Land of the Free Brit Adam Freeland makes a new home on the West Coast Duke Shin
And there he was, the superstar DJ standing before thousands of tent moppets dancing in the mid-day heat, mashing up Daft Punk's "Aerodynamic" with a Speak & Spell's disembodied voice spelling out "O-B-A-M-A. You are correct." As the kids danced harder, one obvious question would be why a British DJ would be so interested in the potential future President of the United States. Course, it makes a bit more sense when said DJ is Adam Freeland, who absconded to sunny Los Angeles about eighteen months ago. So what prompted this move?
"A girl," he sheepishly laughs into his phone as he cruises to LAX en route to weekend gigs in Austria, England and Portugal. Although his love-relocation might not have worked out in the end, Freeland decided to stick around. "I wasn't expecting to like LA as much… [but] 360 days of sunshine a year is enough to win over an Englishman who's used to rain and miserable-ness!"
It would be easy to paint Freeland's apparent support of Barack Obama as simply playing to the festival masses, but there's one element persistent throughout Freeland's musical career that will sound familiar to anyone following the senator's presidential campaign: change. Freeland's meteoric rise to the jet-setting musical elite began with the successes of his "Coastal Breaks" mixes, leading to 1998's "Tectonics," which made Freeland the poster boy for nu skool breaks. But by the time it came for Freeland's artist-album debut, it became apparent that instrumental dance tracks like those featured on his previous breakbeat mixes were not the next step in his career. 2003's "Now and Them" (as Freeland) garnered big attention for its punkish attitude and breakout single "We Want Your Soul." Since then, Freeland has become more visible remixing tracks from the likes of Silversun Pickups, Shiny Toy Guns and Marilyn Manson than relying on his former breakbeat persona. And following the release of his "Hate" EP (released December 2007), one wonders exactly how much of Los Angeles' rock-to-electro scene has influenced his sound. The world will find out soon, as Freeland has been hard at work at his next artist LP.
"I'd say this album I just finished is definitely influenced by being in LA, just because the musicians I've worked with I couldn't access from being anywhere else in the world. The ["Hate" EP] was actually just instrumental cuts that didn't make the album. The album's more song-based… [but] that EP is more influenced by the current Parisian sound than it is LA."
Those Parisian influences could be seen taking hold in Freeland's contribution to the venerable Global Underground mix series, with 2007's "Mexico" installment featuring remixes and productions from Etienne De Crecy, Mr. Oizo and Justice. "To me a lot of the Ed Banger stuff is the attitude that kind of got me excited about early days of breaks, y'know, before it kind of, long voyage, went very generic," Freeland explains. "I've always said I'm a rocker trapped in a DJ's body, and… things come and go… [The French tracks] got that sort of fuck-off rock [and] punk-rock attitude to it. It's not about tasteful minimal high hats—and it's still tasteful, don't get me wrong—but it's maximal… I can't play a whole set of that stuff, but I like it."
"I can't play a whole set of that stuff, but I like it" might be the only accurate description for Freeland's evolving sets. Despite his ribbing on "tasteful minimal high hats," his mixes often contain a few techno-leaning tracks, and he even had Brazilian techno visionary Gui Boratto remix 2007's "Silverlake Pills."
"The fundamental kind of glue that keeps it all consistent for me is my love of snare drums. I've always loved house music but, it's like, I couldn't ever stand the straight 4/4 kick drum… I look at producers like Todd Terry or LTJ Bukem, for example, and they're people who've just got one sound and ran with it. That's their sound," he explains in reverence—before candidly admitting his own limitations. "My personality type couldn't do that. I tire to quickly… I need to be constantly inspired by new stuff, and that obviously influences what I do… I sometimes see if I'd just taken one sound [and] really honed it in exactly and just totally [ran] with that, it would be a way bigger thing, but it's just not me… I can't do that!" he chuckles. Even Freeland's speech pattern reflects this rapid-fire attitude, as he leaves sentence fragments hanging when a new idea bubbles forth. Like, for example, his new album that he's hoping to release early next year.
"I literally finished it today… I'm really happy with it—it's definitely my biggest, most ambitious project to date. I took almost three years making it, so I'm pretty keen to get it out there."
Freeland's admitted love of shoegazer, drone-rock, snare drums and rock sneers will be on full display, with contributors including Twiggy Ramirez of Marilyn Manson fame, punk hellcat Brody from the Distillers, Gerry from Devo, and most surprisingly, Joey Santiago of the Pixies.
Inspired by Coachella.
Current mood: awake
Category: Music
Just back down to earth from an EPIC Coachella weekend.
Its the 4th time I've played the festival and it just keeps getting better.
The line up was just over the top. There were so many of my favorite artists I didn't get to see and a few I did.
I was gutted to have missed Dan Deacon, the funniest man in music. I was playing after Sebastian and Busy P so was focused on listening to them to make sure i didn't play the same tunes. Good job i did too!
