Review: Clut deliver a specialised clout-glut with a fresh split EP from rising artist Alric Aerial, who here teams up with yet another artist who's so far flown under the label's radar - Electrodynamique. Here the pair deliver four electro-dancefloor tracks primed for every situation: sleazy bar, backlit festival stage, ironic doomsday scenario, you name it. This EP's cascading sixteenths flow like metallic droplets, their acid lines and FM blurps splurging forth with increasing restlessness and impertinence, and decreasing self-control. Particularly squelchy is Aerial's 'Tough Cuts', which moves trigger-happy on the cutoff filter whilst dungeon-bound sine tones splay across the top edges of the track, like ectoplasms left behind after a string of Zeno's paradoxes have been solved. 'We Are The City' by Electrodynamique indulges a final emery note, abrading its curveball electro mix to a grinding, apocalyptic oblivion.
Review: The latest from Swedish techno legend is a full-throttle techno assault, pushing Drumcode's legacy forward with relentless energy. The title track is a peak-time juggernaut, built on heavy chords, pounding kicks and a futuristic intensity that commands the dancefloor. With its driving momentum and anthemic hooks, it's a high-octane statement from two producers at the top of their game. On Side-2, 'Living In The Moment' ventures into atmospheric territory, teetering on the edge of trance with sci-fi textures and sweeping builds. Its long, tension-heavy progression culminates in devastating drops, overloading the senses with a euphoric yet punishing crescendo. With Drumcode nearing its 30th year, this release proves there's no slowing downithe label continues to deliver high-impact techno designed for maximum effect. Beyer and Brown's collaboration is a successful dose of tension, release and unrelenting intensity.
Spectrums Data Forces - "Darkness In My Head" (6:04)
EC13 - "Profundo" (Interludio) (0:49)
Wicked Wes - "X1000" (feat Space Frogs From Saturn) (5:48)
Review: Granada's Cosmic Tribe know the definition of "electro" in its broadest sense; their new Xtrictly Electro comp keeps the dystopian sound endemic to the genre's most present incarnation, but refuses to restrict itself to one tempo: the standard 130-ish that has sadly infected the otherwise genius genre as a necessity. An international splinter cell of spec-ops and mercenaries are recalled from retirement here, as we hear Calagad 13, Nachtwald, EC13 and many more mechanoid ilk lay down all manner of slick utilities, making up a morbid multi-tool. 5zyl brings further lasery Lithuanian steeze on 'Vilnius Bass', whilst Spectrums Data Forces betrays the existence of a sinister corporate entity, whose business model works towards the object of instilling 'Darkness In My Head' through giant, killer mozzy basses.
Happy707 - "Where Does That Noise Come From" (4:28)
Review: Menacing EBM and dark synth billows from a Netherlands hinterland; our heralds speak of an esoteric encampment by the name of Espectro Oculto, said to be the remote incantators of an unstoppable curse in sound. Six shadowy emissaries have been sent to spread the pestilence; Trenton Chase, Martial Canterel, DJ Nephil, Exhausted Modern, Fragedis and Happy707. Clearly, the faction have recruited only the best, trusted and yet most nefarious of spies from as far-flung regions as Czechia and Argentina in the administering of such a sordid sonic plague. We're left most quivery at the centrifugal doom drones of Exhausted Modern's 'Fear Of Focus', across whose breakdown banshees are heard wailing and snarling, and Fragedis' 'Landing In Reality', a lo-fi techno freakout and sonochemical anomaly, channeling militant two-way radio samples and hellish FM synthesis.
Review: Fearsome techni-techno through the Swiss futurists ENMODA, whose modus operandi is to actively promote and advocate for the local Swiss scene. With chilling textures and an ear for material, sonic grit, a cloister of ten producers are heard going full Eski-mode here, for the first instalment in their yearly compilation, Alpine Express Volume 1. Aptly described as a set of "dancefloor hurters", this is a record that proves the mid-European enclave still have their ears to the ground: pree the classic trance-techno of Marcism's 'Echo' or Ermatik's 'Funk Alt Delight', The Chronics' restlessly fight-or-flight revenant, 'Sonic Memory', and/or TIS' closing jit-tech piano weapon 'I Don't Mind'.
