2econd Class Citizen’s emergence on the scene has created a buzz of anticipation from a diverse collection of music circles. The young man from London, England (originally from Huddersfield) makes music that he simply calls “Wyred Folk”: a hybrid of electronically produced folk combined with instrumental Hip Hop. Swinging between melancholy and pure anger, strong guitar riffs mined from old psych rock records and the weeping voices lifted from old folk music, he seems to find his real home in a crate of old and dusty vinyl.

There is a beat but this is not Hip Hop – at least not as we know it. Yes, there are guitars, but this isn’t folk music anymore. An anonymous voice sings of being lonely within a hundred other voices and there is this music with a new sound, yet, somehow, it still is the old sound – the old loneliness. It is just that now we are listening to it again, for the first time – and we want to listen. Here is the feeling that Hip Hop may have lost. But Aaron himself wouldn’t dare to say these things so loudly. He just sees himself as an arranger or conductor standing in front of an orchestra of forgotten records, waiting for their time to be played.

Brutal and Melodic, two words which often dont go together, but which pefectly capture the music of Arcsin. Drawing on influences as diverse as Iron Maiden to Devo, his patterns and textures allude to a time when drums were hot and synths were cold. With a unique and distinct sound Arc is able to create music that tells stories while still providing the all too necessary headnod. That – Animal Beat Drums – as he calls it, is found in almost everything he touches, and is as true to New York as corruption and good bagels with cream cheese. By just allowing himself to make the music he feels needs to be made, rather than what others may expect, allows him to stay fresh and innovative.

Some may know Ceschi for his experimental post-psych-rock-hop-jazz-fusion outfit “Anonymous Inc.”, a group formed by Ceschi and his brother David in 1994 that came into recognition in 2001 because of genre bending collaborations with underground hip hop rule breakers such as Circus of “The Shape Shifters”, Dose and Sole of “Anticon”.
Others may know Ceschi as a member of “Toca”, a Los Angeles based group whose lineup includes Xololanxinxo (Of Mexican Descent) and longtime Shape Shifters collaborator Tommy V - Toca is mainly known for a standout debut appearance on 2005’s “Project Blowed 10 year anniversary album” and for their collaborations with some of LA’s finest rappers including Aceyalone and Mikah 9 (Freestyle Fellowship), Abstract Rude, 2Mex (Of Mexican Descent/Visionaries), Busdriver, Awol One and many others.
Fans of hardcore, punk and metal may recognize Ceschi’s distinct vocal abilities from his role as a lead vocalist in “Dead By Wednesday” who released their critically acclaimed 2005 album “Democracy is Dead” on Jamey Jasta’s (Hatebreed/MTV2’s Headbanger’s Ball) Stillborn Records and have already toured the United States. On top of all of this, Ceschi has a promising solo career jump started by the 2004 Beyond Space Entertainment release of “Fake Flowers”, an album that some consider to be a “rare accomplishment in hip hop” (ugsmag.com) and “one of the most beautiful releases of [2004]” (movemusics.com). On his 2006 Net31 Records release, “They Hate Francisco False”, Ramos merges Beatles-esque melodies over crunk drums, heartfelt hip hop, folk ditties, unpretentious poetry and overall honesty.

These decidedly genre-less pieces retain a fluidity that feels completely natural and unfeigned. Erasoul.com stated that Ceschi’s latest album is “One of those albums you just have to hear. Words could not credit the talents of Ceschi, whether it’s rapping, singing, or composing.” Fresh off of a series of performances with K Records’ artist Little Wings, with a Japanese version of “They Hate Francisco False” being released and a nationwide tour in the works for Toca, 2006 may just be the year for Ceschi’s music to be heard.

Deckard aka Attila Makai is one of the most promising European downbeat producers today. Having independently released a limited edition vinyl EP in 2004 called “dasABSTRAKT”, his musical abilities immediately caught the attention of the Swiss label Ish Records. Later, he was featured on their compilation “The Now Factor” which featured two of his compositions alongside artists from all over the world. Yet these by far have not been the only contributions Deckard has made to the beautiful world of music. Over the past few years he has released around 60 tracks on his own internet based network “Foundation-Crew.com” – which also serves to unite an online community of producers from Paris to Berlin.
Now, Deckard has found a home at Equinox Records. With the “Noir Desire EP” he has made another leap forward, displaying his humbling vision of downtempo beats. Still, you can hear the influences of early MoWax, and the sound of musicians such as DJ Krush and DJ Cam, but always with his personal twist and unique use of athmospheric tones and melodies. Deckard proves his style to be exceptional and pushes himself to the ranks of today’s most cutting edge producers.

