Buddhabrot

The following are images derived from the Mandelbrot set. The Mandelbrot set is a complex plane showing the boundaries of this mathematical function:

z = z * z + c

It is named after Benoit Mandelbrot who first mapped it. Melinda Green discovered an alternate method of drawing the Mandelbrot set, where instead of selecting initial points on the real-complex plane one for each pixel, initial points are selected randomly from the image region. Then, each initial point is iterated using the standard Mandelbrot function in order to test whether it escapes or not. Only those that do exit are then re-iterated. The areas that remain are called "strange attractors", the hidden islands of stability that emerge from a chaotic system, but are not simply random, they appear to reveal a deeper pattern and structure. The resulting image from such a function was called a "Buddhabrot", first named by Lori Gardi.




I find it hard to classify such a discovery as a mere coincidence! It must be true that simple formulas when reiterated infinitely over a seemingly infinite space (i.e. the universe) can only result in the current configuration we are experiencing today. How else could it be that an image from such a simple function result in an image that so much resembles the form that has emerged from millions of years of evolution of life on Earth, not to mention billions of years of cosmic evolution before that? The form I am speaking of, of course, is that of the human form.



Such natural functions of course do not always result in human forms. Variations on these functions result in other images of pure beauty that we experience just as much in the depths of outer space as we do on our own planet.






"At any given moment, life is completely senseless. But viewed over a period, it seems to reveal itself as an organism existing in time, having a purpose, trending in a certain direction." -Aldous Huxley

Jeff Mills on Music Production

"Dance music producers have a strange habit of mimicking other producers. When this happens, large bodies of available tracks lean to a particular style - leaving certain areas of creativity unexplored and ignored. To be able to discovers these voids, I think one has to have a wide perspective on what other artists are doing and more importantly, why they're doing it."

"Making music is an ongoing learning process. The more music one makes, the more chances there are to discover, so it doesn't compromise the artist's project at all. It’s the opposite."

"I think if DJs and producers begin to put more of themselves (not their machines/software) into their productions, try not to mimic and copy other people, adapt a mindset that any and everything is possible, we might have a chance of raising the level of the genre where new discoveries come more frequently than they have in the past decade."

"Producers could consider making music without the objective of releasing vinyl, CDs, sounds files -- maybe they could make music for the sole reason of learning on how to make it differently. If this truly catches on, I do believe we would begin to hear extraordinary work."

-Jeff Mills

Self-Orientation

The Known Universe by The American Museum of Natural History

Watch this, I suggest in HD.

The Network

Over the last six months or so I've taken a keen interest in the following subjects, in particular, their connectivity.

-Consciousness
-Astronomy
-Cosmology
-Quantum Physics
-String Theory
-Loop Quantum Gravity
-Techno Music
-Pineal Gland
-Vibrations and Waves
-Fractals
-Astrophysics
-Resonance
-Esotericism
-Agape
-Creativity
-Brain Waves
-The Spirit / Soul
-Gift Exchange
-Mind At Large
-Lucid Dreams
-Dimethyltryptamine
-Out of Body Experiences
-Deja Vu
-Zen Buddhism
-Dark Matter
-Dark Energy
-The Universe
-Black Holes
-Time
-Chaos Theory
-Entropy
-Mandelbrot Set
-Relativity
-Chakras
-Collective Unconscious
-Change
-Ego Death / Suspension
-Taoism
-Organic Pattern (Li)
-Meditation

This whole time I have never really felt the need to write on any of these topics. I still don't, but I feel soon I will.

Review: 2562 - Unbalance

Here's my review of the new album from 2562, found in the new issue of Big Up Magazine, available in all good shops this month!

