First Floor #233 – There Are Other Options (or at Least There Should Be)
First Floor #233 – There Are Other Options (or at Least There Should Be)
a.k.a. Thoughts on the contemporary music festival landscape, plus a round-up of the latest electronic music news and a fresh batch of new track recommendations.
Earlier this week, I published an essay about music festivals. You can find it below—and yes, the paywall is currently (albeit temporarily) down—but for the TL;DR crowd, it basically questions whether all of the recent talk of festivals going out of business and running into financial trouble is something we should actually be worried about.
That question is open to debate, but over the past few days, I’ve found myself paying closer attention to festivals—not the events themselves, but the degree to which they’ve come to dominate the music conversation. Look at any music website, especially in the electronic music realm, and festivals are everywhere. News stories, line-up announcements, line-up additions, previews, reviews, round-ups, wrap-ups, photo spreads … it’s endless, and that’s just the obvious stuff. (Keep an eye out for seemingly artist-focused features and interviews that casually slip in a “ahead of their performance at XXX festival.” There are lots of those, and when that sort of verbiage appears, it usually means that the piece is being done as part of a larger partnership agreement between the festival and the publication.)
Social media isn’t much better, especially now that artists routinely litter our feeds with photos and video clips from their festival-related adventures. I didn’t go to MUTEK Montreal or Dekmantel Selectors this year, but during the past two weeks, I saw more than enough online content to feel like I was at both events, or at least got the gist of what happened. (Quick question: Do DJs really need to repost every single video that punters record? As Physical Therapy suggested back in 2020, three reposts feels like a reasonable limit.)
This isn’t an anti-festival screed. Festivals have been around for decades. Many people obviously like them. I myself work with them. They’re not going to disappear anytime soon, and that’s fine. What’s troubling, however, is how much space we’ve allowed these events to take up in the wider musical landscape. We’ve resigned ourselves to not just their existence, but their dominance, to a point where it’s hard to even imagine a viable music ecosystem in which festivals don’t play an integral role. Money has a lot to do with that, but it also reflects a collective failure of imagination, which of course makes sense in an increasingly atomized culture where “community” is often little more than a buzzword. Hooray!
Anyways, for more of my thoughts on festivals—they’re not all depressing, I swear—check out the essay below. Otherwise, stick around for the rest of this week’s First Floor digest, which provides a snapshot of what’s been happening in electronic music. There are news items, release announcements and reading links, along with a fresh bundle of track recommendations, all of them from releases that dropped during the past seven days. And if you (understandably) want to hear from someone who isn’t me, I’ve also recruited beloved bass DJ Madam X to pop in with a special guest recommendation.
Let’s get started.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Every Tuesday, First Floor publishes a long-form piece that’s exclusively made available to paid newsletter subscribers only. The latest one, which is now (temporarily) open to everyone, is an essay examining the pluses and minuses of the contemporary festival landscape. In the wake of numerous media reports touting the challenges and financial troubles that many festivals are currently running into, the piece also questions whether the disappearance of these events is truly a problem—and what would be needed if they were go to away.
REAL QUICK
A round-up of the last week’s most interesting electronic music news, plus links to interviews, articles and other things I think are worth sharing.
Few working music journalists are bigger ’90s house fanatics than Ben Cardew, and this week he put that passion to use in the latest edition of his Line Noise newsletter, telling the story of MK by highlighting 10 of the iconic producer’s most important tunes. (He’s only shared half of those tunes so far; the second half of the list is coming next week.)
What is the New Industrial? According to an essay by San Francisco music scribe Chris Zaldua in his recently launched (but already quite promising) Thoughts of a Certain Sound newsletter, the term ought to be applied to a cadre of artists and labels (e.g. Hype Williams, Blackest Ever Black, John T. Gast) that he sees as “spiritual successors” to Throbbing Gristle and the other boundary-challenging artists who decades ago laid the original groundwork for the industrial genre. He’s only published half of the essay so far, but it’s intriguing enough that I’m very much looking forward to seeing how his argument concludes.
Lia Kohl, the Chicago-based experimental cellist who’s about to release a new album—and also authored a guest recommendation here in First Floor earlier this month—was interviewed by Stephan Kunze for his zensounds newsletter. She spoke about her upbringing and her evolving relationship with both the cello and experimental music, and also touched upon the ethos behind her forthcoming LP.
