We are selectors Vol. 4 - Nico Lahs (Italy)

In anticipation of his upcoming record "Step Into The Future" we are thrilled to have Nico Lahs deliver a super deep moody mix that includes a couple tracks off his Selections debut! Pre order your copy Today!

https://www.juno.co.uk/products/nico-lahs-step-into-the-future-ep/875896-01/

We are selectors Vol. 4 - Nico Lahs

In the ever-expanding search for good electronic belters, we went into building a bridge between two continents responsible for so many good artists in the last few decades, with some of them being true legends of the house sound. From Detroit to Napoli and Marseille. From Zurich and Bari to Chicago. Ladies and gentlemen, this is 'Bridges: An American - European Dance Connection'

What better way to open the various release than with Chicago's immortal Boo Williams. 'Real Time' is a power tool bearing Boo's known sound signature with dance floor rhythmics and some creamy melodies throughout the track.

Rick The Godson Wilhite's & Jon Easley's A2 'Mental Feelings' brings those irresistible Detroit pads layered over subtle bassline and occasional percussions. Although the track keeps a constant course, it is still multi-layered and emotion-provoking.

Blooming synth pieces played over dry drums and with good momentum is just what you would expect from another of Chicago's finest - Gene Hunt. His B1 'Space Relm' delivers a fast-paced flow with beautiful and crafty breaks in between.

B2 'Escape Two', the '90s sound tour de force. Dan Piu manages to capture the pure ambience of that era in this multi-styled late-night belter. From baseline to synths, the track is constantly progressing
and shifting through dark and moody segments. Good stuff.

If we wouldn't know better, C1 'Tribute To The Sound' would probably be acknowledged as a work of some Detroit head, but no. This beautiful tune is a work of Marseille-based Life Recorder. Truly specific Detroit House vibe in this one. Ironically, perfect puzzle for the Bridges release.

Tribal atmospheric dirtiness on C2 'The Deep(5 am)' signed by Bari's Nu-Cleo sounds pretty simple on the outside, but at its core, it carries a strong bond between bassline, rhythm and pads. Swimming into summer sunset the track is filled with gold deepness and organic hits.

D1 'Surface' by Nemanja Krstic is a perfect warmer for any occasion. Late afternoon or early morning you name it. What gives this track a special vibe is its unfiltered raw sound which forms a beautiful fusion with deep sequences. The beach is calling. 

D2 "P.C.M. (Parthenope City Music)" is a pure definition of a catchy loop segment. The soulful guitar segment is soon joined with a dancefloor bassline and lush hats only to be pushed into playful intermission picking up the speed and once more pulling it back into that sweet segment. Enchanting tune by The Mechanical Man!

C1 Life Recorder - Tribute To The Sound [Snippet]

This month Fortresses was back with 60 minutes of Ambient, Experimental and drone. Follow the journey with tracks from Neon Hotel to Patricia Wolf and ﻿Rafael Anton Irisarri.

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Equinox w/ Fortresses - October 2022

www.facebook.com/zansika.lachhani
www.facebook.com/grantdjgrant
www.facebook.com/scissor.and.thread.nyc/ 
www.instagram.com/scissorandthread/ 
www.youtube.com/user/ScissorAndThread

ZG is the moniker of London based Zansika Lachhani and Grant (aka Anthony Collins, and the Tony in Frank & Tony). The concept  was borne out of a connection online, as Grant and Zan connected on Soundcloud, both independently vibing off each other's music and approach to their art. 
 
In 2018 they began to work together, developing a number of tracks but eventually parking the project as other life commitments got in the way. Fast forward to 2021, while clearing out old harddrives, Grant rediscovered the recordings and was blown away by the music already put down. Together they began to rework and develop the project further, resulting in a blindingly beautiful  seven track LP. 
 
Opener Jungle Times sets the scene, an atmospheric dreamy opening giving way to an idiosyncratic breakbeat and whispered vocals from Zan, setting the tone perfectly, floating the sound equally between London and New York styles. Following it up is the enigmatic Roll of Thunder, drawing its power broken beat patterns, deep and soulful strings and washes reminiscent of 4Hero in their prime. 
When Young also brings a jazz aesthetic to the fore, with upfront drums and Rhodes chords washing over in melodic bliss. Ombre starts with a thick bassline and urgent synth stabs before developing into a tripped-out groove, layered with thick synth lines and subtle harmonic touches. Similarly, Aura uses some of the same sound palette as well with touches of guitars and more sparking pads creating an uplifting yet melancholic journey. The first real vocal arrives with the penultimate track Dog Days, dreamily layered over  beautifully evolving synth washes and skittering beats. By the time Drift Out arrives to usher in the last act of this exceptional LP, we are on cloud nine.

