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Features Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters! N-Kore talks Jean-Michel Jarre, unfinished tracks and fatherhood! Celebrating International Women’s Day and Ten Years of Psy-Sisters with Amaluna A Catch Up with John Phantasm ahead of his upcoming set at the Tribal Village 4 Day Outdoor Event in Kent 6-9 May 2022!

Listen up! It's Batten and Brow Reported by Jazzy / Submitted 14-01-09 21:16 Most of you will have come to know this dynamic production duo through their block rocking Sloppy Jaloppy. Since its release they’ve been churning out more pure quality tracks, quickly recognisable by their rolling yet throbbing basslines, dirty synths and exciting riffs. They’ve also been involved in some interesting collaborations and promise that the year ahead holds much in store. With their fresh and unique sound taking over our clubs I thought it best to catch up with the innovative production team that is Batten and Brow as they release their long awaited Production Showcase Mix. It’s been quite a while since I spoke to either of you. What have you been up to over the last six months? Paul: It’s been a very busy year, just been cracking away at Twist and getting stuck in to the production side of things. We have been getting experimental with our sound and trying to incorporate a slight techno influence into some of our tracks. I’m really looking forward to seeing what this year has in store. Brow: Well as Paul says we've been locked away most nights producing, trying to get to a stage where we can play a large proportion of our own stuff within a set as well as a good range of tracks. What are your personal highlights from 2008? Paul: 2008 was a great year with plenty of highlights. With Sloppy Jaloppy being put on the Tidy Weekender 12 album and Cake Mix being signed to Karim's label Do Not Bend. My biggest highlight for the year was definitely playing back to back with Justin Bourne at Hard House History earlier in the year - it was Justin's final ever event before hanging up his headphones. He was my biggest influence and inspiration and had an amazing technical ability behind the decks that no-one even comes close to. He would always get a room rocking with his tune selection and style of mixing. It was an honour to play back to back with him and that will take some beating for me to be honest! He will always be remembered as one of the biggest legends in the scene in my eyes and I’m sure in plenty of other peoples too! Brow: Being signed to Do Not Bend is probably one the highlights of my life never mind the year! Twist's 6th birthday really stands out for me, the party of the year in my opinion. Justin's last dance was a special night and it was pretty sad seeing him go. Trade was also a very special night for me, I got into this music when I bought one of their CDs and I'm glad I finally went to Trade before Turnmills closed its doors. Who do you currently find inspirational, producer wise? Paul: Karim to me is making some quality tracks at the minute - still tough but with a lot of groove and feel to them, I’m really liking the ideas he is putting together at the moment. I always loved Dave Owens's, Dom Sweeten's and James Nardi's sounds too, they have made countless amounts of high quality tracks between them. There are a lot of fresh producers coming through now such as P.A.S, Kauz and Adam M stamping their sound onto the scene as well. I’m loving the stuff Karl Davis has been churning out at the moment - some proper "get stuck in" stompers. Plus all the lads at Twist are getting right stuck in with their production – Steve Maynard, Tom Basquil and DNG (Tim Shaw) have created some corkers that are getting hammered at Twist at the moment. There’s a lot of quality stuff about being made by plenty of people, it’s great for the scene. Brow: I've always found Karim an inspiration whether it’s producing or rocking the s*it out of a dance floor. Some of the tracks he's made at the moment like On Fire are a different gravy – tough and driving but seriously uplifting at the same time. I'd echo what Paul said, only to add that Ross Homson's Galvez Groove has really inspired me - I'd say it’s my favourite track at the minute. I'm also very much inspired by people outside of hard house, such as Adam Beyer. Sloppy Jaloppy won best tune on the HarderFaster poll last year. How did that make you feel? Paul: To be honest, very surprised. There was a lot of good stuff floating about last year, I'm really glad we won it though. We made that track nearly two years ago now and it’s still getting hammered today. It was the track that got us in the scene and when Justin Bourne put it on the Tidy Weekender album that was the icing on the cake for me. I don’t think I will ever get bored of it either. Brow: Like Paul says, it was a big surprise