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2562 - UNBALANCE [TECTONIC RECORDINGS]

2562 returns on the esteemed Tectonic label with his second long-player entitled Unbalance. No, it isn’t that there are too many producers in the world that they’re forced to use numerical monikers these days; 2562 is quite simply Dave Huismans’ post code at his home in The Hague, Netherlands. It’s proven to have been a perfect place for his style to nurture: one that resonates in a sonic universe where the galaxies of dubstep’s bass weight, techno’s pulsing hypnotic euphoria, and the fragmented rhythms of broken beat have collided into a unique shape where the whole is most definitely greater than the sum of its parts. Sonically it is soothing on the ears, pulsating with warm synthetic textures, rich bass, crisp Roland 909-style percussion, and shimmers of electronic pointillism. Oh, and did I mention it’s irresistibly danceable? Yes. It is.

A brilliant follow-up from his first album Aerial, this one immediately draws the listener in with a short introductory track to set the mood before launching into what I can best describe as the soundtrack to an interstellar tour to the edge of the cosmos and back again. Unbalance shows Huismans really hitting his stride in this second effort, resulting in a compelling, cohesive, yet diverse musical journey from start to finish. Its dynamic ascension from the album’s liftoff toward the high-octane vibrance of “Dinosaur” at track five, my personal favorite, is eclipsed by the sudden zero-gravity suspension of the title track, forming a distinct turning point from which it grooves in a futuristic tech-funk style, swelling and spiraling to the very end, gaining momentum with every turn.

2562 has managed to create a unique headspace with Unbalance that can only arise from seasoned talent and careful execution. The lively rhythmic core of each tune acts as a foundation to the drifting harmonic progressions and electronic dovetails that alight on your deeper mental chasms, while never losing its grasp on your primordial inclination to dance and move about through space.

Such a gathered result is impressive, considering it was composed in the midst of a US tour last year, and has also managed to overcome all of my reservations about its predecessor. The first LP had good elements but lacked delivery and unification, probably because many of the tunes had already been released as singles. In this valiant return, the looking glass has been finely polished, and should be met with great praise. Each track holds its own temperament, while serving its role in the overall voyage, like chapters in a novel, separated only by spatial perforation.

Unbalance is undoubtedly one of the finest results of recent genre cross-pollinations yet, showing absolute indifference for preconceived notions. It’s not quite dubstep, techno, funky, or broken beat, but a completely re-constructed, re-imagined, inspiring soundscape that can only be called 2562.

-Alex Incyde

BUY IT HERE

The Gateless Gate

"What they're doing is making objects with their voices, singing structures into existence. They offer things to you, saying 'Look at this! Look at this!' and as your attention goes towards these objects you realise that what you're being shown is impossible. It's not simply intricate, beautiful and hard to manufacture, it's impossible to make these things."

-Terence McKenna

"Each person is at each moment capable of remembering all that has ever happened to him and of perceiving everything that is happening everywhere in the universe. The function of the brain and nervous system is to protect us from being overwhelmed and confused by this mass of largely useless and irrelevant knowledge, by shutting out most of what we should otherwise perceive or remember at any moment, and leaving only that very small and special selection which is likely to be practically useful. According to such a theory, each one of us is potentially Mind at Large."

-Aldous Huxley

Waveforms (part 1)

So lately i've been teaching myself in the ways of Logic's ES2 synthesizer. I captured these images of some lovely sine waves using a great plugin called WaveWindow. I think I am going to make this a regular thing actually. I've been so interested in simple vibrations lately... the sounds we hear all around us, and what they look like. To me, it brings me closer to nature.... not to get too DEEP on you. ha.

Here's a simple octave (sine wave):

And a double octave:

Major 2nd (whole tone):

Perfect 4th:

Perfect 5th:

Extended Perfect 5th:


Those are all simple sine waves. Quite possibly the simplest vibration in the universe? Zero harmonics. These are only snapshots though.... they look sooo cool when theyre pulsing and shifting before your eyes.

And......


This one is called a "wood wave".

Stay tuned for more waveforms to come... as i continue along my sonic adventures.

REVIEW: Silkie - City Limits Vol. 1 LP

And here is the second review I wrote, published in the Summer 2009 issue of Big Up Magazine, Silkie's wonderful new album on Deep Medi.

