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I've only seen a few of mister Stimming's reviews and I have to say... I've really (really) enjoyed every moment of them. His knowledge paired with his honesty, and the fact he goes so in-depth with the pieces of hardware, really make for great insights into some interesting pieces of tech. Also, he's hilarious. Whoever said German's aren't charming was very much mistaken. Be sure to binge.

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Leeds may be renowned for having a top night out, but if I had to leave my South London abode and relocate to somewhere else on this island, it’d have to be Bristol. The relatively small city, home to one of the world’s most famous suspension bridges, has a lot to offer when it comes to music. 

The music coming out of the South West has evolved faster than Darwin could have ever thought possible since the birth of Boiler Room. Gone are the days of Julio Bashmore and his housey counterparts. Instead, the likes of Batu and Bruce have taken the city’s acceptingness to experiment to push a more industrial, bass-driven sound to the local Bristolians.

Bristol doesn’t take itself too seriously, and that’s exactly why it’s a serious contender in Europe’s electronic music scene.

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Terraforma 2019

Two weeks ago we hit up what must be the most bohemian annual gathering in Milan to spend a weekend appreciating the world’s most adventurous and talented artists in experimental electronic music. Set in the woodsy grounds of a 17th Century villa, Terraforma Festival puts sustainability and experimental music at the forefront to bring in what is definitely the best crowd we’ve ever experienced at a festival of this size. Terraforma’s lineup, which would (thankfully) not turn the heads of the new generation of Adriatic festival goers, did more than turn ours over the three days. It did so from start to finish, and what a way did it start. Caterina Barbieri was the act to open, with a magical, transient live performance that set the tone for everything that was to follow – even the madness that was Monolake's set inside the jam-packed and strobe-light-lit labyrinth, which thanks to the organisers' (and gardeners') wonderful efforts has been carefully rebuilt to its former glory from hundreds of years ago, and is now ready to host a party. Headlining the Friday night was Sherard Ingram, otherwise known as DJ Stingray. Consistently swapping between four-on-the-floor techno and hard, dirty breaks for a solid two hours, this was hands down our favourite set of the whole event. Some 8 hours in to the 3-day festival and Terraforma had already proven to us we'd made a fantastic decision to attend. Saturday and Sunday’s daytime sets saw the likes of Mica Levi and Kelman Duran bring their beats (…and earphones) to the Villa. Whilst Mica was purely having fun, smiling and laughing throughout her performance – something we did not expect considering her no-fucks-given attitude in interviews – Kelman put on a performance which felt like an interpretation of a Dominican Republic contemporary art collection. You couldn’t decipher it, but nor were you meant to. Tempos went up and down various times throughout the set, with Mr Duran even throwing in a section of a Tupac Shakur interview for good measure. Words of wisdom and tempo changes were topped-off with some good old-fashioned dembows, para un poco de perreo. The festival came to a close on the same note at which it started (and kept at during the weekend). Local legend Donato Dozzy began what was to be its closing with a top-tier three-hour-long hypnotic techno set, amid countless cheers from the crowd in their mother-tongue, confirming their appreciation of his selection – which was alternating between three turntables. Molto benne Donato. Energy levels only went up from here. We’ve never encouraged or enjoyed selfie sticks, or similar stand-like apparatus; but that's because we’d never seen one put to such good use. RP Boo's set was fantastic from start to finish – 2 hours of good music, good vibes and a good tempo. Kavain made his presence known and ensured his set was one to remember through the many things he did so well: his DJing, his fabulous one-liners throughout, his dancing on stage, his interaction with the crowd and, last but not least, his crowd-surf to finish – which might have gone on longer than he'd foreseen thanks to a very keen crowd. Paquita Gordon did a great job of wrapping things up before ourselves and a smaller group of festival-goers seeking to see things through made our way out of the main festival area and closer towards the water to what was the afterparty with Dj Nobu, who smoothly and serenely saw Terraforma out with deep, transient techno, and beautifully brought it all to an end with Burial's Archangel. We’ve never heard such little linear progression in musical performances as we did this weekend, and this isn’t a criticism. Far from it. Terraforma lays the infrastructure for artists to come and express themselves through electronic sounds, and boy was there no lack of expression. The structure of the festival – moreso its success – is also worth mentioning, having one act on at one stage at a time really does work, and more importantly really does allow for full enjoyment of the carefully curated selection of artists and performances. Until next year. Grazie mille.

