26-jul-08 at the Wickerman Festival, nr. Dumfries, Scotland
Influences
Aside from the music I'm known for making, my tastes are pretty broad to be honest...here's a random selection doing the rounds on the iPod at the moment:
Underworld, Sonic Youth, Elbow, Howe Gelb, Etta James, Ry Cooder, Trentemoller, Aphex Twin, Debussy, Krzysztof Penderecki, Richie Hawtin, Grandaddy, Terry Riley, Renegade Soundwave, Akufen, Massive Attack, Primal Scream, Ulrich Schnauss, Alex Reece, Emergency Broadcast Network, Metallica, Detroit Escalator Company, Pavement, Nathan Fake, Fela Kuti, Switch, Angelo Badalamenti, Terry Riley, Korn, M.A.N.D.Y., ...and on it goes.
None of that probably makes any sense of what my music sounds like....
Sounds Like
STRONGARM ARCHIVES :: Tuesday 15 July
Exclusive three-hour mix from your host, Elite Force.
Welcome to the Strongarm Sessions Endgame.
Six & a half years ago I began broadcasting a weekly show using some dodgy old software on my Mac & streaming live two-hour sets to the 'world' via the nubreaks.com servers over in the US. With a hand-held mic, the sirens of south east London blaring in the background, an irreverent online chatroom and my manic puppydog, Spears, periodically running off with my headphones, it was a random affair to say the least ... and one that became even more so after I moved out to the country to enjoy an isolation which was splendid, save for the lack of broadband for two whole years. During this time I drove 150 miles to London & back to play live from the studios of BreaksFM every Thursday - harsh times, but they did build a massive following for the show, and one that has only been enhanced during the last 3 years with protonradio. With the show routinely receiving over 20,000 downloads per session & having racked up no fewer than 4 Breakspoll Nominations for Best Radio Show, I've had a blast doing it, but I've also realized recently that the time is now right for a chance of focus, and whilst it won't necessarily be the 'end' of the Sessions, there will be no further regular shows after this one, as I look to focus on running my U&A imprint, and spending more time working on new music. As ever, the Tech-Funk forum, and Strongarm Sessions Mailing List remain the primary places to head to for information on the music you've been hearing over the years, and I'd suggest that you sign up to the mailing list if you're not already a member, as this will be the first place to receive notification of any future downloadable mixsets as well as offering up free guestlist places for most shows.
01 Rolling Stones - You Can't Always Get What You Want (Soulwax mix) [CDR]
02 Re Dupre - Sound is Sexy (Original) [Lo Kik]
03 Modeselektor - The White Flash (feat Thom Yorke) (Trentemoller Mix) [BPitch Control]
04 Ned Shepard - A Fine Balance (Lutzenkirchen Mix) [Harem]
05 Ido Ophir & Miki Litvak - Shnorkel [eVapour8]
06 Hyperion - Gotta Hold It (Calvertron Mix) [U&A]
07 Harnessnoise - Take No Connect (TG Mix) [Phobic]
08 Paolo Mojo - Home [CDR]
09 Eargasm - Everybody Dance [L8-Night]
10 Zodiac Cartel - Robots (part one) [CDR]
11 Unknown - Unknown [CDR]
12 Presets - My People (DIM Mix) [CDR]
13 Elite Force - White Lightning (Broombeck Mix) [U&A]
14 Workidz - Washingmachine [Toolroom]
15 Perc - Cylinder Swing [CDR]
16 Mark Brown - New Heights (Christian Smith & John Selway Mix) [CDR]
