ssg special - kevin gorman

back with another special, this time from kevin gorman, someone i feel is one of the most under-rated people in techno right now. after producing one of the highlights of the mnml ssgs series last year, this time he has made a more conventional DJ set to mark two important events: a release on ostgut and a tour to japan this weekend. these might be signs that kevin's distinctive, powerful take on contemporary techno is getting more (and much deserved) attention. the ostgut release is one of the exclusive 12"s coming out of the ben klock berghain mix CD, with kevin's '7am stepper' being paired up with a track from another leading UK techno producer, james ruskin. meanwhile, for our friends in japan, kevin is playing an outdoor party about 2 hours outside of tokyo. it is really great to see him over here, part of a steady string of ssg artists that have been making their debuts here in 2010. techno is going from strength to strength in tokyo! as for kevin's mix, you can expect a carefully structured and crafted mix, perfectly suited for SSG tastes.

ssg special - kevin gorman mx
*tracklist will be added in a few days

for more info on kevin, check his myspace and the homepage of his label, mikrowave. the details for his japan party this weekend are:

rural open air festival
date : 12:00 May 29 - 16:00 May 30, 2010
venue : yamanashi pref, japan (2h from tokyo). tamagawa camping area
tickets on the day : \6,000, advance ticket : \5,000
advance ticket is available at: ruralopenair@gmail.com

you can find more info through the mnml ssgs mixi page. and for those of you in europe, keep an eye out for upcoming gigs, including a live performance at berghain on 26 june, along with (i believe) some other ssg artists: marcel fengler and norman nodge. nice...

ok, that's it. enjoy the mix. it's a beauty. big thanks to kevin for this. more heat next week.

Pomo Promo Giveway Bonanza! Get one get more free! [house music is controllable desire you can have for free]

I just received an email from Bleep detailing a special promo giveway tie in with Sonar this year.

You can get info on it – not to mention some mpfreez - by simply moving the tip of your forefinger, until you hear the little click.

Pragmatically, this promo makes sense. In fact, it's very savvy. It's also not the first such example of something similar: you get the impression that this is being trialled by labels as a quasi experiment. I have a zip file on my desktop full of similiar files from ghostly,

BUT...

......once you start giving away tracks, is there not the concession here that music is just data, that data is just promo, and that promo is just a marketing gadget, a way of getting bums on seats and feets on floors at overpriced gigs, where you can then be sold merchandise?

To me this email concedes that music as data is of no intrinsic worth.

It then seems churlish, even hypocritical, to turn around and charge for something 'as if' if were a finite object in space, not an infinitely copy-able simulacra.

Sites then have the temerity to charge MORE for flac or wav.

No doubt sites exist in space; every google search is coal fired. No doubt.

No doubt these kinds of promos happen because concerned and savvy record companies want to promote their artists *given* that it's almost impossible to turn a dime from recording these days.

No doubt it also makes complete sense, given the media landscape we're now in (not Kansas anymore, in case you hadn't noticed, Toto).

But: with the best intentions in the world, isn't the cumulative effect of this just the dissemination of bad copies, the further devaluation of music as music, the further transformation of inalienable human creativity into transferable data freebies (fit for desktop consumption and do-while private delectation while iUsers are on their way to work, or at their desks working), and the eventual emptying out of the time-consuming, life-sacrificing processes involved in composing, recording, mixing and mastering a recording?

I read this and I feel that everything turning po mo promo!

When everything is data, will we be the happy, profitable masters of our own futures, or the bored, jaded, accelerated husks of the music LOVERS we once were, people to lazy to even listen to the zip files full of free promos that clutter our desktops? I'm not sure.

But I'm pretty sure there's something wrong with this, that it's indicative of our committed pursuit of some pretty dodgy political decisions; and I'm pretty sure it needn't be the future.



.

ambien...

from the always awesome toothpaste for dinner

beautiful, thoughtful soundscapes:

giorgio gigli - process part 203 (once upon a time...the future)

thanks to modyfier for this gem.

ssg special - finn johannsen

back with another ssg special, this time from a good friend of ours: finn johannsen. for my mind, finn is one of the most important voices in electronic music right now. finn is truly a renaissance man, expertly juggling a number of different roles. he is a music journalist, regularly contributing excellent, thoughtful pieces for a range of sources, including RA. he is also one of the people behind macro recordings, a consistently challenging and worthwhile label. and he is just quietly a really fantastic DJ, consistently demonstrating a remarkable breadth and depth in his sets. i must admit, i tend to prefer DJs that pick a constant groove / sound and really pursue it in a set. normally a DJ like finn i would struggle with, as he covers a lot of ground and his sets can be quite diverse, even unsettling at a times (this is not necessarily a bad thing). finn manages, however, to consistently weave a coherent story and narrative in his DJ'ing. and as an added bonus, you normally learn a bit along the way, discovering gems old and new.

i genuinely believe finn is one of the most interesting and worthwhile DJs about right now, so i am very glad he was able to put together these two mixes for us. and because he is an able scribe, finn was able to tell us a bit about the mixes:

"I have DJ'd for a long time now, since the mid 80's, and all the music that went through my head since then is still part of what I do now. I often play sets with obscure Disco, Synthop and Post Punk records, I often get asked to dig into my archive for some house and techno rarities. When I do nights representing Macro I tend to combine older records I think have stood the test of time with new records that I think might will. Thus the mixes reflect some personal favourites I still carry around, and some current music that impressed me. I have the reputation of being somewhat unpredictable as a DJ, which is not really something I actively support, it more comes out of the fact that I do not want to focus myself on a particular style when there is so much other interesting music that would be left out in the process (and I also think that individuality is important). I'm just interested in a wide variety of sounds, and I see music as chronological process, where it is challenging to connect different eras and sounds to illustrate where what came from, and where it led or might lead to. It is some kind of referential system both informed by being close to the subject for a long time, and my very own perspective. I'm often drawn to producers that follow their own path (to the verge of being eccentric), and I included some here, plus some records that add up to a certain mood I had in mind (it was a rainy night I recorded both mixes, and it probably shows). Of course these are home recordings, but they were done in one take with no subsequent editing and so they are pretty close to what I do in a club context. At least if I would play the same set twice, which I rarely ever do. As the mixes where recorded one after another, you may as well listen to them that way. That I concluded the sets with a disco edit is a bit odd, as I much prefer to play original versions, but this one is special to me. I played it at our first Macro night at Panoramabar, I had the last shift of our lineup until noon, and I was slowly running out of steam. When the lyrics set in I was quite surprised that the floor went absolutely nuts, and at first I didn't really understand why the reaction was so immense. Then I realised that the bar stuff had opened the seminal shutters, it was broad daylight, and here was Loleatta Holloway singing "We're getting stronger, the longer, we stay together", to a crowd that was obviously very determined to do just that. A really impressive and lasting moment that showed me once again how powerful music can be. And it is well worth taking some risks to achieve that, even if does not always work. Well, I hope these sets work."

