The Z-Dar: Seven Lions Beatport Contest

Hey people! It's Z here with another contest that I could not keep my hands off of. Beatport has another contest up in collaboration with Seven Lions and OWSLA for Seven Lions amazing track Days to Come off the Days to Come EP that was released about a month ago. There has been a ton of artist putting their all into this contest, with tons of amazing new faces and styles that are coming out of the woodwork. The contests keep getting bigger and bigger at Beatport and with the ante so high and the numbers so large you can bet even some familiar faces have followed suit to take a crack at remixing too. With the grand prize being an OWSLA record release, among other goodies, to be in the ranks and likes of Skrillex, Zedd, Porter Robinson, Kill The Noise, and Jack Beats to name a few, you can bet that theres gonna be a lot of gold this time around.

Today at EGP I feel I should give some airtime to the artists and their respected remixes that caught my eye for this contest. I took some time to head over to the Beatport page and listened to an ear numbing amount of remixes about 1300 give or take a couple hundred, picked out a bunch I liked the best and that I feel deserve to win the contest. Due to the sheer number of amazing tracks I found I feel I'm pressed to break my limit this time and give you a lot more tracks than I previously had planned. Keep in mind as with any other contest article that this is all my own opinion, I tried to do this with variety in mind so if anything you know that if you don't like any of the individuals up here you can figure that there's sure to be a bunch out there that you most definitely will like. The winner of this one gets announced January 1st, 2013 so keep your calendars marked to see which one it is.

This one here is by Infrasonix. It has beautiful light jumpy dubstep style to it. It's ridiculously fun and engaging. A surprising remix to come out of this contest I'd say. (VOTE FOR Infrasonix HERE)

This one here is from the Canada native, Cublete. It's got some amazing chillout vibes that this song perfectly melds with. It's relaxing and great if you wanna hear this song in a more vocally pure form. A+ (VOTE FOR Cublete HERE)

This one up here is by OSKR a producer from Britian, and its a sick Electro House remix that you can't help but move to. I wanna hear this dropped somewhere very soon, It's dancy as all hell, an amazing remix in my opinion. (VOTE FOR OSRK HERE)

This next one up is an impressively done light Trap remix by Slander, 7Deadlysynths, and Direwolfe. It's an unexpected remix for a lot of people checking this contest out. Not much people expected a well done trap remix coming out of this song and this one is amazing. I love the way they did it. (VOTE FOR Slander/7Deadlysynths/Direwolf HERE)

This one here is by none other than Singularity, he always seems to find a way to get on this site oddly enough, but this remix is too tight to not feature on this article. It's a great remix and the quality of production is amazing. (VOTE FOR Singularity HERE)

This one here is by Coyote Kisses, a favorite of mine, He took a different approach that most would expect with more of a electronic pop rock kinda feel going on. It works really well and I love it. (VOTE FOR Coyote Kisses HERE)

This next one up is a collaboration between I.Y.F.F.E. and AU5, and it's a heavy as hell banger of a Drumstep song. Its definitely a crowd melter if I ever heard one. Sick bass manipulation thats intense but still fitting into the song without being abrasive. (VOTE FOR I.Y.F.F.E. HERE)

This one is by a duo from Britian that goes by the name Culture Code. The have a very dramatic dubstep rendition that fits the tone of the original. It's very movie-esque and moving, Its a fun song that I know I'm definitely gonna revisit. (VOTE FOR Culture Code HERE)

This one here is by Kicks n Licks from San Diego. It's Melodic all all hell with reverberating bass that penetrates and makes you wanna dance. It's a fun remix, and I like how overblown it is without being overdone. (VOTE FOR Kicks n Licks HERE)

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

These next few I liked alot but for whatever reason I feel like they didnt beat the rest in the limits I made for myself, so I decided to throw em up here at the end for honors sake. I really do enjoy them though so let this be a sort of shout out to the artists under here.

