Beats + Pieces: Alloy Cats

On the eve of the release of his band Alloy Mental’s [pictured] debut album, Belfast DJ Phil Kieran has revealed that bass legend Peter Hook gave him his dream booking last year – supporting the legendary but apparently now defunct New Order in concert.
“I bumped into Hooky at an airport and gave him a copy of my band Alloy Mental’s debut album, and a couple of months later we were supporting New Order in Liverpool,” Phil recalled of one of his highlights of 2006.
Another was the New Year’s Eve show at Shine in Belfast by Alloy Mental – his techno/rock outfit which also consists of Martin J Corrigan and Danny Todd – which can be seen in the video for the trio’s new single, ‘God is Green’. The single – the bastard techno offspring of Adam & The Ants at their peak which includes a glitchy Phil Kieran dancefloor remix – precedes the release of the long-awaited debut album, We Have Control, on the Skint label on June 25.
And insiders say the stamp, which is also home to Fatboy Slim, plans to re-release the Northerners first single, ‘Alloy Mental’, during the summer with a host of big-name remixes and the intention of securing the high pop chart status the glam-rocking stomper deserves.
Alloy Mental play the Beach Party festival in Portrush on June 30, and should be a late addition to the Oxegen line-up, as they have already been announced for a July 7 slot at its Scottish sister festival T in the Park.
Incidentally, the aforementioned Peter Hook has informed the world via his MySpace page that New Order have sadly split up. One of the most important bands of the past 25 years, the Manchester icons last played Ireland at Electric Picnic in September 2006. Hooky, meanwhile, will DJ at Dublin’s South Fitzwilliam Bar on June 16.
Cork-born, Costa Rica-based Irish techno star Chymera – who returns to Ireland to play Electric City on July 26 – has three superb new singles hitting the shops this month. First up is the achingly beautiful ‘Run’ on Belgian label Morse, which is out now and also featuring ‘Move’ and ‘Ukluk’.
Hot on its heels comes a delightfully Detroit-ish double a-side on the Spanish stamp, Tishomingo Records, ‘Arabesque’/‘Satura’, and the Funk d’Void and Spooky remixed ‘Umbrella’ on Josh Wink’s American imprint, Ovum. DJ supporters for ‘Umbrella’ include Laurent Garnier, Ben Watt, Zabiela & Fanciulli and Fabrice Lig, and Chymera’s blissful original version has been included on the soundtrack to the new Hollywood flick, The Condemned.
Dublin-based house stamp Queep Recordings keeps up its hectic release schedule this month with no fewer than three offerings. Quelectro Volume 1 is a compilation of its biggest electro-house releases to date alongside remix exclusives and some new tracks licensed especially for the CD. A single follows on May 24. The deep tech-house workout, Mr Fuzz presents Twisty Fuzz’s ‘Berlin Flight Number 1’, includes a trance mix fromAlexMo and a hot electro/house mix from the North’s shining lights, Discount Rhinos. On May 31 comes another compilation, Summer Bangers. Billed as “the perfect tonic for house and beach parties in the months ahead”, the album features tracks and mixes from the likes of Stoned, Rexx Le Gaff, DJamel, Lars Scheeman, Tim Richards and Born to Funk.
Nice and Nasty Records, the techno imprint run by Belfast-born DJ and promoter, Desy Balmer, releases an album from Dublin’s Derek Carr later this month. The long-awaited Science & Soul lives up to expectations throughout 12 original compositions and it will be promoted by a series of live appearances this summer.
Dublin hard house DJ duo Karl Davis and John Kerrigan are back on vinyl this fortnight with the eighth single on their Hard Sounds label. The pair’s hoover anthem ‘Fry Up’ is flipped by ‘Too Rare To Die’, a co-production from aspiring Irish DJ Wayne Reid and English stalwart, WMD.
Trance producer Neal Scarborough – whose work with John O’Callaghan in Inertia brought him much international attention – has lined up a string of releases for the months ahead, with the first landing in the shops this fortnight. The Neal Scarborough Remix of Dave 202’s ‘Rain Against Her’ is on the Armin van Buuren owned Captivating Sounds stamp.
Totally Random are a new production duo comprising Dublin club Tripod’s resident DJ, LRB, and former Slip N Slide Recordings artist Hannu. They make what LRB describes as “electro prog house and breaks with some funk thrown in for good measure,” and their first single – a double a-side pairing ‘Lover’ and ‘Project One’ – has been signed to Canadian John Acquaviva’s near legendary Definitive Recordings stamp. They have also remixed a new Japanese Popstars track, ‘Dirty Popstars’, along with Barry Dempsey’s ‘Dishesque’ which has been signed to the Irish-based electronic label, Monad. And the pair will be appearing at the Lovebox and Electric Picnic festivals this summer.
The crew behind the 2FM Sessions Tour will be launching a new fortnightly club at the Tivoli Theatre in June. At the same venue on July 21, Letrik hosts a one-off party featuring Anjuna Beats founders, Above & Beyond.
Galway duo Cian O Ciabhain and Cyril Briscoe launch their new venture, Badger, at Black Box on May 26.
And finally, an official announcement regarding the new dance festival launching this summer has been postponed until early June, but keep an eye on Hotpress.com in the coming weeks for insider updates as Beats & Pieces understands that the festival has been put back from its originally scheduled date of August 18… THE BEAT GOES ON!