Friday 17 December 2010

Marcel Dettmann - Kontra-Mokira-Mixes [Kontra Musik]

We covered the last Kontra Musik release, 016 by Kondens, and as with that release (and the previous tracks before that) there's quality stamped right through it. The Berghain influences are in full force as Marcel Dettmann returns to the label. He appeared on remix duties on Agaric / One's KM005. But this time around he's taking full control.

Using parts, samples and inspiration from Swedish experimental dub/drone act Mokira, Dettmann delivers two tracks. Factory Report 1 is an excursion into atmospheric dub. The usual detailed manipulation of delays and reverb allow you to drift along effortlessly. Factory Report 2 is more aggressive and up tempo. A true peak time Berghain special.


KM 017 A1. Marcel Dettmann- Factory Report 1 by KONTRA-MUSIK
KM 017 B1. Marcel Dettmann-Factory Report 2 by KONTRA-MUSIK

The release is expected to land in all the usual shops around January time so keep a look out for it. It's another Record Box essential item from Kontra Musik

EarToGround pres James Ruskin @ East Village (17th Dec 10)

It's about that time of year again when everything turns into a cheesy Xmas party. EarToGround are doing things slightly differently. Well i say slightly, more like massively. Instead of Jingle Bells, White Christmas, Santa Baby and Little Drummer Boy on constant repeat, they'll be providing a straight up techno soundtrack to help celebrate the birth of the baby jesus.

James Ruskin will be well known to underground techno fans as he's one of the UKs biggest talents. Chris Finke also is another rising star making a solid name for himself around the country and further a field. The rest of the line up consists of Slash Dot Dash resident, Chris Stanford and ETG frontman Gareth Wild.

Tickets are on sale through Resident Advisor until 5pm tonight otherwise it'll be more on the door. Make sure you wrap up warm and brave the cold outdoors because it's going to get hot in the East Village Basement tonight!

Thursday 9 December 2010

Quantec - My Safe Harbour [Echocord 50]

Ecohocord have just released their 48th EP this week with Resoe's 'The Black Void Of Space' complete with a remix from Sigha (go buy it now, it's amazing) but today we're looking forward to their 50th release.

It comes from serial dub technoist, Sven Schienhammer aka Quantec. No stranger to the label, previous releases include his second album 'Cauldron Subsidence' and his 'Subliminal State', 'Unusual Signals', 'Moonstruck' EPs and also the sister label, Echocord Colour on which he released his 'Ray Of Hope' EP.

#50 is more of the same high quality dub techno as we've come to expect from Echocord, and Sven was kind enough to post the title track 'My Safe Harbour' on his soundcloud page. As with all his music this is another perfectly crafted piece. Full of groove it grows and evolves through detailed intimate production. Different sounds come at you from all angles but the arrangement makes sure that everything has a purpose, no excess or wastage.


We expect to see this hitting the shops early next year and no doubt you'll find it in all the best record shops. More info can be found on Quantec and Echocord here

Videos: Sandwell District @ Timewarp Holland (4th Dec 10)

Photo by Luke Garwood

Winter is always warmed up by one of our favourite festivals, Timewarp, in one of our favourite countries, Holland, and this time they switched it from Rotterdam to one of our favourite cities, Amsterdam. So far everything is looking rather promising but just to make it that much sweeter the guys at Cosmopop decided to get our boys, Sandwell District, involved too.

Held in Sporthallen Zuid, a sports centre near Schipol Airport, filled with 40,000 wanting clubbers, the stage was set. Darko Esser and Steve Rachmad did stellar jobs on warm up duty before Sandwell District took the stage. And they only just made the stage too. Schipol was having difficulties caused by the snow so Dave and Karl's travel plans changed drastically. Originally intending to fly from Berlin straight to Amsterdam, they instead flew to Dusseldorf and had to get a taxi to Amsterdam and arrived only 20 mins before the start of their set. Anyway they simply shrugged all the problems aside and went to work in the only fashion they know how!

Unlike in October @ Berghain, when i was unable to get some videos (rules is rules) I took full advantage this time round. And here they are







Plenty more videos can be found on our Youtube Page

Thursday 18 November 2010

Mix Of The Day: Function @ Sandwell District Nacht, Berghain (24th Oct 09)

We've woke up this morning to a bit of a special treat. Last month we headed out to Berlin to catch up with the boys from Sandwell District for their label night @ Berghain. We was in there for hours and the last 3 1/2 we gave our ears to the brilliance of Function aka Dave Sumner.