Review: The Aniara label out of Sweden has always come at things from its own sideways perspective whether dealing in house, techno, or something in between. This new two track 12" allows different artists to take care of one side each, beginning with DJ Marathon's 'Track 1.' It is the sort of breezy, balmy cut that encourages your mind to wander amongst the stars as you get lost in the pulsing deep house beats. Ebende's 'Elevate' picks up the pace but remains a dubby delight, with warm, molten chords rippling out to infinity and cuddly kicks carrying you to a mindful place.
Review: Chris Barratt aka Eagles & Butterflies possesses the rare ability to unite a larger-than-life peak time personality with the understated production method of comparatively underground records, techno pop and Italo. Bridging such gaps of authenticity and palatability can be a mean feat, but Barratt sacrifices few opportunities on his new 'Heartbreaks & XTC' EP to really think about how both poles can be met. Focussing on skeletal, hands-off mixing and yet apotheotic buildup production, Eagles & Butterflies truly do fly in unison on this stonker.
Review: Echoplex makes a triumphant return with his latest EP, Light Strike, on Soleil Records, which as fans of the underground will know delivers real and proper techno for the heads. After overcoming some adversity, he presents a revitalised sound that blends classic techno with fresh energy and his usual meticulous sound design. The EP features a floor-facing mix of haunting pads, pulsating rhythms, and bold experimentation that starts deep on 'Shift You' and end much more intense with 'The Gates'. In between is the silky dub of 'Embrace' and the high-speed funk of 'Light Strike'.
Review: The cornerstone of a certain (unforgettable) trance moment in time, Eden Transmission's 'I'm So High' was *the* tune to peg the LA and San Fran rave scenes indelibly to the PI's corkboard of dance music. Eden Transmission were only one alias of an ever-evolving, planarian duo - Michael Kandel, Tom Chasteen - whose works as Voodoo Transmission, High Lonesome Sound System and Up Above The World could equally have been deemed just as significant projects. But we prefer 'I'm So High'. One of the best to do it with breakbeats, the 'Ubud' mix of the title track hears what sounds like a bazaar gathering of psychic townsfolk, set against urgent whispers, which hydrolyse against a reso-peaked lead. And by far the best tune is 'Powertrance', which startles us with its wireless charge of mega-heavy breaks and robotic C-shell sendups, whisking us into psycho-cyberspace.
Review: 'Diamond Bullet' is a chill out masterpiece that epitomises Effective Force's pioneering style. With its laid back groove and hypnotic rhythms, the track immerses listeners into a sonic journey through the German trance scene of the early 1990s. The driving force behind the music is undeniable, as Johnny Klimek and Paul Browse skillfully blend elements of trance, techno, and ambient music to create an electrifying experience. The track's four original remixes offer unique interpretations, each adding layers of depth and complexity to the already captivating composition. From the infectious energy of the beats to the ethereal melodies that weave throughout, 'Diamond Bullet' is a great example of the psychedelic underground trance scene of the era.
Review: FOXBAM INC is back to build on the momentum of their first EP with a second one that packs a mighty punch. This one kicks off with EBY, who this year has been cooking up acid for 40 years and here offers the warped low ends and garage-techno power of 'Goldtooth'. Foxtrot vs Ma Bla then mashes up old school samples with earth-shattering bass on 'Deep Down Inside' and bRz vs Stije is a double-time hard techno stomper with warped synths and twisted bass that is inspired by and named after ISCO, a concept from Einstein's general theory of relativity that makes predictions about the dynamics of black holes.
Toro ((I Hate Models Speed Up Revival edit Of Andre VII remix) (6:09)
Review: 'Toro' is a modern classic post-punk track by Spanish band El Columpio Asesino, formed in 1999. Thoroughly difficult to classify or put into any neat box, their sound is characterised by synthesised elements and sinister rhythmic singing, with cryptic lyrics heard throughout. Here techno titan I Hate Models lends 'Toro' a surprise sped-up remix of a remix, remixing the ultra-dry retro-nostalgist version by Andre VII. Whereas Andre's is a drier take on the track - setting its dark-wavey lyrics against serious buzzing saws and scary sixteenth-note stabs in true synthpunk fashion - I Hate Models' version expounds on this further, fleshing out hardcore rollicks and luxury woops for a sublime, floor-frightening ultimatum in sound.
