With a summer of anticipated releases ahead I've had this bass driven little gem mastered for my own sets, but I didn't want to be selfish and keep it all to myself. Starting with one of the most iconic vocals in dance music all it took was a huge wad of bass, some big drums and a touch of reverb to create this haunting, gut churning monster.
Hopefully to be released this year is my new tune, Biggest Drop. I finally bought Ableton 8 at Christmas and have managed to fit in some free time in front of a computer every so often. I wanted to make a Stantons style tune with most of the bass coming from a big 808 hit under the kick, but once I started looping the melodic percussion over it and found the vocal sample announcing "the biggest drop(something I deleted)in the world" I heard a big bass line in my head coming in on the drop and went looking for the sound to make it work. I put the rest of the track together fairly quickly then had to set about adding layers, distortion, drum compression, EQing etc to fill it out and it eventually became this huge sounding beast.
I'm definately on a steep learning curve and I'm incredibly greatful for those producers that have given me the feedback and advice that has made this a vast improvement on the last tune on the engineering front.
It's been an interesting year for me, branching out as a solo DJ as the other half of Pogo (James Furness) had to do some soul searching and find his own sound. This pretty much coincided with me leaving London and disbanding our show on iBreaks. I've had a lot of fun popping back to London playing at the likes of We Have Fun and Supatronix, though there's only so many times you can play for the same people. So over the summer I started focusing on developing my production skills as my musical outlet and hopefully promotional tool. Having taken on the important job of reviewing tracks for This Is Breaks I was interested in trying to do my bit for the scene by producing breaks rather than the electro people might have expected from me. The result was my first release in November (Radio Epidemic) and a couple of other encouraging ideas.
There was a remix competition to work on the classic Double 99 - Ripgroove back at the end of summer. At the time I was getting Radio Epidemic signed and tweeking that all the time as well as starting full time work so I didn't get a chance to make something for the comp. I had managed to make something that sounded promising though, so I still went back to it whenever I found any studio time. As it is there are no clever drum edits or spectacular effects, but some solid beats, the charm of the original and some nuskool synth work make it a proper party banger that I wanted to share.
So especially for all Pogo fans here's a special Christmas/pagan Winter gift:
As you can probably guess from the title, this month’s podcast is a bit more chilled out than usual, helping you to round off your Christmas holiday with an hour and a half of relaxing tracks (of course with a few bangers in the middle for good measure)!
Unlike my normal podcasts which are mixed live, this is my first experiment with mixing on my computer using Ableton Live as I haven’t had access to decks throughout Christmas.
As always you can leave your comments using the form below, or on my Facebook page.
Tracklist
John Tejada - Alone With You (feat. Carl A. Finlow) [Plug Research US]
Kriece - Cork In The Ocean (Jim Rivers mix) [EQ Grey]
Slam - Staccato Rave (Silicone Soul's Darkroom Dub) [Soma]
Motorcitysoul - Space Katzle (Jerome Sydenham Remix) [Songbird Holland]
Tim Deluxe - Espoo's Rose (Original Mix) [AT Records]
One Plus One - No Pressure (Deadmau5 Remix) [One + One]
Milton Jackson - Cycles (Original) [Freerange]
Solee - Impressed (Original) [Le Bien Et Le Mal]
Phonique ft. Erlend Oye - Casualities (Club Mix) [Dessous Recordings]
Andy Caldwell - Warrior (Andy Caldwells Electric Re-Rub) [Om Records]
Maria Edesse - Maria (Damir Blazinic Remix) [BikiniTracks]
Sebastian Ingrosso - Kidsos (Original Mix) [Refune Records]
Those prophets of the broken beat have once again shown their infinite humility and generosity by offering up their latest bootleg remixes to their loyal followers for free. Down at The Boom Town Blog videos are often posted with their latest remix and bootleg projects and, more often than not, the tracks are eventually put up for download. The duo had this to say:
“It’s just a little gift to show our appreciation to all who have supported us this year by buying our records or coming to our shows and making this one of the most exciting years for us yet…see you all in the 2010 for even more. Mark & Dom”
Their reworking of Young MC's Know How is a funky booty shaker with that ultra-recogniseable guitar riff from Isaac Hayes's Theme From Shaft and Young MCs lyrical attitude. Booming kicks and the amen break bring it up to date with some clever editing and very little modern synth work.
Good Vibrations was seemingly knocked up in an Australian hotel room while on their similarly named tour. The build up and breakdowns are big room hands in the air affairs with the Beach Boys classic giving everyone something to sing along to. The cheeky use of a sample from Marky Mark's (aka Mark "Max Payne" Wahlberg") chart hit of the same title is used as a punctuation mark between these euphoric moments and the big buzz-saw bassline that kicks in to knock you back into dancing mode.
Next up on Control Breaks is first ever release from a DJ/Producer whose been making waves on the Breaks, Electro and Fidget scenes for some time now as Shakes throws out his debut in the shape of 'Radio Epidemic'. Once part of the fabled Pogo DJs, Shakes has recently being making his own path, DJing solo at a range of events including regular guest slots at hot London night We Have Fun, at every event playing outstanding sets that straddle a range of genres.
With 'Radio Epidemic' Shakes takes this DJing style and makes a tune that will happily sit in any cross genre set and many a purist one too! The tracks takes it's main elements from the latest breaks but adds a dash of the modern electro style and a pinch of toughest fidget vibes. All of which combines into an awesome track that'll fill any dancefloor in any decent club!
