First Floor #118 – Seven Years Is a Long Time
a.k.a. An interview with Mood Hut's Jack J, plus a round-up of the week's electronic music news and a fresh batch of new track recommendations.
JACK J BREAKS HIS SILENCE
PLEASE NOTE: This interview was originally published on Tuesday and made available to paid newsletter subscribers, but the paywall has now been temporarily removed for the next 24 hours. If you’d like exclusive first access to long-form First Floor pieces—and unlimited views of all newsletter content—then please sign up for a paid subscription.
Before last weekend, Jack J had never done an interview before. In fact, the entire Mood Hut collective—which he co-founded more than a decade ago—had always avoided talking to the press, preferring to instead let their music speak for itself.
That being said, seven long years have passed since Jack J’s last release (2015’s “Thirstin’,” one of that year’s biggest tunes), and now the elusive Vancouver artist—who’s also one half of Pender Street Steppers—has returned with his long-awaited debut full-length, Opening the Door, which is due to arrive on April 5. An album that frequently sounds more like soft rock and Sade than the laid-back house records that made Mood Hut a world-renowned label during the mid 2010s, it’s bound to raise a few questions, and much to my surprise, Jack J was willing to answer them.
Over the course of a long conversation, he talked a lot about the new album, but also went back in time, reflecting on the origins of Mood Hut, how he dealt with the hype that sprung up around it and what he’s been up to during the past seven years. It’s a revealing, thoughtful discussion, and it can be found here.
REAL QUICK
A round-up of of the last week’s most interesting electronic music news, plus links to interviews, mixes, articles and other things I think are worth sharing.
Spotify sure does seem determined to lean into its reputation as the music industry’s biggest villain. This week, the streaming platform announced a new partnership with FC Barcelona (one of the world’s biggest soccer / football teams), solidifying a reportedly $310 million deal that includes a rebranding of the team’s stadium and the placement of the company’s logo on the front of player uniforms. By Spotify’s own admission, the company “has never undertaken a partnership at this scale before,” and while Chief Freemium Business Officer Alex Norström spun the deal as a good thing for artists, stating that “more fans engaging with our platform means more opportunities for creators to live off of their art,” it’s fair to say that most artists—who are still receiving literal fractions of a cent per stream—aren’t buying it.
The launch of Season 1.5 of the $STREAM report—Water & Music’s deep-dive research initiative examining the intersection of Web3 and music—was mentioned in last week’s newsletter, but I wanted to highlight one particular component that went live after my mailout: a wide-reaching survey of industry sentiment regarding Web3. The whole thing is worth a read, but the data clearly displays that while there’s a lot of optimism out there, there’s also a lot of hesitance about (and in some cases, animosity toward) this emerging technology and the new systems being built around it. (And not to toot my own horn, but many of the report’s conclusions parallel the crypto-related issues, frustrations and hurdles I myself laid out in the newsletter last month.)
The Culture Journalist is a podcast I’ve been meaning to highlight for some time, as it presents smart conversations about systematic problems (both cultural and economic) in the culture industry during an era dominated by hegemonic online platforms. Headed up by Emilie Friedlander and Andrea Domanick, the show already boats an impressive archive, but maybe start with the most recent episode, in which the hosts speak to writer / academic James Muldoon and tackle the question, “Is it time for platform socialism?”
Anyone who lived through the bloghouse era likely remembers Kavinsky, and even if that name doesn’t ring a bell, his song “Nightcall” surely will—the track, a collaboration with Daft Punk’s Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, was the breakout hit from the wildly popular Drive soundtrack. Following a lengthy absence from the public eye, the French producer is set to release a new album, Reborn, on March 25, and ahead of that, he’s sat down for an interview with Mixmag’s Gemma Ross about his return to the spotlight.
Esplendor Geométrico is quite possibly the most important Spanish industrial outfit of all time, and Andi Harriman spoke to founding member Arturo Lanz for this Bandcamp Daily profile, which tours through the influential band’s 40-plus-year history.
JUST ANNOUNCED
A round-up of noteworthy new and upcoming releases that were announced during the past week.
UK bass producer Batu will soon be releasing his debut album, Opal, an effort on which he says that his “visceral production isn’t necessarily geared towards shock tactics.” The LP is due to surface on April 29 via his own Timedance label, but he’s already shared one of its tracks, “Atavism.”
CFCF—who I interviewed last year about his Y2K-indebted Memoryland LP—has announced the impending release of an “enhanced” edition of the album. No previews have been shared yet, but the digital-only release will reportedly arrive on April 13 and include remixes from DJ Lostboi, Flora Yin Wong, GRRL, Bodysync and others, along with what he describes as “unreleased demos, tracks, and re-versions.”
