The Out Of The Wood show is back, firing on all cylinders for 2018; each Sunday a local, invited guest or patron of The Book & Record Bar in West Norwood gets 2 hours live on the decks inside the shop, playing to whoever wanders or tunes in. It’s a chance to grab a bag of anything and play around for yourself, try things out and spread out. In my first show of the year I’m bringing a box of recent buys, gifts, samples, a few forthcoming gems and throwing out some improv soundscaping into the mix in places, something I’ll be building on all year.
Mixes / Podcast
I’m very proud to say that my set for the Soundsci launch party that Diggers Dozen put on last year won their most loved poll for 2017! “12 records each. Only 2 turntables play. No compilation. No bootleg. Always original vinyl.” is the DD ethos and that particular night saw myself guesting with Mr Thing, Ollie Teeba, Jonny Cuba, Jonny Trunk and Maxwell Pastor – who runs the nights. Listen to the selection above, I’d pulled out a particularly odd Library set, I think there’s at least one bit of dead air (because I was chatting) and at points, if you strain hard enough, you can hear that chatter through the head of the needle in the quiet parts..
Hi there, sorry for the lack of posts recently, the home renovation continues as does the 2 week (!) half term my kids have been bestowed with and many other things like preparation for the next Further at the Portico Gallery on Nov 18th. The mix that I made of material both released and unreleased from the Death Waltz Originals label run by Spencer Hickman has materialised as a free CD available with all orders of Death Waltz or Mondo releases while stocks last. It should also be available at selected independent record shops too and you can also listen to it here via Soundcloud. The spoken word throughout is from a private tape where my friend Steve Cook is interviewed by John Tomlinson about experiences he and his family experienced growing up in a haunted house.
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things I’ve been loving in the last seven days. Old or new, whatever’s been on in the studio. From top left:
David Sylvian & Holger Czukay – Plight & Premonition (Virgin) – One of my favourite ambient albums ever, RIP Holger
Acidalius – Acidalius (Acid Waxa) Cassette – Fantastic modern acid from 2014 on Newcastle label Acid Waxa
Videodrones – Nattens Haevn (El Paraiso) LP – Second album of 80s-inspired synth workouts from the Danish duo.
Various – DJ Food at Emotion Wave (Mixcloud) Mix – Live improv on two turntables, sampler and FX, an alternate ‘Chill Out’ if you will
It’s been very quiet here because I’ve been on a holiday of sorts in Liverpool. A holiday of the most bizarre, intense and pleasurable kind taking part in the Justified Ancients of Mu Mu‘s return to the public eye with their ‘Welcome To The Dark Ages’ 3-day situation. You may have seen some photos if you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen parts of it on the news or in the papers and I’m still writing up the whole episode for this blog. In the mean time, here’s my set from Emotion Wave last Saturday – a night not dissimilar in concept to my own Further nights, so much so that I even brought along some of my projections. Run by Neil Grant aka Lo Five it runs every two months at 81 Renshaw on Renshaw Street, Liverpool (which has a great little secondhand record shop down in the basement).
As I’d just played the closing party for the JAMs the night before I had a laptop of KLF-related samples and pieces and decided to play an ambient set with them. Imagine a version of the KLF’s ‘Chill Out’ from an alternate dimension, completely improvised live on turntables, sampler and FX with all sorts of additional oddities chucked in and you have the idea.
Check out the other sets by Lo Five and Melodien on Mixcloud too – both excellent – and follow the Emotion Wave facebook page for info on the next night.
My Instagram page at the moment – follow me there for images from Liverpool later this week, I will put some sort of report together once I’m back but I won’t be posting properly until next week once I’m in Liverpool. I’ve been posting KLF-related bits that I’ve done in the past all week and here’s a selected recap of The Sound of Mu(sic) mix and poster series jape that I made with Mr Trick back in 2003. For the full story download the pdf here
I’ve just finished a 65 minute mix for the 45 Live radio show this Friday. Hosted by Greg Belson this two hr show features a guest mix by one of the 45 Live roster each fortnight on rotation. The music remit is broad, the only stipulation being that it’s sourced from a 7″. My mix takes in Dutch electronics, Israeli beats, Canadian collage, British fiddle funk and much more. Listen live between 8-10pm PDT Friday 4th August on Dublab
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things I’ve been loving in the last seven days. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. Having a catch up with all things Finders Keepers this week, go here for even more… From top left:
Andy Votel – Gallic Magnetic and the Fractional Crystallization of Space Rock Part 1 (Mixcloud) – Fantastic space-themed mix of French prog / psych / electronic and just plain odd records alongside an exhaustive blog entry on the Oi Polloi website that will have you scrambling for the Discogs / eBay search function.
