The Armory Podcast

What better way to celebrate this Valentine's Day than with a sultry, sexy melodic bass mix from the lovely DJ ICON (aka Connie Wong) of Illeven Eleven Records and Opulent Temple? Demonstrating her impressive musical range, this one-hour mixset entitled "Be My BB: Luv & Bass Mix" is the perfect follow-up to ICON's "Weapon of Chill" mix which you can find on her SoundCloud page at www.soundcloud.com/djicon.

Without a doubt, DJ ICON has become an iconic figure in the U.S. dance music industry and beyond. With a career spanning a decade-and-a-half, she has captivated audiences the world over with her signature bass-heavy, vocal-infused, cross-genre Bass Music sound; magnetic stage presence, skillful DJ mixes and productions on Illeven Eleven Recordings. It’s no wonder why she’s been dubbed one of the leading ladies of this domain.

Check out ICON's complete bio at www.facebook.com/djicon

For more information on DJ ICON visit:

http://www.facebook.com/djicon

http://www.soundcloud.com/djicon

http://www.mixcloud.com/djicon

http://www.youtube.com/dj1con

http://www.instagram.com/djicon

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

This week in The Armory we welcome the mult-talented, one-man show they call Bobby C Sound TV (aka Bobby Collins) of Denver to the 1s and 2s. Bobby is world-renowned for his love of music and cinema which he artfully combines in his live sets using a special Video-DJ plug-in to create a "pastiche of pop-culture that is visually stimulating and danceable". On the production front, few artists are more in demand that is Collins whose releases and remixes can be found on a dozen different imprints. For his appearance in The Armory this week, Bobby delivers one of his signature, 'Laser Funk' mixsets loaded with more than a dozen original tracks and remixes. Press play. Get down!

For more information on Bobby C Sound TV visit:

https://www.facebook.com/Bobbycsoundtv/info

http://soundcloud.com/bobby-c-sound-tv

http://www.youtube.com/user/BobbyCSTV

http://vimeo.com/user2502898

http://www.myspace.com/djbobbyc

http://twitter.com/BobbyCSoundTV

For this our twenty second episode, we're pleased to welcome label boss at Ground Level Records, Andy McAllister, to The Armory Podcast. Press play. Get Down.

Starting off in the music industry as a drummer in his teens, Andy was playing regularly in his native Scotland, when he got interested in electronic dance music and production. After a few years of crude production, he widened his skills to encompass DJing, coming of age just as the Big Beat explosion was hitting down, and began playing regularly in his adopted home of Derby. As the years went on and Big Beat became Nu Skool Breaks, Andy kept his finger on the pulse running nights in and around Derby and regularly getting guest DJs from around the country to play at his ‘Ground Level’ nights.

At the end of 2006, the steady flow of tracks being given to him by guest DJs gave him an idea, to provide an outlet for this music, and so Ground Level Records was born. Not knowing anything about running a record label, everything was a process of trial and error, the only motto was that no corners where cut, the vinyl records would be cut by the best guys, the remixes by the hottest talent and the artwork accompanying the release would be fresh and innovative, making sure a product came out that oozed quality. This seemed to do the trick, and by January 2008, 10 releases in, Ground Level was nominated as best Breakthrough label at the International Breakbeat Awards, Breakspoll.

Now with over 70 releases in the catalogue Ground Level is preparing to celebrate it's 7th Birthday this July.  Artists on the label include DJ Hero, Fisso & Spark, Beatsmack and Rebel Sketchy and the label's music has attracted listens and spins from DJs outside of the breaks scene from Laurent Garnier to MJ Cole!  The music policy of Ground Level is music with a broken beat and an underground feel, and this manifesto has carved the label a following that far exceeds the niche of breakbeat.

Andy hosts the monthly Ground Level Podcast on iTunes, as well as playing at Ground Level nights up and down the country, and has played with many of the big players in the breaks and bass music scenes including Plump DJs, Stanton Warriors, Drumattic Twins, Foamo, Jack Beats and Calvertron.

For more information on Andy and Ground Level Records visit:

www.facebook.com/groundlevel

soundcloud.com/groundlevel

www.beatport.com/label/ground-level-records/7361

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

They are David Carvalho and Chris Harnett of San Francisco and together they are the renowned, disco house duo they call WhiteNoize. We love these guys and their good old-fashioned, four-on-the-floor disco house. It's just the kind of palate-cleanser we need around here with all these dirty breaks we've been playing lately. Enjoy this bonus episode of The Armory Podcast, Boys and Girls!

WhiteNoize consists of DJ and Production duo Chris Harnett and David Carvalho. The long time friends and veteran DJs of San Francisco have cultivated a popular following in west coast clubs with their unique sets fusing multiple genres of house music. 2010 saw WhiteNoize burst into the scene with 2 critically acclaimed EP’s released on DJ Dan’s Instereo Recordings and a remix on Fatboy Slim’s Skint Records. In just over three years time they have released 40+ tracks on numerous record labels including: Ultra Records, Instereo Records, Guesthouse Music and Skint.
Several of their songs have made it in the Beatport Charts and one of their releases ‘Insecure’ even hit #1 on the Beatport House Chart, #4 on the Beatport Overall Chart, and named one of the Top Ten House Songs of 2012 on Beatport.

