Handbook Beats: Recent Episodes
HB
" Birds of Love came together interestingly. The original sample features a guitar lick that felt romantic, nostalgic, and easy - there was no rush or high energy to the sound, and it had a relaxing and languid feel - really lush. Thanks to the vocals from Violet Indigo, the track retained it’s romantic edge, but morphed into an anthem for lovers. It’s all about unity, growth and looking after each other. Things are hard right now, but it can be a lot easier when you have someone in your corner looking out for you."
Hi Guys,
Here is the first single 'North' from my upcoming EP 'Directions' which will come out soon on Soundplate Records.
Here's my contribution to Hip Dozer's latest comp: volume 4.
Handbook - Come Away With Me
"Con Consciousness” exemplifies how even your close friends will betray you within the blink of an eye. You can barely trust anyone.
“Talk Show Host” is a glimpse into the life of a black boy that goes into detail about the disconnect and multiple run-ins with police. It also shows how the media loves to demonize any black person killed by one. Even if innocent.
A good Christmas chiller. Big ups to the wonderful Kara over at ELLT for nudging me in this direction. Those in the know will recognise Hymn, A Family Tree and Embers from projects on Em La La Terra.
Merry Christmas, you delightful animals x
or the third EP to be released on Hip Dozer, we are honoured to welcome into the team the one and only Handbook and to release ‘Let it All Wash Away’ EP as the latest official work of the producer!
Pushed by the support of tastemakers such as Majestic Casual, Mr SuicideSheep and Chillhop, Handbook has accumulated a lot of streams and a wave of new fans.
Handbook is based in York, UK, and began producing around 2010. His beats are inspired by artists such as J Dilla, Madlib, Kiefer, Miles Davis and the world around him, especially nature.
‘Let it All Wash Away’ is a collection of tracks to get lost in. Common themes such as gentle sampling, soft basslines and swaying grooves allow the listener to lose themselves, even if it’s for a quarter of an hour.
My remix of @Edamame -Mango Pulp Ft. Ian Ewing is out today on @Gravitas Recordings! Listen or DL here: edamame.fanlink.to/bask-remixed
Heard 'Unity' a couple of days ago and it just spoke to me. Heard this small part from the first movement and knew I could do something with it. Enjoy.
There is no better feeling when everything clicks together and just starts to make sense.
Second instalment from my Summer Singles Series, following on from the successful 'Rising Sun'
Handbook - Now Is Not The Time
When I was approached to remix this one, it didn't take me long to know I wanted to and I knew how I was going to do it. Blessed to have worked on such a great cut. Big ups Oli!
Sometimes, you have to be brave in life. Taking a chance, a new opportunity, or anything outside of your comfort zone. Even when you promise yourself that you're going to stick with the safe option, at times you have to go for it.
First of two upcoming singles via Voyager.
'Undecided' is all about being in two minds. Thinking with the head, or thinking with the heart. Sometimes, the less logical approach is better. Sometimes the heart speaks most coherently.
Enjoy!
Handbook - Undecided
'Rising Sun' is the the first track from my upcoming singles series, featuring beautiful artwork from @grisfx
'Rising Sun'
These seven tracks share an energy between them. They were written at roughly the same time (with the exception of the vocals, which came much later) and express a feeling of positivity and optimism. 'Reminiscence' is a snapshot of a moment in time where I was truly happy and content. When I named the EP, what I hadn't anticipated was how apt the name was going to be. My life has changed considerably in the year since I completed the production and it really does remind me of a very different, and a very special, period of time.
Luckily, when I reminisce about that part of my life, I don't feel bitter or that I have lost something, but I feel elated that I had the opportunity to feel that way. I've channelled the positive energy I had then into the person that I have become since.
Share with your friends and family. Much love goes out to Sal for his belief in me, Shane for his beautiful artwork, and to Safe Travel and Heem for their contributions.
