We caught up with the brilliant performance artist Reggie Watts at South by Southwest 2013 for an interview in which he talks about his creative process, musical influences, and his less is more approach to performance tools and music technology. During his performance at The Austin Museum of Modern Art, Reggie Watts shifted between stream of consciousness stand-up comedy to live, improvisational compositions using a limited analog-based performance setup which includes some guitar pedals and loop samplers. Though it all, he remained  funny and spontaneous, making the performance up as he went along.  After the performance, he talked to us his performance rig and the benefits of using tactile  analog tools for creation. He also told us about JASH, a comedy network and collective he formed with Michael Cera, Tim & Eric, and Sarah Silverman.

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In this video series, legendary hip hop producer and music icon Prince Paul is joined by his son and music partner DJ Pforreal to address the important issue of new school vs. old school. The duo address important  topics such as the increasing loudness in sound recordings and call for producers and engineers to please turn it down – more dynamics! They also talk about beatboxing (from the original Human Beat Boxer Doug E. Fresh and the The Diabolical Biz Markie to Rzhzel the Godfather of Noyze), counting BPMs, pick-up lines, basketball, and choosing the right glasses to complement your style and personality.

This is the sixth video in an ongoing series created to accompany the release of Prince Paul and DJ Pforreal’s Negroes on Ice album, currently available online and in stores.

Prince Paul (Paul Huston) is a legend in the world of hip hop who was originally part of the early 80s rap outfit Stetsasonic and later went on to create the iconic sounds of early De La Soul albums, the Gravediggaz project (with RZA), Handsome Boy Modeling School (with Dan the Automator), as well as a series of solo albums. As a collaborative guru for music production, Paul has worked with great musicians from almost every genre including Alec Empire, Linkin Park, Faith No More’s Mike Patton, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid, and Parliament keyboardist Bernie Worrell (to name just a few). Prince Paul’s calling card on almost all his productions is an intelligent (yet sometimes silly) sense of humor that sits right behind the boom-bap beats that have made his music so popular.

Paul’s most recent collaborator is none other than his son, DJ Pforreal, a young performer who has obviously inherited his father’s sense of humor as well as a knack for beat creation and lyrical delivery. Their initial project together, Negroes on Ice, is a comedy / music album that blends music and storytelling into a “hilarious, head-nodding listening experience.” In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Prince Paul explains that much of the album comes from stories that his son would tell him when he was a child. “He would come up with these outrageous things that I knew (weren’t) true, but I couldn’t get mad at him because they were just so dumb. And I knew he was lying, but he would just go on and on about it to where it would start to become entertaining.” When asked about the format of combining music and comedy together, Paul explained further. “If you’ve ever watched Adult Swim, it’s very bizarre and antic and makes you scratch your head, like, ‘What is this silly thing?’ But this is actually put into a story.”

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In the second installment of Clive Chin: The Lost Archives, we sit down with Clive and dub producer/engineer Billy “Prince Polo” Szeflinski of The Kennel recording studio in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The two of them talk about digitizing and cataloguing hundreds of hours of music recorded by Clive Chin and his late father Vincent “Randy” Chin from 1968 to 1978, the heyday of Jamaican reggae, ska, and dub music. Among the hundreds of tapes which lay undisturbed for nearly 40 years were recordings by many of Jamaica’s greatest stars including Max Romeo, Aston “Family Man” Barrett, Alton Ellis, Jimmy London, The Gladiators, The African Brothers, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Gregory Isaacs, Lord Creator, U-Roy, and Tommy McCook.

Clive Chin also talks about producing Augustus Pablo’s 1971 hit “Java” at Randy’s Studio in downtown Kingston, Jamaica. “Java” became an international sensation with its Eastern motif played on the melodica. The former classmates followed the hit single with a debut album from Augustus Pablo titled This Is Augustus Pablo in 1972.

Stay tuned for the third and final installment in which Prince Polo talks about remixing the recordings, as well as adding new vocals and instruments to the tracks, many of which were unfinished instrumentals.

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This month’s installment of Dubspot Student Spotlight features an exciting array of up and coming DJ/producers and talented artists. Throughout this series, our goal is to shed some light on the exceptional DJs and producers emerging out of Dubspot’s front door. Our latest roundup includes: DJ Berlin, Jubilee, Lauren Plevy, Fame Cohen and Nick Bohme.

DJ Berlin // Turkey

DJ Berlin (Belgin Ugursu) was born and raised in the magnificent European city of Istanbul, Turkey. Exhibiting musical talent from an early age, Belgin spent much of her high school and university years performing live as both a guitarist and a vocalist. Eventually, these musical experiences bloomed and facilitated Belgin’s work as a composer of polyphonic ringtones for mobile phones. An interest in live looping and performance led Belgin to develop a live show, for which she has been dubbed a “one-woman orchestra.” Back in Turkey, DJ Berlin has since been featured within various TV shows and magazines.

In October 2012, DJ Berlin won second place in the Roland Corporation’s BOSS Loop Station World Championship Contest in Los Angeles. Belgin is currently enrolled in our DJ/Producer Program in New York City, and is developing a unique and exciting live looping performance – a show which she hopes to debut soon!

“I’ve learned so much in the DJ classes at Dubspot. I feel totally comfortable DJing. The teachers are the best DJs I have ever seen, and they teach you everything; you become very familiar with your DJ gear and equipment, and you’ll be able to solve problems and troubleshoot.  I’ve also learned some unique transition techniques. I feel like I am in good hands, and I totally get in to music so i can not stop it .” – DJ Berlin

Jubilee // Brooklyn via Miami

Brooklyn-via-Miami DJ/producer Jubilee (Jess Gentile) is one of many active figures in New York City’s ever-shifting electronic dance music landscape. Over the last few years, Jubilee has built a reputation for serving up her DJ sets at nightclubs and warehouse parties around the globe, and with a style defined as ranging from bass-heavy electro and sweaty tropical jams to UK grime, house, techno, party rap, r&b and more.

