FREAKS – CONSCIOUS OF MY CONSCIENCE

RELEASE DATE : VINYL 17.01.11 / DIGITAL 31.01.11

LABEL : REBIRTH RECORDS



Freaks follow up their release, ‘Right Now featuring Robert Owens ” with another exciting single on Rebirth. This time Luke Solomon and Justin Harris team up with Diz aka 012 to reinterpret the Womack & Womack classic !

In the words of Freaks…

“We first started recording this record around 6 years ago. Originally to a live drum track. The track started off as a straight cover, then eventually was stripped down and remixed effectively. Diz used to stay with us quite a bit in London and around the time that we first recorded the vocals we had been listening to a lot of Funkadelic, The Style Council and this. Diz started singing it in the car and we just decided to record it for fun. It just seemed to work so well, probably because Diz really understood the soul of the track and captured it in the delivery of his vocals. We then added some backing vox and stripped that back and ended up with this version. .

The album, “Conscience”, that we took it from, is one of our all time faves “

The one and only Henrik Schwarz also serves up a strong remix and dub with his trademark warm sound, piano, synth and acid bassline ! Magic and epic at the same time…and that’s not to mention the awesome Johnny D remix.

Already tried and tested by Gilles Peterson in the last month and seeing support from Pete Tong for Henrik’s remix……. This is a another monster tune from the Freaks stable.

Freaks changed the way for traditional dance music acts. Luke Solomon and Justin Harris came together through a mutual love of all things musical over 15 years ago. They organically evolved into a six-piece outfit incorporating the infamous Jonny Rock on guitar, Sascha Darroch Davies on drums, vocalist Stella Attar and Rub on bass.

Over the years they have become a quirky and loveable ensemble that has found critical favour, flirted with chart success – The Creeps went into the top 10 in 2007, 4 years after its original release – disappeared due to it and now are about to return armed with a fresh outlook.

We spoke to them on the eve of their ‘Best Of Times’ release, a compilation of old favourites alongside new exclusive material that was concocted while underground, now dug up from the vaults and set to become future classics. Available from itunes the material was made embracing new technologies, even Luke’s beloved iphone helped the journey.

Their website is now hosting a remix competition for fans to interpret the original material and Freaks are preparing for a big European tour this summer. There is also single releases out on Crosstown Rebels (their first official release in 2 years featuring Radio Slave mixes), Rebirth featuring Robert Owens on vocals and StattMusik.

Freaks are back. Fantastic. How does it feel?

“It’s great to be getting heard again. Although we’ve not had any sort of break from writing as such. We just took a little step back to work out the next direction for ourselves after “Man Who Lived Underground” and “Creeps” had done their thing. The recent releases really are the tip of the iceberg though.

Your band format was a real first for a dance music act. How did that come about?

“I guess we were at a place where we felt we needed to move on. It seemed like a natural format for us to take on. Dance music was in a dull and stale please and this was an exciting take on pushing the boundaries a little.”

What format will the forthcoming tour take this year?

“For the moment we’re just doing Freaks DJ sets which is, and always has been the lifeblood of our creativity and an essential part of what we do… However, definitely don’t rule out more live band stuff.. ;o) can’t really say more than that just yet.”

What Are your highlights together as freaks?

“There have been a few. Global gathering as a band, Sancho Panza tent at Glade, Sancho Panza boat on the Thames . John Peel playing 2 of our records on one show. We have been in some really fortunate places.”

What about the low times?

“Well of course there have been low times. When you’re in a band a close to people for this length of time you’d be lucky to avoid them, both professionally and personally… I think the most difficult times for us as a band have been overcoming the myriad of issues that the Music Industry in general throws at you. It’s pretty difficult to keep making original and forward thinking music when there’s so much change going on with the way people actually buy and acquire music. However, adversity seems to be a great fuel supply for creativity so it’s hard to knock the lows when so many positive things were created as a result.”

It seems the success of the creeps surprised you. How did all that come about?

“We had licensed the single to Azuli. Dave commissioned a mix from Vandalism without us knowing. He stuck the mix up on DJ download not expecting much. It turned out to be the biggest download in their history. Ministry picked it up, and so on.”

How did you approach the new material? Was there a formula?

“We’ve always had the same formula when it comes to writing and producing music. Not actually sure we know what it is though, probably best not to look into it too much. Having fun and enjoying what you do is high on the list. You could sum it up as  ’ If it works, keep it….if it doesn’t, delete it and try something else’ . And don’t allow yourself to be pigeon-holed….it’s a bad place!”

There is new material on crosstown rebels and rebirth. Do you still feel freaks appeal to a diverse audience or are you sitting comfortably in a particular style?

“We actually have a lot more material that is more diverse than any thing any one has heard. I think these singles are stepping stones for us. The Last Days of Disco, a mid tempo disco number, is coming out soon, which is different again. I think we are heading towards letting people hear different things, we are just taking baby steps.”

