BPM MAG - May/Jun'12 by BPM Magazine

ALL ABOUT THE

BEATS

THE

PEOPLE

& THE

MUSIC

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contENts

MAY/JUN ‘12 EDITION 61

Your latest copy of BPM Mag delivers! 04. 06. 08. 09. 10. 12. 13. 16. 17. 20. 21. 22. 24. 25. 26.

EDITORS NOTE & CONTRIBUTORS THE WALL My name is.... DJ ZINHLE My name is.... DJ ZINHLE THE LITTLE MISFIT MUSIC NEWS MUSIC NEWS CRAZY WHITE BOY CRAZY WHITE BOY SPOEK MATHAMBO SPOEK MATHAMBO ORBITAL RUBIX QUBE & BIORHYTM RUBIX QUBE & BIORHYTM JEAN GRAE

28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 34. 36. 38. 42. 44. 46. 48. 50. 52. 54.

SEAN TYAS SEAN TYAS SHOW US YOUR PARTY FACE SHOW US YOUR PARTY FACE THE DEEP END WITH LUO 5 MINS WITH DJ CNDO PIONEER DDJ-ERGO COMPETITION WINNER ALBUM REVIEWS ALBUM REVIEWS ALBUM REVIEWS DOWNLOAD: DJ PICKS WHAT'S HOT @ BPMLIFE DJ TOP TEN CHARTS PARTY INFO & EVENTS ASTROBABBLE - TAURUS & GEMINI

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No part of this magazine may be imitated or reproduced in whole / in part or online, without the permission of BPM Magazine. Any views, opinions & visual material expressed in BPM Magazine cc. by contributors are not necessarily shared by the BPM Magazine or its staff. We do not accept responsibility for any omissions or mistakes, as we do everything possible to make sure all information published is accurate. All rights reserved. BPM Magazine 2012

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EDITOR’S NOTE EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Feature Writers and Columnists Mary Honeychild - Mary is a fusion queen, her love for music is defined by her roots of drums, saxophone and deep bass. She discovers the break and combination in genres and takes us on journeys into the origin and amalgamation of scenes such as Jazz, Hip Hop and EDM. The Little Misfit - The Little Misfit is an anonymous observer who has been around the electronic music scene for more years than most. She’s seen it all, done it all and has the tales to tell. Not much surprises her any more although she is still wholly excited by music, dancing and socialising within this scene. It’s with this passion and experience that she casts a slightly jaundiced, feminine eye on the many components that add spice to Cape Town EDM Culture. Tendai Luwo - Recovering blueberry muffin addict, dj, remixer and voice over artist, Luo first firmly sank his teeth into music while working for Rhodes Music Radio (RMR 89.7fm) in 2009 and has never looked back since. Now a loyal disciple of all things deep and soulful, He can be found roaming the streets and alleyways searching for his next dose of good 'ol house music. Craig De Sousa needs no introduction. His love and passion for music is demonstrated in each and every performance whether it’s as a house DJ, radio presenter or producer and has a career spanning back to 1996. Look out for Craig’s Ableton Tutorials as he imparts valuable knowledge each edition. Nathan Kabingesi – Nathan is a self-confessed house junkie; you can usually spot him in a corner of the dance floor getting high off the DJ's supply. Appreciating the finely spun mix, he's not shy about calling out the occasional slip of the needle. Expect incisive and considered opinions on everything from the latest album releases to trend developments in the world of EDM. Fletcher Beadon - I am a DJ and music producer based in Cape Town, South Africa. My passion is sound and music technology and sharing my love of sound technology through teaching. I am also interested in non-musical things like herb gardening, meditation, cooking in the kitchen and science fiction. Please feel free to contact me about interesting projects. www.mynameisfletcher.com Jonathan G Shaw – Production Tips – Jon is a professional record producer who has worked with a multitude of artists and record labels in a freelance capacity. Outside this, he lectures music business at the University of the Witwatersrand and provides business consultation to the music industry. jshaw@smstudios.co.za Dave Skinz - DJ, Music Manufacturer, Wordsmith, Record Store owner, Promoter, and gamer par excellence are some of the multi-faceted roles that Skinz has played in his 15 year love affair with dance music. When not indulging himself in MMA footage and band practice, he spends his time waiting for Arsenal to take the treble. www.daveskinz.com

DJs are not musicians!

he age old debate of what makes a DJ a ‘real DJ’ just never seems to go away. Last month on Facebook there were several hotly contested debates about the whole new world of controllerism (sounds like a fancy word soon to replace turntablism), and how using beat-sync makes DJing so easy and how ‘anybody can be a DJ nowadays,’ and blah, blah, blah. If you’re a DJ, or mates with DJs (which is very likely if you are a reader of BPM), then you’ll have heard this conversation at some stage or another. DJs love to ingratiate themselves as being ‘the real deal’ as they cast a disdainful eye at the ‘newbies’ on the scene. So here’s my 5c on the issue. When CDJs first appeared in DJ booths all the vinyl DJs, which was the majority, were up in arms about how DJing off CD was not the same and they weren’t real DJs if they did not use turntables. The same blah, blah, blah, different era! Today, other than a small number, and of course turntablists, all those vinyl DJs have moved on to CDJs and some even to Laptop controllers. So I have a good giggle every time a so-called ‘seasoned DJ’ who has been mixing of CDJ ‘long before controllers bru,’ has a dig at what is fast becoming a derogatory term – ‘Laptop DJs.’ Guys... and girls (‘cos dammit... the female DJs are more hardcore than the guys sometimes) get over yourselves! Beat-mixing is not rocket science anyway! It’s not exactly the same as learning (and practicing) music scales now is it? Personally I don’t care if the only tool you have is a cowbell – as long as you can make the floor move! Real Pros don’t waste their time debating beat-mixing – they look only at the quality of music you perform, how well you read a dancefloor, how well the set is constructed and that wonderfully intangible quality – your personality behind the decks. The tools you use to do that; well that’s entirely up to you. Just don’t go around calling yourself a musician or artist! Leave those names to... well musicians and artists! And if you do make your own music, as in produce tunes on a DAW, then Producer is a perfectly apt description. Speaking of which, the Cape Town Electronic Music Festival in Cape Town that took place end of March (last edition’s cover feature) left me beaming from ear to ear with the talent that this country has on offer. What made it special? A large dose of the music was performed by.... wait for it.... DJs; but DJs who can comfortably call themselves Producers too since the music was their own. To be honest, whilst the DJs that played other people’s music toiled hard and some did better than others, it was the guys that performed their own stuff that really stole the show! Original, world-class, intriguing, phat! Just some of the superlatives that spun around my head when watching the likes of Haezer, Felix Laband, Black Coffee, Sibot, Mr. Sakitumi, Fletcher (in Dub) and Goldfish (their most underground set ever heard) play. Now, lemme address the obvious. We have a lady DJ on the cover!!! And a damn sexy one at that. (Stop being lecherous, Dave!). Unbelievably, and not by design, Zinhle is only our second lady DJ we’ve ever featured on our cover, the first being Lady Lea many years back. Personally I think it rocks and DJ Zinhle is a great example of why we do BPM Magazine. In 2005 she wrote to us as a wide-eyed ‘newbie DJ’ who was starting out and had also just discovered our magazine. Today she is on our cover and certainly deserves to be. You go gal!!! Winters coming. Time for DJs to stop pretending to be musicians and get into the studio and become the next best thing – Producers! Peace and out. DAVE MAC Editor-in-Chief

CONTRIBUTORS: Thomas Whitebread, Dave Mac, Terri Love, Lois Siddhu, Mary Honeychild, Damien Albetto, Charlie & Tony - Hemporium, Pedro from AfrodesiaMP3, Paul & Peter - Tuerk Music, Chris & Clint - Audiosure, Riqardo Neves, Marcel Zandberg, Beatarmy, Seeka, , David Maclean, Heather Mennell, Dave Skinz. The Little Misfit, Malu Lambert, Nathan Kabingesi, Tendai Luwo, Mickdotcom, David Maclean & Fletcher Beadon.

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INTERACT

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BPM Fan Page Messages PIONEER DDJ-ERGO COMPETITION Winner - Wesley RedBot Bissolati I’m so excited for 10 am, good luck to all, Thanks again Pioneer DJ SA and BPM Mag for this opportunity. I really appreciate everyone who supported me with likes, comments and shares. This competition will definitely change the style and performance of my DJ career. What an inspiring competition. Wesley RedBot Bissolati Omw !!!!!!! Thank you so much pioneer and BPM MAG!!!!! Warren Schluter 20 minutes to go!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH the suspense!!!!!!! Pioneer Dj South Africa BPM Mag --> You really know how to make a person anxious!!!! BIG UPS!!!!!! DDJ-ERGO DJ Controller FOR THE WIN!!!!! Treveshan Yang Naidoo Powerful, portable, Pioneer three words I'd use for the DDJ ERGO. With the use of Serato software which is widely used in pro DJ set ups will allow me to hot cue, loop & scratch digitally blowing the crowds minds with world class FX. The simple yet stylish design of the ERGO will allow me to play seamless mixes & not skip a beat with Pioneer world Class sound capacitors. Isaac Luck Mahlangu WHAT A BEAUTY! USB-based midi controller that works with Mac systems, has a wealth of onboard audio, input & output options, Good layout for basic mixing & has a notably unique look. It’s hard not to be enthralled! As an aspiring DJ, never did I expect playing to be this fun, easy & trendy! Kershree Kisten - Whopa!!! I was the 10000 FAN :D!!!!! Psytrance Eastern Cape - Some love from the wacky woods and Eastern Cape psy family! Le Roux De Bruin - Shot for an always educational read.. Article on sHiFt was decent!! Allstar Beatarmy - This is how long we have been reading BPM! {pic of old BPM mags} Gurusbuda Hlatshwayo - Just got da latest copy guyzs. I must admit you keep on upgrading each and every time. Keep on expressing art in many different ways. Thanks for updating us with the latest sound systems. BIG UP :-) Mark Mansfield - Thanx Guys I got my latest edition in the post. It's the best mag. Nytxpress Molefe - Wow I never knew a mag can change my present, thanks BPM mag for giving me all info and updates I need.

Abongile George MrGdeep - Hey BPM, I must say the education page is awesome, am learning something new because of you guys. Big ups!!!!!!!! Much Love!!!!!!!!!! Djl Laden - big up to the great mag you have guys Ndumiso So-Pitch - thanx I got my BPM mag, good stuff inside Luvuyo Deejay Best Magagula - Thanx again team BPM 4 another fantastic issue!! U guys RoCk! Sivuyile Wise Lehoko - Cape Town it’s the Place to be Forever Young! Music has been welcome with arms open wide and I will never miss this upcoming Electronic Event otherwise it’s the First one to bring all Music Genres under one Roof. And I'm very lucky to be in this beautiful City full of inspirations beyond measures! KEEPFILTHY - We love BPM Mag! BIG FOOT (Official) - BIG UP TO THE BPM Mag POSSE - see you Friday! Skymorgenne Ever-Wings Wolmarans - thank you so much for my tickets to Brickfields! Here's to more Awesome memories with great people! Woop woop! Blake Kieran Foster - received my copy of BPM ! Such a sick issue this month ! --- #iloveBPM Thabo-Vincent Mathata Raphahlelo-Mafela - A great magazine indeed, BPM mag that's what it is! Though it would be even greater if the waiting period for the next issue was a bit shorter, maybe make it every fort night, or monthly. It’s a great read, good for learning your way around the virtual studio, and a hip way to know what's happening around us. I BPM mag Bigg Joel Baloyi - Best Mag....you guys must host an award show for all house heads out there...biggupz to you guys. Cara Morris - BPM Mag, my world, you rock it! Thank you for giving me a chance to rock my tutu at Masqued Ball 2012 this weekend!!!!!! WHEEEEEEEEEE Ndumiso So-Pitch - thanx I got my BPM mag..gud stuff inside Bongani Chehore House music is all about, love, happiness and all sort emotions. Deep house Speaks to you without using too many words. Soulful house speaks to the inner you. Afro-house remind me that Africa is the home of the drum. I love house bcoz I am house.

www.bpmlife.co.za Where the beat lives on...

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Cover Feature By Tendai Luwo

My Name is...

DJ ZINHLE outh African house music and DJs continue to grow and shine, but some stars stand out undoubtedly brighter than the rest, and Her Majesty, DJ Zinhle is one such shining star. Youthful, talented and driven, a lot has happened in the life of this sexy DJ since we featured her in our 5 Mins... column last year March. Tendai had the chance to pull her out of her hectic schedule and find out what new heights she has reached since...

