FRIDAY JAN 12, 2018
Mike Simonetti
"At the forefront of a relatively underground movement for over two decades, few artists have had a history matching that of veteran-producer Mike Simonetti’s. But it’s this 20- year backstory that reveals the interminable role he’s played in the world of dance music. His first introduction came in 1988, at the tender age of 17, when he landed a job handing out flyers at the legendary NYC nightclub Mars. He was just a kid at the time, but it left an impression on him that would manifest itself years later. His record collecting habit got him his first few gigs as a club promoter in the early 90s, and it was then he got his first taste of DJing—hitting the lawless basements and warehouses of New York City. He quickly made a name for himself in the local club scene as a resident at the legendary parties Rubulad and Motherfucker. It was during this time that his tiny record label Troubleman Unlimited started gaining momentum as well, and by the end of its ten-year run would yield seminal releases by The Walkmen, Zola Jesus, Titus Andronicus, Prurient, Unwound, Glass Candy, Chromatics and many more. Nearly a decade after its inception, Simonetti put Troubleman to rest and teamed up with Johnny Jewel to launch the dance music label Italians Do It Better. Its first release —a hard-hitting synthpop compilation called After Dark—was a game changer. Eventually, Mike released his first EP of original material, Capricorn Rising, after a slew of re-edits and remixes. The EP laid the groundwork for what was to come, yielding a range of influences from techno, krautrock and ambient music to soundtracks. While Simonetti was in the middle of writing his debut solo work, he was asked to remix tracks from the West Coast twosome Silver Hands. Immediately taken by the incredible range of lead-vocalist Elizabeth Wight, he reached out to collaborate. The result of the bi-coastal email exchange would eventually become Pale Blue. Most recently, Simonetti has decided to split from Italians Do It Better to focus on Pale Blue, as well as a totally new venture: the freshly minted label 2MR (Two Mikes Records). A collaboration between Simonetti and Captured Tracks founder Mike Sniper (whose own band Blank Dogs was released on Troubleman in 2008), 2MR is an opportunity for Simonetti to start from a blank slate and release music he believes in. The first release on 2MR will be The Past We Leave Behind, a double album from Pale Blue."
"At the forefront of a relatively underground movement for over two decades, few artists have had a history matching that of veteran-producer Mike Simonetti’s. But it’s this 20- year backstory that reveals the interminable role he’s played in the world of dance music. His first introduction came in 1988, at the tender age of 17, when he landed a job handing out flyers at the legendary NYC nightclub Mars. He was just a kid at the time, but it left an impression on him that would manifest itself years later. His record collecting habit got him his first few gigs as a club promoter in the early 90s, and it was then he got his first taste of DJing—hitting the lawless basements and warehouses of New York City. He quickly made a name for himself in the local club scene as a resident at the legendary parties Rubulad and Motherfucker. It was during this time that his tiny record label Troubleman Unlimited started gaining momentum as well, and by the end of its ten-year run would yield seminal releases by The Walkmen, Zola Jesus, Titus Andronicus, Prurient, Unwound, Glass Candy, Chromatics and many more. Nearly a decade after its inception, Simonetti put Troubleman to rest and teamed up with Johnny Jewel to launch the dance music label Italians Do It Better. Its first release —a hard-hitting synthpop compilation called After Dark—was a game changer. Eventually, Mike released his first EP of original material, Capricorn Rising, after a slew of re-edits and remixes. The EP laid the groundwork for what was to come, yielding a range of influences from techno, krautrock and ambient music to soundtracks. While Simonetti was in the middle of writing his debut solo work, he was asked to remix tracks from the West Coast twosome Silver Hands. Immediately taken by the incredible range of lead-vocalist Elizabeth Wight, he reached out to collaborate. The result of the bi-coastal email exchange would eventually become Pale Blue. Most recently, Simonetti has decided to split from Italians Do It Better to focus on Pale Blue, as well as a totally new venture: the freshly minted label 2MR (Two Mikes Records). A collaboration between Simonetti and Captured Tracks founder Mike Sniper (whose own band Blank Dogs was released on Troubleman in 2008), 2MR is an opportunity for Simonetti to start from a blank slate and release music he believes in. The first release on 2MR will be The Past We Leave Behind, a double album from Pale Blue."