finn johannsen - ssg special mx1


Rydims – Rydim#2 (Version) (Nu Groove)
Mike Shannon Feat. Fadila – Under The Radar (Ricardo Villalobos Mix) (Cynosure)
Soylent Green – Low Pt. 1 (Playhouse)
The Prince Of Dance Music – E-3, E-6, Roll On (City Limits)
Badawi – DstryPrfts (Shackleton Remix) (Cargo Records)
Hertsi – Oodi Sähkölle (Sähkö)
Da Sampla – The Rider (Moods & Grooves)
Wax – 30003 B (Wax)
DJ Duke – Escape From New York B2 (Power Music)
Never On Sunday – Urban Rains (430 West)
Laurent X – Drowning In A Sea Of House (House Nation)
Keith Tucker – It’s A Mood (Seventh Sign)
Dettmann – Vertigo (Vincent Kunth Remix) (Ostgut Ton)
Nature Boy – The Major Enemy (Black Label)
4th Measure Men – The Need (Henry Street Dreams Mix) (Multiply)
Foremost Poets – Reasons To Be Dismal? (Instrumental Version) (Not On Label)
Buzzin Cuzzins Feat. Romanthony – Let Me Show You Love (Approach To Temple) (Azuli)
Raudive – Sienna (Macro)
Instra:mental – Let’s Talk (Naked Lunch)



finn johannsen - ssg special mx2

FCL – Let’s Go Seven (We Play House)
Ramadanman – Glut (Hemlock)
Scuba – You Got Me (Hotflush)
To Rococco Rot – Fridays (Shackleton’s West Green Rd Remix) (Domino)
Monolake – Alaska (Substance Remix II) (Monolake / Imbalance Computer Music)
Low Res – Amuck (Sublime)
Oni Ayhun – OAR004A (Oni Ayhun)
Julia Decay – Untoward (Scandinavia)
Rhythim Is Rhythim – Kaos (Juice Bar Mix) (Transmat)
DJ Bone – No Sleep (True To Da Roots) (Sect)
Mr. G – Life (One Dark Late Saturday) (Moods & Grooves)
The Oliverwho Factory – Rain 5th Wave (Madd Chaise Inc.)
Moodymann – Analog:Live (KDJ)
Grand High Priest – Mary Mary (We-Ze Records)
Shake – Psychotic Tango (Frictional)
Spencer Kincy – Don’t Stop (Cajual)
The Closer – Strong Meets The Weak (KMS)
Bim Marx – Stronger (Stilove4music)

if you want to catch finn spin, he is regularly playing around berlin and other parts of europe. check his RA page for upcoming gigs. you can find out more info through his homepage, myspace, and macro recordings.

that's it. big thanks to finn for making these. in the coming weeks we've got new ssg specials from kevin gorman and october. plenty to look forward to. for now, enjoy these two treats.

voices from the lake

down the rabbithole...

just found this treat. sorry, streaming only, but still totally essential...

oni ayhun live @ white rabbit berlin 16.10.2009

release me

ok, been meaning to do this for a while. here are some releases i've been enjoying lately:

matthias reiling - das gespenst von altona (giegling): the latest from giegling, one of our favourite labels of late. it is supposed to be an album, but not quite sure whether it is long enough to justify the LP tag. still a very nice release. this is a label worth following closely.

nuel - aquaplano ltd 01: this one has been a long time coming, thanks to some problems with the pressings. still, it is now out and sounds great. proof that the previous aquaplanos has definitely been a two man show. seriously impressive EP from nuel. and i should add, much respect - saw nuel deliver an absolutely killer set of power electro last week. one of the best sets i have heard in a long time.

mike parker - gph14 (geophone): no surprises here, it sounds like exactly what you'd expect from a mike parker record. and nothing wrong with that. powerful stuff. i think he has the next aquaplano ltd release, which is also very special. ah, and mike parker killed it last week too. deeper and slower than what i've heard from him previously. one of the most under-rated producers and DJs out there. i have no idea why the hell this guy hasn't played berghain. he'd destroy the place.

donato dozzy - k (further): dozzy's debut album is out in june on... tape. well, i am not the biggest fan of this format, but i ain't releasing it... the good news is that it'll be out on vinyl in september, and hopefully they will also do a digital release too. they'd be crazy not to, because this is one of the best things dozz has done in a while. ambient, tripping techno. nothing groundbreaking here, but a particular sound executed perfectly. recommended.

the black dog - music for real airports (soma): if you follow mnml ssgs on twitter (and you should), you would know i am a big, big fan of this album. perhaps my favourite release of the year. what i love about it is its ambiguity - the feelings it generates (like airports themselves) are very mixed. we are in the process of doing an interview with these guys, very excited about it. for now, go check the album.

tevo howard - without me (beautiful granville records): this one is an absolute stunner. all 4 tracks are deftly balanced. lovely old school sound. nothing too complicated, just done very very well.

roswell return - probe #5 (SD records): been wanting to hear this since it came out end of last year, finally got myself a copy. mixture of techno, ambient and electro, quality all the way. now i need to go get the other record this guy has done. if anyone knows how to get in contact with this guy, let me know. i'd love to have him do a mix for us!

sandwell district sampler one and two (sandwell district): this pair of releases really gives me faith in techno music. well, that is a big statement, let me explain. sandwell is at the top of their game now, their releases are selling well, they are getting plenty of play and recognition and so on. it'd be easy for them to get conservative and continue with the sound that has got them to this point. but with these releases they have clearly developed the sandwell sound further. it is most evident with the function track, which is a considerable break from 'burn', 'variance' etc. i won't say much more about these EPs, just get them when they come out. the sandwell boys have shown again they are miles ahead of most. respect.

ok, that is all from me for now. here are some recommendations the silent ssg dave has sent through. he has a very good music radar, so i'd take these suggestions seriously (i know i am):

denseland - chunk (mosz): it sounds like Mortiz Von Oswald Trio only with more of a industrial/tech/dub sound.  oh and it's way better too!  more complex structures and more variety yet it also sounds much tighter. [dave has this as one of his albums of 2010]

Robert Turman - Chapter Eleven (tape 4): This is brilliant lo-fi ambient stuff.  really really fantastic stuff.  this guy was really big in the 70s & 80s and did a bunch of stuff including this 8x cassette release which got reissued recently.  the whole thing is great but other tapes also have some noisy and guitar stuff there too.  it's still great though!  tape 4 seems the most accessible and electronic though.

Lussuria - Silk & Honey (hospital productions): Dunno much about this but it seems to be the best lo-fi ambient drone cassette of the year so far.

Demdike Stare – Forest of Evil (modern love): This is pretty spectacular.  this and 'denseland' are the best techno releases i've heard in ages!