An eye-catching new feature in Resident Advisor traveled to West Bengal in India, where writer Arielle Domb got up close and personal with the rural region’s vibrant soundsystem culture. The photos alone—which depict a number of massive, and frankly quite beautiful, speaker stacks—are impressive to behold, but Domb also details when and how these soundsystems are used, and attempts to explain the uniquely ear-splitting strain of bass music that local artists are creating specifically for these giant rigs.
The name Atsushi Hoshiai likely doesn’t ring familiar for many First Floor readers, but as a charming new interview with Attack’s Adam Douglas reveals, the Japanese man—who programmed the cymbal and hi-hat sounds on the now-legendary TR-909 drum machine, and still works at Roland, more than four decades later—is affectionately called Mr. 909 by his co-workers. (As it turns out, he’s also not really a techno guy, and prefers jazz instead.)
With the US Department of Justice currently suing Live Nation for “monopolization and other unlawful conduct that thwarts competition in markets across the live entertainment industry,” Crack magazine commissioned journalist Will Pritchard to take a closer look at the situation. His feature lays out many of the company’s more questionable practices, and highlights how they’ve worsened in the years following its merger with Ticketmaster. The piece also looks at how this has affected ticket prices and the long-term viability of the live music market, before considering how governments will potentially address the situation, both in the US and elsewhere.
Ahead of Massive Attack’s Act 1.5 concert, which took place last weekend in Bristol and purposely sought to reduce its carbon emissions as much as possible, Greg Cochrane penned an illuminating feature for the Guardian which detailed the complex, years-long planning that went into making the event happen. A post-show article by Alex Marshall was published in the New York Times earlier this week, and though its contents touch upon similar ground, it also includes on-the-ground details from the concert itself.
OBLIGATORY BOOK MENTION
My first book is out now. It’s called First Floor Vol. 1: Reflections on Electronic Music Culture, and you can order it from my publisher Velocity Press. However, if you’re outside of the UK, I recommend that you either inquire at your favorite local bookshop or try one of the online sales links that have been compiled here.
JUST ANNOUNCED
A round-up of noteworthy new and upcoming releases announced during the past week.
The Bug has a new album (of sorts) on the way. Machine, which is slated to arrive on October 4, will be the UK bass veteran’s first outing for the Relapse label, and it consists entirely of tracks pulled from the stellar, five-part Machine EP series that he previously self-released via his own Pressure imprint. The Machine album, however, will put these tunes on vinyl and CD for the first time, and more information about it can be found here.
Having released a string of singles throughout the year, Caribou yesterday unveiled his plans to drop a new album, Honey, on October 4. Billed as something that “isn’t about any one person and is available to everybody,” the LP promises “huge dancefloor tracks” that “twinkle, shimmer and surprise.” Merge will be issuing the record, but several tracks—including the latest single, “Come Find Me”—are already available here.
French experimental artist Félicia Atkinson, who also heads up the Shelter Press label, has completed a new full-length. Space as an Instrument is rooted in Atkinson’s own piano performances, though it combines those melodies with field recordings she simultaneously captured with her phone. The music that results is meant to “[dilate] the imagination and [help] us to sit comfortably in the mystery of the ineffable.” Ahead of its release on October 25, Atkinson has already shared one track from the album, “The healing.”
NYC producer and HAUS of ALTR boss MoMA Ready sometimes makes music under the name Gallery S, and last week he added a new alias to the mix: D’oR. He describes the project as a “dancefloor-focused experimental space,” and has hit the ground running with a trio of EPs: D’oR001, D’oR002 and D’oR003. All three are available now.
Speaking of artists with multiple monikers, Jackson Ryland will soon be returning to his techno-oriented JR2k alias with a new EP on the expertly curated Fixed Rhythms label. It’s called The Hot Zone, and though it won’t officially surface until October 1, the Washington DC producer has already shared two tracks from the record here.
Bill Converse and Patricia, two American techno artists who generally stick to the genre’s outer fringe, have teamed up on a forthcoming EP. Entitled 380/750, it contains “raw, no-multitrack, no-edit live recordings,” and will be released via the Acid Test imprint on September 13. In the meantime, EP closer “Fixer” has already been made available.
Karl O’Connor (a.k.a. Regis) has been involved in many different projects and collaborations over the years, and one of them, Eros, is planning to release its first full-length. The trio, which also includes Boris Wilsdorf and Liam Andrews, debuted in 2022 with the mini-LP A Southern Code, and they’ve titled the new record Your Truth Is a Lie. The video for first single “Cut from the Soul” is out now, and the album will arrive on November 1 via O’Connor’s Downwards label.
