Bittles‘ Magazine | Interview: Crossing Wires With Timo Maas Fans of deep, psychedelic house with a touch of melody are in for a bit of a treat this month in the form of ›Crossing Wires 2‹, the rather fab new mix album from none other than Timo Maas. Containing fourteen new and exclusive tracks from some of the finest purveyors of quality house music this side of the sun, it is fair to say that this is one mix that will have any fan of funky electronica feeling rather weak at the knees. By JOHN BITTLES (Foto: Lukas Piotrowksi)
Musik | Bittles‘ Magazine There is a strong electronic element to this month’s album review round-up. I make no apologies for this considering there are such fine releases as ›Reality Testing‹ by Lone, ›Vaudeville‹ by Inigo Kennedy and ›Code‹ by Answer Code Request in amongst an absolute bumper crop of fantastic groove-based releases. So without further ado, let’s begin. By JOHN BITTLES
Bittles‘ Magazine That Coldplay lot are a pretty divisive bunch. Beloved by casual music fans everywhere, yet despised with a passion by hordes of ‘real music’ connoisseurs who find it difficult to forgive their ‘blandness’, or their success. Personally I have never minded Coldplay, or Chris Martin’s emphatic croon. By JOHN BITTLES
Bittles‘ Magazine When not urging me to kill, torture and maim, the little voices in my head have repeatedly wondered why there is no reviews section for singles and EPs in my segment of the esteemed Titel Mag. My standard reply is that it would be far too much work since I’m a bit of a lazy git and all! But, that attitude softened somewhat over the last couple of months due to a couple of reasons. First up I heard Acid Test 09 by Donato Dozzy and Tin Man and instantly fell in love. Next I noticed that my
Bittles‘ Magazine Sonic Boom is not only a fantastic name for a band, it is also the nom de plume of Peter ›Sonic Boom‹ Kember, who was one of the founding members of the exceedingly excellent Spacemen 3. Spectrum is the only commercially available album he ever released under this name, yet it still stands as a momentous record that bewitches with its dense, layered sound. Released over 20 years ago, it isn’t of its time, or this time, or any time. In fact it is something else, separated from trends, fads or anything else which dilutes music to a
Bittles‘ Magazine If it is great music you are looking for then I must commend you for your intelligence and inform you that you have come to the right place. And whereas last week’s selection of new releases had some amazingly good records it’s, if anything, an even better selection this week. We’ve got the superior house of Mark E, the languid guitar grooves of Coves, the experimental pop of Maria Minerva and lots more. So, pour yourself a nice glass of wine, open up a packet of crisps and prepare yourself for some of the best music you may
Bittles‘ Magazine After the trials of ›Record Store Day‹ where I queued up for two whole hours only to find out that I had parted with £20 in exchange for a flat piece of cardboard it is somewhat of a relief to be writing about new music that is universally available to all. In fact this month is such a whopper of great releases that I have made the brave decision to spread the praise, scorn and sexual innuendo over two weeks. By JOHN BITTLES
Bittles‘ Magazine As many of you are probably aware, Frankie Knuckles, the famous DJ and producer, passed away at his home in Chicago on the 31st of March 2014 from type II Diabetes-related complications. One of the originators of the house sound Frankie was much loved by everyone who had had the pleasure of meeting him, heard his music, or experienced the aural delight of one of his legendary DJ sets. By JOHN BITTLES
Bittles‘ Magazine Remixes tend to be much maligned little beasts that are treated by some naysayer with a huge dollop of scorn. For a while it was a discipline that was completely overdone, with seemingly every single release containing about twenty re-rubs of just one song. The fact that at least 90% of these would sound exactly the same meant that most people’s brain cells would have gladly committed suicide before even coming close to the final version. It was overdone incidents like this which succeeded in giving the art of the remix a very bad name. By JOHN BITTLES
Bittles‘ Magazine | 28.03.2014 This March saw the sad demise of The Fly Magazine, which had been entertaining and informing the pale indie-loving public for a good 15 odd years. A monthly magazine dedicated to the type of music beloved by spotty teenagers and ›cool‹ twenty-somethings everywhere, the mag was a staple for any dedicated gig-goer. By JOHN BITTLES