Autolux were good as ever, but it felt way to early in the day to put a band of that caliber on a stage in the blazing sun. Watching MIA was like witnessing a Riot, such an amazing energy . Love n Rockets were great for nostalgias sake, but didnt sound particularly tight. Portishead were unexpectedly amazing. Soooooooo heavy and throbbing droney feedback joy. Totally my kind of thing. Prince was dissapointing. He's one of my heroes but It felt like he underestimated the Coachella crowd. Its one of the most loyal and knowledgeable music loving crowds there is and it felt like he was playing to a shopping mall audience. Loads of other quality acts i half saw and heard.
But Roger Waters !!! OMG! (Admittedly I started the show on a high. My friends Shane and Bozza got married on the grass looking over the stage and as he kissed the bride Roger hit his first note of his show as if on perfect magical cue!. ) I have never witnessed such an awesome production on every level. Full surround sound around the entire crowd, throwing helicopters noises and 'If you don' eat your meat you cant have any pudding!' around your head. Unbelievably high definition visuals, a flying space man, a flying pig, a real airplane! which sprayed the crowd on perfect musical cue with a million tiny pieces of paper which read 'Obama √ ' ( well actually most of the contents of the plane missed the crowd and spread over the nearby town, but its was the thought that counts :) All sounds like gimmicks but what made it so special is having listened to Pink Floyd albums a thousand times the production brought out the message behind the music that had largely passed me by. I've never had an experience like, it people were freaking out, screaming in disbelief at what was going on, kids that had stumbled past and just thought Pink Floyd were a stoner hippie band their parents listened to, were have serious revelations all around us. As it closed with a majestic pyrotechnical wallop, people reluctantly walked away gasping, all you could hear was the murmur amongst what seemed like everybody of "that was the best thing i've ever seen, that was the best thing i've ever seen,that was the best thing i've ever seen, Oh my God what just happened, that was the best thing i've ever seen" . Hate to sounds blasphemous to our electronic gods Daft Punk whose pyramid blew my mind ,but that show raised the bar on every level. I was semi high , but i walked away crying, bleating "Man, we just witness the beginning of the revolution!"
I spoke to some people non plussed about the gig only to find out they were watching from the VIP area, which was outside of the catchment of the 3D sound. LAMOS! (Note to self. 'Never ever judge a band unless you are down there with the crowd IN IT! ' Anyway Roger rant over.
I loved playing my gig too. I decided pretty last minute that just rocking up with a box of records wasn't really going to cut it. I was thinking ' I LOVE this festival,, they have shown me alot of love by booking me so many times, I needed to raise my game.' So I thought i'd go over the top. We got a whole posse of friends to wear Intergalactic choir Robes, rock inflatable 'F' balloons, come on stage to my intro of Rolling Stones "Give me Shelter' and stage dive. Most of them bottled the stage dive , the sight must have been ridiculous, we threw together some visuals with Johhny deKam and Bree and Richard Happy programmed a massive LED ticker in front of the decks, he sat their suited up on the bassbin in front of me, typing realtime mad rants at the crowd, we also had body popping Storm troopers and I made some special remixes and edits for the gig, like Data rock's Computer cab Aerodynamik, mashed up with 'O-B-A-M-A from a speak n spell (which by I've posted on the myspace player) I got a bit over exited by the whole thing and finished with a stage div to' We want your soul'. Looking at the pics, if quite chuffed with the air i caught on that one!
Wanted to send big love to everybody who came out, and in particular to all my Intergalactic space choir who decided not to take the Robes off all weekend and introduced themselves as 'Freeland fighters' . To every passer by who asked "what the fuck is the deal with those robes" You peoples ROOOOOOOOOOOOL. Thankyou!
Adam
ps. If your in California come to' Lightning in a Bottle' in Santa Barbara at the end of May,I've got a feeling its going to be special.
pps. heres some links I've been sent to the antics of Coachella.
I have composed the music for the new Amnesty International advert which is campaigning against human rights abuses in the name of 'War On Terror'. Watch the film above and then 'unsubscribe' yourself from these practices on the unsubscribe website
We take basic Human rights for granted, but our forefathers fought for them. It's up to us to maintain them. Unless we continue to bring attention to them and campaign as hard as those who benefit from taking them away, they silently disappear. Water boarding is just one 'legal' abuse of Human rights carried out in our name that most of us are oblivious to. We have to stand up and say NO.
My 2hr Essential mix for BBC Radio one goes on air tonite
Category: Music
Hi Kidz.
I've just done and Essential mix for BBC Radio One
It includes loads of exclusive segments from the new Freeland ,Alex Metric and Evil Nines albums.
I've made loads of exclusive remixes, edits and mashups especially for this mix. Its the first mix I've done since the Global Underground and I'm really buzzing about it..
It goes out live in 30 mins from me posting this. 2AM GMT.
You can hear it stream live from the site at
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/
You can also hear it live on Sirius radio Channel 11.
