Intr0beatz - Mixtape #90

Iceland Born and Raised

For the past few years, Intr0beatz has become one of the strongest house music developments from his native country, by spreading the Icelandic sound internationally with gigs in Europe and Japan, but also by releasing music on key labels such as Closer To Truth (Alex Agore) and fellow Reykjavik-based label Lagaffe Tales, ran by Jónbjörn.

But let’s go back to the roots! For some, the groove cannot be learned or given: it’s an inherent and intuitive part of their soul… and Arsaell’s whole life has been all about it, starting from his earliest years, delving into his father’s musical collection and compositions.

He first came to prominence as Intr0beatz (Intro Beats) back in the late 90s, first as a turntablist, then as the beat producer behind the seminal 2000s Icelandic hip-hop group Forgotten Lores.

A Deeper Take on House

But Ingvason is not one who is comfortable keeping still in his quest for deep sounds and immersive beats. Diving into his musical past, as well as opening up his horizons, he released the album « Half Time » in 2011 on Möller Records, a heady mix pot of chill out, deep house, funk, and hip hop. It marked not only a maturity in Ingvason’s production but hinted at several new directions away from his original hip-hop status.

Since « Half Time », Ingvason has been going deeper into house music, over the last few years releasing a slew of 12”s and EPs on various deep house labels such as Dark Energy, Something Else, but also the above-mentioned Closer To Truth and Lagaffe Tales.

2021 represents a new landmark for him, with the launch of his new label Cosmic Angles, with already two EPs produced by himself on the tracks: « Good Luck » (Jan 2021) and « Irregularity » (Feb 2021). You can get those on Juno Download and all streaming platforms.

Given this impressive musical career, it’s an immense pleasure to welcome Intr0beatz on the Electrocorp Mixtape series. On this mix, Arsaell delivers a blend of deep cuts, slowly building up to finish on a more late-night, club-oriented level. Intr0beatz features some Losoul productions, as well as Crackazat, or the Chicago-based duo Local Options, just to name a few, all blended with some of his own compositions (including unreleased material). It is trully a beautiful, uplifting journey that will warm up the souls of every house heads.