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Interview: Seven Davis Jr’s Underground Soul

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Something about Seven Davis Jr catches the scout’s ear. Perhaps it’s the the hypnotic, oratorial vocal delivery a la Green Velvet, or the fact that the self-styled vocalist-DJ’s fairly unique production style has already set him his current tour around Asia. We grab him somewhere between Tokyo and Seoul to catch a few words.

Where’s your hometown? What’s the scene like?

Currently I live in Los Angeles. Previously I lived in London for 4 years. When I’m in LA, it’s kind of my refuge, so I lay pretty low and am rarely seen. But at the moment it appears the Los Angeles scene is experiencing a huge rebirth in all of its creative areas. Really exciting.

Tell us a bit about how you got started?

Grew up in the church. Originally wanted to work in the gospel industry but found it to be shockingly violent and pretty corrupt. Then I began studying jazz and wanted to be in the jazz industry which lead me into soul and R&B. At that point, I began to be groomed for the mainstream industry.

From my past experiences and interactions in those many different industries I established a kind of behind-the-scenes presence. People started coming to me to ghost write, ghost produce, sing backing vocals and so on. Around that time, I went into a deep dark depression as a result of abuse which lead to a pretty bad drug habit. I actually don’t remember anything from those times and sadly, a lot of the ghost work I did was used without giving me credit.

Anyhow, after I got sober ultimately I decided to start working on my own music full-time and to no longer keep it secret or in the background. For a few years after that decision I was shunned and kind of blacklisted. But then later, people started listening to my old music and I was able to rebuild to where and who I am now.

For those unfortunate souls that haven’t had the chance to listen to you yet, how would you describe it?

Underground Soul is the best way I can describe it. It’s also Jazz, Funk, Trip Hop, House, Hip Hop, Fusion, but the key ingredient is unfiltered Soul.




What’s your process when selecting music for a show? Where do you find your stuff?

Being a singer, producer and DJ, all my shows are completely different from each other due to my wide range of fans.

So currently, I perform my songs live in clubs when amongs the more loyal type of listeners. Then I DJ when I’m with fans who perhaps are unaware of my singing career.

Live performances include all my tracks. DJ sets are my tracks plus new, unheard music and classics. Labels and artists send me new releases literally every day, which I’m so grateful for and really happy to introduce in my sets, when the audience is open to it.

Can you talk us through your production process? 

Well it’s very random and spontaneous. I prefer to work in my own home studio for that reason. If I get an idea at 3am, I’m not trying to pay nobody to record it. Also, I like the intimacy of home studios.

But with my recent sophomore album, the music first appeared in melodies and lyrics. I quit smoking weed (started vaping instead) and that opened up and repaired whole new levels in my vocal range and abilities. 

So I spent time doing vocal warm ups and retraining myself. In between those moments, these melodies started popping into my head, then lyrics, then background harmonies, then instrumentals. Once I tap into the energy, the music literally tells me what to do next.

Who are your biggest musical influences?

Sammy Davis Jr, Frank Sinatra, Burt Bacharach, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Prince Sly & The Family Stone, Hendrix, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Brandy, Faith Evans, Timbaland, Pharrell, DJ Green Velvet, Mark Farina. Should I go on?

These days I tend to be inspired by other kind of underdog vocalists and songwriters like myself. Sia, Lady Gaga and Frank Ocean for example. I’m a big fan of songwriting and am moving more in that direction.

Can you tells us your top 3 favourite tracks ever? (Sorry, we know it’s tough!)

Geez, it’s always changing, but right now:

D’Angelo – “How Does It Feel” written by Prince
Smokey Robinson – “Tears Of A Clown” 
Radiohead – “Motion Picture Soundtrack”. If you ever want to see me cry uncontrollably for every and no reason at all, just put that song on and watch.”

What would you say is the best set you’ve done so far?

It’s all been experimental, in my opinion, I do my best with the situations I’m put in that’s for sure.

