The heat accompanying global moistness had given the city a sweaty, rainy feel, but the new week is upon us, so that means new sweltering tunes! A mix of old and new this week, dope trance from MitiS, chilled vibes from haven off the new WaveMob compilation, a surprisingly good tech house banger from SREYAS off an OverClocked Remix compilation, and two gems from Submotion Orchestra. Put this ish in your face, and if you get a chance to see Submotion Orchestra live, DO SO.
#MyBoyMitiS continues his meteoric rise from club kid to headliner, dropping a quietly epic Trance tune on Soundcloud yesterday. His signature attention to detail and innovative production choices shine here. MitiS delivers a trance tune that would find a home at FSOE, ASOT, Pure NRG or a dozen other Trance DJ podcasts or live sets. When you shazam it at Dreamstate later this year, you’ll know where it came from.
I cannot say enough good things about Haven. He’s one of those rare gifts of a producer that make you feel amazing things and never abuses the privilege. His latest off of WaveMob‘s new compilation is a stellar example of what WaveMob is capable of, and I highly recommend checking out the entire playlist. If you can’t get enough of this stuff, check out my interview with Haven & other chill DJs here.
I was jamming on a compilation of video game remixes over the weekend when I came across this remix. SREYAS really blew me away with this one, as I am not used to hearing tech house bangers that make me want to play Super Mario Brothers. This tune slaps honestly, the bass is exceptionally well produced, the original VGM material is used expertly, and the mastering is second to none. We’d expect nothing less from OverClocked Remix, so I encourage you to put the whole playlist on when pre-gaming this week, and show them some love over at www.ocremix.org
For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been obsessed with Submotion Orchestra & their album Alium. The 6 piece organic band manages to fuse elements of jazz, pop, indie, electronica, house and R&B, creating a gorgeous, unique sound that feels exceptionally modern. The complexity of the album allows for a sonic journey that I’ve been missing from traditional electronic releases, while the moody goodness keeps me grounded while playing the album on repeat. Awakening is a triumph, even more so than the rest of the album, so don’t miss it.
SeeMore managed to do an exceptionally difficult thing. Remix another one of my favorites from Submotion Orchestra, giving it some future bass oomph without getting in the way of the original source material. The fusion between old and new is one of the finer remixes on the Submotion Orchestra Spotify page, and has definitely turned me onto SeeMore.
Ten Questions With Terry Gotham: 2Tone Disco
Interview By Terry Gotham
1. How’s 2016 been for you two so far? Any wild party stories from touring or festival sets you’re looking forward to?
Omni – 2016 has been great. So many great things have happened but I think being an official artist at sxsw for the first time takes the cake. That whole week was just overwhelming in a good way.
James – Yea SXSW was nuts this year I feel it was a tie between that and Magfest. Magfest was giant convention with a 24 hour arcade (pretty much our heaven) and SXSW we were official artists so that was pretty crazy.
Monday Music: Trademark, Elephante, A-Trak, cln & Jaya Prime!
It’s another scorcher here in the city, so I decided to go with it and pour it on. Trademark brings the sun, Elephante smooths along massively, Jaya Prime bristles perfectly, A-Trak lays down the vintage funk and cln pours scintillating indie feels. San Dimas High School Football Rules!
Trademark is a rare treat now that we’ve passed the era of Pop Mashup. As sad as that is, a couple of acts out there keep the fires burning. Trademark throws together Ariana Grande, ZAYN, 3LAU & Kap Slap to great effect. This mashup is exactly what a summer anthem should be. I will continue to hope for the day when Dance Pop & House beats rule the air waves once again.
A massive tune, Elephante continues to prove that his rags-to-riches story is well deserved. The bass dovetails with the soft percussive pad work as Nevve‘s silky vocals stroll along. This has an August Sunset vibe to it, but when you’re about to write it off, the bass drop knocks it out of the park. Sultry while peppy, with just a touch of melancholy.
