Draco – Live at Samarat 2008

It gives me great pleasure to present as the last guest mix this month an exclusive live set from one of the most fascinating bands I saw when I lived in Japan, Draco. They aren’t your usual band, a combination of traditional instruments and electronic musicians but with a little twist, as with most Japanese things.

I discovered them at the Kaikoo Meets Revolution party (organised by our friends from Pop Group) in Yokohama in April 08 where they were one of the headlining acts in the afternoon. I was already familiar with the electronic half of the band (Numb and Saidrum) and so was really curious to see what this new project was about. The show left me speechless, one of the most fascinating and engrossing experiences during my time there, and since then too. Below is a low quality video of some of that show, to give you a little taste.

Draco are composed of electronic producers Numb and Saidrum, sitar player Kenji Inoue and tabla player Masaki Yoshimi. The former are best known for their work in the techno and house scenes, pioneering albums for the Revirth label and live shows based around the Korg ZERO8 mixer which they helped to R&D, while Kenji is a renowned Japanese sitar player who studied his instrument in India and combines traditional sitar playing with a style that resembles how the Japanese shamisen is played, and Masaki is one of Japan’s best tabla players who also studied in India. Together the four formed Draco following a session organised for a DVD documentary in 2007, Boycott Rhythm Machine II Versus. This led to them recording an album, ‘Zero’, which they released in 08 and is unfortunately rather hard to get a hold of outside the country. Following this they continued to perform live at festivals and venues around the country also incorporating visuals into the mix for a truly unforgettable experience. For those interested, Draco means the star that shines magnificently in the northern heaven sky.

I’d been wanting to try and get them on the show for some time now and once more thanks to the wonders of Twitter, I managed to get in contact with Numb and with a little help from our good friend Tatsuki they agreed to send us some Draco live recordings to use for a guest mix. We settled on the live at Samarat, also from 2008, which is a perfect example of the impact their live can make, at least without being there in person.

Massive thanks go out to Tatsuki and Numb for their help and to Draco for letting us air this live show. For more on them check their myspaces: Draco and Numb & Saidrum.

Download Draco live at Samarat 2008 (right click and save as)

Mr Beatnick – Rhythm Incursions mix

This guest mix by Mr Beatnick has rather been a long time coming, in fact I think nearly a year (without ribbing him more than I already have about it) when he helped arrange a meet with Take and Architeq in June 2009, which led to this rather lengthy but informative three way interview.

Anyways we originally agreed that he’d do a guest mix for the show and then life being what it is it didn’t happen until now. However good things do come to those who wait and somehow in between celebrating his birthday and releasing a free compilation of his music produced over the last 10 years (see below for more on that) he handed in his guest mix. And boy are you all in for a treat.

I think I first met Nick sometime last year after I just came back from Japan. He was one of the people who introduced me to the pleasures of CDR at Plastic People and who helped linked me with a whole bunch of people, like the aforementioned Take and Architeq but also Alex Chase and a few others. It’s fair to say he’s one of the nicest guys I’ve met on the London ‘scene’ but also one of the most clued up when it comes to not just music (man knows his record history) but also people and scenes. We’ve had lengthy discussions about the whole beat thing over the last year and I always enjoy hearing his take on various things through Twitter and his on and off contributions to FACT magazine.

As a producer he’s maybe not been the most pro-active in a sense, but the few releases he’s had have all been of a high quality and he’s definitely a producer who knows his shit and who you should keep an ear and an eye on, if only because when he does do something it’s almost always worth paying attention. Which leads us nicely to the aforementioned compilation he’s just put out online for free to celebrate his birthday and which features 30 tracks from the last ten years, including releases such as ‘Walk’ and ‘Falling Apples’ but also plenty of unreleased beats and remixes. You can get your fill right here in zip format (sendspace link).

As for the mix, well as it turns out he seems to have taken some degree of inspiration from our chats about beats and the evolution of hip hop production over the last decade, as well as from the mix I put out last year alongside Om Unit and Clockwork, A Boom Bap Continuum. As he puts it himself:

It’s my response in a way to the “boom bap continuum” theory laid out by Kper, 2 Tall/Om Unit and Clockwork. Essentially a bunch of boom bap beats in a classic mid nineties style, next to ideas that stood out for me at the time… and then a left turn in the end to some of the more recent twists on the idea.