Over the past years, DJ Scientist has become an important figure in the German Hip-Hop and Electronic scene. Running two labels (Equinox and Audiac) and publishing a magazine (DEAD Magazine), he still takes his time to dj at clubs, release mixes, expand his record collection and, last but not least, produce music.
Starting his DJ-career in 1995 and releasing several mixtapes to spread his name in his home town of Munich, he put out his first record in 2001 – a dj tool called “Mad Science Breaks”. One year later the dark and melancholic Misantropolis EP, mainly produced by him, was the first release on Audiac. Since then, DJ Scientist put his main effort into his label Equinox Records, which now has its headquarters in Berlin. In 2005 he produced 3 tracks for the critically acclaimed “Welcome to the Neo Golden Age – A Sound Exposure Vol.1” Compilation. Being part of the Equinox 10inch Series, his 4 track “Journey Goodbye EP” (2006) contained the outstanding “Atarius” as well as the soulful and bluesy “Autumn Leaves”. Both tracks are considered underground instrumental hip-hop classics.
During his career, Scientist has performed with artists such as Sage Francis, The Pharcyde, Noah23, M.I.A., DJ Faust & DJ Shortee, Ceschi Ramos, Sole & The Skyrider Band, Egyptian Lover, Marc Hype & Jim Dunloop, DiViNCi (of Sol.illaquists of Sound), Subtitle, Boca45, Geste, The Tape, Thesis Sahib, Busy Bee, Wildchild, DJ Static, 88:Komaflash, and many others.
Although DJ Scientist is mainly known for his instrumental productions he has recorded songs with hiphop artists like Ceschi, 2Mex (of Visionaries), Myka 9 (of Freestyle Fellowship), Awol One (of Shape Shifters), Noah23, among others.

One question that is asked quite frequently about Geste: “Is it electronic music?” There’s no definitive answer…
At first glance, Geste’s IDM / electronica compositions may not sound connected to Punk Hardcore, Metal, Post-Rock, Pop, Jazz, Classical, or any other genre of music. Nonetheless, François-Charles Domergue’s atypical musical journey, from the darkest black metal of his early years to the glitchest electronic music he now composes as Geste, shows us that music should never be classified too precisely and should always considered as a whole.
Being a passionate listener to an accomplished bass player then led him to play in various bands, from MØN’s post-rock to Ars Nova’s punk hardcore. Therefore, his work as Geste was yet another way to explore new soundscapes. His curiosity made him try computer generated music and naturally led to a completely unique sound and approach. What started as an improvised “game” became a strong and powerful mixture of sound layers of many origins.
Today, Geste’s music is classified in the “electronic” genre, but only because it comes out of a computer.

After deciding to part ways with the Glitch Mob, Kraddy continues to trail-blaze as a composer and a DJ in the US and abroad.  A dancefloor messiah to both booty shakers and trainspotters, Kraddy is known worldwide for his distinctive style.  His sets are a futuristic fusion of dubstep, hip hop, and dancehall - all laced with Kraddy’s signature style of edits and remixes that make his sound so unique.  Like the skaters and surfers from his home in Venice Beach, Kraddy will unapologetically blow your mind with his skill, style and his no prisoners attitude.

At the young age of 10, Playpad Circus already started making electronic music with computer and keyboard.  Later, after being a DJ for several years as a teen ager, he decided to concentrate more on his career as a producer.  Since then, he made remixes for a diverse bunch of hiphop and indie/electronica acts such as Subtle (Lex Records), Kraddy (formerly of The Glich Mob), Odd Nosdam (Anticon), 2econd Class Citizen (Equinox), Bleubird, Audio88 (Endemik) and while he currently is working on a new solo project and an EP with the Canadian rapper Noah23.

Still at the beginning of his carreer, his unique arrangement skills and production techniques yet made him an established figure in the German electronic and experimental hip-hop scene.  And besides all that, Playpad Circus is also known as an in demand engineer working for several artists and labels in Berlin and beyond.
Playing live, Playpad Circus is combining, controlling and remixing a huge variety of breakbeats, loops and electronic sounds, creating a tremendous mashup-monster, the dancefloor won’t forget.