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Just the right amount of funk. There's so much madness coming out of Bristol. I've never been to that part of England, but if my recent musical research and recreational listening is anything to go by, I'm sure I'd love the place. Let's stay together. Forever. Since the start of the track, ethereal vocals and chords are briefly introduced and set you up for nothing like what you receive – and not in the half-empty Walkers crips packet sense; quite the opposite. Once the rhythmic beauty comes, you're torn away from where you thought you were headed and soon find yourself bobbing your whole being. It's irresistible. You can make your way to Bandcamp to preorder the release for a very affordable price. Sadly though, the other two tracks from the release aren't available for preview, so you'll have to repeat-after-me, do-as-I-do, Simon-says and all that nonsense, and put everything on hold and just keep clicking play on the wonderful Stay Let's Together. I really hope we do.

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Although the sun may not be shining in Scotland, it's safe to say no one seems to give a shit. This latest post isn't about a label nor a release, but about a fantastic Boiler Room set by Folamour. It's hard to say what's better, whether it's his great track choice or if it's his energy – which most definitely has everyone enjoying themselves that bit more (myself included). It's been the perfect soundtrack to the end of a working week – I've been smiling and bobbing my head uncontrollably for the past hour. Enjoy the endless amounts of good vibes (and Golden Virginia) the set has to offer, and not to worry about the neck pain, it'll subside. Happy Friday from myself and the Frenchman.

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What better way to mark my move to London than to talk about one of the big smoke’s perhaps lesser known projects. Insert are doing what Man Utd’s scouts did during the Fergie era - find raw talent.

Nobel & She’s Drunk have teamed up to put together what feels like an impulsive and stimulating EP on the Berlin-based Through My Speakers label.

The first track; ‘Plaster Drums’ may have percussion in its title, but it’s all about the guitar. Upbeat from start to finish, the guitar riff is maintained throughout and does a great job at holding together a track which you almost expect will change direction on more than one occasion.

Just as you shouldn’t present EVERY girl you’re seeing to your rents, Plaster Drums probably shouldn’t be played on every dance floor. If you wait for the perfect moment, however, it could go down as the following day’s talking point - and for all the right reasons.

In what can be perceived as reflective of a millennials attention span, or the rise in number of people diagnosed with ADHD, the second track of the EP; ‘The Thunder’ doesn’t allow for any kind of continuity between itself and its predecessor. It leaves behind the more household instruments in order to make room for more of what we’re used to on a dark and dingy dance floor. Additionally, by inserting some closed and muffled lyrics - and by not being stingy with them, the Milanese & Berliner collab have given us a banger of a B-side. Safe to say I’ll be playing this album through my speakers all summer long.

Listen to the full EP on Through My Speakers Soundcloud page -->   https://soundcloud.com/shes-drunk/sets/nobel-shes-drunk-plaster-drums

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Maranya Festival 2019

I have sent the last number of months co-organising the first edition of Maranya Festival – an eco-festival on the last weekend of May in the Northern part of Spain’s diverse and giving landscape.

In keeping with the festival’s slogan, we really did hope it would be an ecological experience to learn, have fun and connect, and looking back on the weekend, we feel that we achieved exactly that. The crowd was a proper conglomerate of people, with plenty of urban-dwellers flocking in from the likes of Barcelona, Zaragoza, Madrid and Valencia mixing with the locals from the nearby villages. The hundred or so attendees gave and attended workshops under the warm Matarraña sun in the beautiful Mayjal Bioescuela. These ranged from insightful discussions such as “Feminism For Our Boys”, to Beatrice’s “Interactive Concert of Medicinal Songs” successfully getting everyone on their feet and marching round a geodesic dome.

The setting of the sun saw everyone retreat from the Bioescuela back down to the campsite, and allowed for the night activities to commence. Maranya’s musical line-up was largely electronic. The majority of the artists had made their way to Fuentespalda (which I was informed by a local rocks a 180-strong population during the springtime) from the cosmopolitan Barcelona, with artists such as Zonzo and No-Me regularly hosting events in well-known clubs and bars such as Razzmatazz and Metric Market.