but I was very happy! Can we expect to hear any of your tracks signed any time soon? Paul: Sloppy Jaloppy is soon to be released on Adam M's label – Oktane - and a lot of people have taken interest to some of our newer bits too. I think this year will be the year when our stuff starts getting out there a lot more. Brow: I hope so! We are going to pull our fingers out in the New Year and start our own label; we're keen to get some tracks out there now. When people listen to your tunes, what do you want them to take away from it? Paul: As long as they make people dance and they enjoy them, that’s what they are meant to do eh? I just want people to respect us for doing something a little different with the sound and experimenting with it to be honest. If people are enjoying what we do that’s all that matters to me. Brow: A smile! Any inside tips on what 2009 holds for the pair of you? Paul: I think 2009 will see us doing a lot of collaboration tracks; we have several bits in the pipeline. We also have loads of ideas for fresh tracks between the two of us and I think we will probably try and get some funky techno stuff done as well. We just want to keep putting in the hard work and making our sound evolve even more. Brow: We want to push on from what we've done this year and keep working hard; I definitely want to do some techno this year. We are also going to start taking a few studio bookings once the studio is (finally) up and running properly. You definitely have a trademark sound, how would you describe it? Paul: I'd probably describe it as groovy, filthy, funky stuff. We try to always keep some sort of groove with our tracks, it’s very important; we try to have a nice energetic rolling sound too. I think it’s good to have your own trademark sound it makes you unique and individual. Brow: Definitely rolling! I think you've got to have groove no matter what part of the hard dance spectrum you're aiming for. Are there any surprise collaborations in store for the New Year? Paul: We will definitely be doing some more tracks with James Nardi this year. There’s some stuff in the pipeline with some of the Twist lads, hopefully we can get something done with Kauz, P.A.S and some other engineers too. Brow: Ditto. I am particularly keen to get in the studio with Tom Basquil as soon as I can. We've grown up together in club land and it would really mean a lot to me to lay some beats down with him. You've already been in the studio with James Nardi recently. Tell me what came of it? Paul: We booked two studio sessions with James so we could make two different tracks, a funky one and a tough one too. The funky track is called Jiggary Pokery which has a nice groove to it and a nice uplifting feel with a fat funky bassline. There are some catchy female vocal hooks in there as well to add to the flow and the lift of the track. The tough track is called Rattlesnake, it’s a full on driving roller with loads of energy and drive. It has plenty of catchy vocal hooks and fills which keep the track flowing and interesting. It has a dark breakdown with a sample from the Scarface movie, which luckily fitted really well. I'm really happy with both tracks and we pretty much got exactly what we wanted with our ideas too. Brow: Two absolute corkers in my opinion, I'm very, very happy with the two tracks. I really admire what James has been knocking out in the last couple of years or so, so when the opportunity came along I knew we had to make the most of it. What is James like to work with? Paul: James is one of my favourite producers - he's a top lad and it was great to work with him. He's so easy to work with and he keeps plugging away till you are totally happy with the track. He's got a nice funky, uplifting sound with tough grimy synths and I knew if we amalgamated our sound into his we would get some good tracks together. I’m really happy with the two tracks we made and there’s going to be more collaboration works with him again soon. Brow: A real pleasure! I was a little apprehensive about having someone else engineer, but James was on the same wavelength as us and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of. We shall definitely be doing it again! You created a track with Paul's brother Neil called Maniac, one of the darkest tracks you've made. How did this come about and where was the thought behind this track? Paul: My brother was over from Australia for a month and I said we would try and get a couple of tracks done with him while he was over here. He has a very twisted film called The Maniac so I chopped a load of samples from the film that he wanted to use and then we layered them into the track. I was a bit dubious about how the track would sound with the samples because some of them are really evil. But it turned out really well in the end - I’m really happy with it and so was my brother. It was