New Beginnings: A Note On The New Site

It's been a while since I had the time or capacity to post as regularly as I'd like to on here. There's a fair chance that not many people here will be familiar with the all the reasons for this, but my focus for the past couple of years has been primarily on paid work and working out what the best approaches to securing a future in the media are. While it may seem counter-productive to neglect practices like this website, as I've written before, life is good at getting in the way sometimes and in the most general terms possible, that's the reason for the slowing down process of late.

However, recently I've been coming to the point of being desperate to throw myself back at writing again, covering various topics and attempting various different approaches. It's likely that the premise of much of my non-fiction writing will still be music based, but I'm currently working on several projects with different companies and will certainly be posting about my experience of those in the future. The platform for all of this will be my new website, a Wordpress domain entitled High Rise And Ink, which you can visit HERE. There are three articles on the site so far, with a couple of older pieces previously published here to be uploaded over the next couple of days, and this is where all of my self-imposed and unassigned writing will be published in the immediate and probably quite ongoing future. Design wise it's still in its very early stages, but I hope to improve it shortly and make it look far more adept, rather than merely functional.

Thank you hugely, as always, to everyone who has continued to support and encourage me to carry on writing and sharing. I still have plans to make it my full-time profession at some stage, so I'll be doing my best to ensure that the impetus is kept and I manage to stay revived enough get lost in the beauty of what can be achieved via words. It's safe to say that I would have given up completely a long time ago if it wasn't for some of the people who have invigorated me, so every read of every post means a great deal.

Many thanks once again, and I hope to see you in the due course!

Jack x

The Radar: Cultural Highlights Of May So Far

Image Credit: Rene Passet Flickr 

Here's an article about some cultural things, whether music based or otherwise, that I've been enjoying over the past couple of weeks or so. Recently I wrote about the personal need for art-forms as a paradigm to get lost in, but more universally it seems that the best antidote to panic is to submerge oneself in the things that are dearest to them. I'll try and post one of these every few weeks; it's worth mentioning that - as you'll glean from the book and TV show which I discuss here - not everything I write about will have been released in 2017. Largely the only thing I manage to be constantly up-to-date with is music, although this is changing so there may be more on that front soon. 

Anyway, here are the things that have been thrilling me recently. As always, I hope you find something that peaks your interest. 

MIX: Avalon Emerson Live @ Printworks, London

San Francisco producer Avalon Emerson has, via a series of exquisitely crafted and dynamic sets and mixes, carved out a rather inimitable niche for herself as a DJ. This set, recorded at a party hosted by Hydra at Printworks in London in March, completely encompasses all the blood-pumping, tear-jerking and deeply personal facets that she's become known for dealing in. Things kick off in wonderfully banging fashion, as the first half an hour sees her weave in Objekt's 'Theme From Q' (sure to be heard across many a dancefloor this summer) and her own furiously euphoric re-cut of Shamir's 'On the Regular'. The second half an hour is a journey through perhaps the most stunningly beautiful passage you'll hear in any mix this year, before a swift run of drum 'n' bass emboldened by Photek's classic 'Complex' re-shifts the atmosphere and adds even more colour. 

It's her incorporation of Nina Donovan's 'I Am A Nasty Woman' poem, performed by actress Ashley Judd at the Women's March in New York in January of this year, that sees the set's finale reach its zenith, and while the whole two hours is phenomenal, it's this which levitates it to being a celebration of diversity, vivacity, femininity and jubilation. It's the kind of dancefloor moment which will go down in clubbing circle history. 

Listen to Avalon Emerson's set via Soundcloud HERE. 

BOOK: Yeats: Selected Poetry

I'm not totally sure why I decided to start reading this collection of W.B Yeats poetry (this edition published by Pan Books, London in 1974)  I found on my mother's book-shelf recently. Ultimately it was a combination of not being overly familiar with his work and a growing fascination with the structural limits and reserved time frame that exists in most poetry. But it's fair to say that, for all of my favourite writers and their idiosyncrasies, none of them are as adept at creating, summarising, envisioning or relaying feelings as William Butler Yeats. 

