iMuse wrote a nice little feature story on the band, past and present, for the May issue of the Women of Mp3.com. It’s still up this month, so check it out! A new Lovespirals-related online interview with Anji just went up on the DAXX site. There’s a slightly older online interview with her on the Violet Collection site, as well.
New Lovespirals song
Anji and I are on the verge of completing a new track, called “Love Survives,” which has a bit of a Morcheeba feel. It’s good to get back into the studio again! We look forward to picking up some much needed software with the proceeds from the sales of the Love Spirals Downwards Live DAM and Payback earnings. We really appreciate all the support you’ve shown us on MP3.com!
MacNETv2 Interviews Lovespirals
MacNETv2, a fansite for Mac users, just posted an interview with Ryan and Anji discussing their use of Macs in music, design, and website creation. We’ll include some excerpts below:
Interview by Chris Volpe
Chris: Why the Mac platform and not Windows?
Ryan: Actually, we do have one Windows machine, a Compaq, that we use as the server for the studio and house. I’m interested in getting Mac OSX server one day, but I don’t have a spare Mac that I can use as a server right now. But back to your question, there are many reasons why we use Macs. The biggest one is that I enjoy working on them. When there is a problem, I can most often figure out what’s wrong and fix it myself, while PCs seem more complicated in that regard. I like the plug and play ease of use that Macs have. There’s nothing worse than trying for hours and days to get hardware working. Plus, Apple continues to create the most innovative products. If I had enough money, I’d go out today and buy the new flat panel G4 iMac for the office, an iBook for lighter work and playing games, a Titanium PowerBook for doing live shows, and a 1 ghz G4 to run a ton of audio plug ins in my studio. I can’t say that I want to rush out there and buy a copy of Windows XP.
Chris:: Do Macs enhance your creativity in any way?
Ryan: I don’t know if Macs make me more creative, but as far as computers go, they’re the least obtrusive in letting me get on with my creative work in the studio without being forced into thinking like a computer. You just point, click, drag, and don’t have to worry about anything else with regards to the computer. I see computers as a tool, a tool you use to get things done. I think Macs are by far the best platform for anyone who does music or graphics. Also for getting photos, mp3s, and video into and out of your computer, nothing can compete with Macs and all the new Apple software like iTunes, iMovie, and iPhoto. But if you’re a more nerdy C++ or ASP programmer, I’d say PCs are the way to go and a Mac wouldn’t be the right tool at all.
Continue reading MacNETv2 Interviews Lovespirals
Happy New "New Millenium"
Yes, it’s the REAL new Millenium and certainaly a time for change. Anji and I will be busy this year writing and recording our first album as Lovespirals (hear a sneak preview at mp3.com/Lovespirals). We also plan to add a new audio page on this site with RealAudio and QuickTime files from every LSD album sometime in the near future. Later in the year, the whole site will be redesigned with the new lineup and album in mind. Hopefully we’ll find a new way to host our e-store, which is closed for the time being.
Ryan DJs at Dervish
I’ll be DJ’ing in Long Beach, California on Thursday September 16th from 9 to 10:30 pm at the mellow coffeehouse club, Dervish. Dervish runs 7 PM to midnight at Portfolio, 2300 E. 4th St., 562-434-2486. Resident DJs Glenn Bach and Chowderhead, along with guest DJs and musicians, perform a wide variety of electronic and analog music, including ambient, dub, drone, downtempo, IDM, drum-and-bass, and free jazz. Visual artists provide a spatial environment of video, projections, and loops.
Vote for "Hand in Hand" on mp3.com!
“Hand in Hand,” featuring the jazzy vocals of Anji, is included in this week’s “vote for your favorite song of the week” contest on the official MP3.com station, Women of MP3.com. So please come vote for us now!
Ryan DJ Set and dubplate
Saturday, August 12th: DJ Ryan Lum spins a late-night/early-morning set in the chillout room of the Family 6th Year Anniversary Party in Los Angeles. For more info, please call (213) 891-4756 or (818) 503-7535.
We just added another unreleased new track, called “Hand in Hand,” to our mp3.com page. This is the flip side of the “Ecstatic” duplate that I’ve been including in my recent DJ sets. Once again, it features the sax of Doron and vocals of Anji, and is even more jazzy than “Ecstatic.” If you enjoyed “Misunderstood,” from Temporal, you’re bound to dig this track, too!