Which you could also summarise as an hour of crispy headnod audio delicacies which are sure to leave regular listeners pleased as it takes in many of our own favourites from the last decade or so. As always tracklist, download link and stream are all below.

Much love and thanks to Nick for his contribution, and let me say it right now you’re welcome back anytime you want mate

So sit back and enjoy an hour of quality music to put you in the mood for the weekend, or whenever you get round to downloading it.

Dowload Mr Beatnick – Rhythm Incursions guest mix (right click and save as)

Tracklist:
Rhythm Incursions intro
Danny Breaks – La La
Ultra Magnetic MCs – Raise It Up – Instrumental
Pete Rock – One Mike One Dj – Pete Rock Remix (BBE)
Tranqill – Chips And Cheese (One Handed)
Sa-Ra – Frequencies
1st Down – A Day With The Homies
MF Doom – Galangal Root beat
Slum Village – 5 Ela remix (feat 5 elements)
De La Soul – The Bizness (feat Common)
Dj Dez – Place Where U Stand (UR)
Gangstarr – The Militia (Pete Rock remix)
Wajeed – Fat Asia (Bling 47)
Om Unit – Light Grids (all city)
Jon Phonics – A Dying Breed
Cubic Zirconia – D.F.A.D
Paul White – Synthia Dreams (One Handed)
Clause Four – Afro (We Made This Vol 1)
Midi Mark & Dj Cannon – Aragon
Ghostface Killah – Fish (intro juggle)
Lord Finesse – Ghetto (instrumental)
Grand Agent – Know The Legend (instrumental) (produced by Lord Finesse)
Danny Red – Riddimwize (Dj Muggs remix)
Paul White – untitled beat (beat tape 22)
Sir Real – untitled beat
Tightface – untitled beat
Dredi – untitled beat
Georgia Anne Muldrow – Two Shoes
Respite – Pang
Dot Rotten – Bounce
Loops Haunt – Impact Omnihammer (Fortified)
Alex Nut – Wotberry
Fauxhemian – Spectral Funk
Refuge – Sprayed Sparks
Subeena – Picture (Opit)
Mr Beatnick – Turn Your Back (Dub)
Afrika Hitech – 93 Million Miles
Suite For Ma Dukes Orchestra – Take Notice

Friends of Friends mix series: Sven Swift – Fickle Spots

We continue our monthly Friends of Friends guest series with a 45 mins musical journey from Sven Swift, one half of the creative minds behind the excellent net/real label Error Broadcast alongside Flip, and as happens also a friend of ours. So this month is defo a family ting.

As always below are some words from Sven about the mix, an image supplied by him above and a full tracklist + download link and stream player. This month’s mix is a mellow affair, all about the fickle spots as the title suggests. I’m down with them too.

As a child, I’ve been obsessed with the light breaking under half closed eyes. There were these rich, fickle spots just below your sight, and I spent hours trying to focus and come by. Once we got a television set, this afternoon amusement stopped for the sake of colourful images that were no longer my own. Time flies.

With these 40 minutes of beats and textures, I tried to re-create the atmosphere of sitting on the couch blinking into the light of the afternoon sun and doing nothing else besides. This is not a collection of ambient tunes, sure. But the genre borders are blurred in the most adventurous Rap and Garage productions nowadays, and it is easy to get lost with an Abby Lee Tee, fuer.steps or Constrobuz track. Loads of exclusive material here. Please enjoy!

So without further ado get stuck in and be sure to check for Sven’s EB mixtape here. Also click here to check all FoF mixes so far including submissions from Asura and Kper.