17 Hardfloor - Silver Box (EF re-touch) [Hardfloor/CDR]
18 Fake Blood - Blood Splashing (Fake Blood theme) [CDR]
19 Unknown - Violator (Jack Beats Mix) [CDR]
20 Elite Force - Jack the Joint (Zodiac Cartel's Bumpin' Mix) [U&A]
21 Sharon Philips Vs the Bassface [CDR]
22 Hatiras & Jelo - Donkey Punch [Hatrax]
23 Refunk - Mr. Mole (Rektchordz Mix) [ReConnect]
24 Ryan Galbraith - This is My Sound [CDR]
25 D Ramirez - Venus & Mars (Meat Katie & D Ramirez Mix) [Lot49]
26 X-Press2 - Smoke Machine (James Talk Mix) (EF Re-master) [Skint/CDR]
27 TJR - Sonic Chronic [Wearhouse]
28 New Originals - 1979 [White]
29 Chemical Brothers - Electronic Battle Weapon 10 [Virgin]
30 The Subs - Papillon (Yuksek & Brodinski Mix) [Lelktroluv]
31 Wolfgang Gartner - Frenetica [Kindergarten]
32 Noir - Planta [Noir Music]
33 Freaxx Brothers - Tension (Popof Mix) [CDR]
34 Dubfire - Emissions [Minus]
35 Aquaviva & Madox - Feedback (Original Mix) [Mantra]
36 Cirez D - Knockout [Mouseville]
37 Evil Nine - Lovers Not Fighters (BLIM mix) [Botchit]
38 Stri Fry - Breakin' on the Streets (PMT mix) [Kilowatt]
39 Marco Bailey & Tom Hades - Blast [MB Elektronics]
40 Alex Dolby - Hazy Way (Evil Nine Mix) [Mantra Breaks]
41 The Roots feat. Lior Attar - Lo Step [Quad]
42 Frank & Nancy Sinatra - Something Stupid [CDR]
::: end of transmissions :::
Latest Elite Force Releases
Elite Force - No Turning Back (Remixes) [Re:Vision 005] [UAA012] OUT NOW :: Exclusively at Beatport
Elite Force returns with surely the strongest instalment to date in his Re:vision remix project featuring no fewer than 5 remixes of 4 tracks from a bygone era, disembowelled and reanimated by a selection of the great and good from today"s underground electronic music scene.
The ball is set rolling by Mowgli & Solo who slice up "No Turning Back" into a bouncing and shuffling gem of a track, with teasing top lines, vocal stabs and a bottom end that just keep on bumpin". This is pure, deep Dirtybird classiness from the Italian wonk-king.
Next out of the gates is stable mate Butter Party who takes his shot at re-crafting "No Turning Back". A tough 4/4 drum pattern quickly launches into a bottom end driven frenzy with jacking percussion offsetting the growling distorted bass. A sizeable breakdown leads to a syncopated æ rhythm section before sliding back out the other side and into the madness once more. This is taking no prisoners!
Just as things are reaching a pinnacle of sound overload, the door is opened to Bearweasel who slide into the control seat and turn their deep house alchemy to EF"s "Gasoline Alley". Things get stripped to the bone and rebuild into a simple but highly effective dub house version that gives real balance to this package.
As day turns to night, so the understated gives way to the bold and brutal. And so enters Dylan Rhymes. Once again he brings his inimitable production skills to bear on "Haiku" and gives us a dirty, fidgetty and raucous reworking that challenges you to keep still. Outstanding as always.
Finally we have Kid Blue who gets the chance to deconstruct "Vapour Trail" and splice it back together in his own image. The result is a piece of quality big-room jackin electro house that closes things off perfectly.
A great selection of mixes that's received the best and broadest reaction yet of any release on U&A!
