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Posts Tagged ‘bass kleph’

We’re All Moving, But I’m Not Sure Anyone Knows Where We’re Going

Tuesday, October 7th, 2008

It’s strange seeing my so called electro world being split so readily in two like this. It seems the heavy electro sounds that brought the dance community so close together a few years back have progressed in such diverse ways that we’re no longer able to uniformly agree on what defines the most desirable new sound, and as such, we’ve been left with two entirely different genres of music that are both somehow still grasping to be considered electro. I suppose it is a bit strange, and almost a bit frustrating to think that there are going to be multiple tastes and preferences to satisfy along our future disco endeavors, but let me assure you, this can only be good: This may, in fact, require that a little effort be put back into the “job” that is Dj’ing, and as such, I feel there could be a massive drop in the number of freeloading blog abusers sometime in the very, very near future. The threat of required effort, my friends, is natural selection at its best. (That is, if natural selection were real, of course. But the earth is only 6000 years old, remember? Sarah Palin told us so.)

The Two Branches of Electro

That title made me feel like I’m writing a history book. Maybe I should make an outline due at the end of the quarter.

Anyhow, it seems the first half of the split electro genre has not only skimmed the fat, but it’s actually dumped a good 75% of its musical meal right out the window without losing a single bit of integrity. It’s like this: Rather than being served a burrito with everything that makes your taste buds get freaky, all crammed into one delicious dish, you’re now receiving a single bomb ass steak, and a baked potato. In the end you’ve only got about 10% of what you had before, but somehow it’s just way better. And steering away from this failed food analogy, I’d go so far as to say this musical sect could more easily be defined under minimal than under electro, although my opinion is likely to beg a rebuttal.

Bass Kleph

I suppose artists like DeadMau5 and his latest BSOD, The Royal Rumble, and even Herve (especially alongside Sinden), have all veered more toward this side of the argument more than the other, however, the audio craftsmanship of Australia’s Bass Kleph brings it all home. Presenting to you: The epitome of blip-tastic bounce.

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Twocker – Stitch (Bass Kleph Remix)

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Stupid Fresh – Get The Fuck Up (Bass Kleph Remix)

Part Two

As for the other side of our post apocalyptic electro world, well, that’s where I think all the Treasure Fingers, Twelves, Dangers, Van She Tech’s and DatA’s of our time fit in. They’re the guys who’ve taken the exact opposite approach to their furthering of electro, and have chosen to cram every last bit of harmonic Daft Punk influence into an already brimming sound, in order to create tunes that are nearly impossible to fully comprehend. In fact, I’d go so far as to say I don’t think I’ve ever heard the same song twice. (Figuratively speaking of course).

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Big Gipp – Hot (Treasure Fingers Remix)

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Rapture – House Of Jealous Lovers (Tenderlions Remix)

Busy Busy Busy P

Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008

Busy P was, is, and always will be where it’s at. I don’t know where this guy gets his ideas from, but whether he’s got a tank of manatees pulling musical notes out of a pile or he simply purchased a relentless creativity chip from some weird corner of Ikea, anyone who’s owned a pair of headphones within the last year can tell you that the guy has got more musical gravity than just about any other entity in the electro universe. I suppose I could discuss his having detected the potential of multiple internationally successful artists before their sounds were even remotely popular (The guy opted to manage Daft Punk way back in the early nineties, before they’d even acquired a record label, and I’m guessing we’ve all heard the rags to riches story of Justice’s one-song, chance encounter with Mr. Winter. Look where they ended up!), but I feel that there’s even more glowing potential in the French Producer/Ed Banger owner’s own original works. Where most producers tend to have a decent ear for what people know and love to hear, Busy P has the considerably rarer ability to know what listeners don’t know they want to hear. Confused? Let me explain:

Remember 2006? Of course you do. That was the year Justice released their turn-the-world-upside-down Cross album, and hence, that was the year that the electronic scene was driven entirely by steady kick-snare beats and tricky, glitched out transitions. But while our faithful Justice and their nine-hundred spinoff counterparts were all following the same 123 bpm formula, Busy P had already begun to push his standards to entirely different places. Personally, I was drawn in by the Rainbow Man EP, which, though it drew several elements from the trendy hits of the time, had an unusually sedated drive to it, which managed to make it that much heavier. From there, though, colors started flying. A few months ago, To Protect and Entertain tapped into the Electro/hip hop crossover genre (one that happens to have become more than just a bit popular as of late) at a time when few more than The Chemical Brothers had even touched it, and apparently having already moved on, P’s latest track, a remix of Das Pop’s Underground, has nearly combined the weird Helium voices of Bass Kleph’s aptly titled work with a mess of frumpy, windy, slidy synths that’ve got me saying nothing but mmmmmm mmm MmnmLOL. Let me assure you that no matter how you try, it’s likely impossible to comprehend Busy P’s train of thought, but if you take the time to appreciate this mix friendly blend of whacky confusion, (in addition to grabbing one of the most well produced tracks in quite a while), you might, at least for the moment, feel like you have some sort of clue as to what’s going on.

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Das Pop – Underground (Busy P remix)

And just so I don’t leave you with only a single track with which to occupy the rest of our night, I figure I should probably help spread the latest by Van She Tech (special thanks to Discodust for the heads up). The track has got a definite Russ Chimes feel to it (I guess the Nu-Disco-ish influence is spreading), but a careful bit of side chaining every now and again definitely gives it a unique touch. Sometimes I wonder just how far off the map Van She Tech would have to wander to screw up a mix. Thus far, I’m convinced they’re invincible.

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Walter Meego – Forever (Van She Tech remix)