Scissor and Thread's Essential Tracks

Não há muito para falar sobre o nosso próximo convidado: DJ / selector de Tunis, Tunísia, ele deixa o mix falar por si.

O ar misterioso da sua persona permeia também essa hora musical: stoned, trancey cuts, pop oriental obscuro, rap brasileiro, kwaito, soul japonês, e mais um monte de coisa, tudo costurado pra despertar aquela sensação de sol na pele, férias e praia 🏖  dive in!

Bedoui - Alter Disco Podcast 103

This Thursday Hardmatter records joined us live from the studio with two hours of detroit house and techno.

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Hardmatter Records w/ Jvxta - June 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). Their upcoming de- but-album ZG is set for a release in November and 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.

Jungle Times sets the scene for the album with an atmospheric, ambient opening giving way to a wonky breakbeat and whispered vocals from Zan. It sets the tone perfectly, pitching the sound equally between London and New York.

Jungle Times

ZG - Jungle Times

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.

Drift Out

ZG - Drift Out

Rinse Podcast France

ZG (Zansika Lachhani and Grant) guest mix - 15 Novembre 2022

Release date: 3/3/23
Order the lp here:
https://icube.bandcamp.com/album/i-cube-eye-cube-verlp45
We wanted to leave you the surprise of the full lengh tracks for the day of the release, however,we know it’s annoying not to be able to listen the music before eventually order a record.
So we decided to make an auto zapping of the records you can check it out.
Hope you’ll enjoy and understand our way to do it

Eye Cube - album snippet preview mini mix

I-Cube/Eye Cube/album snippet preview mini mix.

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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.”

Sprinkles Says

Black Light Smoke - Sprinkles Says

Club / Hotel Autarkic @TEDER.FM 18/04/23

Alex Albrecht returns with Aurora - a pristine followup to his Blue Caves transmission via Scissor and Thread in 2018. 

The Melbourne based composer and sound designer Albrecht has leans into his predilection for woozy, affecting melodies intertwined with skittering drums and snaking grooves, and Aurora brings that to the fore with six tracks of shimmering beauty. 

Spring Orchard opens the record, effortlessly merging deeply buried keys with washes of dreamlike synths, and dubby effects. 
Wildflower Walk is a melancholic affair, underpinned with a restless groove. 
The title track Aurora treads a similar path, but with a more driving approach, while an interplay between piano, guitar, and synths drenched in reverb offer a warm, enveloping atmosphere. 


Aurora is also shared here as a remix by Roza Terenzi, who entirely reworks the track with her signature club ready grooves . 

Kennett River exhibits a kind of smudged, cinematic hip hop feel, while closing track Morning Piazza showcases Albrecht’s sense of drama and pacing, producing a sublime ending to this deeply affecting collection.

Aurora

Alex Albrecht - Aurora

https://soundcloud.com/soelaela
www.linktr.ee/scissorandthread

Soela releases the first single from her upcoming album Dark Portrait on Scissor & Thread - Even If I Ask You Stay. 

Russian born Berlin based Elina Shorokhova has made a transition from pianist and vocalist into electronic music, balancing her ear for melody and musicality.

With this single, we get to see a very vulnerable side of Soela; "Even If I Ask You To Stay has several meanings for me. The most direct one is about an abusive relationship where you're already openly asking the person to leave, but are so attached that you want them to stay. The second meaning is with my struggle with depression. My experience is that it takes a lot of inner strength to heal from depression, and sometimes you're still powerless against the disease. So it stays with you again and again”.
 
The track itself merges a skittering rhythm, gorgeously melancholic piano and string sections with Soela's vocals that cut deep - resulting in a beautifully realized and powerful composition

Even If I Ask You To Stay

Soela - Even If I Ask You To Stay

Artist: @soelaela
Stream/Buy: www.linktr.ee/scissorandthread

Soela is the DJ and production alias of Elina Shorokhova, a Russia-born Berlin-based experienced pianist and vocalist who has made a hugely impactful transition into electronic music.

