“The Juric is Out” Another Electronic heavyweight hangs up the headphones, or shall we say, scarf

by Taran M

Davey busting it out at Prognosis, June 2012 - Photo by Kenji EuIt’s fair to say you’ve heard the name. In fact you’ve more than likely heard the music. Whether it be propped in front of the spectacular visuals at loop bar, the dingy surrounds of Brown Alley, or the hip vibe of OneSixOne. Roughly five years ago a man started DJing that would, with a little help from his friends, rebuild a stagnant progressive scene. In fact with the Darkbeat and Substance crew, Dave Juric has risen among the swill to become one of the biggest local names in the Melbourne EDM. I haven’t really known much of Dave until mid last year, the first time hearing him I was suitably impressed. Yet another man who looks further into DJing than putting together tunes, staying true to a genre or suffocating himself in the hype or bullshit. I only do articles on characters I know follow their curricular activities or vocations with love, I love writing and would never waste my words on people that didn’t deserve them. Dave is another soul whose passion, no matter how quietly displayed, is always ever-present in his audio extractions. So from borrowing his brothers decks whilst in Europe to playing at Summadayze 2012, I celebrate Dave’s career with cake… or so be it a cake in interview form, a celebration of the life and times of one Dave Juric. So sitting down with him amongst the cafe’s of the inner east I manage to elude his barriers and extract all the dirt on being Dave Juric!

So Dave, it’s all coming to an end soon honestly from one DJ who is in the process of hanging it up, to one that has John Farnhamed twice. Where is your head at right now in terms of life and music?

To be honest it’s a really strange feeling. It was a decision made probably 6 months ago that when my girlfriend and I moved to London that I was going to stop playing. It just felt like the right time. So for a while I’ve tried to enjoy each gig as much as possible. I’m sad, but at the same time pretty excited to be moving to a new city and finish DJing on a bit of a high. When I started it was always going to be a hobby, and I’ve achieved more than I ever thought I would, so I’m content.

You’re moving to basically where most of the genre’s you play began their lives. The Hacienda in Manchester will be just up the road, Ministry of sound, Liverpool’s cream. No interest in setting up shop overseas?

No. Not at the moment at least. I’m quite happy to give it a bit of a rest for a while and pursue other interests. I’ve been playing or out clubbing every other weekend for about 8 years solid. I’m looking forward to leading a bit more of a ‘quiet life’. And checking out more Hip Hop shows in London!

How did it come to be that you started DJing and more so what events shaped your sound?

My brother Jimmy got me into it initially. He spent the money, got the turntables and a mixer and a CDJ100. I was really lucky because he went to Europe for a while and I was able to use his equipment and records and sort of teach myself how to play. I was also studying at Swinburne Uni in Hawthorn so would go to Alley Tunes every week and just pick random records that I liked. I learnt how to mix by playing progressive breaks into Chicago house into German minimal, which really made me focus on beat-matching and not really tying myself to one sound. The first big parties that I went to were James Zabiela & Infusion at Room in ’04 and the MOS Breaks tour at Metro with Kid Kenobi. From there, it was all about Sunny and later Darkbeat.

I know most DJ’s nowadays have a wide range of genres, but in terms of your progressive and house stuff, what influences formed the basis of your sound?

‘Progressive house’ was dead by the time I came of age and breaks was in full swing.  So progressive for me was always a way that you played rather than a sound per se. Phil K, Nubreed and Infusion were the 3 acts/dj’s that I followed religiously around Melbourne early on. Watching Phil move from breaks to minimal and everything in between showed me that you really could do whatever you liked and I always wanted to have that flexibility as a DJ. But most of all he was dynamic. He made you want to go see him; it’s what always inspired me.  And the other side of things was that I got into buying house records in a big way. Dimitri from Paris, Masters At Work, Derrick Carter and pretty much anything on Drop. It was never something I heard out, but was something I really liked listening to. It was also around ’05 that I met Rollin Connection and they had recently moved away from playing breaks to that sort of dark minimal tech sound that they championed for a few years. I was really into that sound when I first started playing in clubs. They were both a massive influence on me, not only on my sound, but also on DJing and ‘the scene’.

