Once upon a time Armand Van Heldon used to make beats under the guise of Circle Children, releasing records on Strictly Rhythm that included Zulu, Mamba Mama and Indonesia. He took the name from a dance craze occuring in the late eighties/early nineties where kids in clubs would form rings in which they'd take it in turns to go solo in busting some moves on the dancefloor. His output as Circle Children was distinctly minimal, focusing on tribal grooves, the sounds of which could be heard at many an early nineties rave.
Although written in 1993 and 1994, his two EPs are still immensely relevant to today's underground (and increasingly mainstream) dance scene, with contemporary dance producers often taking samples of world music and using them in inovative ways, layering them over various dance rhythms, be it techno, midget, house or dubstep. Take a listen to these 2 tunes below to get an idea of what we're on about:
This following track, Zulu, was recently remixed by Mastiksoul... See remix at bottom of this post.
1. Qubula - Swazi Men 2. Darkest Light - Lafayette Afro Rock Band 3. Missing Pancham Da - Kyabaat 4. The Moth - Julio Bashmore 5. Indulj el egy úton - Muzsikás 6. The Three Moment Of The Gate - Chan Heung-Wah 7. Trompe D'Amour - Riva Starr 8. Espagnol - ICS 9. Zulu (Change Mix) - Circle Children 10. Sunchyme - Dario G
After smashing Hype M's LIKE feature to pieces with his Riva Starr remix (Check that out HERE), and now with more material on the horizon including several original tracks, it's time to start paying attention to Shooting Horses.
Let's get to know a little more about the man behind the moniker...
Who are you?
I'm Rob Swaine, I'm 23 and I make electronic music under the guise of Shooting Horses.
Where are you from?
South West London; the part with the leaves and the low crime rate.
What do you do?
I procrastinate, I dream, I watch Eastenders, I serve tapas, and sometimes I get time to do what makes me happiest, and write music.
How would you describe your sound?
A whole mish-mash of things I listen to, things I like and things I aspire to be. Tech-house with a bit of imagination.
What do you take most influence from?
I take influence from myself, from other artists I respect and from my musical history. I don't mean the time I was in a band playing heavy metal but music I've listened to for the past ten years or so.
My music taste is constantly evolving. The only thing I probably don't draw influence from is the pop chart and it’s soulless, over-produced, distasteful excuse for 'music'/moneymaking.
I find film soundtracks of particular inspiration and a lot of my productions contain a strong element of sound-scaping as well as straight-up dance beats.
Whats your musical background and how does it inform your production?
I started producing while at sixth form. At the time I was in a band and we were recording our ground-breaking nu-metal sound in our various kitchens. I found myself much more inspired by the recording and production process than by playing in the band itself. I’d spend hours doing remixes of our songs and it was through this that I got into production.
I got into dance music through drum and bass and it was only when I started DJing while at university as one half of Obstacle One with Rob Hubbert, that I got into house music.
For me, drum and bass was a gateway to discovering a whole world of new and exciting rhythms and sounds, a lot of which I try to incorporate into my productions now.
Who are your most influential figures from A: the current dance music scene you see as relevant and B: any other musican from the past?
A: I’d have to say Daniel Haaksman for me. He’s the perfect example of someone who’s completely immersed himself in the music industry and paved an original path/sound while helping out and inspiring a whole list of budding producers. I put 2 of his remixes in my latest mix. He’s very relevant to me and where I’m progressing.
The whole Dirtybird outfit are hugely influential to me. They don’t take themselves too seriously but they consistently deliver the best in dance music. Their influence can be seen in a lot of up and coming producers. Not naming names.
B: I’d have to say the Mars Volta. I’m constantly in awe of their energy, their skill as musicians, their sound, rhythms and ability to layer so much together and still maintain total control over their compositions.
Current top tracks?