Any funny moments you remember from backstage or on tour?

In the past when I first started touring, people would run up to me and be like “OMG ARE YOU KAYTRANADA”? Then when I told them I wasn’t they would walk away from me all pissed off. I didn’t mind it because Kaytranada is awesome.

If you could support one act, dead or alive, who would it be?

So many to pick but straight up, it would be Prince.

Does your inspiration usually come randomly or do you manage to summon it?

Gratefully I can say, I have no shortage of inspiration. Many things in life strike a chord with me and I channel all of it into music. I’m actually going to rebirth my ghost writing & production in 2017 for this reason. I have so much to offer and want to contribute to the community, not just my own musical career.

Do you have anything exciting coming up that we should be looking out for? 

In 2017 I’ll be introducing a live band and transitioning into more concert performances. I’ll no longer do club tours as a DJ but will occasionally DJ for special occasions.

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Buy Seven Davis Jr “Live From The Other Side

Fabric Nightclub To Reopen After Talks With Council, Police

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London’s famous club Fabric has issued a joint statement with the police and council of Islington to announce that it will reopen.

Listen & read on: Latest Fabric mix

The club has been in talks this week with the Islington council and Metropolitan police to reinstate its license. Judge Robin McPhee concluded that Fabric is fit to reopen under a new set of licensing conditions following the deaths of two 18-year-old clubbers.

One of the lawyers representing Fabric, Philip Kolvin QC, has stated that even before its license was revoked in September, Fabric “has always set about trying to lead the industry.”

According to the police statement below, 32 new conditions are stipulated to which Fabric must comply, including the installation of a new ID scanning system, new guest searching procedures, changes to the club layout. Oh, and a lifetime ban for dealers and buyers of narcotics. The use of sniffer dogs has been ruled out after police attempted to enforce such action in late 2014.

Fabric will be made to pay the Islington council’s legal costs out of the club’s coffers and – importantly – NOT from the ongoing #saveculture and #savefabic campaigns, which raised in the region of £320,000. Kolvin also said that Fabric would start a welfare team alongside drug charity The Loop.

Fabric stated on their Facebook page: “We are hugely thankful to be able to confirm the news that we have won our licence back,” they wrote. “We owe everything to our supporters. We really would not be here today without your unparalleled support and generosity. So many different people stepped up to put their voices to our cause, artists from all corners of the music community, fellow promoters who have put on huge events from us and clubbers from around the world who all united behind us.”

Here’s the joint statement in full:

On 25 June 2016 an 18 year old young man died in hospital after a night out at Fabric nightclub, from the effects of MDMA (Ecstasy). Six weeks later, on 6 August 2016, another 18 year old young man died in similar circumstances.

In both of these cases, the young men and their friends were able to conceal drugs on their person when entering Fabric, and get through the search and entry procedures without being detected. They were then able to purchase, and take, more drugs when inside Fabric.

These two tragic deaths were not the only drug-related deaths of young clubbers visiting Fabric. Since 2011 there have been a further 4 deaths.

On 12 August 2016 a sub-committee of the Authority decided to suspend Fabric’s License pending the hearing of the Police’s application. Then, on 6 September 2016, after a public hearing of the application, attended by Fabric, a sub-committee of the Authority decided to revoke Fabric’s Licence.

The sub-committee concluded, on the evidence then before it, that a culture of drug use existed at Fabric which the existing management and security appeared incapable of controlling, and that a number of conditions on its Licence had not been complied with. It decided that the revocation of the Licence was both appropriate and proportionate in light of all the circumstances.

Fabric then exercised its statuary right to appeal to the magistrates’ court, with a four day hearing of that appeal being due to start on 28 November 2016.

There have now been a number of meetings between Fabric’s directors and senior management and the Authority and the Metropolitan Police. Fabric has offered many new conditions to be added to its Licence, all of which are designed to ensure a Zero Tolerance approach to drug possession, consumption and sale within the club. It has also developed a new and detailed ISO accredited Operations Manual setting out how compliance with these conditions is to be achieved, from the top to the bottom of its operation.