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SILKIE - CITY LIMITS VOL. 1 [DEEP MEDi MUZIK]

After an onslaught of consistently epic 12” plates embodying the meditative side of dubstep music since 2006, Mala’s Deep Medi Musik label makes its first move towards a full-length album, with Silkie at the controls. Remarkably emotive, while maintaining a level of irresistible danceability, this young North Londoner displays a distinct mastery in crafting his own sound.

Within the first ten seconds of “Concrete Jungle”, you’re immediately pulled into Silkie’s care-free, summery island world of rich soundscapes, refreshing in its balance of instrumental samples and expertly designed synthetics. At its best moments, the album has the ability to make all your worries melt away and send tingles up your spine, leaving you in a blissful, energetic state, like you’re on a rainbow rollercoaster soaring through the expanses of outer space. He delivers his music the way a great linguist delivers prose – igniting feelings and actions from your inner depths. His tasteful use of uplifting melodies, harmonic shifts, and post-garage rhythms send signals to your brain that simply inspire movement in both the physical and mental realms. Most of the tracks make excellent use of bass to drive the tunes forward at the right moments, but some others use slightly typical wobbles, shifting the focus away from the more unique elements of his productions.

The standout tunes of the album evoke excitement through pure originality and raw emotion, without much use of LFO. “Purple Love”, for example, is a bubbling ascension of bass-boopage, massaging your senses down from your toes and shimmering its way up to your eyeballs. Another highlight is “Head Butt Da Deck”, beginning with a half-step rhythm that eases its way into your cranium, waits until you’ve gotten comfortable, then cuts out. What enters next is what you’ve been waiting for the whole time but you didn’t expect, and once the beat drops back in, if you’re not bobbing your head with your eyes closed, there’s something wrong with you! The finest opus of the album is undoubtedly the final track, “Beauty”. Carefully constructed from start to finish, it sweeps you off your emotional feet, and floats you up to the top of the castle you’ve been questing for this entire time, and then it’s gone, like a fleeting lover, and you’ve got nothing to do but start the journey all over again. This Silkie. This is Medi Musik.

Due out this summer, City Limits Vol. 1 couldn’t come at a better time, proving itself as a valiant contender for the most imaginative album in the dubstep sphere this year. As an LP debut for Deep Medi, it shows nothing but promise for the label. And with rumors of Quest’s album up next, the future looks very bright.

-Alex Incyde

BUY IT HERE

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Stay tuned for more reviews to come... I've just written one for the AMAZING new 2562 album 'Unbalance' in the new issue of Big Up Magazine and hopefully can post that up soon.

Until next time...

REVIEW: Hudson Mohawke - Polyfolk Dance EP

So I figured it would only be relevant for me to post up the reviews I've written. Here's the first one I did for Big Up Magazine, in the Spring 2009 issue.

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HUDSON MOHAWKE - POLYFOLK DANCE EP [WARP RECORDS]

Warp presents a six-tracker from the 22-year old Scottish beatsmith Hudson Mohawke (AKA one half of Heralds of Change, alongside Mike Slott). Following up from the limited-release Ooops! EP on LuckyMe/Wireblock that sold out in a heartbeat, this mini-LP gives us a little taste of what the man’s capable of: taking post-hip-hop beat music to the next level.

The opening track, Polkadot Blues, happily bounces along like you’re riding through a subconscious nursery, where dancing robotic babydolls whisper sweet nothings in your ears, and meanwhile the pony that you’re riding on has only three legs. This makes the journey bumpy, and a little bit disturbing but mostly reassuringly pleasant. After all, it’s not like you’re in the real world or anything. You float into the second track, Monde, except now you’re on a rainbow carpet ride through space, and the conductor is a three-headed music box. You’re not sure why, but you’re satisfied and your head won’t stop bobbing from left to right.

