Basilisk

http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/sonify-olbiz-ep/

How about... Purosurpo?

Hating artists for their style or habits is a bit adolescent, don't you think?

You don't by chance do sound for events, do you Nexus? You seem very well informed.

I don't think it will show on the freebies list--you have to add it to your order anyway (despite the $100 price tag). It is an interesting compilation, well worth the trouble of procuring it.

I recently reviewed Infernal Intuition... wicked HH material there, as always: http://www.ektoplazm.com/reviews/infernal-intuition/

In my view, beatmatching is the drudgery you do before getting to anything interesting. If digital tools can help, why say no? With that said, it is dangerous to become reliant or dependant on digital tools to take care of everything. Here I am thinking of the alarmingly common situation where laptop/digital DJ doesn't even realize when two songs are slightly out of phase (yet still phrased and beatmatched). When this happens, the songs can start to intersect in a bad way, and everything will sound slightly off. Time and again have I seen digital/laptop DJs carrying on as if nothing were wrong. With good reason, I suspect this is due to relying on the "sync" feature--i.e. handing off responsibility for a mix to the software. As I say, it is a concern--not an inevitability.

I both agree and disagree. One statement I take issue with is "MP3s are the future." Wrong. MP3s are the past. The only reason we have MP3s is to save on bandwidth and hard drive space--both of which we have plenty of, nowadays. Spinning MP3s is lazy, cheap, and even downright disrespectful at times. I don't mean that DJing off a laptop is inherently evil or something--in fact, I suggest completely separating the tools of production from the quality of the media. And really, the quality is what I take objection to--even if you can't hear the difference, some people can, especially on a good sound system. MP3s sound vapid and flavourless, depending on the bitrate. Sure, 320k can pass most hearing tests, but what is being gained from the use of compressed media? Disk space, bandwidth, convenience, and a bit of money. Frankly, if you are willing to sacrifice quality for these things then I don't think you should be in this already over-saturated business... The use of laptops is a completely different matter. In fact, over the summer I have nearly digitized my entire music collection. I have well over 1TB of WAV files sitting on a few external drives, ready and primed for the day when I purchase the necessary gear to go truly digital. The thought of walking into a gig with my entire music collection contained in a little box is quite appealing to me, and the creative potential of using DJing software and a midi controller excites my imagination. I think this debate would flow with greater ease were the component arguments differentiated... there is the issue of quality, and the tools in use. DJing on a laptop does not necessitate accepting lesser quality media.

I have been reasonably impressed with some hardstyle DJs I've heard in the past. I know very little about it, but my perception (based on hearing one commercial CD and a few sets from DJ Klonez) is that, like many EDM styles, there are two sides to it: catchy commercial kitsch and a more artistically credible underbelly. That being said, if you're trying to make a convert... try out some LPS-style tracks from RAM, NRS, and other such artists. Dealing With Morons should do the trick

I wonder when this label is going to sign up with a digital download shop and offer their productions for sale online in WAV format... I never seem to want to buy a whole CD from Spin Twist, but there are always one or two tracks that sound really good.

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What is this, DeviantArt.com? Anyhow, this isn't a CD cover, but I thought it was worth a laugh... check out Dino Psaras' new bio photo on this flyer:

It depends on the laws and the tendencies of the authorities wherever you live. Generally a time-honoured way to get around most legal restrictions in a case like this is to make it a "private party" by invite only. You could go to the length of making people buy a ticket in advance, but that may be too much hassle. Perhaps the best thing to do is keep anything questionable out-of-sight, try and keep people from tearing around the neighbourhood (assuming there are neighbours), and IF the authorities show up, have a means of distributing word throughout the event to have people clean up/hide incriminating stuff as needed. It is also important to have someone on hand to know the laws of your land, to communicate to any authorities in a non-confrontational, informed fashion. The #1 reason parties get busted is because there is no advance plan on how to deal with cops, and no one really knows what sort of magic things you can say to keep them at bay. Learn this, apply the knowledge in a forthright and respectable manner, and you can avoid a lot of hassle. Time and again I see parties busted after someone starts shouting "fuck the pigs" whereas non-threatening gatherings of people having a good time (even with open alcohol in a city park with loud music) are permitted to go on. Out here in Toronto we even once had cops cover for us by telling their commanding officer that the lights and music in the trees were nothing out of the ordinary, and then had a guy wait at the party to let us know when the coast was clear to resume the beats. It really depends, in those sort of situations, on how you approach the cops, and some amount of luck I hope this helps somehow.

1) The Triac EP recently posted on Isratrance is old I believe. Triac's debut album from last year is a fantastic piece of work however. 2) ManMadeMan - The Path. Really deep techtrance at 130 BPM. You can download this one for free from my site. 3) Five Tons Of Flax. My review here. 4) The Plot Thickens. Crotus (DK) vs Cosmic Conspiracy (NZ). I've only had a couple listens but damn is it ever fine in some parts. 5) Zenon Records *.* 6) Solstice Black #01/#02. Some of it is just straight techno, but there are at least three killer techtrance tunes per CD. 7) Rewired from Jester Records (in case you missed it).

