Felix has graced us with another Bopcast.. and this one, leads you into his new residency at Vanity Las Vegas! That’s right, Thee Underground has come to Sin City and the Housecat has made his home at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

Expect some amazing music.. amazing adventures.. and pure craziness at this weekly party. Coming up in January 2012 will be Larry Tee and Skeet Skeet!

See all the Boppers there!

I wanted to make sure to bring you the latest in Acid… and by that, I mean one of the most original sounds in House Music, that fantastic acid sound! Afro Acid has just released Acid Tracks 2011 : DJ Pierre & Green Velvet vs Phuture .. a monster rework of Phuture’s 1986 original. And for those that don’t remember it (or weren’t born yet!) you can also get the original goodness on this release…

Get yourself acquainted with the best mistake a 303 ever made… (thank you, Chicago house!) … It also features additional remixes by Boppernation homies Green Velvet, Angel Alanis and Kris Menace.

And for those wanting some download action, here’s a freebie for ya… a special mix by Mykel Waters of Detroit!

Buy on Beatport : Listen on Soundcloud

*update: Sorry, boppers, looks like the download limit as been reached!

Coming out soon on Beatport, it’s Zaman! Sander van Doorn’s label Doorn Records will be releasing this on Beatport on January 25th. Here’s a little taste of it… go and pick it up soon!

Update:

Also available on the 25th will be a club mix, which is included in Sander’s latest Identity radio show.

Download Identity 58 on iTunes

Download Identity 58 from RSS

On a rainy San Francisco evening, I was able to see one of the most up and coming acts in the scene today, the boys of N.A.P.T.  The guys, Tomek and Ashley, are dressed as dapper as two UK blokes can when travelling around the world spinning some of the hardest, beatiest, dirty break and house music imaginable. Tomek in a white t-shirt and light jacket, Ashley in one of the nicest charcoal peacoats I’ve ever seen. Quaffed and trimmed, offering up European double kisses to the ladies, I was hinted by my inner monologue to temper my brash American attitude.

Now, while most people will mistakenly call them Napt, as the word, technically they should be referred to as the acronym N.A.P.T.  Why, do you ask? Well, let’s let the boys speak for themselves.

Bn:
Thanks so much for giving us some time to talk. Such an amazing show. We’ve been really watching you take off the last couple of years.

So everyone says 2008 is when you really hit it big, but when did you realize what you guys were doing? That it was getting noticed?

Ashley:
Around then. Well, a bit before. But around then is when the hype started getting bigger.

Tomek:
What it is, is we started doing it, basically because the label we were on.. well, we were kind of floating around. We started making records when we were in university, right? We were just kind of putting things out here and there. Didn’t really know what we were doing that well. Just making dance music. Then the label came on and said, ‘Listen, I want to develop you, I’m gonna do a series for you, and you’re gonna do really well out of it.’ And we were kind of like ‘Is this what we’re gonna do?’ ya know? I mean, we’d been doing some, like, other studio work for other people before that, and so forth, and we were like ok, yeah lets do it. So we did the EP series, with each one kind of getting more people on.

Bn:
Is this the idea where you were releasing everything in 4 parts? N-Funk and such?

Tomek:
Yeah, yeah, the one before N-funk, actually.

Bn:
The contr–

Tomek:
Contrast, yeah.

Ashley:
That was leading up to 2008, that’s what really kind of put us on the map.

Bn:
So it really was that time.

Ashley:
2006, 2007, is when we kind of built. And then 2008 is when it kind of took off.

Bn:
So you guys started in like 2003, just producing in your bedroom?

Tomek:
We went to school together.

Bn:
Did you meet in college?

Tomek:
High school. We’ve known each other since we were like 13. And we’re 30 now.

Bn:
And you guys still like each other. Amazing!

Tomek and Ashley laugh.

Tomek:
Yeah, we really started doing music seriously like 10, maybe 10 and a half years ago.

Ashley:
It’ll be 11 years in January.

Bn:
Well congratulations on that!

Tomek and Ashley both laugh, take a look at each other, seemingly realizing that yes, they still do get along and really do like each other. It’s like two gradeschool friends that never stopped hanging out. I eased up a little. The two of them, and their demeanor, relaxed me and really showed me that despite all the recent success, these two guys were just enjoying the ride.

Bn:
The Cee-Lo Green song. Big song, right? So where’d you get this from? It’s like ‘Oh, I like this YouTube video, I’m going to make a song out of it.’

Tomek:
Well, we started getting this idea that we wanted to, kind of, get the music out there to a few more people.  Because, breaks is a bit of a ghetto. So you can do really well with breaks.. we sold a lot of records on Beatport. It was going into the top 20 of Beatport, and that’s cool, but no one really likes… well, other people just want to look in. They go ‘What the hell is a breaks records? Oh, cool, maybe I like this…’ but other than that, it’s hard to get it out to people. So we were looking to do some stuff that we really enjoyed and just give it a spin. But rather than do an edit, since there’s a lot of people who just do edits, we wanted to change a few things. So we were like ‘fuck that’ let’s just sample it..

Ashley:
And make gold records with it.

Tomek:
Yeah, exactly.

Bn:
The old style.

Tomek:
Yeah, as if we were sampling an old disco record. We’ll take a sample of it, we’ll use it in a section, build a whole tune around it, just to try and show people. And we’ve been giving it away for free, as well. Which, is a bit controversial. I mean, it’s other people’s work as well, so we can’t have people pay money for it. But the whole idea was to just get more people, who might be into the more wider variety of good music. You know, the ‘Hey, this is cool music, I’ll check it out, I like these guys.’

