Jackov & Frilla
'Eyes To The Floor EP'
(Self-Released 2009)

One-time Bagman and DJ extraordinaire Jackov has been steadily improving his production skills of late, most noticeably in his first publicly-released effort The Plan a few months ago. Now he's back with a whole EP of off-kilter goodness, this time joining forces with Statix frontman and MC Frilla to provide four tracks of wonky action.

Opener Hefty has all the hallmarks of a twisted dubstep behemoth but it seems crafted from a different fabric to the usual generic wobblers - there's elements of breakcore and techno floating around in the mix - and the result is strangely hypnotic, the sound of a distressed geriatric Dalek that's fallen over in the shower.

Frilla's first offering Redeye again flips the dubstep template into a highly-compressed video game nasty, full of sinister rolling bassweight and clipped percussion that gives the whole track an imminent sense of suspense and drama.

Jackov's second attempt Lench offers a more restrained response to the first two tracks, with a half-step bubbler that combines minimal, spacious drumwork with an undulating bassline straight out of a low-budget slasher movie.

Final Frilla contribution Who Are You brings the grime scattershot percussion to a breathless vocal sample that owes more to the old school of garage then it does the new wave and is the best track on offer here. It would be disingenuous to say this brace of tracks are perfect - as with much of the up and coming ranks of producers who are still in the embryonic stages of making music, the ideas are all present and correct, but perhaps lack the confidence of experience to push them to that next level. That said, this EP shows a lot of promise in these two young artists, and we're looking forward to what happens next.



Jackov - Hefty



Frilla - Redeye



Jackov - Lench



Frilla - Who Are You

Download the full EP

Antoni Maiovvi
'Shadow Of The Bloodstained Kiss'
(Seed Records 2009)

"‘Shadow of the Blood Stained Kiss’ is the Antoni Maiovvi score to a nonexistent 1983 Italian Sci-fi giallo starring Barbara Cupisti and Ian McCulloch. In the distant future "Europa," the 2nd moon of Jupiter has been colonized by man. In the midst of this Utopian era a dangerous struggle for power between organised crime and the highest level of government is underway and when Juliet Hardy (Barbara Cupisti), a stunning discotheque singer, becomes witness to a murder the only person who believes her is tough-nosed cyber-journalist, Jason Scott (Ian McCulloch). Together, they unravel more than they bargained for as a sadistic killer runs loose brutally slaying anyone in connection to the crime. Who does this man in black work for and what is the connection between him and an ancient order that have been controlling the known universe since the dawn of time?"

When the press release for a new album reads as above, you know you have something special about to be shoved in your ears. But then again this is Antoni Maiovvi, the alter ego of Geisha frontman Anton Maiof, and so the acceptable parameters of what's normal were eroded many, many years ago. After the sticky majesty of debut album Electro Muscle Cult gained widespread acclaim, this sophomore release was an important one. The current italo and euro-synth revival is continually operating on a thin line between homage and pastiche, with very few artists that have adopted the genre taking the sound in anything even remotely approaching a new direction. Can an artist like Maiovvi - who wears his influences so well but so prominently - offer us anything new above the nostalgic?

Maiovvi has played a dangerous game in releasing what is considered an imagined soundtrack - not only does the composition have to work within it's concept, it also has to be cohesive as an album in it's own right when that element is removed - as well as offer something intriguing within the genre itself. It's a huge gamble that many artists have tried and failed with - but it's one that Maiovvi wins. This is easily an early contender for our album of the year, regardless of the concept - but made all the more awesome because of it. It's hard to describe the joy you feel when you find an album that perfectly crystallises all that you love about music - but Shadow Of The Bloodstained Kiss is one such album.

The elements of it's influence are all present - that twilight period of the late 70s and early 80s where the synth ruled supreme - but Maiovvi has twisted the original sounds of that time into something brand new and exhilarating. The sense of creeping dread prevalent in Argento or Carpenter's finest work bleeds through into the polished chrome and neon of Moroder, but the style has been reinforced with the sensibilities of the new millennium - whilst the vintage synths and undulating rhythms recall Legowelt or Bangkok Impact, the toughened drums and haunting melodies owe more to the sharper, darker styles of Kavinsky. The overall effect works brilliantly on tracks like Plymouth Fury where the elements combine perfectly to transport you to that dark, distant future of masonic cults and sultry chanteuses.

Maiovvi's obvious mastery of his craft becomes even more apparent on Nightmoves and Velocity Central were he commands a pitch-perfect ability to control the dynamics of atmosphere. Both tracks visualise instantly the world Maiovvi is dragging you into, the former reminiscent of the red rain-streaked car ride in Argento's Suspiria but extrapolated into a distopian nightmare, the latter evoking a tense chase into enemy territory that brings to mind De Vorzon's score for The Warriors. Even without the fragments of memory these pieces conjure up, their integrity as stand-alone compositions remains intact. It's a remarkable feat that Maiovvi continues to achieve throughout the entirety of the album.