Aipolar
La'Reda
Thornsworld
Affinity
Line One
Anansi
FrostBound
TMZ + Janonymous
Vitagliano
Vade
Skelton


So that wraps it up this time for my entries on this current contest. If any of you have a Beatport account you can go out and vote on any of these tracks or any others you might find by using their respected Beatport links provided. Hopefully I showed someone something they really enjoy today, and upstarts should really look into these contests they are amazing for anyone looking to get their names out.

Love & Light
Z

The Z-Dar - AU5

Whatsup everybody! Z here once again and I absolutely need to share with you some pure gold I stumbled on to. The man's name is Austin Collins, He is a 20 year old New Jersey native, and alot of you will very soon come to know him as his stage name and current EDM project AU5 [pronounced A-U-5]. The energy flowing off this guy's tracks is something else, and his production is super tight and upper echelon professional for a guy who surprisingly doesn't have a lot of play, but from the quality I'm seeing that's gonna change very soon. He says he made his own genre out of his influences called "trancestep" which includes elements of electro, progressive house, trance, and dubstep and it really shows. The quality of production comes out really nice you'd think he was a veteran and rightfully so as he's been producing and making music since he was only 12 years of age! That's a feat in itself and there are a lot of younger producers out there as of late if anything the phenomenal quality of this is what we should be expecting in the future once a lot of the younger upstarts, start growing into themselves. Anyways, today at EGP I would love to share with you some stand out tracks from the man to show you what he's all about. Check em out!

Hypersphere [Released - Atom Recordings] by Au5 (Official)

This track is called Hypersphere off of AU5's Iconoclast EP released under Atom Recordings, and its an experience. Starting off with cool glitchy tics and nice melodic highs, it instantly gives off a feeling you come to know as original and a good taste test for AU5. it later breaks off into tight percussion accompanied by some sick bass that manages to be heavy as hell without being overwhelming. It's dubstep at some of its highest and melodic, and that isn't a bad thing.

Depths of Ice II [Released - Atom Recordings] by Au5 (Official)

This track is a preview of his track titled Depths of Ice II also off the Iconoclast EP, and this one is more of a good representation off his "trancestep" stylings he seems to be going for. Melodically is very light and airy, very icy feeling, which is funny since I think those instruments he uses were in Ice Cap Zone in Sonic! (No seriously, let me know AU5 I'm curious). Then you get swept under your feet as the crushing bass beams itself in with some awesome sounding bass manipulation. It's a good one, one of those songs where you think it's too early in the morning to be heavy but you want it anyways.

The Essence [Atom Recordings] by Au5 (Official)

This track is a preview of his track titled The Essence, also released under Atom Recordings, and its got an almost heavenly feel to it. The highs are nice and comfortable then it drags you into an almost vertigo inducing drop that melts into mid bass and low end bass. its a beautiful fusion of trance and dubstep and the beat changes are seamless and fit the overall feel of the entire package.

Au5 - Singularity [Preview] by Au5 (Official)

This gem of a track is a preview of his upcoming track titled Singularity. It's his newest production available and it's a sexy beast of a song. Refining the "trancestep" sound to a whole different level. I can't wait for this one to come out the bass is smooth and grinding at the same time, I'm not even sure if thats supposed to be possible, but keep your eyes open on the look out for this one in the future.

There looks like theres gonna be a very bright future in store for AU5, I personally wanna get a chance to check him out live myself. I may look into trying to get him booked onto some NY shows in the future if possible. Keep your eyes peeled for any releases from this man, Theres a new track coming out with Fractal that's an intense trancey drumstep with some killer vibes to it.

Love & Light
Z aka Zodd

AU5 LINKS!!!

Soundcloud
Facebook
Beatport

666 Lights' Black Mass & Interview with Mantis (Zodd)

Whatup Everybody? It's Z once again and I'm here to tell you about my time at 666 Lights event that just passed recently called The Black Massive which we totally had to attend to cover and also took the time to preview a bit earlier. It featured acts such as the legendary Airwave, the crushingly awesome Mantis, and the face melting sounds of Jantsen, among amazing others such as Dark Elixir, Druley, Omega, Doctor Voodoo, and It Lives... talk about a serious line-up. We at EGP decided to share with you some of our experiences here and some photos that we got together as well as an exclusive interview with Paul Ollinger from Mantis made possible with the help of 666 Lights and The Artery Foundation.

By: Soley

By: Triple Threat Productions

First I'm gonna have to say the presentation was just amazing, the demonic hell themed party might have seemed almost a little overwhelming at first but it all came together as a fun atmosphere in its own right. The visual thematics were amazingly well represented thanks to lighting artist Morgan Freeman. Visuals of scriptures and cinematics of biblical themes in black and white that were tasteful as well as exciting, they literally covered the entirety of the landscape of the inside of Highline Ballroom. It was a different feel from most NYC parties, it brought a touch of dark unique class to the event.

By: Soley

Airwave set it off with one of the most amazing introductory sequences ever that set the party into motion. Theatrical would be an understatement, as it turned every single head I could notice in the event. Once things got into motion I found myself flowing in the ether just enjoying the emotions Laurent Veronnez projected onto the dance floor. This was real EDM, soul moving trance and progressive that got a lot of people especially a lot of the younger attendees wondering what they had been doing with their tastes for so long.

By: Triple Threat Productions

By: Soley

I have to say though Mantis was my favorite act of the night by far, maybe its just me but I love the style of deathstep that they bring to the table, the death metal influenced structures and crunchy almost alien sounding bass set it off on the dance floor for a while. My good friend Scotty and I couldn't help but dance as he dropped a set that was beyond insane. There were some new songs played that I can't wait to get my hands on. We got a chance to chill out and ask some questions afterwards so take a peek at our exclusive interview with Paul Ollinger from Mantis below.

All the photo links are down below! Make sure you subscribe to the Youtube channel for MOAR great content, as well as the Facebook page to keep in touch!

Photos:
Electric Ghost Punk: SET
Triple Threat Productions: SET // Video
666 Lights

The Z-Dar: 'In Time' Peace Treaty Remix Contest

Whatup denizens of the Internet. It's Z here and its contest time again. Beatport has a contest up in collaboration with Steve Aoki's DIM MAK Records and Peace Treaty for Peace Treaty's awesome song "In Time" that came out last July. Like clockwork, EDM artists/producers from all over the world started taking the stems they made available to bring a ton of remixes to the net for the contest and for everyone's enjoyment. Events like these are what keep the scene alive and fresh as you can get a lot of content out in a short time and you can really see what makes a musician shine with a good remix to contrast them from others. New faces to keep on the radar is also a great plus too with lots of originality and flare to bring to the table in the ever increasing fields of electronic music.

Today at EGP I feel I should give some airtime to the artists and their respected remixes that caught my eye for this contest. I took some time to head over to the Beatport contest page and listened to an ear numbing amount of remixes, picked out a bunch I liked the best that I feel deserve to win the contest. Keep in mind as with any other contest article that this is all my own opinion, I tried to do this with variety in mind so if anything you know that if you don't like any of the individuals up here you can figure that there's sure to be a bunch out there that you most definitely will like. Keep in mind these are in no specific order at all.

