For the first party, the line up is stella as always. Headlined by Antony 'Shake' Shakir with support from a Mystery Guest, A Made Up Sound (aka 2562), Inigo Kennedy and a few others (check the flyer above) spread across the two rooms. Tickets are still available through Resident Advisor, although it sounds like there's not many left, so don't hang about. You can find the rest of the event info on RA too.
To keep tabs on all of Plex's movements you can 'Like' their Facebook Fan Page or follow them on Twitter
First up tonight it's one of our favourite Berlin promotions, Dystopian with their event tonight at Arena Club, headlined by our previous SDD guest, Redshape. Their last event featured UK producer, Sigha, and they're continuing to give the UK techno scene some more love this time with Shifted. Fachwerk Records artist Roman Lindau and Dystopian resident, Rødhåd complete the line up. Doors open at midnight. Full info can be found on Resident Advisor Event Page
Next up we return to London and believe it or not, Redshape appears again. It's going to be a busy weekend for the masked wonder as he headlines Bread & Butter's next event at Basing House. He'll be joined on the night by a selection of B&B residents and special guests. Tickets are still available on Resident Advisor otherwise it'll be more on the door.
To get you in the mood for this one check out Shed's superb Wax Treatment Podcast 030. We gave it a listen yesterday and it's seriously epic. Doors open on Sunday at 8pm, more info can be found on the Resident Advisor Event Page
Today's Mix Of The Day comes from our first Techno Sundays headliner, Henning Baer. Clearly the Grounded Theory boss has be gaining a fair bit of attention. We've handed him his UK debut in March, Adam X's Sonic Groove label will be releasing an EP from him later in the year, Tea and Techno listed him as one of their 'Ones To Watch For 2012' and, finally, Droid Behaviour asked him to contribute to their D-Node Podcast Series.
Henning mixes up tracks by Function, Shifted, Morphosis and more in this dark interpretation of forward thinking Techno. You can download the mix from the following link
For the rest of these excellent podcasts and more information of Droid Behaviour, check out their Website. More info on Henning can be found on his Facebook Fan Page. As we mentioned at the start of the post, Henning will be making his UK Debut for Slash Dot Dash on the 11th March. For more info and pre sale tickets head over to the Resident Advisor Event Page
Slash Dot Dash return to bring in a new era of Sunday clubbing in London. For too long the only options available to the Sunday clubber has been house, house, house (with a bit of this new wave disco thrown in the pot too). But finally proper underground Techno has found it's way on to the Sunday scene and it's not a moment too soon!
We've got plenty more info on the event and our guests coming soon so keep an eye out. As for now pre sale tickets are available from Resident Advisor and you can also check out the Facebook Event Page. More info on Henning Baer can be found on his Facebook Fan Page. For Truss, you can like him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter
We told you last week that there was plenty of incredible line ups on the way from Copenhagen nightspot, Culture Box. Kicking off with last weekends Fachwerk Night and continuing this weekend with the visit of Blueprint Records boss, James Ruskin.
Ruskin is no stranger to techno fans. Performing in clubs worldwide, producing seminal techno records as himself, with Regis as O/V/R and with Mark Broom as The Fear Ratio and promoting his own Blueprint Records parties in London's Cable club, he does it all. And whatever he does is always stamped with the highest quality. The parties he threw in London last year made up some of our very best nights out!
Supporting James on the night is the Danish duo, and Slash Dot Dash favourites, of Resoe and Kenneth Christiansen known as Pattern Repeat. With their 5th release on the way on their own self titled label, you know something special will be on the way.
If you're in Berlin on Friday we strongly recommend you get yourselves to Suicide Circus to check out the sounds of one of our favourite labels from 2011, Prologue Records. Label boss Tom Bonaty will be joined by Cassegrain (Live) and Neel from 'Voices From The Lake' fame.
Ok so yesterdays Mix Of The Day saw the first part of Norman Nodge's opening set @ Berghain on Saturday (get it here). And since we posted that one, he's since uploaded parts 2 and 3 so to complete the set, here they are too
We've just spotted this on Soundcloud, uploaded by the man himself, Norman Nodge. This is the first two hours from his four hour opening set from Saturdays Klubnacht @ Berghain. As the mix is titled part 1, it could well mean that part 2 will be along anytime soon. We'll have to wait and see.
