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	News Reviews Events Listen Feature Charts Credits		October 9 - October 22 Earplug is a twice-monthly email magazine, delivering a handpicked selection of news, sounds, videos, and original features to the international electronic-music community. We were thrilled to interview Morgan Geist in this issue. From his early electro funk and work with Metro Area to his new album, Double Night Time, Geist has always been a singular voice in American dance music. He proves himself once again, offering an unusually candid assessment of the state of the music industry — and, by implication, the dwindling subsistence available to independent artists. Contributing Editor Pat Sisson, meanwhile, takes a sobering look at pending legislation that could significantly increase the government's role in copyright disputes. (Ironically, our Brazil-based contributor Andy Cumming reports on a new project that sees one major label opening its archives to musicians used to working in copyright's grey areas.) If that leaves you feeling wistful for the days of old, read Steve Marchese's revelatory recap of ATP, and dig into some fantastic albums (from Hatchback, Âme, Betty Botox, DJ /Rupture, and the Kasai Allstars) and mixes (from Tobacco, Shed, Lee Jones, Convektion, and Luciano) as a reminder that good music will always win out.



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Public Money, Private Gains
Proposed laws boost government enforcement of copyright

As precedents are set in the shifty legal landscape of digital music, subtle tweaks in intellectual-property laws may have serious consequences and inspire important questions. Who should foot the bill for enforcement, for example? Two proposed laws, both currently before the United States Congress, point toward the taxpayer.

In each case, public officials would help enforce the copyright claims of private companies. The International Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement Act of 2008 would fund overseas copyright protection and set up intellectual-property officials at US Embassies. The Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act originally empowered the Attorney General and prosecutors to seek civil suits against file sharers. Until now, civil suits have mainly been filed by private entities like the RIAA. Critics smell a rat.

The latter bill, recently approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, drew fire from the Department of Justice, which recently sent a letter stating, "In an era of fiscal responsibility, the resources of the Department of Justice should be used for the public benefit, not on behalf of particular industries that can avail themselves of the existing civil enforcement provisions." As a result, lawmakers pulled the provision. One of the co-sponsors of the bill, Senator Patrick Leahy, seems to have a different take on the government's involvement in the entertainment industry: in a recent statement he said "My cameo in the latest Batman movie, The Dark Knight, was priceless to me." - Pat Sisson

Renovating Bossa Nova
Bosso do Morro turns classics into funk carioca

Looking for a novel way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of bossa nova, Universal Records has teamed up with Man Recordings, Berlin-based purveyors of Rio's funk carioca (baile funk), to release Bossa do Morro, a compilation featuring DJ remixes of genre classics. As Man Recordings' Daniel Haaksman explained, "All the producers I work with in Rio are all very versatile, and can rework any musical genre in their particular style. I got a big stack of CDs from the Universal Jazz catalogue and picked the tracks that would be best to remix."

Universal gave a few guidelines, including a prohibition on present-day pop samples. The results span the divide between Rio's ghettos and the Carioca middle class, as old-school funkers such as DJ Marrentinho and DJ Nazz meet the likes of DJ Edgar. Given funk carioca's intensity, the remixers bring a surprisingly light touch to delicate Brazilian classics such as João Gilberto's "Desafinado" and the ubiquitous "Girl from Ipanema." In fact, of the original submissions, there were only two rejections (it's striking to think that Sérgio Mendes personally approved DJ FU and Dinho's remix of his renowned "Day Tripper" cover).

