Described as "multi layered electronic music for the heart, mind and feet, no wonder rising German producer Baikal is named after one of the deepest lakes in the world. Keeping his identity partially shrouded and remaining unconcerned with hyper-consumption, the producer is peddling a strand of house music from another, more introspective place. One release on Maeve and a hefty remix of Ian Pooley for Innervisions, Baikal is making all the right moves, all without pandering to trends and doing his music in his own way, and in his own time. Meet Baikal below and check his Fresh Blood mix while you're at it - you're bound to hear from this enigma again in the future.

Pulse Loves...a good name. Where does yours come from? The name Baikal comes from the words 'Bai Kyul', which translates as 'rich lake'. Lake Baikal is the most voluminous freshwater lake in the world, containing roughly 20% of the world's unfrozen surface fresh water, and at 1,642m, the deepest. It is also among the clearest of all lakes, and thought to be the world's oldest at 25 million years.

Pulse loves... hard work. How much of a struggle was it for you to get noticed? To be honest, the first record I did on Maeve, the label I'm doing with my good friends Mano le Tough and The Drifter, put everything in motion quite fluently. On the other hand my music making process itself is quite the struggle, it takes a good while before I come up with something I personally think is release worthy. Where as other producers come to their best ideas rather fast; I sometimes take weeks, if not longer.

Pulse Loves... your mix. Which direction have you taken for it? After selecting a good bunch of tunes that I am into at this moment, I then just let my intuition do the selecting and choosing of direction and had a mix session. Normally you have the crowd as a big influence, now that crowd was only me.

Pulse Loves... remixes. You've had a few out recently; do you see them as a chance to be creative and experiment with ideas? I naturally experiment pretty extensively and my creativity leads me almost always in different directions, so as far as remixes go I see them more as a chance to let a bigger audience get familiar with my take on dance music, where it otherwise maybe would have taken longer before they crossed paths with the Baikal sound.

Pulse Loves... Innervisions. How did you come to hook up with the label? Do they mentor you and offer advice? I've known them for a while, and when I did that first record on Maeve, it initiated the remix request for Ian Pooley's track from Innervisions. They have been great supporters of me and the label.

Pulse Loves...,the future. What does it hold for you and where do you see yourself in a year from now? Hopefully just onwards and upwards. The fact that I take a bit more time then most to come to satisfying results with my music means that I can not take on every project I would want, and so far that has lead to quite a full schedule of remix requests and an ever bigger becoming mountain of original work I need to finish. In a year I see myself releasing more original work and doing a broader range of gigs while bringing Maeve to the forefront of the scene together with my fore mentioned buddies.

Listen to Baikal on Pulse Radio.

American hip-hop mogul Jay Z has been forced to sell his stake in the Brooklyn Nets basketball team and its home, the recently opened Barclays Center due to a conflict of interest. Earlier this year, the famed rapper announced that he would be getting involved in sports management with the creation of Roc Nation Sports, a new division he set up with Juan Perez, the president of Jay Z’s entertainment company Roc Nation, and the Creative Artists Agency.

Roc Nation Sports already boasts a roster of high profile clients including New York Giants’ wide receiver Victor Cruz, New York Yankees’ second baseman Robinson Cano, and female basketball player Skylar Diggins who was drafted this year to the Tulsa Shock.

Forbes reports that Jay Z has already began selling his stake in the team. Brooklyn Nets’ head coach Jason Kidd will be paying $500,000 for Jay Z’s one-fifteenth of one percent ownership of the team. As for the Barclays Center, Jay Z’s owns just under one fifth of one percent, worth around $1.5 million. He may be forced to unload some of his prized possessions but least he still has Beyonce…

Listen to Pulse Radio

James Blake has announced that he will have to postpone some dates on his US tour because he has been nominated for the esteemed Mercury Prize, and therefore has to attend the awards show in London on Wednesday, October 30th. He made the announcement yesterday via Facebook announcing that five dates from the October/November tour - Dallas, Austin, Houston, New Orleans, and Nashville – will be postponed until early next year.

The Mercury Prize is awarded annually to the best album from the UK and Ireland. James Blake’s ‘Overgrown’ will be up against albums from the Arctic Monkeys, David Bowie, Disclosure, Jon Hopkins, and more. Last year, Alt-J’s ‘An Awesome Wave’ won the prestigious award.

Listen to James Blake on Pulse Radio

My Favorite Robot is composed of Jared Simms, James Teej, and Voytek Korab, three Canadian friends who have become key players in both the Toronto and global music scenes by following their vision of "ignoring the norm."  Their label My Favorite Robot Records has released music from the likes of Tim Paris, Fairmont, Jori Hulkkonen, and Chloe among others.  We had a chance to catch up with the guys of My Favorite Robot to dicuss the new album and their ongoing tour to support it, the growing music scene in Toronto, future releases on their label to watch out for, and what you can catch them doing in their free time.

Your new album ‘Atomic Age’ was just released this week on September 17th. Can you tell us a little bit about it? ‘Atomic Age’ was the first project that we approached wanting to write many shorter songs. Up until now, because a lot of our music was more geared towards the dance floor, we tended to extend our music to make it more DJ friendly, and although there are a few tracks like that on the album, many of the songs are much shorter and concise than in previous projects and I’d consider it to be more of a listeners album than anything else. It’s a dark and emotional journey into the mind of a robot!

The scene in your home city of Toronto seems to have been evolving and growing, especially in the past year or two.  Where do you think it’s heading? Toronto has a rich heritage of electronic music, so there has always been a healthy scene. In the past couple years I think that there have been a lot of music and exciting artists to come out of the city so from an international perspective I guess it would appear that its growing. Like with any other large city there are a handful of clubs that support this sound, and a tight knit group of promoters that keep things growing and evolving.

