6 albums into his drum & bass career and Tom Withers still manages to perplex and fascinate. Part revered scene elder, part teenage anarchist skateboard underfoot and a middle finger raised in the face of conformity.

Klute, as he is more widely known is responsible for some of the finest electronic music of the last 3 decades and whether by choice or default was one of the front runners in the techno inspired jungle renaissance of recent times.

Unsurprisingly, Klute has enjoyed releases on many of the most respected labels in the business and is a regular feature in the sets of Marcus Intalex Goldie and more. Shortly after the turn of the century Klute set up Commercial Suicide, his own label and artistic home ever since.

Musically and ethically confrontational, Commercial Suicide has played host to some of the scenes most forward thinking producers including Amit and Dom & Roland and in many ways sums up the Klute persona as well as his musical manifesto.

 With each passing release Klute has refined his technique or reinvented it entirely all the while garnering increasing praise from ravers and critics alike with records like ‘The Emperor’s New Clothes’ and ‘No Ones listening Anymore’ being hailed as modern classics.

This week Klute will unleash his sixth full studio album ‘Music for Prophet’ which has been on repeat ever since dropping into the Example inbox! The records opener ‘Knowing How To Get There’ starts quietly, building up slowly and drawing you in. Before long you’re enveloped in swathes of lush pads, whispering synths drift into your consciousness before warm throbbing subs and a Detroit flavoured break whisk you away.

Now and for the next hour you’re in Klutes world. Eerie soundscapes, shifting melodies and b-lines; this is Klute doing what he does best. Music for prophet resonates with romanticism unattainable in all but the greatest old movies. It’s passionate and emotive, hinting at the nostalgia of bygone years. Memories of warm summer nights dance through your thoughts to the tune of an artist at the top of his game.

Don’t be fooled into thinking Klute is softening with maturity though, there is a toughness to these tracks. Each drum hit strikes with intent, placed to cause maximum effect. As the album journeys through playful liquid, epic jungle workouts and techy rollers, there’s much to keep the dance energetic here but never at the cost of the music.

In a time where less seems to be more there’s definitely no shortage of ideas on ‘Music for Prophet’. Personal highlights include the funk laden ‘Will You Still Love Me’, futuristic raver ‘Black Pony’ the universally lauded ‘Ashram’ and the savage Dom & Roland collab ‘Buy More Now’.

Clearly not one to take the easy route route, Klute once again serves up a double album with a second disk devoted to his techno and electronica explorations. Authority Belief is a retro futuristic soundtrack that veers effortlessly between euphoria and claustophic paranoia. Tracks to look out for are ‘Because You Can’ and the frankly terrifying ‘Son Of Sam’.
 
Example mag was lucky enough to catch up with Klute in advance of this latest LP offering to find out a little more of what makes him tick
 
EXAMPLE: ‘Music for prophet’: nerdy synth reference or album concept?

KLUTE : Profit. Did you see what I did there?

EXAMPLE: ‘Music for prophet’ is your 6th full LP: how did you find making this album and has your process changed much?

KLUTE: The lease ran out on my paradise studio on Fantasy Island near Nassau, so this time I was limited to a string of shitty rooms in north London. It was miserable and desperate but I rose above and made what some people could call, the ‘Sgt. Pepper’s…’ of 2010

EXAMPLE: What has the biggest impact on the music you make?

KLUTE: Knowing that I am a very sexy man

EXAMPLE: What was the last record to totally blow your mind? (any genre)

KLUTE: I’ve been going back on a lot of Smashing Pumpkins stuff and I’m finding a lot of their stuff is really amazing. At the time I was too busy with jungle / d&b

EXAMPLE: What was the first record to totally blow your mind? (any genre)

KLUTE: It would have been ‘Twist and Shout’ by the Beatles

EXAMPLE: If you hadn’t made it in music where would you be?

KLUTE: I would be in a home for retards

EXAMPLE: I read that your punk band ‘The Stupids’ are back together, why now?

KLUTE: Cos we couldn’t be bothered to think of a new name and we wanted to play. Our goal this time was to release a new album, which we did and it’s fucking superb.

EXAMPLE: How on earth do you find the time to concentrate on running Commercial Suicide plus writing and touring as Klute & Tommy Stupid?