Said Haaksman, "I'm really glad that Universal Jazz is cool enough to see potential in such a reworking, which no Brazilian major would ever have thought of." - Andy Cumming


	MORE HEADLINES Mix Purists Get Their Knickers in a Twist Booker complains of topless, pantomiming DJ more » Bring that Beat Back Muxtape shuts down under pressure, promises return more » Head and Antlers Above the Rest Caribou takes Polaris Prize more » So Long, Sonny Junior Senior Call It Quits more » Moby's Gripe NY producer wants EMI on Beatport more » What Classic Means to Him Luke Solomon looks back at his legendary label more » A Feat for Christo? Metro Area roll out a Fabric mix more » Luaka Bop Downsizes Byrne's label launches "Three Inches of Music" Series more » An Ultimatum for RapidShare German court may shut down file-sharing service more »

Artist:

Hatchback

Title:

Colors of the Sun

Label:

Release:

August 9

Hatchback's self-described "California cosmic krautrock disco" might be a mouthful, but his output is far more digestible. Softly incandescent instrumentals fill his debut LP, Colors of the Sun, delving into temporal space with polychromatic tones reminiscent of the West Coast's most stunning sunsets. Propelled by vintage synthesizers and analog drum machines, opener "Nesso" proves an irresistible piece of half-time, arpeggiated mellowness. Even more uptempo numbers like "Everything Is Neu" and "Carefree Highway" retain the organic sonorousness of the most wind-damaged, in-dash 8-track. At the end of the drive, Colors of the Sun is a striking debut, one that successfully covers the distance between the Autobahn and the Pacific Coast Highway. - Steve Marchese

Artist:

Âme

Title:

Fabric 42

Label:

Fabric

Release:

September 15

Since they ruled 2005 playlists with club hit "Rej," Âme (Karlsruhe, Germany's Kristian Beyer and Frank Wiedemann) have spent their time mapping dance music's post-minimal direction. Alongside its fertile Innervisions posse (also featuring Dixon and Henrik Schwarz), the duo has embraced American house's soul-syncracies and Berlin's endless techno pulse in equal measure. And that's generally what you get on its Fabric 42 mix: deep German tracks merge with the a cappellas of jazz philosopher Moondog, Amiri Baraka's son, and aborigines. 313 collective Mixworks and Dan Bell's nearly forgotten KB Project offer banging Detroit bits, while Armando's classic acidic come-on keeps Chicago covered. Besides the new Innervisions single, the only marquee moments are Matthew Styles' increasingly beloved "We Said Nothing" and some classic rave from LFO vs. Fuse. It's as though Âme decided to steer clear of the epic, veering toward the knowing and the expert instead. - Piotr Orlov

Artist:

Betty Botox

Title:

Mmm, Betty!

Label:

Mule Musiq

Release:

August 25

As half of anything-goes DJ duo Optimo, Twitch leads the charmed life of an OCD record geek. As Betty Botox, he proves a similarly dab hand at re-edit malarkey, splicing the excess from songs and refitting them as endless plateaus of pleasure. Twitch's aesthetic is about the other '80s, where electronic pop, mutated via the dance floor, collides head-on with such unlikely characters as Australian tape/noise/video team Severed Heads ("Greater Reward") or eyeball freaks the Residents ("Diskomo"). Twitch also updates Italian EBM pioneers, covering Prince (Pankow's "Boys and Girls"), ex-members of Yello, and anomalies like Hawkwind's ridiculous "Valium Ten" (imagine the Muppets' house band playing Neu!). Each edit balances rough charm and kinetic precision. The unexpected result? Serious fun. - Jon Dale

Artist:

DJ /Rupture

Title:

Uproot

Label:

The Agriculture

Release:

October 7

On this bass-loaded mix, DJ /Rupture (aka blogger/theorist Jace Clayton) runs the gamut from dub to dubstep, patching a smooth flow rooted in reggae. There are no sudden shunts or jarring contrasts; he gets deeper and deeper as the mix progresses, using his customary three turntables to shape a linear pulse. Bass is his heavy tool, emanating from less-than-obvious stepping sources such as Finland's Clouds or Brazil's Maga Bo, the latter boasting seductively sinister vocals and a serrated loop core. An Iron Shirt track bleeds into a specially commissioned string section by Jenny Jones, providing a midway pause before redoubling the low-end action. Ghislain Poirier's "Ignadjossi" is radically stripped, preferring an atmospheric dispersal to juddering climax. Half of the selections are previously unreleased, and a separate disc, Uproot: Ingredients, presents the mix makings in their original, unedited forms, revealing the inner mechanics of Rupture's mind. - Martin Longley

