Let’s face it, it’s hard to get into that good-vibe, good-time festival feeling mood with the weather being the way it is. We’re all feeling the chill of the PNW, so while you’re trying to stay warm by a fire or rolling yourself into a human burrito, check out some of these new tunes from Stickybuds and some of his friends. They were curated for fans who need something to get through the winter blues.
Stickybuds brought some attention to these releases through a post on his Facebook page. Hopefully, this is just what the doctor ordered.
Basement Freaks
People call George Fotiadis “the hardest working man in funk” and for good reason. The DJ, who had a humble start in Greece in 1993 has released three studio albums and so many EPs and remixes that it’s hard to keep track. Having played at many world-renowned festivals, including Shambhala Music Festival, he has a well-known funky sound. There are many artists who sample some of his music into their mixes. Basement Freaks houses a combination of tribal infused beats with incredible funk music.
DJ Wood
DJ Wood is a true veteran of the scene, as he has more than 20 years of experience under his belt. Past collaborations for DJ Wood (as a solo artist) include artists like Skiitour, Basement Freaks, and The Funk Hunters. Classic glitch-funk is the way to describe his music.
Therefore, it’s no surprise to find out that he’s also half of a musical duo called Wood ‘N’ Soo, whose debut album was released in the spring of 2015.
Featurecast
Lee Mintram pushes the boundaries of music. Around the age of 14, he saw a neighbor playing around with turntables and ended up falling for the hip-hop and dance music that was being played. Eventually, Mintram ended up buying the neighbor’s old mixer and saved for a cheap pair of hi-fi decks.
After releasing some tracks on some well-known labels, he released his 2012 album Run For Cover. 2014 proved to be another good year for him, as he was a headliner on the main stage of Australia’s biggest festival, Breakfest. Last year proved to be another successful year for him as he released an album titled Shout It Out and headlined at Shambhala Music Festival.
He’s received praise from fellow breaks artists Krafty Cuts, DJ Yoda and Z-trip, not to mention that he’s dropped sets alongside notable names.
JPOD the Beat Chef
JPOD certainly had a musical upbringing. Raised on piano lessons, jazz, and worship music, at the age of 15 he decided to experiment with music production.
In 2007 he made the transition from turntables to Ableton Live in an effort to hone his musical skills and satisfy his musical passion. This paid off, as his live sets now feature live remixing, effects and beat creation, without losing the uniqueness of his sound.
He’s headlined at many major festivals in the PNW, including Shambhala Music Festival, Bass Coast and Astral Harvest to name a few. Bass Coast is one of JPOD’s favorite places to be. In his own words, “Bass Coast and I have a special relationship and it is always my favorite time of the year.”
JPOD releases free downloads of his bootleg music via his website. Also, his exceptional energy on the decks ensures that all of his fans are grooving and dancing right along with him.
K+lab
As you may have seen in EDM news, K+lab performed a keytar solo on a woman’s shoulders. In a live show. It’s something he incorporated into live shows since, and we can’t blame him. It looks fun! He samples from a wide array of genres, and his musical style will keep you guessing.
His bass-heavy music has drawn crowds from all over the globe. He has a mission to retake the funk and it looks as though he’s succeeding. He’s been busy the last few years, making some tour stops at some amazing festivals. Including, but not limited to, Shambhala Music Festival, Northern Bass, and Earth Frequency.
K+lab’s take on Fort Knox Five’s Don’t Go is a track that’s going to have you dance your winter blues away.
K+lab & Stickybuds
You may have heard parts of Clap Ya Hands Now this summer at Shambhala Music Festival. That is if you were in Fractal Forest on Friday night during Stickybuds’ set. This is the second collaboration that these two talented artists have done so far. In the SoundCloud post of the song, Stickybuds gave credit to Basement Freaks for doing all of the guitars, as well as KWADI for the vocals.
Their take of the classic Hand Clapping Song by The Meters is funky and it reminds us that festival season is not that far away.
Slynk
He grew up hearing his grandma and his father playing music with artists like Stevie Wonder among others. This sparked an interest in music production, and in high school, he used the Playstation 1 game called Music to start creating his first beats.
At the age of 15, he graduated from that game to FL Studio, which assisted him in experimenting with sampling and sound design. He doesn’t like to take himself too seriously, and he has a rule about music creation: “Basically my rule is to only make and play music that makes you smile and for me that usually means that it’s got to be funky.”
It didn’t take long for the artist from Brisbane, Australia to receive recognition worldwide. After he produced a 3-track EP with Goodgrove Records, Shambhala Music Festival heard some of his music and booked him right away.
Stickybuds
The decision to pick up some turntables came easy for Tyler Martens. Known now under his moniker Stickybuds, at a young age he had big dreams. He frequented raves and decided to take the fateful step toward becoming a well-known DJ. After acquiring the necessary tools, he taught himself the DJing fundamentals and the rest is history.
Stickybuds is the kind of artist that makes connections everywhere. With his funky tunes, he’s won some awards throughout the years, including Breakspoll’s “Mix of the year award” (2015), “Best Free Track” (2013) and Glitch Hop UK’s “Best International Track” (2013).
Stickybuds is an artist that’s constantly on the road. While away on tour in the UK, he sat down and produced a track titled Change Your Mind with Skope. Parts of the song were featured in Stickybuds’ Shambhala mix from last year. If you want a copy, you can get a free download here. His smooth jazzy sounds designed to make you smile make him an essential part of what makes Fractal Forest great at Shambhala.
2017 is shaping up to be a great year already. With some of our favorite artists already releasing music, who knows what else is in store. What are your hopes for the scene in 2017? Drop a line in the comments below!
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