Stay Cool

▶ discover: @swindail

▶ Read part one of the write-up via @first-ear: http://bit.ly/swindailinterviewpt1

When it comes to discussing this year’s breakout producers, it’s easy to make a case as to why Swindail should be in that conversation. The Australian beat-maker has risen to prominence swiftly in 2015 following a series of high power moves, beginning with the release of his Sam Gellaitry-sampling jam “Gellaitry Groove” in May.

Since then he’s successfully funded an upcoming trip to the U.S. via a crowdfunding campaign that raised more than $5000, and has been featured on the first volume of Film Noir’s Cinema Black series, an offshoot that features young talent that the FN crew are fans of.

Currently at work on his second EP, I spoke to Swindail (which is actually his surname) about the beat-scene in Australia, the success of “Gellaitry Groove”, the mentality behind his “fuckboiswindail” twitter handle and much more.

Check back next Friday for a free download of the mix I made to play in the background of this interview, featuring tracks from swindail alongside his friends and artists he's feeling, including Haan808, Sam Gellaitry, Mr Carmack and more.

▶ Discover: @freshselects

As always is the case, one week after each Meet the Movement entry I upload a mix I’ve created for use as the background music for each interview, and also as a celebration of the movement.

The mix serves of a look at Fresh Selects past, present and future, featuring early exclusive releases from before the movement was a label, recent hits from Iman Omari and SiR’s latest projects, and also a stunning track off Emmavie’s forthcoming project Honeymoon that has yet to be released.

Listen and enjoy,

Seangran

Tracklist:

1. Iman Omari - Gemz

2. SiR - In The Sky (feat. Fat Ron)

3. Mndsgn - starving

4. BøneS™ - SPschwizzo

5. Mndsgn - adjustmnts

6. Mndsgn. - Deerghalabhati (Zeroh Remix)

7. Iman Omari - GravyTho

8. SiR - The Bullet and The Gun

9. Black Spade - Strawberry (feat. Fresh Daily & MoRuf)

10. Iman Omari - Play No Games

11. BøneS™ - TawdYy

12. Hi-Res - A Quick Intermission

13. Knxwledge - krayzi[guil_T]

14. Kung Foo Grip - Tell The World

15. Hi-Res - Cloudbounces

16. DIBIA$E - Blessings

17. I Hope We Never Break Up by Emmavie (feat Ego Ella May)

18. Coultrain - Kiss Of Death

19. Hi-Res - Zones

20. DIBIA$E - Deep Winter

21. SiR - Liberation (feat. Anderson .Paak)

22. DIBIA$E - Send Me

23. Dolphin - Young Black Mind

24. Coultrain - Let's Pretend It'll Last

25. Key Nyata - Pyramids In Space (feat. Jay Cue)

26. Low Leaf - Set Me Free

27. Low Leaf + King Britt - A Light Within

28. Mndsgn - Perfectbreatharian (instrumental edit)

29. Low Leaf - As One

30. Mndsgn - kikhabits

▶ Discover: @freshselects

▶ Listen to Part 1: http://bit.ly/MeettheMovement005part1

Fresh Selects is pushing towards a position in the music scene that few other record labels are at. Its wide-ranging yet consistent releases mean that it can’t be defined as simply a beat-label, or an R&B label and so on. With a level of quality (just look at his Discogs page) that will be soon joined in terms of it’s quantity due to a string of upcoming releases in the next few months, the label can truly only be defined by it’s music, something that founder Kenny Fresh cherishes.

In the second part of our interview we discuss Gangster Doodles and his artwork for each of the guest-mixes Kenny features on his radio show Tight Songs, changes that Kenny would like to see in the music scene and artists that you should be looking out for.

Background music comes courtesy of DJ Harrison's, Iman Omari's and The Stuyvesants' guest mixes for Kenny's radio show, Tight Shows.

Is it otaku trap? Vaporwave? All I know is I have a deep appreciation for this emerging sound that seems to draw heavily from Japanese influences, specifically anime and video games. This entry in the Stay Cool series focuses on that area of music, while including a few other tracks that feel loosely connected somehow.