A lot of talent was present at the Maranya dance floor. Both nights saw CDJs and turntables getting an outing, with vinyl-only sets making a much-welcomed appearance. If my memory serves me well, Saturday night continued well beyond 4:00am, with the power couple No-Me closing the stage with a smooth live electronic performance. However, it was a different live double act that took the title of musical performance of the weekend in my eyes. The French duo Odiwan Freenobi, sampling live sounds throughout the set (including their own hand claps), worked their sequencers and other pieces of electronic equipment far too alien to me to start naming, to musical perfection. Then, just as I managed to sneak away from behind the bar and make it to the vibing yet attentive dance floor to fully experience the performance, they called a Malagueña to stage. Anyone who suggests that a voice is not a “proper instrument” would have from then on no doubt accepted defeat and changed their perceptions for good as her southern accent pierced through the electronic beats in a collaboration that just worked.

Managing a festival is a bit like being at your own house party. Fun was abundant, but so was the sense of responsibility. I learnt a lot about the logistics behind festivals, and managed to note down a new artist or two who I will definitely be following up. And, who knows, Charles and I may be bracing the stage next year to show off our musical tastes. Maranya Festival – an ecological experience to learn, have fun and connect, all while enjoying some sincere electronic music, delivered by some sincere people.

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Whilst hard (or not so hard) at work, clicking and dragging away, whether it be anchor points in Illustrator or keyframes in After Effects, I tend to throw on a mix and make my way along an undetermined path through Soundcloud, sometimes going further up, right, left or down that I'd foreseen. But that's what's amazing about it — both the content that's up and available on the platform, as well as whatever algorithms guide us throughout our listening. I'm a sucker for anything with a breakbeat – it won me over from the very first second – but it was the pads, chords and textures that had me transported in and out of a meditative state throughout the (sadly) 3-minute-long track. If I'd have it my way, it would last 5 times as long. Overall a fantastic track. I'm very grateful for this find, but once satisfied after having heard it 5 times repeatedly and having had my 15-minute meditative fill, I decided it might be time to move on to further investigation. Male Tears is part of It Takes A Village: The Sounds Of Physical Therapy, a top release which came earlier this month, encompassing all kinds of tastes and styles; and names – with tracks by a number of different aliases and projects of his, with a bit of jazz, disco, and some deeper and heavier hitting tracks like another personal favourite Mischief Maker, which almost makes you forget you just heard some disco only two tracks ago and has you swaying around, eyes shut, wishing for some Funktion-Ones and concrete. The feeling only continues with tracks progressively taking a darker turn. Listen to Physical Therapy's Male Tears and Mischief Maker below, together with the entire release – which you can find here on Bandcamp. For further reading, check out this RA article from back in 2014. - https://www.residentadvisor.net/features/2114

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Not much is known about the Chinese producer Knopha, aside from the fact that he seems to be a key figure in Xiamen’s rising underground music scene. 

Released in the week-long limbo that is the period between Christmas and New Year of 2018, the ambient, wispy EP fittingly reflects Knopha’s mysterious nature, and definitely deserves a place in your Sunday night tracklist. 

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I only recently came across Batu – and I've been on an absolute binge for a week. The level of his productions and track choice in his mixes is an absolute 10/10 on both occasions. His mix at Dekmantel's 2018 Selectors is a great example of everything Batu has to offer: real hard-hitting rhythm and bass. Just how it should be. Enjoy.

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Another creative soul heading to Terraforma this summer - Caterina Barbieri - gifts the world another album. Her fourth in five years... keep them coming girl!

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Canadian duo D. Tiffany and NAP have their second collaborative EP releasing in just over a week, and it is set to be a banger – with El Kesh and Sacrifice being my personal favourites. What a way to start – the first track on the A side, El Kesh, has a beautiful bongo-infused breakdown that has completely won me over. With less bongos and more bass, Sacrifice is a very, very nice breaks track. It features a dark Spanish vocal that can't help but remind me of one (or more) of señor Villalobos's productions (different, but brilliant too in their own right). Very much looking forward to its release — and hearing the rest of post-bongo-breakdown El Kesh. I hadn't previously heard of Planet Euphorique, but now I'm definitely keeping an eye and both ears out.

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Some truly wonderful rhythm and kick drum. An absolute gem from Cocktail Party Effect.

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They say madness comes in pairs (or do they)... Well it will definitely be arriving at Terraforma 2019 in the form of Renick Bell.

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Well, wow. Big up John. I guess that's it for the day then.