Podcast 803: Rrose

Rrose is the elusive incarnation of Seth Horvitz, an artist from California, currently based in London. After several years producing glitch-heavy experiments as Sutekh, Horvitz launched Rrose in 2011 with a mysterious EP on Function and Regis’ now decommissioned Sandwell District, which they followed with a string of vinyl releases on their own own Eaux label. (That includes this stunner.) They’ve also put out influential records on Lucy‘s Stroboscopic Artefacts and Noise Manifesto, demonstrating a breed of techno that channels the spirit of genre’s roots while injecting influences from the avant-garde.

In 2019, Rrose released their debut solo album, Hymn to Moisture, and their second one, Please Touch, is incoming on June 23, featuring 10 deftly-engineered psychedelic techno tracks that are densely textured yet at home on the dancefloor. (You can hear some of these in this studio mix). For this week’s much-anticipated XLR8R podcast, Horvitz has delivered a segment of a DJ set from Budapest in March. As a performer, Rrose’s DJ sets are crafted like finely woven sonic tapestries, and this one is no different: expect two hours of alluring psychedelic techno featuring tracks from Rødhåd, SHXCXCHCXSH, Tommy Four Seven, Peter Van Hoesen, and more.

01. What have you been up to recently?
Doing my best to stay healthy, sane, and inspired amongst all the fear, destruction, and abuse of power that surrounds us. Sorry, that was very dramatic!

02. What have you been listening to?
These days I find myself spending more time listening to the world around me than recorded music, but I’ve recently been intrigued by releases from Kali Malone, The Bug, and Kyle Gann, and older music by Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru, Vicente Lucitano, and Bach.

03. You have a new album coming out later this month. What can you tell us about it?
It’s called Please Touch and it’s a follow up/companion to the 2019 album, Hymn to Moisture. I think of it as a further refinement of the work I’ve developed over the last decade, which integrates elements of microtonal/psychoacoustic composition, sound art, and psychedelia with raw, body-moving electronic rhythms.

04. Where and when did you record this mix?
March 25, 2023 at Technokunst in Budapest, Hungary.

05. It’s a live recording. Tell us what made this set so memorable?
I don’t often allow my DJ sets to be recorded, but this was an exception. After the event, the organizer sent me the file and said “you should release this somewhere, anywhere!” For me, this is a fairly accessible dancefloor-focused set, but apparently they considered it quite experimental compared to what is usually play at the venue, and they were surprised that I could get the whole room locked in and moving to music like this!

06. What setup did you use?
I use Ableton Live and MIDI controllers to control filters and effects, and I also make use of five channels on the DJ mixer for EQ and independent FX control, so my DJ sets always have a hybrid element to them.

07. What can the listener expect?
This event took place a short time after I released a meticulously crafted studio mix, so this recording will give listeners a chance to compare my studio versus live approach. There is some overlap of material, but the mixes are different.

08. What’s next on your horizon?
I’ve been in heavy collaboration mode lately, working on a few releases for my own label and others, and a bunch of remixes. Along with the recently released EP and upcoming album, this will be a big release year for me!

Tracklisting

01. Phill Niblock “Unmentionable Piece for Trombone and Sousaphone” (Touch)
02. Nik Colk Void “Interruption Is Good” (Editions Mego)
03. Aleksi Perälä “FI3AC2031050” (Self-Released)
04. Deathday “Sister” (Rrose remix) (Eaux)
05. Minilogue “Clouds and Water” (Rrose remix) (Enemy)
06. Israel Vines “Nosedive” (Interdimensional Transmissions)
07. Rrose “Spines” (Eaux)
08. Decoder “Krodha” (Self-Released)
09. Luigi Tozzi “Spiral” (Non Series)
10. Aleksi Perälä “FI3AC2030010” (Self-Released)
11. Luigi Tozzi “Sorcery” (Psyk Remix) (Non Series)
12. Decoder “Kurukshetra” (Self-Released)
13. Decoder “Kalpa” (Self-Released)
14. Terrence Dixon “Digital Ladder” (Dasha Rush remix) (30drop)
15. Rødhåd “Thoughtcrime” (Dystopian)
16. errorsmith “No Ice” (Errorsmith)
17. WTCHCRFT “SHAKE IT” (Nikki Nair’s Shook Mix) (SR50)
18. Truncate “Work Ya Ass” (Manao & Elektor Remix) (WKRTRX)
19. Peter Van Hoesen “Dream Implosion” (Time 2 Express)
20. Truncate “The Drill” (Truncate)
21. Peter Van Hoesen “Purity Death Spiral” (Time 2 Express)
22. Konduku “Zifir” (Bitta)
23. Bidoben “Soft Milieu” (Truncate)
24. Clay Wilson “Moving Centre” (Bunker)
25. Rrose “Vellum” (Eaux)
26. Rrose vs. Tujurikkuja “Omerta” (version) (Eaux)
27. Polygonia “Vipera Berus” (ara)
28. JSPR “Cyborg Salsa” (Truncate)
29. Decoder “Kashyapa’s War” (Inguma)
30. Kali Malone “Arched in Hysteria” (Hallow Ground)
31. Phase Fatale “Desecrating Vows” (Rrose remix) (Bite)
32. Anthony Rother “Vox Clamantis In Spatio” (Psi49net)
33. Rrose “A Row of Cylinders” (Eaux)
34. Vel “Era L” (XX Lab)
35. Desroi “If Your Teeth Fall Out You Can Have Mine” (desroi)
36. Agency666 “Not To Be Re-Produced” (Unknown)
37. Eomac “Spoook” (Killekill)
38. Rrose “Shepard’s Brine” (Eaux / Sandwell District)
39. Matrixxman “Mother’s Return” (The Grid)
40. Tommy Four Seven “Track 5” (CLR)
41. SHXCXCHCXSH “VVOV” (Mord)
42. Duane Pitre “Varolii Pattern 10-1” (Important)

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