We're proud to unveil a collaboration with the influential online hub Random Access Radio in the form of our first mix for their eclectic musical community.
We took the opportunity to make a label showcase of sorts that covers the various spectrums of electronic music and in doing so spans the history of the label from the early days through to our most current releases. We're also excited to be able to reveal a few as yet unreleased tracks that will be released on Bricolage over the summer and autumn. You can get a pre-release listen to 'Limestone Phosphenes' from the the upcoming Supply Fi EP (30/4/18) alongside an acidic weapon from Arran Trax and a slice of hard hitting techno from Boom Merchant that drops as part of our first vinyl release later this year. Full tracklisting is at the bottom of the page or find more info at the RAR website.
Massive love and thanks go to all the crew at Random Access Radio for the opportunity to spread our sounds on their platform.
TRACKLISTING
1. Colab - Small Cuts (bc027)
2. Kure - Moon Acid (bc001)
3. Alpha Skies - Evergreen Morning (bc011)
4. Supply Fi - Limestone Phosphenes (unreleased)
5. Subsequent - Smallbatch (bc001)
6. Fragile X - Amygdala {Lo-Jacker remix} (Special New Year 2016 release)
7. Black Lupus - Fractal Particles (bc027)
8. Devras Plexi - Recovery (bc034)
9. Leit Motif and Jaffa Kid - Eehran (bc029)
10. Ix Prospectum - Telescope (bc024)
11. Sunn Boo - Ladyland Pt. 2 (bc001)
12. Boom Merchant - Steam Roller (unreleased)
13. Arran Trax - Morgenlicht (unreleased)
14. Belial Pelegrim and Dark Fidelity HiFi - Numbers In The Mirror (bc029)
In The Loop casts an eye and an ear on the latest sounds from some of our roster. This particular post focuses on the sounds of Dark Fidelity HiFi, Subsequent, Oco, SlowDeepBreath and Kure.
We start by checking in on Dutch producer, Subsequent.The experienced head is all set to take the helm for his second Bricolage podcast next month. Check out his November 2015 podcast on our mixcloud. His most recent upload to Soundcloud is a blast from the past. The track "Chilled Moods" was released on Berlin label "nonine recordings" back in 2008. Exquisite guitars , trip hop beats and blissful vocals ensure the track does exactly what it says on the tin.
Rick Jones aka Dark Fidelity HiFi is a busy man. Always on the go creatively, making his own tunes as well as remixing others. One of his most recent reworks was of the Belial Pelegrim track "Starless". The original is a stellar piece of off kilter electronica and key work. DFHF adds his own spin with a more glitch style base whilst adding even more spruce to the already melodic track with some class pads. Listen to both tracks below.
SlowDeepBreath is known for his breathtaking soundscapes and his latest offering "The Little Satellite" more than hits that mark. The ability to make the perfect ambient, chill out zone is harder than a lot of people think but SDB makes it seem effortless. Calming drones and expressive synths combine to create the perfect piece of space ambience.
Danish ambient enthusiast, Kure, is carefully sculpting away at crafting his own unique sound and "Echo Park" is just one of many playful, melodic numbers that the young producer has been generating recently.
'Oco' just recently released his "Warmth" EP on fellow Glasgow stable he Umbrella Collective. It's three tracks of downtempo electronica with Oco's knack for songwriting shining through and providing a beautiful surface for guest vocals from some of his friends. For us, "Let Me Talk" is the stand out track with it's deep sounds, manipulated vocals and unique rhythm. Check out the EP below and grab a download.
Danish artist Kure, who released on our debut compilation last summer, today released two beautiful pieces of work on Soundcloud in dedication to the liberation of his homeland.
Have a read and a listen below....
"On this day, May 5th, in 1945, Denmark was officially liberated from the Nazi occupation by Allied forces after 5 years of hardship and torture. Today we also mourn and remember those who fought and resisted valiantly against the German Occupation, as well as those who paid the price for our freedom and honor with their lives - those are the true heroes. To commemorate this, I decided to release two tracks to celebrate our Liberation Day and to honor and remember the brave Danes who gave their lives fighting for freedom.
