Birth School Work Death 2006 - 2008 (RIP)

So the end has finally come, and this time it's for good!*! There will be no restart to the posts in a couple of months like I did last time I announced my retirement from this blog!*! The reasons for this decision are numerous and really too boring to get into, alas this time its not for any moral feelings that I may have with posting copyright material, rather those snidy twats that write viruses etc, have for the 2nd time in a month laid waste to my PC, and whilst it's simple (although increadibly time consuming) enough to remedy, I've lost pretty much all faith in the internet, along with the bulk of my music files that were on the PC at the time!*! It's a shame that its come to this but I'm fed up, not with blogging, but with all the bullshit that comes with the internet; the constant pop-ups and adverts for shit you'll never need or buy, or free spyguard applications and all of that fucking nonsense!*! Whilst I appreciate that there are measures you can put in place to protect yourself whilst on the interweb, and I had all that in place, these events still happen and with an ever increasing rate it would seem, so time to step aside!*!

So, it's been fun, I've really enjoyed this blog while it lasted and I hope you've found something to tantalise your earbuds, but for now goodbye one and all!*!

Oh, and don't forget to check the links on the right!**!

Peace

Scott (Ballpoint Pen Thief)

Life In The Concrete Jungle

I'm back after an extended festive break!*! I thought I'd refrain from posting for a week or 2 to let everything settle down. There does seem to be a tendancy amongst bloggers, myself included, to post as often as humanly possible. Lately though, I've been feeling that the music getting posted isn't having the time spent on it that it deserves before people have already moved onto the next new release. Whilst I'll freely admit to adding to this in the past, I'm about to slow things down a little around here. Don't panic though, BSWD is going nowhere for the foreseeable future, just a few less posts that's all, but I'll see how things go, as i'm sure I'll be back to posting everyday before long, and ignoring all my good intensions!*!

Anyway, enough of all that talky stuff!*!

2008's is only 7 days old and already I've had 3 top-drawer releases deposited through my mail box by Mr. Postman, so we're already off to a flying start.

First recommendation to put your way would have to be the new Partial Arts release on Kompakt, resplendant with another mammoth 12-minute heavy-duty Radio Slave mix on the flip, although seriously unusual for me, but I do prefer the original version this time round. Grab a copy here.

Secondly, the new Alexander Robotnik release 'A Coffee Shop In Rotterdam' on Endless Flight is more than worthy of your attention, especially the M.A.N.D.Y 'Terrace Remix' on the flip. The guys over at Random Circuits have it posted at present, so pop on over there and then grab yourself a shiny copy all of your own here or here.

And lastly, but by no means leastly, is the new Skat release on French label Karat. It's a tidy 4 tracker full of freaky, twisted beats and odd echoey vocals relaying some of the fear and paranoia of those lonely dark city streets during the wee small hours of the night!*! Perfect 2am dancefloor-freak material. Flip on over however, and Kenny Hawkes and David Parr drop a lighter, rainforest back-dropped take on previous Skat single 'Nightlife'. Big horn sections, 'French Kiss' styled old skool keys and a laid back groove are the order of the day, and fresh from their 'Gemini' release on Rekids last year, I'm expecting big things from the duo this year with Kenny Hawkes dropping a solo long-player on the afore-mentioned Rekids before too long!*! Grab a shiny black 12" copy here or here, or from whoever supplies your fixes of the black stuff!*!

Skat - 'Nightlife (Kenny Hawkes & David Parr Remix)' (Karat Records)

As always, all these releases are available from digital download stores like Beatport or Kompakt so go fill ya' 320-bit boots there!*!

Wishing You A Hardcore Xmas Pt. 2

I was hunting around in the archives for something festive to post, and you know what, most festive tracks are bloody awful, so I'd almost given up all hope of finding something suitable when I came across the track I'm going to post today!*! It's one of those that I can't for the life of me remember where I got it from or even who it's by, but hopefully one of you more switched-on readers will hopefully be able to clear this up. Rather than being a full-on festive cheese-fest, it samples a xmas staple from Wham. I've always considered myself a bit of an expert when it comes to pop music, but I have to admit failure on this count, because it only samples part of said Wham track, but I think it's from 'Careless Whisper', however I will stand corrected if I'm proved wrong!*! Now before you think that I've completely lost my mind, bear with me here; the sample is welded to an almighty jungle riddim that's straight outta the Shitmat or Amen Andrews school of wreckin' it proper, and is completely mental!*! A perfect fit as we now enter the silly season, where most of us go a little crazy for a week or two!*! So turn it up loud, and imagine you have big Farah hair and cable-knight jumpers, chaleting on the side of a mountain somewhere in Aspen surrounded by Pepsi & Shirley, all the while lamenting about a lost love to the soundtrack of the hardest breaks this sound of sanity!*!

All that remains to be said is however you celebrate xmas, have an enjoyable time, and from all at BSWD Towers (i.e. me!*!) stay safe and I'll see you on the other side!*! 08 here we come!*!

Unknown - 'Never Dance Again' (Unknown)

Wishing You A Hardcore Xmas Pt. 1

I started my other blog; Cellar Dweller, so that I had somewhere to concentrate on my love of early 90s rave music, but whilst ripping a load of old 12"s I came across a track so huge that posting it on just one blog wouldn't suffice, so I'm posting it over both for one time only!*!

It's also quite apt in that the track in question is by a guy who went, and still does to this day, by the moniker Justice, and seeing how 2007 has been the year of the crunchy synths and pounding beats of Justice, it seemed the perfect way to end the year. No, not those Parisians, rather this guy preceeded the Justice we all know and love now by about 10 years or so!*! But they both share a perceived common goal and that is to get you to go absolutely bat-shit!*! If you don't believe me check the drop at the 1:20 mark, and try not reaching for those lasers (so to speak)!*!