Artist:

Kasai Allstars

Title:

In the 7th Moon the Chief Turned Into a Swimming Fish and Ate the Head of His Enemy by Magic

Label:

Crammed

Release:

July 15

A loosely comprised collective of some 25 musicians (not to mention dancers from five different ethnic groups), Kasai Allstars are a Congolese super-group. Much like their peers and labelmates Konono No.1, Kasai Allstars perform Congolese ritual trance music with amplified traditional instruments. But, where Konono No.1 generate a tidal-wave wall of electrified likembe buzzing, Kasai are more nuanced and delicately psychedelic; electric guitar arpeggios tick away quietly in the background while traditional percussion instruments create a syncopated industrial buzz. The compositions ebb and flow, slowly blossoming from single melodies into deeply layered polyrhythms as complex and surreal as the record's title. - Aaron Leitko


	EARPLUG FAVES Damián Schwartz Party Lovers Net28 Scuba A Mutual Antipathy (Remixes) Hotflush Paul Brtschitsch & Cio D'Or Aroma EP Broque David Last vs Zulu Musically Massive EP Staubgold Kieran Hebden and Steve Reid NYC Domino Octavcat Hard as Snails Uncharted Audio Andy Stott Unknown Exception: Selected Tracks Vol. 1 Modern Love Arthur Russell Love Is Overtaking Me Audika Kelpe Extraquarium DC Poni Hoax "The Bird Is on Fire (Chloé Remix)" Tigersushi

REVIEW: All Tomorrow's Parties
September 19-21
Monticello, New York
www.atpfestival.com

The bright, deliberate splash of the festival merchandise said it all: All Tomorrow's Parties was going to be loud. It was going to be louder than your battle-tested eardrums could take; louder than any weekend of music you've experienced in a long, long time. And, while the lineup flaunted more than a dozen bands known more for their status as college-rock icons than for their ear-splitting volume, all managed to rightly bring the noise.

The ATP folks were wise to match a largely nostalgic lineup with the cobwebbed and sun-faded Kutshers Country Club and Raleigh Hotel, once crown jewels of the Borscht Belt resorts, now barely maintained has-beens in a sleepy town in the southern Catskills. For the organizers, the amenities and locale clearly made sense. If it was overwhelming at first, the kitsch grew endearing, unifying the crowd with the strange sensation that Meatballs had been set at The Shining's Overlook Hotel.

Embracing the nostalgia, Friday's "Don't Look Back" lineup was a can't-miss of classic records performed with refreshingly unpretentious sincerity. Bardo Pond's 1997 LP Lapsed kicked off the drone that seemed to last until early Monday morning. It was followed by classic renditions by SST cornerstones Meat Puppets (Meat Puppets II), polyrhythmic post-rockers Tortoise (Millions Now Living Will Never Die), Sonic Youth frontman Thurston Moore (Psychic Hearts), and Pacific Northwest indie troubadours Built to Spill (Perfect From Now On). Taking full advantage of the incredible sound system, Friday's lineup trod familiar ground with nary a misstep, breaking in the Stardust Room — the wonderfully tiered and cosmically muraled main-stage venue — for the sonic assault waiting in the wings.

With the musical hangover stinging deep into the afternoon of day two, new schoolers like Growing, Om, and Fuck Buttons dropped massive walls of surging, sustained noise on largely sobered crowds. Hip-hopper Edan skillfully entertained the audiophiles with an album-cover show-and-tell, kicking off a memorable Stage One run that ended hours later with Lightning Bolt's signature mayhem. In between, Chapel Hill guitar-benders Polvo packed an entire set with forgotten classics, while Shellac kept the Albini/Weston/Trainer sound as raw and tightly lock-stepped as ever. Of course, Saturday's highlight was undoubtedly Les Savy Fav's performance, a set marked by lead singer Tim Harrington's unforgettable, wine-aided ladder climb and a frenetic final number that caused nearly 100 people on stage to simultaneously lose their shit.

