This week sees the re-release of a benchmark album produced by house music’s most enigmatic duo, Virgo. Jamal Moss aka Hieroglyphic Being (from Chicago house music’s new school, Mathematics Records) poses a few questions to Virgo’s Eric Lewis and Merwyn Sanders.

JM: Name of Artist/Band? Include all band members names and instruments played on this album.
V: eric lewis, merwyn sanders, instruments we used was guitar, bass, keyboard (Roland Juno 2), Roland 505 drum machine

JM: Do you consistently practice your musical craft every day ?
V: Yes we practice every other day if not every day sometimes. Merwyn has studied voice with Vocal Mechanics here in Chicago and with his uncle’s company, Opera Ebony in New York, and played around Chicago on guitar doin’ singer/songwriter material. Eric is always on his bass or guitar and created new tracks in his home studio.

JM: Do you tape yourself and listen back critically?
V: Yes we do, and that’s how we realize after coming back and listening that we may not even I like it, but on the flip side somebody else may hear and like it. Quite honestly we are very critical.

JM: Do you take every opportunity to hear other musicians local and national who perform in Chicago ?
V: Between the two us, Merwyn gets out the most to check out local bands and acts, and not every opportunity, there’s just not enough time.

JM: How do you describe your music to people? This is not a short answer. Discuss it.
V: The music with Trax records is house music. We know our music is a little different, but we consider it deep, melodic, house music. Something you can dance to but at the same time sit back listen and chill to.

JM: What image do you think your music conveys? Do not avoid the image issue!
V: Positive. Notice the song titles are all introspective. What’s life about, things we were goin’ through. So the imagery should be unique to each person that listens. In terms of a pictorial image, I would expect it to be space, be it inner or outer.

JM: What are your long-term career goals & what should other artists who are inspired by Virgo should do if they wish to follow in Virgo’s legacy to further that sound?
V: Actually, we only have to come to that now, with the resurgence of the Virgo album. We always wanted to make a living with our music and become “stars” like every musicians does, but we also saw the importance of education and other career goals. With new technology and the YouTube it is more readily available for new artist to put out music. As for other artist that are inspired by our music we would say, just make music for the sake of making music and not to make money. If you stay true to yourself it will be more fulfilling even if you do not profit greatly from it.

JM: What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)
V: Most are about our experience as young men growing up in Chicago. They’re about going through life. As for theme(s) , we didn’t have specific theme in mind, but as a collection, a theme arrived inadvertently, and that is LIFE. We wanted our music to be an escape from day to day worries as it was for us making it.

JM: Who is your fan/customer base & do wish to expand that base and to what targeted audience? (Analyze this question thoroughly.)
V: We never had a particular fan base in mind and we still do not. We always wanted to make music for people to hear our emotions translated into music. We never had a”person” in mind. This stance may come from our days at clubs where all walks of life, race and ages were in attendance. Simply, we wanted everybody to listen to it.

JM: What question or questions that interviewers always forget too ask that should come up but never do . ( Present that question & be the interviewer /interviewing you by giving that answer.
V: The question that no one asks is….

How do you make the music/ work together to come up with the songs?
We feel, and we can’t be sure, that we approach/create music in a unique fashion. Most people would think that a 4:32 song would be sequenced, but we actually played each part for 4:32. If you listen carefully you will hear many mistakes. There were parts of songs that were “sequenced” but not done in the traditional fashion.

No one has asked…

How do you two get along?
We have known each other since 1977. We have never even so much as been in an argument not even on the basketball court.

Links:
Virgo Facebook // Virgo Twitter // Hieroglyphic Being Facebook

The legendary Plastic People is under threat of closure from the police for unfounded allegations of public nuisance, crime and disorder. Plastic People is one of the most important clubs London has ever seen; possibly the darkest club in the world; definitely one of the best soundsystems in the world; and most importantly – a real breeding ground for underground music. We must not let this club be closed without a fight. The owners are seeking legal guidance. Please show your support by joining the Facebook group and stay up to date with any possible ways of helping save this club from closure…

Photo taken from the North / South / East / West project by Shaun Bloodworth, GiveUpArt and Bleep

RED BULL MUSIC ACADEMY PRESENTS: CARL CRAIG, FRANCESCO TRISTANO & MORITZ VON OSWALD, MATMOS, BUGGE WESSELTOFT & HENRIK SCHWARZ DUO, DJ SPRINKLES & ANDRAS FOX
Friday 12 February

A one-off night at Royal Festival Hall, bringing a host of pioneers from the worlds of experimental electronics and avant-garde music. We have a pair of tickets to give away.