Tracklist:

1. Eugene the Jeep - l i n k s t a r t

2. Entheogenesis - ICE WATER

3. Paisley x Drip Drop - 2%

4. Chris Havok - Lakeside View

5. CYAN P - YUNG HENTAI x BARRY BURTON /// BOOTLEG EDIT

6. S H A M P O O G O D - Golden Yen

7. High Klassified - Hyrule Kastle

8. SILK PANGEA - ｏｈ ｓｎａｐ！

9. Illumdafoe - Glass City

10. Cavalier x Dirty Chocolate - Dream Sequence

11. Djemba Djemba - SLAMMER Lol (w/ CZ)

12. SOUJU - 胞衣

13. Noah B - Genesis.014

14. // Y E Λ R S // - きぶん . .

15. EVRL - Dream-sequence

16. 『Drip Drop』 - ◌⚔◌ Gurren lagann ◌⚔◌

17. s ? e c i a l - k - K' 1999

18. ozone x yvng gomi - ｔｓｕｎｄｅｒｅ ｌｏｖｅ

19. // Y E Λ R S // - [笑] - feat. マクロスMACROSS 82-99

20. Vaperror - 808 Dreams

21. 若い蒸気 yng vapor - ICU

22. 26CARAT - FLY

23. Zuper - Shine [Vaperror Flip]

24. Chaos Kid - Cosmobot

25. s ? e c i a l - k - INSULTS

26. Yung AOL - Pool Wave

▶ Discover: @freshselects

▶ Listen to Part II: https://soundcloud.com/seangran/meet-the-movement-005-kenny-fresh-of-fresh-selects-part-2-interview

How many record labels do you know that started out as a blog? That’s exactly the path Kenny Fresh took with his label Fresh Selects, which originally started as FreshSelects.net 7 years ago. Since then the brand’s growth has been monumental, and has seen the label release projects from the likes of Iman Omari, Mndsgn, Low Leaf and SiR, the R&B singer/songwriter that’s been making waves since he dropped his Seven Sundays project.

Kenny and I ended up having a Skype call a few Saturdays ago that went on to last more 2 and a half hours. It was an in-depth interview that covered a range of topics, and while it may have gone by quickly for me, I’ve taken the liberty of splitting the audio interview into two parts to make it easier to digest. In part one we talk about Fresh Selects’ journey from a blog to a record label, it’s first release as an official label, Mndsgn’s seminal conceptual beat-tape Breatharian, the process of turning SiR’s EP into a full LP, Kenny’s radio show Tight Songs and much more.

Look out for the second part of the interview next week, in which Kenny and talk about Gangster Doodles and his artwork for each of the guest-mixes Kenny features on his radio show Tight Songs, changes that Kenny would like to see in the music scene and artists that you should be looking out for.

Aside from featuring my mix of Fresh Selects music, this interview also features part of DJ Harrison's Tight Songs guest mix.

Design by seangran, Kenny Fresh sketch by Rob Lewis.

With the latest Meet the Movement interview featuring Dexter Brandon of Kolossus Records, I’ve now released the mix I made for it, featuring two brand-new, exclusive tracks from the head-honcho himself.

Though Kolossus’ roster may be ever-evolving, this mix acts as a mostly retrospective look at some of the label’s best tracks, from the likes of Falcxne, Rilla Force, VAPERROR and more.

One of the two Dexter Brandon exclusives is a thumping remix of Vonte Vondetta’s thrill-ride “Party People”, while the bass-driven, percussive “Mr. Blue”, is from Dexter’s forthcoming album. I’m sure you’ll be anticipating it as eagerly as I am after hearing both joints.

Listen and enjoy.

Tracklist:

1. Rolmex - We Are Alone

2. KappNeffect - Echos a King

3. Chillchap/GYMK - Blueberries

4. Falcxne - Drop Da Bomb

5. Rilla Force + Kaznyk - y s l

6. Julia Lewis - Geneva

7. Y a e j i - coexist

8. Kimoweh - Maku

9. Voyage - The Others

10. R.O.M - Emotional Man...

11. deadbeat son - They can see us (Short Edit)

12. Lodiac - Shaolin Funk

13. Yo Gotti - Lebron James (Sandro Jeeawock Alley Oop Remix)

14. VAPERROR - Flight

15. Neguim. - Mother

16. Wulves - bae.

17. R.O.M + DEFFIE - Natural Frequency

18. Invention - H∂bιτs

19. WOLFSHIRT - Eai

20. Axnt x Gaszia - When You Told Me

21. Rilla Force - Bounce (Ruby Suns 2)

22. Howie Wonder - Energy

23. чk. - Rainbows and Skunks

24. Raido - Hours

25. Creepavelli - Smoke Part II

26. A-Frillz - You Already Know

27. Dexter Brandon - Mr. Blue

28. Vonte Vondetta - Party People (Dexter Brandon Remix)

▶ discover: @kolossus-records || @dexterbrandon

▶ Read Part. 1 via @artistic-manifesto: bit.ly/meetthemovement4pt1

Dexter Brandon is a busy man. Aside from being a student, he produces, draws and runs Kolossus Records, a diverse label that began in 2013 and has since put out releases from the likes of Falcxne, Vaperror and NeguimBeats.

