When it comes to Boards Of Canada it’s more of an obsession than just liking the band. The hunt for rare tracks, demo’s and anything unreleased never stops as the chances of any new material gets slimmer and slimmer.

Then up pops +dB, a prolific user on Soundcloud who takes great pleasure in curating Dj sets and classic albums all for you to stream. What he seems to have got hold of is a collection called “A Few Old Tunes” which contains demo’s, some unreleased ideas and oddities. Apparently given as a tape to close friends it certainly makes all the right noises.

Tracklist:

1.01 [0:00:00] “Spectrum” (2:19)
1.02 [0:02:19] “Light, Clear, Hair” (0:41)
1.03 [0:03:00] “P.C.” (0:48)
1.04 [0:03:48] “Trapped” (3:52)
1.05 [0:07:40] “Rodox Video” (1:19)
1.06 [0:08:59] “Happy Cycling” (1:49)
1.07 [0:10:48] “House Of Adin’adab” (1:55)
1.08 [0:12:43] “Finity” (5:00)
1.09 [0:17:43] “Forest Moon” (6:35)
1.10 [0:24:18] “Skimming Stones” (2:12)
1.11 [0:26:30] “Carcan” (1:50)
1.12 [0:28:20] “Devil” (0:14)
1.13 [0:28:34] “Mansel” (5:36)
1.14 [0:34:10] “She Is P” (1:42)
1.15 [0:35:52] “Davie Addison” (1:15)

2.01 [0:37:09] “Sac” (1:23)
2.02 [0:38:32] “Blockbusters” (0:40)
2.03 [0:39:12] “I Will Get It Tattooed” (1:37)
2.04 [0:40:49] “The Way You Show” (2:56)
2.05 [0:43:45] “I Love U” (1:41)
2.06 [0:45:26] “King Of Carnival” (4:18)
2.07 [0:49:44] “M9″ (3:32)
2.08 [0:53:16] “Original Nlogax” (1:11)
2.09 [0:54:27] “Sequoia” (4:49
2.10 [0:59:16] “Boqurant” (1:43)
2.11 [1:00:59] “5.9.78″ (4:14)
2.12 [1:05:13] “Wendy Miller” (0:32)
2.13 [1:05:45] “Paul Russell’s Piece” (0:53)
2.14 [1:06:38] “Up The March Bank” (3:24)
2.15 [1:10:02] “Nova Scotia Robots” (1:47)

It’d be fair to say that we can’t get enough of Midland here at the Labs. When this remix of the Boards of Canada classic appeared in his FACT mix we were hungry, hungry like a wolf and keen to get our hands on that badboy.

Now, thanks to the kind folks at Feel My Bicep, you can grab it in full 320kbps glory. Download it as quick as your fingers can click below and bask in the dual greatness of BOC and Midland.

Boards of Canada – Olson (Midland re-edit)

Sunday mornings are often spent listening to the brilliant Boards of Canada and this Peel Session from 1998 is a perfect starting point.

Sit back, get the headphones on and bask in the greatness of one of the greatest production teams to grace electronic music. You can pick this up over at Bleep.

Boards Of Canada – Peel Session, John Peel Show – BBC Radio 1 1998-07-21 by +dB

Tracklisting:

1 [00:00] “Aquarius (Version 3)” (6:24)
2 [06:24] “Happy Cycling” (7:33)
3 [13:57] “Olson (Version 3)” (2:31)
4 [16:28] “XYZ” (8:06)

As BTS Radio writes,

“Lone bridges the gap between ’80s funk & soul, hazy afternoons in Los Angeles and House parties in Chicago.”

Lone’s (aka Matt Cutler) exclusive mix for BTS Radio “The Seasons Change Mix” highlights this perfectly. A mixture of lazy funky soul house hip hop, which for me anyway, makes me daydream…. perfect.

Have a listen below and if fancy grabbing it for your player then “right click” & “save as” the link below.

