Category: Listen

I really appreciate electronic record labels because they tend to focus on specific genres of music such as industrial or hip hop. That focus means they can narrow in on a specific aesthetic and separate the wheat from the chaff.

Once a month I dedicate a show to a record label that is worth hearing and this week on solipsistic NATION we’ll talk with Evan Marc, the man behind Native State Records.

Native State Records is a west coast electronic music label that explores the boundaries between downtempo, idm, dub, and chillout. I’ve featured several artists from Native State Records on solipsistic NATION in the past such as Rena Jones, Shen and Nalepa so it was only a matter of time before I had Evan as a guest on the show.

Evan recently launched Somnia, a sublabel of Native State Records. Somnia releases ambient, electronic, minimalist, modern classical, electro acoustic, and “other” recordings. If Somnia’s first release, Caverns of Time, is an indication of the direction the label is heading in, then Somnia is destined for greatness.

Evan has also entered the world of podcasting with his Somnia podcast, which features artists that put out incredibly moving and beautiful music. You owe it to yourself subscribe to the Somnia podcast. And if you’re so inclined, why not support the artists on his podcast and Native State Records by purchasing some of their songs or albums.

1. Aerostatic “Drone”
2. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
3. KiloWatts “Dub Serious”
4. Vibesquad “Dome Piece”
5. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
6. Bluetech “Enter The Lovely”
7. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
8. Sympath “Pond Life”
9. krill.minima “Nautica”
10. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
11. Shen “Embrace”
12. Saqi “Offering / Reminder”
13. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
14. Welder “Sumeria”
15. Interview with Evan Marc of Native State Records
16. String Theories “White Dragon”
17. Rena Jones “Undercurrent”
18. Promo: Fallen Nation

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and some of you might be thinking to yourself that the whole thing is just an excuse to sell cards, chocolate, roses and jewelry, or that it’s a way to get couples to spend a lot of money in expensive restaurants. You might also think that we don’t need holidays like Valentine’s Day, that each day we should cherish the people we love and tell them how we feel about them.

All of that is true. But if you’re one of those cynical people I ask you to consider this: life goes by pretty fast and it’s easy to get caught up in our day to day existence. It’s all too easy to let the days turn into weeks and the weeks into months and forget to take the time to express our love to that certain special someone.

I think holidays like Valentine’s Day serve as a touch stone to remind us to appreciate the one’s we love and declare how much we love and cherish them. Things like chocolate and roses can be a sweet way to symbolize our affections. But they aren’t absolutely necessary. Sometimes music can be the expression of our feelings.

Which brings us to today’s show.

Our guests for this week’s solipsistic NATION are Ryan Lum and Anji Bee from Lovespirals and together I hope we’ll put you in a romantic state of mind for Valentine’s Day.

Granted, not all the music of Lovespirals is about the joys of love. There are songs about heart break and more but on the whole, their music is often romantic and sensual, even when the music is at it’s darkest.

By the way, if you’re a musician then you’ll want to enter the Lovespirals Remix Contest. The contest will allow you the opportunity to remix Lovespirals’ new single “This Truth.” The best remix wins some great prizes and the opportunity to be included on an upcoming Lovespirals remix digital EP and remix collection CD.

1. Lovespirals “Beatitude”
2. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
3. Lovespirals “Motherless Child (Chris Caulder Remix)”
4. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
5. Bitstream Dream “Love Me Leave Me”
6. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
7. Lovespirals “Deep in My Soul”
8. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
9. Plastic Chair “Requiem”
10. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
11. Lovespirals “Trouble”
12. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
13. Lovespirals “Walk Away (Bitstream Dream Remix)”
14. Interview with Anji Bee and Ryan Lum of Lovespirals
15. Promo: Fallen Nation

I have to say I’m really really impressed with how well the live electronic music performance segments on solipsistic NATION have turned out. In the last couple of months we’ve had some stellar sets from Nalepa, Hol Baumann and the Dub Beautiful Collective. We’re going to kick off February with DJ Olive‘s performance recorded in Australia from on his album, Heaps As, Live in Tasmania, released by The Agriculture.

