Techno pioneer Kevin Saunderson talks about Inner City’s return to the Future

Kevin Saunderson was there in Detroit right at the birth of techno, as part of the Belleville Three with schoolmates Juan Atkins and Derrick May he’s credited with helping to create the genre. Going on to form Inner City, who had huge commercial success with the timeless tracks Good Life and Big Fun, Kevin has worked consistently in the years since techno was born – making electronic music and DJing/touring around the globe. Still one of the scene’s most revered and respected proponents, Kevin has reunited with the crew from Inner City to release some new material – several years after their last outing.

By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Friday, 27 January 2012 at 3:43 pm

John Talabot: I could go three days without leaving the house

They say that house is a feeling. To John Talabot, however, it is many. Over the past two years, the Barcelona based producer has assembled a number of loopy, sample heavy and effusive house productions for labels like Munich’s Permanent Vacation, as well as his own boutique outlet, Hivern Discs. They are tracks that take cues from all over but pay homage to no one scene or sound in particular: they aren’t deep house, they aren’t underground pop, they aren’t futuristic nor revivalist, but somehow Talabot’s sounds tick all those boxes (and more) simultaneously.

By Kristan J Caryl | Arts, Film, Music | Friday, 27 January 2012 at 12:00 am

Anja Schneider talks about juggling motherhood with being a DJ and label head

Being a mother can be difficult at the best of times, especially if you’re juggling motherhood with a career. Anja Schneider is a Berlin-based DJ who also helms techno label Mobilee, she fell pregnant in late 2010 and gave birth to her son in August last year. Bearing this in mind, I wondered how becoming a mother affected her lifestyle, which, as a touring DJ and label head, was about as busy and hectic as one could imagine. She kindly took some time out to speak exclusively about being a mum and the effect it’s had on her life.

By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Tuesday, 24 January 2012 at 10:00 am

Dan O’Connell: I genuinely miss
 great music TV

“Does filming a TV show here a new music show at Red Bull Studios sound like something you’d be interested in?”

By Dan OConnell | Arts, Music | Monday, 23 January 2012 at 12:38 pm

DJ Q: Bassline’s breaking through even more than when it was commercially successful

“Now this whole UK Bass thing is kicking off, I think bassline’s in a really good place,” DJ Q says, “Even though a lot of the original people involved with bassline don’t seem to care for it anymore.”

By Sam Moir | Arts, Music | Monday, 23 January 2012 at 10:19 am

Darren Hayman: Hefner were the best band, but you can’t go back

Darren Hayman rose to prominence in the UK indie scene throughout the 1990s. He was the key member of the band Hefner, which unfortunately split up in 2002 after ten years of making music. After the band disbanded, he released an enormous amount of LPs and EPs under his own name, sometimes accompanied by his band, The Secondary Modern.His discography is phenomenally large for anyone, totalling 69 records! His unique brand of lo-fi music is a brilliant accompaniment to his ironic, yet deep, lyrics.

By Jay Platt | Arts, Music | Saturday, 21 January 2012 at 11:05 am

Belfast producer Bubba on the music scene in Northern Ireland’s capital

Across the Irish Sea it’s usually Dublin that gets a lot of shine for its party scene whereas Northern Ireland is slightly overlooked, even though it has a lot to offer. One Belfast native who has become hot property in recent times is Bubba – his bass-heavy track Dance With Me made a lot of noise last year and was picked up by the much-lauded Hot Creations stable.

By Marcus Barnes | Arts, Music | Friday, 20 January 2012 at 1:15 pm

Difficult second album? More like difficult third

The problem of the ‘difficult’ second album has long been a part of musical lore, but in reality, it’s the third album that’s the real challenge.

Break-out bands of the last 10 years have all more or less been good for two LPs, beginning with a fresh but under-developed sound and then experimenting with production and complexity on their second.

By Oscar Williams-Grut | Arts, Music | Friday, 20 January 2012 at 9:41 am

L-Vis 1990: MySpace, Night Slugs and a secret collaboration

A lot of people claim to break the rules when describing their musical exploits, yet Night Slugs co-founder L-Vis 1990 has released a string of limit-free club tracks which are truly doing things a bit differently. Last year’s ‘Neon Dreams’ album melded nostalgic traces of Chicago house with a hint of pop to great effect and just before Bugged Out Weekender, we caught up to have a brief chat.

By Errol Anderson | Arts, Music | Thursday, 19 January 2012 at 2:25 pm

Hip hop has come full circle – it’s pure Logic

It was always going to happen. UK hip hop, has been suffering from an affliction. For too long it has come to be characterised by, the negative image and reputation left by corporate boardrooms and their marketing strategies. Of late though, UK hip hop has seen something of a renaissance.

By Richard Sudan | Arts, Music | Thursday, 19 January 2012 at 10:45 am