KLUTE: It’s been quite a chore, but somehow I did it. It’s been great fun and terribly fulfilling. Spiritually

EXAMPLE: What’s on the horizon for Commercial Suicide in the coming months?

KLUTE: More records, more T shirts

EXAMPLE: It’s always a topic of conversation but given your involvement in dnb, would you care to offer your own ‘prophecy’ as to where you think it’s headed right now

KLUTE: I would like to see more music instead of this so called "space" people think they’re championing. Also, I hope people stop freaking out about loudness and production

EXAMPLE: Any closing words?

KLUTE: Where’s the music??
 
Klute’s Music For Prophet is out now on Commercial Suicide
 
http://www.commercialsuicide.org/
http://www.myspace.com/kluteuk

Some deep  solid productions here from Arkist out on Bristol based Subdepth Records. It's very much in the vein of Headhunter or the Deep Medi camp, combining nice deep bass and chilled, yet touches of  menace appear at times.

'Sexy Space Mother' subtly slopes into the room all  echoing chord stabs and flourishes of percussion. 

You can see a lot of little influences here, garagey  rhythm, almost trance-like build ups and a solid sub keep things interesting.

A rather dark little vocal sample ends this first  track, although I'm not entirely clear on what it's saying it gives me the impression it's something dark! It segueys into 'Shellfish' which takes the tone a little more darker, a cracking kick drum slams into life and some percussive clicks get the head nodding. 

The rather moody synth is interspersed with a brighter melody that balances  this track really well making for a good, entertaining feel overall. Some varied stretched out  acid feeling tingly synths keep the mood of the track balanced and this eventually fades out to the  next track 'The Devil's'. 

This is my favourite of  the bunch which a nice jangly vibe going on over doomladen synthwork opening out into a quality  pounding sub, dub echo and sweeping, almost sword  clash sound effects broaden the feel as another more  lighter melody appears somewhere in the middle.

This  signifies a nice change up in terms of beats to  ensure the original rhythm doesn't get too
monotonous. 'Tripoli Blues' brings the EP to a  close, decidly more uptempo and reminiscent of mid 90s drum and bass. 

The inclusion of some vocals add to this change around of style and some fat bass  stabs keep some of the feel of the other tracks.  

Overall, a chilled EP with some lovely melody makes  it worth a check.  Probably good for checking at  home or on some headphones while sipping on a
chilled glass of your favourite tipple. 

Fans of the deeper styles available such as Mala, Pinch or Ital Tek and while perhaps not as standout as some of  those artists it's definitely got some promise of what's to from Arkist in the future.

Arkist - Sexy Space Mother / The Devil's / Shellfish / Tripoli Blues
Subdepth records
Released 14th June 2010

Glitch Hop; what is it? Put simply it is fat bass, with Hip Hop beats and whatever the hell you want after that. Though Glitch Hop is still an uncommon term, it is still the term that is being associated with certain music, that certain artists are making at the moment. I’m not going to go in to the history of Glitch Hop, because quite honestly, I don’t know it. For instance I thought the genre was a few years old, until recently, when I found out it can actually be traced back as far as 2001!
Moving swiftly on, one record label that has been making a serious impact on the scene is Liverpool based Skanky Panky Records. With the labels first two releases destroying the Addictech charts, which is the hot-pool of all things Glitch, Skanky Panky is one to keep an eye on. What follows is an interview I had with label owner, DJ & Producer Buddha, over that shit thing that always breaks called Facebook.Example caught up with Buddha of Skanky Panky records to find out about all things "glitch hop" and also what the label has coming up for us in the near future.

Example:  Okay, for those who don't know, who is Buddha, what do you do and what is Skanky Panky Records?

Skanky Panky:
Im a DJ & Producer. I play straight across the board but my biggest interest at the moment is "Glitch Hop" which is what I play with the DJ/Production crew, SixAM.

Skanky Panky Records is a new "Glitch Hop" based label, run by myself and William Breakspear. We pull artists from all over the world and have been working to expand the scene in the UK.

Example:
Could you please explain "Glitch Hop" to our readers?

Skanky Panky:
Glitch Hop is the label being attached to a particular sound that's coming mainly out of the states at the moment. It's a Hip Hop tempo (80-110bpm) but pulls heavy influence from Dubstep, Crunk, DnB, Breaks, and much more. Bassnectar, Glitch Mob and Tipper are some of the larger artists who typify the sound. It's more or less Hip Hop beats with incredibly heavy basslines and the obligatory glitches.

