Tek-One

Tek-One are a London duo who make a more intelligent brand of in your face dubstep, and one of the few acts who make 'wobble' dubstep that I actually enjoy. The create their sounds out of "anything with AA batteries and a low bit-rate that was built in Taiwan and designed to amuse a young child for 30 seconds". These items include circuit bent children's toys, broken keyboards and short-circuited toy amps. Tek-One acts both as a live show with a full acoustic kit, and also a singular DJ when required at clubs for DJ sets. Their live shows look incredible, with so much energy and heavy sounds as you can in this video by clicking here.

The duo are signed to the Hench label, and only have a couple of releases to their names as of yet. They have released two remixes, Way Out West's 'The Gift' and Bring Me The Horizon's 'Sleep With One Eye Open', as well as their first single 'Broken String'. These releases established their bass heavy brand of dubstep, and the sounds of the equipment used make these tracks instantly recognisable as new and innovative.

On their myspace page, there are also a few unreleased tracks which the duo have produced. The tracks 'Hate You feat. Ruth Cullen', 'Bug' and 'WTF?' all continue this very mainstream wobble sound, but there are a couple of really interesting tracks which suggest their is more intelligence to the duo's work than just bass heavy sounds designed to get the majority of a drunken club moving.

My favourite of their tracks, 'So Good' and in particular 'Wax Poetic', suggest the duo are maybe also attached to the post-dubstep movement, following similar sounds to those created by Joy Orbison, Martyn and 2562. 'Wax Poetic's' wonderfully laid back beat, combined with beautifully place piano chords and soulful looped female vocals make for a great IDM track, work I think they should spend more time on. I'm hoping they'll make more tracks like these, and not just give in to sticking with the heavy sounds that the many dubstep tag-along's only know and therefore want to hear. You can listen to the tracks at http://www.myspace.com/tekoneuk.

As I mentioned earlier, there live sets are full of energy, their tracks as well as their selections know how to get a crowd going. Below is Tek-One's 'Yellow Cake Mix' which is a great example of what you'll get if you see them live. You can download this mix now at http://www.mediafire.com/?1mjnmmvqzmd. On the 30th September I will be lucky enough to see the guys playing the Lemon Grove in Exeter, something I'm really looking forward to. Check their myspace to see when they're playing in an area near you, I can assure you they have plenty of live dates planned all around the country over the summer.

'Yellow Cake Mix' Tracklist:

1. Tek-One - Hate You
2. Drumsound & Bassline Smith - R U Ready (Dubstep Remix)
3. Misanthrop - Shadow
4. Jakes & Joker - 3K Lane 1999
5. Tek-One - WTF
6. Sirens, Sirens - The Veil (Tek-One Remix)
7. Bar 9 - The Beginning
8. Tek-One & A1 Bassline - Untitled
9. Dire Straits - Money For Nothing (Giant dubstep remix)
10. Plan B - She Said (16bit Remix)
11. PropaTingz - Windscreen Snipa (Lock n Load Remix)
12. The One Hundred - Bring Me Down (Tek-One Laid Back Remix)
13. Bring Me The Horizon - Sleep With One Eye Open (Tek-One Remix)
14. Noisia - Machine Gun (16bit Remix)
15. M.J. Cole - Sincere (Nero Remix)
16. A1 Bassline - The Lane Simple
17. Tek-One - Crazy Mosch
18. Ludacris - How Low (Caspa Remix)
19. Tek-One - Broken String
20. 12th Planet & Juakali - Reasons (Doctor P Remix)
21. Kavsrave & A1 Bassline - Luckier Charms (VIP)
22. Compound One - Perhaps The Darkness
23. Fugative - Supafly (Tek-One Remix)
24. Triage - Non-Fiction
25. Way Out West - The Gift (Tek-One Remix)
26. Instra:mental - Watchin You
27. dBridge - Lost Shadow
28. Breakage - Foundation
29. Equinox - Acid Rain (Breakage Final Chapter VIP)
30. Wu Tang Clan - C.R.E.A.M.

Nike World Cup Dunk AC High's

Nike have followed the same vein set by their Blazer High World Cup collection by producing a trio of Nike Dunk AC High's which also celebrate this year's World Cup Finals. As with the Blazer High World Cup collection, Nike collaborate with the well known graphic artists Kronk, So Me and Delta in order to re-design the classic Nike Dunk basketball trainer, with each trainer design relating to the nation of the respective artist.

I have always been a fan of Nike's Dunk high trainer, one of their most celebrated and recognisable models. In the past few years there have been some poor designs that have attempted to recreate the success of the 'Stay True To Your School' days. However, this latest release is much more successful than those that have gone before it, with the simple design and cool colourways staying true to the roots of the Dunk High. It's a bit strange seeing a basketball trainer re-designed for the football World Cup, but it's something which works really well, especially in the Netherlands design by Delta, which my favourite of the collection with its wonderful colour way.

