Gathered here are five recordings that I have previously shared with my Facebook fans and Twitter followers. These recordings are not my finest; visit my DJ profile for a full listing of my best studio mixes and live recordings.

Some recordings turn out and some do not. A lot of this has to do with my approach to DJing (which relies on a certain amount of crowd engagement to really shine). I treat the set as a journey, not just a showcase of hot crowd-rocking tunes in whatever order. Moreover, the journey is entirely improvised; I haven’t planned a set in years. I step up to the decks (now a laptop and controller) and select an introduction with as little as 10 seconds to go. From that point onward anything can happen. My role is that of navigator; I chart a course through exotic dimensions of sound, but I don’t travel alone. I rely heavily on my intuition, reading the crowd for signs of where we should be going. In this sense, my sets are a “co-creation”, the result of a dynamic linkage between dance floor and DJ booth.

As great as that might sound, such an approach doesn’t always work, particularly when there isn’t a lot of energy in the space. This is often the case at small, poorly attended events where the dance floor never reaches critical mass, or during unpopular time slots, before the dance floor really starts to take off (or, rarely, long after it winds down). A few of the recordings in this post were taken under such conditions.

The other issue with live recordings is technical precision. Every DJ that takes risks will botch a mix now and then, particularly in small clubs with poor monitoring. It’s not so bad in the moment but such flaws can be magnified by repeat listening. I’ve also had some problems with pops, clicks, and gaps in the audio signal, some of which I have gotten to the bottom of, others which remain mysterious. Even if I record a great set I tend not to share it widely if there are any obvious blemishes.

Anyhow, the point of writing all of this is to explain why I haven’t released these sets before, and why I won’t be giving them a “wide release” (like the mixes on my profile). I’ve also treated this as an opportunity to share a broad outline of my philosophy of DJing, ideally so that you enjoy the listening experience a little more (and perhaps forgive the flaws that you may notice).

Alright, let’s get started… Continue reading the rest of this post »

With the winter chill setting in I am happy to present another round of hot new tunes available from Ektoplazm. This has been a great month for free music, and I’m excited to share with you just a few of the gems that have crossed my stereo in the last little while. Each and every song listed below can be downloaded for free in CD quality direct from Ektoplazm; just click the track title to be taken to the original release drop page. You are welcome to preview these songs with the streaming audio player below; simply click the arrows to skip ahead or go back (Flash required):

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Radioactive.Cake – Bending Rodriguez [Glitchy.Tonic.Records]
Moody grooves and groovy moods; Zenonesque progressive psytrance at its best.

Onionbrain – Lunatic [Uroboros Records]
Dark and ominous progressive psytrance vibes from Brazil with some fun samples about UFOs.

Hanuman – Requesting Energies [Neurotrance Records]
Massive darkpsy tune from Chile loaded with powerful beats, heavy bass lines, and super trippy atmospheres. Now this is killer night music! It might be a bit brash for some listeners but I quite like it.

The 1134 – Ghost Train
High-quality twilight-style full-on from California. This song faithfully captures what was great about South African psytrance before the style slid off into endless stop-and-start territory.

Talpa – Unusual Chair [Pyrethrum Records]
Fantastic full-on psytrance with a breathtaking degree of creativity on display. Simply amazing!

Kadasarva – Cybermind [Sun Station Records]
It was almost impossible to pick a favourite from Kadasarva’s outstanding album Steamagination. The level of detail and obvious care put into the composition of this retro-flavoured psytrance is very impressive.

Amygdala – Wintermute [Ektoplazm]
Alright, I’ll admit that I am rather biased here (this selection is from my latest compilation, Spectral Circuitry). This track reminds me a lot of classic Transwave and Koxbox without sounding derivative. The way it opens up at the very end is simply magical; this is what I love about Goa trance. Try it and you’ll see!

Prog-A-Lot – Heart Connection
Aaron Peacock’s new side project harkens back to a more innocent time in electronic music history while remaining true to his distinct style of trance production. Lovely tune.

Globular – Nahajai
Euphoric psychedelic dub with lovely Indian vocals, shimmering melodies, and intricate bass lines. This is just a taste of Globular’s forthcoming debut album :)

Maharishi – Call Of The Ancients [OUIM.net/Space Baby Records]
An awe-inspiring piece of exotic tribal breaks filled with luscious psychedelic atmospheres and magical vocals. Just “wow”!

Interested in hearing more recommendations from the top? Check out previous free music charts from November, October, August, July, June, the spring and winter of 2011, and the fall and summer of 2010.

Photo: Kipling Power.

With a hint of winter chill in the air I am happy to present another round-up of some of the finest tracks posted on Ektoplazm this month. Each and every song listed below can be downloaded for free in CD quality direct from Ektoplazm; just click the track title to be taken to the original release drop page. You are welcome to preview these songs with the streaming audio player below; simply click the arrows to skip ahead or go back (Flash required):

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Onionbrain – Desert Song [Selknam Records]
Deeply mysterious progressive psytrance from a top-notch compilation.