"No Turning Back (Mowgli and Solo mix) will play this. No Turning Back (Butter Party remix) is great with the shuffled break." - [Peter Kruder (Kruder & Dorfmeister / K7)]
"Elite force f*cking solid as usual. will bang this joint tonight bitchez!!!" - [Dj Dan (InStereo)]
"Dig this sound ... dope remix from Dylan Rhymes!" - [Uberzone (LA)]
"Butter Party mix in the box. cheers." - [Andy Gardner (Plump Djs / Fingerlickin)]
"All tracks are top notch & very difficult to pick a fav, loving the squelchy vibes on the Butter Party & Dylan Rhymes mixes but the Kid Blue one is definitely more of the sound we push in our dj sets, wicked stuff!!" - [Ryan (Bitrok / Dead Famous]
"Wow! I love this very deep and driving bearweasel remix. these crazy cats are getting better and better!" - [Daniel Becker (Trickski)]
"Cool package of mixes. Feeling the Dylan Rhymes and Butter Party remixes." - [Scott Kirkland (Crystal Method / Indie 103.1 FM)]
"Kid Blue Mix is Banging!" - [Ctrl Z (The End / Pyro Radio)]
"This one of the best mix packages i had in a long time still not sure which is my fav but i do like Mowgli and Solo" - [Sonique
"Loving the deepness, Bearweasel are on fire at the moment. Great release." [Richard Belsom (Cubism / Club Class)]
"nice electro house monster from BP" - [Kevin (Fine Cut Bodies / Chi)]
"we love M &S!" - [Zombie Disco Squad (London)]
"the Dylan Rhymes mix is the one i'll be playing out - Greatness!" - [Peter Tall (Bassbin Twins)]
"5 absolute bangers here! full support from me as usual. The Mowgli and Solo remix of No Turning back is just gobsmackingly good. I fucking LOVE it!!! U&A are killing it at the moment! raaaah!!!" - [Dopamine (Title Fight / Fight Club)]
"Another slammer from U&A. Beaver turns up the heat on this one! Big sound. Will be rinsing... " - [Heavy Feet (Potty Mouth)]
"i LOVE butter parties stuff and this remix is top draw indeed. proper squelch bisniz. The dylan rhymes mix is freaking awesome as well. proper dirty vibes. kid blue drop the party action ahoy .. in fact this whole package is excellent. Chartng Butter Party at No.2" [Ben & Lex (Beatz and Bobz / NSB Radio / Brap.FM)]
"Great to see more of my favourite EF tunes getting reworked!!!! All 3 remixers have totally done them justice and their versions complement the originals very well indeed. Hats off to you guys, this is exactly the type of stuff I want to be hearing more of in dance music. Another solid set of tunes from U&A, which confirms my belief that it's by far the best label going at the moment. Dylan Rhymes mix Charted at No.1" [Introspective (Ministry / Sinister)]
"Big fan of Mowgli's already so this mix is spot-on. Will definitely play it." - [Lee Mortimer (Wearhouse Music)]
"Dylan Rhymes mix is sick!" - [Tom Real (Fakt / Samurai FM)]
"the bearweasel dub for me!" - [Martin Stimming (Stimming / Diynamic)]
"All good but Butter Party throwing it down. Loving the 3/4 time breakdown!!!" - [Dylan Rhymes (Lot 49)]
"lovin the Bearweasel vibes!!" [Kevin Griffiths (Tsuba / Issst!)]
"Feeling the Haiku Remix" [Napt (Funkatech)]
Simon Shackleton’s Elite Force project began way back in 1996, debuting on his own newly founded Fused and Bruised label with a series of peerless 12s and remixes. After a successful five years,he put Fused and Bruised on the backburner to concentrate on production work, and following several years with Whole9Yards and Moonshine he became a mainstay recording artist for Adrift Recordings (formally known as Kingsize Records) before moving on to set up his own Used & Abused imprint.
Often credited for being a lynchpin in the developing the tech-funk genre (an amalgamation of breaks, house, techno and electro) he has released a series of highly successful singles in the past few years, finding broad support from DJs and musicians across the board, including the likes of James Zabiela, the Plump DJs, Laurent Garnier and Damian Lazarus.
In addition to these solo singles, Meat Katie has been a regular collaborator with Elite Force, a relationship that had begun in 2003 with the massive-selling 'Toba'. As a remixer, Elite Force has always been in considerable demand, with re-workings for the likes of Grandmaster Flash, Crystal Method, Jungle Brothers, Stereo MCs, UNKLE, Infusion, Rennie Pilgrem, Shiloh and Dylan Rhymes all contributing to his reputation as one of the most creative and effective remixers around.
Elite Force's music has also been the soundtrack to many a movie, with a huge list of impressive A-list credits to his name, including the likes of the Matrix, Charlie's Angels, Arlington Road, Mortal Kombat, Crow, The Bone Collector, The Jackyll, Spiderman 2 and his music has appeared on a wide array of TV shows, from CSI to Top Gear, from Football Focus to LA Doctors. He's also soundtracked a number of computer games, including no fewer than 5 FIFA games, several of the Wipeout series, The Matrix,and Motorstorm 1, and he is currently writing some bespoke music for the sequel to one of the biggest games of all time......