Baby (Daniel Haaksman Remix) - The Phenomenal Handclap Band Balance and Ridum – Christian Martin Alcatraz (Zombie Disco Squad Remix) - Kasper Bjorke Urubu No Telhado (MJ Cole Mix) – Bazeado Très De Niul – Barem Selene - Jacob Korn Sugar Coated Lover - Geiom Ft. Marita
What do you have coming our way for the rest of 2010?
Hopefully some bootlegs. I’ve been meaning to do some for a long time now. It’s tough deciding which ones to do. I’ve made a start on three so far but don’t ever see myself finishing them.
Goal of the year is to get an EP out, I’ve got a plethora of unfinished originals waiting to be completed, it’s just a matter of finding the time to do so.
The ongoing dream is to play at a summer festival. I just want to DJ in a tent. It’s not too much to ask I don’t think.
You can check out Shooting Horses on MYSPACE and SOUNDCLOUD. But be sure to listen to the exclusive mix below...
1. Empina A Pipa feat. MC Gi & Cabal (Samim's Crashroots Remix) - DJ Chernobyl 2. Romane (French Fries & Bambounou Remix) - Bart B More 3. Da Bass - Riley, Durrant, Juan Kidd 4. Alcatraz (Zombie Disco Squad Remix) - Kasper Bjorke 5. Bollyhouse - Minimow 6. Indonesia (Sambal Badjak Mix) - Circle Children 7. Yoppul - Mike Monday 8. Baby (Daniel Haaksman Remix) - The Phenomenal Handclap Band 9. Nice up the function - The Boogaloo Crew 10. Zee - Funkin' Matt 11. Bongo Man - Shooting Horses 12. Vem Que Tem (Daniel Haaksman Remix) - Schlachthofbronx 13. Since Last Night - Cosmin TRG 14. Eyesdown (Warrior 1 Remix) - Bonobo Featuring Andreya Triana
When Milt Mortez said there was more up his sleeve yet to come... I didn't realise he was gonna drop this little delight - Hit the link below to download...
1. Embarrassment - Gregory Isaacs 2. Voce Me Apareceu (Gui Boratto's Horns Mix) - Kaleidoscopio 3. Que Pena - DJ Patife 4. Nao Vou Fugir (DJ Marky and XRS Mainline Mix) - Ive Mendes 5. Man With Stick - Traditional Greenlandic Inuit Shaman Song 6. Hummingbird Song - Traditional American Indian Song 7. Fishing Song - Australian Aboriginal 8. Random Angolan Song - Unknown 9. Mirror Dance [Original Mix] - Afefe Iku 10. Takeshi Beat - Pete Lazonby 11. Balance n Riddum - Christian Martin 12. Bongo Man - Shooting Horses
*NB - Bongo Man by Shooting Horses will be available to download in the Shooting Horses feature going live THIS WEEKEND. So stay tuned... It's BIG.
Shab Ruffcut has been making waves in the music scene for years now, and is currently concentrating on his new project; Dandy Kid Record's little sister label, 'It_TizZ Recordings'. And they have another monster sized EP ready for the drop...
Monday 19th April saw the release of the highly anticipated 'Come With Us - The Remixes' EP, which is bursting at the seems with eight delightful remixes from the likes of Mad Kids, Robert Boogert, Holyboyz, Wetrooms, Rocut, Dan Styles, Disco Killah and Oliver $.
With major support coming in from all angles including Camel (Deadfish), Jenni Philbin (Dirtybird), Lee Mortimer (Wearhouse Music) & TJR (Potty Mouth) this EP is percussive tech-house dynamite.
Head over to www.dandykidrecords.com to keep up to date with all the latest news from both Dandy Kid and It_TizZ...
You can purchase any of these tracks on beatport HERE.
Most notably on EP7, in my eyes, is the remix from Bournemouth duo Wetrooms (South coast whizz kid Samson being half of this production partnership)... Check out another wicked Shab Ruffcut remix from them below, with some funky brass and seriously sassy percussion. Keep your eyes peeled for more from Wetrooms...
