It’s Time: The Soulful House Sound of Sean McCabe
IT'S ALWAYS BEEN FASCINATING to me to find young artists in dance music that gravitate towards soulful music. Since releasing his first tracks in 2003 at 17 years old, Sean McCabe has quietly and...
Some of Your Friends Are Already This Broke: The Problem With Digital Music
"Some of your friends are probably already this fucked."
That's how Steve Albini concluded "The Problem with Music", his famous essay breaking down the malevolent economics of the music industry. It analyzed with mathematical precision...
In Residence with Uhuru Afrika, Boston
5 Magazine's residency spotlight features Adam Gibbons and Uhuru Afrika, the incredibly unique Boston club night deeply rooted in the music of Africa and the Diaspora.
"When someone walks in the door, I want them...
Where House Found A Home: Chicago and South Africa’s House Music Explosion
My dearest Chicago, you are the architect for the house that Jack built, but did you have any idea that your music was fueling the rage and resistance against apartheid? Did you know that...
It’s 2015. Why Is It So Hard to Press a Record?
"SIX MONTHS?"
It's on the high end of the spectrum, but that's how long a friend of 5 Mag's was told it would take to press his next record.
Record Store Day and the...
Fred Everything Interview
FRED EVERYTHING might have a funny name, but there's a very good reason for it. He originally earned his moniker because he played "everything" in his live sets at events in his native Canada,...
Why I’m Not Going to WMC: The Love Is Gone
I checked Hotels.com, Cheapohotels.com, CheapestHotelsInThePlanet.com - you name it. The best I could get for a TWO star hotel room and up ranged from between $331 to $850 a night. And every review of...
Gene Farris: The 5 Magazine Interview
ONE OF THE MOST accomplished DJs and producers of House Music's "second wave" of the 1990s, Gene Farris picked up himself and his Farris Wheel Recordings imprint last October and returned to Chicago, the...
Terry Grant Joins Spiritchaser for “Dancing In My Head”
Terry Grant is one of the most unique vocalists working in electronic music today - pretty much everything that he sings on (and/or writes) is worth a listen and probably an impulse buy. The...
How I Play: Joey Negro on the Culture and Craft of DJing
DJs today are confronted with an astonishing number of choices, from vinyl to digital media, controllers, mixers, and the unending stream of more music being released for consumption than at any time in history.
It's...
Todd Terry: The 5 Magazine Interview
Todd Terry is an icon in House Music. He also has quite a history that many don't know about. He did production on the Jungle Brothers' "I'll House You" - a tune that people...
Tortured Soul: Ethan White, JKriv and John-Christian Urich
THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT the experience of hearing a live House band. The warmth, the impromptu acts of virtuosity and the electricity of the crowd can move your soul more than any prerecorded track ever...
Where To Buy House Music in Chicago
It's a cliche, but buying music these days is something more commonly done behind a computer, in isolation, than in person and in your neighborhood. Especially with DJ-centered genres like House Music, Techno and...
Everyone Is A DJ. And It’s Only Going To Get Worse.
Blame it on Afrojack, dance music's answer to Nickelback. He made it all so easy, and so lucrative for how easy it is - to mask a fundamental lack of skill, knowledge and creativity...
Brawther: The Underground Is Alive
Years before I knew him, I heard about him - this guy from France who made these incredibly sensual and deep records that each found their way as the "secret weapon" in the bag...
Listen to Mystic Bill’s Ferocious Throwback “U Won’t C Me”
Nothing sensitive or subtle about this one. Mystic Bill - the man who DJ'd for your favorite DJ's DJ - teams up with German label Snuff Trax for the forthcoming EP U Won't C...
Spin Slide and Jack: A History of House Dancing
IN 1998, I GOT MY first experience of a New York club called Shelter, and was immediately struck by the vibe. There was a massive dance floor with hundreds of people dancing by themselves...
Heatwave: The Band That Wouldn’t Die
A Stabbing, a Car Accident, Paralysis, a Coma: Nothing Could Stop the Heatwave - the Pre-Eminent Multi-Ethnic Band of the Funk, Boogie and Disco Era.
While noodling about this issue's subject, it occurred to me...
John Morales: The Return of the Disco Legend
In music, and especially in underground music, the word "legend" is thrown around to the point where it loses all meaning.
What is a legend? It's someone who broke the mold - someone whose sounds,...
Sign of the Gemini: The Strange and Beautiful Music of Spencer Kincy
FOR FOUR YEARS I've been chasing a ghost, and his name is Spencer Kincy.
I've been told by some people to leave the ghost alone, while others have all but berated me for not pursuing...
MUST READ!
VIVA ACID presents DJ Hyperactive / 1995 mixtape (RARE)
VIVA ACID presents this never-before-heard mixtape from Midwest Techno legend DJ Hyperactive, circa 1995. This mix captures a pivotal moment and time period in the evolution of Midwest rave caught on tape. Unearthed directly from the VBNTS archive by VIVA ACID's Luis Baro.
