Artist description Raw funky grooves and atonal blasts with a warm dub-infused atmosphere.

Music Style Techno

Musical Influences techno, funk, drum and bass, dub, hip hop, trip hop and electro

Similar Artists Orbital, Autechre, Future Sound Of London, Kraftwerk, The Orb, Aphex Twin, LFO

Artist History In today’s densely populated electronic scene - greatly comprised of solo artists and duos - the sight of a four-piece band is a rare surprise. Even harder to find are groups that truly defy the trappings of operating within a defined genre. Perhaps it is the interplay of Transformantra’s four members that has allowed them to flourish outside of a “style of the month”. Each member seems to bestow the music with their own funked up vision of how the universe should sound. Weeding out predictability is an easy task if you’ve got the headstrong soundsmiths of Transformantra on hand. This crew’s inventiveness in arrangements, melody and discord culminates in a hard-contoured technological sound that manages to retain sweet passages of melody. In a kind of magical way, Transformantra’s songs balance raw funky grooves and atonal blasts with a warm dub-infused atmosphere. The band’s story began in the summer of 1995, when four noisy friends - Mike Gibbs, Will Mokrynski, Nancy Nieuweboer and Will Skol - began an ongoing series of jam sessions. Their interest in the harder sides of techno, funk, drum and bass, dub, hip hop, trip hop and electro inspired them to concoct their own beat-driven sound. Over the following two years they cooked up their debut 12-inch “Liquor Mart”, and the “Transformantra” CD. In performance, Transformantra is a hybrid of live playing and on-the-fly remixing. Heightening the show is dancer King Svenie, a veteran of the Toronto rave scene and a truly crazed illustrator. Costuming himself head-to-toe - with the unmistakable purpose of attempting to make contact with the outer regions of the cosmos - King Svenie brings a bizarre theatrical element to the music. And the band’s gigs have already drawn praise from respected sources. After Transformantra’s recent appearance at a party entitled the Black Lodge, Ken Downie of The Black Dog (Warp Records) wrote a glowing review of the group on his official website, saying “...The real stars of the evening were the local talent. An awesome technofoursome-inthemouldofkraftwerk totally blew the minds of everyone...” Besides the Black Dog, Transformantra has had the good fortune of sharing the stage with other luminaries such as Alex Paterson (The Orb), Stacey Pullen (Transmat Records) and Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia (Kk Records). Freaky Chakra is an artist that Transformantra has had a higher degree of involvement with. This Astralwerks musician’s remix of the track “G-Stylee” can be found on both the “Liquor Mart” 12-inch and the self-titled CD. Most recently, the crew finished putting the final touches on its upcoming second album. The mantra plays on...

Group Members Mike Gibbs, Will Mokrynski, Nancy Nieuweboer and Will Skol

Instruments Electronics

Albums Transformantra (CD), Liquor Mart (12-inch)

Press Reviews Many! To be uploaded soon.

Location Toronto, ON - Canada

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