Your ongoing tour to support your album will take you Ibiza, New York, Paris, London, and more. Have you been to all of these cities before? Which cities are you especially looking forward to playing? We've played in all these cities before, but are excited to return in support of the album. Each city has a certain something special for us, so it would be difficult to pick out a favorite. We're quite excited to be able to travel around showcasing 'Atomic Age.'

‘Atomic Age’ is being released on No.19. We know that those guys are also from Toronto but how did you first get started working with them in this way? No.19 Music and My Favorite Robot Records have always been very close and were started in the beginning out of the same office. Their label is run by our good friends, so we've always had a close connection to Art Department and Nitin. It's nice to see that things have come full circle and we are very excited to have chosen to release this album with them. 

Your tour this summer has brought you everywhere from Mexico to Spain to all around the United States. What have been some of the highlights so far? Yeah the summer was great. Our showcase at Sonar was a great success and as always, we were very happy to be back at DC10 in Ibiza. There are so many great places, that it's hard to pick a favorite. Playing at Crobar in Buenos Aires was definitely one and it was great as well to stop at Canibal Royal in Playa del Carmen as it's a very special place for us. Lots of good gigs and great people so far this year and we hope to hit some new and old spots again this fall for the album tour!

What are some of the things we can find you doing in your free time when you’re not touring or producing? We're mostly pretty tame robots. We all work on stuff for the label in our free time so a bit of A&R, promotions and things like that. We're also all three big tennis fans so we try to play as much as we get the chance to. But most of our free time is spent lying on our couches and staring at the ceiling.

Are there any forthcoming releases on your label My Favorite Robot Records you’d like to highlight that we should keep an ear out for? Yes for sure. We have some great full length albums coming up from Tim Paris and from Philadelphia based Pink Skull, an incredible EP that we just signed from Nhar that’s going to be a big one, and coming soon a great EP from one of our favorites, French producer Chloe.

Are there any up-and-coming producers who have been especially impressing you lately that we may not have heard of? We’ve signed a bunch of great music from some younger artists recently that we’re very excited about. Look for a couple of great EPs from newcomer HearThug and from Speaking Minds in the coming months.

What is one of the craziest or funniest things that has happened at one of your shows? The craziest thing that happened was once we were playing a show; I was singing and I heard someone in the audience singing with me. He sounded really good, so I made him come up on stage and take over and become the singer in the band thus I could retire... oh wait, that's Mark Wahlberg in Rockstar.

Listen to My Favorite Robot on Pulse Radio 

It’s hard to pass up an opportunity to see an episode of Noisey’s Big Night Out video series. Although some are better than others, we can’t get enough of these hilarious party videos in the global Pulse offices. The most recent episode chronicles the lives of Cardiff University’s frats, sororities, and rugby team as they go out for a night on the town complete with questionable drinks, attire, and decisions.

For more of this nonsense, check out the first two videos from the series as Clive explores the UK’s gabber and psytrance subcultures.

Listen to Pulse Radio

Taking place on Sunday, September 29, the We Love… closing party has invited along a bevy of regulars, summer favorites and even a few debuts to boot, with Fatboy Slim, 2manyDJs, James Zabiela and many more heading to their final party of the season.

In the Pulse Radio Terraza, the unparalleled entertainer Fatboy Slim will be taking the lead, very likely employing a few of his rules for DJing (Hawaiian shirts are a must, and never forget to be 20% drunker than the crowd), as well as reminding us that ‘Eat Sleep Rave Repeat’ is in fact a proper and healthy diet. Joining Mr. Norman Cook will be turntable slicksters 2manyDJs, cutting it up with their of ‘anything goes as long as it rocks’ ethos, as well as energetic London legends Groove Armada, and We Love… favorites and regulars PBR Streetgang and Bicep.

The mountain party masters from Snowbombing will be joining We Love… for a Discoteca smasher, with Born Electric honcho and longtime We Love… resident James Zabiela working the crowd like only he can – hair flowing and controls spinning as they will – along with Simian Mobile Disco, who’ll be rocking a live set, as well as Machinedrum, who’s seeing his solo debut at We Love…, and Blawan, who’s also making his first time apperance for the closing fiesta.

Jonathan Ulysses & Ian C will be closing things down in the Sunset Terrace, and earlier on, Mr. Doris and After Dark will keep the beats dubbed out and funky, while over in El Salon, Our friends from Hostal Boutique Salinas have invited Phonica Records to help keep the Lo Cura Lounge feeling nice and groovy one last time this season. 

Listen to We Love... on Pulse Radio. 

In typical !K7 fashion, after just a couple of weeks since the announcement of John Talabot's upcoming DJ-Kicks mix (his debut mix compilation), the label has revealed that UK DJ and producer Ben Westbeech, aka Breach, will follow that release up with his own entry into the series.

The compilation consists of tracks from the likes of Fred P, Dusky, CLOSE (Will Saul) and of course an original track from Westbeech recorded specifically for the mix (a staple of all DJ-Kicks releases) entitled 'Beroving'.

Breach's DJ-Kicks will hit stores on November 12th, 2013. Tracklist below.

Tracklist:
01. Innercity - Prince Of The Immortal Woods
02. Wire People - Triangle Vision (Original Mix)
03. Beesmunt Soundsystem - All Day
04. Fred P. - It Is What It Is
05. Pedestrian - Hoyle Road
06. Coni - My Secret Diving
07. Breach - Beroving (DJ-Kicks)
08. Cassio Kohl - Broken
09. CLOSE feat. Joe Dukie - My Way (Dusky Remix)
10. Iron Galaxy - Attention Seeker
11. Detroit Swindle - The Break Up
12. Dopplereffekt - ZBoson
13. Redinho - Searching
14. Winx - How's The Music
15. Sabre - Nightdrive To Bolland

Listen to Breach on Pulse Radio

Grammy winning house legend Todd Terry is to support fellow Grammy award winning disco legend Nile Rodgers and his Chic band when they tour Australia this December. Terry will share the stage with the disco crew for two shows - in Melbourne at Billboard and at Cloudland in Brisbane.

