Ambivalent (Octopus Recordings // Ovum // M Nus)

About 1 month ago BORYANA & BARBUTO tore the roof off Kingdom Night Club. Join us this time around as Octopus Recordings veteran AMBIVALENT leaves the cold of Berlin for some Texas Techno action! Currently working out of Berlin, Kevin McHugh has spent the last decade living in the German capital or New York and in a sense; these two metropoleis represent the contradiction at the heart of his Ambivalent persona. On the one hand the reckless freedom and hedonism of the Berlin subculture, on the other the more considered, conceptual approach of its New York counterpart. As a result his idiosyncratic sound lies somewhere between the two, a precarious balancing act that manages to infuse stripped down, finked up minimal techno with a distinct sense of purpose, often defined by a pearl of an idea around which his skeletal grooves revolve. After growing up in Washington DC on a balanced diet of Acid House, Go-Go and Punk, his active involvement in the electronic scene began in New York in 2002, producing a series of memorable parties for Creative Time in the base of the Brooklyn Bridge. Fusing house and techno with experimental multimedia and urban installations, Kevin was quick to recognise connecting patterns of value between these art forms, with temporal, physical, spatial and minimal elements among the most obvious common denominators. If one person embodied these principles through music it was Richie Hawtin. The pair were soon working together, co- producing the Plastikman show at Mutek in 2004. The planning process meant spending the best part of a year in Berlin during which time Kevin assimilated into the scene. Energized, he returned to New York and besides co-presenting the Nerd Tank on East Village Radio, he began working on his own compositions, which quickly led to a debut release on Camea’s Clink label in 2006. His event organising activities also intensified, buoyed by the network of DJs and producers he’d met in Berlin. It was after one particularly intense party that Kevin set to work on a new track. Extreme images from the event were still flickering across his mind as he picked up his studio mic and, in a flash of inspiration, laid down a twisted, one-sided conversation in a single take. He passed the resulting track to Troy thinking it was just a bit of fun, a tongue-in-cheek parody for his friends to play. Within days Richie was telling him – the track was blowing up, the dancefloor reaction to R U OK was unbelievable. What followed was beyond his wildest imaginings as the track went global, topping charts around the world aided by Ali Demirel’s tripped-out video interpretation. By 2008, the gravitational pull had become too strong to ignore and he returned to Berlin, hooking up with the Minus community and embarking on a non-stop schedule of live shows and DJ gigs. 2009 also saw him join the line-up for the London Contakt special as well as the release of several remixes, a JPLS collaboration and his own follow up EP is 5. 2010 holds even more promise for Kevin, with back-to-back releases. Rumors shows another quirky wordplay, voiced by a character twisted in knots trying to learn the meaning of all the gossip floating around. His second release of the year comes on strong with a dancefloor bouncer Down accompanied by an aggressive vocal challenge. With a DJ mix and an album in the works, it’s already becoming more interesting by the day. Ambivalent by name, ambivalent by nature, Kevin McHugh insists we shouldn’t read too much into his ideas, but as long as he continues making such bold musical statements, that stimulate the instinct and intellect in equal measures, he’ll just have to get used to the attention. BARBUTO It was in the dark, cavernous clubs around Europe during a stint as a vagabond professional cyclist where the foundation was laid for BARBUTO and his dark knight approach to sovereign lifestyle, beliefs, art, fashion, and techno. More comfortable spending endless hours in the booth and studio than in the saddle training for his next race, the Austin, Texas transplant has been slowly crafting and purveying a masterful blend of dark, groovy techno over the last decade. Native to Australia, BARBUTO has come a long way since relocating to the live music capital of the world. Having received awards from the Austin Music Poll as #2 DJ in the city, #1 on the Study Breaks statewide collegiate music poll, as well as having earned long standing residencies at several popular clubs, he quickly earned his stripes. It was by way of the creation of his online resource for underground dance music (ElectricAvenueATX.com), and his commitment to the ambassadorship of his beloved genre in Austin, the newcomer was quickly accepted, and a successful DJ career was underway. Thanks to the opening of Kingdom Night Club in Austin, Texas, touted by world class techno talent as one of the best clubs to play in the country, BARBUTO has found himself spending plenty of time perfecting his skills where he is most comfortable: the DJ booth. He has had the honor of opening for the likes of SIAN, Adam Beyer, Nicole Moudaber, Alan Fitzpatrick, Jay Lumen, Coyu, Timo Maas, Matador, Booka Shade, Drumcell, as well as many others including SIAN. Unbeknownst to the avant-garde Octopus Recordings label boss that his label had been supplying BARBUTO with the very sounds he needed for the heavy bass-hungry, off-tilt, rather dark-themed crowd of Austin. BARBUTO’s connection to Octopus was apparent, and the Aussie-Texan then focused his efforts upon perfecting his production craft in the studio. Over time, music exchanged hands and a few tracks had finally found their home with the prestigious Octopus Recordings label. For 2015, Octopus is where BARBUTO will be calling home with his first EP hitting the online shelves this Spring. He was also bestowed the honor of becoming a DJ on the official Octopus Recordings label roster.Perched inside his 36-foot live-in travel trailer studio, buried secretly between state forest land and Willie Nelson’s estate deep in the Texas Hill Country, and caught between the sounds of ranchers gunfire, BARBUTO continues to craft and hone his inner-city techno sound, keeping things dark and groovy. Committed to the growth and sustenance of quality deep underground music in Austin you can follow Austin's scene and Christian's ambassadorship via www.electricavenueatx.com $10 // $20 for 18+ text 5124365983 for limited guest list