The first track Danmark is my way of celebrating Liberation Day. It features samples from the actual radio message, Frihedsbudskabet (Liberation message), that was broadcasted in the evening on May 4th, announcing the liberation of Denmark, as well, as other countries. It's recorded in mono and features heavily saturation in order to follow the same style as the radio message.
The second track, Mindelunden, named after a memorial park, is a tribute to the members Danish Resistance Movement who were executed on the spot of what is now a memorial park. More than 200 resistance fighters were executed on these grounds during the occupation. The track consists of nothing else, but pure synth. It is to represent the voices of those gone, but not forgotten.
Drenge I drenge som døde
I tændte for Danmark
i dybeste mulm
en lysende morgenrøde
Last week we posted about our friend and label supporter Mark Shields reaching 100 episodes of his Monday Graveyard radio show/podcast. A real milestone and a gem of a show to go with it. Episode 101 of the Monday Graveyard is also a very special episode as far as Bricolage is concerned. Mark very kindly gave us the opportunity to have a full hour to ourselves....
We're proud to be able to present a mix made up exclusively of music from our members. It's an hour that consists of just some of the unique music that we've released in our first 6 months. It manages to encapsulate what the label and collective is all about. A diverse selection spanning the electronic genres. The hour long show was curated and mixed by, label head, Fragile X and features some of his own music alongside Subsequent, Kure, Intl. Debris, Hiramatsu Toshiyuki, Slow Deep Breath, get-effect, The Next Commuter, Roy Or Bison?, Oscurito and H.ICH. There's ambient, vaporwave, some dub, shoegazed tinged electronics, glitch, drones, darkness, guitars and, of course, what better way to round it off then some techno.
Thanks go to Mark for allowing us the chance to showcase some of our sounds on his show. Be sure to check out his blog and the shows Twitter account for more info on future shows and his general online escapades. Stream the mix in full below or at The Monday Graveyard mixcloud.
Tracklisting in full is as follows:
Subsequent - Smallbatch
Kure - Moon Acid
Intl. Debris - Thursday Morning, Taylor Swift Part 1
Hiramatsu Toshiyuki - Mountain Call
Slow Deep Breath - The Crow Pheasant
get-effect - No One Leaves Here Empty Handed
Fragile X - Amygdala (Lo-Jacker remix)
The Next Commuter - A Dozen Paces
Roy Or Bison? - Night Vision
Oscurito - Octopus
H.ICH - Ladyland Part II (Mental Mix)
Alan Watts
Fragile X - Theory Of Colour
And don't forget, you can download the majority of the music featured in this mix from the Bricolage bandcamp site free of charge.
Stay tuned next weekend for a special blog post that details the beginnings of Bricolage.
Our first "In The Loop" episode of 2016 is a bumper edition with lots to catch up on from the tail end of 2015 and the start of 2016.
First up is a fresh track from International Debris."Glass Tower" is a cut from the upcoming album 'Curtain Moon'. It's a mixture of hard vaporwave and modern garage style drums. You can grab a free download of it on Soundcloud.
A fortnight or so ago, there was also "A Song" uploaded by Ross. Literally, a song. It's a 20 year old mash up type effort (circa 1996) that has a strange and certain appeal to it. Listen below.
Next up is Fragile X, to round off 2015, the Bricolage founder wrote and recorded a song inspired by synesthesia called "Theory of Colour". It's an experimental techno/electronic affair that was created in the space of one late December afternoon. Chunky rhythms, a huge melodic breakdown and Alan Watts samples are at the forefront.
On the subject of Fragile X.....any followers of his mixcloud account may well be aware of his long running Cult Zer0es mix series. The last 3 or 4 sessions have saw guest mixes from some of his musical friends and Volume 17 is no different. He's recruited fellow Bricolage label mate Lo-Jacker to provide a follow up of sorts to his inaugural Bricolage podcast from September 2015. It's another hour full of choice electronic cuts put together in the fun style of Lo-Jackers mixing techniques.