Just like all the times we'd seen Function before, he was on fire. Closing out the morning and pushing us through into the afternoon before Regis stepped up to the plate.

Speaking to him before his set, Dave informed me that the Berghain soundman was gearing up to record his set, and I've been seriously looking forward to getting to hear it all over again. But unfortunately it turns out that this mix is from the 2009 Sandwell District Nacht @ Berghain, not the 2010 night. Still it's a brilliant mix, I've listened to it a few times over now and it's more than worth a listen.

You can download the mix from the following link


Enjoy

This weekends pick for London - Colony Vs. Perc Trax @ Corsica Studios

This Friday our good friends over at Colony have got together with our good friends over at Perc Trax to put on a night at one of our favourite London venues, Corsica Studios. Colony have been on a little break (since July) but have really come back with a bang.

Perc Trax has been ever strengthening its reputation for solid techno release after release for a while now and they feel it's time to enter back into the world of promoting. Headlining the event is one of our favourite DJs / Producers around at the moment, Peter Van Hoesen. And that stamp of quality filters it's way right through the line up.

Advanced tickets are still available on Resident Advisor or you can pay a bit more on the door

You can join Colony's Facebook Group or follow Perc Trax on Twitter to keep up to date with all their future news

Thursday 4 November 2010

Samuli Kemppi - Quantum Mechanics EP [Mote Evolver]

Samuli Kemppi has been very busy of late. Radio shows, DJ demos, remixes and a string of productions. His latest release comes on Luke Slater's Mote Evolver label. The EP consists of 3 new tracks 'Quantum Mechanics', 'Complex Numbers' and 'Linear Function' and is finished off with a remix of 'Complex Numbers' by P.A.S.


The EP will be released imminently and available at all the usual haunts.

Grounded Theory pres Fachwerk Records Showcase @ Arena (5th Nov 10)

It seems that a vast amount of Londoners are making their way out to Berlin for the upcoming weekend. I can't blame them. We was out there two weekends ago and had one of the best times of our lives. There's some monster events going on this weekend. Perlon's launch of their 'Superlongivity 5 EP' @ Panoramabar, the Bermuda Festival is taking over half the clubs in the city, and for us the top pick of the whole weekend of Bermuda parties has to be Grounded Theory's 6th event at Arena Club.

The previous parties have included some great line ups, including the likes of Ben Klock, Adam X, Marcel Fengler, Function, Norman Nodge, Sleeparchive to name a few, and their resident Milton Bradley.

For this party they've teamed up with the excellent Berlin label, Fachwerk Records. They've handed over the rains to Mike Dehnert, Roman Lindau and Sascha Rydell and will be leaving them to get on with playing the style of music that's made the label so successful, great techno! Between the 3 of them they've racked up 16 releases on the label and individually they've featured on some of the most respected techno labels around, such as Clone, Echocord Colour, Deeply Rooted House and Ostgut Ton. The pedigree is there for all to see

Doors open at midnight on Friday and goes on till late. And as parties generally do in Berlin it's likely to go on very late!

To finish you off here's some links so you keep fully updated on the actions of all parties involved

Wednesday 3 November 2010

Samuli Kemppi - Deep Space Helsinki (Nov 10)

With just 10 days till our next party our headliner, Samuli Kemppi has put together a new mix to wet your whistles and get the anticipation building to near bursting point.

Samuli describes this as a "Deep techno dj set recorded live on 3rd November 2010 with 2x SL1210 and Ecler Nuo 4 mixer. No edits, no fixes, just music on vinyls on one take"

Here at Slash Dot Dash we like that a lot. Raw techno on vinyl, as it should be. You can stream the mix from the following widget

Deep Space Helsinki from Samuli Kemppi at Letsmix.com

Deep Space Helsinki from Samuli Kemppi at Letsmix.com.

Tickets to see Samuli Kemppi's exclusive London Live performance are on sale now on Resident Advisor now.

You can find more info on Samuli through his Myspace Page or you can follow him on Twitter

Tuesday 2 November 2010

Mix Of The Day: Silent Servant Vs DVS1 - LWE Podcast 63

After I mad the trip to Berlin and the legendary Berghain to catch up with Function and Regis at their Sandwell District night, we was totally blown away by Silent Servant. A storming set filled with raw industrial beats to more dubby minimalist numbers made Sunday morning very special and set the tone perfectly for Function to carry on where Silent Servant left off.