Todd Terry is a veteran of the electronic music scene, being a Chicago house DJ and producer since the late 80s. He has remixed everyone from INXS to Garbage to perhaps most famously UK duo Everything But The Girl and their hit 'Missing'.

Nile Rodgers & CHIC Australian Tour Dates
06.12.13 - Subsonic Music Festival, Riverwood Downs Park, Barrington Tops, NSW
07.12.13 - Sydney Opera House, Sydney
08.12.13-  Astor Theatre, Perth
13.12.13 - Billboard The Venue, Melbourne (Todd Terry support)
14.12.13 - Meredith Amphitheatre, Meredith, VIC
15.12.13 - Cloudland, Brisbane (Todd Terry support)

Listen to Todd Terry on Pulse Radio 

This October two of electronic music's most exciting up-and-coming duos, BLOND:ISH and Hunter/Game, are set to make their Australian debuts. In anticipation, we asked each of them to fill us in on the track that changed everything and coaxed them onto their current musical paths. Fascinating stuff, enjoy!

Anstascia of BLOND:ISH: 'Doppelwhipper (Live)' by Gabriel Ananda
The record that changed my life would have to be Gabriel Ananda's 'Doppelwhipper (Live)' on a German label I can't pronounce.. I first heard it on my first trip to ibiza back in summer 2006 when minimal techno was at its peak. I was more into non techno-ish stuff back then, but hearing this record mangled on the beach in Playa Den Bossa with my friends definitely put everything into perspective. It was love at first sight (or listen). I then heard it at every single club that summer and it spurred my love for anything dark and twisted that takes you on a journey to la la land. I've recently been reviving the record in my playlist and just heard it this summer being played at Circoloco DC 10 and sort of lost it.

Vivie-Ann of BLOND:ISH: 'Reach' by Lil Mo' Yin Yang
This record was on the popular 90s label Strictly Rhythm. I first heard it playing faintly through the trees far off in the distance on a beach at Balaton Lake in Budapest where we would go for summer holidays. I was 12 years old at the time and told my older cousin that we NEED to follow this sound, I had to know what it was. When we arrived at this illegal rave on the beach I was completely mind blown, as I had no idea what (a) house music was, or (b) raves were. You can imagine the shock i went through, and knowing right then and there at 12 years old that this was my passion, but no idea where it would take me. That was a beyond amazing and liberating feeling.

Emmanuele of Hunter/Game: 'Miura' by Metro Area
This track reminds me of the first time I played in a nightclub. At that time digital technology such as Traktor or CD players didn't exist. The record shop was a place where people shared ideas and good vibes. The Metro Area album and especially that track was the moment of change for a new era, passing from the late 90s house wave to the 2000s electronic music scene vibe.

Martino of Hunter/Game: 'Moth' by Burial & Four Tet
This track simply expresses the depth of my soul and reaches the hub of my feelings. I think is the best electronic music track in history so far.

BLOND:ISH and Hunter/Game play Australia in October. Buy tickets for Sydney and Melbourne.

Listen to Hunter / Game on Pulse Radio
Listen to Blond:ish on Pulse Radio

Before the night starts at Sankeys we always have a big BBQ together and it's always nice when the family comes together. And since H.O.S.H. and I are a really good team when playing B2B, we are also a strong team at the grill. You all know how strong H.O.S.H. is as a very good DJ, but as a cook he is unbeatable! The Diynamic BBQs are so amazing, no party can beat this.

One of the summer highlights for me was Adriatique. No matter if they played warm-up or at the end of the night: They played consistently strong sets and so it was no wonder at all that they got so much amazing feedback and a growing fan base. And they loved it so much playing almost every week with us at Sankeys that they even interrupted their US-Tour to join us.

Two more culinary highlights: DJ Phonos Guacamole and the Greek salad from my friend and business partner Fotios - the whole Diynamic family loved both. DJ Phonos secret for the guacamole: Philadelphia and use of garlic depending on the maturity level and general taste of the avocados. The better the avocados taste, the less you need to take garlic. And Fotios' secret for his salad with tomatoe, onions, olives, besides the dried tomatoes for the taste, is ground feta-cheese in the dressing.

We always had great nights at Sankeys, but one of my personal highlights was to play at the basement last week at September 10. At this time I had one of the very rare moments when everything just fits, and works out perfectly. I had the feeling that the crowd including me was almost flying. In a few weeks, one hour of this set will be out on dancetrippin.tv - so watch out!

Everytime when David August or Stimming played live in the basement, this was always a perfect fit and for me always a great pleasure. I don't know exactly why but, those both live-sets especially, which are very different, fit perfect in Sankeys Basement.

One evening we were having dinner at In&Out, a nice restaurant in Ibiza town when our own PR-team drove by on the Bonanza bikes for Neon Nights promotion. Cause this year we hired an extra Promo-team for Diynamic Neon Nights and Solomun+1 in addition to the amazing Sankeys-team. And the girls came along on the neon branded Bonanza bikes. They didn't see us so we could see observe how they work. And we thought: It was not such a bad idea to bring the bikes to Ibiza. I'm not sure if I already mentioned it but the BBQs with the Diynamic family are my absolute highlights: we have lamb or chicken kebab, sometimes Burger made by H.O.S.H., Octopus, Gambas, Dorada, Tuna... and if we don't forget the watermelon in the freezer, like we mostly do, then we also have a nice dessert.

And of course one of my personal Neon Nights highlights was Amir, the great driver for Sankeys. There are a lot of drivers on this earth, but only one Amir. He's not just a very good looking man, but he also knows how to drive a Golf properly and is a really cool guy which we all love already since last summer. Always a welcome guest at our BBQs , I can say he came as a driver and left us as a friend.