Formerly known as XED Official, I spoke to Dexter in July about the label’s recent reorganisation, inspirations and the importance of a label being a family.

Volume 13 slows things down and highlights an emerging sound that feels like a cross between Akira Yamaoka's guitar-lead haunting joints and trap for the most part. The mix starts and ends with some drifting selections, showcasing the work of a number of standalone producers and SESH affiliates in between.

Tracklist:

1. mathbonus - there is light in us

2. TRIAD$ - Pink Sheets

3. falls x drk - blank

4. Greaf - No More Days (pt. 1)

5. drip-133 - i like low ft. drk

6. Myth Syzer - No Worry Guitar By Dream Koala

7. Dirty Up - We Fell Asleep On Ocean Beach (Alternate Mix)

8. dǝǝls - mechta

9. Lund - Fall Away [kaelyn version]

10. Whispa - l a s t y e a r i w a s n t e v e n w h i s p a

11. BINE X Q U A T T R Ø - BINE X Q U A T T R Ø

12. Invention - Naia

13. Atu - 'till then' (demo)

14. glocque x falls - fathoms

15. Josh Pan - roses are dead

16. steven deblat - Ｉ ＦＯＵＮＤ ＭＹＳＥＬＦ ＯＮ ＴＨＥ ＢＲＩＮＫ ．

17. bine - wild enough

18. MISOGI - THINKINGABOUTLEAVING

19. drip-133 - slanted gray ft. blank body

20. bine - TWELVE STARS

21. HEAVY HEARTS - Sonder Dusk Wilted (w/ Mirvzh)

22. Ghost McGrady - the south bank / we're everywhere

▶ discover: @noirsound

▶ intro by MadBliss (a.k.a. @escents)

One week after each Meet the Movement entry I’ll be uploading a mix featuring strictly artists and affiliates from the movement I interviewed. These mixes are intended for use as the background music for each interview, and also as a celebration of the movement.

This mix features every Film Noir artist, as well as a few of the roster's collaborators. Listen and enjoy.

- seangran

Tracklist

1. Weirdinside – ways up

2. Romby – mhmk

3. Krs. x Roy Woods – All of U

4. Vada – Inside (prod. by R.O.M.)

5. (dc) – SWITCH

6. sosari – dusk

7. Medasin – Brain

8. Lake Theory – Bones

9. OSHI – Thank You

10. Braeden Bailey. – ride.

11. disfnk – Feel Me?

12. ShrineMob – Arcade Chun

13. MadBliss – Lost with you

14. Tails – u like me (paris jones)

15. DEFFIE – Halfbreed

16. Alexander Lewis – Seasons

17. BNJMN – C'est La Vie

18. Masego – Esta - Tic Talk X Arbitrary Sax

19. Towkio – God in Me (whereisalex remix)

▶ discover: @noirsound

▶ Read Part. 1 via @artistic-manifesto: bit.ly/MTM3pt1

▶ Get the mix from this interview: http://bit.ly/MTMMix3

After a slight delay Meet the Movement returns for its third installment, focusing on one of the most exciting labels to appear in the last few years, Film Noir. Despite being just four months old, the label has already achieved so much, including securing their latest release, The Pink Polo EP, a collaboration between sax-machine Masego and heavy hitting producer Medasin, for a premiere via Billboard.

With a talented roster of almost twenty acts, each with their own following before the label existed, it’s no wonder that bringing them all together under one house has resulted in a surge of popularity and recognition for both the artists and the label itself. I recently spoke with BNJMN (@kingbnjmn), MadBliss / Dan (@escents) and Medasin / Grant (@officialmedasin) about the label’s origins along with their personal musical backgrounds, achievements and more.

Check back later this month for the mix I made to play in the background of this interview, featuring exclusively Film Noir and affiliates.