Rather than opening with a bombastic intro, DJ Olive’s music slyly creeps in, establishing some nice head nodding beats. Almost without you knowing it, Olive takes you on a journey that, to me, sonically captures what it’s like walk through the streets of New York City. DJ Olive’s music seamlessly blends hip hop, funk, jazz, dub, dancehall and Latin rhythms, often within a single song! A lesser artist might have chosen to draw attention to all those genres by rubbing your face in it but here Olive creates an organic mosaic of where those styles and traditions flow together. He does it so well that it’s almost impossible to imagine his music sounding any other way.

If you enjoy this week’s show then you might want to check out an earlier edition of solipsistic NATION featuring an interview with James Healy from The Agriculture and a mix of music from the label, including DJ Olive.

Photo Credit: Kay-Christian Heine

1. DJ Olive “Bin Raider”
2. Interview with DJ Olive
3. DJ Olive “Lila Dog”
4. DJ Olive “The Furry Whale”
5. DJ Olive “Heaps As”
6. DJ Olive “Laughing Eyes”
7. DJ Olive “All’a’ya’alls”
8. DJ Olive “Budgie Smuggler’s Cove”
9. Interview with DJ Olive
10. DJ Olive “Dancing With Poxy Stingers”
11. DJ Olive “Follow Me I’ll Be Right Behind You”
12. DJ Olive “They’ll Make Us All Want to Hate Each Other Don’t Do It”
13. DJ Olive “At Least Some Knots Get Untangled”
14. DJ Olive “Snail Trails In My Arms”
15. DJ Olive “Agriculture Under the Tractor”
16. Interview with DJ Olive
17. DJ Olive “Sub Bass Commandante” [FREE DOWNLOAD]
18. DJ Olive “Bitchiman & Tenderfoot”
19. DJ Olive “Time for You…”
20. Interview with DJ Olive

Hey, I admit it, as the host of solipsistic NATION I think the show is the coolest podcast around. You can’t expect me to be very objective about that. But on the other hand, I’ve listened to a lot of other electronic music podcasts and I’ve found the bulk of them to be terrible and, at best, mediocre. Even the electronic music podcasts that I enjoy I’ve also found wanting.

A lot of shows may play some spectacular music but the tend to play such a narrow spectrum of music over and over again on each show that there’s almost no point in downloading another show. Once I’ve heard one podcast I’ve pretty much heard all their shows. Where’s the fun in that? And other shows that play great electronic music might not have a host so I have no idea who you’re listening to unless I check the playlist. As a consequence, the show feels empty.

Then there are those few shows that play exceptionally good music and have a friendly host to guide me on my audio journey. Those are the shows that I think are worth listening to and that brings us to the Electronicast, hosted by DJ Snowy.

Snowy is passionate about the music he carefully selects for each edition of Electronicast, whether it’s breakbeat, IDM or ambient. No matter what genre of electronic music Snowy plays it’s the highest quality stuff out there. Just as important, Snowy mostly showcases independent and unsigned artists that deserve to be heard.

Snowy has only released a few episodes of Electronicast but it’s such a great show that it’s well worth the wait and I’m always excited when I find a new edition of Electronicast on my iPod.

As the host of solipsistic NATION I feel it’s not only my duty to play for you the very best electronic music but to also turn you on to electronic music podcasts that will rock your world. If after listening to this week’s show you feel you absolutely have to listen to more of Electronicast then why not subscribe to Snowy’s podcast? Life’s too short to listen to bad music.

1. Snowy “Asia”
2. Dementio13 “Polymath”
3. Part 12 “Anon”
4. SK123 “Massive Ambient Face”
5. Subway “Persuasion”
6. Mrs Jynx “Monkey Locked Out”
7. Joycircuit “Absent Friends”
8. Kouncilhouse “Rock Beat”
9. Everlight “Can’t Get Enough”
10. Dementio13 “Deprived of My Senses”
11. Lights Out Asia “Roy”
12. Dave Dark and the Sharks “Closedown”

A lot of times when I’m putting together shows my imagination will run wild and I’ll create a story with the music from the podcast acting as the soundtrack. The plot line often changes as I add or remove songs from the playlist.

