Segue

One of the things a blog should be about, and certainly for a band, is sharing some raw ideas. As I write a few different things for a few different publications week in and week out, I think I’ve let the original fun idea of a frequently used Segue blog fall into routine and a form of uniformity. Thankfully, I had a nice dose of inspiration on Friday night, heading out to catch the dual joys of Berlin Sessions at Bar Soma and Jody Wisternoff at Moon Bar. At the latter, Kris had a DJ set after Jody and ambitions to be entirely sober for it, and at the former it was great to catch up with the Logic lads and appreciate how far Nick and the crew have taken Bar Soma. So it was an interesting night. Kris dropped some originals, I lost my voice, various friends were escorted out of various venues and the usual collection of unprintable antics. I came home and threw together this little idea, before sleep overtook me and I eventually woke up wondering why I couldn’t speak anymore. I’m thinking it’s a voodoo curse. Or just talking loudly over loud music. In any case, here’s what I woke up to. It’s not a track. It’s an idea. And it’s about time to start sharing them more:

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The name is literally the first thing I saw. Not being in much of a state to ponder deep and meaningful names at the time, and indeed, as per the picture above, being entertained at the time by a dancing Isobot robot in front of a rather moody lamp. Which is about all I really have to say on the matter.

Other people were out frolicking. A somewhat old term that, but more than appropriate no doubt. Roller coasters, taming lions, computer games and possibly even disco dancing. Crazy kids. Me, I was moving the studio once again. Some readers of Create Digital Music might remember that it was just over a year ago that I wrote an article called “Moving Music: 10 Ways For A Geek To Move House”. I loved the space I had moved into when I wrote that article, with the studio gear dominating the lounge room in close proximity to the kitchen. The fun I had throwing fresh vegetables and spices around in a wok only metres away from Kris hard at work on Begin Again. On the flipside, picking up the refrigerator when trying to record acoustic guitars while reviewing microphones for Time Off. Mostly a great space, but a chance came up on a unique property only a short walk from the current one, and a few months ago it was all about cardboard boxes, carrying things up flights of stairs and trying not to drop things on my feet. With a modicum of success at best.

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After a few weeks as a Beatport exclusive release, the Guise EP has gone worldwide. You can now grab it from your favourite flavour of online music store, such as Juno, 7Digital, Beatsdigital, and even iTunes. It is, of course, still up on Beatport and getting some great responses, so check out it and let us know what you think!

The video should say it all. Maybe not very well. And certainly in a rather pointless way. But there you have it. Segue. New track coming out. Remixers. Dektek Records. Drums and such. Awesome.

Climbing around some glaciers today, I remembered that it’s the Beatport launch date for the Guise EP! I did an impromptu handstand to celebrate, tore another hole in my gloves, and recorded a quick message for all of you back in the civilized world.

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So bust a handstand, kick your rollersaktes off and check the tunes. After that, please pause for a moment of silence for my poor, torn gloves. I did it all for disco.

Here is one that I completely forgot about. Despite working on a bunch of tracks with Vitreous, who is based in Amsterdam but formerly of the excellent act My Ninja Lover here in Australia, I had totally skipped the memory of telling Dektek Records that I was up for a remix of his latest release. Even more embarrassingly, I had been cheering on Kris-Ko as he worked through his own very awesome remix of the same track. With a couple days before deadline, the label asked how I was going on the mix. With a “good! Yeah! Absolutely!”, I took it as a chance to break my usual slow habits and use it as an excuse to try out some new gear. Here’s the result, as a preview on Soundcloud. The actual release date is 23rd of June 2009 for Beatport, and everywhere else two weeks later.

The “Segue Does Disco” Dub:

The Original Mix:

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Bringing his bulging laptop of musical mystery to the Segue studio, the occasional Segue collaborator and live drummer, Kris-Ko, has leaped back into the producers chair with a new track that has been billed as “an emotional piece of minimal-tech electronica aimed much more towards the lounge room than the dancefloor”. Working with Australian record label Dektek Records, Kris-Ko has taken a step back from the pounding tribal house that defined his style while penning D-KO’s “Tribal Gathering“, and has ventured down a melodic and electronic path.

Running on the “re-imagination rather than remix” angle, the Segue mix took the liberty of running wild with alternate ideas, before settling into a gentler idea inspired by a serendipitous night of partying on the Gold Coast with the Dektek Records crew. With a tip of the hat to the space disco, deep house and melodic adventures that have been infiltrating the Brisbane party scene throughout the early stages of 2009, this one is a flipside mix that shows a subtle side to the Segue live show antics.

Available now on Beatport, and all other digital retailers shortly. If you like the tunes, or are playing them out, let us know!

Here’s a rough and ready snippet of video grabbed quickly as Scott Walker and Magoo warmed up for Nick Warren at Brisbane nightclub The Met, on 12/04/09. The track that is booming through the incredibly loud PA is Scott Walker’s first production, recorded recently in the Segue studios and currently out on tour with him in Asia. Despite the vague video recording, this is shaping up somewhere in the deep tribal house realm, with a dose of Balkan folk, care of my travels in 2004. With Kris-Ko also at the helm, and some hilarious recording sessions featuring Scott and some improvised percussion instruments, this is an exciting track and has been a lot of fun. Stay tuned!

Challenged with condensing years of gigs, arm swirls and smashed samplers into a debut release, Segue stepped off the back of an epic performance at the Big Day Out festival and temporarily retired the live rig to the studio with the goal of capturing the excitement from the stage into two tracks of raw electronic music. As homage to the excitement and energy of the live show, Dave Dri and guest percussionist Kris-Ko locked themselves away to record a double single featuring two of the original Segue bombs.

With the bubbling acid and tech riffs of encore favourite ‘Reset’, and the driving tech house grooves and abstracted vocal wanderings of ‘Forever’, this is Segue stepping off stage clutching samplers and synthesisers and headed straight to the after party. As the band evolves, its sound develops, and its players collaborate outwards, “Reset & Forever” is a classic slice of the energy and electronica that has defined a live act at its most smoke machines and strobe lights obsessed. Released on Australian label Smash Bang Records, “Reset & Forever” is available on Beatport now.

Happy new year! We say in February. This is a quick update on what 2009 has meant for a resting and busy Segue so far. You can read the 2008 summary previously, but heres a taste test of some pretty exciting stuff for the year!

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