Sankeys Neon Nights closing party takes place at Sankeys Ibiza on 24th September

Listen to Solomun on Pulse Radio.

Every Friday at Pulse Radio we like to put together somewhat of a list if you like of the parties that you really should be going to. It’s certainly not a list of everything under the sun that is happening, but definitely the parties you want to go to. We also like to add a little something in here for you to press play to while scrolling the list and deciding where it is you will be squeaking that tekkie of yours at. Seize the weekend, come rain or shine, we don’t want to dance, we have to. See you on the dancefloor. 

Listen to Death By Misadventure

(click into the headers for details on the events)

What’s happening in Cape Town…

Bassmint

Every Friday without fail Jackal & Hide gets packed to the brim with partygoers readying themselves for the weekend. It is undoubtedly the best way to bring in the weekend as this party kicks off as soon as you knock off from work for the week. Get In!!

Earthdance Cape Town 2013

Earthdance Cape Town kicks off today. Trust the weather will not hinder anyone with this one as the new venue and extravagant installations they call stages will blow peeps away this year. Really looking forward to this!!!

Samu.l & Friends

A lot of buzz about this event in Cape Town on the Saturday. The Royal Family and Strange Loving have brought out international act Samu.l will be gracing us behind the decks for a day party on the roof of the Mandela Rhodes Place. This will be an absolute corker. Stay tuned to Pulse as there is a beaut of a competition for this coming out shortly!!!! See.you.there.

A Night with Culoe De Song

The Royal Family are not stopping with Samu.l, they have prepared a beast of an afterparty which will be featuring Culoe De Song from Soulistic Music backed up by a very stellar line-up that includes names like Kanan K7, Jimmy Chronic, Pierre Estienne and more. 

What’s happening in Johannesburg…

Earthdance Johannesburg 2013

Earthdance in Johannesburg is also kicking off today. The theme for this years event is Community so we can expect everyone to be stomping in unison which is going to make for very special and memorable experience. 

Black Coffee Poolside Party

Soulistic Music’s main man Black Coffee will be dropping his bombs and ‘effecting’ partygoers poolside on Saturday thanks to Buja Productions featuring JL.

Sunday Funk

This will be your Sunday jol. The best way to cap the weekend if you’re in Johannesburg. Make a move to Sunday Funk this Sunday and listen to the sounds of Jon S (Pimp Squad) Keren Onay and more. We would.

Deep Town Presents: People of the Deep ft. Samu.l

International Samu.l synonymous with a distinct style of House and Techno will be playing at the People of the Deep Party in Johannesburg which is a party you will want to attend, trust us. 

Listen to Pulse Radio

We’ve been talking about the Samu.l & Friends party all week that’s about to commence this Saturday on the rooftop of the Rhodes Mandela Place in Cape Town. Look, the weather has turned over the last few days but the Techno weather gods seem to have a soft spot for an international act that is Samu.l and a conglomeration of partygoers that just want to dance. 

Now, it’s a day party with an international act at an immaculate venue that’s to be followed by A Night with Culoe De Song for the afterparty at Republic Lounge. Being the Loeries weekend – lets expect absolute pandemonium because Cape Town will be buzzing big time. 

Here is what you stand to win:

• 1 X VIP Ticket (This gets you into both the rooftop party AND the afterparty –stellar!)

• It also give you a R500 bar tab once you’re on the roof dancing your ass off.

Here is what you do:

• Share this competition ‘publically’ to share the love and tag the event so it shows up on the event page. 

Winners will be announced on the event page this afternoon at 4pm.

Good luck!! See you on the dancefloor!!

If you’re a fan of techno music but have never heard of The Black Dog, then you've been barking up the wrong tree. These veterans are thought to be one of the most influential figures that’s helped shape the early electronic music landscape as we know it today. Regarded as pioneers and innovators of the UK techno sound, they’ve had string of successful releases on labels such as Warp, Soma Quality and Dust Science that date back to the early 90’s. Classic albums like ‘Parallels’ and ‘Bytes’ earned them legendary status and with the release of their latest LP ‘Tranklements’ being such a success, it looks as though the chaps from SoYo still have a lot to offer before throwing in the towel.

With over 30 years of experience both in the studio and on the road, you can imagine the trio have gone through their fair share of production equipment. Endless amounts of synths, outboard compressors and drum machines have been essential when crafting their imaginative sound, but it’s always been the “lack of high quality Midi controllers” which has somewhat restricted them when jamming or playing live. Through a growing frustration with the markets availability they decided to take matters into their own hands. Machinewerks was born.

I took a trip to Aizlewood's Mill in Sheffield and caught up with Martin and Richard Dust, founders of Machinewerks and 2/3rd of The Black Dog to check out their latest venture, the CS X51. This is a beautifully designed USB/Midi control surface built by the artist, for the artist. Put together with materials of the highest quality it has been built to last and is small enough to slip comfortably into your hand luggage. A Kickstarter campaign has been launched in order to raise £27,000 to help fund the final stages of the project and get it into mass production. 

Latest prototype of the CS X51 “We have taken 40 years worth of mixer and control design, distilled it down and took all the useless features away, but included enough controls so that people can DJ and perform live without any distractions”. (Martin Dust)

Their Journey

For years The Black Dog have been performing mesmerising live shows worldwide but have never been completely satisfied with the control surfaces they’ve used. According to Richard, “controllers began to fail and knobs would loose their sensitivity”. As I was passed a hot cup of tea he went on to say, “it was because of the build quality, cheap components just weren't built to cope”. After carefully placing my mug on the table, I had a rummage through some of the broken controllers that were neglected around the office many of which were either too big and heavy to travel with or simply lacked controls.