Example:
That was Glitch Hop 101 for everyone out there who isn't in the know! I myself have only been in to the genre for three or four months, so I'm by no means an expert, but I can confidently say there's definitely a collection of different "sounds" already emerging in the genre. For example you have the "electro/rave" style of The Glitch Mob, you have artists like Subvert making more aggressive Glitch Hop, and then you have artists like Opiuo, Mimosa and labels like Skanky Panky pushing more earthly delights. Is this the aim of Skanky Panky? To push this type of Reggae/World sounding Glitch Hop?

Skanky Panky:
We're all about showing the diversity of the genre. Our last two releases have been pretty varied and the next two are similar! We have artists like Fredo dropping funk laced, bassline, Hip Hop numbers, next to guys like J.me.J dropping lazer wielding, crunk-step shit. We're about pushing the deeper intelligent side along with the downright filthy and jump-up side of things. It's hard to resist a dirty ragga vocal sometimes though.

There are a few hot spots around the world that have been consistently putting out quality stuff and it's quite exciting hearing these guys' slant on the sound. I think that is what were trying to capture and put out there.

Example:
Sweet. Now you mention it, I'd have to agree that the tracks on Skanky Panky Vol 1 & 2 are definitely varied in style. My two favourites up to now are Fredo Ft ASM - En Wot Yo and the SixAM remix of Top Cat's Special Request.

Another thing I've noticed with the scene is some of the releases are, well, not very good to put it politely. Much like Dubstep, everyone and their nan seems to be producing now. That's one thing I think stands out about Skanky Panky; quality control.

The Dubstep market has become pretty saturated with shit over the past year; bit-crushed hell! Of course there's still excellent music being made, but the bad far out weighs the good.

Do you think the same might happen or is happening with Glitch Hop?

Skanky Panky:
Rather than things being saturated with medicore productions because the sound is so popular, what we're seeing at the moment is the beginnings of a genre. If you listen back to early Dubstep (especially Skream, Caspa & Rusko) the production is atrocious but the idea behind it was strong enough to push it on to what it's become today. Those producers have now matured and their tracks sound great. There are a lot of young producers dedicating themselves to this sound at the moment and given a few years I think the standard of production values will get much higher. If Glitch Hop blows up to the proportions Dubstep has then there will no doubt be countless medicore productions to wade through before you find the jems.

Example:
That is very true. Would you recommend any producers or tracks in particular to people just getting in to the genre?

Skanky Panky:
These are the guys that got me onto the genre and should probably be staple in any Glitch Hop record collection...
Glitch Mob
Bassnectar (old stuff)
Vibesquad
BreakBeatBuddha (aka Propa Tingz)
Ill Gates
Lazer Sword
Subvert
An-Ten-Ae
Tipper
Si Begg

There's a lot of tasty stuff I've been finding recently! Theres a lot of good stuff coming out of South Africa from Mix N Blend, Sedge Warbler, Liver, and a few others. Eddy Crusher, Powell Beats & Turnsteak out of France. J.me.J has always got some hot shit and I've been loving Knight Riders new stuff. Way to much to list!

Example:
Haha, lots of names there for people to check out; get to it! Skanky Panky Vol 1 & 2 have both done very well on the Addictech charts and are currently available from the usual places; Juno etc. Can we expect a Vol 3 anytime soon?

Skanky Panky:
We've really been amazed at the response we've had for the first two EPs. The press has been very kind to us and we're gonna keep that vibe going.

We have got tons of stuff lined up from September till the end of the year! We will be dropping our first album in September followed by something from one of our long time favorites, Memory9, in October. We also have some VERY nice EPs we're putting together for November and December releases.

I cant divulge much at this point but we're really excited about all the people we're working with! Some fresh talent from South Africa, Milan, France and some well established UK acts. The stuff these artists are sending us at the moment is blowing us away!

You can check out all of the latest Skanky Panky releases, bootlegs and general news at www.skankypankyrecords.com

as well as EXAMPLE MIX 016 by SIX AM

The Gremlinz return! Terror Danjah is a seasoned and well respected button pusher when it comes to Grime music, with releases on Hyperdub, Butterz and Planet Mu. His latest EP, Power Grid, is brought to you by Planet Mu, and this collection of music does nothing but further the man’s reputation as one of the best Grime producers ever.