As if Friday and Saturday weren't enough to appease the rock gods, Sunday marked the first stateside performance of British shoegaze legends My Bloody Valentine in nearly 16 years. Festival staff handed out earplugs in anticipation of levels of volume that, it was rumored, might reach the mythical "brown note." (The band is said to have spent over £200,000 on equipment.) Curated by MBV's Kevin Shields, day three was also about control amidst chaos, with sturdy performances by Yo La Tengo, Spectrum, and Mogwai building long, sustained crescendos. EPMD showed mic control over hits like "Richter Scale" and "Crossover," while Dinosaur Jr. brilliantly echoed the urgency of tracks from You're Living All Over Me and Bug via J. Mascis' soulful, extended solos.

But the night belonged to MBV — even with the interminable wait beforehand — and from start to finish, the iconic quartet blasted through what seemed like its entire catalog, closing with nearly 17 minutes of punishing sonic wash from "You Made Me Realise." It was a revelatory, nearly religious experience for an eager, happily masochistic crowd. Even the nagging suspicion that the real world loomed somewhere near this amazing place, with its garish wallpaper and dangerously over-chlorinated pool, wasn't nearly enough to diminish the best weekend of indie-rock summer camp ever. - Steve Marchese


	MORE EVENTS The Warehouse Project Through January 1 Manchester, UK This Is Not London Festival October 3-25 London, UK MUTEK Mexico October 8-13 Mexico City, Mexico Iceland Airwaves October 15-19 Reykjavík, Iceland Unsound October 18-25 Kraków, Poland Amsterdam Dance Event October 22-25 Amsterdam, The Netherlands DEAF October 22-26 Dublin, Ireland

Tobacco, Songs to Get Killed in the Woods To (MP3)
Living up to the title, Anticon's Tobacco plants his crop in the darkest strands of the psyche, rolling hip-hop, psychedelia, and spoken-word snippets into something bitter and wondrous.

LISTEN

Shed, BodytonicLive 06: Live at Berghain (MP3)
Like his amazing new album, Shedding the Past, Shed's live set warps early-'90s techno via shuddering beats and delirious washes of chords. Innovative and invigorating.

LISTEN

Lee Jones, RA.121 (MP3)
On the eve of his new album, Electronic Frank, MyMy's Lee Jones slips on something comfortable and strokes minimal's soft, spongy underbelly.

LISTEN

Convextion, Live at Faktion, Machester, UK (MP3)
Simply citing the influences upon his work — Carl Craig, Basic Channel, B12 — doesn't do justice to the finesse and originality of Convextion's hypnotic, synth-rich techno. This 90-minute live PA isn't so much old-school as it is eternal.

LISTEN

Luciano, Train Wreck Mix (stream)
Everyone's favorite Chilean-Swiss DJ spins furiously along the Berlin/Ibiza axis in a set brimming with monster tunes.

LISTEN


	WATCH Juju & Jordash, "Silencio" watch » Volcano!, "Africa Just Wants to Have Fun" watch » Felix Thorn, "Felix's Machines Composition 02-2007" watch » Wild Combination: A Portrait of Arthur Russell preview watch »

Morgan Geist Courts His Dark Side
Double Night Time flips disco's switch

It seems like Morgan Geist should be happy. After all, a bar mitzvah is a big deal for any parent, and the producer's label, Environ, just became a man. But, after 13 years at the helm, Geist seems to be souring on the industry that's brought acclaim to his label, his collaborations with Metro Area, his solo albums, and his Unclassics collection (a series of offbeat and long-lost disco absurdities). It's this frustration that informs some of the darker themes on his new solo album, Double Night Time, which features vocals from Junior Boys' Jeremy Greenspan. Earplug contributor Patrick Sisson connected with Geist to discuss the industry's fiery crash, the "nocebo" effect, and licensing misadventures.

Earplug: How was the Environ bar mitzvah earlier this year?

Morgan Geist: It was really fun. There's not a lot that puts me in a good mood about music anymore. It was well attended, and a lot of old friends came. We had knishes from Knish Knosh, and I got all of their ridiculous party favors — like maracas with the Star of David on them and inflatable synthesizers. I think Environ is perceived as a serious label, so it's fun to do something that wasn't very serious.