Jubilee has teamed up with Mixpak’s label boss, Dre Skull, with whom she has created the party: Mixpak Extended Play. In addition, Jess also hosts her own weekly radio shows: Brooklyn Radio’s “Fireworks” and Radio Lily’s Mixpak showcase.

As if she wasn’t busy enough, Jubilee has steadily increased her music production workload. Last year saw the release of her Pop It! EP on Mixpak, and she recently dropped a collaborative record with partner-in-crime Star Eyes on the Unknown to the Unknown imprint. Throw in remixes for Canblaster, Hydraulix, Creep and Zuzuka Poderosa, and it should be easy to understand why Jubilee is quickly becoming one of her scene’s go-to producers.

“Dubspot really helped me challenge myself and expand my music journey.” – Jubilee

Lauren Plevy // New York City

New York City-based artist Lauren Plevy recently completed both our DJ Extensive Program and Music Production with Ableton Live Program, all the while studying classical piano. Currently, Lauren is spending much of her creative time practicing piano and refining her productions; ultimately, her goal is “to make music that moves the soul.”

“I was immediately welcomed and accepted at Dubspot as a fellow artist, which gave me the confidence within months to start DJing in clubs and to begin producing my own music. I formed personal connections with all of my teachers and my classmates became like family.” – Lauren Plevy

Fame Cohen // New York City

Fame Cohen has recently emerged as one of New York City’s notable female DJ talents. While performing at venues ranging from NYC’s club scene to charity and private events, her sets span across the genres of house, electro, pop and hip hop. Fame likes to employ an open-format approach in her DJ sets, and by doing so she is able to read the crowd and deliver the sounds that keep everyone dancing.

In the winter of 2012, Fame was one of Polar Lounge’s resident DJs, whereupon she launched her own party: Club House Wednesdays. So far in 2013, she has held three residencies in NYC: Tammany Hall, Nouveau and The Dollhouse Urban Burlesque.

Fame’s talent and tenacity have led her to share the stage with a handful of music legends, such as The Roots’ Questlove and Pras from The Fugees. Fame Cohen is currently signed with the CEG talent agency.

“When I decided to DJ I was 26 years old, everyone said I was too old to start learning, so I signed up for the 3 month DJ course and by the time I completed the course I was spinning live in some of the city’s hottest clubs.  I can safely say Dubspot was the reason, I was amongst the DJs that truly knew Serato inside and out, I was ready for any obstacles the club presented. Years after I completed my course I still have a great relationship with my instructors at Dubspot and they are always there to help me out if any issues arise such as needing massive speakers for outdoor gigs lol. I am currently enrolled in the Music Production with Ableton Live. The instructors are extremely thorough and helpful. Dubspot was hands down my secret weapon for conquering the DJ scene in NYC.” – Fame Cohen

Nick Bohme // New York City

By the age of 16, New York City-based DJ/producer Nick Bohme was rocking parties with an array of musical styles ranging from techno and deep house to freestyle and hip hop. These days, Nick combines various influences to create his original music productions, and also to perform his DJ sets at nightclubs around the five boroughs, as well as for his own event: Midnight Disco Society.

Nick recently completed our Music Production with Ableton Live course, and can currently be found diligently developing and refining his sound – he likes to maintain a positive mindset and believes that “all good things will come to those who wait, but work hard for it.”

“There’s no other place on earth better for music production than Dubspot. Took me from A to Z in just 3 months. Went in knowing nothing, came out knowing everything (almost). An unbelievable experience I will never forget and hope to be back in the near future. – Nick Bohme

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Seven Lions is quickly making a name for himself on the EDM scene as a DJ and producer with his remixes of Florence and The Machine, Above & Beyond, and Paul van Dyk in addition to his recent signing to Skrillex’s OWSLA label. Following his set at Ultra Music Festival in Miami this year, Dubspot’s Nate Mars spoke with Seven Lions to find out about his studio set up, preparing his DJ sets in Traktor, signing to OWSLA and more.

Nate Mars: This was this your first time playing Ultra Music Festival. How did you feel about your set?

Seven Lions: I was stoked, it was a great crowd. I usually don’t play in the daytime, so I was a little nervous about playing when the sun’s up because I can’t see the mixer. I use a [Native Instruments] X1 when I DJ and I could barely see the LED’s. But it was fun; it was good.

Nate: Did you do anything differently to prepare for this set at Ultra than you would for other sets?

Seven Lions: Yeah I knew it would be a bit more of a heavy crowd so I tried to make my set a little more in your face with quicker mixes. But I’ve kind of generally been going in that direction. Not necessicarily the heavy part but quick mixing.

Nate: Could you tell us a bit about your live DJ set up?

Seven Lions: I go [Native Instruments] X1 into the laptop, then from the laptop straight into the DJM 900, and I use that as the soundcard.

Nate: You’re using that with Traktor?

Seven Lions: Yeah Traktor and a Macbook Air.  I try to make my set up as small as possible. I used to carry around an (EKS) Otus, which is basically the size of a CDJ, but after traveling around for 4 or 5 days with something like that you get really tired of it.  So I’ve been making my gear set up as small as possible.

Nate: Have you always been using Traktor?

Seven Lions: No I learned on CDJs, and that’s back when I used to play mainly trance and techno. I still like playing on CDJs if I’m going to be playing 128 bpm house music. But my current sets are so varied in tempo and genre that having Traktor really makes all the difference.

Nate: There is definitely an element of trance happening in your performance. How does that translate into your own music?

Seven Lions: I’ve always been a huge trance fan. That’s kind of how I got into the EDM scene.  I was into industrial for quite a while, and then I heard some trance songs like “Above and Beyond” and “Can’t Sleep” and the Gabriel and Dresden remix of “No one on Earth,” which were really dark and what I related to at the time.  So even coming from a Metal background, those songs really resonated with me quite a bit, and I’ll always keep that influence.

Nate: Could you talk a bit about your transition from live music into electronic music?

