Various Artists
'10 Years of Crosstown Rebels'
[Crosstown Rebels]

Crosstown Rebels has been putting out quality music for ten years now, and seeing as how a decade is a very long hot streak for a record label, they’ve released a compilation album in celebration of their long running success. The project is divided up into three parts, but the whole line-up from start to finish has a total of thirty-three songs. It's a relatively lengthy offering, but when you consider the sheer number of singles, EPs, and albums that Crosstown has put out over the years, you have to assume that deciding what, and what didn’t, make the final cut must have been a grueling process. With so much good material to choose from, this list will probably divide some opinions, but you can’t argue with what did get included. Everything on here represents the diversity of sound this label has embraced, and their commitment to quality and innovation is hard to miss from the moment you hit play.

The release, as a whole, is basically the audio equivalent of an all–star team, but unlike most all-star teams, it actually works well as a cohesive unit, and doesn’t feel disjointed or stylistically confused in the least. This speaks volumes to the quality of the brand vision that Crosstown has had over the years, and the fact that they were able to pull together individual songs from far-flung projects, and make everything mesh, is a herculean feat in and of itself. Since there isn’t really a weak link in the chain, it’s advisable that you enjoy this as a whole, and keep it running from start to finish, but since that’s quite the time commitment for one sitting, we’ll make note of a few standouts so you can get your feet wet before you start wading towards the deep end.

Right off the bat, track number one hits you right where it needs to, and gets things going in the right direction. “Beautiful World” is an upbeat dance track that starts off discretely enough, but it eventually builds into a sweeping room-filler with a beat to match. It’s the perfect way to ease you into the listening experience, and does a great job building anticipation for the rest of the singles. Other notables on the first disc are “Safari” and “Summertime” for their ultra smooth production work, and funk inspired compositions.

The second disc picks up the baton with ease, and does a commendable job making sure you’re still engaged and ready for what the third, and last, segment has in store. On disc two, make sure not to miss “Rock Me” and “You!” as they both represent a nice change of pace from the first disc with their more experimental beat, and a deeper house sound. They’ve still got that awesome energy, they just present in a different way. On the last disc, “Sofiel” and “Hitchhiker’s Choice” should be your go-to tracks on the first pass since they start to wind things down a bit and bring the whole album full circle in near perfect form. They’re a lot slower and more laid-back than the other notables, but the quiet echo and relaxing vibes are just the right way to wrap things up. A commemorative compilation album isn’t a novel idea these days, and hasn’t been for a while, but the vision and care that Crosstown put into this one makes it feel very special indeed.  

Listen to Crosstown Rebels on Pulse Radio

They come from a city, although rich in clubbing history and talent, might not be the fist to pop into the mind of someone looking for a clubbing weekend getaway. At least not for those looking to satisfy their bacchanalian desires like a weekend trip to Berlin or Ibiza might be able to. But that only adds to the Romano twins' mystery. At just 24, they've become two of Tel Aviv's hottest DJs, yet they haven't released a track. And, as they describe in our interview, have done it as outsiders, both as women (something they feel is held against them), and as self described 'lone wolves.'

And as outsiders in a city that's already past the usual fold of clubbing hotspots, the Music Junkies uncanny ability to criss cross genres as far flung as Balearic, jazz, Detroit techno, even '90s trance, caught our attention. It's mixing that comes as much the heart, as cliche as that might sound, as from the head - their encyclopaedic, and admittedly obsessive knowledge of music guiding them through mixes with the grace of jocks old enough to be a parent. But where does this obsession come from, and how did it turn into a budding career as DJs? We find out in this Fresh Blood: Music Junkies. 

At 24, your style of mixing is much more mature than most who have grown up in the digital, or 'press play' era. Who were your early influences when you began to DJ, or when you realised you wanted to begin DJing? We started DJing two years ago, while our intense relationship with music started since we remember. It was only a matter of time until me and my twin sister achieved what was written for us in life. Technically everything has happened by coincidence. It happened one day after we had been publishing tracks and unique songs on our Facebook wall on a daily basis, we got a surprising invitation from a music promoter in Tel Aviv, who was impressed by our musical taste, asking us to warm up an electronic indie band in one of Tel Aviv's main underground clubs. After that night, we said to each other that finally, after so many years of feeling frustrated of not belonging anywhere, we found a place for the both of us, and it was behind the decks. When we started DJing, we fed off the energy of mainly deep and techno house, mutant disco and electronica. Artists like Henrik Schwarz, Kraftwerk, Larry Heard, Moby (in his early years), Moodymann, Laurent Garnier, Drexciya, Jeff Mills, Orbital, DJ Koze, Plaid, Trenatmoller were our sources of inspiration.