Bob Moses remixed by A-Trak. No, seriously, what other reason do you need. A-Trak brings the French house feel to the classic by Bob Moses. There’s a strong smell of Daft Punk pushed through the ever present funk filter of the Champion of Fool’s Gold himself. It’s a triumph and it probably flew under everyone’s radar. Here, just to make sure you didn’t miss it too.
cln is a low-key star from down under that I’ve been tracking for a little over a year. His North American tour is eagerly, eagerly anticipated, as is Mist. The fusion of chip, indie and vintage melancholy works perfectly and makes for a staggeringly potent wave of feels. Great work from the Brisbane native, so happy you’re coming to this side of the planet to drop this kind of vibe on Brooklyn.
I told you I’d be shoving the rest of Jaya Prime‘s discography into your face & I’m a man of my word. This inky, morbid chillstep featuring Peter Weyland from Prometheus is exactly what your goth party scene needs. The murky, staccato beat plays off of the exceptionally well used sample to create an atmosphere second to none. Jaya Prime always sticks the dismount, so put it into your face and save it for a day you need to walk with purpose through a crowd in the rain.
Monday Music: Kenneth Bager, Jesse Futureman, Peter $un, Edwin Raphael & Brutalist
Now that we’re in the thick of the “stuck to your chair” heat here in NYC, I decided to take a break from the throbbing electronic sounds of festivals, and serve up a dose of more analog vibes. Classic guitar, hip hop, indie, lighter drum & bass, and even a tune from a singer-songwriter. Cool off, slow down, and enjoy! Big ups to Stamp The Wax for providing 2 of the 5 tunes this week. They’re definitely one of my crucial daily reads.
Kenneth Bager’s Music For Dreams label has served up some exceptional Balearic, a vibe that some of my younger readers might not be familiar with. Essentially, the lighter, Mediterranean, ebb & flow feel that keeps you moving, but never presses you to dance or make a big show of it. Sunset over Hobro brings together guitar, accordion and soft, sunrise bass pad work for a relaxed intensity that pulled me in immediately. If it intrigued you as well, hit up the album on iTunes & Spotify.
Jesse Futerman, out of Toronto, slid this tune into my reality thanks to Stamp The Wax, and we’re all better for it. The lush, leisurely, morning jam deserves your coffee break or PokeStroll. The squelchy synths never get too aggressive, with a funky melody melting all over the beat. The muted trumpet & bass guitar give the track a vintage feel that I cannot get enough of these days.
Switching gears entirely, but staying at the same tempo, is this cut off of Peter $un‘s new mixtape, Paradise Is A Day Away. It’s been a minute since I repped rhymes, but this was too good to ignore. The heavy bass & ethereal feel seem to match the not-aggressive, but still wicked flow. It’s almost got a tinge of blues which is rare these days. Get at it.
Edwin Raphael does exceptional work here. The guitar soothes, the voice soars, and that’s all you need. No extra wacky synth work, no house beats, no autotune. Just a boy & his guitar, singing his heart out. Enjoy it with someone you love.
Rounding out the list is Brutalist, a group that wins for best new act name of the week, but also really nails it here on Strep. I expected the tune to be way more aggressive & brutal, but it’s a relaxed stroll through piano chord synths, stuttering bass & gorgeous chopped up vocals. Dig in and thanks to Stoney Roads for making sure I didn’t miss it.
Monday Music: La Mar, 2ToneDisco, Cade, Hotel Garuda & Lexy Panterra
We’re in the thick of the sauna that is Summer in New York. So to cool off, here’s your regular quintet of tunes, upbeat, yet still relaxed, all from excellent emerging talent. Enjoy with a cold drink and a skip in your step!
Sydney duo La Mar surprised me with this one. A slow, crooning start pushes into a delightful indietronica vibe, complete with the vagaries of Asian influences, soft vocals, and some relaxed bass. Can we please start hearing shit like this on the radio in America please?!
