Artist(s) .........:: Stelios Vassiloudis
Title .............:: It Is What It Is
Genre .............:: House
Record Label ......:: Bedrock
Catalogue Number ..:: BEDSV01CD
Source ............:: WEB
Quality ...........:: 320kbps avg / 44.1KHz / Joint Stereo
Duration ..........:: 05:01:05 (690.MB)
Release Date ......:: 08-11-2011
Support ...........:: http://www.junodownload.com
Tracklist .........::
1. Stelios Vassiloudis - In Tandem 2:34
2. Stelios Vassiloudis - Entropy 4:19
3. Stelios Vassiloudis - Who You Are 5:37
4. Stelios Vassiloudis Feat Darren Murray - 5:11
I Burn Like
5. Stelios Vassiloudis - Reshape & Reform 7:15
6. Stelios Vassiloudis - Your Other Left 7:14
7. Stelios Vassiloudis - Clarity 4:56
8. Stelios Vassiloudis & Astrid Suryanto - 4:39
Walk Away
9. Stelios Vassiloudis - The View From Here 4:45
10.Stelios Vassiloudis - The Highline 5:12
11.Stelios Vassiloudis & John Dalagelis - 5:38
Sunrise On The Avenue
12.Stelios Vassiloudis Feat Anna Maria X - 4:47
Tie Me Up
13.Stelios Vassiloudis - Small Hours 7:03
14.Stelios Vassiloudis Feat Tomomi Ukumori - 8:33
Green In Blue
15.Stelios Vassiloudis Feat Anna Maria X - 6:53
Isolation
16.Stelios Vassiloudis - My Leaking Vein 8:57
17.Stelios Vassiloudis & Astrid Suryanto - 8:02
Feed
18.Stelios Vassiloudis - Blister 8:54
19.Stelios Vassiloudis - Reaching 9:02
20.Stelios Vassiloudis - Nowhere 8:56
21.Stelios Vassiloudis & Sasse - The Z 9:54
22.Stelios Vassiloudis - Toujours 8:47
23.Stelios Vassiloudis - Repetition 9:21
24.Stelios Vassiloudis - A New Aesthetic 8:08
25.Stelios Vassiloudis - Nickel Wound 8:48
26.Stelios Vassiloudis - It Is What It Is 57:15
(Part 1)
27.Stelios Vassiloudis - It Is What It Is 70:25
(Part 2)
Release Note ......::
Following the debut artist album by Marco Bailey, Guy Js second artist album
and releases from label owner John Digweed himself (in the form of the
Structures and Bedrock 12 mix compilations), Bedrock now proudly presents the
debut artist album from rising Greek star Stelios Vassiloudis, titled It Is
What It Is. I had always tried to avoid making an album and it's safe to say I
had (and still have) various preconceptions and notions about the process of
making an album and also the qualities that constitute a successful and
well-rounded album. The electronic music genre is wrought with sub-par, hastily
produced collections of singles strung together in LP format as much as forward
thinking artistic endeavours, so the prospect of making my own statement was
(and is) always a very daunting prospect. - Stelios Vassiloudis Presented over
two discs, the album commences with a beautiful cinematic soundscape on CD1,
whereas CD2 allows Stelios to showcase his club sound, which develops from
laidback deep house grooves right through to a more intense techier acidic
vibe. With all the tracks blended and mixed together into a continuous play
format to create the optimum listening experience, this is a fantastic release
showcasing top quality, forward-thinking music and once again showing why
Bedrock is one of the leading labels in the global electronic scene. You may
have already heard Stelios on Bedrock recently in his Wiretappeur guise (his
collaboration with Florian Kruse and Nils Nurnberg) with the much-loved
Everybody Loves Ice Cream EP whose deep house vibes and warm sounds are firm
favourites of many acclaimed DJ's. Now, its time for him to shine in his own
right. When I started work on this album a few years ago, I just wrote
non-stop. For the first time in many years, I found myself enjoying the process
of writing and arranging music again. CD1 is a relaxing journey through lush
melodic swells, down-tempo grooves, experimental beats, subtle guitars and
ambient interludes. Inspired in parts by the originality of the likes of Boards
Of Canada, David Holmes and Massive Attack, this superb collection of beautiful
instrumental and vocal tracks explores the possibilities and creative freedom
afforded when music moves beyond the confines of the dancefloor. As CD1 builds
towards a finale, keyboards and strings give way to the stripped-back, slo-mo
house of Sunrise On The Avenue which then morphs into the analogue squelch of
Tie Me Up, Stelios sets the stage perfectly for what is the come on CD2 as the
dancefloor beckons. If you like deeply groovy laid-back, vocal and instrumental
house music with enough depth and variety to warrant many, many repeat plays
before anything like over familiarity or boredom sets in, youre in for a treat.
This is house music that is sophisticated, subtle, filled with hip-wiggling
percussion, intensity, throbbing and ebbing and flowing through the mix with
supreme ease. It is the mark of a truly creative producer that by the time the
final acidic flourish of Repetition dies away, It Is What It Is feels like a
truly inspired journey to the heart, mind and soul of Stelios Vassiloudis. A
big part of this new found enthusiasm and creativity led me to seeking out
like-minded musicians and collaborators-people that could bolster or finesse
some my ideas and complete my vision. The result of these experiments and the
collaborations were some of the strongest, most well rounded compositions I had
put together to date and ended up forming the core of the album. The album is
rich with the many vocal talents it hosts, with glorious contributions from
Darren Murray (I Burn Like), Astrid Suryanto (Walk Away and Feed), Anna Maria X
(Tie Me Up and Isolation) and Tomomi Ukomori (Green In Blue), all of which are
exceptional in their own distinctive styles. Darren and I started working
together during the time he was doing vocals for Killahurtz and it didn't take
long for me to realize what an amazingly talented and inspired musician he is.