A story contains but few words.
Born. Walked. Kept walking…

Vangel’s first musical steps began with his formal music studies as a member of his grade school band and strings ensemble. “I remember hitting all the wrong notes, playing through rests, and resting during section solos”. His thrist for musical experience continued into high school where he rehearsed with his city’s symphony orchestra as a member of the viola section while spending his summers at Scarborough Music Camp.

As Vangel’s exposure to various genres of music grew, so did the scope of his musical interests. “I hated playing. I wanted to put it together”. His fascination with putting together eventually led to an obsession with dissecting songs and time signatures. Needing a more contextual knowledge base, Vangel spent his days digging through flea markets and garage sales in search of diverse vinyl records with new sounds and ideas.

Eventually, vinyl led to djing. “I bought my first turntables and mixer from this guy’s trunk at a local gas station; they were definetly stolen”. Working with 2 records opened Vangel’s eyes to the possibilities of manipulating and creating new sound relationships. “I wanted to make beats so bad. I had so many ideas I wanted to try out. I bought a computer, quit my job, and moved home”.

(more…)

Being involved with the mysterious German abstract Hip-Hop group 88:Komaflash (the name derives from camouflage) Aqua Luminus III. usually hides his face – and misleading information is the only information you might get about him. However, his music definitely speaks for itself. Since his early days as a discjockey he had been heavily influenced by britcore groups like Hijack or Gunshot and by the Golden Age of rap music. Speaking of times when the Bomb Squad was providing music that was so incredibly powerful and energetic. The same energy and creativity now needs to burst out when Aqua Luminus pushes buttons on his MPC or freaks synthesyzers on his computer. But - although the outcome is fierce and confulsed with rage - Aqua Luminus III. could just be the friendly guy from next door.

Brenmar was a name given to William Salas by his then 2-year-old brother. Music that does not easily fit into category, he constructs tunes out of old dusty records, digital and analogue synthesizers, microphones, samplers, and found sounds. He arranges, records, and produces these tunes in the comfort of his room/studio. A musician whos just as comfortable on stage as he is in his studio, the combination of big drums, found instruments, noise, and improvisation makes for an exciting and unique live show. He’s performed with Dosh, Styrofoam, Indian Jewlery, Daniel Givens, Casiotone For The Painfully Alone, Fog, Skeletons and The Girl-Faced Boys, Michael Columbia, Our Brother The Native, Clipd Beaks, Todd Carter, and The One AM Radio among others.

Danny can do it all by himself. The piano tunes, the drums, the flute and whatever noise his keyboard can produce. The mysterious guy from Vienna, starts creating music where sound comes into being: with real instruments. He began all this at the age of five, when his fingers were big enough to reach a couple of keys on his parents’ piano. Later he started playing the drums and years of practice qualified him to become a drummer and percussionist in a whole range of live bands from his original home town of Regensburg. For example playing funk and soul in a band called “Soulflash” or being part of “Nomad”, a group doing a latin afro jazz fusion type of sound. But it was not always the applause of an audience he was aiming at: He well remembers the countless jam sessions with like-minded fellows, improvising sounds just for the sake of it. During all this time and ever since one tool accompanied his journeys into sound: the computer. He had been experimenting with electronic music production for quite a while when he seriously started to proceed digitally what he had learnt to create organically. Being able to combine those skills his often dark and electronic compositions still have the warmth and the analog feeling that will remind you where music once came from: acustic instruments and capable musicians.

Sleep Is For The Weak…

Ask producer/engineer DiViNCi (Glen Valencia, Jr.) what sleep is and he’ll tell you he doesn’t remember. Apparently he hasn’t rested since he was 14. At that age, he independently released his first group’s album, which he produced, mixed, and arranged. Even the artwork was led by his direction. DiViNCi has come a long way since his high school days in Pennsylvania. Now residing in Orlando, Florida, where he polished his existing audio engineering skills with formal training, 21 year-old DiViNCi has added a countless number of projects to his creative and versatile portfolio of sound.

Over the past seven years he has engineered and produced music ranging from hybrids of jazz and hip hop to funk and country, all of which allow his style to shine through with an organic, soulful, and, yet, experimental appeal. As not to limit his duties in the studio to just producing, DiViNCi’s sound design and editing skills have served him well in picking up additional audio post-production work. He has also tacked on the title of poet, and studio owner to his repertoire. DiViNCi is taking on as many trades as possible. Through doing so he hopes to elude what people expect of him. And just as the artist of the same name did many years ago, DiViNCi plans to even further master his current duties as he learns new skills to broaden awareness to new styles and limitless sounds.