Seven Lions: The whole transition to EDM came about when a friend gave me Fruity Loops back when I was in high school. I played in a band; I had no interest in electronic music whatsoever. But when he gave me this program I realized that I could make all this music by myself and I didn’t have to wait for my band to show up to band practice. And then I just ended up messing around with music for 2 or 3 years. I was never really into EDM, I just liked the idea of being able to make this music and compose something by myself.

Nate: Can you tell us a little bit about the recent signing to Skrillex’s label and how that came about?

Seven Lions: Well my management met Sonny at a rock festival in Germany. They played him my music and then it just kind of went from there.  They hit us up and it’s been a really great relationship.

Nate: Do you think in a way you and Sonny have similar backgrounds- you both came from a very instrumental background, a Metal background, and then moved into electronic music?

Seven Lions: I think a lot of my favorite producers came from an instrumental background.  The music that I like still has that live feel to it, like with the drums and the rhythmic elements. I think that a lot of the people who are producing the best music did come from a live background or when they’re thinking of programming a drum track they’re also thinking about how would I be playing this as a drummer, or as a guitarist, or in a band, so composition-wise it makes sense.

N: Could you talk about some of the tools you are using in the studio?

Seven Lions: I’m working in FL Studio and I have been for quite a long time.  When I was in college I trained in Pro Tools, Logic, Digital Performer, and Reason. I’ve kind of been everywhere. I even used Sonar even for a while.  For me FL Studio has the best workflow. I think that when it comes to DAWs, it’s all about finding whatever caters to your workflow. There’s no saying there’s one better than the other.

Nate: What are some of your favorite plug-ins, VST’s within FL Studio or separately?

Seven Lions: I use a lot of Voxengo stuff, I really like Voxengo. their Deft Compressor is awesome, their LF Max punch is awesome.  For delays I actually use the native FL Studio plug-in.  My VST’s are [Native Instruments] Massive, [LennarDigital] Sylenth… and that’s pretty much it right there, that’s my bread and butter.

Nate: So with a heavy touring schedule do you find that you are producing on the road at all?  Or do you find that you go on the road, play some gigs, kind of be a hermit and get some tracks done at home? What’s your process for creating music?

Seven Lions: So currently I go play, come home, and try to be a hermit, but the shows have become so overwhelming that I’m finding that I need to find a way to work on the road. February was ridiculous; I was home maybe 5 days. The nice thing is that after Ultra I get to go home and work on music for like a month, I’m so stoked to get back into the studio. I’d much rather be working in the studio than traveling, I mean that’s my thing.  I can’t wait to get home and work on some music.

Nate: Any advice you would like to share for other DJs and producers?

Seven Lions: I’d say have the right expectations with your music. A lot of people wonder why they aren’t taking off right away when they start producing music. If you keep the right expectations you’ll stay sane.  If you’re a hobbyist and you love making music then just do it. I’ve always made music as a hobby, and if this weren’t going on right now then I would still be making music. And if you come into it with that perspective, like “I just really like making music,” then you’re going to have a nice, long career.  And it might not be a career where you’re making money, but it’s going to be a nice experience.

Nate: Just enjoying the journey…

Seven Lions: Yeah enjoy it! It’s the worst when you see people finish a song and post it up on Soundcloud right away and spam it to everybody. Just take your time and focus more on the music and less on trying to market yourself and just do it as a hobby because you love to do it, and you’ll find yourself in the right place.  I mean there’s no way you can go wrong with that.

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Women are making waves (and .wavs) in electronic music. While this is not earth-shattering news to most, there is an emerging group of prolific female producers who are not to be missed. The sheer number of women releasing quality tracks is great enough that chopping this list down to only five was a very difficult task! However, after some deliberations, chop I did.  These five women are garnering critical attention, and they deserve your attention as well.

TOKiMONSTA (Brainfeeder / Alpha Pup)

LA native Jennifer Lee, a.k.a. TOKiMONSTA, makes R&B-influenced indie dance tracks and is affiliated with the Flying Lotus/Brainfeeder crew. Often, her work reminds me of Lone but with a more traditional pop song format. Her second full-length album, Half Shadows, proves her to be more in charge of her style than ever before. “Go With It” will surely be the soundtrack to many warm weather adventures.

Cooly G (Hyperdub)

Cooly G is a UK funky producer from Brixton, UK, a single mother of two and a former semi-pro footballer. I love her for her unmistakable brand of genre-defying, bass-influenced tracks. Her full-length album, Playin’ Me, found its way into my rotation due to its sparse main elements juxtaposed with bass lines that demand attention.  Her recent remix of The Knife’s “A Tooth For An Eye” is a hypnotic retool that focuses on the best elements of the original and spins them into a tribal whirl.

Kate Simko – (Spectral Sound / Get Physical)

A prolific producer and DJ hailing from Chicago, Kate Simko makes minimal techno sound downright warm and earthy, just the way I like it. Simko’s music is versatile, great for both the dance floor and your headphones. She got her start making music alongside Spectral Sound regulars, and has been listed as one of XLR8R’s top ten Chicago DJs. Her latest EP, Lost in London, draws inspiration from her recent move to the UK. My favorite track of hers is the entrancing classic, “Take You There.”

Vaccine (Hotflush / Nonplus)

Vaccine takes everything that can be sexy about dubstep – light vocals, smooth bass lines, dramatic snares – and spins it into a dark, gauzy web. She was the first female producer to be signed to Hotflush recordings, and has gone on to release tracks on Nonplus. Her sound is heavy enough that you might forget Vaccine hails from Southern California, but light enough to listen to in the early hours of the day. This 2007 single, “Breathless,” is a great example of her style.

RYAT (Brainfeeder / Obvious Bandits)

RYAT is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and singer who signed to Brainfeeder in 2012. The mysterious LA-via-Philly artist has released two full-length electronic albums and created classically-influenced live pieces. Her vocals sound like an Ella Fitzgerald/Bjork hybrid, and her production is experimental and percussion-heavy. The songs on her 2012 release, Totem, were varied in energy and style, but I particularly liked the development of “Howl.”

