Strict Face: The Ransom Note Mix

5 Minute Read

Music

Bass driven heaters from the Australian DJ.

Australia is pushing things forward in the best way. For a long time the country self confessed to feelings of isolation and disconnection from the broader world of electronic music. Taking things into their own hands, this has very much changed and in all honesty some of the best and most exciting DJ’s are really down under.

SLG is a record label run by Strict Face – a producer and DJ who is helping to push a new wave of Bass music. It’s hard hitting, off piste and all over the place – moving quickly between tempos with jarring, disjointed sound design it’s fast paced and exciting.

This mix is very much a testament to that frenetic energy.

Based in Adelaide, he represents a new school of thought and is giving things a much needed shake up.

Listen and read below:

Who are you, where are you and what are you?

My name’s Jon. I’m currently writing this from my couch in Adelaide. I’m an office hog at dawn and an accordion player for gondola rides at dusk.

What does your music sound like? Can you draw what you think it sounds like for us (an image from the old internet is acceptable)?

This image.

Where was the mix recorded?

At home, whilst making dinner, shortly after reading about the two stray horses who broke out of Buckingham Palace. I almost spilt the marinade whilst trying to find the Kessler track.

What would be the ideal setting to listen to the mix?

While rock-climbing or trying not to suffer a panic attack at work. A high-speed bicycle chase may also suit.

What should we be wearing?

Dress to sweat, natch.

What would be your dream setting to record a mix: location/system/format?

A cosy lounge room with a bunch of lamps, a trusty CDJs + turnies/mixer/speaker set-up and a pot of green tea nearby is all I really need. At least I won’t run the risk of spilling homemade marinade that way.

Which track in the mix is your current favourite?

The Dolo Percussion cut 3/4ths in has served me well on countless jump-rope reps since that new record of his dropped, so I’ll go with that. The Autechre track which closes out the mix is a close 2nd.

What’s your favourite recorded mix of all time?

This Spencer Kincy mix. Or maybe Beautiful Swimmers’ first mixtape for The Trilogy Tapes.

If you could go back to back with any DJ from throughout history, who would it be and why?

Probably DJ Plead. Not only is Jarred a wonderful guy + amazing producer all round, he and I share a similar wavelength as DJs.

What was your first DJ set up at home and what is it now?

It feels a bit embarrassing to say, but I’ve never actually had a ‘proper’ DJ set-up ever. I started off on Virtual DJ on a Sony Vaio laptop that was on its last legs, then moved my way up to Traktor on a sturdier workhorse after the Vaio gave up the ghost. I have an Audio Technica ATLP120 to utilise on top of that now.

What’s more important, the track you start on or the track you end on?

For recorded mixes, it’s all in the take-off. For club/live sets, it’s about the smooth landing.

What were the first and last records you bought?

The first record I guilelessly used my parents’ money on was Hit Machine Vol. 16. Hitting ‘repeat’ on The Prodigy’s ‘Breathe’ used to drive them up the wall at the time. Tensions were compounded a year later when I realised the genius of Timbaland’s production on ‘Pony’ and the grandiosity of ‘It’s All Coming Back To Me Now’ got lodged in my head.

I wanna say the first record I dropped my own hard-earned cash on was “Kid A,” but it may have been something boring. The most recent records I bought were The Shadow Ring’s Put the Music In Its Coffin and Phill Niblock’s Nothin’ To Look At, Just A Record.

If this mix was an edible thing, what would it taste like?

Durian.

If it was an animal, what would it be?

A magpie.

One record in your collection that is impossible to mix into anything?

It used to be Davis Galvin’s ‘Rissp‘ before I realised they just took out a beat at the start of the track (it didn’t take long for that realisation to set in, mind.) Now I’ve yet to find an appropriate scenario where playing Ian O’Brien’s ‘Intelligent Desert III (Move With Time)‘ won’t result in dancers scratching their heads.

Upcoming in the world of…

As far as Strict Face is concerned, I’ve just wrapped up a run of shows around Adelaide during festival season, so I’m working on a glut of sketches as we speak. Some of those will eventuate into music worth releasing after I return from a brief sabbatical overseas around the end of winter. I’m still trying to milk the last EP I put out, for all its worth, as well.

Anything else we need to discuss?

Advocating for a free Palestine, first of all. I’d also say the two horses that broke out of Buckingham Palace, but that’ll be old-hat by the time this goes to print, so let’s run with Jacobus Capone’s “Forewarning” and Harris Dickinson instead.