Darkfloor. It’s the umbrella under which we operate and publish a variety of creative music projects. It began in 2009.
Originally conceived as a catch up term to describe the music we were playing on Mantis Radio it quickly evolved as a place to archive the Mantis Radio broadcasts, which had begun airing in May 2007. In 2012 we started our record label – Darkfloor Sound. In August that year we released Distant by Phat Chat. Our first release.
The sound we publish is aligned to our philosophy of pushing music and musicians we believe in.
we are not defined by genre.
we are built upon a rich, diverse and cohesive sound spectrum.
Our sound.
The sound of Darkfloor is a composite – we are not defined by a single genre or style. Primarily, we are concerned with electronic sound, especially of a rich, bass heavy, dark, textured variety. Thundering mutant stabs of bass. Claustrophobic industrial bleakness. Hypnotic lush depth. And the wide gamut of sound between; we are all these things and more.
We absorb the best of established genres and sonics including – techno, electro, breaks, dubstep, glitch, IDM, drone, ambient, breakstep, bass, noise, experimental electronics, metal, power electronics, downtempo, illbient, jungle, drum & bass, and stuff we don’t even know what to classify as.
Our music is available to buy through our Store, Bandcamp, and our Discogs. Our records and cassettes are distributed by Envelope Structure. If you are interested in stocking our records, please contact Oscar at Envelope Structure.
Early work.
Our debut release, the EP Distant by Phat Chex (2012) received national airplay and support by Dave Clarke. Soon followed up by our second release – Output, the debut EP by Serbian duo Ontal. That 12” quickly sold out, receiving extensive global club support along the way. Most notably by Objekt, at Sónar, Barcelona.
We don’t chase the sound of the current flavour of the month. We release what we want, when we want. With each release we continue to grow a body of music from a family of artists that sounds as good now as it did when we released it.
“We have long come to realise that art is not produced in an empty space, that no artist is independent of predecessors and models, that he no less than the scientist and philosopher is part of a specific tradition and works in a structured area of problems.”
– Ernst Kris (1952).
Contributors.
Over the years many people have contributed to our blog and editorial content including Brant Showers (AAIMON), Ali Berger, Alistair Read, Billywood, Blackmass Plastics, Bushby, Clodhoppa, Danny Vandal, Eddie Bovaflux, Inorganic Audio, Karellen, KidChameleon, Laica, Mad Wax, Nora (feryne), Opine Ko$insky, Rachael Kissane, Rob Dunstone, Swarm Intelligence, Taylor Shechet, Ursa, Uschi Schomig, and Vadim Savchenko (Vadz).
If you’re interested in contributing, our inbox is open. Contact us.
Listener Supported.
In 2011 we opened our forum, HIVE, to help further the positive discussion and promotion of the multiple styles and genres of music that form the core of Darkfloor, our label, our radio, and beyond. Good music is good music regardless if it has or hasn’t got specific sounds, programming structure, frequencies and the like. With the rise of social media and the increasing demands on our time to maintain and administer the boards we made the decision to close the forum in early 2014.
However, HIVE lives on in the form of our Patreon – as we rely on our community of listeners to continue the good work.
Events.
We’ve thrown parties and hosted events under the name Darkfloor Live and Mantis Radio. To book Mike Darkfloor, and label artists, get in contact.