Juk Juk - Winter Turn Spring

Earlier today Four Tet announced (on twitter) the next couple of releases on his label, Text. One of which is the debut release from Juk Juk and comes in the form of 'Winter Turn Spring'. You can see why Four Tet has opted to release this as it starts with a sample looped and chopped in a similar way to Hebden's recent offerings before dropping into a skipping garage beat. There's a hefty amount of bass thrown in as well so this'll go down nicely on the dance-floor.


Juk Juk is Caleb Waterman, a producer living in London. Check out his soundcloud for some more quality electronica and look out for 'Winter Turn Spring' out in September.

Toddla T - Watch Me Dance (Album Review)

Toddla T is having a run of bad luck around the release of his second album 'Watch Me Dance'. First, an advance copy of the album was leaked by an irresponsible journalist who Ninja Tune quite rightly named and shamed. As a result, the album had to be rush-released digitally to try and mop up some online sales whilst the physical release was pushed forward. Then, all his CDs were lost in the fire in the PIAS warehouse meaning that the release had to be pushed back another week. Here's hoping that the next few paragraphs will convince you to go out and support an unlucky artist, label and industry in these challenging times.


'Watch Me Dance' shows a heck of a lot of progression for Toddla from his first outing 'Skanky Skanky'. The productions are denser and more complex, the instrumentation is hugely varied and features guitars and pianos as well as the whomping bass heavy synths of his debut. The humour has been toned down (although not altogether dispensed with) in favour of a more mature songwriting style. Title track 'Watch Me Dance' featuring Roots Manuva has a distinct tongue-in-cheek feel to it (especially if you watch the video) but is seriously radio friendly at the same time. Elsewhere Mr V and Serocee's involvement have been dialed down to make way for more female vocalists including Roisin Murphy and Ms Dynamite. The women on this album make it shine, 'Take It Back's rave piano and drums work delightfully under Shola Ama's vocal to give it a 90's feel. The, often brief, interspersed MC verses are far less overwhelming than on 'Skanky Skanky' and Mr V's between song banter has totally gone.

There's a real variety of genres on Toddla's follow up. The aforementioned tracks incorporate rave and electro but there's also R'n'B, Soul, Funk, Reggae and Dancehall all unified by large amounts of bass. Particularly surprising is the straight up soul/funk intro to 'Do It Your Way' which breaks into a jungle tear-out so abruptly yet competently that it might as well be a remix of a vintage track. Final song, 'Fly', is a totally genuine Reggae number with very little electronic production. Notably he's avoided Dubstep altogether and at a point when the genre is reaching saturation point this has got to be a good idea. He's opted instead for a collection of songs that, despite their disparity, come together for a very cohesive second album.

Tracklist
1. Watch Me Dance (with Roots Manuva)
2. Take It Back
3. Cruise Control
4. Cherry Picking
5. Streets So Warm
6. Badman Flu
7. Body Good
8. How Beautiful It Would Be
9. Lovely Girl
10. Do It Your Way
11. Fly

Written by Matt Allfrey (Battery Powered)

Toddla T's 'Watch Me Dance' is out now and available at Ape and all other good music retailers.

ZZT - Vulcan Alarm (Turbo)

Got sent this one a few days ago on promo, however the combination of a family crisis and a 5am flight to Vietnam to prepare for meant I was unable to post before leaving. However despite being on holiday my compulsive BBB disorder means that I am typing this piece in the dark at midnight whilst the better half sleeps and is non the wiser. Anyway thats enough pre-amble, ZZT latest offering is another electro banger that compliments their already strong back catalogue (Lower States of Consciousness, The Worm, and ZZafrika). The single boasts an original mix which is our personal pick and three remixes by Proxy, Jan Driver, and Perc. Of the remixes Perc is the strongest giving the track an even noisier twist.

Vulcan alarm is released September 5th and precedes their soon be finished debut album, 'Partys Over Earth'.



Sorry no extra links, but I am on holiday after all.....