From your humble beginnings back in 2004 you have now grown into a formidable force in the music

industry, how does it feel to have come this far? I am trying to take it all in, one day at a time. I do however feel that there is a lot that I need to do and achieve, when I look back at how far I have come, to me it only looks like the beginning. Did you ever think that one day you would be where you are now? And what kept you going? I am really not sure how to measure the success but I can see that a big change has happened and that I have grown. I am very humbled by how far I have come. I am a planner and a hard worker, I am passionate and dedicated to what I do but what has kept me going is the support I get from my brother Zakhele and my mentor Oskido. Your hit single My Name Is has taken the airwaves and dancefloors by storm. What was the concept behind the making of the track? Well, originally the song was just an instrumental and Maphodisa and I were sure that it was complete without any vocals. Oskido felt that it needed a vocalist; he then invited Busiswa, who took it to the level of celebrating woman power. You were recently in Miami for the 2012 Winter Music Conference, how was that trip and what were the highlights? This was my third trip to Miami, but this year was the biggest year for me personally. The song My Name Is was being played everywhere in Miami and I just felt overwhelmed and proud. Louie Vega dubbed it “the song of Miami 2012” and that for me is an achievement I will always cherish. Oskido was there and hearing him say how proud he was of me made this experience complete.

Fuse Academy [a DJ Academy dedicated to teaching lady DJs] is your other baby, how has that venture turned out over the years? We are 3 years old now and we are growing stronger, the school has established itself and we are now top of mind for a lot of females who want to learn how to DJ. Do you think the DJ industry is still full of misconceptions about female DJs? Not anymore, DJs are DJs now, no gender issues, ladies have made their mark and are finally being accepted. Having been mentored by DJ Fresh amongst others, do you now have a young mentee of your own? I am currently busy with a project called “S.H.E” which stands for Sassy House Experience; here I mentor up and coming female DJs. I am using the experience that I have to help them grow in the industry. Miss Pru has been under my wing for a bit now and she is part of S.H.E; seeing her grow in the industry makes me so proud. Over the years in your musical career, what has been your fondest memory? Miami definitely takes the spot. What next can we expect from DJ Zinhle? The music video for My Name Is. Lastly, is there still hope for all those boys out there who stare at your posters on their bedroom wall, or has Her Majesty now found her King? There is still hope, I am single and ready to mingle… lola!

Follow Zinhle on Facebook: Simply search DJ Zinhle.

“The song ‘My Name Is’ was being played everywhere in Miami and I just felt overwhelmed and proud. Louie Vega dubbed it ‘the song of Miami 2012’ and that for me is an achievement I will always cherish.”

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Cover Feature

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The Little Misfit

COLUMNIST By The Little Misfit

“It takes a lot more than simply talent to get noticed. You have to be able to read your audience, and give them what they never knew they wanted.” reatively, we live in an interesting time. A wannabe producer can put together a track in five minutes opposed to the team of people and instruments required 20 years ago. Music isn’t played, it’s edited. For example, if a band records a song, and the guitar riff is off, the guitarist doesn’t necessarily play until he gets it right, instead it can be cleaned up in a program. And, it’s not about just software; artists simply need a broadband connection to make their work public. On the plus side this means that skilled producers can make their music accessible, by-passing the traditional process of going through a label. The downside, however, is that absolutely anyone with big dreams can shop out their musical Frankenstein. There’s no way to filter the good, the bad and the ugly. Talented and unique EDM acts drown in a scene flooded with commercial noise; an apparent, and topical, side effect of the digital democracy. This may be true, but it’s not particularly new. The masses have always set the agenda for what’s popular, and in turn, what’s mediocre. But what’s worse is that these days the audience also believes they’re the artist; half the punters at a gig have Cubase at home and think they can do a better bass line, or indeed every second person is a blogger, a photographer… you get the picture (uploaded and shared). How are people expected to appreciate talent when, after all, they themselves are the next big thing? The cynical truth is - most people don’t have the talent, and are just in danger of spreading mediocrity. Veterans of the scene are often guilty of moaning about ‘educating the kids,’ and ‘appreciating the performance of the artist’. Hold it right there. Since when did dance music become a spectator sport? We go to gigs, festivals, and parties because we want to dance, drink, and see our friends, not for a lesson. There is nothing more tedious than being educated on something that’s meant to be fun. It’s sheer vanity to make music for ‘arts-sake,’ and not for an intended audience. But, if art is the intention, well

Praying the dancefloor moves with you seldom works

DANCE

Democracy

then, the producer can’t have his bread buttered on both sides: no truly great artist’s ambition is to be popular, that would be oxymoronic. The real talent, in my eyes, is being skilled enough to play the balancing act; by producing music that not only delivers to a dance floor, and gets it jumping, but being able to do it with an original, cutting-edge sound. There are DJs who do this well, and it’s not easy; they kill their darlings, re-work their tracks - it’s a lot more involved than slapping together a discordant sum of notes and labeling it art. The producers who complain that ‘the kids just want it hard’, and ‘have no musical taste’ are looking for an excuse. Sure, there are plenty of acts who are doomed to twiddle dials on the fringes of obscurity - but the same can be said for any creative industry. It takes a lot more than simply talent to get noticed. You have to be able to read your audience,

and give them what they never knew they wanted. Dance music, and especially the fringe stuff, is transient; hype today and gone tomorrow. Ground-breaking, scenechanging tracks are enduring, and will live on in the shaping and forming of the EDM scene itself, but never as a sole entity: the technology moves faster than the music. Yes, we are living in an interesting time, but that doesn’t mean we’ve changed the way we find music: we channel our choices through peers and chosen media. The classic mix tape that exchanged hands is now a YouTube link, but the spirit of sharing and uncovering great music is still very much here, and we ignore the noise - just as we’ve always done. And the artist? Well, if you’re not getting the props you want - you’re doing it wrong.

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MUSIC NEWS BPM Reports

ALL THE LATEST CLUB & DANCE MUSIC NEWS FROM SA AND AROUND THE WORLD... Looking for daily club and dance music news? Check out our daily lifestyle blog @ BPMLife.co.za

Moshito 2012 - Call For Showcase Submissions The music industry is experiencing extraordinary transformation both locally and internationally. Many factors such as globalization, mergers and acquisitions, competition from traditionally non-music companies, and technological innovation are forcing companies to re-think and re-align their business strategies. The premier music conference and exhibition in Africa, Moshito programmes its conference with invaluable insights, emanating from right here at home, across the continent and globe. The annual conference programme offers credible business intelligence on pressing international and national issues, allowing members of the South African music industry to make informed business decisions. Moshito is calling for experts in their fields to participate as part of the programme in the 9th Annual Moshito Conference & Exhibition, taking place from the 5th - 7th September 2012 at the Sci-Bono centre in Newtown. The conference will take in a range of themes including: 1. Socio-economic development (e.g. social security for artists, the rights and status of artists, performers, composers, policy development, SME development, skills development) 2. Industry challenges (e.g. licensing, piracy, copyright laws) 3. New markets (exploring a "how to" for our artists and products to energise national, continental, international, digital and performance circuits and linked events) 4. Technology (investigating the latest trends in technology available to operators in the music industry, honing in on how these can benefit artists, musicians and SMEs) 5. Live Music (establishing and / or enhancing performance circuits through festival and live venue circuits for the benefit of our artists) Papers should be submitted to content@moshito.co.za by no later than 15 June 2012. For further information, please contact the Moshito office on +27(0)11 838 9145

Mr. Cee's Single ‘Pain' a global hit South African DJ, producer Molefe “Mr. Cee” Mmakola and House music label head of BlackWhole Entertainment, is riding high on the international scene with his latest single Pain. The hypnotic track, which features talented acts MindGames, Abicah Soul, Rocco and Alex Finkin, is selling fast on Traxsource, one of the biggest online music stores for house music. Mr. Cee says he was working on his album Once You Go Black when he met MindGames members, Charlie Khoza and Bobby Makhanya. They got to work on the lyrics of the track, dealing with the dynamics of relationships. Pain then got remixed by DJ Veany, with whom Mr. Cee has collaborated for five years, alongside Chicago legend Abicah Soul. Rocco and Alex Finkin were also involved in the project.

Christina Ryat is the latest LA producer to be brought under Flying Lotus' wing This June, Brainfeeder will release Totem, the next album from the West Coast artist Ryat. Cristina Ryat (pronounced "riot") is a producer, multiinstrumentalist and singer from Philadelphia, now based in LA, just like the majority of the Brainfeeder stable. She first appeared last year with Avant Gold, a self-released, digital-only album that established a boldly experimental sound, led by her own distinct vocals. Totem continues on the same tip. According to a press release, every song on the album "represents a different spirit animal, each with a message translated through [her] experimentation with unusual sound signatures." You can stream or download the third track, Howl.

Details have emerged for Sound Signature Sounds Vol. 2, a new collection of mostly old tracks by Detroit luminary Theo Parrish

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MUSIC NEWS

The compilation comes twelve years after the first Sound Signature Sounds, which was reissued in 2008. It focuses mostly on Parrish's catalogue throughout the '00s, culling tracks from his own 12-inches on his boutique label, Sound Signature, though there's also one Three Chairs tune from '97 (Rain for Jimmy) and one previously unreleased song called Didn't Pay Dues. Sound Signature Sounds Vol. 2 will be available only as a limited edition CD. It's expected to have shipped on 20 April.

Astrix

DJ Nkokhi's new SAHA Vol. 2 release DJ/Producer/remixer Nkhoki, and headhoncho at Dojob Records, releases his latest South African House Anthems compilation Volume 2 on Mofaya records. He compiles the freshest House jams on yet another proudly Mzansi compilation. After the success of SAHA Volume 1, Mofaya delivers the follow up of another amazing release on the South African House Anthems series, distributed by Baainar Records.

Astrix, a DJ MAG top 100 DJ since 2005, is back in full swing after a lengthy hiatus when he suffered back problems for a prolonged period of time. He has just released a new episode of his free download mix sessions – Trance for Nations 009 which is available on his Soundcloud page http://soundcloud.com/astrix-official. Soon he’ll be releasing a new Digital EP called Vicious Cycles, as well as an official Trance for Nations - Various Artists compilation. Also in the pipeline for 2012 is a remix album with tributes from all the hot and relevant producers on the current scene who will be reworking all his greatest hits. He is also hard at work on his 4th studio album to be released in 2013. This year’s tour schedule is pretty jam-packed too with the UK's Godskitchen, Denmark and Russia all lined up and mega tours planned for Japan, India, Brazil and Mexico. He will also be debuting in Argentina, Poland and Croatia this year plus headlining club nights in UK, Greece, Sweden, Korea and Switzerland. Fans will no doubt be excited to know that Astrix is back in full swing and can look forward to hearing loads of music from this top trance producer. Check out his DJ Chart on Pg. 50 to see the latest tracks he has been spinning. SA promoters: time to get Astrix back to SA maybe? Visit Astrix at www.facebook.com/astrixOfficial

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Crazy White Boy

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Feature

roving that sarcasm (the duo) and soulful groovy beats (their music) can live in harmony, Ryan Murgatroyd and Konstantinos “Kosta” Karatomoglou have hit the big time with their catchy dancefloor friendly tunes. Having met at the Soul Candi Institute of Music, where Ryan was lecturing and Kosta a student, the two have gone on to form one of the most distinct and appealing sounds under an equally distinct and appealing name: Crazy White Boy. Not content with a SAMA nomination for record of the year, or having the fastest chart-climber in 5FM history with their single Love You Better ft. Ruegroove, the group has spun their unique brand of “ghetto tech” all over Europe and worked with international labels like Toolroom Records and Ministry of Sound amongst others. Nathan Kabingesi caught up with the boys just before they jetted of to Europe to chat about the meaning of ghetto tech, being big in Canada and the release of their first studio album, Zoma:

I smell a story behind the name…? RM: There are some things that should remain a mystery…. You describe your sound as ghetto tech, what does that even mean? KK: Ghetto is the term we use to describe its roots and tech is just the closest genre we could link it to. It just sounds the way it does and the name suits it. What were some of your (individual) early musical influences? KK: Well for me it starts as early as Phil Collins and from there it evolved from Daft Punk to early German techno. Music that influenced CWB directly would be Booka Shade, Patrick Chardronnet, Stimming, Robert Babicz…. RM: Kosta wanted to say Michael Jackson but he is dead and he gets OCD about that stuff. Don’t believe that Phil Collins cover up for a second.

