In the latest installment of Rave New World, the equally, exceedingly tasteful Antoin Lindsay and Aidan Hanratty delve into very best new electronic tracks and mixes of the week, as well as various unmissable upcoming nights and releases.
Gigs
Hydraulics at The Menagerie, Belfast
Friday, January 24
Belfast’s best kept secret returns to The Menagerie tonight with residents Bloom, Jamie Nelson and Jamie Nevin providing the soundtrack. If you head down you’ll be treated to grime, garage and future sounds which is always relentlessly fun. Nobody else in the city is doing anything even remotely similar so treat yourself to this one. AL
Jr Spesh present: The Bug & Flowdan // Grades at The Twisted Pepper, Dublin
“End times need a soundtrack to prep for what’s above and below,” said Ninja Tune ahead of the release of The Bug’s Angels & Devils LP last year. Come get a taste of that soundtrack as things get dirty and loud in Dublin’s Twisted Pepper tonight. AH
Hidden Agenda present Barnt at Opium Rooms, Dublin
Saturday, January 24
The techno world sat up and took note of Barnt in earnest last year. His debut LP Magazine 13’was a whirlwind of techno weirdness, but it was his track ‘Chappell’ which ended up being an unavoidable underground anthem and had his name burned into the minds of dance music fans worldwide. Luckily he’s a good enough DJ to live up to the name he’s made for himself so get yourself to Dublin’s Opium Rooms tomorrow if you fancy a bit of the doof doof. AL
Bastardo Electrico presents Sunil Sharpe, Defekt-Live, & Jamie Behan at Cyprus Avenue, Cork
Like you need an excuse to see Sunil Sharpe? The man is one of the most respected DJs in Europe, known for his dark, basement techno but able to switch it up with the best of them, as he did when he went back to back with Ben UFO in Dublin last year. DeFeKT is a rising star, his twisted take on acid techno catching the ear of Fabric and Houndstooth’s Rob Booth, who put out the Transmuter EP in late 2013 on his own Electronic Explorations label. BE resident Jamie Behan completes this sterling bill of Irish talent. AH
Tracks
Dro Carey – Rollcage
It’s Dro Carey and it’s a free download, need I say more? I will though. It’s part of a Secret Songs compilation and it’s basically a grime sound pallette shoved into a garage track but with the classy weirdness that Carey has made his name from. Hopefully its an indicator that we’ll hear some more from him soon. AL
Tuff City Kids Feat. Shan – ‘Highlights’
Tuff City Kids AKA Gerd Janson of Running Back fame and Arto Mwambe’s Phillip Lauer have teamed up with Vincent Shan for a new EP on the evergreen Permanent Vacation label. Warm, chunky house music that’s as sweet as it is functional, it doesn’t put a foot wrong. Plus, the artwork looks like it says “TICK” – as in “YE TICK!” AH
Novelist x Mumdance – ‘1 Sec’ [XL Recordings]
More grime, you’d think I was into the stuff right now. It helps when there seems to be something amazing coming out every week and after last year’s amazing ‘Take Time’ Novelist and Mumdance are back with ‘1 Sec’. Novelist only turned 18 this week but he’s already been getting props from Wiley and was shortlisted for BBC Sound of 2015. London’s freshest MC over a super sparse and intense Mumdance (who’s doing pretty well himself lately) beat is as essential as it sounds like it should be. This kid is going places. AL
Anna Caragnano and Donato Dozzy – ‘Starcloud’
This is a rather beautiful piece, a taster for a full album from debut vocalist Anna Caragnano and master of soundscapes Donato Dozzy. The entire track is solely built from Dozzy’s manipulations of Caragnano’s voice, a synthetic choir bolstered by no additional instrumentation. So it goes for the full album, which will no doubt be an even greater beauty to behold. Let everything just melt away. AH
Releases + Mixes
Björk – Vulnicura [One Little Indian Records]
Chances are if you’re reading this you’ll already be well aware of this one but its by far the best release you’ll find this week and likely going to be one of the best of the year. Containing collaborations with The Haxan Cloak and Arca, Vulnicura is an album full of heartbreak alongside the beautiful sounds that Björk is already world famous for. It’s refreshing that she’s still producing great music, even after the blip that was Biophilia. Don’t let it pass you by. AL
#DJQLive: Alibi, London Ft Mc Kie, New Years Eve 2014
Five hours of DJ Q? Get in. Classics from Zed Bias and B15 Project, a sweet refix of Usher, Wiley over ‘Functions on the Low’, Aaliyah, Pulse X, Mike WiLL Made-It, it’s PERFECT party music. AH
Marcel Dettmann – Dekmantel Podcast 001
A fresh new podcast series from Amsterdam’s excellent Dekmantel crew christened by none other than Mr. Dettmann. What a way to start off, eh? It’s a whole 90 minutes long so get comfy and get ready to groove in your chair, or wherever else you might be (I stuck this one on while I was cooking the other night, highly recommended). It’s not a million miles away from his Fabric mix from last year which I reviewed on this very site so you’ll know you can rely on it to keep you entertained for a while. AL
Technofeminism Live, Part I: Umfang, Ciarra Black
“Discwoman presents four women crushing out live hardware sets.” So said the RA event page for this New York gig. This 85-minute set certainly lives up to that billing, with searingly intense beats and sounds throughout. A 10-minute foray into modern mainstream party rap gives way to a blistering half-hour of solid techno business. AH
