Author Archives: Matthew Bloss

[Indie/Rock/Shoegaze] ohnomoon – Low [TMN Premiere]

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 13, 2015

ohnomoon
Low

While roughly half of our current staff here at TMN are mostly of the college age-range persuasion, some of us older Ninja cronies cut our proverbial teeth on more classic indie fare. Bands like Pavement, MBV, Primal Scream and Creation Records, Neutral Milk Hotel & the Elephant 6 collective, Wire and an absurd number of other groups helped shape the standard scope through which this writer’s basis of taste was built. And so (after the long winded intro), needles to say, whenever an artist or band can conjure up those lofty comparisons to that aforementioned sound, well… we get a little excited. New York City four-piece ohnomoon have been crafting a hazy, durable stamp on guitar-pop for over three years, but make their TMN debut with the premiere of their latest record “Low”. “Low” is the lead single emanating from ohnomoon’s latest extended play –VVV- (which itself was backed by a successful indiegogo campaign), and serves as a welcome segue into their latest body of work.

While lead vocalist Kat Lee admittedly stated, “When Corey (ohnomoon’s lead guitarist) gave me the demo, I immediately felt the guitar interplay was the backbone of the song. I did a take of one of the main guitar lines from the demo and made it my own, but the weaving relationship was there from the beginning.”; we can’t help but be wrapped up in the tune’s murky, sonic minutiae. From Lee’s reverb-treated, airy vocal track to every underlying kick and those untethered moments of atmospheric ambiance; there is a distinct weight to ohnomoon’s latest single. Corey Oliver elaborates: “‘Low’ was birthed out of an old Garageband demo that existed under the name ‘mbv’ for the longest time (about 5 years before My Bloody Valentine’s blissful follow up to Loveless). I sat down one Saturday morning intent on writing something My Bloody Valentine-esque, but gave up after it proved too difficult. I started playing the opening riff to ‘Low’ out of sheer frustration. The accompanying guitar line came later that afternoon. I couldn’t decide between two instrumental bridges so the song sat unfinished for about 6 years.” It seems as if those 6 years provided the necessary breathing room for one of our favorite songs to lurk out of ohnomoon’s camp since their inception, and one we think will strike a chord with our most intuitive of readers. ohnomoon is set to headline the Mercury Lounge in NYC on March 16 for a special EP release show (with tickets going on sale here this Friday), so we’ll be keeping an eye out for -VVV- as soon as it hits. Stream “Low” above.

[Future/House] Gucci Mane – Pillz (Dr. Fresch Remix) [TMN Premiere]

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 12, 2015

Gucci Mane
Pillz (Dr. Fresch Remix)

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In today’s climate of rapidly shape-shifting musical tastes coupled with sub-genres literally popping up overnight -specifically in dance music; we get a chance to witness some special artists knock the proverbial ball out of the park amongst a smorgasbord of evolving sounds. One such case study in aural diversification has remained L.A.’s Dr. Fresch. We’ve featured the envelope pushing chameleon before, from analog bass swingers to sultry future groovers and we’ve still yet to be disappointed. On the latest house-tinged remix from the Prep School Recordings boss, we find him taking on one of James Franco’s finest film co-stars (and a pretty decent rapper) Gucci Mane with a future revision of party-favor ode “Pillz”. The track gets pulled from Gucci’s club scene straight to the underground dance halls in which future jack (especially in the UK) has really begun to take hold, behind a sterling slick set of crisp, uncluttered legato synths, which pump an innovative feel to the standard four-four kick and swinging bassline that permeates so much of house music. We’re sure this one will be making the rounds around the interwebs as Dr. Fresch continues to solidify a presence as one of dance music’s fastest rising commodities, so get a leg up on all those trendy friends of yours and hear his remix of “Pillz” before anyone else thanks to an official ‘TMN Premiere; and snag the free download in exchange for a Facebook “like” here.

[Tech/G-House] Thee Cool Cats – Swerve

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 8, 2015

Thee Cool Cats
Swerve

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As most of our dance aficionados may be aware, The BPM Festival in beautiful Playa Del Carmen, Mexico –which more or less features a “who’s who” lineup of proper house, techno, disco and every niche genre in between– is just within a day away from what will most rightly be an absurd, dance and party-favor fueled 9 days -and quite the important party for much of the dance community worldwide. So when we heard one of House music’s most prominent labels, Toolroom Records, was putting out a special mix and album –Toolroom Mexico– to kick things off, mixed by one of 2014’s most successful American underground dance artists making their label debut, Thee Cool Cats; our interest was more than piqued.

Featured within their stellar mix album which includes an eclectic batch of house cuts from Dusky, Doorly, Vanilla Ace, Todd Terry, Green Velvet and loads more, lies Thee Cool Cats’ latest offering: “Swerve”. “Swerve”, to say the least, is a bouncy slice of carefully crafted, tech-fueled G-House in the same vein as the scuzzy vibrations coming out of the Dirtybird camp. We’ve heard Thee Cool Cats delve into breezy disco, club-floor G-House; and this latest wrinkle in their production game is as appealing as anything else from the forward thinking dance producers. We’re bounced from proto-typical, and expertly engineered G-House to the blissful feels that have come to attach themselves to Thee Cool Cats’ stainless output effortlessly, creating a unique playability which wouldn’t sound out of place while cruising in your station wagon or the middle of a clammy, peak-hour dancefloor. “Swerve” is available for download on Beatport now, and for our friends out in Playa Del Carmen this week, be safe and bump this one in the sun.

