Night Shift kicks off Spring Break with non-stop hard-hitting electro music on Saturday March 10, 2012 at Club Metropolis (downstairs lounge) in McAllen.

NO COVER ALL NIGHT LONG

Featuring Crunkb0t with a massive electro-house set not to be missed.

CLICK HERE TO RSVP ON FACEBOOK

We installed a new theme today, and while we’re still tweaking things, I think it’s a much better fit for our purpose. Please bear with us as we continue to improve and tweak things!

On another note, as we mentioned on our facebook page, we are planning on reshifting the focus of this site to be more centered on local talent, events, and productions.

This means if you are doing anything creative related to the scene, including djing, producing, painting, etc, we want to hear from you! We will be adding new categories for Bands, DJs, Artists, Photographers, and Fashion. If you want us to feature and promote your work, you have to get in touch with us so that we can create a bio and link to your stuff.

Everyone is welcome, but you need to first contact us because we can’t include you if we don’t know who you are!

We don’t have an exact time frame for this transition; it will begin as soon as we have some contributions. So stay tuned for more as it comes!

A new release called “Surface” from Imperative Reaction is out today and is available as both a CD and MP3 Download from Amazon.

It includes the original single, as well as remixes from Scandy, Komor Kommando, Rotersand and more.

Surface by Imperative Reaction: Official Video

Buy From Amazon

Imperative Reaction

Editor’s Note: Night Shift contributor aKa_DeLeTe has prepared a special edition post for the Music of Night Shift. He scored an interview with Imperative Reaction, and we are excited to present what we hope is the first of many band converstations below.

Be sure to follow Imperative Reaction on MySpace for the latest updates and releases!

-Night Shift Administrator

I decided to write my next article about the band Imperative Reaction, but instead of just an artist profile, I wanted to try something different. I went to all the websites to try and find a way to contact them, so that I could present this as an interview. I finally found an email address to the IR management team who finally got my questions through to the band. Here is what they said.

1. For those not familiar with IR, what is your name? When and where did IR get its start?

My name is Ted Phelps and in 1996 I started Imperative Reaction with David Andrecht. Das Bunker in Los Angeles helped us get our start by promoting and hosting our first shows.

2. Throughout your musical career, what have been your major musical influences?

When IR got started my playlist sounded like this: Leætherstrip, Skinny Puppy, Mentallo & The Fixer, X Marks The Pedwalk, etc. In recent years,
inspiration has come to me from many genres, both from the mainstream and from the underground. The bands that seem to stay on permanent rotation in my world include Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, Nitzer Ebb and the Cure… you can probably thank those bands for planting the seeds that eventually sprouted out Imperative Reaction.

3. Any of your musical Icons that you have met, or still want to meet?

One of my favorite memories is of the time a friend and I snuck into the VIP Lounge at a Nine Inch Nails show and just that we were supposed to be there.
To our surprise, we met Dave Gahan and Trent Reznor which left us pretty much speechless. That same night we also met Maynard James Keenan and Robin Finck. Strangely, we also had a conversation with Gene Simmons; the entire experience was nothing short of surreal. As an adult, I have been fortunate enough to not only get to know a lot of artists whose work I admire, but I’ve also become friends with many of them. It’s a nice perk of this job.

4. Now, everyone has that one song that just holds that special little place in your heart. What would that song be for you, whether it be one of yours, or another artist?

It amazes me how hearing a song can so quickly evoke a particular feeling or memory. Some of my all-time favorites include Martin Gore’s version of the Joe Crow song “Compulsion”, “The Show Must Go On” by Queen, “Halo” by Depeche Mode, “Youth Choker” by Babyland and “Fake Plastic Trees” by Radiohead. As far as my own music goes, “Something I Left Behind” and “Only In My Mind” are particularly special because both represent milestones for me as a songwriter.

5. So, there has no been a new album out since Minus All. I hear you are working on a new album right now. What new sounds can we expect from IR this time around?

I am not completely satisfied with how Minus All turned out and, in juxtaposition, I’ve never been as excited as I am now about an album as I am this upcoming IR album. This time around, I have hired Krischan Wesenberg of Rotersand to mix and master the album. Aside from him being one of the best producers I know, this decision has enabled me to write and record the album without being bogged down trying to make mix or production decisions which, inevitably get in the way of my creative process. While I am still the main songwriter, this album will feature contributions from the live band that’s come together over the years. The new album is going to be very different than anything we’ve done before and I think now is the perfect time for that.

6. If I may ask, what is the title of the new album, if you have a title already, and when can we expect for it to be released?

Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer to the first question. Recording will be finished in the next week, and then it goes to Krischan. We don’t yet have an official release date, but the album will be out later this year.

