Here is the next track in our continuing series about Reaver EP#1, this is the second track of the EP ‘The Prank’. Obviously I wrote this a long time ago and can’t really remember what I was going for, lets just call it eclectic ! Chuck in a few synth hits, a few rave back beats and a number of ripped off samples and what do you get ? A warehouse track…. anyway take a listen…..
I haven’t talked about any other artists for a while, so lets do…. Artist of the week….
Hi-Shock is a techno artists that has been active even longer than I have, we crossed paths briefly back in the late 90’s but since then I’ve not had anything to do with him other than seeing his name appear on the odd party flyer. I had no idea what he had been up to until I friended him on Facebook and checkout his happenings. Looks like you have been busy in the last 10 years… excellent !
DJ Hi-shock, Simon, to his friends, has been busily building an arsenal of deep and minimal techno tracks that could sink a battle ship. Taking a tour through his profile on Beatport will give you a taste of the sonic experiments he has embarked upon. From the traditional deep, full, techno sound of Ageha, The angry and dirty warehouse feel of Zath and a few surprises from Asama Express which sends you on a ride of anticipation, expect nothing but full on in your face minimal tech.
With his record label Elektrax in full swing and churning out plenty of tunes I think we will hear much more from Hi-Shock. Excellent work.
Why am I freaking out ? Building a studio should be a good thing, right ? It’s something that all musicians dream of, a place to work without distractions away from the day to day grind of everyday living, a creative space. But at the moment I feel exactly the opposite….. Stressed out and worried, I’m not even doing any of the work yet. There are three builders in the backyard putting everything together and every time I go and take a look at where they are up to I get a sense that the project is just getting more and more out of control. The walls get higher, the yard seems smaller, and to roof is not even on yet. I did get a sense of this recently when we did some landscaping in the front yard, but not this bad. This is a roller coaster.
I recently quit my job of 20 years aswell, so things are compounding. It was a great job, I had flexible working hours, I was in a senior position the pay was not that bad, so why did I quit….? Well it was the only job I had ever had since school and it was time to go and try something different. Working for myself perhaps….
My hope was that pouring all this out onto a page would somehow make me feel better and get things straight in my head, I don’t know how effective it has been. Anyway here is a picture of the stupid studio……
I’ve wanted to make a studio remake of a pop track for some time, it was just a matter of the right track coming along and having the acapella for it. Well I’ve done it! Ke$ha’s , We R Who R Are is the track I have redone. The clip below shows the studio session in progress in cubase and is recorded directly from the Cubase output. It took about 5 hours to make up all the sounds, arrange and mix. I could spend MUCH longer and get a few little things sounding better, but for now I think I’ve proved a point to myself and learnt a few things in the process.
Another day, another mix tape. And once again it’s a really creative title, August 1997…. Ummm I guess that is when I recorded it. Sound quality and mixing is MUCH MUCH better in this one mainly due to the use of a Chrome tape, a higher recording position gives much less noise on the tape. This has one of my favourite all time tracks on it, Slacker – Scared (The Lonely Traveller) Pump it and enjoy….
Yet more goodness from the world of tapes. This one is imaginatively called May 1995 because that is what it said on the label on the tape, in fact it said ‘DJ Reaver 21/5/95’ , which was a Sunday. The mixing is much better in this one, boarding on almost ok. I am happy with the sound quality too and did not need to do much to fix it…. You might be interested to hear that I’m typing this up while listing to Jimmy j & Cru-l-t – take me away (slipmatt remix) which I hear Slipmatt will be remaking…. or then again you may not.
Here’s a mix that I have had tucked away for some time. It’s not rescued from a tape like the others, it’s a CD mix that I made back in 2000. Don’t know why but I never released it. I do think I boched the mastering a bit and cranked the mastering compressor too much, oh well…..But hey this mix includes one of my tracks…!!
I’ll just leave it as this, here is what I wrote on the inside sleeve of the CD… LOL!
DJ Reaver will be the first to tell you that mixing records is all about fun, and ‘Break Of Dawn’ certainly is fun.
This CD represents hardcore music from an era that was all about cheesy rip offs and girly piano samples, elements which combined with a party crowd could only mean one thing, a good night out!
As per usual the track selection from DJ Reaver is perfect, all thirteen tracks define the essence of hardcore breakbeat, with a style of mixing that can only emphasis the fun elements of the music.
Be sure the keep this CD handy and take a hit any time you are in need of a lift.
Track List
———-
01. ALK-E-D – Home > Dj Hame Remix
02. JJ – 99 Balloons > Original Mix
03. Happy Division – You Make Me Happy > Original Mix
04. DJ Poosie – It’s Gonna Be > Original Mix
05. DJ Brisk – Airhead > SMD Remix
06. Jimmy J & Cru-L-T – Take Me Away > Slipmatt Remix
07. Dougal – Hold On > Original Mix
08. DJ DNA – Reality > Justin Time Remix
09. Billy “Daniel” Bunter + D-Zyne – Ride Like The Wind > Original Mix
10. Sunset Regime & Billy Bunter – You Make Me Feel > Original Mix
11. DJ Reaver – It Makes Me Feel > Original Mix
12. Undercover Elephant – Scratch DJ > Original Mix
13. Redstart – 4 Me & 4u > Original Mix
14. Fat Controller – In Complete Darkness > Original Mix
The tracks on this mix where downloaded about 1 hour ago, just long enough to record and upload it. I didn’t really listen to any of these tracks before mixing them, other than briefly before downloading them, so you are listening to my first attempt at mixing them. Enjoy…. I’ve also fixed up the DJ set download area of the site, so take a look and make sure you get some of my older stuff….. plenty more stuff to come….
Track List
———–
01. Natalie Parker, James Edwards & Trudi Mosiamo – Love Is A Battlefield (Doctor Riboh Remix)
02. Mike Polo – Pasilda (Original Mix)
03. Chris Lake & Lys Feat. Steve Smith – Humanica (Original Mix)
04. C+c Music Factory Djs And Beat Addicts – Keep It Comin (Luccio Loose Control Remix)
05. Federico Scavo – Let’s All Chant (Manuel De La Mare & Marshall Remix)
06. Sergio Flores – Give It Back Feat. Joy Malcolm (Original Mix)
07. Candy Williams & Whiteside – Love will keep us together (Chris Kaeser Remix)
08. Candy Williams – Whiteside-2 Make The Things Alright (I Get Lifted) (Kid Massive remix)
09. Whitenoize – Freak It (Original)
10. Wolfgang Gartner – Illmerica (Extended Mix