Bn:
Well, you get marketed strangely sometimes. The breaks kids know about this but the electro kids don’t. But I know a lot of electro kids that would love to come see you guys. And if it was marketed correctly…

Ashley:
Yeah that’s what we’re doing with these records.

Tomek:
We’re just trying to get the sounds to the moment, we’re doing some more. Releasing a bunch. Cee-Lo Green is like a four to the floor house record, essentially. It’s got loads of breaks in there. So the idea is we’re doing a lot more stuff. Like now, we’re doing like a pop single, at the moment, with a rapper named Bashy.

Bn:
So he laid his vocals over an already existing track? Like an MC?

Ashley:
Not quite the motive. There’s quite a load of that in Europe. And not always an MC. D. Ramirez did it.. No, no Bodyrox did it. You know that tune from 7 or 8 years ago, the electro-house remix that he did. About 2004? Well that went to the charts. Then they put the vocal on it. They do it all the time in Europe, quite a popular thing to do.

We take a moment to just talk, as some of the other artists wander into the interview and start chatting. The conversation flows from the breaks of the songs, to how everyone first heard of N.A.P.T.  A good 10 minutes of laughing and enjoying the cool night air after a very hot sweaty night in the club.

Bn:
So where are you guys off to now?

Ashley:
Calgary. Then home. Then, Italy. Then where, fucking Rome? No, Sicily. It’s like 24 degrees.

Bn:
Do you have anything else coming out?

Ashley:
The Bashy track.

Bn:
Well, of course. But everyone has a crate of unreleased material. Anything new coming out you can talk about?

Tomek:
Yeah, the next release is going to be one called Emotion. We’re going to do a three part release. And it’s like two mixes.. one’s like a breaks, musical breaks, authentic KSH-tikata-KSH-tikata-tikata kind of thing. The other mix is more a four to the floor one. Then a dub bpm kind of one.. we play quite a lot of different genres in our stuff, so the idea is to kind of bring it all together, put our stamp on it.

Ashley:
We’ve done a remix for a band called 2000 Fast Women. Go check them out.

Tomek:
It’s a UK rap band that’s a bit scarry, a bit indie. Really cool. And we did their remix.

Bn:
Wow. We definitely will, guys. Thanks so much for taking time to talk to us. Have a safe trip!

For the next 20 minutes, all the artists from the evening got involved and spent the time geeking out on quantizing, the gear and musical production.  It was a mess of discussion that happens late at night only between DJs. Tomek and Ashley said their goodbyes and got their ride back to the hotel, before their AM flight.

Just a bit ago, we highlighted the recently released Make My Day with Bashy. We also have the N.A.P.T. remix on there for you. And now, you can pre-order the actual release!

So what about something different from the breakmasters of N-Funk? How about a NAPT vs BASHY vs 2Pac track?

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Also, N.A.P.T. recently released a free mix on their website. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

The Event Free Mix by NAPT

Make sure you check them out, see them live and take in the music they have coming up! You will thank us!

N.A.P.T. – website | myspace | facebook | twitter | beatport

“We’re the best ever. Of course, we’re fucking cunts in other ways.” -Lee Plump

The duo that began with the old skool breaks over a decade ago, continue to show audiences worldwide why they can pack any house in the land. Lee and Andy continue the mission of having a great time playing music. And it’s not just to take on the bass splitting, syncopated hitting drumstyles of a single genre anymore, either. For the past few years, they’ve expanded into other parts of House, Electro and even some Epic House (albeit, in the form of some seriously dirty remixes!).

The boys gave me a few moments to sit with them and pick their brain about what’s been going on in their musical world, and I couldn’t have been more excited to hear what they had to say.

Hearing the Plumps play is ever enjoyable as always. They play by instinct alone, catering to the crowd’s yearn for deep bass, glitchy electro synth or ear splitting kicks. When Lee and Andy dive into the decks, they each take on different roles, Lee hyping up the crowd and pulling songs from a virtual case of awesome. Andy deftly spinning the orchestra of beats and laying it down like a wash of insanity. Watching the two glide across four (4) CDJ’s is an amazing sight to behold.

It has been 12 years since they began, and the San Francisco crowd, one of their favorite places in the country, was hungry for both the old and the new from the Plump’s catalog. “Think about it,” the Plumps exclaim, “‘duf duf duf duf’ or ‘duf da duf duf’ .. it’s way more interesting! They just get it, here!” YOu wouldn’t have known it was 12 years since the SF crowd experienced the music, as they were loving every beatlicious drop. And with the expansion of the Plump sound into more House, Electro and even Epic House, the audience was loving it all. Forget the old archetype of the word ‘break beat’ because what the Plumps are playing now is only meant to defy it. And no matter the song, the style with which they go from track to track takes you from one massive emotion to another.

Speaking of tracks, we also asked them about their new label Grand Hotel, and what kind of music they’d be looking for. They spoke plainly about there being no limitations on the styles of music they’d be signing. “Grand Hotel is going to be all types of dance. So we still want it to be quite free and exciting. More often than trying to think about genre and stuff, it can be restricting, we just go by the ‘he likes it,’ ‘i like it’ kind of thing.”

And just for fun, if you’re curious what the guys like for breakfast in the morning?  Andy is partial to Weetabix while Lee likes to take on a full Scottish breakfast. Basically, that’s meat, meat, meat and meat on top of that meat. With a dash of toast (Maybe).

Thanks to the guys for their time. I had blast! And of course, a warm heartfelt thank you to our good friends at Seismic!

How about some music?

First, let’s highlight the Grand Hotel Mini-Mix the boys did. It’s like pure liquid bass fantastic.

