KOTJ Radio | Episode 5: Willy Joy

The fifth edition of our (sort of) monthly podcast comes from Chicago's very own Willy Joy. With elements of electro, house, UK funky, pop, techno and heavy bass all coming to the fore, this is a well put together mix capable of getting just about everyone doing the running man.

His newest release with Rob Threezy on Trouble & Bass comes as part of their Heavy Bass Champions Of The World series. With his releases getting support from the likes of Diplo, Drop The Lime, Brodinski & Boy 8-Bit, this mix shows exactly why he has friends in high places.

Check out his Heavy Bass Champions Of The World X EP with Rob Threezy here and look out for a forthcoming release on Plant Music.

KOTJ Radio | Episode 5: Willy Joy by Kickoutthejam on Mixcloud

Tracklist:

01. Alan 1 - Concertmate (Bobermann Remix)
02. Lauren Pritchard - Not The Drinking (Riva Starr Remix)
03. Robyn - With Every Heartbeat (Nacey Bootleg)
04. Heavyfeet - Here We Go Again
05. Foamo - Here Comes
06. Jazzbit - Sing Sing (Yolanda Be Cool & Dcup Dub)
07. Bart Bmore, Nom De Strip & Little Bastard - Bollymore
08. Bird Peterson - Dropsy
09. Homework - I Got One (You're It)
10. Willy Joy - A Woman Like Me (Hot Version)
11. Scissor Sisters - Any Which Way (Carte Blanche Remix)
12. Katy B - Louder
13. Ethix - Breaking Bad (Nick Catchdubs & Proper Villains Remix)
14. Human Life - Wherever We Are (Grum Remix)
15. RCMP - USA Groove (Burnso Remix)

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Download: KOTJ Radio Episode 5: Willy Joy

DJ Aaron-Carl loses battle with cancer

It seems the current onslaught of rain and the recent departure of Mary Anne Hobbs from Radio 1 are not the only grim elements in our collective conscious. Yes, three certainly is the magic number as far as misery is concerned as news reaches us of the death of the genuinely legendary Aaron-Carl (nee Aaron-Carl Ragland).

After a well-publicised struggle with cancer Ragland passed away, despite posts on his Facebook and Twitter remaining positive to the last regarding his diagnosis and treatment. A quick scan of the internet reveals a mass of producers, journalists, DJs and fans alike mourning this loss on a personal level.

In a career spanning two decades, Aaron honed and advanced the Detroit house sound in a way that no other DJ could. While the Belleville Three (Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson and Derrick May) developed the sound in its infancy, it was Aaron-Carl who nurtured the scene and essentially bank-rolled labels such as Mahogani, Ovum, Underground Resistance/Soul City and his own Wallshaker Music imprint.

"Aaron knew how to move a crowd with an unprecedented warmth and love."

Kastle - Better Off Alone

The artist formerly known as B.Rich has set himself up for a promising year with this instant classic. Barrett "Kastle" Richards has taken on a dubbier sound with an almost housey edge to it.

It used to be that the UK had the monopoly on bass, but recently America, mainly the east coast, has started to take over. Artists such as Drop The Lime, AC Slater, Udachi and of course B.Rich stormed the scene with massive bass-heavy "choons" and "club-bangers".

Naturally, it seems appropriate to post a track featuring two of the biggest names in US bass: Kastle and Udachi. The original is a very mellow bassy piece reminiscent of Burial with a house twist. Now I have to warn you it does feature auto-tune. Luckily, it manages to pull it off by exercising some restraint and it does make it sound like it's underwater, which kinda fits.

Starkey adds a nice ravey horn-through-a-buzzsaw line to bang it up but it's Udachi's Funky mix that does it for me with the most awesome drum samples I've ever heard. Honestly, if you're not sure about Funky listen to this tune. A lot. Then listen to Willy Joy's Funky/soca mix or I'll slap your knees.

Under his B.Rich moniker it was more fast heavy bass drops and ghetto/hip-hop samples but with Kastle his productions have taken on a much dubbier, techy sound - lots of arpeggiated synths and handclaps. Definitely the beginning of big things for this chap.