To win a pair of tickets, simply e-mail info@bleep.com and state what city Carl Craig is from.

Ceephax has a new album on Planet Mu. So we decided to talk to him about some stuff…

Who did the artwork for “United Acid Emirates” and describe the thinking behind it?
I did the artwork. It was inspired a bit by Arabic music cassette tape covers that are often quite garish and colourful. The background carpet and picture were photographed in amusement arcades which are one of the main places that have shaped me and my music. The TB-303 flying carpet ties in the arabic theme with the acid tunes! Basically a collage of some of my influences done in an eye-catching and appealing mess.

What is your studio set-up and what process do you normally go through to make a song?
Here’s a pic of my studio, mainly analogue synths and drum machines (pictured below). Normally I make a tune in a minute or two, have the bassline, chords and stuff ready in less than an hour, but if I want it to be a more developed and sound good then I spend a few days or sometimes a week or more fiddling about and turning it from a good idea into something that is a piece of music and not just a quick jam, whilst trying to retain the magic of those first few creative minutes which at the end remain the most important thing no matter what you add to it. Sometimes this works, and sometimes you lose the magic which is sad. This album is a mix between tracks that I put loads of work into and some spontaneous stuff that was made in minutes.

Tell us the most surreal / crazy gig you have had?
I think one of the strangest gigs was in Bern in Switzerland where I was on tour with 3 of my mate musicians. It was in a sort of tiny underground library squat (?) with books lining the walls and a balcony that ran all around and the stage underneath, so that most of the audience were looking down on you. Anyway we managed to get so drunk on gin and whatever else that we were flailing and falling about the stage and tiny dancefloor and playing absolutely terribly whilst the rather serious crowd looked down on us from the balcony as if we were some kind of curious new exhibit at a victorian zoo freshly imported from the Congo…well that’s what it felt like at the time. It was great fun though, possibly at the audience and organizer’s expense !

What is the best video game ever and why?
Asteroids is probably the best arcade game for me, as it’s non completable and random in such a nice way..It looks amazing too because of the Vector graphics that you can’t recreate on a cathode or LCD screen. I don’t agree with lurking though. Best home computer game..Turrican on the c64. So massive at the time, so deep, I consider it a work of art as incredible as any famous symphony or painting.

What’s next for Ceephax?
At the moment I’m concentrating on videos for my music as film/video has been something I have wanted to get into for years. It completes the Ceephax experience…

coming soon on Bleep… release date 8th February.

You have been known for your diverse style of sounds that you create – what external influences do you think has helped shape your wide sound pallette?

Well, I try to let other music influence me. I can’t always keep up, but when I get into a rut, it usually helps to hear what other people are doing. Sound wise, I’m mostly sample based, so I try to collect sounds that might be unusually interesting and try to make them musical. I guess that helps keep my sound diverse.

A Certain Distance has a much more pop sound… What do you think made you lean this way and was it a conscious decision?

Sure, I guess I just got sick of dealing with the same sorts of structures, so I wanted to experiment a little more with verse/chorus and vocals and see if I could make it work, while still keeping my sound.

How do you go about constructing a song? What musical set-up / equipment do you use?

It’s a combination of hardware and software. I might start with a particular instrument that I haven’t used in a while and just jam until I come up with an idea. I don’t have any set rules on how to construct a song really, but it usually involves building patterns individually and doing variations on those patterns.

As you do both, what do you find easier – scoring a movie or making an album?

Neither, they both come with different sets of challenges. Scoring a movie is basically trying to collaborate with the director, but finding your voice within a set of parameters that works with the movie. Writing an album can be just as hard because you have to come up with something on your own, without any guidelines. Both ways can be inspiring and frustrating at the same time.

You have had many different guises to your music, is there a reason why you have differentiated these personas and their relation to the music of Tadd Mullinix / Dabrye / James Cotton / SK-1? Do you have a different work set-up / structure for these different personas?

I sorted my aliases according to genre for several reasons. In order to try to remove myself from the music I create a persona that will encompass the things I like about a certain style. I also think that it is important to prepare the listener for a certain kind of experience. Context plays a big role in how people take in art. And context is important when making art too. Some techniques are more interesting in a certain musical context. I think that few people would be interested in a music that is a hodge-podge of many styles that I find interesting.