He's also tremendously underrated and not terribly prolific. However, we've
worked together very happily over the years, often to great effect and his
range and versatility made him the first and only choice when I was sourcing
for male vocalists to sing on I Burn Like. Astrid Suryanto has an established
history of working with some of the great names in electronic music such as
Todd Terry, King Britt, DJ Yellow and Morgan Page, as well as a plethora of top
quality labels like Nervous, Plastic City and Armada, amongst many others. Her
vocal contributions on Walk Away and Feed are two of the albums highlights.
I've always maintained that collaborations are tricky business. Especially when
it comes to obtaining a good vocal performance that works in harmony with the
music you've written. Generally speaking, vocalists either tend to have too
much "vision" or not enough of it. Astrid is an accomplished, well-rounded
songwriter as well as a first rate singer so working with her was ridiculously
easy. Based in Japan, Tomomi Ukomori has worked on critically acclaimed
releases with key labels in that territory like Avex, Apt International and
Green Parrot Recordings, collaborating with the likes of Mathias Kaden, Hernan
Cattaneo, OMB and Hideo Kobyashi. Her vocals on Blue In Green take the track to
another place entirely. I met Tomomi years ago at a club I was playing at in
Tokyo. After the gig, she gave me a CD of her (then) current material. I became
an instant fan. From that night until today her exceptional song writing and
talent have taken her far and she has created some very special pieces of
music. It was a Mathias Kaden track that I heard her singing on that gave me
the idea for a Japanese vocal on "Blue In Green". I think the juxtaposition of
a very deep/techy instrumental and Tomomi's soft vocal tone make an interesting
mix. Anna Maria X is a name synonymous with the music scene in Greece, whether
as a DJ or a producer/singer. Anna has been one of the main names in the
electronic scene, being involved in clubs, radio and, of course, a whole host
of releases with her studio partner, Gpal. Her vocals on Tie Me Up and
Isolation will linger in your mind for a long time to come. As far as spoken
word vocalists go, Anna Maria is up there with the best of them. It's no wonder
she has a thriving side career as a voice-over specialist, the timbre of her
voice is unmistakable. She knows electronic dance music. She knows what works
and what doesn't. These were the fastest and easiest vocals I recorded for the
album. In addition to the many original pieces of work on this album, Stelios
has also teamed up with a couple of other like-minded producers. The Z is a
collaboration with Berlin based Sasse, who releases music on his esteemed Mood
Music label. Our working relationship began a few years ago when we started
swapping music and remixes for our 2 labels (his-Mood Music, mine-Dieb Audio).
Since then we've become good friends, and worked together in various
capacities, but hadnt made a complete a track together. The opportunity came up
when I started "The Z". I had started developing the groove and main patterns
but was lacking a fresh perspective, something to give it extra definition that
would set it apart from your usual mid-set fodder. Sasse's touch was just what
it needed and he took my initial idea in a whole new direction! John Dalagelis'
involvement with this album project (he co-engineered and co-produced the
continuous mixes) resulted in him contributing his song writing and studio
finesse to "Sunrise On The Avenue", a DJ tool in essence, but something more
sophisticated and not just a "functional" piece of music. John co-runs the
uber-hip Dieb Audio imprint and has released music on a wide variety of labels
over the years. John was there when I started being involved in this "scene".
He and his brother remixed my first 2 records. Through my (and their) early
development as a producer and DJ we were very tight, always bouncing ideas off
each other, going out to parties, discussing music and discovering new things
along the way. As a studio engineer, John is one of the best I know. He's mixed
and mastered with the best and for the best. I knew I wanted his ears and his
know-how when it came to putting the extra touches on the final mixes and the
mixed version of the album. He ended up mastering it also. All great albums
have a secret story to tell when you scratch below the surface and It Is What
It Is by Stelios Vassiloudis is a debut artist album that is more than a
collection of great tracks. Across the two discs, it is a journey into the mind
of a very talented musician, producer and DJ. If you are open to the emotions
on display it will give you glimpses of his very heart and soul. It is an
exceptionally exciting, bold and brave body of music that will stand the test
of time beyond fickle trends and fashions. Ive spent a year refining,
rewriting, expanding and polishing the album into the two disc form it has
today. In keeping with the popular paradigm, this experience has made the
journey far more poignant and resounding than the end destination and has made
me a better writer/producer. I guess that's what music has always been about
for me-learning and evolving. A music professor at University once told me
that: "the moment you start to feel complacent and accomplished, you're
finished". My professor's words and my unwavering desire to attain (some
measure of) perfection would have probably inspired and self perpetuated an
endless cycle of writing, rewriting, editing and tweaking until the end of
time! But, all good things must come to an end. A line must be drawn. In this
light, I think the album title is self-explanatory. I hope you enjoy listening
to it as much as I did making it? - Stelios Vassiloudis