Category: Listen

Today’s label showcase features, by popular demand, ABAGA Records!

A few months back I asked friends of the show on Twitter which labels you thought I should feature on solipsistic NATION and ABAGA Records came up again and again. You demanded it, I listened!

When I launched solipsistic NATION I was uncompromising in my vision for the show. I wanted to feature the best of all genres of electronic music. Not everyone likes jumping from genre to genre of electronic music but the net is big. I knew that there were listeners out there. We just had to find each other. Six years and 276 shows later solipsistic NATION has found a global audience. And damn, the audience has amazing taste. Whenever I ask for suggestions for guest or labels to feature on the show I’m never disappointed and I’m constantly being introduced to new and exciting things. Today’s show is proof of that.

Today’s show is also a bit different because I haven’t heard the mix yet. Andrew, the label’s director, sent it to me and I literally just downloaded it. I have no more idea what to expect that you do, dear listener. Despite the time shifting with podcasts I am, for all intents and purposes, listening to today’s the same time as you. But you’ve never steered me wrong. I’m going to trust in your good taste.

ABAGA Records releases bass music, dubstep, jungle, d&b and other sub-heavy styles of music. Based in Edinburgh, the label provides a platform for artists to get their music heard, with both free and paid releases.

Join us again next week when our guest will be Nathan Phelan, host of The Electro Show.

See you then!

1. Tactus “Red Tide (Unreleased)”
2. DanieL Bazz “Ace”
3. Interview with Andrew Rankine, director of ABAGA Records
4. Tactus “Refueled”
5. The Mighty Cornelius “The Black Meat (DanieL Bazz Remix)”
6. The Setup “Grindstone”
7. G.Davies “Crab Riddim”
8. CIVIC “So Rough (Tactus Remix)”
9. Tactus “Broken (Unreleased)”
10. Tactus “Skittles (Unreleased)”
11. Tactus “Litmus (Unreleased)”
12. Tactus “Steam Cloud”
13. Tactus “Rub-A-Dub Remix”
14. Tactus “Home Guider”
15. Tactus “Dancing Bruise (Unreleased)”
16. Tactus & Spiral Soundsystem “Dancing Bruise (Unreleased)”
17. Radikal Guru “Inilusion (Quektis Remix)”
18. Interview with Andrew Rankine, director of ABAGA Records
19. Tactus “Captain Cabinets Remix (Unreleased)”
20. Tactus “Amputation Party”
21. G.Davies “Young Hegelians”
22. Project Midnight “Slam”
23. TeKlo “Overdose”
24. ODEA “Circuit”
25. Jammin J “Perfect Score (Tactus Remix)”
26. Tactus “Approach”
27. Tactus “Flamjonkles”
28. Tactus “Death Note (Unreleased)”
29. Tactus “Radikhal (Unreleased)”
30. Interview with Andrew Rankine, director of ABAGA Records
31. Tactus “Detriment (Unreleased)”
32. Profisee “Hold Up (Tactus Remix)”
33. Denney “Make It Funk”
34. Tactus & MAKO “Come Again”
35. Denney “Spiritual Contact”
36. Jammin J “Something Special”

I think it’s safe to say that if you’ve heard the Stereo MCs‘ music then you’re probably already fan. And if you haven’t heard the Stereo MCs’ music, which is almost impossible, then you will be a fan by the end of today’s show.

Well, actually, I have to admit the possibility that you may not be a fan.

I know I wasn’t.

When the Stereo MCs released their track “Connected” it was a monster hit. You couldn’t get away from it. At the time I was working a bar and a nightclub and if the DJs weren’t playing it in the nightclub, people were playing it on the jukebox in the bar. Even a good song, a great song, can turn sour if you hear it too much. And so I grew to loathe the Stereo MCs.

But nearly 10 years later a friend from work played “Connected” and I heard it with fresh ears and instantly became a fan. That very night I ran out and purchased their Connected album and, to my joy, they had recently released a new album called Deep Down & Dirty. Those albums were on constant rotation that summer.

I played those albums at parties the summer of 2001. I drove to the Getty Museum for the first time on a date while listening to those albums. I’ve made love while those albums played in the background.

As you can see, I have a very intimate connection with the Stereo MCs’ music. When I saw Rob on Twitter a few week’s ago I knew what I had to do: invite him on the show. And to my delight, he said yes!

I don’t think neither Rob or his partner, Nick Hallam, self-identify as electronic musicians. I think they just see themselves as musicians and electronic instruments are just one of the tools, among many, they use to create music. That’s cool, but they do use electronic gear and that’s good enough for me to call them one of our own. And if it isn’t? Who cares, it’s the Stereo MCs, for crying out loud!

If you liked today’s show, and honestly, how can you not like today’s show, then tell a friend. The more people who listen, the more people like Rob I can get on the show.

Joins us again next week when we’ll showcase music from Abaga Records.

See you then!

Photo Credit: ©highlandcow.com

1. Stereo MCs “Wooden Heart”
2. Interview with Rob Birch of Stereo MCs
3. Stereo MCs “Breeze”
4. Stereo MCs “Chicken Shake”
5. Stereo MCs “Rhino Part I”
6. Stereo MCs “Rhino Part II”
7. Stereo MCs “Rhino Part III”
8. Stereo MCs “Lost in Music, 92 (Live)”
9. Stereo MCs “Set It Up, BBC 92 (Live)”
10. Stereo MCs “Pressure, T&C 93 (Live)”
11. Stereo MCs “Playing with Fire, T&C 93 (Live)”
12. Stereo MCs “Fade Away, Glaston 93 (Live)”
13. Stereo MCs “Elevate My Mind (Live)”
14. Stereo MCs “Connected, T&C 93 (Live)”
15. Stereo MCs “Breeze, London 01 (Live)”
16. Stereo MCs “Graffiti Pt 2, London 01 (Live)”
17. Stereo MCs “We Belong In This World Together, Cactus 03 (Live)”
18. Stereo MCs “Sofisticated, Cactus 03 (Live)”
19. Stereo MCs “Show Your Light, Brixton 08 (Live)”
20. Stereo MCs “Black Gold, Brixton 08 (Live)”
21. Stereo MCs “City Lights, Brixton 08 (Live)”
22. Stereo MCs “Deep Down & Dirty, Brixton 08 (Live)”
23. Stereo MCs “Ground Level, Brixton 08 (Live)”
24. Stereo MCs “Here And Now, Brixton 08 (Live)”
25. Stereo MCs “Desert Song, Frequency Fest 11 (Live)”
26. Stereo MCs “Far Out Feeling, Frequency Fest 11 (Live)”
27. Stereo MCs “Running, Frequency Fest 11 (Live)”