Highlife returns!

For our fourth installment, we turn our focus to the Middle East this time. Presenting a bit more of an early doors tip with Mehmet Aslan making another appearance , serving up a Turkish folk nugget and Tel Aviv's mighty Red Axes delivering an industrial disco gem.

Available on vinyl only via Above Board from mid-June>
aboveboarddist.co.uk/labels/highlife

Red Axes - Chew The Gun

BCXG - Simultanious (Jungle Mix)

Kind of layer of piano and a vintage organ, with a 3/3 drum layer... Experimentations also... 

Oldus

Tapan: Volumes (COTF 009)

A1: Volumes
A2: Volumes (Willie Burns remix)
B1: Volumes (Drvg Cvltvre remix)
B2: Who's There?

Released 5th October 2015

(P) Crimes of the future 2015
(C) Crimes of the future 2015

TAPAN: Volumes (COTF 009) Mini Mix

La Belle label boss Golden Bug hails from Paris and is a record producer, label owner, DJ, groove sculptor and metal sculptor who has had great solo success with singles on Gomma and recently Ivan Smagghe's label, Les Disques De La Mort. This exquisite track from his new EP has been recrafted by Glasgow's Mr TC, and is an opiatic, drawn out, trippy affair, pinging and bubbling ahead of you, with a sultry vocal which comes from somewhere behind you in the hashish mist. 

Taken from 'Accroche A Moi' EP : http://www.junodownload.com/products/golden-bug-accroche-a-moi/3101644-02/

PREMIERE: Golden Bug (Feat. Julienne Dessagne) - Un Paradis Artificiel (MR TC Remix)[La Belle]

Supported by:
 Juan Maclean, Il Est Vilane, Andrew Claristidge, Jonathan Kusuma, Justin Strauss, Zillas On Acid, Vox Low, Curses, Iñigo Vontier, Phred La Dame Noir, Damon Jee, Duncan Gray, Amevicious, Gameboyz, Johnson, Sequencers, Did Virgo, Thomass Jackson, Roe Deers, Undo, Sebastian Tex, Fairmont, Javi Redondo, Why People Dance, Amarcord, The Two Mamarrachos, Local Suicide, Future bones, Flxxx, Montcosmik, Theus Mago, Veneno, Colossio, Dawad, Rigopolar, Club Bizarre...

Buy at Bandcamp

Teniente Castillo 'Virtual Reality' (Squarewave Remix)

Grand Marabout of the Dark Disco tribe, Kevin Pinenq-Vidal aka Baka Bakqa exercises the dancefloors with his magic waves: New Wave, Cold Wave, Dark Wave, Synthwave, Post-Punk, EBM, Indie-Dance and Italo Disco are amongst his favourite genres.

His spells are the remnants of his fascination with the '80s culture, they make him a committed artist of the Goth scene and resolutely the dance scene. Founder and Artistic Director of Gouter de Nuit (Paris), he is also a resident of Ceremony NWPP.

In just 3 years of DJing, he has created the alliance of the Parisian local scene along with international collaborations with labels like Mange Moi (Paris), Nein Records (London/Berlin), and more recently Controlla (Mexico City). 

He has been currently working on the official French release of the very promising Critical Monday label founded by Damon Jee and Bonnie Spacey (supported by Demian, Curses, Alvaro Cabana, Jennifer Cardini, Zombies in Miami, Younger Than Me and many others).

For such solid projects, Baka Bakqa wishes to develop a more immersive dimension in his events, with themes connecting the world of science fiction and occultism with the art of the table specific to the language of Gouter de Nuit (Gouter: an afternoon snack eaten by children).

Notice to fans of DJ sets: his spectrum of rhythm ranges from 70 to 180 BPM and embarks you on a journey across darkness, melancholia, nostalgia, poetry and assumed intensity!

Follow @baka-bakqa, peeps!

Baka Bakqa

SXDNS134 // Baka Bakqa

13. Mondowski – Cry Wolf 2019
The original mix was released on Relish Industria EP I in 2015.
He decided to update it to 2019 for the comp.

