Unfortunately there are one or two problems with the site right now. A shame, as TYFTH was getting back into its stride recently, but we’ll hopefully be up and running again in a few days’ time.
We’re not finished with 2013 just yet, as an impressive batch of mixes appeared at the end of the year and I’ll be slowly working my way through them this month. The first is yet more freeform from the Freeformaniacs show in the form of a versus set between Alchemiist and Shimotsukei.
Alchemiist’s section is a very nicely selected 30mins, slightly more melodic than usual with some quality connections – see Damage Point – Icy Clouds for an example. This might well be my first Shimotsukei mix, and overall his half of the set really lived up to expectations. Going for Japanese tracks plus Alek Szahala, this is a thoughtfully selected effort with a melancholy edge.
Some transitions work better than others, but a very promising sign of things to come is the Sanctuary – Sunray combination, a superb mix that’s worth the (admittedly low) price of admission alone. Sunray lacks a bit of bass/power in comparison to Le Dos-on’s track, so personally I might have tried either looping an outro section of Sanctuary to give it a bit of support or just starting Sunray earlier to take it through to the breakdown.
Anyway, seems like I was right to have high hopes for Shimotsukei’s sets – this interesting mix of styles with Alchemiist was a fine place to start and the whole hour is well worth checking out.
Time for the last post of 2013, then. The traditional ‘Top 3 Tracks’ post will of course arrive soon, but for now let’s look back at some of the mixes that contributed most to the scene this year.
There are plenty of talented DJs around these days who can pick the right tunes to keep a floor moving (and make no mistake, that’s our first job), but it’s far harder to find sets that go a step further. As DJs, a mix is surely our chance to carefully build upon the amazing atmospheres that the artists create, but on a scale that can’t be achieved in a single track’s 5 or 6 minutes. I wish more would take up the challenge, but here are three sets that definitely show what’s possible when a creative, skilful DJ puts his/her mind to it.
1. Cuedy – Liberate Te Ex Inferis
Freeformaniacs Round 9 – Cuedy pres. Liberate Te Ex Inferis (Save Yourself From Hell) (09/05/2013) by Freeformaniacs on Mixcloud
Cuedy’s superb effort for the Freeformaniacs show is a worthy winner, combining uplifting elements with occasional darkness and the year’s best connections. This remains my favourite Cuedy set and I’m really looking forward to hear more from him next year.
2. Nomic – Freeformaniacs Round 10
Freeformaniacs Round 10 – Nomic (Guest Mix) (20/06/2013) by Freeformaniacs on Mixcloud
Another from Freeformaniacs’ back catalogue of brilliant sets, Nomic’s showcase of his own material is a masterclass in creating a consistent atmosphere while maintaining interest for the whole hour. While the addition of Nomic’s older, angrier tracks might have made it even better, this is a beautiful hour of freeform with some perfectly-judged darker moments.
3. Dyzphazia – Freeformaniacs Round 11
Third place goes to the tireless Dyzphazia, who was very prolific this year in all sorts of genres. This was the standout set for me though, with its emphasis on darker tunes and a nice shift in atmosphere from the halfway point. Again, crucially, the vast majority of the transitions are well-considered, flow nicely, and are essential to the progression of the set’s atmosphere.
It’s only while writing this post that I realised all three sets originally appeared on the Freeformaniacs show – maximum respect and a big thank you to the FFM crew for such strong support of our corner of the scene. There were plenty of other brilliant mixes throughout the year of course, and especially honourable mentions should go to Pearsall, Tyranoid, Alchemiist and SonofSam, all of whom were close to that top 3.
Looking back on my own sets, although I was a bit more active than usual I wasn’t really able to match last year’s Betwixt & Between tribute or 2011’s Munted! Monthly Episode 1 – as a result then, I’ve decided to practice what I preach and wait for inspiration to well and truly strike before trying the next one. It already looks like there’ll be plenty happening in 2014 though, and having met up with Guld last night it seems that we both have some ambitious plans for the next year or so.
