Phonat Mix Fall 2011 by MofoHifi Records
In the seven years since the founding of partner labels MofoHifi and Heavy Disco, the 2 boutique electronica imprints have built a stellar reputation for sourcing great new electronic music which is simultaneously fresh and approachable.
No chin stroking hipster cuts. No take the money and run commercial cheese.
Just interesting new music by new producers with personality and something fresh to say.
In addition to discovering and launching the careers of label regulars Phonat and The Young Punx, just check out the incredible list of artists who have released and remixed on the label: Avicii, Steve Angello, Riva Starr, Dcup, Gramophonedzie, High Rankin, Shinichi Osawa, John B, Sharooz, Olav Basoski, Don Diablo, Space Cowboy and many more. And the important thing to spot is that nearly every one of these artists released on MofoHifi BEFORE they had the big tracks that made them famous. They were all spotted by the MofoHifi A&R team and brought on board as promising new producers, who then went on to make their mark on the charts worldwide.
MofoHifi is expanding in 2011 with new artists (Polymath, LL Ton J, Arveene & MiSK and more to come) and more staff (including former A&R from Positiva and Gut), and to celebrate they are releasing this 26 track chronological retrospective compilation, on BEATPORT ONLY, featuring 6 exclusive previously unreleased tracks, including cuts from Hexadecimal, Binary Star, Medcab, The Young Punx, John B, Phonat, Mohito, Steve Angello, Sharooz, Deltawave, Krafty Kuts, Olav Basoski, Norman Cook, Avicii, Wez Clarke, Gramophonedzie, High Rankin, Shinichi Osawa, Dcup, Max Neutra, Polymath and Arveene & MiSK.
ElectroFunkinDiscoBreakin Vol. 1 (Seven Years of Heavy Disco and MofoHifi) by MofoHifi Records
Annie Mac: “Just listened to Love Money. I love it”
Zombie Nation: “I love the Polymath remix. Evil Nine remix is great too!”
Nt89: “Arveene & Misk’s new EP is a BOMB, the Inflagranti remix is amazing”
Burns: “Quality release as always from these guys, always top notch!
European Sex Music at its best!”
Arveene & MiSK – ‘Love Money Music Body feat. Aaron Smyth’ by MofoHifi Records
The list of supporters ‘Ones To Watch’ (Tilllate), Arveene & Misk, frequently command for their tracks often reads like a who’s who of dance music, and their recent remix credentials boasts commissions from Kelis, Justin Robertson and The Japanese Popstars.
There’s no doubting for MofiHifi the trajectory of A&M’s rapid accession, and this, their second release for 2011 (the first for MofoHifi) maintains such a course.
In ‘Love Money Music Body’, A&M employ the vocal talents of Aaron Smyth to create a proto-house sleaze fest that wears its Chicago influences on its sleeve.
Remixes from Evil Nine, Inflagranti and Polymath came about as much from a respect for the duo held by those asked as it did a label A&R move. The trio of producers cornering off all ends to create the ideal package no matter which way it falls. Solid.
Arveene & Misk ‘Love Money Music Body’ is on full release from 16th May
With limited promos on Beatport from 28th March
MofoHifi supply another dose of disco glitch mayhem to follow up Polymath’s recent smash “My Way To Surf” EP and LL Ton J’s Beatport IDN chart number 1 “Roger More”. This time its the turn of the disco goose. The goose likes to party. The goose is slick. Are you?
Polymath – Discogoose by MofoHifi Records
Dope Dope Dope Dope Dope Ass Sound.
Jacked up garage meets funked up disco to blow your cock clean off.
The Young Punx are back in the house.
“Fucking love it, monster.” – Eats Everything
“This is dope – haha – love it. Like some fat US house shit, but the pitch and the fqd up beat is like some chicago jacking basement. I wanna be there! Lovely!!!” – Space Cowboy
“I haven’t heard that chicago sound for such a long time. It feels really good.” – David Guetta
“That bumps like a mofo. Loving it. Will throw it down in a set for sure” – Black Noise
“Funky and dirty! Nice work” – Robbie Rivera
“This is cool. Grooves like Cassius in 1999 but with a whole different sound” – Phonat
“I Love this track man. Really great and unique production style and a real dancefloor groover. Great great and Grrrreat” – Audiofreaks
“Sounds fat!” – Wez Clarke
“Really like this one” – Lewis Dene – Tilllate
“Sounds wicked” – Arveene & MiSK
“Up my street for shizzle” – Patrick Hagenaar
“Dope Ass Sound is awesome! I love the shuffle on the drums, great jackin’ house feel to it!” – Louis La Roche
The Young Punx – Dope Ass Sound by MofoHifi Records
Blatant kitsch and hedonistic nu-disco escapism, The LL Ton J trio, to include Phonat, hide nothing in their pleasure of putting together this lustrous, warm re-edit that asks for nowt but a smile. A 4-minute carousel of addictive disco restyling, LL Ton J will successfully navigate you from A to B. Like its namesake, Roger More is rich with charm, a classy good timer and a hit with the fairer sex. Do it Roger.
