FMB MIXTAPE 105 | OPTMST

Posted on August 23, 2018 by Feel My Bicep

FMB MIXTAPE 105 | OPTMST

FMB MIXTAPE 105 | OPTMST (iTUNES)

FMB MIXTAPE 105 | OPTMST (320 DOWNLOAD)

FMB MIXTAPE 105 | OPTMST (MIXCLOUD)

Very happy to welcome OPTMST on board to the FMB mixtape series this week. As well as his solo project, OPTMST collabs with Spireview on Age of Aquarius, and also heads the brand new label, Born Sleepy. As usual, we asked a bit about the mix & what he’s been up to…

A month ago a group of us moved into a lab within Vault Artist studios, an old college building in Belfast that’s now been inhabited by a community of over 80 artists. I’ve been spending most of my time there kitting up our space for use as HQ for our projects. Out of the space there’s a few things going on with working towards radio, label and making the space ripe for collaboration/workshops.

Had finished an album earlier in the year with Age of Aquarius but we are taking a break and revisit it later to focus on our own projects with an album of Spireview’s coming in October and some other collaborations going on.  Been herding a gang of talented dudes from here to be a part of Born Sleepy and am getting started with a various artists at the end of September.

We built a stand for the decks recently at the window looking out at the Harland and Wolff cranes that we’re gonna offer to promoters for broadcasting shows, this was the first mix on my own I did on the setup late which was nice. This was done 2 x CDJ2000nxs and a djm 800 over a few hours, splicing together what I liked together in Ableton after.

I’ve been playing mainly chilled bar gigs recently so with this opportunity I wanted to show a side to my sound that I haven’t been sharing. I’m attached to the idea of generative trance states in experiencing music (google it) so think that carrys through into my taste with meditative/psychedelic and emotive sounds across all genres. This is a bit on the tougher side of that, but with harmony.

With the label coming up soon there was a an aim to fit in some Born Sleepy tracks but it didn’t work like that. Only Two tracks from BTU and Fourth Mind made the cut but there will be more popping up soon.

Up next…

Got a busy month ahead with the First release of the Born Sleepy label coming out in September and on the 14th I’m supporting LOR for his album launch with my first live set under this guise.

Music wise atm I’m firstly looking forward to getting some of what’s built up out there on the VA and an EP later in year, outside of that still focusing more on the solo stuff but am looking forward to collaborating more on a project called Virtues with BTU and jamming with Brién in the space! 

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FMB MIXTAPE 104 | JOE MUGGS

Posted on August 9, 2018 by Feel My Bicep

FMB MIXTAPE 104 | JOE MUGGS

FMB MIXTAPE 104 | JOE MUGGS (iTUNES)

FMB MIXTAPE 104 | JOE MUGGS (320 DOWNLOAD)

FMB MIXTAPE 104 | JOE MUGGS (MIXCLOUD)

This week’s episode of the FMB mixtape series was curated by DJ & music writer, Joe Muggs. Along with a bit about the mix, we found out what he’s been up to lately…

Hi I’m Joe, I’m a writer – just putting finishing touches to my first book, on bass culture, which’ll be officially announced next month and released in the spring, and just did a nice podcast on electronic music. I’ve also been a DJ for years, but always winging it and bodging it; it’s only very recently that as an attempt to stave off the mid-life crisis I started taking it seriously. It’s paying dividends, first in making me listen more acutely in my day job, and second in doing some good gigs. Warming up I ♥️ Acid the other week was a dream, and I’ll be at Boomtown this weekend, Spiritland the 22ndof this month, No Bounds fest in Sheffield and Electro Cafe in Bristol later in the autumn.

For this I threw together a folder of stuff that sounds good at my favourite tempo (a tempo very much suited to the extreme heat), including a load of 91-93 progressive house that I found among a bunch of crates that I’d completely forgotten about but found in my mother-in-law’s loft while getting ready to move house. Also, a bunch of unreleased, new and new-ish stuff, and a sly edit I made last year. The mix was done in the garage of my new home in the forest, on XDJs and a trusty old DJM-600. Aside from pre-selecting the tunes and deciding how I was going to top and tail it, it was unplanned, and there’s a couple of, uh, human moments in it, including a bit where the EQ was left funny for a while because I was distracted by the kids coming in to tell me tea was ready. But first thought best thought, right?

