Skinned #1: Andrew Ingram [Tabernacle]

When mulling over possible contributors for our first foray into the world of the mix series, many names came instantly to mind, but Andrew Ingram soon became the obvious choice for a number of reasons. The London-based Liverpudlian has been on our radar for many years as a result of his committed work at the core of the UK's underground electronic scene. Along with a few others, Andrew hosted the invariably brilliant Slabs of the Tabernacle parties in Glasgow, later moving on to do more sporadic nights all over the UK, bringing the likes of Lone, Tevo Howard, Morphology and Detroit's Buzz Goree to receptive crowds. More recently, he has seen the Tabernacle label he co-founded go from strength to strength – releasing techno, electro and house music from a range of gifted producers such as Mark Du Mosch, John Heckle and Scan 7's Trackmaster Lou.

Then there's Head Front Panel. Emerging earlier this year, the Tabernacle sub-label focuses exclusively on techno – and blistering, no-holds-barred techno at that. Released in pairs beginning in February, the series already has many pondering the identity of its anonymous contributors; such is the quality on offer thus far. In keeping with the finest traditions of faceless techno, the records appeared with little promotional fanfare, and in striking sleeves adorned with images of tribesmen in colourful ceremonial headdress. Crucially, the music contained within each 4-track release has vindicated the decision to avoid over-hyped blurbs, and the bar has been set tantalisingly high for the remainder of the run.    

Ingram is a skilled selector and the art of the mix is something he clearly takes very seriously. Anyone who has kept an eye on the Slabs of the Tabernacle blog over the last seven years or so will be aware of the countless treasures contained within – exceptional mixes from a varied cohort of guests such as Casionova, Neville Watson and John Heckle accompany a steady stream of certified gems from Andrew himself. With Head Front Panel gaining momentum, Andrew kindly agreed to christen the Skinned mix series and answer some questions ahead of Tabernacle's upcoming party in Glasgow.

Hi, Andrew! What’s new at Tabernacle HQ?
The cat is enjoying the increasing amount of cardboard in the house - our first sub-label is in full swing. New artists have joined us from London and Holland. The perennials are suffering snail attack in the garden and we're dusting off the bbq.

How did the concept for Head Front Panel develop and what was behind the decision to keep contributors anonymous?
We suddenly found ourselves sitting on an arsenal of techno. It would’ve taken us months to put it all out so we decided to detach it from Tabernacle. The anonymity further separates the two labels, and we all felt it suited the tracks.

So far, the HFP records have tended towards a particularly full-on, frenetic brand of techno. Is the plan to maintain that kind of momentum throughout the series?
That is the plan yes. There is plenty of techno around as always but not much like this.

Can you tell us about the idea for the artwork?
My dad went to Papua New Guinea in the 80s and brought us back some tourist guides on local festivals and celebrations. I found them the other month. The heads selected match the tracks – very colourful, tribal and wild.

The records seem to be shifting well. Will you look at repressing at any stage or are they strictly limited?
We’re not thinking about repressing anything at the moment. Once this project is finished, we look forward to moving onto something else.

What can you tell us about the events side of things?
We’re planning to make our Slabs parties more regular again, continuing our focus towards DJs playing on decks on tables, not ‘legend’ bookings. Just now, we're looking out some tunes and balloons for the (un)official 6th birthday party in Glasgow this month.

Can you give us the lowdown on Glasgow guest, Call Super, for anyone who may not be familiar with him?
Joe is a DJ/producer who has more recently been putting out material on the Houndstooth label. I believe he lived in Glasgow about ten years ago so knows the vibe of the city well. Depending on the event he plays across the board but we’re expecting a solid techno session at our party.

What can we look forward to from Tabernacle and Head Front Panel in the coming months?
We’ve got plenty more electro coming up on Tabernacle, plus an E.P. with three great varied remixes of John Heckle by Call Super, Moon B and Vercetti Technicolor. Meanwhile the Head Front Panel series will continue to appear in pairs until the end of 2014. 

Finally, moving onto your mix, it has a great progression to it - with a long tranquil build up before it takes off. This is something I’ve found in a lot of your mixes. Do you take a lot of time in selecting and ordering tracks?
I love a spacey intro. And yes, recording at home allows me to structure my mixes carefully with plenty of variance. I rarely want to revisit yet another person's Liquid Rooms attempt. Those Head Front Panels do deserve to be played faster though.

So, with much excitement, we present the first mix in the Skinned series – an hour long trip into Andrew Ingram’s vinyl stacks, voyaging through spaced-out and placid openers, plodding mechanical funk and, of course, pummelling techno courtesy of the fledgling Head Front Panel series.

TRACKLIST:

Valanx – Chasm (Crc Remix) [Diametric]
Dasha Rush – Ocean Shy [Deep Sound Channel]
Louis Haiman – Ghosts Of Gratiot [Icon of Desire]
Population One – Octagon [Harbour City Sorrow]
DMX Krew – Keuswask [Mystic & Quantum] 
E3 – Voodoo Groove (A Slight Return) [Peacefrog]
Slowburn – Riders Of The Sea [Apartment] 
Scape One – Migration [AC]
Ondo Fudd – Harbour [Trilogy Tapes]
Jeremiah R – The Astral Journey [Organic Analogue]
Anom Vitruv – Untitled [Tabernacle]
Terrence Dixon – Ocean To Sea [Surface]
Ben Gibson – Vapour [Chronicle]   
Head Front Panel #002 [Head Front Panel]
##### – #####.1 [No Label]
Underground Resistance – The Fog [Shockwave]
Head Front Panel #004 [Head Front Panel]
Planetary – Matter Of Sound [Delsin]
Duplex – Scenes Of A Life [Clone]
Morphology – Magnetospheric [Zyntax Motorcity]
3MB Feat. Magic Juan Atkins – Die Kosmischen Kuriere [Tresor]