Fabric accepts that its procedures in relation to searching were insufficient, as were its procedures to prevent the consumption and dealing of drugs within the club itself. Fabric accepts that the Police acted reasonably in making the application for a review and that the Authority’s sub-committee was fully entitled to revoke its Licence. Fabric repudiates the online abuse aimed at Committee members and Council staff and will permanently exclude anyone who has been found to be involved.

Fabric is committed to doing all it reasonably can to ensure that no more of its clubbers come to drug-related harm. It also recognises that there need to be, and will be, changes to its management structure and accountability.

The Authority welcomes Fabric’s acceptance of all these matters. It is now satisfied that Fabric’s directors and senior management understand precisely what has to be done to ensure that Fabric is a safe environment for young clubbers, and that Zero Tolerance to Drugs means precisely that. The measures to be implemented include:

– The use of a new I.D. scanning system on entry to the club
– Enhanced searching procedures and controls
– Covert surveillance within the club
– Life-time bans for anyone found in possession of drugs, whether on entry or within the club
– Life-time bans for anyone trying to buy drugs in the club
– Enhanced monitoring and external auditing for compliance against procedures
– Physical changes to the club, including improved lighting and additional CCTV provision
– A new Security Company
– Persons under 19 years of age shall not be permitted to be on the premises as a customer or guest from 2000 hours on a Friday until 0800 hours on the following Monday or on any day during the hours that the operators promote a Core Club Night.

In light of Fabric’s acceptance that there have been failings, and given the commitment that its directors and management have shown by their development of the Operations Manual and acceptance of these new conditions, the Authority is now satisfied that the statutory licensing objectives may be met short of the revocation of the Premises Licence. It is for these reasons that it has decided not to oppose Fabric’s appeal. Fabric Life will pay Islington’s costs in these proceedings directly and not from the monies pledged by supporters.

For its part, Fabric understands and accepts that the additional conditions it has agreed to are meaningless unless operational practices ensure each of them is complied with. Its directors and management remain committed to ensuring compliance. They are committed to ensuring the safety of their patrons.

Fabric will not re-open until they believe they can comply with their new conditions.

Neither the Authority nor Fabric will be making any further statement in relation to this Appeal.

The exact reopening date has not been decided.

The XX To Play Full Arena Tour Starting Early 2017

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The xx have have added to their recent tour announcement with a full list of dates for their 2017 UK and European tour. The I See You Tour will kick off on February 8 in Stockholm, Sweden. From there, the trio make their way through Denmark, Germany, Holland, France, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and the UK, including three hometown shows at London’s Brixton Academy.

Presale tickets for all shows will be made available from November 22 at 10am GMT. General sales start at 10am GMT on November 25.

This comes after a recent announcement that the band will complete 2016 with a brief European tour with Norwegian singer-songwriter Jenny Hval heading to Japan for a single show.

The band’s third album, I See You, will be available on January 13. Check out the full list of dates and take a listen to the first single, ‘On Hold’ below.

European tour dates

Feb 08 – Sweden, Stockholm Hovet
Feb 10 – Denmark, Copenhagen Forum
Feb 12 – Germany, Hamburg Sporthalle
Feb 13 – Holland, Amsterdam Heineken Music Hall
Feb 14 – France, Paris Zénith
Feb 17 – France, Strasbourg Zénith
Feb 18 – Switzerland, Basel St Jakobshalle
Feb 20 – Italy, Milan Mediolanum Forum
Feb 21 – France, Lyon Halle Tony Garnier
Feb 23 – Austria, Vienna Marx Hall
Feb 24 – Germany, Munich Zenith
Feb 25 – Germany, Berlin Arena
Feb 26 – Germany, Frankfurt Jahrhunderthalle
Feb 28 – Germany, Düsseldorf Mitsubishi Electric Halle
Mar 01 – Belgium, Brussels Forest National
Mar 04 – UK, Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Mar 05 – UK, Manchester 02 Apollo
Mar 06 – UK, Manchester 02 Apollo
Mar 08 – UK, London 02 Academy Brixton
Mar 09 – UK, London 02 Academy Brixton
Mar 10 – UK, London 02 Academy Brixton
Mar 17 – UK, Cardiff Motorpoint Arena