How do you go about constructing a song? What musical set-up / equipment do you use?

Usually, I begin with a very basic idea and I work on it with instruments until I’ve got something that I think is interesting. Sometimes I experiment until I get something that sounds good and then I elaborate on the main ingredient. I use Technic 1200 turntables, a personal computer, a Roland tr-808, tr-909. tb-303, sh-101, mc-202, tr-606, sp-404, tr-505, tr-707, Alpha Juno 2, Boss DR-660, Yamaha CS-15, DX-7, Ensoniq ESQ-1, Realistic/Moog Concertmate, Casio RZ-1, SK-1, and whatever FX I can get my hands on.

Who are your favourite producers and why?

My Favorite producers are Aphex Twin (because he was my stepping stone into the electronic music world and is usually doing something very interesting with sound design, melody and rhythm) and the late J Dilla (because his music is superior on all fronts. He never made an OK beat. They are all sick!).

What projects is coming up and when can we expect to see it?

2AM/FM will be releasing a 12″ on Creme Organization and a few tracks on M>O>S early next year. And perhaps Dabrye will be doing a remix for a certain (really GOOD) well known dirty south group for a certain late night cartoon program (for ADULTS). And James T. Cotton will be releasing another diverse EP on Spectral Sound soon.

Pictured: North (Hudson Mohawke) / South (Skream) / East (Mike Slott) / West (Flying Lotus)

North / South / East / West is a collaborative art and music project between photographer Shaun Bloodworth, designer Stuart Hammersley (Give Up Art) and Bleep.com; focusing on the music of four different regions of the world — North and South UK and East and West coast USA. The project aims to showcase our pick of a handful of labels, artists and club nights from each.

The final product is a limited edition, deluxe package. With only 500 editions printed and compromising 14 high quality photo-prints and a 12 track CD (9 of which have never before been heard) – all of which will be beautifully enclosed in a special, custom made package.

Plus a further edition, limited to only 100 copies, comprising again of 14 exclusive photo-prints, 12 track CD in custom-made packaging. With the addition of an A2 poster, designed by Give Up Art and featuring previously unseen potraits and extra shots from the project. All of these items will be sold exclusively on Bleep.com

Partcipating artists on the compilation:
North: Hudson Mohawke / Rustie / Taz Buckfaster
South: Skream / Headhunter / Geeneus
East: Mike Slott / FaltyDL / Kotchy
West: Flying Lotus / Matthew David / Daedelus

The first tracks will be played tonight on BBC Radio 1 on the Mary Anne Hobb’s Experimental Show.

TOMORROW, we will be making an announcement of the full tracklisting and streaming more of the music. This item will be released on the 1st December… you can pre-order it HERE.

To coincide with their London launch party tomorrow, those good folks up at Numbers have given us a free podcast showcasing their new label (simply called “Numbers” and now combining Wireblock, Dress 2 Sweat and Stuff records into one streamlined unit). Here is the tracklisting:

Mixed by Spencer
(as featured on the Mary Anne Hobbs Show on 5th November):
Hudson Mohawke – ‘Still On It instrumental’ (Wireblock x LuckyMe)
Lando Kal – ‘Fuzzy Ankles’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Slugabed – ‘The System’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Redinho – ‘Mo Brap’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Ghosts On Tape – ‘Mogadishu Night Life’ (Wireblock)
Rustie – ‘Clipper’ (Stuff Records)
Low Limit – ‘Where U Been 7.0′ – drops (forthcoming Numbers)
Redinho – ‘Lightning Strikes’ (forthcoming Numbers)
L-vis 1990 – ‘Run’ (Dress 2 Sweat)
Ghosts On Tape – ‘Predator Mode’ – Roska Remix (Wireblock)
Mr Majika – ‘Different Lekstrix’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Deadboy – ‘IfUWantMe’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Rustie – ‘Throw Some D’s / Click Clack’ (Dress 2 Sweat)
Emvee – ‘Glitch Dub’ (Wireblock)
Touchy Subject – ‘Wicked Act’ (forthcoming Numbers)
SRC – ‘Gold Coinz’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Kavsrave – ‘MD’ (forthcoming Numbers)
Rustie – ‘Bad Science’ (Wireblock)
Taz Buckfaster – ‘Gold Tooth Grin’ (forthcoming Numbers)

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