Since everyone & their mother is playing Pokemon Go, I figured this week’s tracks had to include at least 1 tune that screams JAPAN, and 2ToneDisco are happy to provide. The fusion between J-Pop, chip and glitzy West Coast house is bouncy, peppy, but still manages to nail the the breakdown at 2min in. All in all a great effort from 2ToneDisco, so now I’ve gotta find a way to interview these cats, especially after their dope JetSet Radio remix.
Hotel Garuda has been moving up that festival booking ladder steadily. Their sound is exactly what so many people need in their day/week/festival, so I couldn’t be happier for them. This sunny remix of the hit by Kaskade & Felix Cartal takes the scintillating vocals from Ofelia K and puts a solid, fest-ready house backing under it. It won’t blow your mind, just make you relax a touch mid-set.
Lexy Panterra continues the smooth, indietronica vibe in effect this week. The soothing vocals, vaguely garage-esque beats, and a distinct lack of audio modulation/auto-tune makes for a great chill/relaxation tune, or for your super secret playlist for getting down.
CADE is a new arrival on my radar, but has an EDEN/Stephen thing going on, so they’re a welcome addition to my indietronica stable. The sweeping chord shift at 1min in is exceptional, showing that heavy modulation can work, especially if you’ve already got chops. You can feel the West Coast influences on this track, but CADE still holds his own, bringing a unique sound to a field that will be very crowded in a couple of years. Indietronica is the future of pop, you heard it here first.
Monday Music: Alexander Popov, Makam, SG Lewis, Renard & Norfair!
Now that we’ve finally reached summer proper, we can push into the perkier, punchier side of the music spectrum. A bunch of genres are coming your way, so get your office dance party shoes ready!
Alexander Popov is one of those gems east of the Danube that the West desperately needs. His masterful use of anthem elements in his hard trance create a post-big room feel that has already found a home in A State of Trance & other trance podcasts. I’ve blogged about him before, and I’ll totally be blogging about him again, so strap in & enjoy the ride.
Stamp The Wax coming at you with a low-key stunner of a tune. This slow-building, simmering house track never gets in your face, but delivers, especially if you’re the type of dancer who picks up the beat minutes before the rest of the crowd. It pulls into a delightful, uptempo jam that would feel at home in dozens of venues across the city. Prime DJ material by Makam.
SG Lewis is slowly getting the attention he deserves, and after collabs with people like Gallant, that climb should accelerate significantly. Shimmering vocals support a groovy, upbeat bassline, funky guitar work and strong indie sensibilities. It breaks into a gorgeous, disco-infused indie track that should get quite a lot of love in the coming weeks. You heard it here first!
This retro track got stuck in my head over the weekend, so I had to share it. Renard, now LapFox reworked this with another artist, and I gotta tell you, I can’t get enough of this sound. It’s terrifying to music newbies, but the fusion between chiptune & breakcore will always bring a smile to my face. The nostalgia is in full effect here, but the broken bass & beats give it a totally modern vibe that only the best of the Mega Man X soundtrack came close to approximating.
Norfair comes at us with a nightcore remix of Above & Beyond. Remixing AvB is not easy and if you mess it up, you’ll have their legions of fans howling for blood in between bouts of crying over AvB feels. However, I think this re-work has enough going on with it to earn respect. This uptempo remix celebrates the original AvB elements while pushing it into more rave friendly territory. Which gives all of us without room for a piano on stage next to the decks a chance to get those AvB feels into the crowd without reducing them to a whimpering mess. Great work by Norfair, can’t wait to see what he does next.
Monday Music: Alex H, Elephante, Virtual Riot, Fred V & Graffix, Jarreau Vandal
This week is off to a rough start, so hug your loved ones, and sink into Monday’s new music. Got some choice uplifting cuts from the best in the business for you.