I’ll be back posting again in the next day or two, but as always an enormous thanks to the TYFTH crew for following the site and supporting my various endeavours in 2013. What with plenty of recorded sets, a fantastic gig in the UK and appearing at CODEX, this year was a very successful one – here’s hoping that 2014’s even better. Thanks again my friends, and best wishes for a quality New Year.
CODEX is getting closer now, and I’m slowly gathering thoughts about my own set – this time I’ll be finishing the event, which has given me some ideas about how to structure things. Still lots of work to do, but looking forward to what should be a quality afternoon of freeform.
Alabaster – 14:00 – 15:00
NONAKA+CHIN – 15:00 – 15:50
Le Dos-on 15:50 – 16:50
Substanced 16:50 – 18:00
raqhow 18:00 – 19:00
PlasmaDancer – 19:00 – 20:00
The second round of the Freeform Awards is up and running, now with the first round’s highest vote-getters in each category. Many, many thanks to those who voted for me in round one, it’s an honour to be among some very high quality names in the ‘Best DJ’ category.
Head along to the survey to peruse the categories and cast your own vote – it should be open for the next week or so, but best to get them in early.
Talk about being worth the wait – Watchtower 3’s tracklist has just been announced, and there’s something for everyone in what could be one of the finest freeform releases ever. Although tracks from the likes of Alek Szahala, Grimsoul and Qygen will surely be highlights, it’s fantastic to see some NRG in the form of Hatral 2013 and Proteus’ superb Freedom – along with a very strong UK freeform contingent there really is something for everyone.
Vol.3 will surely keep up the excellent level of presentation that the series has managed so far, in a 3 CD release that’ll also feature a DJ mix. If ever a release was worth supporting it’s this one, so be sure to keep an eye on the Watchtower site and Facebook page in the coming months.
And so the tracklist:
FireFarm & AJ Myst – Carpe Diem Part 3
Alek Szahala – Avalanche
Proteus – Freedom
Eryk Orpheus – Day Off
Douglas- Not Everyone
Transcend & Hardform – Deliverance
Le Dos-on & Psycho Stalker – Chemical Wash
Endemic – Hurricane (Modulate Remix)
Rik Arkitech – Heart is a flutter
Pretty Addicted – Fear Myself (Lost Soul Remix)
Aryx – Helyx
Epyx & Cyrez Vs Tyranoid / Strongstream – What Lies Below
Transcend – Eons (Substanced Remix)
Psyence – Unique
Transcend – Odyssey
Substanced – Ghost Of The Future (Alchemiist Remix)
GULD Vs Betwixt & Between – Hatral (GULD 2013 mix)
Qygen – Soul Survivor
Grimsoul & Nailgun – Manchurian Kandidate
Transcend & Midas – Hide & Freq
Guld fans will enjoy this one – a bootleg remix of Hide’s Dice that would surely have gone down a treat at Dark Dimension. It wasn’t finished in time for that, but Guld has now made it freely avaialable for use in slower NRG sets. Another quality track from Guld, showing how his production has really stepped up a level in 2013.
With next month’s CODEX appearing over the horizon it’s (ahem) just about time to look back at the first edition. It turned out to be my favourite event since 10 Years of FINRG, as despite the low crowd turnout the track selection and lineup was as good as you’ll find anywhere in the freeforming world.
The sounds were pure TYFTH from start to finish, maybe best illustrated by the fact that every single DJ managed to play at least one Alek Szahala track (with no repeats!). Let’s hope that next month can match it, and that word has spread enough to entice a few more Romancer ravers out of retirement.
More from Le Dos-on, this time a free update to his classic Stance. I still prefer the more other-wordly style of the original Another Story version (at least from the breakdown onwards), but with the improved filtering and a nice weighty job on the mastering this has all the ingredients to fit into a modern set.
A really promising track here from U-F SEQUENCER, reworking his previous collab with Le Dos-on. While I’m not too sure about what we can hear of the breakdown, there’s no denying that tremendous energy in the main section, as well as the classic Le Dos-on-meets-Betwixt & Between style lead. Definitely a track to look out for.