Jamie Jones - Fabric 59 (Album Review)

With all this new, interesting bass music flying around it's nice to see that Fabric still have time to push the staple of electronic music: House. Jamie Jones' contribution to the Fabric series is just that.

Morph into fabric 59: Jamie Jones

The first half of the mix is a smooth journey through the sparser, less sensational side of the genre. Chugging bass synths, kicks and cymbals link up for hypnotic grooves, punctuated with vocal loops and sporadic stabs. It's a mesmerising listen, the subtlety of the tracks and the mixing manages to convey a greater sense of melody, space and movement than the simplistic nature of the components would suggest. The mix ebbs and flows thanks to Jones' careful track selection with the tiniest change becoming a real feature. The addition of a new hat increases the pace, a synth's modulation provides the progression and gently increased reverb ramps up the intensity. It's all very restrained.

The second half of the mix is a releasing of inhibitions. Crazy P's 'Open For Service' brings things to a halt, adding some funk and building to Holy Ghost's remix of Panthers. Jones' has succeeded in reigning everything in so tight that by the time 'Goblin City's guitar solo arrives it bursts into the mix like a blinding beam of sunlight through thick cloud. From here he rounds out the mix with some lighter tracks including 'The Lows' - one of his own productions peppered throughout in various guises. Still riding high on guitar-solo induced seratonin, the continual vocal and muted strings of soho808's 'Get Up Disco' saturates the senses, whilst final track 'Fear Of Numbers' further bolsters the melody with thick chords that gradually fade away.

Jamie Jones really impresses by providing a thoughtful mix that is also appealing to the dancefloor. Those 'in the know' will appreciate his inclusion of classics like Felix Da Housecat's 'Hollywood Madame', whilst newer fans of electronic music will relate to Metronomy's Remix of Sebastien Tellier and Jones' own productions.

Due to the fire in PIAS' warehouse we think the release date has been delayed until 22/08/11 but you can buy/pre-order it at Ape or Fabric.

Tracklist
1. Hot Natured feat. Ali Love & Kenny Glasgow - Time Intro [Hot Creations]
2. Sebastien Tellier - La Ritournelle (Metronomy Mix) [Record Makers / Lucky Number]
3. James Teej - Don't Appear (Redux) [My Favorite Robot]
4. Coat Of Arms - Is This Something (Jones Fly Edit) [Futureboogie]
5. White Lions - DePalma [My Favorite Robot]
6. Karen Pollack - You Can't Touch Me (Murk Remix - Jones Fly Edit) [Slip N Slide]
7. Cajmere feat. Jamie Principle - God Sent (#10) [Cajual]
8. Felix Da Housecat - Madame Hollywood [Rude Photo]
9. Waifs & Strays - Body Shiver [Hot Creations]
10. jennygoesdirty - Amoureux Solitaires [Kill The DJ]
11. Hot Natured feat. Ali Love & Kenny Glasgow - Assimilation [Hot Creations]
12. Crazy P - Open For Service [2020Vision]
13. Panthers - Goblin City (Holy Ghost Mix) [Warner]
14. Oppenheimer Analysis - The Devil's Dancers [Minimal Wave]
15. Jamie Jones - The Lows [Crosstown Rebels]
16. soho808 - Get Up Disco [Dikso]
17. Footprintz - Fear Of Numbers [Visionquest]

By Matt Allfrey (Battery Powered)

Fake Blood - Deep Red EP (Teaser)

Its been a while but Fake Blood is back with a new EP 'Deep Red', and as you would expect its premium Electro House. Having listened to the teaser its fair to say that Fake Blood hasn't attempted to re-invent himself with this release but rather build upon previous glories with a growling 3 track EP that is sure to appeal to the Electro heads among you. Of the three tracks Deep Red is the strongest and the one we expect to be on heavy rotation.



Fake Blood - Deep Red EP Out September 2011


Also if you have a little spare time you should check Fake Blood's 'Used' series which is 4 x 1 hour mixes solely made up of old tunes sampled in classic Hip Hop style. No compilations, reissues, bootlegs, or downloads were used All originals.

