Search:pioneer

On the mean streets of Chicago's infamous Southside, a music pioneer was born... DJ Slugo, born Thomas Kendricks, is most famous for his influential and fundamental position as the original King of Ghetto House. With 20+ years in the game, over 20 albums in his pocket and over 50 CDs on the street, began a journey that lead him to become one of the original creators of a style of music commonly known as Ghetto House, more recently regarded as Juke.

Caramelo is proud to bring you the new EP of the talented artist from Vienna, Roman Rauch. The Release Contains 4 strong
tracks of pure house vibes with collaboration with the quality producer Soulphiction and remix by the French
house pioneer Ark ! Vinyl Only

Fatima Al Qadiri is a multidisciplinary artist and musician from Kuwait. In just a few years, she has quickly built a reputation as a conceptual artist, exploring themes informed both by her own background and global pop culture, through a number of highly acclaimed EPs, multimedia projects and writings. She is also a founding member of the production team Future Brown. Fatima's debut album is called 'Asiatisch', and as the track titles suggest, the record provides a simulated road trip through an imagined China. Musically, the album is an homage to that quietly influential sub-strain of grime, often loosely termed 'sinogrime' due to its preoccupation with Asian motifs and melodies, pioneered by the likes of Wiley and Jammer at the beginning of the 2000s in East London. 'Asiatisch' is a provocation which asks more questions than it answers. The title is the German word for Asian. Unlike its title, however, the music on 'Asiatisch' revolves around the fantasies of East Asia as refracted through pulpy Western pop culture, in particular Hollywood, literary fiction, music, cartoons and advertising. Fatima asks what is meant by the term 'Asian' in a digital age of viral interchange and the hi-speed trading of cultural bytes; the concept of 'shanzhai' proves pivotal, a term whose meaning stems from a wild, out of control zone of banditry, but which has come to be used to refer to the Chinese counterfeiting of Western brands and goods. While a number of producers have made takes on 'sinogrime' over the last few years, 'Asiatisch' is really the first record that attempts to articulate this weird complex of sonic interchanges between the West and China. With the exception of the opening track, 'Shanzhai', a haunting cover of 'Nothing Compares to You' with nonsensical Mandarin lyrics, and the shimmering 'Loading Beijing', 'Wudang' and 'Jade Stairs' which sample and distort classical Chinese poetry staging an epic confrontation between China's ancient soul and the onslaught of the industrial factory machine, most of the tracks blend mallets, bells, gongs, flutes, steel drums and choral atmospherics with the searing synth-brass and the skittering drums of grime, playing melodies that are inflected as much by classic R&B as to synthetic versions of traditional Chinese music. On "Dragon Tattoo" for example, stereotypical iconography of imagined China is slotted into a threatening, robotic R&B format. The carefree pirating of Western brands blurs into a soft-synth pirating of Chinese musical signs.'Asiatisch' is wrapped in pristine artwork by Babak Radboy from Shanzhai Biennial, and the music was given a 3D sheen by in demand mixer Lexxx. Proclaiming both its love of both ancient and imagined China, 'Asiatisch' is a rare album that is both icily beautiful and conceptually layered.

Hailing from LA, Atlantic Connection has been pioneering his own style of ''future soul'' a signature blend of soul, R&B, dubstep and bass music.

For the 63th vinyl installment by Fokuz Recordings he delivers two exciting pieces of d&b aimed towards the soulful spectrum of the genre. The 12'' kicks off with 'One Moment', a heartfelt roller with beautiful chopped samples, textures and tones.

LP is available on 180 GRM black vinyl The KVB release their new immersive and hypnotic album 'Minus One' on November 18th via A Recordings. The album follows hot on the heels of outstanding stand alone single 'Run Away' released on Ample Play Records last month. The KVB is the audio/visual project of London youngsters Nicholas Wood & Kat Day, who combine reverb heavy wall of sound guitars, minimal haunting strings and grinding bass synths, messed up motorik drum machine beats and delay drenched vocals with a backdrop of imagery to accompany the symphony, that's nothing short of life affirming. 'Minus One' is in fact The KVB's third album, their second full length LP 'Immaterial Visions' which came with an accompanying remix EP, featuring mixes from underground techno pioneers Regis and Silent Servant was only released in February this year. The KVB is a group with a sense of urgency about it, to do what they need to do, with full commitment and without delay. It's a tangible attitude that runs throughout 'Minus One'. Indeed this year they have undertaken more extensive touring, including shows in Russia & the Ukraine and November 2013 will see them playing the last ever ATP before supporting The Brian Jonestown Massacre across Australia in December.Dates For The UK 23 Nov 2013 Electrowerkz w/ Dead Skeletons, London UK & 29 Nov 2013 ATP Festival, Camber Sands UK