Download Sven Swift – Fickle Spots (right click and save as)

Tracklist
01 pharaoh sanders – hum-allah-hum-allah-hum-allah /impulse
02 fLako – hot ish /cdr
03 OL – unexpected* /cdr
04 a-rec – fuck the boss* /error broadcast
05 shlohmo – spoons (shigeto unofficial remix) /cdr
06 abby lee tee – imma richtung himmel ft. def ill* /cdr
07 wols – damage (rework)* /cdr
08 fuer.steps – lunar dust /error broadcast
09 nest – cad goddeu (revised) /serein
10 comfort fit – tinitus* /error broadcast
11 amon tobin – big furry head /ninja tune
12 maguett – zodiak* /cdr
13 chocolate girl – valhalla* /cdr
14 iL – when she wakes up /cdr
15 pixelord – pxlr7 /car crash set
16 constrobuz – my diamonds fruity /cdr

Katzuma – From Inner Space

Our latest guest mix comes from one of the pioneers of the Italian hip hop scene who has now transformed himself into a renowned producer of funk and disco under the name Katzuma. In recent years he’s made a name for himself in and outside of Italy for his deep productions taking its cue from classic funk and disco from the 70s and 80s and putting his own cosmic spin on it.

‘From Inner Space’ is a promo mix by Katzuma ahead of his involvement in the latest Original Cultures project, of the same name, which will see him direct a five piece band put together for the occasion and nicknamed the The Expanding Disco Machine. Over four days they’ll be locked in workshops putting together a one hour show inspired by the evolution of black music in America from the funk of the 70s to the early electronic experiment of the 80s. Alongside them will be Opificio Ciclope, a collective of video artists, who will design and produce visuals for the show. You can read more about the project and event here. Check out a trailer for the show below:

For more on Katzuma, check his bio here, and look out for his latest EP ‘Dr Know’ which is out now and features predominantly in this mix. The mix itself is a 25 minutes ride into Katzuma’s musical universe on a deep, cosmic tip.

Enjoy and if you like what you hear check out another promo mix for the event I put together called Beats and Boogie.

Download Katzuma – ‘From Inner Space’ promo mix (right click and save as)

Tracklist
Bob Moog – Not The Machine
Katzuma – Dr. Know (Scuola Furano Remix)
Absolute Voltage – skit
Katzuma – El Chupacabra
Katzuma – Tell Him I’ Holding On (E-The-Hot Sunday’s Dub)
Katzuma – Reach For The Stars

Friends of Friends mix series: Asura – I Am The Homonculus

Following from the inaugural mix of our Friends of Friends series last month (here if you missed it) we swiftly follow it up with an exclusive mix from L.A’s Asura, a producer who’s slowly but surely making a name for himself as part of the city’s ever growing, open-minded music scene that encompasses beats, electronic, hip hop, atmospheric and more. Entitled ‘I Am The Homonculus’ it’s a lovely ride through the man’s musical tree as he calls it.

For those new to this series, the FoF mix series features an exclusive mix every month from a close friend of the label complete with an exclusive picture from another close friend of the label. The mixes go out exclusively on Rhythm Incursions and also via FoF’s Soundcloud page (embed below). The picture this month comes from Shaun ‘Sodapop’ Koplow, and has the following story attached to it:

This photo was the result of luck while messing around with my new Panasonic Lumix – GF1. While setting up camp in Joshua Tree for Lazy Brow’s bachelor party, I figured I’d attempt to document things with a few long exposures. I came up with a few shots that seemed exemplary of that night’s bro-motions just fine… this being one of them.

As for the mix, Asura had the following to say about it:

My musical tree spanning the past five years, full of old ones, friends’ ones, and my ones. Los Angeles is represented deep while paying special attention to certain very very important tracks in my development (especially pay attention to “The Big Ship”, “Outdoor Miner”, “I Am A Scientist”, and “Tommib”). Searching for the oppositions of melody/noise, order/chaos, pop/non-pop, and all that good bullshit. Mostly just enjoy, I know I did.

For more on Asura you can check Nonprojects.net and his myspace. Look out for a new split release between the man and Non Project’s Anenon, which should be out later this month via the label and Alpha Pup distribution.

For now though sit back and enjoy this lush musical ride into the influences of one of L.A’s best kept secrets!