Emeralds - Does It Look Like I'm Here? (editions mego): First synthy album to be on a semi-major label (mego) and it's really really brilliant.  Definitely one of the best of the year and essential listening in my opinion.

ok, that's it. more soon...

olafur eliasson

just a quick post, one that is not about music, but something i think will be of interest to many ssgs... my trip to berlin the other week luckily coincided with the opening of a new exhibition from one of my favourite artists, olafur eliasson. for those who don't know his work, it is based around light, colour and perception. many of his installations have an interactive component - you are not just looking at a painting, you are relating to his art in a much more direct manner. the picture above is one i took from one of the installations in berlin. basically it is a room with fog in it, and different parts of the space have different coloured lights. walking through the room is a very trippy experience, as you move from colour to colour and back again. i won't say anything else about the other installations he has there, i'll just say that if you are in berlin in the next couple of months, i strongly suggest you go check this exhibition. even if you are someone who doesn't normally bother with visual art, give this one a go. the beauty of much of olafur's work is in its simplicity, grandeur and the way you interact with it. details are:

Innen Stadt Außen
Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin
28 April - 9 August 2010

you can find more info about olafur eliasson and his projects here.

suzi got skills

just a very quick post... when i was in berlin back in feb, i went to adam x's party at maria. one of the unexpected highlights of the night was discovering the talents of suzi wong. i'd already heard an excellent ambient mix she put up on her soundcloud, and that night i saw a different side, with an impressive and diverse set of techno. after that i made sure to tell her that next time she records a set, she better send it my way. and luckily she remembered... her description of it is: '2:20h warmup DJ set for Killekill Clubnacht at Berghain Kantine on April 21st 2010. Mixed with two Technics MK 1210, an Allen & Heath mixer and a few bottles of beer'. the results are great: a warm groove and a really nice, diverse selection of quality records. this mix has confirmed my feeling that suzi definitely has skills. give it a listen...

suzi wong @ killekill 21.4.2010

for more info on suzi, check her myspace. that's it for now. more soon.

craftsmanship

"Sure, any doorknob can get behind a computer and crank out some bleeps, blips and squelches. But it takes a craftsman to get behind a keyboard or a drum machine, and make something that people enjoy, and that's pleasing to the intellect as well as the ear, or pleasing to the soul, or whatever that inner thing is that makes people appreciate music. It takes craftsmanship and hardwork, and I think if you look at some of the more elite guys and people who left a legacy, and have made an imprint, you can hear the quality in their music. It's simply different from a run of the mill person, who goes out to the mall, or goes to their local music store and decides they want to make music. You know, it's about suffering the pains of having some months where you don't have a lot of money, and you're suffering. You may play a club and not a lot of people turn up. But you love what you do, and that's what separates the run of the mill guy from the guy who is a craftsman. It's taking that machine and putting feeling, putting part of you into the that machine, using electronics to not just make a song, you're trying to move people with the melody, the structure, you're trying to peak interest. And make people sit up and pay attention to what you've doing. That takes craftsmanship."

words of wisdom from dj stingray. read the full interview here at the wire. quality, thoughtful exchange. definitely worth taking the time to read. we need more stuff like this.

The Future, sadly...? (Requiem for Detroit)

The remaining parts can be watched here.

I was introduced to the documentary through an LSE podcast, in which I listened to an mp3 of the screening, followed by a frustrating discussion that seemed like a wasted opportunity, sassy school teacher aside. I recommend downloading the 'cast and taking it for a random walk through your cityscape... I found it very evocative and moving, literally an invisible sountrack for one person's evocation of Detroit...

I guess this also leads us back in to a discussion from two years ago which looked at Detroit techno in terms of its myths, legends, heroes, tragedies, ironies and so on... here, here, here, and here.

Thank God for Computing! Now I have more free time to program ready-to-mix tools (for elevators!) using my networked software interface (and plugins!)

MNML SSGS X DISK UNION SPECIAL MIX CD

so much for having a break, but this is something we are really excited about... mnml ssgs has teamed up with disk union, the leading record store in tokyo, to produce a special promo CD of one of our mixes. the one we selected was marcel fengler's timeless ssg mx14. disk union have pressed some CDs of it, and you get one free if you spend at least 3000 yen (that equals about 2 records or a CD). you can find it at the following disk union stores: shibuya, shinjyuku, ochyanomizu, shimokitazawa, kashiwa, ikebukuro, yokohama, chiba, tsudanuma, kitaurawa, kichijyoji, kunitachi and online.

we think it is a pretty good deal. why? there are 2 main differences from the one you can download here. first, it is something physical - it is the first non-digital ssg. second, and more importantly, this mix is in lossless. you get to hear marcel's mix in all its original glory. yes!

we are really excited and proud of this. disk union is a store we've been going to for a long time, so it is great to now be working with them. hopefully it will be the first of more collabs in the future...

big thanks to shin @ disk union and marcel fengler. for more info, check disk union here.

----

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※MIX CDの内容は「mnml ssgs mx 14」と同一のものです。+ 特典は無くなり次第、キャンペーン終了とさせていただきます。予めご了承くださいませ。
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April's Untimely May Discussion Thread: Triangulation, ~step, the future?

Hello SSGs,

apologies for this untimely post, I'd meant to get it in yesterday, but have been snowed in with marking responsibilities. Thus it is May Day, time to think about the future...

In fact, this month I wanna have a whole theme: in a sense, everything posted here in May will be about the future.

The future of music, the future of the SSGs (that includes you), the future of a planet, whether it's a planet of sine waves, laptops, headphone-wearing sheep soaking up the surplus, or a light rail to unknown trashscapes...

...a coupla weeks ago, Dave Slutskin had me back on To and Fro on Triple R (or Triple 'Ah' as it might sound if you don't share our stunted, mu(n)ted Australian r). We covered a lot of ground, played a bunch of records... well, I think the show gets at a lot of things I've been thinking about, talking to Chris about, and listening to...

Check out the To and Fro site, here, and see the downlad link, just below... hopefully that'll give you all plenty to feed off...

To those who cannae be bothered listening to the show (but I would really like you to if you can), let's just call the theme triangulation and start from there...

Penny for your thoughts, fellow SSGs...

EDIT: well, it's either proof that Jung lives and is among us like a fungus, or that somehow all the cool kids have their best thoughts at almost the same time. Boom/tick/bleep's most articulate spokesperson, Mssr Philip Sherburne, reaches beyond 'dancing about architecture' to represent triangulation. Represent, y'all. Fuel for your pennies, farthing for your fuelled coins...