Kaskade’s not an easy guy to remix, but every once and a while someone manages to knock it out of the park. Alex H is a Zimbabwean producer who made it to Manchester, where he’s pushing out some of the smoothest, positivity-infusing tunes that I’ve heard in months. His remix glides along for nine minutes, a sonic odyssey that never clashes with Kaskade’s vocals. It freshly uses the original elements in a way that would find a home among many of NYC’s rooftop DJ events. I hope to hear it at a couple before fall.
Elephante has successfully transformed from Soundcloud superstart to emerging headline contender. After a string of dope remixes and originals, he’s taken the next step, remixing his own ish. This is a somewhat advanced move, usually only attempted by Daft Punk tier artists, but considering his success at reworking Closer, I can’t wait to see him drop live sets using an Elephant-infused pyramid. It’s a heavier electro remix than anything he’s done for a while, but it works perfectly. After hearing this track, I really want to see Elephante & TheFatRat tour together, because this could be the birth of a new style of electro-pop that could take LA by storm. This is top down, driving up the Cali coast music, so hop to it.
Virtual Riot has been a source of quality on the heavier side of electro, dubstep and almost-chip for years, but I have to say, I’m really digging this shift. The FutureLectro debuted by This Song Is Sick (Big Ups to Rishty) is an expertly executed example of the sweet spot forward looking production, anthem vibes and broken beat syncopated rhythmic work can be. The stuttering vocals compliment the bass perfectly, so rock this at high volume.
Fred V & Graffix continue to amaze me. While producing some of the best drum & bass found anywhere in the world, their new album shows a breadth of talent that even us die hard fans didn’t anticipate. Can someone classify this tune for me? Is it Pop & Bass? Indie DB? I don’t know how to label this, except as triumphant, euphoric and hopeful for a better tomorrow. Given the events of the weekend, it’s more needed than ever.
My girl numichuu made sure I didn’t miss this deep cut, and I’m so glad she’s keeping an eye out and yelling into the internet about dope tunes like this. Jarreau Vandal has an exceptional sense when it comes to understated deep house. It’s a subtle, funkily crafted tune with a lot of inventive tonality and sample use. Mr. Vandal is on my “to watch” list for 2016, and numichuu needs to be on your TL.
Ten Questions With Terry Gotham: Floatinurboat
I promised you that I’d dig deep to find the best emerging talent from all over the world, and floatinurboat is exactly the artist I created this blog to promote. The smooth, effortlessness of his production jives with a sonic aesthetic that would be right at home in a Porter Robinson or Madeon set. Someone tell Porter we’ve found a new opener for him, at least, once he’s old enough to get into the club!
1. When did you start producing? Did you play any instruments before you started?
I first started producing when I was around 14, my dad got me FL11 and I just completely fell in love with the program and producing. I wasn’t completely new to music though because I had been playing piano for 10 years at the time (now 12).
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Memorial Day Music: Prismo, Petit Biscuit, Krewella, Hybrid Minds & Sarah Silverman
Summer has arrived all at once! To celebrate the long weekend, new tunes from Krewella & Hybrid Minds, two rising stars Prismo & the 16yr old rising star Petit Biscuit, and a hilarious send up of “going out” anthems by Sarah Silverman I somehow missed from 2013. Bomp these tunes in the office if you’re working, or by the pool if you’ve taken the day!
Rishty continues reminding everyone why you can’t miss his posts on TSIS. I’m really hoping the Houston native Prismo makes it out to the East Coast, as his production chops are stellar. Coexist manages to be bassy, poppy & fest anthemy at the same time. Guitar chords, strong vocals and a delicious punchy bassline make for a fantastic introduction to Prismo. Now I really want to know if the name comes from Adventure Time, don’t you?
When a producer clears 100k followers on Soundcloud, smart bloggers take notice. When a producer clears 100k before they’re 17 years old & reaches #1 on the French iTunes Electronic charts with his last single, you put down the bong and press repeat. Petit Biscuit needs to get on your radar right now. The kind of smoothness evokes some strong feelings of Kygo, but it’s distinctly not tropical. To be clear, the piano and guitar is all him, so let’s make sure we don’t think of him as a bedroom producer. A fantastic, shimmering tune that glides along in the sun, with drizzles of vocals and hopeful xylophone vibes. Is that a thing? Cause if it’s not, it should be.
