Tonights Plans

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James Blake: An Interview

Abandon Silence would like to wish a huge thank you to everyone that attended our show last Thursday at The Shipping Forecast in Liverpool. It was an absolutely huge success, with James Blake's headline set striking such a precedent for this Autumn that it is hard to imagine anyone beating it. Further thanks are given to our fantastic residents, Rich Furness and Horza, who once again absolutely killed The Shipping Forecast. Their opposing styles but awesome DJ skills make them residents that we are very proud to call our own. Guest KillaHurtz also deserves special mention for working through the tough test of following on from James Blake, which he handled superbly.

Luckily we were able to catch a few words with the man himself about the release of his new EP, Klavierwerke, out on R & S Records on the 10th October. It is pretty interesting to see his views on his own categorisation and the motives behind some of his decisions. We have also been able to, via FactMag, include audio of the title track of the new EP. I hope you enjoy, here is a picture of me looking very smug with James Blake, plus a few nice pictures from the evening below. To see all 129 pictures taken by the brilliant Robert Keith Seeley, click here.

So, here goes...

Abandon Silence (AS) : First and foremost, did you enjoy your Liverpool debut last Thursday? The Abandon Silence crowd seemed to really enjoy your set.

James Blake (JB) : I loved it yeah. It was nice to make my Liverpool debut and was chuffed at how open minded and nice people were, before during and after the set.

AS: We are fast approaching the release of your second EP with R&S records, titled Klavierwerke. How does this EP differ from any of your previous releases?

JB: I started to use my vocals (albeit in adulterated forms) a bit more candidly on this EP, so I feel a really strong connection with the music. Secondly, the piano samples are from the same recordings, not separated but equally bastardised and manipulated. I fell in love with the sound of the piano again on this EP, but this time in an electronic context.

AS: When you approached the creation of the Klavierwerke EP, which records/artists influenced you? Are these the same artists that influenced all of your work so far?

JB: I think the track that brought me to this new sound was 'Baves Chords' by mount kimbie, and possibly certain beatless burial tracks. I wrote Klavierwerke in a slightly different headstate, with memories of Berghain fresh in my mind.

AS: Klavierwerke is your second release with R&S records, as you help with it's remarkable re-emergence. What attracted you to work with them? Im sure there were other offers..

JB: The two EP's are so different that it takes a label like R&S, with their huge range of output, to release them consecutively without hesitation. I was excited to work with them because they've been reborn, and their reputation precedes them. Their audience base is also really diverse, which means it's reaching people that might not otherwise have heard it. I'm good friends with all the labels i've released on and I send them all my new stuff, so it's a matter of where it fits really.


AS: How did it feel to have your first full solo EP release, CMYK, given universal acclaim by critics? Had you expected it?

JB: I just wanted to make a track that brought out the euphoria i'd experienced listening to pangaea and joy orbison sets, and in doing so I made something that took on a life of it's own.. A while later it was incredibly surreal to hear it on Radio 1 and the like, but then the day i'm not suprised, humbled and delighted by people liking my music might be a very sad day.

AS: On the tracks that you have released, there has been a great variety in moods and atmospheres. Do you pick and choose your styles from production to production, or is it just natural?

JB: It sounds obvious but whatever I'm feeling at the time should be captured, or I'm doing something dishonest. Therefore the atmosphere is always changing and my music (like life) goes through phases.

AS: You appear to have been placed into the 'dubstep' genre. With such a difference between your music and the productions of other 'dubstep' artists such as, say, Borgore, how does it feel to be categorised side by side with such opposing sounds?

JB: I like to think I placed myself in the dubstep genre. When I started doing it I was listening to Mala, Coki and later Mount Kimbie, none of which are really categorised side by side with people like Borgore. I'm happy to play nights alongside people like Borgore because for me, opposing sounds make interesting nights, and make it easier for my music to have a clear shot at the runway.

AS: Finally, I ask all artists that I interview this question, which three records are you loving right now?

JB:
Joanna Newsom - Have One On Me
Tallest Man on Earth - The Wild Hunt
An unnamed dub by Blawan who released on Hessle, and who is one of my favourite new producers


Finally we would like to thank James wholeheartedly for being an excellent guest at Abandon Silence last Thursday. It was a huge success and was most certainly memorable in part for his epic set.


James Blake - Klavierwerke (128) by factmag

Thursday Night

In one last shameful plug for the club night, here once again are the details, along with some very nice tunes from the headliner himself, James Blake.

Abandon Silence 02

Thursday 23rd September 10pm - 3am at The Shipping Forecast, Slater St, Liverpool.

James Blake

KillaHurtZ

Rich Furness

Horza

£5 advanced tickets available at http://www.skiddle.com/events/11386301/

£6 on the door

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=117813361604398&ref=mf

Please come along and show your support. I am trying to push something fresh for Liverpool and have some killer line ups planned before Xmas so get involved now!