Probably the greatest pop song ever about… um… muffs.
Provocative and outrageous, doing what they do best. The Young Punx team up with Dresden Dolls’ Amanda Palmer on their new collaborative single, ‘Map of Tasmania’.
Video (Club Mix)
Video (Original Mix)
The youthful Scot Martin Gowans aka Polymath hit our club radar early last year. We made some noise about his music. Punks Jump-Up, Dom Rimini, Wolfgang Gartner, Kissy Sellout, Andy George, The Young Punx and Supermal all came forward and said they loved Polymath’s records.
It went to his head and he soon spiraled out of control. Drinking ‘Buckfast’ for breakfast, shouting at old ladies and tagging himself in everybody’s pictures on Facebook. The shimmering disco-glitch good times and sunshine of the ‘My Way To Surf EP’ and his remix of Futureheads ‘Heartbeat’ got abandoned in the corner. Told to face the wall. Self gave way to ego and something begun to manifest.
‘Babootee’.
Unlike the ‘My Way To Surf EP’, all the tracks on Babootee are squarer, more solid. Low-end ballast. Music to grimace to and punch your fist at; much the like the weather in Inverness, which is incidentally where Gowans professes to come from. Tougher and meaner (also like Inverness), sharp and direct.
Apathetic producers of ‘electro’ stand-aside. Make room for the boisterous, thundering heaviness of Polymath. Or else!
‘Ghetto Burnin’, a track written and performed with Yolanda Quarterly, has been the organic builder from ‘Phonat’ ranking over 500k views on Youtube and rising. With inner city violence and social decay the theme ‘Ghetto Burnin’ has become one of Phonat’s most popular tracks. Even the guys that put together the music for cult drama 24 spotted the appeal, quickly making it the title track for a Japanese airing of the series.
MofoHifi are proud to announce the issue of the Ghetto Burnin’ 2011 remix package featuring updates from Arveene & MiSK, MMMatthias, Bahar Canca, Sharooz and Johnatron.
Arveene & MiSK, who can count Annie Mac and Erol Alkan as fans, deliver a low lying flat beat full of acid, grit and wobble; one for the bassbin riders and the booty-shakers. Dishing out the nu-wave electro, MMMatthias applies a simple, but stunning sub-115bpm cosmic groove to his version. And Johnatron, the head-honcho from super-blog Discoworkout matches his namesake with a wicked disco-tinged recut. But it’s Bahar Canca that turns it up a notch with a solid tech-house big roomer. Completing the package MofoHifi redeliver the timeless minimalistic re-edit from Sharooz.
‘Ghetto Burnin’ is complimented by the 3rd in a trilogy of videos made for Phonat by Amsterdam-based Italian experimental artists the Savants Collective. Seamlessly merging stop motion animation of slices cut out of picture books with CGI elements it’s a visual feast with the trademark Phonat look.
Polymath burst onto the scene earlier this year with his ragbag full of samples and cartload of ideas. Martin Gowans aka Polymath has a taste for things that shine and a devilish eye for detail, cutting and shutting the least obvious of samples otherwise left to rust, welding and polishing them into pure monster dancefloor incarnations.
Bigwig Radio One jox, the likes of Kissy Sellout and Andy George gave way to Polymath’s door knocking, and so far this year the wee young Scot has notched up no less than twelve prime ‘electronica’ time Radio One spins.
Now ahead of issuing a brand new EP in early 2011, MofoHifi are pleased to release one of Polymath’s earlier master classes in sample shapeshifting.
The sound of Studio 54, gin & tonic and a gold brick being dropped into a blender at 5am, the 4-track ‘My Way To Surf EP’ may be loud, brash, glitched and ripped but it’s as funky as you like. Smoke that.