Warp Records Will Release “Generative” Brian Eno Record

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English musician Brian Eno will be releasing another of his trademark ambient albums on Warp Records on January 1st 2017. The full-length, 54-minute album follows on from 2016’s The Ship and 2012’s Lux. The album is titled Reflection and according to Eno is “the latest work in a long series.”

According to the ambient composer, whose full name is Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno, the pieces are generative works of art, creating music by a cosind system of probability and rules. In other words, the piece will unfold differently every time it is activated. The album represents a selection of recordings of various iterations of those unfoldings.

On the album itself, he went on to add: “When I make a piece like this most of my time is spent listening to it for long periods — sometimes several whole days — observing what it does to different situations, seeing how it makes me feel. I make my observations and then tweak the rules. Because everything in the pieces is probabilistic and because the probabilities pile up it can take a very long time to get an idea of all the variations that might occur in the piece. One rule might say ‘raise one out of every 100 notes by five semitones’ and another might say ‘raise one out of every 50 notes by seven semitones.’ If those two instructions are operating on the same data stream, sometimes — very rarely — they will both operate on the same note…so something like one in every 5000 notes will be raised by 12 semitones. You won’t know which of those 5000 notes it’s going to be. Since there are a lot of these types of operations going on together, on different but parallel data streams, the end result is a complex and unpredictable web.

Perhaps you can divide artists into two categories: farmers and cowboys. The farmers settle a piece of land and cultivate it carefully, finding more and more value in it. The cowboys look for new places and are excited by the sheer fact of discovery, and the freedom of being somewhere that not many people have been before. I used to think I was temperamentally more cowboy than farmer…but the fact that the series to which this piece belongs has been running now for over four decades makes me think that there’s quite a big bit of farmer in me.”

Take a listen to Brian Eno and Karl Hyde performing live.

Montreal Electronic Duo Beat Market Release ‘Sun Machine’ on Lisbon Lux

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‘Sun Machine’ is the new album from Montreal-based electronic duo Beat Market, out now via Lisbon Lux Records. ‘Sun Machine’ includes collaborations with long-time friends singers Malika and Aiza, French Horn Rebellion vocalist Robert Perlick Molinari and fellow Montreal icon APigeon.

According to Louis-Joseph Cliche and Max Bellavance, who met at university, the goal was always to bring electronic music to a live setting where they could express themselves as true musicians. At their first gigs, Beat Market’s energy gained fans in the form of Thump, Dancing Astronaut, KCRW and the Montreal crowds.

“We want to create a music that makes people move, dance and have fun. An instrumental journey easy to understand and feel. If they feel good when they listen, that’s the right path,” explain the duo. Drawing influences from the likes of Hudson Mohawke, Major Lazer, Mr. Oizo, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Kaytranada, Deadmau5, Daft Punk and Justice, Beat Market’s new album features sophisticated French house beats and thumping rhythms.


‘Sun Machine’ Tracklist
1. Dune
2. Sun Machine
3. Doors (ft. Malika)
4. Stars
5. Turn My Colors On (with French Horn Rebellion)
6. Riders
7. Mariane
8. See What I Mean (ft. Aliza)
9. Les Belles Années
10. Madonyx
11. Atlantis (with APigeon)

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Lyon Nightclub To Press Charges Against Four Overdosing Patrons

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Four guests at Le Sucre nightclub in Lyon were hospitalized after overdosing last Friday night.

