DJs: Most Charted - Techno - June 2011

Review: Sir Jeff returns with this sampler 12" featuring highlights from his recent album The Power, released on his own Axis Records imprint. Exploring a similar, albeit slightly denser, sonic terrain to his recent Something In The Sky releases, A Side tracks "Microbe" and "The Exchange" are imbued with tense loops and an almost overwhelming sense of intangible menace. Flip over for the stunning, hypnotic chiming melody of "Spiral Therepy" - backed by a beat so delicate and fragile you have to really listen to realise it's actually there. The beats disappear entirely on "The Diagnosis", leaving ghostly echoes and synth washes to tiptoe cautiously across the bleak sonic landscape. A supreme exploration of restraint from one of electronic music's most relentlessly forward-thinking characters.

Review: Long Island Electrical Systems come through with their third release - enlisting the clearly quite talented Steve Moore to provide two visions of techno futurism. You might know Moore as Lovelock, the Mindless Boogie artist who delivered a superlative Tubular Bells edit - or as Gianni Rossi, the Giallo revivalist who released an album's worth of slasher horror funk for Permanent Vacation in January. He's also part of Zombi. This, however, might be his best work to date, as "Zero Point Field" effortlessly shifts between dystopian and utopian sensations throughout the nine minutes. This is complemented by the sprawling washes of "Frigia", from which gentle chord flutters emerge to set the scene for the deftest of beats. The ease with which all elements lock to forge one gentle yet increasingly hypnotic pulse is quite brilliant!

Review: ** Repress Alert! Modern Love issue a much requested repress of Andy Stott's amazing Passing Me By and it's on clear emerald vinyl ** British dub-techno producer Andy Stott returns to the production fold with this excellent double pack entitled Passed Me By. Although strictly a double EP rather than an album, there's enough here to fill the void left since the last Stott long player, Merciless. Housed in artwork that perfectly encapsulates the mood of the music within, Stott opens with the disturbed paranoia of "Signature" and the brilliant "New Ground", which utilises a drowned-out vocal snippet that immediately brings to mind the work of Actress. The grumbling dub of "North To South" contrasts neatly with "Intermittent", in which rasping drum hits form the rhythmic pulse, allowing another ethereal vocal to float over the top. The second 12" takes on an even darker hue; with the raw drum hits of "Dark Details", terrifying drone of "Execution" and ghostly atmospherics of the title track rounding off this most stunning release.

Review: Autoreply Music marks the coming of the summer season with a very tidy little 10" from OCH. This man recently recorded for Baby Ford's PAL SL imprint, gaining support from a diverse range of DJing luminaries including ZIP, Sammy Dee and Efdemin. Now the mysterious producer steps up with a big room floor rocker that has been described as Ian Pooley's "Chord Memory" meets Christian Vogel. Thunderous drums, hypnotizing chords and a cheeky sample that the old house heads will be sure to recognise make this one for the peak time. Claro Intelecto's Warehouse Sessions on Modern Love is regarded by many as one of the most definitive collections of contemporary techno to hit the shelves in recent years. Fresh back from remixing Depeche Mode he takes time out of his busy schedule for remix duties. Taking his cues from the warehouse classics that accompanied him through years in Manchester's revered clubs like the Hacienda, Home and Paradise Factory, he serves up a powerful, stripped down reworking of the original track that is equally suited to sweaty dance floors. Fasten your seatbelts.