January saw Kure make a very important announcement or two....
"One Very Important Announcement" and "Dreamliner" are quality returns to SC for the Danish experimentalist. They offer a sneak preview into his vision of a "new Jet Age". Stay tuned for more.
Towards the end of last year, Glass Mammoth uploaded a few new tracks. One of the stand outs from them was the tribal chillout of "Zen". With it's rolling percussion and blissed out melodies providing a melancholic meditative landscape to get lost in.
As mentioned before on this blog, jazzdefector is a constant source of musical output and 2016 has started no differently for him. No less than 5 new instrumentals have made their way on to his Soundcloud this past month. My personal favourites are the the ambient canvas of "3 +hree" and the beautifully constructed "Einsteins Blackboard" which was inspired by a visit to the Museum of the History of Science.
Merrimans Ghost is another artist who has some seriously regular musical output. One of his latest offerings was the intriguing "Delirium Tremens". Full of wistful arpeggios and soft delay. It's a late night track to drift off with.
Last but not least, last months Headroom mix from "Roy Or Bison?" is now available for free download to take on the go with you. You may remember our blog post from last month where we outlined our new download host website for all our mixes, hearthis.at. Our mixes are still exclusively uploaded to Mixcloud but will appear on there (hearthis.at) for free download. Our full catalogue is available on there now and Headroom 02 is the latest addition. It's a head melting, genre mashing 2 hour trip that's bound to stretch your skulls a little....
The second part of our virtual advent calendar that's currently running on a daily basis at 10am over on our Facebook page.
December 6th
Maurielle - Vostok (H.ICH remix)
Kolkoz Records is a new techno and acid net label from France. Here, Bricolage member H.ICH, takes label founder Maurielle's track "Vostok" and gives it the remix treatment.
A glorious cover of the title track from the classic Brian Eno album "Taking Tiger Mountain" courtesy of one of the many pseudonyms of Microvolt, Teslacoil321.
A new upload from Kure in the form of "Nature On Acid". Spacey textures and trippy sounds in a musical tribute to natures famous psilocybe semilanceata....
"Serenity Creek" is a new chirpy, upbeat number from Glass Mammoth. His own take on making a computer game soundtrack type track. Wonderfully melodic wee number.
The second episode of "In The Loop" shines the spotlight on Microvolt, Kure, Merrimans Ghost, Slow Deep Breath and International Debris.
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Microvolt hadn't posted any new tracks on soundcloud for a couple of months but its fair to say it was worth the wait. Last week he posted a new track called "Love Echo Fade" and it's everything I've come to know, and love, about his work embodied into one track. Experimental glitchy sounds filtering through, while haunting notes tinkle away in the background. Tracks like this are the reason I was eager to have him on board the collective.
Paul Randall, the man behind Microvolt, also runs his weekly show Bluetown Electronica on Sheppey FM radio. The latest episode is 3 hours of solid electronic goodness.
At the end of August, Kure posted his longest track to date on his soundcloud page. Until recently his longest released track was two and a half minutes. "Universe Apollo" clocks in at almost 4 minutes and has all the Kure trademarks. Warm synths, nostalgic, psychedelic atmospherics and NASA samples. The track was dedicated to Andreas Mogensen, who became the first Dane to fly in space on the 2nd September this year.
SlowDeepBreath is potentially the most well traveled member of the collective. Constantly on the go, travelling the world, utilizing field recordings and creating binaural beats wherever he goes. If you're new to the work of SlowDeepBreath then check out his full collection of meditation music over at his etsy page.
As I mentioned before, he travels regularly, here's a recent capture of a beautiful sunrise in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Anyone who has heard our debut compilation will be familiar with his track "The Crow Pheasant". Below is a visual accompaniment for the track. Gloopy, abstract colours on the screen fit unbelievably well with the natural sounds of the music.
