Agoria - Impermanence

Set for release in February, Impermanence is the delicious new LP collection from French DJ and producer Agoria aka Sebastien Devaud.

Agoria was first introduced to electronic music via Kevin Saunderson’s classic Good Life playing on his local radio station at home in rural France back in 1988 and set out on a mission to save enough money to purchase his first 12″ of the track.

Fast forward to 1999 and Agoria was making the music himself, producing and releasing his own material and in 2002 he gained international recognition with the release of a series of 12″s on Pias Recordings.

His acclaimed album Blossom followed in 2003 and since then he has released two more long-players The Green Armchair (2006) and soundtrack Go Fast (2008), all showcasing Agoria’s talent for creating deep, stripped-back, melodic, techno tracks.

This rare talent holds good today and on his latest LP Impermanence, Agoria appears to have found himself through his own music, saying; “For the first time, I have complete freedom in creating my music, I don’t have the feeling any longer of having to work within certain boundaries and the result sounds more like me.”

The new album opens with a track so sparse it is almost bare, serving as a gentle introduction to the vocals of Kid A, a twenty year old female singer from Virginia who is the album’s biggest discovery with her Bjork like delivery.

Other contributors on the album are Berlin based DJ Seth Troxler, attempting his best sexy whisper in inviting the listener to ‘allow yourself to drift.’

Carl Craig makes an appearance voice wise on the more upbeat track Speechless, which frankly doesn’t quite work in the same way as say Isaac Hayes or possibly Seth Troxler’s voice might have done with its supposedly sexy lyrics.

But don’t let that spoil the LP for you, there is plenty to applaud on this excellent collection, not least the introduction of Kid A on the scene on an album that is both intimate and alluring.

AGORIA – IMPERMANENCE – LP – Infine (France) – Release Feb 2011

01- Kiss My Soul 02- Souless Dreamer 03- Panta Rei 04- Simon 05- Speechless 06- Grande Torino 07- Heart Beating 08- Little Shaman 09- Under the river 10- Libellules

Agoria Tour Dates:

15-Jan-11 – London – Fabric
22-Jan-11 – Zouk – Singapore
29-Jan-11 – Ageha – Tokyo (Japan)
03-Feb-11 – Velvet – Clermont Ferrand (France)
04-Feb-11 – Transbordeur – Lyon (France)
05-Feb-11 – Rex club – Paris (France)
11-Feb-11 – Barcelona (Spain)
12-Feb-11 – Madrid (Spain)
18-Feb-11 – London (United Kingdom) TBC
19-Feb-11 – Panorama Bar – Berlin (Germany)
25-Feb-11 – Room 26 – Rome (Italy)
26-Feb-11 – Tunnel – Milan ( Italy )
04-Mar-11 – Pratersauna – Vienna (Austria)
05-Mar-11 – Trouw – Amsterdam (Holland)
12-Mar-11 – Libertine Supersport – Brussels (Belgium)
17-Mar-11 – San Francisco (united States) – TBC
18-Mar-11 – King King, LA (United States)
19-Mar-11 – New York – (United States) – TBC
25-Mar-11 – USA TBC
26-Mar-11 – USA TBC
01-Apr-11 – L’Espace – Rennes (France)
02-Apr-11 – France
15-Apr-11 – Gaité Lyrique – Paris (France)
16-Apr-11 – Festival Des Giboulées – Le Creusot (France)

Groove Armada

Surprise favourites from this summer’s festival season, Groove Armada - Andy Cato and Tom Findlay – have responded to fans pleas by releasing the stirring club anthem History as part of a four track EP.

A yearning, sophisticated highlight from their latest studio album Black Light, History features Andy’s good friend Will Young on guest vocals adding classic pop quality to their already expansive and ambitious repertoire.

Released as a digital EP and complimented with remixes from Ministry Of Sound signing Grum, DFA’s Still Goin’ and ALiVE head honcho Tom Budden, the single comes on the back of a string of festival dates across the UK and Europe where Groove Armada play new live reworkings of all of Black Light’s tracks.

The premiere of these versions received an ecstatic response at Glastonbury, prompting an online tsunami of interest and making Groove Armada the most tweeted band at the festival. These exciting versions will form the back-bone of GA’s summer festival appearances and their September/October tour of Australia and the UK.