You’ve played some pretty crucial sets with supporting some major DJ’s, how did you feel when all this was going on? The change from regular Melbourne DJ to Melbourne support DJ in particular?

I always was really excitable (I still am in many ways). I got a massive kick out of supporting artists that I loved.  I tried to meet and become friends with as many people in the scene as possible and I’ve always cherished any opportunity to play any role in a night. Be it closing a side room or opening the main room or whatever. Each DJ has a purpose and I was always happy to do my part, whatever that may be.

Musical heroes, give us two electronic DJ’s/ artists and two non electronic?

Geez that’s tough, as there’s been so many.
Phil K and James Zabiela. They had the most influence on me as a DJ because of their determination not to be pigeonholed and how much they both respect the art of DJing.
Jimi Hendrix and Dom Kennedy. Hendrix was the first artist I ever obsessed over and Dom Kennedy is a new one. He reignited my love of hip hop about 18 months ago. (Special mention to The Prodigy, Daft Punk and Led Zeppelin).

Between you and Simon Murphy, I have to admit to knowing two of the most technically gifted beat mixers the planet has seen. What would you recommend to up and coming DJ’s in terms of exercise routines. We know that before you take to the decks you usually do at least 500 sit ups. What other tips would you have for people to break out of the bedroom?

Wow, thanks! Definitely agree on Simon though. It’s all about the sit ups! Haha! Honestly, my advice would be to try and be the best mixer you can when you’re first starting out. Learn how to mix! Take the time to learn the basics. Learn how to phrase tracks. Do it by ear, not by software or key charts. They have their place, but I feel that a lot of the ‘love’ (for the lack of a better word), has left DJing. It’s about throwing 2 tracks together that you feel will work together rather than what a program is telling you will work together. It’s something that you need to focus on and constantly try to be the best you can be when you play. My favourite gigs are the ones where I walk away and feel like I mixed well.

If you’re hanging up the headphones, are you hanging up the scarves and knitwear as well?

Blasphemy!

Worst gig experience ever Vs. Best gig experience?

The worst experiences are the ones where you wait till 5am and then get told that the club is closing. It’s the nature of the beast, and it does happen. It’s not the clubs fault, it’s not the promoters fault, it just happens. But it’s the worst, because all I ever wanted to do was play tunes.

Best experience?

I’m going to give top 3 most fun sets in no particular order.

  • Freestylers Boat Party w/ J-Slyde (2012)
  • Summadayze w/ Rollin Connection (2012)
  • Trust Us NYE on the rooftop at Brown Alley w/ Alam after Nick Curly (2010)

Top 10 tunes for the smashings?

Luke Chable – Tokyo (Nubreed Remix)

Stetsasonic – All That Jazz (Dimitri From Paris Remix)

Drumattic Twins – Feeling Kinda Strange (Bass Kleph & Nick Thayer Remix)

 HiFi Bugs – Lydian & The Dinosaur

Royksopp – What Else Is There (Trentemoller Remix)

Infusion – Love & Imitation

PQM – Babe, I’m Going To Leave You (Phil K vs Nubreed Remix)

River Ocean ft India – Love & Happiness (Michael Cleis Remix)

James Holden – A Break In The Clouds

Leftfield – Africa Shox

What has been your favourite venue for DJing?

Brown Alley was home for me for so many years, and I knew the people there really well. The promoters, the door girls, the staff, the owner, they were all really good to me. It still feels like home when I go in there. Loop & 161 I love because of the intimacy, seeing people rave right in front of you, you get that rush that sometimes you don’t get in a big dark club.

Do you have any closing gig’s coming up?