On the decks, Elite Force has been a prime mover since 1990 when he cut his teeth playing huge student nights and self-promoted acid house nights in the South West of England, before moving up to London and ultimately gravitating towards his tech-funk style, with which he now has a full diary of global bookings and has become known as one of the top technicians on a circuit that has included massive shows in Hungary, Australia, Italy, USA, Czech Republic, India, Turkey, Spain, Japan and China, as well as numerous festival slots including Glastonbury, Coachella and the Glade. His bi-weekly strongarm sessions webcasts have become something of an intraweb institution since their inception back in 2001, and the most recent archives should be your first stop if you've not come across the Force in action before :)
LATEST FROM THE ROAD ...
27/oct-07 : Opel Halloween @ Mighty, San Francisco, USA I flew in to the US during the day, and that night played after my good friend Dylan Rhymes at one of the best parties of the year in San Fran. The costumes were simply out of this world, and that alone upped the energy levels by a good few notches.
06/oct-07 : Sfinks Club, Sopot, POLAND. First time for me at the lovely Sfinks Club in Sopot, part of the tri-city in Poland, and was a great, excitable night. I was on the 6am flight home though, which hurt like hell!
30/sep-07 : Babyface, Shanghai, CHINA. Okay, so I've played several times at Babyface in Shanghai and they've always been good shows, but this one was a little special as it was the start of the Chinese National Holiday, which lasts a week and saw the club absolutely mobbed. My good friend and excellent host, Anders, took thousands of photos and these are just two of my favourites from the night.
23/mar-07 : Angel Club, Beijing, CHINA This was the first time I'd played in Beijing despite having been to China a few times, and it was a superb night all round - at one point people were shaking the booth so hard I thought the whole lot was gonna collapse!
17/feb-07 : La Serata, Juarez, MEXICO. Awesome night over the border from El Paso in Juarez and my first time playing in Mexico. The club was packed, killer soundsystem and the people were party ANIMALS :)
25/nov-06 : Harbourlife, Sydney, AUSTRALIA. This was an amazing day. First up I flew out of Melbourne to arrive in Sydney for a late afternoon set at the mangificent Harbourlife (pictured), and then straight from there to Brisbane to play at the MoonBar, which was another highlight of a tour for which the term 'an embarrassment of riches' could have been coined.
21/oct-06 : The crazy crowd @ Switch in Tbilisi, GEORGIA. Had been looking forward to my first trip to Georgia for as long as Meat Katie'd been raving about the crowds out there. And I wasn't disappointed :) Some of the friendliest, most passionate & committed people I've met.
Have A Break @ Cinema Club, Kiev, UKRAINEMore on this on the new blog, but it was a wicked night all round - played for two & a half hours with loads of new stuff to throw at the crowd after another long week in the studio.