Before his Fabric Presents mix / compilation drops later this month, Leon Vynehall has just today issued a special digital package that includes all the exclusive tracks from the release, including songs from Or:la, Skee Mask, Ehua and Vynehall himself.
Born in Australia and based in London, electro / acid / breakbeat specialist Nite Fleit has completed her debut album, which Resident Advisor reports will be released in July via Steel City Dance Discs. The LP is called Nite Fleit / Day Flight, and first single “Overload” is already available, as is the song’s vibrant video.
Eight years in the making, “ . . . on reflection ” is the upcoming new album from celebrated experimental composers William Basinski and Janek Schaefer, and while it’s slated for an April 29 release through Temporary Residence Ltd., the pair have already shared the LP’s pensive opening track, “. . . on reflection (one),” along with an accompanying video.
In light of the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, artists and labels have continued to put together benefit releases and compilations. Some of the more prominent ones that have appeared in recent days include:
Andy Stott’s The Slow Ribbon, an album-length cassette that will only be on sale through the end of today. (After that, a digital version will still be available.)
Soul Enforcer, an album from techno veteran Dax J.
Creature, a new full-length from Russian artist LVRIN on the Pinkman label.
Compilations from such labels as Muscut, Freerotation, HÖR, Haŵs, Turn the Tables, A Strangely Isolated Place, De Lichting, Noland, Component, Natural Selection and Green Fairy.
NEW THIS WEEK
The following is a selection of my favorite tunes from releases that came out during the past week or so. The ones in the ‘Big Three’ section are the songs I especially want to highlight (and therefore have longer write-ups), but the tracks in the ‘Best of the Rest’ section are also very much worth your time. In both sections, you can click the track titles to hear each song individually, or you can also just head over to this convenient Buy Music Club list to find them all in one place.
THE BIG THREE
DJ Hank “Lift Gate” (Hyperdub)
DJ Hank “Get @ Me” (Hyperdub)
I accidentally left this out of last week’s newsletter, an omission made all the more glaring by the fact that the new City Stars EP is one of 2022’s finest offerings to date. (I know it’s only March, but the record really is that good.) A North Carolina native who fell in love with footwork after moving to Chicago, DJ Hank has put his own unique spin on the fleet-footed genre, taking a more melodic approach while intriguingly folding in elements of UK garage. Opening number “Lift Gate” is especially colorful, its glittery chimes rippling above the song’s wonky bass manipulations and skittering percussion, while “Get @ Me” leads with a bold R&B vocal snippet, ultimately sounding like an updated take on what artists like Kingdom and Nguzunguzu were doing more than a decade ago. Both tracks are excellent, and if DJ Hank keeps making tunes of this caliber, he seems poised to become a fixture of Hyperdub’s already star-studded roster.
Area Forty_One “Voyage” (Delsin)
A compilation of three EPs (and a couple of previously released bonus tracks) that spans nearly a decade, Nocturnal Passions 2014-2022 puts a much deserved spotlight on Area Forty_One, a producer whose soulful, space-age electro is often overlooked. “Voyage,” a track first released in 2016, is just one of many highlights on the record, and though it’s not a hard-charging banger—to be clear, it’s not trying to be—its gleaming melodies, funky underbelly and subtle dramatic flair perfectly encapsulate what makes this Dutch artist a special talent.
SHXCXCHCXSH “Onge” (Avian)
SHXCXCHCXSH “Nges” (Avian)
Although their chosen moniker remains unpronounceable, SHXCXCHCXSH continue to deliver compellingly chaotic techno on their new Kongestion album. (In the interest of accuracy, the music is perhaps more “technoid” than it is strictly techno. The Swedish duo seems to have little affinity for straight lines, which means that four-to-the-floor kicks are in short supply.) “Onge” is one of the LP’s more punishing cuts; with synth contortions that menacingly swirl as the song’s rapid-fire percussion relentlessly pounds away, it’s akin to being being battered by a crew of young hooligans armed with baseball bats. “Nges” dials down the drums, but it dials up the terror, piloting a harrowing journey through warped sound design and disembodied hardcore stabs, likely unnerving even the steeliest of listeners.
BEST OF THE REST
Fennec “bnb” (Self-released)
a couple of good days, the latest album from Fennec, is quirkier than his past efforts, its playful spirit at times recalling the off-the-wall, anything-goes approach of ’90s sample maestros like Cut Chemist and Dan the Automator. “bnb” is cut from the same spiritual cloth, but it also showcases the now-Austin-based producer’s well-established talent for hazy house music, stitching dreamy exotica to a steady, static-soaked kick drum.