Review: Aniara's output has always been brilliantly designed for club deployment but could never really be considered as mere tools. The artists who appear on the Swedish imprint have a cultured sound and a knack for crafting maximum impact from minimal elements. Enter Mattias El Masouri who does just that with the sublime 'Time Dilation In Ultraviolet'. It's a hypnotic deep house cut with real drive that's down to the deft broken kick drum patterns, pulsing synth and heady pads that swirl above. 'Inre Dimension' is a 13-minute plus sonic daydream with paddy drums, drumming pads and perfectly airy hi-hats that anchor you in the heart and now as your mind wanders.
Review: Label boss El Prevost makes a welcome return to No Speakers after something of a break. Thankfully the quality levels remain high here as he kicks off with 'Catastrophizing', a brilliantly bass-heavy cut with broken beats to make you sweat. On the flip, 'Landing' has a more inward sense of reflection with its fizzing synths and deep space atmospheres making an indelible mark. Last of all, the magic of Detroit looms large with a superb remix by Motor City mainstay Kyle Hall. His version of 'Landing' brings some jazzy melodic vibes and one of his trademark deep house and bumping grooves. Another essential 12" from No Speakers.
Review: Andreas Gehm of Cologne returns with more lo-fi and nasty acid techno for brilliant Dutch imprint Panzerkreuz and it's everything that you'd expect from this eccentric fellow. They're all sure to please in their rusty and hissing glory but it's probably "Track 3" which is out favourite where Gehm proclaims through a helium induced voice "Im a freak, you're a freak.. we're all freaks!" and if you're still reading this, he's most probably right. Highly recommended!
Review: We're not yet familiar with FM therapy as a psychotherapeutic modality, but we'd sure as hell like to try it. Producer Elias, welcomed for the first time here to the Ranges label, offers up a sampler of this as yet esoteric, but sure-to-become-popular aural masseuse's technique. Admittedly, it doesn't sound far off dub techno; opening with the rainsoaked, padded piner 'Aquatic', it's as if we've entered a parlour doubling up as a humid human greenhouse, with palm plants on the inside and a backlit rainforest vista on the outside. Follow-ups 'Red Lantern' and 'Severe' go further into the dub techno mode, but the latter is especially interesting for its fusion with jukey sonics; finally, the titular 'FM Therapy' rounds things off with a neat return to crackle and ricochet.
Geto Mark & DJ Deeon - "In This House" (Elyas 13130 rework) (4:37)
Elyas & DJ Sack - "Triumph" (Mark Broom remix) (4:37)
Player - "Player Three" (Elyas remix) (5:42)
Review: Seclusion debuts with its first vinyl release here and it decides to use the opportunity to showcase four remixes from three different techno titans. UK favourite Ben Sims goes first with his turbocharged take on Elyas/Anta's 'Real 13130 G's' and then Elyas offers the first two remixes. His version of Geto Mark and DJ Deeon's 'In This House' is seriously heavy, with rock solid kicks and muted acid spraying about them, then he remixes Player's 'Player Three' into a funked up and loopy house banger for the peak time. Mark Broom is the last to remix and goes for a fusion of smeared Detroit-style synth soul over hefty techno drums.
Review: Cyphon Recordings celebrates its tenth release with Emotive Technology, a new project by Chilean artist Massiande. The five-track EP offers soul-stirring techno spanning various styles. Despite being his debut under this alias, Massiande boasts a decade-long career, releasing music on esteemed labels like Housewax and Phonica. The EP kicks off with 'Rise,' a fusion of new beat and arp-operated techno, setting the stage for peak-time euphoria. Tracks like 'It's On' and 'Your Zone' dive deeper into hypnotic rhythms, while 'Walk Into The Light' pays homage to Detroit's techno legacy. Closing with 'The Swing,' the EP captivates with its resonating synths and pulsating basslines, embodying machine music with soulful depth.