Stand out tracks: Udachi Mix, Willy Joy Mix

Title: Better Off Alone (seclus026)
Artist: Kastle
Out now soon on Seclusiasis.

Download: Kastle - Better Off Alone (Udachi Remix)

Download Hostage's new EP for free!

Our good friend in the north Alan "Hostage" Parley has put out another stonking EP on Nightshifters and it's absolutely free!

It's good to see him branching out from the sidechain electro/wobble templates and trying something a bit different. Here big Al bridges the gap between dubstep and funky with an incredibly wobbly drop and the trademark funky drum pattern.

Hostage - Roll from Nightshifters on Vimeo.

You should also totally check out the new look Nightshifters page. It's right sexy.

Download: Hostage - Roll EP [ZIP]

New LP from The Count & Sinden

On August 23 The Count & Sinden will be releasing a new LP on Domino. As such, the first single 'After Dark' (which features the Mystery Jets) has already been released.

The LP boasts a broad range of styles: from House to Bassline to Funky to Baltimore as well as the vocal talents of B'more star Rye Rye and Londoners Katy B and Bashy.

You can stream the whole thing at FACT magazine for 10 days from today and in the mean time you can download 'After Dark' below.

Download: The Count & Sinden - After Dark feat. Mystery Jets

EXCLUSIVE new Dev79 tune!

Wow, I'm really excited about this one! A little while ago our good friend Dev79 agreed to do a mix for the radio series and as a cheeky little gift sent me his new tune 'Riddim Of The Night'.

At the time I was told to keep it on the ol' hush-hush say-no-more, but now I'm finally allowed to share it with you in all it's exclusive glory! You won't hear this version ANYWHERE else as it's been remixed and re-edited with different vocals for the release of the upcoming EP.

So to tide you over until his awesome mix comes out, here it is. Enjoy it and tell your friends!

Download: Dev79 - Riddim Of The Night

We like the music! We like the disco sound!

Expect to hear this everywhere for ever.

Download: Monarchy - Love Get Out Of My Way (Holy Ghost & Dixon Remix)

The Chemical Brothers - Further

Sounding very much like 'Baba O'Riley' during an aneurysm, 'Escape Velocity' sees The Chemical Brothers attempting grandeur but in the end it turns out to be just a really long song. As did the rest of the album, it bored the arse off me and was so bland and repetitive I found it almost impossible to pay attention to.

'Swoon' also sounds like it's borrowed from somewhere I can't quite place and that made for a really irritating listen. And for some reason all the vocals sound like Snow Patrol, which is awful. Just awful.

The tracks themselves are OK but nothing really stands out and you've forgotten it as soon as you've heard it. 'Snow' is alright, sort of a grower but takes far too long to get going and isn't really that great once you get there.

If you could somehow pass it through a filter that would remove the vocals and then on some of the tracks every single sound (I couldn't even finish the last track), you might end up with a decent electro or house record. Since The Chems decided not to do this it is not a decent electro or house record in the slightest and they are off my Christmas card list.

Stand out tracks: Horsepower

Title: Further (6325302)
Artist: The Chemical Brothers
Out now on EMI

Drop The Lime remixes Femme En Fourrure for Discobelle

Since Discobelle made the transition from blog to digital label, they've been putting out a lot of strong releases from relative unknowns. Shrewdly, they've used their impressive online stature to attract the remixing talents of a lot of big names. Case in point: they're giving away Drop The Lime's remix of Femme En Fourrure's new tune 'Dirty Blonde'.

You can get yourself a copy of the whole release at Beatport.

Download: Femme En Fourrure - Dirty Blonde (Drop The Lime Remix)

Second Dubbel Dutch EP out now on Palms Out!

Following on from last year's Trollsta EP, the long-awaited second EP from Texan producer Dubbel Dutch has finally hit shops. It's attracted a lot of attention in recent months from DJs and bloggers alike. It's a three track EP, with the title track 'Throwback' garnering the most interest.
Incorporating elements of Funky and garage with bassline and house, Dubbel Dutch takes UK music and adds his own unique twist. 'Throwback' stands out with a heavy B'more drum beat and glitchy vocals setting it apart from the majority of the releases at the moment.