Data Transmission Mobile- Grand Hotel Mini Mix by Plump Djs

Recently, we posted their fantastic remix of their very own plump song, and I wanted to highlight it again for you, if you missed it.

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During our discussion, the Plumps mentioned that one of the favorite tunes they’ve made, and still love to play, is Scram. In case you boys and girls don’t know why, pop your ears and take a listen.

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And for some old school sounds, I’d like to give you a fat tune from the land of yesterday. The lovely 303 sound of Fatboy Slim, Plump style.

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There’s some serious stuff coming out from them in the next week or two, so keep your ears open!

Plump DJ’s – website | myspace | facebook | twitter | beatport

Good Thursday, boppers…! News for today is that our good friends at Seismic have helped us snag two free tickets to give to one of YOU to see the Plump DJ’s in San Francisco, on Friday (tomorrow night) Nov 12th at Mighty!

We also highlighted their new mix recently and are excited about their tour! Do you want to see it LIVE? You should!!

All you have to do, is like us on Facebook and post your favorite Plump DJ’s song! We’ll randomly select one of the posters today to win the tickets!

Hurry, though, this offer is only good for today!

Here’s the event page on Facebook, for more information.

Originally born in Boston, Eric Sharp has made a name for himself in San Francisco as a premier DJ and promoter, as well as a solid music businessman.  As a versatile DJ, Eric built a following at his residency at San Francisco’s acclaimed Temple Nightclub, spinning anything from House & Electro to Techno & Dubstep or Breaks and Minimal (depending on the gig and the crowd). But his latest music, as well as his businesses are severely focused projects.  Rock It Science events, first started out doing warehouse parties, became too big and lead to the creation of Rock It Science Laboratories, his own label.

Recently released to much hype in the Bay area, the Thundercats EP had much success, earlier this year appearing as the opening track in a Tommie Sunshine mix, as well as an XLR8R podcast and blogged over the interwebs.

So what has this one-man music and event machine been up to?  Creating some killer sounds, that’s what… with support by artists such like Tommie Sunshine, Larry Tee, Donald Glaude, Markus Shulz, Flipside, Audiostalkers, TJR and Santiago, you know he’s on his way to keeping the crowds on their toes.

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This is a new and unreleased track by Eric that really gets you to dance!  The track does a great job of grinding some dirty life into this already fantastic song, and showing some real grit to slam the speakers with. With this 2010 edit, Eric gives DJ’s another great way to spin some bouncy beats into their mix!

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Not available on the EP, but blogged many times already, this is quite a cool take on the bass heavy track.

Keep an eye out for RISL and Eric in the future… good things are surely to come!

Eric Sharp: Facebook | Myspace
Rock It Science Labs: Website | Facebook | Myspace

The Treaty has been Enacted

Hot off of weeks of Kissy Sellout dropping PeaceTreaty track after PeaceTreaty track, the boys are hitting the clubs with their tunes. They’ve been mad busy in the studio creating amazing sounds that hit hard, and now they’ve begun to pound your ears with bass, siren and true to form Dutch inspired awesomeness.

Their Funk in Deep EP will be released May 3rd, with two tracks, and they’ve hinted at another coming out in the near future. So what does Boppernation do with such an amazing artist? We interview them and ask them to do our next Bopcast, that’s what.

So Boppers, I bring to you, the PeaceTreaty interview. Look for the Bopcast soon and listen to the Treaty DROP!

Bn:
First, guys, we really want to thank you for taking some time to talk with us. We’ve really been impressed with the productions you’ve been putting out!

PT:
- Sam: No problem, man. We’re really glad for all the support Boppernation has been giving us.
- Josh: Totally.

Bn:
As far as everyone knows, Josh, you started PeaceTreaty. How did you end up with the name and how did you two get together?

PT:
- Josh: Well, I started out with a track called Cheaters. See, I used to be engaged, and then that ended because I fucked that up. And a few other relationships. So, I did that Cheaters track. And then, once I got the hang of it, I started doing all this production stuff. So one day Sam and I were at Dim Mak and we were like ‘Why don’t we get together and work from there?’ so that’s how it started.

Bn:
So, we’ve been seeing your name all over the place, recently. But it’s never spelled quite the same. Which is it… with or without the space?

PT:
- Sam: *laughs* No space, two uppercases. It’s been difficult, especially since on Twitter we have that underscore in it.

Bn:
Speaking of that, what about your Myspace links to that PeaceTreatyUp?

PT:
- Sam: That was our original link, that Josh had started. It didn’t really work for us, so we changed it. We couldn’t get PeaceTreaty though, because some girl already had it. Maybe she’d be nice enough to let it go for us? *laugh*

Bn:
You guys have put out a great set of tracks. What’s your favorite gear in the studio? Or what about when you’re playing out? Is it different?

PT:
- Sam: My monitors. *laughs* I dunno, we use it all, man!
- Josh: I dunno, man. My mini USB. Without that I can’t do nothing!
- Sam: When we’re playing out, we gotta have Pioneer CDJ 1000s. Fuck Serato!
- Josh: Yeah!

Bn:
Don’t you use Ableton in the studio?

PT:
- Josh: Yeah. Sam uses Ableton, I’m on FL Studio.

Bn:
FL Studio? Have you always used that?

PT:
- Josh: Yeah, all the tracks are done so far in FL Studio. I just learned it really well, that’s all. I know what to do in Ableton and Logic, too. Logic, though, is where we want to go. There’s no walls. In FL Studio there’s walls in automation, global automation. Single channelling VSTs and plugins on one channel, it’s kind of hectic, because globally you can’t tweak it how you want to, like you can in Logic.  Laidback Luke even states some of the dilemmas in FL Studio. You can only go so far. It’s frowned upon deeply in the production side, so whatever.

