House – Page 7 – 7th Level Music

Jacques Greene releases great new track, “Taurus,” ahead of his next EP.

Jacques Greene today announces a new EP, Fantasy, out January 28th (digitally) and April 8th (physically), with the EP available today as NFT. Fantasy pushes Greene further into his down-tempo, trip-hop, and ambient influences than ever before, all while maintaining his signature style. In conjunction with today’s announcement, Greene shares Fantasy’s hypnotic lead single, “Taurus.” “In my mind there’s a real soothing, meditative core to this,” says Greene, “and the almost relentless repetitive nature of the aggressive breaks is meant to tip over into full mediation mode. There’s angst – but there’s trying to move through it.”

Listen to “Taurus” by Jacques Greene

“The things you hear when you’re alone. Walking through Mount Royal or other wooded areas you might notice a branch break. As much as I value my alone time and the subtle things you can pick up around and within yourself in those moments, a certain loneliness and anxiety permeates the quiet at some point. The past couple years created ample opportunity for that anxiety and loneliness to stretch its legs and make itself comfortable. This record was born out of weeks of willing a form of peace and inspiration into my surroundings. A large part of that came from working with Leanne Macomber on some vocals. Through a desire to form new connections and throw more humanity into the work. We made a variety of song sketches that I mostly reworked into the final recordings here. We spoke a lot about where our heads were at, certain key phrases, triggers and emotions. Joel Ford, whom I worked on Dawn Chorus with, mixed the record and helped me wrangle a few cats to get this across the finish line. Restless at home in Canada, feeling the restlessness of all my friends and loved ones I kept in touch with as much as possible, trying to make something that made the quiet a bit more peaceful.”
— Jacques Greene

Since releasing his last studio album Dawn Chorus in 2019, Jacques Greene scored the short film Exhaust starring Jimmie Fails (The Last Black Man in San Francisco), Glenn Kaino’s installation piece Tidepools (alongside Nosaj Thing), and the video game Home School. Additionally, Greene released remixes for artists including Montreal disco legends Lime, Kacy Hill, Kllo, Elohim, and more. In 2020, Greene made headlines for creating “Promise,” the first single released with associated NFT that staked the owner to music publishing, and the following year released ANTH01, a collection of unearthed tracks spanning the earliest years of his career alongside previously unreleased tracks.

Fantasy Tracklist:
01. Taurus
02. Memory Screen + Fantasy
03. Relay
04. Sky River ft. Satomimagae
05. Leave Here

Pre-Order Fantasy

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Top 30 albums of 2021: #’s 5 – 1

We’ve reached the top of the chart. Who takes the prize? You’ll find out soon.

#5: Anika – Change

Good heavens…This album is so lush, haunting, and beautiful that it will sweep you away from whatever you’re doing when you play it. Anika’s voice immediately drapes over you like a luxurious robe with a knife hidden in a back pocket.

#4: Rochelle Jordan – Play with the Changes

Seriously, why aren’t more people going nuts over Rochelle Jordan? She mixes soul, house, disco, and trip hop better than most, and Play with the Changes is, if you ask me, the sexiest album of 2021.

#3: Brijean – Feelings

This lovely mix of trip hop, dream pop, bossa nova, and house music is a delight from start to finish. It was a much-needed tonic during the crappy 365 days of 2021. It’s a perfect spin for any time of year. Got the winter blues? Play this. Need a fun record for that summer beach trip? Play this. Need a boost to start your garden? Play this. Looking forward to sipping hot cider in the fall? Play this.

#2: Aaron Frazer – Introducing…

This solo record from one of the cats in Durand Jones and The Indications is one of the best soul and R&B records of 2021. Frazer puts down his trademark sharp beats and brings his other trademark, high-end vocals, with him to create a groovy, sexy blend that impressed Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys so much that he produced it.

#1: Shame – Drunk Tank Pink

This album got locked into my number one spot not long after it was released. It’s a sharp post-punk record, and I remember being more and more impressed with it after each listen. It covers everything from Brexit and the pandemic to boredom and hope for the future. It’s snarky, witty, and powerful.

There you have it. I hope 2022 is good to all of us.

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Review: X Club – Now or Never

Coming in with a cover that looks like something by a death metal band and beats that sound like a basement club staffed by werewolves, X Club‘s Now or Never EP is a great EDM record that combines trance, house, and jungle.

