Whenever I’m in the mood for a slo-mo synth driven nu-discoish sound with a touch of slightly melancholic pop, Lasertom is usually just one click away. His album „Drift“ (Nang Records) is a long time friend, I guess it’s even impossible to delete it from my iPod and since Simon Cullen is not just producing we had to ask him for a Monday Mixtape…

 

HOME THEME

When invited by LodownMagazine to make this mix I was finishing up on a few pieces of work, some for myself and some for friends, and it struck me to make this a starting point. From here I decided to give it a theme and keep it Irish, and I began gathering new music coming from Irish artists.

So this mix includes a few tracks I worked on and a few I wish I had, and all from Irish musicians. The mix is not too long, about an average album length. A short trip seemed to make sense for the material which unfortunately meant I didn't get to include everything I had shortlisted. 

There are at the time of it's publishing 5 unreleased tracks on this mix so you will certainly find some music you haven't heard before. 

ONE: Somadrone - Caustic City - Oracle: Somadrone has become a cornerstone of Irish electronic music in the 15 years since he began the project. Neil has a singular style and process which combines thoughtful sonic textures with touching song writing.  He is currently poised to release his fifth full length titled Oracle sometime in September (date tbc) and in the meantime has revealed one track Invitation -  I pitched in on some mixing on this album and he permitted me to open up this selection with another track from the forthcoming release titled Caustic City. http://www.iamsomadrone.com/

TWO: Jape - This Chemical Sea - This Chemical Sea: Richie Egan's fourth album This Chemical Sea was released earlier this year. In my ears it is an expertly crafted combination of heartfelt pop with modern and progressive sound palettes. This Chemical Sea, the title track of the the album was one of my favourites from the first listen. It's right at the end of the album, typically the songs that are most susceptible to the least listens. Maybe having it here will help even out the tally for this beauty. http://www.thischemicalsea.com/

THREE: Sunken Foal - Sailing Architraves - Friday Night Syndrome Vol 2: I have only in the last couple of years caught onto the music of Sunken Foal and I find in it a unique sensitivity. He released his first of the series Friday Night Syndrome Vol.1 with Planet Mu and has since self released Vol.s 2 and 3, all of which are worth earing up. http://www.countersunk.org/

He has another project under the moniker Press Charges which I highly recommend falling for.  https://soundcloud.com/press-charges/tighter 

FOUR: Bantam - Pacing - Unreleased: I heard Bantam play live for the first time at a festival in Ireland this summer. After the show I shook his hand and we chatted about collaborations and performing electronic music as solo musicians. From this set I was really struck by one tune especially and he offered to send me a copy, even though it was unreleased and unfinished! I loved it so much I had to include it on this and convinced him to let me. Many thanks Ruari! https://bantum.bandcamp.com/

FIVE: Lasertom - Drift - Drift: Lasertom is the name i make music under. I'm not going to blow my own harp too hard here. 

This is a live version of the title track from my LP Drift. https://www.facebook.com/LTandBC

SIX: Leo Drezden - Necromancer - MultiMoment: One of the guys in this band is also in the band Solar Bears which is the short story version explaining how I found out about Leo Drezden. It was a logical inquiry since I was already a fan of Solar Bears. Leo Drezden released their debut album Multi-Moment in early 2015. Their music is proglike, dreamy and intense. The band is made up of four adept and keen musicians who when performing live create a truly explosive experience. I chose one of the less energetic tracks from the album to keep to the feel of this mix. https://leodrezden.bandcamp.com/

SEVEN: Wounded Healer - Panic About Love: This is the first song of a new project, Wounded Healer from Sorca McGrath. Most recently Sorca has been making music with Ships but has been active in the Irish music scene since her teens. She decided earlier this year to bring this solo project to completion, writing, producing and mixing from beginning to end. The intensity of the emotion of these songs I think have been well served and preserved by this process. The debut EP is set for release in September with the young Irish label,  The Pigs Ear -  http://www.thisgreedypig.com/journal/category/music

Wounded Healer - https://www.facebook.com/woundedhealeruniversal?fref=ts

EIGHT: Signa - White On White (Lasertom remix) - Lines: In terms of the legitimacy of my previous claims about this being an all Irish mix I make this allowance. Although 50% of Signa are Italian by birth, this percentage has lived in Dublin Ireland for a fair few years now, long enough to be counted among us. I didn't know the guys up until recently when I got a call looking for feedback on mixes for their debut release Lines. They have since invited me to make a remix which I am happy to reveal for the first time here. https://signamusic.bandcamp.com/

 

NINE: Donnacha Costello - Farewell - Love From Dust: Donnacha Costello returned to releasing music in 2015 after a hiatus of a fair few years and it's a welcome return indeed. The album entitled Love From Dust is an ambient journey with a interesting quirk to its creation. Each song was recorded in a single take and played on one synthesiser, a Buchla Music Easel, in tandem with some guitar FX pedals. The whole album is excellent but i singled out this his lovely number called Farewell. https://donnachacostello.bandcamp.com/

TEN: Wounded Healer - Change Your Mind (Lasertom remix): Here, Lasertom has remixed one of Wounded Healers tracks called Change Your Mind. 

 

 

Thanks, Simon, not only for this amazing mix, but also your insights into the underrated irish scene.

Keep updated with Lasertom’s releases and gigs check his FB and if you happen to be in Dublin around September 19th you know what to do: see him play with Christian Löffler here.

 

pic by Oliver Kehoe Smith