When I heard the original of this one, I couldn't resist playing around with it and coming up with something different. Natty did such a good job in the first place - big thanks for trusting me to mess around with it :D
Natty Reeves - Under Your Thumb (Handbook Remix)
This one soundtracks the dawning of a new day. The shroud of night lifts and life begins to emerge. The rainy night subsides and a freshness breaks through. It's early morning in Seoul, London, New York, Tokyo ... wherever. The normally heaving metropolis surrenders to the soft morning before the energy surge.
Handbook - 5 AM
'Kill Your Masters' comes from the third joint EP between Supreme Sol and Handbook, following on from 'Higher Manifestation' and 'An Obscure Narrative'. These are two artists who truly have a connection and understand what each individual brings into the mix. Handbook provides his well known brand of charismatic production for Sol to express himself over, using his trademark delivery that really catches the listeners attention and imagination.
Supreme Sol: "Last year was pretty rough for me, especially when it came to my relationships with women. I was down about how my music would get looked over, my city (St Louis) moved to the number 1 most dangerous city in the US once again, and sometimes I'd feel pretty hopeless at times because of it. Throughout Impetus I'm sharing all of those experiences from a place of frustration, acceptance, determination, and organic growth."
Happy Friday people!
Back again with a new track via the good people at Soundplate.
Check it out now!
Handbook - Once Again
Having been in the works for almost a year, the time has finally come for us to proudly announce the release of our first ever vinyl project. Although this kind of project is definitely a first for us, we’re very grateful to be able to invite back to center stage once more one of the label’s oldest contributors – Handbook. This time around, Handbook has pulled out all the stops to present us with a 6-track EP worthy of such a special occasion.
‘Devotion’ -the record’s title and underlying theme- was chiefly inspired by Handbook’s personal experience of music creation as an almost spiritual exercise. For him, this record symbolizes the culmination of his efforts towards developing a dedicated and passionate work ethic. Even in between all the gaps of real life -be it work, personal or otherwise- he has always been able to find the time to discover and absorb inspiring sounds wherever he is able to. As a consequence, ‘Devotion’ embodies his attempt at merging sounds from a variety of different origins whilst, at the same time, preserving that classic Handbook sound.
The album artwork comprises a digitized version of a physical piece of artwork which uses a wide variety of plants and flowers in order to make the arrangement. Preserving the organic material required these plants to be carefully pressed and dried over extended periods of time. This specific method of preserving organic material has been in use for hundreds of years for scientific as well as creative purposes. In creating the artwork for this release, we felt there would be no better way than to use this same method to represent Handbook’s tendency towards producing organic, full-sounding instrumentation.
As such, it has been an honour to again have been able to work with an artist who has been with us truly from the very start. Therefore, we hope to celebrate such a longstanding collaboration with our first physical release together; ‘Devotion’ is our combined attempt at doing just that. A lot of hard work has gone into making this one a reality, so it is an absolute pleasure for us to be able to finally share it with you. On behalf of Handbook and everyone else involved, thank you.
The record is now available for pre-order via QRATES. Records will be pressed and sent out once the limit of 200 pre-orders has been reached.
PRE-ORDER THE VINYL HERE: https://qrates.com/artists/Handbook/items/12798
Good morning all! It's my birthday and I thought I'd share this little beaut with you. Bless and enjoy!
Handbook - Just Us
Back in December, YellowFlower released my EP 'Clear Mind' for your listening pleasure, digitally and on vinyl too.
I know you guys like a continuous mix of some of my projects, so here it is, and it's also available on Soundcloud too.
LINKS: BUY: http://yellowflowermusic.co.uk/album/yf003-clear-mind-ep STREAM: https://open.spotify.com/user/11147166822/playlist/5ZkyhYa7PJeZ7G0a4gO7ka
Big thanks to https://soundcloud.com/natty-reeves for letting me remix this one. Such a smooth track.
Enjoy!
Natty Reeves - Soul Drive (Handbook Remix)
"I went to Paris for Paris Fashion Week. It was my first time and the greatest 8 days of my life. In between each show, before every after party, everyone would meet up at Hotel Costes. It's like the playground for the cool. When I left Paris, I wanted to make a song about how it felt to be there. This song is the soundtrack to my Paris experience." - @JaylienWesley