Music
Press
“Sound is Matter Vol.001” is more a display of musical talent and diversity than it is an album. This is not always necessarily a bad thing, this collection of songs simply lacks cohesiveness. The tracks are well produced, interesting, and fresh. Turntable Kachina explores the many aspects of dance, world, and electronic music, sprinkling bits and pieces of each like salt over a meal. And more times than not throughout the Kachina’s first release, it is a tempting and tasty feast. The piano playing on “Star 9 Pillow” is one brief example of the amount of talent and a nicely tuned musical ear that this artist portrays. “Rain Stance” is a very clean, smooth, dance track….and maybe the most marketable song on the album. Overall, I give the songs on this release high marks, each for different reasons. A very impressive first outing for this new artist from Arizona. - Dan Filler for Intuit
Sound is Matter - Vol. 001 is an excellent album. As I write this I'm listening to the very chill Shoshone and stepping back into my early college days when the Trance Nation albums from the Ministry of Sound were being played way too much in my cd player.
What gets me loving the album is that I can hear the video game influence in Bear's tracks. Sure enough, as a DJ in the Scottsdale scene for several years, Bear's influences aren't just Mario and Ninja Gaiden. But I swear I can hear some of these tracks in today's video games, like the mood setting Spare Change and Mission to Earth.
-ic - Ian Castruita for enblog
Turntable Kachina’s new release “Sound is Matter Vol.001” is a mind encompassing sound-scape, thick with melody, deep in rhythm. The tracks tickle the senses, and in my case triggered reflection and inner thought. An overall well crafted E.P. that breaks many musical boundaries, and all the rules of dance music.
The opening track “Unorthodox Entrance” is a dirty and grimy east-coast influenced Hip Hop instrumental. Started with Kung-Fu samples this track is reminiscent of RZA’s early works, and may have been a good fit to open a Jeru the Damaja album. This is a short and sweet entrance to the album, which shows Bear the Astronot’s Hip Hop roots.
The second track “Canyon de Chelley (thunder mix)” is an energetic and very unique ride through Canyon de Chelley with impressive chanting samples, and thunder throughout. A very strong track that immediately introduces you to the essence of Turntable Kachina.
Elements of smooth piano jazz chords, and a very relaxed approach to downtempo, chill, and electronic reign supreme in “Star 9 Pillow” and “40oz. Martini.” The ending track “Cane in the Dark” is an orchestral masterpiece that would fit the bill for any epic movie. A spaced-out side of Bear the Astronot’s production meets dance and piercing synths in “Rain Stance” and “Mission to Earth.”
“Paint Your Windows” and “Designated Driver” show two very separate sides of jungle and drum & bass rhythm. “Paint Your Windows” is a very jazzy relaxed ride over double time and choppy drums. “Designated Driver” tells an all too familiar tale. The song starts with an apparent ambience of a fun night out drinking wine with friends, where “Passion, Friends With Flare, and Wine With Attitude” flow in abundance. Time to head home. Suddenly an aggressive bass line, energetic ride, and sound effects galore, follow the listener on a chaos filled ride home which inevitably ends as all over done nights of drinking do. A fun, energetic, and well concocted track, with plenty of attitude and flare.
Overall, “Sound is Matter Vol.001” is a nice opening to an E.P. series by new-comer Turntable Kachina. The tracks are unique, but still very at home in the ears of any electronic, new age, dance, techno, hip hop listener. Dusty vinyl samples ride right along digital thump and synth laden funk. I look forward to hearing more from this artist.
Michael Patrick for Cygyne Mag.
- Cygyne Mag
Discography
"Sound is Matter Vol.001"-2007
"MITOSIS"-2007
"Roots"-2008
Available for download now. Visit turntablekachina.com or www.myspace.com/turntablekachina to purchase.
Photos
Bio
Inside the basic starving artists den.....Stacks of bent cornered vinyl stacked around keyboards and a Mac G4 decomposes almost into dust. The dining room of his tiny two bedroom apartment has been crammed with blinking lights, XLR cables, Native American "Kachinas" and jewelery. Jackson Polack splattered with hand percussion and Midi Keyboards. After a succesful night of editting the artist scratches at his face....deeply in need of a shave. Bear the Astronot started Dj'ing when vinyl still reigned. He started as an MC when "Chuck D" mattered more than cough syrup. As he ponders, out of the corner of an intent and searing gaze, he catches an image...
Bear the Astronot grew up in Grand Canyon National Park, on the Navajo Reservation (dinetah), and in and among people of the Hopi, Havasupai, Apache, Pima, Yaqui, and Tohono O'odham tribes. These people and places had a tremendous and lasting effect on his music. Now atop his turntable, permanantly sculpted into dancing stance, a perfectly carved "Snake Dancer" kachina stares back at him. It casts a waving shadow.
He has been searching for a name for his instrumental works. A name that shows how deeply rooted he is in this music, and that seperates it from his work as a Hip Hop artist.
From this image, this slithering shadow across his turntable....... Turntable Kachina is born....
Turntable Kachina is one producer’s exploration into sound. From the most remote reaches of the Southwest, Grand Canyon National Park to the towering painted cliffs of Monument Valley, the sounds of nature meet jutting comets and industrial pings in Turntable Kachina’s compositions. The music is at once electronic urban pulsing static, and subtle flowing mountain side inner journey. A mixture of electronic, Hip Hop, house, drum & bass, downtempo, jazz, and chill influences bubbles from samples, synths, and pounding drums. Turntable Kachina does not have a genre or title, because as humans we should not constrain our experiences to genres or titles.
The music of Turntable Kachina is created by Bear the Astronot. This is his foraging for sound-scapes outside the intruding boundaries of Hip Hop. If Bear the Astronot is what his mind and mouth sound like, Turntable Kachina is the sound of his body and soul. The majority of these compositions were created with movie and video game soundtracks in mind. All of them are meant to tell a story, project emotions, or capture a point in time.
Bear purposefully breaks the constraining and often strict rules of each style he plays, mixing and melding techniques used by various producers and Dj’s, and the end product is often a gumbo of samples, synths, and live instrumentation.
Bear is a trained and certified studio engineer, audio technician, and spent over eight years as a professional event, club, and rave DJ. All of his experience as an MC, Producer, and DJ is funneled cohesively into this music. He creates these songs from the ground up, handling all performance, production, recording, mixing, and mastering himself. Years of playing instruments such as saxophone, turntables, and piano, have aided his creative skill.
Turntable Kachina released the first of many E.P.’s in 2007. Released as a series entitled “Sound is Matter.” Vol.001 is available now, and 002 will be available for download in February 2008. "MITOSIS" a more dance influenced album was released November 2007, and a third release "Roots", a journey into The Kachina's influences, will be available the end of December 2007. These three releases will cap off a succesful year.
The songs created by this artist are perfect for advertising, movies, video games, and more. Created for contemplation, meditation, and enlightenment, they just might have you dancing and reflecting at the same time. See what our planet sounds like from outer-space, and what secrets lie behind the “Turntable Kachina.”
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