Can you tell me more about your DJ setup? Do you or have you used vinyl? We use a Novitation controller, and it sufficiently serves our needs at the moment. We have our modest vinyl collection, which we are trying to enrich.

Did you come from a musical family? Where do you think your obsessive love of music comes from? We grew up in a very musical environment, which had a huge imprint on us. Since a very young age we were exposed to diverse music in major scales. At the age of 6 we were listening to our parents' old cassettes and records collection of jazz, South American, African ethnic and classical music - Vivaldi, Miles Davis, Manu Bibango, Mory Kante, George Gershwin, Salif Keita, Stevie wonder and many others composed the soundtracks of our childhood.

Who were your musical influences before electronic music? As teenagers we remember ourselves alone, alienated from the outside world, in our room listening to ambient, dream pop, acid jazz, downtempo, post rock, trip hop and Icelandic music . melancholic sad music was always an essential part of who we are, and its fingerprints are well shown on our sets. Tom Waits said once "I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things." We fully agree. We can not speak about our musical influences without mentioning those who shaped our musical landscapes as teenagers:

Brian Eno, Radiohead, Portishead, massive attack, Air, Monobo, DJ Shadow, Lamb, Boards of Canada, Amon Tobin, Sade, Sigor Ros, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Zero 7, Thievery Corporation, Emancipator, Bjork, Underworld, and also dark ‘80s and classic rock.

Have you begun to produce your own music? If so, can you tell me more about what you've got planned? Yes we have. Nowadays we are focusing on translating our ideas into music. We have waited long time to do so and it gives us a lot of satisfaction. All we can say is that we hope it would be released soon. It’s going to be an orchestra of sounds. We can not say more in the meantime.

Whether playing live or recording a mix, do you set out to create a certain feeling before you've started the mix, or does the energy flow as it happens? Most of the time we have a clear direction in our minds and we know pretty well how to develop it. For us, the most important thing in creating a set with a certain atmosphere is trying to tell a story, weather it's tragic, dramatic, joyful, something genuine that will give the crowd a glimpse of our inner world. Remaining true to ourselves, in a demanding industry, it’s not an easy task, especially when almost everything is valued by money. But we try to be loyal to ourselves by not giving in to "cool" trends and fashions. In our view, a good DJ should not only entertain but should also have something to say.  

How has growing up in Tel Aviv influenced your musical style? Tel Aviv had a meaningful impact on our musical background because it's by far one of the most open cities in the world. We were strongly influenced by its cosmopolitan spirit, and by the fact it accepts so many types of people. And you know...many types of people means many types of music.

What is the clubbing scene like in Tel Aviv? Tel Aviv's clubbing scene has been working strongly since the early '80's. The gay and the underground scene have become the dominant force that shapes the nightlife dynamics. Every weekend, it hosts the biggest names in the underground world music industry. What´s good about this city is that it's 24-7. Clubbing scene is not limited to a certain season or period, and parties here last till down. Having said that, it has a lot more room to grow and develop.

Is it inclusive, and do the older generations try and help the newer learn and get better? Honestly no, sometimes we feel that some older generations disregard the young DJs that try their best to fit in. Since me and my twin sister are lonely wolves, it was much harder 'cause we don't have any connections and we don't belong to any clique in the city. As female DJs, we find it even harder because this industry is mainly controlled and run by men. But in the last 2 years we had the chance to prove ourselves showing our potential - you know, eventually true talent wins.

Is there a lot of room for experimentation with DJing in Tel Aviv? Even though there are many different clubs hosting different kinds of DJs, the clubs themselves won't initiate experimentation because lets face, it is risky. The DJs are left to decide what to do and when.

Finally, why do you think your DJ sets have such a diverse range to them? We think that our stage name, Music Junkies, says it all. We are addicted to so many different genres of electronic music. One day we can play Detroit techno, acid house and disco, and on the other day we could play a set of deep and melodic techno. Because we are not talkative persons, and we hardly know how to communicate with people, we let our sets to speak for us, to tell our untold stories.  

