P056: Cabeza de Vaca – ASC

Sometimes it is hard to judge the success of an artist, especially prolific ones like James Clements or ASC, the focus of this week’s show on Cabeza de Vaca and Scanner FM . Sometimes ASC tracks seem to everywhere and nowhere at the same time. ASC is the go-to artist on some of the biggest left-field labels around such as the first Exit records compilation "Mosaic 1", the two epic Samural Music and Samurai Horo compilations from this year, as well as his own releases often on his own label’s like Auxiliary music and his new imprint Veil. ASC has been prolific and critically lauded. Yet why doesn’t his name come more quickly to mind when thinking of electronic music? Where is his presence on the festival scene? Maybe there is an element of politics somewhere there or the absence of a bonafide hit that somehow keeps Clements glued to the fringes? Perhaps it is an artistic choice? Certainly his cross-scene movements make it more difficult for media and electronic music’s micro movements hard to pin him down.

As usual, our show finds ASC at a crossroads. We use one of his tracks to sign post the mighty and unmissable Samurai Horo compilation of abstract and ambient drum n bass which feels closer to glitch and a missed offshoot of ~scape than something likely to come out of Metalheadz or the like.

Last years “Way of the samurai 2” compilationfrom the same label family, and of course featuring ASC,  was a little more traditional, although built from the same sparse tool kit with plenty of dub elements.

ASCs own Auxiliary label released a compilation themselves earlier this tear and collecting some of the highlights from the labels roster including AnD, Fis (who also has his own links with the Samurai Music roster), Sam KDC (ditto and a long-term collaborator with ASC) and the man himself:

Not content with that Clements has also recently debuted a new sublabel Veil to complement Auxiliary Transmissions and Diode. As well as Sam KDC and Christine Vaccine who will appear in a future show, the first of the Veil label collection 12”s features another collaboration between ASC and Synth Sense, the drum n bass duo from Ashford in Kent in the UK who have contributed to the other sublabels.

ASCs only album release to date in 2013 has been a recent double CD set for Canada’s Silent Season imprint from the middle of the year, but arriving in my hands just too late to feature on the show.

If some of these tracks sound a little similar to Bvdub it may also be because the two collaborated several years ago on a split single for Auxiliary.

And ASC does not stop it appears. Even since putting the show up he has released the second Veil split single

As well as a new EP “Programme 02” on Auxiliary.

Try to keep up if you can…

Number	Artist	Track	Label	Year
1	Ed:It	Ideology	Commercial Suicide	2013
2	Geiom	2-4-6 featuring Terrible Shock (Desto Remix)	Well Rounded Records	2013
3	Tessela	Hackney Parrot	Poly Kicks	2013
4	Randomer	Need U	Not on label	2013
5	ASC	The noncolour entity	Veil	2013
6	ASC	Karma	Halo Cyan Records	2013
7	ASC	Oracle	Samurai Red Seal	2013
8	ASC	Dragnet	Samurai Horo	2013
9	Djrum	Blue on blue	2nd Drop	2013

Cabeza de Vaca Facebook

Scanner FM