Dubspot guest blogger Rachel Dixon was a Handel and Haydn Vocal Apprentice, studied at New England Conservatory, briefly sang lead vocals for the Phoenix punk band Scrimshaw, managed the guestlist at Boston nightclubs Avalon and Axis, and was on the design team for the Dance Central video game franchise. She is a published fiction writer, bedroom songwriter, and poet who lives in New York City with her dog.

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The Dubspot crew caught up with groundbreaking DJ/producer and Brainfeeder label head Flying Lotus at South by Southwest 2013 for an interview about his influences, his creative process and methods, and some of his most recent projects.

He told us about the influence of Jamaican dub pioneer King Tubby on his music, also mentioning J Dilla and James Brown. He also talked about pros and cons of today’s advanced music technologies, and how he prefers the freedom of recording at home alone away from any kind of external pressures. (He even mentioned that when he needs more info on a specific point while he’s working, he jumps on YouTube and looks up Dubspot videos to help figure out what he needs to know!)

One of the main threads we kept coming back to in our conversation was his improvisational jazz-influenced approach to performing and recording. In contrast with some performers who more or less map out their sets in advance, FlyLo commented that his live Ableton set is “a mess” and that he even surprises himself with some of the musical combinations and transformations he comes up with when he’s playing.

He also talked about how the visual performers who play with him manage to keep up with the surprises and changes, and said that it comes down to working with visualists who understand his overall approach and specific cultural references, so they can come up with an improvised visual flow that matches the music.

To Stephen Ellison a.k.a. Flying Lotus, a heavy jazz influence come naturally as he grew up surrounded by the music; he is the grandnephew of legendary jazz power couple John and Alice Coltrane and grew up in Southern California’s San Fernando Valley in a family full of musicians and performers. Saxophonist Ravi Coltrane (son of John and Alice) is his cousin and contemporary and was also a musical collaborator on FlyLo’s Cosmogramma album. Ellison’s grandmother is singer/songwriter Marilyn McLeod, best known for having written Diana Ross’s “Love Hangover” and Freda Payne’s “I Get High (On Your Memory)^.”

Ellison’s current crop of production projects include work on Thundercat’s forthcoming album as well as a follow-up to Duality, his 2012 debut release as rap alter-ego Captain Murphy.

Flying Lotus Until The Quiet Comes short film directed by Kahlil Joseph with music by Flying Lotus

Flying Lotus “Quiet Moments”

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In the second installment of On Tour, Dubspot instructor, composer and electronic music producer Raz Mesinai (a.k.a. Badawi) traveled to Japan to perform at Unit Club in Tokyo and help commemorate the first anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku, which had struck exactly one year before. Raz took a camera along to record his visit and what’s presented here is an exciting road report that includes a visits to manga comic book stores, Japanese toys, sake bars, gambling, observing, protests, a trip to the cyberpunk lover’s paradise known as Shibuya, and much more!

TUNNEL VISION

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In this first installment of Clive Chin: The Lost Archives, the legendary Jamaican reggae and ska producer recounts growing up in a musical family. His father, Vincent “Randy” Chin, got his start in the recording business in the 1950s; from operating jukeboxes to establishing one of the most prominent enterprises in Jamaican recording history. Randy’s Records opened in 1958 at 17 North Parade in Kingston. Not only a record shop, it was a recording studio and music distribution business, which became home to countless local and international Jamaican reggae and ska musicians and artists including The Skatalites, Toots and the Maytals, Lord Creator, Augustus Pablo, Bob Marley, John Holt, Ken Boothe, Alton & Eddie, and any more.

In this first episode, Chin talks about the exodus from Kingston, Jamaica to Queens, New York and the experience of leaving behind thousands of rare and unreleased recordings in a poorly ventilated storage. The bulk of the recordings were damaged when the Island was hit by Hurricane Gilbert in 1988. Chin also talks about his motivations and how he was encouraged by his son Joel Chin to rescue the recordings, and the process of saving those recordings with Billy “Prince Polo” at Kennel Recording Studio.

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Paul Baümer and Maarten Hoogstraten a.k.a. Bingo Players have emerged from The Netherlands to quickly become two of the world’s most prominent EDM DJs. The duo have created an international reputation through epic releases and a massive touring schedule and most recently dropped “Get Up (Rattle)”, which was a number one single in the UK two weeks in a row. This success came after the original version of Rattle shook up European charts for nine weeks during last year. 2013 is going to be a big year for Bingo Players. Along with numerous hit productions to their name, Bingo Players have over 30 worldwide music festival performances under their belts. Just ahead of their show at Ultra Music Festival in Miami, Dubspot’s Nate Mars caught up with Paul and Maarten to speak with them about how they prepare their DJ sets, their workflow in the studio and plans for the future.

Nate: So first of all, how does it feel to be playing at Ultra Music Festival this year?

Paul: Ultra is one of the biggest and most special festivals, so you want to play there, you know? The vibe is amazing, and it’s an international festival. You have people coming from all over the world to see their favorite DJ’s. The energy is always amazing.

Nate: This is your third year playing Ultra. Did you do anything different from the norm to prepare for your set?

Maarten: We have prepared some really new songs. We just produced them in the last two months, and we’re going to premiere them here today, so that’s pretty special for us to see what the feedback is. And we always have some special bootlegs, some mash-ups.

Paul: We have some cool new visuals that we’re going to do for the first time today so we are looking forward to that as well.

Nate: Have you been performing with a VJ?

Paul: Yeah we have our own VJ with us at the moment.

Nate: Can you tell us a little bit about the process of preparing with a visual artist?

Paul: We had meetings, and first told them what kind of vibe we want and what kind of feel. Then they came up with ideas and a storyboard.
We loved it, and then we sent feedback back and forth.

Nate: With regards to your DJ set up, what are you guys using for performance?

Paul: We use the CDJ’s. Old school DJ’s man, old school DJ’s, no computers (laughs).

Nate: What do you guys think about the new technologies coming out for CDJ’s such as Rekordbox?

