Friday, October 5, 2012

Ikonika: Live in Wellington



Ikonika returns to Wellington this Saturday at San Francisco Bath House. A collaboration between Girl Trouble and Ex.D, our second joint gig after bringing you oOoOO and Lapalux earlier this year. Last time Ikonika played here, she showcased her incredible skills as a DJ for over five hours, and even threw out tour T-shirts to those who had remained until the end of the set. In other words, she blew young Wellington minds, and looks set to do so once again. Her releases on Hyperdub including her debut album Contact, Love, Want, Have, and recent I Make Lists EP, showcase this talented artist perfectly, channeling the influence of Aphex Twin through the modernist leanings of the UK bass scene. If you're after something inspirational that goes above the bland normality of dance music, then you really can't afford to miss this gig.





Also on the bill are some of New Zealand's best acts, with ex-Trinity Roots member Riki Gooch, Electric Wire Hustle cohort Benny Tones, and sensational neo soul diva Estere all performing on Saturday night. DJ support comes from LRD JXN, who you've probably heard on Radio Active and at a variety of venues throughout Wellington. Ex.D's Gus, and yours truly, will keep things sorted either side of the acts.



 
Estere Live at VanguardRed from VanguardRed Magazine on Vimeo.

Tickets are available online HERE, and at Rough Peel Music on Vivian Street. There will also be door sales on the night.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

78 Edits mini-mix



The 78 Edits releases have been incredibly reliable as a source of quality disco and deep house. The Edinburgh based producer has been making edits that combine the original elements with a deep house thud and plenty of filters, with the results similar to what the likes of Eddie C and the Melbourne Deepcast have been producing lately. This mix for London based label Retrospective compiles tracks from an upcoming vinyl release, and while it may be only a short 30 minutes, it definitely crams in some quality, with stand out tracks by Rayko, Toomy Disco, and Mudegg.

Retrospective are giving this mini mix away on their Soundcloud. You can also pre-order the full release.

Deep House Mix: Recorded Live 23/03/12



Here is a mix that was recorded live at Saturday Social in Wellington that features tracks by Mic Newman, Aeroplane, Eddie C and more. Shouts out to Jamie Christer and Vernon McCarthy for the gig.

Check the full track list here - http://serato.com/playlists/B_Lo2/saturday-social-3-24-2012

Mayer Hawthorne: Live @ San Francisco Bath House 14-02-12



Scratch 22 warms the anxious crowd with some Bill Withers as the time nears for Mayer Hawthorne to come onstage. The people here are almost as interesting as the music so far, as DJs mingle with jazz musicians, and homies, hipsters, and hotties populate the bar area in search of one last drink before heading closer to the stage. The night is clearly a special occasion for some, with those in the know dressed in slim fit suits, accompanied by ladies in throwback prints.

Hawthorne’s quartet burst through the room, their propulsive funk gleaming with the shine of punk energy. This isn’t a hobbled together group of session musicians looking for a buck, not at all; in fact it proves to be by the end of the night, a band with superior understanding and ability of how to decimate an audience.

I was initially skeptical about the thought of Hawthorne live. Would his voice hold up? Would the slick production and catchy songs transfer to a live set? Can a hip white boy really deliver pure soul music worth your time? After a shaky start, which took up only half of the first song, the Michigan born singer delivered a set which could be seen as some sort of dictionary definition of professionalism. Within a handful of songs Hawthorne’s charisma, call and response, and astonishing band had turn the large crowd into a frenzied pit of singing, dancing, clapping participants. Standouts were predictably the best songs from his recorded output, ‘Your Easy Lovin’, Ain’t Pleasin’ Nothin’ was delivered with a Commodores’ style stage dance, while the infectious ‘A Long Time’ drew probably the biggest response from the crowd, and ‘Green Eyed Love’ then showed the band at its most precise and effective. Throughout Hawthorne interacted with the audience with ease and charm, the composite front man, even if his voice was exposed at times during ballads as a little flat. Never once were his calls for hands in the air, or singing along to a chorus meet with any hesitation. Every song, joke, and recognition of the crowd was met with mild adoration.

The musicianship was a display of inspired discipline and considered flamboyance. The first half of set was a tightly programmed medley of floor fillers delivered with ridiculous efficiency, underpinned by the sort of rhythm and blues played by musicians whose influences are as broad as Allen Toussaint and Talking Heads. A switch into ballads isn’t completely successful, paling in comparison to what has come before. Towards the end of the show, Hawthorne confesses that he collapsed only an hour before the show, the effects of a busy schedule the cause. Onstage he jokes that it’s just because he’s “living like a rock star”, before continuing to perform. This proves the impetus for a huge finale, with the band showing an emphatic ability to deliver not only grooves, but also break into some impressive solos as they brought the intensity in the room up to boiling point, finishing as they had with Hawthorne leaving the stage first, his band winding things down just as they had warmed up.