Take this week’s show, called Wayout.

As I selected the songs an epic unfolded with a hero, Captain Cornelius, as it’s hero.

Captain Cornelius is a multidimensional adventurer from a far-off place called Wayout, much in the tradition of Michael Moorcock or Moebius. The screenplay is by Grant Morrison and directed by, of course, the Wachowski siblings.

The story opens with Captain Cornelius enjoying the decadence of Wayout, his every need and whim responded to with utmost devotion by his nanotech servants. But such a utopia comes at a price and when not off duty Cornelius is a stalwart defender of Wayout.

The Captain is called to meet with his superiors. There is a threat not only to Wayout but the multiverse itself. Cornelius is tasked to go after a rogue captain from Wayout who plans to unravel the fabric reality, a quantum Ragnarök. Even as we learn the nature of Cornelius’s mission the rogue captian attacks and destroys the constabulary, but not before Cornelius escapes by hurling himself blindly through space and time, with the rogue captain always on his heels.

Cornelius’s adventures takes him from humanity’s neolithic past to a distant future far beyond imagining. Along the way he knows victory and defeat, love and love lost and finally, a pyrrhic triumph: total understanding of reality but with no ability to change the outcome of events, or prevent the death of his lover.

Cornelius returns home to Wayout an older and wiser man and finds that he has come to regard his utopia as false and empty. Such is the price of defending the Edenic realm of Wayout.

Well, at least that’s what I got out of this week’s show.

Photo Credit: paulpaws

1. CyberChump “Anticipation”
2. Aughra “The Warmth Of The Shallows”
3. OP11 “Eau”
4. Bola “Zoft Broiled Ed”
5. H.U.V.A. Network “Symetric Lifes”
6. Social Interiors “Potrat”
7. Detalles “Permeate”
8. Tycho “Brother”
9. Solar Fields “Combinations”
10. Giuseppe Ielasi “04”
11. Savvas Ysatis + Taylor Deupree “Listen to the Morning Sleeping”

Ninja Tune. Man, where to begin?

I guess for me it all started when I was spinning at WMFO. Each week, an hour or two before my show, I’d go through all the new CDs and records to listen to what tracks I might want to play when I went on air. Whenever something particularly special came in I’d check out what label it was on for future reference. As the months, then years went by, I could help but notice that some amazing stuff was consistently coming out from this label called Ninja Tune.

There are certain record labels that develop a distinct personality by their roster of musical artists. A classic example would be Motown Records. Back in the 60s, Motown represented a staggering collection of mind blowing talent such as Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross & The Supremes. Motown developed a reputation for putting out such insanely great music that if a new album came out by, say, the The Jackson 5, you could virtually bank that it was going to be great. And if a record came out by someone on Motown you didn’t know you could take it on faith that it was probably going to be good.

This has happened time and time again and most relevant to me are the indie/hardcore record labels that came out in the 80s like Dischord, SST and TAANG!.

Which brings us to Ninja Tune.

NInja Tune also has a flavor all its own. The sum of all the artists on Ninja Tune makes it sexy and aggressive, gives it a wry sense of humor, and moody and menacing. Ninja Tune skips from drum and bass to abstract hip hop to nu jazz and chillout and on and on… The thing is, some how all these different artists and different artists belong together. They all feel as if they are part of the same cloth.

A few months back I had Ronnie Darko on the show and played a few tunes he mixed from the Scion CD Sampler v. 18: Ninja Tune Mix. Darko put me in touch with Jonathan Shedletzky from Ninja Tune and I asked him to come solipsistic NATION to talk and play a mix of new and classic music from the label. Think of it as my attempt to sketch out a mug shot of Ninja Tune.