There’s no small amount of 90’s Kwaito elements in your productions; if you could work with any of the OG artists from that period, who would it be? RM: Okay, you caught us, we’ve been using a Tkzee drumloop in every release since White Men Can’t Dance, sometimes we turn it up, sometimes down, but it’s always there, always, [laughs]. What production tools do you prefer using? RM: Most of the CWB stuff starts off in Reason, where we write chord structure and play with the groove a bit and when it starts to gel together it all goes out in midi to Cubase. From there things get a little more technical. We use Omnisphere a lot, in my opinion it is the most unique sounding synth in the world and really organic which is refreshing. And then its all about the right mix – we gain structure a lot, take everything down to a nice low level before we run any compression or EQ on it. We use a lot of Sonnox and even some of the older Waves plugins for basic vocal processing and Eqing. We went through a phase where we used to sum everything in analogue – bounce stems out and take them into the SPL mixdream, sum them, and record them back in through a good DA converter. It made a huge difference – that’s what we did with Love You Better, and that track translated perfectly on every single system we ever played it on. So ja, summing is really important too. KK: Boobs! Having just released your first album, Zoma. Is crossover appeal something you work towards or is it a passive result of your artistic inclinations? RM: I think CWB is a cool opportunity for us to explore our deeper, groovier, artistic leanings. Also, because it’s not what we as individual producers

work on every day, we put vocals down on CWB tracks that we would never use in our individual productions. Sometimes, it helps to not be so judgemental about what is cheesy and what is ‘underground’, you kinda have to in order to make songs, as opposed to tracks. KK: I think the crossover appeal is ‘cos we really draw influence from a lot of different styles, and we put them together, with good vocal hooks, and that’s it. Your sound is easily recognisable without being generic, contrasting Love You Better and The Forgotten People for example; do you approach/tailor each track with an end product in mind or is it a more spontaneous sort of process? KK: It is purely spontaneous, especially in the beginning it all started out as Ryan said with a chord progression or as a drum groove. Love You Better was a session that Ryan had made in class as a project for example….. which later became a full track. The Forgotten People was actually engineered by Behr Ellips a very talented producer from Cape Town- you should look him up; we just gave the track a rework more than a collab. The last year or so we have been experimenting a lot more with groove patterns basically making the drum tracks a lot more intricate.

“We ONLY play our own productions in our DJ sets/live performances. Until we’re really drunk, and then sometimes things get confusing.” Best (or worst) times/places for brainstorming? RR: That is the toughest part; inspiration can come at any time and sadly most of the time it can be difficult to just start writing so we have loaded up both our Macbooks with everything running in our studio. What fuels you during marathon studio sessions? RM: Shhh, I hear narcs... Do you play a lot of your own productions in your DJ sets? RM: We ONLY play our own productions in our DJ sets/live performances. Until we’re really drunk, and then sometimes things get confusing. With gigs all over the country and the amount of time you spend in the studio, do you still have time for your projects outside of CWB (Electric Sushi etc.)? RM: Yeah, we have gotten pretty good at time management. I still work very closely with the Soul Candi Institute of Music, as their Educational Director, and Kosta and I both produce music under other aliases. You went on a European tour last year and you’re about to head out again. What’s your verdict on these tours? RM: Its tough playing overseas until you are REALLY well known. Our first tour had some amazing moments, and some very challenging ones too. But we played 20 gigs, and we returned a lot wiser, and that experience translated into a clearer idea of what we wanted and didn’t want to do with the

album, and in general, in terms of the future of CWB. The biggest lesson from overseas is that, despite the proliferation of soulless, intentionally generic housepop rubbish into commercial club-land, there are still small pockets of highly educated house music lovers who want to hear new, fresh, and authentic sounds. And we’re gonna keep working until we’re playing the right venues, the right sound systems, and the right crowds, all the time. KK: Europe has actually kind of become our second home and we are currently on our 40th odd gig here this weekend. Did you pick up on any shifts in music trends/tastes while over there? RM: Yeah we LOVE David Guetta now.

17 | BPM

Feature

By Nathan Kabingesi

You’ve had your music released on some pretty influential international labels, has this helped raise your profile overseas? RM: It has definitely helped us; the bottom line is in this day and age DJing just isn’t enough. Production is the way into Europe and the rest of the world with good support from labels. Apart from promoting your new album, what’s next for Crazy White Boy? CWB: We will be shooting the Zoma video soon and after that we will be doing album tours and a lot of other little surprises on the way! Scan this tag to listen to the title track from their album, Zoma on your Smartphone.

You’ve had chart success in Portugal and Canada of all places; any countries you’ve been surprised to find your music being well received? KK: London is somewhere where we didn’t really expect to work in but have already started gigging here and it has been really well received. People know all the words to some of our tracks and that is truly a blessing. Get the free mobile app for your phone

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For trade enquiries or to find your closest retailer call: Tel: 011 250 3280 | www.hybrid.co.za or luis@hybrid.co.za | marco@hybrid.co.za | bernard@hybrid.co.za

20 | BPM

INTERVIEW

By Mickdotcom poek Mathambo, like his mysterious moniker, is very much out there, and at the same time very grounded, of the earth. Grooving to the tunes on his latest album Father Creeper (for it’s difficult material to merely listen to – as cerebrally engaging as it is, the cranium can’t help bopping, and as Master [George] Clinton decreed, “.. your ass will follow,”) it takes some time to realize that much of the sense and scenes you’re getting down to are in fact decidedly ominous. Mathambo renders the sputtering ghosts and ashen hues behind the façade of the Rainbow Notion, but renders it - the blood and decay - into helplessly swinging hips. In fact, he cleverly inverts George Clinton’s famous line into something like ‘Free your ID, and your mind will follow.’ His musicality is just as trixy. Very much a Hip-Hop head (he started rapping at ten, and in high school edited and distributed his own underground Hip-Hop magazine), Mathambo is most associated with cutting edge, Hip-Hop fronted dance music. His first blip on the radar was his positively sunny contributions to Watkin Tudor Jones’ The Fantastic Kill project and album, his raps lending bright relief to Waddy’s more sinister deliveries, via tracks like Bang On The Drum. His next two projects were all-out Electro, with his raps fronting beat & glitch maestros Markus Wormstorm in Sweat.X, and Sibot in Playdoe. Today Spoek’s still mostly filed in the promiscuous Dance realm of sonics, while his band reads more like a Punk-Funk outfit – Drums, Electric guitar, and horns. It helps that said instrumentation is inflected by, nay, infected with sophisticatedly crunchy bass & beats, and deliciously pixilated ambience.

SPOEK

MATHAMBO and the crush of ghosts

So here we have a live groove band of the most dangerous kind. One that lingers in the mind long after the dance floor reverie has ended... long after the body comes to rest. With lyrics that seep into one’s sleep.

The Creeping Father There is a watershed separating Mathambo’s increasingly successful work as side-, wing- and frontman, and his new realm as self-governing musical artist. Following Sweat.X and Playdoe’s minor ripples in greater ponds, Mathambo has been featured as rapper/vocalist on several successful dance/remix tracks spanning continents. But with debut solo album Mshini Wam, Mathambo tasted authorial identity. The stylistic shift is significant. Spoek Mathambo, the band, comprises many elements. From gifted childhood and high school friends, to seethingly talented musicians he got to know locally and from “making inroads internationally”, the Mathambo fold is essentially a Family of contributors. A collaborator at heart – true to his approach of the music sounding “how we feel it, in the moment” – Spoek is now in the delicious position of surrounding himself with a variety of talented and complementary artists, as opposed to playing a vital role in someone else’s board game. “My big thing is just to celebrate people who I admire and others who have also supported me. I think of it as resources: Having these people who don’t just pull their weight you know? Who end up being a big part of the personality of the given project.”

What be the ghost of Bones BPM: You seem to prefer a sort of a scruffiness, a bit of asymmetry to your sound, especially on Father Creeper, compared to the sort of clean-cut precision many bands go for? “We just tend to do things the way we

do them, the way we see them, vibe them, you know what I mean? That’s how we enjoy it. That’s one side. The other side is we do a lot of D.I.Y - a lot of rough sounds so that’s the way it comes out. I think with time things will change – grow and develop. But this is where it’s at now.” BPM: In your tracks, I get a feeling like there’s a crush of ghosts, wandering the pavements and clubs and alleys. As if your songs prefer a menagerie of passing characters rather than the usual singular hero or protagonist? “I guess in a sense. That’s the one side of it, the other side is just sort of storytelling from a lot of different characters’ perspectives, but, at the same time I would say that [Father Creeper] is a lot more personal than any other project I’ve been involved in, and for the most part [the songs] are first person narratives.” BPM: You seem to be not as judgmental as a lot of other artists are. You celebrate the power of love and growth, on the one hand, but also the power of disruption and decay. As if you celebrate life in all its shades and angles? “Yeah. But I think that’s just about honesty, y’know? It’s not just my perspective but also the inner working of a sort, from beginning to end. Not ‘This is the negative’ and ‘That’s the positive’. On [Father Creeper’s] We Can Work it’s all the different things I’ve gone through in my life. From being a little kid up to now. And not just representing one side of it, which I think is a dishonest, self-righteous approach. I talk about my uncle, and about doing various [arbitrary] jobs.. and just what it’s like to be young and having that.. Dream [chuckles] – Y’know? You’re young and irresponsible, making decisions that don’t involve bills that have to be paid. There’s a lot of stuff that.. my 16-year old self wouldn’t like to do, that I have to do to pay the bills now.”

21 | BPM

INTERVIEW

On emancipation and anchor BPM: ‘Spoek Mathambo’ translates as ‘Ghost of bones’, and I’ve heard it’s a kinda derogatory phrase, where’s it come from? What is Spoek Mathambo? “Kind of a couple of different routes. I wrote a story when I was just finishing high school and the character’s name was Spoek Mathambo. I got that name from this local sit-com which was just my favourite sit-com at the time, someone in there said it. I’ve really had a lot of rap names, like, Scientific rap names – I’ve been rapping since I was ten, and I’d be going through dictionaries, reading through the pages looking for names [chuckles]. With Spoek I just wanted something irreverent, something funny. As my sound has become a lot darker – If you said Spoek Mathambo five years ago it wouldn’t have the same meaning it has now – its meaning and connotations have shifted. Like it’s become Self-Actualizing y’know?”

“We just tend to do things the way we do them, the way we see them, vibe them, you know what I mean? That's how we enjoy it...”

BPM: Who is Father Creeper dedicated to? “It’s dedicated to everyone who worked on it, yeah. It’s dedicated to a lot of my family, who’ve been very supportive... It’s a big, big milestone in my professional career. Not necessarily career-wise but in the sense of all the skills I’ve picked up. Yeah it’s dedicated to ME [laughs].” Outside of being a mind-fudging work that mysteriously gets you down and boogying, Father Creeper is most significant as a celebration of intellectual freedom.. and the emancipation of hips. Dig in.

[See my review of Father Creeper on page 42]. Checkout the Father Creeper album trailer by scanning this tag on your Smartphone. Photo: Sean Metelerkamp

Get the free mobile app for your phone

http:/ / gettag.mobi

22 | BPM

FEATURE By Heather Mennell

Orbital Return

British electronic icons come full circle

n one way, my interview with Orbital’s Phil Hartnoll was every journalist’s nightmare, a bad line kept dropping and ten calls later we had only managed to assemble a fifteen minute conversation. There I was talking to half of one of Britain’s most influential electronic bands and, ironically, technology was sabotaging me. But the warm voice on the other end revealed a healthy sense of humour and down-to-earth enthusiasm. “As soon as I heard a synthesizer I thought, ‘that is the thing for me!’” he says, reflecting on his early days. “As an artist you emulate what you get excited about, and try to express yourself in that sort of way”. In case you don’t know, Orbital are living legends. Touted as ‘the grandmasters of English electronica’, Orbital can lay claim to half a dozen legitimate classics including 1990’s hit single Chime and Halycon (a track that any 90’s teenager will recall ecstatically). Their pioneering music surfaced at a time when electronic music as we now know it was beginning to emerge through the foundations of early rave, Hi-NRG, disco, indie and punk. When the brothers ‘joined forces’ in 1989, rave’s second wave was in full effect and reaching its tipping point. But despite their substantial oeuvre, it was Orbital’s incendiary live performances that turned them into icons. Their legendary set at Glastonbury 1994 was a precursor to the festival’s Dance Tent which soon expanded into the Dance Village. The brothers Hartnoll challenged the idea that live electronic acts were boring and static on stage. Orbital proved that electronic music could be just as riveting and improvisational on stage as rock. Their return to the stage— 5 years after their 2004 split - proved to be the catalyst in their reformation and brand new album, Wonky. “We got asked to do a reunion gig for 2009’s Big Chill festival” explains Phil, “the huge, warm response to our gigs encouraged us to carry on touring and two years later we thought, ‘either

we must stop doing it or write some new music’. We can’t be doing reunion gigs all the time!” he laughs. “So, essentially, we did the album to inject some new music into our live sets”. Not satisfied to keep touring with a ‘Greatest Hits’ set, Orbital returned to the studio and crafted new material. “Obviously we get influenced by current trends. Our current album has been influenced a lot by Dubstep – with that big fat bass. We love all that. The track Beelzedub started as a live remix of one of our earliest tracks Satan and people responded so well to it. There are so many sounds around us that we love to pull together and play with.” he says. Of course a ‘come-back’ is risky business. In a career made up of so many anthemic moments, surely there must be pressure involved in producing new material? But according to Phil, “There was no pressure at all. It was a natural progression from doing all our live gigs. There was no record deal, no people breathing down our necks or anything like that. And to be honest, we’ve just done what we do and kept our fingers crossed and hope people like it. And it’s the most wonderful thing when they do. That’s the pay off, really”, he says. It seems that their split brought both rejuvenation and retrospection, “Now that we’ve had this opportunity - rekindled our enthusiasm and got back together, I’ve tried to make a conscious effort to take it all on board, because it all went by so fast”, he says “you end up chasing your tail, instead of realising where you are. We’ve had a wonderful career and now

we’re getting on a bit - so I’m definitely living in the now, rather than the future - which is what you tend to be doing. You live life thinking ‘What’s next? What’s next?’ instead of in the present”. And it’s right in the present that you find Orbital but in a way they’re doing what they’ve always done: merging exciting elements into their inimitable Orbital sound. They have faced the ‘come-back’ challenge head on (or more accurately, head-torches on) and it’s good to have them back. Check out Heather’s review of their new album Wonky on Pg. 42.