PEACETREATY - IN TIME - (WALI FINKBEINER REMIX) [LINK TO VOTE IN THE DESCRIPTION!!!] by Wali Finkbeiner

This first one up is an impressive Progressive House remix by Wali Finkbeiner. It's light and airy, one of those songs that just make you feel right with the intense highs. The production on this song is awesome as well and keeps the original feel intact while building on its original emotional content. (VOTE for Wali HERE)

PeaceTreaty-In Time(Kundo Remix) by KundO

This next one up is a dope Drumstep remix by Kundo. It screams catchy and its upbeat stylings are gonna make it a mainstay on my playlist for a while. One of my favorites for this contest in particular. (VOTE for KundO HERE)

PeaceTreaty - In Time ft. Anabel Englund (Exige Remix) ~ Vote on Beatport! by Eхige

This one here is from the Australian native Exige. This one has that extra flair to it, keeping a more whimsical style of Electro House to the contest. It's good and my first listen from this artist. Definitely gonna check the back catalog on this one. (VOTE for Exige HERE)

PeaceTreaty feat. Anabel Englund - In Time (Kynaze Remix) by Kynaze

This one is an interesting one from Kynaze. Its very Electro House, but it has a bassier vibe and structured  like a Dubstep track. It's ear catching and I love it, the vocal effects are awesome and this song out of all I post here, this one is the party banger. (VOTE for Kynaze HERE)

Peacetreaty - In Time (Third Culture Remix) by Third Culture Official

This one is probably the most melodic entry on this article, this cool one up by Third Culture is an amazingly light and airy Progressive House that instantly caught my body in one of emotional overloads you get from a good progressive song. (VOTE for Third Culture HERE)

PeaceTreaty - In Time (Singularity Remix) by Singularity

This last one here is by none other than Singularity. It's a very trance-esque take on Dubstep, its nice with tight production that Singularity is known for. It's an excellent song to chill out to and probably my favorite of this list. (VOTE for Singularity HERE)

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

These next two I liked a lot but for whatever reason I feel like they didn't beat the rest in the limit I made for myself, so I decided to throw em up here at the end for honors sake. I really do enjoy them though so let this be a sort of shout out to the artists under here.

Volie Joight - REMIX! (Dubstep)
Josh Vega - REMIX! (House)

So that wraps it up this time for my entries on this current contest. If any of you have a Beatport account you can go out and vote on any of these tracks or any others you might find by using their respected Beatport links provided. Hopefully I showed someone something they really enjoy today, and upstarts should really look into these contests they are amazing for anyone looking to get their names out. The winner will be announced on December 11th 2012.

Love & Light
Z

Catskill Chill 2012: Exclusive with Break Science (EGP Festival Watch 2012)

Sup everybody? Wish yonder! Not even a full week after EvolveFest was the next stop on our festival tour, Catskill Chill. The Chill took us up north into the Catskill Mountains in New York. Placed in a quaint and quiet camp ground, this festival felt more intimate than any of the other one's we've been to prior. As the festival moved forward, the Electric Ghost Punk team had some of the most memorable moments and eye opening experiences than ever before. And it was all thanks to the team over at Velour Music, Brotherly Love Productions, the team at Catskill Chill, and of course, Break Science.

Before you continue, relax, push the play button, and carry on.

Website by Break Science

The following is what went down at Catskill Chill.

Although not the biggest music festival we were attending (just around 5,000 people), all the EGPunks were very excited to be going to this event. It was the first time the main players would all be together in one place, and to top that off, I was getting to meet Brower for the first time as well.. Me and Fitz had headed there together, while Zodd and Brower came separately. This allowed us to settle in and figure out where we wanted to set up shop. After all Fitz has his ENO hammocks and it's always nice to find a relaxing area to set them up and catch some sleep or hang out. After walking around a bit with nothing but our backpacks on we sat down on a small hill overlooking a lake. As we sat there, I began to write a bunch of notes on who we wanted to see, and a basic game plan for the day. A few people came up to us just say hi and introduce themselves, the breeze was cool, and the scenery was perfect. It was "chill", and perfectly so.

As the day kept flying by, and there was no word on Zodd or Brower, so me and Fitz decided to go and check out the music as it began. After walking through the main camp grounds, there was a check point to approach the stages. It was past here where the stages were set up, as well as the main vending area. These grounds provided a central meeting area for people to eat, smoke hookah, enjoy music and be centralized to the middle of what's going on. After this first day of interaction with so many amazing people, my entire weekend had been put into motion to meet and connect with so many talented, intelligent, creative people.