all his ideas and it was cool to use his twisted, creative brain to engineer a track for him. The other track we did is just getting polished off and will be getting played very soon so watch this space. Brow: Well Neil is a big drum and bass head, real dark and dirty stuff, so he came in with a goal of creating something really dark. He was very well prepared and knew exactly what he wanted from us. Maniac is one of my favourites, I can only describe it as a darker, techier version of Cake Mix, but it still keeps the ass-wiggling vibe that we strive for in everything we do. Which of your tracks is your favourite? Paul: God this is a toughie but I think its a toss up between Gut Rot and Rattlesnake. I think Gut Rot just pips it for me. It’s got a different unique techno sound and always goes off when it’s dropped at Twist. I love it! Brow: Gut Rot - I'll never get tired of hearing it! You've been playing more back to back sets recently. Is there one in particular that stands out for you? Paul: I really enjoyed our back to back set at Hi Oktane in November, it went really well and I enjoyed every minute of it. There's a few more already lined up for this year which I’m looking forward to as well. Brow: Hi Oktane's birthday without a doubt. Adam's got a real good party going up in Leeds; the crowd are really up for it. Are there any particular albums that you are listening to at the moment? Paul: At the minute I've been listening to some of my old albums, Cypress Hill – Black Sunday has been in the player quite a lot. I will never get bored of that album, its quality! Brow: Alex Reece – So Far, it’s really good for unwinding and de-stressing. I also listen to Adam Beyer's albums and the Wiggle Fabric albums all the time. What can we expect from your production showcase mix? Paul: Basically a mix of most of our favourite tracks progressed from funky tracks at the start through to our tougher tracks at the end. We want to give people a little run down of what we have done over the last year or so really. Brow: I think you can expect a biography of what we've done this year, a late Christmas present if you like, to everyone that has been supporting us and enjoying our music. There's a few newbies on there, as well as the classic tracks - look out for a special mix of Sloppy! Quick fire questions: Firestarter or Your Love? Paul: Your Love's one of my favourite ever tracks. That’s an easy one. Brow: Definitely Your Love. Urinals or public? Paul: Nearly been nicked for doing it in public so urinals it is for me. Brow: You won't be saying that next time we're stuck in traffic on the M1 30 miles from the nearest services! Rosie or Jim? Paul: Jim. Haha! Brow: I always suspected you were sweet on him! Paul: Well we all know you're sweeter on Rosie...! Arnie or Stallone? Paul: Arnie all the way he's a legend. One of the best actors on the planet by far. Brow: Apart from Rambo it would have to be Arnie. The End or Turnmills? Paul: Turnmills for me. Brow: Two clubs that I will sadly miss, Turnmills just shades it. Grease or Dirty Dancing? Paul: There both pretty pants to be honest but I'll go with Grease just because Travolta's got some moves in that film, haha! Brow: He ain't got sh*t on me, haha! Velcro or blue-tac? Paul: Both because I like blue-taccing velcro to phone boxes, it's a little fetish of mine. Brow: We won't mention your other fetish.... Spiderman or Batman? Paul: Spiderman all the way. Brow: Batman. Heaven or Hell? Paul: Well when Basquil's closing, hell. He plays some top grime the lad! Brow: Don't think I'm going to have a choice there! Mushrooms or sweet corn? Paul: Sweet corn every time, love it! Brow: I'd rather go hungry! Here is a very special link to their new 2009 Production Showcase Mix: Batten & Brow Production Mix Tracklisting: 1) Batten & Brow - Buckaroo (Intro) 2) Batten & Brow Vs James Nardi - Jiggary Pokery 3) Batten & Brow - Ghetto Funk 4) Batten & Brow - Zama 5) Lisa Lashes - Looking Good (Batten & Brow's Old Skool Stomp Rmx) 6) Batten & Brow - Sloppy Jaloppy! 7) Trauma Vs Ian M - Deep Swarm (Batten & Brows Tech-NRG Rmx) 8) Batten & Brow - Taaaamas! 9) Batten & Brow - Cake Mix 10) Batten & Brow - Hopscotch 11) Neil Batten Vs Batten & Brow - Maniac! 