Our Wednesday selection:
Various Artists – MEGANESIAN_Plates [MEGANESIA, MND001-MNP004)] + Interview
Hey DJ Spiderdog, please tell us your story
What was the idea behind the Meganesian_Plates compilation?
To collect 14 tracks of different artists and bring them all under one hat is quite a challenge with 4 x vinyl along with the digital release …
It took a very long time to develop, with the project being incepted in January 2021 and the first release coming out in March 2022. This is somewhat because I wanted to give the artists time to make a new track specifically for the release, but also because I wanted to have time to build a community around MEGANESIA. Before the release came out, I felt it was important to get time to know each artist, create connections between them and assist them (if they needed it) to locate and secure further opportunities for themselves.
I am hoping to be able to keep doing this moving forward as it’s been a rewarding experience and I want to continue building a community of artists who are making music for the creativity and community outcome rather than the money or the clout.
Tell us about the Australia please. Even though we are global now, there’s a lack of connection still between Europe and Australia from my point of view. We know, there’s electronic music/Techno, parties and festivals going on but … Australian labels and artists are not soo known and cannot come over often. But your project shows, the scene and artists are very active.
In Australia we are still under a kind of Imperial cultural grip, where the highest hierarchy of creative culture must come from the European cultures, closely followed by American. It’s important to acknowledge and respect the originators of house, techno and rave culture but if this were to be done genuinely, we would be placing black and queer artists at the top of the pyramid.
I’m not trying to say artists in Australia (and to another extent the Asia-Pacific) at the moment are better than those elsewhere, but I think as the world is so globalised, now there is very little disconnect, and we are certainly on-par.
The biggest issue for us to have sustaining careers here is the barrier to international touring (pretty expensive to fly overseas), but I believe if audiences here and in nearby countries start to consider Australian and Asia-Pacific artists as headliner-worthy we will be able to be paid as such, tour locally more frequently and build careers without moving overseas.
What should we know about the Australian scene?
However, the COVID-19 lockdowns we experienced caused a bit of a shake up, and it’s been super exciting to see a new generation of creators emerge, particularly promotors and party groups.
Which role plays the harder Techno /Trance/High Energy you have a strong passion for?
The first is that I’ve grown up as queer person and while this is very accepted in 2022, but like many other queer people I have a lot of lingering distress and anger from the experiences and various violences of my youth. I find the experience of playing and raving to the harder faster more powerful music incredibly therapeutic, somewhat like the exorcising of a demon.
The other answer is that when I go to a rave, I really want to have fun. I still love slower bpm Techno, Intelligent Dance Music and Deconstructed Club music but I would prefer to listen to this at home or at a listening party than at 3am in a warehouse. Sometimes I think that cool is dead and the time for cringe and fun has come. You can kind of see this with the rising popularity of Donk too!
Do you have some background stories with one or more of the artists, and or about individual tracks happening during realisation?
Crime Stoppers is the name the police use for their lesser crime syndicates, and is basically for middle class people to call up and report kids drinking in parks in their suburb etc. The samples used in this track are interviews from the pill crackdown that happened in Sydney a few years back, where many festivals were shut down due to drug fears. It’s a very comedic, but also very locally political track.
What are your wishes for the future for you and the Australian music you support?
Future projects on your label?
I also have the next release confirmed for November/December called CRATON. This will be more of a hardcore vibe of a release and will have a CD attributed to it. I’m very excited for this one as it’s again another round of my favourite artists working in this specific genre, and a couple of new friends I’ve become very close with since I started running the label.
Alright, thanks Spiderdog!
The project
My name is Spiderdog and I’m an artist and Dj who lives between Sydney and Melbourne. I’ve been working in the underground music scenes in both cities since 2009, and have watched a local resurgence in hard and high energy music emerge over the years.
Always having a passion for this but not as much of an audience as other cities and countries in the world, I wanted to gather my favorite artists both established and emerging working in the genre from across Australia, bringing them together to form an identity and push for the talent of harder styled music producers in the country.
This project has been developed for over a year now, and I’m thrilled to share the incredible work of the 14 artists who contributed to MEGANESIA’s debut release.
The label
Drawing it’s name from the continental plate which sits underneath the landmass of Australia, MEGANESIA is a new Hard Dance label focused on platforming Australian producers making hard dance and high energy techno, trance, tek, breakcore and more.
WakeUpNeo Statement:
„I’m absolutely stoked to be a part of this MEGANESIA release, as I feel that it is absolutely crucial to the evolution of Hard-Hard-Dance music in Australia. We have such incredible hard dance music in Australia but have never been given the platform compared to other countries.“
The artists
WakeUpNeo
Self described inner space astronaut from Australia’s Gold Coast WakeUpNeo has a unique talent for blending elements of psy, trance, techno and even some occasional hip hop reference points. WakeUpNeo is becoming a local leader in the trance scene, releasing and supporting local labels with a similar taste such as Selfness and The Space Between Us, plus a roster of self releases promoted by international trance pinnacle CRUDE.