Tracklist:

Haiku Salut – I Am Who I Remind You Of

Firenze – Orange Is Orange

Kams – Walk Along The Wall

HVL – Under Libra

Lovechild – Waterfall

Via Maris – CU2

KG – Midnight (Flute Riddim)

TJ Kong & Nuno Dos Santos – The Bells (Spacemuffin Dub)

Benoit B – Kimono

SYT – Beauty Unfold (Unfolded Dub)

Marquis Hawkes – Hope In Our Hearts

Ben Hauke – Get Up To Get Down

Mugford – Fix It In The ‘Mics

Trevor Jackson – Qix

DJ Dinesh & Kid Deli – 20-20

Snips – Ayer Of Funk

Donato Dozzy – TB Square

The White Man – Atacama

Haiku Salut – I Am Who I Remind You Of

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FMB MIXTAPE 103 | SALLY C

Posted on July 26, 2018 by Feel My Bicep

FMB MIXTAPE 103 | SALLY C

FMB MIXTAPE 103 | SALLY C (iTUNES)

FMB MIXTAPE 103 | SALLY C (320 DOWNLOAD)

FMB MIXTAPE 103 | SALLY C (MIXCLOUD)

It’s time for mixtape #103, & this week we invited Irish-born Berlin-based Sally C to take the reigns. First up, we asked a bit about the mix & what she’s been up to…

2018 has been pretty sweet so far, things are starting to kick off a bit which I’m super happy about.. I’m based in Berlin but this year I’ve been playing more outside of the city in the UK and Europe which is what I aimed to achieve when I moved there 3 years ago. It was a tough move from Scotland where I lived for 5 years, in terms of finding gigs and developing my sound but I’ve chipped away at the scene here and now running nights with pals and playing at different clubs around the city. Its a class place to live, absolutely spoiled for record shops – I spend a lot of time digging for weird records I fucking love it. 

I started the summer off at Denis Sulta’s FLY Festival in Edinburgh which was class craic and debuted at AVA Festival on the main stage which meant a lot to me to be a part of it was such a special atmosphere everything from the production to the lineup to the crowd was phenomenal. I just played at the DABJ night in Berlin at Else which was great, played after Alden Tyrell so definitely played a lot harder than I usually play but really liked that as I got to show my darker side.

Recorded in my flat in Berlin. Two technics, DJM 350 mixer (the one where you can just pop your USB in to record mixes which is so handy) and two CDJ 2000 Nexus 2’s which are actually my pal hectors which he asked me to look after so thank you hector b :) I have other cdjs but they’re shite. I try to use mostly records when I’m recording mixes but its very convenient having the CDJs for pals tunes and new music I’ve been sent etc. 

I actually never plan my mixes too much – They have to be raw and in the moment and I only ever record a mix once. Of course I will have a general concept but I can’t re-record, it just doesn’t work for me, this is a one time recording and I liked it so didn’t have to record a whole new one which was sweet. I will always include unreleased or new stuff from friends. Its important to me to promote their music in whatever way I can. 

I had some time to think about the mix and I’m honoured to have been asked to join this mix series. I really wanted it to be a reflection of how my style has developed. I used to play a lot of disco but Im definitely playing a lot harder at the minute which I’ve tried to convey in this mix. All of the tunes mean something to me, make me feel something, make me think and I hope its some what of a journey to listen to with a focus on weird vocals and heavy grooves which is what I look for when digging. 

Its also kind of a homage to Bikini Waxx Records in Berlin as 90% of the records in the mix are from there. Its my favourite record store, all of my second hand gems are from there, I have a lot to thank them for to be honest. 

Up next…

I’ve spent the last 6 years fine tuning my mixing – especially with vinyl, I used to watch videos on youtube of people mixing records and thinking I would never be able to do that, ever. But especially since moving to Berlin Ive really focused on trying to perfect my mixing which Ive put all of my energy into. Now I’m pretty comfortable with that I want to focus more on production – I know how to make tunes and I have some nice gear which I know I need to use more. I haven’t put pressure on myself to rush into production as I know its a slow and personal process but I know the tunes are coming and I feel good about it, Ive cultivated so many ideas over the past years so Im excited to execute them. 

Gigs wise Im playing in Sheffield this weekend, Netherlands at the end of the month and some really exciting shows in September which I can’t wait for. 

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FMB MIXTAPE 102 | ANTONI MAIOVVI

Posted on July 12, 2018 by Feel My Bicep

FMB MIXTAPE 102 | ANTONI MAIOVVI

FMB MIXTAPE 102 | ANTONI MAIOVVI (iTUNES)

FMB MIXTAPE 102 | ANTONI MAIOVVI (320 DOWNLOAD)

FMB MIXTAPE 102 | ANTONI MAIOVVI (MIXCLOUD)

This week, we’ve invited the producer/DJ/composer/label-owner Antoni Maiovvi to take the reigns for the 102nd episode of our mixtape series. As usual, we asked a bit about the mix & what he’s been up to lately…

I’ve just had a 12” and an album released for my collaborative project Acid Vatican with Gianni Vercetti, who I also run Giallo Disco Records with. Last year after SXSW I composed the score for Can Evrenol’s film ‘Housewife’ whilst in New York so I have been attending the film festival screenings. Continuing Giallo Disco and Royal Athlete Records and trying to save Driftmusic from the ashes. Making cocktails by the beach in The Hague and looking at animals who I call “Buddies”. So if I say “Hey! Look at that fluffy buddy!” 90% of the time I’ve just seen a fluffy dog. The other 10% we’re most likely being… intimate.