Review: Big up to the Equalized label for making it to #010 without ever putting a foot wrong. The label's eponymous production outfit takes care of this move into double figures with another direct to dance floor and hand-stamped 12" with two forceful bangers. 'Track 1' brings the heat with cantering drums and lashing percussion all run through with caustic synth textures. 'Track 2' is another high octane and chunky techno rocker with pent up energy and subtle hints of warehouse funk.
Review: 'Pang i Bygget' is a bold new EP from Swedish live techno artist Niclas Erlandsson. Erlandsson has established a reputation with his intense live performances and unique blend of techno, acid, EBM and breakbeats which are never less than turbocharged with power. Once again here he offers up immersive soundscapes and controlled chaos inspired by Swedish 90s techno. D.A.V.E. The Drummer's remix brings a driving, hypnotic 90s acid techno vibe to the party while Orion's remix adds intricate, forward-thinking elements that balance rawness with more polished dynamics. It's a great coming together of pioneering artists and new school star.
Review: The man best known as Convextion assumes his ERP aka Event Related Potential alias for four more next level cuts that find him pushing his electro electronics ever more into the future. 'V/Eight' opens with a melancholic bassline under busy drum programming to get things going. 'Equiponderance' is more complex with squirming electronics, more hefty bass notes and serene background pads adding a third dimension. 'Engine Vibration' is a more gritty mix of busy analogue machinery and star-gazing chords then 'Enfield' closes with optimistic sonics and propulsive bouncy bass to end this cosmic cruise on a high.
Review: After his recent releases on X-Kalay and Craigie Knowes, Melbourne's Escape Artist returns to Phonica where he has previously released his well-received Energy Breakthrough EP. Once again here he shows his love of serving up euphoric and energetic cuts with the A-side, 'Forgot Who I Was,' building great intensity with delicate melodies and a shifting bassline. The B-side, 'Remembering', offers a contrasting yet complementary vibe that keeps on with the previous track's two-step rhythm while evolving into a more uplifting direction with ambient techno elements and acidic breaks. It's potent stuff.
Det Blaser En Vind Genom Varlden, Och Det Har Det Alltid Gjort (6:54)
Review: An experimental techno hexagram in LP form from Stockholm artist Evigt Morker. Without so much as a hint of context, the techno dark-shooter here drops his third LP for resident label Northern Electronics as a surprise, and the result is rather stunning. A bleary set of impressions, some tunes on this record clip the top edge of the mix, chinking our emotive armour. The effect is gastric, dehiscent, exuding bile: 'Hemilga Eldar' leaves us dumbstruck by its ambient eventidal winds and strangely sprawled drum shapes, while 'Sokaren Hittade' combines nyctophile cantos with electric twangs. The closer 'Det Blaser En Vind...' is a headland of humility, letting in much longer gusts of tuned air.
Review: Electro don Robert Heise turns his attention back to The Exaltics project for a new EP on his steady label home Repetitive Rhythm Research. Forgetting the proverbial "house" that birthed the song, Heise borrows the canonic title and lends it a certain force majeure, in the vein of bristly "helicopter blade" synths and classic techno drum machine furrow. Best on this fearsome crock is 'Parallel Reality', whose impressively miscible cuckoo-clock offbeats and sneak-up, reverse-worked, burring lead line have yet to meet their match this year. ORX's opening edit is the most expulsive, firing off a grunting artillery of monstrously low synths and brusque cymbal crashes in enfilade.
Review: You can always count on Clone's Repetitive Rhythm Research label to bring a proper, hard-edged strain of techno that matches brawn with brains. Next up on the label after a knockout record from Frequency is The Exaltics, tailoring their signature electro style to a blown-out 4/4 sound to incite a thousand sweatboxes. 'It Never Ends' is brilliantly jacking, with deep space synths on top, and 'Hammerheads From Outta Space' doubles down on brute-force kicks and dirtbag leads. 'Corroded From The Future' dips into dystopian acid from the depths, and 'Dumb MST Digital' caps the record off with a stripped back 303 workout for those who carry a torch for the glory days of Bunker Records.
