Band:
Brian Porter
Matt Johnson
Patrick Gough

Lineage: Stereo AKG 414s + mono soundboard output -> Zoom H4n -> Cubase (mix + limiting) -> MP3/FLAC
Taper: David Carter (carteriffic@gmail.com)

Download the full set formatted as: MP3 or FLAC

Stream and download individual tracks below.  Another fantastic Imperial China set, sporting a load of tracks off their upcoming 2010 full-length debut (Phosphenes) on Sockets / Ruffian Records.  I can already tell you, it is a winner. Many kudos to relatively new-on-the-scene taper David Carter for catching such an awesome one.

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1. MP3: Untitled
2. MP3: Radhus
3. MP3: Rookie Cop / Mortal Wombat
4. MP3: Bananamite
5. MP3: A Modern Life
6. MP3: All That Is Solid
7. MP3: Letter of a General

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01. MP3: Dark Party – Status from Light Years (2009)
02. MP3: Mux Mool – Nausican from Just Saying Is All (2008)

I’ll be up in Boston this weekend to catch Built to Spill’s run at the Middle East.

But I’m regretting it as there are some stellar shows happening.  Wye Oak is opening for Blitzen Trapper at a mammoth Saturday Ottobar event.  Following the show, everyone’s favorite DJ Jason Willett will be hosting the after-party at the Golden West.

Tonight though, all eyes should be on the Hexagon who hosts a phenomenal Moodgadget-anchored orgy of dance music, courtesy of local label Environmental Aesthetics.

Out of towners Dark Party and Mux Mool bring electronic dance bliss (lush with hip-hop beats and influence) to the Hexagon, while opener Cex blasts you with his particularly visceral brand of electronic and beats-master Mickey Free lays down some rhymes.   This is easily a can’t miss show.

The Hexagon has a bit of history.  For those unaware, in a previous life the much beleaguered space was home to the Lo-Fi Social Club’s disastrous attempt at becoming a legitimate, traditional venue.  Needless to say, this fell flat due to its proprietor taking the equivalent of Sherman’s march through the arts community, leaving a reputation with an aftertaste somewhere between two-week old flat beer and swamp water.

Lucky for everyone four plucky friends (Josh Atkins, Karl Ekdahl, Miguel Sabogal, and Matt Sterling) decided to take over, and oh how things have changed.

With more than a little sacrifice and effort, the growing community has established a viable, intimate venue with a unique atmosphere that is proving to be a gem in the burgeoning Station North Arts District.  But alas, times are tough and business tougher, so they are making a thrust to move the venue into non-profit territory to open themselves to alternative, more philosophically amenable funding sources to help stabilize the space and expand its mission.

This Saturday night, the monthly BOLT! Dance Party is hosting a 1 year anniversary party for the Hexagon, and doubles as a fundraiser.  Proceeds will help pay for the application to gain non-profit status.  Surely not to be missed, the night features New Yorkers Ava Luna, Polygons (Sabogal and Atkins’ electronic project), DJ Lemz and James Nasty.

Josh was kind enough to answer some questions on past, present and future of the 6-sided beast.

Read the rest…

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MP3: Cex – Last Gazp

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MP3: Cex – Brains Out

Cex aka Cexman aka Rjyan Kidwell recently dropped his new wax, Bataille Royale, on a Baltimore scene that is more than ready for this addition to its musical vocabulary.  This record is unquestionably the product of a bombed out soul, a spirit that is truly and uniquely urban.  Here we find soundscapes that, much like dub, reflect the darker side of the metropolitan experience.  Kidwell has openly stated this is a response to the predominance of standard (and saccharine) tropes of indie rock and psychedelia, and it certainly succeeds in presenting an alternative flavor.  Cex has carved a musical document that channels Baltimore while pond-hopping around various subgenres of electronic and hip-hop.

The first track, “Last Gazp,” is a burnt-out aural landscape: expansive and distant, while somehow, paradoxically, claustrophobic and overbearing.  Recurring machine-gun rattles are jarring and immediate, especially when juxtaposed to the mysterious melody.  ”Brains out” is a dark and foreboding, borderline psychoses-inducing cut of techno, the only words being exhortations of: “Blow your brains out.”  These tracks, and this record, deserve to be digested and pored over.  Each listen brings out more and more facets of this gem.