Music for freaks is issuing the best of times album. Is there plans for further output on the label?

“Yes. We have stacks of material and back catalogue which got a bit missed in all the confusion.. we’re just sorting through it all now……. (of course all info on that can be got on our website – www.musicforfreaks.com”

You’ve seen great change in the musical community over the years and are forthcoming in embracing new technologies such as using iPhone in music production to blogging and remix competitions. Do you think its important to stay on top of these things as an artist?

“We always did this kind of thing, way way back. Justin always had the web knowledge, and we used this to make our fans feel involved. This has been a big deal for us, the interaction. Now we are in the perfect position, it’s almost like this is the world that needed to evolve to allow us to flourish.”

How do you feel about the current stance of dance music? Vinyl sales are sliding. Does this keep you awake at night and do you think there is a solution?

Over twenty years in this business have shown that technologically there will always be a next big thing. A new format, and improved way to listen. The slide of vinyl is sad because the replacement formats simply aren’t as good yet. Hopefully this will be ironed out in time or vinyl will get a resurrection again, in the meantime it’s a case of getting on with it and moving with the times.  Formats aside, we think dance music is actually very very healthy at the moment. Some of the music out now is easily as fresh and exciting as it was ten years ago.”

Tell us about the best of times album. Did it bring back memories or are you pointing more to the future?

“It began out of neccesity. It then became something else. We started to realize that our music felt relevant to the new generation. It also meant we could show case new material. Although what you are hearing now bar the Crosstown single, was actually made 4 or 5 years ago. Yes it did bring memories, but we have never been big purveyors of retro. It’s all about moving dance music forward, else being different.”

What else is in store for freaks in 2010?

“More of the same or none of the above. Without wanting to sound too cliche, for us it’s just like a very interesting open book which never seems to quite reveal the plot (sorry, it doesn’t get more cliche than that eh?). The more we learn, the more we realise that  we have yet to learn. There are still three years of new songs, tracks, dubs and re-do’s  to get out to people and we never stop writing.”

If you’re a producer / remixer or all round music maker, then this one’s for you as we’ve posted up the parts to 5 of our classic tracks which you can access by clicking on the REMIX COMPETITION tab on our home page – www.musicforfreaks.com - all details of the competition are noted here.

Being a Freaks fan you already know we love music which won’t be put into a box or confined to the corners of a genre, so feel free to do as you will with our very precious parts

Us Freaks, aka Luke Solomon & Justin Harris will be doing the honours on the a&ring front and picking the best mixes……

But what is all this remixing for ? We hear you cry..

Well, the best remixes will be used on a forthcoming compilation album of some of our all time favourite remixes of Freaks original tracks. The album which is titled “Freaks – Danced & Re-Ordered” will be released on Music For Freaks in Spring 2010 and your remix will feature alongside classic producers / remixers such as Greenskeepers, Rob Mello, Derrick Carter, Doc Martin, Tiefschwarz, Swag.

Have fun with the stems.

“These tenacious musical miscreants are back and firing on all cylinders, if ‘Right Now’ is anything to go by. Luke Solomon and Justin harris may have been under the radar for a minute, but they’ve been hard at work, and this team up with the distinctive voice behind classics like ‘Tears’ and ‘Bring Down The Walls’ puts them firmly on the house music front line. A typically rich, emotive timbre from Owens, a vintage Chicago bassline, and bustling precussion conjure a feeling of spiritual connection and celbration as well as bittersweet melancholy, tears on the dancefloor, that transient capturing of a moment in time that only the best house records are capable of evoking”

DJMag March 2010

It was the best of times, it was the freakiest of times. Since 1996, Freaks—the London duo of Luke Solomon and Justin Harris—have been turning dancefloors upside down with their unique sense of boompty. It’s hard to imagine the house music of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s without Freaks tunes like ‘Turning Orange’ or ‘Washing Machine’, which managed to combine elements of jacking Chicago house, minimal German techno and an unhinged, quintessentially British sense of humor.

Freaks spent a decade kicking merrily around the underground, releasing dozens of singles and three albums, most of it for their own Music For Freaks imprint. Then, in 2007, a funny thing happened on their way to the disco: ‘The Creeps’, a record that they had originally released in 2003, finally wormed its way into the U.K. pop charts, going all the way to #9. Pretty cool—unless you happen to be Freaks, for whom the idea of pop stardom is about as appealing as an extended bout of stomach flu.

Reeling from the exposure, Freaks went dark; Solomon focused his efforts on solo material, including a string of singles and an album for Radio Slave’s REKIDS label, and a cracking collaboration with Jonny Rock, ‘It’s In The Rhythm’, for Playhouse.