Faxi Nadu – The Deep [Postunder Records]
Distinctly original psytrance with a highly experimental touch. The entire album is full of surprises but this track is particularly delicious.

Vertical – Plastic Plants [Visionary Shamanics]
Ultra-psychedelic forest music in the Parvati vein, literally oozing with mind-altering potential.

Glitch – Sacred Geometry [Psybliminal Records/Ritual Records]
Blazing South African psytrance with just a touch of wobble. Quality stuff for the dance floor.

Keamia – The Real World [Elephant Head Records]
This is a lovely full-on morning tune filled with passion and spirit. Keamia has made a lot of progress since he began releasing music on Ektoplazm.

Mantra Flow – Behind The Shadow [Panzar Produktionz]
Bombastic progressive psytrance with huge melodies and loads of energy, almost like full-on pitched down and beefed up a few notches.

AstroPilot – Emptiness [Sun Station Records]
Pulsating and airy, this smooth piece of deeply progressive trance hits all the right notes.

GoaHuman & Sirius – Solar System [Underground Alien Factory Records]
Downtempo Goa trance at its finest; a pleasant surprise from the prolific UAF Records.

Brujo’s Bowl – Organic Structures [Timewave Records]
I have become a huge fan of Brujo’s Bowl since he appeared on the site earlier this year. This is another great psy dub tune from this talented newcomer.

Hinkstep – Medusa [Omnitropic]
Strange, exotic, and disarming psychedelic downtempo from one of the most musically articulate albums of the season.

Interested in hearing more recommendations from the top? Check out previous free music charts from October, August, July, June, the spring and winter of 2011, and the fall and summer of 2010.

Photo: Friday Night Campfire @ Harvest 2011.

If you have visited Ektoplazm anytime in the last two months you have probably experienced slow transfer rates, corrupted downloads, and/or significant downtime and unavailability. There has also been a problem with individual release download counts spiralling wildly out of control. These issues have been plaguing the site since early August. Usually, such things are easily remedied with an email to the technical support staff at my web hosting company, but not this time. Unfortunately I was completely consumed by the last of my undergrad degree requirements in late summer and was unable to devote my full attention to the problem. I have, since then, spent an inordinate amount of time trying to address the underlying issues. Now, having alleviated the worst of the problems, I figure it is time to post an “official” update about he situation. Be warned: things get a bit technical from here on in.

Continue reading the rest of this post »

Time for another monthly round-up of top tunes released through the Ektoplazm free music portal! Even though we hit a rough spot in September (a subject for another post) there is an incredible amount of quality music flowing through the site these days. I’d like to draw your attention to ten of the best recently posted songs (according to my taste, anyhow). Each and every song listed below can be downloaded for free in CD quality direct from Ektoplazm; just click the track title to be taken to the original release. You can also preview these songs with the streaming audio player to hear them all at once; simply use the little arrows to skip ahead or go back (Flash required):

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Gorm – Grumble [Silent Existence]
Filthy Scandinavian forest music with groovy bass lines and heaps of atmosphere.

Cenotes – Smektachius [Forest Freaks]
A pure psychedelic delight from Lithuania. Cenotes is a collaboration between P.Tale and DoHm, another one of my favourite producers.

Re-Horakhty – Spring Tools [Rising Sun Crew]
Full power night music! I’ve been a fan ever since I heard Dungeon Keeper on Under The Moss Vol. 2.

Paraklang – Second Mind Desaster [Independent]
Ripping twilight-style full-on psytrance with catchy riffs and an excellent sample.

Wirrareka & Chors – Horizon [Timeflux Records]
Full-on psychedelic morning trance faintly reminiscent of Mr. Peculiar. Strikes a nice balance between smooth and snarly.

Vishudda – All You Need Is Love [Panzar Produktionz]
Pumping progressive psytrance with an irresistible drive and a fantastic melodic finish.

Faradize – Forgotten Psy [Ektoplazm]
Exotic melodies and classical atmospheres merge in this curious fusion of styles.

Sephira – Destiny [MerKaBa Records]
Deep and mysterious progressive psytrance. The entire album is a gem; don’t miss it!

Astropilot – Yasmin (2011 Rework) [Neogoa]
Luscious tribal downtempo and deep trance. Pure relaxation and entrancement.

SeaMoon – A Deep Breath [Psyderweb Records]
Enchanting downtempo trance from Germany. SeaMoon made a big splash with his debut, A Twisted Downbeat Adventure, and I have been looking forward to hearing new work ever since. This delivers.

Interested in hearing more recommendations from the top? Check out previous free music charts from August, July, June, the spring and winter of 2011, and the fall and summer of 2010.

Photo: Parc Royal.