Shab Ruffcut's previous release on the label - with the Original of 'I don't Know' and a few other nice little ditties... - is also well worth a look in too:
Podcast 3 saw us play Rass Out by Altered Natives, probably his most well known tune but one that highlights only a fragment of his production output.
Playing alongside Joy Orbison, Julio Bashmore, Darkstar, and Mount Kimbie this Friday at The Big Chill House, we got on the blower to Danny Native to chat about his forward-thinking sound, his vast experience in the business, the excitement of current music scene, and his home-town of London.
So how would you describe your sound?
I've lived in London all my life, having grown up in Hackney, I've never lived out of the city though I've lived all over different parts of London. I love my city. I love the fact that it's so diverse and we've got so many different cultures and races all melted together; that is my sound really, it's a diverse mish-mash of every culture. It contains every element of every culture there is.
I've never been a person to stick in one kind of scene. I'm sure if I'd just stayed in house music for a couple of years I'd be a better known name but I like to be diverse and free with my writing.
I've never sat down and been more of a square peg in a square hole if you know what I mean.
Your songs are generally very percussive/rhythm based, do you play any instruments yourself?
No, not really. I got my first real taste of messing with beats was when I was a kid. I used to make tapes and tapes of loops using a double deck tape recorder, and loop in bits of my favourite tracks and that was the start of it.
I'd actually chop up beats by pausing and starting, trying to make my own beat out of a beat, they all sounded shit but that's where I started. But no, I've never had a drum lesson in my life, but I know how a drum kit works, I'm fully aware of how a drummer plays them; I can write beats in a way that it sounds live and it would be playable by a drummer.
I love drums, I've always been a fan of drum samples and sampling. I guess that's kind of a hip hop thing really, the love of drum samples.
Since the release of the Rass Out EP early last year, probably your best known record, which featured in Martyn's Fabric mix at the beginning of this year, how has your musical life changed?
Rass Out was written over three years ago. I remember the first time I played it, it was in a broken beat club.
When I play, I kind of play production sets, although I do play bits of other people's music too but because I make so much music I'm at liberty to play three or four hours of purely my own production. I remember playing Rass Out and people were like 'what the fuck'. It became a bit of a broken beat anthem before the US house guys and the UK house guys started playing it and then it ended up a bit of a UK funky anthem.
It was mad to actually have created something that was appreciated by dubstep heads and UK funky fans as well as house DJs. Last year was a bad year for me personally so I didn't entirely celebrate the success of it.
It raised awareness of what I'm doing though. People will now hit me up and ask me about my last album and old stuff that was released in the past and they're appreciating it, it's nice.
I've got quite a lot of stuff coming out this year off the back of it so this year should be a good year.
Are you sick of Rass Out?
No I wouldn't say I'm sick of it because it's probably the biggest achievement I've ever made.
In terms of a song that has crossed over and been appreciated on more than one platform, I don't think many people have actually really done that. You'd never get a house tune that's appreciated so much by a dubstep crowd, so it's mental.
Everyone can appreciate the energy and the drums on it, everyone can get with that groove, you can't not nod your head to it. We've just entered the greatest time in dance music, everyone's openned up a bit, everyone's diversifying their sound. You've got DJs like Martyn and Kode9 who're playing fucking everything, and people are kind of following that and diversifying what they put in their music.
Are there any artists who particularly influenced you as you started out or have you always tried to pave your own path?
I've never been overly influenced by music. All my influences come from life experiences really. People who have come to know me, sometimes when they listen to my music they'll ask what the hell was wrong with me that day and stuff like that.
You can tell if I'm in a good mood or bad mood through my music, it's kind of like a diary for me because I write on a daily basis. I get pissed off if I don't write. If I go away on holiday, I get tetchy, I know I'm supposed to be relaxing but I relax better when I'm writing. I don't intend to stop or ever want to stop. I'm happy and blessed that people are starting to enjoy what I'm doing because it doesn't begin or end anywhere for me, it's just constantly flowing.