Yeats' use of words is neither particularly complicated nor introverted, but so wholeheartedly do the convictions, perspectives (whether his own or not) and emotions pervade from the pages in this collection (which spans his entire catalogue and timeline of work) that the poems here lift the veil on a magnificently deep connection with his home country of Ireland, the human condition, war, love and prophecy. An underlying melancholy and sense of regret is the most common base for many of these verses, and slammed as they are against a pastoral, bleak and vivid depiction of the Irish landscape and folklore, they create an ethereal beating heart that's as much a product of the early 20th century as it is the desire to make these feelings tangible. This collection acts as a way into a world stricken with grief but not ignorant of glimmers of hope, which is why reading it in 2017 can seem like a vindictive activity. 

TV: War & Peace, BBC One

I have a strangely long relationship with Leo Tolstoy's War & Peace. I first brought the book when I was eighteen, hoping to spend the summer before embarking on my first year of university getting immersed in it, but I've started reading it about five times and have still gotten no further than about forty pages in. First aired in early 2016, BBC One's adaptation of the legendary novel was perhaps exactly what someone like me needed, and the results were fairly beautiful. 

Enlisting Paul Dano as protagonist Pierre Bezukhov was an inspired move, but the production went to greater lengths to show off the wealth of young British artists who are starting to become welcome regulars through the likes of Lily James, Tuppence Middleton and James Norton. Add in to the equation the mercurial old guard combo of Brian Cox and Jim Broadbent, a remarkably eerie soundtrack and a pristine, fine-tuned cinematic projection of upper middle class antics and visceral battle scenes, what the show lacked occasionally in context it made up for in well-judged wholesomeness. Just over a year on and it still ranks as one of the BBC's finest historical drama propositions. 

ALBUM: Pond- The Weather

Perth, Australia based Tame Impala affiliates Pond have honed in on a zeitgeist moment for their seventh LP, The Weather. The en vogue psych-pop sound that Kevin Parker has re-energised and embellished in the mainstream over the last few years does find itself interwoven into the first half of this record, with songs like 'Paint Me Silver' and the Ariel Pink-esque 'Colder Than Ice' being smothered in just enough hallucinogenic light to potentially earn a place on the "edgier" side of the Radio 1 roster. The whole record is an invigorating, often achingly addictive and textured opus, whether it's residing in poppier climbs or slightly deeper moments like the slow-burning saxophone-centric wig out of 'Zen Automaton'. Despite it's sun-kissed domain however, the lyrics are delivered by frontman Nick Allbrook with a sardonic sense of retirement that, although drenched in humour, adheres to an outlook based on the notion that it's time to give up on the human race. Just like all the best psych-pop, it marries exuberance and druggy craft with poignancy. 

MIX: Hunee, BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix

It's always special when a DJ who isn't a household name gets given the chance to propose their craft to a slightly more mainstream audience. Pete Tong & Radio 1's Essential Mix series have done wonders in this regard, and famed crate-digger Hunee delivers in spades on his contribution. Like the aforementioned Avalon Emerson, Hunee's mixes revolve around an almost intellectual understanding of texture and colour, and the two hours on offer here run the gauntlet in terms of experimentation, beauty and twisted, alien shapes and ideas. The majority of the cuts here are little-distributed house and techno tunes which thrive at the deeper end of the spectrum, but the push-and-pull dynamic that exists between the different flavours is always fluid, antagonistic and interesting. It's the last half an hour though which will provoke the biggest grins, and Hunee embarks on a series of gorgeously feel-good and international funk and disco, providing the perfect summer accompaniment in an era when throwback tactics are all the rage. 

You can listen to Hunee's Essential Mix HERE. 

12": Dom & Roland- Aliens/ Zodiac

Mined from the archives of the legendary Drum 'n' Bass duo's unreleased '90s material as part of their Dubs From The Dungeons series, Aliens / Zodiac is a time capsule from the past, the alluring resurfacing of an era steeped in technical ability and precision but with the kind of heart and soul that much of today's DnB seems to lack. Both of these weapons are deeply otherworldly, skulking out of dark warehouses and taking on hulking forms rooted in fat, distorted bass lines and tech-stepping rhythmic cycles while leaving plenty of room for gaps, silences and growing dystopian shadows, especially on 'Zodiac'. It's a release that's both suitably banging and cold, and one that harks back to a time when this music was pure futurism broadcast from another dimension. 

