Shows to Love: As You Like It Presents | Ghostly Meets Spectral
SAN FRANCISCO TONIGHT: There are shows that are not to be missed, and then there are shows that you can be certain are never EVER going to happen again. Tonight, our friends with As You Like It are bringing out one of THOSE kinds of lineups, with a full room of Ghostly International and Spectral Sound artists for your dome. Featuring Ryan Crosson (Spectral/ Visionquest), (the almost NEVER seen) Osborne (Ghostly/ Spectral), and Solvent (Ghostly), all of which adds up to—well, it’s just all a bit too exciting to put into words, really.
And yes, though this is very last minute, discounted presale tickets are STILL available here (until 6pm PST), and more will be available at the door.
Still need convincing? Plug in to the sets below, and prepare for awesome. See you at Public Works!
Ryan Crosson is one of the four gents who make up powerhouse collaboration Visionquest, and as far as fast-rising artists are concerned, this one comes with a bullet.
Osborne is Todd Osborn is Soundmurderer is Superstructure is one half of TNT … and the list goes on, really. For more on him and his varied career, check out this interview he did with the Red Bull Music Academy here. Also, check out his mix for the XLR8R Podcast here.
Solvent has been making beautiful, “genre-defying” electronic music for a decade and a half, and his most recent album, Subject to Shift was released in 2010 on Ghostly International. You can also find his releases on Morr Music as well as his own label, Suction Records.
Events to Love: Love Underground
Every scene has its diamond-in-the-rough DJs; the ones who are always a resident somewhere, consistently bringing new sounds to the fore, playing at skill levels rarely seen even on the international level, and who maintain their home-base following simply by performing from the heart. This event is all about hearing sets from San Francisco and Santa Cruz’s very finest of that ilk.
Featuring veteran performers Mozaic and Ivan Ruiz, and with support from Dirty Dirty Techno and the elusive Rob Monroy (Love series events), Love Underground looks to be chock full of sonic treats for fans of chilled-out house and banging techno. Lovers of dancing, this one goes until you can’t take it anymore; midnight-the bitter end. And in true underground fashion, the details on this one are sparse at best, but if you’d like to know more, contact us for further info.
Finally if that still doesn’t sound enticing enough, check out the listening homework for you below. We promise it makes a pretty convincing argument, and hope to see you on the dancefloor!
Prim Sessions Podcast (July 2010) by Mozaic
W.A.R.M.T.H. October Promo Mix by Papouban
Events to Love: Forward & Public Works Present - Maceo Plex, Robag Wruhme, and Adnan Sharif
This coming Friday, May 27, the folks with Forward are bringing some very excellent house music to San Francisco’s Public Works. Featuring sets from Maceo Plex, Robag Wruhme, and Forward’s own Adnan Sharif, the night looks very promising. You can purchase tickets (for $10, plus service fee—a total steal) via Eventbrite. For more on the featured artists (and a bit of listening homework), keep reading.
Maceo Plex (aka Maetrik) has been largely unavoidable on the dancefloor following the release of this moniker’s first album, Life Index, on Crosstown Rebels in February. His ubiquitous single, “Vibe Your Love”, has landed on so many mixes and DJ charts it borders on absurd, but it’s praise that comes very well-earned. Below you’ll find a preview of his album as well as his most recent (and mind-blowingly good) mix for Crosstown Rebels.
CRMCD012 - Maceo Plex - Life Index by Crosstown Rebels
Maceo Plex Crosstown Promo Mix Jan2011 by Maetrik / Maceo Plex
Robag Wruhme (aka Gabor Schablitzki) has been a consistent player in the push for bringing beautifully-crafted house and techno to a wide audience. His most recent album, Thora Vukk, has received high praise from well beyond just the electronic music community—and of course is quite the favorite around these parts. You can read more about his album here, and be sure to check out his most recent mix out on Kompakt, titled Wuppdeckmischmampflow, which you can purchase via Beatport. And if you’re still craving a brief preview, check out his track, “Pnom Gobal” below.