This Sunday at New Guernica will be the ‘biggest’ gig to date and will hopefully sit in that top 3 above. Me and a very good friend of mine will be warming up for Guy J. A few months ago I sat down with Dan Banko and we tried to figure out a gig that I could warm up an international for. Guy J is the perfect artist, and I’m VERY excited. Also having the opportunity to play alongside Andrew Wowk from Sydney will be great fun. I consider him to be my Sydney counterpart. Someone who has that real passion for DJing and has an even bigger range than me. He plays everything! We’ve supported each other and traded tracks since the very start of our DJ careers. I’m really happy for how well he’s doing up there.

My final gig will be at 161 with Fluidlife with one of my favourite producers, Tom Middleton and Haciena’s very own Graeme Park. I’ll be playing a bit of a ‘classics’ set. An opportunity for me to play all the tracks I’ve loved over the years. Really looking forward to that as well. The last few parties I’ve played there have been incredibly fun.

What are your views on MASH, Dubstep and Shappelle Corby? five words please, not in sentence form…

MASH – Vintage TV; Alan Alda’s rad.
Dubstep – Like everything, CAN be GOOD.
Shappelle Corby – Not my favourite Chappelle show.

Have you got anything to say to the pundits and fans of yours before your last set?

For the love of god, dance. That’s all DJ’s want, for you to dance and enjoy yourself!

Thank people in this space:

I’ve been really appreciative for a lot of people in Melbourne for giving me chances to play and supporting me. I started to write a list of all the DJ’s, promoters and friends who have helped me over the years and it was getting ridiculous. So there’s a few I really want to thank and I’ll give a big generic thank you to everyone else haha.

Dan Banko and Darius Bassiray have been the biggest support for me over the last 5 years or so. They gave me an opportunity initially, and then kept giving me opportunities. More than that they offered advice and for the lack of a better word ‘mentored’ me during the early days.

The Clarity crew: Mark Stewart, Phil Moore, John Morcom & Ryan Quinsee. It really started here. These guys gave me the confidence that I could actually play. Some of my fondest memories of playing are from these parties.

Symphonic Tonic and Dynamic: Alex Boffa, Alam, Nat Lipton and Dave @ Room. I loved the 3 years I had running parties for up and coming DJ’s. So many fun/loose nights were had there.

Substance Crew: Simon Murphy & J-Slyde in particular. Mad love. Best new crew in Melbourne, hands down. These 2 are in my opinion the future Phil K’s and Gav Keitel’s of this town.

Finally to all the DJ’s, promoters, club owners and music fans I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with over the last 8 year, massive thanks! Keep on raving!

Last but not least my girlfriend Jess who has been incredibly supportive and patient.

 

So there we have it.  As it is, is ever as it was. As one door closes for someone they casually open another. I’m sure that as that door closes there will be Dj’s lining up to open the door. But none of them will carry themselves with the dignity and respect earnt by Dave. I’d personally like to thank Dave for giving me the scoop on this and especially for giving me his humbed thoughts and opinions. Us here at Substance HQ wish him well in his future endeavours and hope he enjoys the transition from the decks, to the couch in the same manner he approaches everything he does…Like a Boss.

Taran M and all the Substance krew
Peace homie!

Interview by Taran M / Photo by Kenji Eu

Category : Articles, Interviews
Tags : , , , , , ,

Rehgan De Mather – Busy Playing Art

by Taran M

In my journey through the inner and even more so now the outer sanctum of the Melbourne EDM scene I have met so many amazing artists. Musically gifted souls who can turn a blank screen on Abelton come alive, Awe inspiring DJ’s who can beat juggle three open 1200mk2’s whilst balancing a pint of lager in one hand and a note in the other. You can turn any corner behind any DJ booth and find a myriad of talented or semi talented turntable, abeltonist’s.

One of the things about finding musical talent is it’s easy to find. You can lead a horse to water and you can lead a punter to a brilliant band or musical performer by simply rocking up to “The Espy” or “Loop” (maybe next Saturday?). For me some of the people who have impressed me ever more so than musicians, have been the souls that I have met out in the crowd, some of them doing truly what makes them happy. Thus leading me to the main premise of this article, by far and away one of the most humble talents I have ever met in my life.

