Two fresh consists of an inseperable pair of twin producers, Sherwyn and Kendrick Nichols, who have been making beats and playing music together since they were fifteen years old. Now only twenty, the twins are ready to release their first album entitled “The Baker’s Dozen”. This release contains a unique style of music combining elements of hip hop, jazz, soul, standout synth lines, creative sample chops, and heavy bass sections. The thirteen track album is available for free download. It only takes one listen to tell that these two have something special.
Boulder based producer Alex B is giving away a glimpse into his day to day life for free.
When he’s not touring with a Pnuma Trio or Lipp Service, Alex B is in his home studio scrutinizing over drum patterns, digging for samples, and working on his production chops. What do you do when you have amassed a monstrous collection of beats? Share them!
Hip Hop Beat Tape Vol. 1 is a collection of original productions hand selected/Produced/Mixed/and Mastered by Alex and are available for free download through 1320records and AlexBeats.com . Although the entire album lives up to his reputation, "NDD Get Down" & "Heavy Strings" are the tastiest cuts on this 17 track compilation.
Pretty Lights is the musical creation of Derek Vincent Smith, who while putting on live shows is accompanied on the drums by Cory Eberhard, both coming from Colorado. His music is the byproduct of digital sampling and transforming it to create a new kind of music that crosses all genres pulling bits and pieces from each one, the end product being a combination of glitchy hip-hop beats, buzzing synth lines, and vintage funk and soul samples. Pretty Lights' sound is generated by synthesizing samples and organic beats using the monome and the Akai MPD32. Smith programs these digital controllers with the music production software Ableton Live 8. Download all of Pretty Lights' albums here.
One thing Dominic Lalli (Motet saxophonist/producer) is not afraid of is trying new things. Big Gigantic's latest 5 track album Wide Awake showcases an array of gripping compositions combining elements of a DJ and a live band setup. Lalli and drummer Jeremy Salken, mix thoughtful melodic ideas, with pulsating dance tunes, sure to energize the dance floor. Big Gigantic flavors the electronic music scene with powerful sax solos and soulful synth lines on top of super hot beats.
His Sequential Circuits keyboard might be missing a few buttons, but one listen to Eliot Lipp’s second full-length "Tacoma Mockingbird" and it becomes clear that those particular triggers must not be important. The shuffling beat and pinwheel playfulness of "Glasspipe" is downright minimal; its concept so simple it seems too easy. Lipp is not just an artist, but an engineer.
Drifting along with bliss inducing melodies and silken rhythmic layers that linger for days, "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" is best enjoyed at high temperatures.
In 1977 Classic Jazz violinist Jean luc Ponty pioneered the use of the 5-string electric violin, with a lower C string as well as the Violectra, a 6-string electric violin with low C and F strings.
Ponty was among the first to combine the violin with MIDI, distortion boxes, phase shifters, and wah-wah pedals. This resulted in his signature, almost synthesizer-like sound perfected on his track Nostalgia.
Ponty's works have laid the groundwork for new age musicians and continue to be sampled by artists today. "Nostalgia" was sampled in Black Milk's "Bounce".
A new collaboration from Eliot Lipp and Leo 123, Dark Party's "Status" is an electro-funk dream—a DJ could place it next to Newcleus or Dam-Funk effortlessly, its lush synth pads and sample-based hook bringing memories of Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo to mind.
Recently came across this gem from the 80's synth pop era. Off the newly (Minimal Wave Label) re-relesased LP "On the Screen". Perfect mix of slinky beats and synths. The last 1:30 nails it.
If you need material for your “Saturday Night Sexcapades” mixtape, definitely throw this in. “Thin Moon” is featured on James Pants’ recently released album, “Seven Seals”.
Dark Party is Eliot Lipp and Leo123. They met in San Francisco & despite living all over the US, these nomadic producers have always followed the music. This is their remix of Jogger's "Napping Captain".
Bluetech is a Psybient DJ/producer who creates downtempo and psybient music. Bluetech's music is very diverse, even for a psybient artist. He places significant emphasis on melody in his productions, and his works often demonstrate an influence from Dub and Ambient Techno.
The cold and beautiful synths of Galaxy Toobin' Gang are transmitted through the same feeric wave-spaces as those of Laurie Spiegel, Terry Riley or Tangerine Dream and convey perfectly the sensation of simultaneous wonder and alienation that the members of the Peabody expedition must have felt when flying between the abnormally regular shapes of a monstrous mountain range hidden deep into the heart of a eternal screaming whiteness. Galaxy Toobin' Gang's debut album is a truly timeless sounding piece of work created by Elliot Lipp and Speculator.
For those of you who've spent countless hours tracking down the samples used by DJ Shadow, I recently came across this very rare and outstanding compilation of Shadow breaks.
01 = Baraka – Sower of Seeds 02 = Dennis Olivieri – I Cry In The Morning 03 = (George Marsh = Interview on Percussion) 04 = Alan Hawkshaw – Countdown 05 = Roy Wood – Get on Down Home 06 = Ron Geesin – Slow Song 07 = Sensations Fix – Strange About your Hands 08 = (Snippet from the Starwars Holiday Special) 09 = The Eclectic Mouse – Pre-Dawn Reprospective Chant 10 = Chaffey College Jazz Ensemble – Imagination Flight 11 = Stardrive – Stardrive 12 = Flying Island – The Vision And The Voice 13 = David T. Walker – Never Can Say Goodbye 14 = (Snippet from the movie Prince Of Darkness) 15 = The Salvation Co – The Revival 16 = The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards – Drummer’s Salute 17 = Leroy Vinnegar – Reservation 18 = (Snippet from the movie Jacobs Ladder) 19 = Marc Z – Its Easy 20 = Sensations Fix – She’s Gonna Grow on you’ 21 = John Cage – In a landscape (for Harp) 22 = Dexter Wansel – A Prophet Named KG 23 = AB Skhy – Trackin’ Shoes 24 = Marcus – Million Grains of sand 25 = The Stories – Brother Louie 26 = The New Mastersounds – Drop it Down 27 = The Daly Wilson Big Band – 2001 Space Odyssey 28 = BeBe K’Roche – Alone 29 = Jo Ann Garrett – Walk on By 30 = Ron Geesin – Concrete Line Up 31 = Brother Jack McDuff – Jelly Jam 32 = Los Incas – El Condor Pasa 33 = The Dave Pike Set – Ritmos Do Bahia 34 = Tony Church & The Crusade – Love Trip 35 = Giant Crab – The Answer Is No 36 = Spindrift Libarate – With Cat like Tread
While some players in major media pull their heads out of the sand every couple of years to re-discover vinyl, others know that it never went away. Stones Throw Records has always released their instrumentals on vinyl and this custom has carried on through the years up to their newest artists.
