マルチな才能を発揮するジェームス・ホールデンは、エレクトロニック・ミュージックのプロデューサー、DJ、そしてレーベルBorder Communityのオーナーとして最前線に立ち牽引している男だ。ホールデンのサウンドはエクスペリメンタル、アシッドハウス、レフトフィールド、テクノ、トランス、エレクトロ・・・ジャンル分けするには不可能と言え、幅広いシーンのファンを獲得している。彼のプロダクションは、デジタル・プロデューサーとして秀でており、コンピュータを駆使する様は実際の楽器を弾くように、生命の息吹を感じさせる生命観を持ち、驚きをもメカニカルな必然と言えるものに転換するのだ。彼のBorder Communityは、最もアツいレーベルの一つとなり、Nathan Fake、Avus、Dextro、Petter、The MFAといった同じ志を持つ自由なスピリットを持つジャンルの越境者たちに提供している。

ホールデンの最近のプロジェクトは、Nathan Fake「The Sky Was Pink」、System 7「Planet 7」、Andre Kraml「Safari」などのリミックス。そして忘れていけないシングル「A Break in the Clouds」「Nothing」 (Loadedレーベルより)がある。2005年後半には「Nothing」のヴォーカリストジュリー・トンプソンとのコラボレーション「Come To Me」が予定され、世界中でのDJパフォーマンスは、バルセロナのLoft club、アムステルダムのPanamaでのレジデンシーを含み、またブラックストローブやミルキー・グローブなどのリミックスが登場予定だ。

www.bordercommunity.com

The latest show starts with a 1 hour studio mix from Jon Rundell, followed in the 2nd hour by forthcoming Intec tracks, heavily featuring artists playing at Space this summer for Carl Cox's Revolution party. We would love to hear what you think of what's to come !

Following on from the recent release of El Nino Andres's wonderful debut album, Hija De Colombia takes a break from the sound of house & techno, and turns to Stumbleine for a collection of his weird, warm and brilliant electronica in the shape of ‘Ghosting’.

Ghosting is collection of early recordings from Bristol based producer Stumbleine. It features eight tracks, taken from three eps, spaced over two years. Musically Stumbleine draws heavily from rnb, chillwave & shoegaze all drowned in nostalgic lo-fi warmth. Influences range from Burial to my Bloody Valentine making the end result truly genuinely unique.

Listening to Stumbleine’s music is an immersive and engaging experience and with ‘Ghosting’ we are offered up the change to lose ourselves in everything he has to offer, enjoy!

www.facebook.com/stumbleineuk

http://www.facebook.com/hijadecolombia

Next up on the EPM Podcast we get our collective jit on as Detroit’s OktoRed gives us a full Motor City blast with his own OktoRed and Cocky Balboa productions mixed up with his own re-works of Franki Juncaj (aka DJ 3000), Katy B, I:Cube, Gauche Kids and the hip hop classic Wu Tang Clan ‘Aint Nothin’ To Fuck Wit’.

OktoRed, hailing from Detroit MI, has been gaining some real momentum of late. As one of Beatportal’s “Artists To Watch 2012”, and coming off his first YoSucka! imprint, ‘The Future Sounds of 8 Mile’ he wanted to showcase his ability to transcend from his kind, gentle side, to a more rough, dark side with the release of ‘Gemini 1 EP’ released on 4th May and the forthcoming ‘Gemini 2 EP’.

OktoRed continues a long lineage of Detroit Electronic Music. Limitless, genre expanding and intelligent, it can be said that this artist has pushed his music to project feeling. It is hard to define his genre and that would just be too limiting, as OktoRed morphs between indiscriminate tempo future bass, defined as Detroit infused techno, borrowing ideas from moombahton, dubstep, juke, footwork and ghetto tech.

A gun to the stomach by a typical Detroit stick up thug flashed his musical life before him, right before he gave up all the cash in his pocket, and his life was spared. He remembered his time as a kid, only 12 years old, teaching himself guitar while following the Detroit techno, ghetto tech and jungle scene. Over the next few years visions of gear, often given to him by older cats in the industry became realities, as he collected an old Koss drum machine, Fender Rhodes piano, various synths, and drum machines, coupled with a Roland MC 500 sequencer. At this point his tools would then be worked to all hours of the morning. Flash forward to the cold metal of a handgun, in his gut, he realized that his day gig was NOT the direction he needed to go in life and began working past sleep deprivation to give birth to tracks that have become Detroit underground staples. He had no choice but to make his grimy and dark, underground bass symphonies pound through the bodies on dance floors, laying them out one by one and turning them into frenzied fans.