ALBUM: Full Of Hell- Trumpeting Ecstasy

Although this is only Full Of Hell's third LP, it's their first offering of stand-alone new material in four years. The time in between this and 2013's Rudiments Of Mutilation has been spent adhering to and developing the notion of them as the grindcore newcomers with real evolutionary ideas via split releases with Sludge metal weirdos The Body and Japan's dark-hearted noise master Merzbow. Eleven tracks long and clocking in at twenty three minutes, there's a certain amount of back-to-basics, nails-down-a-blackboard savagery going on here, completely submerged in nihilism and bleak, near anti-human philosophy and grooviness. But as expected, they make time for cavernous, eerie spaciousness (particularly at the finale of closing track 'At The Cauldron's Bottom'), discordant sampling and electronic excursions, and the title track, featuring the vocal talents of Canadian songstress Nicole Dollenganger, is THE most haunting thing I've heard so far this year. 2017's most thrillingly nasty piece of work rears it's ugly head. 

Record Store Day 2017: Just Say No

The tail end of last week saw the arrival of the time of year when record buying (on a general level) stops being a hobby and becomes a Deal Or No Deal- style slice of marketplace propaganda. Taking place on April 22nd this year, it seems fitting that the simple seduction of Record Store Day lands at a time where information is warped into post-truth fanaticism and previous indifference is largely becoming panic-stricken Twitter-based outcries. We live in an age where distribution and consumption has never been lapped up so submissively, whether that be with regards to migration, secular aspects of funding or, indeed, how much value there is in a picture disc.

As with most things purveying the corporate side of the music industry these days, it's easy to be cynical about Record Store Day. Until just a few days ago, I was excited about the prospect of a picture disc containing rare versions of Danny Brown's 'Ain't It Funny?' and previously unreleased Goat material. Of course, there's plenty of charm in the idea of a "grand unveiling" of unheard music at the base level of intrigue that all music obsessives will be familiar with. However, the idea that this is best addressed with a zoo-like shop-based work-out rather than a streaming through Bandcamp or a specialist website like Metal Injection, for example, is where the landslide begins.

Given the fact that vinyl sales reached their highest peak for 25 years in 2016, the prices now charged by places like Rough Trade East and Rise in Bristol are expected retail manoeuvres. There's not much doubt that many of the exclusives on offer this year will be pushed to more extortionate amounts than previously. Part of this is due to the accessibility of records in places like HMV and high street super market chains, whose pernicious stocking of major label big hitters is continuously turning record buying away from devout listeners and into an itunes-style cover-all decoy.

The wider point regarding this is that, sure, there's still an enormous sense of community and camaraderie to be found when visiting independent record stores on a daily basis. But when they're turned into price-driven exhibitions, there's not much of an incentive to avoid buying original pressings of many of these records for as little as £10 on Discogs. SPOILER ALERT: Picture discs sound woeful anyway. The whole point of Mayhem's Deathcrush EP is that it sounds like it was recorded in a biscuit tin; getting that big-room vibe off a decent sound-system and being able to hold and look at the sleeve will be a far more rewarding experience anyway.

None of the arguments here are about elitism, either. I believe anybody should be allowed to buy records- It's been said 100 times over the past few years, but the resurgence of vinyl as an art-form and passion is a very fine thing. Cynical accessibility and exclusive pressings limited to a few hundred copies are two sides of the same rotten coin in this respect. On the one hand, the attempt at forcing mass appeal to line the pockets of labels like Sony and Island via sales through Tesco and Sainsbury's is devaluing that very idea of music as a passion.

On the other hand, inaccessibility shuts out fans who are generally stimulated by furthering their collections, or people who are looking to start one based on, *ahem*, sound and vision rather than trendiness. Exclusivity isn't about building a sense of community anymore; it's another example of the music industry being stolen from the people it should target. Especially when it comes to something that's largely still as devotion-based as vinyl, none of these exclusives will be as marketable as is being suggested. Record collections are about personality and should never be based on a marketing man's wet dream.

The argument about record flippers veers in and out throughout the year, as it does with ticket touts. One piece of positive news to salvage amongst the nihilism is that, as pointed out in this excellent blog by Discogs user Diognes_The_Fox last year, the value of 2015's exclusives turned over online for a price that far exceeds what people would have paid for them initially had fallen back to either list price or, indeed, just below. Undoubtedly record flippers have an unusually callous perception of music fans, but when cash grabs are reflected in marketing and promotion as seemingly worthwhile for the listener then the ball has started rolling way earlier that someone selling Radiohead's Kid A for £100+.