Their music has been supported by some of the biggest names in the industry including: A-Trak, Carl Cox, Chuckie, DJ Dan, Mark Knight, Mark Farina, Max Vangeli, TJR, Tocadisco, Treasure Fingers, Umek and many others.
Most recently they were hired to do several official remixes for Sony/RCA records. They were also commissioned by Ultra Records to do a remix series of the Salsoul/West End Disco catalogue which resulted in numerous Beatport chartings including #3 on the House chart with their remix of Inner Life’s ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’.

WhiteNoize is known for their versatile and energetic live DJ sets. They are well rehearsed in adapting to a variety of crowds and delivering a quality dance experience ranging from underground house music parties to corporate events. Some highlights from the last 6 months include both weekends of Ultra Music Festival in Miami, the Heineken Dome at Coachella, and headlining Facebook’s annual party for their 10,000 employees. Some of their notable past performances include:

- Coachella: Sahara Tent 2011 and Heineken Dome 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013

- Live Nation’s ‘I Love this City’ w/ Duck Sauce, James Murphy, Steve Aoki among many others.. May 2012

- Bill Graham Civic Auditorium w/ Kaskade  SF July 2012

- Insomniac Events’ ‘Beyond Wonderland’ in Oakland with Avicii, Cazzette, Alesso, Justin Martin and many others.. September 2012

- Facebook Holiday Party San Francisco Dec 2012

- Ultra Music Festival Miami March 2013- numerous performances including the VIP Yacht Party with Afrojack and Carl Cox.

- Ruby Skye with Dirty South April 2013

For more information on WhiteNoize visit:

www.whitenoize.com

www.facebook.com/whtnoize

http://soundcloud.com/whitenoize

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

This week in The Armory we're stoked to be featuring London's PuRe SX (aka Martin Flex) as recorded live from the Reporter Club in Kaliningrad, Russia on January 18th. Press play. Get down.

PuRe SX (aka Martin Flex) is one of the freshest names on the booty breaks scene, a producer who knows how to drop the 808 boom and send the bodies flying around the room. Blasting out of the thriving UK underground since 2008, he currently DJs all over the world from Florida to Spain, Russia to London and beyond.

Famous for low end terrorism in the form of his smash hits 212 Booty and Link Up alongside Deekline, as well as his recent bangers Sunglasses and Lift off the Roof, PuRe SX has picked up support for his music from all the top names on the scene, from Deekline to Stanton Warriors, Ed Solo to Lady Waks and Krafty Kuts to the Freestylers. Here is a producer and DJ with the skills to lock down the club for as long as he's on the turntables: a true original with an arsenal of floor-shaking weapons to get those hands up and keep them there 'til the break of dawn.

More information on this week's artist visit:

https://www.facebook.com/puresx

http://www.beatport.com/artist/pure-sx/106571

https://www.facebook.com/martinflex2010

http://soundcloud.com/martinflex

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

The pride of Perth, Australia, he’s one half of the breakbeat duo called the Beatslappaz and label boss at Rump Shaker Records. They call him Juxtapose and we're absolutely thrilled to have him in The Armory this week! Press play. Get down.

Juxtapose is a bass music producer from Perth, Western Australia. When not working on new sounds, either solo and with production outfit Beatslappaz, he's running Rump Shaker Records alongside longtime friend Eyan. Writing tunes aimed squarely at the dancefloor, Juxtapose shows no signs of slowing down the production train with releases and remixes due on several labels over the next few months.

Next Upcoming U.S. Show:

Vitamin B Presents Beatslappaz, March 14, 2014 in Brooklyn, NY USA

Connect with DJ Juxtapose here:

Soundcloud : https://soundcloud.com/djjuxtapose

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/JuxtaposeDJ

For more information on Rump Shaker Records visit:

Soundcloud : https://soundcloud.com/rumpshakerrecords

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/RumpShakerRecords

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

They are Tim the Enchanter, Tektite and Barney iLLer from Brooklyn, New York. Together they form Vitamin B and they're this week's special guests on The Armory Podcast. Press play. Enjoy.

The longest-running monthly breakbeat party in the NYC metro area, Vitamin B has brought bangin’ beats and bass to the breakbeat-barren borough of Brooklyn for the past five years. The no-frills, late-night dance party draws bass-heads, burners, and bad-asses from all walks of life, and has attracted global headliners including DJ Icey, Zinc, Deekline, and the Stanton Warriors (Upcoming, January 24 | https://www.facebook.com/events/408805919223110).

 

For their Armory guest mix, Vitamin B residents Tektite, Tim the Enchanter, and Barney Iller focus on their ghetto breaks roots, ignoring for the moment their breaks-related passions of UK garage, funky house, drum & bass, and old-school hardcore. You’ll find over an hour of rare and unreleased gems featuring dirty vocals, uplifting rave rifts, and booty-bouncing bass. There's even a spanking-new original track by Tim the Enchanter, plus a panty-dropping remix from Tektite!

