As if the Electric Zoo festival hasn’t already gotten us beyond excited for this coming Labor Day weekend, the ambitious minds behind Blkmarket Membership, ReSolute, and Esthetik are putting their heads together to give New York City music lovers yet another reason to strap on our dancing shoes Sunday night – the Bpitch Control Showcase. We’re not ashamed to say we quite literally jumped for joy when we first glimpsed this incredible line-up. Ellen Allien, Sascha Funke, Nicolas Jaar, Kiki, Alexi Delano, Taimur & Fahad, and Steven Letigre will all get behind the decks for a no holds barred journey into techno heaven sure to carry you late into the next morning. You better start resting up now, as you will not want to miss a second of this musical event of epic proportions that promises to go even above and beyond the stellar  events we are used to seeing from these party facilitators.

As a DJ, producer, label owner and fashion producer, headliner Ellen Allien not only crosses universes, but rather tries connecting multiple genres through the creation of an independent culture. Her label Bpitch Control, which she founded in 1999, is one of the most successful independent labels in Berlin and beyond, and has released a host of boundary pushing techno, electro, and breaks from international producers like Sascha Funke, Kiki, Moderat, Modeselektor, Paul Kalkbrenner, Thomas Muller, Telefon Tel Aviv, Jahcoozi and more. Bpitch’s mentality is influenced by Berlin’s counterculture, and thus in some ways Bpitch Control represents the musical and thereby cultural and creative movement that has flourished in Berlin over the past ten years.

Ellen Allien – Flashy Flashy (Nicolas Jaar Remix)

Along with Ellen Allien, Bpitch’s second in command Sascha Funke will bring his particular brand of techno that sways between the polarity of emotional overload and concrete rationale. In addition, Kiki will be making his long awaited return to New York and will be adding his unique style which encapsulates everything new and exciting about electronic music, and New Yorker Alexi Delano, who has been a very important part of electronic dance music for the past two decades, will also be delivering his trademark sound. Have a listen below to one of Sascha Funke’s new collobarations with Nina Kraviz.

Sascha Funke vs Nina Kraviz – Moses

Completing the Bpitch Showcase will be electronic music’s new wonderboy Nicolas Jaar, who will be performing a very special live set. Nicolas Jaar was born in New York but quickly relocated to Santiago de Chile in the 90’s only to come back to his birth place as a teenager. Haunted by Mulatu Astatke and Erik Satie, Nico started to make organic electronic music in 2004 at the age of 14. At 17, he made his debut with “The Student EP” on Wolf and Lamb Music with a remix by Seth Troxler who called him “one of the most talented minds dance music is about to see develop”. In recent years he has continued producing and played live all around the world, and has even started his own label, Clown and Sunset. Have a listen to one of his mixes below recorded live inside Brookyn’s own Bunker.

Nicolas Jaar – Wolf & Lamb Showcase Live at The Bunker 3.13.09 [Download]

RSVP to bpitchny@gmail.com for more information and to learn the location. Advanced tickets through Resident Advisor are sold out, but tickets are still available from Halcyon Records in DUMBO, Brooklyn, or at the door on the night of the event.

In today’s awesome collaboration news, Robyn will debut a brand-new version of “Dancing On My Own” when she performs with Deadmau5 at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards. Deadmau5, the evening’s in-house DJ, is also set to collaborate with Travie McCoy and Jason Derülo to rework some of their current hits. Other scheduled performers include Eminem, Usher, Kanye West, Justin Bieber, Drake, B.o.B, and Florence + The Machine. The MTV Video Music Awards will be broadcast live from Los Angeles on September 12 at 9 PM Eastern Time.