Fake Blood - "USED" Vol.1


Related Posts
Essential Mix - Fake Blood (2009)

Scuba - Adrenalin (Hotflush Recordings)

We'll start by clearly stating that this is probably the best EP from start to finish that we've heard this year.

For the un-initiated Scuba is the head honcho of Hotflush Recordings which was founded in 2003 and quickly became synonymous with the sound that came to be known as dubstep. Since then Hotflush has broadened in genre as it has explored and expanded upon its founding philosophy of presenting fresh new music, introducing us to the likes of Mount Kimbie, Benga, Joy Orbison, Marytn, Sigha and himself among others. In 2010 Scuba released his debut album 'Triangulation', and in 2011 he has already treated us to the singles Feel It and Loss which we featured in our recent WeAre4 mix.



Adrenalin is the lead track from the new EP, and is just that through a clever blend of soaring main room synths, underground bass, reverbed vocal loops, trademark melodic flourishes and a slamming house beat. This track alone has huge dancefloor presence, however the EP doesn’t stop there, with both B Sides 'Never' and 'Everywhere' equally well equipped to challenge Adrenalin for supremacy. This is a superb EP that will inject a fresh vitality into many a record box over the coming months.

Adrenalin released 26th September 2011 on Hotflush Recordings

Tracklisting:
A1. Adrenalin
B1. Never
B2. Everywhere

Scuba - Essential Mix - Live @ Sonar (June 2011)


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Survival of The Independent Music Industry

Over the past week England has witnessed some particularly disturbing scenes of civil unrest and our thoughts go out to those who have been directly affected by last weeks rioting, looting and violence. The weeks events became particuarly poignant when we learnt that a Sony warehouse which shared its space with the largest UK Independent Music Distributor 'PIAS' was burnt to the ground. PIAS store and distribute music for most of the UK's independent labels and artists. Overnight they lost an estimated 750,000 CDs, records and DVDs to the fire.


Toddla T (Pictured above) - lost all copies of his soon-to-be-released album 'Watch Me Dance'

Indie labels are the vital grass roots to the future of our music industry and this fire brings into sharp focus how fragile the future prosperity and diversity of our beloved music scene is. Indie labels operate on very tight budgets, often with one release funding the next, and although much of the damage should be covered by insurance this does not take into account carefully timed promotion campaigns and disrupted time scales. In an already stretched industry it is vital such an incident does not deal a knock out blow.

Thankfully since putting this article together a number of initiatives have been launched to help those labels affected by the fire. The British Phonographic Industry, which represents British music companies is to create a fund of more than £100,000 (Read More Here). Whilst online music blog Drowned In Sound is co-sponsoring a campaign called Label Love where they're encouraging fans to donate to the cause.

To find out how you can get involved and support an already stretched Independent music scene hit up one of the following links:

Label Love Website
Label Love Twitter
Label Love Guardian

By Matt Allfrey (Battery Powered) & Jonny Cassell (BBB)

Blah Blah Blah T-Shirts Now on Sale

Our Limited Edition We Are Four T-shirts are on sale now!

Please follow the link below to purchase one. We also have a handful of our Burger Logo t-shirts for only £15 before p&p.

Blah Blah Blah Shop

New Blah Blah Blah T-Shirt on Sale Tomorrow!

To celebrate four years of Blah Blah Blah, we are releasing some very special limited edition t-shirts. Screen Printed in our trademark pink ink on high quality Continental tees.

Demand is usually high for our t-shirts and as usual we will ship to anywhere in the world at a cost that won't break the bank for you. The t-shirts are priced at £17 and will go on sale at a random time on Thursday 11th August.

We have limited numbers of this design, so we highly recommend acting quick to ensure you secure the size and colour you want. We will be revealing the link to purchase on our Facebook and Twitter so make sure you are following us.

We'd personally like to thank everyone who has come to our parties and visited our blog over the years. It's been a great ride so far and here's your chance to own a little bit of BBB history.