Stand out tracks include the haunting piano-led Witchcraft which flips around it's central motif a huge bolt-on hi-NRG riff that takes you straight into the heat of the discotheque before some nameless horror unleashes bloodshed on the patrons. Closing tracks The Chase Pt 1 & Pt 2 are still the quintessential Maiovvi compositions - sinister melodies enveloped in pounding drumwork that continually shifts it's shape to keep your synapses stimulated. It's a rare thing to find an album that encapsulates such invention and spirit, and even rarer for one that is shrouded in the contrivance of a concept such as this. Maiovvi not only revels in this contrivance, but transcends it, taking the listener into a whole new realm of pleasure.

5 out of 5 - Essential!



Antoni Maiovvi - The Chase Part 1

FFI : Antoni Maiovvi Website

BUY: Antoni Maiovvi - Shadow Of The Bloodstained Kiss

Choose your Weapon wisely…

How does one fulfil that need to appeal both to musical purists AND the hipster art types? Are these two spheres mutually exclusive? Club nights is club nights innum? Chin-strokers need not apply when it comes to the much maligned business of the wobble wub wub surely? Well Cheba over at Weapon of Choice towers has been riding this figurative dichotomy for 14 months now. And with the help of regulars Nikill and Betamax not so much rode it out, as bare backed that beast all the way to the VD clinic. Consistently rambunctious, WOC has now become a staple for those who like their ink scribble accompanied by bass heavy boom bap and soulful skank outs. But part of you feels that maybe this synergy works to the detriment of its component parts.




For the artisan amongst the crowd, Dylan Shipley and Rory Doona were pon pen, and it was a joy to watch the anime-meets-traditional-eastern-lure-in-the-coat-of-Jamie Hewlett graff unfold – Dylan's bold stylised figures creating a strong contrast to Rory’s intricate, detailed musings. The culmination of a Little Shop of Horrors-esque female ninja segued with beautiful dystopian imagery was a great success and holds up to any past pairing that WOC have put before, and I’ve no doubt that the canvas will be subject to much scrutiny once it hits the Weapon of Choice gallery.




Musical accompaniment began with an audacious and equally accomplished turn by young emcee Misha B, with an assist from another mere whipper snapper Jagos. Misha delivered an honest and insightful collection of tracks, barely stopping for breath from one song to another and did her very best to draw the crowds eyes from the squiggling behind her. Next came the Project 13 family (sans an immobile Eva Lazarus) aka Chalk MC, Mista Switch and A-Kid on the mic with Le Mart on the one’s and two’s. High energy syllable splatterings were exchanged between the three orators, with tales of cider swilling merriment and world woes combining in a great “we don’t take ourselves to seriously” mantra that had the heads nodding and arms aloft once technical issues were ironed out.




Next up, the Vertabrae sound system rolled out the low-end heavy, bashment and frankly anything else-influenced goodness. Ben One’s MPC wizardry was complimented by the pacey flares of DJ Rogue as Bristol luminary Awkward drizzled his enigmatic and discerning rhymes over the top like some hip hop jus and again, it had the crowds interest perked as the trio jostled for space amongst the writers and equipment. However, it also typified the polarity WOC sometimes throws up – when complex art is showcased along with complex rhyme wrapped in the cacophony of ebbing bass and stonking percussion, you find yourself strangely entranced as pen caresses canvas, and you could tell the crowd were suffering from this ailment as Awkward, as well as the other live acts of the night, jostled for the attentions of the massed crowd and several of the folk’s attention meandered between the music and the painting during the course of the evening.

This was further highlighted by Middleman and Sparkerboi’s guest appearance, as a high energy dubstep-tinted cameo that really should have torn the roof off was met with late applause as the crowd caught up, again losing themselves in the intricacies of Rory and Dylan’s work. It wasn’t until the down right dope juggles and beat matching of Cheeba that the crowd finally started to loosen up, bust a swift shuffle and get the shoulders moving, and you couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for the folk who had gone before as they really didn’t get the attention they deserved. As Sickman D slammed on heavy dub after wobblecentric two step goodness, brilliantly assisted by Central Spillz’ founder C-Strike-Z, later to be supported by Spydogen, you finally felt the harmony between beats and brush strokes and the night shimmied nicely into the early hours.

Maybe it was me. Maybe it is the credit crunch myopia blunting the lay persons enjoyment. Maybe it was that as the booze flowed so did the gratification. The night was no doubt a success, and once the various live acts had finished doing their thing the appreciation was there. But the jostle between arts was evident as the peoples attention was dragged one way and then another as we were bombarded by brilliance. Maybe we just aren’t used to it. But hey, Cheba and the boys are still riding that beast, and long may it continue!

Words - Lemmie Sobon