DPC Guestmix Series 03: Ichisan

Happy Halloween, DPC Readers!

Hopefully your Halloween is going great so far. I love Halloween - mainly because it's a holiday that has been centered around candy, duh. Too bad it's not socially acceptable to trick-or-treat as a 24 year old or else I'd be all over my neighborhood with a pillowcase in hand. And I'm not kidding either.

And because it's the holidays, and we love all of you (seriously!) we have our third installment of our guest mix series for you this morning coming from Ichisan (Igor Skafar).


Yes (!!!) Ichisan who also did the Indian Summer mix! The Slovenian DJ/Producer has been on DPCs "must listen" list for quite some time; and I have been enamored with his mixes since discovering them about a year ago. Not only is he a great DJ/Producer, he is an incredibly humble and friendly person - something I learned from our many email exchanges.

The Autumn Blossom mix acknowledges the start of fall and the closing of summer through music. And I can't say enough about how much I like this mix. I've already listened to it about 10 times since receiving this mix a week ago, and it was a task in itself to keep it under wraps.

This mix, like his Indian Summer one, starts as a slow burner to warm things up, but I think it contrasts nicely with the summer mix because it has a more spacey vibe with a faster pace. The summer mix was very tranquil and I've read, written, and slept to it. It amazes me how the contrast can really reflect the different seasons. I'm not sure how else to describe it because the spaced-out beats literally flowed together seamlessly and I found myself back tracking to segments to re-play them. A lot. I think the highlight of the mix for me was around 30 minutes when the tempo picks up and my head was nodding and I wanted to start a dance party. Then and there. Epic.

As emails were exchanged about the guest mix, I decided to delve a little further since many of you may not know too much about him (and frankly, I did not either). Hopefully you get some insight into Ichisan's life, and his music career and what he hopes for the future. Thank you, Ichisan for the guest mix, and for being so receptive to all my (annoying) emails!

Follow Ichisan Soundcloud. Listen to his latest mixes. Stalk him on Facebook. Or... if you're in Europe - you should probably catch one his upcoming gigs.

BT: I read that you started playing the guitar with some bands when you first got started with music - what led you to begin to want to DJ/Produce music?
Ichisan: I got my first PC at the time, so I started making tracks with some primitive music software. I never finished those tracks and I never took them too seriously to put them out or even brought them to the level that would be good enough as a demo. That was the late '90s, over the years the music software became much better and useful so I developed my "know-how" to the level I was able to finish a couple of tracks. I sent the demos to a number of record labels in 2006. I signed my first 12" with Airtight Recordings at the time. And btw, I still play the guitar!

BT: Many of your mixes have been very deep and relaxing - almost tranquil - with a dancey-vibe. Is this also what people should expect if they go see you live?
Ichisan: No, not at all. Usually I record mixes for listeners, not for dancers. If you know what I mean. That is why my Soundcloud mixes are tranquil sounding. When I play in the club the tempo is usually faster, but never faster than 120-123 BPM : ) Let's say I play Nu Disco, Contemporary disco sets in the clubs.

BT: Do you forsee a US Tour in the future?
Ichisan: Unfortunately I don't have a booking agent at the moment so there is no US tour plan in the near future. Hopefully better times will come because I just started to record a new solo album. It will come out next year hopefully before the summer; I can't tell you what to expect from it because there are only a couple of tracks I made so far.

BT: Do you have any mentors as you were getting started?
Ichisan: I learned a lot from a friend who was a member of an electronic duo called 'Random Logic' but mostly I taught myself.

BT: Who are some of your favorite artists?
Ichisan: I don't have any in particular. I listen to all kinds of music. If I had to list a few artists whose music I play then the Norwegian trio of Lindstrom, Prins Thomas and Todd Terje would be the right answer.

Download Here

Tracklist:

01-Jon Brion - The Break-Up Theme

02-Felix Laband - Whistling In Tongues (Todd Terje Remix)

03-Max_Essa - Water Business (Social Disco Club Remix)

04-Newcleus - Jam On It (Martin Brodin Remix)

05-Discodromo and Massimiliano Pagliara - Costellazione K78 (Ichisan remix)

06-Royksopp - This Space

07-Doctor Dru & Adana Twins - Supreme

08-Name In Lights - Touch The Sky (Eddie Mars remix)

09-Kid Creole - I Do Believe (40 Thieves instrumental)

10-Ost & Kjex - Have You Seen The Moon In Dallas (Maurice Fulton Remix)

And in case you missed our other guest mix installments:

Guestmix01: Mr. Bonkerz
Guestmix 02: Speakerbot

Ichisan - Indian Summer mix

Sometimes we need to slow things down for you at DPC. Because sometimes when you're in the office, your music listening isn't always about disco-jacking, dance partying, I want to take 10 jager bombs to the face kind-of-music.