Andy Votel – Gallic Magnetic and the Fractional Crystallization of Space Rock Part 2 (Mixcloud) – and there’s more… as above, I don’t know where he finds the time.
Doug Shipton – Bile Over Substance (Soundcloud) Mix – Bonkers beats and brutal basslines, a mix made for Vice Romania, up to his usual high standard.
Finders Keepers Radio – Vinyl Vacation Road Trip (Soundcloud/iTunes/Mixcloud) – Latest episode of the crew’s essential podcast, a vinyl roadtrip with guest Stanley Chow
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things I’ve been loving in the last seven days. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. From top left:
Smoove – Main Sourced (Wack Records) 7″ – The ‘Breaking Atoms’ album recreated from the original sample sources to brilliant effect, his ‘Return of the Beats’ 45 from last year is still in the box.
Mongrels – Attack The Megalith (Invisible Spies) Hand sprayed white vinyl LP + insert / patch / badge – Attack The Monolith remix album with the usual high quality packaging by Kid Acne
Remaniacs (Audioboom) podcast – A new, balanced podcast for people who won’t just shut up and accept Brexit. Whether we like it or not, this is happening, be informed about what’s coming and how it will affect you.
Danny Ben-Israel – The Katmandu Sessions (Anazitisi Records) – Reissue of a crazed lost Israeli psych holy grail
Here’s my mix for the Diggers Dozen vs Soundsci night a few weeks back – all library, all vinyl, all originals, no reissues or comps allowed. I went in for the weirder end of percussion, electronics, jazz, ambient and a bit of big band cheese. Below are also sets by Mr Things and Ollie Teeba and you can hear more sets from Jonny’s Cuba and Trunk here.
The Diggers Dozen vs Soundsci ‘My Boosey Weighs A Ton’ launch party at Joyeux Bordel in Old Street the other week was as nerdy and bloke-centric as you’d expect with frequent outbreaks of ‘breakface’ and clusters around the decks as library oddities were pulled out left, right and centre. Various old heads were in attendance and new acquaintances were made until 1.30am when it wound down. Much chatting obscured indepth appreciation of the musical treats going down but Maxwell from DD has kindly snipped some of the sets out of the melee and uploaded them to the cloud of mixes. If you listen carefully you can even hear the faint sound of chatter coming through the needle in the quiet parts. First up, Jonny Cuba (above left, below right) with his ‘spy jazz’ set, then Jonny Trunk (above right).
My mix, alongside more from Ollie Teeba and Mr Thing can be heard here
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things that have been doing it for me. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. From top left:
Major Force West – 93-97 (Mo Wax) LP – RIP Toshio Nakanishi – otherworldly productions
Children of Alice – Children of Alice (Warp) LP – Mindbending audio collage
Bigmouth podcast – #42 (Audioboom) Podcast – The Magnetic Fields, SS-GB and 40 years of 2000AD
Ian Helliwell – Tape Leaders (Sound On Sound) Book + CD – Indispensable history of British electronic pioneers + compilation of electronic/concrete obscurities
I was very pleased to be asked to guest on one of my favourite podcasts: Bigmouth, talking about 2000AD’s 40th anniversary, the new Magnetic Fields album and the first part of new BBC drama SS-GB alongside guest Matt Allen and regular hosts Andrew Harrison and Matt Hall. Also hear which track of the week I chose and what closing time chatter gem I dredged up.
UPDATE: Annoyingly I go the date of the Orbital Comics closing party gig wrong at the end, it’s March 10th, not 9th.