The best way to diffuse these people and their games is to avoid events like this "holiday" altogether. By all mean buy copies of the records that are listed, but buy them somewhere honest, either an independent retailer online (Boomkat, Juno, or Bandcamp to name just a few of the most direct) or in an independent record store ANY day of the year. And as cool as splatter-coloured vinyl is, lots of records are pressed in dynamic and aesthetically interesting ways in their original versions; pick up a copy of Deafheaven's Sunbather and you'll most likely find it slammed on fluorescent pink and yellow wax. Of course everyone is entitled to buy on RSD- as highlighted earlier, collections should be deeply personal things. But there does come a point where one has to decide which you value more: A haul ending in a rarity that ultimately means nothing after purchase, or an activity based on love and intrigue that shouldn't be allowed to become another cog in the corporate mire.

Call Super- Fabric 92

Artist: Call Super/ Various Artists

Album: Fabric 92

Record Label: fabric

Revered UK producer and DJ Joe Seaton brings his masterful, shape-morphing skills to bare on maybe the finest Fabric Series contribution yet

Given that fabric's two Mix CD series, respectively titled simply 'Fabric' and 'Fabric: Live', are arguably the most successful and popular specimens of their kind, the sense of joy and want to continue down the trajectory of pushing the most exciting and forward-thing DJ's and mixes on a worldwide scale has been resumed without any kind of reserve or lapse in quality since the club's re-opening. The fabric series' have been a prolific way for those not able to regularly enjoy the club's cultural prevalence and the coming-of-age empowerment indulged in by many of the producers and DJ's who have made contributions to experience all facets of the dance genre. It's probably not controversial to say that without them the widespread appeal of dance music, especially in the UK, wouldn't be half as prevalent. 

Joe Seaton, aka Call Super (one of various aliases he releases music under), is a name that constantly drips from the tongue of anyone who has had more than a passing interest in club culture over the past five years or so. His often visionary productions and chameleon-esque approach to DJ'ing, honed especially by several incredible showcases with Berlin's Objekt over the years, have cemented themselves at the heart of the UK's beating late-night core. In many ways, he's the perfect candidate to succeed the reigns of the mix series from Nina Kraviz, whose Fabric 91 was one of the strangest but most technically adept chapters yet. 

In a statement released prior to Fabric 92, Seaton said: "The late hours seem strangely unrepresented within this series, and I thought I would start there instead of using this opportunity to add another peak time chapter to the collections". It's an almost impossibly smooth mix and as Seaton's words allude, it doesn't shy away from the most club-friendly elements of the dance sphere (Objekt's shape-shifting 'The Stitch-Up' and Call Super's own 'Acephale II' ensure that), but it's a selection that largely prioritises atmospheres and magnetic, sunken grooves and contains plenty of his penchant for dynamic shifts and disorientating turns. 

Although Seaton says that he wanted the mix to somewhat reflect how he plays in a club, the overriding sense of a non-live mix in his hands is an opportunity to draw in thinkers; people completely aware of the music's history, heritage and context and thus those seeking out dramatic paradigms or real emotion, and Fabric 92 has both in abundance. 

The soothing, barely there bubbling of Photek's 'T'Raenon' is balanced as a sleepy lull between the forthright, reflective groove of Two Full Minds' 'No Smoke' and Don't DJ's mind-warping 'Pornoire', which here is ever-so-slightly tweaked to slot in without a second's hesitation. Shortly after the "epic mix" of Carl Craig's 'A Wonderful Life' is transformed from being whisper-quiet into being totally sun-kissed and euphoric before melting gloriously into 'Acephale II', providing us with the mix's biggest moment of sheer, unadulterated ecstasy. 

The final 15 minutes or so feature this venture's most sumptuously reserved and textured gambit, which soars from the early acapella blues/soul of Walter Brown's rarity 'Keep On Walkin'' set flawlessly against the backdrop of Karen Gwyer's trance-inducing 'Hippie Fracca' and a brief, nightmarish flicker of Thomas Ankersmit & Valerio Tricola's drone demon 'Plague #7'. Yves Tumor's classic 'The Feeling When You Walk Away' manages to pack some sunset-drenched imagery into proceedings before the angry contemporary ragga of Speng Bond's 'Cutbacks' round things up with an inspired nod to the criminal justice bill and a government-lead mission to strike out at the poor & young.