I first heard of Rehgan De Mather in 2006, when a former housemate had a piece of his hanging ever so aptly above his turntables. To be honest I looked at it and registered a little interest in it. I was fed the time old story ” I know the artist.” so similar to back in the day “I know the DJ/producer.” I studied the canvas a little further and began to appreciate the time it would have taken, once you know o f a personal connection you tend to appreciate things a little better. From then on I would hear intermittent stories of Rehgan’s growing success, how if anything this piece would one day be worth a lot of money. It took a further four years before I would meet Rehgan properly, I think on the dance floor at Rainbow Serpent during an Opiou set. He was hanging out with two people I knew, who I didn’t realize were good friends with him. After being introduced to him, the penny dropped, the stars aligned and my slightly askew bush doofed memory recalled in unison my housemates painting. We chatted for the better half of Opiou’s set, I have admired his art from afar and also had the pleasure of playing at a charity gig he organised. However Rehgan and I aren’t your type cast Facebook “friends” – we have chatted for hours and hours on facebook regarding his art, music, the snow and everything in between. It also turned out that my father was his wife’s boss at one point. I consider him a good friend and I was honored to be invited to attend his latest Exhibition, showcasing his latest body of work, M N M L V M X M L @ Gallery 577.

To meet Rehgan and chat with him is not what you’d expect from an artist who from early on his career has had smoke blown up his ring about how fantastic he is. In fact it’s almost like the smoke is a haze in front of him and once you throw down your presumptions of artists and talk to him, you realize he’s sitting well behind the haze, unassumingly humble, not choking on the caustic intoxication of appraisal. He is someone who, regardless of paint bush, spray can, street sign or even words, can easily portray himself. It would be a shallow outlet if what he felt inside was not represented in his art. In fact the most amazing thing about Rehgan is that through the last fifteen years the mojo that drive’s the inspiration is still as ever fresh as it was in high school. A love for what he is doing.

Captain Safety Pants, Acrylic, spray enamel, charcoal and collage on canvas, 140cm x 140cm, 2011What I especially love about Rehgan is how he sees himself in his own eyes. His webpage is called “Busy playing Art” and that name has always stuck with me. It’s such a valid representation of how he view’s what he does and his approach to his outlet. Tongue in cheek? most definitely. Are you a painter? “No I am an artist” no different than that DJ over there or that street performer. His working style pretty much says it all. Four to six canvas’s all at once, on the fly. How does he feel today? Where is his work going to take him? Nothing is thrown out either, anything that has been expressed on canvas can be re-digested, an old painting cut up and re applied. My favourite piece of the night, a portrait of his wife Emily was in fact originally a spot patch canvas for cleaning the nozzles of the spray. So since the age of twelve when he first designed his parents new house complete with bowling alley. To right now an artist clearly defining his purpose in the sphere. It’s all about the love, just like a DJ for music. And whilst he currently works full time, everything he does is to paving a career where he is happiest, behind the canvas.

I’m no art critic, I just heard all of your jaws drop, so to say that I can cover this article with any professional integrity is about as relevant as me mentioning Whitney Houston right now. But I know what I like and I can only comment on what I saw. “M N M L V M X M L” definitely showcases a maturity in his work since the first time I saw an end product of his. More so his life pre and post wedding, award winning prizes in hand and “everything in its place” feeling overtakes every piece. He assured me that this time in his life has been the busiest he has ever known. That his life currently needs a break ad that he can’t wait for his honeymoon. This is not representative of his work. M N M L V M X M L is a calm and fluent display of talent, showcasing control in the face of grinding 9 to 5 to do what you love. Mainly portrait based with a few murals and showcase canvases, the body of work is all interlinked, not just by brush stroke or can tilt, the bold bright colours, or crisp black on white counter pieces. It is indeed linked by the comfort found in each piece, not by the viewer in looking, but by the artist in doing. This exhibition displays an ever growing decadence and structure to Rehgan’s talent. What’s more, every part of himself, his wife and his friends is on display and it is clear to see he is enjoying life. But more so enjoying being “Busy playing Art”. What’s more I fear that the best is yet to come.