Not much else to say really, just play this really loud and enjoy!*!

Justice - 'Soothe My Soul' (RBR Records)

My In-Box Weights A Ton Pt. 3

There's been a steady trickle of material through my in-box for sometime now, but I've got sidetracked recently, so time to catch up with some of it!*!

First up, I got an email from a New York based producer who goes by the moniker, A-ux, with a link to his Myspace page. He's got some tasty downtempo treats for you to download to give you a break from the noisier output that 2007 seems to have been all about!*! After checking out his wares, there's an album up for sale on Itunes here, which is gorgeous by the way, and if your in and around the Big Apple tomorrow (22nd) then you can check the man live at the Elegantly Wasted party, details are on his Myspace page here. As a wee taster here's A-ux's refix of The Chemical Brothers' hit 'Galvanize'. I always found the original to be a little too Big Beat for my taste, so this was a welcome reminder of just how good it could have been. Starting with some block-party beats, the track is then transformed into a laid-back, off-kilter affair, that could have easily sat on Mo' Wax back in the day. Fear not however, this is no a retro fantasy, just a completely different take on something that could ahve been oh so good. If I have one slight criticism then it's that the track is nowhere near long enough!*! Excellent all the same though!*!

The Chemical Bothers - 'Galvanize (A-ux Remix)'

Next, for your delication the lovely folk over at Gomma, sent me a taster of their just released, digital-only compilation; 'Gomma Galactic No. 2'. With tracks from Danielle Baldelli, Drrtyhaze, Rodion, Tomboy and a superb cover of Ricardo Villalobos' 'Easy Lee' by Danish tikes Whomadewho, this is one compilation that should be all over your xmas list to Santa, alas no vinyl version at the present time. You can grab the tracks from Itunes here.

As a taster here's Baldelli's track 'Xilodelphia'

Baldelli - 'Xilodelphia' (Gomma)

Lastly for today the folks over at Turbo have teamed up with the Boys Noize crew for a xmas treat. If you haven't already copped a copy of Boys Noize's debut long-player, then you can get a free super-320-bit mp3 of 'I Go Raven' from Beatport by hitting-up this link. You will need a Beatport account though, but it's not like you need to buy anything from there again if you so choose!*! You gotta love xmas, with all these pressies!*!

Ladies & Gents, Please Be Upstanding....It's 2007!*! Pt. 3

So here it is the third and final part of my end of year run-down (of sorts!*!), and 2007 saw the supposed rise of nu-rave!*! I've written here before of my utter hatred of that tag, and several months down the line, that doesn't seem to have wavered!*! I know many do not share my views on this subject, and it's not the music I have a problem with (that shold be evident from my chart below), rather the lazy journalistic effort by one particular weekly music magazine, and their effort to get everyone believing their nonsense!*! I can see lots of paralells with the rave scence of the early 90s (of which I'm an enormous fan of by the way!*!), with cheap equipment making it possible for producers to turn-out club bangers without the need for major studio time, and the internet replacing small independent labels as a means to get you gear heard, or in essence cutting 'The Man' out of the picture entirely. Regardless of your views on Myspace and it's corporate owner, there can surely be no denying that 2007 saw it really prove it's worth, enabling producers to interact directly with their audience, it's also provided a link between producers and bloggers. There's barely a week goes by where my in-box isnt chock-full of new material from folks that have found me through Myspace, some of it's been very good, others less so!*! As to how much impact it will have in the future remains to be seen, but it can't really be a bad thing!*!

For me the over-riding memory of 2007 would have to be the feeling that finally electronic music is flowing freely from all corners of the globe. This has always been the case, but what seems different this time round is the emergence of thriving scenes in some far flung places, gaining reputations through word of mouth and the obvious ease of communicating through the interweb. Portugal, Italy and Australia seem to be the real heavy-hitters this year, but I received material from producers in Canada, Lithuania and Brazil, and long may this continue!*!

As far as who's been on top this year, there can't really be anyone worth mentioning more than Justice. 2007 saw them finally release their debut long-player, which as I wrote about earlier, for me, justified it's hype, although I'd have preferred the whole thing not to have been leaked in its entirety. What struck me most however, was the fact that neither 'D.A.N.C.E', nor 'Phantom' was my favourite, rather the potential 'Godzilla' theme tune of 'Stress' that really showed that the guys from Paris mean business. A full-throttle, moody-string led behemoth of epic proportions that has been on heavy rotation for months here now, and takes pride of place high up in my end of year chart, although the top-spot was reserved for Puzique's 'Don't Go'. A suprise package from the perhaps too often noisy Boys Noize camp, this nod to the French sound of old is just sublime!*!

So without wishing to cut things short here (I could go on all day believe me!*!), 2007 was properly DIY, and with any luck 2008 will follow suit and see loads more new material arrive to get us all dancing round our bedrooms, and those places where folks congregate to drink and be merry!*!

Ok, enough typing, here's my end of year run-down for all those who may be interested:

