We are honoured to have the opportunity to curate the next edition of the XLR8R+ record label concept, following on from an impressive catalogue of releases coming from artists like Roman Flugel, Fred P, Lawrence, DVS1, Tom Trago, Levon Vincent, µ-Ziq, Wata Igarashi, Fluxion, Scuba amongst many other greats.
Over the next few weeks we will share a number of pieces themed around our performance from Movement Festival in Detroit earlier this year. This was a certainly a show to remember, as all possible weather and technical conditions went against us on the day and we were on the edge of cancelling the show. We endured everything from flight delays, through to rain at an outdoor festival (never a winner), the roof of our tent splitting in two and tons of water pouring millimetres away from the live rig, monitoring issues, sound bleed from the other stages, you name it! On top it was the very first time we welcomed both Amp Fiddler and Vril for their debut performance, so we certainly carry a couple of white hairs on our heads from this day. We rolled with the punches though and got the jam going… it was just straight magic from the very start. Gangster grooves from Vril, pure love beaming from Mr Fiddler’s soulful chords and vocals, Mathew sounded as Detroit as the native born artists performing at the festival, Sebastian was in a total flow and we ended with Amp on the microphone with the whole crowd singing along. Not a typical Circle Of Live jam to say the least :)
Four our contribution to the XLR8R+ series we kick off with a four-track offering from all the artists who took part in this jam Amp Fiddler, Mathew Jonson, Sebastian Mullaert and Vril.
Mathew Jonson’s track, titled “When I think about Detroit,” was written especially for his live set at Movement back in 2012. It’s only been heard live once before, and it’s now available for the first time here. Amp Fiddler, a Detroit native, has delivered a track from his The Digitarians project, titled “Know Your Way.” It’s a brooding cut, lightened with some vocals towards the end. Closing the release is Vril, who returns to XLR8R+ with a more ambient cut that serves as a snapshot of his new album, details to come soon. There’s also a bonus track from Sebastian Mullaert himself, called “Ever Closer,” which is a fully-improvised live jam recorded specifically for XLR8R+.
As for extras, we have two to announce. Firstly, we have a two-hour segment of the Circle of Live Movement improvisation, the first time it’s ever been heard outside of the moment, which will appear over the next weeks. Secondly, each artist has written a ‘Live Essentials’ piece, detailing the gear they used in Detroit which is available in the form of an 16 page e-zine supplied with this release.
We want to send a massive thank you for Chuck Flask, Ernie Guerra and Sam Fotias from Paxahau / Movement Festival for the trust and giving us the opportunity to perform at and troubleshooting our debut North American Circle Of Live performance. Kevin Reynolds for running the stage with us on the day, solving all the problems we encoutered and his endless creative solutions against all the elements. Also Nick LeTellier for the wonderful photos he captured which grace the cover of this release.
Enjoy the music and thank you for all the support and good energy everyone has been sending our way!
