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EP Review: Horizon EP - EJECA

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​Garry McCartney unleashes three tracks of 90s influenced dance on this new EP through Needwant under the pseudonym EJECA. Growing up in Belfast McCarthy's entry into dance music came through the house and garage popular at the time - a fact clearly evident on his new EP.

EJECA - Horizon​

'Horizon' sounds like mid-nineties garage - tracks like Roy Davis Jr's 'Gabriel', released before the concept of a UK version of New York's "Garage" was even a concept. The bass is raw and hollow sounding, the vocals pitched slightly up and samples tweaked to perfection. If you were there at the time it's hard not to feel a twinge of nostalgia - you can almost smell the smoke machine kick in. On the flip side 'Dazed' is deeper but equally inspired by the recent past. Progressive keys build a gentle tension before a snappy house beat and driving chords.

Final track 'See Through You' is actually the most contemporary of the three, influenced as much by dubstep as 90s garage and house. The beats are more complex yet softer, the bass deeper but more rounded and the vocals submerged in layers of noise. It contrasts well to the immediacy of Horizon's opening in being a little less obvious.

Horizon is released through Needwant on Monday, available for pre-order on MP3 from Amazon.co.uk [affiliate link].​

Design: Disform 2012 Signage by Dani Wolf

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Dani Wolf submitted these brilliant signage designs that he came up with for his final project at the Bezalel Academy of Design and Arts and they are absolutely fantastic. He put these together for alternative festival DISFORM 2012. In Dani's own words:​

The signage system of the alternative music festival DISFORM 2012 has two purposes: to direct the audience, informing where each area is located; and to enrich the whole experience of the festival itself, by creating an engaging dialogue between the signs and their surroundings.
The animation and the editing are directly affected by the live music performances, using OpenGL technology. The additional layer of information is dynamic and updated in real-time in order to help the audience of the festival.

I love these designs on several levels - they look absolutely great and have an amazing amount of dynamism in the way they move in time to the music, something that is perfect for a music festival. I also really appreciate the detail in the way the signs communicate additional contextual information, with text highlighting which bars or toilets are busy and which have more capacity. No-one enjoys the toilet queues at a festival so this seems like one of those really obviously but ingenious touches.​

Check out the video and gallery above to get a closer look.

Video: The City is London - Ithaca Audio

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Try the interactive version and create your own mashup: http://ow.ly/cAw4H 26 Video Live Projection Mapping Mashup Using some of our favourite London musicians, films and TV shows. Download the mashup for free on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ithacaaudio Available for live performance Created with 2 projectors, 3 laptops, Ableton Live, Max for Live, Resolume Arena (http://www.resolume.com) and MadMapper. By Chris & Andy over 3 months. ///// Ithaca Audio is a creative audio company http://www.ithacaaudio.com http://www.facebook.com/ithacaaudio http://www.twitter.com/ithacaaudio http://www.soundcloud.com/ithaca-audio ///// Tracks used: Eurythmics - Winston's diary (1984) Night and the City Mary Poppins - Stay awake Queen - A kind of magic Amy Winehouse - You know I'm no good The Who - Baba O'Riley Blur - Song 2 Amy Winehouse - Stronger than me Jamiroquai - Deeper underground Dizzee Rascal - Fix up, look sharp Quincy Jones - It's caper time (self preservations society) Adele - Rumor has it John Murphy - 28 days later Led Zepplin - Whole lotta love Faithless - Insomnia Florence & the Machine - You got the love The Clash - London calling Eastenders Queen - We are the champions Dizzee Rascal - Bonkers Klint - Diamond (Snatch) The Kinks - You really got me Are you being served Only fools and horses Queen - Another one bites the dust The Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter ////

​Ithaca Audio have previous released mashups that garnered them a nomination for the Vimeo Awards 2012. Here they have put together a mashup video that celebrates the home of the 2012 Olympics: London.

Featuring 26 musicians, films and TV shows connected to London it's a really well put together rapid fire celebration of the city​. If you are feeling the Olympic vibe (and who isn't?) then the conclusion is sure to give you a few goosebumps.

Video: That's Alright - Kindness & Trouble Funk

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Kindness'​ debut album World You Need a Change of Mind is definitely one of my favourite albums of 2012 so far but I've only just now got around to actually blogging about it. Kindness is the name Adam Bainbridge makes music under and his music mostly consists of warm, lazy soul and funk tracks. World You Need a Change of Mind was produced by Cassius' Phillipe Zdar (who also produced Phoenix's excellent Wolfgang Amadeus Pheonix) and thus has his production mark all over it. Which is usually a good sign.

There's a clear house origin that underpins much of the album but it feels suitably removed from the turgid modern day equivalent people often think of when the genre comes to mind, giving the album a beautifully fresh 'n' clean feeling. There are a number of great moments - the sparkling synths and bubbling bass of 'SEOD' or the schmaltzy balladry of 'Anyone Can Fall In Love' - but the standout moment is the juxtaposition of the stoner ballearia anthem 'House' to proto-R&B smash 'That's Alright'. It's one of those moments where you can't help but question whether you are still listening to the same album.

Which is ironic​ because as the Bainbridge explains on the press release for his latest video 'That's Alright' is based almost entirely on samples from another band, Trouble Funk, and specifically their song 'Still Smokin'.

So what is the music video for 'That's Alright' about then? Well in Bainbridge's own words:​

That's Alright' is almost entirely based upon samples from the Trouble Funk song 'Still Smokin'. Trouble Funk are a go-go group from Washington DC, who have existed in one form or another since 1978, and previous to that as a more straightforwardly r'n'b oriented act called the Trouble Band.
"Go-go has been on my radar since Rich Harrison first started putting out incredible songs with a go-go influence. As a DC area native, Harrison knew well the urgency and vitality of go-go, and its unswervable effect on an audience. Hence his use of go-go breaks in 'Crazy in Love' by Beyonce, 'One Thing' by Amerie and 'Take this Ring' by Toni Braxton.
"In clearing a sample for use in a song, you have to send a copy to the original writers for approval and publishing clearance. So I knew that Trouble Funk ought to have heard the song already. For that reason I thought we might try and take things a step further. Would the band perhaps be interested in performing the new version of their song for the video? And could they find me something to do?

The results clearly show Trouble Funk were up for it. There's apparently an additional 'making-of' documentary coming too but in the meantime check out and enjoy the video.​

If you are a Spotify user check out the whole album in the player above, otherwise​ you can grab it from Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP or MP3 [affiliate links].

Competition: Win a copy of Seconds' Tell Them EP

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You may recall my review of Seconds' rather nice Tell Them EP from last week. Well now here is your opportunity to find a bit more out about the electronic duo as well as win a copy of the EP. The short video above provides a nice intro to the band, explaining the origin of their name.

If you are yet to listen to the EP you can check it out via Soundcloud below. And whilst you do that you may as well enter a competition to win a copy! I have two copies of the vinyl release to give away - to be in with a chance to win one simply send an email to Competitions@BlackPlastic.co.uk including your name and postal address with the subject line "Please Sir, can I have some more?".

The deadline for entry is midnight on Sunday 8 July 2012 and winners will be selected at random. This competition is only open to UK residents.