Tuesday, January 19, 2010

mnml ssgs mx48: redshape



When SSGs first invisaged a mix series, the fundamental thing we agreed on was that the artists we chose chould be given a blank canvas: using a single mp3 file, preferably at 320, we just asked people whose music we love to make us something, anything.

Well, actually, an almost blank canvas. We did insist on a few conditions, which were these: go deep, follow your sound, make an emotional connection.

I’ve been really staggered by how positively people have responded to this over the course of the series. Not only have Chris and I been really blown away by how may of our favourite artists have agreed to be part of the project, but the quality and diversity of the mixes has been, I hope you’ll all agree, truly fucking magnificent and constantly surprising.

And now, well, what can I say? Redshape has come up with the goods, managing to do ‘all of the above’ as well as take the series in his own inimitable direction, with a mix that is boisterous, playful, and that reveals, to me at least, a whole bunch of different clues to the different parts of the redshaped world.

I won’t spoil the ride further by describing the scenery in detail, sufficed to say – this one’s a doozy.

Ladies, gentleman, machines, and other forms of extraterrestrial intelligence who are tuned in, we give you... Mr Shape.

mnml ssgs mx48 - redshape
sendspace mirror

For more info on Redshape, check his home page and myspace. As usual, tracklist to follow. Many thanks to Redshape for this.

44 comments:

  1. for me, this mix shows the real depth of redshape's understanding of music. a beautifully composed mix. the tracklisting is sublime. huge thanks to red for this beauty.

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  2. Very curious to see how this relates to his Fact mix.

    Thanks for the mix, congrats for the album, and, as usual, thanks for ssgs for making it available!

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  3. Awesome, what a way to kickoff the mix. Really excited about this one. Thanks!

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  4. Even after the first listen, I honestly think that this mix deserves the same heat as the SCB got. And I guess everybody knows what this means in terms of quality, openness, genre-confidence...Fucking brilliant!

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  5. @ zoller: agreed. blew my brains out the first time i heard it.

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  6. Haven't heard that much variety in a mix in a LONG time.

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  7. Well I have to say that I haven't listened to this mix yet...but having liked everything else that I have heard by Redshape I am sure that it will be as magnificent as ALL the others that you guys have put up.
    So my thanx to you and as it is my 50th a BIG ta to Mr. RS too for my pressie...
    Regards/

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  8. this is magnificent.. it is becoming my favourite ssg yet... i didnt expect to hear radiohead and shackleton in the same mix... and i adore both of them, along with everything else in this mix.. thanks red

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  9. Holy shit, I just got as far as Idioteque and my own head nearly fell off.

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  10. I think this is a prime example of the freedom a mix can give you in channeling your own creativity trough the vast array of music available to a dj.

    Excelent mix. Thanks a lot Redshape and ssgs.

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  11. Brains exploding. Heads falling off.
    Yup - I can agree with that. Especially from Idiotique about half way through. I just love where it meanders and weaves from that point.
    Truly creative. Three cheers for ssgs and three hundred cheers for Mr Redshape !
    Lucky kids, err, and oldies, we are : )
    Oh, and if you have not BOUGHT Dance Paradox yet, well, you really really should. More cheers.

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  12. the redshape kinda stopped me half way through the mix... dont know what happened its just not my cup of tea , i miss mind bending stuff :( im not saying that this one is bad , i just wish for more bang to the mind i guess. dance paradox isnt the greatest he done i like the sebastian kramer of him much more right now, but the 10" limited edition of dance paradox is lying in my bag as a great afterparty killer just the prices gone up so much i might not be able ever to play it

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  13. I seem to remember Ellen Allien trying a similar trick. Ballasting a mix - Boogybytes? Fabric? - with a Thom Yorke song. It sucked the momentum clear out of the service hatch. The fact that Redshape not only gets away with it, but actually empowers the mix is one of many spells wrought by this stunning set.

    Many thanks to Redshape for this keeper, and the ssg team for hosting it.

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  14. es sind 30min vergangen und der mix hat mich nicht gepackt. ein sehr guter track (20min -23min) reicht nicht aus. tschuess redshape. ich hör jetzt den shed mix von fact. da weiss man was man hat.

    in english: every time i listen to mix of redshape, i cant feel anything. sorry not my cup ofe tea.
    i listen to the fact-mix of shed. huuuge!

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  15. while enjoying listening the mix right now, i remembered the radio from wish mountain!!! first heard it in Lady Aida supreme mix a decade ago, doppler f act and i m really touched*

    i dig the mix already..
    ;-)

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  16. from the 38' i don't like the mix anymore.. ;-(
    the selections is not for me.. :-)

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  17. for those who don't like the mix (or parts of it) i'd be curious to know exactly why you don't like it. this mix really knocked me out the first time i heard it, and after a lot of listens, i am still blown away. the composition is so impressive.