Two pioneering heavyweights unite for this stellar 4 track EP forthcoming on Eglo Records.It's fair to say that the legacy of Dego's musical output can be heard in just about every genre in the contemporary dance music spectrum, from hardcore and drum n bass, to house and of course Broken Beat.Kaidi is of the highly skilled keys player that lent his hand to many of those legendary productions.. recording with Bugz In The Attic, Domu, IG Culture etc not to mention his own releases.
Eglo fulfil a life long goal of bringing the pair together to release a brand new EP of broken beat bullets!

Long serving Cadenza recording artist, Mirko Loko, has always worn his Detroit musical influences on his sleeve, counting pioneer Carl Craig as his mentor, and having worked with the likes of Derrick May and Stacey Pullen in the studio.

And on Daybreak, Mirko fully indulges in the one genre that seems never to get tarnished, the mechanical and industrial beats working off the deep and soulful strings and melancholic pads, a true hallmark of the classic sounds of the Motor City. Originally released on Outpost Recordings, the label run by Scottish techno don, Funk D'Void, the masterful Original Mix from Takuya Yamashita gets three new versions from Mirko. Takuya, a techno artist from Kobe, Japan has already sparkled on labels like Biotech and Espai, and in his Original version we have a driving and energetic piece of classic techno. Mirko remains ever faithful to the melody and sounds of the original, providing a full beats re-rub on the 'Mn version', and an alternate 'Taiy version' that's more urgent, with its broken beat. The digital only 'Kanj no' version dispenses of a backbeat entirely, creating a remix that forever teases with it's percussive elements, building up great anticipation throughout. As Cadenza continues to celebrate its 10th year as a label, it takes delight in backing great music from its artists and associates, and this release is another curveball in the label's eclectic catalogue.

