All the way from Paris, disco-electro producer, Monsieur Adi, proudly released his second EP Fire Fire Fire on February 20th from Technofavrik Records. Adi introduced us to the EP in September with the album-titled single “Fire Fire Fire,” which caught the attention of many and helped energize the hype for this 6-track EP.

Monsieur Adi – Fire Fire Fire

The album is set in an orchestral landscape filled with dark, mission-hungry electro that influences both the instrumentals and vocals throughout. Monsieur Adi ignites the album into a “modern-day symphony” that peaks at many epic scenes with pulsing beats and rock-influenced flow. For vocals, Adi reached out to top UK singer/song writer Gary Go who gave input for the tracks “Fire Fire Fire,” “Blood,” and “Last Stand.”

During the 2 years since his first EP “We Are The Romans,” he’s been releasing a variety of collaborations and remixes from the works of Visitor, Daft Punk, Justice, Ellie Goulding, and Madonna that indeed gave listeners much anticipation for the EP. However, as Fire Fire Fire is expected to grasp a considerable amount of respect, Adi is labeling it only as an excerpt for what’s to come. Later this year, he plans to release a full-length album titled Empire – stay tuned.

In the meantime, you can now purchase Fire Fire Fire today on iTunes.

Monsieur Adi – Blood

In addition, Adi is currently spearheading a remix contest for his track “Requiem” until March 5th. He’s thoughtfully posted the stems for the song in a SoundCloud set that you can download and begin transforming. Three winners will be selected: “One remix will be chosen by Monsieur Adi and Technofavrik. The other will be chosen by the people.” You can follow the status of the contest, and later on, contribute to voting on his Facebook and Twitter.

We’ve covered the work of Will Phillips a few times on the blog before but much has changed since our last update in September. Will previously released dreamy synthpop under the name Little Loud up until 2012 when he decided to rebrand as Tourist. Getting comfortable in the new outfit, he’s preparing for his debut Placid Acid EP set to release on March 12th via UK label Make Mine.

Just about a month ago, Will gave his introduction to Tourist by streaming the album’s first song titled “Placid Acid.” The track carries the orchestral rhythm and high-pitched electronic characteristics that we saw with his work as Little Loud and has already received a substantial amount of feedback from listeners. This week he let loose another EP preview, “Jupiter,” which is yet another catchy tune that stretches vocal echoes across an electropop landscape – listen to it streamed below. Both of these previews give us another refreshingly smooth taste of his production in anticipation of the EP to come. From initially being a known as a remixer and slowly dabbling his way into original production, Will has certainly worked his way up to confidently building an EP as well as beginning to do live performances.

Stay tuned to his Facebook and SoundCloud for more upcoming previews and the official release of Placid Acid EP. Tracklist is as follows:

1. Placid Acid
2. Forgive
3. Jupiter
4. Fires

Most of his previous work as Little Loud has been disposed but some tracks are still available for listen on Myspace.

Put on a cup of tea and grab your slippers. Relatively unknown before 2011, Sebastian Genz, aka Moomin, has released some of the coziest house music of late with The Story About You. The first full length under his current moniker, this long player is bubbling with tracks that ebb and flow yet never really take you any place in particular. And in this instance, one couldn’t be more content to go absolutely nowhere.

Give the opener “Doobiest” about two minutes to put you in a state of hypnosis. Samples of swirling waves and seagulls drift into the distance beyond drum programming with enough grit to remind you that there’s sand between your toes. Forget the beach though – this one’s just bleak enough to make it the ideal soundtrack for a winter nap on a gray Sunday.

Moomin – Doobiest by Blisspop

Fans of John Roberts take note – this album stands right up to Glass Eights, offering a similarly beautiful, introspective take on house music without being too flowery or ambient. It’s got grit in all the right places. Put that in your pipe and smoke it…in your slippers and robe, of course.

Buy The Story About You at Smallville Records or Beatport.

We had a chance to catch up with Ben Silver, 1/3 of Chicago-based house music enthusiasts Orchard Lounge and discuss clubs, festivals, talking through turntables and their upcoming trip to Washington DC.

Orchard Lounge formed in Chicago back in 2000. How did the three of you join together and where did you come up with your name?

The 3 of us met in Chicago after Spencer and I graduated from the University of Wisconsin in Madison. We both moved to Chicago and there we met Spencer’s future wife, the Queen B. We shared the love of similar music and collecting rare records. Way too many times we would end up spinning records until the wee hours after we would go to the clubs or shows. That was how the name came to be – I used to live on Orchard Street, and my place was a spot where we would often “Lounge” out. The next year Spencer and I became roommates and once again it happened to be on Orchard Street. Coincidentally, Bethany also lived exactly 10 blocks south -on Orchard Street. The name just stuck.

All three of you have a previous background in music prior to joining forces. Spencer with the violin, Ben with the guitar and Bethany with the clarinet. Were you each able to bring unique elements to the group upon its formation and do you still see this holding true today?

