If you read our feature this morning about dance-music legend Carl Cox, you can probably imagine that the producer, DJ, and remixer has a discography a mile long. With that in mind, we’d like to turn you on to five essential cuts from that long list of accomplishments.
At 50 years of age, Carl Cox remains a techno provocateur on all counts. From scaling the globe’s biggest festivals and the UK charts over the years, he’s had an iconic reign over dance music, one which began by fueling London’s rave culture decades ago. Since then, he’s racked up four albums, countless singles, and even more nights behind the decks—all with that unmistakeably winning smile. With no plans to retire and a strong second wind behind his Intec imprint, Cox’s sense of preservation is not only one for the history books, but an inherently relevant case study in keeping your cool in the face of universal adoration.
Back on track for 2013 with fresh Ibiza plans and the return of his Pure Intec compilation series, Cox pulled up a chair with Beatport News in London to talk bringing Intec back from the dead, his consistent run on the White Isle, and taking America on his own terms.
As a consistent mainstay on the global underground circuit, Jon Rundell has made the transition from starry-eyed fan to influential tastemaker look incredibly easy. But for the Brighton-based DJ, whose early encounters with Carl Cox would lead to the now fruitful partnership known as Intec Digital, his penchant for diverse studio offerings has sent him on leaps and bounds across the digital market and dancefloor. Despite taking a brief hiatus from duties at the helm of Intec, Rundell has returned in full form to fuel the increasingly influential outlet with forward-thinking music.
A decade in club life is like a century for normal businesses. While people will always need shoes, the changing tides of music and partying preferences often puts a short shelf life on havens of entertainment. Not so for NYC landmark Cielo, which just marked its 10th anniversary with a series of high-profile parties showcasing underground heroes like Todd Terje and The Martinez Brothers. Co-founder Nicolas Matar is the man behind Cielo’s ethos, which he designed to be a timeless club—a goal that he certainly achieved by bucking the trend of NYC’s short-lived nightlife establishments. From being on the cutting edge of sound by having the first Funktion One soundsystem in the US (which we named the best in the country) to constantly keeping amazing talent on the decks, Matar describes what it’s like to have been at the helm of one of NYC’s most influential clubs.
Admittedly, it’d have been more appropriate if we could’ve brought you the tale of how New Order’s “Bizarre Love Triangle” was made, but as it happens, instead we have the story of how they programmed “Blue Monday” in today’s Morning Roundup, along with some great new D&B DJs, a Carl Cox documentary, a Porter Robinson interview, and plenty more.
Led by the passion to unite people with her music, and jailed for exorcising those demons within narrow-minded society, Nicole Moudaber’s global techno overhaul has been as socially charged as it has creatively balanced.
Without cashing in on her female prominence in the electronic music industry, Moudaber’s ability to hold the ranks alongside Carl Cox and Adam Beyer alike has seen the dark and melodically refined exploits of her studio work reign mercilessly over a movement too often cast under the shadows of the great clubbing spectrum.
For 2012, however, her globetrotting ventures between Ibiza, the US, and Australia signaled hope yet for the future of techno and her likeminded peers. Beatport News sat down with Moudaber during Carl Cox’s 500th radio broadcast during Amsterdam Dance Event to talk discovering techno, musical insurgency, and her forthcoming artist album for Beyer’s Drumcode imprint.
You may recall that last summer we tracked the ongoing trials and tribulations of 11 up-and-coming DJs from around Europe as they vied for three coveted spots in burn studios’ residency competition in Ibiza. Now the contest has returned for another big season, and the submission window is open for DJs just like you to be mentored by Steve Lawler, Solomun, Maceo Plex, and plenty more music-industry giants—and of course, to find yourself in one of burn’s much-ballyhooed club residencies.
Firstly, welcome back! The first Morning Roundup of the year is, to be expected, packed with news—including tidbits on a new DJ reality program and how to get productive in the studio right away. So, let us help you resolve to bust out some new tunes STAT.
The crazy, hilarious, brilliant, and oft-scary world of fan art has thrived for decades, but with its proliferation on the web, that space has become all the more amplified. And while fan art used to be relegated to the world inhabited by comic-book and fantasy geeks, in 2012, it really knows no bounds. Yep, it’s even jumped genes to the DJ world, with great success, as you’re about to witness. Whether for the purposes of generating a gig flyer, or simply to satisfy an urge deep down inside to express oneself with pencil and paper, in tribute to one’s favorite artists, DJ fan art can be a manifestation of equal parts sincerity and creepiness. But anyway you slice it, it’s all pretty mind-blowing, so without further ado, here are 10 of our favorite pieces floating around the web. Can you guess who’s who?
We’re not gonna end the day by telling you young whippersnappers a “when I was your age” tale, but some of us olds on the Beatport staff (that’s pretty much anyone over 30, if you’re counting) remember with vivid detail the first time we heard Daft Punk’s now-classic “Around the World” track back in 1997—and damn, it was a joyous occasion. So suffice it to say that dudes like myself are pretty stoked (do you kids say “dudes” or “stoked” anymore?) that the tracks that first turned our ears toward electronic music have, as of today, been given a huge new push from EMI’s Mixed Repertoire label in the form of some amazing lost remixes from the vaults. First up, for me personally, is that iconic Daft Punk track remixed by none other than the equally legendary Masters At Work.