(Mark, Robin, Dan, Chris, me, Ian – out of shot Zoe, Hannah and Alan – who was taking the photo)
On Saturday I was invited to be a guest on the OST show on Resonance FM – this time with Robin The Fog ably sitting in for an absent Jonny Trunk (away on Basil Kirchin business in Hull). Joining us in the studio were Alan Gubby (Buried Treasure), Mark Pilkington (Strange Attractor Press), Dan Wilson (Radionics), Hannah Brown (Kvist), Ian Helliwell (Tape Leaders book and so much more), Chris Sharp (Concretism) and Zoe ‘Lucky Cat’ Baxter who stayed on after her show beforehand.
The reason was twofold – to try and present a sonic picture of all the artists who would be contributing / playing at The Delaware Road event at Kelvedon Hatch Nuclear Bunker on July 28th. If you’re not up to speed on exactly what The Delaware Road is then please go here.
The gathering was also to highlight a very special prize bundle assembled from all who’d be taking part that’s being auctioned off in aid of Resonance FM’s annual funding drive. Here’s a photo of most of the items to be included:
Here’s a link to The Delaware Road At Kelvedon Hatch Audio Apocalypse Survival Kit auction in aid of ResonanceFM
Here’s a link to buy tickets for The Delaware Road gig on July 28th
and here’s a link to the 2 hour show featuring music from a lot of the prizes featured above.
So sad to hear of the passing of David Axelrod tonight. If you don’t know the man’s music then all you need is this interview that DK and Dean Smith did with the man back in 2001 for Solid Steel. It’s unlikely that most people wouldn’t know parts of his music, being that he was sampled so widely by hip hop artists like Dr. Dre, DJ Shadow, Black Sheep and more. DK has been an uber-fan for as long as I’ve known him so this interview goes deep.
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things that have been doing it for me. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. From top left:
DJ Krush – Headz Tour, Custard Factory, Birmingham 1994 (Mo Wax) Cassette
Cavern of Anti-Matter – Blood Drums (reissue) (Duophonic) 3xLP/CD/DL
Jack Jones – Blast / Out Da Box (Structures Built) 7″
Run The Jewels – RTJ3 (Mass Appeal) LP/DL (still banging this!)
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things that have been doing it for me. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. From top left:
Brian Eno – Reflection (Warp) LP
Coldcut – 6 Music New Year takeover (BBC6Music) Radioshow
The KLF – The Sound Of Mu(sic) (Mixcloud) DJ Food / Mr Trick Fan Mix
Depeche Mode – Big Muff (K_Master Remix) (Soundcloud) Fan Remix
My set from Spiritland on Dec 11th was uploaded to Mixcloud but was so quiet you could barely hear it. I got to work on the file and remastered it whilst compiling the track list for the full 5 hours. Photo by Karla Davis
DJ Food – Spiritland 11/12/16 track list…
The Heliocentrics w. Melvin Van Peebles – Prologue (Now Again)
Bernard Szajner – The Fremen (Cache Cache)
Voyager – Arrival (excerpt) (Union City Recordings)
Basement Jaxx – Stanley (Sunday Best Records)
unknown – Blue (CDR)
DJ Shadow – I’ve Been Trying (Third World Orchestra’s Folkumbia Remix – DJ Food edit) (https://soundcloud.com/punk-cho)
DJ Shadow – Come On Ride (Through The Cosmos) (Secret 7s / Island)
DJ Shadow – Dark Days (Spoken For Mix) (MCA)
Andre Previn – Executive Party Dance (UA)
The Dragons – Peace Garden (Rural)
Kool & The Gang – Summer Madness (De-Lite)
Stan Getz – Bonjour Tristesse (MGM)
Fourtet – I’m On Fire (part 2) (Text)
Lalo Schifrin – Joy To The World (Lo Recordings)
Warner Jepson – Deck The Halls (Shinkoko.com)
