The 1st post

OK, this is going to be a weekly blog to share cool things I found in the world of Hardcore dance (including Freeform, HappyHard, UK stuff and Gabber).

As this is the 1st post, I'll put up some cool shit I've found out over the past few months.

Websites and news:

1st thing I want to mention is SoundCloud. A really cool site where people can upload music and discuss all things music in any genre. Some really cool tracks are there, some free, some previews and others with links to buy the music. It's a great tool for people wanting to get their music heard, or for people trying to discover new music. I even discovered a new genre which I found really banging, Psycore, which is a mix of Psytrance and Hardcore, with a real Freeform tone to it. Check it out at http://soundcloud.com/ and you can see my profile at http://soundcloud.com/stray2615.

Next up is Krafty Radio. Cool site with Hardcore music playing 24/7. Also full of links to free set downloads as well as full tracks. Found some great podcasts there too, but I'll cover the podcasts later. They have a good mix of established DJs as well as up and comers, so well worth checking out. Check http://kraftyradio.com/.

It's voting time! Hardcore Heaven awards are on now - http://www.slamminvinyl.com/index.php?con=hh_poll. Be sure to vote for your favourites.  Also check out the DJMag top 100 awards - http://www.djmag.com/top100. Now I know Hardcore DJs never get in, but lets at least try! If that's not a good enough reason for you to vote, you also get a free track download from trackitdown, and they actually have some decent Hardcore tuneage in there across different genres.


Some sadder news, Crush on Hardcore (a free hardcore mix series for those that don't know) is calling it quits. They have however launched "Sequel of the V" (http://www.crushonhardcore.com/sequel/) to say goodbye, a cool full length track release with some absolute bangers on there. Make sure to download the album that was called V, their last mix release as well (http://www.crushonhardcore.com/). Best of luck to the guys behind the project in their future work and thanks for the great music!

Back to some better stuff, and staying on the free shit theme, I discovered a new site recently - http://ruffbeatz.com/.  They have 2 albums of full length DJ friendly tracks for free download, the most recent has only just come out. One track that really stood out to me is a Speedcore remix of surfing bird (from Family Guy) by S3RL. Well worth checking out for that track alone.


Podcats:

Nu Energy Collective - http://feeds2.feedburner.com/NuEnergyCollectivePodcasts. Awesome weekly podcast with a different NEC artist or guest each time. You can listen to this live on Krafty Radio (Thursday or Friday depending on where you live) or download them all from the link above. You can also subscribe to recieve them all by email, which is what I do as the live show doesn't agree with Australia time, and that way every Saturday I have an awesome Freeform set to bang out in my car!


Next Generation - http://feeds2.feedburner.com/NextGenerationRecordsHardcorePodcast. A monthly podcast hosted by Brisk and Fracus, who mix the 1st half of each show, plus a guest DJ (sometimes 2) mixing the 2nd half. The main thing I want to mention here is the comedy. Those 2 guys are funny as fuck, and the half time sponsor break is always hilarious. Also the music is a good mix of UK, Gabber and some other styles thrown in for good measure.


Luna C podcast - http://www.kniteforcerevolution.com/podcast. Hosted by Luna C and a guest. This one you need to subscribe to through iTunes (unlike the other 2) but the link is in the site above. Check this one out if you like your Hardcore not as mainstream, always great tracks you've probably never heard on this one.

Banging track(s) of the week:

I'm going to mention a few tracks I'm really digging each week here, but as this is the 1st blog here are a number of things I think you should check out:

Hardcore Energy - http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=10684.  Mix by Kevin Energy as well as 22 full length tracks, for a great price (£9.99 if you are in UK, or however much that works out to be in whatever currency you use). Great value if only for the tracks, but a great mix as well.



Billy Daniel Bunter: 2 Decades Of Hard Dance & Hardcore Mayhem -http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=11719. On the same tip as hardcore Energy, but more for the Happy hard fans. 3 mixs plus 67 singles, another great value purchase. 


Spiritual Tazer - Brain Slushie - http://soundcloud.com/spiritual_tazer/brain-slushie. This is the Psycore I was mentioning earler. Absolute smashing track, one I plan to use a lot, and it's free! This guy is one to look out for, if you are on SoundCloud I'd definately follow this guy.

A few mentions on the Hardbeatsdownload site:
http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=11439 - Transcend EP.
http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=10181 - Lost Soul EP.
http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=9504 - Utopia EP - Nomad & Impact
http://hardbeatsdownload.com/products.php?product_id=11655 - Stomp - Marc Smith & Darwin Harder Mix - Original available there too.

And some gabber tracks I'm feeling:
http://www.junodownload.com/products/the-collaborations/1553148-02/ - Tha Playah collaborations EP.
http://www.junodownload.com/products/neophyte-048/1588168-02/ - Evil Activities - Evil inside EP.

Well that's it for my 1st blog. I'll do another one next week (I swear it will be shorter) so be sure to check it out.

Stray out.