On returning back to London I set upon a little mission to find myself some new mixes from him and was delighted when i stumbled across this gem. Little White Earbuds drafted in two of Minneapolis's best techno pioneers. Silent Servant, or Juan Mendez as he's known by his mum, teamed up with Ben Klock's latest find, DVS1. Zak Khutoretsky has been filling the Minneapolis scene with the finest underground techno for many a year. After Klock spotted his amazing live show at an event, it wasn't long before Zak's debut release appeared on his Klockworks label. Since them he's gone on from strength to strength and his name is spreading far and wide.

The mix can be downloaded from here. It's a direct link so right click and save as


And as if a great mix wasn't enough, LWE grabbed a few moments to get some choice words off the pair. You can read the interview here

More info on the pair can be found on their respective myspace pages

Thursday 21 October 2010

Adam Beyer & Chris Liebing @ The Drumcode Warehouse Party, London (25th Sep 10)

Last month Adam Beyer came to town and he brought his Drumcode label showcase with him. It was a monster night with people coming in from all over Europe. For those of you that missed it, or just want to try and re-live some of it again..... today is your lucky day! Parts of both Adam Beyer's and Chris Liebing's sets were recorded and have been released for your listening pleasure.

First up it's 55mins of Chris Liebing's set


And of course, here's Mr Beyer's offering


Tracklisting

Sasha Carassi - Monochromatic (Psyk Remix)
Paul Ritch & D´Julz - Run - 2000 And One Dark Tech Mix
Tom Hades - Equialoco (Brian Sanhaji Mix)
Marco Bailey - Purple Haze
Sasha Carassi - Hypercombo
Phil Kieran - Empy Vessels - Gary Beck Remix
Sasha Carassi - Minerals
Alan Fitzpatrick - A Small Decline - Mark Broom Dub Mix
Sasha Carassi - Cubic Carbon
Psyk - Throes
Sasha Carassi - Diamond
Funk D'Void - Italoca

And here's some more links for all the info you could possibly need on these two Techno heavyweights

Wednesday 20 October 2010

Slash Dot Dash Podcast 001: XI




Here at Slash Dot Dash we're proud to announce the launch of our new podcast series. It will be used as a platform to showcase the music you can expect to hear at the parties. It will feature mixes from our residents, our special guests and anyone else we feel is worthy of more airtime.

The first mix comes from the man behind Slash Dot Dash, XI. Starting off with some deep dub techno before slowly progressing into some full on raw techno beats.

There's a few ways you can get this mix. You can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes or by searching for 'Slash Dot Dash Podcast' in the iTunes Store
iTunes Link

For those of you on soundcloud you can follow Slash Dot Dash and either stream or download the mix
Slash Dot Dash Soundcloud Page

Tracklisting

1) Sigha – Light Swells (In A Distant Space) [Hotflush Recordings]
2) Cio D’Or – Organza (Milton Bradley Remix) [Prologue]
3) Marcel Dettmann – Drawing [Ostgut Ton]
4) Maurizio – M5OA [Maurizio]
5) Milton Bradley – Interdimensional Entity [Prologue]
6) Samuli Kemppi – Dark Matter [Mote Evolver]
7) Heiko Laux & Steve Rachmad – The Broken Cup [Figure]
8) Lucy – Kalachakra [Prologue]
9) 19.454.18.5.25.18 – Horizontal Ground 06A [Horizontal Ground]
10) Szare – Mendeleev [Syndrome Z]
11) Reality Or Nothing – RSB 9 (Function Remix) [RSB]
12) Skudge – Remixes Part 2 (Marcel Fengler Remix) [Skudge]
13) Traversable Wormhole – Closed Timeline Curve (Marcel Dettmann Remix) [CLR]


This should, of course get you nicely in the mood for our next party @ The Rhythm Factory on 13th November with underground techno legends Samuli Kemppi, providing a London debut live set, and Milton Bradley who will also be making his London DJ debut.

You can check out the event page for all the info here
Facebook Event Page

Tickets are on sale at the moment through Resident Advisor
Resident Advisor Ticket Page

You can keep up to date with all XI's movements through his Facebook Group and his Myspace Page

Mix Of The Day: Chris Stanford - City East Podcast 01

Slash Dot Dash resident Chris Stanford has just put together his own podcast series and here's the first episode. There's no tracklisting at the moment but you can download it from here


Or subscribe to it through iTunes from here

More info can be found on Chris via his Myspace Page or in his Facebook Group

Thursday 14 October 2010

Mix Of The Day: Ben Klock - Voices @ Propoganda, Moscow (30th July 10)

Another little gem courtesy of Soundclouds most famous user, R_co. I have no idea where he gets all these mixes from, but we're not complaining. This time around it's a 4 hour marathon set recorded live in Moscow back in July


Ben Klock Live @ Voices, Propaganda, Moscow - 30-07-2010 by R_co

There's no official tracklisting for it but various listeners have identified different tracks throughout the mix. More info on the Berghain residents gigs and releases can be found on his Myspace Page

Thursday 7 October 2010

Sandwell District to release debut album 'Feed-Forward'

Sandwell District have announced details for their first artist album, Feed-Forward, slated for release this month.

