Fortnightly Mix 01

We at AbandonSilence have decreed that due to the mass of songs we receive weekly, we need an outlet to insure that every track reaches your precious eardrums. Thus, we have devised the idea of a fortnightly mix to get every track in.

This series will run alongside current concoctions like the monthly chilled mix and normal posts. Don't worry, all it is is even more music for the masses! Enjoy the inaugral AbandonSilence fortnightly mix here.

AbandonSilence - FortnightlyMix 12 - 26 Jan '10

Tracklist (Under 'Lyrics' if uploaded to iTunes)

Numan - Light

Untold - Never Went Away

Sub Focus - This Could be Real (Joker remix)

Calvin Harris - You Used to Hold Me (Nero Remix)

Flux Pavilion - Got 2 Know

Foreign Beggars & Noisia - Contact (Excision & Datsik remix)

Skream - Listening to the Records on my Wall

These tracks may be reviewed individually in the future, if you would like to see any in particular, comment below and we'll do that for you coz were nice like that.

The Redemption of Flux Pavilion

After the downright rude lambast Flux Pavilion received in a previous post for their track 'Digital Controller', I thought I'd rush out to assure you of this producer's quality. The track in question is titled 'Got2Know'.

The track is very similar to the works of Doctor P, the jump-up Prince to Rusko's King. The sound barrier breaking high shots pummel your eardrums, whilst a lowly drum pattern takes the rest of you with it. I fully recommend anyone serious about their live dubstep to take this, it'll never be on the Pitchfork top 100 but you can guarantee you'll be hearing this out and about in the near future.

Flux Pavilion - Got 2 Know

Bonus: Flux Pavilion & Doctor P - Air Raid

Tonight's Plans

AbandonSilence is now chilling in it's cushy apartment awaiting the evenings event.

Tonight were attending Playdub in Liverpol at The Kazimier. Ive never been to this location so should be an interesting night.

Coki, nu:tone, Cotti and Irration Steppas are playing. Hoping for a good night

DO THE DISHES

After a long few days I'm back with a set of new tunes for your pleasure.

Firstly, I have a new tune from Flux Pavilion, titled 'Digital Controller'. This track is similar to Chase and Status' White Lies remix and the works of Mt Eden Dubstep. The lyrical content is piss-poor, but the music is uplifting and wobbly. The whole rap can be summed up by the line, "Up on your profile page, how many hits can you get today." I am suprised that I would give it the time of day, but the track is so happy and just plain 'nice' that I can't ignore it.

Flux Pavilion - Digital Controller

Joining Flux Pavilion in this countdown will be one of the funniest tracks I've heard in a long time. The track in question is Borgore's 'Act Like a Ho'. The track rolls around with jumping synths accompanied by a light rap by a guy to his girl, and his demands for the bedroom. Then, from nowhere, the track breaks down and it is announced, "But first.. Do The Dishes!" Seriously funny, and also followed by a ridiculously heavy breakdown, which is becoming Borgore's trademark, after tracks like 'Cry me a River' and 'Ice Cream'

Borgore - Act Like a Ho

So now I will leave this post, not for today, just for now. The final track will be Emalkay's 'Angie Got Stoned'. This track is just another feather to Emalkay's very birdlike cap. It takes things a few notches down from 'When I Look At You' and 'Heroics' to a pulsating beat with some beautiful vocals. Give it a go, maybe partake in some activities similar to what happened to 'Angie', nice.

Emalkay - Angie Got Stoned

Potent Clunge

No, this isn't a vitriolic anti-feminist post, but instead a heavily bass-riddled post. I'm sure most of you will agree that that's for the best.

This track comes from SDUK, who first came to AbandonSilence's attention after remixing Emalkay's 'When I Look at You', possibly the original track of 2009. That remix included Ibiza steam guns and added gloss and sheen to a previously dirty and grimey track.

The track at hand is indeed called 'Clunge', I presume named after the Inbetweeners joke. Though without any vocals, it could be called anything I guess.

The track begins slowly, with house style jabbing synths leading off with hard hitting drums. After around a minute the track picks up pace and begins rolling around not too disimilar to Emalkay's track.

This is the first original SDUK track that I have come across and I must say I am quite nonplussed. SDUK clearly where's his influences on his sleeve, which isn't always a bad thing, but the lack of any individuality or anything new forces me to just feel the need to shrug at this track.

However, you may love this track, and you most definitely will enjoy the Emalkay remix (find the original if you don't already have it) so take these on the house, after finding SDUK on Beatport or iTunes of course...

Emalkay - When I Look at You (SDUK Remix)

SDUK - Clunge

Dubstep in HD

If youve ever been interested as to what a real dubstep night is like, check these videos. These videos are from nights in Toronto, and have been filmed by a genius named Matt. Filmed in what looks like HD, these videos have the best sound and video quality I have seen anywhere.

