Shortly after I pressed play on Erol Alkan’s “Influences Mix” for the Laura Leishman Project, I was reminded that he’s still my #1 DJ. I remember my trip to Coachella in 2010 with some buddies..I saw Erol in the dance tent, and was stunned at his execution. The beats were tough, his hair was long, and at some of the builds he’d hold his arms out horizontally like a modern day Jesus. It was a glorious display, and since then he’s always been at the top of my DJ list. He does a lot more than just DJ’ing of course; running Phantasy Sound, producing albums for Mystery Jets, Late of the Pier and The Long Blondes + collaborations with Boys Noize, Switch and Chilly Gonzales.
We now have his debut solo EP, Illumination. Cannot wait to play all these songs out, that’s all I’ll say. The top notch site The Quietus did a recentinterviewwith Alkan about his new home studio, the EP and his influential Trash night. x
Where do I start with this guy?! Boys Noize is one of the most valuable, innovative and mighty electronic artists today. Real name Alex Ridha, is a beast of a producer, dj and label owner. Whenever I’m thinking about artists that give me inspiration, this man is never far from my mind.
I got into his first album, Oi Oi Oi (2007) around the same time I became entranced by Ed Banger Records and the “Cross” album by Justice. Favorites were “The Battery” and “Don’t Believe The Hype” as well as his fantastic remix of Feist’s “My Moon My Man”. Fans witnessed an evolution of his sound with the follow-up album Power (2009). Tracks such as “Kontact Me”, “Transmission”, “Gax” showed strong diversity and a unique perspective on electronic dance music.
I cannot go further without also mentioning his collaborations with Erol Alkan. 2009 saw the release of Waves/Death Suite, powerhouse tracks that will fuck you up. In 2010, the duo returned with Avalanche/Lemonade, both interesting in their own way (hear “Avalanche (Terminal Velocity)” which features eerie vocals by Jarvis Cocker). Now in 2012, these two incredible producers continue to push the envelope with Roland Rat/Brain Storm.
I was humbled to open the Boysnoize Records showcase at Chop Suey in Seattle recently, with label mates Housemeister, Strip Steve and Djedjotronic (thank you George Bashington Productions for putting this on). To have the BNR label represented (finally!) in my area was a treat and breath of fresh air. Last year at EDC in Las Vegas, I remember seeing a rad set by Skrillex, followed by an all out sprint to the stage next door. Boys Noize had the sunrise set, from 4:30-6am, and running alongside the stage I witnessed him throw down his mammoth track, “1010”. This acid banger sounds like it could level a building, one of the most monstrous productions Alex has created thus far, I’d say. His set was by far my favorite at the festival, very few people can confidently direct an audience so early in the morning. He had us all screaming for more at 6am when his set came to an end. Alex, if you’re reading this, thank you for making that BNR tote bag, got it at EDC and I’m so proud to wear it around.
Boys Noize is currently working on his third album. Here’s a few recent comments from him about the new lp via Twitter..”working hard on finishing this next album #3″, “I know you dont need a full album these dayz just but fuck it i want to give it to you!”.
dd 