As a label and as an artist collective, Sandwell District have become a favorite among techno connoisseurs over the past few years, both for their epic DJ sets and purist-leaning 12-inches. Feed-Forward features production work from all three of the outfit's core artists: Dave Sumner, AKA Function, Karl O'Conner, AKA Regis and Juan Mendez, AKA Silent Servant, with contributions from Female. Its nine tracks follow the same blueprint as much of the group's work to date, melding steely techno beats with strings, field recordings and abstract semi-hooks. The album consists entirely of unreleased material and will see release on CD and triple-vinyl. Rather than committing to a specific release date, Sumner says the album will simply "appear" at some point this month.

Tracklist
01. Immolare (First)
02. Immolare (Main)
03. Immolare (Final)
04. Grey Cut Out
05. Hunting Lodge
06. Falling the Same Way
07. Svar
08. Double Day
09. Speed + Sound

The album will be released at some point this month and will be available from the usual outlets. Keeping tabs on Sandwell District isn't always that easy but adding Function on Myspace

Monday 20 September 2010

Traversable Wormhole - Vol 1-5 (Mix CD) [CLR]

It's been a busy day in Slash Dot Dash related news. After the excellent Milton Bradley CLR Podcast, one of our guests from Julys party, Traversable Wormhole, is releasing a special 68 minute mix. Well I say mix, but it goes a lot deeper than that.

Volumes 1-5 were released as anonymously stamped white label vinyls over the course of 2009. These caught the eye of some of the top names in techno, including CLR boss Chris Liebing. After a chance meeting between the two of them at Berghain, Chris signed Traversable Wormhole (or Adam X as he's more widely known) to his label and asked him to embark on a serious project.

Adam could of easily just pulled out the records and mixed them like a normal dj set.... but that would be far too easy. Instead he revisited all the original productions and spent months re-editing all the intros and outros to create a seemless blend of gloriously crafted techno.

The cd is out today from all the usual haunts. I've seen it in decks.de this morning.

And as if that wasn't enough keep your eyes out for his CLR Podcast, out next Monday, which is a recording of his live set from Saturdays CLR Label Night @ the legendary Berlin techno spot, Berghain. Adam's live set at Slash Dot Dash was mindblowing so we're expecting the podcast to be just as good!

Mix Of The Day: Milton Bradley - CLR Podcast 082 (20th Sep 10)

Chris Liebings legendary CLR Podcast is another week old and for all you Slash Dot Dash fans it's something a little bit special, Milton Bradley. For those of you who don't know all that much about him, here's a chance for you to see what the man is all about ahead of Novembers Slash Dot Dash party, and why we rate him so highly.

The mix can be downloaded from the following link, or you can subscribe to the series by searching for 'CLR Podcast' in the iTunes store


Tracklisting

  1. DBX - Loosing Control (Carl Craig Remix)
  2. Marcel Dettmann - Shena (T++ Remix)
  3. Kenny Larkin - Glob (Ben Klock Remix 1)
  4. Milton Bradley - Motor City
  5. Sawlin & Subjected - Vault Series 2.0 (Untitled 2)
  6. Sweet Reinhard - Motiv
  7. R Factors - Deep Crevice
  8. Chris Liebing & Tommy Four Seven - Bauhaus (Mallet Mix)
  9. Chris Liebing vs Green Velvet - Auf Und Ab Und Kinda High (Dustin Zahn Mix)
  10. Robert Hood - Towns That Disappeared Completely
  11. Soul Designer - The Soul Is Back (Luke Slater Remix)
  12. Planetary Assault Systems - Funk Electric
  13. R Factors - Tilted Base
  14. Grovskopa - Atopic (Delta Funktionen Remix)
  15. Horizontal Ground - Horizontal Ground 05-B
  16. F - 0907 [Energy Distortion - Part 3]
  17. Outro (The Day The Earth Stood Still)

You can keep tabs on Milton's movements through his Myspace Page

There's still time for you to get early bird tickets for Slash Dot Dash in November. They're on sale till 5pm today, after that they go up, so get in now to save yourself a few quid. They can be found on Resident Advisor

