Maybe it’s been a foolish endeavor, and maybe I’m the only one who misses the blog ol’ days, but I’ve been giving it a shot. I’ve been working on restoring some of the old content, though much of it was lost. I’ve slowly been rebuilding the old remix sunday archives, and even posting the occasional new edition. And I’ve been writing again.
You can find all the label’s releases here, on bandcamp, or most anywhere you listen to music these days. I’ve still got copies of some of the old vinyl releases, and I recently released the first in a set of charitable cassette compilations to raise awareness about the continued [mis]use of broken windows policing methods.
Plus, I put together a playlists section with a handful of spotify lists that hopefully start to capture a [slightly] updated version of the moods we used to peddle. Give those a listen and a ❤ if you would be so kind. If you want to get in touch, just give me a holler.
Sometimes the simplest expressions of love are the most enduring. When my wife scratches my back without my asking, the way my dog looks at me inquisitively when he’s wondering if I’m ready to play, the texts I get from my oldest friend fearful of the latest impending world catastrophe, when my father-in-law makes sure we have the right coffee in the house when my mother-in-law is coming to visit.
Lyrah‘s “Hold Me” feels like it’s about two people waiting for the point when they can trust in those seemingly minor expressions of trust in one another. That point in a relationship when there’s already a real familiarity, and each is gently testing the other to feel them out a little more carefully than they bothered to initially. In and of itself, the song gets close to encapsulating the tenderness of a moment like that.
Next in our submissions series is Berlin-based producer, CEE. Best known for his work with Berlin dub mainstay Al Haca Soundsystem, his latest solo effort features vocals from Shrii and Rider Shafique (whose name you may recognize from a prolific string of collaborations with the likes of Sam Binga and The Bug). “Watch” is a slow-roller, evocative of mid-era Massive Attack, or perhaps more fittingly, Modeselektor. The latter comes as no surprise, as CEE has previously released on Monkeytown and has collaborated on releases on 50weapons with Phon.o. The single is out now, and can be picked up on bandcamp.
CEE – “Watch” ft. Rider Shafique & Shrii (bc)
I’ve also included two songs from one of CEE’s side projects, Bass Sekolah, both recorded as a part of a series of collaborative sessions that took place while CEE was living in the Berembun jungle in Malaysia.
Skinnerbox & Bass Sekolah – “Where The Rivers” (bc)
Housemeister & Bass Sekolah – “Die Zirpe und der Frosch” (bc)
As I’ve been resurrecting this old gal, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the fact that I continue to get a lot of really high quality submissions. Even after only a few months of writing here again, I’m already a bit flooded. So I thought it would be a good idea to start a new feature that highlights some of the best submissions I receive in my mailbox. If you’d like to submit music, you can still reach me by the old methods, but if you want to make sure I manage to listen to your music, a better way to go is to reach out via Submithub, where I will listen to everything that gets sent my way.
To start things off, I recently received this song from Athlymn. With a sound that is both metropolitan and natural, it’s fitting that Athlymn turns out to be a British expat now living in the Catalonian mountains. This song nods at 90’s euphoric brain dance and lofi techno, while also maintaining a friendly and approachable sound of its own. It reminds me of being antsy to get outside the house without having anywhere particular to go. It would probably work just as well for those walks to the corner store as it would for taking a hike in the beech forests of el Hayedo de Jordá.
Athlymn’s other work flirts more with rave, breakbeat, and dub techno, but this is the one that grabbed me most. Have a listen to the rest of his catalog on bandcamp. He tells me he’s got new music coming out this summer, so keep an ear out for new things from him if you enjoyed this.
The next one from End Broken Windows Vol.1 comes from Vancouver’s Garneau, who’s been wildly prolific in recent years, in a wide variety of subgenres. 44,100hz Social Club did us the solid of premiering this song, and I couldn’t be more excited to have it included in the compilation. It’s one of those songs that just makes it impossible to sit still. If you like this, be sure to also check Garneau’s newest collaborative project, Energy Boyz, out with old friends of Palms Out, Top Billin’.
The next premiere from End Broken Windows Vol.1 comes from Köln-based Ubahnrider. When I came up with the concept of a charity compilation inspired by the subway system, there was no one more appropriate to involve than Ubahnrider. I mean, his name is already perfect for the project, but more importantly, his musical output is always great. What resulted was a wonderful song that gives me the feeling of being two stops from home, simultaneously ready to wind down from whatever I’ve been contemplating on my long commute to gearing myself up to make the last stretch of a walk to my house. Electric Shapes was kind enough to premiere this song.