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Fit Of Body
"Despite containing only five original tracks, Fit of Body’s long-awaited EP, Healthcare, covers a wide swath of territory, from sultry techno to understated hip-hop. The level of thoughtful variety reflects Fit of Body’s dedication to the past, from the Detroit underground to Atlanta’s favorite son Jermaine Dupri. Don’t get it twisted though: Healthcare may be an extremely mindful house record, but it’s the gorgeous production and timeless beats that make it a critical listen. The overt passion of the record isn’t surprising considering the qualifications of Fit of Body’s Ryan Parks. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone more dedicated to the local electronica scene than the Atlanta producer. When he’s not writing music, he’s busy running Harsh Riddims Blood Sucking Cassette Co. and releasing albums like 10th Letter’s killer Portals & Compasses LP. It’s a busy schedule, which is one of the reasons why Healthcare took so long to finish. (On top of it all, Parks somehow found the time to paint the album cover.) The post-punk rhythms that permeate the EP invoke Metal Box era PiL, but for the most part the EP finds Parks exploring funk through via the narrow lens of classic techno. It’s an interesting confluence of genre best represented by the album’s unexpected anchor, “770-997-2341.” The track’s incessant refrain of “Dial me, it’s been awhile” is initially nonchalant, but the insistent beat ratchets up the tension until all you can do is stare at your own phone and wonder at the abstraction of human relationships. In truth, “770-997-2341” shouldn’t work on Healthcare. I get it — juxtaposition, contrast, blah blah blah — but it still shouldn’t work. And yet what should disrupt the flow of the record instead grounds it in the realm of experimental expression and accents the smoothness of the rest of the EP. As a whole, Healthcare hinges on citrus-laced funk to balance out stringent percussion. Even the dreamy introspection of “Antonio Girl” utilizes oceans of reverb to invoke waves lapping at the sunset. While it’s not much of a departure from Fit of Body’s 2015 tape, Health is Wealth, or his 2016 12″ on CGI Records, it’s proof that Parks is willing to take risks as long as they accentuate his internal interpretation of Atlanta Overall, Healthcare works as a casually brilliant statement rendered all the more impactful by its cool delivery. It’s the kind of record you want bumping when you roll into the gas station before a night out, and the one you want on repeat when you’re headed back from the club. It’s easy to get lost in the nuts and bolts of the production, but forget the technicality and embrace the transcendent synths." -Immersive Atlanta
"Despite containing only five original tracks, Fit of Body’s long-awaited EP, Healthcare, covers a wide swath of territory, from sultry techno to understated hip-hop. The level of thoughtful variety reflects Fit of Body’s dedication to the past, from the Detroit underground to Atlanta’s favorite son Jermaine Dupri. Don’t get it twisted though: Healthcare may be an extremely mindful house record, but it’s the gorgeous production and timeless beats that make it a critical listen. The overt passion of the record isn’t surprising considering the qualifications of Fit of Body’s Ryan Parks. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone more dedicated to the local electronica scene than the Atlanta producer. When he’s not writing music, he’s busy running Harsh Riddims Blood Sucking Cassette Co. and releasing albums like 10th Letter’s killer Portals & Compasses LP. It’s a busy schedule, which is one of the reasons why Healthcare took so long to finish. (On top of it all, Parks somehow found the time to paint the album cover.) The post-punk rhythms that permeate the EP invoke Metal Box era PiL, but for the most part the EP finds Parks exploring funk through via the narrow lens of classic techno. It’s an interesting confluence of genre best represented by the album’s unexpected anchor, “770-997-2341.” The track’s incessant refrain of “Dial me, it’s been awhile” is initially nonchalant, but the insistent beat ratchets up the tension until all you can do is stare at your own phone and wonder at the abstraction of human relationships. In truth, “770-997-2341” shouldn’t work on Healthcare. I get it — juxtaposition, contrast, blah blah blah — but it still shouldn’t work. And yet what should disrupt the flow of the record instead grounds it in the realm of experimental expression and accents the smoothness of the rest of the EP. As a whole, Healthcare hinges on citrus-laced funk to balance out stringent percussion. Even the dreamy introspection of “Antonio Girl” utilizes oceans of reverb to invoke waves lapping at the sunset. While it’s not much of a departure from Fit of Body’s 2015 tape, Health is Wealth, or his 2016 12″ on CGI Records, it’s proof that Parks is willing to take risks as long as they accentuate his internal interpretation of Atlanta Overall, Healthcare works as a casually brilliant statement rendered all the more impactful by its cool delivery. It’s the kind of record you want bumping when you roll into the gas station before a night out, and the one you want on repeat when you’re headed back from the club. It’s easy to get lost in the nuts and bolts of the production, but forget the technicality and embrace the transcendent synths." -Immersive Atlanta
Pyramid Club
In music, darkness often devours itself. Those who nosedive down into synthpop’s more perverted forms — industrial, coldwave, darkwave, and all subgenres in between — tend to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the shadows. But that’s precisely what draws devotees in, both the machinists and their audience. The deconstruction of humanity into objective parts, autonomous beats, vocals smeared into alien sneers — these were the tools that proto-industrial types like Cabaret Voltaire and Throbbing Gristle employed to separate themselves from the punk rock ego, the explosion of self. Even in that light, Pyramid Club aren’t just followers of this self-negating cult. Indeed, both members of the clandestine duo have helmed their own projects — Chris Daresta with the cold techno of Anticipation, Matt Weiner with the chrome-clad but buoyant TWINS — and together they run DKA Records, international purveyors of murk. So while “Stay Behind” oozes with all the subversive sludge that devotees to the dark might expect, the Pyramid Club machine burbles and pulses in an uncommonly Technicolor display. The suave gear shift in the middle affirms the expert engineering at work here; Daresta and Weiner may be taking cues from their muses, but they’re clearly spiraling down a tunnel of their own design. -Immersive Atlanta
In music, darkness often devours itself. Those who nosedive down into synthpop’s more perverted forms — industrial, coldwave, darkwave, and all subgenres in between — tend to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the shadows. But that’s precisely what draws devotees in, both the machinists and their audience. The deconstruction of humanity into objective parts, autonomous beats, vocals smeared into alien sneers — these were the tools that proto-industrial types like Cabaret Voltaire and Throbbing Gristle employed to separate themselves from the punk rock ego, the explosion of self. Even in that light, Pyramid Club aren’t just followers of this self-negating cult. Indeed, both members of the clandestine duo have helmed their own projects — Chris Daresta with the cold techno of Anticipation, Matt Weiner with the chrome-clad but buoyant TWINS — and together they run DKA Records, international purveyors of murk. So while “Stay Behind” oozes with all the subversive sludge that devotees to the dark might expect, the Pyramid Club machine burbles and pulses in an uncommonly Technicolor display. The suave gear shift in the middle affirms the expert engineering at work here; Daresta and Weiner may be taking cues from their muses, but they’re clearly spiraling down a tunnel of their own design. -Immersive Atlanta