Maarten: Well it has its advantages. The cool thing is that you can find your music so easily, you can scroll through your playlists and that’s great. Everybody is talking about the fine old days where you had to beat match and nobody can do that anymore. But we think it’s obsolete to do that nowadays, it’s more about giving the crowd what they want; playing the right tracks at the right moment.

Paul: We still beat match though. We do it the old fashioned way and we don’t want to have things in the same order, we change it up, it depends. Especially now, you have DJ’s before you, they’re playing songs and they might play a song that you wanted to play. We don’t want to play a song twice you know, so then we just switch it up.

Nate: Can you tell us a little about your production setup? What are you using in the studio?

Maarten: We have a Mac Pro with some great monitors from Focal and we are using Ableton Live with some plug-ins. We hardly use outboard gear. It’s great to have it, but these days you can do everything in the box, and it’s so quick and easy.

Nate: What are some of the plug-ins that you have been using?

Maarten: Well, its pretty basic, everybody uses the Nexus, we do too, (Lennar Digital) Sylenth, (Native Instruments) Massive and of course some sample packs, but most of the time we like to tweak our own sounds. We don’t want to use sounds that you hear in someone else’s tracks. Sometimes you hear the same sound- “ok the Sylenth plug-in with the preset 14, out of this bank. That’s what we hate, so we always try to disguise that, or to make it our own. I think it’s really important.

Paul: Our only rule in producing is always to make a unique song, we never want to copy another song. Everybody says we’ve got to make another “Rattle.” No, we’re not going to make another “Rattle.” It’s boring, we want to make something new and fresh.

Nate: What projects are you working on now, anything in the works coming up that you want to talk about?

Maarten: We have several songs, but we always have to test them out. We have 5 or 6 songs done, but we’re always tweaking them after playing them because the crowd is the best feedback.

Nate: Are you going to test them out tonight (at UMF)?

Paul: We’re going to play our first single for the first time today. That’s really, always a special thing, because you’re playing the song, and are still nervous to see how the crowd is going to react you know, because you really want them to really feel the song.

Nate: Any advice you would like to offer up and coming DJ’s or producers?

Maarten: Well, first of all, stay unique. You can have inspiration from other tracks and try to copy them, that’s fine, but give your own twist to it. Never make a 100% copy of an existing track. And take a risk. You do something that you think is maybe really weird, but….

Paul: Then do it. Think outside of the box.

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In the first episode of On Tour, Dubspot instructor, DJ, and producer Abe Duque takes us on a trip to one of the most unique electronic dance music festivals in the world: KaZantip Republic. KaZantip takes place in Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula 5-6 weeks in the summer with more than 150,000 people (or “paradiZers”) attending each year. Abe Duque took a camera along for the trip to capture the sights, sounds, experiences, and people he encountered along the way. He also offers some great advice for traveling, sound-checking and preparing for your set or performance.

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Nicole Moudaber has quickly become a well-respected innovator in the world of techno, with original releases topping the Beatport techno charts for weeks on end. Releases on labels such as Drumcode, 8Sided Dice, Kling Klong, Leena Music and Waveform Recordings have all furthered her reputation for producing and performing minimal techno and have keeping listeners locked into her unique groove.

Just ahead of the release of her debut album Believe which is set for release on May 6, 2013 on Drumcode records, Nicole Moudaber sat down with Dubspot’s Nate Mars at Ultra Music Festival to talk about the production process and tools she uses to prepare for her DJ sets.

Dubspot: Minutes after playing your two-hour set for a packed audience at UMF how are you feeling right now?

Nicole Moudaber: I feel really good, I always get off on a high after a set. It was awesome.

Dubspot: It was an amazing set.

Nicole: Nice, thank you! I played all my album that’s coming out on Drumcode, there’s a collaboration with Adam Beyer on the album called ‘They Called” ?. I also played a little production of mine called ‘Organic Love’, and I had Skin from Skunk Anansi, she did the vocals, so I tested that as well.

Dubspot: Can you tell us about how you’re preparing your tracks sets in Traktor? It must be a lot of preparation because you’re often using 4 decks mixing.

Nicole: I always mix 4 decks, I like to loop everything basically. It just gives a different dynamic to the set and the sounds. And I can filter some sounds in and out, it’s just so much fun to do that. I prepare my set normally according to the hour that I’m playing, so if I’m playing early and before someone one like Carl (Cox), I tend not to bang it too much, and try to build the set, start with a bit of tech house and deep tech, and then take it to a bit of funky techno and then go from there.

Dubspot: With so many elements running at once, how do you decide where you’re going to take things?

Nicole: It’s just that once I’m up there I get into a zone and I get locked in a space where I’m 100% listening to every sound that’s coming out. It’s  like production, bringing sounds in and out. I also do a lot of effects on my [Native Instruments] X1’s, to create different patterns and different frequencies that I play with. It just makes the experience more fun for me.

Dubspot: How important do you feel effects are to your set and what type of effects are you using?

Nicole: Very important. I use the Beatmasher, the Delay and the Reverb a lot. I try to push everything up and Beatmash and tweak as I go, and I fade out, it’s so much fun.

Dubspot: You mentioned you were playing a lot of tracks from your upcoming album. What are you using to produce music these days?

Nicole: I use Ableton Live all the way.

Dubspot: How do you get started on a track when working in Ableton Live?

Nicole: I always start with the groove. I spend at least two hours getting my groove locked. I start with the drums and I filter so many layers on top of them to make them sound low, and solid. And from there I start with the rest.

Dubspot: Since you’re traveling so much, are you producing on the road?

Nicole: No. Never. I just get inspired, when I’m on the road and playing I tend to focus on my sets and where I’m going to take that show, and I focus on the music that I’m going to play, more than production. Because production you know, you have to be in a certain zone so my time is spent on selection of my tracks.

Dubspot: How do you feel when you’re about to play a brand new track that you’ve just worked on?

Nicole: (expletive) (laughs).

Dubspot: Do you still get nervous?

Nicole: I get nervous all the time before I get on. While I’m playing, if I am venturing into new things I’ll think “oh my god is that going to work?” And then boom, it’s there.