Related Post
WeAre4 Mixtape - By Blah Blah Blah DJs

DiSapia - Bass & Stuff (Released Sept 2011)

DiSapia is an artist we have kept in contact with for the last couple of years ever since he sent us a Soundcloud link to his Pollum EP. Since those early beginnings DiSapia has continued to hone his craft creating a distinctive ethereal deep house sound that while atmospheric has a techy edge that gives his music tangible dance floor energy.



Since his Pollum EP he has gone on to release 'They Mostly Hunt at Night EP', 'Catch a Glimpse' single and is currently preparing the release of his superb 'Bass and Stuff' track as part of the 'Tones & Stuff' EP on Monog Records. Bass and Stuff is probably DiSapia's best work to date, demonstrating a real progression from his earlier releases and further cementing his growing reputation as a talented producer.

Recommended Listening

DiSapia - Bass & Stuff (Released Sept 2011)


DiSapia - Catch a Glimpse


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L-Vis 1990 - Lost In Love Feat. Javeon McCarthy

"Lost In Love" is the first single to be taken from L-Vis 1990's forthcoming debut album, Neon Dreams. Lost In Love is a shimmering vocal House track that makes no attempt to ease in fans of his more underground gritty sound. For many this new direction may prove too much too handle, however L-Vis 1990 is not trying to fool anyone and Lost in Love is clear indication of what to expect from the full LP. However if the thought of shimmering vocal house makes your toes curl, dont worry as the single package includes a Club Mix and a Nightslugs Allstars Dub Mix.

Released - September 26th (PMR/Island)



Track List:

01. Original
02. Neon Dreams Club Mix
03. Neon Dreams Club Dub
04. Night Slugs Allstars Street Mix
05. Night Slugs Allstars Street Dub

Related Post
L-VIS 1990 - Neon Dreams (Album Preview)

Win Classixx - Into the Valley (Remixes) on Vinyl

We eulogised about this track a few weeks back and now Green Label Sound have kindly given us 3 Vinyl copies of the single to give away. However please note this competition is only open to US residents, so if you’re not living the 'All American Dream' don’t despair as you can still download the remixes for FREE via the following link: Free Download

How to Enter
Simple Tweet us the following message and we will enter your name into the Blah Blah Blah Tombola for a chance to win one copy of Classixx - Into the Valley (Julio Bashmore Remix).

"I live in the US of A and want to Win Classixx - Into the Valley (Julio Bashmore Remix) on Vinyl" @Dew_GLS @blahblahblahdjs

Good Luck

Joe Goddard (Hot Chip / 2 Bears) - Gabriel

Not content with just Hot Chip and The 2 Bears Joe Goddard is also pumping the tunes out under his own name releasing the stylish 'Gabriel EP' last week via Greco Roman and DFA Records. Gabriel builds itself around a haunting vocal refrain, live drums and solid house beat before unleashing the super smooth main vocal and bassline that combine to give the track unforgettable early hours dance floor energy. If you liked Joe Goddard's work as The 2 Bears this is an essential addition to the collection.



Joe Goddard (Hot Chip / 2 Bears) - Gabriel


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Foamo - Vibrations

Somehow managed to miss this one among all my numerous emails, but as they say better late than never. Foamo is an aritst we've fallen in and out of love for over the years. When we first started BBB Foamo was right on the money with his fidget stylings and bang on DJ sets, playing for us in year 1. However fidget lost its original sheen and while Foamo's sets were still banging his tracks started to lack the originality that first caught our attention. Despite this Foamo has continued to establish himself as both artist and DJ and his latest release 'Vibrations' is Foamo back to his partying noisy best.



Vibrations nicely combines classic house beats, piano stabs and vocals with a crunching dubstep type bassline that works to great effect on the dancefloor. For some this track might sound a bit obvious, however not everything has to be breaking the mould. Highly recommended for those peak time moments.

Foamo - Vibrations - Out Now