Cobber
He’s a fresh face on the scene with a handful of releases and a single show; this mix is a snapshot of the sound driving interest around Cobber’s work. ‘La Haine’, his first vinyl release on Berlin imprint ‘Rascals’ has been supported by DJ Spit, Ellen alien and Hyperaktivist in Berghain and online streams. Cobber’s sonic palate combines flickering hi end, delicate sampled textures bedded in galloping bass. Rhythm creates momentum, cool tones reflect the familiar. A contrast bet- ween intensity and depth reveals a liminal, aesthetic exploration within confined
structures, a sense of life birthed out of constraint.
DJ BEVERLY HILL$
One of the most iconic Hard Dance producers in Australia at the moment and a global leader in Tek and Tribe, DJ BEVERLY HILL$ is an unstoppable force of production in both digital and hardware processes. He boasts releases on PUP- PY, RS94109, Bodycount and his own Dysphoria Records.
DJ Big Guns
Another of Australia’s most important producers in the Hard Dance Scene and another driving force of Tek and Tribe, Dj Big Guns similarly boasts releases on Morph plus hugely successful self-releases.
0055RAVE
Currently residing on the Mid North Coast of Australia on Gumbaynggirr country, 0055RAVE is bringing a fresh new sound to the Australian music scene and pioneering a wave of hard dance music. 0055RAVE‘s music can be described as a mix between trance, acid and techno and is heavily inspired by early hard dance music.
Eastern Distributor
Eastern Distributor is a Sydney based DJ/Producer, resident at Renegade, and co- host of the local SHED party bringing in the likes of Reptant, DJ Gigola and Nadia Struiwigh. His selections and productions revolve around the higher energy levels of techno, electro and bass, though isn’t limited by genre and typically follows a mood, seamlessly fused together with an unpredictable style.
Fairie
Emerging producer of ethereal soundscapes expertly blended with tantalizing trance reference points, Fairie has gained a significant following through her own self-released tracks such as Fairie’s Jig.
Obelisk
Emerging left field hard dance producer based in Sydney, with experimental sound performances released on Ma3a]ef and Chengdu based Cyanide System. Obelisk also runs local left field techno events Nexus and Transport Eora.
Crime Stoppers
Crime Stoppers is a spite project of an anonymous Eora based producer, aiming to criticize the laughable nature of our countries police force and backwards policies. Crime Stoppers puts a fat middle finger up to the festering cesspool of Murdoch dominated media that plagues our nation and has dictated many of the laws in which we dully abide by. Personally offended and pissed off, Crime Stoppers is nothing but raw, unfiltered, whacked out psychotic tekno aimed to put you deeper into the hole in which you came. Expect media snippets and political commentary amidst tribal rhythms that aim to keep you on the dance floor for
days after you should be.
Suspect Raver
Hailing from Sydney Australia, Suspect Raver has seen first hand the effect that tough laws have had on the local nightlife over the past few years. Although it was dire for most, there was still a resolute band of underground music heads that kept the soundsystems thumping throughout the weekend evenings at determined and unyielding venues as well as via „illegal“ raves which have inspired his releases on Snatchers, Filth inc. and collaborative tracks with TDJ fka Ryan Playground.
SLAMROSS1000
If you’ve ever found yourself in the club at 5:30 am checking train times then copped a hard wall of dark techno, gabber, & bass that’s held you there till the house lights came on – then you already know. If not.. meet SLAMROSS1000
Dj Ali
Hugely important Melbourne based Dj and Producer originating from Lebanon, Dj Ali has mastered both Hardware and Digital productions with releases on Falling Apart records, Live from Earth Klub, and Strictly Yes.
SHUGO NOSS
SHUGO NOSS is a producer and DJ that has been involved in the underground music scene in Naarm over the last 4 years. Co-founding the Fantaesia parties at 524 Melbourne, they began to foster their passion for quicktek and hardcore. Their style has stemmed from a deep interest in music that allows an individual to express hyper-hedonistic tendencies through heavily distorted soundscapes mixed in with psychedelic synths.
Clair Bai
Sound Designer, Artist, Model and Hardware focused music producer. Melbourne based Clair Bai is emerging with a powerful force through her self released tracks and recently platformed hardware jams on Al Gharib.
Tracklist: Various Artists – MEGANESIAN_Plates [MEGANESIA, MND001-MNP004)]
01. WakeUpNeo – Irukandji
02. Cobber – Transient
03. DJ BEVERLY HILL$ – Ece Come La Cocaina (Deviated Septum Mix)
04. DJ Big Guns – Body Traffic
05. 0055RAVE – Nebari
06. Eastern Distributor – Life Force
07. Fairie – Zhe Li
08. Obelisk – Lightbender
09. Crime Stoppers – Sniff Off
10. Suspect Raver – Service 50
11. SLAMROSS1000 – Riser
12. Dj Ali – Pan in ur Mind
13. SHUGO NOSS – Psychogenic
14. Clair Bai – Asian POV
Buy release: Vinyl // Digital
Listen on: YouTube
Follow the label:
📷 Instagram MEGANESIA
🔊 Soundcloud
