out now: Jamaica Suk – Dreams Of A Distant Journey EP [Gradient]

 

Artist:
Jamaica Suk

 

Title:
Dreams Of A Distant Journey EP

 

Label:
Gradient

 

Cat#:
GRA003

 

Release Date:
16th July 2019 (vinyl)
October 2019 (digital)

 

Format:
vinyl & digital

 

Tracklist:
A1.
Dreams Of A Distant Journey
(Inland Remix)

A2.
Road Between

B1.
Dreams Of A Distant Journey
(Juho Kusti Remix)

B2.
Dreams Of A Distant Journey

 

Press Info:
Jamaica Suk returns with the third release on her quality-not-quantity imprint Gradient, with two fine originals matched by two excellent remixes.

‘Dreams Of A Distant Journey’ is an expansive soundscape of brooding, time-stretched, distorted synths which growl and morph around a heady, delayed chime motif. Ambient in structure but more brutalist in texture, its hazy feel is exacerbated by off-kilter percussive touches whose looseness add an element of freeform jazz into the mix. It’s a beast of a composition that’s fit for a sci-fi film or a mesmerising live show all the same.

‘Road Between’ is Jamaica Suk in club mode, with pummeling bass arpeggios and discordant metallic percussive rhythms firing in all directions. Subtle variations give character as cymbal hits cut in and out and reverbs push sounds further into the distance. With the bassline channelling classic electro and techno and the sound palette very much modern-day techno, it’s a potent blend.

The title track gets two excellent remixes. Inland has made his mark on both Ostgut Ton and Boiler Room, and it’s not hard to see why with his pummelling work out. Hard machine funk underpins his version with frantic bleeps pulse away under shuffling shakers and intense cymbal rides, with a thick undercurrent of rubbery bass at the heart of the matter.

Finnish master and Deep Space Helsinki man Juho Kusti provides the other remix, giving a deeper and more gentle interpretation that makes good use of the chimes over a sputtering beat. The brief breakdown gives a bigger nod to the original, and opens the door for those magnificent textures to glide over his succinct but powerful rhythms.

Side note: the title of the EP is steeped in Jamaica Suk’s family history. It was originally the name of a track by Southroad Connection, the 1970s funk band that her relative Paul McKnight performed and composed with.

 

Listen:

 

Full Track Streaming:
“Dreams Of A Distant Journey (Juho Kusti Remix)”

 

Special:
“Paradox Podcast #114”

 

Recommmendations:
Jamaica Suk’s EP “Whispers” on Gradient
Jamaica Suk’s EP “Art vs War” on Gradient

 

Buy Vinyl:
Deejay
Juno
Decks
Hardwax
Red Eye Records
more soon

 

Buy Digital:
Juno
Beatport Classic
TraxSource
Google Play
iTunes
Boomkat
more soon

 

Commercial Streaming Services:
Spotify
Deezer
Tidal
Youtube

 

Booking:
Sweatlodge Agency

 

Websites:
Jamaica Suk
Gradient

 

out now: Jamaica Suk – Whispers EP [Gradient]

 

Artist:
Jamaica Suk

 

Title:
Whispers EP

 

Label:
Gradient

 

Cat#:
GRA002

 

Release Date:
17th December 2018

 

Format:
vinyl & digital

 

Tracklist:
A1.
Stinger Ray

A2.
Fallen

B1.
Whispers

B2.
Twilight Rain

 

Press Info:
With recent appearances on Boiler Room and the Groove Magazine Podcast plus sets across Asia and Europe, Jamaica Suk’s fearsome techno sounds are winning fans far and wide. A year on from her debut release on her own Gradient label comes this stunning second volume.

Stinger Ray kicks off the EP with zingy modular-style synth sounds pulsing over a bubbling, murky bassline. Sheet metal snares punctuate the beat, with a switch-up halfway through into gnarled, distorted synth crunches catching you unaware. These brutalised rhythms morph in and out of hypnotic arpeggiated pulses to make for a hallucinatory ride with ample dashes of psychedelia throughout.

