Up

System 7

May 30, 2011

Electronic / Ambient / Techno / Trance

UP - first released in 2011 - was the first album of new System 7 material to follow 2008’s Phoenix, the project that was heavily influenced by the work of Japanese manga pioneer Osamu Tezuka. Much of the UP album, including the two tracks with A Guy Called Gerald, was written in Berlin - and regular exposure to the contemporary Berlin techno scene influenced System 7’s Steve Hillage and Miquette Giraudy to work with somewhat slower tempos than previously. Accordingly the new album has more of a techno and tech-house feel to it, still showcasing the unique System 7 psychedelic sound with ultra modern production and a feeling of positivity.. Also featured is System 7’s remix of Josh Wink’s “Dolphin Smack” – with the full approval and collaboration of Josh Wink. There are also collaborations with Rovo electric violinist Yuji Katsui on the track “Berimbau” and Japanese guitarist/DJ Funky Gong Minoru on the track “Funky Gong”. “One of the things we have noticed about the current techno scene in Berlin is that the crowds at the clubs tend to be quite joyful and happy while at the same time totally digging the specialist Berlin techno sound in an educated way. This positivity we found very inspiring and has directly led to us titling our new album UP”. The album was followed by the single PositiveNoise with remixes by Detroit techno luminary Carl Craig and leading Japanese techno artist A.Mochi. Carl Craig worked with System 7 on several tracks in the 1990s and two of his mixes are featured on the successful recently released digital catalogue album System 7 Classics. PositiveNoise is one of the collaborations between System 7 and British acid house music legend A Guy Called Gerald who was living at the time in Berlin. It also has a video produced in Japan by ace animation team Mood Magic, who also made the acclaimed video for System 7’s Hinotori released in 2007.