Lee Perry's time at WIRL Records, later to be renamed Dynamic Sounds Studios, was a very productive time
in his career. A run of great singles and the shaping of a new sound, the beginning of what we know today as
Reggae .
Lee Perry (b. Rainford Hugh Perry, 28 March 1936, Hanover,Jamaica) began his entry into the music business at
the age of 16.Moving up to Kingston Town and working around various Sound Systems, before finding
employment at Coxonne Dodd's Studio One set up, in the late 50's early 1960's. Perry started out as a record
scout, organising sessions and supervising auditions at Dodd's record shop on Orange Street. Helping to make
hits for Delroy Wilson ( 'Joe Liges','Spit In The Sky') and the Maytals, which would lead to his own vocal records
released through Studio One.The musical backing for which, came from legendary Studio One house band The
Skatalites. Another important relationship for Perry, his first recordings with Bob Marley came in the form of
the Wailers, also providing backing, alongside the Soulettes who featured Rita Marley. Cutting such tunes as
'Chicken Scratch' around 1965/1966. This tune was also to provide him with one of his future nicknames
'Scratch'. A dispute over credits and money saw Perry leave Studio One and work with various producers
including Clancy Eccles and J. J. Johnson, before arriving at the door of producer Joe Gibbs in 1967. Here he
would write songs and produce hits for artists such as, Errol Dunkley and the Pioneers. A tune cut during his
time with Gibbs, voiced a snipe at fellow employee Dodd, a trademark that would become an outlet for his
frustrations in the business.This particular tune 'The Upsetter' would also provide another moniker and a name
for his label 'Upsetter'. Again lack of musical credit and financial reward saw Perry move on this time to WIRL
(West Indies Records Limited) Records, working alongside manager Clifford Rae, who would provide studio
time and pay for pressings in return for helping to promote and distribute WIRL product, which Perry would
carry out on his trusted Honda 50 motorcycle around Kingston town.
This period at WIRL saw some inspired work from Perry. 'Run For Cover' was another musical blow to a
previous employer, Coxonne Dodd and featured the Sensations on backing vocals and Lynn Taitt's guitar
picking skills. 'People Funny Boy' was a massive hit for Perry going on to sell over 60,000 copies. Joe Gibbs
would be at the end of this musical attack. Perry had felt Joe Gibbs had turned his back on him, after he had
provided hits for groups like, The Pioneers amongst others. The song would be one of the first records to
feature a New Beat (Reggae) inspired by the sounds coming out of a Pocomania Church, Perry had heard one
night.The congregation inside, wailed in a more slower way than the current musical style of the time Ska!. Perry
worked up this new style with Clancy Eccles, who would come under attack himself in 'You Crummy'. Their
closeness, which as detailed in that song would find them, 'Even shared the same Gal' but 'Now it's plain to see we
reached the end'. 'Set Them Free' was an answer record to Prince Buster's 'Judge Dread' (which had
featured Perry on it) a plea to the Judges in Jamaica that handed out extremely harsh sentences to the young
offenders of the time. The track was cut on the same rhythm as 'Run For Cover' . 'Django Shoots First'
inspired by the Spaghetti Western film of the same name, features Sir Lord Comic. One of the early DJ's who
used a jive talking style over rhythms. 'Night Doctor' was a hit instrumental that featured the organ talents
of Ansel Collins, that really push the tune along. 'Something You Got' was a cover of an USA R& B track by
Chris Kenner and 'Wind Up Girl' was cut at the same session. 'Water Pump' was a rude style track that
was cut later and originally released in 1974.As was 'People Sokup Boy' a later version of 'People Funny Boy'.
'Labrish' which means idol talk and gossip, was one of the first great talk over tunes that features Lee Perry
and producer Bunny 'Striker' Lee talking about the Political situation in Jamaica at the time and their own
financial situation and stories of various comrades.The track was originally released in 1973.
Bunny Lee would play a major part in lee Perry's career around this time and they were very close, often
sharing sessions and rhythms. Ironically it would be Bunny Lee that took over Perry's roll at WIRL and become
responsible for the labels products in years to come. Clifford Rae who give control to Bunny for a lot of the
WIRL product and even gave him his shop 101 Orange Street. So here we have a collection of music born out
of a time spent at WIRL Records and providing an important chapter in Lee Perry's career and indeed to the
story of Reggae itself.
Hope you enjoy the set.

True house music on The A side with Self Enemy and huge house beat also on the A2 with DJ Aakmael. SEEKER'S BAND with remixes by JACK THE BOX & CORES FOR SPIN !
Self Enemy aka as Parisian Professor Inc & Detroiter Kris Wadsworth play it slow here. Picking on some classic sample, highly tweaked synth and dj friendly structure. Second opus of this raw collaboration.
Dj Aakmael picks another Billie's song, This time it's heavy orchestra chords on a hard kick singing the blues on the house core.
On the B Side, the SEEKER'S BAND aka Miguel Benavides composes with at Vocals: Mathieu Boko, Percussion: Eric Konnert (plays with St Germain, Martha Galarraga..), Bass: Francois Barbe, Tenor & Soprano Sax: Stephane Becarie, Keys: M Benavides and produced by Professor Inc & Miguel Benavides ; inspired by the first house school, jazz accents, afrocuban classic percussion, a tasty radio version right here !
It comes with a remix by the Berliners Tyree Cooper & Bobby Star aka JACK THE BOX. Dj friendly and deeply rooted with one of the pioneers perpetuating the style.
To conclude this ep, a special short dub version by CORES FOR SPIN

Subwax Bcn is very proud to present our new sister label Detroit Dancer! On this first release we give you no other one than detroit legend Santonio Echols! Mr Santonio got famous in the late 90's with vital releases on label's such as KMS , Serious Grooves, Made In Detroit, Express, Siren and Tresor, from which he made a true mark in techno history. On this release you get three tracks of pure detroit dancing moods and including a fresh remix from Orlando Voorn, another pioneer in the world of detroit sounds!

