I was asked by StewartTVOD if I'd like to play an italo disco set at his club night on 21 April and obviously I couldn't say no to such an offer. The night is called Meat Raffle and happens at Catch on Kingsland Road every month. See, my name is even on the flyer:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/168/448432402_b7e9093b1b.jpg

The kind of music played will be classic italo a la the Mixed Up in The Stepney mix. Needless to say, I'll be quite nervous as I never really played in a proper club before, and probably will miss a mix or two, but at…

I've recently been enjoying using the tag lowslung to denote a particular style of stripped down and viciously rocking machine funk, mainly made in Holland in recent years, but it's also possible to find examples of it in such different places as C64 game music (the Paul Norman track opening the mix) and early 80s Detroit disco (A Number of Names).

In any case, I thought it was time to bring together a bunch of tracks that all have that low-slung feel in a mix. This almost turned into a tribute to Legowelt in the end with five…

Burial

I completely missed this last year but just started listening to Burial's self-titled debut album and it's absolutely brilliant. On the second listen through right now and it's only getting better.

I never really got into dubstep before, Kode 9 live was a pretty boring experience to me, but this is so much richer! Full of dubby bass, atmospheric menacing chimes, nice reverbey effects and crisp beats. This rules.

There's no denying that this has been an italo disco year. I discovered the Cybernetic Broadcasting System (CBS) and its annual Top 100 at the tail end of 2005 as it was broadcasted, and it triggered a period of italo and general 80s rediscovery that has lasted pretty much all year. So therefore, an unproportionally large portion of the Top 50 below is CBS- and italo-related.

I'd like to apologise in advance for my inability to express the genius of the music, I find it incredibly hard to come up with language that describes the feeling you get when listening…

…is not going to see Nitzer Ebb when they played in London on their reunion tour earlier this year. Listening to That Total Age and watching videos like this,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R-owIKYvbE

it just strikes me how powerful these tracks still are and how ecstatic a live experience it would be.

Riktig uppviglarmusik. :)

Oh well, if they're announcing any more gig dates I'm there.

Many thanks to the saintly kichi for uploading the documentary This is our music about the Dutch electro scene around Clone and Viewlexx featuring all your favourite Dutch disco freaks. Legowelt, Alden Tyrell, Serge from Clone, Comtron and I-F are all being interviewed, some stranger than others.

It's excellent fun to watch, both Legowelt and Alden Tyrell come across as really humble, almost shy, and both seem to find it incomprehensible why people like their music.

Choice quotes

Legowelt: I really like maps, I don't know why but I like to look at maps. I can look at…

It was my brother's birthday recently and two days before it I realised I'd forgotten to get him something so I thought I'd make a mix CD. As I only had a short amount of time, I decided to follow in klaashermans footsteps and try out this Mixmeister DJing software. Part of me tells me it's cheating if you don't mix it by hand but another part tells me that if you can get a perfect result in half of the time, why not be pragmatic about it. So I was.

There will be no prize for the person correctly…

http://static.last.fm/proposedimages/sidebar/6/13364471/134298.jpg
Sally Shapiro

http://static.last.fm/coverart/130x130/2419876.jpg
I'll be by your side 12"

Perfect. This is absolutely perfect in every way. The cheap-looking 12" sleeve in the colours of the Italian flag, the excellent choice of name, the promo picture of a shyly smiling Sally with snow in her hair… It's sending out all the right signals.

And that's without even mentioning the music! I never heard more perfect italo disco in my life. It is absolutely stunning. Sally's voice is airy, wafer thin, almost a whisper and fits the shimmering music perfectly. The whole thing reminds me a bit of Valerie Dore…

Just watched the second episode of Steve Coogan's new TV series Saxondale and I have to say it's a real grower. I've always been a massive Alan Partridge fan and half expected to be disappointed by this as nothing could be as good as Partridge.

You can definitely see some of the Partridge character coming through in Saxondale, the figures of speech, some of the mannerisms, but this new creation is more likeable and there's lots of great material based around him and his 40-year-old-Camden-kid girlfriend. You get a warm, fuzzy feeling from watching it. :)

So if you…

Totalitär

If there was such a thing as a school for EBM bands, Swedish duo Spetsnaz would have graduated top of their class.

Warfare-inspired name? Tick.
Totalitarian-looking logo and cover design? Tick.
A vocal style directly modelled on Douglas McCarthy? Tick.
Lyrics about aggression and decay? Tick.
The most hypnotic, mind-numbingly driving analogue basslines this side of That Total Age? Tick!

For despite being hugely derivative, this album is one of the most exciting things I've heard this year. EBM is not a genre I spend much time keeping track of these days, but when done this well, it…