As a novice they explained to me that many existing functions are seemingly good ideas until you put them into practice. If you mistakingly push a wrong button when swapping between banks of preloaded sounds, “suddenly your controls do nothing you want them to”. Functionality had to be considered carefully. Martin butted in, adding “we wanted to build this for ourselves and not put crap in it”.

The pair joked when I asked them about the involvement of Ken Downie, the longest serving member of The Black Dog. They told me he was living on a boat, drifting further and further away from normal civilisation. With the pack leader out, they shipped in engineer and friend Darren Nutting a dark horse when it comes to electronics. “We knew that Darren had to be involved from day one” explained Richard, “he’s a whizz kid when it comes to designing PCB’s (Printed Circuit Boards) and brings a completely different skill set all together”.

Initial Stages

The team went about brainstorming ideas, thinking up of feasible options and eradicating others. They told me about their initial thought process, drawing knobs and sliders onto plain paper to get a feel for the layout before producing any prototypes. Spacing was important for them. Martin stood, screwing up his fingers to resemble Hanson’s ‘strong hand’, and said out loud, “we didn't want to make something you needed babies hands for”. Happy with how it was mapped out on paper, the next stage was to get it cut out of plastic or wood.

Initial laser cut prototypes for the housing units. “We would get something printed or laser cut and within seconds you know it’s wrong- it’s soul destroying”. (Martin Dust)

Built in SoYo

Sourcing high quality components was essential to make the controller hard-wearing and durable, but Martin, Richard and Darren were also out to prove something. They were adamant that all of the parts would be sourced locally from around their home town of Sheffield. When asking them for their reasons behind this, I was surprised to discover it was mainly for political reasons. They gave me a brief story into Sheffield’s history, making sure they mentioned about its steel productiontion  through the industrial revolution. I was told about how Labour and Tory governments systematically dismantled industry through the 70‘s and 80‘s. Steel producrapidly declined and coincided with the collapse of coal mining in the area. Nowadays derelict factories scar the outskirts of the city centre.

This humbling approach to keep business within the local economy proved to be easier said than done. Martin rolled his eyes and told me about his frustration with UK fabricators,“out of perhaps 30 emails that were sent, only 3 replied, they just didn't want to know unless you were spending more than 50 grand with them”.

Shot down somewhat, they pushed on eventually managing to source what they needed. Endless experiments dragged on through the night, testing as many rotaries and sliders as they could to see how each felt. Not only was it imperative for the build quality to be at a high standard, it was also important for the components to be light so it made travelling a lot easier. I compared the CS X51 to a Bitstream 3x that was lying around the office and the difference in weight was enough to give you backache.

Prototypes

Determined on keeping a degree of familiarity with its layout, the CS X51 had to be as intuitive as possible so that people could pick it up and instantly connect with the product. For this, a chip had to be designed to eradicate the need to install any drivers.

The first aluminium prototype “The Tank”

Versions 2 and 3

Machinewerks teamed up with Ian Anderson of The Designers Republic to help with the look and feel of the product, as well as its logo design. Martin explained to me that they were waiting for the right product to come along to collaborate and added, “it’s an amazing experience working with Ian, he offers so much more than just design”.

The latest prototype includes 28 rotary knobs, 10 buttons and 7 sliders that are all fully assignable, giving you complete control over your performance and production. It’s plug and play and is compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux, and as Martin puts it, “we’re very close to completion; our focus now isn't about stardom, our focus is about raising £27,000 to start a business in Sheffield and to employ people”.

Kickstarter

A campaign has been launched to help raise the money, finish off the final design and get the CS X51 into mass production. Kickstarter is also low risk as nobody has to pay unless the campaign hits the target. If the full amount of money is raised by October, Machinewerks are confident that the CS X51 could take just 3 months before it hits the shelves.

So far the campaign has been going from strength to strength, but much more backing is needed before their goal is reached. Being mindful of those who have helped raise money, Richard ended on saying “we want everyone who has supported us to have the chance to get their hands on the product before anyone else”.

Richard jamming on the CS X51 “It’s given our live shows and studio time a completely new dimension. We don't have to touch the mouse hardly and more controls means you can double up on effects to make unique sounds”. (Richard Dust)

Listen to The Black Dog on Pulse Radio.

Co-founder and owner Ralf Kollmann chats to Pulse radio about how Mobilee started and how the label serves as a testament to the vision, passion, and love of music that continues to drive the extended Mobilee team in all that they do, and all that will come. 

Anja Schneider and yourself started Mobilee in 2005, tell me your story? Anja and I met in Berlin about ten years ago and started to work on a few projects together. I was still working in advertising and she worked at the radio every day besides her show on radio 'Fritz' every Saturday night. We started with a monthly party series at Watergate. We made a good team and when Anja was approached to start her own label we both jumped into it and started our own company. The rest is history... Its one of the biggest pleasures in life to do what you are passionate about and to have the freedom to only work with people you like and respect. Sharing some of the experiences and insights, we both got by working for the music industry and being "professional ravers" since the 90ies with young talents is quite fulfilling as well. After a short time a core team of artists gathered and also helped to develop the vision behind Mobilee further. The Mobilee sound is defined by the various artists on our label and it reached from Techno to Deep House. There are not many labels with such a broad range of music. We do not dictate a musical direction. Our artists have all the freedom to produce whatever they feel like. It just has to make the people dance... and smile!

Where did the name 'Mobilee' originate from? Anja is very creative when she drives the car. I think she suddenly came up with the name and then we created a little philosophy and visual concept around it.

How do you find/sift through new talent for Mobilee? Yes we get a lot of demos every day through different channels. We must admit that it's impossible to listen to all of them. Its also very very rare to find something outstanding or unique in between all the demos we get. The best way to find new talents is through common friends or by recommendation by established artists. Personality and a professional work ethic is very important for us. The business is getting more and more complex and you need to deliver so many different aspects as artist to make your way to the top. We do not release music from artists we haven´t met in person. We also don't just have a release on our minds if we find a new artists. We are always aiming on the full picture and want to develop an artists career together. Besides the label we have a booking, event, publishing and promotion department who get involved once its rolling! 

You currently represent a range of unbelievably talented artists. Do you believe your live artists like Rodriguez Jr. and And.Id gain more support/exposure because they are playing live as opposed to just those artists that produce and deejay? Do people know the difference or are they just there for the good tunes? As a live act it's very important how you present your music to the audience. You have around one hour to impress. Especially Rodriguez Jr. and And.Id both deliver quite spectacular shows with a proper live feeling. Rodriguez Jr. is virtuos on his Piano and every show is unique. And.Id is well know for his melodic trumpet solos during his show. With the right spotlight in the club they get a proper attention for sure. Usually the audience is a bit more focused on the live show when it is presented in the right way. Some clubs don´t highlight the live act properly with a little changeover between DJ and live act which is sad as its also great for the whole journey and plot for the night. I just watched a recording of Aphex Twins recent live show in Australia on Youtube. Quite impressive! I must say that we already did better in the 90ies when it comes to the presentation of artists in clubs

You guys are a male/female team. Do you think this is important to the success of Mobilee? Not that I'm saying two guys/girls couldn't run a label just as well, but how does this element help or even not help? We have known each for 8 years now. Meanwhile we have a blind understanding and share the same vision. Everybody has different strengths that make a good fit together. If two people are deciding directions you are automatically re-thinking everything twice and it prevents to make mistakes maybe. That man and woman are driven by different hormones and also have different senses and priorities is not a secret i guess. It balances everything out quite well. So yes, i think it’s one of the reasons for our success.

I watched your recent Mobilee Pool Party Session in Barcelona where you featured a few of your top artists including Anja. Really impressive. I notice that you weren’t featured as much, is this to push the Mobilee artists or is there another reason? Or am I talking shit? Haha. I must admit that i was a bit under the weather that day! I didn't stay until the end, which is a shame as the Fact pool series was probably one of the best events we ever had in Barcelona. We also had 3 own event productions on the Hotel Diagonal rooftop which was tiring a bit. But in general our core artists and producers should always be in the focus. As i am not a releasing artist on my own label there is no need to promote myself like hell ;)

How do you promote/market your artists uniquely compared to other labels? We are using the new media channels as extensive as possible since the beginning and always try to motivate our artists not to be too lazy to do it as well. At the end its all about creating little stories and allow some behind the curtain scenes. An interesting personality should always have something to share with the audience beside the pure music. Our challenge is to capture the right moments, stories, pictures and quotes and put it in entertaining formats.

We are quite good in producing our own videos to introduce new artists and to promote or review our events. But as Mobilee alone is such a strong brand every artist who has a steady output on our label and is playing our showcases automatically participates. At the end its all just about teamwork, sharing the same vision and doing great music and shows. The most important promo tool for every artists is his performance. Make sure your audience has a fantastic time and you can´t beat that with any advertising!

Any conceptual parties or experienced based parties Mobilee as a brand are working on if any? This summer was just fantastic for all of us. We had some great gigs in Ibiza, some of us played at the biggest festivals in Europe. Our Mobilee rooftop summer at the Hotel Silken Diagonal in Barcelona was out of the ordinary. On top we had an amazing open air in Berlin with Mobilee artists and friends Nick Curly, Ultrasone and Woody accompanied by an intimate boat shuttle to the a little island spot. ADE with a big warehouse showcase in Amsterdam is around the corner and we are working on a Mobilee rooftop world tour for next year. Right now we are in the creative process to develop our theme and visuals for next year. Let´s see whats happening in the next months.. we are always open to take the music and dance experience to another level.

Who would you say is your 'most likely to make it HUGE' artist on Mobilee, another label and why? Rodriguez Jr. will make it to the top with his live show next year. You will see him playing at all big festivals around the world next year.

Ray Okpara is signing responsible for the next Mobilee back to back compilation next year and going on tour with the crew. Re.You has his album coming out but  it's difficult to just point out one name! Everybody is busy and making big steps at the moment.

What has been one of Mobilee's greatest achievements in the last 8 years? That we are still there and have a great team of artists that sticks together without any trouble, scandals or weird scene shit going on. We also have a very close relationship to our followers and Mobilee music lovers. It’s a big circle of friends all around the globe. There is still so much to explore, discover and develop in the next years. The steady feedback of fans keeps us going and motivated.

Lots of love to the Pulse Radio crew and your readers!

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For the first time playing together on South African soil Auntie Flo & ESA are in the house!! A string of gigs lined-up for the pair that will that will include the Alex Theatre in Johannesburg and The Assembly in Cape Town, both of which will be a treat. 

Esa is rooted here on South African soil so the fact that he will be coming out with Auntie Flo enabling the man to get a bit of background on his partner in crime is a special occasion. That coupled with the fact that they have been touring new Auntie Flo and Esa material, we’re in for a hell of a time as soon as they hit the decks. 

We managed to get an exclusive mixtape from both ESA and Auntie Flo, so press play, turn it up and read what the lads had to say: 

Your first album that you released was back in 2003, which was ultimately used as a demo. Can you tell us about a milestone moment in your career that changed everything for you and your career going forward? I’m not sure folk are supposed to know about the ‘first album’ haha! It was more me messing around when I first started getting into production. I’d say the first proper milestone was putting together what I look at as being the ‘first proper’ Auntie Flo productions – Future Rhythm Machine. The tracks on their pre-date everything that has been officially released as Auntie Flo and was mostly made in 2010, even though it was eventually released in 2012. It’s a milestone as it was the first time I managed to come up with what I wanted to sound like. I sent it to Andy Thompson who promptly set up his Huntley’s and Palmers label after hearing it and I guess everything else followed that! 