RELISH 100

Cry Wolf 2019

Mondowski - Cry Wolf 2019 [Bonus Track]

Lithuanian dj / producer @DannieFade arrived with a bang in 2019 with a debut release on the Sinchi  label which gained raves reviews from a plethora of top international dj's and press. His unique sound is a mixture between light and darkness, and this mix showcases his taste to great effect. We are big fans and recommend keeping a eye on this promising artist.

ABOUT

1) Introduce yourself?

My name is Daniel Jurevič, I’m a music producer and DJ based in Vilnius, Lithuania.

2) What have been your highlights from the last 12 months?

My music career only began last year but I’ve already released single on Sinchi, with remixes from Tolouse Low Trax and Roe Deers. Plus two remixes released on “P P P” and “Partyzanai Pop” labels.

3) What do you have lined up for the coming year?

Looking forward to my upcoming EP on “Partyzanai Pop”, also I have few new tracks ready and a free download track coming soon.

Also  some new gigs and many more tracks are planned for the rest of the year.

Check the full interview via the Sinchi Blog - https://www.sinchi-collective.com/sinchi-friends-88-dannie-fade/

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/episode/5hjRoiTZqNmMGmQ1mYlDWH?si=mR8JwYFzSn2QMP_CJTiTcg

Sinchi & Friends 88  - Dannie Fade

The intriguing tale of French duo Kimshies continues... Their sole release from 2004 re-upped into the ether by Solomun in 2018, it triggered a return to the studio after almost 15 years. Making up for lost time, they’ve already dropped two exceptional EP's on Nein. Now comes their Duro debut... And it’s a perfect dark disco match.

Even the title says as much ‘Fucked Up Mama’: a scuzzy, frazzled jam rich in oiled distortion and lighting strike synths and a rising case of venomous acid mid-way, there’s a grit in the groove that’s going to take more than a few lockdown handwashes to feel clean from. It’s coupled by a series of equally forthright remixes: fresh from completing his debut album for Life & Death, Disco Halal alumni Autarkic strips your mama down to her kickdrum undies and redresses her in a dynamic laser laced charmer.

He’s in good company... Nein brethren Cabaret Nocturne makes a welcome appearance with a creeping dark electro twist while La Dame Noir’s Arthur Johnson gets busy with two perspectives; one where the swing and organs provide funky refreshment and a bonus one which takes us right back into the gritty analog mama-fucking attitude of the original. Exceptional. The intriguing tale continues...

Fucked Up Mama

Frizzy Pazzy

Kimshies - Frizzy Pazzy (Original Mix)

Back at the start of lockdown, label boss Man Power set the challenge to remix a track he created that day in 2 hours.

The idea behind the challenge being to set yourself limitations as a producer - be that time, or only using certain software/equipment - and to finish the arrangement completely.

The amount of stellar remixes we received was astounding and hence we've arrived at this point, a compilation of all those amazing remixes being released on the label with all profits going to NHS Charities Together.

You can grab the full compilation from the link below, please donate generously!

Link to purchase > https://mememe.bandcamp.com/music

Man Power - It's Not A Competition (Stockholm Syndrome AU's "Last Minute Crash" Remix)

Ransom Note is an online music, arts and culture magazine. We provide a home for readers and writers with boundless enthusiasm, esoteric knowledge, fierce opinions and impeccable taste.

With our core team immersed in all aspects of dance music, we publish news, articles, and interviews covering the greatest in innovative, underground culture from across the globe. We offer regular, exclusive music and mixtapes from our favourite artists, and publish features shining a light on everything from the freshest new artists to the untold tales from rave history.

Alongside this we offer musings on film, books, life, and art, generating some context and controversy as an antidote to the reheated PR that clogs up the internet. Our office is fuelled by Tunnock’s Bars, cat memes, hangovers and a ridiculous, never ending love for our culture.

We're always interested in getting new writers on board – feel free to get in touch if you’ve got a story to tell.

With love until the grave.