Now you can join the ranks of Grandmaster Flash and spin records on your own set of (virtual) turntables, courtesy of developer Scott Schiller. Schiller recently launched wheelsofsteel.net, which is just what it sounds like: a set of virtual Technics SL-1200s that allow you to mix and scratch to your heart’s content. What’s truly awesome about this—besides, you know, the basic concept of web-based turntables—is that Schiller built the site using HTML/CSS/JavaScript for the bulk of it.

I have been interested in the idea of building a turntable-based UI in HTML for years; however, the past presented a number of technical hurdles. Setting dreams of browser-based remixing aside, simply recreating the core design elements of a turntable was practically infeasible until the advent of CSS3. The features most notably missing from browsers involved drawing circles, rotation of elements and low-level control of audio. As of 2011, it’s a pleasure to say that these features can be implemented almost entirely using HTML, CSS and JavaScript alone.

Schiller has written a very extensive article that provides all sorts of background and technical info on the site’s development (e.g., development of the site began on January 31, 2011 and has taken approximately four months). It’s clearly not intended for “real” DJs—as Schiller notes, “what DJ really wants to scratch records with a mouse, anyway”—and using it comes with all kinds of caveats, but it’s still an awesome idea and the execution is incredibly impressive (watch a video of it in action).

While Flash was used for portions of the site—primarily to provide audio support—a site like this just continues to prove that “native” web technologies, though still in the early stages in some cases, are more than capable of creating truly immersive and engaging web experiences. (Another example would be The Man in Blue’s HTML5/CSS3-based “Definitive Daft Punk” visualization.)

When I last wrote about Minikon’s music, it was early 2008 and I was listening to (the aptly titled) Hope while sitting in my wife’s hospital room as we waited for the arrival of our first child. It’s now June of 2011, and Denty One is back with a slew of music.

First, previous Minikon albums have been reissued via Bandcamp on East Gate Sound. Second, Minikon returns with Rare Candy, a collection of remixes by various Japanese and American artists as well as some previously unreleased Minikon material. While I’m partial to the original material (e.g., the shimmering, ambient “Fireflies”), the remixes are certainly enjoyable, and keep in the joyous, upbeat, and shamelessly retro aesthetic that Minikon has cultivated over the years.

Third, Denty One has released Denty One Plays the Korg DS​-​10, a collection of tracks that were composed on the Nintendo DSi’s Korg DS-10 software. Finally, a new Minikon album titled Love Wins is due out sometime this year, also on East Gate Sound.

Antony Harding (the man behind July Skies) recently tweeted about a brand new July Skies song… which, of course, caused me to stop dead in my tracks and check it out as soon as I could.

Titled “Fête In The Rain (6876 Version)”, it’s got the characteristic July Skies tone and feel—i.e., bucolically nostalgic in all the right places, due in large part to Harding’s layered, delay-drenched guitars. As with a good deal of the July Skies catalog, listening to the song feels like a favorite memory that is in the process of fading away to the periphery of your consciousness until all that remains is the memory of a memory. In other words, a bittersweet and poignant experience, to say the least.

The song has a bit of a demo-y feel to it, due in large part to the programmed drums. However, there’s a note that the “original” version of the song will appear on an upcoming July Skies EP titled Observe The Weather that will be released on November 6, 2011. A second release, titled A Day in the Country, is also in the works, though no release date has been announced for that as far as I know.

Balam Acab’s debut full-length Wander / Wonder will be released by Tri Angle on August 29. In the meantime, you can listen to “Oh, Why”, the album’s debut single, which I’ve embedded below. The so-called “witch house” aesthetic is still in full effect, but Balam Acab appears less interested in sounding spooky and evil like some of his peers, and more interested in simply crafting lush, hypnotic soundscapes (think Burial run through Photoshop’s “Gaussian Blur” filter a couple of times).

On a related note, I love the album artwork, which you can see in its entirety at Stereogum. It’s minimal, elegant, dark, and mysterious… sort of like Balam Acab’s music.