“Concentrate” challenges you to do just that – focus on the beats and dance, dammit. You need to let go and cut loose now and then, and forget about all the crap happening in the world. The perfectly titled “Inna Trance” brings early rave tracks to mind and will get you bouncing.

“Sports That Require Petrol” not only has a fun title, but some of the coolest beats on the EP. It will make you want to stamp the pedal to the metal, or at least turn up the speed and incline on your treadmill. The EP ends with the “Journey Mix” of “Elevation” – a trippy track that drifts into euphoria by the end.

I’d like to catch these two Aussies at a festival or club. I’m sure they put on a great set, if this EP is any indication.

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[Thanks to Peter at Harbour Music Society.]

X Club joins the Kettama label and immediately releases a killer house music single.

Following its genesis release from the label co-founder himself, Galway native KETTAMA invites Brisbane locals and close pals X CLUB. to lay down the riddims for G-TOWN002.

Having met the lads at their GRID night in Brisbane during his Australian tour, G-TOWN Records label head KETTAMA alongside Shampain are familiar with the dutty duo. Shampain actually interviewed the pair for the VSN World website (a concept that started as a club night run by the label heads), so you could say this is a dream link up of sorts. They may be on the other side of the world but make no mistake, X CLUB. are honorary G-TOWN members.

Following releases on Steel City Dance Discs and 1Ø Pills Mate, alongside appearances on Mall Grab and Miley Serious’ Rinse FM shows, the duo of Ben Clarke & Jesse Morath have cemented their reputation as one of dance music’s most exciting doublets with their distinctively large productions – channeling influence from grime, electro, hardcore and techno – and capturing the minds and hearts of dance music fans with their big-room, uncompromising attitude. Punishingly beautiful, devastatingly cinematic; X CLUB.’s back catalogue invites a sea of oxymorons to the shore, blending euphoria and darkness – with one eye on the past and another to the future – to perfectly capture the mood of the modern-raver.

‘Concentrate’ kicks things off with a swirling blend of textured atmospherics and driving kicks that soon manipulates into a steppy electro-techno hybrid drenched in heads down energy. ‘Inna Trance’ swaps the serious for the fun with something that sounds like a blend of quintessential X CLUB. and the progressive, trance-like sounds of Radiant Love in Berlin; bouncy techno for those that like to smile while they dance.

‘Sports That Require Petrol’ incites images of joyriding youths doing donuts in parking lots and sweaty bodies bumping into one another in packed-out clubs; an ode to the hardcore era that contributed to the birth of the X CLUB. concept, before ‘Elevation (Journey Mix)’ guides us on a blissed-out trip through emo-dreamscapes and tears-in-the-club energy that wouldn’t sound out of place dropped in the middle of a Bicep performance.

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[Thanks to Harbour Music Society.]

Marco Benevento wonders if we’re “At the End or the Beginning” with his latest single.

Today, Marco Benevento shares his latest single, “At The End Or The Beginning” (listen/share). Diving deep down a psych-funk rabbit hole, the singer/songwriter/keyboardist captures the zeitgeist with lyrics like “we can walk and keep our distance, the whole world changed in an instant,” as he delivers a dose of blissed-out escapism where listeners can recontextualize these troubled times through a surrealistic-slanted optimism and the pure joy of an irresistible groove.

“Where are we? At the end or the beginning? It’s been a strange few years not being able to hug our close friends or play shows and to see so many people struggling from this pandemic that came out of nowhere,” says Benevento. “So the idea was inspired by what we’ve all been living through. The lyric says it all, we can’t wait for the clouds to lift up for us…this one time.”

Co-written with San Diego-based poet/lyricist Alfred Howard, “At The End Or The Beginning” hints at what’s to come from Benevento in 2022 as he puts the finishing touches on a new studio album. In the meantime, Benevento and his band featuring bassist Karina Rykman and drummer Dave Butler perform a handful of select shows to close out 2021, including a sold out two night run at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock this weekend, a three night stretch at one of his favorite rooms The Press Room in Portsmouth on November 11-13 and Brooklyn Bowl over Thanksgiving weekend.