Aura

ZG - Aura

1. MJ Cole - Cathedral - Madrugada
2. Boxwork - London - Heading North
3. Dan Piu - Isolation - Tru Time And Ages
4. Boxwork - Junction Spray - Heading North
5. Brad P - Time Flow - Late Night Journeys - Moto Music
6. Paul David Gillman - Red Earth pt 2 - Colours Of The Earth LP 
7. Slam Mode - Atmospheric Mix - Spiritual Life Music
8. Laak - Light Winds - Austere Recordings
9. Jay Sound - Differences - Salon
10. Kevin Reynolds - Riverfront - Yoruba
11. Damar Davis - Gym - Haus
12. Derek Carr - Ceres Station - Guardians Of A Kids Society
13. Dan Piu - Incarnation Of A Myth - Childhood Intelligence
14. Marina Trench - L’Orage (Earl Jeffers mix) - Sweet State
15. Deenamic - First Inversion - Freebeat
16. Black Corsairs - Skelos…Let It Be - Teflon Dons - Worldship Music
17. Damar Davis - Zension - Haus
18. Patrice Scott - Analog Dreams - Sistrum 
19. Brad P - A Track I Dreamed - Late Night Journeys - Moto Music
20. Stokeswood Sessions Vol 2 - New Prescription - Floppy Life - NDATL Muzik
21. Urban Haven - Nara - Human Experience Ep - Just 4 The Beat Records
22. Barney McAll - John Coltrane ( Instrumental) Sampology  Precious Energy ReUp
23. Kevin Reynolds - 12 Degrees - Yoruba 
24. Marcellus Pittman - Make It Work - Still Music
25. Stokeswood Sessions Vol 1 - 3NDATL @ FXHE - NDATL Muzik 
26. Ignatius - Sea Tower (Less J Remix) - End Of Dayz
27. Norm Talley - Holla-Day - Upstairs Asylum Recordings 
28. Boo Williams - Back Track
29. Ewan Jansen - Island Life - Butter Sessions
30. Contours - Kyushu - Slow Life
31. Rico Herrera - Slow Down ft. Jane Hamilton - Roots Underground
32. Al Smith - Full Of Music - Chubby!
33. Guydee - Svet (Melchior Sultana Remix) - Minor Notes
34. Ron Trent - Look Beyond - Future Vision Records 
35. Glenn Underground ft. Charles Matlock - The Ism's - SJU
36. Aleqs Notal - Airlock Nation - Forbidden Dance Records
37. Dj Aakmael - Lakes - Deep Inspiration Show Records
38. Ian O'Brien - Music Comes From Within - Neroli
39. Dan Piu - Days Gone - Chubby!

J4TB Radio Show 23rd Jan 23

Our stuff here >>>>

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www.facebook.com/scissor.and.thread.nyc/ 
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JVXTA is a DJ and producer based in London (UK). He also co-founded the label Hardmatter.
  
Here, Scissor And Thread, the Brooklyn imprint headed by Francis Harris and Anthony Collins share JVXTA’s debut album - Euston Blues. 

The album is a collection of moods and textures, from woozy soundscapes like opener No One Needs to Know and Voyager, to grooving, dusty house tracks like Hold On, Water Temple and Lost in Place. 

Tracks develop from ambient textures into leftfield beat excursions (Beyond) and incorporate thoughtful samples such as the spoken word poetry in The Stolen Child.

Elements of free improvisation and experimentation pepper the album, while a strong thread of atmospheric cohesion winds its way through the eight tracks - making Euston Blues a truly rewarding and rich listening experience. 

"Euston Blues synthesises deep chords, classic house rhythms and jazz laden influences to chronicle an intimate journey of physical and psychological isolation." says Charles Field, the man behind the JVXTA project. 

"Scope is relative and this transposition is explored from the seclusion of a single room to the expanses of the Beyond".

Euston Blues

Voyager

JVXTA - Voyager

My one hour recorded at the Doc Sleep x Tartlet Records x Bubble World takeover at Refuge Worldwide in celebration of Doc Sleep's album release.