These trainers have been released in limited numbers, and the only places I think you'll be able to find them are in independent specialist trainer stores and also a select few of Nike's flagship stores, with Nike Town in London (236 Oxford Street, London, W1C 1DE) probably being your best bet if you live in an area close London.

Nike World Cup Dunk AC High Collection:

South Africa (Kronk)

Netherlands (Delta)

France (So Me)

Bass Odyssey - Summer Mix

Bass Odyssey, 19 year old Toby Neilson, is an up and coming DJ from Maidstone. He currently studies Film at the University of Exeter, where he regularly DJ's in the city's finest clubs for more alternative and experimental music. Neilson regularly plays the well known Beats and Bass nights at Cavern on a Wednesday as well as Lofi-Hifi nights. He also appears at Mosaic's 'Dirty Beat' night on a Thursday, where you can catch him playing tonight, make sure you're there.

Whenever I have seen him play I have always been impressed, providing something different and more unique to what you would normally expect to hear in clubs. His sets comprise mostly of nu-disco and filter house, genre's which I don't know to much about, but which Neilson more than excels in. To get a taste of what Neilson's sets sound like, I would highly recommend downloading his new 'Summer Mix', which displays his penchant for nu-disco, filter house and electro house. The mix is really well put together, smoothly progressing through a number of different genres, and Neilson's track selection is brilliant, with gems from the nu-disco area in the form of Treasure Fingers and a Ghosts Of Venice remix. You can download the mix now on Neilson's soundcloud page at http://soundcloud.com/bass-odyssey/post-exams-summer-mix. The tracklist can be seen below.

'Summer Mix' Tracklist:

1.) Spiller: Groovejet (Ghosts of Venice remix)
2.) MyKill: Flashback
3.) Treasure Fingers: What Am I Supposed to do?
4.) Grum : Can't Shake This Feeling (Ghosts of Venice remix)
5.) Rod Stewart: Do ya Think I'm Sexy (Mightyfools remix)
6.) Momma's Boy : At Night
7.) Chaos In the CBD : Bong Song
8.) Ludachrist : Pon De Foley
9.) DJ Bam Bam : Club go!
10.) Sandro Silva and Anjiro Rijo : Fifty What (Dem Slackers remix)
11.) Kill The Noise : Roots
12.) DJ Bam Bam : Let Me Tell You
13.) Wynter Gordon : Dirty Talk (Laidback Luke remix)
14.) Hervé : Zombies
15.) Proxy : 8000 (Sticky K remix)
16.) Kids At The Bar : So We Can Party

A few months back Neilson also compiled the 'Frosty Winter Mix', which again is brilliantly put together, displaying his mixing talents and great track selection once again. You can also download this mix from his soundcloud page at http://soundcloud.com/bass-odyssey/frosty-winter-mix.

I will be keeping you informed on new mixes/tracks Neilson produces in the near future, and if you're in Exeter, look out for him playing in Cavern and Mosaic over the next year or so. If your done with all your exams make sure you catch his set at Mosaic tonight, its going to be a big night. Also, Neilson knows what he's talking about when it comes to film. He's talented at critically writing about film, something which is evident in his blog http://neilsonodyssey.blogspot.com/, which I would recommend to anyone who has an interest in the latest film releases.

Doldrums Presents - Updated Lineup

I was delighted today to discover that the brilliant Floating Points (aka Sam Sheperd) had been added to the Doldrums label launch night, alongside Josey Rebelle and The BPM. I know very little about the later two, with Josey Rebelle being one of London's most highly rated female DJ's, and The BPM an experimental electro-soul artist who is signed to Brownswood records and has received a lot of support from soul/funk/electro/hip-hop specialist DJ Giles Peterson.

A man who I know a little bit about though, and who has made this event even more worthy of attending is the fantastic Floating Points. His mix of electro-dubstep with soul and funk is delightful to listen to, as is evident on the track 'Love Me Like This' where a slow dub beat is accompanied by wonderfully melodic soulful vocals crying 'Love me like this'. His latest releases have been just as impressive, with the 'People's Potential' and 'Shark Chase' singles furthering his simultaneously soulful and electro vibe. This is however best represented by his recent mix 'My Plastic People' which I have written on in the past.

If you are yet to hear the 'My Plastic People' mix I would throughly recommend it. Shepherd manages to effortlessly mix old 70's soul and funk tracks progressively with modern day electro, which takes influence from this throw back era as shown in the inclusion of his own track 'Shark Chase' towards the end of the mix. I have a feeling we could be hearing something similar to this mix on the night, maybe slightly more electro based but however staying true to his roots of soul, jazz and funk. You can stream the mix here, or download it on itunes by subscribing to the XLR8R podcast series.