Friday 17 September 2010

Kondens - First Cut EP (Norman Nodge Remix) [Kontra Musik]

Kontra Musik are now on their 16th release. Previous releases have featured Slash Dot Dash favourites like Marcel Dettmann, Scuba, Mikael Stavostrand, Luke Hess, Shed, A Made Up Sound and more. For this release Kondens provides their first work for the label and it will be out at the end of the month, available from all the usual places

Kondens is a collaboration between Swedish electronic music veterans Andreas Tilliander (Mille Plateaux/Force Inc, Raster-Noton and Repeatle) and Stefan Thor aka Folie (Mitek). The sound is a hybrid of techy dubstep with a twist and banging dub-influenced techno. Pure peak time bliss without losing the love for dub and tape delays. The vinyl debut, First Cut EP, includes a stunning deep techno remix signed Norman Nodge.

Check out the samples


First out is a fast and broken dub-techno track – Ruddock Rave. Named after Osbourne Ruddock aka King Tubby, the title gives a clear signal of what Kondens is all about – the combination of dub and dance. The dubstep track 0451, in typical dubstep manner, is named after the area code where the song is made and where both Andreas och Stefan grew up - good old Hässleholm in Sweden. The remix is signed long time favorite,Norman Nodge. With a good amount of effects he turns Rudduck Rave into a late night techno mover, giving thought to the atmosphere and mood of the Plastikman Consumed era.

More info on Kontra Musik can be found on their Myspace and Twitter pages

Thursday 16 September 2010

Mix Of The Day: Terence Fixmer - Don't Stay In Mix Of The Week Vol 052 (13th Sep 10)

The Don't Stay In Mix Of The Week is now 1 years old. What kicked off this time last September, with a mix from Fuse front man Enzo Siragusa and has featured names from the global dance music spectrum including Carl Cox, Paul Van Dyk, Hernan Cattaneo, Judge Jules, Nic Fanciulli and of course our very own XI pulled out a minimal selection for Vol 016.

For 052 they've enlisted the help of Terence Fixmer. Terence is on of France's most illustrated characters of the techno scene, of which he had been at the forefront for over 10 successful years. Bringing his dark atmospheric sound to prestigious dance floors that range from Berlin's mecca of techno Berghain to Paris' floating jukebox Batofar.

You can download the mix through the following link


Tracklist

1 Cassegrain : Luban (prologue)
2 Sigha : Over The Edge (osc1)
3 Donato Dozzy& dj Say : Your Transparent Eyes (Attic music)
4 Marcus Suckut :Parsec (stroboscopics artefacts)
5 Lori : Time hole (prologue)
6 Dino Sabatini : Dry Bleep (prologue)
7 Claudio Prc :LDN 622 (prologue)
8 Silent Servant :untitled (sandwell district)
9 Terence Fixmer : Breathless (electric de luxe)
10 JPLS : 808 loop
11 Raudive : Conc ( Macro rec)
12 Terence Fixmer : Alert (electric de luxe)
13 Traversable wormhole : Closed time like curved (Marcel Dettmann remix) (CLR)
14 Terence Fixmer: Impakt (Electric De Luxe)

You can keep up to date with Terence and info on all his latest productions, remixes, gigs and mixes through his Myspace Page and Twitter. And of course check the Don't Stay In Website for a mass of clubbing and music information

Shed (Live) @ Wear Fear Silence, Cable (11th Sep 10)



Last Saturday we made our way down to SE1 for the latest in We Fear Silence's string of events at the South London superclub, Cable. A massive line up, including Surgeon, A Made Up Sound, Peverlist and more, was assembled to join Shed in the launch of his new Album 'The Traveller'.

I caught the end of his amazing set on the trusty iPhone for your viewing pleasure. The album is available in all good shops on CD and Vinyl and available digitally from the usual download sites. More info on Shed can be found on his Myspace Page

Friday 10 September 2010

Free download of unreleased Stefan Linzatti track, remixed by Par Grindvik

Swedish techno legend, Par Grindvik, produced a remix of Stefan Linzatti's 'The Thruth' which never saw the light of day on a release so rather than allowing it to go unheard by the masses, he's decided to allow us all to download it for free.

(Java Gone Crazy SiFi II Version) by Grindvik

Here's the usual links for more Par Grindvik related news and info

Friday 27 August 2010

Luke Hess - Michigan Central Station EP [Echocord Colour]

Next up on the excellent Echocord Colour, off shoot label from Echocord, is the stunning 'Michigan Central Station EP' by Luke Hess. The label's been in fine form over the last 2 years or so. With releases from Brendon Moeller, Sebastian San, Deadbeat, Mikkel Metal and Pattern Repeat to name a few. This latest offering from Hess is his second outing on Echocord Colour, his first being a project with Marko Fuerstenburg (another great dub techno artist. Check out his recent 'Counter Mode EP' on Artless Records).