7. Now I’m sure IR is going to go on tour in support of the new album, any chance we can get you to come to South Texas? The people here love your music.

We love playing in Texas… in fact, some of our most memorable shows have been there. We played a show in Corpus Christi in ’04 on the Redemption
Tour. Unfortunately there weren’t a lot of people there but, thanks to the enthusiasm of the promoters and the people who came to see the show, it ended up being a lot of fun. The band has grown a lot since then so I think shows like that would be a little more exciting now. If there is a promoter who wants to have us, and we can work something out, we will be back to South Texas!

8. Many bands now offer some kind of remix contest for fans. With the new album in the works, have you ever thought about doing something like this.

We ran a remix contest when As We Fall was released and it yielded a lot of really cool remixes but nothing that we felt strongly enough about to
release. We are in talks with our management and label about the marketing strategy for the new album so we might just revisit the concept of a remix contest just yet…

9. To show your love for the fans and their dedication, would you maybe consider putting the winning track on the album?

I can’t imagine including remixes on an album; I feel it detracts from the power of the artist work. However, I do feel they have their place on EPs
and singles so if things worked out time-wise, I could see including a fan remix on an official release..

10. Finally, last question. To end this on a lighter note: If you were playing at a club or venue and a fan wanted to buy you a drink, what would that drink be?

Ha! Drinks are too expensive and we usually have plenty of whiskey for the band backstage. If a fan asked to buy me a drink I’d politely decline and
invite them to buy a t-shirt or a CD instead .

The Music of Imperative Reaction

Buy Imperative Reaction Albums

aKa_DeLeTe began djing behind the decks of a Mexican night club, Zero Zone, in 2000. Known then as Dj HerbZ, It was simple and to the point, name is Herbie. There he started developing his talents as a club dj spinning everything from Techno, Industrial, 80′s, Nuwave, D n’B, and even Rock and ska. How does one spin Rock or ska you say? HerbZ and fellow Dj: Zapo made it work.

DeLeTe ended his tenure at Zero Zone in ’03 when he left the valley and move to Beeville, in the middle of nowhere. He became a correctional officer of all things. During this time, he was completely disconnected from the musical world, except of the rare trips to Corpus of San Antonio where he would frequent The Sanctuary or Sin 13.

After a year of that, he left Beeville for the big city and move to San Antonio. Take jobs here and there, he was still out of the scene except for the rare club visits. Not knowing anyone made it hard to jump into the local scene. He had work on his own material during times of musical isolation and tried to get the djs to play it with no success.

In April of ’05 at yet another dead end job in San Antonio, DeLeTe met Kristopher Olmedo. Kris was a drummer for a popular local band known as Emily’s Gone Mad. Kris and DeLeTe started talking and found out he was drumming for two bands, the other was Bombs over Berlin. Having developed this new friendship, Kris invited DeLeTe to a couple of his band practices and some band meeting where he got to meet and the guys in the bands and make more friendships. It was after this the Bombs Over Berlin was looking to expand and DeLeTe jumped in the picture. He was the 5th and newest member of the band and still went by Dj HerbZ at the time.

Things were great with the band and after some time, he and Kris decided to venture into a duo side project. This was an all electronic act consisting of nothing but Synths and  drum machines supplying the sick beats. They work on a couple of songs and decided to call themselves “DELETE.”

As in with a lot of bands, Bombs added members and lost some, line up changes were a regular. and DeLeTe was out the picture. In “07 DeLeTe made the trip back home to good old Brownsville to root his feet again and start off fresh.

All his friends were here so they knew where the scene was at. Good friend and Dj, Denise Garza, Dj Sweet, introduce DeLeTe to Valentinos. They had a Friday goth night and pretty good. after a month a two, DeLeTe convince the club manager/DJ to let him spin and show off his talents. After a couple of weeks of free DJing, Dj HerbZ was the new resident dj for Resurrection @ Valentinos.

Wanting to establish a new image for a new scene, Dj HerbZ wanted to change his name and added aKa: Delete to his name. Dj HerbZ aka: Delete was made in remembrance of Kris and that once side project. After a couple of months with the new name, he decided to drop the Dj HerbZ and aKa_DeLeTe was here to stay.

aKa_DeLeTe has since made a name for himself in the valley and is loved by those who have heard him. DeLeTe has had the please of spinning all over the lower valley, Mexico, and more recently in McAllen. He is currently one of the  resident djs for X-otiK Playhouse @ El Antro in Brownsville and is a contributor for NightShiftRgv.com. Where ever he is at you can expect him to draw a big crowd. Keep an eye open for his name and an ear open for the beats.

aKa_DeLeTe’s Latest Mix