HALT. One of those canes from those old cartoon shows yanks you by the neck and pulls you into a sub-atomic future rock-disco, AKA track three, Overnight. Center stage, a floating set of pink lips sings triumphantly, and a synthetic baby pig is singing his heart out in the loveliest way possible. This track is a pure dancefloor stalker, as in you don’t see it creeping up on you for the first five seconds, and that’s all it needs before it has you hooked by the jugular. And at 140 bpm, it’s friendly for a dubstep set.

Flip the record over to Speed Stick. You don’t even get a chance to catch your breath before some digi-instrument that hasn’t been invented yet invades your brain sockets, the drums are slapping you on your rosy cheeks, and three-eyed, mini-mouthed children are humming polyphonic chords into your facial area. However, they’re gone as soon as you’re starting to get used to it. Next track, Velvet Peel, the same children pull you by your pinkies onto a color-shifting radio flyer wagon that glides into Super Mario World and you feel strangely at home. The koopas aren’t even mad at you either. Then you go down a green super-pipe.

Final track, Yonard. It’s too dark to see. The babydolls are back! What are they yelling at you? Who cares… a kick-drum sludge monster that you can’t really make out rumbles across your peripheral vision but you’re too scared to move. The lights come on, and it’s not a monster! It’s just a gelatinous music-machine dripping with clicks and claps, babydolls, sirens, and mechanical nonsense. It grows larger, starts spinning uncontrollably, and then careens into a black hole. You wake up in a hot sweat and you’re sleeping upside down. Ooops!

Seriously next-level tunes from this young Glaswegian producer, with more greatness to come, surely. By the time you read this, the vinyl copies have probably sold out unless you’re looking on Discogs, you might still be able to grab a CD from Boomkat, but there’s always Bleep.com for all your digital music needs. And this is one you need.

-Alex Incyde

BUY IT HERE

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Kode 9 on Bass

"At least in the club setting, what gets lost is a certain sensual relation between the dancer and their body, the sense of the materiality of their bodies, that they are just another vibrating object in the room. What I think is conceptually powerful about bass culture is that it reminds the arrogant human race that they are really mostly composed of non-organic matter, are not self-enclosed individuals but permeable membranes through which forcefields can pass and interfere with your insides. I think there is a extent to which bass culture educates dancers about their bodies, literally vibrating parts they didnt know they had."

read the full conversation here: http://wayneandwax.com/?p=2365

85 degrees at night.. July re-cap

Been a little while since I have updated... lets see whats been going on...

July was mostly traveling for me... and it was really fun. First half of the month was spent in the Uk and Germany, visiting some old friends from my London days (as in 2007.. ha) and spent a few days in Berlin too where Paul was doing his party Sub:Stance that weekend. It was quite a blurry 10 days, going from this place to there, meeting this person here and that person there, catching up, drinking, smoking too many cigs, etc etc. Really amazing to meet with so many people involved in different facets of the underground music scene over there though and got a sense of what things are like there nowadays. But it was far too short.... wish I could have done the same amount of stuff but spread it thinner so I wasn't running around like a madman. But oh well, life is short. Out to my gracious host Boomnoise, and if I started to big up anyone else from the trip I'd have a list a paragraph long before I knew it, so I won't.

Back in new york for a quick week for Dub War (as previously mentioned) which was great, and then the rest of the month was spent on the west coast with Pandai'a as a sort of joint vacation/gig thing. We spent the first few days in San Francisco, saw some sights, played at the Big Up Magazine vol 4 launch party, and got to meet a good lot of the SF dubstep gang. Great group of people there.. the weather was a bit shit though. cold and windy... which kind of took me by surprise. Out to our host Katya... BIG UP.

Then we took a road trip down the coast of California to LA, by way of Santa Cruz and Big Sur. I must say it was goooorgeous. There's nothing quite like driving along the winding cliffs of the edge of America. LA has very nice weather... hot all day every day, which was a welcome change from the coldness in SF. Played at a night in Costa Mesa called Dubtroit.. the venue was AT a strip mall. Never done anything like that before.. heh. It was good fun.. out to Drew Smog and 12th Planet hookin it up.