Over the course of seven studio albums and countless shows around the world, keyboardist Marco Benevento has drawn praise from tastemakers far and wide. Los Angeles Times has written, “it’s safe to say that no one sees the keyboard quite like Marco Benevento’s genre-blind mashup of indie rock, jazz and skewed improvisation,” while NPR Music raves that Benevento combines “the thrust of rock, the questing of jazz and the experimental ecstasy of jam.”

Indeed, Marco Benevento’s music cuts a wide swath, seemingly connecting the dots in the vast space between LCD Soundsystem and Leon Russell, His songwriting is smart and earthy, yet simultaneously pulsating with dance rock energy. Benevento’s high energy live shows have led to numerous high profile appearances, ranging from CarnegieHall to Pickathon. In the studio, he’s collaborated with the likes of Richard Swift (The Shins, Nathaniel Rateliff), Leon Michels (Lee Fields, Freddie Gibbs) and Simone Felice (The Felice Brothers, The Lumineers) among others.

Upcoming Shows

November 13 – Portsmouth, NH – The Press Room (Sold Out)
November 27 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Bowl
December 11 – Miami, FL – North Beach Music Festival

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[Thanks to Kevin at Royal Potato Family.]

Debby Friday’s new single will help you “Focus.”

Audiovisual artist, vocalist and experimental producer DEBBY FRIDAY is back with a new single & video, “FOCUS“. The track originally premiered on Adult Swim on their latest Digitalis compilation.

Speaking about the meaning behind the song, FRIDAY said “I wrote this song in 2019, when I first started thinking about writing an album and the possibility of pursuing my creative passions as my career was making itself known to me. I kept debating with myself, ‘do I want this? or do I not want this?’ It’s a heavy question. The video also speaks to this. The whole process was like undergoing some sort of fire baptism. It was difficult and chaotic and supernatural. I felt like I was the mountain, cracking open and spilling forth.”

The video for “FOCUS“, filmed on 35mm, opens on the astonishing scene of a live avalanche – a torrent of snow flying across a frozen mountain range. The vision behind it was created by FRIDAY herself and director Ryan Ermacora.

Watch & listen to “FOCUS” here: https://youtu.be/nPs-vbGKW0E

“The shoot took a few days, spread out over a week. First, Ryan and Jeremy went to film the avalanche in Kaslo. The avalanche crew had to take them up in a tiny helicopter with all the gear to an adjacent mountain so that they could set up the dynamite and then we could get the shot. Once that was done, myself and a skeleton crew drove out to Cache Creek to shoot in the mountains there,” said FRIDAY. Shot across various locations in British Columbia, we watch as FRIDAY runs through a deserted forest and icy woods, glitching between daytime and nighttime. The desolate frigid landscape is juxtaposed with the striking imagery of her bullwhip choreography. The blazing whip cracks in the twilight air as she stands fierce and unrelenting, decked out in futuristic winter gear. Paired together, the trumpeting bass and spellbinding images make for a vision of an apocalyptic future where FRIDAY has become the last woman on Earth.

On making the video, FRIDAY stated, “Getting the logistics of everything together was the most stressful part. It’s not everyday that you have to figure out how to make an avalanche and take fire bullwhip cracking lessons. Thankfully, I had a really supportive crew the whole way through. It took a lot but I feel like this song and video marks a turning point for me that I can’t exactly name yet.”

After finishing her Master of Fine Arts degree earlier this year, FRIDAY has set her laser focus on her forthcoming LP. With a secret title and rumoured accompanying short film, DEBBY FRIDAY is not slowing down anytime soon.

Born in Nigeria, raised in Montreal and now based in Vancouver, FRIDAY released her debut self-produced, rap adjacent EP, BITCHPUNK in 2018. In 2019, Deathbomb Arc ushered in her second, critically acclaimed EP, DEATH DRIVE, which throbbed with eroticised electropunk fervour and cleared a path for self-actualisation. FRIDAY also created and directed her “FATAL” video, which was subsequently nominated for the 2020 Prism Prize Award, as well as her first short film, “BARE BONES“. Earlier this year, FRIDAY released the video for her single, “RUNNIN“, and also shared “LINK SICK” – an audio-play written, directed and scored by FRIDAY herself. She is currently working on her debut full length, and will be appearing at Substance Fest in Los Angeles on November 28.

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[Thanks to Frankie at Stereo Sanctity.]

Jacques Greene to release a treasure trove of early and out-of-print stuff on October 22nd.

