Never Knows feat. Qzen - Untitled 26 (Untitled & After)

San Francisco’s mysterious Untitled & After imprint returns with the new single from Never Knows, a deep industrial workhorse of a single titled “On & On & On”. So what is known about this artist? A project of Marc Kate, the Never Knows moniker is used to tackle spacey, dark-tinged techno with a variety of influences outside of dance music. Late night dance floor excursions seem to be the modus operandi of Kate’s productions, reaching people at the time their minds become foggy and vulnerable to subversive thoughts. Collaborations featuring characterful vocal narratives have been a recurring staple of Never Knows’ singles, and “On & On & On” continues this run with the contribution of Qzen. Also a bay area native, Qzen is the voice of underground dance music cuts by the likes of John Tejada, 40 Thieves, and Guillaume & The Coutu-Dumonts. On this release her reverberating words are ripe with “what if” posturing: “What if the sun never shone, and if the day never dawned, and if the light were just beyond, would we go on and on and on?” The original mix spaces her vocals out over rolling up-down patterned synth layers, a heavy swing style drum beat, and the rhythmic clash of metal pans. A companion remix comes from Japanese producer Birdcage (Basilic, Somebody’s Story) who lets the vocals breathe more playfully, but in eerie fashion over glitchy, percussive scratches and eroded distorting synths that transition frequencies from high to low and back up to the mid-range as the track progresses. If this single is the soundtrack to never seeing the sun then lots of people could be easily persuaded into signing up for this suspended in time experiment.

Phonogenic (Moodmusic / Cocoon) - “I like the electronic body music vibe of the original.”
Mathias Schaffhäuser (Ware Records / Groove Magazine) - “Cool original, cool vocals. A good mixture of deepness and roughness.”
Q-Burns Abstract Message - “I think this is quite excellent. Both cuts hit all the right buttons, but I’m favoring the original for its Chris + Cosey-ness. Nice work.”
Hardway Bros (A Love From Outer Space) - “Excellent!”
Gavin Russom (The Crystal Ark / Universal Consciousness) - “Stellar release.”
Sumsuch (Colour and Pitch) - “Loving this … big, beefy, and beautiful all at the same time! The Birdcage remix is a stunner, too.”
Al Bradley (3am Recordings) - “I’m digging the Birdcage remix here … great gradual build, with a real release when the bass line comes in. Ace!”
Chrissy Murderbot (Planet Mu) - “Amaaazing!”
Ulysses (Neurotic Drum Band) - “I like the late night spaced out feel of the original.”
Cyclist (Homebreakin) - “The Birdcage remix for me … it will do nicely in late night sets.”
Joey Silvero (Distant People) - “Nice, dreamy affair … subtle and hypnotic.”
Alinka (Classic Music Company / Greenhouse) - “I’m really digging the Birdcage remix … beautiful!”
Leri Ahel (Mutant Disco Radio Show) - “I love both tracks. A brilliant release.”
DJ Nova (Rodon FM, Greece) - “Love this moody, cosmic techno hybrid. Qzen sounds like a singer in new wave band spun by the likes of Daniele Baldelli.”
Deadbeat Disco Radio Show - “It’s going to be fun to watch the birdcage mix melt some faces this weekend!”

Available now from Juno Download and iTunes.

Never Knows feat. Jupiter - Concrete. Drama. (Untitled & After)

San Francisco’s Never Knows last turned heads and covertly moved dance floors with the provocative single “Black Enough,” a collaboration with vocalist Kevin Knapp for the Untitled & After label. The pairing of Never Knows’ sparse, deep, and dark techno sound with Knapp’s emotive messaging proved to be a memorable proposition, earning accolades from the likes of Dubfire, John Selway, Oliver Klein, and Chris Fortier. Continuing in this spirit of inspired collaborations Never Knows launches the next single, “Concrete. Drama.” this time featuring the vocal contribution of Jupiter, an enigma of San Francisco queer culture. “My whole life is art. I am an exhibit,” proclaims Jupiter, a two-spirit artist and ritualist who shares duties as a shamanatrix storyteller, performance artist, wordsmith, stylist, and fashion influence. Jupiter appears at clubs in outfits that would make Leigh Bowery turn his head, chanting, rhyming, singing, and toasting along to club beats. Never Knows’ Marc Kate aspired to capture this identifiable essence within “Concrete. Drama.” and succeeds with style and attitude to spare. A stark four-on-the-floor clap and kick open proceedings, soon joined by an ominous bass line, ringing keys, and roomy percussion. Jupiter intones a bit of thought-provoking wordplay, speaking to the tensions between the rituals of the club, the rituals of the forest, and the hard realities of urban living. The cut builds with purpose, with not so much a climax as an unknowing revelation … keys, bass, rhythm, and words washing over the nightclub like a fine mist as bodies sway. It’s another subversive treat from Never Knows and Untitled & After, immediately requiring your sonic attention.