1 - Puzique - 'Don't Go' (Boys Noize)
2 - Chromeo - 'Fancy Footwork (Guns N Bombs Thizzmix)' (Backyard)
3 - Unklejam - 'What Am I Fighting For? (LA Priest Remix)' (Virgin)
4 - The Human League - 'Things That Dreams Are Made Of (Kissy Sell Out Mix)' (Hooj Choons)
5 - Shit Disco - 'OK (Luna-C Hardcore Breaks Mix)' (Fierce Panda)
6 - Bolt Action Five - 'Tree Friend Tree Foe (Kissy Sell Out Remix)'
7 - Klaxons - 'Gravity's Rainbow (Soulwax Dub Mix)' (White)
8 - Altern 8 - 'Frequency (Hostage Remix)'
9 - Justice - 'Stress' (Ed Banger)
10 - Klaxons - 'As Above So Below (Justice Remix)' (Because)
11 - Kavinsky - 'Wayfarer' (Record Makers)
12 - Midnight Juggernauts - 'Into The Galaxy'
13 - Maximo Park - 'Terminal Velocity (Blamma! Blamma! Remix)'
14 - Stardust - 'Music Sounds Better With You (Miami Horror Mix)'
15 - Air - 'Mer Du Japon (Teenagers Remix)' (Virgin)
16 - Apache Beat - 'Tropics (G.L.O.V.E.S. Remix)'
17 - Armand Van Helden - 'This Aint Hollywood (DJ Froz Remix)'
18 - Bag Raiders - 'Punch Reprise' (Bang Gang)
19 - Deportivo Street Team - 'Devils On Horseback (Digi 7" Mix)' (Five20East)
20 - DJ Inferno - 'Out Of My Head' (Repeat Offender)
21 - Breakbot - 'Summer Party' (Moshi Moshi)
22 - Alan Braxe & Kris Menace - Lumberjack' (Vulture)
23 - Timbaland - 'Miscommunication (The Bloody Beetroots Remix)'
24 - Jean Nipon - 'Raw Deal' (Arcade Mode)
25 - Kissy Sell Out - 'Her (Metal On Metal nstrumental)' (Lavolta)
26 - Midnight Juggernauts - 'Road To Recovery (Miami Horror Remix)'
27 - New Young Pony Club - 'Ice Cream (Herve Goes Bananas Remix)' (Modular)
28 - Operator Please - 'Just A Song About Ping Pong (Kissy Sell Out's White Stallion Remix)' (Brille)
29 - The Outrunners - 'Cool Feeling'
30 - Switches - 'Every Second Counts (Ocelot Remix)'
31 - Trilogyy - 'Apocolypse Rock' (Work It Baby)
32 - Spitzer - 'Avida Dollars'
33 - Justice - 'D.A.N.C.E' (Ed Banger)
34 - Daft Punk - 'Prime Time Of Your Life (Roccanova Remix)'
35 - Felix Da Housecat - 'Future Calls The Dawn' (PIAS)
36 - Chromeo - 'Tenderoni (Sinden Remix)' (Backyard)
37 - Crookers - 'Nchlinez (DJ Froz Mad Edit)'
38 - Captain Pheonix - 'Pistols & Hearts (Bloody Beetroots Remix)'
39 - Duke Dumont - 'When I Hear Mu'sic' (Turbo)
40 - Rodion - 'Electric Soca (Crookers Remix)' (Gomma)
41 - Shesus - 'Debbies Shoe's (SebastiAn Remix)' (People In The Sky)
42 - The Teenagers - 'Homecoming' (Merok)
43 - LA Priest - 'Engine (Erol Alkan's Transonic Re-edit)' (Phantasy Sound)
44 - DVAS - 'Macho'
45 - Lifelike - 'So Electric' (Different)
46 - Voodoo Chilli - 'Turn It Up (Jack It)' (Dubsided)
47 - Cagney & Lacey - 'Your Girl Pukes All Over The Dancefloor (Jesse Rose 'Sort Your Missus Out' Rmx)' (TFE)
48 - Franz & Shape - 'Tightropes (Kissy Sell Out's Bethnal Green Dub)' (Relish)
49 - New Young Pony Club - 'The Bomb (Kaos Disco Bomb Extended Dub)' (Modular)
50 - Justice - 'D.A.N.C.E (Alan Braxe Remix)' (Ed Banger)
51 - Sinden & Count Of Monte Cristal - 'Tamborzuda (3 Is A Crowd Remix)'
52 - Klaxons - 'Golden Skans (Erol Alkan's Ekstra Spektral Dub)' (Polydor)
53 - Foals - 'Hummer [McSleazy Remix]'
54 - Scanners - 'Raw (Blamma! Blamma! Scanner! Mix)'
55 - Pharoah Monch - 'Simon Says (Hostage Remix)'
56 - Midnight Juggernauts - 'Out Of The Storm (Kris Menace Remix)'
57 - Boys Noize - 'Don't Believe The Hype (Surkin Mix No.1)' (Boys Noize)
58 - Justice - 'Phantom'
59 - Moulinex - 'Break Chops'
60 - JoJo De Freq - 'Saturn Returns' (Mythic)
61 - Simian Mobile Disco - 'System' (Witchita)
62 - Brabe - '50 Ways'
63 - Like Woah! - 'Oh I Like (Whitenoise Remix)' (Bang Gang)
64 - Unklejam - 'Love Ya (Herve Remix)' (Virgin)
65 - Curses! - 'This Is The Way' (Institubes)
66 - Remi Nicole - 'Fed Up (Kissy Sell Out's Rules Of Attraction Remix)' (Island)
67 - Maral Salmassi - 'Back Up Your Ass' (Television Rocks)
68 - 3 Is A Crowd - 'Nirvanal'
69 - Strange Idols - 'She's Gonna Let You Down Again (The C90s Remixx)'
70 - Mr Hudson - 'Ask The DJ (Sinden & The Count Of Monte Cristo Mix)' (Mercury)
71 - LCD Soundsystem - 'Get Innocuous (Soulwax Remix)' (DFA)
72 - King Creosote - 'You've No Clue Do You (Kris Menace Instrumental Mix)' (679)
73 - Sneaky Sound System - 'UFO (Bricks! Remix)'74 - Tricky Disco - 'Tricky Disco (The Martin Brothers 'Thizzy Disco' Remix)' (IO)
75 - Scissor Sisters - 'She's My Man (Goose Remix Edit)' (White Riot)
76 - Simian Mobile Disco - 'I Believe (Switch Remix)' (Witchita)
77 - The Teenagers - 'Starlett Johansson (Blamma! Blamma! Scared Of Spiders Mix)' (Merok)
78 - Teenage Bad Girl - 'Cocotte (Boys Noize Rework)' (Citizen)
79 - Moulinex - 'Leisure Suit'
80 - Digitalism - 'Pogo (On The Road To Paris Version)' (Virgin)
81 - Krazy Baldhead - 'Dry Guillotine' (Ed Banger)
82 - Duke Dumont - 'Lean/Bounce' (Turbo)
83 - Larry Tee - 'Licky (Herve Goes Low Remix)' (Holon)
84 - The Bells - 'Target Group (C90s Remix)'
85 - 3 Is A Crowd - 'Breakdown (Mamba Mix)'
86 - D.I.M - 'Airbus Baby' (Turbo)
87 - Mr. Oizo - 'Flat Beat (DJ Manaia's Baile Kuduro Remix)'
88 - Crystal Castles VS Health - 'Crimewave' (Trouble)
89 - Patrick Alavi - 'Hell Yeah (Jaimie Fanatic Bad Boy Remix)'
90 - Harris Robotis - 'Shampain!'
91 - The Whip - 'Divebomb (Crystal Castles Remix)' (Southern Fried)
92 - Human Resource - Dominator (Hostage Ravemix)'
93 - Charlean Dance - 'Mr DJ (Speaker Junk's Tarantula Remix)' (Positiva)
94 - Faunts - 'M4 (Dvas Macho Mix)'
95 - Dada Life - 'Fun Fun Fun (Fredo & Thang 1 2 3 Piano Mix)' (Prestel)
96 - Starkey - 'Let You Go (Drop The Lime Remix) ' (Werk)
97 - Teddybears - 'Punkrocker (3 Is A Crowd Pump It Up Mix)'
98 - Blamma! Blamma! - 'Carry Me Home (Final Mix)'
99 - Foamo - 'Moving It Over Here'
100 - Chromeo - 'Bonafied Lovin' (Backyard)