The clubbers at Mutante party on Friday, November 11th were rushed to hospital, prompting the club to close at 3am for preventive reasons. According to the website Lyon Mag, the Twitter rumours of a “poor quality drug” being sold that night were false. “The hospitalized persons—all of whom were in the same group—admitted taking the drug with them to the party.”

The club has announced that it will file a claim against the patrons in order to avoid “irresponsible actions” damaging its reputation.

Project Mooncircle To Release 39-Track Leftfield Electronica Anniversary Compliation

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Berlin-based, left-field electronic label Project Mooncircle is celebrating 15 years in the business by releasing a 39-track compilation. The 15th Anniversary Compilation features a long list of some of the most credible and established names, and includes up-and-coming, groundbreaking acts such as Synkro, Rain Dog, Jehst, Robot Koch,Flako, 40 Winks, Long Arm, submerse, kidkanevil, 1000 Names, Tendts, Kafuka, Erik Luebs, My Panda Shall Fly, CYNE, Soosh, Nuage, Michal Lewicki, Jilk, Sieren, Olof Melander,KRTS, Deft, Barnaby Carter, Rumpistol, Fau, Button Eyes, Deceptikon, Pavel Dovgal,Memotone, Graciela Maria, Mujuice, Stompy’s Playground, Sina., Sweatson Klank, Senoy,Parra for Cuva, Fybe One, Monsoonsiren, Tom Day, and many more. The box was furthermore designed by English comic illustrator Dave McKean (Dark Horse Comics / DC Comics / Tundra).

Since PMC’s 10th anniversary the face of one of their founding members who passed away way too early graces the logo, created by artist Dave McKean. The album is dedicated to one of the founding members of PMC, who passed away too early. The compilation logo features her face.

The compilation represents a journey to the moon that began fifteen years ago and over 150 individual releases later. Many many stories and shared memories – not all of them good, not all of them bad either. While modern space age technology would make it possible to reach the moon’s surface a lot faster, for Project Mooncircle it is not only about moving forward as quickly as possible, but also to turn around, look back around themselves and to reflect on everything that has happened and is happening. “This is why we have such a broad range of artists guesting on our latest compilation. Some that have been part of the voyage from its earliest stages, others that have been with us for major milestones along the way, and even more that might move ahead with us into new and unchartered musical regions.” says Malte.

The limited box (only 500 copies worldwide) includes five colored vinyl LP’s with over 35 exclusive tracks plus four additional digital bonus tracks (with digital download code), a bonus double CD version exclusively designed by Lorena Assisi, a T-shirt (only size L) and an exclusive documentary about the label – all in a box specially designed by Dave McKean.

The compilation will be out on the 6th January, 2017. Take a listen to the teaser below.