The always-excellent Houseum recently premiered the A2 from End Broken Windows Vol.1. This one comes from Leeds based Lobec, who delivers the gorgeous “Timeless” — referencing some of the best of what 90s euphoric breakbeat had to offer. Lobec hasn’t released very much yet, but his 5AM Nostalgia EP from 2020, on Further Electronix, has been a real favorite of mine over the past couple of years.
The next premiere from End Broken Windows Vol.1 comes from Palms Out alum, Carli — whose credits are too long to list. Currently, he’s best known as a quarter of Off The Meds, but longtime readers will remember him from his now-classic pair of releases on Palms Out with Marcus Price, Mat Bira Kvinnor Weed and Bubbelgum, as well as releases on Fool’s Gold, Studio Barnhus, Mad Decent, Dubsided, to name a few. Carli delivers an excellent lesson in suspense with “XP10” — a real stand out on this compilation. The song was kindly premiered by Definite Party Material, and is available to stream and purchase everywhere now.
The next premiere from End Broken Windows Vol.1 comes from Varum, a rising star from Leipzig. Bubble Bath Berlin premiered this song a few days ago, and it’s a heater. Varum’s got wild chops, and is unnaturally consistent, especially for someone so prolific. If you enjoy this, be sure to also check out Yarn Init, Varum’s group with Int Main, as well as their label Clear Memory.
End Broken Windows Vol.1 is out now everywhere. You can stream it wherever, and order the limited edition cassettes on bandcamp. All proceeds go to the SBB National Sex Worker Bail Fund.
DJ Mag were kind enough to recently premiere one of the standouts from End Broken Windows Vol.1, “Detroit Tale” by Max Ulis and Khari McClelland. Max was the first person I reached out to about being a part of this project, and I’m so glad he agreed. This song is a perfect crystallization of a night out in Detroit, told through the lens of Khari’s first night out. It’s also my favorite kind of dance music hybrid; impossible to easily categorize, it sits somewhere between electro, house, and techno. It’s just a really great song.
End Broken Windows Vol.1 is out today everywhere. You can stream it wherever, and order the limited edition cassettes on bandcamp. All proceeds go to the SBB National Sex Worker Bail Fund.
Max Ulis – “Detroit Tale” ft. Khari McClelland (from End Broken Windows Vol.1)
Stream it wherever you listen to music, purchase the limited edition cassette on bandcamp, or download it from bandcamp, beatport, boomkat or wherever you get your files. As a reminder, all proceeds from this compilation will go to the SBB National Sex Worker Bail Fund, so if you’d prefer to make a donation directly, please do. They are a wonderful organization doing great work. <3 to everyone who has already supported, as well as all of the artists involved.
The nice folks at welofi just premiered “Flooressence” by SUMORAI & AVIVX, from the A-sdie of our upcoming charity compilation End Broken Windows Vol.1. This one is special to me, not only because it’s a truly infectious and playful take on electro, but also because I first met Viktor and Arys in Tokyo in 2014, when we were all three participants at Red Bull Music Academy. Kind of amazing how that experience forged lasting bonds that continue on almost 8 years later. Such a shame that RBMA is no more, but I feel lucky to have been a part of something so special. And we’re all the better for it, if for no other reason than songs like this are its eventual result.
The fine people at Suprematic Sounds just premiered a song from the A-side of our upcoming End Broken Windows Vol.1 charity compilation. This one comes from our old friend, Copenhagen-based A.dixen, who I recently wrote about — “Broken Skin” is delicate breakbeat exploration, full of detail and nuance. Dix takes his time with this one; with each turnaround, I feel like the train car just skittered over a rough portion of track, but not quite enough to break bliss. I’ll be home soon.
Our friends at Tracklistings were kind enough to premiere the closing track from our upcoming charity compilation, End Broken Windows Vol.1 — the track comes from Leeds-based producer The Droid, who delivers heady subterranean electro on “Merge”, evoking the tension and anxiety of clandestine middle-of-the-night explorations through subway tunnels.
On February 25th, Palms Out will release the first in a series of compilations on cassette and digitally. Titled plainly: End Broken Windows, 100% of the proceeds of the series will go to charity in an effort to raise awareness about broken windows policing methods. Specifically, I hope this project contributes in some small way to spreading the word about the ways in which policing and prosecuting low-level offenses serves only as a way of terrorizing and traumatizing vulnerable populations, without achieving the intended goal of preventing violent crime. The theoretical premise of broken windows policing is fundamentally flawed, and woefully misguided — there is no evidence that focusing police power on low level violations like sex work, loitering, minor vandalism, petit theft, minor drug offenses, etc. leads to any reduction in violent crime. The practice must end.