The track listing for the digital EP of ‘History’ is:
1. History
2. Grum Remix
3. Still Goin’ Remix
4. Tom Budden Remix

Groove Armada Live Dates:

September
Sun 19th IBIZA, We Love Space Sunday (DJ set)
Sat 25th AUSTRALIA, Parklife Gold Coast
Sun 26th AUSTRALIA, Parklife Perth

October
Sat 2nd AUSTRALIA, Parklife Melbourne
Sun 3rd AUSTRALIA, Sydney
Mon 4th AUSTRALIA, Parklife Adelaide
Thu 7th LEEDS, O2 Academy
Fri 8th GLASGOW, O2 Academy
Sat 9th MANCHESTER, Academy
Mon 11th NORWICH, UEA
Tue 12th BRISTOL, O2 Academy
Thu 14th BIRMINGHAM, O2 Academy
Fri 15th LONDON, O2 Academy Brixton (7pm-11pm)
Sat 16th LONDON, O2 Academy Brixton (9pm-3am)

Digweed & Muir - Satellite/Meteor

The old master John Digweed is back with collaborator Nick Muir for this two track single from Digweed’s Bedrock label, creating another monster that threatens to push the boundaries of dance music to new dimensions.

Sneak previews of both tracks, Satellite and Meteor, can be heard on John Digweed’s double CD Structures, where he has utilised beats and breakdown FX versions in his mix.

Both tracks are now released in their full glory on this double header.  Satellite features a massive heads down house groove that develops into an ear splitting anthemic breakdown that simply puts a silly grin on your face before the track chugs to a standstill.

For those who prefer a non stop locked-down groove, Meteor develops the loop patterns further, creating an unrelenting energetic alternative that layers on the pressure to maximum effect.

Between them Digweed & Muir have shown yet again that they are not prepared to rest on their laurels and on this double header they are once again developing their sounds and skills in an exciting direction.

John Digweed & Nick Muir
A. Satellite 09:04
B. Meteor 07:46
(Bedrock) Bed92
12” & Beatport Exclusive  – 02/08/10

John Digweed Tour dates:

Tue, 17 Aug – The Revolution Continues with Carl Cox at Space / Ibiza, Spain
Fri, 27 Aug – Be at Space / Ibiza, Spain
Sat, 28 Aug – SW4 Weekender 2010: Day One / London, UK
Sun, 29 Aug – Nic Fanciulli presents Saved Sundays at Source Bar / UK
Sun, 05 Sep – Electric Zoo 2010 – Day 2 at Randall’s Island / New York, USA

For more information visit the Bedrock website.

Radio 1’s Jaguar Skills ‘Smash Up!’ UK Tour

Radio 1’s resident mixologist Jaguar Skills will be hitting the road this autumn for his much anticipated and eagerly awaited ‘Smash Up!’ Tour.

Taking in 12 dates throughout September and October, the original Ninja will be wowing crowds up and down the UK with his now legendary lightning-quick mixing and mash-up skills.

The exponential rise of Jaguar Skills continues with the ‘Smash Up!’ tour offering the opportunity to witness one of his mesmerising and mystical mixes.

The summer season has been hectic for Jaguar Skills as he has been smashing his way through the UK festival period, keeping Ibiza on its toes, showing off his encyclopaedic musical knowledge on Huey Morgan’s 6Music show, demonstrating his versatility with his ‘History of Drum N Bass’ and ‘Ayia Napa’ mixes for Radio 1, and also a series on conceptual mixes around themes such as stress and sex.

The forthcoming tour is the place to catch Jag draw on all these musical influences and skills as he launches an aural assault on your eardrums with music of every tempo, from hip-hop to drum n bass, and everything in-between.

And with tickets for some of these gigs already sold out you will have to be ninja-quick if want to catch Jaguar Skills in action.