Last Saturday, HARD Summer Tour hit New York City’s Terminal 5 as the second to last stop on their nationwide journey bringing dance music to the masses. Terminal 5, whose capacity is set at 3,000 heads, was completely sold out; packed wall to wall on every level with enthusiastic partygoers who were nearly bursting at the seams with energetic excitement. New Yorkers JDH & Dave P started off the night with an opening set of disco tinged house music, which provided the perfect appetizer for Destructo’s heavily electro influenced set, heating the dancefloor up in earnest. By the time Sinden took the stage, the crowd had been reduced to one heaving organism that was pressed up against the barrier as he spun a set of solid bass music, bring in elements of house, dubstep, and garage. Canadians Crystal Castles closed out the night with their explosive performance of experimental electronic music created through the use of a live band.

Thanks to our good friends over at URB Magazine, we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to sit down and chat with UK producer/DJ Sinden who has revitalized the club scene with his own brand of forward thinking remixes and productions, clever mash ups, and genre-melting DJ sets. Although Sinden’s sound is associated with different forms of house music, his original influences while growing up stemmed from hardcore hip-hop, the kind that you have to be over 16 to purchase (in the UK), and that your parents would confiscate and destroy if the records were ever found. He sights Public Enemy and N.W.A. as primary influences, which then lead him to branch into the discovery of electronic music through jungle and garage. Pulp Fiction’s “Alex Reece”, which he describes as soulful, sparse, quirky, minimal, and different, fundamentally changed his perception of electronic music and inspired him to truly embrace dance music.

His new label, Grizzly, is in many ways set to reflect Sinden’s own eclectic taste and his desire to keep things fresh and constantly pushing forward. Although house has always been the unifying focal point for the music Sinden has been involved in with regards to both his own production and DJ sets, Grizzly in many ways represents a move away from the traditional 4×4, and an attempt to create and experiment with new patterns and ways of looking at club music.The direction that the label will take is still very fluid, with Sinden’s own innate sense for sound acting as the primary compass – certainly nothing to complain about. Sinden’s own transition into UK Funky and more cutting edge sound has mostly stemmed from a boredom with the over-saturation of generic basslines, which stirred up a desire to move forward and keep things interesting, through tapping into unique micro scenes from all around the world, such as guarachero and old go-go rhythms. In this sense, he has never been much of a “genre” artist, preferring to dabble in many different areas and switch up his production, keeping us hanging on his every release.

Sinden will head back to the studio at the end of this year to work on some solo material, but there’s plenty from Grizzly to keep your dancing shoes moving until then. You can look forward to the release of a collaborative record between Felix Buxton of Basement Jaxx’s disco alias Jon Gionvanni and Sinden, as well as new material from Bassanova (Grahmzilla and Jess Jubilee’s project). You should also keep your ears peaked for Sinden’s remix of Lone’s “Once in a While”, which is sure to be a killer track, and as always, future releases from his role as one half of The Count & Sinden.

Check out the full photo gallery from this edition of HARD Summer HERE.

According to his own description, Claude VonStroke does not scowl and look mean while he DJs. He does not pretend to know everything and he will be nice to you and your friends. He is grateful to be doing music for a living and he knows that the reason people go to parties is to have fun. If you want to act cool and not have any fun then please do not book him.

It’s probably due to this attitude that dirtybird has always been synonymous with sweaty bass-lines, quirky ideas, bumpin’ funk, and most importantly, FUN. It is therefore only fitting that a label based on a philosophy of bringing smiles to the dance-floor was created by a party. Claude VonStroke’s enigmatic tech funk label released its first record in Janaury 2005, but the idea actually began in 2002 during the production of “Intellect,” one of the most intensive studies on DJs and producers of house and techno music ever filmed. Director Claude VonStroke (aka Barclay Crenshaw) created the concept of the label in order to supply tracks for the DVD soundtrack, and in 2003 his friend Christian Martin purchased a massive portable sound system and began throwing outdoor parties in San Francisco called “dirtybird” with the grand idea of changing the landscape of San Francisco house music by throwing an epic free party in the park based on a new sound.