Jacques Greene announces ANTH01, a collection of tracks and out-of-print 12”’s spanning the earliest years of his career. Arriving ten years after his groundbreaking single, “Another Girl,” ANTH01 features classics that introduced Greene to the world, such as “The Look,” and also includes collaborations with Koreless and How To Dress Well, plus tracks from Greene’s releases on 3024, Night Slugs and his own Vase imprint. In conjunction with today’s announcement, Greene shares “I Won’t,” a certified live favorite and highly requested unreleased gem; one of two exclusive, previously unreleased tracks to appear on ANTH01.

Stream Jacques Greene’s “I Won’t” (Previously Unreleased)

Greene has been making music “about the club” for over a decade. Over the course of multiple EPs, singles, and two full-length albums – 2017’s Feel Infinite and 2019’s Dawn Chorus – his sound has developed into an emotional haze. Outside of his own releases, Greene has explored his relationship with the club in a variety of contexts, from remixing Radiohead to producing for Katy B, Tinashe and touring with The xx.

“Time became quite slippery in the past year and a half,” says Greene. “As the years go it’s strange how some things feel like just yesterday while others are seemingly lifetimes away. It was equal parts challenging and fun to revisit some of this material that laid the foundation for this Jacques Greene project. ‘ANTH01’ is a form of anthology: a collection of songs meant to tell the first few chapters of that story. From bedroom studios in the Mile End in Montreal at the start of the 2010s to now. Thank you for listening.”

ANTH01 Tracklist:
01. I Won’t
02. (Baby I Don’t Know) What you Want
03. The Look
04. Tell Me
05. These Days
06. Arrow (feat. Koreless)
07. Ready
08. Faded
09. On Your Side (feat. How To Dress Well)
10. Faithful
11. Quicksand
12. Another Girl

Pre-order ANTH01

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Ela Minus releases remix of “close” by Buscabulla.

Ela Minus’ debut album acts of rebellion, released last October via Domino, boasts “daring calls to would-be dance floor revelers and rioters alike, in both English and Spanish” (Rolling Stone). Since the album’s release, Ela has been keeping busy – she recently performed at Chanel’s Fall-Winter 2021/2022 Haute Couture show and remixed Little Dragon’s “Hold On”. This fall, Ela will tour the US in support of the album. Ahead of these dates, she today presents a remix of “close” (feat. Helado Negro) by Buscabulla, plus a live performance of the otherworldly Liminal Spaces version of the song.

Ela and Buscabulla have previously worked together, namely on Ela’s remix of their song “Vámono.” The “close” remix features vocal contributions from Buscabulla’s Raquel Berrios and expands the playful original into a murky and dreamy dance track. The “close” (Liminal Spaces Version) live performance was filmed in the Centro Historico district in Mexico City earlier this spring and marks the first time Ela performed the song live.

“‘close’ is different from the rest of the songs on my album in many ways, including that it’s the only one with a collaboration, Helado Negro. My approach to sharing this song has been different; when I imagined how to approach new versions of it, I imagined them very distinctly. I came across the concept of liminal spaces, which inspired the improvisation of this version – in one take. I always imagined hearing Raquel’s vocals on this song, so I asked Buscabulla to rework it.” – Ela Minus

Listen to Ela Minus’ “close” (feat. Helado Negro) (Buscabulla Remix)

Watch Live Performance of “close” (Liminal Spaces Version)

Watch/Listen/Share
Purchase / Stream acts of rebellion
Watch “el cielo no es de nadie” Video
Watch “megapunk” Video
Watch “they told us it was hard, but they were wrong” Video
Stream “dominique”
Listen to “they told us…” Remixes

Ela Minus Tour Dates

Wed. Sept. 15 – Washington, DC @ Flash
Fri. Sept. 17 – Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5
Wed. Oct. 20 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere
Fri. Oct. 22 – Sat. Oct. 23 – Miami, FL @ III Points Festival
Sun. Oct. 24 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy Theatre
Thu. Feb. 10, 2022 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall ^
Fri. Feb. 11, 2022 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater ^
Sat. Feb. 12, 2022 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s BBQ ^
Mon. Feb. 14, 2022 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren ^
Wed. Feb. 16, 2022 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater ^
Fri. Feb. 18, 2022 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom ^
Sat. Feb. 19, 2022 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom ^
Sun. Feb. 20, 2022 – Seattle, WA @ The Showbox ^
Mon. Feb. 21, 2022 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater ^
Fri. June 10, 2022 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound

^ = supporting Caribou

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[Thanks to Ahmad at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Mano Le Tough – At the Moment

Recorded in Zurich during the pandemic, Mano Le Tough‘s new album, At the Moment, is a chronicle of him dealing with lockdown while raising a family and adjusting to the reality of not touring, not seeing fans, and having to just be in the moment.