'My Plastic People' Tracklist:

01 Flora Purim "Encounters" (Milestone)

02 Deniece Williams "Slip Away" (Columbia)

03 Esther Philips "Home Is Where the Hatred Is" (KUDU)

04 Windy City "(So You Think) Somethin's Missin'" (Chi Sound)

05 James Brown "Mind Power" (Polydor)

06 Gil Scott-Heron "Lady Day and John Coltrane" (Flying Dutchman)

07 Brian Auger & Oblivion Express "Whenever You're Ready" (RCA)

08 Willie Bobo "Sixty-Two Fifty" (Columbia)

09 Chick Corea & Return to Forever "Captain Marvel" (Polydor)

10 Kuniyuki "Precious Hall (Dub)" (Natural Resource)

11 Larry Heard "Missing You" (Track Mode)

12 Herbert "Suddenly" (Studio !K7)

13 Darkstar "Aidy's Girl Is a Computer (Kyle Hall Oats B So Deep Remix)" (Hyperdub)

14 Floating Points "Shark Chase" (Eglo)

15 Pharoah Sanders "Greeting To Saud (Brother McCoy Tyner)" (Impulse)

Urban Outfitters - New Graphic Tee Releases

Urban Outfitters have made their latest releases of new t-shirts. These are by no means their best releases, but there are some nice items within the line, particularly coming from brands such as Altru, Homage, RVLT and Stussy. You can view my highlights of the Urban Outfitters collection in the pictures below, and you can visit www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk/ to either view more items or to actually purchase them.

Altru have once again provided the goods with their super-soft slim fitting t-shirt accompanied by cool graphics. Both the Space Invaders and Napoleon Skywalker tees are really well designed, with the graphics being especially well designed for the t-shirts. I was surprised at the quality of Homage's designs in this collection. The US vintage t-shirt designer, whose products turn back to the old school and pay homage to eclectic moments and individual great from the worlds of music, film, sport, politics and popular culture, take a similar approach to Altru in designing light-weight t-shirts which are made for a slim-fit featuring a well designed graphic.

My favourite t-shirts of this collection come from RVLT. RVLT is a Danish streetwear label which specialises in producing first class graphic t-shirts as well as flannel shirts. RVLT's designs are unique, with a strong slim-fit and shorter sleeved look, accompanied by one off abstract/colourful designs to act as the defining feature of the tee. A couple of Stussy's deigns also round off the collection. The US label is currently celebrating its 30th anniversary, something I will be writing on shortly, and the two t-shirts I have selected here take their classic graphic tee fitted shirt and add graphics and writing which commemorates this celebration.

Urban Outfitters Graphic Tee Releases:

Altru

Homage

RVLT

Stussy

James Blake 'CMYK' EP

21 year old James Blake forthcoming release is going to be one of the highlights of the dubstep world in 2010. His 'CMYK' EP, due for release of the Belgian techno label R&S records on the 31st May, is one without doubt one of, if not my favourite release so far in 2010. The tracks on this EP follow on from his earlier works in style, especially in relation to 'Air & Lack Thereof'/'Sparing The Horses', with distorted vocals and an overall sound that is simultaneously relaxing yet at times heavy with deep bass and poignant chords layered on the tracks.

'CMYK' Tracklist:

01 - CMYK
02 - Footnotes
03 - I'll Stay
04 - Postpone

The EP is more directed to the dancefloor than his previous release 'The Bells Sketch' EP, but it is also equally to everyday listening, production you should just sit down an really admire. The EP is full of Blake's trademark soulful tones and samples, with beautifully worked and emotive chords layered on each track, and also the use of soul/R&B samples with Aaliyah's 'Are You That Somebody?' and Kelis' 'Caught Out There' featuring on tracks on the EP. As well as these distorted samples, Blake's very own Blake is used in tracks again to accompany these, something which can be seen as a correlation between all his releases. You can listen to some of the tracks of the EP at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQoQirZwxE4, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrIT532vMlM&feature=related.

Blake really is one of the most innovative artists working within the electronic/dubstep genre's at present, and he can be considered the antithesis of dubstep's bass wobble stereotype, with his more intelligent and well worked brand of music. Last Tuesday he went on Giles Peterson's Radio 1 show for a quick interview, and discussed the new EP, as well as a follow up release on the R&S label and also the workings of an LP release which sounds really promising. You can listen to the interview at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00scy17, and you can find out more about Blake at http://www.myspace.com/jamesblakeproduction.

Young Lovers

'Young Lovers' is an emerging street fashion label from the US, which specialises in producing limited edition t-shirts. The t-shirts are unisex and designed for a good slim-fit, with light materials also used in order to give it a relaxed and laid-back look/feel. Each t-shirt features an individual graphic, and these are released in very limited numbers, especially difficult to find in the UK.

My favourite t-shirts by the label's Autumn/Winter 2009 line and Spring/Summer 2010 lines can be seen in the pictures below. I do not know of any shops in the UK which stock the label yet, but I will inform you if I discover any. You can browse/purchase these t-shirts on the label's website at http://www.youngloverslabel.com/, as well as view a few other designs that have been produced over the last few months.

Young Lovers Collection: