SLL EXCLUSIVE : DJ Clairvo - Suppa Shoota (MustBeat Crew) *FREE DL*

The MustBeat Crew

After many months plugging away on here, I'm delighted to announce our first EXCLUSIVE download from the MustBeat Crew over in Hungary.

MustBeat are a bunch of wicked DJs, musicians, party promoters and artists hailing from Budapest. Collectively they are skilled in all manner of artistic trades, not just producing music but also specialising in graphic design, video production and a whole host of other projects besides.

The team began life in the Listen! record shop in 1998 where they worked as booking agents for DJs alongside their graphic design work. Then when the shop closed in 2001 (such is the sad fate of so many decent wax retailers these days), the guys decided to pool resources to promote their own music and art under one brand. MustBeat was born, with this leading to the launch of their own record label in 2011.

In two short years they've been massively busy, putting out over 20 releases from artists the world over, with their output being met with high acclaim by a broad cross-section of DJs and music lovers alike - indeed, several records have already begun to make it into Juno's top-5.

I've been talking to one part of the outfit - DJ Clairvo (of Nynfus Corporation fame) - who put together a new take Wrongtom's 'Superteng' (which we reviewed a few months back) and has offered it up to SLL's readers exclusively for the princely sum of nowt! A great peak-time party vibe that offers a sympathetic update, maintaining the reggae bounce of the original and the full vocal whilst beefing-up the beats with a broken rhythm that is the trademark of much of MustBeat's stellar output.

A serious record. Big thanks to the guys for letting us have first dibs. :-)

Ellie Mae - Without You (A Stop.Look.Listen. Edition) FREE DL

Apologies for having been out of touch this last week - I've spent the last few days head-down in the studio which has consumed all my brainpower. I figured seeing as I spend so much time passing judgement on other people's music, I should work on my own stuff and put it out there for scrutiny. Plus it meant I could start messing with my new Vocoder. :-)

The track is a remix of 'Without You' by the gorgeous Ellie Mae, a singer-songwriter who I first met when she played at WIRED a few years back as the vocalist for Rigolo. It's been fully approved for release by Ellie, who's likened it to the Gotan Project sound. Praise indeed.

We've kept in touch whilst Ellie has been working on some beautiful acoustic melodies, culminating in her first studio EP 'Wash Away My Love'. Without You was my favourite inclusion; minimal, moody and moving, I just had to give it a splash of broken beat flavour. Check it out, download it, distribute it, enjoy it - and don't forget to check out Ellie's FreEP via the link below - it's ace!

Ella Chi - Gobstopper [Ben Cox SLL Dub Instrumental]

Tonight I'm delving into the archives.

Here's a wee dub remix I did on Ella Chi's 'Gobstopper' after meeting the lovely lady numerous times through my sets at WIRED.

A soul goddess if every there was one, and a beautiful lady to boot. Here's my dub version for free download. Enjoy and feedback peeps!

Marvin Gaye - Ain't That Peculiar (Ambassadeurs Reconstruct) [Download]

Another track I've got on repeat this week (and thus included on this week's Podcast) is the Ambassadeurs Reconstruct of Marvin Gaye's 'Ain't That Peculiar'.



Sporting that nu skool hip-hop vibe, this rework is driven by a huge, soulful electronic lead, as well as sharp, robotic organ stabs and crisp percussion. What I love most is that the track is not overly produced, as is the temptation with many producers looking to better a timeless soul classic. This is more a contemporary optimisation, a sensitive revision for the modern listener. It showcases Marvin's vocals perfectly and retains the depth of the original without trying to be too overbearing. A mean feat indeed.

Funnily enough, I've since found out that Mark Dobson, the name behind Ambassadeurs, is actually a guy I DJed for at a tech house night at Club EQ in Southsea many, many moons ago. A top bloke - it's great to see he's flourished into such an amazing producer.

Check the embedded download link in the SoundCloud widget above. | @AmbassadeursDJ‎