The Soulful Strings – Little Drummer Boy (Cadet Records)
Warner Jepson – Silent Night (Shinkoko.com)
J. P. Massiera – Silent Night (Finders Keepers)
Warner Jepson – Good King Wenceslas (Shinkoko.com)
Vincent Geminiani – Ophis Le Serpentaire (Jazzman)
Paul Schutze – Doubts About Waking (edit) (Extreme)
Alice Coltrane – A Love Supreme (Impulse)
Arnaud Robotini – The Choir Of The Dead Lovers (Blackstrobe Records)
Brain Machine – Massive Dying Stars Vibrating Like Giant Speakers (Tinae)
Chapterhouse – Beta Phase (Global Communication remix) (Dedicated)
Voyager – Arrival (excerpt) (Union City Recordings)
Howlround – OH feat. abandoned playground (The Fog Signals)
Sheila Chandra – One (Indipop)
Eurhythmics – The City Never Sleeps (Capitol)
Annabel (lee) – (1849) (IF Music/Ninja Tune)
Beautify Junkyards – Constant Flux (Ghost Box)
Cavern of Anti-Matter – Zone Null (Duophonic UHF Discs)
Stepkids – La La (Stones Throw)
Broadcast & The Focus Group – The Be Colony (Warp)
Vanishing Twin – Floating Heart (Soundway)
Stereolab – Miss Modular (Duphonic UHF Discs)
Sirconical – Moondance (Twisted Nerve)
The Twelve Hour Foundation – Sun and Air (Part 2) (Bandcamp/Environmental Studies)
Voyager – Arrival (excerpt) (Union City Recordings)
The Orb – A Huge 54 Minute Mix Mk.2 (excerpt 1) (CDR)
Grace Jones – Don’t Cry, It’s Only The Rhythm (ZTT)
Grace Jones – Rough Slave (Better Days version) (unreleased)
Flying White Dots – Slave To The Grid (soundcloud.com/flyingwhitedots)
Grace Jones – The Crossing (Ooh The Action) (ZTT)
The Orb – A Huge 54 Minute Mix Mk.2 (excerpt 2) (CDR)
Szuletet – Domino (Bandcamp) https://afxtribute.bandcamp.com/releases
David Sylvian – Home (Virgin)
Paul Schutze – Doubts About Waking (edit) (Extreme)
Sheila Chandra – Nada Brahma (Indipop)
Camille – Ta Douleur (EMI)
The Beastie Boys – Something’s Got To Give (Live) (Grand Royal)
NT – Distances By Air (RCA)
Annis le Neve – Stories (Apeman)
Grandmagneto – Night Fever (Big Single)
The Karminsky Experience Inc. – The Fifth Peg (Patterns of Behaviour)
The Hellers – Take 46 (Command)
The Karminsky Experience Inc. – Through A Prism Backwards (Patterns of Behaviour)
The Karminsky Experience Inc. – The House Band Takes A Break (Patterns of Behaviour)
The Casuals On The Square – Moonbound (Trans International Airlines)
Nino Nardini – Tropicola (Jazzman)
Vincent Geminiani – Ophis Le Serpentaire (Jazzman)
Jacky Chalard & Dynastie Crisis – Les Scandales (Fat City)
Bomb The Bass – One To One Religion (Skankapella) (Stoned Heights)
Scarper – Lacuna (Jani R Remix) (Plexus)
Drog – Curtains (Bandcamp) https://afxtribute.bandcamp.com/releases
The Shamen – Possible Worlds (Reverse) (One Little Indian)
Nico Motte – Morning Mist (Antinote)
As One – Where Did He Go… And Why? (De:tuned)
Steve Hauschildt – Same River Twice (Kranky)
Queen – In The Space Capsule / Ming’s Theme (EMI)
As One – Where Did He Go… And Why? (Heinrich Mueller Lamb Shift Model) (De:tuned)
Nico Motte – Necroville (Antinote)
The Emperor Machine – Introduction To Outer Space (part 1) (DC Recordings)
E.A.R. – Interlude (Earworm)
V.I.V.E.K. – Mantra (System Music)
E.A.R. – Transistor Music (Earworm)
Boards of Canada – Satellite Anthem Icarus (Warp)
Four From Food Fridays – a weekly look at four things that have been doing it for me. They can be new or old, any style so long as it’s been getting some rotation in the studio. From top left:
Trevor Jackson meets Trevor Horn (NTS) Interview
Clocolan – Nothing Left To Abandon (Enpeg) LP
Manuel Gottsching – E2:E4 (MG.ART) LP
DJ Food – Live at Spiritland 11.12.16 (Mixcloud) DJ set