I just want to keep it like that and enjoy the rest of my life doing something I love doing. With the music industry it's all to easy to accept what's played to you, not many people will dig and dig, it's all too easy to be led.
Especially DJs as well, it's easy to be a top DJ and buy all the same tunes as all the others.
Do you have any favourite producers at the moment or any people you've played with who've stood out?
There are a lot of younger producers who are coming through that I'll support.
I found when I was coming through writing music, no one wanted to help me or give me their support. The music industry is very selfish in the way that people will try and grab every opportunity but keep it for themselves.
No one helped me to get to where I am or do what I do.
When I was younger I only had a couple of people who believed in what I did and really pushed my sound. Phil Asher was a big UK house producer and DJ, mates with Masters at Work and all that lot; he really pushed my name and played every track I've ever done from the very first one I ever did as Altered Natives. That really helped, and inspired me, gave me a bit of strength. It's nice to know that you've got someone who believes in what you're doing because there's a million fuckers out there trying to do what I'm doing. But I mean, there's a bunch of young UK producers who are coming up and making names for themselves now.
I kind of see myself as their big brother and try to give them my advice and support whenever it's needed.
Are you a fan of Julio Bashmore and Mount Kimbie, and other acts playing with you this Friday?
Julio, Joy Orbison, all these guys coming through, they're changing up the face of what's going on.
Julio Bashmore's take on house is fresh, bringing new angles and perspectives. Bok Bok, and L-Vis 1990, they've got a nice sound coming on, as well as Beat Technology.
It makes me really proud to be involved with it.
Before, everything seemed so segregated, now everyone's sound seems to compliment each other, it's almost like someone's found all the jigsaw pieces and is now fitting them together.
This year's going to be a good year for a lot of people, I'm just excited to see how it all pans out. On a personal level, I can't say I ever envisaged myself on 3024 but I obviously am now. I guess it's just how it all falls into place.
Danny has his own show on DeJa Vu Fm called 'The Altered Natives Radio' show, going out every Thursday night from 8-10pm, playing broken beat, house, hip hop and dubstep as well as exclusive productions from the man himself...
Check the MYSPACE for more music and upcoming gigs.
Enjoy this track from the new album, and grab the one below available for download for a few more days...
For those of you who might have missed the legendary Edu K on your musical travels, get ready...
Who are you, where are you from, and what do you do?
I’m Edu K; King of the jungle. I come from the South of South America; more precisely from the city of Porto Alegre in Southern Brasil. N’ , well, what I do is party a lot... crack some fat as tunes n’ then travel the world droppin’ those same tunes n’, yay, u guessed right: partyin’ a lot all over again! HA!
Of late your "sound" has changed rather dramatically, and moved further away from the old hype stuff towards something altogether more... sparse(?)... How would you describe the music you currently output?
Hmmmm, I’d call it HOUSE MUSIC (or at least, accordin’ to Mista Teki, that’s what our fathers used to call it). Of course it’s infused with lot of tropical drums, dark-side tech n’ the, err…”sparseness” of Mins but, still it’s House, right?
Who do you see as your most influential contemporaries? Who do you most look up to at the moment?
Fuck. Shit loadsa dudes! But most of them German; Alex Niggemann, Heinrichs & Hirtenfellner, Daniel Steinberg, etc. But I also love the Dirtybird crew sound n’ what dudes like Lazaro Casanova n’ Jay-You are doin’ in Miami n’ LA – the new Deep House thang! N' French Fries has been givin’ me the hots recently too!
With this huge influx of minimal percussion and SPACE in tracks, is hype dead?
Nah… Nothin’ dies, just transforms! Kids still love bangers but they are also opening to other (n’ sexier) stuff now too!
What influences you most musically, when you write tracks?