James Blake - CMYK by S>A

James Blake - Measurements by user39221

James Blake - CMYK by Nubs

White Russia

Ill be honest with you, one of the oddest things to happen since creating this blog has been the endless stream of emails I receive about new bands/DJs/producers. At the start, I thought this was excellent, getting told about new artists all the time. However, after a while it gets quite grating hearing the same music over and over again in (VERY) varied quality.

I do listen to all of the emails I receive, thought to be honest most don't fit with what I'm after. However, I recently got an email about White Russia, a new band from South London who are apparently influenced by Bjork and Depeche Mode. I would not usually be interested in this style of music, but one particular track I was linked was just superb.

The Solution has a slow burning intro, with some great vocals. At around the 1:20 mark the bass and percussion kick in to create a fantastic crescendo. This track is excellent, I recommend that you check these guys out while they're fresh...

http://www.myspace.com/whiterussiamusic

White Russia - The Solution by White Russia

Pariah - Safehouses EP : A Review

I apologise for the recent lack of posts, the impact of running the club night has affected all aspects of my life, with the blog one of many things having to take a step back. However, despite the rigours of organising these nights, I have still been downloading a steady stream of new music - undeniably most of it isn't that great, with many tracks being deleted almost as soon as Ive got them on my iTunes, but still every now and then something just blows me away.

The track(s) in question come from Pariah. I have been clucking for his Safehouses EP since it was first announced back in July, and I finally copped a digital version via eMusic earlier today. The EP is just deliriously beautiful, with some hip hop, 2step and dubstep thrown into a very classy mixing pot. I have decided to ditch the usual brief review style and I will administer a thorough seeing to to each of the six tracks to be found on the EP. Partly because I cannot pick a single track that deserves special mention. (and also that I am back at Uni next week and need to get back into writing.)

So, here goes....

First track The Slump is a delicious little slice, with some great spindley percussion building towards an undoubtedly Untold influenced bass lead drop. It is really a very sparse affair for the opening, before a cascade of percussion, synths and vocals come to join in. The track is an excellent opener for the EP, setting such a quality that the other tracks fight to keep up with.

The Slump is quickly followed by Prism, which begins as your typical 130 banger. However, at around 90 seconds in, the track takes on a different form and evolves into a slow build featuring some epically peaceful chopped and looped vocals, which cascade throughout the peaceful beat, leading to a final breakdown featuring the previously mentioned 130 beats, which are suddenly a lot more bearable. Possible EP highlight, this could go on to rival Joy Orbison as a crossover into DJ sets in almost any genre.

Railroad, the third track on Safehouses, greets us with a subtly complicated 2step vocal led introduction. A very crafty drum build is flitted in and out of the beat, giving the impression of some 'Filth' drop is around the corner. Thankfully that is just a phase and it all collapses into some very James Blake styled majoratively synth based 2step. A very dreamy track, the 2step really compliments the vocals and layered synths, creating probably the most atmospheric track here.

Crossed Out is another track around the 130 bpm area, with a similar style to the opening/closing beat from The Slump evident throughout. Despite my seemingly negative approach to it's pressence in The Slump, in the habitat created by Pariah in this track, the fast paced beat seems right at home here. There are some teasing vocals that are dispersed across the song, and also some great side partings of ambience that recall the opening of Joy Orbison's 2009 classic Hyph Mngo, before resuming back into the very choppy vocals. Easiest description would be a funky update of last EP highlight, Orpheus, however I feel that it required a more in depth description.

With the penultimate track, C Beams, Pariah takes us on a musical journey to FlyLo, Dilla, Madlib via his own track, Detroit Falls and Bristolian Joker. The vast drop in bpm is noticeable, but not worried about, some very Zomby-like skittley jabbing synths carry the expansive beat along it's path. Some wailing vocals are welcomed to bring some light to this increasingly dark track, before some Balam Acab style bass jumps are stabbed in. The purple sounding synths seem to work so well at this speed, that it is a wonder that Joker, Peverelist or Pinch haven't considered attempting this. (If they have and Ive missed it, apologies.) The pianos that introduce the track are worthy of making this track on a par with Prism as the EP highlights.

The final cut, Safehouses, is a beatless wonder. With no discernable drum beat to follow, a lot of responsibility is placed upon the ambience and atmosphere that Pariah is able to muster. This skill was sublimely done by Skream on his recent LP opener, Perforated. This song most reminds me of the sea. I know that appears to be some pretentious arty thing to say, but it really does. The waves of reverb that loop are sublime, creating an emotional soundscape. To say that this track really doesn't switch or drop or change in all of its 4 minutes and 11 seconds without me getting even slightly bored, is a testament in itself to the production skills of Pariah.