As with yesterday's chart, I've put together a little 60 minute mix-up for your listening pleasure!*! I was a bit restricted in the tracks I could include because of my refeusal to mix with anything other than vinyl. There's a couple of obvious mistakes and I hope this doesn't detract too much from your enjoyment. It's loud, fidgety, and full-on with no warm-up, just straight in at the deep-end!*! Enjoy!*!

Ballpoint Pen Thief Presents 'Loud, Bad & Dangerous, Just Don't Call It Nu-Rave' Mix (Zshare Link)

Tracklist:

Duke Dumont - 'Lean/Bounce'

Rodion -'Electric Soca (Crookers Remix)'

Duke Dumont - 'When I Hear Mu'sic'

Chromeo - 'Tenderoni (Sinden Remix)'

New Young Pony Club - 'Ice Cream (Herve Goes Bananas Remix - BSWD 'Just For Xmas Extended Edit)'

Simian Mobile Disco - 'I Beieve (Switch Remix)'

Maral Salmassi - 'Back Up Your Ass'

JoJo De Freq - 'Saturn Returns'

Chromeo - 'Fancy Footwork (Guns N Bombs Thizzmix)'

D.I.M - 'Airbus Baby'

Boys Noize - 'Don't Believe The Hype (Surkin Mix No. 1)'

Bag Raiders - 'Punch Reprise'

Ladies & Gents, Please Be Upstanding....It's 2007!*! Pt. 2

Here it is, the first of my two charts. As I wrote in my previous post, I don't think there can be much denying that 2007 has seen some cracking material released, and for me picking my favourite single track of the year was actually much easier than I thought it would be, in fact once this particular track was released nothing was going to better it, in my opinion. That track was of course Ricardo Villalobos' refix for Shackleton's 'Blood On My Hands'. Ok, so the subject matter caused some people to object and I can see why they might, but music is always best when it provokes a reaction in people, whether that reaction be good or bad, it surely has to be better than doing things by the numbers. It had all those ingredients in it that I love; off-kilter beats, swirling effects, strange vocals, oh and because Mr Villalobos was in the hot seat it lasted a glorious 19+ minutes!*!

As far as labels are concerned, again I had no doubt in my mind who was going to come out on top this year for me, and that was DFA. Their release schedule had seemed to slow during 2006, but 2007 saw it kick truly back into life, with releases pretty much every month this year, and sometimes even two in the same week. The overiding factor for me was the level of quality that they managed to maintain throughout the year, because it's one thing to release heaps of records, but it's entirely another to release lots, that people will come back to time and time again, and there's no doubt in my mind that they've succeeded in that goal, no question!*! As far as the other labels go, Rekids and Dissident were IMHO way ahead of the rest of the pack. Dissident seemed to come out of nowhere, releasing no fewer than 13 records this year (albeit all of them extremley limited one-sided vinyl affairs), but all were exciting for very different reasons. Rekids on the other hand carried on cementing their huge reputation with numerous weighty releases, which judging by the tracks up on Radio Slave's Myspace player, should see 2008 being even better for them!*!

Right, enough chit-chatter onwards to the chart. It's a pretty mixed bag, in terms of styles, I'm sure you'll agree, but these are my biggest tracks of 07, and I'd have no hesitation recommending any of them, so if you missed out, make your life better and grab a copy. Almost all of them should be available from the back-catalogues of the likes of Juno or Phonica, or if digital is your cup of tea, then there's plenty of options to furnish yourselves with some choice cuts. Obviously, I've tried to limit the chart to those tracks actually released this year, and tried to keep reissues out where at all possible, to keep the numbers down, but I'm sure you'll notice some tracks didn't make it that perhaps should have, and that is purely down to the fact that I still have a mountain of vinyl to listen to, and I'm not comforatble charting something just off the hype that might surround it, so it's only those tracks that I own and have been spinning round BSWD Towers all year!*! Enjoy, and a little mix-up at the bottom!*!