Lone – The Seasons Change Mix

Original Air Date: March 23, 2010
Running Time: 46 minutes

TRACK LIST:
Lone – Fire Rainbow East (CDR)
Lootpack – On Point (Stones Throw)
Lone – Arista Tape Groove (CDR)
Lone – Twilight Groans (CDR)
Count Bass D – Real Music vs. Bullshit (High Times / Metal Face)
Lone – Rural Urban Binge (CDR)
Lone – Sungrazer Cascade (Werk Discs)
Letherette – Leabs (CDR)
Boards Of Canada – Red Moss (Music 70)
Lukid – Hot And Cold (CDR)
Lone – Spring Sun 707 (CDR)
Plaid – Yak (Warp)
Lone – Once In A While (Werk Discs)
Lone – Karen Loves Kate (Werk Discs)

I don’t really know too much about Skywave Systems to be honest, except I came across an “All Boards of Canada mix” they did a while ago, which i really enjoyed.

This brand new mix (released 25/02/10) features tracks from such famous labels as Warp, Luckyme, Sonar Kollektiv, Myuzyk, Ninja Tune, Big Dada, Planet Mu, Skam, KLF Communications & Illicit (amongst others).

The mix features hip hop, dancehall, dubsteppy IDM, electronica, downtempo turntablism, film samples, and probably some other styles i don’t know the name of.

I think it’s a cracking mix tho. check it out.

(right click & save as to download the mix)

Skywave Systems – Ban The Mindreader mix

Skywave Systems – Ban The Mindreader

The Advisory Circle – A Clear Yarn Warning [Ghost Box]
Gazoo – Esplanade [~scape]
Lukid – Slow Hand Slap [Werk Discs]
Dimlite – Back To The Universe [Sonar Kollektiv]
Professor Ojo – Old Ghost [mp3]
popnlockbeats – Uncanny [mp3]
Buddy Peace – Crimson Feather Valve [Dirty Urban Birds / Myuzyk]
Fulgeance – Haggis [Rush Hour]
Waxfactor – Reggaenomics (Luna Landa mix) [Needlework]
Skywave Systems – Jankophone ft Rod Azlan (acapella) [Myuzyk]
Lunice – One Of Me [LuckyMe]
Depth Charge – Dead By Dawn [DC Recordings]
Sabres of Paradise – Ballad of Nicky McGuire [Warp]
Harmonic 313 – Cyclotron [Warp]
Antipop Consortium – Apparently [Big Dada]
Si Begg – I Thunk Therefore I Am [Noodles]
Luke Vibert – Electrophy [Planet Mu]
Pest – Heard Yer Bird Moved In [Ninja Tune]
Jaylib – The Red [Stones Throw]
Push Button Objects – Non Existent (Keyed In By Gescom) [Chocolate Industries]
Tatamax – Fairy Glen Appearances [Skam]
The KLF – Rites Of Mu [KLF Communications]
Beyond The Wizards Sleeve – Before We Start, If? [3rd Mynd]
The Cake And Sea – Sound & Vision [45 Tribute]
The Irresistible Force – Sky High [Rising High]
Spacemen 3 – Big City (Everybody I Know Can Be Found Here) [Space Age]
Savile Robots – Am Trax [Illicit]
Thomas Brinkmann – untitled [Profan]
My Bloody Valentine – Soon (Andrew Weatherall mix) [Creation]
Flying Lotus – Parisian Goldfish [Warp]
Lone – My Ami [mp3]

Contains various samples and edits.

Those of you who are regulars to the site will know we featured FUR (aka Bryce Isbell) back in November.

Since the free downloads of the “Black Castles” & “Blood” EP’s became available Fur has been getting more & more attention. He was recently featured on Pitchfork and XXJFG amongst others- all with glowing reviews.

This has led to him being spotted & signed to Sacramento based label Waaga Records for the release of his 52nd album (!!) (the first 51 being self released).

“Witches“, which is due for release on February 23rd, 2010, is a full length electronic/ ambient/ IDM/ album. Having recently listened to it in full there are a number of stand out tracks for me-”Lackadaisical” being one of them, while the opener “Faces” wouldn’t be out of place as music on Blade Runner in my opinion.

