Beatportal Feed

3 September, 2010 | 10.48AM

Martyn ‘Great Lengths’

Written by: BeatportSean
Filed under: Videos: great lengths, martyn

Martyn has always led the path when it comes to avant-garde mix sets and productions. He’s quite the conceptual artist on both fronts, but he steers into a whole new realm with this latest musical video, or shall we say short film.

3 September, 2010 | 8.32AM

Cratedigger Essentials: Jimmy Edgar

Written by: Philip Sherburne
Filed under: Music News: cratedigger essentials jimmy edgar

Given dance music’s focus on the new-new-new, a lot of older music can fall by the wayside. But there’s nothing like the feel of chancing across a forgotten track that never sounded as good as it does right now. Cratedigger Essentials is a feature highlighting those forgotten gems that our guest selectors keep on hand for when something a little different is called for.

This week, we’ve got Jimmy Edgar in the hot seat. Signed to Warp for several years, the Detroit native recently resurfaced on K7 with ‘XXX’, an electro-funk extravaganza that touches upon vintage techno, new jack swing, Prince, and more. Its lascivious lead single ‘Hot, Raw Sex’ gets further hot and bothered via remixes from Kris Wadsworth and Machine Drum.

Check out Edgar’s classic picks below.

3 September, 2010 | 6.00AM

Focus on France: Don Rimini

Written by: Beatportal
Filed under: Music News: don rimini focus on france

We continue our ongoing feature on French electronic music with an interview with Don Rimini. Despite his frequent releases on the Swiss label Mental Groove—and despite his artist alias, a reference to the seaside resort on the Adriatic Rivera, known for decades for its over-the-top nightclub culture—the Parisian producer is very much a product of the Rex Club, Roulé, and other icons of the French scene.

To coincide with our feature we also have a compilation of French musical delicacies to download for free featuring Cassius, dOP, Martin Solveig and more coming soon.

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3 September, 2010 | 4.09AM

Album of the Week: Shed, ‘The Traveller’

Written by: Philip Sherburne
Filed under: Music News: eqd ostgut ton shed stp subsolo wax

Shed‘s René Pawlowitz reminds me a little of James Murphy’s persona in LCD Soundsystem’s ‘You Wanted a Hit’, with its memorable refrain, “You wanted a hit/ But maybe we don’t do hits.”

True, Shed’s dusky, sedimentary techno couldn’t be further away from LCD’s forceful dance-rock, stylistically speaking. But Pawlowitz shows the same kind of ambivalence about fulfilling populist expectations. In an interview with De:Bug magazine this month, he makes it clear that he’s no great fan of nightclubs or their occasionally lunkheaded patrons—for instance, the clubbers who ask him, in the middle of his set, why he isn’t smiling.

Regardless, the man knows how to make hits. His records as Wax and EQD routinely top Resident Advisor’s monthly DJ charts as well as Beatport’s own lists of most frequently charted tracks. The reason is simple: they’re perfect distillations of techno at its most gracefully functional. Pawlowitz goes so far as to describe them as DJ fodder—tools, essentially. (In German, he actually calls them “DJ-Futter”: literally, pet food for DJs.)

‘The Traveller’, the followup to Shed’s 2008 debut album, ‘Shedding the Past’, is something else entirely.

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3 September, 2010 | 1.05AM

Video: Redlight feat. Ms.Dynamite “What you talking about?”

Written by: Caleb Rakes
Filed under: Videos: chase & status, clipz, ms. dynamite, mta records, redlight

After the collaboration with DJ Zinc on the crack-house anthem ‘Wile Out’, Ms. Dynamite returns with Redlight on the heavily garage influenced, ‘What you talking about?’. Click on to read more.

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Get ' What you talking about?" on Beatport Now

2 September, 2010 | 7.54AM

Introducing: Flux Pavillion

Written by: BeatportSean
Filed under: Music News: flux pavillion freestylers introducing

In the narrow span of five years, dubstep has leapt from a sound that attracted a small circle of head-nodding audiophiles into anthems that command hands-in-the-air for a sea of club goers. One artist proving to be a leader in this metamorphosis is Josh Steele, who produces under the title Flux Pavillion, known for brutal, contorted basslines, and quickly becoming the go-to guy for remixes.

