Le Chatroom
Release Date: 17th September 2021
Cando return to Le Chatroom to inaugurate the label’s first full length EP, backed with remixes by Bakongo and Kouslin and accompanying illustration and graphic design by Charlie Maclagan (AD93/Only Ruins/Shapework).
Since their debut on Livity Sound and subsequent appearances on Par Avion, Pressure Dome and Le Chatroom, Cando have been carefully refining their percussive bass heavy sound. The ‘Clutch’ EP is confident and distinct, from all-out slammers to warm and fuzzy synth excursions — the sound palette is diverse but has Cando written all over it.
The A side kicks off with a heavy percussive track inspired by Bristol Techno and the drumming of Carnival and street parties; ‘Clutch’ is a constantly evolving song with Cando’s signature drum fills announcing new percussive patterns that keep the listener on their toes throughout.
Bakongo’s remix follows suit but swaps the swung and syncopated drums for a four-to-the-floor groove, reprogramming the drum flurries of the original into a more stripped back, repetitive and heavier track.
On the flip side, Chad and Owen channel their more melodic sensibilities, first setting the pace for the B side with ‘14U (Drum Mix)’, a lush and spaced out track with bursts of drums that mature into a pulsing pattern. The percussion and synth sounds towards the end of ‘14U’ tease and provide for a seamless segue into the successive track ‘Ambivalence’.
'Ambivalence’ has a blissful and warm aura with strummed plucky synths, building arpeggios and textures which give the track a really organic feel. The drums and tight sub movement provide a strong foundation for the synth motifs and percussion to evolve, distort and crescendo throughout the track ending the EP on an optimistic high, hinting at better times to come.
Two extra tracks are included as Bandcamp exclusives, 14U (Dub Mix) which strips the percussion and drums back to a minimum and provides a more textural and synth heavy version; and a second remix of ‘Clutch’ by Le Chatroom boss Kouslin, with a tempo change inviting the listener or DJ to a slower pace of 100bpm — perfect for seamlessly transitioning mid-set.
Early support from Surgeon, Peverelist and Hodge.
a1. Cando - Clutch
a2. Cando - Clutch (Bakongo Remix)
b1. Cando - 14U (Drum Mix)
b2. Cando - Ambivalence
Release Date: 9th October 2020
London-based Kouslin's Le Chatroom imprint presents LCR003; a percussion-heavy release of four tracks from close friends and affiliates.
Taking inspiration from rhythms around the world and the uproar within the new-gen UK Funky scene, Le Chatroom once again exhibit their ethos of eclecticism that has found them in the record bags of the likes of Ben UFO and Call Super.
Big Brothers' frontman Amor Satyr (also of Parisian collective Boukan Records), channels heavy baile funk on 'Hohohoi', with razor-sharp low-end separation and haunting harmonies.
Soreab (Baroque Sunburst/BeatMachine) serves up a hearty cut of low-slung, tribal drum funk with a groove synonymous of Hessle Audio sets.
Having recently featured on an R&S Records compilation, plus a release on More Time Records, rising artist DJ Tess presents her new “Mala Femmina” alias and offers up a triplet-based 4x4 groove with relentless icy blows and rotating polyrhythms.
Livity Sound's Cando close out with a remix of Soreab's 'Cave Walk'. Racing away with dancefloor panic, the intricacies of the remix shine through via its claustrophobic and pristine mixdown.
a1. Amor Satyr - Hohohoi
a2. Soreab - Cave Walk
b1. Mala Femmina (DJ Tess) - Ruff
b2. Soreab - Cave Walk (Cando Remix)
Released 23rd March 2018
After an inaugural, top-rated release by Kouslin and his friends, the Le Chatroom familia remain on top of their release schedule with this successive record, featuring some familiar faces from the UK music scene. The team have compiled another hefty VA, containing three bass-heavy tracks close to the 130BPM mark that definitely resonate at Le Chatroom’s signature frequency. With their first release having received support from a wide range of artists, from Marcus Nasty to Huxley to Bristol's Livity Sound gang, and with glowing write-ups in DJMag, When We Dip and Cone Mag, this second excursion is destined to be a highly successful follow-up.
DJ SUPPORT: Lee Gamble, Peverelist, Kowton, Moxie, Marcus Nasty, Jus Now, Simo Cell, Murder He Wrote, Lurka, Silas and Snare.
a1 Kouslin & Cloaka - Ash
a2 Yak - Zephyr
b1 Ebb - Raiders
b2 Kouslin & Cloaka - Ash (Bamao Yendé Remix)
Le Chatroom, a record label established in 2016 by the English producer Kouslin, searches for the missing link between underground bass music and outer national sounds. Its music is defined by the blend of synthetic and organic tones, modern / classic instruments and low- end heavy percussive rhythms.
Pushing artists from all around the globe that share the same love for this newfound sound, Kouslin’s aim with Le Chatroom is to promote musical diversity, open-mindedness and experimentation at a time when unity between cultures is crucial. With ‘LCR001’ the label advances into a new physical environment from which this release should be experienced.
Real talk and native percussion establish the steady climax of ‘Brothers’, the A-side of Le Chatroom’s inaugural wax release. Kouslin cuts through this sediment with a bright flute, before the state of the sound switches into something far darker and meditative. By placing several samples at irregular intervals, the Londoner achieves a fascinating charm that’ll unite us all.
Booming bass in ‘Gyals’ lingers with a steady pace while percy tribal hits forge a raw groove that’s far from common. With this movement, the producer from Bristol disintegrates the sense of a generic production and sticks to his true nature. Through this it becomes clear that Galtier has his polyrhythms down to a science.
Londoner Sheik clinches the B-side with a craze that unveils a nearly psychotic sense of sample architecture. Pushing crystal clear 808 kicks in- between the haunting atmospheres and a wall of pressure simply becomes one of his most inventive takes documented on wax. If you love to swerve through a minefield, the odd ‘Oxram’ would be your favourite pick off this first outline.
The three producers that feature on ‘LCR001’ pass on their fundamentals to conjure Le Chatroom’s philosophy red-handed. Together they do the imprint’s name justice by handing over critical bass repertoire that’ll excite many!
a1. Kouslin - Brothers
b1. Galtier - Gyals
b2. Sheik - Oxram