Dubspot: It doesn’t show at all.

Nicole: Really?! (laughs) that’s why I wear my sunglasses! (Laughs)

Dubspot: Although your set today was two hours, you often play much longer. Can you tell us about that?

Nicole: Absolutely, because it’s all building, you know. It takes me one hour to get in my zone you know, to get locked into it. I normally do really good when I play 8 hour sets. In the States mainly I do a lot of that.

Dubspot: How do you prepare for a set that is 8 hours long?

Nicole: Select different styles. I start with deeper music, the deep house stuff, then I take it to very deep tech, and this allows me to, you know, play all the records that I love and just move in that wave you know? I did New Year’s at Stereo, and I did 8 hours then, and I could have gone another 4 (laughs). Yeah, I love it.

Dubspot: That’s amazing. So what would you say to those people that are really locked into your zone, and really looking up to what you’re doing both as a producer and a DJ? Any advice?

Nicole: My advice really is if you are really passionate about the music, and this is what you want to do, then you’ve just got to leave everything and just do it. And don’t get disheartened with the obstacles that you face, because there are many, and it’s a long process to really establish yourself in this business. There’s a lot of competition out there. But you know, if you are passionate enough, and if you are dedicated, and if you do your research, and you collect great sounds and great music – you’re bound to shine. It’s impossible not to.

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In this Dubspot original series, legendary hip hop producer and music icon Prince Paul is joined by his son and music partner DJ Pforreal to compare new school vs. old school perspectives. In this episode, father-son duo tackle topics such as rap voices (from Melle Mel to Lil’ Wayne), DJ techniques (cue points vs vinyl markers), cold hard cash versus credit cards, the use of gating (digital vs analog), and handshakes!

This is the fifth video in an ongoing series created to accompany the release of Prince Paul and DJ Pforreal’s Negroes on Ice album, currently available online and in stores.

Prince Paul (Paul Huston) is a legend in the world of hip hop who was originally part of the early 80s rap outfit Stetsasonic and later went on to create the iconic sounds of early De La Soul albums, the Gravediggaz project (with RZA), Handsome Boy Modeling School (with Dan the Automator), as well as a series of solo albums. As a collaborative guru for music production, Paul has worked with great musicians from almost every genre including Alec Empire, Linkin Park, Faith No More’s Mike Patton, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid, and Parliament keyboardist Bernie Worrell (to name just a few). Prince Paul’s calling card on almost all his productions is an intelligent (yet sometimes silly) sense of humor that sits right behind the boom-bap beats that have made his music so popular.

Paul’s most recent collaborator is none other than his son, DJ Pforreal, a young performer who has obviously inherited his father’s sense of humor as well as a knack for beat creation and lyrical delivery. Their initial project together, Negroes on Ice, is a comedy / music album that blends music and storytelling into a “hilarious, head-nodding listening experience.” In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Prince Paul explains that much of the album comes from stories that his son would tell him when he was a child. “He would come up with these outrageous things that I knew (weren’t) true, but I couldn’t get mad at him because they were just so dumb. And I knew he was lying, but he would just go on and on about it to where it would start to become entertaining.” When asked about the format of combining music and comedy together, Paul explained further. “If you’ve ever watched Adult Swim, it’s very bizarre and antic and makes you scratch your head, like, ‘What is this silly thing?’ But this is actually put into a story.”

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Sound City

Sound City is a new documentary by rock luminary Dave Grohl that chronicles the rise and fall of the legendary Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, CA. The studio was responsible for recording numerous hit records from artists such as Tom Petty, Fleetwood Mac, Neil Young, Kyuss, Slipknot and Nirvana (who recorded Nevermind at Sound City.) While the film features appearances from artists such as Trent Reznor and Mick Fleetwood, the real star of this film is Sound City’s legendary Neve 8028 mixing console, which (spoiler alert) Grohl eventually buys and uses to host a 24-hour recording session reunion of artists in his own Studio 606.

Searching for Sugar Man

Warning: If you don’t like spoilers, don’t watch the above trailer for Searching for Sugar Man. Just jump directly into this beautiful Academy Award-winning mystery that weaves tales of revolution with the humble attitudes of a man who unknowingly touched millions in South Africa with his music. The story begins in the late 90s as two South African journalists set out to find a musician named Rodriguez, a 70s folk singer who had recorded a few records that went nowhere in the United States, but whose album had gone on to become an anthem for the resistance movement against apartheid in South Africa. The film follows these musical detectives through urban myths of South Africa and across the Atlantic to discover the truth about Rodriguez, a man who ends up being just as interesting as they could have hoped. By the end the film becomes a tale of redemption, uncovering some candid moments about the record industry and American business along the way. If you’ve seen the film already, also check out this follow-up with filmmaker Malik Bendjelloul that aired on 60 Minutes.

Marley

Marley is an epic documentary on the life of music legend Bob Marley created by director Kevin Macdonald (One Day In September, The Last King of Scotland) and released to critical acclaim last year. Using archival footage of Marley along with more recent interviews, Macdonald gets deep into the artist’s life with some great concert scenes and fascinating insights into his life and artistic development.

Dub Echoes

Although Bruno Natal’s Dub Echoes was released in 2008, we realized that we have never featured the documentary in our film roundups and we want to make sure to recommend this as essential viewing for a trip through the genre and mindset of dub music. Although the film can be somewhat meandering at times (much like the music it portrays), the intimate conversations with artists such as Lee Perry, Sly and Robbie, Mad Professor, Thievery Corporation, Basement Jaxx, Bunny Lee, King Tubby, Beat Junkies, Kode9, Roots Manuva and may others make the journey well worth taking.

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As one of the central figures in the early days of dubstep, Hatcha has played a pivotal role in popularizing this sound from his position at the influential Big Apple Records record shop in Croydon, England, where he pushed vinyl into the hands of heavyweights such as Skream, Plastician, Digital Myztikz and others.  Also one of the initial dubstep residents on Rinse FM, Hatcha is one of those most responsible for the rise of dubstep – and actually coined the phrase ‘Dubstep’…  He now spins regularly on Kiss FM alongside Crazy D.