Hmmm, not just music but also comics, books, tv shows, movies, club nights out n’ many other kinds of kool shit!
What do you listen to at home?
It goes from Iggy & The Stooges to John Coltrane n’ Frank Sinatra. But also a whole lotta Exile on Main Street n’ Pet Sounds on repeat, every single day! Yeah, lotsa club trax too, of course!
What are you doing for the rest of 2010?
I’m spendin’ 3 months tourin’ Europe soon. Also workin’ on tons of nu tracks n’ remixes. In the summer (Brasilian Summer that is) I’ll just chill for 3 months at the beach, on an island!
How has being Brazilian informed what you do? (if at all)
Hmmmm, I guess besides the drums there’s the famous “Brasilian way”, ya know, I guess that we can grown the lemons AND make the juice in any given situation! ha
Why do you think all this "world" influence is suddenly jumping into the scene?
I think things change all the time n’ faster n’ faster n’ FASTER each day. N’, I guess peeps where tired of the violence of bangers! When the Fidget hangover came down with a thud that was the right time for slower BPMs, groovy beats n’ percussion n' a lil' emptiness too, I guess!
Where is it taking us is the one million dollar question nobody has the answer to - which just makes everything MORE fun!
Check out another quality Edu K mix below... For your health...
Download the EXCLUSIVE CURRICULUM AWKWEIRD MIX HERE.
Massive Props to Edu K for taking the time to do this mix for us. It's an absolute banger!! World Minimal in essence. So enjoy, and check out his MYSPACE.
Edu K is playing the Zulu Tea Party in London, May 15th.
Milt Mortez (MYSPACE) is an artist that caught my ear recently with 2 tracks in particular; 'Astoria' and 'Lungisani'...Hit links to download. Milt Mortez - Astoria
Claiming his main influences to be the weather, liquor, special effects and Opaque Mixtapes, I was stoked when he said he would do a mix for us (download at bottom of post).
With new track 'Pluto' upcoming on Discobelle Records' 'Turned On Vol. 1' Milt Mortez is a pretty exciting prospect for the future...So keep your ears peeled for more.
A new feature to look forward to every month on the Curriculum blog is our Label Of The Month feature.
Every month bringing you a different creation station who's output we greatly dig, or who seems to be bringing something interesting to the contemporary scene.
This month we have chosen Deadfish; an influential label who have brought a lot of fresh sounds to the table over the last few years, and who continue to hone their sound within Worldwide House underbelly.
We grabbed a few words from label boss Mowgli...
How did Deadfish come about?
I wanted to be independent from other labels; once you learn how to distribute and promote a record why would you license your tracks to someone else and split the profits with them??
Also I could release whatever I wanted and whenever I wanted...its freedom!
Who does what within Deadfish?
I do almost everything.
I've now hired a guy that helps me with the network promotion as the workload has become too much and I don't want to take to much time off from my music productions.
Then my manager helps me with licensing, and I have another person for accountancy.
How would you describe the Deadfish sound? and how do you select artists that you think would be right for the label?
I think we do house music with a weird funny touch...
Well, honestly I don't select many artists, even if I receive a lot of good promos, cos I want to have just a few good ones.
I don't want to become a massive label like Defected... We want to be like a family, and this what we actually are.
In fact I will never release an amazing producer if he's a dickhead; I could never have a party or a tour with him...
Who are your hot prospects for the rest of 2010?
Looking into my family I must say Camel, Tom Flynn and Round Table Knights.
Others its hard because there are SO many good producers, it would be a long list...
What does the future hold for Deadfish?
We'll obviously continue to release EPs trying to keep the quality high;
12th April there's my EP "I Want Everything EP" 26th April Tom Flynn "Just Can't Play EP"
Then in May I've got a remix album for our 1st anniversary, with a lot of friends that picked up a favourite from the catalogue and remixed it; remixes by Me, Solo, Camel, Round Table Knights, Renaissance Man, Tom Flynn, Zombie Disco Squad etc.