The second track 'Deep Underground' starts off as a traditional Funky track before bringing elements of electro and some ravey synths to beef things up. The final track, 'Fool In You' is a dubstep affair with a slight lean towards the junglism a la Burial.

You can stream the entire EP at Palms Out.

Pick up the limited edition 12″ from Redeye records.
Or download it at Beatport, iTunes, Juno and Turntable Lab.

New AC Slater single on Trouble & Bass!

Trouble & Bass stalwart AC Slater has been rather busy of late. His new single 'Take You' with Ninjasonik has been released along with his contribution to the T&B Smashcast series and his mix for Mishka.

I met him briefly at Bangface and drunkenly arranged an interview that never happened, but I can at least vouch that he is a good egg - however hammered he was that night.

His new tune 'Take You' draws together elements of funky, house, bassline and even a touch of grime. Oh, and there's a lovely little piano breakdown reminiscent of Jason Tyler's 'Run Around' from a couple of years ago.

The video was directed and produced by T&B's very own Patrick 'The Captain' Rood, and Edited/DPed by Matt Canada of Control Alt Media. The remixes come from Drop The Lime, Nadastrom, Lee Mortimer and a host of others!

AC SLATER — TAKE YOU FEAT. NINJASONIK


AC Slater MySpace Music Videos

If you haven't downloaded 'Take You', you better get it now! Get it at Beatport, iTunes / Amazon, Juno, Boomkat and other digital retailers.

DJ Donna Summer - Raw EP

Just as 2006 belonged to electro, 2007 and 2008 to dubstep, and 2009 to bassline, so too will 2010 belong to UK Funky. So what better way to kick off the year in funky (even though it's March, for fuck's sake) than to review DJ Donna Summer's first release on Nightshifters in 2 years?

I wouldn't say I'm a convert yet, but the possibilities within the genre have been opened up to me. Tracks like 'Wood' remind me of the old glitchy records that tigerbeat6 used to put out back in the day. The percussion-oriented tracks seem to allow for more irregular time signatures, which is encouraging, but the RnB element that never seems to die still exists in funky. Which is gay.

You can always rely on Donna Summer to do something exciting with a genre or style of music. Hopefully, the jungle element will come to the fore and BPMs will go up again. He's bagged a good bunch of producers for remix duties as well: Noise Floor Crew and Hostage deliver as expected, and Bok Bok delivers what some are describing as his best tune yet, but Sonido Del Principe are the surprising little gem with a Cumbia-inspired take on Funky.

Stand out tracks: Raw, Wood, Fighter
Download: DJ Donna Summer - Fighter

Title: Raw (NS013)
Artist: DJ Donna Summer
Out now on Nightshifters

Grab it at: Beatport, iTunes, Juno Download

DJ Donna Summer - Raw EP

"Nightshifters label head Jason Forrest is back with a vengeance as DJ Donna Summer! Hot off his Pitchfork-approved remix for The Arcade Fire, he’s here to shake asses and (gasp!) even make you think a little bit. 'Raw', his first EP for Nightshifters and first release in 2 years, is filled with syncopated drums, far-out bass, and hybridized house organs to take you well into the next morning.

The title track “Raw” is an expansive bass tune with enough sexual innuendo to keep a nun awake for a week and 'Fighter' an explosive house-dubstep 1-2 punch that will surly call for many rewinds. 'Back' is caught between deep house organs and a touch UK Breaks, whereas 'King' uses Forrest’s Star6 iPhone app to shred police sirens over a driven beat. But it is the surprise last minute addition “Wood” that really pushes the boundaries between dubstep, house, and proto-Jungle! Save it for your year-end lists!

And then we have our remixes! Emerging UK star Bok Bok delivers what we think is his finest tune to date with a remix of 'King', which builds from an organic organ melody to a massive crescendo. Sonido Del Principe surprises with a deep, raw Cumbia mix that is sure to turn heads, and the Noise Floor Crew from Chicago go deepest with the lowest bass line we’ve yet to hear. Lastly our Scottish hero Hostage shows up in fine form fresh from his live BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix with Annie Mac."

You can grab a copy at Beatport, iTunes and Juno.

Download: DJ Donna Summer - Raw :: DJ Donna Summer - Back (Yobkiss Remake)