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  18. Seriously amazing. In my top 3 mixes that have been specifically made for mnml ssgs. I have loved the whole series, where it has taken me and what it has exposed me to. For this mix, hearing wishmountain into idioteque makes me weak at the knees. Seems like a different mix each time i listen to it. a pure joy.

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  19. It was the Ellen Alien Fabric mix - Harrowdown Hill - and I disagree, I thought it worked rather well in what was quite a restrained mix overall. But then I love that track anyway

    Featuring Idioteque in a techno mix is not new, I recall Dave Clarke did it on the electro disk of his first World Service compilation. But I would argue that it has greater impact here due to the sheer unexpectedness and context of the surrounding material.

    Anyways, top mix which I'm sure I'll enjoy repeatedly.

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  20. can't wait to listen to this one. props ssgs.

    @daragh99 - this one as well - disk 1 song 6

    http://www.amazon.com/Ibiza-Perfecto-Presents-Paul-Oakenfold/dp/B00005N8PI

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  21. chris you know the only problem imo is just the taste ithis time i really didnt like the playlist but im gonna give it a spin once more just to make sure it wasnt a bad decision.

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  22. @ rokas: thanks for the reply. i am always curious how/why people do and don't connect with mixes.

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  23. @ chris:

    for me a mix has to be deep and give me the "trance" feeling for example the norman nodge, s. servant or cio d'or mixe. and many many other mnmlssg mixes.

    or the mix has to make me happy in a funny way like the incredible Jackmaster Mix you linked to. some month ago.

    in both ways i feel someting. in redshapes mix i cant get this feeling. MAYBE the mix its too "eclectic" for me. when eclectic then like jackmaster

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  24. Wow a very controversial mix. Something about the swift mixes, aggressive changes in style, mood, and remind me of an earlier form of mixing. One that is certainly not heard on this blog very often. Perhaps that is why it has polarized views. I think the controversy is a good thing and a good sign. This is the risk taking that everyone wants. I don't think complete fidelity to a genre, sub genre or style necessarily creates a good mix.

    It has been mentioned a few times on here recently, "mindfuck" techno is beginning to feel a little bit tired and formulaic and the mixes being produced are sounding far too predictable, imo. It's funny because Dozzy is often associated with the style, but listening to his mixes you can hear there is a lot more going on there than one style.

    This mix is a great antidote, incredibly rich, brave and well constructed.

    One thing I will say, someone mentioned Idioteque sucking the life out of a particular mix. Well I think this is true, and once you get over the power of your initial association with track, you feel it happening here. It's almost as if you put your foot down to hit a beat, but always just miss it. Perhaps because it lacks groove due to it's origins, I don't know, but it is never feels comfortable.

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  27. great mix! thanks redshape/ssgs. the fact he is a fan of thom makes me love the guy even more. idioteque is probably my 2nd favourite rh track; how to disappear completely comes in at #1. if anyone is interested where that four chord sound was sampled from, download this:

    music.princeton.edu/~paul/sf/mild_und_leise.mp3

    third time lucky...

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  31. Radiohead - Idioteque

    Do people even try anymore?

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  32. @ jonnyp: im a huge radiohead/thom yorke fan and i've always found the question to name/sort my favourite albums in order of liking excruciating... let alone the songs

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  33. ps. i could however say, rather confidently, that my favourite album is amnesiac and my least favourite pablo honey... the other i cant really put them in order

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  35. @ feroce: yes, they do.

    @ giorgio, that's fine. i hope it wasn't too excruciating for you to consider.

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  36. well i gave it another shot and in some places i liked it and in somei really wanted to skip it. i think its just to eclectic for me. but as i see its only like 10% of people who didnt like it so its a very high quality podcast:)
    and by didnt like it i mean just nottheir taste: )

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  37. this mix may not match the definition of headfuck techno, but if this doesn't fuck with your mind I can't quite put to place what will.. loving it from beginning to end!

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  38. i completely agree with oliver. nice to see the mix generating some discussion and different opinions. thanks to everyone for engaging, regardless of whether you like it or not.

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  39. Finally got around to listening to this mix... and it is pretty INCREDIBLE. I totally zoned out for awhile... Idiotique is where it all came together and officially ripped by head off. haha. Thanks for all the great mixes!

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  40. Still fascinating! I guess there is no need for typologies here, but this would definitely go in the same rack as the SCB mix, and the exemplary DJ Koze RA podcast. Bold!

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