Essentially, that's how The Chill felt. It was a small community, all surrounding the love of music, and how we all communicate with it. After watching Lettuce from the side stage and coming back with them afterwards,  the band took a seat at the green room house. Even Adam Deitch was saying "I wish I could continue playing... I don't want to stop the music". If a drum set had been handy you can bet Deitch would jump right on it.

Fitz with Adam Deitch

Vernon Webb Photography

We actually had the opportunity to sit down with Adam to talk about his projects. He has been the drummer for Lettuce for many years, and like other members of the band (Kraz) he has a side project that's been popping for a couple of years now, Break Science. Currently releasing music under Pretty Lights Music, Adam and partner Borahm Lee break it down for you. Their live performance is so ridiculous. People in the crowd go nuts, with the beats breaking down from effervescent flows, to funky glitchy beats, right back down to the flow again. It kinda felt like the room went from jumping dance party to very sexy party in the drop of a beat.

Here's what down in the interview: (Push Paus3 above, and play below ;)


A few hour after that interview is when they went on, and they tore the house down. The set was intense, and ultimately packed out the stage area so much it spilled out into the common grounds. It was glorious. There were multiple sets that went down that weekend that I consider some of my personal favorites and bests. With so much talent, it only made sense they'd all bring it. The soul, the funk, the jam, and the heart pounding beats...

McLovins by Zodd

Crowd for SoulLive by Wish

Break Science by Zodd

And when you weren't checking out the music at one of the three stages, you could be eating some bbq, or some fresh oysters (might just be my favorite person ever), or hanging out by the lake, meeting new people, buying new wares, exchanging ideas, learning about crystals and healing... the list goes on. The point is, between seeing amazing talent like Break Science, The McLovins, SoulLive, Lettuce, Horizon Wireless... among many more, meeting all the incredible people from all over the world, and feeling at home every night wrapped up in a hammock or cuddled with my friends. If you didn't know, now you know. Catskill Chill is where you want to be.

Photos:
Electric Ghost Punk: Zodd's Album // Pictorial Walkthrough
Vernon Webb: Day 1 // Day 2 // Day 3
Allie Gangi Photography: All of This

2012 Festival Tour: EvolveFest - Open Mind

Wassup ya'll, Wish[Paus3] here! A few weeks ago we were telling you about a yoga-arts-music festival in New Jersey called EvolveFest. Being a few years in existence already, this festival has a nice following, and the following is full of open minded, spiritual, and quite flexible people. It was here that the community aspect I always talk about really came to light, this festy really hit home for me.

When we first pulled up to the festival grounds, you could see the camp sites already popping up from the main road. Last year we heard it was at another more secluded location, so The Warren County Fairgrounds was a new spot for all the return Evolvers. It was a cozy size with multiple stages and locations for workshops. Everything was nicely set up, with the majority of campers set up in a field, a vendors' row, and more places to explore such as where the Green Bus was parked and the old barn houses.

This festival is known for it's yoga workshops and spiritual lifestyle attraction. It was interesting to see the combination of EDM and this part of the community. The music was diverse, featuring some awesome talent that really blew us away. We checked out Karmic Juggernaut, Telesma, Consider the Source, and Mercury Landing... just to name a few. The music wasn't only on stages, it was pretty much everywhere you walked. There were drum circles in the fields throughout the day and around bonfires at night. Guitars, didgeridoos, drums and other percussion instruments were no strangers to the festival grounds. Everywhere we walked there were different sounds and music playing.

Karmic Juggernaut

Mercury Landing

dude.