Smash Up! Tour dates

18th September – Nottingham Stealth
19th September – Sheffield University
23rd September – Bristol O2 Academy 2
26th September – Cardiff University
27th September – Birmingham Custard Factory – Sold Out
29th September – Keele University – Sold Out
30th September – Norwich UEA – Sold Out

1st October – Southampton Orange Rooms
8th October – Manchester Deaf Institute
9th October – Loughborough University
12th October – Portrush Lush!
15th October – London O2 Academy Islington

Zombie disco Squad appearing at Lovebox photo: York Wegerhof

2010 Rizla curators Grandmaster Flash, Hot Chip and Toddla T head to the legendary Rizla Arena at Lovebox.

Rizla’s second party for 2010 sees them return to Lovebox for possibly the best inner city festival in the world. After smashing it last year, Rizla couldn’t resist taking the famous Rizla van back to one of the coolest areas in London, Victoria Park.

From 16th – 18th July the Rizla curators, Grandmaster Flash, Hot Chip and Toddla T will each be programming a day at Lovebox, and have carefully selected an outstanding line up that is sure to give the Rizla Funktion-One Sound System the workout it deserves.

On Friday we see Radio 1’s In New DJs We Trust presenter Toddla T picking a heavyweight line-up that includes one of the godfathers of the UK garage sound, Todd Edwards, the Zombie Disco Squad who are residents at the notorious Panorama bar in Berlin, and Cooly G one of the freshest stars of the UK funky scene and a semi-pro footballer to boot.

Saturday sees hip-hop legend Grandmaster Flash host Soul II Soul’s Jazzie B, critically acclaimed hip-hop producers The Nextmen, reggae renegades the Trojan Sound System and don’t forget (your ear plugs) Hip-Hop Karaoke.

The final day of the festival will see Hot Chip taking over the reins and booking two of Chicago’s house legends, Derrick Carter and Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers to play music all night long…say what?

Confirmed Line up of the Rizla Arena @ Lovebox Festival 2010

Friday 16th July – hosted by Toddla T

14.00 – 16.00                   Cooly G
16.00 – 17.30                  Sticky + The Heatwave ft Lady Chann
17.30 – 19.00                  Zombie Disco Squad
19.00 – 20.30                  Toddla T and MC Serocee
20.30 – 22.00                  Todd Edwards

Saturday 17th July – hosted by Grandmaster Flash

12.00 – 13.00                  Heavenly Jukebox presents HVN JBX
13.00 – 15.00                  Hip Hop Karaoke
15.00 – 16.30                  Trojan Sound system
16.30 – 18.30                  The Nextmen
18.30 – 20.30                  Jazzie B (Soul II Soul)
20.30 – 22.00                   Grandmaster Flash

Sunday 18th July – hosted by Hot Chip

12.00 – 13.30                  Peter Digital Orchestra (Eklektik – live)
13.30 – 15.30                  2 Bears
15.30 – 17.30                  Hot Chip DJs
17.30 – 19.30                  Derrick Carter
19.30 – 21.30                  Larry Heard

After Lovebox the infamous Rizla Arena will be setting sail on a paddle steamship in Glasgow and London, and launching four bespoke regional events across Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Sheffield. All events are set to be show-piece parties, building on Rizla’s already impeccable reputation as the place to go for great music and party times.

2010 Rizla Curators UK Tour Dates

Lovebox: 16th – 18th July
Glasgow Boat Party – Fri 6th August
London Boat Party – Fri 8th October
Regional event Sankeys Manchester – 26th November
Regional event Rainbow Warehouse Birmingham – 13th November
Regional event Motion Bristol – 20th November
Regional event Plug Sheffield – TBC

For more information visit www.rizla.co.uk

Grandmaster Flash, Hot Chip and Toddla T - Rizla Arena at Lovebox

2010 Rizla curators Grandmaster Flash, Hot Chip and Toddla T head to the legendary Rizla Arena at Lovebox.

In the 1920’s, Rizla toured the UK with a musical van hosting impromptu parties and playing tunes to the masses. As festival pioneers and arguably the originators of pop up raves, Rizla and the van grew in popularity and achieved critical acclaim in local media wherever it travelled.

Ninety years later and Rizla’s second party for 2010 sees them return to Lovebox for possibly the best inner city festival in the world. After smashing it last year, Rizla couldn’t resist taking the famous Rizla van back to one of the coolest areas in London, Victoria Park.

From 16th – 18th July the Rizla curators, Grandmaster Flash, Hot Chip and Toddla T will each be programming a day at Lovebox, and have carefully selected an outstanding line up that is sure to give the Rizla Funktion-One Sound System the workout it deserves.