1. Neotropic “Ultra Freaky Orange”
2. Interview with Jonathan Shedletzky of Ninja Tune
3. Roots Manuva “No Love”
4. Ghislain Poirier “Blazin (Featuring Face-T)”
5. Wiley “50/50”
6. Blockhead “Duke Of Hazzard”
7. Interview with Jonathan Shedletzky of Ninja Tune
8. Sixtoo “Jackals and Vipers In Envy of Man (Part 8)”
9. Daedelus “Fair Weather Friends”
10. Interview with Jonathan Shedletzky of Ninja Tune
11. The Heavy “Colleen”
12. Hexstatic “Tokyo Traffic”
13. Interview with Jonathan Shedletzky of Ninja Tune
14. DJ Kentaro “One Hand Blizzard”
15. Amon Tobin “Kitchen Sink (Boxcutter Remix)”
16. Cujo “The Light”
17. Bonobo “Ketto”
18. DJ Food “The Ageing Young Rebel (Featuring Ken Nordine)”
19. Coldcut “Eine Kleine Hedmusik”
20. Interview with Jonathan Shedletzky of Ninja Tune
21. DJ Vadim “Your Revolution (Featuring Sarah Jones) [Version]”

One of my goals for the second year of solipsistic NATION was to release more shows featuring live performances of electronic music. I’ve been blessed with some fantastic sets by Robert Rich, Hol Baumann and and select tracks by artists recorded by the Dub Beautiful Collective. In the next few months you can expect to hear live shows from Dr. Toast and DJ Olive.

This week’s solipsistic NATION features a live performance by Nalepa, recorded by the Dub beautiful Collective in 2005.

Despite my best efforts, Nalepa’s comes up a lot on solipsistic NATION.

Five years ago I made a resolution not play a particular artists too often and never to play one of their songs more than once on my radio program. While I could do a two hour show dedicated to Meat Beat Manifesto or playing songs by Massive Attack over and over again I wanted to force myself to be more stringent on what songs would make it to my playlists. If I were going to play “Nephatiti” by 808 State, for example, I’d better be sure it was worth it because it would be a while before I played 808 State again and “Nephatiti” was never to be played on the show again.

I wanted to keep the show lean and fresh. When I relaunched solipsistic NATION as a once a week, one hour podcast, there was even less reason to repeat artists or songs. And yet Steve’s name keeps popping up.

The reason for that is because Steve’s an amazingly great musician. His stuff is damn wonderful that as try as I might, Steve’s music keeps creeping it’s way into the shows.

I’m delighted to present to you a live performance by Nalepa as well two tracks from collaborative efforts Steve is working on with The FMs and Bass Science. And you can be sure I’ll be playing more of Nalepa’s music on the podcast in the future.

1. Nalepa “Live (December 3, 2005), recorded by the Dub Beautiful Collective“
2. Interview with Steve Nalepa
3. The FMs “Fancy Seeing You Here”
4. Bass Science “Razors”

My iPod is always loaded with a half dozen electronic music podcasts that I listen to without fail. Each week I wait with baited breath for the XLR8R and Beatport podcasts.

Released less frequently but waited with no less anticipation are podcasts like the Indian Electronica podcast and DJ Bulut‘s New Turkish Beat podcast.

Indian Electronica is a Canadian-based online community, record label, radio station and annual international music festival – all focused on showcasing cutting edge electronic music inspired by South Asian traditions. The podcast is an eclectic sampling of electronic music produced around the world. You can also catch their stream 24 hours a day, 7 days a week straight out of Toronto. Previous shows have included mixes by DJ Spooky and Tony Estrada.

DJ Bulut hosts the equally eclectic New Turkish Beat podcast. Bulut has an exquisite taste for the mixes he puts together and has an extensive show notes at his blog.

Since this week’s solipsistic NATION was so heavily influenced by the Indian Electronica and the New Turkish Beat podcasts I wanted to have DJ Bulut on to talk about his show and have him contribute to the mix.

The mix, by the way, is dynamite!

I’ve been a big fan of Vijaya Anand for years so it was a privilege to play one of his tracks on today’s show. A special shout-out goes to Christina from Motel Records for letting me play Dan the Automator‘s remix of Kalyanji & Anandji V. Shay’s “Uptown Bollywood Nights” from the now classic Bombay the Hardway CD. And once again, Ad Noiseam and Sound-Ink Records continues to blow my mind with tracks from Enduser and Mutamassik. What a great way to close 2007!