Heh... I opened this thread thinking "Colours"...

You're welcome! You'll find a lot more at http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/ (which includes covers, descriptions, track listings, reviews, ratings, comments, and such things)...

Since the last update, here's what's new: 60 Full Moons: underground sounds from the British Isles! http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/60-full-moons/ New Born's debut EP has been making waves all over; minimalistic Goa trance with genuine spirit! http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/new-bo...e-luna-king-ep/ Only By Promotion, hot and sunny Mexican progressive beats! http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/only-by-promotion/ Nolax's old school Goa trance album Persistence 2.0 has become a big success! http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/nolax-persistence-20/ Mainspring Motion, preview version of a great compilation from PAR-2 Productions! http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/mainspring-motion/

Rummage around, I've put them on my server: http://www.free604.com/files/

I generally don't bother out-of-town artists when they come in to play a set around here... often they seem haggard and a bit worn out (probably from the plane ride) and I figure, well, why trouble them? But every now and then I do get a chance to hang out with one of the known names. I can say, for instance, that Frank E is extremely laid back--he just smiles a lot and enjoys the local organic produce. Human Blue was a really nice guy--one of the very few I've seen come off the stage from his set to dance to the next act and socialize a bit. He stayed out a while, and I eventually met him up at the crew quarters at this festival we were both playing at deep in the mountains of B.C. Very friendly guy, and he really seemed to like Canada. Generally, I find most artists very down-to-earth; here in Toronto the acts we bring in will often come out to the afterparty, DJ a bit for fun, or just hang out with the local regulars. I know Gus Till and Mapusa Mapusa were out and active for most of their weekend here, hanging out at people's houses or throwing down a set at an impromptu beach party, although I was not around for either. Really, I cannot think of any incident where things went all pear-shaped with an international artist visiting here. They've all been quite reasonable from what I know.

I like it. I've written about it on my site: http://www.ektoplazm.com/free-music/new-bo...e-luna-king-ep/ Included is a bit of a review and some help with more reliable/accessible hosting. If you have any way of reaching the original artist I'd love to get in contact! Please note: if you are going to copy the URL I posted, be sure to get all of it (Psynews truncates it).

Order Odonata? Check out my extensive reviews of the first three in the series: http://www.ektoplazm.com/reviews/order-odonata-1/ http://www.ektoplazm.com/reviews/order-odonata-2/ http://www.ektoplazm.com/reviews/order-odonata-3/

I have the Atomic 2CD compilation and the vinyl and can confirm the track listing is incorrect. Xtra Mundane is on the CD listed as Solaris. This song has the sample "this is way too weird" so you will know it As mentioned, Out There is high energy Ofer power!

James Holden remixing Depeche Mode - The Darkest Star. Give that one a listen and let me know if I'm crazy for being so into this... vocals and all. I also really like the new Minilogue (especially the Gamma remix--isn't this just like 1992 with much better production?)... does anyone know the track list of their full-length by chance? I don't want to purchase any singles like Elephant's Parade if they are going to be included there.

Picture a graph in your mind; one axis is time, whereas the other is a measure of energy, mood, tempo, style, and so on. The most basic flow is straight from bottom left to top right--a steady growth, typically in terms of energy or tempo. The "peak, plateau, and trough" model is a more advanced way of plotting the flow--you build, hold it steady (whatever "it" is), drop a little, and then build again. This has the effect of providing both excitement on the dance floor as well as some relief, and functions as a sort of "sum is greater than the parts" method of energy work. However, there are many more ways of conceptualizing flow. Beyond energy and tempo are specific attributes to consider--how organic, mechanical, tribal, synthetic, melodic, classical, hard, dark, or deep a piece of music is (and that is just the beginning). Plotting energy or tempo is easy--the real fun starts when you work with many intermingling attributes, working in several different dimensions of sound. This might sound confusing, so let me provide an example--an old set of mine called Nocturnal Wanderlust. FREq kicks it off in a very synthetic way, but this sort of punchy toughness decreases steadily as a more "dreamy" kind of atmosphere begins to rise, peaking with Avoid The Future. The next stage introduces a tribal-organic vibe that gradually replaces the dream sound in the same way. I've carefully orchestrated the rise and fall of three specific attributes with this mix. In this sense, it is a fairly simple example of what I think of as "advanced flow." When you start to work with many different attributes, you move beyond the X/Y plot into a realm of multi-dimensional graphs--imagine a spiralling DNA-like helix, with time represented as an arrow moving up the axis of the helix. Or something even more elaborate. I think the options are limitless. Of course, some of what I write applies far more to a mix than a compilation...

In reference to the last post from Anoebis, for music designed to be played loud, WAV really makes a difference. It's true I can't usually tell the difference between a properly encoded MP3 and a WAV file at home, but it is easy to hear on a loud system. When DJs play nothing but MP3s there is a curiously muffled feeling to the music. No good! About the download statistics; with 22 tracks and 2200+ downloads, this would suggest about 100 downloads per track. However, the actual numbers listed next to each track are like "1|1|8" or thereabouts. Has the Lost Buddha EP really been downloaded by no more than 20 people or so? That's a bit sad.