Automation Addiction is the stunning debut album from Los Angeles based painter and musician Max Neutra. Assembled over 10 years using a surreal array of musical toys and hacked electronics, and created in splendid isolation from the commercial pressures of radio playlists, record reviews and DJ chart returns, Automation Addiction is a deeply personal expression of one man’s escapist love of electronic sounds, creating something simultaneously bizzare and leftfield yet also endearing and engaging.
Prepare to enter a unique world where naive bleeps and perky melodies mingle with circuit broken chaos and sci-fi madness, telling a story of mankind’s relationship with technology, and his place in the cosmos; where computers can love, where humans send cosmic greetings into space, and where one day, the aliens may come to us, in search of our music. Read more
The lovechild of sleazy East London disco and jpop-esque female vocals, Laura Kidd’s perky performance adds vocal bounce to the track’s twisted disco vibe. Perfect for late-night, back-alley antics ‘SugarCandySuperNova’ is the Punx latest offering to be lifted from current album ‘Mashpop & Punkstep’.
Calling in remix favours from fellow stirrers of the scene MofoHifi have put together a world class remix package. First in the party is Per QX, self proclaimed leader of the Dalston Gay mafia and founder of Gutterslut, creating a gritty electro workout. Meanwhile LA’s Acid Girls bring their own unique blend of cool weird electro to the party. Superfrank arrives armed with guitar blended big beats and Redroche provides the massive big room house banger. Read more
(Veröffentlichung und verfügbar in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz ab den 14.05.10. // Japan, Australia, NZ out June)
The Young Punx return for their second studio album, a startling and inventive exploration of the deliberate destruction of genre boundaries in electronic music. Probably the first album in history to have toyed with drum and bass, heavy metal, electropop and cuban timba within the first 5 minutes (!) “Mashpop and Punkstep” is a vibrant manifesto for the next generation of mashup music. Featuring the epic collaboration with Memphis hip hop Don ‘Count Bass D’ – “Ready For the Fight” (already heard as the theme music for EA Games “Fight Night 4″ and as official entry music for world middleweight champion Arthur Abraham), the J-pop electro disco of SugarCandySuperNova and the Ragga House of “Juice and Gin” the album spans Puccini Opera, Punk rock, hip hop, synth pop, Japanese rock and much more…
“[The Young Punx are...] jubilantly shredding genre boundaries, swooping like crack crazed Magpies to grab their favourite shiny bits with maniacal gusto” – Clash Magazine
(Availability note – though you can buy it on import now from Amazon etc, full release in the USA, Germanic countries, Japan and Australia will roll out over the late spring/early summer)
A triumphant collaboration, the track blends the group’s London electronica with the vocal talents of Memphis-based, indie hip-hop don Count Bass D.
Despite radically different musical and cultural backgrounds both artists have developed a great respect for each other’s work and come together to create a unique and moving track. Seamlessly combining the best of post Daft Punk, European dance production with big room hip-hop vibes, in a moving tale of resolve and determination in the face of great adversity. Read more
The Young Punx are delighted to announce the availability of The Young Punx branded skis from esteemed Austrian Ski manufacturer Kneissl. Featuring custom artwork specially designed by cult Dutch illustrator Han Hoogerbrugge these unique limited edition skis are sure to set you apart on the slopes:
Description
[Deutsche] This is the combination of Kneissl’s top GS and top SL ski with a slightly broader waist for an extra boost in powder conditions. The perfect ski for a big variety of conditions, it is fast, it is smooth, it holds a perfect line and makes you feel safe while going on high speed down the track – the perfect all-around ski for skiing enthusiasts.
Race / Sport: 20% / 80%
On / Off Piste: 75% / 25%
Technical Information
- Sandwich-sidewall-technology
- Full woodcore ash/poplar
- Titanal/triaxial fiber glass belts
- ABS sidewalls
- Nano graphit racing base
- Racing-edge
| Available length [cm]: | radius [m] | sidecut (front / mid / tail) |
|---|---|---|
| 158 cm | 14 | 113 / 68 / 96 |
| 168 cm | 16 | 113 / 68 / 96 |
The Skis are available direct from:
Kneissl Sport Shop
Ladestrasse 2-10
6330 Kufstein
Austria
To purchase online email: theyoungpunx@kneissl.com
Tel: +43 (0) 5372 6990 240
The Skis cost € 699, without bindings.