There are more videos on mattmtoronto's Youtube site, including Joker, Caspa, Rusko, Bassnectar and Skream. Please do yourself a favour and check them ALL out.

mattmtoronto's Youtube page

Th Hngvr

Just been spending my morning recovering from a rather horrific hangover, so thought I'd take it down a few notches and give you lucky people a few new tunes designed for mornings like my current one...

Sbtrkt. No, it's not a typo, though he should really tell someone that some knob's robbed all his vowels. Anyway, this producer is crafting their own unique sound using old half-step, almost garage styles (a contradiction in terms, but stay with me). Their epic 7 minute remix of Goldie's Timeless has been on repeat for me throughout this painful morning.

The indispersed chopped vocal track recalls the works of the anonymous Burial for there sparse nature, and the drumtrack is also quite similar. However, Timeless is most unashamedly old school that this could've easily come out on an old garage dubplate in the late '90s, such is it's, ahem, Timeless nature.

Keeping it at 140bpm, Sbtrkt has created something that could be played at any time. The song is strikingly beautiful yet intimidatingly dark all at the same time, the vocal track gives extra dimensions to what is a quite simple but always evolving drum track.

I must send all my gratitude to Sbtrkt for helping to soothe my hellish headache ahead of a fun-filled day of lectures followed by a spontaneously planned but nevertheless sure-to-be-great trip into Wales later tonight.

(apologies for any made up words in this post, I really do have a horrible hangover and not really in the mood for spellchecking or dictionary searching.)

Sbtrkt - Timeless Edit

Chibuku Tickets Released

Just ordered Chibuku 10th Birthday tickets.

Despite the fact that no one has been announced I am relying solely upon past experiences.

I severely recommend anyone within walking, driving or flying distance of Liverpool on March 13th to head to www.chibuku.com/shop and get your cheaper Early Bird Ticket while they're available.

MIA vs Rusko

Exciting times, as AbandonSilence is proud to share new MIA material with you. The inaugral six posts on AbandonSilence were dubstep related, and this is no different, as the unexpected producer is... Rusko!

Did you see that coming? Well we most certainly didn't.

The track itself is very different from our man Rusko's previous efforts. He really appears to have adapted to the surroundings very well. The backing track is tribal, glitchy, grimey and bassy at the same time?!

This track will apparently be appearing on MIA's forthcoming currently untitled second album, and going by this MIA may have done the unthinkable task of actually topping Kala.

MIA - There's Space for Ol Dat I See (prod by Rusko)

Artist Profile: Eskmo

As we approach a new decade, it is important to analyse which new artists and producers will be taking a stake of the limelight over the coming months and years.

Eskmo, aka Brendan Angelides, hails from San Francisco and is a glitch and dubstep producer.

Eskmo’s rise to musical peerdom has taken a very similar path to that of the UK’s most popular dubstep demon; Skream. Both have been producing for just over 10 years and have inexhaustibly spread their musical wings over many different genres and styles before both falling into dubstep.

Eskmo's most high profile releases, as with most electronic music producers, is his collection of remixes. A body of work including mixes for Radiohead, Bar9 and Gella have helped to raise Eskmo’s profile.

Though, to really see the man’s personal style, you must experience his own original works. He has released four EP’s to date, with each release garnering more and more recognition. His most recent release, the “Let Them Sing” EP, is a fantastic summation of all that is fantastic about this young producer.

On the title track, a childish keyboard intro leads skilfully via an auto-tuned vocal into a distorted rumbling tribal beat. Eskmo’s influences are instantly recognisable, you could easily see this track fitting comfortably in the surroundings of “Los Angeles” or “Butter.”

Other Eskmo tracks such as “Agnus Dei” contain ruthless Bass distortions that spitfire along the low ends until you are feeling numb. However, light and fluorescence is abundant throughout Eskmo’s output, with vocals, synths and tribal patterns used to add depth and colour to his music.

Eskmo is available at www.myspace.com/eskmo and iTunes. Below are a few tracks for your listening pleasure. AbandonSilence severely recommend that you check out this producer while he’s still fresh.

Eskmo - Let Them Sing

Eskmo - Agnus Dei

Bar 9 - Murda Sound (Bar9 remix)

Zomby vs Skream... Finally?!

Ever since hearing this back in November when I saw Skream at Chibuku I have been scouring the web for this track. Finally through the magic of a 'Free mp3s but please buy a Ringtone' website, AbandonSilence have been able to bring this to you.

The combination of Skream and Zomby is just too good to be true. I absolutely love the original track, Float, and Skream's remix track record is unrivalled in the dubstep world. Skream's remix of La Roux's 'In For The Kill' went platinum, and fully rubber-stamped dubstep in the consciousness of the UK masses.

