Eskmo Press on CreateDigitalMusic.com

Electronic Music in Austin; Free Listening from Eskmo 

Austin isn’t generally associated with electronic music, but from bands to strictly electronic acts, you see lines blurring all over the place. And amidst the many, many things happening here in Texas in the coming days, we’re fortunate at CDM to help support two events.

Tonight is the Allies Electronic Lounge – 416 W Cesar Chavez, 9-2, no badge and free, with Two Fresh, DJ Vadim, Eskmo, and Mindelixer. I’m especially excited about Eskmo’s music, and wherever you are in the world, you can take a listen, free. (Topspin just launched their media platform for everyone if you want to do the same with your music, and they’re naturally partying it up here in Texas to celebrate.)
http://www.musicallies.com/electronicalounge/

There’s some of the crackly clap sound that the kids love these days, to be sure, but Eskmo has some serious sound design chops, and a vocal style I love, very often reminiscent of Matthew Dear. I’m told Eskmo works with Native Instruments’ Maschine drum sampler instrument live. If you have any questions about how he works, let me know; I’ll be doing some research. Eskmo, aka San Francisco’s Brendan Angelides, has been on Warp and Ninja Tune, but he also has a mean mix of Brainfeeder music:

http://www.eskmo.com/

Friday night, it’s another free event on a rooftop in the heart of downtown Austin. I’m playing at 9pm on the spot to warm things up, so come say hello. Lots of free tech to win. No downloads yet, but again, if you’re not in Texas, let me know if you want any tips or information from these folks — I can sum it up by saying they’re all a bit insane with Ableton Live automation and sound design with Operator and NI’s Massive.
http://academikrecords.blogspot.com/

Original Press Article on CreateDigitalMusic.com

Q/A with Eskmo: Making emotive electronics

 

With more than a decade of beat engineering under a few monikers and countless collaborations and remixes, Eskmo (real name Brendan Angelides) is finally gaining a following worldwide after exposure in traditional media (BBC), the blogosphere (Brooklyn Vegan, XLR8R, Pitchfork), and clubs (alongside Flying Lotus and Amon Tobin).  Next up, he’ll be opening for Beats Antique’s US tour on a month of dates including three Oregon stops, Ashland, Eugene and Portland, in the end of March and early April.

Striking an emotional chord, Eskmo says his style “sounds like a robotic tree would sound”-- a perfect description of vibe he generates on his self-titled Ninja Tune debut, which dropped in October 2010.  The organic and electronic cohesion is illustrated in sight and sound the first single, “Cloudlight” (video below, download track here), from Eskmo.

The Connecticut native but San Francisco transplant is inspired by “too much stuff to mention,” but his latest is “primarily about loss, gain, family, relationship, alchemy, love and stillness” and contains an enchanting palate of sounds, including “sticks being stepped on, soda cans, metal plates, etc….”  Eskmo adds, “I record a lot of environments and natural sounds to incorporate into the songs.”  (Listen to the whole album here.)


The album was written over a six month stretch “in the middle of a whole bunch of personal relationship-type stuff, a lot of deep life-experience type stuff happening that helped the music just bleed out of me. I just poured all those feelings into the music, it’s very cathartic. I allowed myself to let go of DJ structure – it’s not a ‘dance club’ album, because that kind of stuff hasn’t inspired me in years. This is the first full body of work where I’m singing all over it, and allowing myself to get over that furlough of expression has been really liberating.”

Your Ninja Tune debut features your own vocals a lot more than some of your past releases. Why did you decide to incorporate more of your own vocal samples on this album?
My last track of 2009′s “Let Them Sing” for Planet Mu really got me moving more in that direction. I just had a huge pull to let that side of me out. I almost felt like I made that track to say to myself: “Let yourself sing.” I knew it would drive some listeners off, especially since my background and influence is definitely not RnB vocals, which is all the rage. But it felt right to me.

You’ve explored a lot of territory with your music over the years. Tell me a little bit about the road that has led you to this point in your musical career.
I came from a band background, was introduced to electronic [music] in the mid ’90s and it took hold. I bought my first bass and 4 track and started writing in my bedroom. From there I branched out in various downtempo, then drum and bass and some heavier techno and gabber. Music was my fuel and kept me going. I started self releasing music and never sent anything out to labels for a while. I released a few vinyl records with labels that friends owned and started to get a tiny bit of attention. I just kept going, meeting more people, branching out, traveling and kept on opening myself to different sounds that wanted to come out.