For further information visit www.kneissl.com
On Saturday 23rd January, the world’s leading music industry conference, MIDEM, was kicked off by a panel discussion with MofoHifi co-founder, Hal Ritson of The Young Punx and Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls discussing the artist’s perspective on new models for the promotion of music in the digital economy. Other speakers following included Pharrell, Ed O’Brian of Radiohead and Fallout Boy.
There has been a lot of press coverage of the event, but here are a couple of examples :
MIDEM(net) Blog
Hal Ritson and Amanda Palmer at MIDEM 2010
Artists are getting in early with their views on digital music innovation this MidemNet – the opening panel on day one features Amanda Palmer (centre, of Dresden Dolls and now solo fame) and Hal Ritson from The Young Punx (left)… It also made history as the first ever MidemNet session to kick off with a ukulele cover of Radiohead’s Creep (Palmer), interpretive dance (Ritson) and a sock puppet (representing Paul Van Dyk).
Ritson talked about his own online activities, saying an artist has to do three things nowadays: first, get people to listen to the music; second, get some emotional contact with them; and third, find a revenue stream from somewhere.
“We’ve totally embraced the point that writers of music blogs are totally taking over as the new tastemakers of music,” he said. So Ritson looks at blogs giving away free music not as a threat, but as the modern equivalent of radio promo. “You’re getting people to hear your music,” he said.
Read more
Watch Han Hoogerbrugge’s video for The Young Punx and Count Bass D’s epic collaboration.
The Young Punx are a busy bunch. Remixing, producing and performing have kept them almost constantly busy over the past two years, but somehow they’ve found the time to get back in the studio and finish their own album. ‘Mashpop & Punkstep’ is due for release early next year, but in the meantime the collective drop a double a-side single to whet the appetite…
First up is ‘Simple Pleasures’, featuring vocals from Laura Kidd and Yolanda Quartey, this is a rolling trip of a track, opening with 1970’s influenced punk vocals and ending in d&b toastings. Proof if ever it was needed that a hooky riff, strong bassline and love-based lyrics are a timeless blend.
Meanwhile ‘Like Dat’ is a murkier affair, combining Memphis rap, old school hip hop grooves, rock guitars and a uniquely filthy London bassline, ably ridden by Count Bass D’s commanding flow. An almost improvised gem, the Count’s vocals were the first continuous take, recorded immediately after they had been penned and guitar legend Guthrie Govan’s solo was again a first take, this time with him playing having never heard the track before.
The Young Punx themselves are a fluid collective, in demand as remixers, producers, DJs and a band, they draw on breaks, rock, hip hop, electro and even pop to create their own unique and un-genrefiable sound. A sound that has already seen them release one album to critical acclaim, gaining praise from the likes of Pete Tong, Annie Nightingale and Clash magazine along the way.
With their second longplayer due for imminent release The Young Punx are now making moves up the ladder and are sure to be coming to a radio station, dancefloor or live venue near you soon…
“It’s been described as an Acid House Bohemian Rhapsody, it takes in 25 styles during it’s course, I like it” – Rob da Bank on BBC Radio 1
“This guy F**ks with all the rules” – Norman Cook
“Learn to Recycle is six minutes of utterly unique music” – IDJ
“Phonat has frequently stunned us with his none-more-innovative productions over the last few years, coming across like a hyperactive Daft Punk on happy pills…… By the end, you’re exhausted, perplexed, flabbergasted, and left with the feeling that all other music is boring, unimaginative, repetitive trash. Wow. 10/10″ – Data Transmission
Unique, innovative, rule breaking, genre-spanning….just a few of the plaudits that have been used to describe the works of Phonat, the seven foot mop-haired Italian who’s been catching the ears and attention of the ever intangible ‘tastemaking set’ over the past few months.
Annie Mac, Annie Nightingale, Andy George, Rob da Bank and Pete Tong have all been championing the producer since last year, when singles ‘Incredible Sound’, ‘Ghetto Burning’ and ‘Learn To Recycle’ marked him as one to watch for 2009 and beyond. Now readying the release of his eponymous debut album, Phonat has created a panoply of chopped up riffs swirled around murky basslines, a world where guitar-driven dancefloor fillers meet bleep-filled fantasies for fun, friendship and possibly more.