In 2005, “dirtybird” the record label began releasing vinyl. At the same time, the DJ alias “Claude VonStroke” was created as a joke, but the name stuck forever after the debut record “Deep Throat” sold through more than 11,000 vinyl copies worldwide. Since then, both the label and the dirtybird party have enjoyed great success, particularly through the release of classic dirtybird records such as “Deep Throat,” “Stoopit,” “Who’s Afraid of Detroit?,” and “The Whistler.” Artists on the label are mostly from San Francisco (like Justin Martin, Worthy, and Claude VonStroke), but the label has recently been expanding beyond its West Coast home base to include a more diverse roster of talent.

As for the man himself, since 2005, VonStroke has released two artist albums as well as a Fabric mix and over 25 remixes for a wide range of commercial and underground artists from Indy rock group “The Rapture” to Detroit techno legend Kevin Saunderson. Tour wise, Claude has headlined almost every major club, festival and basement after-party in the world. He will be appearing Saturday, September 4th on the Sunday School Grove stage at Electric Zoo Festival, an opportunity to experience the tech house master for yourself that you definitely do not want to miss.

To celebrate the five year anniversary of one of America’s quirkiest labels, a 3 CD package with over 50 tracks has been put together representing the past, present, and future of the label.

Disc One – The Past: Includes all the greatest hits and most loved dirtybird tracks including everthing from Claude VonStroke’s classic “Who’s Afraid of Detroit?” to the Martin Brothers hyphy-house anthem, “Stoopit.”

Disc Two – The Present: Justin Martin, the man behind DB001, one half of the Martin Brothers, and one of the original founders of the dirtybird party represents the full catalog with a superb DJ mix using bit, pieces, and parts from over 30 dirtybird classic and future tracks.

Disc Three – The Future: Claude VonStroke spent almost a full year A&R-ing this cd filled with new classics and crazy cuts representing the future of the dirtybird sound, further expanding the label from SF to Europe, Canada and beyond.

Visit the dirtybird WEBSITE to pick up a copy of Five Years of dirtybird, as well as other releases from the label’s impressive array of talent, and to see what else the dirtybird gang is up to.

Just remember, Claude VonStroke is only coming to see you if you want to enjoy yourself and get sweaty and nasty. If you want to wear a sweater and frown in the VIP section, he is not the right DJ for you. With that in mind, we’ll see you Saturday at Electric Zoo, stage front and center.

This Saturday, August 21, Club Infinity returns to Santos Party House for the third installment of their club night of future-minded, bass-driven dance music from around the world. Brought to you by the good folks over at MeanRed, this weekend’s party features resident DJs Kingdom and Dre Skull, as well as Prince William, Physical Therapy & $hayne, and very special guest Girl Unit.

Hailing from the far off shores of London and from Bok Bok and L-Vis 1990’s reputable Night Slugs label, Girl Unit is known for his ability to seamlessly blend deep and melodic variations of Juke, R&B, Hip-Hop instrumentals, South African House, Ballroom Grime, UK Funky, and his own unique reinterpretations of all of the above through his dynamic sets. His own productions also take in vintage, star-lit house, dramatic R&B and 808-heavy Chicago dancefloor gear, creating a product that is not only innovative and interesting, but downright impossible to resist moving to. His track IRL, described by Bok Bok as “rat alert meets Juke @ 135″, has garnered some serious well deserved hype, and we’re itching see what he comes up with next.

This is Girl Unit’s first US tour, and he will be playing a few dates on both coasts, with New York City lucky enough to be counted among them. With only one official release and a smattering of remixes and other tracks to his name, Girl Unit nonetheless displays a keen ear for sound that is completely on point, and an impressive talent and ability that you will not want to miss witnessing firsthand.

For a taste of the coming action this Saturday, check out Girl Unit’s brand new killer XLR8R Podcast below, brimming with the latest dubplates and unreleased tunes to get you pumped.

Tickets are $5 with RSVP HERE, or $10 at the door. We also have two free tickets to give away to one lucky winner, just fill out the form below to enter. Contest closes this Friday at noon. See you on the dancefloor!