Fallen sets it outs stall immediately, with filtered down acidic bass playing out a jagged groove. A manic counterpart mimics its rhythm but dizzyingly delayed off the beat to create a rugged, funk-fuelled feel. Cymbal rides pitch up and down; unidentified snarls of FX mutate around the edges; all the while the sharp hi-hats keep the metronomic heartbeat going.

Whispers ups the intensity. Delicate, arpeggiated chime sounds set a crystalline mood before swathes of intense, darkly-tinged synths swell in and out of focus atop the throbbing kick drums. The effect is that of a factory full of machines growing a mind of their own, malfunctioning in a pleasing harmonic dissonance.

Twilight Rain (vinyl only) completes the set with infectious triple kick drum patterns underpinning dramatic drum hits and warped atmospheric shivers that create a spooky feel as droning bass tones carve a path through your speakers.

 

Listen:

 

Full Track Streaming:
“Fallen”

“Stinger Ray”

more soon

 

Special:
“Boiler Room x Pornceptual”

 

Recommmendations:
Jamaica Suk’s EP “Art vs War” on Gradient

 

Buy Vinyl:
Deejay
Juno
Decks
Red Eye Records
more soon

 

Buy Digital:
Juno
Beatport Classic
Juno
Google Play
iTunes
Boomkat
more soon

 

Commercial Streaming Services:
Spotify
Deezer
Tidal
Youtube

 

Booking:
Sweatlodge Agency

 

Websites:
Jamaica Suk
Gradient

 

out for a while: Jamaica Suk – Art Vs. War EP [Gradient]

 

Artist:
Jamaica Suk

 

Title:
Art Vs. War EP

 

Label:
Gradient

 

Cat#:
GRA001

 

Release Date:
25th January 2018

 

Format:
vinyl & digital

 

Tracklist:
A1.
Beyond Horizon

A2.
Art Vs. War

B1.
Around The Vines

B2.
Around The Vines
(Cassegrain Remix)

 

Press Info:
With her quality not quantity approach, Berlin based techno artist Jamaica Suk has built a beautifully curated body of releases over the last few years. Her EPs for Facetoface, Coal Records and L.A.G. have won her fans far and wide, and now she embarks on the next chapter in her career by launching a vinyl series, Gradient.

Gradient kicks off with a four-track release from Jamaica Suk and remixer Cassegrain. Beyond Horizon builds into a fl urry of whirring metallic noises and mind-massaging squelches, with throbbing bass tones permeating the disorientating wall of sound. Art vs War brings drunken bassline funk, with warped synth growls and dusty percussion punctuating.

Around The Vines is a less thumping affair, but its incessant rapidfire synth arpeggios are equally hypnotic, paired with ticking percussive rhythms and pulsing sub bass. Cassegrain’s remix of Around The Vines underpins the aforementioned synth refrain with a thundering tribal tom rhythm and builds the intensity further through a metallic military snare roll.

The EP and label will be supported by a Gradient Nights launch party at Mensch Meier in Berlin featuring Juho Kusti, Anders Hellberg and two very special live acts, with bespoke visuals created for the event to go alongside the music. Expect hypnotic techno and experimental sounds in a night that will engage all the senses in a deep way.

 

Listen:

 

Videos:
“Around The Vines”

“Around The Vines (Cassegrain Remix)”

 

Special:
“Pornceptual Podcast #1”

 

Buy Vinyl:
Juno
Decks
Deejay
Red Eye Records
more soon

 

Buy Digital:
JunoDownload
Beatport Classic
TraxSource
Google Play
iTunes
Boomkat
more soon

 

Commercial Streaming Services:
Spotify
Deezer
Tidal
Youtube

 

Booking:
Sweatlodge Agency

 

Websites:
Jamaica Suk
Gradient