Each volume of the series will benefit a different charity doing work to counteract the effects of broken windows policing. All broken windows really does is criminalize being black, trans, queer, young, unhoused, etc., so helping those people avoid the worst repercussions of these policies is a worthwhile place to start. The first volume will benefit the SBB National Sex Worker Bail Fund. Sex workers are often intersectionally and inordinately affected by broken windows policing, and should never be forced to spend a single night in jail merely for exercising agency over their own bodies.
Musically and conceptually, this record is inspired by a place where broken windows policing is disproportionately felt: the subway/metro. I gave all of the artists the vague prompt to write music inspired by the NYC subway system — and the results were expectedly varying. For this volume, I pursued artists who have been generally exploring midtempo dance music without focus on 4 to the floor drum patterns. The result was a collection of largely breakbeat-oriented songs, some with direct classic NYC & Detroit electro references, others with more melodic and euphoric UK hardcore inspiration, and others still that kind of split the difference between modern bass and Baltimore club (for lack of better descriptors).
Featuring: Max Ulis (CA), Khari McClelland (US), Carli (SE), Disaffected (UK), Garneau (CA), Varum (DE), Martyn Bootyspoon (CA), Lobec (UK), A.dixen (DK), AVIVX (KZ), SUMORAI (SE), Ubahnrider (DE), The Droid (UK). Mastered by Joel Krozer at Six Bit Deep.
“The way you handle a car can really say a lot about you as a person”
– Sassy 009
The latest mixtape from Norway’s Sassy 009, aka Sunni Lindgaard, Heart Ego, is out now.
In lieu of a lyrics video for the song I’ve posted below, Sassy 009 put up this fun interactive web-based driving game that responsively lets you guide yourself through the song (and its lyrics) yourself. A couple of the other songs on the album also have really ingenious responsive mini games/tools, check them all out here.
Central Processing Unit embarks on its tenth year with a near-perfect four-tracker from Fasme and Maelstrom; both French. Though the release as a whole is firmly footed in the CPU aesthetic, the first song below evokes a touch of the naive romance of the best song CPU has ever put out, “Dance With Me” by the late Rhys Celeste (aka Microlith). The second song below is a gem too, particularly in its use of [over-]compression. That kick drum is almost inside-out. Buy the release on bandcamp, unfortunately we were all too slow for the 12″.
Fasme & Maelstrom – “Almond Blossom” (sc)
Fasme & Maelstrom – “Ciliae” (sc)
And because Fasme’s melodic ear seems to be especially in tune (or microtuned? I dunno, there’s a bad pun in there somewhere), here’s another recent one from him that also seems to have bottled some Microlith-inspired magic. Out recently on Feel My Bicep.
I stumbled upon these two really infectious songs by Malia Lani, who I can’t really find any information about, but I believe is based in Berlin. Both songs are produced by Grave Goods, who also contributed to (and executive produced) Naeem’s Startisha, which seems like it’s been criminally overlooked since its release in 2020. Grave Goods is also one of the people behind the seemingly defunct (and sorely missed) Philly-based Rare Mp3s, along with other big talents like Ryan Schwabe, Sam Greens, and Heaven in Stereo.
I’m late to catch this train, but Tom VR has put out some gorgeous stuff over the past few years. This one is from 2020’s Acheless EP. If you like this, you might also check his latest album, Please Keep Shimmering, which came out this past September, also on Seb Wildblood‘s All My Thoughts imprint.
This track from Vancouver, BC based Garneau appears on this year’s edition of the annual 12 days compilation series on Bass Coast. 2021’s edition of the series is pay what you wish, and its proceeds will go to the Nicola Valley Food Bank located in Merritt, BC on the shared traditional territories of the Nłeʔkepmx and Syilx. Merritt and the surrounding areas were recently devastated by immense rainfall and resulting floods. Donate a few bucks when you grab this record, which also includes excellent contributions from Ikonika, The Librarian, Mat the Alien, and Fort Knox Five, among several others; and have a listen to the other volumes of the compilation series, which is reliably first-rate.
I keep playing catch up trying to cover the trajectories of former Palms Out favorites. I guess that’s what happens after a ten year hiatus. Stefano Ritteri used to make *idget house music as Solo, and we covered him several times. In the years since, his output has been largely focused on balearic, Italo, and cosmic disco styles. He’s behind the excellent Viaggio and Spaciale labels (the latter of which was wildly productive in 2020, somehow managing to avoid the worldwide vinyl production standstill).
