jOBOT is back for more! After releasing a FREE ep, Gratitude, he’s releasing another one! I didn’t expect this but it makes a lot of sense. This EP is a lot more focused on the dance floor and it bumps.
The first intro track, Be You Auto, seems to have left off where gratitude ended but as soon as you’re getting all cozy the vibe of the track warps into hyper drive. It’s a great intro track that warms you up and blast you into a crazy funky tornado. There’s no end to it once you’ve been sucked in. I Can’t Keep Doing This takes you into a 8bit arp storm filled with wet bass all over the place. The balance and flow of this track has some dynamic range which will allow you to experiment with on it on all sorts of levels. Hundos picks the beat back up and sends you into a funky midtempo vibe. This track is where I feel Joe really shines and showcases his understanding of bass music. It’s weird, groovy, and fun but most of all, it’s a dance party. Until Tender is the title track and probably my favorite off this EP. It’s your signature midtempo bass track that makes you want to move. The textures of the bass really add a lot to the track. It’s as if Love and Light, Skrillex, and Opuio had a child together. Those wet bass lines mixed with electro disco thrash make for a great combination I’ve been hearing more often. Overall this release was not something I had anticipated but it comes at a great time where I’m spending a decent amount of time with midtempo dance moods.
I’ve had the luxury of having a few encounters around this dude. I purposefully use the term Dude because this guy is pretty much that. He’s one of the funniest people I’ve been around in this community. Always goofing around and making everyone laugh. Not to mention the guy is one of the prime players in the Steak Tribe. One thing that I’ve always found interesting about Joe is that he’s an exceptional bass player. It’s something I hear you have to experience yourself to fully grasp. I can’t wait till something comes of that. Another thing that I can’t help but mention is this guys spectrum of music. There’s a few tracks that I have of his back from the day and it’s some of the most beautiful stuff I’ve heard. This guy has one hell of a voice. I had the pleasure of seeing him play an early morning set at LIB 2011 thanks to ill-esha yelling at me to wake up and I’ll always thank her for that because it was one of the best sets I’ve experienced in a festival environment.
Be sure to keep a watch out for the release of Until Tender on November 5th!
It has been a LONG time since I’ve done a Fire Friday Mix. Now that the Afro Monk team is back and posting on a daily basis I figured it’d be best to start this weekly tradition again. This week we have a mix from the lovely Jillian Ann.
This mix is way HEAVIER than I anticipated but really helped me get focused at work this morning. Jillian explains a bit about her intentions with this mix, “I did for my lover to play guitar to late one night so I could seduce them into bed after… it worked”. I personally don’t see how this is love making music but it’s definitely super intense and bass heavy. The main reason I wanted to post this mix is because I’m a huge sucker for female vocals and she caught my attention awhile ago on the track she collaborated with Love & Light, Know Us. The other reason is that this site gets a lot of traffic dubstep keywords and I don’t really have that much heavy/brostep post on here. If there’s any sort of heavy stuff it at least has to have sexy female vocals and Jillian Ann accomplishes this.
I’ve personally never interacted with Jillian but I’ve seen her around and we share tons of mutual friends but something about her just never made me go say hello. As beautiful as she is there’s no question she has this certain look and presence to her. The photography of her is absolutely stunning but always has a mysterious dark emotion and feel to it. I have tons of respect for her as she makes numerous post about her emotional state and raw feelings online. It’s not easy to express yourself freely online and she does it quite openly. She’s definitely one of the few female vocalist that always make me pay attention to the track just because she’s on it.
Overall if you’re into female vocals, heavy bass lines, and dubstep this is something you should grab!
Digital Rust is back! It has been awhile since we’ve heard much from him. His new EP, Dark Horse. The release consist of 3 great tracks and a free download. I recently reached out to him since I saw his name appearing a bit more and seeing his name on a few festival line ups. He let me know that he had this release coming out and sent me a few previews. A few weeks ago I play a show down here in Miami with Govinda and prepped a funky mid tempo set. We all know about names like Love & Light, Opiuo, Tipper, etc… but Digital Rust is another name that should not be left out if you’re thinking organic bass driven music.
Digital Rust’s last EP, Loophole, is something you should definitely check out as well. I’m hoping this EP is a signal that there is a lot more to come from him. There are quite a few people doing the whole mid tempo set but the reality is that not many of them have the lasting appeal. I totally believe that this guy has what it takes as a producer and am keeping a close eye on him. My love for funky midtempo has returned and can’t express it enough how this music is perfect for opening, dancing, jamming, and over all just have a great time. This tiny collection of music by Digital Rust is all that and will have the dance floor electrified.
Desert Dwellers are super excited to release their newest release that has been fully funded by their fans through a kick-starter project! DownTemple Dub: Remixed will be released on April 3ed thanks to a huge rally from fans and friends helping to promote this project. This is just one more reason why our community is such a blessing to be apart of. Everyone benefits in this situation, new music, new live show. Now the music. Desert Dwellers put together a release filled with otherworldly down-tempo and psy-chill grooves. Some of today’s top producers took classic Desert Dwellers yoga dubs and remixed them into another dimension. Combining sounds of the future with the roots of years past this release is perfect for sitting back and allowing your mind to drift far from daily life. Prepare for a sonic exploration into higher dimensions! Remixes from Love & Light, Aes Dana, Kaminanda, Kalya Scintilla, Duke Mushroom, Eastern Sun, Drumspyder, Androcell, and Earthrise SoundSystem.