Norman was joined by fellow Berghain resident Marcel Fengler, John Selway and a live set from Grounded Theory artists, Vault Series (Live). Check out the set below...
If you want to see Norman Nodge performing at a club near you, he'll be playing at Hive Club in Switzerland on Saturday (RA), then back in Berghain on the 4th Feb (RA), Amsterdam on the 11th Feb (RA) or all you Londoners can come join us in Room 2 @ fabric on the 11th Feb as he's joined by Ben Klock (RA).
For all the rest of the info on Norman's gigs and releases head over to his Facebook Fan Page
Our friends at Culture Box in Denmark's capital, Copenhagen, have been putting together some incredible line ups for 2012.... and this is the first of many.
You will all of heard of Fachwerk Records, Mike Dehnert and Roman Lindau. Along with Sascha Rydell, Mike and Roman have been cementing their position as one of the most respected collectives in techno today. They will be taking over Culture Box's main room to display why they're so highly rated by clubbers and industry types alike.
There's no tickets for this one so turn up and pay on the door. The party will kick off at 11pm. Any other info you could need can be found on the RA Event Page. To find out what's coming up at Culture Box, check out their Website and more info on Fachwerk Records can be found on their Facebook Fan Page
Marcel Dettmann has been sharing the love around of late. Recent months have seen him release on Ostgut Ton and 50 Weapons, remix for Delsin Records and produce a DJ compilation CD, 'Conducted', for Music Man Records. It's for this final legendary label that Dettmann drops his latest offering.
After choosing not to select any of his own work on 'Conducted' Marcel decided to put together a special EP to follow up the compilation. 'Landscape' is a sparse drifter of a record. Ambient styled synth patterns perfectly compliment the industrial grating. Those of you that have seen the 'Conducted' tracklisting will recognise the name of the remixer on this EP, Answer Code Request. After releasing their debut single towards the end of last year, Marcel invited his close friend to go to work on 'Landscape'. The result of this being bass heavy, disjointed and ferocious is all the right ways.
The EP is scheduled for release on the 23rd Jan. Decks.de already have it on presale. Make sure you don't miss out. For more info on Music Man Records check out their Website. As for Marcel, head over to his Facebook Fan Page
'Im Dunkeln' basically means 'In The Dark' and we couldn't think of a better place to be when these four DJs are taking to the turntables. A mighty fine selection from the most forward thinking techno producers in the world.
Andy Stott has been wowing listeners relentlessly with a string of releases on the Manchester based label Modern Love. This has lead to a number of bookings at some of the best venues around Europe. Those who made it to the Plex / Colony / Machine party at Corsica Studios will know how much damage he did in Room 2.
Peter Van Hoesen is a name that will be familiar to followers of our blog. As a DJ, Producer and boss of the Time To Express label, he's one of the most respected names in the business. We've been lucky enough to witness his sets in London on numerous occasions over the past few years and everyone has been exceptional.
As with PVH, Milton Bradley is another name that needs no introduction to our blog readers. The man behind one of our favourite imprints, Do Not Resist The Beat!, as well as The End Of All Existence and his new venture with Henning Baer, K209. Milton's droning, experimental sound manipulation and attention to detail have made him stand out as a real talent.
Completing the line up is another Modern Love artist. MLZ. This talented producer has been building his name around the scene releasing some serious dub techno on Modern Love and remixing for Time To Express, Perc Trax, Mikrowave and a few more. We expect more big things to come.
Doors open at Horst Krzbrg tomorrow night at 23:30pm and entrance will set you back 10 euros. There's no tickets (there never is in Berlin) so pay when you get there. You can check out the Facebook Event Page for more info. Also while you at it check out the artists Fan pages
It's very rare that 19.454.18.5.25.5.18 hits that big red record button. Before now we've only been blessed with two studio mixes, the first being his epic Resident Advisor Podcast 201 which made us realise we had to bring him to London, which leads us to his second mix which he kindly recorded for us that went out as our Slash Dot Dash Podcast 003.