Wednesday brought on Low End Theory where I was lucky enough to play a short set alongside Ras G, Dam-Funk and the residents Gaslamp Killer, Nobody and D-Styles. It was a SICK night.. the soundsystem at the Airliner was revamped and was pure weight. Many thanks to Daddy Kev for hookin it up, sadly he was away on tour that night. It was a lot of fun though.. the crowd seemed to be feeling my leftfield-ish deeper dubstep shiz. They cheered anyway... so that's a good sign.

Finally the highlight of the trip had to be driving out to the desert at night and spending the evening at Joshua Tree park... we couldn't see much getting there but once the sun came up it revealed a beautiful landscape of huge rock formations and strangely shaped furry trees that look like they're straight out of a Dr Seuss book.... Rainbow skies all around... seriously... you could see the entire spectrum of color in the sky.

That wrapped up July. Overall it was an amazing month of summer trippin'... but it really wore me out. I think I may have actually paralyzed my travel bug as it were.. I have NO desire to go anywhere anymore... I just want to settle into NYC and ground myself here for a good while. So that's what I'm gonna do... and it feels good...

Bringing us up to the present moment... end re-cap post and check the next entry for some more relevant information.

Aldous Huxley on Experience

"Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you." - Aldous Huxley

Facing the Blur

It's really difficult to explain how honored and proud I feel at this moment.

Perhaps this is what they mean by "entering the mysteries".

To feel the anticipation of the fruits of your labors, after so many times of doubting yourself and your abilities, your future, but still persisting on regardless, yet not for the sake of persistence itself, but simply because you have real other path to take but the one you're already on. And to feel that you have not nearly reached the end of your journey, only taken one step further towards it, as if the world is rewarding you for doing something you would have done anyway, regardless of what may come of it, simply because you love to do it, and for no other reason.

Perhaps this is what is meant by facing the blur of reality, the rush of life itself, the bustling frenzy of activity all around us.

I was given 12 minutes to show the world what I love to do.

In one week, Dub War will present a mix on Mary Anne Hobbs' BBC Radio 1 Experimental show, a 50-minute sampler of us simply doing what we love to do, what (evidently) we are here to do, every third Friday of the month, in New York City.

I can't explain what an honor it is to be a part of it, especially being such a recent addition to the collective. But it does feel empowering to me, to feel that all the things I've done in my life up to this point, following my purest passion, and being blessed enough to have the ability to do so, has led me up to this point, where so many other people can listen to me doing my thing, can share the joys of the music I'm fortunate enough to have been given and (in one case) have had to opportunity to write myself.

So on May 26th, 9-11pm NYC time, or May 27th, 2-4am UK time, the Dub War mix will air on BBC, with collective contributions from Dave Q, Joe Nice, Badawi, Juakali, and myself (hell I still can't believe it really), as well as a mix from Los Angeles' finest Low End Theory selectors.

Tune in at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/maryannehobbs.

The blur continues...

Mystery

"What always is an essential element in the creative is the mysterious. The dark, like the black in lacquer. The impenetrable, and yet the profound depth out of which glorious things come, but nobody can see why."

-Alan Watts

First post

Welcome to the blog of incyde!

Don't you hate when you make a cup of tea and then forget to drink it? Then it's all cold and you gotta either drink it if you're desperate, or if not just brew another cup and hope you don't forget that one too. I feel there's a pretty tight window of time that hot tea is most enjoyable. Sleep on that window and it's game over.

What is this??

It's just a place for me to post all things related to my activities and also my random thoughts and enjoyments. So if you like what I do, or like what I like, then you're in the right place.

21 Apr 2009 Repost

"There seem to two kinds of searchers: those who seek to make their ego something other than it is, i.e. holy, happy, unselfish (as though you could make a fish un-fish), and those who understand that all such attempts are just gesticulation and play-acting, that there is only one thing that can be done, which is to dis-identify themselves with the ego, by realizing its unreality, and by becoming aware of their eternal identity with pure being." - Fingers Pointing Toward the Moon by Wei Wu Wei...