On Friday we see Radio 1s In New DJs We Trust presenter Toddla T picking a heavyweight line-up that includes one of the godfathers of the UK garage sound, Todd Edwards, the Zombie Disco Squad who are residents at the notorious Panorama bar in Berlin, and Cooly G one of the freshest stars of the UK funky scene and a semi-pro footballer to boot.

Saturday sees hip-hop legend Grandmaster Flash host Soul II Soul’s Jazzie B, critically acclaimed hip-hop producers The Nextmen, reggae renegades the Trojan Sound System and don’t forget (your ear plugs) Hip-Hop Karaoke.

The final day of the festival will see Hot Chip taking over the reins and booking two of Chicago’s house legends, Derrick Carter and Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers to play music all night long…say what?

Confirmed Line up of the Rizla Arena @ Lovebox Festival 2010

Friday 16th July – hosted by Toddla T

14.00 – 16.00                   Cooly G
16.00 – 17.30                  Sticky + The Heatwave ft Lady Chann
17.30 – 19.00                  Zombie Disco Squad
19.00 – 20.30                  Toddla T and MC Serocee
20.30 – 22.00                  Todd Edwards

Saturday 17th July – hosted by Grandmaster Flash

12.00 – 13.00                  Heavenly Jukebox presents HVN JBX
13.00 – 15.00                  Hip Hop Karaoke
15.00 – 16.30                  Trojan Sound system
16.30 – 18.30                  The Nextmen
18.30 – 20.30                  Jazzie B (Soul II Soul)
20.30 – 22.00                   Grandmaster Flash

Sunday 18th July – hosted by Hot Chip

12.00 – 13.30                  Peter Digital Orchestra (Eklektik – live)
13.30 – 15.30                  2 Bears
15.30 – 17.30                  Hot Chip DJs
17.30 – 19.30                  Derrick Carter
19.30 – 21.30                  Larry Heard

After Lovebox the infamous Rizla Arena will be setting sail on a paddle steamship in Glasgow and London, and launching four bespoke regional events across Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol and Sheffield. All events are set to be show-piece parties, building on Rizla’s already impeccable reputation as the place to go for great music and party times.

Rizla Arena Tour Dates:
RockNess: 11th – 13th June
Lovebox: 16th – 18th July
Glasgow Boat Party – Fri 6th August
London Boat Party – Fri 8th October
Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Bristol- October – November

Check out the website for more information and updates: www.rizla.co.uk

Fresh from  heading the Top Billin night at the recent Amsterdam Dance Event, Nobody Beats The Drum are about to embark on their second UK tour in a year.

Hailing from Amsterdam, NBTD fuse together Sjam’s decks, Jori’s keys and Rogier’s visuals into a sensual assault that’s impossible to withstand.. or something like that. Big beats, hard-cuts, heart thumping rhythms and a party atmosphere is what its all about.

This is the new single Purple Cactus – Nobody Beats The Drum

To celebrate the release of their new EP released via UK based digital label Satan’s Circus Nobody Beats The Drum will be appearing at the following UK venues through November:

NOVEMBER
13 – Bangers and Mash – London
14 – Start The Bus – Bristol
19 – Rat & Emu – Dartington
20 – 93 feet east – London
21 – Rat & Emu – Dartington

For more information check the NBTD MySpace page.

M.A.N.D.Y

M.A.N.D.Y make their debut Renaissance appearance on this latest Mix Collection, joining an elite roster of artists who have gone before them.

Heading up the Get Physical label, DJing, producing or compiling mix collections Patrick and Philipp – aka M.A.N.D.Y – are among the finest and most exciting pioneers of electronic music around right now.

The pair have built a reputation for delivering quality, eclecticism and the damn right weird and wonderful, be it at club appearances or on their record releases, a trend that is set to continue with their brilliant and eagerly anticipated Renaissance Mix Collection.

“Eclecticism has always been the key to our approach in selecting tracks for our compilations and the broad brief of ‘The Mix Collection’ enabled us to carry on this way. It’s never an easy process and, as with all our mix comps, this was chosen, edited and produced with blood, sweat, tears as well as a lot of fun and love!”