So, R&S continue their 100% record with UK bass music since their relaunch in 2008. After getting releases from Pariah and James Blake, they firmly have their finger on the pulse of UK Electronic music. This EP should make a name out of Pariah. If DJs are willing to give his tracks a go, I believe that certainly Prism should become a danceflooor hit. If not, Pariah will still have his own supporters who will stay faithful as long as he continues to bring such amazing music to our ears.

RS1005 - Pariah - Safehouses by R & S Records

Fresh James Blake! Thank God!

Via James Blake's Facebook profile....

James Blake Coming soon --> Klavierwerke EP on R&S Records --> 27/09/10

Some fantastic news there from James Blake, I've been eagerly awaiting some fresh material from him - CMYK was too much too soon, its been hard trying to handle these last few months with no fresh Blake to live by. Luckily, I also found this fresh slice of goodness when perusing Soundcloud.

More in a vocal direction, as it is thought his forthcoming LP will be, I Never Learnt to Share is just simply astounding. With some great jazz/soul vocals from the man himself, musically it appears to be similar to CMYK for it's desserted and chopped approach, until a majorly heavy drop comes out of the blue at 1:28. Pure screechy fire from James Blake, something I really thought I would never say. However, he still manages to keep it subtly original and recognisable as his own production by keeping half time switches and some great strings. I cannot recommend this enough, and while your listening, why not book tickets to see him live at Abandon Silence 02 this September in Liverpool?

ps This is in no way a plug for the show, this tune is just plain incredible and HAD to be shared.

James Blake - I never learnt to Share by spacehappens

Abandon Silence Autumn Dates

Abandon Silence 02

Thursday 23rd September

JAMES BLAKE -- hessle/hemlock/r&s
KillaHurtZ -- naiive/foul play
Horza -- squiggles
Rich Furness -- chibuku


£5 tickets at http://www.skiddle.com/events/11386301/
£6 on the door


join the guestlist at http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=117813361604398&ref=mf

Abandon Silence Presents... ink at CHIBUKU

Saturday 9th October

RAMADANMAN -- hessle
Horza -- squiggles
Kidheader -- ampersand
Grandav -- yam yams

also performing in different rooms are Shy FX, High Contrast, Andy C, Nero and Netsky to name a few.

join the guestlist and buy tickets at http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=142183352486640&ref=ts

Abandon Silence 03 - Saturation Point non-Dubstep night

Thursday 28th October

MOUNT KIMBIE -- hotflush
Rich Furness -- chibuku
Horza (Grime set)-- squiggles
Dalema (Hip Hop set) -- sessions

£6 tickets available at http://www.skiddle.com/events/11389605/
£7 on the door

Abandon Silence 04 - End of Year/ 21st Celebrations

Thursday 25th November


BREAKAGE -- digital soundboy
special guest tba
Rich Furness -- chibuku
Horza -- squiggles


tickets available OCTOBER

Chibuku vs Abandon Silence

Abandon Silence is proud to announce the second of our Autumn dates, as we host the INK room at Chibuku on October the 9th.

Playing will be the owner of the best name in music, Ramadanman, with local support from the ever present Horza, Irishman Kidheader and weird Brummy Grandav (2nd best name in music definitely Dav).

With other rooms at Chibuku hosting sets from High Contrast, Nero, Andy C and Shy FX, its set to be a memorable one. To celebrate this huge evening of events, Kidheader has put together a mix exclusively for Abandon Silence. Taking in massive dubstep from Tek One, reggae vibes from the fantastic Babylon System and some very nice chilled vibes from Breakage, this is a great exhibition for Kidheader's DJ skills.

Check it out, then come along on the 9th October and see him live. Link for more details forthcoming, but for now see all the Chibuku Autumn listings here.

Kid Header Abandon Silence Mix by Kid Header on Mixcloud

TICKETS OUT NOW

After previously revealing the line up details for Abandon Silence 02, we are happy to give you a link so you can bag yourself some tickets.

To repeat ourselves, the line up is:

JAMES BLAKE - hessle audio/R&S/hemlock

KillaHurtZ - foul play

Rich Furness - Chibuku

Horza - Squiggles

tickets available by clicking right where this text is...

Lil Wayne - A Milli (James Blake Harmonimix) by KaL!

James Blake - Footnotes by subraw

Celebratory Post.

I must congratulate each and every one of you that came on to check out my review of Skream's album, Outside the Box. It has been by far the best received post on the blog, with over a thousand hits coming in the first day. I am very proud of the review, despite it's brief nature, and it is still on the first page of Google when you search for 'Skream Outside the Box review' - I am immensely proud.