Review: The 110th release from Kompakt Extra comes from Extrawelt, a long-serving electronic band from Hamburg that has previously impressed via albums and singles on Traum Schallplatten, Border Community, Darkroom Dubs and Cocoon Recordings. They naturally hit the ground running with "Pink Panzer", a bustling affair that mixes live drum breakbeats and tough machine percussion with moody, booming bass, creepy strings and evocative, ever-building tech-house electronics. Flipside "Argonaut" is an altogether sleazier and heavier affair full of thrusting, non-stop distorted bass, redlined post-electro drums and all manner of mind-mangling electronic effects. It's effectively the Yang to the A-side's Ying and, like its' predecessor, very good indeed.
Review: Greyscale unveils its latest endeavour, the Spectrum Series, as a way to continue to evolve its offerings and this time it is with something that makes a vibrant departure from its traditional black-and-white aesthetic. The inaugural release features the iconic Lithuanian dub track 'Kasdienybes Sventykla' by grad_u & Eazystyle MC as a way of commemorating its 15th anniversary. It came as a double CD in 2011 but now gets a first vinyl pressing on a nice 10" slab of wax. The track itself taps into the earliest roots of dub in the 70s and traces a line through the 80s with its heavyweight drums and endlessly echoing bass topped by great mic work. A pared-back instrumental features on the flip of this latest crucial drop from the dub dons at Greyscale
Review: EC Underground is back with more inquisitors of low-end heavy sounds on Bass Scene Investigation vol 1 and again digs deep into the worlds of electro, techno, breakbeat and IDM. The compilation kicks off with the skittish percussive patterns of Illektrolab's 'Making Heads Dip', then heads into moody ground with ADJ, Pablo Funk brings some menacing synth work and Errorbeauty gets all weird and trippy with some mad electronics. Francois Dillinger offers a dystopian electro sound full of irresistibly jacked-up drums. A fine investigation indeed.
Review: The Berlin-based 432HERTZ crew kicks on here with a new various artists 12" packed with electro heat. Rinaldo Makaj gets things underway with the serene grooves of 'Computational Universe', which has some of the nicest snares we've heard in some time. Rickie's 'Mesosphere' is a nice off balance sound with thumping kicks and melodic bass, then it's time to get sleazy and more than a little ghetto with the raw Electric City jam 'Escape From Reality.' Pumio Space brings a little colour and playfulness to closer 'Mario's Juice'.
Review: Serious seriality from the OHM Series, an imprint and sole patent owner of the rare, aurally administered chemical known as Omega X. The alphabetic Greek letter ohm determines impedance / resistance in an electrical circuit, and so too do each of the dub techno tracks released on the OHM Series amount to tergiversating transductions, their chillout chord-knocks and hardened beats never quite letting us settle. Though titles like 'Innocence' and 'Downtime' persist here, the tracks perhaps inadvertently prove that flow is impossible without resistance: Separation's track is especially unorthodox in its strange reordering of phaser, pan and saturation effects on the pad-stab, which produces an unusual swirling effect.
Sina XX & Dance Divine - "Dancefloor Is Hot" (6:10)
Sina XX & Metaraph - "Color Of People" (6:57)
Sina XX & Lacchesi - "Goth It" (5:43)
Enham, Lessss & Sina XX - "Le Demon" (5:10)
Review: Get your marching boots on and strap in for a white knuckle ride from fledgling label Body to Body. This second release from the French crew is another thrilling take on hard techno and gabba as Sina XX links up with different artists across four cuts. First, it is with Dance Divine for the flat-footed menace and lashing synths of 'Dancefloor Is Hot' then Metaraph joins for 'Color Of People,' a cut that burrows deep on an oversized bassline and edgy string stabs unsettle the mood. Sina XX & Lacchesi's 'Goth It' is a minimal excursion on tightly wrapped drums and bass that are full of pent-up tension then last of all is the most brain-frying and textural rave of the lot as Enahm and Lessss join in for 'Le Demon.'