Music Junkies on Soundcloud

Music Junkies on Facebook

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This Saturday, March 1st, our friends at BABËL New York and Overkill Movement are kicking off a new party concept which they call ATMOSPHERE. The event promises to be full of good vibes, “a place where we all feel good, where we have space to mingle, flirt, and dance all night long.” After months of searching for the ideal venue, Dune Studios, a photo studio at the top of a tall building, was chosen as the for the perfect setting for this new experience.

Rob Garza, the San Francisco-based founding member of the famed Thievery Corporation, will headline the first edition of ATMOSPHERE alongside New York locals Orazio Rispo and Mike Khoury. Dresscode for the evening is Future Disco, costumes are mandatory, and there will be a professional photographer capturing the party, so find your best attire and head over to Soho for a night of fun, friends, and magic along to an amazing musical soundtrack!  Be sure to get your tickets to ATMOSPHERE today on Pulse Radio!

Listen to Mike Khoury on Pulse Radio

The classically zany theme song from Benny Hill perfectly synchs up with these three dudes rocking out to techno at Amsterdam's Awakenings Festival  in 2013, and it's brilliant. Who knew? Enjoy...

[Article has been edited to reflect correct number of dudes.]

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A little over a year ago an opinion piece was published over on Disco Demons titled, "EDM – the worst thing that has ever happened to electronic dance music?", which, as you might imagine, argued that dance music's swift move into the mainstream consciousness via the loose genre term 'EDM' is a negative thing for the scene as a whole, particularly the underground. You can read it over here.

As is typical of the nature of the internet, the article has been doing the rounds again and has caught the attention of a one Richard West, the legendary UK DJ and dance music icon known as Mr. C. West argues that while he understands the "bitching" about "cheesy shit" EDM, in the end it can only be a good thing for dance music's future. As someone who saw the same cycle occur back in the late 80s and early 90s when acid house and rave entered the mainstream (and was even a part of that process - read here to find out more), if there's anyone whose opinion is worthy in this argument, it's Mr. C's.

You can read over his thoughts on the matter in full below, which he posted on his facebook recently.

"So many people are bitching about EDM lately. I do understand the bitching as I used to do the same about trance & other forms of cheese. I no longer waste my energy bitching about cheese & instead spend that energy talking about things I'm interested in & like instead of what bothers me. My take on all of this however is what is know as EDM doesn't interfere with the quality house & techno scenes. Also, I think this cheesy shit will get kids into dance music when they may have gone for crappy rap music or noisy rock, but instead they're are having their first dance music experiences. Let's be realistic about this for a second. The people that listen to this schizer are new to the scene & on first listen probably wouldn't understand adult contemporary dance music, & if only 20% of these kids develop their taste when they grow up (yes it's mostly kids), then there'll be a whole new generation of young 20 somethings with a disposable income getting into quality house & techno. For me that can only be a good thing."

What do you think? Does Mr. C make a valid point? Do you think EDM is good for dance music's future?

Listen to Mr. C on Pulse Radio

The weekend just gone saw Finely Tuned celebrate a milestone, with the 20th Agwa Yacht Club setting sail on Sydney Harbour aboard The Starship. And what better way to celebrate than with Panorama Bar resident Cassy (on her debut trip down under) and the much hyped (and rightly so) Lithuanian DJ and producer, Mario Basanov.

Both DJs brought their A-game, playing epic sets with solid platforms provided by the Agwa resident DJs (as usual). You can re-live the amazing day that was via the recap video below. And in case you missed it, be sure to check out our top 20 memorable moments from Agwa's six year history here. We wager that Cassy dropping The Bucketheads''The Bomb' on the weekend will be another memorable moment to reminisce over in another six years time.

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It's finally happened. After years of near misses, the one and onlyEric Prydzhas landed in Australia and is ready to destroy crowds at the national Future Music Festival.

Pulse's Georgia Hitch sat down with Prydz at his Sydney hotel yesterday to talk his 10 year anniversary as a producer, his new album and what fans can expect from his live shows at FMF. Listen below.

Eric Prydz plays Future Music Festival 2014. For tckets and info head to www.futuremusicfestival.com.au.