On remix duties we have Dom Almond, a producer who has been prolific in recent years with a host of releases on a number of big labels, both original tunes and top remixes including a serious banger for Control Breaks. With 'Radio Epidemic' he takes the original in a slightly harder and more pure breakbeat direction , toughening things up without losing the originals charm.
Since my recent trip to Ibiza I have been really getting much more into my Techno – something really clicked this year whilst listening to some awesome sets on some jaw droppingly crisp sound systems at the likes of We Love etc…
This month’s podcast is based around some of the seriously chunky Techno I’ve collected over the last few months since my return, and is very much all about the bass so make sure you have your subwoofer cranked right round to 11!
Let me know what you think of the mix! Leave your comments using the form below, or on my Facebook page.
And if you enjoyed the mix, please use the “Share This” links below to share the mix with your friends…
Tracklist
Boy 8-Bit - Baltic Pine (Original) [This Is Music]
Malente - I Like It (Riva Starr SNATCH! Mix) [Fool's Gold Records]
Nadastrom - Save Us (Original Mix) [Dubsided]
DJ Madskillz - Surface (Original Mix) [Bitten]
Mikas - Temperamental (Manuel De La Mare Remix) [Progressive Grooves Records]
Mini mode - process (Manuel de la mare & luigi rocca (marshall) remix) [303LOVERS]
Armand van Helden - Funk Phenomena 2010 (Starkillers 2010 Remix) [Henry Street Music]
Say what you will about the Stanton Warriors and their allegiance to the breakbeat community, but Mark and Dominic are out there dissolving the boundaries, finding the best in new genres and often pushing the broken beat to an unsuspecting wider audience. Being very picky about the quality and style of the music they play, it is not surprising that they have a string of thumping remixes on their resume (including the list of bootlegs that they finally released to the public on their blog this summer).
Keen readers of the Stantons' blog, Boom Town, will have seen the video for their remix of Rye Rye ft. MIA - Bang and been more than a little excited. The B'more/crunk style of the original works incredibly well with a spot of Stantons bass and beats and previous Rye Rye collaborations with Diplo and Sinden have proven very successful. This week sees the anticipated release of the Stantons version and it's bloody well free! Click here to grab one of the best party tunes of the year in full 320k quality.
Don't forget to check out the site for other little gems too!
At last, the latest instalment of my podcast is available for your listening pleasure! This month’s podcast is very much inspired by my set at Space in Ibiza, including some of the tracks that went down a storm, and a few tracks I wanted to play but didn’t manage to fit into my set whilst I was there.
As always you can download the mix directly from here, but if you want to get future episodes delivered to your iPod automatically you can use the buttons below to subscribe.
Tracklist
2Raumwohnung - Wir Werden Sehen (Solomun Vox Remix) [it sounds]
Depeche Mode - Dream On (Bushwacka Tough Guy Mix) [Mute]
Having finally recovered from the mayhem that was Ibiza 2009 I can definitely say it was one of my favourite gigs to date. It was also one of my favourite holidays to date, with a few days before/after Space to chill out in the sun with a group of my close friends.
We Love Space poster at Ses Selines
We Love itself was an amazing experience from the moment of arriving in front of Space and feeling the hairs on my neck stand up at the thought of what I was about to do. Being led in through the back doors of Space is always an amazing experience, past the fridges and kitchens along a twisty maze of passages until faced with a row of doors which open and lead out into the cavernous discoteca. From there we had a few hours to soak up the atmosphere before my set at 2am. We caught an excellent set from local legend Alfredo on the Sunset Terrace followed by an awesome set from Tiefschwarz in the Terazza before it was time to head upstairs and catch red box regular Jem Haynes.
As 2am quickly arrived it was time to put any nerves to the back of my mind and take to the decks in the already packed red box. The crowd were brilliant, responding encouragingly to my track selection and constant pogoing around the booth. Despite my set being at the same time as Grace Jones, David Guetta and Paul Woolford the red box remained packed throughout, with a queue of enthusiastic clubbers waiting outside to be let in by the bouncers when space became available.
Rocking the red box
By 4am I was glad to see the familiar face of Paul Arnold arrive in the booth to relieve me, as I had by this stage become a sweaty, tired mess from 2 hours of jumping around the booth. After finishing my set there was time to sit down and listen to some of Paul’s set before heading downstairs to the Terazza to see one of my personal favourite DJs, James Zabiela, close the night.
All in all an amazing experience, big thanks to Paul Arnold from Chew The Fat! and Mark Broadbent and all from We Love for making it happen, not to mention all of my friends for supporting me both in Ibiza and from back home. Here’s hoping I will get the chance to repeat the experience next year!
Leaving Space
Scroll down for some selected photos from the evening (a full gallery is available on my Facebook page) and a tracklisting of my set.
Tracklist
Armand Van Helden - NYC Beat (MSTRKRFT Remix)
Tiga - Pleasure From The Bass
Hot Chip - Over and Over (Solid Groove Remix)
Tiga & Zyntherius - Sunglasses At Night (D.I.M. Remix)
Andy Caldwell - Warrior (Claude VonStroke Sharp Toof Mix)
Yousef - Legacy (Vocal Mix)
Hyper - No Rockstars (Original Mix)
Nick Thayer - Toasted (Original)
Meat Katie - All I Need (Dylan Rhymes Remix)
Gramophonedzie - Why Don't You (Original Mix)
Soul Of Man - Mylowdowndirty
DJ Jeroenski - Back Once Again (Vandalism Remix)
Aztec Mystic - Revenge Of The Jaguar (King Unique Mix)