So, back to the music. I have today completed my resit exams for Uni as I have been a dunce. Despite the boring revision riddled last week, one track has held me together. I know very little about this guy, just that he was in NME about 2 months ago and I took no notice, then I caught a listen in a live set by Mount Kimbie and my jaw dropped. This track is just huge, listen to it, find it, buy it.

Jai Paul -BTSU (stream)Jai Paul - BTSTU Master 06 01 10 320k by Jai Paul

Skream - Outside The Box: A Review

Today I have decided to put together a brief review of Skream's new LP, Outside the Box. Please forgive me for the rather small review, I am meant to be revising for a resit next week! I hope you agree with my opinions, but if you don't, please give your reasons in the comments box at the bottom.

The album itself comes out this Monday, the 9th August, on Tempa Recordings. It is a fantastic LP, taking in many different styles and genres on it's way. As I am trying to keep it brief, I have just given a small review of each individual track.

Perforated

Despite having no discernible beat to it, the popping synths and mountains of reverb make this an emotional introduction.

8 Bit Baby (featuring Murs)

Nice light production, but is really let down by the vocals.

“Guess who came through the front door bangin//

one leg up on the speaker nuts hangin... danglin.”

Err.. I guess it is quite fitting that the weak point of the whole album is a guest appearance.

CPU

Real grower. On first listen appears immature and underdeveloped. When given further attention, however, you see past the incessant vocals and begin to admire the ebbs and flows of the track. Some old school Nintendo sounding keys are subtly brilliant as well

Where You Should Be (featuring Sam Frank)

My personal favourite track. Great sub bass punches every 4 bars aide the tracks introduction before the vocoded voice of Sam Frank punctures the beautiful instrumental. Purple vibes run throughout, counter acted by some pretty deep vocals, the track has the emotion and epic nature to push it beyond anything else on the LP.

How Real (featuring Freckles)

Again some vocoded vocals. Not as great as the previous track, but still huge. The crashing cymbals transport the track along it's duration, with some key synths and subs joining in to herald each passing chorus. The chopped vocals on the chorus are superb as well.

Fields of Emotion

A trade mark Skream dancefloor smash. Quite simple production is used to great effect, minimal percussion that take a back step for the synths and heavy stabs of 'wobble bass.' Just wait for the final drop, the reverbed wobbles are just fantastic.

I Love The Way

The most 'commercial' track on the record, to say it reminds of Labrinth's production could be taken as a positive or negative. An un-attributed vocal, I presume a sample, is used to great effect in 'I Love the Way'. Some brooding synths and a nice breakbeat bring the track along to an epic dnb style crescendo that is well worth the wait.

Listenin’ To The Records On My Wall

We all know this track, the Amen loops and great 'Midnight Request Line' style delays. It's a great club track that would get almost any crowd going.

Wibbler

The hardest track on the record. Constant metallic 'wobbles' accompanied by hard hitting drum patterns force the track on. Subtle alterations in chord and tempo keep you guessing and keep you interested.

Metamorphosis

At 85 BPM, this is another Autonomic style production, similar to Reflections. The track begins some different and intriguing drum patterns joined by rumbling sub bass before at around 90 seconds a great swirling synth track and slight 'wobbles' slide in to create a great concoction of noise that Skream does very well to handle.

Finally (featuring La Roux)

Skream received quite heavy flak from other blogs for this track when it leaked recently, I disagree. In my opinion the vocals fit superbly with the track. Her high pitched calls fit very nicely with Skream's forboding and quite stripped production.

Reflections (featuring D:Bridge & Instra:Mental)

As with Acacia Avenue (No.3 on our Tracks of the Year so far), Skream brings in D:Bridge and Instra:Mental to help with the production. Some fantastic breakdowns and interesting drum patterns as usual from the Autonomic crew.

A Song For Lenny

Very similar to the opening track, with some nice keys and strings, again a very emotional track. Ties in with Perforated to create what I'd call the logical end of the album...

The Epic Last Song

Hearing this track I had the impression that A Song for Lenny was originally the conclusion to the record, but I guess Skream opted to end with an upbeat banger. I kept that belief as the track rattles along, appearing to go nowhere until around the 2:30 mark it breaks down and begins a build up to an epic and fitting finale to the record.

Skream - Where You Should Be Ft. Sam Frank by iroel

Skream - Finally feat. La Roux by bissnyytaa

Questions...

I am more excited for this film than any other, does that make me a geek?

One to Watch: MyCassetteTapes

Today AbandonSilence introduces a brand new and fresh artist to you, his name is 'My Cassette Tapes.' All I know about this guy is that he is called Andrew Bowers and he is from Manchester, England. Also I know that this track is just epic! (Wait for 2 mins 30. PURE FIRE!)

The Gunman by MyCassetteTapes