RAWAX IS PROUD TO WELCOME MR. K-ALEXI SHELBY TO THE FAMILY!
Mr. K Alexi Shelby
Like a moth drawn to a flame, there is something utterly infectious about the music of Mr.K Alexi Shelby, better known as K-Alexi one of the founding fathers of house music direct from his home city of Chicago. Since the late 1980s, he has pioneered the true house sound, leading to a DH and production career spanning over 20 years, including collaborations with artists ranging from The Pet Shop Boys to Derrick May and from Larry Heard and Felix da Housecat to Will Smith, as well as gigs across the globe.
An impressionable young teenager, Mr.K Alexi Shelby developed friendships with Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy whilst attending seminal venues like The Warehouse and The Music Box in the mid 1980s. Being here at this embryonic stage of dance music culture, there were no rules or precedents, so K Alexi drew on a rich musical heritage that had seen him grow up in the 70s and 80s listening to Stevie Wonder, Prince, Curtis Mayfield and David Huff. Those roots continue to influence his music to this day.
It was under the moniker Risque III that Essence Of A Dream was released in 1987, firmly establishing the name of Mr.K Alexi Shelby amongst the most prominent of all house producers at the time. Moreover, those early tracks are still recognized to be the quintessential Chicago house sound. The rumbling and dark bass, smooth strings, incredible percussion and the spoken word poetic and erotic lyrical flow became the trademark for classic Chicago house and the template for everything else that followed. To reiterate, there was no template before this. This was the beginning.
This initial success has lead to Mr.K Alexi Shelby working with the leading names across the electronic music world and beyond. Collaborations and remixes for Chicago peers like Mike Dunn, Mr. Lee and Marshall Jefferson merely served as the springboard for Alexi to work with the best in the electronic scene, from Derrick May to Paul Johnson ,Ron Trent Dave Angel to Felix ad House Kat. Furthermore, his talents have also lead to him working with The Pet Shop Boys and Will Smith.
On top of this, his tracks have appeared on compilations by artists varying from Laurent Garnier to DJ Hell, who used It's Me 2010 contribution to the Body Language series for Get Physical Music. Produced under the Club M.C.M. moniker, the 1991 EP It's Me/Club M.C.M. has been a frequent selection for compilations for 20 years and is rightly regarded as a true underground techno classic.

This wonderful self-titled album by pianist, singer and composer, Johnny Alf, was first released on vinyl in 1966 by Rozenblit. Here the bossa nova pioneer sings beautiful songs, featuring the legendary musicians Hermeto Paschoal (flute) and Airto Moreira (drums)

5 KING'S "Love & Then Sum" : 5 KING'S is five motherfuckers and this one from Chicago shows once again his very natural heritage/memory of Ron Hardy. Taking you into a more than 11 minutes deep house classic blend, classy, spiritual and dj friendly. Once again, core and essence of house music in its purest form ; continuity of & by the pioneers.
Tracklisting:

It's no secret that Kompakt pioneers Wolfgang Voigt and Jörg Burger have
maintained a long and steady friendship outside the studio. It's even
detectable if you give a critical listen to their collaborative sound, where
almost like magic, the distinct musical swagger of each artist synchronises
completely with the other. There's Wolfgang Voigt, a confirmed radical, a
stalwart, analytical, mindbombing sensualist who famously transformed
Techno into a state of matter and lifted the Art Brut club canvas. His
material spans from Mike Ink and Gas to Protest or Kafkatrax, and within
this contrast-rich portfolio, each new oeuvre transports the serial anarchy
which is the artist's trademark.

It is a great honor for us to welcome such a living legend, a pioneer from the Chicago House scene: Mr K' Alexi Shelby !
At the age of 12 he was already moving in the right circles, befriending Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy whilst frequenting the famous Warehouse. His upbringing in Chicago in the 70s and 80s meant that he was exposed to a range of genres and different styles of music including Stevie Wonder, Prince, Curtis Mayfield and David Huff. These same names would prove to be the roots of his influences.

We welcome a newcomer to the Audiomatique roster as talented Brazilian producer Wehbba comes to the fore with the glorious "3Days'. Wehbba has explored many zones of the tech-house genre and now brings his expertly polished beats to Steve Bugs pioneering label.

Second release in a series of four of this Ann Aimee compilation series, featuring a diverse selection of techno tracks.
Part two of the four-part Inertia sampler again serves up four heavy-hitting techno bangers from different artists of the new-school techno generation. Again, each of the tracks is previously unreleased.

First up is Frenchman Marcelus who offers a heavy house and techno fusion, before London's Sigha goes deep and ominous with 'Finding Myself.' Redshape and Area Forty_One close out the package with frozen, static coated sounds and textured techno respectively.

Reading like a who's who of the day's most pioneering techno producers, Inertia #2 is another connoisseur selection.