[Synth-Pop] POP ETC – Running In Circles

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 7, 2015

POP ETC
Running In Circles

Soundcloud

While the synth & indie leaning side of pop music has become somewhat of a saturated wasteland in recent years, we’re still finding ourselves being moved by the choice diamonds from one of our favorite aural aesthetics. Some tunes still somehow manage to instill those nostalgic rumblings and transfixed periods of unfazed listening, and POP ETC, the one-time bedroom recording pet project known as Morning Benders turned N.Y. to San Francisco live band have turned in perhaps the most stirring revivalist pop tune we’ve heard in their entire library: “Running In Circles”. “Running In Circles” flirts with both brooding synth-wave effects and shimmering, sprightly plucked guitars which give the single a neon 80’s shine steeped in more contemporary foundation. Rarely do artists successfully inject such an accessible sound with the careful musical care of a classical composer; which is just lovely stuff. After recently unleashing a slew of covers over the past year, it seems as if POP ETC may be ready to attack the LP game again, and we’d have to be crazy to not want to hear more from their 2015 reincarnation.

Stream “Running In Circles” above and hit the jump below to watch the accompanying music video featuring some gorgeously choreographed classic and flashy Wushu (that’s Chinese Kung-Fu for ye unschooled martial artists) forms from Sifu Chen Ying.

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[Indie/Synth-Pop] Rose Quartz – Axis of Love EP

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 6, 2015

Rose Quartz
Axis of Love EP

Soundcloud

A few weeks ago, we featured the warm, synthy, tonal reverberations from Rose Quartz and their single “Leaving Now”; along with a promise to cover their impending EP, Axis of Love the second it was made available. Alas, that day has finally come, and today we’ve got Rose Quartz’s brand new extended play in its entirety. Seeing Rose Quartz’s subtle shift into heavier, darker, analog instrumentation through the scope of their lurid take on synth-pop was nothing short of breathtaking to hear, as they’ve turned in yet another addictive triumvirate of tracks.

As we’d already consumed the polished and stellar “Leaving Now” ad nauseam since its release, we’d been chomping at the bit to hear the rest of Axis of Love, especially after a sold-out NYE eve performance in Denver which featured loads of unreleased tunes and only served to stoke our fire for the quickly rising four-piece. After leading with “Leaving Now”, Axis of Love tips even gloomier with the slow-burning “Medicine”. Ethan Converse’s soulful refrain reaches further into longing soul than we’ve previously heard, while a simply plucked and reverb heavy guitar washes through a sea of modulated synth-work to create a song which simply oozes sexy, while shining across a number of different listening mediums. Closing out their latest EP, Rose Quartz nudge us a little closer to the dancefloor with an acid-house trimmed pop gem, “Something To Believe”. The quartet infuses large, chunky bass with rousing percussive elements from wood-blocks to a driving drum kit for a superlative finish to one of the richest 17 mins of music we’ve featured all year.

Quite simply, we’ve been impressed and enamored with Rose Quartz since their early days as FLASH/LIGHTS, and seeing their wealth of potential and talent translate into an impressive release is exactly what we’d been waiting for from the young avant-poppers. The quartet is currently gearing up for a U.S. tour with Generationals, which you can find dates for below as well as the complete stream for Axis of Love.

01/30 – San Francisco, CA – DNA Lounge

02/04 – Phoenix, AZ – The Crescent Ballroom #

02/05 – Pioneer Town, CA – Pappy and Harriet’s #

02/06 – San Diego, CA – Casbah #

02/07 – Santa Barbara, CA – SoHo Music Club #

02/09 – El Paso, TX – Lowbrow Place #

02/10 – San Antonio, TX – Limelight #

02/11 – Austin, TX – The Parish #

03/05-07 – Savannah, GA – Savannah Stopover Music Festival

# = w/ Generationals

’Leaving Now’

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’Medicine’

Soundcloud

’Something To Believe’

Soundcloud

[House] Full Crate x Mar – Nobody Else (Sebastian Carter Remix)

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 6, 2015

Full Crate x Mar
Nobody Else (Sebastian Carter Remix)

Soundcloud

It’s been a few months since we last checked in with Swiss producer Sebastian Carter, and while his busy output has slowed a bit, Carter’s work is no less impeccable than ever. Carter’s latest release finds the 20 year-old taking on Full Crate x Mar‘s “Nobody Else”. A sultry blend of PBR&B with a house backbone, Carter fuses enough of his own sonic vision into the tune as to let listener’s identify that luxuriant dance sound all through the lens of Full Crate x Mar’s original. Muted, melodic bass kicks and synth stabs waltz fluently around each other; resulting in a haunting, catchy, unique and accessible remix; and furthermore, rides a line that only a handful of dance producers would even dare attempt. This one comes as part of Full Crate x Mar’s Nobody Else EP which also comes with remixes from Nymfo and Hotel Garuda; and drops officially on January 11. Until then, get lost in Carter’s hypnotic house stylings above.

[Future/House] Sweetland – Feel It

Posted by Matthew Bloss - January 5, 2015

Sweetland
Feel It

Download

It seems like whenever us Ninjas are in need of a genre blurring electronic tune, all we have to do is start a little correspondence with some of our friends Down Under (as well as one of our own) for the pulse on underground dance’s craftiest tunes. The latest single into our friends Stoney Roads’ new label, “Feel It” from Melbourne’s Sweetland was a no-brainer to share with our savvy readership coming out of the holidays. The tune rides an envious stylistic aesthetic; fusing the same heart and soul found on those classic Chicago House and U.K. Jack records coupled with the genre-pushing future production structures which have been permeating our blogwaves more and more. We’ve been pleasantly impressed with Stoney Roads Records brief output, having already become one of our go-to imprints for future house and bass, and Sweetland’s entry into their brief but rich catalog has us pacing our week with a warranted amount of shuffle. Grab the free download here and stream “Feel It” above.