In addition to being an all around studio and programming wizard, DiViNCi is also constantly raising the bar for his own live performances by being among the few to use a sampling/drum machine as an instrument rather than a tool. Whether supporting other musicians or soloing on his own, DiViNCi always uses two MPC2000XLs (his weapons of choice) to freely mimic any sound, style, or instrument fulfilling his need for a new embodiment of Free Jazz. As a huge fan of improvisation, you may never know what to expect from a DiViNCi performance, but you can always count on him to go all out, often resulting in an overwhelming emotional and physical experience. Through many beat-filled performances as well as working out of his own Soul.illoquy Lounge Recording Studio in Orlando, DiViNCi, along with fellow Sol.illaquists and others of the same ambition, hope to continue to spread a positive message and move people with their music along their own path of self-awareness.

Additional Info:
DiViNCi is always spelled this way. With all letters capitalized except for the i’s which are lowercase.

DJ Sept, a munich native who already earned his stripes with last year’s “Neo Golden Remixes”, returns with “A Promise Never Given”. An addict to rough beats as well as a sucker for spine tingling melodies, he presents us his very own “melodramatic” style. The EP features three tracks: The A-side starts with energetic hiphop drums turning into the rough drum n bass tune “Seventh Sense” and continues with the uplifting revised version of Sept’s classic “Morning Comes”. Side B on the other hand, presents the first real club hit on our label – a club hit in the style of Equinox: From start to finish “Mental Odyssey” is pure adrenaline and it will grab your heart as well. This EP will leave nobody untouched.

emynd (government name: Emil Nassar) is a cultural, ethnic, and geographic nomad through-and-through. Having spent a significant portion of his life in what seems like every corner of the world, emynd’s compositions and influences are as motley and muddled as his many homes and mosaic ethnicity. Having already produced for underground artists like Sole, Sage Francis, Reef the Lost Cauze, and Dose One, emynd made a name for himself early on as producer willing to take risks, sampling anything from listless Golden Earring guitar riffs to piercing Pretty Tony 808 kicks to appropriately illustrate his amalgamated and appropriated worldview. As a solo artist, emynd first exposed himself on the Beyond Space Compilation with the guitar-driven “Introdiction” that convincingly mumbles a head-hanging optimism through its minor-key sighs, inspiring as much introspection as dance floor delight. emynd also contributed to Equinox Record’s first vinyl release “Welcome to the Neo Golden Age EP” with his electr(o)rganic “Positive Reinforcement” which encourages its listeners to dance away their pain because, at the end of the day, if the dancing doesn’t work, there’s always suicide. emynd continues to throw caution to the wind every time he sits down to make music, finding that limiting his work to the arbitrary rules and customs that his many predecessors inscribed is not only an inaccurate representation of who he is, but at a more basic level, simply uninteresting. emynd is a wayfaring stranger and he has no problem with his music being a physical, sensual, and emotional representation of his nomadic nature.

Enter Free The Robots, a producer who pays homage to the past with a drive for the future blending elements of jazz, electronic, hip-hop, soul, psychedelic rock and noise. Somewhere between soulful-melodic bliss, head-nodding grooves and aggressively-driven rhythms, harmony and total freedom stands for those with open minds. A Low End regular, he knows the score.

Baracuz wurde 1982 in Berlin-Steglitz geboren. Vorbelastet durch einen Gitarre spielenden Vater und einen großen Bruder, entdeckte auch Baracuz bald seine Liebe zu diesem Instrument. Und so führte auch kein Weg daran vorbei, dass bald die erste Fender und der erste kleine Marshall Amp ihren Platz im Kinderzimmer einnahmen. Es war Zeit zu üben.