 

The Vitamin B crew traveled the sonic reaches of the universe to put together an aural narrative unlike any other breakbeat compilation you’ve heard recently – so take off your pants, turn up your speakers, and get ready to shake it Brooklyn-style. 

For More Information on Vitamin B visit:

www.vitaminbreaks.com

www.facebook.com/vbparty

www.twitter.com/vitaminbparty

For more information on The Armory Podcast visit www.armorypodcast.com

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

It was another magical Breakfast of Champions, our 14th, and seemingly everything, even variables out of our control like the weather, went our way. We had another smiling, happy, fun-loving crowd. There was a stellar DJ line-up which included the likes of Thievery Corporations's Rob Garza, Dirtybird's Worthy, David Harness and all of your favorite Space Cowboys of course. The sun was shining and drinks were flowing. What more could we ask for?

We spent a little more time and care on programming B.O.C. than in years past. We were shooting for more diversity in the musical offering and to that end I played house instead of the usual breaks. I played earlier in the day (10 AM) than the past two years so I started things off with a nice groove at a lower tempo and gradually built the energy as the set went along. If you were there, I hope you enjoyed it. If you're just now listening for the first time, I hope you like!

Big thanks to Space Cowboys Managing Partner, Andrea Lundquist, to Josh, Tamo, Kirk, Mighty and to everyone else who made Breakfast of Champions an enormous success again this year.

And one last thanks to MC Matt Haze for getting the crowd hyped during my set! Woot woot!

Photo courtesy of Josh Williams (aka 8ball)

For more information on Zach, visit www.djzachmoore.com

For this, the final episode of 2013, we're pleased to welcome Spain's DJ Orebeat, co-founder of Distorsion Records, to The Armory. Enjoy, Everyone and ¡Feliz Año Nuevo 2014!

Co-founded by Spanish artists, Orebeat, Mutantbreakz and DJ Rueda, Distorsion Records began operations in early 2009 and quickly established itself as one of Spain's most innovative, bass-music imprints. Winner of the Symphonic Distribution Award for 'Best International Label' in 2012, Distorsion's catalogue can be found on Beatport, Juno and Trackitdown.

For more information on Orebeat and Distorsion Records visit:

http://soundcloud.com/orebeat

http://soundcloud.com/distorsionrecords

www.facebook.com/DistorsionRecords

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com

This week in The Armory we are absolutely thrilled to be featuring two of America’s finest purveyors of the broken beat, Chicago’s Keith MacKenzie and Orlando’s DJ Fixx. It’s about to get filthy up in here! Press play. Get down.

Illeven:Eleven Recordings’ label boss Keith MacKenzie's contributions to the breakbeat scene cannot be overstated. After honing his skills as a DJ in the 90's Florida scene alongside luminaries like DJ Icey, DJ Fixx and Infiniti, Keith's move into the label game sought to combine his various influences under one roof. Although the primary focus has been bass-driven breaks music, the label built a reputation for releasing quality collaborations from artists working across electronic genres, quickly making it a Beatport favorite.

Besides his own productions with DJ Fixx (as KMFX), the ever-growing list of releases have included music from producers like Calvertron, Deekline & Ed Solo, Hatiras, Bass Kleph and Gigi Barocco, as well as frequent vocal contributions by the likes of Sporty-O, Sue Cho and Whiskey Pete.  In addition to gigging extensively in North America, the last few years have seen Keith's profile boosted to international breakbeat fame. Over the last year alone, Keith has smashed dancefloors in Spain, Russia, Rome, and London, constantly pushing his potent formula of party-rocking breaks to new heights.

Over the past 15 years, breakbeat pioneer DJ Fixx has been stocking the shelves of record stores everywhere. Said by many as one of the most innovative and consistent producers in the industry, he continues to deliver some of the most sought after breakbeat tracks available. Making his debut in 1998, Fixx produced over 75 anthems on the classic Kaleidoscope Music label. Many of these timeless tracks are still played frequently today. This was then followed by Fixx's own personal imprint, Bottom-End Records (2004-2008). Managed by Afterdark, the BER trademark produced some of the biggest anthems in the industry, easily claiming the spot of one of the top five best-selling domestic labels in the country. Alongside of Keith MacKenzie, Fixx is currently a leading producer for Keith's illeven:eleven label. Frequent solo installments can be found on ILL, as well as collaborations with Keith under the production duo 'KMFX'. With over 150 12-inch releases, over 200 exclusive digital releases, and eight massively-distributed CDs under his belt, Fixx has assembled one impressive Discography. All of this resulting in one of the strongest and most loyal followings in the industry

For more information on Keith MacKenzie visit:

www.facebook.com/keithmackenzieofficial/info

http://twitter.com/illeveneleven

http://soundcloud.com/keithmackenzie

For more information on DJ Fixx check him out at:

www.facebook.com/djfixx

www.illeveneleven.com

www.twitter.com/fixxisill

www.soundcloud.com/dj_fixx

Artwork by www.jempanufnik.com