Seaton said of the mix that he wanted it to be "primarily highly personal", and certainly Fabric 92 is the kind of mix that could only be achieved with an acute and unique, persistently evolving approach to DJ'ing. That Call Super has attempted unorthodox ideas and pushed different sounds and ideas out of their comfort zones to create fresh experiences and feelings should come as a surprise to no one familiar with his work, but it's particularly powerful in a context like the fabric mix series. Not only does it proudly carry on the tradition of bringing the more esoteric depths of dance music to the fore, but it's also the contribution to the series that has the most life-affirming sense of self and intrigue yet. 

9/10

Lessons In Hypnotism: Leif & Inga Mauer Reviewed

Inga Mauer. Image credit: Rene Passet Flickr 

Two of Techno's brightest names show off their mesmerising chops on two of 2017's most exciting dance releases thus far

Artist: Leif
Album: July V/ Shoulders Back
Record Label: Tio Series

While it may run the risk of becoming "the cliched story" to cynical minds, one of dance music's proudest traditions is its record label culture. After years on the circuit as both a producer and DJ, it seems more like a natural step for the London-based Leif Knowles than it does for most. His esoteric deliveries and prolific output since the mid-noughties have certainly given him enough of a platform to launch something that celebrates those consistencies even further.

July V/ Shoulders Back is the debut release on his newly fashioned Tio Series imprint, and as expected it barrels through with all the character and nuance we've come to expect from him with a resolutely fresh twist. 'July V' grows from humble beginnings into a jarring, burbling series of jagged synth loops, growing into itself seamlessly and taking on fried, layered forms. It turns in a recognisably Leif-centric melodious heart around the mid-point before finding its feet in self-assured oddness again as it draws to a close.

By contrast, 'Shoulders Back' has more of a rigid structure from the start. Drawing on a more classically banging persuasion, its mesmerising lead synth is simpler in nature but just as enticing. Coupled with a deep-cut analogue bass lick and a well-measured but propulsive beat, it proves itself just as intriguing as the weirder recesses of Knowles' work.

8/10

Artist: Inga Mauer
Album: Schtum 012
Record Label: Schtum

The new 12" by mysterious Russian producer Inga Mauer steps into contact with record label culture from a different direction. As its title suggests, it's the 12th release on rising German label Schtum, who have kick-started the likes of Avalon Emerson and Leibniz into prominence in recent years, and who have a penchant for soliciting both a hard-nosed and forward-thinking approach to techno. Mauer uses the four tracks on Schtum 012 to explore different traditions within a club-friendly framework and takes them to nearly impossibly sunken, no-nonsense depths.

Opener 'Dno' has a gloriously smooth and strident stomp to accompany its fat and fuzzy two-note synth lead that's packed with the ecstacy of a Hamburg sweatbox at 2am. 'Silences' is cavernous and dark but comes loaded with the kind of infectious, subterranean repetition that the likes of both Randomer and Roman Flugel have secured in the past. There's a real tinge of euphoria in the sense of the "doom of our time" atmospherics exorcised on the pounding closer 'Dystopia' via deceptively simple but hyper-coloured melodies and effervescent vocal samples. Best of all though is the warped, hallucinogenic crawl of 'My Flights Without You', all swamp-mired wobs and an increasingly banging but reserved groove, all an eerie base for the swirling vocal cuts floating in the foreground.

8/10

Stormzy- Gang Signs & Prayer

Artist: Stormzy

Album: Gang Signs & Prayer

Record Label: #Merky

Stormzy's debut LP extends both Grime's hardcore roots and contains a fresh-faced kind of humanity

The debut album from Stormzy, Gang Signs & Prayer, starts in the expected fashion. A dark, bubbling instrumental packed with menace and a hint of American trap propels him as his distinct, gun-shot flow brings to life Croydon industrial-estate fire. But then comes the assertion that "while you were fighting your girl, I was fighting my depression". It's subject matter that will rise again on the record's candid closer 'Lay Me Bare', but it's not completely uncharted territory for grime. Dizzee Rascal ended his seminal 2003 debut Boy In Da Corner with 'Do It!', a track that saw him confessing to suicidal urges that only guts were preventing him from obliging. 