Just as Flux Pavillion’s remix of the Freestylers‘ ‘Cracks’ was taking the number one position in dubstep downloads, Steele told us, “The brand ‘electronic music’ is so diverse, I think most modern music falls into that bracket. What I love is the ability to create massive energy with it and keep tweaking and refining tunes for months. Whereas with a band, there’s only so much you can really do… without resorting to using some electronics of course. For me dance music is fun and is better suited to a live environment, but with my tracks I like to put something in there that you can listen to at home as well. I think it’s really interesting how you can turn a dance track into something that actually has real emotion to it.”

I’m sure the fans would agree that each Flux production swirls with power and emotion. He’s found a way to tap into that element of music that is most visceral and uses it to harvest a reaction. Between his touring, producing, and his booked schedule, we pestered the Flux man just enough for him to take the time to answer our questions.

2 September, 2010 | 7.30AM

Introducing: Renaissance Man

Written by: Caleb Rakes
Filed under: Music News: introducing jesse rose made to play renaissance man

Renaissance Man are, in fact two former architects from Finland. Having dominated their native countries’ house scene the Finnish duo turned their attentions to Greater Europe, winning hearts and warming dancefloors with their outlandish style of housemusic. Having garnered so much attention Jesse Rose was keen to snap them up to this Made to Play imprint earlier this year.

With prestigious shows being lined up in venues such as Fabric and Panorama Bar, Beatportal thought it was the right time to catch up with the plurallistic confused producers and introduce them to our community.

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Check our Renaissance Man on Beatport Now

1 September, 2010 | 7.25AM

Mount Kimbie tour North America

Written by: Beatportal
Filed under: Videos: hotflush, mount kimbie

Whatever you call Mount Kimbie’s music—post-dubstep, folky future garage, warm-fuzzy-wave—they’re bringing it to North America this month on a tour hitting nine major cities, coast-to-coast.

In keeping with their unorthodox aesthetic, the duo’s live show isn’t your average exercise in tapping at the space bar. They incorporate guitars, live percussion, on-the-fly sampling, and even vocals, lending a welcome dose of spontaneity to their immersive, hazily psychedelic tunes.

Check out their acclaimed debut album, ‘Crooks & Lovers’, and see the full tour schedule after the jump.

1 September, 2010 | 6.00AM

Focus on France: Cassius

Written by: Beatportal
Filed under: Music News: cassius focus on france french touch la funk mob motorbass zdar

Beatportal presents a new series in which we take an in-depth look at a particular country or city, interviewing veteran musicians, rising stars, and record labels to find out what makes their scene special. To coincide we are releasing a compilation of French musical delicacies to download for free. Our first track is courtesy of our featured artists Cassius.

The duo’s members, Philippe Zdar and Boom Bass, established themselves in the early ‘90s as La Funk Mob, one of the few French acts on the legendary Mo’ Wax label; Zdar is also his known for his role in Motorbass, one of the seminal French house acts.

Cassius broke out in a big way with their millennial album ‘1999’, a classic example of French house that sounds just as relevant 11 years later. They took it slow in the late ‘00s, but they returned last year with ‘Youth, Speed, Trouble, ‘Cigarettes’, and this year, their re-released single ‘99’ (remixed by Tim Green and Reset!) has helped them find a whole new generation of fans.

Read on for Philippe Zdar’s thoughts on what the scene was like in the old days, what went wrong with the “French Touch”, and which French producers are setting Paris on fire these days.

31 August, 2010 | 2.11PM

Riva Starr feat. Noze “I Was Drunk”

Written by: Justin Jack
Filed under: Videos: made to play, riva starr

In the last year Riva Starr has shattered through the barriers of electronic music and has become one of the most in demand talents in the business.

31 August, 2010 | 10.38AM

Weekend Weapons: Todd Terry

Written by: Alex Hughes
Filed under: Music News: todd terry

Few artists personify house music’s range like Todd Terry: from his roots as one of New York’s pivotal underground DJs, he’s gone on to become a massive crossover fave.

When he submitted his Weekend Weapons to Beatport, Terry told us how he stays inspired by traveling frequently between the overground and the underground:

“DJing this year has been about playing in two different worlds, but trying to give each world a taste of the other. One world I call the “big room” commercial clubs and festivals, and the other world I call the old school house clubs. I’m playing different records, different types of sets in each, and it’s great to be touring and play a house club in Naples on a Friday night and then a big room in Belgrade on a Saturday night to see what the different crowds are dancing to. I have been at this for a minute and as a DJ you have to know where the crowd wants to go, and it’s my job to take them there. In the big rooms I’m playing Steve Angello mixes, and in the house clubs I can always throw in some of my classics like ‘Samba’, ‘Can U Party’, and ‘Bango’."