Hate, the blistering new E.P. of original tracks from Adam Freeland, caps a triumphant year for the pioneering DJ and Grammy-nominated producer. In 2007, Freeland dropped numerous acclaimed remixes, spanning artists ranging from Fujiya & Miyagi to Marilyn Manson. As well, Gui Boratto's mix of Freeland's original track "Silverlake Pills" is shaping up to be one of the year's biggest tunes; you might've also heard Freeland's grooves coming from your television set or Playstation Two, as he revamped The Who's "Baba O'Riley" to create the new theme for CSI: New York and provided the thundering soundtrack to the smash videogame Juiced 2. Somehow he found time to put out a new mix CD, Global Underground: Mexico City, the 32nd entry in the renowned series, which proved its most controversial. That's thanks to the mix perfectly capturing Freeland's trademark combo of genre-smashing innovation and uncut dancefloor assault that marked raucous DJ sets rocking everywhere from Coachella and Beijing to Glastonbury and Dubai, as well as an Australian tour alongside M.I.A., MSTRKRFT, and Justice
True to form, the new Hate e.p., released by Freeland's own acclaimed Marine Parade label, features him doing what he does best: making dirty electronic funk, shot through with signature sonic iconoclasm. The crunching title track—already the floor-filling highlight of Freeland's sets—sums up his latest musical direction. From its first snare crack, "Hate" instantly transforms into a stripped-down, balls-out anthem free of the fromage usually associated with that word. "Hate" proves a minimalist masterpiece, molding stuttering, squiggly beats and squelching, distorted bass booms into anarchic electro fury; the only vocals feature a synthesized voice hauntingly repeating the title over and over. Imagine if Mr. Oizo got his hands on "Doom's Night" instead of Timo Maas, and you get a little window into how massive and revolutionary this storming tune is. Expect this one to become a cross-genre smash a la Freeland's breakthrough hit "We Want Your Soul": from Ed Banger electro freaks to dubstep heads, breaks geeks to even forward-thinking techno/prog spinners, all will find something to love about "Hate."
The e.p.'s second track, "Where's Your God Now," continues Freeland's ability to defy convention while keeping asses shaking. Openingwith a surreal burst of krautrock synths, "Where's Your God Now" slows down the tempo to showcase a meat-cleaving hard rock riff that suggests what might've happened if Josh Homme and Jack White were Moog manglers instead of guitar heroes. This is drone rock for the dancefloor, Freeland style, riding an unforgivably funky beat into a transcendent flurry of shoegazed-out feedback bliss. Meanwhile, true to its ironically ravetastic title, "Glowsticks," the e.p.'s closer, brings it all back home with a club killer par excellence. Glitchy synth hooks give way to Moroder arpeggios and menacing acid basslines before a shamelessly hands-in-the-air, future-retro breakdown raises everything to a higher state of consciousness. Providing the perfect taster for Freeland's upcoming artist album (due Spring 2008), "Glowsticks" epitomizes his explosive attitude that's perfectly captured fia Hate's thrill ride: keep the crowd moving while surprising them with every twist and turn.
Global Underground Tracklisting below. It's out June 4th for UK / World and June 12th for USA
CD1. 1. Faze Action-in the trees carl craig mix 2. Revl9n- Walking machine-sebastian mix 3. super discount- fuck 4. kim- wet & wild 5. mr oizo- half an edit 6. adam freeland- silverlake pills 7. kim- by the time they reach you-bagraiders mix 8. jape- floating- alex metric mix 9. Beauty School-disco sux- stonelions mix 10 oliver hunteman- 37 grad 11. justice- the phantom 12. minimal compact deadly weapons-optimo mix- 13. dj mehdi- signatune- tomas bangaltier mix/spank rock- bump-switch mix 14 .phones- sharpen the knives 15. trabant- the one- para one mix. 16. kavinsky- testatorssa. sebastian mix 17. Evil Nine- Happy Ending
CD 2.
1. space man three -ecstacy sympathy 2. my my -Butterflys and zebras 3. lee jones- there comes a time-prinz thomas mix 4. justus koehncke- advance 5. 120 days- come out 6. gui boratto- Terminal 7. james holden- lump 8. cobblestone jazz- dump truck 9. silversun pickups-lazy eye- adam freeland re-edit 10. substance and vainqueur-Immersion 11. fujiya and miyagi- ankle injuries- adam freeland re-edit 12. andrew weatherall-feathers 13. b movie- no where girl- adam freeland mix 14. mylo- paris 400- Aswefall remix 15. adam freeland-self indulgent ending
Marine Parade are currently building a catalogue of the mixes that Adam has done over the years for radio shows. Some of these have now got legendary status and we get lots of requests to make them available. Anyone who has a copy of his Mini-Mix, Essential Mixes, or anything else could you send them over for the Marine Parade podcast? Get in touch with eva@marineparade.net if you have anything to offer!
Go to www.marineparade.net for full details on the podcast. Latest episode is a Wunderlust mix from Adam.
awake
horny