The EP is a homage to Michigan Central Station in Detroit. Once a glorious piece of engineering, now left in ruins, showing a glimpse over previous flourishing times in the City. The A Side sees Hess display dreamy melodies with his signature dub delayed patterns underneath to deliver a beautiful uplifting composition. Side B is darker. It's flittering percusion carries the track along over a deep bassline. Check out the samples below.


More info on Luke Hess can be found on his Myspace Page

Thursday 26 August 2010

Ostgut Ton release new compilation as they celebrate turning fünf

Over the past five years, Ostgut-Ton has risen steadily to become one of house and techno's most respected imprints, thanks in no small part to its association with the famed Berghain/Panorama Bar. The label was first conceived by Nick Hoppner in 2003, following the closure of Berghain's predecessor, Ostgut, which was torn down to make room for Berlin's o2 Arena. Hoppner had been a resident DJ at Ostgut, and when he heard about plans to open a new location, he offered to run the club's record label. Two years later, Ostgut Ton ("Ostgut Sound") released its first CD: Berghain 01mixed by Andre Galluzzi.

The relationship between Berghain and Ostgut Ton is brought to new heights onFünf, which uses field recordings from within the club as source material for new productions. Spanning two unmixed CDs, the compilation boasts 24 previously unreleased tracks by most of Berghain and Panorama Bar's residents, plus new tunes by Emika, recent signing Ryan Elliott and Murat Tepeli with Elif Bicer. Resident Advisor caught up with him at his office within Berghain itself, and Hoppner gave them the rest of the scoop on Funf:

What can you tell me about the concept behind the compilation?

Well, it wasn't really my idea. I was thinking about our five-year anniversary compilation already a year ago. I didn't like the thought of doing it like everyone else–maybe a mix through the back catalog and a few exclusive new tracks by some key artists... I wanted something more special. Then a while ago I met Ema Jolly, she’s making music herself on Ninja Tune, as Emika. We sat together one day last summer and she told me about her last visit to Berghain. It was a regular Sunday morning and she noticed how everything in the building was resonating and vibrating and swinging and humming–she realized that there were lot of sounds coming from the building itself. That led to the idea of doing field recordings within the building while it's not open to the public. She had access to everything, the cooling rooms, storage rooms, the PA rooms... Our in-house technicians helped her mic the lighting rigs, they recorded the strobelight flashing, the fridges humming... They recorded impulse responses in the space of Berghain and built a reverb plug-in from that. It took about two or three weeks, then she took home tons of rough field recordings and edited them down to a library which she organized into different groups: downstairs, cloakroom, toilets, water, glasses, swings... whatever she has recorded... It was a four gigabyte library.

How strictly did the artists stick to that sound-bank when they were producing their tracks?

Some more, some less. We’ve got a few tracks where you can hardly tell, but every track contains a sound from the club one way or another. The tracks by Marcel Dettmann and Magaret Dygas, for example, rely on the sounds to a very big extend and it really shows. Then you’ve got other tracks where they have just put some hums in the sampler and tuned it and pitched it and copied so it's kind of turned into a pad that sounds like a regular synthesizer. We didn’t place any restrictions on the use of it, we just said "take these sounds and do something with it."

Why was that concept important for the compilation?

People always talk about how the club influences the music, so it was interesting to see what kind of music you can actually make with sounds from the club, you know ? It’s kind of a play on the relationship between the architecture and the label and the really close relationship of the label and the club itself.

Berghain and Ostgut Ton have both become a lot more popular over the past two or three years. How has that affected the label?

I don't think it's really affected the content of the label. It's up to our artist completely. Whatever they wanna do, they do, I hardly ever intervene, I was never in a situation where I had to say "Sorry you can’t do that." Basically our concept is more of a social one than an aesthetic one. The idea was to set up the label as a platform for our resident artists, and that's what we’re still doing... Of course what has changed is that we are putting out a lot more music these days and there is a lot more work and responsibility and deadlines to meet. It has become more of a business. I would say that everyone is feeling some sort of pressure, but not in a negative way. It’s just there. We have to try to keep the good work and that’s basically it!

The label has been expanding out from the club a bit recently, for instance you've had label nights in Tokyo and at Space and the quarterly residency at the Bunker. Is that just an experiment something that you think will continue?