Bn:
Well your productions have been fantastic. What about playing out? I know you were both playing solo before doing PeaceTreaty. How is it different?

PT:
- Sam: Well, there’s a lot you can do with two people you can’t do with one. I mean, you only have two hands. Depends what you can do on the mixer and the CDJ at the same time. So..
- Josh: Effects would be the biggest thing.
- Sam: Yeah… or the scratching. When you’re one person, it’s harder to worry about beat matching and effects.
- Josh: Effects.
- Sam: When you’re one person you can’t worry about beat matching… can’t throw in a cool loop and start tweaking it and throw in an effect too, ya know?
- Josh: I scratch…
- Sam: He does a little bit. He’s the looper-master…
- Josh: Well, he’s the beat master. *laugh*
- Sam: We each have our strengths, so it works well, to be together, I think.

Bn:
What about all the Kissy Sellout stuff that’s going on? He’s been giving you mad props and plays…

PT:
- Sam: He likes PeaceTreaty! *laugh*

Bn:
I mean, you’ve gotta have fans over there in the UK. Are you planning on making it over there?

PT:
- Sam: Well, yeah we had a blog over there that did a write up on us and has a sponsorship at a club. So theyr’e trying to set up a mini-tour with a bunch of other promoters in the UK in September. Play a different club every night, between England and Scotland. But Kissy has been a huge supporter. In fact, we’re doing a remix for his label, the new Hot Pink Delorean track that actually just sent for mastering today.

Bn:
And when can we expect that to be released?

PT:
-Sam: That’s up to Kissy, I’m not really sure… They were pretty adamant about the deadline.. *laugh* so I assume fairly soon
- Josh: We actually remixed that song like 5 or 6 times, up until we finally got some feedback from Hot Pink Delorean, going back and forth, to where they were like, pretty involved.
- Sam: Yeah, we had a version we were happy with and Kissy talked to Hot Pink, and they had a few suggestions and things they wanted to see, so we went back and did some of that stuff. I think what we came up with is pretty great.
- Josh: You can, like, levy off them.. it balances…
- Sam: If someone was remixing one of our songs, I would want to approve of what they did. I’m not going to let someone put out a remix of one of our songs that we hate. I don’t see the point of that. We were more than willing to hear what they had to say.

Bn:
What about any of the other bootlegs that you’ve done? Have any of the other artists given you flak for them?

PT:
- Sam: Eeehhhhhh…
- Josh: Uuhhh…
- Sam: Well, Bart B More loved the one that we did. *laugh* There’s one artist, that shall remain nameless, that objected to a certain aspect of it, but, we don’t need to go into that. It wasn’t the track that he objected to, it was more the fact that we called it a remix, and not a bootleg, because we used samples…
- Josh: And then that shit gets played out, and Kissy plays and tweeted it out… so, I mean it’s that way…
- Sam: Some people care, some people don’t. I mean, we apologized. And we have that Laidback Luke bootleg, which we’ve actually done 2 different versions of also, and we’re waiting for feedback from Luke on that. He knows that we did it, he’s talked to us about it, he’s just sifting through a pile of 5 or 6 hundred other promos that people have sent him. He’s really cool, cuz he listens to almost everything. He’s one of the few people that will literally everything that everyone submits him. We’re just waiting for him to get to ours in the stack. He’s eager to listen to it.

Bn:
Well, people have been playing your tracks out. Is there anyone you really want to have play your track?

PT:
- Sam: Oh, god… well, we heard a rumor that Wolfgang Gartner dropped one of our tracks at Coachella, but we have yet to be able to verify that? Friends of ours who were there, who said he did, were in various states of intoxication, so we’re not sure we can really trust whether or not it was actual. *laughs*
- Josh: That would be pretty massive though.
- Sam: Yeah that would be pretty great. But we’ve had some pretty cool people drop them. Hot Pink dropped our New Disco Villains remix, and they liked that a lot. Swedish Egil’s dropped our tracks, Hyphy Crunk’s dropped our tracks. We get hit up all the time by people saying ‘Oh, we used your track in our podcast’ and stuff. Mustard Pimp used two of our tracks on their recent mixtapes that they put out. So that’s a big supporter right there. And then, of course, there’s Kissy. I mean, we’ve had our tracks played almost every week on his show for the last, you know, 5 or 6 weeks.

Bn:
Alright, what about collaborations? You’ve done a lot of remixing. Do you have any collaborations happening?

PT:
- Sam: Well, we have the EP coming out, with the two originals that’s being mastered right now. Comes out in May, from Ho-Ju Records in Australia, called the Funk in Deep EP. And the tracks are Funk in the Ganja. Meditation, inspiration, creativity if you will. And the other track is called Deeper Insider and it’s kind of our take on the classic Deep Inside by Harddrive. And that’s the one we did with DiskJoSlim. It’s sort of our modern Dutch take on that classic, so…

Bn:
Why did you guys choose those two tracks?

PT:
- Sam: The ganja track, you know, we just wanted to write something about something we love.

Bn:
*laugh* Wasn’t that what the 420 song was for?