In every DJ’s bag there is something you’re confident in dropping anywhere – a sure win with the floor all the time. Care to disclose which tracks go with you everywhere? Auntie Flo - We just released two tracks which we call ‘Highlife weapons’ – on white label vinyl only – entitled Doodle and Lumbalu. They are two edits I put together using some old South American vocal tracks. We play loads of stuff like this at our club night Highlife and they got such a good response that we wanted to release them. Apart from that, the tune I always play every set is Emmanuel Jal – Kuar (Henrik Schwarz Remix) on Innervisions. It never fails.  

Esa - Lechuga Zafiro - Sapo de Managa - Been playing this track a lot over the past few months, released earlier this year on Comeme records as part of the El Untitled compilation. Also, Africaine 808 - Tummy Tummy - I’m sure the vocals are either Zulu or Xhosa but this has been our weapon this year.

So the Auntie Flo & Esa tour in Africa is about to kick off – Is this the first time out together? What can we expect from you when you’re on this side of the planet? Esa - Yes this is our first time out together to South Africa and I am really excited that this has finally happened, I think this will be a nice opportunity for Brian AKA Auntie Flo to get a little insight into my roots and musical background. We’ve been touring a brand new live show all year so you can expect fresh Auntie Flo and Esa material.

Aunti Flo - Yeah first time playing in Africa for us so super excited. As we’re heavily influenced by African music new and old I’m looking forward to seeing how our interpretation of that music goes down in SA. 

Can you talk about the mix we’re showcasing from Secret Agency? Driving force behind the track selection etc.? Esa - I’ve recently just moved to London and have had the pleasure of being part of the Secret Agency so I felt an introducing mix should showcase some of my favorite tracks and artist and also be a representation of the music I play and music that I’m currently enjoying.

What’s your relationship? What’s the history behind you guys? Auntie Flo - I’m from Glasgow in Scotland although my Mum was born in Kenya and her family is from Goa. I met Esa a few years ago at a MOBO event in Glasgow and we got chatting about music. At that point I only had an idea in my head about the music I wanted to make but had a feeling that Esa would be a good guy to work with so said I’d keep in touch. 2 years later I called him up and asked if he wanted to be part of the live show and so we got together to do our first shows and everything else followed from there. 

How would you, the artist, describe the personality behind the decks? Dancefloor and ‘the partygoers on it’ driven, or do you prefer to play what you’re feeling, or have prepared for the gig at the time? Auntie Flo - I learnt how to DJ in Glasgow and Glasgow is always about the party. Our clubs only stay open till 3am so you have to go ‘all-in’. This doesn’t mean big tunes right from the off though, the Glasgow crowd are really knowledgeable too so you need to work it in a unique way. The Glasgow DJ education means you can step up anywhere in the world. 

What’s in the pipeline after your African tour? Auntie Flo - Got quite a few releases lined up which we’re just finalizing. Got the next set of Highlife edits coming on vinyl and continuing our radio show on Comeme. We’re also playing in Russia, which I imagine will be a pretty big contrast to Africa! 

There’s a saying, 'go big or go home.’ And if there’s one artist on the island who embodies that phrase in full, it’s Carl Cox. Never one to do things by half measures, his parties draw the biggest crowds, his lineups read like a who’s who in world-renowned dance music talent, and his parties rage on, full of blasting CO2, dazzling lights and shows by Kryoman, well after other’s have packed up their decks and headed home. And next Tuesday the 24th, we’ll get the chance to do it one last time.

As usual, Carl has invited some great friends along for the ride, and if the past is any indicator, the night is sure to be full of surprises. Kicking things off over in the Covered Terrace is longtime Intec rocker Jon Rundell, returning back to The Revolution for the first time since Carl’s birthday celebrations. Yousef will be returning to the Covered Terrace for one last White Isle performance this summer, so Circus fans take note. And capping it all off is Mr. Controversy, aka The House Gangster, aka DJ Sneak, who, despite where his mouth (or more accurately, his Tweets) might take him, always makes it happens behind the decks.

Over in the Discoteca, things heat up even more, as Desolat queen, tINI, brings her dark and sleazy grooves ahead of Loco Dice, who’s returning once again to help Coxy close out the festivities, having gone back-to-back with Carl to finish the night off in a blaze of glory last season, so keep your ear to the ground on that one.

But it wouldn’t be a Cox party at Space without some groovy side room action. Over in the Sunset Terrace, Future Disco has invited Amsterdam’s Tom Trago along to close things out along with the stage’s curator, Sean Brosnan. Trago’s recent collaboration with Subb-an and Seth Troxler, ‘Time,’ has become one of the season’s favorites, and his Voyage Direct imprint, an offshoot of the famed Amsterdam label Rush Hour (for whom Trago has released a number of hits), has seen releases by the likes of the fast rising Carnival resident, William Kouam Djoko.

Last but not least, London promoters Spacestation (made up of Rick Maia, Jordan Wade, SE7EN, and James People) will be bringing the Spacestation DJs along to help Revolution and We Love… resident and island favorite Ian Blevins keep the upstairs Premier Etage chilled into the dawn, and over in El Salon, last year’s Revolution DJ competition winners Anwar & Mike Bites will keep the deep vibes just right, along with Ireland's finest Eoin Smyth. 

This one is sure to go off like no other party this season. And considering how many of Carl’s parties have been absolute jaw droppers, missing this is simply not an option, so grab your tickets below.

 Listen to Carl Cox, tINI, DJ Sneak and Yousef on Pulse Radio.