In our interview with the seminal UK DJ, Hatcha discusses the emergence of this sound sound and how he was able to contribute to its evolution over the years.  Hatcha sees himself as a DJ among producers and has set himself apart by selecting only the tracks that he deemed best and tirelessly learning his instruments. Hatcha stresses the importance of determination and drive while constantly improving your skills.  Embracing the many faces of dubstep, Hatcha has made his reputation as an ambassador for the genre in all of its forms.

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Ink Eyes // NYC

Ink Eyes is the collaborative project of bright young minds Trevor Coleman, Brad DeSalvo and Julian Lamb. Their shared passion for bass music and production led them to start working together, their styles meshing to create an original sound and approach. Borrowing influences from artists such as Borgore, Document One and Helicopter Showdown, Ink Eyes blends the melodic with the heavy, fusing complex musicality with accessible danceability. Keep your eyes peeled and your ears open, Ink Eyes is not music to be ignored.

“Dubspot is more than a school, it’s an environment, a family. You don’t go there to sit and listen to a teacher drone on and on, you go to grow as an artist. Every time you walk into the building, you get a sense of ‘wow, this is the future.’” – Ink Eyes

Electro Khaki // Warsaw, Poland

Electro Khaki is the production moniker of Andrzej Pieszak, a classically-trained musician, composer and producer based in Warsaw, Poland. With wide-ranging stylistic influences from hip hop and jazz to house and breakbeat and enviable production credits under his belt (as in-house producer for the acclaimed Polish synth pop group Furia Futrzakow), Andrzej makes infectious and grooving dance tracks. He’s signed to Hero-In Music and is constantly remixing other artists and producing for his synth pop duo Fury of the Furries as well.

“I really got to know my production tools, met amazing people, charged my creative batteries and did it in the most inspiring environment possible–New York City. So, if you have an opportunity to come to Dubspot–do it!” – Andrzej Pieszak

Bertioga // NYC via São Paulo, Brazil

Juliana Pastoriza relocated to New York City from São Paulo in 2010 to further her graphic design career. She also developed a passion for deep bass music and dubstep, which she would listen to on headphones while she worked on designs. After immersing herself in the city’s growing underground bass music scene, she enrolled at Dubspot and took courses in Ableton Live, sound design, and DJing. Under the name Bertioga, Juliana serves up deep, rolling bass music at clubs and parties in New York and São Paulo. Listen to a couple of her recent remixes below and look out for the debut EP later this summer.

“Never before have I been so motivated and productive, or surrounded by so much talent, or felt this strongly about a community.” – Juliana Pastoriza

Tree Star Moon // Arlington, VA

In 2012, nineteen-year-old electronic musician and producer David Martell moved to New York City from Arlington, Virginia to study music production and mixing at Dubspot and further his composition and production skills. By the end of that year, Martell was producing advanced electronic dance tracks under the name Tree Star Moon, melding heavy bass and dubstep with ambient soundscapes and post-rock pastiche. One of his his tracks, “Surfing on the Clouds,” was released on LUNGR, the label owned and operated by Travis Richter (and also featured on last year’s Dubspot Holiday Compilation), and he’ll have a new EP coming out this April.

“Dubspot’s Music Production with Ableton Live and Mixing & Mastering courses gave me the means by which I could translate all the ideas in my head into music. I wanted to combine ambient soundscapes, post-rock, and acoustic music with heavy bass and dubstep elements. I didn’t have the production skills at the time, but Dubspot gave them to me. I learned so much and it helped more than I can even begin to explain. It gave me the foundation that I needed and opened so many doors for me.” – David Martell

Conrad Wittkop // Montreal via Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Montreal-based DJ/producer Conrad Wittkop was born and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He played drums and guitars in various bands as a teen until he caught the electronic music bug and started sneaking into clubs and immersing himself in club and dance music culture. Ever since first getting involved with the scene, Conrad has been fascinated with the art of the DJ, seamlessly blending together a stream of continuous music and creating a communal space where people can let go.

He’s had the opportunity to open shows for world-renowned artists such as David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia, Avicii, Tiesto, Erick Morillo, Bob Sinclar, Britney Spears, Pitbull, LMFAO and many others. Check out his latest DJ mix on SoundCloud:

“I studied Music Production with Ableton Live and Mixing & Mastering at Dubspot. I was so happy when I found the school! They really gave me a great understanding of the program and how electronic music works in general. Classes are well-paced and the instructors are very knowledgeable and experienced. I just loved the cool creative vibe there and the very nice people.  Who doesn’t love New York City? Can’t wait to be back.” – Conrad Wittkop

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In episode two of Reclaiming the Remix, Brooklyn-based hip hop producer, DJ, and rapper D/R Period stops by Dubspot for a lesson on Native Instruments’ Maschine with instructor Shareef Islam. D/R has produced tracks for some of hip hop’s brightest stars including Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes, Queen Latifah, DMX and Cam’ron  as well as the late greats Notorious B.I.G. and 2Pac, but to most he is known as the man responsible for hardcore rap duo M.O.P.’s radio hit “Ante Up” and the “Money” song from TV’s Breaking Bad series.

D/R talks to Shareef about his creative process and using his trusted MPC 60 II, and they explore the creative possibilities of Maschine by not only recreating “Ante Up” but then also remixing and recomposing the track with impressive results. In the process, they highlight some of the features and functions Maschine provides for chopping and sculpting samples, building and modifying drum sounds, applying effects and more.

UPCOMING Maschine Courses Starting In New York City:
April 3, 2013 in NYC – Wednesdays, 3:15-6pm
June 3, 2013 in NYC – Mondays, 6:15-9pm

What’s Included:

• Maschine Level 1: Programming and Beat Making Basics
• Maschine Level 2: Sampling, Slicing and Composing
• Maschine Level 3: Advanced Production and Performance Techniques

More start dates and information about payment plans can be found here.