Joy Orbison “pinky ring” (Hinge Finger / XL)
Inspired both by a desire to have something new for his DJ sets and his “lady dragging [him] to d ’n’ b parties again,” Joy Orbison has cooked up “pinky ring,” a swinging, fuzzed-out gem that cleverly pulls from various eras of UK bass music, combining clacking, garage-flavored rhythms with wobbly, dubstep-style basslines.
Anthony Rother “Atomic Hunger” (Bad Manners)
Fresh off his electro-oriented (and rather excellent) DEKATRON album, German mainstay Anthony Rother has now popped up on Marcel Dettmann’s Bad Manners imprint with BM9, and EP standout “Atomic Hunger” is a driving, no-frills acid techno cut. The sound palette may be familiar, but in the hands of a veteran like Rother, the tweaky track still feels fresh.
Mani Festo x Denham Audio “Things You Don’t Do” (E-Beamz)
The new Continuum-Z compilation is an homage to the evolution of jungle over the past three decades, and it reaches a high point on “Things You Don’t Do.” A collab between UK trio Denham Audio and fellow Brit Mani Festo, it’s built atop a sturdy (albeit not overpowering) breakbeat rumble, but it’s the song’s tender R&B vocals that lead the way, tugging harder at your heartstrings than your dancing shoes.
The AM “Shadow Werk (Scan 7 Remix)” (Tresor)
Black Majick is the solo debut from The AM, and while the up-and-coming Detroit artist flashes some promising genre-hopping talent across her EP, it’s O.G. Motor City outfit Scan 7 who steal the show, infusing the grimy techno stomp of “Shadow Werk” with glowing synths and a soaring sci-fi sensibility.
Space Dimension Controller “Space Grunt” (Tiraquon)
First released digitally in 2020, “Space Grunt” now leads off Tiraquon Recordings Vol. 1, a collection of tunes described as having “a higher energy and BPM than the usual Space Dimension Controller sound that many have come to expect.” That said, there are still elements of the Belfast producer’s signature space-age funk at work, and “Space Grunt” demonstrates that they’re just as effective (and fun) when paired with galloping techno rhythms and plinky melodies that could have been lifted from an old Nintendo game.
MDM Factory “La Vida Loca” (Cómeme)
“La Vida Loca” is the swaggering title track of MDM Factory’s debut EP, on which Matias Aguayo and Buenos Aires duo DJ Pareja join forces to put their own distinct spin on techno-ish sounds. Led by an imposing synth riff that blares atop the track’s bare-bones (albeit effective) rhythm, the song’s cartoonish bounce actually recalls the boisterous spirit of fidget house, and has a very good time doing it.
Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Sofia Honer “In Åland Air” (International Anthem)
As the album’s title implies, Recordings from the Åland Islands was born out of Jeremiah Chiu and Marta Sofia Honer’s travels to an archipelago in the Baltic Sea, and “In Åland Air” opens the LP on a woozy, dreamlike note, its warbling melodies wafting through the ocean air, accompanied by hints of drone, tinkling chimes and comforting bits of birdsong.
Lauren Duffus “Habits” (AD 93)
It’s not easy to reference ’90s R&B without sounding like a retread, but Lauren Duffus does just that on “Habits,” the fantastic lead track from her new Dubplate 07 release. Her (quite lovely) voice soulfully leads the way here, but the London artist wraps it in sensuously drifting pads and harp-like melodies, and keeps the whole thing moving with a bubbly (albeit low-key) rhythm. Keep an eye on this woman—she seems poised for big things.
Disassembler “Impossible Color” (Western Vinyl)
A cross-country collaboration between LA sound artist Christopher Royal King and NYC violinist / composer Christopher Tignor, Disassembler close out their debut album A Wave from a Shore in grand fashion, as “Impossible Color” layers orchestral string flourishes atop lilting synth swells, the song’s sense of majesty only growing as its exquisitely detailed composition becomes more intricate and complex.
That’s it for this edition of First Floor. Thank you so much for reading the newsletter, and as always, I do hope that you enjoyed the tunes. (Don’t forget, you can find them all on this handy Buy Music Club list, and if you like them, please buy them.)
Until next time,
Shawn
Shawn Reynaldo is a freelance writer, editor, presenter and project manager. Find him on LinkedIn and Twitter, or you can just drop him an email to get in touch about projects, collaborations or potential work opportunities.