But, the real meat of Cex lies in his masterful live sets.  Lucky for us, this month’s More or Less party at the Hexagon has Cex performing tonight (he’s even giving away some copies of Bataille).  You can pick up copies of Bataille Royale at the lovely True Vine.

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MP3: The Clash – I Fought the Law

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MP3: Operation Ivy – Here We Go Again

Baltimore City looks to be pursuing further action on the Live Entertainment License legislation.

The main perk is that officially recognized venues will no longer be required to stay in designated entertainment zones; on paper this should stimulate and encourage this sector.

But there are a number of corollaries to that main thrust which may actually threaten many of our beloved and established DIY spaces.  These stipulaions range from the douchebaggery of new annual fees, ambiguous investigations on the “moral character” of involved parties, and all sorts of logistical bureaucracy (plans for cleaning, parking, safety etc) to the bizarre, such as designations of non-participatory dancing.

This is all rather shocking and dumbfounding until you realize that the amount of communication between the legislators and the venue owners and operators who run affected businesses has been slim to none.

But it’s officially crunch time, and two organizational meetings for any community members interested in voicing their concerns on the bill have been scheduled in Station North this coming Monday, Mar 16.

Meeting #1 is at the Metro Gallery, 4PM.

Meeting #2 is at the Hexagon, 7PM.

Photo Credit: Greg Szeto

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MP3: Thank You – Empty Legs from Terrible Two (2008)

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MP3: Leprechaun Catering – Adult Carrot

2009 started off right with 2 great art openings in Station North, anchored by 2 shows from some great Baltimore musicians.

The Windup Space opened an exhibit of Jordan Kasey’s interesting landscape art that has a bit of Magritte surrealist touch to it.  Friends Thank You and Wheatie Mattiasich helped open this exhibit; Thank You were burdened with a bit of technical difficulty early in their set but managed to bang out a slew of their nimble, stuttering tracks from Terrible Two including the ever-hypnotizing rhythmic exercise “Empty Legs.”

The Hexagon Space played host to Emily Dierkes’ Recent Works: Pink Clouds Remixed exhibit.  Leprechaun Catering played a banging set of glorious racket that had the Hex packed and pulsating.

Wheatie Mattiasich

Read the rest…

I had no expectations of Michna going into this night, literally none. I had never heard a single track of his before, but he did come highly recommended from the More or Less crew, and others. Further more, Michna’s label, Ghostly International, is home to the crème de la crème of American electronic acts.

I read his press release, and knew he would be performing with a live backing band, that he had some connections to Diplo, worked with Bonde do Role, etc. But I knew nothing substantial. I was prepared for anything, and ready for nothing.

Quite simply, Michna’s set blew me away. Read the rest…

I saw the Blank Artists tour back in August at the Hexagon. You can read about it here.

Blanks Artists is at the vanguard of Detroit’s underground electronic music scene. Forget the bloated Richie Hawtin Contakt parties, or the overpriced Underground Resistance nights, these guys take techno back to the way it was–raw, DIY, and uncompromising.

Drew Pompa’s set anchored that night back in August. He’s a fun DJ to watch–he gets lost in the groove just like the audience. Fortunately Baltimore feels like home for Drew (I guess all post-industrial, crime ridden cities are the same), and he’ll be making the rounds again this Friday, the 17th, for the October edition of Baltimore’s own More or Less party at the Hexagon.

Between spinning, and running a label, Drew is a busy man, so I shot him a couple question via email. Read the rest…

…or so I was told when I decided to do some impromptu promo leg work for the More or Less birthday party with Ben Parris last night.

It was truly an amazing night. DJ Kel, of More or Less, opened up the night with a solid set, but Ben was the center of attention. The Once.Twice:Sound founder was dropping tracks I’d never heard of before, I don’t know where they came from, but damn those sampled saxophone stabs brought the house down.

Trouble was all the ladies moving and grooving had an affiliation, so to speak. So, a new friend (a recent transplant from Detroit, who was blown away that an entity like the Hexagon could legally exist in a city–that kind of stuff doesn’t fly in Detroit apparently), and I decided to press the fresh and get some people (women) to come up from the area around The Depot, and Club Charles.

We grabbed a handful of really well designed handbills done by More or Less founder Patrick Brander; beautiful graphic design work that would look good simply tacked to a hall as a type of low-budget art. We set off toward The Depot. Read the rest…