You can see Rehgan’s work on display at:
M N M L V M X M L @ 577 Brunswick St. Fitzroy North. Thursday Friday 12-6pm, Saturday and Sunday 12-5pm

Further info:
http://busyplayingart.wordpress.com/
http://Gallery577.com

 Words by Taran M

Category : Articles
Tags : , ,

“Ask for Janice” ~ Adam Yauch from new school brat to Old Skool philosopher

by Taran M

R.I.P Adam YauchMy first tape was Pauls Boutique, that should pretty much sum up the next article. In the words of Notorious BIG in Juicy “I let my tape rock till my tape popped”. They say that the first Album that you physically own for yourself you “Will hold forever in your own personal immortality” (John Lennon). It was my first introduction into hip hop and I have to thank my brother for it, a listened once hand me down, with a very used ‘Best of Run DMC’ cassette. I went through my old cassettes on Sunday to try and find it. I couldn’t find it anywhere, but i found an old bootleg of their 99 Hello Nasty tour at the palace.

I was sparked by an incident in the crowd that I had never really paid attention to in the recording. About 40 minutes into their set a guy in the crowd starts asking for ‘Hey Ladies’. Soon a little chant starts. Adam Yauch’s voice comes over the top with a response. “I’m really sorry but you aint going to hear that song or Girls”. The crowd stops and gets over it quickly as Body Movin is brought into play by Mix master mike.

They say sometimes in rap that its “All about flow”, fuck Jay Z claims that every time you listen to him “You’re now tuned into the motherfucking greatest”. But I think over flow, what you say in rap is more important than how it’s actually delivered. I never actually rated Adam’s flow (Just sayin), I always felt that Mike D and Ad-Roc had a better flow and were a lot more creative with the word soup that they delivered. But what I feel Adam Yauch lacked in vocal audacity he made up for in content. Sometimes the most basic form of vocalism can have the most profound execution and effect.

Listening to the Beastie Boy’s catalogue from start to finish is like listening to the three kids from Brooklyn’s own personal growth. More so noticeable is the content change by Adam. From License to Ill we hear a brat, a bravado punk with little respect for ladies (they used to perform with a giant inflatable penis on stage and traveled America with the ironic “Like a virgin tour with Madonna”. Apart from the classic ‘Hey ladies’ (In which Adam Yauch had very little audible content). The content of Pauls Boutique was less brash and apart from party tunes like ‘Shake your rump’ and ‘Sounds of Science’ there is a more cultural urban narrative.

By the time you get a minute something into Ill communication it’s clear that Hey ladies is a thing of the past. Adam gels the words “I want to say a little something that’s long overdue, the disrespect to women has got to be through. To all the mothers and the sisters and the wives and friends, I want to offer my love and respect till the end”. I always remembered this line. At the time of recording, acts such as Too live crew, The Ghetto Boys and others used mysoginism and degradation of women as topics, I always thought it was good to hear a rapper asking us to treat women with respect. In fact Adam met the full force of Keith Flint from the Prodigy when he asked them not to perform ‘Smack My Bitch Up’ at a festival performance. This is how serious he took his beliefs.

Unless you’re a big fan of the Beastie Boy’s you wouldn’t really know that Adam was a practicing Buddhist. You really should have looked a little better at Ill communication and the song ‘Bodhisattva Vow’. which is basically Adam’s acceptance and description of what he feels Buddhism means to him. Yauch was inspirational, organizing the Free Tibet concerts of the mid 90’s, through his own charity the Milarepa fund. Adam first sat in on a conference by the Dali Lama and by the end of his life he had had numerous private and personal audiences with the Dali Lama. This song indeed, inspired my investigation of the Buddhist faith and whilst I remain an atheist I like to believe that I have absorbed some of the basic Buddhist beliefs in my own personal life.