Krewella’s first long-form release since the departure of Rainman made a bit of a splash recently, getting the coverage the headliner deserves from the EDM blogosphere. While a lot of sites showcased the one or two main singles, the 2nd half of the album really caught my eye. Marching On specifically. The combo of their signature vocals & post-EDM sensibility layers over a blues’y back beat. I think it’s a sleeper track that’s going to find its way into a bunch of festivals this summer. DJs will drop the almost rock, almost hymnal break into their sets to keep the energy going without laying on the cheese, you’ll see.
I fucking love Hybrid Minds. They make some of the best, smoothest drum & bass I’ve ever heard, and I listen to a LOT of d&b. Their new releases are consumed almost instantly, and Fade was no exception. Gorgeous piano work supports Katie’s Ambition, who provides excellent vocal tracking in her own right. Add onto that a drum & bass beat that has been perfected by Hybrid Minds to be as heavy as it can be without being aggro. Delightful from start to finish.
And now, for something completely different. Sarah Silverman employs Will.i.am and drops a send-up of “Shit’s Gonna Be Epic” anthem tracks that I cannot believe I missed in 2013. This shit is kind of hysterical, with Sarah littering the music video with her signature gross-out, snarky & profoundly true opinions. I’m not going to spoil any of it, so get at it, then shout her out on Twitter. Don’t ping Will, cause he can stay in 2013.
Monday Music: Vassh, floatinurboat, kamandi, sakuraburst & unforseen
Now that the warmth has finally arrived and outdoor parties are getting busted for not having a liquor license, here are some sparkling hidden gems from around the internets that you need to know exist. No time to waste, here are the tunes!
Vassh & Haven are fast becoming my favorite post-EDM producers. The total lack of festival anthem stupidity is in full effect here, with a tasty infusion of UK garage into true hip hop vibes coming from across the pond. This is South London rude boy shit, combined with soothing, exotic bass padding that needs to be celebrated. A tune so hard street and soft garage simultaneously is something most Americans have yet to master, while the duo, hailing from MA & SC has knocked it out of the park.
floatinurboat is the kind of artist you’d totally miss for lack of promotion, but spend several hours listening to in the middle of the night if discovered. I know, because that was my Friday night. Future production like this is one of the directions I’m praying indie pop moves into post-diplo/skrillhouse. There’s a stride that this tune hits that gives me hope. The ability to communicate complex emotional landscapes using electronic influences has taken a back seat to fist pumping in recent years, so I’m holding out hope we push back into the territory this 16 year old from Glasgow seems to lord over.
Kamandi is not an artist I saw coming. Honestly, I was swinging from account to soundcloud account, stumbling on this west coast stunner entirely by accident. Burn Them Down seemed like an entirely forgettable tune until the 2 minute mark hit. Then, it transitions into shockingly brutal electronica, to the point where it convinced me there’s a metal band making it happen. More please.
Sakuraburst is one of those low-key stars that Soundcloud & basement producers look up to. Why? This is the year where you find out. Sakuraburst has production skills that are almost unmatched, turning heads like T-Mass, Beardyman & others that have already made it. Their new EP showcases this production prowess, which is why I needed to make sure you didn’t miss anticrystal. Shuddering, throbbing bass fuses with jittery garage elements to make an intimidating but unforgettable original that will be welcome in any ominous game OST.
unforseen is another one of the exquisite Ambient/Chillwave posse on Twitter that need their own music collective and stage at festivals. Unforseen pushed out this 4 track tribute to his favorite chill producers glo, haven (told ya), madi larson and pearl. 4 tunes for 4 producers you should all know about, especially when the sky is gray, or you’ve just been dumped by bae. Check out each of the producers if you have time, but don’t worry, I’ll be bringing you dopeness from each of them over the summer.
Terry Gotham 