Originally from Florence, Italy, Phonat (aka Michele Balduzzi) was first spotted by MofoHifi Records on MySpace and they were so impressed with the 21 year old that the loving label bosses persuaded him to leave his parents’ idyllic country farm in Florence and move to a bed sit in Canning Town. Armed only with a five-year-old computer and an electric guitar Phonat dutifully relocated to London in late 2007 and the rest, as they say, is history.
Drawing on every vein of dance music, from hip hop to house, garage to breaks Phonat’s expert use of a vocal hook is also evident, most noticeably on the Yolanda vocalled ‘Ghetto Burning’ and next single ‘Set Me Free’ – where classic 80s style rock vocals sit atop a stacatto-synthed stomper.
Phonat may have arrived on the scene late last year, but with DJ bookings and remix requests coming in from across the world and his album ready to hit the streets, 2009 is set to be an busy year for the big Italian.
‘Phonat’ by Phonat is released on MofoHifi Records on September 21st. ‘Set Me Free EP’, featuring remixes from Avicci, Louis La Roche and High Rankin was out August 24th.
Tracklisting
1. A Warm Welcome
2. Get Down My Dirty Street
3. Set Me Free
4. Ghetto Burnin’
5. Love Hits The Fan
6. Ho Visto Un Quadro Verde
7. It’s For You
8. Learn To Recycle
9. The Big Deal
10. Zombie Army
11. Bad Boy
12. London
Available at all major sellers.
(from the BBC web site)
From the teenage grime producer who pored over the pages of heavy metal weekly Kerrang and sampled Japanese chamber music, to the pop star Jeremy Paxman calls ‘Mr. Rascal’ when soliciting his views on US president Barack Obama, Dylan Mills AKA Dizzee Rascal likes confounding expectations.
In 2003, his radical debut album Boy in da Corner scooped the Mercury Prize. He’s since redefined UK urban music with a trademark style which blends raw street lyricism with radio friendly melody and draws as easily from grime as hip hop, R&B or pop music.
In the last 12 months, Dizzee hooked up with producers Calvin Harris and Armand Van Helden for an untouchable trio of electro-grime anthems – Dance Wiv Me, Bonkers and Holiday. All three UK number one singles feature on upcoming fourth album Tongue N’ Cheek – a recession-beating collection of upbeat party bangers. Enjoying his recent reinvention as a pop star, Dizzee is now in a place where he has artistic free rein; “I don’t know what people think I am now, and that’s good, because it means I can do whatever I want”.
Continuing to confound expectations, for BBC Electric Proms Dizzee Rascal delivers his first ever full length live show with a band, horns and string section. Dizzee is joined by Heritage Orchestra and backed by electronic mash-up collective The Young Punx under the musical direction of Hal Ritson. A celebration of the artist’s diverse influences, expect a party set of mash-ups, radical reinterpretations of Rascal favourites plus a few closely guarded surprises.
Massive new club anthem on MofoHifi Records, with groundbreaking remix from Phonat.
London based electro producer Sharooz was first introduced to the dance world by MofoHifi in 2006 with his debut release “Hell Yeah!” which received over twenty BBC Radio One plays and featured on numerous high profile compilations.
Three-years on and his star is still rising. Sharooz’s productions can now boast a clutch of leading taste-maker fans including 2 Many DJs, Moby, Mylo, Erol Alkan, Boys Noize, and Kissy Sell Out; an appeal which hasn’t gone unnoticed by club promoters, securing him DJ bookings in Serbia, Switzerland, Russia, Spain, Denmark, Sweden, USA and France. After topping many of the main dance download charts earlier this year with “Get Off”, Sharooz is back with his third release on MofoHifi – “Adrenalize”.
Adrenalize is a tough, big room crowd pleaser combining his trademark simple biting basslines and epic builds, with a triumphant piano break that has been raising the roof in Ibiza over the past few weeks.
Early support for the track comes from Fake Blood, Steve Aoki, Meat Katie, Grum, Dada Life, The Young Punx and many others and it looks set to be one of the underground dance records of the year.
On remix duties, MofoHifi artist Phonat, building up to the release of his forthcoming debut album ‘Phonat’, delivers a radical and innovative remix that creates a sound fusing the worlds of Dubstep and French house. Never one to deliver a predictable sound, the seven-foot Italian has been inspired by the increasing integration of the Dubstep scene into mainstream Ibiza clubs such as “Reclaim the Dancefloor” to create a Dubstep influenced groove that can be easily dropped by house DJs in their steps without changing tempo.