2007 - Chart 1

1 - Shackleton - Blood On My Hands (Ricardo Villalobos Apocalypso Now Mix)’ (Skull Disco)’
2 - Len Faki - ‘Black Sheep’ (Podium)
3 - Kenny Hawkes & David Parr - ‘Gemini’ (Rekids)
4 - Shit Robot - ‘Chasm’ (DFA)
5 - Still Going - ‘Still Going Theme’ (DFA)
6 - S.C.S. - ‘Model Specific’ (Dissident)
7 - Radio Slave - ‘Bell Clap Dance’ (Rekids)
8 - Holy Ghost! - ‘Hold On’ (DFA)
9 - Kate Bush - ‘Running Up That Hill (Ashley Beedle Edit)’ (White)
10 - Professor Genius - ‘Pegaso (Silver & Kane’s Roma Mix)’ (Disques Sinthomme)
11 - Ricardo Villalobos - ‘Druic’ (Sei Es Drum)
12 - Sebbo - ‘Beirut Boogie’ (Liebe Detail)
13 - Skatebaard - ‘Vuelo’ (Radius)
14 - LCD Soundsystem - ‘Sound Of Silver (C2 Remix Rev. 3)’ (DFA)
15 - Shackleton - ‘Next To Nothing (Guillaume & Coutu Twins Mix)’ (Crosstown Rebels)
16 - Soylent Green - ‘La Forza Del Destino (Radio Slave Remix)’ (Playhouse)
17 - Phobia - ‘Phobia (DJ Hell Mix)’ (International Deejay Gigolos)
18 - Redshape - ‘Munch’ (Delsin)
19 - Justus Kohncke - ‘Parage’ (Kompakt)
20 - Binary Chaffinch - ‘False Energy’ (Dissident)
21 - Al Usher - ‘Here Today’ (Misericordings)
22 - Division By Zero - ‘Boulderdash’ (Eskimo)
23 - Holy Ghost Inc. - ‘Mad Monks On Zinc (Martin Buttrich Remix)’ (Flying Circus)
24 - Gabriel Ananda - ‘Stream Of Conciousness’ (Karamarouge)
25 - Francois K - ‘Road Of Life (Quiet Village Sound Factory Dub)’ (Deep Space)
26 - Tiefschwarz - ‘Original (Carl Craig Remix)’ (Souvenir)
27 - Black Devil Disco Club - ‘Constantly No Respect (Black Mustang Remix)’ (LoEB)
28 - Baby Oliver - ‘Feelings 2’ (Environ)
29 - Slam - ‘Azure (Radio Slave Remix)’ (Soma)
30 - Simon Baker - ‘Plastik’ (Infant)
31 - Anomaline - ‘High Lights’ (Anomaline)
32 - Mudd - ‘Spielplatz (Quiet Village Deep Space Remix)’ (Rong)
33 - Minilogue - ‘Space’ (Traum Schallplaten)
34 - Professor Genius ‘Across The Spree’ (Italians Do It Better)
35 - Massi DL - ‘Acidland’ (Trapez)
36 - Osborne - Outta Sight (Luke Vibert Remix)’ (Spectral Sound)
37 - Len Faki - ‘Mekong Delta’ (Ost-Gut-Ton)
38 - LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends (Harvey’s Mix)’ (DFA)
39 - Tracey Thorn - ‘It’s All True (Martin Buttrich Remix)’ (Virgin)
40 - Pheek - ‘Magda Had A Little Troll (Glimpse Remix)’ (Roman Photo)
41 - Pheek - ‘Pikaya’ (Cadenza)
42 - Efdemin - ‘Acid Bells (Matt O’Brien Remix)’ (Metisse)
43 - Hercules & Love Affair - ‘Classique 2’ (DFA)
44 - Ame - ‘Enoi’ (Innervisions)
45- Cage & Aviary - ‘Television Rocks’ (Dissident)
46 - Tony Allen - ‘Kilode (A Remix By Carl Craig)’ (Honest John’s)
47 - Deetron - ‘Life Soundtrack (Radio Slave Remix)’ (Music Man)
48 - Teflon - ‘The Wombat’ (Rebelone)
49 - Legowelt - ‘Disco Rout (Deetron Remix)’ (Cocoon)
50 - Marc Houle - ‘Porch’ (M_Nus)
51 - Martin Buttrich - ‘Hunter’ (Cocoon)
52 - Avus - ‘Furry Hat’ (Border Community)
53 - Gorrilaz - ‘Kids With Guns (Quiet Village Remix)’ (White)
54 - Kevin Saunderson - ‘Till We Meet Again (Carl Craig Remix)’ (Planet E)
55 - Canvas - ‘The Cat’ (Rebelone)
56 - Misstress Barbara - ‘Barcelona’ (Border Community)
57 - Far East Band - ‘The Call Up (Martin Buttrich Rework)’
58 - Stamp Release 001 - ‘Russia’ (Stamp Release)
59 - Trentmoeller - ‘Moan (Radio Slave’s Remix For K)’ (Poker Flat)
60 - Pan-Pot - ‘Charly’ (Mobilee)
61 - Shed - ‘Kinky Guys’ (Solo Action)
62 - Chloe - ‘Suspended’ (Kill The DJ)
63 - Faze Action - ‘In The Trees (Carl Craig C2 Remix No. 1)’ (Juno)
64 - The Tuss - ‘Rushup i Bank 12’ (Rephlex)
65 - Minilogue - ‘Ghost’ (Mule Electronique)
66 - John Keys - ‘Torturing Lines’ (Crosstown Rebels)
67 - Radio Slave - ‘Screaming Hands (Josh Wink Interpretation)’ (Rekids)
68 - LCD Soundsystem - ‘North American Scum (Onastic Dub)’ (DFA)
69 - H.O.S.H. - ‘White Elephant’ (Kindisch)
70 - Professor Genius - ‘La Grotta’ (Italians Do It Better)
71 - Mountain People DJs - ‘Mountain005.2’ (Mountain People)
72 - Justin Martin - ‘Nightowl’ (Buzzin Fly)
73 - Philip Sherburne - ‘Lumberjacking (Excercise One Mix)’ (LAN)
74 - James Mowbray & Leiam Sullivan - ‘Tropical Heights’ (Four:Twenty)
75 - Pedro Madeira - ‘Long Shadows (Christian Prommer Remix)’ (Buzzin Fly)
76 - Vinyl - ‘The Weasel’ (Rebelone)
77 - My My - ‘Fast Freeze’ (Cocoon)
78 - Ali Renault - ‘Zombie Raffle’ (Dissident)
79 - Minilogue - ‘Elephant’s Parade’ (Wagon Repair)
80 - Perc & Fractal - ‘Up (Perc Mix)’ (Kompakt Extra)
81 - Peace Division - ‘Voodoo (It’s In The Wall)’ (Crosstown Rebels)
82 - Mock & Toof - ‘K-Choppers’ (Death From Abroad)
83 - Discemi - ‘Data Sapiens’ (Rekids)
84 - Sleeparchive - ‘Papercup’ (Sleeparchive)
85 - Lauer - ‘Valentino’ (Brontosaurus)
86 - Monty Luke & Tasho - ‘Paranoid’ (Mothership)
87 - Chaim ‘Dana (Guy Gerber Mix)’ (Dogtown)
88 - Smith N Hack - ‘Falling Stars’ (Smith N Hack)
89 - Rejected - ‘Let’s Go Juno’ (Rejected)
90 - Ambivalent - ‘R U OK’ (M_Nus)
91 - Serge Santiago - ‘R2D2’ (We Love Music)
92 - Hugo - ‘Stel & Atan’ (Tuning Spork)
93 - Serafin - ‘Berlin Has No Cows’ (Mountain People)
94 - Mental Blank - ‘Put Up Job’ (Kompakt)
95 - Guiseppe Manuele - ‘The Prince, His Lover & Her Red Shoes’ (Radius)
96 - Matthew Jonson - ‘Stop’ (Wagon Repair)
97 - Paul Kalkbrenner - ‘Altes Kamuffel’ (Bpitch)
98 - Dubfire - ‘Ribcage’ (Desolat)
99 - Argy - ‘Malena’ (Cocoon)
100 - Marc Houle - ‘Techno Vocals’ (M_Nus)

