brass knuckles February 26, 2014Summer 1 CommentNice combo of R&B snaps, trap, and big band brass in this H3 Remix of Emoh Instead’s Why Can’t You Say So. High heavenly and low modulated vocals side by side followed by a huge symbol crash. Boss. Big Band, R&B, Trap"Emoh Instead", "Goon Music", "Remix Pack", "Say So EP", "Sweat It Out Music", big band, brass, H3, symbol crashShare : Tweet
Humpday Hero February 26, 2014Jules 2 CommentsDon’t let the impending rain storm that will destroy all of Los Angeles get you down! Just get up and dance to this sick shit until the 3 HUGE inches of rain ultimately sweeps you into a storm drainage gutter. It will be so worth it, trust me. A-Trak and Lex Luger did a stellar job producing this if you ask me, building this song like a rollercoaster, taking you on delightful joy ride filled with drums, high hats and echo-y vocals. This song is so money, Travi$ needs a dollar sign in his name. RIGHT?!! Oh trap, how I adore thee… Trap, Trap Hop"100 Bottles", "lex luger", "travi$ scott", A-Trak, trapShare : Tweet
MEET OIKI February 25, 2014Summer 7 Comments First off, I would just like to say that it has been an awesome experience interacting with Oiki. Not only is he an exceptionally professional, talented musician/producer/DJ, but an extremely cool human being in general. Ratchet is out! Lasers galore and growls that swallow you whole, leaving nothing behind but the ping of a harp .38. We’ve got a super interesting exclusive interview with Oiki himself to go along with it, enjoy! Summer: I’m dying to know, where did you come up with “Oiki?” Oiki: I’m not sure about sharing that… it’s a secret. Summer: Okay. You’re based out of Moscow, Russia. Is that where you grew up? Oiki: Yeah. I grew up in Moscow. Summer: Did you always know that you wanted to make music? Oiki: I’ve been making music since school, so I think to be an artist was always a dream of mine. Summer: Only electronic? Oiki: I have played the piano since school. I only really make electronic music, of course I also make some piano sketches, but the most part of the material is electronic. Summer: What turned you on to Trap? Do you enjoy it, or are you just answering the call of duty as a musician to give listeners what they want? Oiki: I’m not exclusively into Trap music. But still, it’s something fresh and it is interesting working with something that’s new for me. Summer: Did you make a different genre before? Oiki: I’ve got so many different tracks; Drum’n’Bass, Electro, Dubstep, Moombahton, so there’s always a place for something new. Summer: I notice a recurring dark, frightening theme in your music. (One of my favorite things about it, besides the fact that it’s just really good.) Can you elaborate on that? What inspires you? Oiki: I can make sad music, and always wanted to make some rave/festival stuff, so I am working on that at the moment. I think I can create something different for big festivals. The first thing that inspires me is music. I love the Dubtechno sound and old Drum and Bass tunes. There was something special about them. Summer: I can’t wait to see you perform at a big festival. I think you have the potential to be like Skrillex. Has anyone ever told you that? Oiki: Yeah people tell me that sometimes. I like what Sonny is doing but I don’t like when someone tries to compare us, because there’s always something different in any artist’s music. Summer: I think the sincerity of the darkness in your music is something that makes you unique. I am crazy about your scary samples; gunshots, explosions, etc. They’re different from other artists’ samples because they’re more mid range and low end (or at least that’s how they sound to me.) Like in Groove, for example. What do you look for when eqing/compressing a sample? Oiki: Well, this is about experience. I don’t think it matters what plugin you use. It‘s all about your feelings. Half of the samples you hear in my tracks are self-recorded sounds. Even drums and some explosions, percussion, voices. It’s always cool to design your own sounds that no one else has. Summer: Also, your 808s and sub bass are out of this world! Do you do any special processing/layering to create them? Oiki: My favourite part is drums. I spend days layering them, I really love the process. I don’t use 808s because it looks too simple for me. So I produce my own samples for the bass kicks using fm8, Massive etc. Summer: What types of songs do you like to use as references if ever when doing a mix down of a track? Oiki: When I mix down I always look at Pop, Hip Hop and Rap songs from the most famous artists. This is the best way to understand the idea of mixing down. Summer: What gear do you like to work with when mixing? Oiki: I only use my headphones – Sennheiser HD-25. I don’t like using monitors much. So I’m always sitting with my headphones on. Summer: Do you build a track in any particular order? Oiki: They all start with some idea. A melody or like the whole conception of the track. That was the case with my Are You Scared track where I tried to make the atmosphere of a horror movie. Summer: What production technique would you say that you’ve benefited from the most? Oiki: Sidechain compression is my favourite. You can make such unique sounds using it. And of course EQ automation. This is a kinda difficult part but the result deserves the time you will spend on it. Summer: What is your DAW program of choice? Oiki: I use Ableton LIVE. I used to make music in Fruity Loops, but after I changed from PC to Mac I decided to install LIVE. It is just perfect for me. Summer: If you had to delete all of your plugins except for one, which would you choose to keep and why? Oiki: I think that would be Massive. I’ve spent too many years working with it, so I’ve got a bunch of nice presets for it. But also I want to say that Sylenth is just amazing for growl bass lines. All the “Get It Now” EP growls were done by Sylenth. Summer: I love the loudness and width, (I guess that’s how it could be described) of your tracks. What’s your mastering process like? Oiki: I make them loud before mastering and then EQ and compress them. I think a crystal clear mixdown is the secret of a good mastering. Summer: So about your handle/DJ name, any commentary at all? Oiki: Nope. That will be kept secret. Summer: A mystery it remains. Thank you SO much for doing this interview, I’m so excited about it, and I can’t wait until you come to the US! http://bit.ly/DP097iTunes http://bit.ly/DP097Beatport http://bit.ly/DP097Juno http://facebook.com/oikioikioiki http://twitter.com/oikioikioiki http://dubpolice.com INTERVIEW, Trapoiki, Oiki Interview, ratchet, trapShare : Tweet
Swedish House Mafia + Epoch Rises= so good I forgot how to add February 24, 2014Summer 1 CommentStart the week off with some fist pumps, this new Greyhound remix from Epoch Rises is charged with enough energy to last you until Friday. The deflating accordion/unmuffled harzoo (harmonica-kazoo yeah, they exist) sound at .43 is perfectly juxtaposed by the low bass and honking buzzes following. You’ll definitely want to race after they kick it up at 2.04, then grind down at 3.00. Dubstepabsolute, bitfelon, droid dogs, dubstep, epoch, epoch rises, greyhound, moniker, remix, robodogs, swedish house mafiaShare : Tweet
Can’t Stand Still February 22, 2014Jules 4 CommentsI’ve been a fan of Unlimited Gravity for a while now, but I have to admit I kinda let it drop off the map when I started swimming through the massive sea of electronic music recently. I’m glad he popped back up on my radar with this jam right here! This song kinda has a Phutureprimitive feel to it with a sprinkle of dnb… just a sprinkle, because I can’t handle more than that. Unlimited Gravity does a great job of mixing vocals with the bass and it only gets better as the song goes on, at 5:16 I was quite pleasantly surprised with the variation of sounds that popped on in there! But, he’s from Denver so… obviously he’s good. Bass, DNB"Boss Miller", "Unlimited Gravity", bass, dont stand stillShare : Tweet
Vroom February 21, 2014Summer 1 CommentMad Max- MAKJ: This song huge! It makes me want to drive, drive fast… and dance… dance and drive at the same time. I keep listening to the beginning over and over again, need I even say Smack My Bitch Up? I love how he slipped in some sick break beats around :40. Do you feel me? Do you?! Now get behind the wheel, or on the floor if you got that booty. Electro Housecar sound, Electro House, Mad Max, MAKJ, smack my bitch up, vroomShare : Tweet
Patrick Reza Interview February 19, 2014Jules 3 CommentsOh you knowww.. just havin a spot of tea with Patrick Reza… If you had to pick one instance memory or moment that influenced you to start producing music, what would that be? July 21, 2007 seeing Daft Punk’s Alive Tour. Them and Aphex Twin really got me introduced into the electronic music scene. As far as dubstep I was really pulled into the genre from my appreciation and love for Bassnectar and Zeds Dead’s early productions, for example Timestretch, Magical World, and Eyes on Fire Remix. What do you think is the most challenging part of making music for you? I think one of the most difficult parts of producing electronic music these days is trying not to get caught up in the wave of those who are riding on some bandwagon. It’s really important for you to have you’re own unique sound. Additionally, as far as my production the hardest part for me is trying to glue opposing sounds together, i.e. huge chords and a face ripping bass to sound cohesive in the overall tune. When you aren’t slaving over a song, what else captivates your attention? Who is your biggest supporter? As far as personal supporters I’d have to give it up to my family, girlfriend, and friends. They’re always there pushing me to better myself and my productions. As far as professionally, I’d have to say one of my biggest dreams has come true in that I was able to work with and gain support from Bassnectar. What song of yours is most personal to you and why? I think Take Me Away is the song I am most proud of as it is my first fully original song in which I was happy with the lyrics, vocals, vocal processing, and instrumentation. Lyrically speaking it really captures the essence of my mindset while producing. Shout out to my girl Jilian for killing it on that track! Do you have a favorite set of plugins you typically tend to use when processing basslines? I tend to use a lot of the stuff that comes Native in Ableton. As far as baseline synthesis I usually stick to Operator, Massive, and Sylenth for the midrange bass stuff. I use my Analog Arturia MiniBrute for my sub bass. Your snares are always so fat and bottom heavy. Could you tell us some of the steps you take when processing snares? The key to making good snares is really in working with good samples to begin with. As far as processing I usually tend to do minimal compression, eq notch at anywhere from 180-220hz (depending on the key) to beef up the initial punch/ring of the snare. Lastly I always throw a low pass filter around 150hz to keep room for the subbass and the kick. Your drums are very punchy and translate well on any system. Could you give any tips on how to maintain your drum transients so that they punch through a mix even if its heavily limited? Side chaining is really a key factor on making room for everything in the mix. Additionally, I use fabfilter pro-q on almost every channel doing very precise harmonic eking to get rid of all the “muddy” frequencies. At the end of the day the real trick is knowing how to mix down a track and create room for everything. That way you can get great dynamic range and volume with minimal smashing/limiting. And lastly, where would you like to be in 5 years? A Headline Tour with full stage design and production, work on some more movie soundtracks and establish my own label to help out up and coming producers get started. Thank you Patrick, we are so excited to see you at your next show in Los Angeles: Alive! A music festival teaming up with nonprofit organization We Are The Movement to create an INSANE experience filled with crazy performances, live painting, art installations, interactive art and amazing beats by Epoch Rises, Tristan Hendy, DJ Miss Dust, Baaze and Bullet Made Statues! You’ve gotta come!! https://www.facebook.com/events/246991765462366/ INTERVIEWAlive, baaze, bullet made statues, dj miss dust, epoch rises, interview, Patrick reza, tristan hendyShare : Tweet