PT:
- Sam: *laugh* Yeah, but that was more as a DJ tool, something for fun…
- Josh: Yeah.. *laugh* that was from Sam and I sitting in the car and we heard something on the radio and he goes ‘This would be a cool one to do.’ and ‘Aw, yeah, we’ll try it.’ Next thing we know, we’re throwing in all these different sounds from different tracks..
- Sam: We got a Sublime sample in there, Peter Tosh..
- Josh: And then the bad battery. The laptop battery less.. So we hit the cord halfway through what we were doing, and it went out.
- Sam: We lost everything.
- Josh: We had to recreate the whole thing.
- Sam: But it came out better than when it started, so it worked out.
- Josh: Yeah, definitely.
- Sam: Anyway, so we have a couple other original tracks out now. One on Beatport, actually, called Cheaters that came out on Not Small Records… and Silly Boppers This is a Killer is a track we have on our Soundcloud…

Bn:
Don’t worry, we didn’t take any offense. *laugh*

PT:
- Sam: *laugh* Yeah, well… We also did another track with DiskJoSlim, which was a bootleg we released of French Fries. The track is Senta. And then, our next collaboration is probably gonna be another EP of original tracks, probably 2, that we’re gonna hope to get Whiskey Pete to do vocals on both of them. That one is going to kind of be inspired by … well, I don’t want to give too much away, but inspired by a certain gendre of music, from LA, from the 90s. But what genre of music that is, will remain a secret till it comes out. If it turns out the way we’re hoping it will, it’s going to be unlike anything else that anybody else has ever really done.

Bn:
Is there anyone you really want to collaborate with?

PT:
- Josh: Actually yeah, I hit up the Squatters, they’re on Kissy’s label. Dem Slackers, I’ve talked to them. They’re all like young funny producers coming up on Kissy’s label. So we’re doing those guys, like French Fries. They’re on that level, and we want to get on their level, and also want to help ‘em out.. do a remix of somebody, like the Mowgli one.
- Sam: Well, Pete definitely, because he’s a good friend, so that’s why we have that one on the books. Other than that, we haven’t really talked to a lot of people about collaborating. *laugh* We’ve had a lot of people hitting us up, asking if we wanna do tracks, but we’ve been so busy right now with all these other remixes we’ve been doing that haven’t been able to say yes to any of them, yet. But we’ve kinda of been collaborating with this guy, Kissed With a Noise, who’s from Canada, and we played a remix tonight, of a track we remixed for him. An original he did, with a Young Buck vocal. He reached out to us and asked did we want to remix it for an EP package, and it’s gonna include remixes from us, Disco Villains, Skeet Skeet, Marletta and B Rich, so that’s all going to come out and it will be free.

Bn:
I heard about a remix for Disco Villains. You tweeted about that.

PT:
- Sam: We finished a remix of Disco Villains’ Crickets and it’s been getting a lot of good response. They’re currently looking for a label for that release, so we’re kind of just waiting along with them until they find someone.

Bn:
Rumor has it you have some Big Name Artist that you’re doing something for?

PT:
- Sam: Ah, yes. Well, he’s actually … well, that’s got to stay a secret for now.

Bn:
So what new gigs are coming up for PeaceTreaty?

PT:
- Sam: Well we’re doing Mode 7 with DiskJo Slim, our good friend and also Colors and Sir Charles on May 7th, at the Glass House in Pomona, CA. Santa Cruz at a club called Motiv, on May 1st. Josh is playing at Stanford on April 28th, yeah, next Wednesday. So that’ll be half of PeaceTreaty. And we’re doing a big rave at the end of May, called Nu Disko, with DJ Bam Bam, Paul Ahi, Cold Blank and a bunch of other local DJs. We’ll also be doing the House of Blues in San Diego with Designer Drugs in July. And hopefully the UK in September and in Canada with Dmitri Vegas and Like Mike, both soon. Lastly we’re also doing another gig with the 1107 folks, who put on Dance, the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend, at the Glass House again, with Paparazzi and Religion.

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Fantastic guys! Thanks so much for talking with us!

PeaceTreaty tracks are all over the internet, so here’s just a few of the awesomeness… And don’t forget to look for their new release EP, and on Beatport for their already released tracks!

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PeaceTreaty
myspace | twitter

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Chalk it Up… Work it Out…

We’ve highlighted Angel before, and it’s time to highlight him again, as he’s released a fantastic collection of beaty tunes, all available to the masses for free!  Angel never disappoints, with his glitchy, fun, squeaky clean beats, fast and furious tempos and interminable stylings.

As we’ve mentioned before, he’s collaborated with DJ Rush, Colette, Sinead O’Conner, Greenskeepers, Julia Fordham, Robbie Rivera, Pole Folder as well as Felix da Housecat, so he’s in excellent company. He is a true bopper. And in keeping to his musical roots, he makes music he loves and that he wants others to hear.

Lately, he’s been busy with his new M-too label, focusing on minimal techno and house, and working alongside DJ Pierre and the Afro Acid team on Pierre’s solo album. But that hasn’t stopped him from putting together an amazing set of tunes for these albums.

Freedom Series Vol. 1

01. Good Old Days – Chicago
02. Get On Down
03. Let’s Dance
04. Dig This
05. Deputy Power
06. Frag Grenade
07. Like That
08. Chitown
09. Turn It Out
10. Chunky Soup
11. Majik (Unreleased)

Bandcamp

He’s a master of the two and three word song titles, each name seemingly simple, yet each one also offering up only a hint as to what the song might be about. While listening to the album, you continually think back to the title, and can immediately visualize what Angel is trying to musically explain. Each track has a very different feel, yet you can tell the minimal styling, and they are able to deliver a very rich new take, but with that old school techno break you remember.

He drives the beat hard! Makes the tempo fast… and he forces you to listen to the transition of each and every song. The amazingly precise technical aspects of the songs aside, they are extremely mixable tracks, even in a set that wouldn’t necessarily know it.  Anytime you drop one of these in, you’re certain to get the crowd dancing…

And yes, you’re right. Let’s Dance is a take on Bowie. If you want a SOLID David Bowie remix, this is the track for you. Fantastic! Grindy! Heavy! Nice one, Angel!