24 | BPM

There’s no rest for psytrance producers Kieron Grieve and Carl Sharples; two albums, a record label launch, and an outdoor festival – all in one weekend

Feature By Malu Lambert

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

ieron Grieve is staggeringly tall. So much so, that the espresso cup in his hand looks comical, like a giant at a children’s tea party. We’re chatting at Obz Café in Observatory, Cape Town; an inner city suburb populated with punks, hippies and students (astutely etched onto the front door is a sign saying ‘no bare feet’). He’s known as Rubix Qube as well as Biorhythm in the psy world; the latter a collaboration with Carl Sharples of dark psy project, Luna. ‘The Village presents Spiritual Synaesthesia’ (April 20 – 22) is the launch party for the duo’s first hardcopy album, Divine Geometry, and is also the launch of the newly founded Village Records, which is behind the release itself. Carl was meant to join us today, but instead he’s knee deep in lumo helping set up the party. “I’ve been here for the last two weeks, 18 hours a day, just blasting,” he tells me later over the phone. Carl is one of the four founders of the brand. The Village throws two events per summer season, and has grown in numbers and support. “It catches you off guard. You never know how many people are going to come, and the numbers can sometimes really surprise you! With Village Records we’re taking the music into our own hands. It’s a platform we

can use to get the music out there.” Divine Geometry was written last winter. Inspired by the group’s gigs in Portugal, and more generally what ‘sounds kiff’ on the dance floor. Kieron describes it as ‘twilight music’ (not the vampire kind…). “It’s aggressive, percussion driven, yet melodic with loads of energy.” “We work well together creatively. I use Biorhythm as an excuse to do something I wouldn’t do in a solo project. I can be more flamboyant, and get away with it.” The two met while studying sound engineering and both are classically trained musicians; Kieron on guitar, Carl on drums. So, between them there’s loads of musical pedigree. “Carl used to come to class in his pyjamas, while I was there in my collared shirt,” Kieron laughs wryly. “We quickly became friends, and started Biorhythm.” Also being released at The Village is Rubix Qube’s first hardcopy album, Dark Continent. Comprised of eight tracks, six of which will be completely new. There’s a ninth too; a mix of seven tracks in ten minutes. “I’m into the comical side of death, like the movie The Nightmare Before Christmas, or The Mighty Boosh,” he says.“The album is loosely based on that concept, that, and machines…” Luna will soon have a release too. Carl, a recognisable face behind the decks (he has dreadlocks as long as

Kieron is tall), is set to release an EP early next season. “Luna’s sound is more relaxed than Biorhythm, which can be quite manic,” he says.“It’s chilled nighttime stuff without the noise.” Carl certainly has his head in the interstellar clouds. “I’m inspired by the stars and the universe,” he explains when I ask about the name Luna.“I love the mythical nature of it.” And Rubix Qube? “I only thought about it afterwards,” says Kieron a touch sheepishly. “The challenge of a Rubix Cube is completing the process, and once it’s done, it just sits on a shelf. My music is like that progression, never completed, always changing.” Kieron has a third project, Jam Jarr [featured in BPM Nov/Dec ‘11]. It’s a glitch-hop rap group that sees him behind the beats as Soundproof and Paul Stubbs aka Bakaman as the MC/ rapper. “Our first track we called Lasers and Vaginas,” he says laughing. To get your paws on both Divine Geometry and Dark Continent email:thevillagerecords@gmail.com. The online versions will be released in conjunction with Spectral Records from Portugal on 7 May. Keep an eye on www.spectralrecords.com for information on downloads. Check out reviews to both albums on PG 44.

26 | BPM

Exclusive Interview By Mary Honeychild ean Grae is an unrivalled New York Underground MC/ lyricist; she has been carrying the torch for female Rap artists since her début with the ‘Natural Resource’ crew in the mid-nineties. Her dad is the legendary South African jazz musician Abdullah Ibrahim. He had moved their family from Cape Town to USA in the early eighties during the apartheid era. On a late Saturday afternoon after her Friday evening performance at The Cape Town International Jazz Festival, I meet with her and her crew in the lounge area of the upmarket Pepper Club Hotel. It’s an interview that turns into an afternoon of laughs that leaves me glowing for days afterwards. Jean Grae [her real name is Tsidi Ibrahim] is an alias she adopted from the famous X-Men’s female hero character, Jean Grey. She is renowned for her confidence, strong delivery and intense live performances. We explore the root of this confidence; “My mom taught us to read very early. We started having conversations from a very young age so that encouraged confidence in us. As for my attitude, my extended family in Cape Town is a lot like me [laughs], I honestly think it’s a coloured thing. We are assholes! Even the amount of cursing, it seems so normal to me. I like saying the word motha’ fucka, it just feels so right coming off the tongue,” I find myself nodding as we share a chuckle. For all her fierceness and aggressive

JEAN GRAE “As for my attitude, my extended family in Cape Town is a lot like me [laughs] I honestly think it's a coloured thing.”

lyrics, Jean has been mistaken as lesbian time and time again but is quick to add that she is definitely straight. “I write songs about relationships and guys!” she states emphatically glancing over her very hip sunglasses. I’m interested in the fact that she uses her relationships as fuel for her music, intrigued by which ones are in her life right now. “I don’t keep anyone in my circle that I don’t consider absolute family. People who surround me are able to be around me. I don’t keep weak company.” Ironically relationships played an uncanny role in her performance at the jazz festival the previous evening. “So much went wrong. During the performance, in the middle of this intense song the wind blows the back of the stage in, nearly knocking out our drummer. I hadn’t performed that song in months because it’s so deeply personal to me. The person I wrote it about I hadn’t spoken to in a very long time and only called them that morning. Then, I finally perform it for you guys and that happens, it was way too strange.” The stage drama aside, I certainly enjoyed watching her perform which I assure her of. “Thanks, everyone seemed relaxed though; I noticed that the Cape Town crowd is pretty much like New York. I’ll tell you this, I’m so used to the dry sarcastic sense of humour we have going on in New York and I noticed that

it’s the same here. There are a lot a ‘cool kids’ hanging around like the photographers, the DJ’s or band members handing out demo's and mixes. Everybody is into something.” Okay, who doesn’t love New York? I’m super stoked that she compares the two cities, and I mentally high-five my home town. My focus isn’t to highlight the fact that she is a female rapper, but that she is a superb MC. I ask her what she thinks the responsibility of MC’s are… “Showcase your diversity and be as honest as possible, over-sexualising happens way too much with males and females. You know , go ahead be as sexy as you want, but don’t let it be your only draw card.” My curiosity for the unknown compels me to ask what, about the NYC Hip Hop Underground scene, would probably surprise the rest of the world. “Backpacks weren’t a style. We actually just had to carry our stuff around, we were kids. We are also not as polarised as we are made to seem. Underground artists chat to and often work with main stream hip hop artists too,” she laughs. Friendly New Yorkers? Go figure! Her recent album Cake or Death is out now and all discerning hip-hop fans should check it out. “I made a point of being as honest as possible with my music on this album. It will make you cry,” and again I find myself beaming in agreement.

28 | BPM

Artist Q 'n A By Mary Honeychild

Sean Tyas

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Festivals are great, and I have slowly started to love them more and more.â&#x20AC;?

29 | BPM

Artist Q 'n A rogressive Trance's very own, resident Swiss DJ, and owner of Tytanium Recordings, Sean Tyas heads to South Africa this June as part of his 2012 World Tour. He was awarded Mixmag's number eight spot in their 'Best New DJs Poll' in 2007, and also Beatport's 'One To Watch' in 2009. Sean is a firm favourite for any Euro-Trance lover, and is billed alongside the likes of Armin Van Buuren, Sander Van Doorn and Dash Berlin to name a few. We chat to him about what made his hit Lift so special, what it's like being a native New Yorker living away from home and the rumours he has heard about the party freaks in SA...

Lift is such a special track, even today, for many of your fans. Have you ever considered what it is about this track that seems to have touched so many people hearts? Simplicity. I am a super-huge advocate of very lush and complex harmonies and melodies. But there is seriously something to be said about just keeping the “less is more” focus. Melodically it tends to truly stick in one’s head. After it blew up, you must have been tempted to emulate it. Did you? Well Drop was the actual follow-up for it. Even though it was also really big for me, I feel I may have gone, like I said in the last question, a bit too complex. It didn’t have that “wake up in the morning and it’s the first thing I hear in my head” vibe. Having won Sander Van Doorn's 'Punk'd' remix competition back in 2006, how much would you say this impacted on your career? Very much so. Any high profile remix contest is always a huge thing to help with visibility in a very over-saturated business. But even more so, this was a huge confidence booster. I felt that I was capable of taking on the types of project work I got. What are some of the things you have personally learnt to keep in mind when doing remixes of other artists' tracks? It's just nice to not be “attached” to the elements of the original artist, and as a

result I feel no remorse to change things to my heart’s content. I try to preserve the vibe. But, if it's one of those situations where I didn’t like the vibe in the first place, then it’s a pleasure to challenge myself to see if I can get it to be something that I love and will play. You have played at some of EDM's biggest festivals, namely Ultra Music Festival, Dance Valley, the fairytale styled festival Tomorrowland and Mysteryland. How differently do you plan or shape your sets for playing a big festival like that compared to a club night at a Godskitchen or Gatecrasher event for example? Festivals are great, and I have slowly started to love them more and more. At first, I was more into the club vibe, with everyone much closer to you, it's more personal in a club. Now, I really do love playing for the tens of thousands at big festivals just as much because that explosion of energy is just ridiculous! What are some of your personal favourite dance floor-lifting tracks (those ones that come in after a long build-up in your set) that you love playing and have been playing for years? My remix of Paul Webster – Time, or even older, my remix of Legend B – Lost in Love. You are originally from New York. What made you decide to move to Switzerland when you did? I was chasing love of course. Actually I had moved to Germany first, to do studio work only, in 2004. I met my wife while I was there, visiting her friend in Cologne. After a while of long distance dating we decided to live together in Switzerland, which is where all her family is. Do you think you would ever move back to the States, considering that Dance music has really been taking off there over the last few years? One example I can think of, was your sold out Tytanium 100 week-end in June last year at Webstar Hall. I doubt it, at least for the foreseeable future. I’ve dug my heels in here pretty solidly in Switzerland. It would be very difficult to move back, just the logistics of it. I do love going back to play in the States of course, all of my old friends

and my family is still there. The beauty of it is that I get to visit them pretty often on extended stays. How often do you interact with your listeners on your popular 'Tytanium Sessions' radio show and by what means? Not always, but when I have the time, I will chat on Twitter while the show runs, and of course I allow anyone to submit shout-outs via my website. For quite a few weeks I actually allowed fans to vote for the track of the week on Facebook. Last week I cut that because I noticed some “questionable” accounts placing votes. Honesty and fairness don’t hold up very well these days! Club and big room Trance music seems to be the one consistent genre that never fades amidst a plethora of ‘new’ genres popping up regularly. What do you think it is about big room Trance that keeps it right up there all the time? It’s very digestible for any age. Even my parents love Trance, they come to the New York shows I play. The melodies, solid power and drive, plus the energy of the people at the show. What’s not to love? What one track or artist on your iPod/Pad/Phone would fans, and possibly friends be surprised to know you have? Some Brandon Flowers or Nine Inch Nails stuff. South Africa. You heard much about us down here? Heard you’re all unreal party people actually. Hope that’s true! Yes, Sean it’s true!

Catch the 'Sean Tyas - Tytanium Sessions' SA Tour: Fri 29 June | Durban at Origin www.origin.co.za Sat 30 June | Joburg at Truth Nightclub www.truthjhb.com

30 | BPM

SHOW US YOUR FACE!

“Lisa and Inge both pinched Tommy just to see if it would ruin his pouting pose” “and this ladies, is how you DJ without messing up the manicure.”

“Ok amateurs this is how you let your hair down at a party!”

“The gypsy led her villagers through the motions of the famous arm-pump dance.”

“We get it, you guys all have tongues.”

No DJ Mango, the crowd is the other way.

31 | BPM

Any time anyone tried to talk this guy, all he said was... “Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh!”

“Jimmy cleverly used his four willing and gullible friends as sunshade.”