The first words on the album are “On stormy nights, if you start to pray…” The sample is from from a documentary on the remote Irish island of Aran – a place that knows and embraces isolation. “Man of Aran” swells with blips and bloops and has a peaceful quality to it, as does “Empty Room” with its lyrics about listening to bees and learning to be present instead of dwelling on how much we missed everyone in 2020.

The sparse “Snow on Bamboo” leads into the thumping, danceable “Aye Aye Mi Mi.” The smooth lyrics of of “Moment to Change” drift into the dance-synths and bright pop of “Fadó Fadó.” “Pompeii” bumps and thumps with dance floor bass and heavenly synths while the gospel handclaps elevate you higher.

I will never turn down good dub music, and “No Road without a Turn” certainly qualifies. The echoing beats, tinny synths, and heady, thick bass are a great combination. “New / Cycles” has goth touches (creepy synths and slightly industrialized beats) and lyrics like “You hollow me out and fill me in.”

“So Many So Silent” reminds me of Art of Noise tracks with its mixture of synths, warped vocals, bells and xylophones, and echoing dance beats. The acoustic guitar “Short Cuts” eventually dissolves into a dial tone, or perhaps the sound of an old modem…which nicely bridges into the futuristic dance track “Together” to close the album.

At the Moment is an interesting record. It’s difficult to categorize, but I think that’s the point. It’s something Mano Le Tough made in the moment and without much thought to fitting everything into one box. It’s an album made in the present for the present.

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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Mano Le Tough shares “Aye Aye Mi Mi” from upcoming album – “At the Moment.”

Irish producer and DJ Mano Le Tough releases a new single, “Aye Aye Mi Mi,” from his forthcoming album, At The Moment, out August 20th on DJ Koze’s Pampa Record, and announces new tour dates with more to come. Following lead single “No Road Without A Turn,” “Aye Aye Mi Mi” is an indie dance ear-worm that’s hard to shake, and is the only track on the record that survived his original batch of demos and sketches. Beat and bass heavy, it highlights Mano’s skills for melodies and compelling vocal inflections. Mesmerizing instrumental flourishes, like ascending keys, filter in and out. “It’s a kind of reflection on narcissism, social media saturation and the ego,” Mano says.

Listen to Mano Le Tough’s “Aye Aye Mi Mi”

After more than a decade of releases and touring, Mano has spent the past year at home in Zurich, rearing his young family and focusing on the positives of 14 months without performing, amid the uncertainty of the pandemic. In the face of horror, Mano channelled inspiration. With At The Moment, the follow-up to 2015’s Trails, those struggles have produced a record which balances the ambivalence of the current moment, with wistful streaks of unguarded optimism.

At The Moment shows Mano’s modes of expression evolving too. The synths and rhythms common to earlier works are now complemented with less familiar sounds and influences. Jangling guitars and sun-bleached chords envelop his own tender, plaintive vocals in a dappled wash of summery pop. Another track grounds overlapping melodies and sci-fi soundtrack pads with hip hop beats, creating a hypnotic slice of slinky retro-futurism. Where there is reflection, there is also a sense of being unafraid.
Listen to Mano Le Tough’s “Aye Aye Mi Mi”

Listen to “No Road Without A Turn”

Pre-order/Pre-save At The Moment

Mano Le Tough Tour Dates

Fri. July 23 – Las Vegas, NV @ Art of the Wild
Sat. July 24 – New York, NY @ Teksupport
Sun. July 25 – Miami, FL @ Space
Thu July 29 – Athens, FR @ Island
Sun. Aug. 15 – Bloemendaal, NL @ Woodstock
Sun. Aug. 16 – Berlin, DE @ TBD
Mon. Aug. 17 – Verbier, CH @ Electroclette
Fri. Aug. 27 – Lincolnshire, UK @ Lost Village

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[Thanks to Patrick at Pitch Perfect PR.]