Eclectic, the album certainly is, Patrick and Philipp have managed to squeeze a massive 44 tracks over the two discs into a beautiful hybrid that flawlessly blends and balances tempos, genres, moods and emotion.

‘Upside Down’ (Disc One) kicks things off and, although it may be the more relaxed mix of the pair, remains true to its audio rollercoaster promise. Be it the ambient intro of Shed and dOP; their own ‘Full Off…’ (a production recorded exclusively for the comp’); the impeccably sequenced mid-section that fuses Lopazz, Sebastien Tellier and Bronnt Industries, or the finale of Schneider TM & Kpt-michi-gan’s Smiths cover – ‘The Light 3000′, this is a body of music that delivers throughout its 70 minutes.

‘Downside Up’ (Disc 2) puts on its dancing shoes, snatches the baton and picks-up the pace, transporting the listener further into M.A.N.D.Y.’s unique musical world. It’s a constantly shifting, yet perfectly poised landscape crafted out of the 27 records that comprise the disc.

Key names such as Peter Kruder, Chromeo, DJ Koze, Martin Buttrich, Felix Da Housecat and Ben Watt rub shoulders before giving way to the inspired inclusion of seminal Miami Bass classic, the aptly titled ‘Bass Generator’. Keen to underline the entire album’s cohesive diversity, things come to fitting close with The Black Dog giving way to the cheeky use of the piano riff from Radio Slave’s take on Hell and P Diddy’s ‘The DJ’ and bonus track ‘What It’s For’ by friends and Get Physical regulars, The Junior Boys.

The Mix Collection by M.A.N.D.Y is released on October 26th.

M.A.N.D.Y Dates:

October 31.10.09 – L.A. sports arena, Los Angeles (CA)

November
05.11.09 – Club 101, El Paso (MX) Philipp
06.11.09 – Escenica, Monterrey (MX) Philipp
06.11.09 – Studio, Würzburg (DE) Patrick
07.11.09 – Moroccos, Juarez (MX) Philipp
14.11.09 – Desertica Festival, Parque Vicente Guerrero, Mexicali (MX)
17.11.09 – Flex, Wien (AT) Patrick
28.11.09 – Get Physical@Cable, London (GB) Patrick

Balance 015 is an epic triple CD mix which immerses itself into a deep electronic landscape of sound and textures, featuring a blend of artists from yesterday’s heroes through to today’s renegades like Burial, Smith & Mighty, Seth Troxler, DJ Koze, Ricardo Villalobos, Junior Boys, Sly & Robbie, Appleblim, Daniel Wang, Hercules & Love Affair, Jordan Fields, Mixmaster Morris and more…

The triple album will be released on October 29th and as a teaser EQ Recordings have just published the full track listings, as follows:
Balance 015 – Will Saul – EQ Recordings

Disc 1
01.  The Irresistible Force – Sunstroke
02.  Smith & Mighty – Anyone (Mellow Mix)
03.  Lawrence – Laid One
04.  Junior Boys – Work
05.  Karma – Beach Towel (I:Cube Cosmix Marathon Remix)
06.  I:Cube – Vacuum Jackers (Maurice Fulton Remix)
07.  Chromatics – In The City
08.  Studio – Life’s A Beach (Todd Terje Beach House Mix)
09.  Dølle Jølle – Balearic Incarnation (Todd Terje’s Extra Døll Mix)
10.  Cage & Aviary – Georgio Carpenter
11.  Daniel Wang – Panoramic (Acid Dub)
12.  Kerrier District – Let’s Dance and Freak
13.  Syclops – NR17
14.  Tensnake – Holding Back My Love
15.  Capracara – King Of The Witches (Rub ‘n’ Tug Remix)
16.  Bostro Pesopeo – Falls (Hercules & Love Affair Remix)
17.  Hercules & Love Affair – You Belong
18.  Sally Shapiro – Jackie Junior (Junior Boys Dub)
19.  I:Cube – Supernovac (Live at the Lanchonete Version)
20.  Recloose – Get There Tonight
21.  Bat For Lashes – Pearl’s Dream