Adam openly welcomed calm in attitudes towards the Islamic community especially in the late 1990’s and especially after the world trade center attacks. Adam was one of the few to argue against open abuse of the Islamic faith, in a torrent of anti Muslim, fear induced sentiment. He openly criticized The US military reaction to these attacks “I’m getting really tired of the situation, the US attacking other nations.” Adam always had something to say and usually what he said was followed up by Ad-Rock or Mike D that was never as concise in thought but a welcome balance in humor or less dramatic. For example after the “I’m getting tired of the situation..” line Ad rocks response is “I’m a funky ass Jew and I’m on my way, I gotta say fuck the KKK, homphobics aint ok”. Whilst the other two members held on to the brattish charm to form their style, post ill communication Adam Yauch had become predominantly the conscience of the group, a sooth sayer between two intelligent jesters. The ying to the other two’s yang, perhaps fueling the other social commentary and political persuasion. The Album ‘To the five Boroughs’ carries a very post 911 political opinion to it and I wonder on reflection how much was fueled by Adam’s thought’s.

In the background now I’m listening to “Awesome… I shot that.” I can’t watch it at the moment, because I look at Adam and start to cry, cause I realize I’ll never see my favorite group perform ever again (I’m so gangsta). Adam what you brought to my life and the opinions I have, absorbed through your presence in the Beastie Boy’s, whether it be as a kid skating through the city to ‘Shake Your Rump’ and ‘So What You Want’, smoking dope as a teenager to ‘The in sound from way out’ or smashing down a hill to ‘Triple Trouble’. Since 9 years young you have always been in my ear and I hope to give a fresh MP3 album of Paul’s Boutique to my 9 year old son or daughter to start their musical crusade. You will always be the softer, more thoughtful Beastie Boy to me. The one with less brawn and more brains and I will be forever indebted to your contribution to my life. Whenever I’m at Hotham or Fall’s I’ll think of the line from ‘So Watcha Want’ “When the snow is fallin’ I am goin”.

Your name is MCA and you now have a license to chill.

Much Love Taran M

Category : Articles
Tags : , ,

They turned the Punters Club into a Bimbo’s and you expect Miss Libs to Survive!

by Taran M

Miss LibertineI really feel for the youth and future youth of Melbourne today. For this week marks I feel, the point where Melbourne essentially turned the corner into being the next Sydney. For a cultural epicenter hell bent on being the epitaph of all things live music, we should be ringing the alarm bells, just as long as these bells don’t disturb the neighbors or compromise some form of the liquor licensing act. With the closing of Miss Libertines in the city as we see not just another EDM venue dead, but another consistent outlet for quality music, be it dance, rock or Sudanese hip hop gone.

The writing was on the wall the moment the pokies boom crashed through Melbourne’s pub scene in the late 1990’s. Suddenly the licenses of traditional music venues and suburban pubs were bought through strong arming and deep pursed conglomerates hell bent on ensuring that rows upon rows of poker machines spread through the floor space of alcohol spilt floors. Suddenly the abundant crash of a high hat, tear of a C chord or wail of a post punk singer was replaced by the lounge instrumental of Kylie’s “Better the devil you know”. The reeking of high grade formica fake plants, with the standard resolute carpeting and the chirping of electronic machines replaced the crowd, the sweat and now more so then ever, the tears. Music not just in Melbourne but round Australia is being left with nowhere to run.

It isn’t so much this historical threat that is such an issue now. It is the demand of the general public to move into the inner city and embrace the “Most liveable” city, by literally jamming into the CBD, Richmond, Collingwood. The next time you are in the CBD have a good look at the number of gantry cranes littering the skyline,  consider all of these are primarily residential developments.  Live music and electronic music is a beautiful loud, sweaty, seething, almost apocalyptic  heathen playground. “Joe the lawyer” who lives on the 20th floor does not want to hear Simon Murphy and J-Slyde bang out a 2 hour prog set at 3am….. unfortunately. In the venues I have dealt with when running Substance, we have always had problem surrounding noise complaints.  Now the powers that be, local Councils, VCAT, Liquor Licensing and to a lesser extent the police (remember, the boys in blue enforce policy, not create it) offer no protection towards venue operators once people move in and around the venue. Noise complaints for licensed venues are registered and held by Liquor Licensing, much to dismay of some venues it becomes clear that when a license is up for renewal, and it’s a venue with numerous complaints for noise, you’re going to have a hard time renewing it.

