DMX KREW レコード& CD

Review: From Permanent vacation to Hypercolour, Furthur Electronix to Under The Radar, Ed DMX's music pops up all over the place these days. That's primarily because the electro hit machine just can't stop producing pure gold from his gear, and this latest joint on Peggy Gou's Gudu label proves the point - his second for the label after 2019's Don't You Wanna Play? EP. From the jubilant vintage techno sound of the title track to the cheeky 90s house bounce of 'Altered Chords', 'U Ain't Really Down's wild-eyed jack to the joyous machine soul of out and out tribute tracks 'I Love Juan', this is DMX Krew laying some major influences bare and making magic out of his pure passion.

Review: You can't get more reliable than Ed DMX frankly. The veteran artist can do all electro styles imaginable and all with equal elan. This month, for example, is dropping a disco and boogie fried 12" as well as this more classically inclined electro outing on the fine Shipwrec label out of the Netherlands. 'Parasite' has a perfectly elastic and rubbery baseline under celestial melodies, 'Tree In Space' is a twitchy rhythm and 'Unbelief' then settles into a deeper groove with smeared synth chords. 'Meltdown' ends with a darker and more atmospheric sound for the late night hours.

Review: The next electro exploration from the infamous DMX Krew comes in the form of 'Blue Bob', which scours the genre's less bangerific backwaters. The four tracks on this new EP her for Further Electronix centre on everything from the weezy, to the gaseous, to the strange. 'Ambient Freak' does what it says on the tin, working as one of Krew's most minimal cuts to date; its noir synth strings and piquey melodic motifs sound like the soundtrack to a space-age murder mystery, as we try to decipher who killed Zog with what; a laser-blaster? a lightsaber? a photon torpedo? 'Clean The Stylus' and are 'Blue Blob' further sci-fi pleasantries, with icy blue notes and propulsive FM basses gluing it all together.

Review: The legendary DMX Krew is as accomplished as they come when talking about electro innovators. Each time he steps out he proves that and this new one proves it, quite knowingly so given the title. The title track 'Still Got It' is a stomping electro sizzler with lashing of disco goodness and a catchy vocal hook. The dub fleshes out the low end while 'Paranoia' picks up the pace on the flip. It's a high speed cut with dazzling melodic sequences riding up and down the scale. Cold then shuts down with boogie energy and more lush Casino keys.

Review: Ed Upton - the electro gift that keeps on giving. For someone so prolific, the man like DMX Krew never misses and it's frankly astounding. Take this new clutch of tracks for a new label entitled Operation Madness, which leads in with the synthetic fantasy ride of 'Trigger Warning' before sliding into the sprightly 80s flex of 'Local Off' and on to the quintessential machine funk of 'Software User Guide'. The styles are distinct, but the quality is just immeasurable. In these times of electro abundance, it's not easy to make well worn tropes truly sing, but DMX Krew sounds as rich with inspiration as ever, and there's a generous six portions of this goodness on offer on this fulsome 12".