I only discovered Terror Danjah about half a year ago, when a fellow DJ showed me one of his tunes. Following that I bought the Industry Standard Part 4 release, which is fuckin’ awesome! However, Power Grid offers a slightly different and fresher approach to all things grimey.

The productions are much more experimental, for use of a better word and though the tracks are of varying styles they stand together well, in a nice, coherent assembly of bass, synth and beats.

None of the tracks jump out as dance floor slayers and I can’t help but think that when compiling this release, that that was Mr Danjah’s intention!

This release showcases the innovativeness and ballsiness that a lot of producers lack these days. The Power Grid EP is simple, deep and awesome! Check it out!

The release can be picked up here: http://www.planet.mu/discography/ZIQ278

Festivals come in all different shapes and sizes these days and there's no real shortage of them either.   If you're feeling like an adventurous festival goer you can pack your case and jet across europe to get crunk on an island and listen to some dubstep or head down to spain and get your festival fix at Sonar or Benicassim.

However you don't necessarily have to take flight and travel miles and miles to find a sick festival. There's plenty in England and I think there's a lot to be said for ditching the stress and impersonal atmosphere you so often find at the big festivals and swapping it for one of the UK's smaller festivals.  

Nozstock near Worcester in the south west is one of a number of very young independent festivals that have been popping up over the last decade or so.  Forget the gargantuan Glastonbury and the Commercial neon filled tents of Creamfields,  Nozstock takes it back to the roots where the whole music festival concept began in the sixties with Woodstock, Isle of Wight and Glastonbury. It even references the first festival in its name.  

  Hosted on a farm and its surrounding paddocks Nozstock grew over the last decade from a regular summer BBQ into an annual party drawing a few more people each year until it grew into a fully fledged multi stage festival. Nozstock's family/community vibes have not got lost in the growing process and even though there are some kids running around.  You don't need to worry that the atmosphere is too family to get smashed in because it definitely isn't.

The lineup this year covered all sorts of acts across a wide spectrum of genres. Pretty much what you'd expect at a festival haha. Highlights for our team included a sick little ska band called tin roots who brightened up our slightly hungover saturday afternoon and also the veteran Blockheads whose playing prowess definitely reflected their experience. Sadly they now play minus the deceased Ian Dury however his space has been amply filled by Phil Jupitus and their set definitely drew the biggest crowd of the weekend.   

From the dubstep and DnB end of the spectrum we checked out Caspa, High Contrast and Sub Focus. Admittedly not very much underground talent there but they certainly brought a party feel to the aptly named "Rave Yard".  My own personal enjoyment of High Contrast was marred slightly by my completely sober trip over a monitor resulting in me falling flat on my face in front of the whole room. Shit happens though ey.   

Outside the Rave yard and away from the main stage theres a number of smaller stages tucked into corners around the site. With some amazing small bands and musicians playing.  You know the sort of hidden gems that make you stop in your tracks as you wander aimlessly through festivals and take a moment to actually appreciate a guy who can really play guitar but sadly due to the nature of capitalism probably dont have a record deal.

When you get bored of all the music in your ears. You can roam around the trademark festival stalls.  Those ones where you can buy an indian head-dress of a 60 year old psytrance guy wearing boots from star wars and zebra pattern leggings or maybe buy a wooden carving of a dragon of a guy who looks like Dumbledore and lives in a caravan made out of old bicycles.

Theres also a stand up tent which turns into a burlesque tent at night. Which means you just cant lose really its either eye wateringly funny or full of birds not wearing very much. My personal highlight was a woman painted to look like a moth jumping up and down on a pile of broken glass generally the sort of stuff you only really see in fields at half three in the morning.

No review of a festival is really of any use unless it tells you about the toilets and trust the toilets at Nozstock are the cleanest festival toilets i have ever seen.  So bear that in mind when you're buying your ticket to Nozstock '11 you shouldn't have any difficulty queueing nor shud there be any risk of catching dyssentry. So all in all if you're looking for an intimate chilled festival to add to your festival calendar Nozstock is definitely one worth considering for next year.

Check out the photos here...

Nozstock Festival