Check out his full list of tunes, with audio and Terry’s commentary, after the jump.

31 August, 2010 | 5.57AM

Weekend Weapons: DJ Fresh

Written by: Caleb Rakes
Filed under: Music News: breakbeat kaos dj fresh drum & bass

DJ Fresh’s long overdue comeback album is one of the most anticipated drum & bass albums of 2010.

Having taunted us with singles from the longplayer over the past two years, including ‘Gold Dust’ and ‘Hypercaine’, Fresh’s return to the scene after an extended absence is a chance to reclaim his title as one of the best producers on the scene.

Having come full force after resurrecting his career post-Bad Company, Fresh (aka Dan Stein) went on to set up the infamous Breakbeat Kaos imprint and became heavily involved in introducing Pendulum to the world. His 2006 debut album, ‘Escape from Planet Monday’, gathered serious critical acclaim on the back of tracks like ‘The Pink Panther’, ‘All That Jazz’, and ‘Submarines’.

Fresh takes the time out to take us through the records that have causing epic rewinds and burning holes on the decks throughout his gigs, keep reading to find out more.

30 August, 2010 | 4.13PM

Bomb Alert! Swedish House Mafia ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’

Written by: Justin Jack
Filed under: Music News: axwell sebastian ingrosso steve angello swedish house mafia

With an already phenomenal live following, Swedish House Mafia are playing a 16-week residency at Pacha. Last year their awarding winning show, the Dark Forest, opened to record crowds, and this year’s Masquerade Motel theme immerses the crowd in a 360-degree performance, making the audience a part of the show.

The reactions from SHM’s live sets at Electric Daisy Carnival and Ultra Music Festival have received accolades from SPIN and URB Magazines as highlights of the festivals’ histories. The celebrations of their all-star summer of pure extravagance continue as the superheroes of house music drop their next massive crossover anthem, ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’. The signature SHM style is in full effect with euphoric synth lines, looping claps, and in-your-face percussion that has brought thousands to their feet, fists pumping to the sky. The single comes from the highly anticipated album ‘Until One’, set for release October 26, and compiling highlights of each of the Mafia members’ solo work to date.

With full support from Pete Tong, Annie Mac, Andi D (Galaxy FM) and Steve Smart (Kiss FM) and Radio 1’s DJ Zane Lowe calling it “the hottest record in the world”, ‘Miami 2 Ibiza’’ looks to be a massive hit for 2010.

30 August, 2010 | 10.12AM

We Know The Feeling: Dave Heugel

Written by: Beatportal
Filed under: Music News: beatport we know the feeling

Every one of Beatport’s staff is a vital element within the company’s existence, a cog that drives the machine that drives the industry. And at Beatport we know that our staff members are more than pistons and prongs, they are multicoloured rainbows that shine out above the musical community at large, raining down multitudes of techno, house and the occasional heavy metal record.

Yes this week, we introduce to you one of the most enigmatic and hard working DJs within the Berlin office, Dave Heugel. Those within Europe will probably be already aware of Dave, a familiar face within the Robert Johnson and Tresor clubs of Germany, Dave has been spinning techno and house for many years now.

About to embark as a producer Dave recalls to us his tales listening to Slayer, how he acquired the name ‘Dave The Rave’ and how he’s manages to see through the clothes of his fellow employees for so long without anyone of us catching on.

30 August, 2010 | 4.51AM

Simian Mobile Disco serve a new plate of Delicacies

Written by: Alex Hughes
Filed under: Music News: delicacies fixed simian mobile disco

Simian Mobile Disco are about to drop ‘Simian Mobile Disco Is Fixed’, a powerhouse mix CD celebrating New York’s Fixed party. Out October 12, the mix is a twisted expedition through peak-time techno at its most off-kilter, featuring the likes of Etienne Jaumet, Bam Bam, DJ Hell, Paul Woolford, Clement Meyer, and Carl Craig.

But while we’re all waiting for the main course, the duo serves up a tantalizing appetizer in the form of a new release from their own Delicacies label. Titled after stomach-churning foodstuffs like 1000 year egg and casa marzu (aka “maggot cheese"), it’s not for the faint of heart—but then, proper techno never was.

We interviewed the duo to find out what else they’ve got cooking up.