MARK HAND レコード& CD

Review: Innate is a new Bristol label born from the blog of the same name. This first release features a spread of talent both established and emergent, all bound together by a love of illustrious machine soul. Gilbert leads in with the sumptuous tones of "Birds Of Paradise" before Mark Hand takes control with the uptempo cascade of "Lessons." The vintage techno vibes continue apace on the B side as Lerosa lays out one of his gorgeous square wave bass lines amidst some snagging drums and quivering synth flourishes, and then label boss Owain K finishes the picture with the laid back musings of "Pixeled Scenery."

Review: Fast-rising house producer Mark Hand makes his bow on Serbian stable Soul Print Recordings. Surprisingly, it's the Belgrade label's first release of 2018. It's rather good, too, with opener "Midnight" - an impeccable fusion of yearning Motor City electronics, Larry Heard smoothness and impeccably soulful vocals by guest singer Greg Blackman - providing the undoubted highlight. There's plenty to tickle the fancy elsewhere across the EP, too, from the ultra-deep house/jazz-house fusion of the Sio-fronted "Under The Winter", to the rubbery synth-bass, jazzy electric piano solos and delay-laden horn solos of Alex Hand hook-up "Mountains". Stellar stuff all told.

Review: The latest joint on Uzuri comes from Mark Hand, a secret weapon of the UK house underground who has been active for a long time and now seems to be finally getting the props he deserves. His mood on "All Caught Up" reflects the infectious positivity of his live sets at Freerotation, all mellifluous Rhodes keys and classic deep house signifiers that seep into your soul. "Cobwebs" is just as smooth, although it takes on a more deep-diving tone laden with transcendental chord progressions and a dash of Motor City melancholy. That makes Patrice Scott the perfect choice to remix the track, and he takes a measured approach to simmering the component parts down for a version garnished with gorgeous piano and synth tones.

Review: "Way back in the 1990s, Mark Hand, Neil Iceton & Jez Nicholl channelled their love of sci-fi-fired Motor City techno into a string of inspired releases under the alias Cubic Space Collective.

After reuniting for a memorable machine jam at Freerotation festival in 2016, Hand & Iceton headed back into the studio for a one-off session and recorded 'Holiday in Beta Centauri', a musical love letter to Mad Mike and the rest of Detroit's most militant futurist techno crew.

Sending us surging skywards via 'Binary System', where lilting lead lines, fizzing electronics and enveloping chords dance atop a snappy, cymbal-heavy drum machine rhythm, before 'Arps in Hyperspace' sees them step things up a notch via layered waves of synths, sparkling melodies and a driving, hyper-speed groove.

The North-East-based twosome then attempt to warm us to the core in the shape of 'Rigil': restless organ stabs, undulating Michigan bass, alien electronics, psychedelic acid lines and Galaxy 2 Galaxy style chords catching the ear. Bringing us gently back down to earth, they complete their deep space mission with 'Beyond The Nebula (Holiday in Beta Centauri)', a bustling electro number full of stabbing analogue bass, star-burst electronics, meditative ambient chords that shimmer full of night-sky melodies.

A fine return to action for this Teesside UR-loving techno twosome... 3,167 miles away in Detroit, their achievement will be noted."

Review: Fatdog Records returns after a break, offering contributions from 3 artists new to the label - The Rutan, Tom Mc Connell and Mark Hand. FDR003 offers a development from the deep house template on the last EP, this time taking us further into deeper Detroit territories. Mark Hand offers us Drexciyan techno in the form of 'Cold Feet'. The Rutan's 'Fable' sits somewhere between Vakula and some of Henrik Schwarz's earlier dub-house experiments, while Fat Dog takes us to the murky back alleys of his mind with 'Jaffa Cakes'. Finally Tom Mc.Connell's 'Juniper' takes us into wonkier groove Rhodes stylings which rounds off the EP very nicely indeed. Support by John Heckle, Afrikan Sciences, Lay-Far, Enrico (Neroli), Sonars Ghost (2000 Black), Burnski, Wolf Music

Review: Tominori Hosoya's Wishes & Memories EP series is based on the concept that the label only releases "special musics that are made for precious persons, memories, things by each artists.' The revered composer himself appears with 'Cycling,' which is a superb house tune wash with star-gazing melody and expansive pad work. UK vet Mark Hand explores similarly celestial highs on his majestic 'Questions I Never Asked' while Trinidadian Deep, in his usual fashion, serves up a a meditation on deep drums, organic percussion and spiritual synths with his 'Personal DUB Expression.' Shaka serves up a more funky and playful vibe on his 'There We Go.'