“It's called 'Trance Meditation’.” “Dude! Do you smell that?!” PHOTOS BY:

facebook.com/thefreedomseekers

“This trio always sang their 'happy-shots-song' before downing 'em!”

Brought to you by www.bpmlife.co.za

Where the beat lives on...

Disclaimer: All names and comments made are purely fictitious and in no way are meant to be taken seriously.

32 | BPM

COLUMNIST By Tendai Luwo

2 is COMPANY,

The Deep End with Luo

25000 is a crowd… of DJs

“It has become increasingly difficult to cast a stone into a crowd and not hit a DJ.”

first realized I had super powers when I was about 6 years old. I had just finished watching Van Damme in Bloodsport when I noticed I could now defeat any stuffed teddy bear enemy with a simple round house kick to its fluffy temple. Sadly I lost these powers though around about the same time Mr. Van Damme stopped making action movies, although apparently I’m not alone. There have been several cases worldwide of little boys and girls who morphed into Japanese street racers, black guys break dancing in nightclubs or even better yet, white guys who can rap. And this all happened strangely around the same time Hollywood released a movie with a similar theme. But there is one occurrence that Hollywood can’t claim under its superpower bestowing belt and this is the art of DJ’ing. It has become increasingly difficult to cast a stone into a crowd and not hit a DJ. Some religious factions even believe there are more DJ’s than there are sinners in the world. And no one can explain why and at what point this sudden surge in disc jockey numbers occurred. But there are a few clues.

Internet and laptops are arguably at the top of the culprit list. The internet and growth in the technological realm has lead to easy and free access to music. Gone are the days where a DJ used to spend his time searching through crates of vinyls at his local music store or ordering the latest 12” EP by Frank Knuckles only to receive it via post 7 to 14 working days later. Now it only takes a Google search and uncapped internet bundle to build a comprehensive music collection in a matter of days if not hours. Once the aspiring DJ has acquired this music all they then have to do is then acquire Virtual DJ [software], which is also usually free, and they are almost ready to play. DJ software comes with sync buttons, so the first step to being a DJ which is beatmatching is already eliminated. Some even go to the extent of performing a smooth cross-fade on your behalf, all the DJ has to do is click and their will is done. Now in all honestly, technological advances are the norm in modern day society. Cars can now park themselves and iPhones talk back to you, but the question is, what is the effect on the DJ industry? Although anyone is free to choose their own career or hobby path, the large amount of overnight DJs has had a hugely negative effect on the culture. Firstly, DJs have never been up there with chartered accounts and lawyers when it comes to moral high

ground. We aren’t quite the black sheep in the family but we are pretty close to being the drunk uncle... but the caring drunk uncle, not a great amount of respect but still get invited to family dinners. So with this surge in numbers, of which in all honesty most of the new DJs tend to be below average when it comes to skill set, our credibility has been compromised further. We are taken less and less seriously as those on the outside view it as, “anyone can be a DJ”. Furthermore the issue of supply and demand then comes into play. Supply and talent has become heavily diluted, which in turn has resulted in a significant reduction in the earnings of the regular DJ. For someone that simply downloads his or her music via Google searches and acquired their laptop through parents for school purposes, this doesn’t affect them much. But there are DJs out there who still purchase all their music [online or otherwise] and call the craft their bread and butter; those are the DJs who have been hit the hardest. These overnight wannabes are usually more than willing to play for such paltry fees [if any fee at all] that a seasoned spinner who is accustomed to a set sustainable amount, can no longer compete. The scarier reality is that there is no clear end in sight. Every day a new star is discovered and 3 DJs are born. We can only hope that the fad and apparent star appeal of being a DJ blows over, hopefully leaving behind those whose hearts beat to the rhythm of the speakers.

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FUN STUFF We grab 5 minutes with some of our favourite DJ's and ask them... Well... Just about anything we feel like!!!

‘

5Mins with...

urban's Finest Lady' DJ Cndo was a resident DJ for thirteen episodes on the hit Dance show Jika Majika. The début of her first album Finest Lady of House Volume 1 made her the first black female DJ to release a House compilation in

1. If you could be any super hero character, you would be... Shera 2. Your worst habit is... Being late always, I'm never punctual. 3. What do you think is the most overrated virtue? Patience; if you want to make it no one will hand it to you. You have to hustle hard. 4. If you were an MC what would your aka name be? Miss Thang 5. You enjoy it most when people... Appreciate my work. 6. Your favourite thing to do when you know nobody's watching... Clean my nose. 7. The first thing you thought of when you woke up this morning? I need to pee. 8. What is the single piece of advice your parents gave you that has never left you? Pray before you do anything, and be thankful for every result. 9. What was your part time job while you were in high school/ college? While at college, I used to be a waiter at Spur. 10. You take approximately how long to get ready in the morning? Two hours or maybe three.

11. One thing you have learnt about yourself recently that has surprised you? I am so impatient and I panic if things don't go my way. 12. In one sentence describe the experience of being part of the Durban's Finest Family. One of best highlights of my life. 13. Your definition of House is... It's food for life. 14. What makes a man sexy in your opinion? His confidence, being smart and a little bit of ego will do. 15. What is the one thing you love most about being a female DJ in SA? You get more attention, and you are always the centre of attraction! 16. Being natural means... Being unique and being you, living you, not trying to impersonate someone else. 17. What has been your most absolute favourite place to gig at? Zimbabwe, 2011 New Years Eve. It was my first time spending New Years Eve away from home; I played for four hours. Twelve thousand people in a packed stadium. Best experience ever. I would do it again! 18. The best thing someone has ever come up to you and said at a gig? You're my inspiration.

DJ Cndo

South Africa. This début earned her a nomination for the 2007 'Metro FM Best Compilation Award'. Each year she followed this up with another in the series, her latest being Volume 4, out last summer [2011]. We did the 5 Mins boogie with her and here’s what she had to say.... 19. Your biggest regret purchase ever? A pair of Louis Vuitton sunglasses for R6,200 20. Being a DJ in modern society is like... In modern SA it's getting better all the time, it's reached celebrity status which makes it a viable career if you willing to put the work in. 21. The one song on your iPod that would surprise friends if they found it while scrolling through your playlist? Oliver Mtukudzi - Neria 22. Describe the Jika Majika set in three words. Fun, Funky, Fabulous.

23. What does the rest of SA not yet know about Durban House? It has an element of the Durban Kwaito sound and it rocks like Durban. 24. The South African Dance scene needs more... Originality, passionate and persistent artists proving that our SA guys rock!

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THE WINNER’S PAGE

SPECIAL FEATURE BPM REPORTS

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Pioneer Play Out More DJ Competition

et another fantastic competition from Pioneer DJ SA drew to a close last month as we gave away the awesome new DDJ-Ergo DJ controller to an ecstatic winner, Wesley ‘Redbot’ Bissolati. The handover took place at Frontline Sound & Lighting in Maitland. Look them up; they have an awesome range of DJ gear including all the latest from Pioneer DJ SA, and at decent prices too!

Wesley especially took the day off from work to spend it playing around with his new controller. Later that day all his friends were going to join him for a braai as he spun them some tunes on his sparkling new DDJ-Ergo. Name: Wesley

BPM Mag Editor, Dave Mac (left) and Marc Bongers (right) from Frontline hand over the DDJ-Ergo Controller to Wesley Bissolati (centre) at Frontline Sound & Lighting.

Bissolati

Nickname or DJ Name: RedBot Age: 23 City: Cape Town Occupation: Software support engineer DJ Style (Genre): Dubstep / Electronic 5 Words that best describe my DJ style are: Funky,

Wobbly, Melodic, Entertaining and Electric Favourite SA DJ: Grimehouse & Pascal n Pearce Favourite International DJ: Skrillex & Deadmau5 Favourite Movie Star: Martin Lawrence, Johnny Depp and that freak on Hangover Favourite Movies: Pirates of the Caribbean, Hangover & the Disney Channel One international artist/band you’d love to see LIVE:

Green Day or Skrillex Favourite Food: Definitely Pizza, Pasta or a Boerewors Roll Favourite Saying/Quotations: Music is the platform in which I stand the pause is as important as the note Favourite club/parties: I love Festivals and outdoor events. Beach parties are awesome; Clubs, well the most exciting one I’ve been involved with are Stones, Café V and Cougar Lounge. I love BoB’s Place in town, Trinity, Fez and FTV.

Shout outs to: Firstly if it wasn’t for my dad (Luigi Bissolati) I would never have been introduced to DJing. I want to thank my darling Kimberly Dormehl for all her support in my love for DJing and producing over the years. The rest of my family for being there when I needed help with gigs and support. Lastly my awesome friends who put so much effort into helping me advertise this competition, I cannot explain how much I appreciate each and every one of you, all 84 people who liked my winning comment and all who shared, Tweeted and commented.

Thoughts on winning your new DDJ-Ergo: I actually can’t put all these thoughts into words. Other than winning a pencil for school, I’ve never won something so incredible in my life. When I saw the competition held by BPM Mag & Pioneer DJ South Africa, my heart dropped to the floor. I immediately fell in love with the Pioneer DDJ-ERGO; I Googled everything about this device and wanted it more than anything. I pushed myself everyday and made sure everyone I knew heard about this awesome competition. It’s an incredible device and I intend to make use of it wherever I go.

BEATARMY

DDJ-T1 DDJ-Ergo

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ALBUM REVIEWS

PASCAL & PEARCE - PASSPORT 2.0 SPECIAL EDITION (JUST MUSIC) <Electro House> Hot on the heels of their successful debut album, Passport, Pascal & Pearce return with this ‘Special Edition’ release aptly titled Passport 2.0. Aside from opening track, Beautiful Life with Yoav this 12 track album is made up exclusively of remixes mainly done by the duo as well as a handful of tracks from the original release that have been reworked by others. Showing off their remix skills the boys get a chance to sink their teeth into the likes of Martin Solveig ft. Dragonette on Big in Japan, Childish Gambino’s Heartbeat, Alex Kenji, Starkillers & Nadia Ali on Pressure, Robyn Banks ft. Bekuh Boom on You Can Find Me and LA Syndicate’s Levels on the international front as well as Locnville ft. Natasha Meister – Staring at the World Outside locally. With each remix P&P stamp their trademark electro twist. The last three tracks are all remixes of the duo’s tracks from their debut album with ESC doing a really interesting remix combo job on Paper Skies and Passport as one track! A kind of electro meets Dubstep mix. It works! Kyle Watson reworks Disco Sun into a glitch house stomper and Danalog closes the disc off with a sneaky minimal tech groover. Passport 2.0 will please fans of their first album with these tougher dancefloor ready stompers. Reviewed by Dave Mac

down Lele X remix of The Difference will have you shuffling around the room and singing offkey without a care in the world. If you aren’t on your feet by the time Hauke (Atjazz base elements remix) comes on then you definitely will be; there’s just something undeniable about the funky piano, incoherent vocals and that signature Atjazz off-beat clap. The album comes to a well-placed climax with Pablo Fierro’s The Essence of Your Smile, a lovely slow-building minimal number that I couldn’t help repeating; it just seems to end way too soon. Reviewed by Nathan Kabingesi LOLO - BREATHE (SOULCANDI RECORDS) 4. <House> Lolo already has a string of hits to her credit as featured vocalist, so I guess it was a logical step to put out an album of her own. Breathe is her first full-length studio release and includes collaborations with the Pasta Boys and Jerah among others. One can’t help but reference other female urban house vocalists, especially the American songstresses, and I’m not entirely surprised to find this project lacking in just about every department. The records she made before this album were catchy commercial tunes, not relying on strong vocals or particularly well written lyrics to carry them. Lolo’s voice becomes grating about half-way through the opening track; partly because she’s not that good a singer and tries to carry notes in a way that she has no business attempting, and also because the lyrics are poorly written and repetitive to the point of distraction. There are bright spots though; Gonna Be is well arranged, and she (thankfully) stays well within her vocal range. Baybe is another well produced track, spoilt only a little by harmonising that contradicts the word. Jerah combines a great bass line with slick guitar arpeggios on Everyman, but again the vocals only serve to detract from what could have been a stand-out track. Reviewed by Nathan Kabingesi

2. GIGGS SUPERSTAR - SOUNDS OF A SUPERSTAR 3.

VOLUME 3 (SOULCANDI RECORDS) <House> Sounds of a Superstar Volume 3 is a marked departure from Giggs’ previous release, Deep House Chronicles 4, on which he featured a lot of his own productions (half the album) and catered to more of an afro-deep audience. This album has much stronger commercial appeal. Considering the popularity of I Don’t Care (with Dr Duda ft. Genevieve), Giggs did well to include similar sounding self-produced tracks featuring Mario Ogle to open and close the album, one of which, Say Yes, has already enjoyed some chart success. The rest of the album is an interesting collection of local and international productions, remixes and collaborations. Mi Casa’s These Streets, remixed by Abicah Soul, Harrison Crump’s No, No, No as well as Rocco & C. Robert Walker’s I Love The Night (Louie Vega Roots Mix) are all relatively well-known tracks, kicking things off on a dancefloor friendly note. Rocco’s Reconstruction Remix of Jerk House Connection’s Velvet Touch reinforces his reputation for crafting light, ethereal remixes that are simple yet sublime. The track selection is astute, but the mixing is strangely inconsistent; one track carrying on a little too far into the next in some cases, but seamless in others. Overall, a big stride in the right direction for the Superstar. Reviewed by Nathan Kabingesi