What’s different about your latest release that you think has finally catapulted you to the next level and resonated with a larger audience? Is it simply something you’ve earned after more than a decade of music making; is it the support of Ninja Tune; or was there a conscious change or evolution in your music?
I don’t think you ever “earn” anything from the fan base no matter how long you are writing. I’ve seen people blow up and become huge within one year or two because they happen to be doing a certain sound at a certain time. The support of Ninja definitely helped, but before that Warp, before that working with Amon, before that Planet Mu and so on. I think it just grows and grows. This latest stuff definitely felt very, very real for me. All I know is it’s really where I was at, and the next material will reflect where I’ll be at that point. It’s all stepping stones.

How did the relationship with Ninja Tune begin and progress?
Well I met Amon a while back. We kept in touch and started working together. From there I met Jeff from Ninja around the same time I happened to be shopping the album out. It just came at the right time really. I ended up meeting more of them and seeing what they were about and it ended up being the best fit. They are very open to building artists still (something that gets lost with major labels these days). They are very open to experimenting and pushing art in general. So it made sense to me.

You are now experiencing some relative success (signed to Ninja Tune, extensive touring and spots opening for bigger names) and international exposure, how have you accepted this?
It’s all just been fun to be a part of the process. I never wanted to start touring so I’m a bit late when it comes to that side of the music world, but I’ve recently embraced it and just looking forward.

What’s been the biggest change or highlight as of late?
Just having the resources to create what I want on stage and moving towards being able to solidify that vision. Before it was very tough to show people what I was about cause I was always plopped into situations and club environments that didn’t gel with what I was trying to do.

What else influences you, musical or otherwise?
Just life in general. I like taking my experiences and trying to channel them directly as I possibly can into sound. Songs can tell stories even beyond what imagery it might convey.

How did you end up in San Fran? How has this helped your growth?
I played here in 2005 and instantly fell in love with it. The nature, music, food, culture, funkiness - everything. It’s helped to be surrounded by such a dynamic environment. My friends, other musical acts that come through town, the nature – it all inspires and has helped me to grow.

The video for “We Got More” is absolutely captivating… MC Escher meets a robotic Attack of the 50 Foot Woman. Tell us a little bit about the creation of this video.

I had no creative input in the video to be honest. Ninja sent over Cyriaks past work to me and I knew he could nail exactly what we were looking for.



Tell me about your live show and set up. What makes you different from other electronic acts?

I blend lots of stuff together on stage. I do live percussion, singing, tweeking out controllers and I play some keys. I’ve recently brought in a visual show that is triggered exactly from what I’m playing with my gear. Not sure what makes me different, I’m just doing my thing.

Your name comes from the title of the 1979 Residents’ album Eskimo. Why did you choose this name and why did you drop the “i”?
I was just really inspired by the album. I loved how it created an environment and at the time was one of the most out-there things I had ever heard. I listened to it every night for 5 days in a row and at the end of the week had come to the conclusion I wanted to base a character around the ideas I got from the album. Ideas of shamanism, sound, ice and psychedelia. Not sure why I dropped the “i.” Nowadays I like to joke and say it’s not about “i” it’s about “you.”

What can we look forward to?

I’m close to finishing up a Welder (my other persona) album, about to start working on new material with Amon, lots of touring this year and more Eskmo later into the year.

Catch Eskmo opening for Beats Antique in Ashland at the Ashland Armory on Wednesday, March 30th, in Eugene at the McDonald Theatre on Thursday March 31st, or in Portland at the Wonder Ballroom on Saturday, April 2nd.  Ashland is 21+, Portland and Eugene are all ages, ticketing information here.

Original Interview and Q/A Article on Oregon Music News

ESKMO Included in the Top 100 Acts at SXSW 2011

When it comes to making music, Brendan Angelides is a man of many names. Welder and Eskamon are among his noms de guerre, but at the moment, he's in Eskmo mode. Having just released an album on Ninja Tunes, he's focused on the collage-like, textured electronic music he produces under that moniker.

Before forming any of his artistic identities, Angelides spent his early years in Worcester, Mass., and later Connecticut. Five years ago, he was invited to play in San Francisco, and he fell in love with the city and its innovative music scene. Angelides packed his bag and went west, basing his new stage name on 'Eskimo,' a 1979 album by San Fran post-punk experimentalists the Residents. Angelides spoke with Spinner about why he started playing bass, the musical usefulness of shovels and why, if you see him getting into your elevator car, you're probably better off taking the stairs.

