass and house melodies. Daneeka seems to be experimenting with new ideas since dropping last years collaborative LP They!Live with Benjamin Damage. His new EP is a mixture between his percussive older work and a refreshing evolving sound, filling out the contemporary house spectrum with elevating synth patterns and soulful vocal cues. Sketches Of You comes on strong in 'Day By Day', an experimental string and bass combo leading into two coasting vocal tracks held up by a deep house rhythmic approach. The EP’s finale, 'Sunset To Neath' builds off the previous songs echoing percussive force into minimalist-like resonating textures packed full of the releases reoccurring elastic qualities. Sketches Of You should make a mark on the hybrid electronic/dance scene when it is released next month on 20:20’s Midnight Visions label." – Aaron Thomas
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Tessela
Hackney Parrot / Helter Skelter
Poly Kicks; 2013-03-18
POLY001
"Another track that has been floating around the most exclusive clique of DJs has found itself a home on a brand new label. This coming month’s hype comes from 23 year old West Country based Ed Russell, aka Tessela. After a couple of big releases on Audio Culture, Punch Drunk, and 2nd Drop, Tessela is starting 2013 his own way with his brand new label Poly Kicks. With the much anticipated 'Hackney Parrot' on the front and equally hard hitting breaks on the flipside with “Helter Skelter” the label looks to be off to a great start." – Matt Rauch
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Citizen
Trax
Lover Fever; 2013-03-11
LFR003
"Love Fever Records has been on a bit of a tear since their debut release back in April of last year. They're shaking up the London underground party scene with their own brand of parties, and the music reflects it. Having much success with their first EP by Bicep, their latest 2013 affair brings back a member of the family in Citizen. Trax is Citizen's second release for the label and picks up where Room Service left off.
'Everything' starts the EP off in a deep, gloomy haze that sends you off to a world of elegance. It's quite reminiscent of dark, almost 2-step-like house from back in the day. Meanwhile, 'Worship & Tribute' starts off dramatic then rocks some very nice piano chords and vocal hooks. Very much in the UK garage spirit, the track will have a wonderful effect on a dance floor. 'Glastique', the release's final track, is a lush house tune that draws rhythm from layered drum patterns and soothes you out with plenty of atmosphere. The synths and vocal echoes float well with each other and give the track a special uplifting energy that seems to be Citizen's trademark." – Kevin Rodriguez
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EDITOR'S CHOICE
L-Vis 1990
Circuits
Clone Jack for Daze; 2013-02-18
CJFD17
"Look at the family portrait and you'll find a creative split between dance artists striving to be ahead of their time while others bend back to the sounds that came before them. Dutch record store turned record label Clone plays on both sides of the pitch with their Jack For Daze series that looks to write the future in an old school aesthetic. I've always found myself asking what makes classics like 'Strings of Life' or 'Playing with Knives' so extraordinary that people actually seek out the aging instruments that played them. You hear it from the guys that won't admit to passing their prime, music has lost its magic.
L-Vis 1990's contribution to the series Circuits gets close to the answer with a title track that could pass off as the work of legends. Hands in the air house and a tribute to an era when 909s were put to work and Es were 25 quid a go. Shuffling toms add a cheeky trademark to the intro, as heard on acid floor raisers like 'Voodoo Ray'. On that note, if 'Circuits' hit the shelf in 1990 L-Vis would have gotten a sub-label deal with Sony (I'm looking at A Guy Called Gerald). B-sides like 'Wires' and 'That Thunder Track' bear a resemblence to his solo Club Constructions volume, which undoubtedly prepped him for the array of retro polyrhythms and drum machines found throughout this EP. Call New Order and tell them to bring back their Simmons SDS5 for fuck's sake." – Lukas Switlicki
Clone Records · Facebook · Twitter
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EARMILK INTERVIEWS
Samo Sound Boy
Samo Sound Boy hails from Los Angeles and is one of two men (the other is Jerome LOL) behind rising label BODY HIGH. Sam Griesemer doesn't stop at running a label that's already hosted releases from the legendary Todd Edwards and bubbling-up stars like Jim E-Stack , Myrryrs, and DJ Sliink and printed the coolest t-shirts you could possibly be spotted in. He's also a regular on the DJ decks and makes his own music.
Catch him touring now with Daedelus, Salva, Two Fresh, and Ryan Hemsworth! You'll definitely find me at the Cambridge, MA edition this Friday.
We talked about what's happening with Sam and Body High this year, why he loves Los Angeles (and loft/warehouse parties that I found myself more and more envious of as he described them), what makes an event worth going to, and his musical inspirations.
EARMILK: Before going too deeply into anything, what would you say you're primarily working on right now? Producer, DJ, label head, some mix of all of those?
Samo Sound Boy: I'm trying to balance them all. Working as label head takes up tons of time, and last year, when we were getting Body High off the ground and getting it started, I kind of concretely just gave all of my time over to that. The good thing is that now things run a little bit more smoothly and there are a lot of good people helping out too, so I have a little bit more time to focus on my own production.
Read the full interview by Alyce Currier
Citizen
Music today has become as accessible as the nearest Mcdonalds, making what was once underground and dirty, now much more popular much than the hottest cheerleader in high school. Today, no matter who you are, everyone wants a piece of ¨house¨. But true love lies in integrity. And with sad times of mass-production and over-consumption, let us be very aware that anything -including dance music, crafted out pure and wholesome, is cherished through much longer periods of time.
Being an ardent dance music fanatic myself, I admire those who can keep this genre as pure and alive as possible. But, how does one produce innovatively while care-taking the ¨classic¨? I recently interviewed the perfect example of this phenomenon. DJ/Producer Citizen, has had the courage to artifice a sound of his own, meanwhile paying homage to an era which has mastered the art of dance music.
Influenced by a combination of a music-loving family and a colorful 90’s era, Citizen has nurtured dance floors with characterizing hits and remixes. Part of Kerri Chandler’s Madtech family, he’s released the four track, base-heavy EP, Deep End. Citizen is also known for remixing classics like Andina Howard’s ¨Freak Like Me¨ and pop diva tunes like Adele’s Rolling in the deep -making both tracks home sweet home for true house heads. Last year Citizen joined Love Fever Records with the LFR002 EP, and made a club favorite out of the echoey and soulful track, ¨Room Service¨. Paving the way towards success, he starts 2013 with a tribute to nightlife. Hitting us March 11 with the salubrious LFR003 EP, Trax is South Londoner, Laurence Blake – also known as, Citizen.
EARMILK: Citizen, you represent a lot of what we miss from back in the 90’s, could you tell us what made this your signature sound, and how it all began?
Citizen: Well I grew up in the 90's which was an amazing period for popular music from both sides of the pond and was blessed with a young and music loving family so music has always been a super positive vibe in my life.
The Citizen sound started out as a New Jack Swing project which later embraced the housier elements of the genre and kind of developed from there really.
Read the full interview by Vanessa Gil
