Selections: DJ Pitch

In this series, Selections, we invite DJs, producers and label heads to dig into their digital crates and share the contents of their Bandcamp collections. While hearing new music played out by your favourite selectors remains largely on hold as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s never been easier, or more important, to support the artists and imprints releasing tracks, albums, EPs and comps in the midst of all the madness. In lieu of opportunities to discover new records on the dancefloor, Selections will give you the chance to nab sounds from the crates of tastemakers, and support the people behind them while you’re at it. Win-win, right?

This week, TT and All Centre label boss DJ Pitch spotlights UK club gems and sounds that have inspired his own productions, including Overmono, BFTT, Pessimist, Fauzia, UMFANG and more. The London-based producer has been embedded in the city’s experimental club music landscape for over half a decade now, and has championed some of the most exciting young producers on the scene through his two labels. TT (which he co-runs with Gribs) released the debut EP from object blue back in 2018, while EPs from the likes of Holloway, hmurd, BFFT, Yushh, Jennifer Walton and more on All Centre have been picked up and played by a wide range of in-the-know DJs in the UK and beyond. 

This month, DJ Pitch released his debut album, ‘It's Not What You Said It's Because You Spoke’ via edited arts. In his review of the album for DJ Mag, Joe Roberts described the album’s colourful sense of contradiction; a sound of “solace in a sea of melancholy”. Indeed, the 10 tracks have a bittersweet feel; a delicate glow like the dusky image on its cover, which hovers around a shadowy, natural foundation. Ambient electronics beam and swell around smooth-yet-heavy beats and bass plumes, while lyrics from guest vocalist Rafael Lubner contextualise the feeling that this album is providing the soundtrack “For darkening nights. For a world that is ending. That has ended. For what comes after”. Playful cuts such as the bouncy ‘But In Fact’ and the David Byrne and X-Press 2’s ‘Lazy’ sampling ‘I’m Not The Person’ make this an album as fit for the club as it is for the contemplative twilight walks its track titles evoke. 

You can buy ‘It's Not What You Said It's Because You Spoke’ via Bandcamp. 

Dig into DJ Pitch’s Selections below. 

“Another summer, another couple of belters from Overmono.”'
 

“I'm biased but BFTT is going from strength to strength on this one. He's quitetly moulded a combination of hi-fi pop sonics with club ready UK techno that no one else can fuck with.”

“A subtle reminder of the depth and breadth of Pessimists abilities (alongside his work as Boreal Massif).”

“A bold, blissed out club flip full of ‘80s goodness from SHE Spells Doom. Can't wait to test this one out on dancefloors.”

“Shouts out to salllvage on the All Centre discord who linked this one in there recently. A set of take-no-prisoners club edits from a 15 year old producer!”

“I've never quite understood exactly who was behind Silk Bless (but I believe it's Yves Tumor). I come back to this album all the time and count it as a big influence with regards to how singular an electronic music album can feel when relatively simple production techniques are employed.”

“I haven't stopped listening to this one since it came out and it's been the record that's finally pushed me towards having a crack at making jungle (that's right, I've been trying to make jungle…).”

“One of London's best DJs turning their hand to production is always exciting, and to hear someone use their vocals in such a simple and effective way never fails to floor me. Can't wait to hear more from Fauzia in the future!”

“I've always been a big fan of UMFANG’s work, and hearing the departure away from what I might have expected on this record was really inspiring. I listened to it quite a bit when I was finishing off/mixing down my album and the strength of UMFANG’s production style gave me the inspiration to cut out a lot of overproduction on the demo version of the record.”