DEEP HOUSE CHRONICLES 7, MIXED BY FUNK 3. DEEPSTAR – LET’S PLAY HOUSE (SOULCANDI RECORDS) < House> G-Family’s contribution to this series of deep house compilations was always gonna be a hard act to follow, but Funk Deepstar has risen to the challenge with aplomb. I’m a firm believer in structuring an album like you would a live set, with each track linking together in a way that takes the listener on a sonic journey with clear points of departure and arrival. Funk pulls this off brilliantly. The opener, by the Soul Renegades, is an understated, atmospheric jam with snatches of vocals that sets the tone for the rest of the album; somewhat funky, somewhat muted, but always deep and soulful. Jimpster’s remix of Love’s Got me High will set your feet to tapping from the first bar, and the stripped

TJ KONG & MODULAR K - DREAM CARGOES (POKER FLAT) <Techno/Electronica> The album title Dream Cargoes alludes to a short science fantasy story by J.G. Ballard - in which a young sailor uses memories and flashbacks to give clues to his present predicament. Similarly, the two Dutch producers TJ Kong and Modular K have used memories and flashbacks in the form of vintage techno textures to craft a cohesive, intricate and intriguing sonic storyline. TJ Kong (AKA Erwin van Moll) was one of the first Dutch techno musicians during the early nineties and a key developer of the ‘Eindhoven techno sound’ and his recent partnership with virtually unknown Gijs Janssen (AKA Modular K) has been productive, literally. Dream Cargoes fits nicely alongside their recent work on Poker Flat’s Forward To The Past compilation, which explores early analogue techno. Their artist album draws heavily on techno nostalgia – 909 drum machine samples and old synth sounds swirl and expand, creating lo-fi sci-fi spaces. There is a variety of moods and tempos on offer here: tracks shift from Dubtechno to tech house and the fact that they’re interlocked makes interesting listening. I found some of the tracks to be a touch over-crowded and directionless but, overall, an absorbing album. Reviewed by Heather Mennell

www.bpmlife.co.za Where the beat lives on...

42 | BPM

ALBUM REVIEWS

SPOEK MATHAMBO - FATHER CREEPER (SUB POP / SONY) <<EDITORS PICK>> <Ghetto Tech> Dark Grooves. The Spoek Mathambo band is Can't-Stand-Still rhythmic. It whispers motion into your bones. Dark dance music concocted of Funk Rock instrumentation and elsewhere syncopation, Spoek Mathambo's is not the groove of escapism or flights of sunshine. It is the groove of survival, of persevering in the face of a corrupt, decadent world. Following the delightful and profanely neon excesses of previous outfits Sweat.X and Playdoe, the hushed beats and ghosted melodies of first solo outing Mshini Wam was confounding. What we didn’t know was that this was Mathambo for the first time approaching his own sound. “Some tracks on Mshini Wam and Father Creeper were written in the Sweat.X days. Obviously they wouldn’t work in that project, so it was great to finally give them life,” notes Spoek. Father Creeper, and, most crucially, Spoek’s current circle of conspirators, sees said Spoek Mathambo sound finding potent fruition. Contrary to the popular platitude, there are many new things under the sun. This. Is one of the more rewarding ones. Deeply recommended. Reviewed by Mickdotcom

7. FAITHLESS - PASSING THE BATON (JUST MUSIC) 8.

<Dance>This CD/DVD set of their final live performance in Brixton, is just great, and is especially well played on the nostalgia front. The tracks performed, are delivered superbly without flaw or fail, which is what you can expect from this legendary band. This CD release is a lovely compilation of their all time best tracks such as Sun to Me, God is a DJ, I Want More and my favourite for reasons I can't really explain... Insomnia, just to name a few. Faithless, has been and still is a pioneering band that has stood firm in the EDM scene since their launch in the mid-nineties and is still garnering new fans and building on the age old respect they have received from their founding fanbase. Expect undeniably great production, thought provoking honest lyrics and none other than Maxi's legendary throaty vocals, wrapped in the kind of electronic music that makes you go, yes! “I remember this from such and such a day years ago”. If you are a fan, this is definitely a must have, CD and DVD set, you will surely love! Reviewed by Mary Honeychild

8. ORBITAL – WONKY (SHELTER) 10.

&LIGHT C I T Y

<Electronica> Five years after their split, British rave icons Orbital reunited for a reunion gig. The huge success of the gigs prompted two years of ‘Greatest Hits’ touring and by the end of that they decided to craft some new tunes to inject into their live sets. These new tunes turned into the album, Wonky. There are hints of new elements – like the Dubstep re-rub of Satan called Beelzedub and title track Wonky which features the hotly-tipped UK emcee Lady Leshurr. Distractions is a breakbeat banger and the ethereal New France features vocals from Goth songbird Zola Jesus. But despite incorporating new artists and influences, Wonky is unmistakeably Orbital. As one of the most beloved live acts of the first rave era, they have managed to mix their retro rave sounds with fresher styles. Convincingly. They’ve made an album that reaches back to the band’s earliest days while simultaneously being firmly rooted in the present.

Wonky probably won’t make it onto any ‘alltime-great’ lists but it still represents the signature Orbital sound – cinematic and bold, beautiful and brutal - and if it means that a new generation of ravers get a taste of Orbital then I’m all for it. Reviewed by Heather Mennell - T (JUST MUSIC) 9. TODDLA <Hip Hop/Dancehall/Grime> I Love Take It Back, a song about the urge to rekindle past relationships. I'm so into the sweet 90's pop vocals by the songstress, Shola Ama, which makes me think of back then, it successfully pulls in that reminiscing energy, nice. Cruise Control flows in as though part of the track before; UK Rap with a synth heavy and Drum & Bass beat. Street So Warm makes me decide that yes, I think I do in fact really enjoy this album. Few things beat a bumping sexy Dancehall inspired track with those raw ragga hooks. Badman Flu carries on with the same high energy and manages to make the album even more exciting. I feel like getting up off my seat and busting a few badman moves myself! These tracks were arranged so beautifully on this CD in the order of how you were meant to enjoy them. The Jamaican Body Good is one for the ladies. Sexy, with effective bursts of wild vulgarity. What is most obvious to my ears is the total throwback to what was experienced fifteen years ago in early Hip Hop, Dancehall, EDM and specifically the root efforts of Drum & Bass. Toddla -T has managed to layer this over his own take on the combination of these sounds, and he is good at it! I love this CD! Reviewed by Mary Honeychild

10. HIGH CONTRAST - THE AGONY & THE

ECSTACY (JUST MUSIC) <Electronica> High Contrast's 4th studio album ropes in tellingly big names like Tiesto and Underworld. To little effect. Continuing in the realms of standard Drum 'n Bass and retroactive tropes of build-up and release associated with early Nineties Rave and, indeed, Roxette, The Agony & The Ecstasy does little by way of charting fresh release – preferring to keep the new lighters, I-Pads, aloft in stadium-sized clubs. Curiously, second track The Road Goes On Forever quotes Rock Opera stalwarts The Who, to intriguing effect, and 238 Days dares to explore less beat-en tracks; but these are exceptions in an otherwise tried-andtested routine of dance floor seduction. The highs and lows of the title are, unfortunately, non-existent. Inoffensive stuff, best left to peeps who love the cozy high of the predictable. Reviewed by Mickdotcom

MORE ALBUMS REVIEWS ONLINE @ BPMMAG.CO.ZA Goldfrapp - The Singles Various Artists - Lost in the Humming Air DJs Only 5 CD Box set Skrillex – Bangarang Ministry of Sound – The Annual 2012 Ministry of Sound – House Party 2012

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- DIVINE GEOMETRY – (VILLAGE 11. BIORHYTHM RECORDS)

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ALBUM REVIEWS

<Psytrance> Attention all night time stompers the Cape Town duo, Carl Sharples and Kieron Grieve aka Biorhythm have released their 2nd album. These producers have advanced diplomas in sound engineering and are the founders of The Village (party organisers) and Village Records. With Divine Geometry you can get your fix of screeches, zips, howls and creepy sounds, yes, this is psychedelic trance for the hardcore and they take no prisoners. The majority of the tunes are fast and furious with a driving basslines that stops for nobody or nothing. The beautiful symphonic sound of Limitless and the fuller bass of Ground Zero makes these tracks my favourites. Faceplant is something many of us have done at outdoor events and this title made me chuckle, the guttural vox is a nice addition to the swirling melody. By the time you reach Aweh the sweat should be pouring as the stomping intensity has been increasing all the time and by now the music has reached a crescendo. But wait….there is more. Sincronicity grabs you by the balls and keeps you glued to that dance floor. Dark Monkey with beats like bullets from a machine gun and creepy vox leaves you looking nervously over your shoulder. Recommended. Reviewed by sevenR

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12. RUBIX CUBE - DARK CONTINENT (VILLAGE RECORDS) <Psytrance> Rubix Qube (aka Kieron Grieve) is a psychedelic trance artist from Cape Town and cofounder of The Village. The tracks on this album are very intelligent compositions with twists, turns and surprises. The structure and note placement must have taken a lot of deep thought and planning; this is the mark of a great master and an artist that I will be following with interest in the future. Sneeky Snake Eyes starts off with beautiful piano and then gets down and dirty with crunchy and distorted melodies, this could possibly be a future dance floor classic. Sweeping melodies abound in Brain Wave with a touch of guitar, this is hard stomping stuff. The bass is so hard on Not Physically Possible it smacks you between the ears like a whip and then the synth lifts you up onto a magic carpet ride. Demon Speeding which includes heavy metal guitar and singing sounds like a motorised bat out of hell from the 70’s, wonderful. What do we have here? Sounds like melody straight from an arcade game with sweeping synths, a great tune – No Time. The album ends off on a banging track with some awesome Buck Rogers vox. Highly recommended. Reviewed by sevenR

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SONIC SPECIES – UNLEASH THE BEAT (ALCHEMY RECORDS) <Psytrance> Massive! Large! Groovy! Sunshine! Expansive! Banging! All these superlatives can easily be used to describe Sonic Species’ first full length (to my knowledge) album. But perhaps the most important one is psychedelic. I think it’s fair to say that I know SA psytrance floors pretty well so believe me when I say that Unleash The Beat will do just that to our sunshine laden daytime dancefloor. These are BIG outdoor tunes aimed squarely at a boisterous energetic floor of freaks and party monsters. Right from the get-go with opener, The First and the Last, the template is set for a hugely energetic ride through phat soundscapes of psychedelia. Whilst there’s nothing profoundly new about what Sonic Species do and little deviation from their previous work, in fact one could argue that it’s fairly safe and obvious trance, what they do they do very, very well with nice

big analog basslines, huge kicks and psysounds in all the right places. Collabs with Avalon, Zen Mechanics and Mr. Peculiar (perhaps the most peculiar of the tracks, sic) do manage to add a subtle twist here and there. Bottom line... guaranteed fodder for any midmorning DJ with energy that carries through from beginning to end. Reviewed by Dave Mac

14.