New music site and compilation
We just launched a band page on MP3.com! Included is a new unreleased song, “Ecstatic,” which features recent collaborators Doron Orenstein (saxophone) and Anji Bee (vocals). Go to mp3.com/lovepirals to listen to our FREE streaming and downloadable MP3s on MP3.com.
In other news, Love Spirals Downwards have been included on another new compilation CD, the Side-Line Magazine presentation of Diva X Machina 3, on Cop International — along with Diamanda Galas, Danielle Dax, Gitane Demone and many other female fronted bands. The song included is my remix of “Alicia” from Temporal.
Upcoming interview and several new comps
I will be interviewed live on Outsight Cyber Radio Sunday, June 25th, 8pm EST/5pm PST. Please tune in via the internet at his site. Tom will be archiving the interview as a RealAudio file, for those of you who can’t tune in live, so check his site for that! [Ed. note: search for “Ambient electronica group Love Spirals Downwards”]
We’ve been included on several compilation CDs recently released, including:
- Claire Voyant – Time Again (Accession Records): a remix project CD including Front 242, Haujobb, Trance to the Sun, VNV Nation and many others. Anji and I remixed their track “Bittersweet” in a jazzy, atmospheric drum ‘n’ bass style, featuring sax by our pal, Doron, of Toof. More details are available from Accession.
- Heartbeats (Mascara): this cool German comp focuses on electronica acts with “tender feelings” such as Moby, Sneaker Pimps, Smith & Mighty, Marc Almond, Nightmares on Wax and more. Flux’s “Psyche,” featuring Kristen Perry on vocals, is the chosen LSD cut.
- Projekt 100: The Early Years, 1985 to 1995 (Projekt Records): this is a compilation of vintage Projekt band recordings, in celebration of their 100th release. The Love Spirals Downwards track is the 50 Years of Sunshine mix of “Kykeon,” which some fans have lamented having not been included on Temporal. More details are available from Projekt.
- Darkwave: Music of the Shadows v2 (K-Tel): Projekt Records founder, Sam Rosenthal, helped to compile this collection of darkwave-related bands such as: Cocteau Twins, Lycia, Miranda Sex Garden and more. “Forgo,” from Love Spirals Downwards’ debut album, Idylls, is the first track of the album. More details are available from Projekt.
Upcoming Ryan DJ sets
Still spinning on a regular basis, I have upcoming slots where you can catch me, dropping atmospheric drum ‘n’ bass and downtempo tunes…
- La Belle Epoque: May 13th, San Francisco The Top DJ Bar, 424 Haight St. (between Webster and Fillmore, 21 and over, $5). I’ll be on from 10pm to midnight. This club is the West Coast mecca for atmospheric drum and bass. I had a most incredible time DJ’ing there last year, and this time will be even better as I look forward to playing some acetates of new unreleased Lovespirals material.
- Caffeinated: May 20th, Santa Barbara Held by the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts forum, 653 Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara, CA. This multi-media party and art opening goes from 8pm – 2 am, is $10 admission, and open to all ages. Call (805) 966-5373 for more info or visit their site.
DJ Ryan on Love Cat House
On Friday April 14, I’ll be spinning on the very unique “Dinner With a DJ” show, at the infamous Love Cat House. The show goes on at 9pm PST, and continues well into the early morning hours. I believe they archive their shows, so you might check for that later.
For those who’ve never caught one of my sets and are curious as to what they sound like, I’ve put up my mix set from last year, entitled “Atmopshere ’99,” on Live 365, under the Jungle and Dance categories. You can either go to the site or go copy this url [ http://166.90.143.144:12530/ ] into your Shoutcast Winamp/Soundjam player directly. (You’ll need a connection faster than a 56k modem to listen to it.)
Lovespirals on RadioSpy, Ryan on GuitarGeek
Beginning this Friday, and continuing through the weekend, RadioSpy.com will run a special feature interview with Anji and I. This streaming audio broadcast (in ShoutCast format) will also include selected tracks from our albums and a number of songs by other bands that I consider influential to LSD’s music.
And for kicks, you might want to check out my guitar/music set up on the great fanatical site, GuitarGeek.com.