Photo credit: © 2007 Jennifer Oatsvall

1. Vijaya Anand “Aatavu Chanda (Dancing Is Beautiful)”
2. Madlib “Early Party”
3. Oh No “Ohhhhhh”
4. DJ OM “The Arrival”
5. Kalyanji & Anandji V. Shay “Uptown Bollywood Nights”
6. Soulphonic Soundsystem “Eastern Market”
7. Mutamassik “High Alert A’al Geddu Featuring 4th Pyramid”
8. Özgür Sakar A.K.A. Misda Oz vs. Mercan Dede “Ab-I Beka”
9. Interview with DJ Bulut of the New Turkish Beat Podcast
10. Gate Eight “Just Remember”
11. Sertab Erener “Music”
12. Harri Kakoulli “Love Exotico”
13. David Starfire “Indian Fever”
14. DJ Spinna “The Ill Kudana”
15. Enduser “Switch”
16. Promo: Urban Outside

This week we’ll be listening to a mix of breath taking music from the Boards of Canada, Nalepa, Vector Lovers and much, much more.

This mix was originally released on Praketh’s Blue Orb podcast and, sadly, is no longer available for download. But the music is so beautiful that I asked Praketh, the record labels and artists if I could share the mix with you on this week’s solipsistic NATION. Happily, they all said yes.

As I said, the original mix is no longer available and that’s got me thinking about the shows I release on solipsistic NATION. Each podcast is, ultimately, disposable media.

Let me explain what I’m talking about.

I spend hours putting these shows together and each week you download the latest edition of solipsistic NATION, listen to it, and then delete from your computer or MP3 player. I’m not complaining. I do the same thing.

But when I downloaded Praketh’s podcast I was so enchanted with his mix that I never deleted it. In fact, I’ve set the alarm clock on my computer to wake me up to this mix each morning.

A good DJ will take you on a journey when they put together a mix of music and this show has everything: it’s gentle, sweet, melancholy, joyful and spiritual. Enjoy!

Photo credit: .kaishin.

1. Schulman “Staring at the Abyss”
2. One Second Bridge “Everywhere”
3. Tycho “Past is Prologue”
4. Vector Lovers “Neon Sky Rain”
5. Ganucheau “Stillness”
6. Boards of Canada “Dayvan Cowboy”
7. Felix Laband “Whistling in Tongues”
8. International Peoples Gang “AC Harmonics”
9. Nalepa “Fresh”
10. Studio Pankow “Heidelberger Platz”
11. I’m Not A Gun “Move”
12. International Peoples Gang “This One”
13. The Gentlemen Losers “Laureline”

Back in August I did an all tech house show on solipsistic NATION and most of the music came from Elektrotribe Records. Elektrotribe’s co-founder, Rom1 and I exchanged a few emails and after many months I’m pleased to have him as a guest on solipsistic NATION.

Elektrotribe Records is a label and management company based on an international community of music producers, DJs, designers, VJs and video producers. While a lot of Elektrotribe’s releases focus on tech house they’re not limited to that genre. Soulkut, for example, specializes in a kind of abstract hip hop and Dark Machines tends to be more drum and bass oriented.

Speaking of which, Nikolce Vasilevski of Dark Machines will release his latest album, Motion, on Elektrotribe December 17th. If you loved Prodigy‘s The Fat of the Land then you’re really going to dig Motion!

1. Dark Machines “220”
2. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records
3. Soulkut “Berlin Undaground”
4. Lucio & Pep “Afternoon”
5. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records
6. Digital Filth “Beta Bug”
7. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records
8. Moog Conspiracy “Code Alfa (Lucio & Pep Remix)”
9. The Free Electric Band “Bashy”
10. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records
11. Flavio Lodetti & Cletto Arrighi “Refresh”
12. Ilario Naples “Anfetamin”
13. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records
14. Mark Marquez “Voodoo Cat”
15. Harnessnoise “Flat Coke Can’t Dance”
16. Interview with Rom1 of Elektrotribe Records