Few artists come from as genuine and distinct a perspective as Finland’s Aki Latvamäki. In his bio he speaks of dirt, and in the following interview, he speaks of love. Working at the distant boundaries of what can only ostensibly be described as “tech-house,” Latvamäki (who also records as Artificial Latvamäki) offers up sounds that are more closely tied to experience than invention. Latvamäki’s esoterically titled tracks have appeared on Cocoon’s G compilation, Ellen Allien’s Fabric 34 mix; EPs for Trapez, Mezzotinto, and Budenzauber Recordings; as well as split recordings with LWE favorite Mark August and Dub Kult on Curle Recordings. Latvamäki is also a member of the “junk percussion” group Transistori, who have recently posted to Youtube a documentary of their live work, Transistori Play Toppilan Tehdas, at the factory of Toppila in Latvamäki’s home town of Oulu, Finland. What Latvamäki specializes in is a sound that combines melodic daring, dizzying introspection, and propulsive movement, and this talent is on display both here in this stunning exclusive “mixtape” of unreleased/forthcoming material.
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Stream a mix by House of House
If you loved “Rushing to Paradise” by House of House as much as we did, you’re probably clamoring to hear a DJ set from these rising stars. But unless you live in NYC (or are able to get to Fabric this Saturday, where they’ll be playing this Saturday at Fabric alongside Villalobos, Patrice Scott, Slam and Holy Ghost et al.), your chances are probably slim. Thankfully, Fabric is teaming up with LWE to share the wealth and let the rest of us in on the duo’s eclectic tastes.
Little White Earbuds Interviews Joris Voorn
Rotterdam’s Joris Voorn has been spinning and producing house and techno for over ten years now, with no shortage of accolades along the way. His debut EP, “Muted Trax pt. 1,” was tipped by Carl Craig and Laurent Garnier, and By 2004’s “Lost Memories pt. 2,” the fervor around Voorn had become virtually unavoidable. After founding the Green label the following year, Voorn landed a gig mixing the fourth CD in the Fuse series. Taking the Ableton Live brochure to task, he blended, layered, and combined forty-odd tracks for the mix. We were impressed, but Voorn figured he could do one better, which brings us to 2009’s hundred-track Balance mix. Easily one of the most discussed dance-music releases of the past year, Little White Earbuds had plenty of questions and Mr. Voorn was gracious enough to explain how one undertakes a project as ominous and daunting as Balance 14.
Talking Shopcast with Diamonds & Pearls Music
Number four brings us to the eclectic and far-reaching Diamonds & Pearls Music, a distributor, record label and production studio in one. DnP has taken its time releasing records, selecting a coterie of top notch producers to fill its diverse slabs, such as Henrik Schwarz, Ricardo Villalobos, Luciano, Matthew Styles, tobias., Efdemin and more. DnP is also responsible for getting records from Mikrodisko, Beatstreet, Contentismissing, Enliven Music, Pastamusik and many more in shops around the world. All three of DnP’s founders were gracious enough to answer our questions; and although they insisted on relative anonymity, it didn’t stop them from giving us one of our best Talking Shopcasts yet. To top things off, Efdemin crafted an exceptional exclusive mix (available below) that might make it difficult to sit still long enough to read the interview.
LWE Podcast 15: Duplex
Although Detroit revivalism is presently en vogue, Europe’s techno artists have long drawn inspiration from the Motor City’s creative geniuses. Two hardcore enthusiasts, Chris Callahan and John J. Matze, have fused their love for America’s techno roots and their own spacious vision in their music as Duplex since 1997. The Rotterdam-based duo is perhaps the most underrated members of the Clone family, with several spots (including an album) in its catalog and those of its Djak-Up-Bitch and Frantic Flowers sub-labels. Though the pair has been relatively quiet since 2007, our 15th podcast, an exclusive hour of spectacular techno cuts, is about shatter that silence in fine fashion. We haven’t had a DJ mix on repeat for so long in ages, and we suspect this will keep you coming back for more, too.
LWE Podcast 14: DJ Sprinkles
If house were a nation and LWE its president, Terre Thaemlitz is the first person we would look to when filling our cabinet. It would be difficult to decide where to put her, though, as his abundant talents make him perfect for many roles. As a top notch producer whose roots are tangled in the history of house, she’d make an excellent minister of culture; as a great thinker who elucidates hidden truths in media, gender, sexuality and our interactions with them all, he’d fit well as secretary of the interior of our heads. Midtown 120 Blues, his first album delivered under his disc jockey alias, DJ Sprinkles, brings these departments together, recontextualizing house music to the tune of sumptuous deep-house (easily nabbing the #3 spot in our top albums of 2008 list). So we’re very pleased to have Thaemlitz curating LWE’s 14th podcast, which is actually a live DJ mix from his Deeperama series.
Announcing the winner of LWE’s podcast mix competition
Listening to and judging over 35 mix submissions was something of a life-consuming task, but one which exposed us to a number of incredibly enticing sets that left us quite proud of our readers. A hearty thanks to each of you who put your time, effort and taste into these mixes. This is our last [...]
LWE Podcast 11: Simon Flower
Simon Flower placed himself into DJing exile a number of years ago to hone his production techniques; and now with releases popping up on Poker Flat, Moon Harbour and Curl Curl that hard work is paying off. His tracks often have more parts packed into them than you could feasibly number and possess a style that provides a simultaneous contrast of light and dark elements. Having lived with Simon for a number of years and DJed alongside him at various clubs in New Zealand, I have long been aware of his faultless DJ style, so he seemed like an obvious choice for an exclusive LWE podcast. It didn’t take much coaxing to get him to put together this mix entitled “Act Natural,” which stitches together a selection of recent house and techno picks with a few older classics all assembled in his kinetic, fluid manner.
LWE Podcast 10: Andomat 3000
Andreas Wiegand didn’t have much to say when answering our interview questions, but critics and clubbers alike have been quite noisy in their appreciation for his music as Andomat 3000. Retooling his career after years as DJ Mahatma, Wiegand (and Jan) turned heads with the massive “L Delay” for Cadenza, and he’s only gotten better since. His barbed and tightly laced “Cognitive Dissonance” helped propel Cécille Records into the spotlight before splashing his tracky, jazz-influenced aesthetic across releases and remixes for Four:Twenty, Platzhirsch Schallplatten, Poker Flat, Einmaleins Musik, REKIDS, and Cocoon, among others. For our 10th podcast, Wiegand opted for an exclusive live set crafted solely with unreleased tracks, offering a spectacular keyhole view into the future sounds of Andomat 3000. Given the nature of this beast the tracklist is necessarily sketchy, but few will have time to care when the irresistible, pumping rhythms draw you far from your computer.
LWE Podcast 09: Pär Grindvik
As owner of the record shop Illegal Stockholm, Pär Grindvik established himself as a pillar of Sweden’s techno scene in the 90’s; the next step was making releases to appear on its shelves. His stark, rhythmically-focused productions cloud the air with delightfully malicious tension that only his breakdowns can resolve, fitting in well on Drumcode, Spectral Sound, Syndikaat Records and Truesoul. Grindvik also owns, operates and releases on Stockhold Ltd and Isles & Islets, home to Staffan Linzatti, Van Rivers, Hardcell and his own alias, The Hollow. For his exclusive new mix for LWE, Grindvik whisks listeners away to a murky, uncertain and largely unreleased world governed by drums and deep pools of delay. Grab a torch and take the plunge.