With 19.454.18.5.25.5.18 it's most definitely quality over quantity, and for his third mix in the space of two years he lends his considerable abilities to Field Records to contribute to their Field Recordings Podcast series and he doesn't let them down. An hour of dark techno to send judders down your spine with a mixture of heavyweight beats and subtle melodies.
You can get the mix either but clicking on this Download Link or you can stream / download from the player below.
As is always the case with 19.454.18.5.25.5.18 everything is shrouded in mystery so there's no tracklist available. There's a few in there you'll recognise but a few you most definitely won't, so happy hunting. More info on Field Records can be found on their Facebook Fan Page and the same goes for 19.454.18.5.25.5.18 with his Facebook Fan Page
2011 was a very good year for Kontra Musik. Jonsson / Alter's album 'Mod' was one of our favourite albums of the year. As was Mokira's 'Time Axis Manipulation project. Add to that singles from Marcel Dettmann, Kondens and remixes from Redshape, Silent Servant, Echospace, Substance and Move D and you can see why we've rated the Swedish label as one of our best from 2011.
2012 kicks off in the same vein with the first release on the label for Rivet. Gaining critical acclaim for his remix of Kowton he was quickly snapped up by Kontra Musik and put to work. The results are three excellent dancefloor centered tracks, two originals and a remix from Ostgut's Marcel Fengler . 'Metrist' is a chunky groove that combines techno with old school disco vibes over a warbling, distorted bassline. Fengler's interpretation of 'Metrist' makes for one of those late night moments. Synth notes delicately drift over the top of solid 4/4s. Rivet wraps things up with 'Sleepwalker'. Broken beats and ghostly vocals stir up emotions of bliss. Check out the samples below.
The EP will be in the shops at the end of this month. For more info on Kontra Musik, their releases and artists you can check out their Website, Facebook Fan Page or you can follow them on Twitter
January, fabric, Sandwell District. It's a combination we're getting familiar with. In 2010, on the second Saturday of the year, Regis and Function took on Room 2 with a mission to remove all those Christmas cobwebs and announce that the new year was here with a giant bang (well 3 hours of giants bangs to be precise). This Saturday is the second Saturday of this year, and guess what...? Sandwell District are back!
It's been an uncertain few weeks for Sandwell District fans after a slightly confusing post on their Tumblr Page, explaining how the label was going to cease audio communications from 31st Dec 11. Unfortunately for us this means that there will be no more releases from the label, instead the collective planning to spend their time working on their own projects. But one thing that won't be stopped is the live performances!
Joining them will be fellow Berlin residents, Ostgut's Barker & Baumecker with a special live set and fabric long timer, Terry Francis. The main room plays host to a Superfreq riot whilst Air London will be in charge of Room 3.
Tickets for Saturday's party are still available through Resident Advisor, or you can check out the fabric website for more info.
To kick off 2012 we bring you our first podcast of the year from a very special talent, Mick Finesse. To coincide with his first release on one of our very favourite labels, Perc Trax, we invited Mick to display his considerable DJ talents and become a welcome addition to our series.
Since 1999 he's been DJ'ing and promoting in a number of worldwide locations including Toyko and Boston, but it's in his current home town of Denver where he's a leading figure in an ever growing techno scene. It's this pedigree which is evident in both his work as a producer and a DJ.
The well structured mix slowly shifts your mind state as it progresses through dark textured layers of suspense and intensity before spitting you out at the other end in a wash of relentless droning techno. This mix delivers a perfect representation of the sound of Slash Dot Dash so we're extremely pleased to have Mick as part of Slash Dot Dash.
You can download the podcast either by subscribing to our series in iTunes or you can follow, download, stream and or comment through the Soundcloud player below
After he sent us over the mix we caught up with Mick to find about more about his history, his work and what we can expect from the year ahead...
1) How did you see in the new year?
Quietly. Stayed in with my wife and had a nice little toast and reflection on the past year with our newborn son. It was nice.
2) How did you get into DJ’ing and producing?
When I was in the US Navy and stationed in Japan in 1999 I ran into a group of guys that were into all kinds of music ranging from epic trance to drum & bass. We'd all go out partying all weekend in Tokyo at places like Liquid Room and Club Yellow and developed a little ritual of spending our Sundays in Cisco Records in Shibuya spending the last bits of cash we had on vinyl.
