Break a Leg!!!

toromi Start!!

"Open or closed?"
My gin and tonic snapped onto the epoxy finished table. The glass was cold in my hands. Hands that were slowly warming up with the room around me. The kick thumped with the up-beat hi-hat. The dreamy sound of the washed vocals and filtered synth pads called me towards the dance floor. The spring reverberated stabs subtly held my attention as the groove began to swell. Without a word, I watched as people swayed their way towards the booth, drinks in hand. Something about this... You give it your attention and it rewards. I need to get back out there.
"Closed"
I sipped my tonic and washed my mind away in the music.

Ava Blank is a producer based out of Los Angeles, California specializing in some of the more refined genres of dance music. "come thru" represents some of the most refined and original of her work, able to reward with multiple listens.

https://soundcloud.com/avablank
@ravemail.us
Mastering @hutzler

come thru

Ava Blank - imma b alr

*GO TO https://www.leavingrecords.com TO BUY LTD PHYSICAL EDITIONS & DOWNLOAD .ZIP w/INDIVIDUAL TRACK MP3s
*ALL PROCEEDS FROM THIS PROJECT WILL BE DONATED TO GAZA RELIEF (I will publicly publish a receipt after first month of sales)
*NOT ON SPOTIFY
-- -- --


Uncleared is the name of my new 29-track instrumental beat-tape. In a more “back-to-basics” approach to beat-making, this tape began as a creative exercise for myself to return to the music that made me who I am. Around Q3/Q4 of 2023 I had read about a “one 4-bar loop a day” regimen to keep output flowing, and this practice was entirely effective in churning-out beats during self-imposed down-time for music making amidst my record label/family balance lifestyle. It was then that I had set a goal to produce & release 40 new beats by the time I turned 40. I found an almost entirely sample-based production flow in Ableton referencing an ongoing list I kept of material to sample & chop as the foundation for the track, culling from the timeless All The Breaks folder for the drums, and finishing the track with a synth bass-line that I’d quickly dial-in & play by hand using Teebs' old M-Audio midi keyboard controller that I am somehow still borrowing and cherish. Most of these beats are under 10 stems in any given project - drastically different in comparison to my projects in the past (Outmind, In My World, Time Flying Beats et al) where stems would be consistently breaching 50+.


Furthermore relating to the title, I was recently served an uncleared sample notice from a bigger label entity. It’s the first time this has happened so I suppose we’ve been lucky, and it’s honestly the first time I’ve reconsidered casually releasing this type of material - particularly on major streaming platforms. I’m not sure what lies ahead for sample-based music culture - but i'm hopeful it will be able to sustain and evolve as we attempt to emphasize the reclamation of the spaces on the internet where this music can be safely & responsibly shared, supported, and appreciated. 


During the last few weeks leading-up to release, artist neighbor / bestie Aaron Raays would come over to my backyard studio shed at night to listen to the developing material and provide me with trusted feedback notes. I have a habit of whip-testing music obsessively in my 2010 Prius driving around Los Angeles, and at the Leaving offices on the Mobius Acoustics system there. These check-ins were crucial in seeing this one through. Only 29 beats made the cut, but I had a lot of fun making these, and I’m having even more fun performing them.


- Visual art direction provided by painter/illustrator/rapper Maurice McCrimmon aka BlissArmyKnife, and mixed-media open-source artist/musician AndrewCS. Press photo by Eric Coleman. I’m eternally grateful to have the pleasure to be collaborating with and turned-on by these inspiring artists in our community daily. 


1_CAVESHRINE
2_DRAGONTEARS
3_WINDFISH
4_CHRONO
5_HATENO
6_SKYDIVE
7_KOROK
8_REGULATE
9_WALKONMEDLEY
10_STARMAN
11_JONI
12_DAYDREAMIN
13_THEFLAME
14_QUIETSTORM
15_BARRYBREAK
16_REUNITED
17_PROUD
18_DENNISANDREW
19_CONNY
20_BAMBOO
21_YOSHIMURA
22_EVENSONG
23_EVENINGSTAR
24_MARIMBAFUSION
25_BIGISLANDFLUTE
26_REFLECTIONS_W/CARLOS NIÑO
27_ZITHERTRONICCHOPS
28_EXPERIENCE
29_NBS

FREE GAZA

Matthewdavid - Uncleared

gf.wav

hi all :)

Are You Smashed?

self-titled's needle exchange mix series

NE258: Ahnnu

girls go to heaven

Cmd We Aint neva scared!!!!!!! (rip KeKe)

ep comin soon.....shout out to my boa elmoe!

TEEKAY - WiCkEd WeRkS

soundcloud:users:167094

soundcloud:tracks:492275661

Break a Leg!!!

Cherche