He is currently releasing tracks on the YoSucka! Imprint, working on music that is sometimes inspired by current events. For instance, the track ‘How Many Moons’ was made in response to the riots in London of 2011. Overburdened by the thoughts of how people can burn down their own neighbourhood forced him to react in his own musical way. Software synthesizers, Ableton Live and esoteric tracker programs come under his command as he continues to produce, long after you’ve gone to bed and entered the deepest parts of slumber.


Q&A with OktoRed

1. Please give us a quick walk through your selection. Why did you choose these tracks for the mix?
I just wanted to showcase some of my current and upcoming releases from YoSucka! Music, Generation Bass and Motech Records. All of the songs are originals or edits made for personal use by myself. The songs in this mix are more to the smoother side of my production.

2. How would you begin to describe your style?
My style is all over the place. I like to mix it up as much as possible. I guess one consistent pattern from track to track is that I don't spend time over producing things. I like a more organic natural feel to a lot of my music. Lots of swing and lots of melody.

3. Your work although influenced by Detroit, also sounds from somewhere else. How has the fabled 7th City impacted on you as a producer and DJ?
Growing up we had a lot of good music on the radio that opened my mind and ears up to a lot of stuff I wasn't getting from friends and other places. We had lots of ghetto-tech and good dance music on the radio for most of my formative years. When the internet came around a little later, I got to experience lots of stuff that wasn't being played anywhere around here. I like to try to take from everything I listen to without being a copycat.

4. How has working with Brian Gillespie, one of the unsung heroes of the Detroit electro and ghetto tek story, helped you to envisage your work as an artist?
Working with Brian has been amazing. His knowledge has been a real asset and his ear for good music is the most valuable thing I've had in my corner in a long time. Also, I got to realise a dream of mine by releasing some new ghetto-tech/juke stuff with him on Juke Trax under the Cocky Balboa alias. His business knowledge and connection to the global dance scene has really helped in getting my music to people who would have otherwise never known of me.

5. How do you work in the studio? Do ideas come to fruition quickly or do you tinker with lots of ideas at the same time, going back and forth until one clicks and you focus on it?
I constantly work on music. Literally at least 6-10 hours a day so I have a bunch of different approaches. I like it best when I can sit and write and record a song in a few hours. I just let it flow on its own. If I get stuck I usually just delete everything and start from scratch. I just go be ear mostly. If it makes sense to me then I pursue it.

6. Which modern day producers currently impress you?
I really like Diplo’s stuff a lot. He seems to be all over the place but consistently good on the board. I recently found out about Boddika and lost my mind. It’s very simple sounding stuff that has so much feeling behind it.

7. What plans do you currently have for your own music productions?
Right now we are just working on getting out some new stuff. I’d like to keep everything different from release to release. Different tempos and feels. Once again, I just don't want to get pigeonholed into a one sound music career.

8. Where do you play out these days? Any plans to come to Europe?
I'm doing a bi-weekly live webcast with 8EN, Jawa and Brian Gillespie on the Everyday Sucka Webcast. I do visuals at a bar in the Corktown area in Detroit called "The Works" for Calico and Matt Clarke for their weekly Bass Down Low parties. I’m up to playing anywhere I can right now, but I mainly focus on production over doing live shows. I’m also working on starting up a weekly live radio show on TapDetroit.com.

9. Please give us your top 10 all-time favourite Detroit tracks:

in no particular order…
DJ Rolando – ‘Knights of the Jaguar’
A Number of Names – ‘Shari Vari’
Starski and Clutch – ‘Triple Gold’
Subject No001 – ‘Black Lives’
Drexciya – ‘You Don't Know’
Ectomorph – ‘Insert Another Data Disc’
Inner City – ‘Good Life’
Aaron Carl – ‘Down’
Rhythim Is Rhythim – ‘Strings of Life’
Jeff Mills – ‘The Extremist’

Hosted by veteran Berlin-based DJ and producer Clé aka Clemens Kahlcke the monthly Poker Flat Podcast showcases the hottest new cuts from the Poker Flat label camp, plus some juicy exclusives, scene news and party gossip and of course our all time favourite classics.

Some special guests are lined up to drop into the studio aswell and with the ever charming and eloquent Clé at the helm its really a not-to-be-missed slice of freshly-baked electronic music goodness!