Italian producer Phonat has been catching the ears of a fair few tastemakers with his last few single and EP releases. Add the likes of Annie Mac, Annie Nightingale, Andy George, Tiesto and Pete Tong to the list above and you can see why the lofty Italian has been marked out as one to watch this year.
Now, ahead of his eponymous debut album due out in September, Phonat releases ‘Set Me Free’ a staccato-synthed stomper of a track, where classic 80’s rock vocals provide the support. A standout from the forthcoming album, Phonat hasn’t skimped on remixers with the first coming courtesy of Avicii, the latest ‘made’ man in the Swedish House Mafia. Proving his pedigree Avicii chops vocals and swirls synths to create a hands in the air Balearic bomb, early copies of which are already becoming staples in the record boxes of the more discerning DJ.
Bleeps and basslines are the order of the day on High Rankin’s re-rub as the dubstep dandy leads listeners to the dancefloor, albeit down a slightly murkier back route, before Louis La Roche’s Reconstruction adds a tougher, twisted edge to complete the package
With previous singles ‘Incredible Sound’, ‘Ghetto Burning’ and ‘Learn To Recycle’ Phonat (aka Michele Balduzzi) has showcased his ability to draw on every vein of dance music, from hip hop to house, garage to breaks and left fans eager to hear more. Now with DJ bookings and remix requests coming in from across the world and his album ready to hit the streets, 2009 is set to be a busy year for the big Italian. Not bad for a man who arrived in London from Florence little over a year ago with just a guitar and a five-year-old computer.
The Young Punx team up with their Japanese label buddy Shinichi Osawa with this full throttle remix of forthcoming Young Punx single ‘Rock Star (Understand)’. This banging hard glitch remix went straight to number one in the Japanese iTunes electronic chart on release! Shinichi Osawa is one of the worlds most exciting producers and needs no introduction following his UK releases on Data (Star Guitar) and Southern Fried (The One).
The Young Punx perform "Rock Star (Understand)" live in Japan, July 2009.
(NB This release is not yet available in North America)
MofoHifi Records and Ultra Records are delighted to announce that the forthcoming track by The Young Punx – “Ready for the fight” is featured prominently as the title track on the highly anticipated new boxing video game “Fight Night Round 4″. The track is one of several songs from the ‘eclectic electric collective’s forthcoming album “Mashpop and Punkstep” to feature guest vocals from highly respected Memphis rapper Count Bass D.
Hal Ritson and Nathan Taylor of The Young Punx with Count Bass D
“Ready for the fight” is triumphant cross genre collaboration between London-based electronic dance producers The Young Punx and Memphis-based king of the independent Hip Hop producers Count Bass D. Despite radically different musical and cultural backgrounds both artists have developed a great respect for each others’ work and come together to create a unique and moving track seamlessly combining the best of post Daft Punk European dance production with big room Hip Hop vibes in a moving tale of resolve and determination in the face of adversity.
The Young Punx are no strangers to the gaming world, having had 3 tracks featured on EA releases in the past 2 years, and having performed live at the EA Games “Be The One” event in Trafalgar Square recently. However, “Fight Night Round 4″ ramps this up a notch by using the track to soundtrack key scenes in the game as a core part of the gaming experience.
“My favourite song so far of 2009… it’s really amazing. lots of wicked rifts that go real mental”- Jaymo and Andy George on Radio 1 covering for Annie Mac.
“this guy F**ks with all the rules” – Norman Cook
The eagerly awaited new EP from the Italian prodigy paves the way for his debut album release this spring.
The “Set Me Free EP” is a follow up to the innovative and critically acclaimed “Learn to Recycle” which was celebrated as one of the most adventurous pieces of electronic music to be released in 2008 and was described as the ‘Bohemian Rhapsody for the acid house generation’.
Support has come thick and fast for Phonat from top DJ’s such as Annie Mac, Annie Nightingale, Andy George, Rob Da Bank, Herve, Kissy and Pete Tong.
“Set Me Free”
“Set Me Free” is an uplifting and inspirational club track which draws together three separate themes from current house music – disco revivalism, rave revivalism and wonky fidget. It combines them in a fresh sounding summer anthem that unifies many aspects of underground dance within one, highly accessible track and shows that dance music, so often divided aggressively by sub genre, can unite defined by its similarities more than its differences.