Anything from seeing your first concert to learning to play an instrument inspire and influence people in their own way. I have always felt that playing music can be very therapeutic and I love playing guitar around the house when home. I look at it in a much different way than DJ’ing and just like DJ’ing, I wanted to learn how because I was heavily inspired by different music. In the case of guitar, it was 70′s jazz guitar that really made me want to learn. That lead to a love of collecting records and really trying to understand them which is a huge part of DJ’ing and we all share that. Also we are focusing heavily on production and a background in music has been really helpful for all of us.

Orchard Lounge sets themselves apart from many others because you not only tour with DJ’s but bands as well on a consistent basis. One relationship that comes to mind is the strong bond you share with the Disco Biscuits and several other jam bands. Tell us how that came about and the differences between touring with bands vs. DJ’s?

We love all kinds of music and before DJ’ing I used to be a big Phish fan and the Disco Biscuits were another band I used to see as often as possible. We used to share DJ mixes with lots of fans of theirs instead of just focusing on people who listen to DJ’s. Later we played Camp Bisco and a number of other events which exposed some people to sounds they may not normally have been listening to like house music which diversified the listeners quite a bit. It is totally different playing with bands because we are opening and then in some cases playing a short set during the set break to get the crowd fired up. Much different than when it is our own show because like any supporting act, we are trying to get the place warmed up however some of the most fun moments we have had are when the band comes out and starts the set with a “segue”, playing over our last records. When it’s our own show, we like to play as long of a set as possible and try to take the listener on a journey for as many hours as we are given.

Which do you enjoy more: Performing in clubs or festivals and why?

Clubs.
Two totally different worlds and it’s a blast getting to play these amazing festivals, especially when in front of a huge crowd which is thrilling. However, there is a reason why DJ’s and clubs go hand in hand. There is something to be said about a nice DJ booth, a big sound-system and a room of people dancing for hours on end. That is where the magic can really happen.

Your mixes and live sets frequently incorporate the use of samples and really help bring together the many genres of music you blend together. Was this a collaborative decision or is their a leader of the “samples” brigade?

Sampling is fun to do and since we don’t really talk to the crowd, it is a way we can express a feeling..or a joke with the crowd but through the music. Bethany really has a lot of samples and it is a quirky way for her personality to shine through as well. We’re all pop culture freaks so often times we hear something and think “I should record that”. It helps us to stay current and we’d rather talk through the turntables than on a microphone.

We know you’ve got a large fan base in the Northeast and have consistently rolled thru Baltimore in the past. Who/What convinced you to come down to Washington DC for the show and are you excited to perform at U Street Music Hall?

We all love DC but this time around it was all U Street. Aside from the obvious places like Red Rocks or Hammerstein Ballroom, I can’t think of a venue where EVERYBODY we speak to says it’s the coolest venue around. Just about everybody who has mentioned U Street says it’s their favorite place to see music, so we are really excited. Since it opened, we have had fans suggesting/requesting we play there.

What can we expect from Orchard Lounge in 2012?

Original music released, more mixes and lots of sweaty nights!

Check out Bethany and Spencer’s latest mix, “The Living Room Sessions Vol. 2″ as they explore the deeper, sinister side of house music.

Lokkenic (Spencer & Bethany Lokken) – Living Room Sessions Vol. 2

And don’t forget to catch them at U Street Music Hall on Wednesday January 11th with yours truly. Doors are at 9 and it’s only five bucks. You can grab your tickets here.

I confess. I totally disregarded posting the debut release of electronic duo Jewellers about 2 months back. Might have been a good thing knowing I would have sobbed all over the article. However, I’m reluctant to hear that the group just released more work, which I’ll mix right in with the old news if you don’t mind.

Producers Gareth Leaman and Gareth Young reside in Newport, Wales and create their music under the moniker Jewellers. Their debut release Sleep Education was official as of October 10th on the Sounds of Sweet Nothing label, but was hitting headphones as early as spring. This provided enough time for them to proudly gain support for their hypnotic, yet arm-hair-raising tunes. The full-length album was brilliantly compiled with a set of inspiring, electronic tracks that will bring your mind to a dramatic-thinking state of sorts. Inspiration for the album and cover art may have come from sounds of cathedrals in Wales as they reflect the echoed patterns of dark, crystallized synths and looped vocals that creep into each track.

Just this past week, Jewellers let loose some more chillwaving tracks as free online releases. They’ve teamed up with Manchester shoegaze group Patterns in a collaboration release with two remixes. Alongside that release, a brand new track of theirs titled “Moonshine” was released as well, which you can grab for free via the Red Deer Club mixtape. Take a listen to the “Throwing Stones” remix below for a whiff of the most recent Jewellers work and then “Tape” from Sleep Education for a little of what the debut album has to offer. If you enjoy what you hear, jump on over to their Bandcamp and SoundCloud for free downloads of all the tracks.

Patterns – Throwing Stones (Jewellers remix)

Jewellers – Tape