Mitte der 90er schwappte dann eine Neo-Punkrock-Welle mit Bands wie Greenday oder Bad Religion über Deutschland herein und traf den kleinen Baracuz mit voller Wucht. Die Haare wurden bunt gefärbt und kurz danachentstand die erste eigene Band um selbst die Schulaula und kleine Jugendclubs zu rocken. Die nächsten Jahre spielte sich Baracuz durch die verschiedensten Punkrock- und Hardcorecombos.
Während dieser Zeit wurde jedoch abends zum Chillen immer häufiger Gang Starr, Pete Rock, DJ Honda oder Nas in den CD-Spieler geworfen und so kam neben der Liebe zu verzerrten Gitarren immer mehr das Interesse an Samples, programmierten Beats und elektronischen Tönen zum Vorschein.
Mit seinem ehemaligen Drummer aus Punkrocktagen, der ebenfalls dem Rap verfallen war, bastelte Baracuz die ersten Tracks zusammen und bald wurden die Nächte nicht mehr im Proberaum, sondern vor dem heimischen PC und der Plattensammlung verbracht.

Baracuz hatte gefunden, wonach er lange geuscht hatte. Er war nicht mehr auf andere angewiesen und konnte sich ganz und gar seinen musikalischen Interessen widmen. Kein Wunder also, dass er immer öfter mit dicken Augenringen und total übermüdet beim Zivildienst erschien, weil er morgens um 7 an seinen Ideen für sein Debut-Album „Lasergun Romances“ feilte und produzierte. Zu dieser Zeit lernte Baracuz durch einen Zufall Kaspah kennen, der kurz danach Evilmama mitbegründen sollte.Sein erstes Album “Lasergun Romances” ist eine samplelastige Instrumentalplatte mit Trip Hop- und Elektro-Einflüssen.

As a “journey in blurred memories”, that’s how Mnemotrauma’s music once has been described: With the use of well-chosen samples and pulsing beats, the producer from Mainz Germany is indeed capable to infiltrate the listeners mind by his sinister but beautiful compositions. Finding his musical roots in Hip-Hop, Mnemotrauma later became influenced by jazz and jazzfunk as well as the progressive excrescences of 70’s rock music. While being a founding member of the Offbeaters, an independent and international network for alternative music, Mnemotrauma already made himself a name with some publications on Subversiv records: His first album “Der Audiopath”, which was originally released on CD in 2001, was reissued in the year 2003 on vinyl. And just recently he collaborated with the west coast underground MCs Awol One, Circus and Life Rexall (of The Shapeshifters Crew / L.A.) with 2 tracks. After his Split 7″ (along with DJ Scientist / Equinox Records) that featured his song “Waiting for the Sun”, further instrumental works are in progress. And since Mnemotrauma’s style and outcome is hard to predict one never knows on which journey he will take the listener next.

Sorry, no bio available.

Info coming soon.

Liebe. Leben. Und Tod. Das sind die Quellen, aus denen die Musik des Misanthrop entspringt: Rap in seiner ehrlichsten und schonungslosesten Form. Keine Pose, dafür Haltung. Kein selbstbezogener Größenwahn, dafür selbstironische Offenheit. Daraus entstehen Texte, die sehr klar und stark sind, in dem was sie sagen müssen. Gleichzeitig scheuen sie, mit dem was sie sagen wollen, keinen Augenblick lang die Poesie - und das im positivsten Sinne des Wortes.

Misanthrop lässt die üblichen Stereotypen des Genres einfach hinter sich, verbindet lieber Musik und Texte zu (s)einer eigenwilligen Interpretation des deutschsprachigen Rap.

Seine bisherigen Soloveröffentlichungen sind Konzeptwerke, bei denen die einzelnen Lieder trotz der festen Rahmenthematik ein breites Spektrum aufweisen. Seine EP Die sieben Weltwunder beispielsweise behandelt …

Auch Live kann sich das Publikum von der intensiven Kraft des Misanthrop überzeugen, der auf der Bühne zwischen dem explosiven Wahnsinn eines jungen Jack Nicholson und der verletzlichen Seele eines Sole oder Buck 65 changiert. Und das geschieht mit krassem Witz, feiner Ironie und kampfbereiter Melancholie.

PlattenregalDie Musik von Misanthrop zeigt, dass es eine neue Bewegung im deutschen Rap gibt, die z.B. den selbstreferentiellen, und dadurch langweilig gewordenen Gangsta – Rap weit hinter sich gelassen hat. Heute, da unsere Musikkultur zudem beliebig reproduzierbar scheint, liegt es auf der Hand, der Flut flüchtiger Hörererlebnisse die Beständigkeit einer ausgesuchten Musiksprache entgegenzusetzen - und genau da beginnt die Welt des Misanthrop.

Sorry. No bio available.