If you fancy grabbing a copy, come the release date, it should be available to buy digitally on iTunes, InSound, I Heart Comix, Amazon, and other online stores, along-side a limited physical release of 125 jewel-case copies of the album. Artwork duties for the album have been carried out by Joe Bastardo.

In advance of the release date we thought we would ask Bryce to put together a wee Phuturelabs exclusive mix for us, which he called “Controlled Reverberations” and ask him a few questions……..

Kieran (PL)- “Tell us a bit about yourself- how did you start writing music?”

Fur- “I never really made any huge effort to write music, it always kind of happened; when I was young (before I could play any instruments) I would sit in front of my parents computer with the default windows audio recorder and sing whatever came in to my head. It sounded awful but it taught me experimentation at a young age.
I have an old computer from when I was a young teenager that has probably two thousand (give or take) 60-120 second songs consisting of improvisational lyrics and instrumentation.

Eventually (circa 2006) my paths crossed with Matthew Gray (Matthew and the Arrogant Sea) and his brother Caleb Gray (Verülf) and the three of us really started to develop our song-writing skills in that ‘collective’. We never wrote down any lyrics or instrumentation, we would just hit record on Caleb’s laptop and improvise until we made something that felt right. This is when my song-writing skills really started to develop; and when I made the transition to electronic music, everything fell perfectly into place.
In electronic music, I have the ability to improvise and perfect.”

PL- “Who (or what) are your influences?”

Fur- “I’m not really sure; I’m very influenced by life and the things that surround me on a day-to-day basis. I don’t really have any strong musical influences; I’m really into opera and sound collage right now. I’ve always had an affinity for soundtracks as well.”

PL- “What does your studio set up consist of? How do you go about composing?”

Fur- “My ‘studio’ isn’t much. These days I generally use a Mac running Ableton Live 7 & Reason 4. Before I fixed my laptop (which was only a recent event) I worked on tracks from computer to computer, which was cool in its own way, because I ended up with lots of collaborations.

As far as the actual construction of the melodies, percussion, atmosphere, et cetera, there is somewhat of a process I usually go through, and it generally consists of chiaroscuro lighting, and a syrupy synth sound.

I usually begin with an idea, an appropriate synth, and/or a sample, then add onto it for several hours, piece-by-piece, until the puzzle is finished.”

PL- “What are your personal favourite tracks on the “Witches” album & why?”

Fur- “Lackadaisical” and “Haunted”; I don’t know why exactly, I guess I like the way they make me feel.”

PL- “What was the idea behind the Phuturelabs mix “Controlled Reverberations” & how did you put it together?”

Fur- “The idea behind the mix was to enhance the altered mind (more or less). I was working on a dance mix at first then eventually settled with what you have now. I had a few rules going into it though; I wanted to keep most of the tracks deep or minimal, with an accent of micro-house (Coyote Clean Up, Bibio, and Faux Fox are the few exceptions).
Everything ended up coming together really well as a chilled, head nod, mix, rather than the usual “dancescapades” I put together…

Enjoy!”

Big thanks to Bryce for taking the time to do the mix and answer some questions for us- all that’s left now is to say… turn the volume up and enjoy this Phuturelabs exclusive mix from the man they call Fur.

You can also subscribe to our mixes podcast on iTunes.

FUR – Controlled Reverberations
(Phuturelabs Mix)

01 – xxx xn thx wxxds/so mucheyeseyeseyes – Coyote Clean Up
02 – Der purpurrote sonnenuntergang am schilfumsäumten bergsee – Dominik Eulberg
03 – Carosello Ellitico – Bibio
04 – Kardamom – Oval
05 – Mädchen mit Hase – Isolée
06 – Domina (Carl Craig’s Mind Mix) – Maurizio
07 – Der judaskuss des sonnentaus/Untitled – Dominik Eulberg/Moodyman
08 – Personal Best (Weird Tapes Remix) – Faux Fox
09 – Bohemian Forest – Pantha Du Prince
10 – Von Nicht-Wollennach Nicht-Kön – Oval

As some of you may know I’m a massive fan of Boards of Canada.