Love and Light’s freshest release positively lives up to its name, Galactic Booty Activation. You can’t listen to this funky composition from Matt Madonna and Ryan Anderson without feeling the need to shake that ass! While you can clearly sense their signature sound shining throughout the release, they blend in an assortment of other musical flavors. The album effortlessly integrates crunky, glitched-out beats with wubby bass, tasteful samples, and instrumentals, making for a vibrant and compelling listen. My favorite tracks are Ninja Brothas Motha and their collaborations with Samuel Wexler (Structural Liberation – I love the buildups & instrumentals) and Zebuel Early (Making Waves – I enjoy the rock influences). Zeb is a fellow Tahoe local and proponent of the bass scene here so I was stoked to see his name on the album. This is without a doubt Love and Light’s most solid release yet! Let Love and Light empower you with the sensation of pure bliss; grab the Simplify Recordings album here at Addictech.
Matt and Ryan have made it their goal to transmit their genuine compassion for humanity via uplifting, genre-paving music. People are catching on so the pair is deservedly blowing up – they have been touring the nation and popping up on coveted lineups. That being said, if you have the chance to catch these two live, I would highly recommend taking advantage of the opportunity. The energetic duo originates from Reno, NV; as I am native to the Lake Tahoe region I have been fortunate enough to see, or rather experience, countless Love & Light sets. I can honestly say that of the multitude of shows that I have attended, Love and Light offers the most consistently astounding live experience – I have yet to be disappointed. They never seem to suffer from “off-nights” as most DJs do every once in a while. It’s not only the duo’s spine-tingling music that triggers the masses into motion, but also their undeniable energy and passion for creating a sense of togetherness. While they are undoubtedly stirring up emotion in their listeners, you can tell that the audience is having the same effect on them. You can FEEL the music and the soul that they devote to it. Check out Love and Light and get that galactic booty activated!
Might as well say what’s up to all you Afro Monk readers and introduce myself. I’m Tara, also widely known as Taradactyl. I’m passionate about bass music and the community that surrounds it so I’m honored to become part of this project
I promote and attend most of the countless shows in the Tahoe/Reno area and also make it to many CA festivals. Come say what’s up!
Stephan Jacobs is interesting in his fans to help him out a bit. He is getting ready a lot of shows ahead and his laptop is on verge of dying due to all the changes. After talking to him a bit he told me that as he is gearing up a whole new live setup with some new toys and now running solely WAVs instead of Mp3s and his laptop is starting to give up.
Stephan decided that he’d put some of his work hard work up for sale to help raise the money for a new laptop. He is selling some of his NI Massive patches that he has built. Any starting producer or even experienced one could get a lot of value out of this $15 package. This is a way to help a fellow musician out as well as gain some knowledge on what one of the rising stars has been doing.
Not only has he decided to sell this product he put together but he’s also giving away his Emancipator – When I Go remix as a sign of good faith. This track explodes and has such great depth to it.
Be sure to be on the look out for Stephan as he embarks on some exciting shows such as Coachella next week and Lightning in a Bottle at the end of May. I’m looking forward to catching up with him as it seems like awhile now. Also word on the street is he has been working closely with Love and Light on some tunes… Who knows what’s ahead with that… A collab EP, tour, etc… ? The world may never know but expect something…
Love and Light are back with a new release on Simplify Recordings. Ryan and Matt have been hard at work with this new release and have put together quite a tour of the States. This release shows off some of their new styles and techniques as they mature their sound. It’s great to see a release where most of the tunes have that whompy bass feel that reminds me a lot of Heyoka. The best part is that this arsenal of bass bombs are at a sweet sexy 200 bpm. It’s always great to have a good amount of variety in the bpm ranges.
I’m really looking forward to playing the two Texas shows in Austin and Dallas with them. Matt and Ryan truly have so much great energy online and always have been there to support me in anything. Excited to finally kick it with them in person. The videos and responses I’ve seen on this tour is unbelievable. It seems just like yesterday when they put out their first tune together. Get ready because they are just getting started and this dynamic duo has quite the future ahead of them.
Stylust Beats is a producer out of Vancouver BC that has absolutely been crushing it lately. He noticed my post the other day about my fave tracks of the month which included his remix of “Mattafix-Big City Life” and he has decided to offer it up as an exclusive track for the readers of Afromonk.com. Seriously, you need to grab this track while it’s hot.
His lookout ep was released in August which includes this dynamite track:
And most recently, his remix of the track “Know Us by Love & Light Featuring Jillian Ann” was featured on their remix ep. No doubt you’ve heard this ep already as it’s one of the hottest releases of 2011.
Here’s a few other tracks of his you need to check out:
He’s also working on a new “Thugstep” mixtape and his 2nd ep which he hopes will be released in March.
Check out his soundcloud for a bunch of other killer tracks, his upcoming shows, and links to buy his releases: Stylust Beats Soundcloud.
Afro Monk
October 17th by John-Michael 
Tags: ill-esha, Jobot, Lightning in a Bottle, Love and Light, Opiuo, steak tribe
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