The original track, Float, is one of the highlights of Zomby's "Where Were U in '92" LP, so the task of adding to the song through a remix certainly is a tall one. Skream, at over 6 feet, is a tall man, so few worries. He adds even more piano, even more synths, even more high hats and adds a little extra tempo. There really is so much going on, but I guess you would call it Controlled Chaos.

I know this track was first heard in 2009, but at AbandonSilence it is our track of 2010 so far.

Zomby - Float
Zomby - Float (Skreamix) .. 128kbps sorry

Mad Decent vs Gucci Mane

Diplo has used his power as boss of fast-growing label Mad Decent to create a free mixtape of Gucci Mane remixes, called Free Gucci: Best of the Cold War Mixtapes.

Artists ranging from average at best (DZ, SALEM) to the truly genius (FlyLo, Zomby) appear to give Gucci's tracks an electronic jolt.

The competition for the mixtape's greatest contribution is a straight tie between remixes by Zomby and Flying Lotus.

Zomby is an artist that I rate very highly, "Where Were You in '92" was one of the best albums released in 2009. He will come under the AbandonSilence spotlight in a future post. His track features suppressed vocals partnered with trademark high hats and skittling synths. It really is an excellent creation that does seem out of place surrounded by these run-of-the-mill remixes.

Photo Shoot is a very average Flying Lotus track, but in this habitat, it stands out like a sore thumb.

I've actually met FlyLo on a particularly messy night, all I could muster was a stuttered "I loved Los Angeles mate, favourite album of the year," Then got the really embarassing picture below.

You can tell that this is a mixtape, however, as you get further along the tracklist. The final three tracks feature some rather patchwork sampling and some lyrical nightmares. "I'm The Shit" is a useful piece of evidence for anyone arguing why people in their right mind should give gangster hip-hop a very wide berth. Some terrible lyrics, the worst hookline, the worst chorus, "I'm the Shit bitch, I'm the Shit bitch, look at my bitch, damn." Yeah, that is the chorus.

Overall, this is an excellent publicity stunt, with some great tracks being created as a result. However, it is so blatant from the first listen that this is just a mixtape.

The album is available to download in it's entirety from the Mad Decent website, but if you just want the good stuff, take these on the house.

Boi (Zomby Mixtape) - Gucci Mane

Photo Shoot (Flying Lotus Remix) - Gucci Mane


Abandon Silence

Gorestep

This is a new area of dubstep that I am quite intrigued by. It has come under several other terms, deathstep and transformerstep to name a couple.

It could easily be seen the same to Electronic music that Rage Against the Machine are to Rock. The extreme violence of Rage's lyrics are here translated to brooding bass and their furious guitar riffs are translated to lashings of heavy wobbles. Due to these similarities Gorestep has become a popular area of dubstep as metal and rock fans can relate to it.

However, it does have some big problems. The tracks are, as previously suggested, chaos. Due to this lack of rules and boundaries it appears that anyone with Ableton or Fruity Loops has decided that they can do it. Some tracks I have heard from this genre are literally painful to listen to. The problem I see is that these pretenders could potentially ruin the reputation of the genre.

Artists such as Excision, Datsik and Trolley Snatcha are commanders of this area. Their heavy music is a new area of dubstep that is slowly gaining momentum and recognition.

Trolley Snatcha - We Rock the Forest 

Excision & Datsik - Invaders

Joker - City Hopper 12"

Bristolian Dubstep Icon Joker returns with the release of a new double A side, City Hopper/ Output 1-2.

City Hopper is another track to go alongside Digidesign, Grimey Princess and Purple City as Joker's best work. The steppin' drum beat is complemented by a trademark synth roll that is ridiculously infectious.

Output 1-2 is the Brother of an older Joker track, Zariak. For over a minute and a half the song seems to be going no where. A simple dubstep drumbeat is complemented by playfully spontaneous synths. Then from nowhere a subtly introduced extra synth rolls in, flitting in and out of the constant heavy bass synth-drumbeat to crescendo towards a the huge climax.

The songs on here are undoubtedly top quality, there is no doubting. Joker is one young producer to keep your eyes on, with rumours of an LP in the works, AbandonSilence predicts a very bright 2010 for this man.

AbandonSilence

AbandonSilence Jan '10 mix

Hello there,

As we see the never ending 'Big Freeze' take hold of the UK, I have created AbandonSilence to share my music and views with you.

Unless you hadn't noticed, this is AbandonSilence's first ever post. To set the ball rolling I'll share with you my own personal mix.

This mix was created last week for a personal project, though I have received such positive feedback that I felt it was right to share it with you.

AbandonSilence Chilled Mix Jan '10

Tracklist
Nosaj Thing - Fog
The XX - Intro (Quix remix)
Burial - Fostercare
Joy Orbison - Wet Look
Nosaj Thing - Forever (Drake Remix)
Pariah - Under the Sheets (Ellie Goulding Remix)
Burial - U Hurt Me
Joy Orbison - Hyph Mngo