.

out

just a quick post to say i'm off for a bit of a break... will be in berlin for this weekend, which i'm looking forward to. hope to see some fellow ssgs out and about. not sure exactly where i'll be, but presumably berghain, club de visionaire, one or two other places and then the stroboscopic artifacts party on sunday. and of course there will be the obligatory record shopping... after that, off to italia for a very special couple of days. looking forward to seeing lots of friends there, old and new.

my aim on getting back to j-land will be to take a bit of a break from ssgs for may. after 2.5 years of continual posts, organising mixes etc., i'm pretty exhausted. PC and i both want to try to push some different things here, still working out how to do that. as part of it, i think i need a bit of a breather, get some energy and come back stronger. so chances are there will be less posts from me in the next few weeks. never fear, PC will be looking after things, and there is plenty on the way - a new kevin gorman mix, an interview with the black dog and some other things. so the ssgs will keep on cooking. i just won't be around the BBQ so much...

tokyo twitter techno...

dommune in full swing

one thing we've talked about on SSGS is the desire for different ways to engage and enjoy with techno music. in this regard, there is an interesting new development in the tokyo scene i wanted to talk about. on monday i went to a new club here called 'dommune', which has been open for about a month or so. it is a small one room space in a basement, decked out with some really nice funktion ones. the concept is an interesting one: it is only open sunday through thursday, 21:00 - 24:00. the purpose is twofold: (1) by not operating on weekends they complement other clubs, rather than directly competing. (2) they provide an alternative for people who simply don't have the stamina and/or desire to do the allnight clubbing thing. this way you can go, dance for a couple of hours, and be in bed by 1 or 2am. not bad at all... by being open on weekdays, it has also allowed them to have follow up gigs from internationals that have come to town - steve bug, sammy dee and maurice fulton have been some of the people to have spin there so far.

given the small size of the space, the club is limited to 50 people, and you have to register online to get a ticket. if you are not lucky enough to be one of the 50, all is not lost, as video and audio of the party is streamed live on ustream. this has been very popular in japan, with each night regularly getting a couple of thousand viewers (it has already had over 1 million visitors in total since it started streaming). the result is a rather interesting dynamic: both people at the club and those watching at the home are using twitter throughout the party. being at the club this made for a weird situation where probably half the people on the dancefloor had an iphone in their hands the whole night. so more interaction with people on the interwebs, less with those around you - real virtual partying (or something like that). the other consequence of the live streaming is there is some serious attention whore action going on, as partygoers do their best to get on camera. this did my head in a bit, but was also pretty amusing... put together the whole thing is all a bit surreal. then again, when you've got maurice fulton killing it on a funktion one, it is going to make for a fun night.

i'm not completely sure what to make of dommune. i really like the basic concept, but the whole interactive component with twitter and video streaming makes for a dynamic that is definitely a bit different from the usual club and quite different from my preferred mode of engagement: a dark anonymous space... anyway, it is great to see developments like this happening and it is a sign that the tokyo scene is really becoming stronger again, which can only be a good thing.

for more info on dommune, check their homepage. and try tuning in sometime...

DDKH

eruptions and disruptions...

sometimes the best laid plans go to waste... when a big angry volcano fucks with everyone's shit. if there is one thing the last week or so has made clear it is that the degree to which electronic music is reliant upon the airplane... DJs grounded all over the place, lineup changes, *shock* locals having to play in prime slots, and so on... my sense is that as soon as the smoke clears, things will go straight back to usual, but should this be the case? is it really that bad to foster local scenes more? look at bleep43's mammoth effort last week - they lost all their lineup. what happened? they got surgeon into play, someone they rate as the best DJ out there. not a bad ring in.... obviously this is much more possible in places where there is a higher density of techno - i.e. europe. still, something to think about... is it productive/positive/dangerous/inevitable/etc that electronic music is so dependent upon airplanes? can we just go digital and dance on virtual dancefloors (as i do everyday)? hmmm... plenty of questions. if you missed it last year, go back and read PC's very timely and thought provoking piece at RA: 'one planet, one million DJs'.

and if you want a soundtrack for all of this, you will not do any better than the new album from the black dog - 'music for real airports'. a simply stunning musical document. a textured, powerful and thoughtful album. without doubt one of the highlights of 2010. more info about it here.

Sunday Sounds like Solid Gold

Hello SSGs,

well, far be it from we to become aggregators of content, but in this case, this was the mix that, yet again, got me to smiling my way to the end of Sunday.

FACT's mix series is an amazing resource. We've spoken elsewhere at greater length at their punishing schedule, and how, for better or worse, it really contributes to the sense I think we all have of drowning in the datasea.

A few of FACT's mixes have really stood the test of time, but this is easily my number one.

Too often these days the emphasis is on making the 'right' mix with the 'right' tracks then delivering a technically perfect, FX-enriched finished product. Sometimes you slide off the bonnet sheen, sometimes it's all surface... okay, sometimes it works, BUT

This mix pays very, very close attention to track selection and programming. Not only that, but the live effects, vocals and commentary not only connect each track with the next, but generate an additional interesting space inside the flow of sound - queue tardis metaphor.

To be honest, I really think this mix is superior to the trio's very good album, which, at times, is just a little bit like another Massive Attack album, one they didn't record. Okay, that's unfair, it's really nice, but I don't come back to it again and again like I do with this 'ere thing. I think they've put something really precious and enduring together. Worth the price of admission for David Sylvian's vocal and lyrics on 'Ghosts' and the AMAZING Dabrye remix of Midas''One Ting'. In fact, said track is a fucking classic - get it, if you haven't got it.

Meantime, Midas. It's a keeper.



.

SSG Special – Live, lovely and by no means skittish: Deer @ Galleria Civica Modena

Hello fellow SSGs and Cervidae,

around six weeks or so ago, we were quietly excited to offer a set from Deer, Martin Hirsch's current project. Deer music takes in a number of different sources and influences, from field recording, electronica, ambient house (now there's a term you don't hear much these days), and the full spectrum of Hamburg and Heidelberg-related deep, minimalist house and techno. You can check out what he does at his website.

More immediately, Deer is part of the Weimar scene, that takes in a lot of the other talented/interesting peepz releasing on the Giegling label. Deer's own release in Giegling (and all releases on said label are limited, with amazing hand done sleeves), is still available from Clone, here. SSGs also hosted a set from Giegling affiliate Kettenkarusell last year that was one of our favourites - put it this way, I have a 30 gig iPod and mostly listen to lossless, and the set is still on there and getting a regular rinse. Fingers crossed the lads are almost recovered from their laptop theft last year...

The last Deer set we offered was, in the words of its author, "a case of 'i have to do everything improvised in max/msp phase' that disregarded the notion of building transitions or a longer narrative." This sparked a back and forth with Martin, Chris and I via email, which ended in the request for what you are about to receive (and may ye be truly thankful).

It's a typically-contemporary act of pointlessness to describe in words music you can just listen to yourself, so I'll refrain.... except to say that this set pays very close, smart attention to transitions and narratives. Yes, it's great. Deer aficionadoes will note the striking musical development since the last set; those new to the sound.... well, I'm sure it'll endear itself to you. Sorry, no excuse for the punning but too much coffee...

Context from the beast himself: "The set was recorded at the afterparty of an exhibition called "Pagine Da Un Besstiario Fantastico" at the Galleria Civica in Modena, Italy on March 20. Basically an exhibition featuring modern and contemporary art with animal depictions (and in some cases rather crude ones at that). Some surrealists like De Chirico and a lot of unknown (to me) stuff."

Oh & Ah: as Dave Aju (and every funny comedian) reminds us: timing is.....

everything!

And Deer is playing this weekend in Berlin - not in the Tiergarten. Oh dear. No, here. The link also has a pretty neat description of house music.

Okay, 'nuff text, here's the set.