Notables
Get On Down
Dig This
Work It Out

Freedom Series Vol. 2

01. Harvey Mckay – Tribal
02. Angel Alanis & Cpen – Alright (Alan Barratt Delicate Dub Remix)
03. Jhon Doe & M.N.L – Ak47
04. Angel Alanis – Angel Alanis vs Jet Set Groove & NIN “God Sent”
05. Angel Alanis – Resolutions (Punisher Remix)
06. Adam Jay – Come To The Tone
07. Joe Irwin – Punch Card
08. 10,000 Watts VS Dust N Haze – Pendulum (Mustafa Avdic & Matt Rissi Remix)
09. Kaufmann und Ferdinand – I Am Soooo Mad
10. Angel Alanis – Buggin feat. Harrison Crump
11. Submerge – The Drive
12. Angel Alanis – Kasper Da Ghost

Bandcamp

For Volume two, Angel collects songs which have either had limited release or are completely unreleased, as of yet. The feeling of the album, while musically across the board, keeps to the beats and the essence of what Angel’s music is about. Driving bassline, glitchy effects, masterful vocal drops and an unending push to the next step, next break, next rise. These tunes never let you relax, while still giving you some breathing room. It’s an amazing collection of artists from Angel’s personal and business stash.

Being a personal NIN and Trent fanboy, I was excited to hear the Angel Alanis take on God Given. Definitely not disappointed at all. Trent never sounded so good.

Notables
Jhon Doe & M.N.L – Ak47
Adam Jay – Come to the Tone
Submerge – The Drive

As always, for our loyal boppers, we have some unreleased exclusive tracks to share! Cage Me In, both Original and Tribal Mixes are amazing, as Renee’s vocals are ethereal and beautiful, all over very different bassy synths. The remix title “Tribal” fits perfectly. Too Bad So Sad, is an epic tune, giving you some longform rises and driving, hart hitting noisiness. Make sure you turn up those speakers!

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Make sure you check out both albums, join his fanbridge, and buy some of his released tracks. Let’s keep this man making music! He truly is keeping to his core love of sound, and doing it spendidly…

And if you join his fanbridge, you never know the types of secret things he might send out…?

Fanbridge | Beatport | Myspace | Facebook | Twitter

And just for fun, here’s Dave Clarke dropping Angel’s song Xcite Bike (both a personal favorite old skool NES game, and Angel Alanis track) at I Love Techno 2008.

Re:Vamped is his latest project, recently released to the public by his label Used and Abused. It’s quite an idea to take so many artists and mash them all up into a big melting pot of electronic goo and hit the blend button… because the business is made up quite a bit by remixes, mashups, refixes, re-edits and the like of not only you’re own music, but others as well. What happens if you did an entire album like that? Well, Simon wanted to find out, apparently. And to make sure he got top-notch music from the project, he got top notch talent, with the likes of Popof, Dylan Rhymes, Stanton Warriors, Propellerheads, Meat Katie, Classixx, Datsik, Bar 9, Wolfgang Gartner, Roland Clarke, Layo & Bushwacka, Deadmau5, Caspa and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs just to name a few of the roster… Some are remixes of songs, some are collaborations of songs and some are remix collaborations of remixes of songs both of his own, as well as theirs.

So how does it sound?

Well, it sounds pretty awesome, actually. If you know the dub, tech, bigbeat bass-ee sound of Simon’s music, you won’t be out of that territory. Each song is definitely stamped with his landmark quality beats, but there are several attempts to stray from the typical sound.  Some of the songs are built on heavy drum ‘n bass, with dubstep influence, enter Bar 9, Benga and Caspa, for example. Others are much more traditional remix fare, such as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs‘ Maps, which will sound absolutely fantastic dropped into a set for an added build up and drop.

Simon’s aesthetically chosen use of bass and rhythm has never been doubted, and with each track you want to hear the next sound, the next loop, the next drop.  While some of the drums are a bit similar between the songs, it does more for keeping the album smoothly connected than it does sound uninteresting. And, because there are so many different artists, the album never gets stale.  If you’re looking to wake up and move, this is definitely the album for you to put on repeat, in your car. There isn’t a sleeper song in the entire mix, and the whole album will keep you dancing, even when you’re in traffic. Don’t mind the looks from other people as you boogie in the drivers seat; you’ll be enjoying the rumbling sounds of Calvertron or Stanton Warriors. Don’t mind them, they’re just jealous.

And Boppers, don’t forget, when you’re listening to it, don’t forget to smile when you hear the Fireball sound from Mario Brothers.

Listen to the album:

//

Bn
Thanks so much for talking with us!

The act of “remixing” is different for each artist (thus making it personal and subjective) — but what do you consider the difference between a remix vs. an edit? vs. a refix? vs. a mashup? vs. a bootleg? vs. your re:vamp?

EF
Generally speaking a Remix is an official re-working of a track for which you’ve been given individual stems / parts, and you’ve been commissioned to do it … everything else falls outside of that ‘official’  tag really. A re-edit can be something as simple as a re-ordering of the track or just cutting out a few bars here & there whilst a mashup tends to involve two or more tracks in the same piece. A bootleg is more an unofficial release of one of the above, whilst this album really focuses more on using elements of existing tracks to create completely new productions, so in that sense it’s perhaps as close to an artist album than a mix album!

