Marcus Barnes is a music journalist with ten years extensive experience in both print and online writing. He is Techno Editor at Mixmag, Social Media Marketing Manager at Point Blank music school and contributes features, reviews and interviews to various publications including Resident Advisor, Ibiza Voice, The Word (Belgium), i-D Online, Notion Magazine, Meoko and more. He also hosts a show on www.hoxtonfm.co.uk every Saturday 8pm-10pm (GMT).
Soul Clap are one of my favourite DJ duos on the circuit, and it’s not just me who loves them – they have a huge following around the world and their parties are always an essential destination for anyone in search of a good time.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Wednesday, 16 May 2012 at 4:00 am
Making music only to give it away for free may seem like a strange notion, but in an age where file sharing and illegal downloads are widespread, adopting a different approach to spreading your musical message is sometimes the only way to achieve success. Pretty Lights (AKA Derek Vincent Smith) did exactly that and he recently joined electronic music superstar Skrillex on tour as well as amassing his own huge following.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Monday, 14 May 2012 at 4:00 am
Since the dawn of time many different styles and forms of music have been created and, unfortunately, forgotten. Psych is a form of music that has its origins in the sixties, that heady era when the world went through a cultural revolution. For many, psychedelic rock became the soundtrack to this era – but, of course, the sixties couldn’t last forever.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Wednesday, 9 May 2012 at 10:30 am
Earlier this year video of DJ duo Art Department playing a track with the chorus ‘You and I, we are like…cocaine and ketamine’ spread like wildfire on the net. The infectious, and blatant drug-related lyrics striking a chord with many partygoers around the world. As with many exclusive, unreleased tracks, nobody knew who it was by and so the hunt began.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Monday, 7 May 2012 at 4:00 am
Nic Fanciulli is proof, if ever it were needed, that hard work and dedication – along with some balance – can really help an individual to succeed. His love affair with music has been incessant since his early teens and, now in his early thirties, he has his own record label (Saved), tours the globe regularly and isn’t a bad DJ either. On top of that he has a reputation for being one of the nicest guys in the business.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Wednesday, 2 May 2012 at 4:01 am
Fritz Kalkbrenner is successful producer from Berlin, that ever-trusty hub of creativity. Although he’s been making music since he was in his teens, Fritz initially pursued a career in music journalism, before he found the success of himself and his older brother, Paul, meant that he could ditch the journalism to become a full-time musician. He’s a famous face in Germany and recently put his talents to work on an excellent mix CD for the Suol label. A retrospective mix that represents his various influences, it includes everything from Boo Williams through to Pete Rock and CL Smooth.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Monday, 30 April 2012 at 1:03 pm
A little while back I received an EP from No.19 Records, their Spring Sampler – a collection of tracks from a various different musicians. I wasn’t overly impressed to begin with (although I love it now) but there was one track that really stood out for me. It was called Falling From Grace, by Tony Smart and Terence Kissner, and it completely blew me away. Deep, sullen and rolling – I had it on repeat for ages. I recently to get in touch with one of the guys who made it, Tony, and we had a really interesting chat about his on/off relationship with music, his dad’s influence and his connection with a famous UK DJ… and he recorded a brilliant exclusive mix for me too.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Monday, 23 April 2012 at 12:07 pm
Bristol is without a doubt one of the country’s most fertile cities in terms of electronic music. Exports such as Massive Attack, Portishead and Roni Size are a testament to Bristol’s ability to produce musical talents who can really make an impact on the world stage. Today the city continues to sprout new talent and exciting new acts, one of those being Waifs & Strays (Amos Nelson and Rich Beanland). Last year their thunderous house track ‘Yeah Yeah’ was ubiquitous, so much so that I named it as one of my top tracks of 2011 and they’ve carried on the momentum created by their success last year into 2012 with lots of exciting projects on the agenda and a hectic touring schedule.
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Thursday, 19 April 2012 at 4:00 am
I often wonder what life on the road as a DJ is like, from what I can gather it’s not always as glamorous as one might imagine. Ok, so they get to travel the world playing the music they love to thousands of people every week – but, in reality despite the obvious plus points there’s the down points too – constant tiredness, traveling from one airport to another to another, never really seeing much of the city you’re playing in. Ok, hardly the end of the world, but still it’s not all one big party. To illustrate their life on the road as DJs, German duo Pan-Pot (Tassilo Ippenberger and Thomas Benedix) have released an hour-long DVD based using footage from their various gigs. I spoke to them about the new film…
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Tuesday, 17 April 2012 at 4:00 am
Kasper Bjørke had a large degree of success as one half of Danish duo Filur. Since splitting with his partner in Filur, Tomas Barford, Kasper has moved on to producing his own material, working for others and managing his own acts – the super-talented Trentemøller and new group Reptile Youth. Despite being so busy he’s managed to record a brand new album, Fool, which I absolutely love so it was only a matter of time before I tracked him for a chat…
By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Saturday, 14 April 2012 at 4:00 am
1Doctor Who ‘The Name of the Doctor’ – Series 7, episode 13
3Dish of the Day: The Reluctant Vegetarian’s recipe for Simple BBQ’d vegetables
4On The Road at the Giro d’Italia: Feeling ill and racing in the rain must be pretty grim
5PSG and the French league must be more proactive in dealing with hooliganism
|
|