Rumour has it that the notoriously elusive brothers will be releasing a new album this year………….maybe. Their last album “The Campfire Headphase” was released in 2005 so, if true, it’s been a while in the making.

While searching for some confirmation that the new album is on its way I came across this video made by a fan going by the name of TheFroschyankee.

It features the Japanese bonus track “Macquarie Ridge” from the Campfire Headphase album with the visuals coming from the excellent National Geographic “Atmospheres” blu-ray release. The visuals are of the Aurora Borealis (aka The Nothern Lights), taken from Salten in Norway.

If your connection can handle it i recommend watching the HD version.

Quite simply the loveliest thing i have seen & heard on the internet.

Nearly a month has passed since i posted about Fur‘s excellent Black Castles EP, and he’s just released two further Ep’s for free legal download- “The Downstairs Room” & “Blood EP“.

“The Downstairs Room” clocks in at just under 45 mins in duration and is pure ambient electronica- not a single drum sound in site!!!

“The Blood EP” is a two tracker with a more IDM sound about it.

FUR- Blood II

If you’re liking the sounds why not buy his recent album “Colorful People” which features a track entitled “UB313″.

FUR- UB313

Originally released in 1999 (and worth a few pennies if you have one of the 500 originals)- this brilliant 12″ has just become available again as a bootleg repressing, courtesy of those football cheating French types.

The vinyl features remixes & mash-ups by Squarepusher, Autechre, Boards of Canada & others (all under aliases) of 1980′s electro, pop, soul, funk and hip-hop.

The full press release states:

Limited reissue of this SKAM 10 track remix LP done in an IDM style (circa 1999). HELL INTERFACE (BOARDS OF CANADA) remix MIDNIGHT STAR’s “MIDAS TOUCH”, HAKAN LIBDO remixes DAVID BOWIE’s “ASHES TO ASHES”, GESCOM (AUTECHRE) remix BDP, CHAOS D (SQUAREPUSHER) remixes VAN HALEN’s “JUMP” and more.

The full tracklist is as follows:
a1 – Unknown – Untitled (D Breeze remix)
a2 – Yazoo – Midnight (Post remix)
a3 – Duran Duran – Save A Prayer (Anodyne remix)
a4 – Van Halen – Augustus Pablo – Jump (Chaos A.D. remix)
a5 – Shannon – Give Me Tonight (Sonic Beat Aliance remix)
b1 – Unknown – Untitled (Jacobean remix)
b2 – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes (H_kan Lidbo remix)
b3 – Midnight Star – The Midas Touch (Hell Interface remix)
b4 – Man Parrish – Boogie Down Bronx (Gescom remix)
b5 – Boogie Down Productions – And Now A Word From Our Sponsor (Sonic Beat Alliance remix)

Who knows how long this will be available for, so grab it while you can.

Hell Interface (Boards of Canada) remix of Midnight Star’s “Midas Touch”

((and just for laughs- here’s the original- Midnight Star- Midas Touch))

I have to say that, until yesterday, I’d never even heard of this guy….. but having just listened to Cumbernauld-born Seafar’s debut album “Hegira” for the third time in about 24 hours, i’m already a big fan.

Released exclusively on The Future Sound of London‘s own digital label FSOLDigital the double cd length album ranges from doomy downtempo ambience to trippy electronica IDM, with some glitchy scratchy synths and samples thrown in for good measure. In parts it’s reminiscent of Boards Of Canada (which is no bad thing as far as i’m concerned)- in other parts more like Aphex Twin‘s “Ambient Works” albums.

The listing on FSOLDigitial states:

SEAFAR deliver a fat slice of electric space music – Hegira the sounds of a flight from danger. Wander the streets together, the noise of life muted by sheets of rain, brilliant colours dimmed in a pervading mist of grey. An instrumental amalgam of moody beats and synth drenched noises.

Have a listen below and see what you think…………and if you like it why not buy it- only a fiver for a double cd’s worth of quality music!!!

Seafar- High Tide at Point Ormond

Seafar- Antifi

Seafar- Rising Son