ZERO HOUR - DEMENTIA (ONE FOOT GROOVE) <Psytrance> Bulgarian Georgi Dunkov, aka Zerhour, aka Zero Hour is no doubt entrenched in the darker half of psytrance and this is his debut album. Listening to the vox, most of the tracks sound eerie and foreboding; this is not for the feint hearted. Some serious hard arse guitar can be found on the first track, no holds barred. Nuclear sounds like the soundtrack to an underground first person shooter, it is hectic and banging (he wants to nuke the crap out of it). Psyonic Emanations has a driving bassline and computer generated voice that can be found in creepy sci-fi movies. Prototype continues on that same course and wants you to put on your Doc Martens and march into battle or just pogo your arse off. Code 138 contains more vox that sound straight out of a jet fighter com. Inferno moves to the religious side with talk of sin… man, I love this type of thing so much. Oh boy, the tunes before have set me up nicely for the title track. This is an explosive tune on an epic scale of HARD and MAD….a track that leaves the rest behind. Just when I thought it couldn’t give more, Transformer hit me between the eyes; this stuff is off the scale. BANGING. Highly recommended. Reviewed by sevenR

WAVE CONTROL – SIXTH SENSE (FREE 15. SONIC SPIRIT RECORDS) <Progressive Trance> Sonic Wave Control is a progressive psychedelic trance act formed by Jay OM aka OMsphere/Journey) and Steve Morley (aka Cathar/Cosmic Warrior). I really love extended progressive tracks as it gives me the time to explore and all eight on Sixth Sense are over 8 minutes in duration, a bonus indeed. The album is a stunning work and expresses the ability and talent of these artists perfectly; each note is in its rightful place. Although there are no surprises and all the tunes remain on the same path, it remains a must-have in my collection. It starts off on a very chilled pace and remains that way throughout. The style may be relaxed but the tunes are very danceable progressive psytrance. Many of the track titles are a reference to nature and the third termed, Solar Flares effortlessly creates the imagery of wide open expanses of space. The second track named, Thunder Storm even has the sound of wind for added effect and it had my mind wandering off to a cloudy but pumping dance floor somewhere in the sticks. Every time I listen to this album I set it to repeat and float off to faraway places in my prog spaceship. Recommended. Reviewed by sevenR

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Easy Riders – Flashback - Psyprog Ace Ventura and Rocky weigh in with 3 hefty stompers, the title also featuring Symbolic in a collab. Flashback is an outright psychedelic prog stomper – a guaranteed floor-filler. Once Upon a Lifetime adds some melody but sustains the pressure and Hamburger is a real afternoon groover. Highly recommended. Picked by Dave Mac Etic and Double Click – Undercook EP - Psyprog Etic (Etay Harari) and Double Click (Avi Levi aka Ultravoice, Gaddy Marian aka Visual Paradox, and Solly Noama – what a mouthful) collaborate on this two track EP to bring you a stunning, groovy progressive trance delight. Nothing undercooked here. Picked by sevenR Flowjob - Theres no business like flow business - Psyprog What a crazy title for an EP? What else can be expected for this wild Dane (Joakim Hjorne)? These tight progressive rhythms and beats are sprinkled with strange vocals and voice. What is not to like? Picked by sevenR Audiomatic – Lost in the Mix EP – Psyprog Audiomatic (aka Benjamin Halfmann) is a German progressive psytrance producer and this awesome two track EP will be a dance floor filler of note. It grabs you from the first beat and never lets you go. Picked by sevenR OXIA – Harmonie - House So OXIA'S journey started in 1971, which gives you an idea of how long these two guys have been in music... Stephane and Olivier started their studio in 1991, after 20 years of playing music together. This track is GROOVY melodic house with a touch of techno, I’d imagine that because of the era they come from. They have a long list of great remixes to check out too. Picked by Beatarmy Super Flu - 3 Isaac - Tech house Tinitus Pärt (Feliks Thielemann) & Mathias Schwarz - that´s Super Flu!!! Electronic lifestyle contains more than just music - it´s the beginning of a new fusion! The ambition of Super Flu is to connect tradition and modern electronic music in terms of vitality and joy of life. Thereby, it always remains elementary to satisfy the user´s claim in quality. Pulsative machine songs, generally beyond all words, are already a steady part in omnipresence. Listen out for the Barry White sounding vocal, it’s awesome! Picked by Beatarmy Kellerkind - Disco On The Dance Floor - Deep/Disco House To the deep house cats this is no new comer to a set, to those who don’t know who this mastermind is: http://soundcloud.com/kellerkind. The musically gifted Producer and DJ from Switzerland adds a personal touch to all his tracks, I always look out for the great basslines. Picked by Beatarmy Tube And Berger - Soulgood - Tech House So all my reviews this edition comes from our H20 Avicci set, we played the main stage from 12:00-13:00. We had to keep it vibey but remembering the fact that it was still early. This was a great track from Tube and Berger using a guitar riff used from the old ''Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene.....'' by the Dolly Parton. The older folk's could go back to 1974 when it was released: ''Her big blonde hair, purple bell bottoms'' and the younger party animals could relate because of the bouncy tech added by another great music duo! Picked by Beatarmy Onsulade - Envision (Argy Vocal Mix) - House Damn this is a party song! I have started listening to more and more Onsulade tracks. After buying the album at the Soul Candi Store with the weirdest cover - Pyrography, I knew I was in for a musical journey. This remix from Argy not on the album but a definite MUST for the set at pretty much any club in SA! Onsulade uses the old Short Dick Man vocal for a touch of old school. The Synth is also one of those taking one back to the 80's electronic days. Picked by Beatarmy

DOWNLOAD SITES: www.afrodesiamp3.com / www.audiojelly.com www.beatport.com / www.djdownload.com www.djsonly.com /www.emusic.com http://free.napster.com / www.junodownload.com www.rhapsody.com / www.stompy.com www.trackitdown.net / www.wasabeat.com

Afroseeds - Your Love (Main Mix) – Afro Deep AfroSeeds is a group of three young gents from Soweto South Africa, who were brought together by music. They all started as Disc Jockeys, playing at local events and pubs. In 2009, they were drawn together by their similar music interests and taste which lead to them forming a group in which they could combine their ideas to create their own unique style. So herewith is their debut release on AFROdesia called Your Love, a stunning vocal track on a super Afro Deep bed! Get it while it’s hot! Picked by Afrodesiamp3 DJ What What – Re Tlo Koba - Afro Deep DJ What What with this super release presented on his imprint Back Bone Productions titled ‘Re Tlo Koba’, the track is making serious waves on South African radio stations as well as on the dance floor, groovy and bouncy Afro Deep vocal track with smooth melodies, one for the crooners. Enjoy! Picked by Afrodesiamp3 DJ Hypnosis ft Decency – In Times Like This (Main Mix) - House Deep Yet another blazing deep soulful offering from the duo, a touch of soul from Hypnosis merged with the deep feel of Kid Robbin who always sticks to his groove. Aero and Hypnosis comes in hard on the 4Days In Jail tune as they showcase that they can bang out a stomper in the dance world too. A kick ass track. Picked by Afrodesiamp3 Nutown Soul ft Melo – Take It Slow - Afro Deep New Town Soul is back with a monster hit in the form of Take It Slow featuring Melo delivering a superb angelic vocal on this fabulous Afro Deep groove. Words cannot do it justice, just click on the play button and hear for yourself, hit the buy button and go straight to checkout. This one will pack the floor!!! Picked by Afrodesiamp3 Mezo Renzo – Malome Monate (Original Mix) - Afro Deep House Mo-Faya presents this package titled ‘Home Coming EP’ by Mezo Renzo which features Linda on piano as well PS Deejay and Gumzito on the remixes. Look out for Malome Monate and The Great Piano, these are killer tracks and a must have for DJs... Picked by Afrodesiamp3 Tibi ft Christyle – Something Like - Afro Deep Ganyani Entertainment back with another sizzling release by Tibi titled Feel It, featuring vocalists Christyle. Already on high rotation on South African radio stations and shaking the up local charts. Picked by Afrodesiamp3 SoulPoizen – Shadows Of The Moon - Afro Deep SoulPoizen is back at it with his latest offering for 2012. Shadows Of The Moon is one of those all rounder tracks, Afro Deep sound, laidback feel, airwave killer. Time resistant track even after decades you’ll still be rocking to it. SoulPoizen's Shadows Of The Moon is a definite must have on your playlist. Invaders Music never disappoints, it all about good music. Picked by Afrodesiamp3 Nicco Imani – Through The Rain (Saharan Desert Mix) - Afro Deep Through The Rain is a new tune from Nicco Imani looking to add to the already sizzling South African club scene, this track will elevate your senses with its strings and progressive Tribal Sounds… A Definite must have! Picked by Afrodesiamp3 DJ Phat Cat ft Toto – I Believe In You - Afro Deep I Believe In You is the poetry of air, it is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life. If music be the food of love, play on. This track is the medicine of a breaking heart. Nyefnyef Productions adding more sizzling beats to their imprint. Picked by Afrodesiamp3

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What's hot @ Where the beat lives on...

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TOP OF OUR PLAYLIST THIS WEEK Nathan Kabingesi Feature Writer – BPM Mag Artist: Miguel Migs Title: Life ft Half Pint Genre: House Record Label: Om Records Release Date: 2011 I like this because… it’s warm, vibey, nicely arranged and the lyrics are all about enjoying the life you have right now to the fullest ‘cause if you think about it, there is no other reality, so make the most of it. Truth. There’s also a chopped up version of the same track on the album Outside the Skyline that’s used... Read More @ BPMLife.co.za

EVENT REVIEW: CTEMF 2012 – THE DEBUT So the year of the Dragon, the year of the Apocalypse, and, more mundanely, the year following 2011, is now also marked as the birth of what promises to become a star-spangled Stomp of local and international electronica luminaries, dancefloor heroes, and all manner of digital slingers, bringers, and monsters getting down with adoring crowds. It’s been a long time coming. Ever since the midNineties, when then-unknown Cape Town kids like Fletcher and Roach, and Joburg blokes like the Blunted Stuntman, started tinkering with the new, jazzier forms of Dj’ing... Read More @ BPMLife.co.za

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: MARK KNIGHT (TOOLROOM RECORDS) BRINGS THAT QUALITY TO SA! “Don’t rush things. Really craft your work and give it longevity. I take my time when producing music or when deciding to release something.” I made a long distance call to the UK at lunchtime last Friday to have a little back and forth with Mark Knight, creative and business head behind one of the world’s most successful Dance music labels, Toolroom Records. Mark and his Tech House goodness, brings his dance floor beat wielding tunes and that undeniable love... Read More @ BPMLife.co.za

INTERVIEW: GAUDI – RAGGA TO DUB, THE ELECTRONICA GIFT We chat to bench mark setting ‘Dub Alchemist‘ Italian born GAUDI. A musical being whose impression on modern music has been strongly felt over his three decades of contribution to Electronica. He tells us about the 80′s, his African experience that led to the production of the album Bass, Sweat & Tears, his music being playlisted on MTV in the 90′s and what Dub music really means to him… Before your ground breaking and award... Read More @ BPMLife.co.za

INTERVIEW: OSUNLADE – HANGING UP THE HEADPHONES As an all-round artist who truly lives and breathes for the various works he creates, Osunlade is almost without equal. Under various guises as a producer he has crafted some of the most enduring and evocative records ever made and as a conceptual artist and photographer, he has brought his unique vision to life with a huge variety of projects. Having drawn a line under house music production with his ‘last ever house album’ Pyrography last year, his... Read More @ BPMLife.co.za

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DJ CHART MR. O (Deeptone Recordings / JHB / Deep House) 1. Mr. O feat. MXO - Mama Africa (Deeptone Recordings) • 2. DJ Spen - Rocker (Quantize Recordings) • 3. Incognito - Freedom To Love (Reel People Music) • 4. Miz-Dee Penelope ft. Bob James - Sound Of Explain (Nu Deep Music) • 5. Alton Miller - Find A Way (Vibe Boutique Records) • 6. Deep Xcape & Dee Mac - Emotions (Dance Net Records) • 7. The Layabouts ft. Portia Monique - Do Better (Reel People Music) • 8. DJ Le Roi - Dust Of Basement (Muak Music) • 9. Mindlo & Essential I ft. DJ Pap - Soul Meditation (Deeptone Recordings) • 10. Mr. O and Funk Deep Star ft Ckenz Voucal - Got this feeling (Soulcandi) BOB"EZY (Soul Candi / JHB / House) 1. Bob"ezy & Bevan godden ft Michael Ashely Summer rain (Bob"ezy Records) • 2. Bob"ezy ft. Deepconsoul & Mzukisi - Nguwe (Bob"ezy Records) • 3. Mindgame - Connected Luminous Records) • 4. V. Underground ft Mishka - Gelo Wandi (Ultra Tone Records) • 5. Bob"ezy ft. Siphu zee - Someday (Seed Records) • 6. DJ Game ft. Happy - Destiny (Barcode Music) • 7. Jerk house Connection Velvet Touch (Rocco Recontruction) (Stalwart Recording) • 8. Bob"ezy ft. Khadaffi - Cebo (Bob"ezy Records) • 9. Pirupa ft. Bajka - Trust (Rebirth Music) • 10. Bob"ezy - Samora (Bob"ezy Music) LEBZITO (Afrodesia MP3 / JHB / House) 1. Lebzito Ft. Thulipilis - Singing (Original) (Jack 2 Jazz Records) • 2. Dvine Lopez ft Dns & Queen - Believe (Franas 6 Feet Deeper Mix) • 3. ABwalk ft Howard - So Insane (Original Mix) (Deeptone Recordings) • 4. MathaduSoul ft Kwanda Puffinz - Smooth Cafe (ABwalks Connected Dub Mix) • 5. Lebzito & Thulipilis Reasons Why I Sing (Franas Blue Light Dub Mix) (Soldiers Of House Entertainment) • 6. BlackJean & Kevin Visto feat. Austin - Keep On Dancing (Abwalk Jazz Café Mix) (Peng Afrika) • 7. Frana - The Entrapment (Main Mix) (Soldiers Of House Entertainment) • 8. Licious Deep ft Olona - Umhlekude Nakufutshane (Lebzito's Cheated To Get You Mix) (0152 Records) • 9. Joel Vibes & Bhunu Brill - Music That Soothes Me (Franas Dub Classic Mix) • 10. Licious Deep & DJ Sign - Tell Me (Lebzito's Wet Dreams Remix) HUMEROUS (Psynopticz / CT / Psy Progressive) 1. Ace Ventura - Maximum Overdrive (Iono Music) • 2. Motion Drive - The Last Jedi (Iono Music) • 3. Egorythmia - Parallel Worlds (Synergetic Records) • 4. Suntree - Fear & Love (YSE) • 5. Easy Riders - Once Upon A Time (HOMmega Productions) • 6. Klopfgeister - Good Bye Goa (Jiser Rmx ) (Iono Music) • 7. Pop Art - Abstract Expression (Trancelucent Productions) • 8. Liquid Soul & Captain Hook - Liquid Hook (Iboga Rec) • 9. Ritree - De Ja Voodoo (Iono Music) • 10. Double Click - Freak Out (COM.PACT Records)