Your bio mentions that early some of your influences included Primus and the Prodigy, who were both huge in the mid-'90s but quite different musically.

What drew me to both was the bass. That was the first time I appreciated how amazing a big bass sound could be. It inspired me to start playing an instrument and I obviously chose bass. I basically leaned to play by trying to copy every Primus song I could.

That would definitely form some nice calluses and build up your finger muscles.

Yes, it certainly did!

Before going solo, did you play in bands?

Yes, but that was back in high school. Nothing serious.

When you perform, is it pretty much just you and your gadgets?

Yes, it's just me. I prefer it. I did the band thing and it seems like most of your energy is spent on keeping the equilibrium between members. I prefer the freedom playing solo gives me to create any sounds and music I want to.

You do have a collaborative music project called Eskamon, too.

That's me and Amon Tobin [Brazilian DJ/producer]. I thought it was important to differentiate between what I was doing alone and what me and Amon do. I'm concentrating on Eskmo right now because of the album I released last fall. But we will be doing more stuff together, not live, just in the studio.

How would you classify your brand of electronic music?

I don't know. I suppose it's in the dance category, though I never listen to dance music. I can't remember the last time I listened to a dance record at home. But, then, if Aphex Twin released a record, I'm sure I'd be the first to buy it.

You say you like to make field recordings. What sorts of sounds do you capture?

It can be anything: a twig breaking, a bird, a machine. I also create my own new sounds. I'm always raiding the kitchen for pots and pans and things. I'll incorporate pretty much anything. I want to be able to form music from as wide a range of sounds as possible. One time I played a shovel on stage.

You banged away on a shovel, or with a shovel?

I was beating it with drumsticks and looping it to create a big sound. It worked really well.

What comes first when you're making music: a sound, beat or melody?

It can be anything. Some pieces have come from a very basic childlike melody. One song came from recordings I made when I was jumping around and banging on the walls of an elevator.

Hopefully you were alone in it at the time.

Yes, I was.

You must have been praying no one stopped the elevator and got in. You could have been arrested.

Actually, someone did get in, but I managed to convince them that I wasn't a crazy person.

Original Article Featured on Spinner.com

MUSIC2 & ESKMO - Allies Electronic Lounge @ SXSW

ESKMO Interview with BF2D + Ambient P Stretch EP

Plus la peine de le présenter, le jeune artiste qui est l’un des shurikens montant de chez Ninja Tune. Avec un sublime album dont j’avais fait la review en septembre dernier (allez y faire un tour si vous voulez un maximum d’informations sur l’artiste), le producteur hors paire qui reste parfaitement dans la lignée d’Amon Tobin a plusieurs sorties de prévues pour cette année, dont l’EP Ambient P Stretch dont je vais aussi parler et qui est sorti il y a peu de temps.

Même si Eskmo n’est pas très bavard, je suis plutôt heureux de vous présenter cet interview, premier interview d’un artiste signé chez Ninja Tune et que vous trouverez dans la suite du billet.

Original Article posted on BF2D

EVENT: Eskmo, Blackbird Blackbird, oOoOO, DJG @ The Independent - March 3, 2011

Eskmo, Blackbird Blackbird, oOoOO, DJG

Thu., March 3, 9:00pm

The Independent
Price: $15

You're Okay, Computer

Laptops and vocals make for futuristic pop with feeling.

By Ian S. Port
 

Consider this a notice and/or reminder that anyone looking for the cutting edge of pop music shouldn't be searching for someone holding a guitar. Today's envelopes are pushed via keys, screens, and sound cards, with the accompanying human components bathed in pale LCD-screen glare inside bedrooms, basements, or on stage. Sorry, rockists: Laptops ― and various things (including electrified traditional instruments) connected to them ― are to 2011 what the Les Paul guitar was to, say, 1964. 

No scene better demonstrates this than the current crop of beat-pop practitioners: artists like Baths, Eskmo, and oOoOO, who meld elements of hip-hop, electronica, rock, and radio pop into many different-sounding and forward-looking musical styles. Some hail from the make-'em-move tradition of DJ-based dance music, but take it to new places; others merely assemble uniquely modern bedroom pop on their computers. (The names above certainly aren't the only artists doing this kind of music; they just all happen to be playing S.F. this week.) Instead of chillwave or witch-house or dubstep with vocals, let's brand this big group laptop-pop, even though laptops aren't a requirement, and a lot of it isn't quite poppy. The defining characteristic here is a reliance upon electronic instruments like computers and drum machines ― along with live vocals ― to make beat-based music that aims to communicate something more complex and profound than a simple itch to move.