Bn
So what’s the remedy you use when you completely hate the way the remix you’re doing is going? More booze? Re-edit the edit? Start over?  Ever had to remix a song you dislike?

EF
lol @ more booze. If I was drinking booze I wouldn’t be in the studio for sure – I work 8am – 6pm as a rule. It’s very very rare that I hate the way something’s going – it can be a struggle to make all the pieces fit together but after doing this for a number of years you tend to have quite a clear vision of how you want something to play out, and the rest of it is just spent getting there. I have started stuff over before a few times though, when the route I decided on didn’t play out as I’d hoped.

When you take on board tracks to remix, it’s really not about how much you like or dislike the song in the first place, it’s more about what you can do with it.

Bn
Are there any really inaccurate things ever said about you that still pisses you off to this day?

EF
Nothing springs to mind – I try not to hold grudges!

Bn
You’ve been in music a long time. What’s changed in YOUR music since you started creating music? (were you DJing prior to producing?)

Pretty much everything! I started making music (releasable music that is) back in 1994 and whilst I was first & foremost a musician I really got into electronic music through Djaying, doing parties at the local Student Union back in 1991. Those sets were a proper education as I was expected to play for 5 hours, and people would want anything from Nirvana to acid house … great fun though and gave me a love of DJaying for life.

In my music I think the core to what I do has always been there  – I don’t like purism. I’m more interested in what happens when you explore the edges around different genres, where they cross-pollinate with one another, and in that sense my interests remain surprisingly true. The first thing I released was a techno EP back in ’94, the next thing was a rap/rock hybrid EP, the next thing a breaks white label, but even within each of those releases they perhaps didn’t hit the BIG audiences because of that unwillingness to replicate the same sounds that other people were using in each of those fields.

Bn
So… Vinyl? CD? Mp3? Is vinyl dead?

EF
I use CDs nowadays & have done for years now – I’d happily live without the constant burning, but that’s all part of the job I guess! Vinyl’s far from dead … on this project we’re on the third repress now of both of the vinyl samplers we’ve released and there’s another one coming in a couple of weeks [ed. check store link below]. I mean, it’s been in decline for a long time but look across the dubstep, drum & bass and techno genres in particular and you’ll see a thriving market for vinyl. MP3s have revolutionized music’s dissemination, but they are more a product of limited bandwidth and data storage than anything else – they’re just digital audio that don’t sound as good as the WAV files.

Bn
Any tracks, when DJing, do you ALWAYS try and fit into your set, or what track do you HATE spinning?

EF
Music’s always shifting … I’ll have a few months where I’ll have key tracks I can’t do without, and then slowly they become superseded by more current ones. Why on earth would I play something I hate?

//

Boppernation wants to say special thanks to Simon for taking the time to talk with us.. We’re really excited to hear the new stuff he’s putting out, and so should you!

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Check Elite Force out:

Twitter | Myspace | Blog

Buy the album or Tracks at any number of places:

Re:Vamped Store | Beatport | JUNO (Buy Postage Free CD)

Everyone likes a good party.  And Groove Thursdays, which happen at the Arena in Hollywood California, are no exception to the rule. What started out in September 2009, the brainchild of investors DJ Sole, VeeVeeMarie and SayFresh, a local promoter, has turned into a weekly epic party for Hollywood, California to enjoy.  The venue is good, the parking was run well (security was quick on those trying to cause trouble!) and the line to get in was handled in a professional manner, even given the number of people.

The weekly event is 18 and over if you want to get in, so teens, so sorry, but you have to be 18. Obviously, 21 and over is a must if you want to drink. Once past the door, there’s VIP access above and around the stage, a place to chill outside for everyone, and several bar locations up and down.  On the side, there is an on-site photographer (who is there every week) snapping pictures for posterity, viewable online after the event, on the photographer’s Flickr site. The ubiquitous raving dancing go-go girls are doing their thing, grinding to the rhythm and helping everyone get into the mood to bounce.

While there are three rooms to The Arena, the main focus will always be on the main stage. But, don’t let the perhaps unknown DJ or closer quarters fool you, there’s a lot of boogie to be had in the back. And later into the evening, the back rooms are partying it up with lights and music to hypnotize you, with lots of local talent spinning their sets. While the party doesn’t stop back there, the main focus is always on the main stage in front.  And, with the bass heavy JBL sound system, the main stage was definitely rockin’…

But, as with any weekly event, it’s all about the music.

Examples of previous acts appearing have been Klaas, Dan-OH, Blake Miller, Disco Villains, Shark Attack, DMNDAYS,  DJ V-Tech, Nadastrom, Deejay Sam Hiller, Religion and Felix Cartal.

But the resident DJ’s are nothing to scoff at. On the bill are such great times as DJ Sole, Rocke and Messy Vndlz. And, because they drop weekly, their sets are ever changing, each with its own feeling… with the obvious favorites thrown in for some heavy phat clubbery. Wouldn’t want to disappoint the regulars, right?

The night that Boppernation took to the Groove on a Thursday, the bill was DJ Sole, B Rich, The Italian Sensation and finally LA Riots. Each started their set right from the other, only once or twice having a chat mid-set with the other entourages on stage. The sets were tight, each featuring the personal select brand of electronic love for the crowd. Some heavy bass, some raving pitches, some wah-wahs for the hot mah-mahs… The crowd was loving it. By the time the LA Riots took to the decks, the crowd was really craving more but couldn’t get enough.

For those that have never heard the LA Riots, their brand of dance is one which is sure to please, with focus on explosive sounds, some fancy heavy bass, longform mixing and pure get-down fun, making you want to do nothing but move your body with the crowd. They dropped an impressive set, having fun with the beats and the audience was loving the attention they put on playing the songs instead of jumping from track to track.