12) Batten & Brow - Gut Rot! 13) Nowak Vs Batten & Brow - Slapstick 14) Batten & Brow Vs James Nardi – Rattlesnake Photos courtesy of Batten & Brow and The HarderFaster archive. Not to be reproduced without permission. Share this :: : : : Follow HarderFaster :: Other Features By Jazzy: Warning! This Is Brow Brow gives us a Warning ahead of his new residency Grady G gets ready to explode at Blast! Tim Shaw does SNAT Lucy Fur and Paul Batten go back to back for Warning! The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable. Comments: From: dave curtis on 14th Jan 2009 23:00.05 good shit guys! bout time this mix got put up lol From: Daniel K on 14th Jan 2009 23:05.20 Awesome, awesome awesome! From: K8-e on 14th Jan 2009 23:08.27 Sloppy Jalopy FTW!! So excited to get this the other day. RAAAA! Wishing good times for you guys in 2009! x From: karl davis on 14th Jan 2009 23:38.22 Top stuff lads, love the sounds, keep it rocking might have to spin this on the radio show in the coming weeks! kd From: treesa on 14th Jan 2009 23:45.58 excellent x 10000000000!!!!! From: Redrum on 15th Jan 2009 00:27.28 I love this interview. I want to read it again. Such talented guys and great friends. Hope 2009 is even better for you both x From: ravechick on 15th Jan 2009 09:05.04 what a great read, two hard working, amazingly talented individuals, downloading the production now.... love you guys xxxx this is a long time overdue WOOP ! From: James Nardi on 15th Jan 2009 09:50.43 Good read lads & thanks for the mention. Always a pleasure having you two in the studio. Talk about coming in armed!!. You boys certainly put the time in before hand, which makes a big difference. Looking forward to our next session. Grabbing the mix now. From: stevieboi on 15th Jan 2009 10:01.42 great read Jazzy, nice work! Production mix has not left our player since we had it. favourites have to be Taaaamas, Maniac and.... actually love them all. You have definately got your own thing going awwwn! love ya boys! putting bexley on the map From: Jazzy on 15th Jan 2009 11:48.14 Big up the Welling Clowns of Hard House!!!!! From: Jennie B on 15th Jan 2009 12:39.28 GIVE IT UPPPPPPPPPPP FPR WELLLLLLINGGGGGGGG You 2 are a pleasure to listen to in clubland....the world would be a dull place without ya! Batten - keep it ben dooly Brow - keep it rosie! :heard: From: kevsey.d on 15th Jan 2009 14:16.28 Great read lads!! always a pleasure.. im gonna get on the downloading now... From: the archer on 15th Jan 2009 15:26.03 only just got into these 2 recently......what have I been missing for yrs ahhhhhhh but gonna make it for it now. Loved the NYE set Paul. From: A.Waters on 15th Jan 2009 15:46.52 Never get tired of hearing these guys tracks or sets, Both set for bigger things in 2009 and well deserving of it all From: Glyn Waters on 15th Jan 2009 18:16.55 Top stuff lads, cant wait to hear what you come out with in '09 From: chris edwards on 15th Jan 2009 18:18.19 just listening to the mix for the second time its been put together so well an never get bored of seing either of you guys play at twist!!! an it can only get better for u 2 so i look forward to it From: Steve Maynard on 16th Jan 2009 17:45.50 Looking forward to more thrills and spills with this pair of c*nts in 2009... luv ya really...top boyzzzz's! From: Jennie B on 16th Jan 2009 22:57.39 awww always count on maynard for a lovey comment! From: Steve Maynard on 17th Jan 2009 00:39.49 They's like my brothers innit! From: Getonit on 17th Jan 2009 12:43.22 Sorry late reply to a wicked interview. Will download mix when back in UK. All about Commando- nice arms! not sure about the acting!!lol really looking forward to Zip on Sunday's, techno fun baby x From: Disco Diva on 17th Jan 2009 18:54.22 Same as Darren soz for late reply & reading but great interview Jazz & well done Paul & Brow, nice work lads & two nice lads that can both dj well too. I am loving the names of the tunes, they are quality haha From: madjojo on 17th Jan 2009 19:26.11 FUCKINNNNNNNN LOVE IT You boys have dont so well and absoulty love your mix's and to think more will be mad....OH YEAH!!!! x x x From: Paul Batten on 18th Jan 2009 13:42.05 Cheers for all the comments and support people! Glad your enjoying the mix and interview. Plenty more to come for 2009, cant wait to see whats in store for this year! From: Jennie B on 19th Jan 2009 16:19.49 i know maynardo i know From: Tom Basquil on 19th Jan 2009 17:22.21 Two absolute legends! Was a great 2008 for ya's rightly so and I only see bigger and better things for you both! Can't wait to get in the studio, Brow! And with Batten for that matter... Yep!! From: sexyminx on 20th Jan 2009 11:50.42 Massive to you all. Wicked interview, well done Jazzy From: Kamora on 22nd Jan 2009 18:22.50 Very pleased for these two for what they have achieved in a relatively short space of time, all the best for the future dudes. From: the archer on 30th Jan 2009 14:00.17 looking fwd to seeing them both at Zip on Sunday morning. From: umairsoomro on 16th Nov 2024 10:32.44 Add yourThis is usually a wonderful recommendations primarily so that you can all those a novice to blogosphere, limited plus genuine information… With thanks to get spreading brussels. Very important learn posting. Bijoux fabriqués au Québec comments here ! From: jamesseo on 19th Nov 2024 14:28.01 Thank you regarding offering latest revisions about the problem, My partner and i enjoy examine a lot more. 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