Bubble World with Glenn Astro (Sat 25th March)@ Refuge Worldwide

www.instagram.com/blacklightsmoke/
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www.instagram.com/scissorandthread/
www.youtube.com/user/ScissorAndThread/

Black Light Smoke returns to revered New York label Scissor and Thread with Ghosts, a sophomore LP that sees the Chicago native revisiting his youth through exploring the origins of house music, while touching on themes of closure, creativity and identity. This LP is something of an anticipated homecoming as he debuted on the label over a decade ago with his gritty, analog sound, and he’d become a regular fixture throughout Scissor and Thread’s earlier years before pursuing other projects.

Rochester-based Black Light Smoke is the moniker of Jordan Lieb. Moving to New York in 2001 for close to two decades, as a multidisciplined musician his career has taken flight in many forms. Writing music for TV and film for over 20 years, recognition for his work came early with Emmy nominations and an Emmy win. Recent projects include Ana Lily Amirpour’s movie The Bad Batch, starring Keanu Reeves, Suki Waterhouse and Jason Mamoa, and biographical sports mo- ckumentary I, Tonya with Margot Robbie. Aside from working full-time in TV and film, his passion projects under Black Light Smoke include releases via Brooklyn labels Scissor and Thread and Cut Mistake Music, as well as from his own imprint Death Decay Magic which since its 2020 launch has found fans in Bloody Mary, The Hacker, DJ Hell, Green Velvet and Posthuman for its explorations through dark wave, post punk and dark techno.

Spanning ‘90s house, soulful beats and dusty grooves, Ghosts speaks to Jor- dan’s clashes with the intrusive shadows and demons of his past. Written across a two-year stretch, it was a fraught period which heavily impacted his creative life. “Producing this LP took so much more time than I’m used to,” he explains. “I’m invited back to Scissor and Thread but I didn’t know how I’d fit back into the label after years away. I’d then ask myself what am I doing producing house music - I’m now family-focussed and not out clubbing any more, so what am I dra- wing on. I didn’t realise that there’d be two years of soul searching, and that I’d come up against a bit of an identity crisis in trying to find my artistic voice again. I realised that I didn’t have to reinvent, but simply had to make something that came from my heart. I needed to push through a lot for the new ideas to come.”

Once Jordan honed in on his reverence for the origins of house music, from the founders to the creators behind its “second wave”, he felt a shift forward in mo- tivation and productivity. Born and raised in Chicago, he was an impressionable teen during the mid ‘90s, with illegal warehouse raves being his access point. That era left its mark and influenced his need to later immerse himself in club culture which he’d do in New York.

“I found myself in that world. I found my purpose and identity in New York’s scene and did it all with brilliant people. House music was the soundtrack to this trans- formative decade in my life. It was everything through my twenties and thirties. There were the iconic clubs like Cielo and Output, but also the golden era of after parties, connecting and crate digging with mates - there’s nothing as beautiful as that. This LP kinda closes that chapter of my life while creating music that I feel stays true to my roots.”

All of his personal proceeds from the LP will go to The Little Bit Foundation, a non-profit committed to improving access to education for students living in poverty across St. Louis, Missouri. “We start with our children when working towards generational progress. I’m now a father to young children so this hits home. I went with The Little Bit Foundation because of their broad and holistic approach which focuses on health and nutrition, academic equity, family support, and college readiness.”

Anthem (House Is Black)

Black Light Smoke - 727 Anthem (House Is Black)

Hold My Hands

me canse de hablarle al espejo

They hid Redwake Station so deep in the mountains that even the mapmakers conveniently forgot it. Snow muffles everything around it, but the structure hums faintly beneath the frost, as if it never learned how to sleep. The upper tower leans like it’s listening for something in the treeline, while the house below sags under the weight of too many winters and too many secrets.

Red lanterns still burn along the walkway, a holdover from the early containment protocols. Their glow isn’t meant to guide visitors. It’s meant to warn whatever lies inside not to wander too far.

The researchers who once lived here were convinced they’d isolated a frequency older than human breath, a vibration hidden in the bedrock of the world. They called it the Deep Pulse. When played aloud, it rearranged thoughts, then memories, then will.

Redwake was built to study the phenomenon. Or maybe to quarantine it. The documents never agree.

What’s certain is this: one night the station sent a final transmission, a distorted tone that rattled across nearby settlements, followed by a single word rendered untranslatable by every modern system. After that, silence.

Now the lights glow again. The snow around the stilts is disturbed.

The Void Remembers. 

All content is original. Thanks for your support.

Redwake Station Part 1 - Deep, Sci-fi, Nature Ambient [Sleep/Study/Relaxation]

Scissor & Thread is cut from a different cloth than your average dance imprint.