Eric Prydz 2014 Australian Tour Dates
01.03.14 - Brisbane, RNA Showgrounds
01.03.14 - Family, Brisbane (DJ set)
02.03.14 - Perth, Arena Joondalup
07.03.14 - Academy, Canberra (DJ set)
08.03.14 - Sydney, Royal Randwick Racecourse
08.03.14 - Pacha, Sydney (DJ set)
09.03.14 - Melbourne, Flemington Racecourse
09.03.14 - Trak, Melbourne (DJ set)
10.03.14 - Adelaide, Adelaide Showgrounds
10.03.14 - HQ Complex, Adelaide

Listen to Eric Prydz on Pulse Radio

Back To Basics resident DJ and Hot Creations affiliate Denney heads up the 12th Start:Cue party in Sydney this Friday night at The Jam Gallery - a hidden underground gem in Bondi Junction.

Since his huge 'Ultraviolet' release on the Hot Creations summer sampler, Denney has continued to up the ante, with his Back-to-Basics residency and high profile sets at DC10, Miami WMC and Burning Man justifying his “Future Hero” Mixmag award. Not only that, this year he's gearing up for an eagerly anticipated release on Steve Lawler's infamous VIVa label.

Entry is free before 10pm, otherwise you can grab tickets HERE for just $11 which gives you the luxury of sauntering on down anytime you please. Best part? No lockouts in Bondi!

S:C: A year ago you were named resident at the longest running club night in the UK BacktoBasics, in Leeds. How did that come about and what makes the night so successful? Denney: Being made resident was a great honour and something i never imagined would happen. Basically its quite a long story but i have been involved with Basics for quite a few years, i used to work in the office but left to concentrate on my music full time in 2010. After my release on Hot Creations came out they invited me to play as a guest which was amazing considering i used to be the one doing the bookings a few years before that. Then i ended up playing the after party of the 22nd birthday for about 4 hours missing my train home, Dave messaged me saying he was so impressed he wanted me to be a resident and made Laura Jones and myself one on New Years Day 2013. I think the success to it going for so long is due to them not selling out and always putting the music and crowd first. It isn’t a job to Dave Beer, it is his life and he doesn’t know anything else. It has no sign of stopping and Basics is a family which i am incredibly grateful to be part of.

Your new EP Strobe light is out on Steve Lawlers VIVa music label. There’s a couple of Acid house sounding tracks in there. Which DJ/producer do you look up to/has influenced your sound the most? It’s impossible to put it down to just one person as i have been influenced by so many great DJ’s/Artists over the years but i guess the main ones have been Yousef, Laurent Garnier, Danny Tenaglia, Layo & Bushwacka!, Andrew Weatherall and Damian Lazarus.

Describe your production style in 3 words... Acid House Music

The best DJ set you’ve witnessed in the last 12 months? Without a doubt Danny Tenaglia at Shindig in Newcastle in August last year, the man absolutely blew me away and i have never seen anybody control a dance floor like the way he did that night. Shindig is easily my favourite place to go for a night out in the UK when i’m not playing. Scott, Neil and Mark know what they are doing there and put on the best parties.

It’s summer time here in Australia. Tell us about your most inspirational summer club night. I guess it would have to be DC10 in Ibiza, there really is no place like it on the planet.

The track you play when the sun is shining?

Just a beautiful record which people always ask me what it is when i play it in the sun.

The track that currently gets the most plays?

Straight up acidy house business, I’m loving Sidney Charles at the minute…Dope!

The track that you must play 5am in a club?

I absolutely love Marc Romboy's old productions, this is melodic and twisted…lovely!

The best track by my favourite new artist?

Got to be Patrick Topping, we met last year when we played for Hot Creations in Ibiza. He is one of the most down to earth people and a top lad. This track took DC10 apart last year!

The track to get the crowd back?

A great edit of a classic and it’s free…download it quickly!

The track I'd play at peak time Start: Cue 012?

This has been going off in all my sets since last year, one of the most peak time records i have ever made.

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Australia's biggest electronic music festival is back in 2014 for another #twodays and they've just announced the dates, so get your diaries out (or, um, fill in your ical).

Stereosonic is just one of our 20 must-do festivals before you die. Check the rest here and the Stereo dates below!

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Kings Cross identity John Ibrahim has released an anti-violence video campaign with the tagline, "Don't be a dickhead" featuring guest spots from Kyle Sandilands and Koby Abberton. It's simple, yet rather effective! Check it out below.