Download Asura – I Am The Homonculus (right click and save as)

Asura – I Am The Homonculus – Friends of Friends Mix by FoFMusic

Tracklist:
Asura – All Our Favorite Colors
Gyorgy Ligeti – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra-1. Praeludium Vivacissimo Luminoso
Masanka Sankayi – Le Laboureur
Dimlite – On The Same Picture (feat. Elan Tamara)
Joji Hirota – Fire Dragon
Arthur Russell – Answers Me
Aco – Machi
Supersilent – 6.4
Fennesz – Glide
Brian Eno – The Big Ship
Dak – Rolling Hills
Baths – Hall (Asura Remix)
Kate Bush – Suspended In Gaffa
Matthewdavid – Know You’re Not Alone
Can – Vitamin C
Anenon – Damiel
Grouper – Heavy Water/I’d Rather Be Sleeping
Four tet/Burial – Moth (feat. Ana Caravelle and Bjork)
Wire – Outdoor Miner
Guided By Voices – I Am Scientist
Squarepusher – Tommib
Ana Caravelle – Blackberries (Asura Source)
Asura – Silver Trees
Arthur Russell – A Sudden Chill

ASA – Live in Nagano

Following from the excellent Cafeteria’s Revenge mix which dropped last month, we’re now bringing you part 2 of our collabo mix series with Mondayjazz. This time the artist and mix was handpicked by our goodselves and is none other than ASA, a Japanese producer who is probably most famous as the founder and friendly face of Jar-Beat Records in Tokyo’s Kichi-Jyouji area. Jar-Beat, alongside others like We Nod, is one of the key indie record shops in Tokyo, acting not just as a purveyor of music but also a place where fans and artists can meet. More recently they’ve started hosting Ustream sessions from some of Tokyo’s leading underground artists, including our very own Raid System collective. I remember first going there with Ken One in 2007 and it’s definitely one of the most welcoming record shops I’ve ever visited. If you’re ever in Tokyo you must make time to go and check them out.

When it was decided with Mondayjazz that we would do a series of joint shows the MJ guys put forward the Cafeteria crew as their offering, repping their home country of Lithuania. At the same time ASA had got in touch after our first series of guest mixes from Raid System back in Jan and Feb this year. That’s when the idea came up to put his mix, an exclusive recording of a recent live show, forward as our offering, to rep our international outlook but also our close bond with Japan.

As mentioned ASA is the founder of Jar-Beat records but he’s also an accomplished and well respected producer in the Japanese breakbeat and hip hop scenes, having been releasing since 1998. In that time he’s collaborated with people like DJ Krush (he was featured on Krush’s ‘Kakusei’ LP), Baku, Tha Blue Herb and DJ Hide among others. He’s also released on various compilations, produced for Japanese rappers and has two EPs and two LPs to his name, the latest of which, ‘Fast Abstract Bass 2′, was released 2 year ago.

The live set he’s given us to air was recorded in Nagano last year and features ASA doing his thing live on a complete freestyle tip. Everything that you hear was done on the spot, incorporating elements of his own tracks, live recordings and off the cuff samples and instrumentation. It’s in many ways typical of his live shows, taking in everything from atmospheric and hip hop to breakbeat, jungle and harder electronic styles. It’s definitely not for the faint-hearted, it’s quite a hectic ride but just how we like it.

As with our previous show, this mix goes out simultaneously on Rhythm Inc and Monday Jazz today. Many thanks to the MJ family for this series, as well as for hooking up the art on both occasions, ASA for the mix and Cafeteria for their offering. Look out for more guest mix series in the future.

For more on ASA check out the Jar-Beat website and the label site too.

Download ASA Live in Nagano (right click and save as)

Friends of Friends mix series: Kper – My Friends, My Family

It’s with great pleasure that we kick off a new monthly series of guest mixes in conjuction with the Friends of Friends label. FoF should be no stranger to regular listeners, as we’ve been strong supporters of the label ever since it started in late 08/early 09. We’ve worked with them in supporting the releases and spreading the word, and even hooked them up with Om Unit for a forthcoming release, so when Lazy Brow who runs the label got in touch recently about starting a series of guest mixes and asked me to do the first one it was a no-brainer. Not to mention a real honor and pleasure.

Once the mix was wrapped we got chatting about how best to get it out there to as many heads as possible and so the next logical step was to do a Rhythm Inc/FoF team up. So starting this week, once a month we’ll be dropping an exclusive mix as part of the Friends of Friends mix series – each mix will be brought to you by a friend of the label. The next one in the series is already done, but we won’t give out who it is just yet. Expect to be hearing sounds from worldwide producers who are doing things we love. It’s a friend and family thing really.