Like most of my mix tapes these days, this was assembled (rather than recorded) from my own vinyl rip archive. Quite a lot of my records have increased in value over the years, especially from my own label, so I decided to rip them and start playing digitally. Though I sometimes miss the tactile pleasure of playing vinyl, my back thanks me though as I’m getting old now.

I’m trying to find a little trip to take you on and keep things eclectic. I have no idea if I actually achieved that. 

Tracklist is here:

Makeup & Vanity Set – Arpa

Beck Nash Reyenga – Metaclaw (Gordon Pohl Remix)

Lost Years – Pressure

Job Sifre – Zodiak

Cut Hands – Damballah 58

Consolidated – Brutal Equation (12” Mix)

Timothy J Fairplay – Pure Hex

Ortrotasce – Eye Movements

Knickknack – Freudlos (M.W. Cut)

Human Performance Lab – Venal

Legowelt – Evaporate With Me 2 Infinity

Don Chrelli – Caramel (Pin Up Club Remix)

TV. Out – Moon

Cardopusher – Blast Cut

Holiday Inn – Feel Free (feat. D.a.P)

As a final note, I almost took Tim Fairplay’s track out, (I made this mix on the 10th of May) because it’s been picked up by Sven Vath and that EP is going to be heard everywhere all summer (if it hasn’t already, when is this coming out? July? Old news mate…) it is however a total banger and it’s so cool for Tim to be finally recognised as the amazing producer he is and always has been.

Up next…

I have a 12” for Omnidisc coming out of quite heavy stuff. There’s a new project in the works to be released, but who knows when exactly. My collaborative project with Bristolian Prog-Rock group ANTA is finished awaiting release. Homoagent, my collaborative industrial techno project has their 2nd 12” coming out soon on Instruments Of Discipline. I’m working on another movie soundtrack currently the details of which I can’t talk about just yet. Keep on producing, keep on touring, more film festivals, more label stuff. Keep on keeping on, I can’t really do anything else at this point I don’t think.

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FMB MIXTAPE 101 | NEW JACKSON

Posted on June 28, 2018 by Feel My Bicep

FMB MIXTAPE 101 | NEW JACKSON

FMB MIXTAPE 101 | NEW JACKSON (iTUNES)

FMB MIXTAPE 101 | NEW JACKSON (320 DOWNLOAD)

FMB MIXTAPE 101 | NEW JACKSON (MIXCLOUD)

This week, we invited Dublin based producer New Jackson, aka David Kitt, to take the reigns for mixtape number 101. With releases on All City, Permanant Vacation and Major Problems to name a few, we’ve been looking forward to getting our ears around this. First up, we asked a bit about the mix & what he’s been up to recently:

I’ve been busy with non New Jackson pay the bills work and I just finished a double e.p. for Major Problems with Lumigraph. We’re called Garies and it’s our first release. Very excited about that coming out in September. We’ve been working on our debut album as well as a live show, which we performed for the first time last month on a small island called Inis Oirr off the west coast of Ireland. I’ve just finished another New Jackson e.p. for Perm Vac which is out soon hopefully. 

The mix was recorded on two 1210s and two XDJ 1000s, a DJR 400 mixer with a send and return to a Meris Polymoon going into an OTO BAM reverb for a wee bit of dubbing up. I just made the move to USB and this is my first mix using the XDJ’s so I’m still getting the hang of them. I recorded it into Pro Tools, one take with a medicinal beer or two. 

When I used to make actual mixtapes they generally had two arcs; the keep building and building and maybe have a ballad or hip hop tune or something at the end to round it off and then the slow build and slowly back down to where you started. This one is more the latter, normally better suited to a C90 cassette but I think I just about got there in 60 minutes. I have a habit of bookending mixes with a sound or artist or label and this is one of those. I wanted to make something I thought Andy and Matt would dig too obviously and keep it loose which it most certainly is!

Up next…

Working on a new New Jackson live show which I’m debuting at Closer in Kiev in a few weeks and getting back to the second New Jackson album which will out next year on All City. I’m also taking part in the PEOPLE event at the Funkhaus in Berlin in August. Hopefully some time off too at some point. Badly need a break!

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