Now, at long last, the duo has emerged from its underground burrow with an irreverent new single for Crosstown Rebels, ‘UMakeNoSense’, and another new record, ‘Right Now’, for Rebirth, featuring vocals from the legendary Chicago house musician Robert Owens. To top it all off, they’ve pulled together a selection of hits, obscurities and exclusives, ‘Best of Times’, for their own Music for Freaks label. We caught up with Solomon by phone to ask what brought them back, and to find out if the world is finally ready for Freaks….. to read full article please click here

Freaks Vs Robert Owens Right now – new entry in Cool Cuts Top20

And …..

No 17 new entry on Buzz Charts

Freaks Vs Robert Owens – Right Now
Release Date: Vinyl Out Now
Digital: 1st March 2010

JOHNNY D “What a great track!!! I’m a big fan of Luke and Justin works..”
LAURENT GARNIER “love this. proper old school vibe. great single ! Will play for sure “
DEETRON “Great mixes all in all but my faves are the Original and the Dubsttramental mixes, will play the latter most of the time I think!”
SAMUEL L SESSION “-really good classic house with that authentic touch that you do not find that often anymore”
ASHLEY BEEDLE “ really into the ROTCIV re-edit of the Freaks track. Killer house music! Big support from me.”
LEE COMBS “Love the original, Robert Owens voice brings back so many great memories!”
EKKOHAUS “Legendary collaboration……..my favorite mixes are Rotchiv and Glocal’s,apart from the original of course….Thanx…”
TOM BUDDEN “Both the remixes on this are Fantastic!! Very strong. Please can you send me all the remixes though, as depending on the time, could play all of them.”
ALEX DALLAS (Drumpoet) “Wow, that’s a great release. defenetly full support!!!!”
DAN CURTIN “”Sounds excellent, like all mixes, will be perfect for my residency here in Berlin which focuses on deep sounds and also for my normal full on club sets, lots of possibilities with this release!”
FISH GO DEEP “Sounds great as well. Unusually these days to get two cracking vocals in one week.

Original and ROTCIV edit would be great.”
TOBI NEUMANN “super tracks, super song! i will play for sure.. so good to have the freaks back!”
TIM PARIS “Loving the original mix, would love to get the tune ! Nice release.”
SANTOS “INTERESTING FREQUENCIES…LIKE THE ORIGINAL MIX”
SLAM “Very nice !”
MARKUS ENOCHSON “Wow! Fantastic fresh stuff! Love it! Full support!”

Freaks UMakeNoSense EP

A. UMakeNoSense (Original mix)
B. UMakeNoSense (Radio Slave’s Rekid Riddim Remix)
Digital only: UMakeNoSense (Radio Slave’s Music For Freaks Remix)

Label: Crosstown Rebels
Released: 18th January 2010
Distribution: Kompakt
Cat no: CRM055 

Back after a two-year hiatus following their top 10 hit with ‘The Creeps’, Freaks launch their next episode with ‘UMakeNoSense’, a mind-bending electronic monster package complete with two Radio Slave remixes.

UMakeNoSense is a distorted trip into psychedelic territory through a minefield of cosmic energy. This is music that appeals to the mainstream and the dark underground, a formula that Freaks have achieved time and time again. Radio Slave has become renowned for his epic reworks, producing some of the best-loved remixes of the past few years. He doesn’t disappoint with an expedition through low-end and high-octane stratospheres shaking out the groovy beast within the track through two original reworks.

Freaks was originally the brain child of Bournemouthʼs Justin Harris and London-based Luke Solomon, but mutated through its live format into a 6 piece outfit incorporating the infamous Jonny Rock on guitar, Sascha Darroch Davies on drums, vocalist Stella Attar and Rub on bass, journeying through filter disco, quirky mid tempo house and minimal techno to cement their own revolutionary style.

With three albums behind them and a seminal label we know and love as Music For Freaks, they created the top 10 hit, ʻThe Creepsʼ, built around a story written by a friend that had accompanying music and animation to boot. However, the success of the record created an underlying pressure that weighed very heavily on the band and it was through sheer frustration they both decided to take Freaks back to itʼs roots. The time where there was no pressure, just fun to be had. The result was UMakeNoSense – a two fingers to their struggle and a mad record that they wanted to make as Freaky as possible.

It was like an epiphany and a new awakening all at the same time. This new chapter lead to them go back over old ideas, realising that they had a mass of material they needed to be heard and reheard and so as a precursor to the forthcoming single on Crosstown Rebels, Freaks are releasing a “Best of Times” compilation. This includes songs from all three studio albums, some unreleased stuff, and a masterfully mixed free studio set that will accompany the album on iTunes. There will also be the gift of a free EP of unreleased instrumentals to accompany the promo of this release. Promising to mesh of all their electronic, disco and leftfield pop influences, this will undoubtedly re-introduce their fans to a whole new level of freakish behaviour.

www.musicforfreaks.com
www.lukesolomon.com
www.myspace.com/justinharris_freaks
www.myspace.com/rekid
www.crosstownrebels.com