Protassov - The Ride

Journeying through the surreal No Man’s Land between percussive electronica and ambient funk, The Ride is relaxing and unsettling in equal measures. For the DJ/dancefloor there is Protassov’s signature dominant beat throughout: heavy, upfront and uncompromising. The melodies are constructed from a bewildering array of sources – including live instruments - with a structure that demands repeated and careful listening. This is electronic dance music as fine art.

What makes this EP fascinating is the attention to detail. The choice of samples and sounds is elaborate and unexpected. The obsessive processing of each noise reveals Protassov’s microscopic fascination with the parameters of engineering. And throughout, there is a hyper-sensitivity to the precise balance between the weight of the beat and the finesse of the melodies.

The EP opens on deceptively familiar territory. “At The Freakshow” comes in hard with a grinding, slow electro break; the crunchy snare funks things up nicely. As it progresses, however, the ecstatic synths, glitching soul samples and edge-of-ear arpeggios turn this groovy tune into an unnerving and distinctly trippy experience.

Slowing things down for “Dance Like That”, Protassov offsets ambient synth waves with jittery notes and hints of drill. Somewhere in the far distance an old skool rave sample screams its way towards us until it bursts in the room, staggering the mashed ravers into action, before Protassov returns them to the womb of the mellow. 

The opening grimy synths of “March of 100” and its insistent hiphop beat do not prepare us for a mystical prog rock evolution. Suddenly we are riding on a magic carpet out to some smoky souk in Cairo. Before we know it, the vision has dissolved like a hit of hashish in a lunch-break. Protassov’s finely-tuned engineering of the guitar in this track reveals his long love affair with the instrument.

“The Ride” begins like a dusty rip of a long-lost gramophone record, before a fog-horn baritone sax pulls us down underwater. We’re at a live jam session at an old blues bar at the bottom of the sea, with the reverb set to “abyss”. Protassov pulls us back to the surface with some crisp snare-driven breaks, until drunken synth lines emerge to duel with the sax and to send us back to the deep. The sax player on this track is cabaret virtuoso Andreas Booter, improvising live on the beat with no edit. 

On “It’s OK!” we stay dusty and analogue. A hypnotic xylophone drips melancholy; a rainy walk in the park in alienation-land. A siren voice promises warm illusions, but the beat keeps us out walking in the cold.

The last track is a minimalist, musical statement of unmistakable regret. Protassov’s simple guitar notes are achingly intimate, underpinned by a repeated minor piano chord - the ticking of a clock that cannot be turned back. “We Solve Problems Later” indeed…

This set is a deep listening experience with powerful rhythms and moments of gratifying emotional intensity. Protassov has spent long in the studio and it shows - the tracks reward total immersion to experience each and every detail. They are the statements of a musician, crafted obsessively. So set aside your consciousness, dust off your boots and get ready for… The Ride.

The Ride

Streaming & Download

Protassov - The Ride (Snippet Mix)

Protassov´s Stefan Fuß is a German Music Producer based in Hamburg.
He began his Music career as a singer and guitarist in the late 80ies in several bands in the Ruhr Area DIY scene.
In 1992 he joined the myth enshrouded Techno Band TEVO and played countless gigs all over europe.
He began recording  HipHop influenced Beats in 1998 and teamed up with Tom Strauch of the Ancient Astronauts who founded Switchstance Recordings in 2001.
In 2008, Stefan released his album debut „Shalina Music“ on Switchstance Recordings, followed by 3 EP´s.

Stefan takes multiple influences and turns them into something that's his very own stile.

Protassov´s work has been remixed by Jon Kennedy, Hint , Flevans and Dr, Rubberfunk.
He is always in search for fellow musicians to  collaborate and develope his creative outcome.

SWITCHSTANCE RECORDINGS 
Quality music for advanced listeners!

"Switchstance" is taken from the culture of boardsports, meaning the skill used to change the stance (easily) by switching one's foot position. The stance in freestyle Snowboarding or Skateboarding, is either riding in "regular" (left foot forward) or "goofy" (right foot forward) position. This identifies a really skilled rider and opens up a whole new world of trick combinations.

The label's creed and therefore the style of its producers and DJs is to have ultimate freedom, whether in their musical movements or in "switching" between various styles. The aim of the label is to combine early musical influences such as Funk, Jazz, Latin, 90´s Hip Hop and Reggae with the most progressive techniques of electronic music production in order to create a new dynamic sound that pays respect to the diverse cultures it comes from. It is the soundtrack of the lives of artists that dedicate their time and energy to produce cutting-edge grooves for a conscious and openminded generation.

Inspired by the label members' and friends' lifestyles in music, boardsports, arts and travels; the sound of Switchstance is always in motion and reflects a unique vision and attitude towards modern life. 

check my playlist:
https://soundcloud.com/vrijabasi/sets/mixes_to_the_people

The Ancient Astronauts are Kabanjak and Dogu, a bulletproof production and DJ duo hailing from Cologne, Germany. The phenomenon of “ancient astronauts, “a belief that extraterrestrial beings visited Earth in ancient times to mingle and trade ideas with early human civilizations”, isn’t an alien concept to these Ancient Astronauts.  The cross-pollination and mash-up of ideas, sounds, styles, and a collaborative spirit are their modus operandi.
Although, the long-time friends are quick to admit that they are not followers of the German music scene, Kabanjak notes, “for us music is and will always be an international phenomena”, and Ancient Astronauts are certainly not afraid to draw on influences from international artists and styles.
Self described as a “mash up of the distant past and far future”; these time travelers´ music is a mystic brew born out of an eclectic mix of ideas, sounds and styles. 
Already having remixed and collaborated with AM & Shawn Lee, Nickodemus, Fort Knox Five, Ladybug Mecca (Digable Planets), Zion I, The Pharcyde, Azeem, Analogik, Subatomic Sound System & Anthony B, Bajka, Vieux Farka Toure, Raashan Ahmad, Bajka, DJ Brace and Tippa Irie, the Ancient Astronauts always link up with a quality selection of sonic collaborators. 
 “At an early stage we realized that we are both big music heads so we started running parties in our hometown together”. Those parties became the catalyst for a production team that never forgot its roots. They specialize in diversity loosely glued together by a single thread. Like a good party, you don’t just listen to the music, you experience it. 
In 2001 Dogu of Ancient Astronauts started his own label Switchstance Recordings, which was developed as a way of allowing them total musical freedom. The label soon gathered momentum and built up an impressive international fan base. Switchstance Recordings is now famous in international club circles for the integrity of its production and style.

www.ancientastronauts.de