Deer, live @ Galleria Civica di Modena, March 20, 2010


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the art of tokyo

just a quick post for everyone in tokyo about some cool things happening this week. there are 12k showcases today (saturday 9th) and tomorrow (sunday 10th). i'll be going tomorrow to catch label boss, taylor deupree, along with solo andata and minamo. also deupree has a new exhibtion on next week called 'unseen', a project based on expired polaroid film. the pic above is one of them. linked with the photos is a new release called 'snow (dusk/dawn)'. there are only 63 copies, each with a unique polaroid, which will be for sale on the opening night of the exhibition (thursday 15th april). as luck has it, i have an unchangeable family commitment that night so i am going to miss my chance to get one of these CDs. i'll just have to wait for it to be released digitally a month later... shame, as the concept is one that really appeals to me. i really love the image i've posted here, so i'll definitely be going to the exhibition at some stage. special stuff... anyway, info here about the 12k tokyo shows and deupree exhibition, and info here for the new release.

keeping with the art theme, our good friend stefan marx also has an exhibition in tokyo this week. for those who dont know stefan, he does the artwork for smallville, and many of the mule records. a lovely guy and an incredibly talented artist. his exhibition is opening on tuesday 13th then runs for a week or so. definitely check it out. i'll be there for the opening night. looking forward to it. details for the exhibition are here.

ok, that's it. i'll be trying to include more posts about upcoming gigs and stuff going on here in tokyo. more soon, including new ssg specials from deer and kevin gorman. plenty of extra heat on the way.

and the golden ssg goes to... autechre

today we are very proud to give out the first ever GOLDEN SSG for lifetime achievement and contribution to electronic music. the first people to receive this very prestigious and special award are:

AUTECHRE!!!

listening to their new album, 'oversteps', once again i am filled with such deep respect and admiration for these guys. this is one of the rare times i wish electronic music was mainstream, because more should know how brilliant autechre is. they could have stopped 10 years ago and they still would have made an immense contribution to techno. instead, they kept going. and going. always challenging, always pushing forward, always inspiring. simply put, autechre is electronic music at its absolute peak.

thinking about autechre's unparalleled and completely unique approach and oeuvre, i found these words by sean booth in a new interview really interesting and revealing:

"There was kind of a cynicism that grew up during the 90’s. You had the club circuit people bringing up the new generation of young stars during the late 80’s. Production was limited to singing over awful backing tracks and churning out stuff on a production line. Then the KLF book came out, which was very cynically pointing this out. Then you had a generation of wiser producers who wanted to take this on board on a musical level. Cos no one likes mediocrity and being sold a shit idea, everyone wanted come out with fresh stuff. Which was nice for a bit. But nowadays, kids have grown up with X-Factor and all that shit. So it’s like gone full circle again, the club scene people running the show again. Kids thinking that they can sing and dance and make every single fucking genre of music, do you know what I mean? Its like taking away the personal element.

And kids are growing up now are thinking ‘Im being really expressive, I’m really in control of my life, I’ve got all these goals and agendas’. Whereas having that mindset is exactly the problem. The self image is being programmed externally. But, fuck it, whatever. (laughs)."

i dont really have to much more to say about ae. you could talk for ages about how amazing autechre is, then again, the music and their career speaks for itself. if you haven't heard the new album, 'oversteps', go out and buy it. now. this is clearly one of the stand out releases of 2010. i dont listen to albums as often as i should (i go for mixes, if you hadn't guessed...), but i've had this one on repeat since getting hold of it. the melodies, the patterns, the depth, it is all there, brilliant as ever.

and for all these reasons, and so many more, mnml ssgs wants to recognise autechre for an outstanding career of service to the advancement of electronic music. autechre, we salute you! thank you from the bottom of our hearts. we graciously give you the mighty golden ssg!

ssg special - eli verveine

when there is another mix from eli verveine, you know there is a reason we call it a ssg special... eli is an artist who has really connected with the ssgs - she represents exactly what we are about. and it has been great the amount of positive feedback and responses we've got about the mixes from her we've feature here. probably because there is a real beauty, love and appreciation in what she does. i really love eli and her music to bits, and that is why i asked her a while ago to make sure she did another mix for us. she's nice and said yes. the result is what you'd expect: warm and friendly music for humans. there is a real sincerity in it that i deeply appreciate. not much more to add, besides we made sure she recorded this one in 320kbps...

eli verveine - ssg special mx

sunpeople - check your buddah
anton zap - time dub
dreesvn - maen-mix
oz artists - as if the living were moving
g-man - skiz
j.dahlbäck - a day at work
substance & vainqueur - reverberation
j.dahlbäck - a day at work
oz artist - zx spectrum
hi-lo - run!
robert hood - wandering endlessly
salz - III
mono box - realm 02 (substance mix)
anthony "shake" shakir - arise (trus`me rmx)
pink elln - i know (stardub club slam)
taksi - helikopter

for more info, make sure to check the eli verveine page on facebook and also on soundcloud for some of her older mixes, if you've missed any. big thanks to eli for this. and much respect for her super cool t-shirt. i want one!

sunday sounds

short sunday post. this is more on the house tip. i've been enjoying this mix quite a bit. it is from an artist i don't know much about, but the tracklisting looked promising so i decided to give it a go. and i'm glad i did. great sounds. it also let me ID a track i've wanted to know for ages. unsurprisingly it is from atom tm, under one of his many guises... beats in space is normally a bit too hip for me, but sometimes they'll have great mixes like this. enjoy it.

beats in space #512 part 2 with brontosaurus

Adonis Presents Late Invitation - Thus

I:Cube - Operation Hypnosis

Mim Suleiman - Mingi (Instr.)

Quarion - Pepper Candy

Tin Man - Love Sex Acid
The Utopia Project - File#4

Rick "Poppa" Howard - I Won't Lay Back (Original Instrumental)
Leron Carson - Red Lightbulb

Mr. Fingers - Stars
? - Historical Archives # 13
?

I - L.T.B.C.Y.B.

Donnie Tempo - Mental Problem

TNT - L8

Hardy -
$tinkworx - Coelacanth

also, the previous post has become the april discussion thread, so please feel free to comment if you want. some really interesting discussion so far. anyway, have a good sunday people...

boring tech-house for elevators

ssg special - patrick walker (forward strategy group)

it has been a while since we've had a serious techno mix on ssgs, but no need to worry, the break ends now with this tight techno workout care of patrick walker. for those who don't recognise the name, walker is half of forward strategy group (FSG), a UK outfit that has been responsible for some really top notch techno over the last year or two. i saw FSG at plex in london last month and despite a few technical glitches at the start they put together an impressive set of power techno. what i like about FSG is that they are really building on the strong british legacy of the 90s, but doing so in an interesting and quite unique way. these guys are definitely worth keeping an eye on...

for this mix, patrick has made something which is more representative of what he has been doing when DJ'ing and working by himself. it was done using 1 laptop, 2 midi controllers + 1 technics 1210. the result is a tight, powerful mix that has a real sense of coherence and focus to it. i've been struggling a bit to find techno mixes lately that have really satisfied me, but this one definitely did the trick. i like its pace and structure.


