Knopje is a Nijmegen based independent record label focusing on electronic music.
The label has grown considerably since its inception and continues to gain a reputation for unpredictable releases. Knopje has slowly built up a roster it can not only be proud of, but also one genuinely envied by many of its contemporaries.
Artists of the label are Ricardo Tobar, Idiot Idols, Avus, Angelo Battilani, Magic Panda, Van Did, Roi Koch.
Knopje 003 Release date May 12, 2014
Magic Panda - Life is Elsewhere EP
Life is Elsewhere EP is the latest release from Magic Panda aka Jamie Robson, 32 year old producer from Norwich UK and his first release with Dutch indie imprint, Knopje - home to releases by Ricardo Tobar and The Idiot Idols.
 Robson arrived on the electronic music scene in 2011 with his debut EP, The Glass Mountain on Maripoza Records, and in this short time has attracted support from and been playlisted by the likes of Laurent Garnier, Hernan Cattaneo and Max Cooper (whose remix of Magic Panda’s Distant Places skyrocketed to the top of the Beatport electronica charts). In addition to a handful of EPs and remixes, he has developed a club orientated live set and played alongside Luke Abbott, Ricardo Tobar, Mount Kimbie, Portico Quartet and DMX Krew both in the UK and across Europe. His debut album, Temple Of A Thousand Lights was released in June 2013 on Kid606's Tigerbeat6.

This 3 track release sees Magic Panda further evolving his sound and style and in many respects picking up where Temple left off.  
The EP opens with the title track, Life is Elsewhere. Rife with the trademark Magic Panda signatures of melancholic arpeggios, scattergun percussion and intense melodies, Life is Elsewhere is an emotive reflection on existence. 

This is followed up with the more wistful, happy/sad trip of The Floating World.  The Japanese term for 'the floating world' is 'Ukiyo' which refers to the buddhist concept that nothing in life is permanent and that life is made up of fleeting and transient moments of beauty. These themes are explored through the tracks pensive melodies and euphoric choruses.

The EP finishes with the wild and propulsive Maunsell Sea Forts, a track that took inspiration from the haunting robot-like towers whose rusty shells remain in the Thames estuary, looking out to the open sea, and the track takes the form of a sad love poem to the ocean. 

Things are wrapped up nicely with remixes from label boss Roi Koch, with a hypnotic interpretation of Life is Elsewhere and Van Did, who takes The Floating World to a darker, more introspective place. 

www.knopjemusik.com


Maunsell Sea Forts

I've been working on some new music with Tom Hodge, combining piano and electronic elements - the first track preview is below, with the full release coming 20th April.

For this track we made the drums from clanging around inside a broken piano, and then applying some complex editing, so they have an interesting partially live feel, even though rhythmically they are very electronic.

The piano came from a live jam over an initial chord structure, then lots of editing to find that one simple little hook in there. It felt like a reflective piece of music to me, invoking memories, so we chose "remnants". Nick Cobby has taken the concept further with an amazing music video, coming soon!

Pre-order the EP or get Remnants now > http://hyperurl.co/MCartefactEP

Buy Full Length

Remnants - with Tom Hodge - Preview Clip

Empathy Boxes

Limited edition (250 copies worldwide) 12" vinyl.
Includes Sleep Paralysis, Earth Shrine, Dry Sense and Dry Sense II.

Mikron are two English brothers, Michael & Ciaran Corcoran, living in Australia. Following on from their impressive No Correlation EP on The Hacker & Gesaffelstein’s ZONE Records in 2014, Sleep Paralysis brings a level of darkness to the CPU roster we’ve not heard since the likes of Source Direct. Harsh, hard hitting electro bass similar to that of Black Narcissus, overdriven, tape saturated 808 beats, with raw robotic funk leads seemingly conversing throughout.  

Mikron - Sleep Paralysis

Artist – Sync 24 & Silicon Scally
Title – Jack Out EP
Label – Cultivated Electronics 
Format – 12” Vinyl/Digital 
Catalogue Number – CE019
Release Date – June - 2016
Worldwide Distribution - www.clone.nl

Next in CE's colab series Sync 24 teams up with Carl A Finlow under his Silicon Scally moniker. 

Together the pair turn in 4 tracks of Robotic machine funk showing both artists distinct styles as one. 

CE019 - Sync 24 & Silicon Scally - Jack Out EP

SYSTEMATIC SESSION #321 with TERMOMENT

SYSTEMATIC SESSION 321 with TERMOMENT

Artist – Sync 24 x Truss/Radioactive Man/Jensen Interceptor/Steve Allman
Title – 10 Year Electronics
Label – Cultivated Electronics 
Format – 12” Vinyl/Digital 
Catalogue Number – CE020
Release Date – Jan - 2017
Worldwide Distribution - www.clone.nl

A1 - Sync 24 & Truss - Tri-gate
A2 - Sync 24 & Radioactive Man - Eliptical
B1 - Sync 24 & Jensen Interceptor - Wave ID
B2 - Sync 24 & Steve Allman - We Animate 

To celebrate 10 years of Cultivated Electronics and the closing of CE's colaboration series Sync 24 has hooked up with some of the hottest names in Electronic Music to deliver 4 tasty electro cuts.

CE020 - Ten Year Electronics - Sync 24 x Truss/Radioactive Man/Jensen Interceptor/Steve Allman

The Shores Of Hell (Ténébreuse Musique 4000)

Direct Y, aka Fabrizio Rega, has forged a unique musical sound from language of machines. It’s a language the artist knows intricately, translating it for the dystopian club land of Italy through tech-hybrid tracks that range from Electro to four to the floor Techno. Making his initial mark in 2006 with the aptly titled Human Vs Computer, Direct Y cemented the ideas behind his music within the bowels of the no-copyright project, Audioresistance.

It was through this project where his abstract view of the dance floor was first established, taking its cues from the underground rave scene of Rome and classic science fiction novels. Nodezero followed in 2008 and alongside AHK, Direct Y has been using the outlet to deliver the subterranean sounds of Europe’s nightlife to the world including that of the collective’s two remaining members. 

The project, re-launched in 2012 as the independent label Nodezero Electronics, has been a nurturing environment for both AHK and Direct Y, allowing the latter the freedom to mature and develop his artistry since 2012, and leading to the seminal EP, Electric Sheep. 

check out www.nodezero.it 

Direct Y continues to be a staple in Rome’s underground electronic scene while his work persistently finds new avenues of exploration in the realm of the 4/4 beat, decoding the language of machines.