I was very big into drum & bass / jungle at the time and was buying loads of Virus, Metalheadz, 31 Records and the like. We turned this collection of records into a Thursday night weekly in Yokosuka at a very small bar called Planet Earth. None of us really knew how to DJ well and it was messy and extremely varietal in selection, but we all learned a lot and had fun doing it.
Producing didn't come until much later and me giving up djing and d&b out of frustration and stagnation around 2006. I bought Logic and played a load of terrible productions to the dismay of my friends and family over the years as I learned.
3) Your latest release on Perc Trax is out soon, how did that come about?
I think with extreme luck and little bit of persistence. I was sending about techno demos anywhere I could and one day I had a reply from Ali ( Perc ) for the track 'They Sex Machinas'. Originally it was intended to be just the one track with a Perc remix, but he ended up being tied down working on his album and unable to finish the remix for some time. I just kept sending him more stuff and the release evolved into the Tunnel Vision EP.
I want to add that Ali has been great to work with through the process and is very insightful and helpful to new artists like myself. He has a focused resolve on where he wants Perc Trax to be but he finds a way to make the artists' and the labels' vision work together. I'm pretty grateful at the opportunity to be on his label with such a stable of great artists.
4) You’ve done a fair bit of travelling, what brought you to Denver and what’s the scene like there?
My wife has family here and after she finished college at the Rhode Island School of Design she made the call to set up shop in Denver.
Denver is really proving itself to the world on its techno chops in the past couple years. We had our first multi-day all-techno festival in the Great American Techno Festival this past fall ( which aligned with the staple craft beer event Great American Beer Festival ) bringing all techno headliners like Audio Injection / Truncate, Tony Rohr, and Derek Plaslaiko to name a few. We have a few different groups pulling headliners every couple of weeks it seems like and even the big nightclub here Beta, which is associated with Beatport, is on board and bringing techno in on occasion too. This is a big transition from just 2-3 years ago where small groups of locals would compete at smaller venues and headliners were not profitable to bring in as often.
We have a nice little community of producers here doing big things in their own right such as John Templeton at Emote, The Missing Link, and Daegon. We're seeing a solid amount of growth in talent and numbers so I'm highly optimistic for the future of techno in Denver.
5) Finally what’s in the pipeline for 2012?
For now there's a release due on Prosthetic Pressings in the same vein of broken-beat industrial and ambient flavored techno. I'm also working on some stuff for Broken20 which I'm very excited about and happy to have another proper outlet for my more experimental tendencies and be bit less worried about the techno side of things.
Here we have the new release from Darko Esser's label, Balans. After releases from Rod, The Parallel, Betek and Dimi Angelis & Jereon Search it's time for the boss to take over. The release features one original track with two remixes by Peter Van Hoesen and Sandwell District and as you would expect, all three consist of the highest quality techno. Esser brings twisted acid, PVH takes a more restrained, stripped back view whilst Sandwell District up the atmospherics and make use of the bass frequencies. Check out the samples below.
The release will be in the shops around the middle of February and will be available on vinyl and digital. More info on Balans can be found on their Facebook Fan Page and the same goes for Darko Esser.
First off let us start by wishing you all a great New Year and hope you all had a Christmas that was full of fun and general good times all round. We've had a couple of much needed weeks off but now it's time to crack on again. And we've got something very special to kick start the year off.
Back in October last year, at Berghain, the collaboration of DJ Pete and Sleeparchive, known as TR-101, came together for a very rare live set. It was recorded and sent over to Resident Advisor to be added to what is one of the most consistent dance music podcasts around.
The short interview reveals how the pair have no plans to release a record as TR-101 as the joy of the project comes fully from live performances, so unless you get a chance to catch one of their infrequent live sets, this is one of the few times you'll actually be able experience the analog freestyle sessions from the two techno giants.
You can download the mix directly or subscribe to the series through iTunes by using the links below
2011 was a hell of a year for Plex. Their three parties at Corsica Studios saw a whole host of names take the stage including Surgeon, Perc, Ancient Methods, Delta Funktionen, Morphosis, Sigha and more. 2012 looks like it's going to be more of the same...