But Gang Signs & Prayer is hardly a complete throwback triviality or a re-hashing of old ideas. Just like the best grime it comes loaded with gritty identity, but perhaps in a relatively untested manner it confronts and develops a recognisably human face for a genre so imbued with the cold, hard reality faced by vast swathes of London's misrepresented youth. 

There's plenty here that unashamedly harks back to grime's roots. 'Cold' is a searing banger that sees Stormzy wrap himself in the sort of gangsta mentality most honed by the likes of Giggs a decade previously. 'Bad Boys' is an eerie crawl through a desolate Lewisham warehouse at 3am, with a masterfully aggressive gambit from Ghetts and gems like "they think they're like Narcos, they're just some Netflix bad boys" adhering to the genre's perpetually dark but self-aware sense of humour. 

There are layers to be found in these heavier moments too. 'Mr. Skeng' addresses split personalities and a self-directed culture change in raucous fashion; one of many references to the connection that Stormzy will always have with his formative, gang-centric years as explored with more subtlety in the heartfelt pathos of '21 Gun Salute' and 'Don't Cry For Me'. 

The real moments of vulnerability that have lead many to herald Gang Signs & Prayer as a sea-change in personality come in the most lovelorn moments. 'Velvet/ Jenny Francis (Interlude)' is an overtly smooth, Drake-esque ode to the kind of love-life our protagonist can offer, while 'Cigarettes and Kush', featuring a beautiful gambit from Kehlani, uses narcotics as a metaphor for regret, misplaced entitlement and heart-broken longing. Unfortunately, despite its cosmic sonics 'Blinded By Your Grace pt. 2' lacks any real tact and proves beyond measure that there's almost no way to make the line "Let's hear it one time for the Lord" sound well-composed in rap verse. 

Gang Signs... isn't a fully recognised standard. It's occasionally inconsistent in its impact but it bristles with humanity and, perhaps most tellingly, approach-ability. It's certainly more adept than Skepta's Konnichiwa was last year at carving a (mostly) captivating personality, and it's also the first grime record for years that's left plenty of room for foreseeable growth. 

7/10

Key Tracks: 'Cold', 'First Things First', 'Cigarettes and Kush (ft. Kehlani)'

For Fans Of: Wiley, Kano 

Jesca Hoop- Memories Are Now

Artist: Jesca Hoop

Album: Memories Are Now

Record Label: Sub Pop

The California singer-songwriter's 7th full-length has noble intentions but is disappointingly lifeless. 

California-born (and now Manchester, UK based) singer-songwriter Jesca Hoop's early life experiences certainly give her plenty of grounds for introspection. Raised in a Mormon household and spending her early 20's working on a rehabilitation programme for wayward teens would be formative for most. Memories Are Now, her 7th LP, tries to directly collate these experiences and reflect on lessons learned. For all that warmth though, the record feels unfortunately lifeless. 

The opening title track revolves around a skeletal groove and beautiful harmonies, but its distant percussive clang means it never gains much traction. Although similarly beat-less, the delicate loneliness of 'The Lost Sky' feels much more epic and longing but by the end its repetition renders it comparably dull. 'Animal Kingdom Chaotic' is better, a nicely off-kilter exploration of human arrogance and power. 'Songs Of Old' is unexpectedly stark and slightly chilling, while absolute highlight 'Cut Connection', with its fuzzy, calmly stomping update of her previously minimalist tendencies  is likely to be effecting to anyone familiar with instability or depression (opening lyric: "I'm living the dream and in the dream I'm buried alive"). 

'Pegasi', however, veers too close to Juno soundtrack-esque cutesiness, and although 'The Coming' sees her indulge in biting, Father John Misty-like anti-religious satire the sludgy, cavernous guitar chords are disappointingly void of atmosphere or energy. 

There are a handful of lovely poetic nuances on Memories Are Now, but more often than not neither the music or lyricism is pounding enough to hit as hard as it'd like to. Hoop's introspection is almost always noble if too understated. 

5/10

Key Tracks: 'Cut Connection', 'Animal Kingdom Chaotic'

For Fans Of: PJ Harvey, Laura Marling