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All 38,000 available tickets to the annual playa excursion are gone, selling out in less than 45 minutes. So if you didn't get your $380.00 ticket to paradise, it might be time to start figuring out alternative solutions.

Unlike years past, however, purchasing tickets ran smoothly, averaging about 15 minutes a sale according some customers, like the woman below. 

Burning man tickets purchased. Last year it took four hours and this year it took four minutes. Major props to @BManTickets and @ticketfly!

The last few years have been plagued by crashing websites and angry customers, no more notoriously than in 2012 when the festival introduced a lottery system, and demand far exceeded supply, resulting in irate customers and crashing websites. This year, however, Burning Man switched its ticketing platform over to the San Francisco based tech startup Ticketfly, and it seems like this was a good move. 

And we're just kidding about the whole "alternative method" comment - no need to freak out yet. Those  not lucky enough to score their tickets Wednesday can still obtain tickets to enlightenment through Burning Man's secure ticket exchange platform, which the Huffington Post reports "connects individuals who no longer need their passes with people still looking,opens within the next few months." Also, if you're short on cash, you might be able to apply for the low income ticket program, as well as an "OMG sale," which will dispense the remaining 1,000 tickets in early August.

[Via Huffpost]

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ADMT (African Dance Music & Technology) will soon be back for the 4th edition of the Music Exchange seminar at Cape Town’s City Hall. ADMT aims to bring together beginners and experts from all areas of modern music production and DJ'ing to share information and knowledge on every aspect of making and releasing music and developing a successful career in today’s exciting SA and world markets.

ADMT: African Dance Music & Technology 

After the success of their first 1 day ADMT session in 2013 they now return on March 7th and 8th with an expanded, bigger and more varied 2-day program of lectures, presentations, demonstrations and interactive sessions covering every aspect of working in the music world. 

The 2 days of workshops and interactive sessions will be hosted by 2 world class DJ/producers; Charles Webster from the UK (Defected, Miso, Foliage, House Afrika, Freerange amongst many others) and Cape Town's Dino Michael (Good Hope FM, DJ Syndicate, Motherland Distribution, Defenders of the Deep etc). They will be announcing 2014's special guests over the next week.

Charles Webster

They will be running a remix competition where attendees will have the chance to remix one of Charles Webster’s tracks with the winner of the comp taking home a Soundcard (kindly donated by Focusrite) and a Controller Keyboard (donated by Novation. However, the very exciting top prize they have for this year’s winner is a Bursary to the Boston College / Soul Candi Institute of Music. 

The 2 days of ADMT 2012 will be packed with around 15 different workshops covering all aspects of the modern music world and beyond. 2 day tickets available here: Tickets.

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You probably know Idris Elba from shows like HBO's 'The Wire' where he played notorious drug kingpin, Stringer Bell, and movies like Mandela. While he'll always be Stringer to some of us here at Pulse (we can't let go, sorry), he's actually been a DJ much longer, using his other talent (some people, right?) to help him make ends meet while looking for acting work in NY back in the '90s. 

In fact, Idris used to be known as DJ Big Dris, playing side rooms gigs around New York City before landing his first acting gig in 1995. Since then, he's had a fairly prolific DJ career, when not acting in movies about Nelson Mandela or delivering tear jerking performances in Mumford And Sons music videos (again, some people, right?), that is, having opened up for Deadmau5, and held a spring residency at Ibiza Rocks House - where Freddie Mercury hosted his 41st birthday party - last year in Ibiza, among other gigs and residencies, and a keynote speech at IMS Ibiza with Pete Tong last year. He also the man behind one of dance music's most well produced documentaries, "Idris Elba's How Clubbing Changed The World," which if you haven't watched yet, should do right after you check out his new Look With Your Ears Mix. 

So although it should come as no surprise this mix is a wicked hour of garage and house, it's still pretty cool. Check out the mix above to get your Thursday off to a rocking start, and the well curated track list, which includes Chromeo, Tensnake and Chocolate Puma, among others, below. 

