Ransom Note

From the Lock Tavern via The Gun to spoons…

Family Silver are Mr Nick ‘The Gun’ Stephens and Casper ‘Volte Face’ Clark.

Nick was the publican at The Gun, a much-loved Hackney institution that recently closed its doors – more on that here for those who have been living under a rock. Nick’s excellent Netil radio show can also be found here.

Casper, is based in Clapton and was the music programmer for Camden institution The Lock Tavern where our paths originally crossed – most of the time being kicked out whilst DJing. Casper’s shared stages with Justice, Jeff Mills, Helena Hauff, Daniel Avery and many more and is also known for his long-running BleeD events via which he collaborated with labels like Blackest Ever Black, PAN and Downwards. Both share a love for “v lo-fi early eighties sound, kosmische, post-punk and scuzzy electronics,” with Nick’s influences ranging from 80s TV themes and Giorgio Moroder to The KLF, while Casper was shaped in his youth by electronic acts like Leftfield, Underworld, and William Orbit with DJ Hell’s International Deejay Gigolo Records becoming a huge influence later on.

Their sound sits between post-punk and the electronic… so with that in mind let’s give it a listen shall we?

Handily via the wonder of a recording from this year’s Field Maneuvers where they opened The Gun’s stage.

Listen and read the interview here:

https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/line-out-family-silver-live-sputnik-field-manuevers-2025/

@volte_face_bleed @fieldmaneuvers

Rosie Ama's Human Endeavour label announce a debut label outing from Ambient Babestation Meltdown & Borai.

The production pairing, whose musical partnership has birthed a string of releases on Optimo Music, Me Me Me and Ritual Poison, join forces once again for ‘Why The Tiger And The Monkey Are Sworn Enemies’.

Known for their excursions into scuzzy, cyberpunk and EBM electronics, this three-track EP on our sub-label chronicles the pair’s ventures into chugging grooves, wormhole acid and early 00s tech house à la Playhouse and Rework.

In signature style, Ambient Babestation Meltdown’s FX-soaked vocals take centre-stage across the package, ushering us in with the ritualistic vibrations and hypnotic rhythms of lead single ‘Warm’.

Slothboogie is regarded as a bit of an institution, the long running London based record label and party series has been responsible for releasing forward thinking music which has helped push a new wave of artists and dj’s in the pursuit of dancefloor enlightenment.

House music underpins a lot of what Slothboogie is and what they do.

Founded in 2010 as a blog, it quickly evolved in to something far greater and now the collective are widely regarded as selectors in their own right.

SlothBoogie is a vibrant cultural force—championing underground electronic music with a holistic approach that spans curation, release, performance, and community building.

There 15 year anniversary is accompanied by the release of a new compilation which they are celebrating with a launch party in London at Cafe 1001 this evening.

The views from the aeroplane were hard to believe, the scale of the deep blue as it disappeared into the great beyond was staggering. The endless abyss of the limitless sky.

Clouds were sparse yet every time he caught a glimpse of one he’d try to create a mental image or a sense of perspective as to what they were, floating against the backdrop of the opal sky.

He imagined a great dragon, a frightening beast roaring through the sky with a mighty myriad of colours cascading from its magnificent wings.

It was all magic up here.

Sarayu is set to release an EP on More Rice – a wiggly, techy beauty of an EP which combines lots of fast paced, glitchy elements to craft a deep, pensive groove.

Soaring, majestic ambient explorations from Pisterman as he unveils the first taster from his second album out in Oct on Hologram Teen's Hologram Opera...

Full details: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/premieres/premiere-yoann-pisterman-individual-friends/

In the age of over-information and over-exposure what control do we have over our public persona? It's all about the personality, all about our profile, incessant, endless posts to every medium we can lay our hands on.

After 25 years of DJing around the world,  the catchily title |-...-.|  seems like they've had enough of all that and switched to the exact opposite and put together a project with no real name, no real public persona or much else besides. But it's been getting noticed by the right people - Joe Muggs featured them twice in Bandcamp Daily this year, and their latest album "Deliveroo Studio Séances" is the piece that really caught our ear.

"This is all about music being judged on its merit rather than ego or identity, transcending the audiences potential preconceptions and focusing on a sonic and visual journey. "

The sound pulls from various places - you can hear bits of Aphex Twin, Burial, Daft Punk, and Weatherall in there. It's genre-fluid stuff that doesn't fit neatly into boxes, which is probably why the likes of Trevor Jackson and Prosumer have been supportive.

The whole anonymous angle means the music has to speak for itself, which it seems to be doing. So it feels kind of counterintuitive to ask them any questions for this rather tasty mix they've put together of original material, intermingled with other beauties. But we'll do it anyway, hey.

Tracklist and full interview here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/the-shine-a-light-on-ransom-note-mix/

@4lob1c66csdd

A long overdue mix from the recent R$N Recs cohort and all-around excellent person, Bleaching Agent.

Full interview here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/bleaching-agent-the-altered-currents-mix/

@bleaching-agent

Producer DJ and dweller behind the counter at Phonica, Ysanne makes Mondays ok. "If you're not excited about life you should probably make some changes"

Full interview and tracklisting here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/ysanne-the-monday-is-ok-mixtape/

While some industry voices claim it's all computers now, Turbo Recordings maintain that everything in life can be understood as a "funhouse mirror"

Sascha Funke's "MZ" was a massive record for both Funke, Turbo and us come to think of it, all the way back in 2017. A classic, you might call it!  So much so that it's been given the re-rub treatment from a veritable smorgasbord of left-of-centre royalty including 

"We have paid access to the halls of European power, where you get to make backroom deals with Emmanuel Macron and British Seinfeld as Opus’ “Live is Life” blares over a gigantic bluetooth speaker. And, yeah, you’ll probably run into the most celebrated European producers of our time. Pional, Axel Boman, Mano Le Tough, and Roman Flügel — these are the kinds of names you only see once you’ve reached the highest levels of success, be it in dance music production or purchasing the hottest tickets in town on your favorite mobile device." says Turbo

We're premiering the mighty Flügel remix. The master keeps the roller style but just a bit more pumped. Does exactly what it needs to when you're dealing with this level of royalty; creating something altogether new, whilst maintaining the essence of the source. 

Pre Order them all here: https://turborec.lnk.to/MZ-Remixes

Sarayu is a key figure amidst the Bangkok underground and remains pivotal in the progression of the scene. As the co founder of More Rice records he has been pivotal in releasing music from locals and broadening the reach of music from Thailand. He works tirelessly and also produces his own music alongside involvement in Bar Temp and Bangkok Community Radio.

He keeps busy.

This mix demonstrates his prowess as a DJ and what a mix it is.

Weaving between different variations of house music, this one is perfect for the hot, sticky summer and is packed with feel good moments and deep groves galore.