Miss LibertineThe other factor is what expenses a phone call for a noise complaint actually costs, especially if it is put through the police or through a council complaint line. After a complaint for noise a minimum of two police officers are sent to investigate (while somebody is beaten to a fucking pulp on King St), after investigating they file their incident report. That has cost the government an hours wage, choked a public resource and created a threat for the public because it has diverted the attention of the police. Now the council gets involved, because both Liquor licensing and the council have permits and licenses hooked into the venue. The Council issues a $2000 fine for consistent noise complaints, venue owner hires lawyer  to contest…. You see where i am going with this hopefully??? All because some fuckwit has moved into a flat next door to a live music venue……. This was made by one phone call. No wonder the live music scene in Melbourne “Ain’t what it used to be”.

This is where Adelaide has it right, and fuck me it’s not often that happens (the mantra of “But when it does it’s priceless” comes to mind). In Adelaide if you move in or around an existing music premises, by law you have no reasonable right to complain regarding “Acceptable” noise.  As it is seen:  “You moved there, the venue was there before you,  why do you think you’re paying $200 a week for a five bedroom apartment above a nightclub? “Dear Melbourne…. Investigate this….It will work…”

If it isn’t the Punters club (where Bimbo Deluxe now stands, used to be one of the best live music venues in Australia) QBH, Viper and now Miss Libertines. We’re losing our cultural flare. In years gone by it was just the promoters that vanished into the night, now the very venues that once carried them are joining them.

Category : Articles
Tags : , , , , , ,

PROGNOSIS ~ Dec 17th @ LOOP

by J-Slyde

Prognosis December Flyer

One year on from their first event under the Prognosis banner, with no sign of slowing down, the krew are getting set to celebrate the only way they know how – hot beats, tasty beverages, and shenanigans a’plenty!

Intent on doing something special for such a momentous occasion, we couldn’t think of a better artist to headline and celebrate Prognosis’ first birthday than NYC protégé come Melbourne beat wizard, PQM. With a DJ and production career that dates back to the early 90’s, PQM has a vast musical knowledge that will no doubt be used to good measure. With the opportunity to flex his musical muscles over a two hour feature set, PQM is set to delve into his extensive collection of tunes to deliver a set of truly epic proportions.

After turning the FB world green with envy over his international exploits, local trance favourite Jed returns from overseas and will be stepping up to the plate to play his first ever ‘non-trance’ set. As part of Rush with events pushing techno and progressive alongside trance, Jed is well versed in the sounds that will no doubt whip Loop into a frenzy.

Substance kingpin and crowd favourite Taran M returns from quasi-retirement to get amongst the lunacy as he lays down the sweetest of beats and other tasty treats from his repertoire. Rounding out the night will of course be the Prognosis residents J-Slyde, Simon Murphy and Aaron Static. Expect the unexpected as the three continue their musical missions into melodic madness.

No Prognosis would be complete without captivating, hypnotizing visuals which will once again be provided by Vdmo Kstati. With a booking schedule jam packed with festival and club events, the forever growing arsenal at this VJ’s disposal will ensure the night has an extraordinary audio visual feast!

LINEUP:

PQM (Yoshitoshi, Abducted Records), Jed (Rush), Taran M (Substance), J-Slyde (Substance), Simon Murphy (Substance), Aaron Static (Hyline, Indigo, Spherax)

VISUALS:

vdmo Kstati

WHEN:

Sat, 17th December

WHERE:

Loop – 23 Meyers Lane, Melbourne CBD

COST:

FREE!!!!

