“What has the internet ever done for us?”, some ask. A complex question indeed, which I’m going to conveniently ignore except for the purposes of this segue. However, one thing it has given us that we otherwise would never have experienced is a juxtaposition of some kind of semi-fictional cat playing the keyboard against a man falling through a stepladder.
And for that, I think we should all be thankful.
So, here’s the scoop on the latest EP to burst forth from the Hardcore Lives stable. I’m actually pretty excited, as this one features of my favourite artists from the whole Hardcore Energy series.
The guy in question is T92, who popped up last on Hardcore Energy 3 with the storming piano anthem Weeky. This EP veers off down a darker parth however, toward the harder end of breaks. Autimate in particular rides almost entirely atop a rumbling, distorted bassline which I imagined as the offspring of injecting Red Bull into a dubstep record. Mix in some gravelly, pleasingly-unintelligible samples and you’re good to go. Definitely my pick of the two, and an excellent sense-sharpener on a cold wander around the city.
Chilly March treads slightly sunnier territories, layering breezy synths with crisp beats in a 7-minute adventure that can easily withstand multiple back-to-back listens. Its demands are less immediate on your aural attention, and is correspondingly less exhausting. The morning after Autimate‘s night before, if you will, evoking memories of the icy spring weather recently past.
And it’s pumping out of my stereo on a mild Sunday afternoon in the city. For a couple of quid it could be pumping out of yours too.
Hardcore Lives Digital 008 is available from Hardcore Lives Records.
T92 can be found on PromoDJ.ru
Disclosure: I make sleeve artwork for Hardcore Lives Records. I don’t have any influence over their A&R.
While browsing around earlier today I came across this advert:
That’s a bloody small inbox if it’s full with only 5 messages in!
Why would I want to open an inbox full of hate mail?
Why would I give out my email address to people I don’t like?
What kind of “buddy” sends you hate mail?
Do two of them hate me so much that they’ve sent me 2 hate messages each?
One of the people who I occasionally wrangle with Photoshop for, Hardcore Lives Records, have their latest free Digital EP available, which is grabbable here.
It’s Hardcore Breaks, which essentially boils down to ’93-’94 Old Skool (think 2 Bad Mice or Seduction) with up-to-date production values. If knowing that doesn’t float your boat, it’s probably still worth a grab at a massive £0.00, isn’t it?
Yep, that’s right. After a year or so lying dormant (or sleeping, as I like to kid myself), Shinypixel rouses from slumber to resume its rightful place as an important outlet for nothing in particular.
Why? I’ve been meaning to do it for a while, but a recent surge in personal motivation and productivity has led me to get back behind the reins. So, I’ve kicked the old site into a cocked hat and here we are. Well, obviously it’s not finished, but it ain’t a bad go for a couple of hours and a cup and a half of tea.
All of the old posts and content (since 2003 or so) aren’t around at the moment, but hopefully they’ll come back someday. I’m not sure if anyone will miss it, but for me there’s a certain nostalgia value so I’ll be getting around it it eventually.
So, erm, hello again. Do you remember who I am?
Rik Ward is a gentleman of West London, a dashing client/server-side developer by day and intriguing man of mystery by night.
You are perusing his blog, wherein music, art, independent games and general whimsy mix gently into an entertaining, frothy mixture.
He also occasionally makes things: websites like Drivvle and handy software that can be found in Shinypixel Labs.
Rik is also, of course, on Twitter, as it's where all modern gentlemen are these days.