EP: What's putting you in a bad mood? What are your thoughts about the industry?

MG: What are my feelings on the Hindenburg a moment after it's exploded? It seems like it's in a tailspin that it's never going to pull out of — at least in terms of recorded music. I'm happy to be proven wrong, but I don't see how that can happen. I've been doing the label for so long that it's sort of burned me out, even the creative side. Everybody has their own take. Mine is especially negative because I signed up to be a recording musician. I'm very lucky because people will have me DJ. The Internet is destroying recording musicians' careers. It's not hyperbole. I'm making a fraction of what I once made. I don't want music to turn into something I hate, but it's starting to. I need to figure out what I'm going to do — if it means quitting completely or quitting the label. But I love making music. I'm one of these people who like recorded music more than live shows, which I know is at odds with the way a lot of people feel about pop and dance music.

EP: With that hanging over you, what inspired you to go into the studio and make a new album?

keep reading »


	MORE FEATURES Enraptured Mike Powell basks in Lovely Music's glow more » Cheeky, Not Cheesy Deadmau5 puts critics and punters in their place more » Digital Death PM checks in with the last of the mixtape masters more » Back to the Retrofuture Simon Reynolds on the BBC Radiophonic Workshop more » Promo Post-Mortem Journos worry: are free CDs drying up? more »

Each issue, Earplug sneaks a peek inside the crates of our favorite DJs. We'll even help you beef up your own bag: click on selected titles to preview tracks, download MP3s, or purchase vinyl.

Solo Andata
(12k/Hefty)
Brooklyn, NY
www.myspace.com/soloandata

It's not often that avant-garde ambient music worms its way into pop culture's consciousness. But, in an odd strike of luck, Solo Andata's hushed "Together Apart" was recently used in a controversial Calvin Klein campaign. The duo, Paul Fiocco and Kane Ikin, recently relocated to Brooklyn from disparate locales (Australia and Sweden) and continue to record experimental, electro-acoustic sounds on a variety of noted imprints, including Type and Hefty. Here, they share some of their inspirations with Earplug.

Grouper, Dragging a Dead Deer up a Hill (Type)

Grizzly Bear, Yellow House (Warp)

Nick Drake, Pink Moon (Island)

Radiohead/Jonny Greenwood, In Rainbows and There Will Be Blood (XL/Nonesuch)

In Rainbows

Mogwai, Young Team (Chemikal Underground)

Svarte Greiner, Knive (Type)

Knive

Stalker

Giuseppe Lelasi, Gesine (Häpna)

Gesine

BJ Nilsen, The Short Night (Touch)

Paavoharju, Laulu Laakson Kukista (Fonal)

Sawako, Madoromi (Anticipate)

Managing Editor
Philip Sherburne

Deputy Editor
Andrew Phillips

Contributing Editors
Michael Byrne
Doug Levy
Patrick C. Sisson

Cover Art
Jimmy Edgar

Production
Axel Anderson
Rachel Brodsky
Tom Starkweather
Andrew Steinmetz

Founder
David J. Prince

Contributors
Todd L. Burns
David M. Cotner
Andy Cumming
Jonathon Dale
Rachel B. Doyle
Marc Gilman
Jorge Hernandez
Aaron Leitko
Martin Longley
Steve Marchese
Michaelangelo Matos
Colin James Nagy
Piotr Orlov
Nick Parish
Tomas A. Palermo
Tim Pratt
Bernardo Rondeau
Joe Rudkin
Jesse Serwer
Oliver Spall
Josh Sparber
Andrew Stout
Bruce Tantum

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	About Us
	Earplug is an email magazine dedicated to electronic music and its many dynamic styles and influences. Published twice-monthly, it features a handpicked selection of music news, cultural spotlights, tip sheets, CD reviews, original reporting, and music festival previews and reviews. Earplug offers only pure editorial and unbiased news — no money is accepted from any artists, labels, promoters, or companies seeking mention.

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