Merrimans Ghost is an artist who has been very productive over the last wee while. The last 8 days has saw him upload 3 new tracks to his soundcloud page. "Austerity Austerity", "Bells" and "Must Be You". Each one with its own individual characteristics and charms.
"Must Be You" is a dark soundscape with a broken beat bobbing along nicely beside it.
"Bells" is in a similar vein but with a less frequent beat which in turn creates a more spacious sounding track.
And finally "Austerity Austerity" is the the most frenetic of the trio of new songs. Experimental guitars give way to ricocheting drum patterns before a crescendo of sound kicks in and fades out to bring an end to the track.
Behind "International Debris" is Ross Baker. Releasing quality music in vast quantities under many names but also sometimes just under the straight forward, no frills, Ross Baker. A few days ago a CDr of Ross' album "East of Evening" was reissued on Assembly Field. You can grab a very limited edition copy of it at the Assembly Field bandcamp.
Have a listen below and get lost in the sounds that were inspired by still summer evenings.
So, as mentioned in the previous post, my friend Emma came up with the idea of drawing her own visual interpretations of all the tracks that made up our first release.
Armed with a notepad and pastels her task was to quickly sketch down the vibe she got from each track in the allocated time slot, which was each individual track length, sometimes played twice in the case of the shorter tracks. It's worth noting that Emma knew absolutely nothing about any of the tracks or artists, had never heard even one second of any given track and just subsequently went with the flow. The results vary from colourfully abstract to sometimes almost childlike efforts to near blank pages with splashes of colours sporadically placed. Below I'll post the first 8 songs along with their corresponding drawings. Click the images for a bigger viewing.
Yesterday saw the release of our first compilation. Various Artists Volume 1. Major thanks go out to all the artists who contributed for making this release happen so quickly.
Volume 1 more than represents what the collective is all about. It's full to the brim with a wealth of music from the world over. Sounds from Japan, Denmark, Scotland, England, Ireland, Spain, Germany, Holland, France and Sweden are all on show here. There's no bias against genre. Just a collection of quality and eclectic music for your listening pleasure.
The compilation covers a diverse range of ambient, glitch, techno, house, drone and experimental sounds. Hopefully there's something for everybody among the 16 tracks. As will always be the case, the compilation is a free to stream and download from the Bricolage bandcamp page.
With the first compilation all set for release a week today, on the 31st of August, it's now time to start telling you a little bit about our artists. We'll introduce them in no particular order.....
1. MUTE BRANCHES
Mute Branches is the work of Lichfield based James Cresswell. Channeling vibes of vintage BoC and adding his own unique twist to make music that brims with nostalgic feeling.
In his own words..."West-Midlands, UK-based lo-fi / experimental project, established at some point in the '00s when a bored teenager discovered the wonders of messing about with sounds on a computer and basically kept messing about with sounds into his twenties, getting gradually better at it.
Sunn Boo is a young, and hugely promising, producer from Toulouse in the south of France. With a keen ear and ability for rhythm and melody and the beats to back it up. He produces house and techno and describes his techno side as "mental" and his house side as melancholy :) He also plays in a band called Nord Church that make experimental blues and ambient music. "Bricolage" isn't the only collective he's a part of either. He's also a member of the France based Collectif Sympa. https://soundcloud.com/sunnboo
Kure is a Danish electronic musician with a notion for making short abstract and psychedelic ambient gems that fit perfectly with what Bricolage is all about.
In his own words...."Kure is a newly hatched experiment. Kure is a parallel universe where nothing and everything exists and is without objective purpose. The endeavour and purpose with Kure is to open up and adapt a whole new dimension of the human mind using warm, experimental and nostalgic synth tunes and visiting themes like space exploration towards the unknown, psychedelia and the golden age of the 60's - 80's. All these things combined and mixed with Nordic flavour will, through a new world, uncover the unknown of our existence and its meaning - all in good time." https://soundcloud.com/hexagonkure