One can hardly imagine the genre-busting, culture-crossing musical magic of Outkast, Prince, Erykah Badu, Rick James, The Roots, or even the early Red Hot Chili Peppers without the influence of R&B pioneer Betty Davis. Her style of raw and revelatory punk-funk defies any notions that women can’t be visionaries in the worlds of rock and pop. In recent years, rappers from Ice Cube to Talib Kweli to Ludacris have rhymed over her intensely strong but sensual music.



There is one testimonial about Betty Davis that is universal: she was a woman ahead of her time. In our contemporary moment, this may not be as self-evident as it was thirty years ago – we live in an age that’s been profoundly changed by flamboyant flaunting of female sexuality: from Parlet to Madonna, Lil Kim to Kelis. Yet, back in 1973 when Betty Davis first showed up in her silver go-go boots, dazzling smile and towering Afro, who could you possibly have compared her to? Marva Whitney had the voice but not the independence. Labelle wouldn’t get sexy with their “Lady Marmalade” for another year while Millie Jackson wasn’t Feelin’ Bitchy until 1977. Even Tina Turner, the most obvious predecessor to Betty’s fierce style wasn’t completely out of Ike’s shadow until later in the decade.



Ms. Davis’s unique story, still sadly mostly unknown, is unlike any other in popular music. Betty wrote the song “Uptown” for the Chambers Brothers before marrying Miles Davis in the late ’60s, influencing him with psychedelic rock, and introducing him to Jimi Hendrix — personally inspiring the classic album Bitches Brew.



But her songwriting ability was way ahead of its time as well. Betty not only wrote every song she ever recorded and produced every album after her first, but the young woman penned the tunes that got The Commodores signed to Motown. The Detroit label soon came calling, pitching a Motown songwriting deal, which Betty turned down. Motown wanted to own everything. Heading to the UK, Marc Bolan of T. Rex urged the creative dynamo to start writing for herself. A common thread throughout Betty’s career would be her unbending Do-It-Yourself ethic, which made her quickly turn down anyone who didn’t fit with the vision. She would eventually say no to Eric Clapton as her album producer, seeing him as too banal.



Her 1974 sophomore album They Say I’m Different features a worthy-of-framing futuristic cover challenging David Bowie’s science fiction funk with real rocking soul-fire, kicked off with the savagely sexual “Shoo-B-Doop and Cop Him” (later sampled by Ice Cube). Her follow up is full of classic cuts like “Don’t Call Her No Tramp” and the hilarious, hard, deep funk of “He Was A Big Freak.”

Raw and direct tracks on the Appointment label, which was born from a fusion of Livejam & restoration records. Four tracks with influences of the pure tracks that have been brought by the early pioneers

This single is a surprise to all and is the first new official solo material from the mysterious dubstep magnate since 2007. Not to say Burial hasn't been busy, seeing how the man just released a collaborative effort with fellow electronic pioneers Four Tet and Thom Yorke. Their combined length is 20 minutes, 41 seconds.

We’re extremely proud to present Leaving Time, a new EP by Christoph de Babalon. The EP has all the menace and grit that the Hamburg-born, Berlin-based producer is known for, but packs a potent, dance-ready punch that breaks new ground.

Leaving Time begins with the snarling subs ‘The Upper Hand’, and momentum builds through the panoramic breakbeats of ‘I Trusted You’ and dubwise groove of ‘Steps Into Solitude’ to reach the symphonic release of ‘Got to Let Go’.

This record encapsulates everything we love about Christoph’s music – it’s doom-laden, introspective and crafted with intent.

In short, it’s CDB on a 140 / fwd tip - fuck the chairs!

About Christoph de Babalon:

Christoph de Bablon first became known for his work on Alec Empire’s Digital Hardcore Recordings in the early 1990s and has championed a misanthropic take on drum and bass that has stood the test of time.

A punk-influenced fusion of jungle, breakbeat and dark soundscapes, his signature sound has become the stuff of legend – Thom Yorke once said Christoph’s pioneering debut album 'If You’re Into It, I’m Out Of It’ was the “most menacing record” in his collection.

After a brief hiatus composing music for theatre (we’d like to hear what that sounded like), recent releases on labels such as A Colourful Storm, V I S and AD93 have sparked renewed interest in the German producer, and with much excitement from his loyal following of die-hard supporters.