Who chose those awesome EP covers?
I do all the covers, I find the jellyfish really psychedelic... And there are so many different species that I'm sorted for few years of releases..!
What advice would you give to up and coming producers (how to get heard etc), and people thinking about starting labels?
To new producers I suggest to spend time in studio more then trying to promote themselves, if you are really good someone will notice your music and sign you.
First good advice I can give to start a label is, again, to have really good music; this is what makes you stand out from the million labels out there; don't release something if it's not amazing... One bad release can ruin your reputation.
Second advice is to stick to a sound; don't be all over the place - it's all about becoming really good in one little niche and slowly building a fan base.
Third piece of advice is to be patient! There's no short way to success.
Keep doing your work every day, every week, every month, and you'll get results.
Like my manager says, "It's not a sprint is a marathon!"
Two women face each other, usually holding each other's arms. One singer leads by setting a short rhythmic pattern, which she repeats leaving brief silent intervals between each repetition. The other singer fills in the gap with another rhythmic pattern. The sounds used include voiced sounds as well as unvoiced ones, both through inhalation or exhalation. The first to run out of breath or be unable to maintain the pace of the other singer or the first to laugh, or to simply stop, will lose the game.
At one time, the lips of the two women almost touched, so that one singer used the mouth cavity of the other as a resonator, but this is less common in present day. Often, the singing is accompanied by a shuffling in rhythm from one foot to the other. The sounds may be actual words or nonsense syllables or created during exhalation.
That first video is a pleasant example of this Overtone technique, though I have found that so much online footage is teaming with background noise and instruments, and right now the main thing I am interested in is the actual singing itself.
What is happening there is that the partials (fundamental and overtones) of a sound wave made by the voice are being selectively amplified by changing the shape of the resonant cavities of the mouth, larynx and pharynx.
This resonant tuning allows the singer to create apparently more than one pitch at the same time (the fundamental and a selected overtone), while in effect still generating a single fundamental frequency with his vocal folds.
The below video is from the Chevy Chase show, so forgive the mid 90's wholehearted American-ness of it.
That said, with no background distractions or hullabaloo, this is one of the best pieces of documentation I have found showing off Overtone throat singing, and I am pretty certain it will blow your mind.
Monkey Safari are two guys looking for their way on the ride through the musical jungle; always avoiding the big beaten paths of commerce.
With the experience of making music and working as DJs for almost seven years, their sets and productions contain influences of African rhythms, Hip Hop, Funk, Midget House and a variety of musical styles from all over the world.
In the year 2008 Monkey Safari founded What! What! Records with their studio partner Mike Okay, since which time they formed their own jungle in the wide What! What! world.
1. DJ Sany Pitbull - Tribos 2. Beenie Man - Dude (TLGB Remix) 3. Gorrilaz - White Flag (feat. Bashy, Kano & The National Orchestra for Arabic Music) 4. Incubus - Aqueaous Transmission 5. The Beatles - Tommorrow Never Knows 6. Ravi Shankar - Tabla Solo in Ekial 7. Four Tet - She Moves She 8. Frikstailers - Tô Com Saudade (feat. MC Maiquinho) 9. Jan Driver - Kardamoon 10. Milt Mortez - Astoria 11. Preacherman - Daniel Steinberg 12. Randomer - Scapegoat
We should Bang ZDS Intro Johan Vermeulen – Mbaya Vincent Thomas – Heureka Hanne, Lore – Und Die SchufaKlausel BingoPlayers – Chop (Original Mix) Idiotproof – The Bouncer Blackbox – Ride on time (ZDS Bass Mix) Riva Starr – Dance me – (Fatjam Remix) Round Table Knights – Calypso Tok Tok – Circus Ramon Tapia – Say Sascha Braemer- Some Sweat Saeed Younan – Yeah Ha Detroit Grand Pubars – One Hump Or Two