This song is the title track on the Dope Mania 12″, released on Viaggio in 2019; it fits nicely in that little corner of music that blurs the lines between disco, old school New York-style electro and a first wave Frankie Knuckles record.
Anders Dixen is another dear friend from Copenhagen. Once upon a time, he put out an excellent (but criminally under-appreciated) record on Palms Out under the name Dix One, and then went on to make music for a number years as Unkwon, a name he was gifted by a close mutual friend of ours who was no longer using it. He subsequently had his greatest success as part of trio Av Av Av (with DJ Er Du Dum Eller Hvad and another Palms Out alumnus, Eloq) — releasing a couple of really solid albums, scoring the Netflix series The Rain, as well as the film Brakland. He’s also made music as part of duos Dokkedal/Dixen (with Simon Dokkedal of Den Sorte Skole), and Diamond Mouth (with Ane Trolle). This list is incomplete; Dix is as much a fixture of Danish electronic music as anyone could conceivably be.
He’s always been a brilliant producer, but he’s truly found his voice with his newest sobriquet, A.dixen, under which he has released far more personal and nuanced work — and unsurprisingly so, since the handle is only a few letters removed from his government name. In 2019, he released two albums as A.dixen, both on Øen Records. Death Tapes Vol. 1 was without doubt my favorite record of that year, and Vol. 2 was among my favorites of 2020 (though it was released at the very tail end of the previous year); and not just because both make myriad and original use of breakbeats, though they do. At the beginning of this year, he also made available for free on his bandcamp two improvisational ambient records.
Below is a brief selection of some of my favorites from the Death Tapes series. It was hard to choose, as both albums deserve to be listened to in full.
A.dixen – The Birds the Birds (bc)
A.dixen – “Slow Jamz 4 the End of the World” (bc)
A.dixen – “A System to End All Systems” (bc)
After the jump, find a recent remix Dix did for Rumpistol, which is inexplicably not on bandcamp.
Why Be is one of those artists who probably has innumerable songs wasting on old hard drives that no one will ever hear, but are probably really good. When I met him once or twice in the late aughts, he was a part of HVAD‘s Syg Nok collective in Copenhagen. These are two from 2020’s Caged Animal on Berlin-based Yegorka.
Why Be – “Impossible Drops1” (bc)
Why Be – “Impossible Drops2” (bc)
And since I mentioned him, I may as well share one from HVAD, another Dane who releases far less than he creates, and whose records I treasure. From 2014, when Syg Nok was still active.
I first met Cæcilie Trier when she was playing cello in Atoi, a band I blogged about a few times, years ago. She’s since released a handful of records under the name CTM, and is current with a collaborative album under that name with pianist August Rosenbaum on Posh Isolation. She’s a superb songwriter, and the production on all of her work is as inventive as it is immediate. For as delicate as much of her music can seem at first blush, it also feels distinctly physical; sort of body music for air signs.
In addition to the title song from her latest with Rosenbaum, Celeste, I’m including a favorite of mine from her most recent solo effort, 2018’s Red Dragon, as well as the title track from 2013’s Variations.
CTM & August Rosenbaum – “Celeste Song” (sc)
CTM – “Paloma pt. 2” (sc)
CTM – “Variations” (sc)
And just because, here’s the video for another one from Red Dragon.
Soho is a dear old friend. We used to be in a band together when I lived in Denmark, though that’s not saying much; she’s collaborated with so many others in the time since. She was a regular member of Lust for Youth’s live band, she’s been in bands like the short-lived but excellent Gold Lip, and she’s made records with the likes of Croatian Amor, Kasper Bjørke, and many others. But it’s really her solo work that strikes my nerves most; her voice is beautiful and an obvious blessing, but she’s also a gifted composer and producer.
She’s been prolific in recent years, but since things were dormant here, I didn’t have the chance to post any of her wonderful work. Above, I’ve posted a video of one of my favorites, from her 2018 album Six Archetypes, which included five video treatments, all of which are really worth attention. I’ve also included a selection of other songs from recent years that may inspire you to dive deeper into her catalog.
Soho Rezanejad – “Greed Wears a Disarming Face” (2018) (bc)
Soho Rezanejad – “December Song” (2018) (bc)
Soho Rezanejad – “Two Women Bucolics” (2020) (bc)
Soho Rezanejad – “Memory Shell” (2019) (bc)
Soho Rezanejad – “Everyday’s Another Holiday” (2015) (bc)
And for good measure, another video from 2016, for a song that isn’t available on bandcamp.