Tracklist:
1. Hannah wants & Chris Lorenzo - Breathe
2. Aluna George - Best Be Believing (Shadow Child vocal mix)
3. Gorgon City - Ready For Your Love (Extended mix)
4. Chocolate Puma - Step Back feat Kris Kiss
5. Getsome ft The Get Along Gang - Bassline (Chocolate Puma remix)
6. Ac Slater & Lucent - Bouncy Baby
7. Chromeo - Sexy Socialite
8. DJ Tonka - We Don't Play
9. LKID - That Girl
10. Second City - I Wanna Feel
11. Toyboy & Robin - Back& Forth ft Nikki B
12. Wiz ft Joel Compass - Early Morning Champagne
13. Allusion - Looking for Base
14. Brett Gould - Burning
15. Kiesza - Hideaway
16. Lancelot - Givin'it Up
17. Tensnake ft Fiora - See Right Through (Medlar remix)
18. Wayward - Marvin VIP
19. OMT - Kant 'ey Yo

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We're no daisies here at Pulse. Heck, we write about dance music, so partying comes with the territory. But we don't hold a candle (thankfully) on this rowdy group of American university students who got so drunk and out of control they brought down the neighbourhood. 

@SUNYPartyStory#cortland#cortaca look both ways before you cross the street pic.twitter.com/jpy0FMJXXD

The (presumably) drunken mayhem began when estimated 4,000 to 6,000 people took to the streets after SUNY Cortland’s football team won its rivalry game against Ithaca in New York. 

#Cortaca2013 most wild party ever pic.twitter.com/3p6cQ2ghrK

Beer bongs, broken windscreens, and destroyed TVs. It was a party, alright. 

That's a funnel #cortacahttps://t.co/kmNyOGQq7I

So much so that the SUNY Cortland's president issued a public apology to the community around the school, calling the students’ behaviour "inexcusable."

@SUNYPartyStory I love this show #Cortacapic.twitter.com/xtb294OV1l

For the rest of the story, and more pictures of the carnage, head here, then be thankful you don't live in this poor neighbourhood. 

[Via Buzzfeed]

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Just recently the South African electronic rap-rave duo Die Antwoord announced that their next album Die Donker Mag 4 is set to be released soon (date TBA) after a fairly long dry-spell in terms of tunes coming from their corner. NINJA (Watkin Tudor Jones) says it’s the culmination of 2-years work that will boast collaborations with his favourite artists. Read the full article below: 

Die Antwoord: Soon to release Die Donker Mag 4

And now, much sooner than expected, they have announced the first leg of their album world tour of Die Donker Mag 4 that will have Die Antwoord travelling the States showcasing what they have been keeping hidden in their dark twisted corner. This should be a spectacle. Read further for the dates, States and venues.

5/22 - Vancouver, BC - Comodore Ballroom
5/23 - Quincy, WA - The Gorge Amphitheater
5/25 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
5/27 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
5/29 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fonda Theatre
5/31 - Dallas, TX - House of Blues
6/1 - Houston, TX - Houston Free Press Festival
6/3 - Chicago, IL - Riviera Theater
6/4 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
6/6 - Montreal, QC - Metropolis
6/7 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
6/8 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
6/10 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
6/11 - Washington DC - 9:30 Club
6/13 - Manchester, TN - Bonnaroo Music Festival

And just because Yo-Landi is Yo-Landi we've gone ahead and added pics from Yo-Landi Vi$$er's official fan page. She's got something. Again, you either love it or hate it. Check these pics out:  

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Maetrik, Maceo Plex, Mariel Ito, call him what you like – the guy never fails to deliver.

And this particular weekend, he’d be delivering twice, having already played the night before to a sold out crowd as Maceo Plex for his SideXSide Ellum Audio Showcase. But now, it was time for his dark alter ego, Maetrik to come creeping out of the shadows, delivering his best to all the bad boys and girls.

Though before heading to the main event, Maetrik served up a little taste of things to come with an in-store appearance at Phonica Records, where an in-the-know crowd quickly filled every nook and cranny in between the racks and shelves in the dimly light building, some even spilling out onto the Soho curb when none more could squeeze through the doors. Although billed to play back-to-back with Convextion, Maetrik treated the gathered crowd to a 2-hour set alone, as the former had missed a connecting flight.

Starting out with trippy, warped electro soundscapes, Maetrik was highlighted only by the light of a small, pink and yellow lamp, slowly flickering next to him, amplifying the surreal nature of the scene. Gradually he increased the tempo of his set until he had the crowd wrapped around his little finger, his own pointing to the roof in anticipation every time he unleashed one of his signature sonic bombs, sending the amassed crowd into a whistling, bouncing frenzy in the process. The end of the show came far too soon, but thankfully we reconvened only a few hours later at the Factory 7 warehouse venue in Shoreditch, arriving to the sounds of Dexter and Convextion, who had now made it to London.