Tracklist

01 Synkro Lunar Cycle (Phase I) (Produced by Joe McBride)
02 Erik Luebs Frozen Eye (Produced by Erik Luebs)
03 KRTS Odd Fish (Produced by Kurtis Hairston)
04 Sina. Our Sweet Entropy (Produced by Barry Gordon)
05 Deft No More (Produced by Yip Wong)
06 Tendts On Fire (Produced by Christos Papadakis & Fotis Papadakis)
07 Sieren Burn (Produced by Matthias Frick)
08 Tom Day & Monsoonsiren Interlude (Produced by Tom Day & vocals by Nathan Menon)
09 Flako Black Dance (Produced by D. Rojo Guerra)
10 Kafuka Surface (Produced by Kazuomi Eshima)
11 Olof Melander Parallelism (Produced by Olof Melander)
12 Jilk All Dust Form (Produced by Jonathan Worsley & Neil Gay)
13 Barnaby Carter Yugen (Produced by Barnaby Carter)
14 My Panda Shall Fly Tsar (Produced by Suren Seneviratne & Asier Leatxe Ibañez d’Opakoa)
15 40 Winks World Will Find Out (Produced by Wiet Van Den Bogaert)
16 Long Arm Anna (Produced by Georgy Kotunov)
17 Jehst Wolf at the Door (Produced by Jason Wood (a.k.a. Apa-Tight) & vocals byWilliam G. Shields)
18 Button Eyes Burn It Down (Produced by Lewis Lindgren & vocals by CW Jones)
19 kidkanevil Helical Scan (Produced by Gerard Roberts)
20 submerse Cloud_s (Produced by Rob Orme)
21 Memotone Living (Produced by William Yates)
22 Soosh Fading Mankind (Produced by Soroosh Khavari)
23 Rain Dog Miss You (Produced by Samuel Evans)
24 Robot Koch & Graciela Maria Harps And Landscapes (Produced by Robert Koch & vocals by Graciela Maria Alatorre)
25 Parra For Cuva On A Life Feat. Bijou (Produced by Nicolas Demuth & vocals by Bijou Allie)
26 Pavel Dovgal & Mujuice Mooncircle (Produced by Pavel Dovgal & Roma Litvinov)
27 Michal Lewicki & Fau Kafka (Produced by Michal Lewicki & Mateusz Szmigiero)
28 Rumpistol Carry Me (Produced by Jens Berents Christiansen)
29 Nuage Leave The Past (Produced by Dmitry Kuzmin)
30 Fybe One Bloodline (Produced by Greg Haynes)
31 Sweatson Klank Either Way (Produced by Thomas Wilson)
32 Mujuice Dead Moon Sonnet (Produced by Roma Litvinov)
33 Synkro Lunar Cycle (Phase II) (Produced by Joe McBride)

Bonus:
34 Deceptikon From Time (Produced by Zack Wright)
35 CYNE On the Head of the Crimson King (Produced by Michael Gersten & David Newell. Vocals by Clyde Graham)
36 Senoy F L Y (Produced by Jonas Christian Eberhard Lechenmayr)
37 kidkanevil & Daisuke Tanabe Harmonics (Stompy’s Playground Live Version)(Produced by Robert Hervais-Adelman)
38 Barrio Lindo Raiz (Produced by Agustin Rivaldo)
39 1000 Names Hollow Hello (Produced by Aleksiev Margarit & Todorov Nikolay)

Reeko takes on fourth Unknown Landscapes mix

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Spanish techno expert Reeko is the man behind the upcoming Unknown Landscapes CD release, set for December by PoleGroup Recordings Reeko’s selection includes 22 previously unreleased tracks, including three of his own original productions and including tracks from from Buffalo, Mike Parker (NYC), Raster-Noton’s Kangding Ray and Hospital Productions bedfellow Lussuria. Mix duties for the previous Unknown Landscapes collection was handled by Exium, who also features alongside Jonas Kopp and DJ Hyperactive (Chicago). The 74-minute mix will be followed by a vinyl sampler featuring the likes of Unbalance, Mike Parker, Lussuria and Reeko in January next year. Take a listen to ‘Dead Animal,’ by Reeko, one of the tracks that will appear on the vinyl EP.


Four Tet Kindly Shares 4 hour DJ Set

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Election madness got you in a morning spin? Here’s one way to escape today – download Four Tet’s generous 4-and-a-half hour DJ set. The mix, recorded by the pioneering master of experimental electronica at Far Away’s monthly party in Los Angeles, has already racked up over 35,000 plays in just two days. The recording, which apparently cut out 90 minutes before the end of his actual set, features disco, gospel, house and techno.

Moderat will release new single “Eating Hooks”

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Moderat, the collaborative brainchild of German electronic titans Modeselektorand Apparat, have announced the release of their new single “Eating Hooks” along with a Slomun edit of Siriusmo’s remix and a remix by Night Drps on the 7th October.


“Eating Hooks” is a recording taken from the band’s live show that sold out concert halls in both Europe and North America during their spring 2016 tour.
Tracklist:
01 – Eating Hooks (Live)
02 – Eating Hooks (Siriusmo Remix, Solomun Edit)
03 – Eating Hooks (Night Drps Remix 2)

04 – Eating Hooks (Original Version)