After the adverse weather conditions and cancelled flights back in December, the MN Presents… crew are delighted to finally host the I.E. debut of Alan Abrahams‘ live Bodycode/Portable show in the Underground, Kennedys on Friday 25th March.  (Again!!)

Abrahams has created a unique aesthetic which constantly evolves and draws influences from his own life experiences, past and present. His formative years, spent in South Africa, are evoked through his Portable moniker, where tribal rhythms are arranged alongside more atmospheric indigenous tones. This is juxtaposed to more accessible productions under his Bodycode guise which he conceived during his time in Lisbon. Here, Abrahams has adapted a more dancefloor friendly sound with techno awash with faint vocals and housier melodies, influenced no doubt by his earliest Chi-town records. The combination of elements from both his Bodycode and Portable aliases create a very distinct sound which is too often lacking in modern electronic music. With past and upcoming releases on Spectral Sounds, Süd Electronic, Perlon, Naif, Karat, Scape, Karat, Mutek and Revolver (to name but more than a few) we are very excited to have him over to Dublin at last.

In support, we have Test head honcho Jay Galligan, fresh from his recent gig at Suicide Circus in Berlin (ding! ding!!) with Sandwell District and Ancient Methods. Jay’s penchant for all things techno is second to none so we’re very excited to have him on the line up

With VJ Monicker providing the sights to the sounds, MN’s Pete Cadden will be kicking the festivities off with some deep old school house and acid.

Ahead of the gig, we fired a few questions over to Mr. Abrahams to get a little insight on the unique producer.

(Disclaimer: Richard Brophy, who is also a huge fan, beat us to the punch with a more depth article a few weeks back. Read it here. Some similar questions but don’t hold that against us!!)

1. I am very intrigued to hear about where you draw your influences from today. Lisbon obviously had a big impact, and your African roots had a huge baring too but now I see your name cropping up around Berlin. For us, it’s the unique sound you create by drawing on past experiences which is most appealing, do you feel that exposure to Berlin may see a change in direction?
I think my living in Berlin will only add to my sound…Berlin is such a melting pot of musicians ,crazy but still quite a subdued city. I think my life in Berlin will lend itself to more introspection. I feel a period of relative stability dawning.

2. I understand that you have a particular fondness for 12″ from Chi-town.  If you had to, would you single out any Chicago House producers,  Disco or even Afro-beat who have influenced you?
That’s quite a difficult question to answer,there is of course never just one or two  single tracks but a collection of them from different genres, But if I would have to I’d say Master C + J – Dublove , Hugh Masekela – Don’t Go Lose It Baby , Funky Green Dogs – High Up

3. I feel one of the defining characteristics of your music is the distinct vocals awash  through many of your tracks. Where do you draw inspiration from when making these  vocals? Are they samples or your own vocals.
The vocals use to be from mainly traditional African music, but of late, I am using my own vocals.

4. I’ve always felt that your Bodycode project was more dancefloor orientated while  Portable was more abstract but ever evolving. You’ve recently combined elements from  both monikers in your productions. Do you have a separate vision for each project in the  future? When you get down to producing some music is there a specific mood that makes you decide that you want to produce as either Bodycode or Portable, or is it a planned process.
Portable was always the more experimental of the two monikers. I don’t plan which track will go with which moniker but of late I’m am planning to make Portable my predominantly vocal project and Bodycode more instrumental.

5. Out of your contemporaries, is there any particular artists you’re digging these days? What kind of sounds do you like to check out in the spare time you can afford?
I don’t listen to a lot of electronic music. Mainly because I like to draw influences from other styles of music.So often it depends on my mood. Sometimes Bach, sometimes Beachhouse …

6. I understand that you and Lakuti (Sud Electronic promoter and DJ) have been involved  with the Freerotation festival since its inception. We’ve heard some amazing things  about the event; can you explain to us what is so special about it? Do you particularly change your set for these gigs?
I think the most special thing about Freerotation is that it’s made by and attended by music enthusiasts. There’s no big sponsors and it’s quite a small festival. For my live sets, I try and change each live set,as that’s what it is…live…

7. Your last two records were released under the Portable guise, would you like to tell us a little about upcoming plans or projects for 2011?
2011 will see a Portable 12″ on Sud Electronic and a Portable album on Perlon, later in the year.

Triphouse Rotterdam Podcast 001: Portable aka Bodycode

To be in with a chance of winning a double pass to MN Presents… Portable/Bodycode Live this Friday night in The Underground, simply email the answer of the following question, with your name (& mobile number if you would like text notification) to tickets@mntothat.com

When he’s not producing and performing as Portable or Bodycode, by what name does our guest act go by?
(There’s a clue on this page)

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Winners will be notified no later than 6pm on Thursday.