Tommi Bass (Rednetic / Multipraktik) - “ I love this … it’s got that real old feel about it, like a more stripped down Blake Baxter track. Full support!”
Orde Meikle (Slam / Soma) - “Cool tracks. Will spin.”
Jaymz Nylon - “Fresh, fun, and funky.”
Makossa & Megablast - “Solid, deep vibe.”
Rob Warner (Ibiza Voice) - “Awesome. Simply awesome.”
Chrissy Murderbot - “WTF is dude talking about in the second half with cell phones and rituals tryna get laid and s**t … I love it!”
Louk (Compulzion / Druck) - “Dark and deep …”
Ulysses (Neurotic Drum Band) - “Both tracks are nice. Dark, yet uplifting.”
Severino (Horse Meat Disco) - “Pretty cool.”
Michele Vitucci (BTE Podcast) - “Wonderful tracks.”
JAGM(MusicMagSpain) - “Really good release … high quality deep, dark sounds.”

Additional support from Richie Hawtin, Alexi Delano, Mademoiselle Caro, Hardway Bros, Brendon Collins (Summer), Raymundo Rodriguez, and Omid 16B.

Available now from Juno Download and Beatport.

Never Knows feat. Kevin Knapp - Untitled 24 (Untitled & After)

San Francisco’s ambitious imprint Untitled & After welcomes the return of vocalist Kevin Knapp and in-house production outfit Never Knows for a provocative collaborative single titled “Black Enough.” The track has been brewing for a while, with Never Knows’ dramatic music accompanying a personal and political message from Knapp, giving it a somewhat complicated history. Some have been enthusiastic and supportive of “Black Enough” while others are hesitant at approaching controversy from the dance floor. Regardless, Knapp has been performing “Black Enough” live in sets with the likes of Inxec, Matt Tolfrey, Kate Simko and Audiojack only to find people swarming him afterwards wanting to know about “that ‘Black Enough’ track.”

Never Knows and Kevin Knapp provide two versions, with both featuring almost theatrical synth chords over the sparse four-on-the-floor rhythm, accentuating while leaving ample room for Knapp’s spoken vocal to cut through. The Young, Gifted, and Black Version minimizes the arrangement just a tad, with a driving bass throb and snappy rhythm sound helping Knapp’s message hit its target. On the remix comes the London-based Inxec (Rekids, Crosstown Rebels) who admirably twists things into a pulsating and funky deep techno interpretation. Knapp’s vocals are effected to an almost otherworldly flavor, somehow giving weight to the words rather than obscuring the message. This is an impossible-to-ignore slice of slinky business, primed and ready for dark, late night dance floor excursions.

Kevin Knapp has been making waves by contributing vocals to tracks from Matt Tolfrey, Kate Simko, Audiojack, Inxec, Burnski, and more. His track “Hindsight,” a collaboration with Safeword’s Marc Smith for Untitled & After, is a particular highlight of this steadily rising artist’s oeuvre. Never Knows is the latest project from Untitled & After’s Marc Kate, focusing on deep, dark-tinged techno with a variety of influences outside of dance music. Never Knows has already turned heads with tunes contributed to Trip Show, Modyfier, as well as the distinctive “Fear Of The Unknown”/”Poe” debut for Untitled & After. There’s much more to come from these two acts as they continue to experiment within San Francisco’s flourishisng electronic music community.

John Selway - “The Inxec remix sounds really cool.”
Dubfire - “Deep stuff!”
Chris Fortier - “Inxec twists it out!”
Chloe (Kill The DJ) - “Good release … will play!”
Oliver Klein (Mutekki / Kling Klong) - “The original for me!”
Tuomas Salmela (Phonogenic) - “The Inxec Version works for me.”
Orde Meikle (Slam) - “Nice original and remix.”
Motorcitysoul - “That Inxec version is super cool!”
Justin Harris (Freaks) - “Love this … lots!”
The Glimmers - “Deep and dark … nice one.”
Erik Rug - “The original is a cool track … works for me.”
Johnwaynes - “Good stuff. The Inxec version my favorite.”
Adam Collins (Omni A.M.) - “Sounds Cabaret Voltaire and Kraftwerk enough … and I like that.”
Severino (Horse Meat Disco) - “Deep and raw.”
Andrew Grant (Circoloco) - “Original and Inxec for me.”
Tony D’Onghia (Radio Koper-Capodistria) - “All the 3 versions made me think of the darkest shades of Detroit techno which is always a good thing.”
TJ Norris (Resident Advisor) - “These are dark times and this is the soundtrack.”

Available now from Juno Download and Beatport.