That's the list out of the way, time for some music!*! I wrote at the beginning of the year that I spent a whole load of cash on some fancy new Vestax turntables, however, it wasn't until about a week ago that I actually got round to doing anything with them. It was only at that time that I realised mixing with direct-drive turntables appears, on the face of it, to be a whole different ball game to that with belt-drives. Until my previous belt-drives broke about 18 months ago I had gotten to be quite respectable behind the decks, but it would appear that the combination of so much time without any practice and the new decks has stripped me of any skills I might have previously had. Having said that I'm fairly happy with the results, and I can only get better with a lot more practice, right!?! Also, please be gentle, I've only just got my head around how to use 'Kill Switches' having not had them on previous mixers!*! If your wondering about the tracklist (let's face it, it isn't subtle!*!), I have an excuse; I was suffering with the flu at the time and was drugged-up to my eyeballs on medication, and the particular tracks used seemed to fit with my mood at the time!*! Ok, so I haven't sold my mix very well, but give it a go and you never know you might grow to like it!*!

Ballpoint Pen Thief Presents '18 Hours In The Making & All I Could Come Up With Was 49 Minutes Of Music' Mix (Zshare link)

Tracklist:

Trentmoeller - 'Moan (Radio Slave's Remix For K)'

Deetron - 'Life Soundtrack (Radio Slave Remix)'

Shackleton - 'Blood On My Hands (Ricardo Villalobos' Apocalypso No Mix Pt. 1)'

Soylent Green - 'La Forza Del Destino (Radio Slave Remix)'

Pan-Pot - 'Charly'

Monty Luke & Tasho - 'Paranoid'

Ambivalent - 'R U OK (A Cappella)

Ambivalent - 'R U OK (JPLS 12mg Remix)'

Ambivalent - 'R U OK (Original)'

March Houle - 'Techno Vocals'

Ladies & Gents, Please Be Upstanding....It's 2007!*! Pt. 1

Yet another year is ending, and i'm fairly sure you’ll agree it’s been quite a year music wise, no matter what genres your into, there’s been really strong releases to suit all palates.
I’ve always strived here to show that sticking to one genre is a little bit pointless (although I’m hoping that isn’t quite the case with my other blog!), with so much goodness on offer, variety is surely the spice of life. So it may seem a bit odd then that I’m about to shoot myself in the foot, metaphorically speaking, with my end of year chart. I’m not whollyced how much use they are to anyone else, but being a bit of a nerd I like lists, and I like end of year lists even more.

