chicago techno jams

while i will be getting involved in house-related shenanigans tonight at the MiM party at smart bar, there's some rock-solid techno parties coming up here in chicago over the next few months... here's my quick picks of the bunch at the moment:

tomorrow night, some dj friends including elly (kiddo) and andrew (antiphase) share the bill with san francisco live act christina chatfield at the techno will tear us apart again underground party.

then next week, a thursday-night natives party at crocodile lounge. this should be a really good one: jeff pietro (remember this review?) and karl meier - two of chicago's finest local techno talents - top the bill down in the basement. to get you in the mood, check out this mix the two dj's cooked up a few years ago. to sweeten the deal: free pizza with each drink!

and of course, the following evening, oktave hosts silent servant and rrose from sandwell district at the lair.

after playing to a slim crowd in his chicago debut (for which i was on the bill) a year ago, berlin dj ben klock makes his second appearance at smart bar on friday 14 april. one can only hope for a better showing this time around...

and then on saturday 21 april, claude young returns to peoplemuver's mass transit loft party. lokua from heartbeats - who recently released a very nice record - is also on that bill.


so, lots of techno fun in chicago over the next few weeks. and finally, on a vaguely unrelated note: feel free to check out my recent reviews at RA, for records from agony forces and dead sound & videohead. more reviews and a feature(!) coming soon...

march chart

here's what's been on my mind for the past month and beyond. all LPs and EPs. there's some excellent albums coming out to start out the spring season. take a look:

zooloft - patterns of behavior

check out the thrilling new video for a recent track from giorgio gigli and obtane, 'patterns of behavior':



this one is from the newest record on the duo's label, zooloft00I. and berlin heads, look out: after playing for grounded theory last month, giorgio and obtane will be back there tomorrow to headline the ://about blank party. those berliners sure have good taste in music...

anatomy 01 and 09, revisited

today marks the two year 'anniversary' of the start of the anatomy mix series. way back when, on 14 march 2010, nax_acid cooked up anatomy 01 to kick things off. then exactly one year ago, alan backdrop's anecumene became the ninth entry in the series. so, happy birthday to both mixes... and until i share the next set in the series, what better time to (re)listen to these two than now?

mixes, part two

back, with another assemblage of sounds that have been recently rocking my world:

hubble - live at club der visionäre, september 2011 a relative oldie, but goodie nonetheless, and proof that the approach heard in hubble's studio mixes isn't too different from his 'live' jams. behold, a two-hour long trip through deep techno soundscapes filled with strange strands of melancholy... lovely!

surgeon - live at berghain, april 4th 2012 not only is surgeon a damn fine producer and dj, he's also a generous guy who often shares his sets. here, he offers up a recording of a recent three-hour set at berghain in berlin. wide-ranging but always hard-hitting, the mix launches out of a dubwise groove into one of surgeon's own tracks, and included amongst the ensuing maelstrom is material from his excellent breaking the frame LP - one of my favorite albums from last year, if you recall. the above link goes to surgeon's blog, which is definitely worth a peek. go to soundcloud for a stream and extra download link.

gianluca meloni - only for robots 011 a typically mind-screwing set from one half of modern heads, for a fellow chicago techno defender, don't trust humans. some of you may remember my review of gianluca's outis record at RA last month - this mix thrusts forth with his original version before moving into a blissful outro. very nice!

juho kahilainen - workhorses in winter a set of mix tips wouldn't be complete without one from an anatomy alum... like his anatomy mix from way back then, this one shows off juho's eclectic tastes, from deep and dubby house into acid and raw techno, etc, and back into some airy house jams to finish. give into the funk...

that's all for now, but one final note for the chicago heads (in particular the far north siders) - come see m50 and lokua at morseland tomorrow night!

monday moods: mixes

today seems like a fine time to talk mixes. as usual there are plenty of good ones going around, so here's just a few for now, and expect another list tomorrow...

m50, ashina, andrew solomon - where am i now release party here's a good place to start. this took place over the last weekend here in chicago. the reason for celebration: m50's new album as area. all three dj's - andrew, ashina, and m50 - played very nice sets, and it looks like that memorable night is available for stream or download at m50's website. check the tracklist for his set if necessary: mike parker, speedy j, convextion, oh my! and if you need more updates on m50, why not follow his facebook page? and if you're looking for andrew's opening set, click here.

electric indigo - pomcast 03 here's some high-powered stuff from austrian veteran electric indigo. this one includes tracks from nax_acid and claudio prc (on the recent aconito twelve inch, reviewed here at RA!) and an excellent pair of recent orphx remixes (one pulled from the recent zooloft record), along with music from dadub, silent servant, cassegrain, etc. berlin heads take note: electric indigo will play at 'all you need is ears' with, among others, peter van hoesen, dasha rush and milton bradley at tresor late next month.

milton bradley - smoke machine podcast 039 speaking of milton bradley, a personal favorite here at smilecoldanatomy... his studio mixes are always a cinematic experience, as evidenced by this recent session for smoke machine, which ranges from dark ambiance into the best sorts of psychedelic, frantic techno. tracks from obtane, jeff pietro, claudio prc... do it to it!

developer - RA podcast 302 check out the brand new RA 'cast from LA techno dj developer. if you're still recovering from dj harvey's gnarly RA.300 mix - which invited a bunch of bizarre commentary and which i think is definitely worth a listen or three - this should be a good cure. and look out for a review of his brand new record on semantica...

that will be all for now. stay tuned for more tips tomorrow!