The fabric presents mix / compilation series isn’t known for its commitment to hard-charging techno, but it’s unlikely that many will complain now that the famed UK outpost has chosen Rødhåd to helm the series’ next installment. September 27 is the official release date, but “Nightlife Experiences”—a new track from Rødhåd himself that features the vocals of Theo Nasa—has already been shared.
Having linked up with Method 808—a label that has also released music from camp-loving artists like Marlon Hoffstadt, Malugi and SoFTT—it appears that Shanti Celeste is flirting with a poppier sound, or at least a more carefree one. This week the Chilean-born UK took another step in that direction with a new single called “Ice Cream Dream Boy.” She describes it as “a happy and uplifting vocal summer tune,” and it’s her first track on which her own singing is front and center.
MADAM X HAS BETTER TASTE THAN I DO
First Floor is effectively a one-person operation, but every edition of the Thursday digest cedes a small portion of the spotlight to an artist, writer or other figure from the music world, inviting them to recommend a piece of music. Today’s recommendation comes from Madam X, a veteran DJ who’s currently splitting her time between Athens and London. Though she’s perhaps best known for her energetic treks through the UK bass continuum, she’s just as comfortable bopping around the techno realm, and has funneled that genre-blending mentality into the curation of her Kaizen label, which first launched a decade ago. On October 24, she’ll be making her long-awaited debut as a producer with Homecoming, an EP that includes collaborations with the likes of DJ JM, Cartridge, Andy Martin and Doctor Jeep. Anticipation for the record is high—lots of people are curious to hear what happens when Madam X gets into the studio—but in the meantime, she’s stopped by First Floor to highlight the work of someone whose talents and musical vision are just as multifaceted as her own.
Akiko Haruna “Athena” (Numbers)
Akiko Haruna is one of the most exciting and original artists for me right now, and her track “Athena” is so beautiful and unique. The sound design, not afraid of playing with the space in the music, lets the tune breathe and also gives way to dramatic, film-worthy moments, taking you on a proper emotional journey. Her voice is emo and enchanting and her style, which echoes FKA twigs, Evanescence and Paramore, sits somewhere between AI pop princess and hardcore gothic raver. She’s one of a kind, and this song offers a glimpse into her otherworldly Planet Haruna.
NEW THIS WEEK
The following is a selection of my favorite tunes from releases that came out during the past week or so. Click the track titles to hear each song individually, or you can also just head over to this convenient Buy Music Club list if you prefer to listen to them all in one place.
Fracture & Neptune “The Limit (2024 Remaster)” (Astrophonica)
First released in 2010 and newly remastered / reissued in 2024, Fracture & Neptune’s “The Limit” actually sounds a lot like 2000, when artists like Ed Rush & Optical were terrorizing the drum & bass realm with their menacing brand of tech-step. Darker and brawnier than most of the ’90s-style jungle revivalism that’s currently in vogue, the track is armed with warning sirens, crunchy lazers and a gnarled, utterly filthy bassline, which all coalesce into something that might prompt more timid listeners to duck and cover. Those who can withstand its onslaught, however, are likely to be invigorated by the song’s bustling drum attack and serrated aggression. Back in the day, “The Limit” was instrumental in putting the then-young Astrophonica label on the map, and even though the track is now approaching its 15th birthday, it’s still an awfully potent tune.
Lundin Oil “Schengen Burning” (Northern Electronics)
More than eight years have passed since Anthony Linell last employed the Lundin Oil moniker, but the Northern Electronics founder has impressively resurrected the project’s post-industrial tensions on his new Exploit Divisions release. Meditative but never relaxed, the record—which includes telling track titles like “Unpaid Moral Debts” and “Melting Skin”—is not exactly a feelgood listen, and though its jagged compositions do at times motion towards EBM and no wave, they do so in a way that never once steps foot on the dancefloor. Linell instead prefers to stew in his own distortion-streaked, largely beatless malaise, and while the slow-burning standout “Schengen Burning” is one of the cleaner cuts on offer, its muscular churn is soaked with feelings of dread.