FACEBOOK EVENT

Category : Events, Prognosis
Tags : , , , , , , , ,

Dubstep and beyond, what could possibly happen next?

by Taran M

Dubstep!Sub genre’s in general at the moment seem to be the new black and in the words of the famous rap tune “It don’t take much to realize that”. I state this as we gaze into the open abyss of obtuse genres of electronic music making the acoustic ‘jump’ across to the mainstream pond of both the popular electronic and pop music spheres.

At the moment it’s all about Dubstep. Yup its fucking everywhere and I for one feel a little ill about the concept. I’m not hating on Dubstep, I am actually quite fond of the occasional slice of Dubstep with my afternoon coffee. What I’m not entirely sure of is how it became so big so quickly. In the last three weeks I have seen/ heard comment’s whilst out and trawling Facebook that have made me want to throw a sack of puppies in a meat grinder. People who have been vehemently against Dubstep, to the point of driving in my car and saying “Turn that fucking rubbish off” are now jumping up and down gayly clapping their hands as they dance around like an autistic child who has been stung by a wasp. At Day Glo in the middle of a brutal tech house/ Electro set…. BOOM! massive Dubstep breakdown…. Creamfields everywhere….. Dubstep… The thing that made me throw my earplugs out and walk away throwing hand grenades was…. Gabrielle and Dresden… Dubstep breakdown….. For fucks sake, really did I just hear that…. Oh and for the previous examples, Britany Spears’ last radio hit… MOFING DUBSTEP BREAKDOWN, how does that make you feel? It definitely seems more sturation than admiration.

I just don’t understand what has changed, although I understand more after seeing Skrillex at Creamfields. I regularly played his track “Kill Everybody” in the last few months of playing out. I never knew he was predominantly a Dubstep producer as “Kill Everybody” is a banging piece of Electro house. However the majority of his production is a blend of dub step and Electro. So here is the bridge that got people across to Dubstep. This is where the sub genres become murky bout whats what, whats not etc. Hardened dub veterans will state Skrillex isn’t Dubstep, a hybrid, like a 95 Toyota Camry with a Sunroof and a V12 engine. Instantly unique and attractive to some but not what the core element of driving a Camry is about. Now I’m not wailing on Skrillex, he played a stellar set at Creamfields for what he is, but for what he is when he played and me having another idea about what he played, his sound is way too loose to fit into either Dub or electro. The core throw away is to compare Skrillex to Ed Solo or Love and Light. “Hello Chalk….Have you met Cheese?” that’s pretty much it. I’m gad that this form of Dub has got people interested but the thing that producers have to worry about is not so much selling your soul, but the soul of your genre.

It has happened so frequently in the past with Grace. “Born Slippy” by Underworld gracefully danced across the EDM sphere and popular radio without damaging the underground tech scene. “Addicted to Bass” introduced the public to Drum and bass and then Pendulum’s recent crossover hits have reengaged the music buying public to DnB without saturating and exploiting. Then the most delightful graceful crossover was in 1997 was DJ Honeysmack and his quirky “Walk on acid” which brought funky minimal tech/ house into the rooms of the public.

So it has always been form that Sub genres will occasionally dip their toes into the waters of popular music and with merging Dubstep and Electro, the market has been exposed and another genre will either grow or flop in its 5 minutes of fame, or its 30 second breakdown of fame. In writing this though I think I have already worked out why Dubstep in general has been slotted in with every genre, it runs at roughly half the BPM of most 4/4 electronic music, that’s the fit. So while I listen to a mix i have just done of Scrillex, Egyptian horns and Chase and Statuses mix of Heartbeat, played in between the breakdown to Energy 52’s “Cafe Del Mar” I wonder in 6 months what is the next crossover… I can see Psy Trance and Hip-Hop, then again maybe I can’t…

Category : Articles
Tags : , , ,
Pages:«1234»
« Previous Page — Next Page »