Part of it is an experiment I would say, but I’m not so familiar with the thought behind the booking policy. I don't think that we would expand to a huge extent. But the relationship with the Bunker for example is something that will go on. It’s a very nice working relationship with the people promoting it and everyone who has played there really really enjoyed it. So I don't see why this should stop any time soon. And the rest... yeah I don’t know. I’m sure people from the club and the label will continue to travel to Japan but I don’t know about regular residencies or label nights. At the moment it’s kind of a new phase where a lot of possibilities open up, but we’re aware of the traps of it.

So even though you're expanding, Berghain the resident DJs will always be the foundation of the label?

Oh totally. You know, I could have found so many great artists already because people give me amazing music all the time, but we have to turn it down because we have so many in-house artists and it’s hard to meet everyone’s needs. More of our residents are producing their own music now, like nd_Baumecker is about to release a collaboration with with Sam Barker, AKA Voltek, and he wants to continue to do music for us, so that's another artist we have in our family now. Tama Sumo is starting to do her own stuff--so far she only did music with Prosumer, but she has her first solo track on the compilation. Boris also has his first solo track on the compilation and I guess sooner or later they will do their own 12-inches for the label. So yeah, I think it will always stay within the family. And of course, I mean, even if everyone of us enjoys playing parties abroad in different cities I think all agree that playing here in Panorama Bar and Berghain is still one of the best thing that ever happened to us. There is no place like home (laughs). I don’t see what that should change.

A lot of clubs and labels have been suffering in the past few years, due partly to the economy and the state of the vinyl market. Have Berghain and Ostgut Ton felt any effects from this at all?

I’m not the right person to talk about the economics behind the club, but just from what I’m feeling I don’t think so to be honest. The place is full most of the time, but I'm not sure... Speaking for the label, I can say that vinyl sales for us are still a bit higher than for other labels I’m aware of, but it’s constantly going down. It’s not getting better. It’s slowly but surely getting worst, and the digital doesn’t really make up for it. We’re not losing money, but we’re not making a lot of money either.

Are there any other releases in the pipeline that you can reveal at this time?

Yes. We've got the debut of nd_Baumecker with Sam Barker coming up in three weeks. At the end of September there will be a new Marcel Fengler 12-inch, then in November it's a Ben Klock 12-inch. At the end of January, early February probably we’ll do Steffi's debut album. And new Panorama Bar mix by Prosumer next year, then a Marcel Fengler Berghain mix CD. Probably a new album with Luke Slater at the end of 2011 and the rest is still to be thought about.

Five years on, what are the label's long term ambitions?

I think the long term ambition is to stay interesting and relevant with the concept we are following. People are very picky and choosy and their music. Everyone has his tastes and a very high standard of quality. Just maintaining this level of quality is our ambition I guess. Keep it interesting, and whatever that might actually mean remains to be seen. I don't know where we'll actually be in 10 years. Of course I hope we will be here but whatever happens in between in the meantime… I don’t know. We’ll try our best, that’s for sure.
Fünf will also be available as a pack of seven 12-inches, though some tracks are exclusive to the CD release. Naturally, the compilation will be launched with a weekend-long bash at Berghain and Panorama Bar, featuring many of the label's core artists, including Shed, Marcel Dettmann, Steffi, Prosumer, Tama Sumo and more.

Tracklist
CD1
01. Emika - Cooling Room
02. Marcel Fengler - Shiraz
03. Prosumer - Daybreak
04. Substance - Gestalts
05. Ryan Elliott - Abatis
06. Nick Höppner - ISP
07. Marcel Dettmann - Shelter
08. Fiedel - Doors To Manual
09. Shed - Boom Room
10. Steffi - My Room
11. Dinky - Twelve To Four
12. Len Faki - Kraft Und Licht

CD2
01. Barker & Baumecker - Drin
02. Marcel Dettmann - Scourer
03. SCB – Down Moment
04. Tama Sumo – Iron Glance
05. Murat Tepeli feat. Elif Biçer – Hold On
06. Soundstream – Wenn Meine Mutti Wüsste
07. Cassy – Never Give Up On A Mood Swing
08. Ben Klock – Bear
09. Norman Nodge – Start Up
10. Luke Slater – Boom Tang Shwuck
11. Boris - Rem
12. Margaret Dygas – Qunitet

Fünf will be released on Ostgut Ton on the 25th October 2010. Keep up to date with Ostgut Ton via their Website and on their Myspace page

Wednesday 18 August 2010

19.454.18.5.25.5.18 - Horizontal Ground 06

The next release from our favourite mystery label, Horizontal Ground is set for release at the end of August / early September.