Each mix will be podcast on Rhythm Inc and also available via FoF’s Soundcloud page and website.

The artwork for this one comes from a friend of FoF, of course. Photographer Oliver Kish snapped this truly incredible picture and had this story to tell regarding how it came about. It is not staged! (click it for a bigger version)

“This photo was taken during my first tip to the blooming poppy fields in Southern California. Thinking the day was over, I turned a corner and there he was, the tinman. I took a quick snap on my original Russian made LC-A, then headed home. I’ve been to the poppy fields since and have never run into the tinman again. Right place, right time, channeling the Wizard…”

As for the mix when I was asked to do this the idea of a theme for it came pretty quickly – showcase music from friends and family worldwide. People I know and have worked with over the years in various music scenes. In my 8 or so years as a music journalist and in various other roles relating to music I’ve had the pleasure to meet and work with some amazing artists, many of whom I feel lucky and honored to call friends, and quite a few who are close personal friends of mine and continually inspire me and drive me on. This mix aims to represent that by showcasing as much of the talent I feel close to – it covers scratch music, jungle, dubstep, beats, hip hop, electro and much more. The mix also reflects the truly worldwide spread of exciting music today and my own times spent in various countries, including the UK, France, Italy and Japan.

The mix itself is a pretty intense ride with 27 tracks in 45 minutes but I hope people get as much enjoyment from it as I did putting it together and that it leads to them checking out the artists and supporting them. The mix features a heap of exclusives, unreleased tracks and forthcoming releases. I have worked with every artist and/or label featured in this mix, so this is truly a snapshot of my friends and family.

So I won’t blabber on much longer and let you enjoy the music. As always embeds for stream and direct download links are below. Subscribers to the RSS or iTunes feeds will have the mix on their way to them now.

I’d like to just thank all the artists for the music but also their support over the years. It’s been a pleasure working with each and everyone of you in whatever capacity and I hope to continue to do so in years to come. And huge thanks to FoF for asking me to do this. It’s truly a pleasure!

Peace

Laurent aka Kper

Download Kper – My Friends, My Family (right click and save as)

Tracklist:
Ken One – Mind Rain – Unreleased (Japan)
Danny Breaks – Hemisphere – Forthcoming Groove Attack (UK)
Dday One – Contamined Energy – Unreleased (USA)
And – Untitled beat – Unreleased (UK)
Onra – Iron – Forthcomig Ubeat (France)
Uncle Lew – Chop Chop remix – Unreleased (Ireland / Canada)
Lorn – Running Ink – Unreleased (USA)
Tatsuki – Kiyasu Breaks – Original Cultures (Japan)
Ernesto Gonzales – Self Awakening (Take remix) – FoF Music (USA)
Othello Grey – Feeling (BJu remix) – Unreleased (Germany)
Fulgeance – Smartbanging – One Handed Music (France)
2phast – MoynaQ – Unreleased (Italy)
Paul White – Body Spirals pt2 – Forthcoming One Handed Music (UK)
Throwing Snow – Elephant Trees – Unreleased (UK)
Grems ft Foreign Beggars – Brockabilly (Machine Drum remix) – Forthcoming (France/UK/USA)
Skyfish – Heso Cha remix – Unreleased (Japan)
Om Unit – Searching – Forthcoming Stretched Records (UK)
ENA – Drop – Unreleased (Japan)
Foreign Beggars – No Holds Barred (Goth Trad remix) – Forthcoming Dented Records (UK/Japan)
Dong – Suzuran (LV + Quarta330 remix) – Hyperdub (UK/Japan)
Lone Wolf – Badman – Unreleased (UK)
100 Mado – Club Asia – Unreleased (Japan)
Jamie Vex’d – Saturn’s Reply – Planet Mu (UK)
The Bug ft. Flowdan and Killa P – Skeng (Kode 9 remix) – Hyperdub (UK)
XLII – Podgy Swing – Raid System/Fubar (Ukraine/Japan)
Om Unit – The Corridor (Shigeto remix) – Forthcoming Terrorhythm (UK/USA)

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