The EP also contains a re-edit of “Set Me Free” by East London Nu Disco outfit, Tasmanian Disco Stampede, re-focussing the track on its more funky elements, for more disco based dancefloors.
“Get Down My Dirty Street”
“Get Down My Dirty Street” is a unique and entertaining track, created from tiny fragmented micro-samples of different songs; rock, country, pop, soul, rap and metal, which start off playing as a stark disjointed chaos and slowly coalesce into a cohesive whole and then wonderfully form an upbeat party breaks bomb. Guaranteed to bring a smile to your face!
“Ho Visto Un Quadro Verde” – (“I’ve Seen a Green Picture”)
Finally, “Ho Visto Un Quadro Verde” shows off Phonat’s more minimal side – a trippy yet bouncey stripped back club tool which explores the sparse soundscapes, yet doing so with a sense of charm and humour so rarely seen in that field!
The track name translates from Phonat’s native Italian as “I’ve Seen a Green Picture” and is derived from a drunken bet with a friend made when he was living in his native Florence, in which they invented a variety of surreal and ridiculous pretend song names, and bet that one day ‘when they were successful’ they would be able to release an album that actually included one of the names in the tracklisting!
We went out onto the streets of London with members of the eclectic mashpop collective to find out about their approach to albums, music, gigging and mayhem.
The first single from The Young Punx second album, featuring vocals from Laura Kidd, awesome ravey fidgety mixes from Shir Khan and Goshi Goshi and an insane new video from Han Hoogerbrugge!
The Young Punx; an innovative collective of diverse musicians led by inventive multi-instrumentalist and producer, Hal Ritson, have been building themselves quite a reputation of late. Resisting easy definition by continuing to deliver fresh sounding, first-class electronic music, coupled with a string of hugely popular remixes for the likes of Sonny J, Mighty Dub Katz and Giant Jnr, The Young Punx are becoming one of London’s hottest exports. Drawing on an eclectic fusion of influences – breaks, house, rock, pop and electro – to create a sound loosely coined as “mashpop and punkstep”, they get ready to release their second album in Spring 2009.
MASHitUP is its first single release, a fine slice of quality breakbeat driven electro pop featuring a killer punky vocal from ‘new girl on the block’ Laura Kidd (fresh from touring with Tricky and her collaboration on ‘Automatic’ with Michael Gray, Eye Industries) and staggering shredding guitar licks from The Young Punx’ resident guitar virtuoso, Guthrie Govan. It’s dirty, it’s multi-layered and it’s loud – just the way they like it.
MASHitUP is already creating vibrations across the globe. From performing it live to a rapturous 15,000 strong crowd alongside the Stereophonics in Yokohama Arena, Japan, to featuring it in their inspired DJ set alongside Tiesto at Ibiza super club, Privilege, it’s going down an absolute (electric) storm.
Discerningly keen-eared blog tastemakers have been onto this for some time, sharing and hyping MASHitUP since mixes surfaced 6-weeks ago. Support from key blogspots, such as Discodust, Discobelle, Get Weird and Monster Says Rawr – considered instrumental in unearthing and breaking the hottest of fringe and underground acts – are all marking The Yong Punx as one to watch this year:
“I love the original on this, The Young Punx are bad as fooook, will be playing this 
”
– Micky Slim
Filmed out and about in Old Street, London, and more intimately at Hoxton’s cult ‘Phone in Sick’ night, hosted by Jerry Bouthier, MASHitUP’s video is a visual feast of freakish fun. Cut and animated by renowned Dutch Digital Artist, Han Hoogerbrugge, if you’ve ever wondered what Old St might look like should a troop of bikini-clad clowns invade, take a peek and wonder no more…
Mixes come from the Berlin Battery’s Shir Khan and new MofoHifi signings, Goshi Goshi. Shir Khan is undoubtedly one of the finest German DJ / Producers to have emerged in recent years and underlines exactly why he deserves the hype with this mash-up of electro house style leads, distorted e-guitar solos, baile funk drum rolls and a shuffled groove. All in all a massive record already singled out by Pete Tong for inclusion in his Fast Trax Show – “Totally rocking remix!”
Goshi Goshi lean their mix towards the ‘sound of 2008’ fidget house. With a banging combination of retro rave revivals, dropping basslines and glitchy beats, they deliver a killer peak-time remix.