Disc 2
01.  Isolée – I Owe You (Villalobos Remix)
02.  Cortney Tidwell – Palace
03.  DJ Koze – First Snow
04.  Ricardo Villalobos – Minimoonstar
05.  Lawrence – Rabbit Tube – (DJ Koze Remix)
06.  Isolée – Pillow Talk
07.  Konrad Black  – Medusa Smile
08.  Adam Marshall – Vespers
09.  Mathew Jonson – Typerope
10.  Will Saul & Tam Cooper – Sequential Circus
11.  Precious System – The Voice From Planet Love (Dixon’s Chic-A-Go-Go
Edit)
12.  Robag Wruhme – Robag’s Bobb 2005 Für F
13.  Appleblim & Ramadanman – Sous le Sable
14.  Model 500 – Wanna Be There (Dave Angel Remix)
15.  Will Saul – Mbira
16.  Burial – Shell Of Light
17.  Zomby – Test Me For A Reason
18.  2562 – Embrace
19.  Pangaea – Router
20.  Peverelist – Infinity Is Now
21.  Pearson Sound – So Far Ago
22.  Modeselektor – The White Flash feat Thom Yorke

Disc 3
01.  Pangaea – Memories
02.  Rhythm & Sound – King In My Empire
03.  Geiom & Appleblim – Shreds
04.  Sly & Robbie – Skull & Crossbones
05.  Geiom – Reminissin’
06.  TRG – Broken Heart (Martyn’s DCM Remix)
07.  Rhythm & Sound – Free For All
08.  Atlantic Conveyor – Nasty Things
09.  Patti Jo – Make Me Believe In You (Black Science Orchestra Re-Edit)
10.  Dapayk & Padberg – Island (Noze Remix)
11.  Wolf + Lamb – If U Had (Shaun Reeves Edit)
12.  No Regular Play – Lady Luck
13.  Jordan Fields – I Wanna Thank You
14.  Sebo K & Metro – Sax Track (Reboot Remix)
15.  Motorcitysoul – Vivid (Roman Flugel’s Desperate Dub)
16.  Will Saul & Tam Cooper – Teddy’s Back
17.  DJ T – Bateria (dOp Remix)
18.  Tony Lionni – Found A Place
19.  Shonky – Coco Feel & Love Shonk
20.  Seth Troxler – Love Never Sleeps
21.  Morgan Geist – Detroit (Carl Craig Remix 1)
22.  Liquid People – Son Of Dragon

BALANCE TOUR DATES

OCTOBER:
23 Oct 2009: Balance Launch Party
Logik/Brisbane/Australia

24 Oct 2009: Balance Tour
Chinese Laundry/Sydney/Australia

30 Oct 2009: Balance Tour
Adelaide/Australia (tbc)

31 Oct 2009: Balance Tour
Canberra/Australia (tbc)

NOVEMBER:
3 Nov 2009: Balance Launch Day Party
Alumbra with Steve Bug, Melbourne/Australia

DECEMBER:
4 Dec 2009: Balance Tour
Phonotherapy/Mirano Continental Rooms/Brussels, Belgium

12 Dec 2009: Balance Tour
Magnet/Liverpool, United Kingdom

19 Dec 2009: Balance Tour
World Head Quarters
Newcastle, United Kingdom (tbc)

Joe & Will Ask?

Building their status with cutting edge productions around the London club scene for the last two years the pair have an ear for the dance floor and with effortless musicality – not generally associated with techno.

The result of their work has earned them fans from across the musical spectrum, from Indie to New Wave to Rock to Die Hard Clubbers. Their next release on Andrew Friendly’s Gulp Communications, Fabric Of Win, sees Joe & Will team up with the amazing vocalist SaintSaviour.

SaintSaviour used to front and write for an electro band called the RGBs and is now also writing and performing with Groove Armada. Fabric Of Win is one of those fabulous songs that sticks in your head from the first listen. Perfect when heard on the radio, and bursting with energy that screams out to be heard on the dancefloor.

Joe & Will Ask? will be at the following functions over the coming weeks in the UK:

28/08/09 – Alwayz Frydaze @ The Egg, London – Live Set
04/09/09 – Dumfries, Scotland – tbc
12/09/09 – Audio, Brighton – Live Set
19/09/09 – Death Disco, Glasgow – Live Set