mezzanines

Musician, vocalist, poet, painter, writer, graphic designer, bon vivant – the man most renowned as one half of Underworld, Karl Hyde, is a man of many faces, slipping effortlessly between roles with a remarkable ease that makes his decades-long career in the creative industry a truly enviable one. His most recent jaunt is into the world of solo musicianship – one that sees him releasing his first effort Edgeland later this month before heading down to Australia for a string of performances in his own right.

Hot Chip have a busy New Year’s period ahead of them. After an absence of over two years, they’re headed back our way with dates at Falls Festival, Summafieldayze and Falls Festival as well as a couple of inthemix presented sideshows. Needless to say, it’s a welcome return – as well as leaving a very good impression on Australian audiences on their last visit, the boys have a killer new album under their belt. So with in Our Heads ready to show off for the first time, inthemix caught up with the group’s Owen Clarke.

Orbital, veterans of the rave made up of brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll from Sevenoaks in the UK, have left an indelible imprint on the landscape of contemporary dance music - one of the key figures in its emergence into the mainstream consciousness of the music industry. Having gone underground at the end of 2004 after the release of veritable classics including Halcyon, Chime and Belfast, the two went underground seemingly at the height of their career, and nothing from the Orbital camp was heard for five years - leaving heartbroken children of the rave to believe that the legacy of the duo was conclude there. To much fanfare, they resurfaced in 2009 with a headline show celebrating twenty years after that first single Chime, and with a new album on the way and an extensive upcoming worldwide tour, Orbital continue to keep the dancefloor moving and I speak to one of the brothers, Paul Hartnoll, about their extended absence, assembling the new album, and returning to the live stage.

Yet the more discerning music consumers may point you towards the new wave of beatmakers emerging from the rainy cities of Scotland – remarkably young, yet as talented as many of their peers, figures like post-dubstep’s Koreless or hip hop hero Rustie seem to be changing minds about the sleepy country. Possibly one of the most exciting being Glasgow’s Hudson Mohawke (the production alias of Ross Birchard), immediately demanding attention when signed to Warp Records at the startlingly youthful age of 23. One of the genius children of the hip hop/electronica offshoot rapidly gaining attention at the moment, it was on the strength of two self-released EPs that he was picked up by the revered label, allowing him the opportunity to show the world the potential of these two worlds.

Notorious for claiming that “real DJs don’t have a tan”, Miami-based producer of everything from Detroit techno to Italo disco Danny Daze is a voice that stands out among the babble of DJs out there, in it for the lifestyle and the fame. In an industry where distinctively unique creative endeavours are steadily being superseded by the cult of personality and high-sheen, soulless tracks made for rapid consumption on commercial radio, Daze is proudly defiant – an uncompromising creative ethos bolstered by an incredible amount of success found at such a young age. One of 2011’s breakout producers and DJs, the self-professed studio nerd has suddenly found himself in high demand by audiences across the globe.

Effortless, laidback cool is something that seems instinctive to London-born and New York-based Ninja Tune stalwart Simon Green, better known through his production alias Bonobo. With ten years worth of expansive, breezy electronica to his name that’s much-lauded by fellow musicians and music critics, it’s no wonder that news of his first live tour of Australia was met with enough enthusiasm by fans that his first show in Melbourne sold out as quickly as it did, prompting promoters to add a second date to his time in Melbourne – no better time, then, for us to get on the phone to Green and catch up with his always-moving musical world.

Samson’s roots in feminist experimental film and queer studies have had an undeniable impact on the projects she’s been involved in to date. The difficulty she found in accepting her identity came not from external sources, but an internal struggle, as she explains. “It’s complicated, because I was lucky enough to live in a community of very supportive and liberal people… it was harder on myself to be honest,” she muses, offering sage advice to other girls facing a similar struggle to accept their identity. “I found myself being very critical of myself as queer, and most of the bullying was from me to me. I would say that that is probably the one thing that I think kids who are coming out should be careful of – don’t abuse yourself for being different. You are beautiful just how you are.”

Named after a girlie mag called Plumpers, it’s no surprise that the Plump DJs have a reputation for dirty, good times. Widely regarded as some of the earliest pioneers in breakbeat, the Plumps have managed to endure in a way that many of their peers in the scene were unable to – formed in the ‘90s, the London-based production and DJing duo are a force to be reckoned with, a filthy mixup of everything from broken beats to wailing electro synths and fearsome basslines that have featured on four full-length albums to date, a countless number of singles and remixes for the likes of Stanton Warriors, Deadmau5, Orbital and more. 

You know you’re a true party animal when the rave you throw along with your mates racks up more than $100,000 dollars in fines for violating noise and city ordinances. Bassnectar – the alias of dubstep and electronica producer Lorin Ashton – has, sadly, experienced this. To be fair, though, if you’ve ever been subjected to the Bassnectar live experience, you’d probably agree it was worth it, as did the thousands of punters and fellow producers and DJs in attendance who all contributed financially to Ashton to try and ease the pain of a city council trying to ruin the party. And if you haven’t? Well, luckily enough for you, Ashton will be bringing the Basshunter experience down to Melbourne over the Australia Day weekend – and has the advantage of being entirely legal, too. We managed to catch the elusive man for a brief interview to get caught up on his dealings over the past few years and figure out what it is we should be expecting when he’s down.

Steven Ellison’s role as an unofficial ambassador for the bass music scene that is rapidly gaining traction in the clubbing scene of Los Angeles as well as on an international scale is one many would recognize. As the owner of one of the scene’s most well-known labels Brainfeeder, which plays host to all manner of electronica luminaries including Martyn, Thundercat, Tokimonsta and an impressively extensive list of other artists.

“I started the label by having all these amazing friends - a lot of us lived in the same apartment building,” Ellison says of Brainfeeder’s humble beginnings. “There was a lot happening at the time, and it was a scene with so much potential and a lot of labels were really interested in what we were doing.” And what is it that makes Brainfeeder stand out from the other slew of labels all attempting to push the whole bass-music thing that’s got everybody watching on carefully at the moment? “I think it has to do with the intent,” Ellison muses. “Obviously, there’s a definite connecting sonic thread with these artists, but I think a lot of the time, I’m interested in what people are trying to say with their music and where they want to go is, what their goal and their sound is – it’s fascinating to me.”