Friday’s extra flavor is a bit of secondhand that came late in the day, but it means a little something new for you all. I’ve got about as much info on these guys as you do right now, but it’s always nice to have some homework to do. This is a San Francisco-based band called The Soft Moon who are, by all accounts, damn awesome. I have a terrible soft spot for shoegazer, and this one comes with a huge no wave streak, so I’m glad to hand this one along just on first impressions alone.
As You Like It Meets Leftroom | March 19, 2011
I remember 2005 being a big year for the reemergence of techno. Ellen Allien blew everyone’s minds with Thrills, Donnacha Costello released the final 12” of his revered Colorseries, Matthew Dear became Audion, and, at the very end of the year, Leftroom Records made its first appearance with a sleeper release titled The Extended Family EP. Digging through my crates now, I realize just how critical this EP really was—it signaled the grand entrance of minimal, legitimized further by the presence of Ali Kahn’s “Water Bomb” on Audion’s Mix for Fabric that came out in the very beginning of 2006.
Now here we are just over five years later, and Leftroom is still at the helm of the growing swell of new techno, house, minimal, and tech house. This June, label head Matt Tolfrey is set to release a compilation featuring his catalog’s cream of the crop (and a few new treats), and in the meantime, he’s making limited stops around the world to share the love, including two in the States. San Francisco has the good fortune of being his sole West Coast stop, where he will be playing for As You Like It Meets Leftroom on Saturday, March 19.
If you’ve never had the opportunity to see As You Like It in action, this event is going to be one hell of a treat, featuring support from residents Mossmoss, and Rich Korach, as well as Forward SF’s Adnan Sharif and Leftroom’s SF local, Kevin Knapp. The venue is limited capacity and will be presale-ONLY, so for tickets and more info, go here.
Finally, your listening homework—should you choose to accept it:
Matt Tolfrey @ mnmlife 2 year anniversary by Matt Tolfrey Adnan Sharif @ Forward Feb 18th 2011 by Adnan Sharif Mossmoss at As You Like It 06-26-2010 by mossmoss Rich Korach Live @ Forward 2-18-11 by Rich Korach Is This Thing On? by Kevin Knapp
Fact Mix 227 | oOoOO
The elusive oOoOO, whose trademarked witch house sound has found tremendous favor in the last year and a half, steps out just a little further from behind the curtain to provide a mix for Fact Magazine. As expected, the playlist reads like the weekly picks from San Francisco’s own Aquarius Records (he is from the City, after all), swinging widely from the lilting Finnish-language neu-folk Islaja’s “Uni pöllönä olemisesta” to the juke-paced slow jam of DJ Roc’s “I Can’t Control the Feeling” and back again to Cat Power’s heart-wrenching “Evolution”. Makes me fondly remember my days in the heart of the Mission District.
Edit: By the way, the whole middle of this mix is made of bubble gum, so don’t hesitate to page forward to the better selections.
The Santa Cruz Surprise: Svengali
Svengali Mix No. 1 by SVENG∆LI
Last night, I met these two guys who were trying to get into the 2562 show, but were too young. They were talking shop with my friends and pretty clearly knew what was up, so I pressed them to learn more about what kind of music they make. Turns out the pair, Peter Luber and Taylor Roy, aka Svengali, are blithely unaware of just how soundly their productions put quite a few local techno producers to shame. This mix alone rains 303 harder than I’ve heard in days. Guys, if you’re reading this, send your tracks in to Dubplates and Mastering as soon as possible. You’re about to break some hearts.
2562 Tonight in Santa Cruz, CA
My friends and extended musical family never seem to fail in impressing me. Tonight, because one of the brightest crayons in the box took a chance on a rare opportunity, I get to see one of my greatest musical heroes and influences of the past few years, 2562, in one of the most intimate settings ever. To say I’m grateful would be a gross understatement; things like this don’t happen without raw talent at your side.
If you’re in Santa Cruz (or interested in driving down/up) and want further info about this event, go here. Meanwhile, see you on the dancefloor tonight!