Groove Thursdays was a fantastic time. Whether there’s a major act performing or not, you can’t beat the price for some of that electro thunder that Groove Thursdays provides. Make sure you check out their myspace for special deals, and to keep up with the acts they’re laying down. Trust us, you’ll have a blast!

Check out more photos in the gallery! (photos by HeartScreamS and KngtRdr)

Groove: myspace | twitter | facebook

The Arena

Can you feel it? In the air?

With all the great tunes coming out lately Boppers, it’s no wonder that we have another review hitting thee nation! This time, it comes from Dada Life, the fantastic duo from Stockholm.  The single, taken from their album Just Do the Dada does everything that Dada does. Fills you with electricity, soul and makes you dance your ass off!

LOVE VIBRATIONS

- 12 Inch Edit
- D.I.M. Re-Loved Mix
- Dimitri Vegas Like Mike Feel It Mix
- Phatzoo Remix
- Savage Skulls Remix

And so the Dada comes back again, now with a banger of a tune, Love Vibrations. The EP, which includes the original 12 inch version and four stellar remixes … is just asking to be spun everwhere and in the air! No matter what kind of set you drop, the remixes are bound to please one of the crowds, as each mix has it’s own distinct feel.

DIM, always one to take an interesting direction with a tune, chooses a particular portion of the vox, then notches and twists it into an unreal and fantastic foundation for the tune. You would think you’d get sick of it in the background, but the rest of the tune builds around it, and the bass shakes the speakers just the right way, with a nice whirring interlude to send an audience ballistic. A definite crowd pleaser.

While Dimitri spends some time twisting the vocals, his synth is what builds his tune into the high-raver that it will be, if someone places this into the peak of their set. The trancers are going to go ape-crazy with the middle build of this mix.

If you’re looking for some drrty bass and house then Phatzoo has the mix for you. His remix builds slow and hits hard, giving you a reason to get on the dance floor.

But what if you have a raving techno crowd who just can’t enough? The Savage Skulls hear your plea, and grind your happy hardcore self to a pulp, even offering some woops, blips and hollahs to boot.

I really gotta hand it to Dada Life, who care little what you think, as long as the music makes you move and you have a great time!

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official | myspace | twitter | facebook

Thee Nation has souls of every kind, and once and awhile we like to highlight just what kind of great music it’s producing. From the ranks of the Boppers comes the whirling electro-dervish Control and his grinding buzz of a saw basslines!

Interested in making house music from the early age of 10, he was producing by age 14 and has become quite the draw with his raving lights and synthetic energy.  His mastery of of the mix is enjoyed by all and Thee Nation loves when he spins for us!  Though he likes to call his music Thrasher rather than Electro, you won’t be disappointed with the heavy hitting foundations of his songs and the ready-to-mix quality they have when he puts them in his sets.

We offer for your pleasure, some fantastic tunes that are ORIG to the NAL by one of our very own Boppers:

And as a BONUS here’s an unreleased remix by a Bopper for da Boppers!

As well as a preview of one of his new upcoming remixes along with Aelias:
Control and Aelias - Curbed (preview)

Like what you hear? We know we do! Keep your ears out for him!

myspace | twitter | soundcloud

In 2006, while at the Oxegen Festival in Ireland, the Japanese Popstars were born out of the desire to hear the music for free. What better way, then with a live act,  they thought? Little did they know that after releasing their debut song Rodney Trotter, their pounding beats and electricly sleek sound would be a huge smash 3 years later and they would be releasing their second album We Are Just (Live) while playing to thousands of fans every show and travelling the world.

A lot has been written so far about The Japanese Popstars, and it’s all just deserved. The new album We Just Are (Live) is a live version on their already released We Just Are (2008). It was recorded live during their 2008 and 2009 touring schedule for We Just Are and includes a few new banging hits, including Rushed Jabb, which previously only appeared in remixed form on the Rise of Ulysses single.

The concert release gives you the same feeling as being at one of their shows. You can feel the crowd dancing to the music and it makes you want to dance right along with them. The introduction brings you into their world and grabs the hair on the back of your neck, readying you for what is yet to come. What makes each song, and the Japstars as a whole stand out, is the unique aural journey they take you on with every sound. Whether smashing in your ears with their heavy bass or sliding a distorted siren through your soul, they know how to make sure you’re listening and feeling what they want you to feel. Whether this comes from the fact that all three members are DJs or not, the excursion they take you on is fun, electric and is theirs alone.

1. We Just Are (Intro)
2. Sample Whore
3. Rushed Jabb
4. Total Distorted Mayhem
5. F19b Droppin Dirty Beats
6. Benni Benassi ‘Electro 16′ (The Japanese Popstars Remix)
7. Facemelter
8. Catapult (Live Edit)
9. Kid Roppongi
10. B.C.T.T
11. Rise of Ulysses (Live Edit)

This is a definite disc not to be missed. Any DJ worth his weight in electric salt should be dropping a Japstars track, as it will undoubtedly put the crowd into a frenzy.

You can listen to the entire album (and listen to We Just Are, as well as purchase both) here:
http://thejapanesepopstars.bandcamp.com/

For your enjoyment is live version of Facemelter:
Japanese Popstars - Facemelter (live)

Here’s a great remix they did, which was played much over the Summer of 2009.
Tong & Spoon - Gas Face (Japanese Popstars Remix)

Finally, here’s the radio edit for my favorite Japstars track, as well as the video:
Japanese Popstars - Rise of Ulysses (Radio Edit)

myspace.com/thejapanesepopstars
twitter.com/japstars