Having released material on such labels as Kompakt, Dial, Shall Not Fade, Lost Palms, E-Beamz, Red Ember Records, Sushitech, and others, Soela joins the ranks of Scissor & Thread for this exquisite album - Dark Portrait. 

The album opens in a typically understated manner with Unsuitable - a melancholic trip-hop adjacent track that sets the tone for the next 8 pieces. As Soela explains, “I was dealing with some very complex feelings, so I came up with this album, which helped me not to despair, to work on myself, to grow internally, and to start listening to myself. It helped me to keep sane when my country invaded Ukraine with a full scale war. It absolutely broke my heart, and music was one of my main salvations.” 

This complex mix of emotions plays out across the album with tracks that utilize her beautiful musicality (Through the Windows feat. Francis Harris and Philipp Priebe, Drowning feat. Module One) and ear for details with skittering beats, ambient soundscapes (Spirits, Lost In The Fog) and lose-yourself dancefloor moments such as the collaboration with Lawrence on February Is Not Going To Be Forever. The title track Dark Portrait combines dubby elements with affecting pads and melodic touches, while the lead single Even If I Ask You Stay delves into multiple feelings around escaping toxic situations, and battling depression. It features a powerful vocal from Soela supported by a deeply affecting arrangement. The closing track The Darkest Hour Before Sunrise brings a sense of hope and light, balancing subdued keys and strings with ethereal tones and atmospheres

Dark Portrait

Soela - Unsuitable

Stream/Vinyl: www.linktr.ee/scissorandthread

DaRand Land, who hails from the post industrial confines of Buffalo, NY was one of the leading figures of Deep4Life, a cult label known for submersible oriented, yet dancefloor-friendly productions. With ambient synth-driven tones and heavy funk basslines being at the center of his sound, DaRand Land’s music often evokes an introspective quality, without losing its groove fundamental.

Following on from a number of releases on Pulp, Downbeat, Urban Imagery and the “Discover You” EP on Scissor & Thread, here is Nature Of Reality, the single taken from DaRand Land’s second album Wander Being, released on Scissor & Thread in late November 2024. 





“In particular, the single, The Nature of Reality”, says DaRand, “was written to convey a sense of what it feels like to be in a state of suspended animation. There is a natural tension introduced via the organic, swirling pad progression juxtaposed against endless vocal echoes and the low-end groove of the bassline. Thematically, I wanted to carry this forward through the entirety of the album.”

The Nature Of Reality

Stream/Vinyl

DaRand Land - The Nature Of Reality

fka boursin is a DJ and producer out of Bristol, UK. 
Previously known as DJ Boursin, he is recognized for his deep, ambient-infused house music that explores political dimensions of clubs and identity politics.

Welcomed into the Scissor & Thread fold, fka boursin shares two cuts of deep and introspective electronic music. 

The original Listless Intertext is a hazy trip through ambient soundscapes, shuffling rhythms and half-caught conversations, drifting across a 12 minute run time that slowly evolves and shifts with time.  

"Listless Intertext is a track centred around the "failed" employment of cheap vocoder software that attempted to process explicit words and phrases across 11 minutes." says fka boursin. "Instead, the vocoder output made any words indecipherable and I was left with thematic vagueness. The final text of the track is simply a submission to its own limitations with some french thrown in."

When label bosses Frank & Tony step up for their Housebeat Dub, they keep the essential mood but introduce a thick, fat groove that works just as well in conveying the mood. 

"Our remix is a strictly dancefloor approach," says Frank, "an extended psychedelic beat rework perfect for late night, early morning vibes".


Listless Intertext (Frank & Tony's Housebeat Dub)

Thank you very much for always paying attention to my track and taking the time to do so.  
I am always grateful.
Secret meetings, rendezvous
I think everyone has one or two secrets!
Secret things you keep hidden inside yourself!
They are purely a part of you and close to your true self!
They may be similar to trauma.
If you reveal those secrets, you may become free! Why not try to express what you have been hiding?
The universe remembers everything about you and watches over you.
And it supports the fun things you choose to do.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

Secret Rendezvous

Bass PatrolEd

22.08.wav

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

ZG - Jungle Times

Scissor and Thread

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