At the end of last year I did a Top 50, but looking back that didn’t really cover half of what was truly great about 2006, and being so impressed with the TAPE boys Top 100’s (which themselves led me to discover countless gems I’d missed out on during the year), I’ve decided to follow suit and go with a nice round 100. Even plumping for a Top 100 proved really difficult with loads of strong releases left out, but you’ve got to stop somewhere before it gets ridiculous, and lets face it if anything outside a Top 100 is still excellent then it proves what a good year it’s been. Where I’m about to go against everything I’ve tried to instill here is that I’ve decided to post two Top 100s, one for the all techno, italo, disco and the dreaded M word releases, and a further one for all the tracks of a more ‘Turbo’ variety, and the reason for this is that I found that it was almost impossible for example to compare lets say Justice’s ‘D.A.N.C.E’ with Len Faki’s ‘Black Sheep’. I absolutely love but, both for very different reasons, and they both represent the differing sides of my rather schizophrenic love of electronic music. So to that end you'll get two Top 100s, so hopefuuly there’ll be something for everyone. Having said this, once the charts are out of the way, it’ll be back to business as usual here with a mix of everything for your listening pleasure.
As far as 2007 goes, it’s been a bit of a strange year on this blog with my temporary shut-down for reasons I’ve already written about, but rest assured I will be around for a while yet, although it remains to be seen how much longer this blogging will continue. I thought this was a good time to explain why I came back a lot sooner than I had planned, and simply put it was down to comments left by you guys (the readers) and some encouraging emails from some of my favourite labels. I’m not naive enough to believe that blogging serves any more of a purpose than recommending releases to you, but I have become slightly dissolusioned at some of the practices being operated by some blogs. If you take for example Justice’s LP as the most extreme example, then for the most part it was as good as I’d hoped, but almost every track made it’s way onto some blog or other, and as a result slightly diminished its release. The odd track would have been fine, but some blogs had multiple tracks and I don’t believe personally that does any good to anyone. That may seem slightly hipercritical coming from me, but I’ve continuously tried to focus on stuff that isn’t everywhere else, and hopefully to some extent I’ve succeeded in that aim, and I will continue to do so. As far as the future goes, the bitrate of tracks on offer will not change, and the 7–day download period will remain, however, I am still committed to moving towards streaming in the near future for tracks where express permission hasn’t been given to post tracks. That seems to me to be a fair compromise and hopefully if you read this blog you agree it is too!*! The other reason for coming back so soon was that looking back at what I’d personally purchased this year, I’d noticed that much of it was on the recommendation of blogs I hold dear, like Joe and Skypher over @ Random Circuits, Steve @ Littlewhiteearbuds.com and of course the TAPE guys. You may have noticed that the releases that have made they’re way onto my monthly charts recently have had a slightly different sound about them than say during the same period last year, with a much higher emphasis on those that could lazily be described as ‘Minimal’. However you choose to describe this sound, the fact remains that until the TAPE guys posted their charts last December I’d been fairly ignorant to most of these amazing records, and subsequently I’ve been out and bought the majority of them. Continuing on from those charts, the blogs mentioned above have introduced me to the delightful sounds of labels like Cocoon, Cadenza and a host of others, that has then in turn led me to discover others like Mountain People and Sleeparchive. Whilst, it could be said that I may have discovered these labels by my own accord, it’s my belief that these guys provide an ear for quality in an ever-growing sea of weekly releases, and if you choose to buy the releases then all the better. To this end, I stopped questioning the worth of blogs when I discovered how much I’d personally spent after having releases recommended to me. I’d estimate that I’ve spent twice as much as in 2006 on vinyl this year, and whilst I’d be the first to admit that I’m in a fairly privileged position with regard to disposable income, if you buy what you hear and like then everyone benefits. So, providing blogs don’t take the piss and post tracks on labels that have previously requested tracks of theirs don’t get posted, then this medium can work to everyone’s advantage, but it is a thin-line I’m afraid!*!

So that’s Part 1 out of the way, Part 2 tomorrow will be the first of my charts accompanied with a little 50+ minute mix, then Part 3 will follow hopefully on Sunday with the last chart and another little end of year mix-up. Hopefully you can keep up and that you find something of interest and perhaps something you’ve missed that takes your fancy!*!

The Edit Suite Pt. 9

I was a bit slow on the uptake with today's offering, having previously downloaded it from the good people over at Dilate Choonz, and then not listened to it until about a week ago, which in itself is a tragedy, because to put it mildly, every other re-edit I've ever heard (IMHO) pales into insignificance!*! This is truly a work of art, and unless something completely amazing comes along in the future, then this series of posts is going to come to an end today, because I can't imagine following this with anything else!*! If you think I'm being a little dramatic then fine, but seriously play this and then try telling yourself it's not every bit as good as it could be!*! Granted, Ashley Beedle was off to a great start picking what is aruguably one of the greatest pop songs ever recorded, but it would have been so easy to get it all wrong. Happily he knows his way around a classic and does everything a re-edit should do, but just better than anyone else, extending the whole thing out to a glorious 9 minutes, adding just the rigt amount of effects, not buggering about with that amazing vocal, just treating the original with the respect it surely deserves. Straight into my top ten tracks of the year, no question!*!

Vinyl copies have just surfaced, so if like me you like spinning those shiny black discs to people, get yourself a copy of a bonafide classic in the making!*!

Kate Bush - 'Running Up That Hill (Ashley Beedle Edit)' (White) (Buy) (Buy) (Buy)

I promise I'll be slightly less gushing with my next post, and whilst I try to calm down, go over and checkout, Steve's newly re-designed Little White Earbuds, cause it's boss!*!

Deep In The Heart Of Village Life

If your a regular reader of BSWD then you've probably ascertained that I'm a bit of a fan of Matt Edwards productions, and I'd been waiting for sometime now for today's offering to be released, after scoping it on one of Matt Edwards' charts on his Myspace page.

Matt along with his production partner Joel Martin have turned in a fairly uncharacteristic refix of New York house music legend Francois Kevorkian's 'Road of Life' on Francois' own label; Deep Space. Uncharacteristic in that it's way more tracky than most of their previous Quiet Village output with an almighty kick drum dominating proceedings, building the track from just one of the bell sounds from the original, twisting and looping it into one hypnotically tribal banger if you will. Imagine the kind of track that Danny Tenaglia used rinse back in the day with all the lights off, save for one glowing red bulb and a monsterous sound-system doing it's bit. If you were feeling Radio Slave's recent 'Bell Clap Dance', then this will get you leaping around the room!*!

