Sixis Embraces a Fierce New Direction

Is it challenging for an artist who has found a degree of success to consciously decide to switch up their style? If one earns recognition doing things a certain way, how will they fare once they begin doing things differently? The experimental producer Sixis has some insight on these questions. He made his name with a handful of EPs and singles marked by ambiance, attention to detail, slow progression, and tropes of transcendence. Now the producer is pursuing a “fierce new direction”. 

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Elements Lakewood 2019 Stands Out Among Small Festivals

By presenting diverse lineups in an immersive summer camp setting since 2017, Elements Lakewood Music and Arts Festival has been edging towards becoming the premiere electronic music festival in the northeastern United States. This year on Memorial Day Weekend, they solidified that spot by taking their stage production, logistics, and guest offerings to the next level.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 075 - Mecca:83

Every weekend we curate 10 tracks from one instrumental hip-hop producer to try to capture his or her essence. This can be a challenging task, but it may have never been more challenging than this weekend as we feature the music of Manchester-based producer Evan Jones aka Mecca:83. His catalog is vast, and virtually every cut is worthy of a deep listen. What’s more, music from his jazz alias Rise just became available for streaming for the first time.

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Saltus & Pathwey - Mirage [Single]

The latest single from Street Ritual finds two mystics of underground bass, Saltus & Pathwey, joining forces to cast a powerful sonic spell called “Mirage”. Saltus hails from Boston, MA and co-manages the production powerhouse Rezinate. Pathwey is from Asheville, NC and was recently signed to Street Ritual’s booking agency. Both put their best foot forward on this collaboration and the result is one of the strongest tracks in either’s catalog.

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Sweeps - Not Just One Thing [Single]

“See hip-hop is not just one thing. As long as it feel good and it hits you in the heart, and you can feel what the person’s saying in that type of way, then that’s hip-hop.” So says Nasir Jones aka Nas, as sampled by Sweeps in the Boston-based producer’s latest single “not just one thing”. Sweeps hits on a special sound in his latest tune, a cerebral take on hip-hop.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 073 - Juan Rios

Hailing from Seville, Spain, producer Juan Rios has been releasing textured lo-fi instrumentals for almost five years. He’s released on over a dozen labels, and collaborated thoroughly with vocalists. Rios comes from a Spanish underground where the influence of 1990’s boom-bap hip-hop is strong. He puts his own unique spin on the traditional boom-bap sound and has rightfully earned a prominent place in the playlists of lo-fi fiends worldwide.

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Kodiak Kid - Gangster Cinematic ft. Mad Zach [Single]

Today the second single from the long-awaited Drifting Status EP from Kodiak Kid is here - “Gangster Cinematic” featuring the veteran producer and controllerism adept Mad Zach. This eerie six-minute ballad picks up where the first single “To the Point” left off. From the creeping bass lines to the tense string samples and the spacious mixdown, the sonic themes across both songs are similar, giving the listener a solid indication of what to expect from this EP.

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ManyColors - Gladys [Single]

Travel to Denver, Colorado to the small basement studio run by upstart label Color Red and you’ll find guitarist Brant Williams and his four-piece ensemble ManyColors recording sparse, low-slung hip-hop grooves direct-to-tape. Their first single “Bangs” used jazz modalities to riff over stuttering beats, and with their second song “Gladys” the group does the same but with more chemistry and confidence.

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Kiefer - Bridges

Following the release of prolific LPs in each of the past two years, the Los Angeles-based pianist and jazz hip-hop producer Kiefer is back with his third drop, a smooth yet experimental six-track EP titled Bridges on the stalwart Stones Throw Records. Kiefer has more than earned his stripes in Los Angeles’ happening beat scene.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 067 - Flavors

For boom-bap beats with the right touch of lo-fi aesthetic, tune in to the hard-knock sound of Connecticut-based beatmaker Flavors. With a deep catalog and a consistently slamming style, his music is perfect for hours spent studying, strolling or daydreaming. One will be satisfied drifting away with his beats as background, or digging into them to focus on their careful curves and layered sonic details.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 065 - Mirrorish

Without getting bogged down in genre talk, if you interpret that word “trip-hop” at face value, it’s just psychedelic hip-hop. And so many of the out of phase, off-pitch beats in the lo-fi universe are trippy as hell. Certain beatmakers are just inherently psychedelic, even if they’re not aiming towards it. Enter Mirrorish from the state of Maryland.

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ManyColors - Bangs [Single]

Manycolors is a new four-piece band that opens up new musical space by using a hip-hop format to explore chords and motifs usually reserved for jazz on their debut single “Bangs”. Soft and sure, “Bangs” combines the twinkle of contemporary lo-fi aesthetics with the electric groove of older, more acoustic styles. This is a new sort of notch in the catalog of Color Red, a Denver-based label run by Eddie Roberts, the guitarist from The New Mastersounds.

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Maxfield - Cage of Glass [Premiere]

The enchanting, Odyssean “Cage of Glass” is the third succulent taste of Maxfield’s upcoming EP The Malleable Mirage releasing on February 27th with VALE. Coming in at just under nine minutes, and missing the traditional whizzes, bops, and bright colors that entice bass music listeners, “Cage of Glass” is an enchanting electronic bass ballad that finds Maxfield again out on an artistic limb.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 064 - ColDrip

There’s nothing like a chunky, big-bodied hip-hop beat to make you sit up in your seat. ColDrip surprises us with his small cache of these slappers, which are counterbalanced with more thought-provoking, jazzy fair. His small catalog jumps around a few different sub-styles of lo-fi. It sounds like the assuredly talented producer is still finding his voice; seeing what’s hot, what’s cold, and what’s just right.

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ØDYSSEE - Desired Things

There’s an old axiom that says, “It’s not what you do, it’s how you do it.” The music of ØDYSSEE exemplifies this axiom. On his new six-track release, Desired Things, he borrows bits from different styles then arranges them like a florist creating a beautiful bouquet. This unconventional take on hip-hop, presented by NINETOFIVE Worldwide Beatmakers, is entirely composed and arranged by ØDYSSEE himself; there’s no sampled material here.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 062 - mora.

Grainy, wavering, echoing notes are a hallmark of the ascendant lo-fi hip hop sound. Mora., a producer based in Buenos Aires, Argentina who’s been at it for approximately three years, hits these notes effortlessly. His sound surrounds the listener. The lead melodies in his music are set against a backdrop of pads which sound like a music box that’s been dropped into a bucket of water; shimmering echoes carried on crisp drums.

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Lo-Fi Sundays 059 - KLIM

KLIM aka KLIM Beats has a knack for sampling soul music. He’ll peel off a precious woodwind or brass arrangement from some long forgotten 45 and use it as the foundation for a bright new beat. With finely-tuned production and chops that stand out from the pack, and a recurring 1970s feel from the sampled material, KLIM beats are like a soundtrack for a trip back to the future.

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