If you have questions, please call 877.DUBSPOT or send us a message.

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We are happy to report that former Dubspot student Fernando Arruda a.k.a. FJAZZ has recently licensed three tracks (Embody, Salt Waters and Round Edge) from his album Sound Bending to the new film Concussion, which also features music by Brian Eno and David Bowie. Arruda is a multi-instrumentalist, producer and performer whose music pushes the boundaries between improvised acoustic jazz and electronic music. You might have caught him a few weeks back during our Ableton User Group session at Dubspot NYC, where he explained how to create a “hybrid performance” combining DJ tracks and live instruments.

Concussion, which was directed by Stacie Passion, features an original score by Super Buddha Music’s Barb Morrison who helped Arruda get his foot in the door for music licensing. He explains:

“Through Dubspot’s Director of Student Affairs Kelly Webb I got hired as an audio engineer to run Logic for Super Buddha Music producer Barb Morrison. After a few sessions I got to co-write a song with her and Debbie Harry from Blondie. Barb, being super generous, asked if she could send my CD Sound Bending to Stacie Passon, the director of Concussion. Barb composed some great music for the movie, and there is also music from some of my childhood heroes including David Bowie and Brian Eno. The movie premiered at Sundance in January, and in February at the Berlin International Film Festival. I just heard it won the special jury award there, which is pretty exciting news. It will be released for the general public in October. Check out Concussion when it comes out and listen for some FJAZZ in there while you are at it!”

Originally from Brazil, Fernando began his music career on the saxophone, studying classical saxophone performance at the Federal University of Brasilia. After some time he became a bit frustrated with his classical studies because he wanted to learn more about composition and improvisation, and ended up moving to New York City to study jazz at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. While living in NYC and studying at the New School, he was exposed to a lot of new music and began listening to electronic music more, getting into the drum’n'bass he heard at Club Love in Greenwich Village and other places.

“I came to the USA in 2007 to study jazz performance at the New School. By the time I finished my degree and was four years into my New York experience I realized that the ‘edge’ of the NY music scene was no longer in jazz. I felt in love with drum’n'bass and soon felt the need to learn how to make such music. I walked past Dubspot and felt an instant connection with the place. I have been part of that community ever since.”

Fernando combined his interests in jazz and electronic music to create the 2011 album Sound Bending, mastered by Dubspot’s Daniel Wyatt:

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Marley Marl is unquestionably one of the greatest producers and DJs in hip hop history. His influence and importance to hip hop are undeniable, and his innovative productions and pioneering use of sampling helped define the genre. Marley Marl has produced beats for some of the music’s finest MCs including Big Daddy Kane, MC Shan, LL Cool J, Biz Markie, Roxanne Shante, Kool G Rap, Nas, Rakim, and Masta Ace.

In this episode of Classic Recipes, the legendary producer explains and demonstrates how he created the beat for MC Shan’s “The Bridge,” one of the most memorable beats in hip hop history. As always, along with the beat programming tips and composition/production techniques he also gives us the lowdown on where and when the music was originally created.

Marl recalls the moment he first met MC Shan and recorded “Marley Marl Scratch,” and also remembers when legendary rap radio personality Mr. Magic rejected a Boogie Down Productions record that was submitted for airplay on WBLS-FM, later resulting in the feud between the South Bronx crew and Marl’s Juice Crew.

“The Bridge” was originally created using the Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer and the Korg SDD-2000 Sampling Digital Delay. Marley Marl programmed the beat by triggering drum sounds (the kick and snare) from the TR-808 into the SDD-2000, giving the track a unique sound and feel.

In this video he recreates the beat using the Akai MPC Renaissance; instead of just sampling The Honey Drippers‘ track “Impeach The President” intro drum beat, Marley completely reprogrammed the beat from the kick and snare right down to the “Ladies and gentlemen” voice intro. Along with adding some ghost notes, he reversed The Magic Disco Machine’s “Scratching’” record to create the stabs and gritty noises you hear at the beginning of “The Bridge.” (Check out the last episode of Classic Recipes for more on ghost notes and how Marl used them in Eric B. & Rakim’s “Eric B. Is President.”)

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In this Dubspot original series, legendary hip hop producer and music icon Prince Paul is joined by his son and music partner DJ Pforreal to compare new school vs. old school perspectives. In this episode the duo debate important topics such as slang, mustaches, dance styles, workouts, Auto-Tune, and analog vs. digital reverb.

This is the fourth video in an ongoing series created to accompany the release of Prince Paul and DJ Pforreal’s Negroes on Ice album, currently available online and in stores.

Prince Paul (Paul Huston) is a legend in the world of hip hop who was originally part of the early 80s rap outfit Stetsasonic and later went on to create the iconic sounds of early De La Soul albums, the Gravediggaz project (with RZA), Handsome Boy Modeling School (with Dan the Automator), as well as a series of solo albums. As a collaborative guru for music production, Paul has worked with great musicians from almost every genre including Alec Empire, Linkin Park, Faith No More’s Mike Patton, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid, and Parliament keyboardist Bernie Worrell (to name just a few). Prince Paul’s calling card on almost all his productions is an intelligent (yet sometimes silly) sense of humor that sits right behind the boom-bap beats that have made his music so popular.

Paul’s most recent collaborator is none other than his son, DJ Pforreal, a young performer who has obviously inherited his father’s sense of humor as well as a knack for beat creation and lyrical delivery. Their initial project together, Negroes on Ice, is a comedy / music album that blends music and storytelling into a “hilarious, head-nodding listening experience.” In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Prince Paul explains that much of the album comes from stories that his son would tell him when he was a child. “He would come up with these outrageous things that I knew (weren’t) true, but I couldn’t get mad at him because they were just so dumb. And I knew he was lying, but he would just go on and on about it to where it would start to become entertaining.” When asked about the format of combining music and comedy together, Paul explained further. “If you’ve ever watched Adult Swim, it’s very bizarre and antic and makes you scratch your head, like, ‘What is this silly thing?’ But this is actually put into a story.”

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