Showing posts with label Robot Koch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robot Koch. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Beat Meet: The Combined Forces, Cowboy Gambling, Sex Talking, Boudoir Blunted, Second Introductory Edition

You been getting that jonesin' for some beats, too, lately? Let's scratch that itch, shall we? The good news about delayed Beat Meets is the fact that there's generally more beats to share when we do get together like this. The real question, however, remains: did you bring me my cheez whiz, boy?

It had been almost a minute since we last heard from our favorite label, Project: Mooncircle, and i was beginning to get a tad worried. Turns out they were just putting the finishing touches on Robot Robinson, featuring stellar beats by Robot Koch and tight rhymes by John Robinson. Koch maintains his otherworldly, spaceship soundtrack while Robinson keeps those alien heads bobbing with his lyrical flow. A powerful one-two punch, to say the least. i keep waiting for P:M to drop the ball and put out something less than phenomenal. Fortunately, i have a feeling i'm going to be waiting a long time before that happens.


If oddisee is willing to back your beats, odds are your beats are worth hearing. If you would agree, you're going to want to hear this joint by Maverick. Apparently, oddisee was so impressed with Maverick's stuff that the established producer talked the relative rookie into dropping this debut. All instrumental hip-hop, there are some real gems in here.



Proving that unsolicited submissions from you dirty bastards often yield some of Beat Meet's finest gems, we recently received some great stuff from Lawrence, Kansas-based Say My Name. This stuff is a bit more of the experimental variety; think Shigeto without the obvious Asian overtones or maybe somewhere between Teebs and Baths. Or think something else. Just give it a listen and hear for yourself.



Just in time for Valentine's, in this corner, weighing it at beats the hell out of me, Star Slinger dropped another beast. Sporting tracks like Slow 'n Wet, this three track EP continues to show that someone's about to take the next step and start hitting the big time. Sure, that may just mean a CD on an obscure label that about 100 of us listen to, but what the hell have you done today, you smarmy bastard?



And finally, a little something from someone whose name you're probably going to hear a fair amount 'round these parts in the coming days and weeks and sometime thereafter i haven't decided yet. Maybe a...fortnight. With a self-described sound falling somewhere between Nosaj Thing and Flying Lotus, i'm of no mind to disagree with oddlogic. His beats are low end heavy, but have that weird blunted, spacey vibe that marks the best work of the genre. oddlogic will be gracing with our very own, FIRST EVER, LET EXCLUSIVE MIX. Suck on that, all you other blogs! To let you know why we're so very excited about this, check out this joint. More, as they say, to follow.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

More Label Love for Project: Mooncircle

Is it just me, or is damn near everybody out there going on and on about Ninja Tune's 20th anniversary? Don't get me wrong, they deserve all the love and attention, and probably even some more, but let's not forget the other labels out there, doing what they do for off-center, instrumental, beat music or whatever you want to call it (and yes, i realize Ninja Tune does more than that, but bear with me, i'm writing a fucking post here).

Project: Mooncircle is back at it yet again with more goodies for our earholes. Remember that new Robot Koch joint i told y'all about a while back? Well, not only has Songs for Trees and Cyborgs hit the streets, good ol' RK has his first video out for the project, too. "Threats" features a robot, weeds, grass, and occasional light-ups. Now, i'm not one to read symbolism into everything, but, well, you do the math.



And if that weren't enough, they've put together another "everybody on the label" compilation, now with theme-y goodness inside! Inspired by their new A&R, Jinna, it's dedicated to her dream of going to the moon. Now, i don't want to say this is their best group project yet, as that would diminish all the other outstanding work they put out regularly, but i'm not NOT saying it, either. You've got label standard bearers like Robot and Pavel Dovgal here, as well as up and comers like Juj. The tracks all have a spacey, dream-like quality, a bit softer around the edges than you might expect from the label, but the end result is fantastic. Not that i have favorites or anything, but MyOwn's "Tit Tit Tudi Tit Ti" definitely has made my short list of best beat tracks of the year. Here's a snippet of glitchy goodness to prove my point. Make sure to snag this beast when it drops November 5, 2010.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Beat Meet

i really need to come up a name for this recurring column. "Beat Meet" seems to be both truthful, as we're here to discuss the latest i've dug up from the beat music scene, plus the double entendre in the name is just childish enough to work for me. i'll gladly accept other suggestions should any of you care to post in the comments, but we may just have a winner here.

Anyway, as luck would have it, we have a particularly good haul this week.

From one of my all-time favorite labels out there today, the folks over at Project:Mooncircle have remained busy. Hell, Robot Koch apparently is working on the Madlib model and will drop his Songs for Trees and Cyborgs this October. The LP comes essentially on the heels of his phenomenal Listen to Them Fade EP, which came out just a few months back. This time around, the Mad German Maestro teams up with the likes of Boxcutter, 1000 Names, Doshy, RQM and Graciela Maria, amongst others. Koch happens to be one of my favorites in the game right now. His stuff demonstrates a bit more of the European sensibilities you don't always find in U.S. beat scene, more structured and textured than a lot of the other players out there. Just to get you pumped, we've got an early listening treat for your ear holes.


The other main reason this week is so good is that i finally got off my ass and downloaded a new browser, thereby allowing me the ability to download from the fantastic XLR8R site. Holy Christ, it's like a freakin' treasure trove of grooves over there! And guess what? They had even more Robot Koch, remixed by my hero, Alex B.


What's more, Alex B just released a brand new podcast mixtape for XLR8R, thereby bringing perfect symmetry to where we are. And thus, it all returns to foot wear.


Hell, while we're at, i dug up a boatload of remixes over there that need to be shared with you lucky bastards. Truth be told, i don't know too much about the first two actual artists, but you know of my love for Shigeto and Flying Lotus. Of course, the last one is just the opposite; i'm way down with Baths (thanks, Ernie and Bert!), but couldn't tell you too much about the One AM Radio or the Los Feliz Ladies Choir. All share one thing in common, however, and that's that they're all bad mama jammas.




Since i'm feeling so generous today, i've got to also throw love towards We Did It Collective yet again for these two new gems from jonwayne, both from his upcoming Doodles CD. Sounds like that's only going to be available at shows, so pick up these tracks and say you got there first.



The Pro~Ef camp just sent us over a sample of their upcoming adventure score series, Compression Chamber, due out September 21st 2010. Stuttering beats over hazy grooves. Me likey. If you've read this far, i'm guessing you will, too.