patrick walker - ssg special mx
*tracklist in comments

FSG have a remix on the latest perc trax EP, and they've got their own release on the same label coming soon. in addition, patrick is doing some stuff by himself, and also collaborating with inigo kennedy and charlton ravenberg on a new label, destroyaliens. the first release for that is out soon. big thanks to patrick for this mix, and for doing the artwork, thereby saving everyone from my shithouse efforts. ok, techno time. enjoy!

friday (big) fun

just a quick post. i got this mix the other day and it has been putting a big stupid smile on my face every since. this is a mix of old pop house tracks from the 1990s by tevo howard. the description he gives is: "This mix was spun circa 2005, and is in a classic Chicago dj style and format (blends spun at the break). The track selection is of some of the popular songs that got radio play circa 1990." that should give you an idea what to expect. nothing too highbrow here, just fun, carefree music. i must admit i have a huge weak spot for music from this era. i am not sure what it is exactly, but there is a real simplicity and almost naivety to many of these tracks. i'm probably just romantacising it all, i just love it.

tevo howard - '90s pophouse mix

tevo is playing a bunch of live and DJ dates across europe in the coming months. info here. i'd be very interested in live set, i think i was reading somewhere it was all analog... anyway, enjoy this mix for now. fun fun fun.

Fly, Flügel, Fly!

Well, here was I thinking that the mix CD was over and that, to be frank, Roman Flügel was all washed up.

Think again, folks...

As you know, SSGs usually refrain from tipping and reviewing recordings, but...

I just received a CD promo copy of Flügel's contribution to the so far otherwise underwhelming (or perhaps 'whelming') Live @ Robert Johnson mix series.

Fuck. Roman has really hit it out of the park with this one, for real.

A tracklist and other basic info are here on RA.

In a sense, this is a 'backward looking' mix CD, one that could have been recorded at any time in the past ten years or so. Then again, the track selection and programming are totally on point, there are some really nice re-presentations of a few classics AND Flügel's own productions here, contributed for the mix, are the bomb. This is basically an acid mix, but in a very certain way... if, as I do, you love Tin Man's minimalistic, 'long trippy' acid styles but get a bit tired of the remorselessly grey, bleak atmosphere, here's a way to continue in reduced/bleepy form, but with added slap, thump, and bounce... yes, there is even a bit of boompty here, but as always with Playhouse-associated sounds, it doesn't overcrowd things. This is house, this is techno, yes to both, more please...

Roman was easily one of the most talented, subtle, supple producers of the first half of the 00s. I can't help but think that main room bombs like 'Gehts noch' and 'Rocker' overshadowed the real quality abundantly evident in his other, less populist personae. But by the time La Forza del Destino was released, it seemed like a greatest hits comp, and since that time, very little of Flügel's work - either as a DJ or as a producer - has been exciting. In my dismay, I wrote the guy off as another Marc Leclair, someone whose later works (with notable exceptions) failed to fulfil what was promised by the explosive energy of the earlier sounds.

If you don't know Flügel's solo stuff well, PLEASE remedy this and find the old EPs on Playhouse and Klang, as well as the CD compilation of his Eight Miles High works, the best of which are fucking spectacularly beautiful pieces of electronica.

...or then again, just get this mix CD. Though it is kinda retro, is at once the best representation of Flügel's inimitable style AND clear evidence of a vital talent.

In any case, get your ears around a copy ASAP, it's fucking fantastic.


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plus/minus

i accidently hit a button on my mp3 player which resulted in the latest RA mix coming to an early end and old plastikman starting all of a sudden. while i was kind of enjoying the house of house mix, i was not complaining when the old, warped sounds of plastikman started filling my head. and that was enough to motivate me to write this post about 2 new projects to emerge out of the m-nus / plus8 stable. the first is the new ambient mix from matthew hawtin, the second is the string of plastikman live gigs planned for this year. both have definitely got me intrigued, but at the same stage, it is noticeable that these are both backward looking projects. it *might* be a sign that richie might slowly be emerging from his own ass and realising that the avenue he has been going down has reached a dead end, yet at the same time, he has failed to work out a new creative direction to pursue... anyway, a few more thoughts on each project:

i was very happy that i actually received a promo copy for matthew hawtin's 'once again again' mix CD, composed of 90s ambient classics. it is an ode to the long lost chill out room, something the ssgs reminisced about some time ago. the mix CD is pretty solid, but doesn't quite work - there isn't enough space for the music to breathe. luckily plus8 have also put out a digital release composed of essentially the same tracks and is 3 hours long. this gives the records the space they need. i've only listened to it a couple of times, but it works really, really well from what i've heard. last saturday i put it on and went to my favourite temple in tokyo and relaxed there for about 90 minutes. it was pretty awesome. really deep, spacey ambient stuff, which is very unique to that period of the early to mid 1990s and has managed to date pretty darn well. there is nothing overly amazing about this release, but it is a very nice tribute to a special set of sounds. and because it has the m-nus/plus8 branding, one advantage is that it will introduce this whole genre to mnml heads that would have been unlikely to come across it otherwise. anyway, you can get it here. and don't be silly, make sure to get the wav version for an extra euro or two. you want a proper copy of it.

as for the plastikman live gigs. hmm... i have decidedly mixed feelings about these. on the one hand, if he plays in japan, i will be there in a heartbeat. without doubt. and i'm sure it'll be good. when richie is on it, he is amazing, no question. quite a few of the very, very best moments i've experienced with techno have been thanks to him. and the source material for plastikman is so incredibly strong that he'll definitely be able to put together a 60-90 minute performance filled with quality. but. on the other hand, something feels not quite right about resurrecting plastikman in this way. i am still angry about the god awful dubfire remix of 'spastik', one of the worst acts of musical vandalism i have had the displeasure of hearing. the fact that he let this steaming pile of shit get released is hardly a good sign... beyond that, on a deeper level, i'm just not sure if there is much of plastikman left in richie. for me, plastikman is very deep, dark, twisted music. to put it bluntly, i think richie is too happy, carefree and enjoying his superstar DJ lifestyle. this is a long way from the dark places of his brain that plastikman must have come from. also, plastikman is the very context specific - it is tied up with the 90s and the way techno was developing then. iphone apps and the mnml m-nus lifestyle is a long way from the warehouses and raves of the '90s. all in all, i think plastikman would have been better left alone. an artifakt of a different era of techno...

so where next then? the most promising - and forward thinking - thing m-nus has done in a while was one of its least promoted, the collab party it put on in berlin with the raster-noton crew late last year. raster have been moving towards a more techy sound in the last year or two, and pushing forward in a very interesting direction. and raster fits closely with richie's aesthetic and some of the more sonically interesting parts of his sound palette. the only report i heard about the gig was very positive. given how good richie was, and can be, and how prominent m-nus has become, it'd be good if they could start playing a more progressive and positive role again. i'm not confident, but there are a few positive signs. lets see...

sunday sounds

sorry, don't think there has been a sunday mix in a while. this will have to be a quick one... still been enjoying a lot of ambient stuff lately. here are 2 ambient mixes by material object. one is completely composed of material from pete namlook's fax label. given his ridiculous output (checking his discogs it looks like he releases something about once a fortnight), this is a good entry point. the other, longer mix also contains plenty of fax material too. keeps the deep spacey ambient vibe going nicely. if you liked the ambient mix dozz did for us, chances are you might like these.