Now, not all the music that fits our loose criterion is interesting or worthwhile. You could even argue that this territory is more prone to missteps than others: It isn't always going to make people want to dance ― although some of it does ― and it's rarely going to dazzle with rhyming lyrics. Plus it almost never wields the watch-me-make-it-happen excitement of rock. The above formula could easily be a recipe for intricately boring background music, and some of what fits it is. (The task of turning button-pressing into a compelling live show is tremendous ― more on that later.)

But consider Baths, the stage name of 21-year-old bedroom producer Will Wiesenfeld, who uses a laptop and various other tools to make beat music, with vocals, that is melancholic and complex and beautiful. A sudden star on the much-heralded L.A. beat scene, the classically trained Wiesenfeld builds dense, organic-sounding productions out of machine-made beats, piano, random samples, and his own wilted voice. "Lovely Bloodflow," a highlight from last year's rightly acclaimed debut, Cerulean, weaves a hesitant, stumbling beat through what sounds like the plucked strings of an acoustic guitar.

On top of this, he spreads several layers of his own singing into something like a traditional pop structure. "You are my bloodflow, baby lovely bloodflow" he moans, rather creepily, for the chorus. This is confessional electronic pop, poetic and intimate, yet driving. Wiesenfeld doesn't always sing ― the next song, "Maximalist," uses vocal samples with a more brusque hip-hop beat ― but his laptop-pop feels expressive the way that folk or rock or emo-anything can. Cerulean is more of a cohesive statement of feeling than a collection of tracks. It wouldn't even be ridiculous for Wiesenfeld to include a lyric sheet with his albums (and in fact, we might ask that he does).
On another side of the scene is the music S.F. producer Brendan Angelides makes as Eskmo. Basically heavy, dubsteppy electronica with vocals, the best Eskmo productions feel like deep, subtly shifting canyons of sound. His massive bass structures are speckled with shotgun blasts of tiny clicks, staticky asides, and small variables in rhythm, rewarding close listening while sometimes inspiring dance. Where Angelides stands out from other producers is by infusing his own voice into this maelstrom. The idea has a lot of potential for enlivening the repetitive, monochrome slam of dubstep. But the vocals on Eskmo's self-titled debut are more ornamental than essential ― often, they will consist of a single spoken phrase repeated through different effects. They fit well into his soundscapes, but certainly aren't words you'd quote to a lover ― or anyone else, for that matter. Partly as a consequence of this, much of Eskmo's debut fails to rise beyond expertly made, kinetically inspiring background music.

Then there is what's been labeled "witch house," as practiced by the infamous trio Salem and S.F. denizen Christopher Dexter Greenspan, who records under the name oOoOO. It's unclear what instruments he uses live, but the result is sludgy, gloomy electronic pop with vocals, both his own and others'. Thankfully this music doesn't come across as intentionally obnoxious like Salem's. Greenspan is an admirer of mainstream pop and R&B, even covering Lindsay Lohan's "I Live for the Day." So here, vocals are vital ― in fact, most of the instrumentation on oOoOO's self-titled EP feels like grinding, panoramic background landscapes for the contorted lyrical expressions of darkly longing lovers. This is quite different from Baths or Eskmo, but it's still semirepetitive music built largely out of synths and drum machines (and possibly laptops) in which emotional communication -- not dancing -- is the focus.

The challenge is translating all of this to the live sphere. Because while club-inclined fans won't balk at the guy onstage only pressing buttons during a concert, others will want to see a "real instrument" played when they aren't dancing. This issue could determine how quickly the diverse field of laptop-pop practitioners finds a mass audience outside the club. (And by adding more live instruments to their shows, many of these artists already have.) But it won't change the fact that they're making some of the most forward-looking music out there.

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Eskmo performs with oOoOO, Blackbird Blackbird, and DJG on Thursday, March 3, at the Independent. 9 p.m., $15; www.theindependentsf.com.
Baths performs with Braids and Gobble Gobble on Friday, March 4, at Rickshaw Stop. 8:30 p.m., $12; www.rickshawstop.com.
oOoOO — in addition to his Thursday appearance at the Independent — is a resident DJ at "120 Minutes," which happens this month on Friday, March 4, at the Elbo Room. 10 p.m., $5-$10; www.elbo.com.