PillowTalk
'Lullaby'
[Wolf + Lamb]

San-Francisco trio PillowTalk are back with Lullaby, their latest EP on Brooklyn's Wolf + Lamb imprint. Shifting from the soul-infused sound they usually produce, the title track is a soft, sullen soundscape. From the opening note it is clear that this is music made to move the listener emotionally. Saturated by synths and rich with an ethereal Rhodes, the song has a delicate and enchanted beauty about it. Sammy D sings especially wistfully, his intonations imagined as if being carried by a breeze, then whispered to a lover between the sheets. With this tune PillowTalk perfectly walks the line of dreamy pop and deep house, blurring the lines of the underground sounds in a mature and accessible manner. Like Tinkerbell, the nymph of Neverland, this song survives in that magical place between sleep and awake.

Making a full 180, the B Side 'We All Have Rhythm,' reminds us that swag is their bag, and these boys have still got it! The funky tune sees them get back to their R&B roots and soul-inspired sounds akin to 2011's 'Far From Home.' The psychedelic song begs the listener to “follow me and sing along,” and who can help themselves? “It's ok, we all have rhythms to play” they assure us, over a catchy hook and groovy bassline. With just two tracks this ebullient EP has a tune to help you greet the day with a smile, and one to ensure sweet dreams at night. Lullaby reminds listeners that PillowTalk can just as easily make emotive music, as they are able to liven up any daytime dancefloor.

Listen to PillowTalk on Pulse Radio

Berlin seems to get a lot of press and to a degree, so does Germany's second coolest city, Hamburg. But situated in the bottom half of the country lies the Bavarian capital Munich and its flagship club, Harry Klein. Aside from residents such as Julietta, DJ Ana stands fast as a representative of true underground culture in the city, even though there's a "strict Bavarian governement" - a world apart from the oft-publicized Berlin axis.Heading up her own Slave to The Rhythm parties and preparing to release her first productions soon, Pulse thought it a good idea to re-acquaint ourselves with Ana and grab her opnions on the state of underground music in 2013. Over to you Ana...

Pulse Loves... Munich., how is the scene at present in the city, with clubs such as Harry Klein being noticed on the worldwide stage? Munich itself has a long electronic history which started in the early 90' , so the scene is not that small overall, but with an intimate crowd aswell. Nowadays we got several cool clubs where you can often choose between a few cool parties. The atmosphere can be amazing, when the people are open minded and thrilled from music. Nevertheless in the scene people almost never dare taking risks in booking, sometimes I miss the true rare underground stuff. It's not comparable to Berlin eg. even because of the strict bavarian governement, but after all we have a solid scene which is still alive.

Pulse Loves... slave to the rhythm. Why did you decide to form this night with Julietta? And what's been the biggest venue or club that the party has hosted on the international stage? Beginning this year I started my own bi-monthly night named 'slave to the rhythm' at Harry Klein together with Julietta. We decided to make our own night where we can bring our favorite artists we really would like to listen in a club. We were kind of bored from these celebrity namedropping and mainstream boredom which guarantee a full club, but no adventure. We wanna put the focus just on music which is front and center here. 'No zombies to the hype, just slaves to the rhythm'.

Pulse Loves.. your exclusive mix. Tell us about the theme (if there is) and is it typical of your transient DJ style? In this mix I put together some of my actual and all time favorite tracks I am into it right now. I ve choosen some old school timeless reflective and spheric tracks, mixed with some actual deep stuff. I really love this kind of fluffy and deep music, but in a way positive music. Its meant to be a mix you can listen everywhere you like, at home or even in car. Generally I try to avoid speaking in genres, because music should speak for itself.

Pulse Loves... electronic music in 2013. What's the best thing about dance music and electronic culture for you at the moment. I had the impression that in 2013 the clubbing scene seems to be more concerned with intimate parties and quality music rather than mainstream on big stages in huge clubs. People have to be more concerned about how they spend money nowadays and focus more on quality again. The same development you can see on the vinyl industry revived again, because people care more about quality and start buying more records again. Its pleasant to see that some people still care about records like I do.

Pulse Loves... the underground. But at a time when dance music and club culture has been mass commercialised and packaged, can it survive? Or do you think the commercialisation and introduction of EDM is forcing people to go back to basics and, essentially, back to the roots of it all? I think there are two developments that can be observed. Techno in its origin was more like a movement against the established music business. It was a scene with its own structures and it was all about music. Small venues growing anew with an intimate and familiar atmosphere where the music is the center. More and more parties are running in secret or off locations again. That's like how it all began, far away from vip areas and mainstream clubs. From this point of view there is still kinda underground vibe alive. On the other side, a huge economic sector discovered the electronic music for making profit. For the economy EDM festivals may be a gigantic lucrative business less personal but with little risk. On such events the focus is on the spectacle itself, unfortunately not on the music.

Pulse Loves... busy release schedules. What's coming up next for you in terms of music? First of all I have to say that I really love what I am doing. I always wanted to produce music by myself thus it took my time to set me into the whole production thing and technical stuff. I try to find and create my own style and I believe in what I am doing. At the moment I am working on my first release which gonna be released soon...

Pulse Loves... eclectic inspirations. It's cited that you're influenced as much by hip-hop as you are by house and techno; how do you bring your hip hop influences into your music and what do you think bridges the gap between the two (three) genres? Back in the days, I was heavy into hip hop before I discovered electronic music for myself in age 16. I love old school hip hop, especially from the 90's. The songs still had these positive vibes and messages, but with raw and dry beats. This influenced also my taste in electronic music, where I love dry raw beats and rhythms but with warm or postive atmosphere. In all these genres, the repetitive beat is a basic feature.

Pulse Loves... The future. what's going to be coming up for you in the next 12 months? First of all, our own party series 'slave to the rhythm' gonna be in some cities of Europe aswell, like Amsterdam, Florence, Rome and Berlin, besides our party in Munich with guests such as Praslea and Ion Ludwig, two of my favourite artists. I am really looking forward to it. And of course, studio time to continue working on my own music. So watch out!

Listen to Ana on Pulse Radio.