ASTRIX (HomMega / Israel / Trance) 1. Infected Mushroom – Nation of Wusses (DimMak/Just Music) • 2. Astrix – Vicious cycles (HOMmega CDR) • 3. Easy Riders & Symbolic – Flashback (HOMmega) • 4. Xerox & Volcano vs. Hipnotix – Gate 2 nowhere (Noya) • 5. Astrix – Random Moves (HOMmega CDR) • 6. XSI – Anjuna Bull (HOMmega) • 7. Astrix – Talking Stones (Unreleased) • 8. Vertical Mode – Deep Vibration (HOMmega) • 9. Astrix & Pixel – Here & There (HOMmega) • 10. Growling Machines – So far so good (Unreleased) MISS PRU (S.H.E /JHB /House) 1. My Name is - DJ Zinhle • 2. Kakaramba - Black Motion • 3. Lately - Black Coffee • 4. Im so hung up on you - Nastee Nev(Infinite Boys) • 5. Traveling - Quentin Harris • 6. Someday - Martin Solveig • 7. Jika - Dr Malinga & Oskido • 8. Amaphoyisa - DJ Fresca • 9. LA Vida Mi Casa • 10. I Deserve - Donald SA5H (Star5hip Records / JHB / Bigroom Everything) 1. David Guetta & Nicky Romero – Metropolis (Jack Back Records) • 2. Crazy White Boy - Zoma feat. Nonku (Soul Candi Records) • 3. Thomas Gold - Sing2Me (Axtone Records) • 4. Skitzofrenix, Jeff Doubleu - Rushin' (Sneakerz MUZIK) • 5. Firebeatz - MiniMan (Spinnin' Records) • 6. Nicky Romero - Toulouse (Chocolate Puma Remix) (Spinnin' Records) • 7. Sidney Samson - Get Low (RockTheHouze) • 8. Laidback Luke, Wynter Gordon - Speak Up (Das Kapital Remix) (MixMash Records) • 9. Vato Gonzalez - Blow Ya Stereo (MixMash Records) • 10. SA5H, Kevin Butho & Martin Chech – Andromeda (White) DJ WONDER (CPT / Deep House) 1. Incognito - Freedom To Love (Atjazz Astro Remix) (Real People Music) • 2. Osunlade - Envision (Tuccillo Vocal Vision Mix) - (Defected Records) • 3. Charles Webster ft. Shana Halligan Give Me More (Willie Graff and Tuccillo Dub) - (Miso) • 4. Liquideep - Feel It (Andre Lodemann Remix) - (Deeper Shades Records) • 5. Julian Jabre Swimming Places - (Sebastian Ingrosso Re-Edit) (ITH) • 6. Afrocomma ft. Mr Mabena - Beautiful Music (Black Error Recordings) • 7. Black Jean & Kevin Visto ft. Austin T - Keep On Dancing (Interscope Recordings) • 8. Da Capo - Deep Route (DNH Records) • 9. C.9ine ft. P. Oliveira Rafiki (Atjazz Record Company) • 10. Jullian Gomes ft. Bobby - Love Song 28 (Marketing Music)

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PARTY INFO

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Every Wed | Student Night 2012 | DBN @ Crush Nightclub | Free Entrance | www.crushnightclub.co.za

Sat 26 May | Psycho Stomper - Psychedelic Celebration | Venue: Somewhere Mystical beyond our Imagination | LSDork, Psy-Anomic, Kineticz, Mark, Hiyarant, Myzo, Biorhythm, Distorted Culture, Xatrix, Hysteria vs Highstyle, Killian vs PsyOps, Archive, Tune Raider, PlusMinus, Bruce, Formula8, BnX, Sway | Features: Turbo Sound, Shaded Dancefloor, Cash Bar, Clean Toilets, Camping, Security, Chill area, Performing arts, Live Visuals, Stalls & Good Vibes | 12h00 | R75 Pre-Sold & R100 @ the Gate |

Fri 4-6 May | Sandile Stomp | E.London @ Sandile's Rest, Stutterheim | Psydstep, Guns & Lazers, Steam, Potty, Tinker Bels, Martin, Acid Lunch, Ahdub, Criptz, Kuleflux, Genie, Gaialama, Koffer, DRFNUK, Davey Rocket | Feat: Camping fee included in ticket price & Potjie kos will be available throughout the event @ R20 a plate | Gates open 18h00 on Friday | R100 @ Gate | www.facebook.com/events/194423197333619

Sat 2 Jun | Joseph Capriati SA Tour (Drumcode ITA) | JHB @ Townhall and The Woods, Newtown | Host: Teknotribe | Live: Joseph Capriati, Nick Grater, Deliriant, Parallax, Dre’ama, Killer B vs Digital Dream, Manifesto, Thalia, Senjo, Seb Otage, Sound Sensible | 2 dance floors, awesome visuals, UV Décor by Carin Dickson, Olmeca giveaways, Massive sound and lighting | 20h00 | R120 / R100 before 10pm / R100 members / R90 @ www.strictlytickets.co.za | www.teknotribe.co.za

Sat 5 May | Organik: Love Project | CPT @ Utopia | Anestetic, Broken Toy, Bruce, Corona, Cybernetix, Dave Mac, Gandalf Grey, Mark, Plusminus, PsyGuy, Regan, Satori, Sterealkey, The Streisand Brothers, Wobblz, Xatrik | Feat: Quality Sound and Lighting, Quality Tree Shaded Dance Floor, Forest Shaded Camping Spaces, Swimming Dams, Fully Licensed Bar, Constantly Clean Toilets, Food, Craft & Clothing stalls | R185 Pre-Sale & R200 @ the Gate | www.organik.co.za

Sat 2 Jun | New York-New York | JHB @ Movida | 21h00 | www.movida.co.za

Sat 19 May | Experimental Stompers III | Venue TBA | Deadlock, Chemogen, ETM, CyberNetix, PsyQlopZ, Xatrik, PitchHikers, Archive, Bruce, Parana, Ninja Jack, Sway, Commercial Hippies | Feat: Turbosound rig, Lots of bar space with insane drink specials, A couple of stalls, Never before seen themed psydecor, Surrounding visualz to stimulate the mind, Professional security and medics on site | 16h00 | R150 Pre-Sold & R180 @ the Gate | www.psysa.co.za

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ASTROBABBLE

MAY 2012 20 APRIL - 20 MAY

Lois Siddhu lives in a circle of mountains in the Baviaanskloof. For professional Astrological counseling CALL 049-8391178 or Email: masonwaspstudio@telkomsa.net

By Lois Siddhu

The planet Venus turns retrograde and relationships go through changes.

TAURUS

ARIES | 21 Mar - 20 Apr | FIRE If you see the planet as a living extension of yourself, then the way you treat the natural world will be more harmonious than if you see everything as being external to yourself. You then begin to lose the separation, the inanimate and the need for exploitation.

LIBRA | 23 Sept - 22 Oct | AIR Abuse of your body and your SELF may result in an illness which brings the totality to consciousness. You have within you a natural gradient toward wholeness, and if you try to ignore nature, the body attempts to remain in harmony in order to incubate the totality.

TAURUS | 21 Apr - 20 May | EARTH To have a truly sustainable society you need to rediscover your own deep intuitive mystical connection with the planet Earth. This is just the beginning of a great and exciting adventure, albeit one that is going to take time to manifest if you stay with it.

SCORPIO | 23 Oct - 21 Nov | WATER You feel yourself often moved to help the underdog but now with Jupiter in the earth-sign Taurus, it is important that you retreat into nature, in order to recharge your spiritual batteries. While you take responsibility for earth healing. SAGITTARIUS | 22 Nov - 21 Dec | FIRE Seek your own company at times and resist the temptation and drive to organize everything in order to do some spontaneous 'out of the blue' things. Let the child play and seek laughter and enjoyment in your life.

GEMINI | 21 May - 21 Jun | AIR Appreciate and enjoy your own diversity within an ever expanding diverse society. Remember that it is when you do that spontaneous positive something for someone else, that an inner glow illuminates your entire being and recharges your power. CANCER | 20 Jun | 22 Jul | WATER Do you wish to be bound by the fetters of a society that is on a road to self destruction or do you feel the need to centre yourself in order to undertake the joyful task of rehabilitating and redirecting towards a sustainable future? LEO | 23 Jul - 22 Aug | FIRE You have been driven away from your individual reality into a forced reality and it is this untruth that is besieging you at the present time. Within each and every one of us lies the truth but when you are constantly told untruths, you start entering a stage of confusion. VIRGO | 23 Aug - 22 Sept | EARTH In order for you to aspire and reach for a 'higher consciousness' you need to work through the feelings of inferiority that lurks in your subconscious mind. You need to empower yourself to be the best you can.

JUNE 2012 21 MAY - 20 JUNE

CAPRICORN | 22 Dec - 19 Jan | EARTH You tend to think you know yourself but the truth is you only find out about yourself through events and happenings and your own interaction and relationship with others. As your life moves on you learn more about yourself. AQUARIUS | 20 Jan - 18 Feb | AIR Being obsessive can be unhealthy for it prevents you from seeing matters objectively. Your sense of yourself is tied up in the feeling of needing to be perfect but healing is about restoring and recovering what has been neglected. PISCES | 19 Feb - 20 Mar | WATER You may have been conditioned to regard knowledge and your ability to think as the main assurances that you are on the right track to get on in the world. It is however not the facts but how you use your mind and what you use it for, that counts.

There's a solar eclipse on the 20th of May and a partial lunar eclipse on the 4th of June.

GEMINI

ARIES | 21 Mar - 20 Apr | FIRE Alienation and emotional discomfort will result from your insistence on being right and your own growth will stagnate. Allowing yourself to see deeper than the obvious you will find that your thoughts were running away with you and your fears were unfounded.

LIBRA | 23 Sept - 22 Oct | AIR Your refusal to open your mind to the occult dimensions of life has sown the seeds of your destruction. Similarly, your willingness to engage what has been hidden from view will engender illumination.

TAURUS | 21 Apr - 20 May | EARTH Your health manifests your inner stress and tensions and you can only heal if you address the core of your 'dis-ease', which will require looking into these hidden fears and feelings of â&#x20AC;&#x153;not good enoughâ&#x20AC;?.

SCORPIO | 23 Oct - 21 Nov | WATER No matter how hard you hold on there will always be those happenings that cannot be controlled and accounted for so allow yourself to not feel guilty or inadequate if you don't cope with all of it.

GEMINI | 21 May - 21 Jun | AIR With your acquisitive mind you are clever and resourceful but you need to steer away from being dogmatic and insisting on your way as the only right way. Live and express yourself in the present. Let go of unnecessary baggage.

SAGITTARIUS | 22 Nov - 21 Dec | FIRE If you choose to remain unaware of the abuse and misuse of the life force within you and your unique creative gifts, then you are creating situations of destruction within yourself, which will rob you of your joy and happiness.

CANCER | 20 Jun | 22 Jul | WATER Emotional issues have never really been your comfort zone and easy to deal with for you and in many ways you flippantly shrug them away. Now the emotional agendas are surfacing and have to be dealt with. LEO | 23 Jul - 22 Aug | FIRE Holding on to old gripes and disappointments become a heavy weight to carry and they never give you any satisfaction. They become old and distorted and eventually you cannot even remember what the real issues were. Let go! VIRGO | 23 Aug - 22 Sept | EARTH Make those changes that are essential to your own growth process. Practice walking away from situations that through experience, you know are going to cause the repeated patterns of discontent and quarrels.

CAPRICORN | 22 Dec - 19 Jan | EARTH Abstruse anger and partnership issues will surface and you'll be compelled to bend your head to understand the sometimes more emotional and sensitive feelings of those you are dealing with. AQUARIUS | 20 Jan - 18 Feb | AIR Have the courage to be independent and individualistic and accept the unconventional way of doing things by accepting and trusting your own understanding and ideas, despite the differing reality consensus. PISCES | 19 Feb - 20 Mar | WATER The ability to respond makes you real and human while the journey through ecstasy, despair and the countless nuances in-between, keeps life from being mechanical and sterile imbuing your earthly experience with soul and spirit.