Review: Eindhoven underground acidcore distributor and label Flatlife generate yet another mind-melter for the nitty masses, supercolliding tracks by four of the foremost DJs come sound-summoners on the subterranean scene. Flatlife have dispatched rapid-response rave Apaches since 2009, and A-siders 'Septic' and 'Lord Of Darkness' bring a fittingly mid-noughts feel to things, during which time the roughage of hard dance fused with the encroaching gloss and finesse that came with digital sound tech that defined the decade. The mood is horrific, with 'Saure' climaxing to apocalyptic, territorial levels through waspish yamps and kick crushings, while the aggro is not lost on the ensuing 'Out Of Order', somehow the most relaxed of the four.
Review: Scottish producer Tony Scott graces Prologue for the first time with a debut album under the Edit Select guise - now as established a name as his old Percy X work was. The Munich label is cultivating quite the reputation for techno album projects, with excellent longplayers from Mike Parker, Echologist, Dino Sabatini and of course Voices From The Lake in recent times and we can add Phlox to that pile. The Scotsman's collection of mesmerising and sometimes big-room techno productions is a perfect match for the Prologue aesthetic, pitched perfectly between moments of emotional ambience and "hypnotic monsters for the dance floor". Look out for a new rendition of "Bauer", which appeared on the Berghain 03 Mix CD and the Dino Sabatini collaboration "Survivors Of The Pulse".
Review: DJ and live electronic musician Erika is a force of nature, having built an entire alternate universe around her own sound. If you're keen on world-building and conceptronica, then hers is almost entirely built around themes from astronomy, physics and cosmology. A techno album through and through, 'Anevite Void' centres on the idea of "the irregular life cycles created by three suns circling over a planetary organism that presents two major biomes: rocky crystalline desert, and deep layered forest, each of which exists above and/or below ground, depending on what phase the suns are in." The result is a shapeshifting foray through both relaxed and driving soundscapes, seasonal as they are ecstatic.
B-STOCK: Slight tear to left side of outside sleeve, but otherwise in excellent condition
Landing Process (1:01)
Lets Fly The Gravity Fighter (4:01)
Lif Eono Ther Planets (feat Paris The Black Fu) (4:11)
Higher Levels (4:47)
The Long Goodbye (4:46)
The Seventh Planet (5:09)
Resurface (5:23)
They're Coming From Everywhere (4:38)
We Never Had A Chance (3:49)
Did You See Them (feat Paris The Black Fu & Mr Remy) (3:08)
We Would Do It (1:38)
Review: ***B-STOCK: Slight tear to left side of outside sleeve, but otherwise in excellent condition***
Robert Witschakowski's tunnel-like focus on the advancement of electro continues apace with this latest Exaltics transmission for Clone West Coast Series, his second album after 2019's II Worlds and his latest since the acclaimed link-up with Heinrich Mueller, Dimensional Shifting. Of course this is electro first and foremost, so the likes of 'Let's Fly The Gravity Together' will hit the pleasure centre of any machine funk aficionado, but even more special is the presence of Detroit Grand Pubahs' Paris The Black Fu offering his unmistakable MC work to 'Lif Eono Ther Planets'. Paris returns for penultimate track 'Did You See Them' alongside Mr Remy, and in between there's an abundance of electro riches to fulfil your cybernetic fantasies.
Review: The Exaltics is always a dab hand at crafting cinematic sci-fi scenes out of his dystopian electro, but even he took it to another level with Das Heise Experiment. Conceived in 2013 as a soundtrack to a graphic novel, it was the perfect outlet for Robert Witschakowski's music beyond the function of a club 12". The atmospheres and moods he elicits from the Exaltics sound bank are brilliantly rendered across the whole release, which gets the ten year treatment on this reissue with striking, all-new full colour artwork which brings the visuals to life alongside the music like never before.
Review: Troekurovo Recordings is a production team made up of Toki Fuko, Vadim Basov and Evgeny Vorontsov and they have been hidden away deep in some enchanted Russian forests recording music. Now they are putting out the results on this superb double pack. This project started back in 2016 as a live experimental jam and is now an annual tradition made on loads of analogue gear on the banks of a canyon that was formed many years ago by a melting glacier. The locale provides inspiration - from the fresh country air to the meteor showers often visible overhead - for the music making which is strictly "no preparation, no pre-programming - hardware, friends and live improvisation only."
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