Telesma

Now the main reason I fell in love with this festival was how open people were. The sharing of energy, conversation, knowledge... it was truly awesome how close I felt to everyone. It was easy to walk up to any tent, hammock, workshop, vendor, really anybody at all and start talking. As we spoke to more people, we created many connections. I mean, the ability to get over initial judgements and see people for who they were was extremely refreshing. Zodd and I met healers, yoga teachers, musicians, promoters, dancers, singers, bakers, artists... all these different people with different skills and life experiences. It was pretty awesome to hear everyone's stories in this wholesome environment.

This was a first for us and 100% not the last. To be able to connect with our friends the way we did and meet and connect with so many other people was truly a beautiful thing. Check out the pictures on our Facebook, and see all of them fly by in our Pictorial Walkthrough's and even this crazy drink called AhhMigo, check it out below.

EGP PICTURES/VIDEO:

Wish's Album
Zodd's Album

Z-Dar: Alpha Data's Newest Release "I Am The One Who Knocks"

Woah, Literally that is all I can say at Alpha Data, new melodical onslaught of an EP release that had just dropped hot off the internet presses earlier this month. "I Am the One Who Knocks", contains four new banging tracks from the man, James Ristvedt. I was blown away at the releases intensity and the direction he's going in is a lot more consise composition wise and his production style on this end is getting alot more varied as it seems he is flexing his new skills in all directions, using new samples, meatier melodies, and more distinct drum play that is evolving the Alpha Data sound we all knew and loved into something a lot more substantial and long lasting than his previous efforts. He has been pouring his all into the Glitch Hop scene as of late with frequent releases all over the community such as his new remix of Madeon's Icarus, and his remix of Papa Skunk's Loud Noises. So in honor of the hard work he's been putting out lately here at EGP I feel a review of his most recent release track by track is in order. You can catch the EP and his other releases at his Facebook or Soundcloud, but for now check it out here and read the reviews!"Are You Watching Closely" is the first track off the new release that does well to introduce you to his newer more refined stylings starting off with a lighter melody that eases you into a comforting space. Don't let that fool you its hard without being heavy, making a dense entry into his catalogue that you can drop without being in full blown banger

Alpha Data - Challenge Accepted (Original Mix) by Alpha Data

"Challenge Accepted" is a fitting drop in from the last track that does not disappoint that whole need for the bass intensive banger if the last track kept you at a standstill. Lighter on his melody play that he's well known for its more of melody disguised under bass and drum play that is more pure Glitch Hop than most of what he's done thus far. 


Alpha Data - I Am The One Who Knocks (Original Mix) by Alpha Data
 

"I Am The One Who Knocks" [Shoutouts to Walter White the OG Breaking Bad(ass)] is the album title track and going by the name fitting enough its the most badass song on the release.It's my personal favorite of the four it's the one that shows the most that Alpha Data has been up to progression wise. It has some of the catchiest melody and sickest drum play I have heard in a while with distant melodies that mix together well with the upfront melodies that make a surrealistic head space environment that definitely catches eyes.


Alpha Data - See Ya In Another Life, Brotha (Original Mix) by Alpha Data

 

"See Ya In Another Life, Brotha" is the final track on the release that ties it all together with an airy vibe that shows his more reserved side, with a more melody intensive synth play and pianos that is fitting for an end credits on a touching movie. its one of the best songs I've heard in a while and far outstretches the confines of the word EDM. It proves Alpha Data's musicianship beyond EDM and is a promising end for the release as if this is any indication he will do more in the future with his skills beyond what we have known already than you can count me and thoroughly excited for any future releases.

HELPFUL Alpha Data LINKS!

Catskill Chill 2012: Photos Galore!

As we finish preparing our coverage from Catskill Chill 2012, here's the photos we got from the weekend, all taken by the awesome Zodd!

Horizon Wireless

The McLovins

Crowds Were Always Stocked!

PHOTO LINK (go tag yourselves!)
VIDEO LINK (or look below!)

Keep your eyes out, interview with Adam Deitch and Catskill Chill 2012 coverage coming your way!!

Fitz and Adam Deitch