At the moment, it's all about "serenity now". Which is exactly what I need. And maybe you do too! This one is a slow-burner from Ichisan and I intend to keep it handy whenever I need something relaxing and slower-paced to enjoy.

Throughout the mix, I felt this kind of tranquil peace, and around the 8:20 mark, the beat begins to pick up to get your head nodding. The 14 minute mark it slows down once again to a beautiful spaced-out track that I am a huge fan of. It sounds ridiculously familiar, and I found myself playing that sequence over and over again.

Some other highlights to watch out for is around the 25 minute mark when the mix gets a little pep in its step once again, and at 31:30 a familiar song "Heaven" by Kasper Bjorke reveals itself. It doesn't fully sound like the Nicolas Jaar remix, and it's definitely not the Prins Thomas one, so can someone enlighten me?! The entire mix is a great listen, and I'm hoping that Ichisan puts out the tracklist soon because there are some tracks I recognize but can't pinpoint them exactly.

Serenity now has been achieved. Thank you.


Download for mix available here.

Music to Cure That Case of the Mondays

Note: I wrote this last night. Clearly my mind didn't wrap around the fact that it is almost 11:30AM on Monday, and I am now just posting this. If you're looking for more Monday cures, check out Rashad's Sleazy Beats recommendation. It really is serious music for jogging. Try it, and don't blame me if you get weird looks for having a dance party at the gym.

Want to know a secret? I was in bed until around 4PM today. I'm still wearing my pajamas and a U Street Music Hall stamp may or may not still be on the inside of my right wrist. I think my raging hangover and the faint soreness in my legs can be attributed to this. The 'moderation' game was attempted, and I epically failed. I forfeited the game when a friend showed up with a handle of Maker's Mark. Hey! We all win!

I am already dreading tomorrow's day at work - even though it isn't even Monday yet.

These mixes are some gems that have been circulating via email since November 2010, so I can't take all of the credit. The email was dubbed, 'womp womp' (I have no idea why?) and it's still going strong 9 months later.

I could probably spend hours on the computer finding mixes or music (full disclosure: I've been known to send a month's worth of music in a sitting). Some people think it's crazy... I'd like to call it a gift.

So please accept these 'presents' from me, and cure your Monday morning blues with some happy, shiny, mixes and songs that make me dance in my cubicle. And look at that, I actually included a little bit of fun facts with the music this time.

How do you cure your case of the Mondays?
Coffee. Music. Kitchen Therapy (baking!)

Ichisan-From The Other Side Mixtape by Ichisan Mixes Page
Ichisan is the bomb. If you haven't heard of him before, you need to get familiar with this Slovenian DJ. He was a photographer and guitarist turned DJ whose genre can be considered Nu-Disco. His mixes can range anywhere from very dancey (LOVE!) to ambient, spaced out disco. I really hope I'll be able to catch him one day. Or maybe I will just go on 'nu-disco' tour in Europe, hitting up all of the clubs my favorite DJs and producers frequent. Who wants to come?


AZARI & III - DJ MIX by warmhq
Azari & III are two producers that hail from Toronto. You may be familiar with their song, Wreckless (With your Love), or even Hungry for the Power. The remix HFTP by Art Department is one of my favorite songs. Ever. This mix is one big dance party, and really starts to pick up around 9 minutes, with HFTP being dropped around the 16 minute mark. Around 23 minutes you get lost into a space-disco odyssey, and you will soon forget it's Monday. And only 11:30 AM.

BOTTIN Presents TINPONG - New Religion [Marcus Marr Remix] by Marcus Marr My new DFA crush. Sorry, Shit Robot. You've been replaced. However, both of your songs featured in last week's Beats in Space radio show were in Shit Robot's guest mix, so it was like my top two DJs ever found in one mix... LOVE!


Obsessed. Maybe you'll get a mix with this song featured in it soon. (read: tomorrow)