BeatRoute Magazine Alberta print e-edition - October 2016

SINISTARR
footwork mastery and the history of Jeremy Howard’s music
Jeremy Howard suggested Local 510’s video game
night as the spot to meet up for his interview
with BeatRoute; an appropriate setting given
that he based his musical moniker Sinistarr off of the
1982, Asteroids-esque arcade game Sinistar.
Howard was born in Detroit and has been hard at
work developing an extensive back catalogue since
around 2007. He first heard of Calgary in 2013 through
Sheena Jardine-Olade when she interviewed him for a
piece FREQ Magazine wrote on the Movement festival
where Sinistarr performed.
He met some of her friends and, after some conversing,
was convinced to come check out festivals like Bass
Coast and Shambhala in the summer of 2014. And then
in early 2015 played a show in Calgary.
“I played Habitat March 2015 and then it kind of fell
into place there,” Howard explains. “I kind of fell in love
with the city.”
“I think [the city] has heart and they have their ear
to the ground properly on what’s going on around here,
or what’s going on outside of Calgary and outside of
Canada in general – as opposed to other cities where
they have a small scene and they’re kind of fighting back
against the bigger scene, people [in Calgary] are going
out on Fridays and Saturdays you go to the clubs and
people are going to check out stuff.”
Detroit still holds a place deep within Howard. He
has family and friends there, and the city’s sounds still
influence the music he makes.
“It would be nice to see them again, because I haven’t
been back since I moved,” Howard says. “I’d like
to go back and see them and just see old friends and
things like that. The scene’s nice; everyone’s still kind
of vibing. We have this saying that’s like, we’re still
here if you’re not, we’ll still be here. So I know they’re
still gonna be there.”
From Detroit to Calgary, Sinistarr continues being prolific in releases.
by Paul Rodgers
Howard’s influences, of course, are not limited to his
city of origin alone. Going through his mammoth list of
original tunes, remixes and collaborations is staggering.
He has released drum and bass for legendary and varied
labels like Hospital, Renegade Hardware and Goldie’s
Metalheadz. He gained a great deal of notoriety as a
DNB producer and then moved forward and started
making footwork, which gained him even more attention.
He has also produced house and techno and seen
releases on labels like Juke Trax, Tectonic and Human Elements,
as well as joining up with Urban Tribe, an outfit
founded by Stingray313 that has hosted Carl Craig and
Moodyman among others.
Most recently, he made a five-track EP for
D.Bridge’s Exit Records; an imprint Howard would
feel quite at home with. The new tracks all hover
around the 165 BPM mark and showcase his talents
at crafting footwork.
“I feel like they’ve been on it, ‘cause I did that BBC
mix recently and I was actually talking to the press guy
for Exit and I was like, ‘yeah, I’m actually really happy
I did this mix because there’s a lot of stuff in the 160
range, 160-165 range that I was able to play and most of
it was on Exit’ and he said, ‘Yeah that means we’re on to
something good.’ Sure enough they had like at least four
or five releases out that I was able to play that were just
solid like that so I think their programming is changing
[the] game anyway.”
While diversity in the content he produces has never
been an issue, Howard states he is happy with where
he is currently at and wants to just continue honing his
skills, and seeking out the perfect home for his eventual
full-length album.
Sinistarr plays alongside J:Kenzo at Sub Chakra’s five year
anniversary at Habitat on October 28th.
photo: Michael Benz
LET’S GET JUCY!
Hatcha will be at Habitat on October 20.
With September dispensed with we
can now settle in to the month of
October, with its last remaining
moderately nice days, pumpkin spice saturation
and every raver’s favourite holiday: Halloween!
This month, and especially the weekend of All
Hallow’s Eve, is outrageously jam-packed with
shows.
Noctilux has returned from a brief summer
sabbatical with a couple sterling bookings. First
off, on October 6th, they have Croydon’s Deft representing
20/20 LDN that also hosts such forward
thinking artists as Halogenix and Ivy Lab. This will
be a versatile night of genre bending tunes taking
place at Habitat.
Next up, on the 7th, an artist with a complicated
and captivating life story, and equally engaging
music, MNDSGN will bring his unique sounds to
The Hifi. Check him out online!
On the 8th, this time at Nite Owl, Manchester’s
big bossman Chimpo will perform what is sure to
be an unforgettable night. From his widely varied
production work that features collaborations with
recent supergroup Richie Brains, to his always
impressive DJ sets, to his booming, baritone voice
which he has lent as an MC to countless tunes this
may be one of the shows of the year.
There is a CJSW funding drive taking place on
the 9th at Commonwealth presented by Dirty
Needles and Shaolin Sundays featuring, among
others DJ Cosm. Get down there and show some
support one of the world’s greatest independent
radio stations!
Noctilux gang come correct yet again with
their immense booking of Hatcha, a man largely
responsible for helping to forge and maintain the
sound of proper dubstep. Deep heads don’t sleep!
This goes down on the 20th at Habitat.
On the 22nd you can walk the line between
hipster indie pop and Real Trap Shit with a victory
lap performance by Purity Ring at Mac Hall.
They’re stopping by midway between the release
of 2015 album Another Eternity and whatever the
heck they’ll get up to next. Why here? Why now?
Is the truth really out there? This show likely won’t
answer those questions, but it’s hard to imagine it
won’t deliver aesthetically and offer dedicated fans
a night out to remember.
October 27th marks the return of one of
Canada’s hottest bass music sensations: Ekali. With
support from one of Calgary’s finest producers
OAKK, you can safely wager you’re in for some big
sounds.
Then again, you could choose to head to
everyone-under-18’s favourite venue, MacEwan
Hall, to see white rapper tour-de-force/Justin
Bieber acquaintance Post Malone on the 27th as
well. This major-label rapper is stopping in Calgary
between… Something, and another thing, maybe.
Enjoy the show, and study up with the online
story we likely lost after this column entry.
October 28th is a big one. Sub Chakra, who
began with humble origins at Sal’s on 17th turns
five and celebrates their incredible accomplishments
and growth over the years with one of the
best in the bass biz, J:Kenzo alongside Sinistarr and
founder Metafloor in addition to a massive lineup
of local talent.
That same day, Australia’s Mr. Bill brings his
mind bending production skills to Distortion.
The 29th has two gargantuan shows next
door to one another: Bass Coast founder and
extraordinary DJ/producer The Librarian performs
at the Hifi, while at Nite Owl 403DNB presents the
21st year of Fright Nite. This long-running Calgary
tradition this year features London heavyweights
Mob Tactics and The Prototypes with yours truly
warming things up at 9:00. (I’m allowed to mention
myself now and then, right?)
Phew. That’s a lot of music. Stay safe, stay
spooky and I’ll see you all again next month!
• Paul Rodgers (with antagonistic contributions
from Colin Gallant)
40 | OCTOBER 2016 • BEATROUTE JUCY