material object - fax mix

material object - ambient01 mix

like many of the sunday mixes i post, nothing too mindblowing, just quality sounds for the weekend. have a good one people...

ssg special: claudio fabrianesi

ok, this will be the first in a couple of ssg specials over the next few weeks. while we are slowing things down with the main mix series, you dont need to worry, we will still be feeding you quality mixes. and, once again, we find ourselves back in italy...

a while ago dozzy sent me some tracks he'd been working on with a friend of his, claudio fabrianesi. these were real killers - best i'd heard from dozz in a while. deep, deep house burners. when i hear a collab, my instinct is always to go & investigate more about the person i don't know so well. after hearing these tracks, i figured claudio knew a thing or two about house. and this mix he has done for us confirmed my thoughts. not much to say about it, house music done right. that simple.

claudio fabrianesi - ssg special mx

with these mixes i'll just add the tracklisting in the comments after a few days, so just check back if you want some IDs.

as well as DJ'ing,  claudio is behind the còclea music label. for more info, check his myspace. the good news is that the tracks i mentioned are coming out soon. the EP is called 'disco infecta' and will be released may 2010 on mule musiq. this is a great home for some really fantastic tracks. definitely check this EP. perfect slow burning grooves. for now, enjoy some lovely house jams care of claudio...

back into the labyrinth. again...

just a quick post to say that the dates for the 10th labyrinth festival have been announced. it will be on 18 - 20 september 2010. no more details at this stage, but you can feel confident it will be another very special event. i know some ssgs have been thinking about making the trip but are a bit worried about whether it'll sell out. well the good news is the labyrinth organiser has guaranteed any mnml ssgs readers making the trip from overseas to japan they'll be able to get a ticket. if are you are definitely coming, please email us with a really obvious email title like 'labyrinth tickets', including your name and how many tickets you want, and we will pass your information on. to be clear, we really don't have the time to be giving travel advice & stuff like that on coming to japan. i'd suggest the lonely planet guidebook. but if you've decided you will 100% be coming, send us an email and we'll make sure you will have the opportunity to buy tickets for labyrinth. i am sure it will be another special few days. both PC and myself will be in attendance. hope to see you there...

Ben Frost is a wolf to man....

In developing the mix series for the blog, Chris and I have been adamant in pursuing anyone and everyone who we feel passionate about and asking them for a recording.

With this in mind, and after his mindblowing (and speaker blowing) set from Unsound which we posted a few months ago, I contacted Ben, on the off chance that some genius might have hit record while he was doing the do.

Ben has been kind enough to offer us a 'mix' of several cuts taken from live performances of his work on the recent tour.

You can really hear Ben's sound developing here. There is something... incredibly intense, vital, visceral about this man's approach to sound design and composition. The album title - 'By the Throat' - is apt. If you haven't heard it, buy the By. But as a prelude to that, and as a work in its own right, we proudly offer this gem. Enjoy. Oh, and trust me - play it LOUD.

Ben Frost - Concert excerpts from the Bedroom Community Whale Watching Tour


Ben Frost - Concert excerpts from the Bedroom Community Whale Watching Tour - Fairtilizer link, 44.1khz version

And here's a sendspace link. The file is encoded at a bitrate higher than Fairtilizer wants, so if you want it as Ben intended, here 'tis:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/n9vsjk

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Anything but Melboring... (another partial re-territorialisation)

Hello all,

...actually, to be honest, I've just kind of had the wind taken out of my posting sails. I just received a DMCA complaint/takedown warning for another post I did on an event in Melbourne that shall remain nameless.

Like all our posts, this had NO link to anything that could be construed as copyright material... I don't understand it... ...this makes me think that the notices must be automated (or maybe even a pssstake or a mssstake), because any human scrutiny of the post in question (or even a non-human such as a lawyer) would have made it abundantly clear that there is nothing even remotely suss about the post... but now in order to counter-claim, I/we have to write (snail mail, not email) or fax google... geez and or gosh... ...rest assured, Chris and I are looking into ways to safeguard the archive online here.

ANYWAY...

...so if you read my Melbourne-related posts, you might be forgiven for thinking that it's all doom, gloom, and no boom boom round these parts. Of course, the intention here is always critical and polemical, a way of provoking some kind of conflictual discussion that, I hope, will lead to a better understanding of where we at and the possibilities that might contain.

But today it's all enthusiasm. It never Waynes, it Pauls, or something. Hot on the heels of an amazing performance by the Dirty Projectors on Tuesday and Tim Hecker last Thursday comes a triple header... Over at Unfortunate Ancestor we have the Optimo boys banging the party for the cooly/munty gen Ys and their allies; somewhere in the bushy bits of Abbotsford, DJ Pete is playing in a warehouse (true story, check facebook, follow the youtube link); and down at Miss Libertines, we have a gig that is both exciting in its lineup and eminently sensible in its price and times.

Shackleton, ladies and gents. And so I cast my votes with them... hope I might see some of you there. I'll be yapping, drinking, and wearing a Stefan Marx t-shirt with some lousy animals on it, such as you might find here in the Winter 2010 collection. Gosh I am such a geekboy/fanboy... but hey, that's why we started the blog, no?

...I've been meaning to have my two cents on the whole spectrum of back-to-front, syncopated, music doing the rounds... it strikes me there is sooo much interesting going on, but also a lot of complacent re-hashing and recombining of old forms, which then gets presented as something 'new'. Of course, novelty is over-rated and sometimes functionality is enough, but.... I want more. On this tip, if you haven't, do yourself a favour and get a lossless, vinyl or CD copy of Shackleton's 3 EPs album. It is worth the effort, really one of the best releases of the past year or so, and very poorly represented by the thin mp3s that were doing the rounds. But more on that soon. In the meantime, maybe see you down the disco.

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tokyo techno spring

well, it sure looks like i hit tokyo at the right time... last weekend i caught lerosa drop a couple of hours of lovely deep house beats. and that was just the start of a busy month in tokyo. so, if you happen to be about, i'd suggest coming along to these parties. i'll planning on hitting them all:

sat 13 march: delta funktionen @ module: 2nd week in a row a ssg artist will be making their debut in tokyo. nice one!
sun 14 march: mika vainio, rashad becker, NHK @ soup: bring the noise!
tues 16 march: mika vainio, rashad becker, NHK @ superdeluxe: a 2nd serving. perfect.
fri 26 march: shackleton @ module: got a bad feeling this one is going to be overcrowded, but still super excited about this.
sat 27 march: levon vincent, terre thaemlitz @ womb: i love levon & terre more than i hate womb. i think.

put that all together and you've got a really good month of music. for a while i was feeling a bit despondent with the scene in tokyo, but this year it really feels like things are picking up. lets hope this month is a sign of things to come. now that i'm based here, will try to do more posts on upcoming parties in tokyo, as well as reports on some of the artists i catch. pump!

