Paul St. Hilaire & Friends - Tikiman mix vol. 002
Picture of Paul St. Hilaire and Berlin station underneath
It's almost impossible to collect records in dub techno and bypass the influence of Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald who have made music under a plethora of monikers, perhaps best known for being Basic Channel.
Whilst the early techno releases on BC was infused with dub productions but more focused on the rhythmic structure, and still very much minimal techno, their output changed when Rhythm & Sound released their first 12 inches in 1996. It was more centered around dub and reggae influences. This is where vocalists like Paul St. Hilaire as well as Jennifer Lara, Cornell Campbell and the Chosen Brothers came in. The advent of professional singers led to a strong emphasis on the vocals, who became just as important as the basslines and the riddims
It became de facto the perfect mixture of dub & techno (hence the coined term). The accuracy of Berlin techno but with the finesse and the lyricism of dub / reggae sensibilities.
Lyricism refers to the quality of expressing deep personal emotions, feelings, or artistic passion in an imaginative, song-like way, typically applied to poetry, music, and literature. It denotes a melodic, expressive, or "singing" quality in art and writing
The releases of Rhythm & Sound became the benchmark by which releases in the genre continues to be measured up and compared to, because it’s the perfect mixture of proper dub (mastered and created on a real mixing board and not a cheap laptop with a software) This echoed the Studio 1 studios of Jamaica. It also brought to the forefront an equally talented producer and singer named Paul St. Hilaire. First known as Tikiman, St. Hilaire is practically a living legend. Under his alter ego Tikiman, he released numerous tracks in the late nineties on the Burial Mix label together with Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus. The singles and EPs from Rhythm & Sound were groundbreaking for dub techno at the time and are still considered an inspiration for many electronic music producers today.
Over his 30-plus year career, St. Hilaire has become one of dance music’s quietly legendary figures. Born and raised in Dominica, he moved to Berlin in 1994 and has lent both his voice and his musicianship to some of the most iconic electronic music from the German capital – and beyond. While he is known to have collaborated with Ernetus and von Oswald, he has also appeared on records with Deadbeat, Rhauder, Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers and Stereotyp (G-Stone Recordings), but also Moderat, Modeselektor, Mind over MIDI and Beat pharmacy, all of whom are featured on this mix.
With this mix, unlike Vol. 1, which was more deep house & techno, I tried to showcase different producers and genres. I have been collecting releases from Paul for over 25 years. Therefore the mix is more akin to a trip into dub & rasta culture. Be it dubstep, low fi electronics with his last two albums (Tikiman vol. 001 + With the Producers), classic Rhythm & Sound releases and a few other obscure EP’s who went overlooked at the time of their releases.
Tikiman Vol. 2 is a heady dub statement...Are you ready to dive in ?
https://soundcloud.com/funky_jeff/psh-friends/s-Ir2uVLb6HhL
It's almost impossible to collect records in dub techno and bypass the influence of Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald who have made music under a plethora of monikers, perhaps best known for being Basic Channel.
Whilst the early techno releases on BC was infused with dub productions but more focused on the rhythmic structure, and still very much minimal techno, their output changed when Rhythm & Sound released their first 12 inches in 1996. It was more centered around dub and reggae influences. This is where vocalists like Paul St. Hilaire as well as Jennifer Lara, Cornell Campbell and the Chosen Brothers came in. The advent of professional singers led to a strong emphasis on the vocals, who became just as important as the basslines and the riddims
It became de facto the perfect mixture of dub & techno (hence the coined term). The accuracy of Berlin techno but with the finesse and the lyricism of dub / reggae sensibilities.
Lyricism refers to the quality of expressing deep personal emotions, feelings, or artistic passion in an imaginative, song-like way, typically applied to poetry, music, and literature. It denotes a melodic, expressive, or "singing" quality in art and writing
The releases of Rhythm & Sound became the benchmark by which releases in the genre continues to be measured up and compared to, because it’s the perfect mixture of proper dub (mastered and created on a real mixing board and not a cheap laptop with a software) This echoed the Studio 1 studios of Jamaica. It also brought to the forefront an equally talented producer and singer named Paul St. Hilaire. First known as Tikiman, St. Hilaire is practically a living legend. Under his alter ego Tikiman, he released numerous tracks in the late nineties on the Burial Mix label together with Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus. The singles and EPs from Rhythm & Sound were groundbreaking for dub techno at the time and are still considered an inspiration for many electronic music producers today.
Over his 30-plus year career, St. Hilaire has become one of dance music’s quietly legendary figures. Born and raised in Dominica, he moved to Berlin in 1994 and has lent both his voice and his musicianship to some of the most iconic electronic music from the German capital – and beyond. While he is known to have collaborated with Ernetus and von Oswald, he has also appeared on records with Deadbeat, Rhauder, Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers and Stereotyp (G-Stone Recordings), but also Moderat, Modeselektor, Mind over MIDI and Beat pharmacy, all of whom are featured on this mix.
With this mix, unlike Vol. 1, which was more deep house & techno, I tried to showcase different producers and genres. I have been collecting releases from Paul for over 25 years. Therefore the mix is more akin to a trip into dub & rasta culture. Be it dubstep, low fi electronics with his last two albums (Tikiman vol. 001 + With the Producers), classic Rhythm & Sound releases and a few other obscure EP’s who went overlooked at the time of their releases.
Tikiman Vol. 2 is a heady dub statement...Are you ready to dive in ?