Although both played interesting, trippy, deep techno, it was perhaps more suited to the afterhours and lacked enough ante to get the packed crowd moving, leaving the atmosphere with a distinct a pre-concert, wait for the main draw feel. Finally taking the stage at 2 a.m., Maetrik took no time to give the crowd what they had been waiting for, immediately delivering some seriously dark, evil, sexy, filthy, brutal techno that your mum would probably disown you for if she knew you were into.

Whilst the in-store appearance at Phonica was more intimate, the East London warehouse setting lends itself perfectly to Maetrik’s unique brand of groovy, industrial, big room techno, and over the next 2 hours he proceeded to relentlessly pummel the eardrums and corrupt the minds of those fortunate enough to be in attendance with ruthless antipathy, like a man possessed. Accompanied by enough strobes, lights, and lasers to send anyone into a fit, Maetrik dropped some of his own monsters like “Bottom Heavy”, “Reason” and “Crush On Me,” as well as other monstrous, eerie, chugging dark numbers. The entire set went by in a flash, no sooner had it started did it seem to be over, like some kind of twisted nightmare which one awakes from feeling unsettled and unsure of what just happened – except that this was a good nightmare, and one I definitely can’t wait to revisit…

Words by Barry Daly- follow me on Twitter @_bazmatazz

Changing the face of the Mauritian club scene - the Electric Dodo are back, bringing you Mauritius' first daytime beach festival. Mauritian EDM promoters The Electric Dodo are back with their first event of 2014. The team of 8 house enthusiasts are intent on bringing Mauritius a series of firsts. Less than four months ago, they put together a night time production which had great reviews. In short, the event went down exceptionally well even for international standards.  

This Saturday, the team will be revolutionising the scene yet again, bringing the very European concept of daytime partying to Mauritian shores for the first time. Event link below: 

The Electric Dodo presents Rodriguez Jr. and Joachim Pastor

Rodriguez Jr.

Joachim Pastor

Join them for what is sure to be an unforgettable day on the south coast. Headlining will be French DJ’s RODRIGUEZ JR. and JOACHIM PASTOR, supported by a strong line-up of local talent (Aakash-K , Creamcracker, Rain, Tess, Tahir). We've seen Rodriguez Jr. and his live act before, and let us tell you, you don;t want to miss this man on the hardware. Here's a glimpse of what to expect.

Both Rodriguez Jr. and Joachim Pastor boast an enormous following in the global deep/tech house community and have been handpicked by the Electric Dodo team for their unique LIVE talents. Layering their sets with distinctive live melodies, both artists have redefined the meaning of DJ'ing. If you are even the mildest fan of house music, this event is not to be missed. 

Buy tickets by calling ++57988799 or send your name and phone number to the.electric.dodo@gmail.com for a call-back.

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Seminal techno imprint Intec Digital will celebrate its 50th release with "Kommen Zusammen" from none other than the label’s creator himself, Carl Cox. Listen here.

The track first featured on Carl’s artist album "All Roads Lead To The Dancefloor," and now gets a rework from one of techno's most in demand artists, Joseph Capriati.

The 50th release caps off a particularly fruitful 12 months for Intec, with the re-birth of their ‘Pure Intec’ compilation series, and the conception of their highly successful ‘Pure Intec’ club night, which has taken over some of the world’s best clubs, including Space Ibiza, returns to London’s Fabric for the second time on April 3rd.

Intec Digital will release "Kommen Zusammen" March 5th, 2014.

Listen to Carl Cox on Pulse Radio.

It was revealed only a few days ago that American popstar Pharrell Williams was collaborating with Daft Punk among others on his forthcoming album ‘G I R L.’ Now, the track appears to have been leaked and is popping up all over the internet. Check it out below and let us know what you think!

Pharrell’s new album features an all-star list of collaborators including Miley Cyrus on “Come Get It Babe,” Justin Timberlake on “Brand New,’ and Alicia Keys on “I Know Who You Are.”

“Gust Of Wind” follows previous collaborations between the artists who worked together on Daft Punk’s hit album ‘Random Access Memories’ and most recently performed together alongside Stevie Wonder and Nile Rodgers at the 2014 Grammy Awards last month.

Listen to Daft Punk on Pulse Radio