mx50: peter van hoesen - tracklisting

very happy everyone has been feeling peter's mix. can't think of a better way to celebrate out 50th! and if you were wondering what some of the gems were, here is the tracklisting:


mnml ssgs mx50: peter van hoesen

Ben Frost: God Protect Me
Oval: Oval Office
Theo Parrish: Space Station
Jouem: Levitation
Peter Van Hoesen: Closing The Distance/Toy Universe
STL: Silent State
Tres Demented: Tres Demented Drums Version
Claro Intelecto: X
Photek: Glamourama
The Lady Blacktronica & Mattski: If Some Rain
Juan Atkins: Urban Tropics
Keith Worthy: Lost In Sound
Levon Vincent: These Games
Abacus: A Place In time
Juju & Jordash: Deep Blue Meanies
David Wenngren: Fragment VIII

make sure to check PvH's new album, 'entropic city', which hits on 22 march. if you want to get a taste, all tracks are now available to stream. with this and 'dettmann' arriving, the techno world is about to get 2 very strong, and very different, albums. good good.

not sure when mx51 will be up, or who exactly it'll be from... we've been listening to what people have been saying, so for the time being we are going to slow the ssg mixes down a bit. dont worry, though, plenty more gold on the way.

thoughts on 'speaking in code'

i watched a preview copy of the new techno documentary, 'speaking in code', last night. there has been quite a lot of hype about this, and it has been a long time coming, so i was very interested to see it. and, well, to be honest, i was disappointed with it. i have mixed feelings commenting about it. through the dvd it is clear that the people that made it put a huge amount of effort and money into it. but, from the point of a view of a reviewer, effort is not always sufficient. and in this case, despite the fact they clearly care about it a great deal, the documentary just doesn't really work.

'speaking in code' attempts to show more of the human face of techno music by tracking one of the film makers - a dj and promoter in boston, as well as sherbs and some artists like the wighnomy bros and modeselektor. and while there are some worthwhile moments - like monolake geeking out on gear and robag in a much more pensive frame of mind - none of the people are really examined in enough detail to fully convey the human side of machine music. also the way europe is presented as this kind of techno oasis in contrast to a barren desert in the US is overly stylised. indeed, one of the main feelings i had about my berlin trip last week was that there is a massive case of over abundance there, and i am not sure this is a good thing (but more on that in a later post). and these are not the only problems. partly because it has taken so long for it to finally see the light of day, the film is already out of date. the sounds and artists they are focusing on are much less fresh than they were a couple of years ago - between when filming started and when it gets released this month, electronic music has hurtled forward at its usual speed.

on a more fundamental level, there just isn't enough of a coherent message/narrative throughout 'speaking in code'. simply showing artists in different contexts, removed from the club or whatever, is not sufficient to properly show the human side of techno. and when i compare it to two electronic music documentaries i recently watched - 'synth britannia' or 'we call it techno' - i really didn't feel like i learned much from this. what made these documentaries so interesting is that they contextualised developments in electronic music in the political and social contexts within which they were forming. this provided a really interesting perspective that allowed a different way of viewing and understanding the way electronic music operates and develops. you just don't find that in 'speaking in code', which instead offers a slightly superficial portrayal of the techno scene. and the key message of the movie - 'everything changes when you get lost in music' - is, to be frank, not that insightful. hell, if you are interested enough in techno to watch a documentary about it, then you are already fully aware of how powerful music can be. i am guessing basically everyone who has read this blog appreciates exactly how important music can be in influencing and shaping one's life. i don't need a documentary to tell me this. i experienced it last week in berlin. i am experiencing it right now writing this from tokyo, a place i would most definitely not be if it was not for techno.

so if you want to read a more positive review, head over to LWE, but in the end, i was left underwhelmed and frustrated after watching 'speaking in code'. techno music has been around long enough that is it documented through mediums like film, but after watching this, i feel like we still have a long way to go.

mnml ssgs mx50: peter van hoesen

number 50... wow. hard to believe. this series started in april 2008 with bvdub and while we had plans to do something special, never did we expect it to blow up the way it has. one of the major reasons the series has been so strong is because we were lucky to have some fantastic mixes early on that set the bar high and helped to define what we were trying to do. there are a couple of pivotal mixes we've had, and for me one of them has to be peter van hoesen's first mix. what made it so important is that peter did not just make a quality mix, he made a quality mix for us - he really understood what we were trying to do and he tailored his mix accordingly. peter's was not the first killer mix in the series, but it was one of the first ssg mixes (if that makes sense). so, when it came time for mx50, peter was someone who fitted just perfectly - an excellent way to celebrate the series as a whole, and also peter's impressive rise and rise in the techno world.

i've listened to this mix a lot already, and i've been thinking carefully about what to say here. i could talk about the way peter has moved from strength to strength over the last 2 years, or his killer livepas and deftly weighted dj sets, or his new album which is going to be a highlight of 2010. but if you read ssgs, you probably know all this. and if not, check RA or something. for me it is hard to separate this mix from peter, the person. and that's what i'd like to write about. i first met peter at labyrinth 2008 and since then i've been lucky enough to forge a strong friendship with him. and i'm really proud to have him as a friend. peter just gets it. he is reflective, thoughtful and cares deeply about what he does. there are many parts of his character that impress me and i greatly respect, but perhaps above all what i appreciate is the amount of thought that lies behind his actions. and this trait defines the mix he has put together for us. that's all i'll say about it. quite simply, peter may be a quality musician, but above that he is a quality individual. much respect.

peter put together a few words about the mix:

"In September 2009 I played two dj sets, different to what I usually put on. The first set was at Panorama bar, as a part of the Lan Muzic label night. The vibe was already more than ok before I had to come on, thanks to sublime sets by Philip Sherburne and Jacopo Carreras. I continued, playing a three-hour set, starting out really slow, gradually working my way up into faster territory, but never going as full-on as I would when playing techno. That P-bar set was one of my personal highlights of last year. Along with, you guessed it, Labyrinth, which took place a few weeks later. My dj set at Labyrinth started at six in the morning. Because of this I felt like a giant alarm clock, responsible for slowly waking people up to bring them in the mood for the last day of bliss. Here also I started very slowly, without beats, trying to get people to move out of their tents, into what was going to be a very special day. There were a few difficult moments in the set, most of all related to the fact that it was hard to increase the pace at such an early hour. So I kept the tempo within limits, going near 128bpm only at the last part of the set.

I have fond memories of both dj sets, not only because of the context (the people, the space, the vibe, the love and the intensity) but also because they allowed me to do something else than usual. This was my inspiration for this mix."


mnml ssgs mx50: peter van hoesen

peter has an excellent new album, 'entropic city', which is due to drop on 22 march. definitely worth checking. for more info on PvH, check the site for his label, time to express. he's playing out quite a bit with the new album, and if anyone is near berlin on 17 april i would strongly, strongly recommend catching him at berghain. my guess is he is going to do something very special. huge thanks to peter for the mix and his ongoing support, and to all the artists and our readers that have helped us reached 50. thanks!