ESP “Crisis” (YEAR0001)
Personality doesn’t factor much into how ESP present themselves to the world, but the NYC duo—which largely restrict their appearances to Instagram, and even then usually obscure their faces (or just wear giant sunglasses)—won’t need to play the typical promo game if they continue to make records like Promise. With eight tracks and a total run time of less than 20 minutes, their first full-length keeps things brief, but it does so with a sense of cinematic grandeur, stuffing trancey swells and blippy, video game-ish synths into bite-size blasts of emotion. “Crisis” actually sounds like an updated take on New Order; the song’s thrumming bassline is very Peter Hook, and while no Bernard Sumner soundalike shows up to sing a memorable chorus, the duo’s shimmering textures and neon melodies prove plenty enchanting on their own.
seb wildblood “stick it in the freezer” (Aus)
There needs to be a name for this kind of house music. Pop-house almost gets it right, but “stick it in the freezer”—the opening track on seb wildblood’s new FLUSH EP—doesn’t have any proper vocals, and its “hook,” if it even has one, consists of a relatively subtle piano riff and a silky, wordless R&B vocalization. It’s in the same neighborhood as what artists like DJ Seinfeld and Barry Can’t Swim are doing, which is why I’ve sometimes referred to this sort of music as Spotifycore, but that sounds borderline insulting. It’s not meant to be though; wildblood is compressing the traditional house formula into something that’s more immediately accessible—and, arguably, more potent as well. It’s dance music, but it doesn’t actually require a dancefloor, and the song’s warmly wistful, “life is a movie” vibe is far more critical to its success than its actual grooves. Whatever you want to call it, it’s working, and it’s guaranteed to deliver a quick shot of FEELS, even if whoever is listening is nowhere near the club.
GAS “GAS 2” (Kompakt)
It feels a little silly to recommend GAS here in the newsletter, as I’m guessing that a sizable portion of readers are already well aware of the project and its towering legacy. For the scattered few who aren’t familiar, or who’ve maybe seen the name and were too nervous to ask what all the fuss is about, GAS is one of the many, many aliases that German artist and Kompakt founder Wolfgang Voigt has used over the years. Under that name, he produced a string of highly influential albums in the ’90s that effectively established the template for ambient techno. Many of those albums have been reissued numerous times over the years, but GAS—the project’s debut LP, which first came out in 1996 on Mille Plateaux—has now resurfaced on Kompakt for the first time. Like all of the early GAS records, it’s incredible, though it showcases a slightly more rough-around-the-edges version of what the project would ultimately become. That grit only enhances the music’s appeal, and while the whole LP is excellent, “GAS 2” is one of the more propulsive cuts, a nearly 19-minute trek through hypnotic haze and almost feral growls, all of it pushed along by a throbbing, dub-drenched beat.
Elin Piel “Presidentvägen” (Northern Electronics)
Northern Electronics may not be the most obvious home for Elin Piel’s delicate hardware concoctions, as the Swedish artist doesn’t dabble in techno or desolate noisescapes. Nevertheless, her new Vaka album is a real gem, a collection of precision-crafted and intricately textured—but never overcrowded—meditations that deal in elegantly noodling synths, soft static and nuanced feelings of wonder. For those craving something introspective, opening cut “Siren siren” and the LP’s title track are clear standouts, but the album’s most memorable tune is also its most surprising selection: “Presidentvägen,” which significantly ups both the drama and the energy level. Built around a bright arpeggio and some persistently tapping percussion, the song is less than two minutes long, but it closes out the record with a well-earned flourish.
Lyndsie Alguire “sandcastles” (Hush Hush)
There’s something magical about Lyndsie Alguire’s new album. Maybe I’m being influenced by the vibrant watercolor that graces the record’s cover, or perhaps the crystalline chimes of LP standout “sandcastles” have sent my imagination into overdrive, but time is but the drawing of a sword is steeped in fantasy, prompting thoughts of the detailed world-building that author Ursula K. Le Guin engaged in with her landmark Earthsea series. Alguire, who’s based in Montreal, does appear to have a taste for fantasy, and wrote an entire interactive online game to accompany the album. Dedicated to themes of “alienation, the passage of time, the stories we tell ourselves and the tug-of-war between hope and bitterness,” the game isn’t shy about its narrative ambitions. Alguire’s music, on the other hand, is somewhat more subdued, but her rich, occasionally twee, occasionally ren faire-adjacent strain of ambient is engrossing all the same.
That brings us to the end of today’s First Floor digest. 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.)
Have a great week,
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.