Francois K - 'Road Of Life (Quiet Village Sound Factory Dub)' (Deep Space) (Buy) (Buy) (Buy)

And whilst on the subject of Quiet Village, the 2nd instalment of their 'Fragments Of Fear' mix CDs has just touched down, and if you enjoyed the 1st then this should be a must on your xmas wish-list. Grab a copy here before they all disappear!*! A collectors item if there was ever one!*!

Journey With Me To A Faraway Place....

Martin Buttrich finished 2006 with his epic release 'Full Clip' riding high in stacks of end of year charts, and he's kept the pressure up in '07 with a slew of top-drawer releases, lending his unquestionable production and remix talents to the likes of Holy Ghost Inc., Friendly People, his own productions such as 'Well Done' on Four:Twenty and 'Hunter' on Cocoon and most recently dropped a rather special reworking of the Far East Band's 'The Call Up'.

IMHO this track provides Martin Buttrich with all the right ingredients with which to work with and he's certainly kept his quality quota in the red with this one. Never one to rush things the track just builds subtely at first with just simple drums and keys, before he teases the listener with array after array of hypnotic effects and lush, dubby string arrangments, before withdrawing them and building it all back up time after time, all the while sprinkling snippets of the vocal throughout. If your a fan of Rhythm & Sound, deep Detroit house music or for that matter just quality, emotive listening gear then this is certain not to disappoint, and futhermore it's gone straight into my end of year chart!*! Superb on every level.

This particular release has been out for the last couple of weeks as a one-sided 12", and you'd be daft to miss out on a copy!*!

Far East Band - 'The Call Up (Martin Buttrich Rework)' (Four Music) (Buy) (Buy) (Buy)

If vinyl isn't your bag then grab a superior digital version here or here

My In-Box Weighs A Ton Pt. 2

I thought it was about time again to shine the spotlight onto some of the recent goodies that have found their good way into my in-box and today I'm going to start with West Country wizz-kid; Plimsouls. Even before I'd checked the tracks he'd sent me, I knew I would want to post them, his email was accompanied with the glorious tag-line 'I Don't Sound Like I Want To Be On Ed Banger, that has to count for something right?', and you know what it certainly does. There's nothing wrong with wanting to emulate the Ed Banger sound, let's be honest if your going to take inspiration from somewhere it might as well be from one the best labels around!*! The only problem with that is that the Ed Banger guys do it so well, and in the majority of cases it's very unlikely that your going pull off the balls-to-the-wall, extra crunchy Ed Banger biznezz with much of a result!*! So its really refreshing to see new producers setting their sights elsewhere, and that's where Plimsouls comes in!*!

Having already found plenty of blog love this year and with bloody good reason, just don't call it blog-house (another god-awful tag if ever there was one!*!), 2008 could well see this talent get some major props, so keep one ear open on his myspace page, and await further goodies!*!

So, 2 fresh tracks on offer today, buzzing with 8-bit goodness and a whole smorgasboard of influences (I'm sure I copped an ear-full of laser in amongst them!*!), these gems have the overwhelming desire to get you where you belong; on that dancefloor!*!

Plimsouls - 'Long Way Down'

Plimsouls - 'As It Happened'

My Italo Leanings Pt. 7 (Live From Hell Edition)

Today sees the release of a new Italo mix; 'Hellboys', and whilst most Italo CDs appear as compilations which are extremley handy if like me you never got round to buying the tracks when they were first released, this is a continuous mix, for those times when wall-to-wall classics is the only way to go!*! Lovingly put together and mixed by International Deejay Gigolos head-honcho; DJ Hell, it's 19 tracks with the filler well and truly dispensed with and replaced with stacks of killer dancefloor classics from the likes of Casco, Gino Soccio and the Yellow Magic Orchestra.

It may seem a strange combination of Electroclash pioneer mixing a compilation of Italo disco tracks but if you think about it the 2 scenes were remarkably similar, both weren't around for long, both were increadibly flambouyant, in some quarters style was preferable over substance, both have immediately recognisable classics to shout about, and both similarily took things to extremes releasing some truly awful records!*!

To give you a taster here's 2 of my favourites selected from this mix

Gino Soccio - 'Remember' (Atlantic)

Hypnosis - 'Pulstar' (ZYX Records)

The mix itself is available here and here, and should hit most music emporiums sometime this week!*!

You Can Skream All You Like, It Won't Do You Any Good!*!

So there I was reading last month's issue of Mixmag when I came across news that there was a dubplate doing the rounds of a Skream refix of the Klaxons 'Not Over Yet', along with the unhappy news that it was never likely to see the light of day (until a good friend of mine dropped a copy into my in-box)!*! Now your probably sitting there thinking 'not another bloody Klaxons mix', and for the most part I would agree with you (if that was what you were thinking!*!), I for one could have done without at least half of the mixes that have surfaced this year, but I'm sure you'd agree that the prospect of Skream giving the Klaxons a dubstep makeover could potentially be something special!*! This particular refix follows hot-on-the-heels of what was a superb Burial re-dub for Bloc Party's 'Where Is Home?', and i'm happy to report that Skream does not disappoint!*! However, rather than plunge the track into the murky depths of ocean-deep sub-bass, Skream somehow manages to retain the pop-slant of the original, whilst droppin' the tempo completely which gives the track a completely new lease of life!*! The dubstep purists may scoff, but I for one think they're wrong on this count, and given a full release this could do big things, alas I feel it may only make it onto some shady white label, but if it does you better make sure you grab a copy before it disappears forever!*! So keep your eyes peeled at your local vinyl emporium!*!

Klaxons - 'It's Not Over Yet' (Skream Mix)' (Dubplate)