You can check out samples of the tracks from the following links


Upon release this will be available from the usual outlets. More info on 19.454.18.5.25.5.18 can be found on his Myspace Page

Wednesday 11 August 2010

Mix Of The Day: SCB @ Sub:stance 2nd Birthday, Panoramabar (9th July 10)

The 9th July 2010 saw Sub:stance turn 2. The line up was incredible, filled out with names like Appleblim, Mala, Mount Kimble, Monolake (Live) and of course SCB. If it hadn't of been for Slash Dot Dash being held on the very next night, we would of put serious consideration into lining Ryanairs pockets some more to get ourselves out to Berlin.

We was gutted to miss it. But thankfully Paul Rose, the man behind Hotflush Recordings and one of the leading figures in dubstep, was kind enough to record his set from his techno infiltrating pseudonym for our listen pleasure. It doesn't come close to making up for not being there in person, but it's a start.

The mix can be downloaded from the following link


More info on Scuba, SCB and Hotflush can be found through these links

Slash Dot Dash pres. Samuli Kemppi (Live) & Milton Bradley @ The Rhythm Factory, 13th Nov 10

It's probably about time we announced details of our next event......... so here it is

Slash Dot Dash is going back to its' roots, back to where it all began 3 years ago with that amazing night at The Rhythm Factory.

We may be getting all nostalgic over the venue but as usual we're staying at the very front of cutting edge underground techno. And to do this we're flying in a couple of firsts.

A live set from Samuli Kemppi and a DJ set from Milton Bradley have never been heard across London soundsystems.......... until now!

The rest of the line up will, of course, be filled by our residents, XI and Chris Stanford.

The flyer and more details will be coming soon, but until then you can occupy yourselves, and saving a few quid at the same time by picking up your £10 early bird tickets which can be found on the Resident Advisor Event Page

And of course more info on the artists can be found here

Monday 9 August 2010

Mix Of The Day: Cio D'Or - Resident Advisor Podcast 219

An excellent new addition to the Resident Advisor Podcast series this week from Cio D'Or. After spending a long time at the forefront of electronic dance music Cio Dorbandt finds herself as one of the scenes' most knowledgeable and talented djs / producers around. A firm favourite of ours at Slash Dot Dash, Cio had recent releases on Prologue, Kamarouge and Peter Van Hoesens' Time To Express label.

This mix is blend of atmospheric soundscapes and dubbed out beats set across a downtempo structure. Featuring tracks from Milton Bradley, Xhin, Margaret Dygas, Perc and plenty from Cio D'or herself.


Cio D'Or - Autumnwinds - RA podcast exclusive
Murcof - Rostro - The Leaf Label
Xhin - Seed - Stroboscopic Artefacts
Milton Bradley - Somewhere Beyond My Illusion - Prologue
Heartthrob - Valentine - M-nus
Monolake - Zero Gravity - Monolake
C-Olvrin - Walk at Night in the Misty Woods - Unreleased
Monolake - Infinitive Snow - Imbalance
Margaret Dygas - 37 min to 7 - Non Standard Productions
Milton Bradley - Uncontrallable Desire - Do Not Resist The Beat!
Monolake - Observatory - Imbalance
Terence Fixmer - Electric City (Function Rmx) - Electric Deluxe
Perc - BGG (Milton Bradley / Bejond The Silence Mix) - Perc Trax
Xhin - Key - Stroboscopic Artefacts
Murcof - Memoria - The Leaf Label
Milton Bradley - Sector X - Unreleased
Cio D'Or - Organza (Milton Bradley Rmx) - Prologue
Monolake - Ionized - Monolake
Milton Bradley - Last Flight To Cologne - Do Not Resist The Beat!
Donor - Remainder - Stroboscopic Artefacts
Marcel Dettmann - Silex - Ostgut Ton
Sleeparchive - Infared Glow - Sleeparchive
Xhin - B-Link - Stroboscopic Artefacts
Obtane - Twilight Observer - Unreleased
Perc - BGG (Milton Bradley Critical Level Mix) - Perc Trax
Cio D'Or - Goldbrokat (Donato Dozzy Techno Rmx) - Prologue
Cio D'Or - Goldbrokat - Prologue
Cio D'Or - Goldbrokat (Donato Dozzy Ambient Rmx) - Prologue

There's a interesting interview to accompany the mix which can be found on Resident Advisor. An make sure you check out the official Cio D'Or Myspace Page for more info and upcoming dates