DISCOGRAPHY
albums
No Turning Back Whole9Yards
Modern : Primitive (october 2006) Adrift
12" Singles / Downloads
Mainframe Wrekka Fused & Bruised
Cool Like The Man (Remixes) (12") Fused & Bruised
Turf Wars Vol.1. Derailed
This is Latinamyl EP Fused & Bruised
Call it Brisco EP Fused & Bruised
Bombin' the Subway Fused & Bruised
Here Come The Flow / Krushyn / Godfather with a Groove Fused & Bruised
Gasoline Alley (remix by Dylan Rhymes) Whole9Yards
Curveball / Haiku Whole9Yards
Crew One / Killer Elite Moonshine US
Hi 5 / Midnight Sun Moonshine US
Vapour Trail / Give it to the People Whole9Yards
No Turning Back / Body Electric Whole9Yards
Melodik Hypnotik / Jack the Joint Kingsize
Destination Australia EP EQ/Stomp AUS
Driving Me Crazy (remix by Rennie Pilgrem & Elite Force) TCR
Peyote Road / White Lightning Kingsize
Shadowbox / Ghetto Fabulous Kingsize
Pure & Free / Reclaim the Airwaves (PMT remix) Lot 49
Mindfunkpsychedelic (remixes by Jesse Rose) Adrift (re-released onU&A
Heart of Darkness (remixes by Dylan Rhymes & Madox) Adrift (re-released onU&A
You (remixes by Hybrid, Perc, Elite Force & Double Black) U&A
Return2Mindfunk (remixes by Vandal, Double Black & Blende) U&A
I Don't Think So Lot49
Used & Abused (remixes by Zodiac Cartel, Klaus Hill & Dopamine, SpeculumU&A
Melodik Hypnotik [Re:Vision 001] (remixes by Miles Dyson, Riva Starr & Elite Force)U&A
Ghetto Fabulous [Re:Vision 002] (remixes by Dopamine & Fine Cut Bodies)U&A
Engine (part of Lot49 presents Lee Coombs sampler) Lot49
Modern Primitive Mixes [Re:Vision 003] (remixes by Rogue Element, Dan F & Double Black) U&A
Peyote Road [Re:Vision 004] (remixes by Hyperion (Oz) & AMB) U&A
12"s with Meat Katie
Toba Kingsize
Juju TCR
The Answer (with Roland Clark) Kingsize
Fabulous Mint 400 Kingsize
Nu-Tron / All Night Long Adrift
Divine (with Roland Clark) Adrift
selected other aliases & collaborations
Lunatic Calm - Metropol (album) Universal/MCA
Lunatic Calm - Breaking Point (album) V2/City of Angels
Lunatic Calm - Centista Universal/MCA
Lunatic Calm - Roll The Dice (12") Universal/MCA
Lunatic Calm - Leave You Far Behind Universal/MCA
Double Black - Double Black / Pipedream Thrust
Killer Elite - Triggaman TCR
Killer Elite - Mezkal Blue Black
Elite Force - You (Double Black mix) U&A
Elite Force - Return2Mindfunk (Double Black mix) U&A
Elite Force & Jem Stone - Outta SightThrust
Elite Force & Lee Coombs - Right Side of Wrong Thrust
REMIXOGRAPHY
Ajello - It's True Moving Target
Blak Twang - Travellin' Unreleased
Buffalo Daughter - Rhythm & Basement Grand Royal
Crystal Method - Starting Over Virgin
Dan F - Right On Rendition
Downpressor - Nine Ritmic
Dylan Rhymes - On the Dancefloor Blue Black
Dylan Rhymes - Superstar Adrift
Fine Cut Bodies - Trekk Far Chi
GDR - Powder 12 inch Recordings
Grandmaster Flash - White Lines Warner Brothers
Groove Armada - Get Down Columbia
Hybrid - I Choose Noise Distinctive
Jungle Brothers Vs Elite Force - Lose It Music (Elite Force mix) unreleased
Keoki - Jealousy Moonshine
Killer Elite - Triggaman TCR
Klaus Hill & Dopamine - Ah Baby! Title Fight
Kraymon - Who Wants Some? En:Vision
Los Paranoias - Lies, Lies, Lies Faith & Hope
Lunatic Calm - Centista City of Angels
Mach One - Rip Chord P.A.C.K. Music
Madoka - Plataforma Release Elements
Madox - El Magnifico Mantra
Meat Katie - Next Life Kingsize
Mild Mannered Janitors - Shoom 74 Fused & Bruised
Oblong - Playing on my Mind Exceptional
PMT - Gyromancer 10 Kilo
Quinn Whalley - Hold Tight W9Y
Recycler - FUH115 Nation
Redlight - Play Proton
Rennie Pilgrem - Drumma TCR
Rhythm Division - No Messing W9Y
Rogue Element - Let Me Breathe Exceptional
Shiloh - Mana Electrofly
Simply Jeff - Funk Deluxe Phonomental
Speculum - Nympho Used & Abused
Stereo MCs - Set it Off Unreleased
Surreal Madrid - Flatline Rock Fused & Bruised
Surreal Madrid - Girls of the Nite Fused & Bruised
Surreal Madrid - Insanity Sauce Fused & Bruised
Toob - The Miscreant Lo Recordings
UNKLE - In a State Universal Island
