Disco / Nu-Disco

Review: In some ways, the work of Figi (AKA Dutch producer Vigi Auke Weemhoff) is reflective of the Netherlands' vibrant, colourful and mixed-up dance scene - one where synthesisers are frequently foregrounded and the rhythms of house, techno, Italo-disco and boogie are mixed and matched in a variety of retro-futurist ways. Certainly, that kaleidoscopic blend is at the heart of the artist's latest album, Fig 1. Rooted in vaporwave, Hi-NRG and Italo-style synth sounds, it's a confident and sonically sparkling set that puts melodic motifs and catchy riffs at the heart of the action. For proof, check standouts 'Belka-Strelka' (an acid-flecked, drum machine-driven chunk of 80s elctro-disco), 'Fig 1', the Klakson-style electro hustle of 'ADSL' and the ultra-deep, dreamy, Endorphins-releasing wonder that is 'Ornex'.

Review: Berlin-based Dina Summer - a synth-loving trio fronted by the suitably sassy and no-holds barred singer Dina P - impressed with their Italo-disco and turn-of-the-millennium electroclash inspired debut album, Rimini. Three years in, they return with an arguably even stronger set - the notably darker, more stylish and more new wave-influenced Girl's Gang. Many of their trademark elements remain to the fore - Dina P's dead-eyed spoken word vocals, the use of vintage drum machine rhythms and sequenced basslines - but this time round come accompanied by black mascara-clad nods to post-punk, New Romantic, goth-rock and Depeche Mode style synth-pop sounds. As previously stated, it is genuinely stylish and impeccably observed stylistically, but what makes it stand out is the substance behind the sheen.

Review: Berlin-based synthwave and dark disco band Dina Summer return with a sanguine new seven-track record, continuing their reputation for making 80s nostalgist music fans ever more ravenous for their distinct take on EBM and its adjacent styles. Following 2022's acclaimed Rimini LP, this freak zone of a record brings gravely detuned, yet DJ-ready instrumental backings and stiffly but passionately delivered vocal recitations to a modern production palate. This approach reaches its ultimate conclusion on the natural midpoint 'Alien', a track perhaps best describable as a hi-NRG number made in a cryoponic chamber and lent an extraterrestrial theme.

Review: On their latest EP for Incoherent Data, producer Valerio Della Notte prove themselves to be not only a slick producer but also a rather amazing vocodist. Setting about exploring the boundary between human emotions and digital tech, 'Silicon Love' sets the stage for a four-track, new beatific bust-up of galactic proportions; unfortunately we can't make out the lyrics, but that more or less doesn't matter, due to the existence of auditory pareidolia; we hear what we want to hear. A2, B1 and B2 are equally as weighty and synthetic glitter-caked, bewitching the ears with power chords and mega-triads of the most excessive and luxuriant variety. Only 'ZXC' dubifies things somewhat, steering more quizzical through glassier square leads, like a cutting room floor fragment from a mid-career New Order studio session.

Review: Synthwave, or "outrun" as it is sometimes popularly known, is one of the defining micro-aesthetics of the 21st Century. Cornered then abrogated by filmmakers like Michael Mann and Nicolas Winding Refn, the style was expanded upon in the music imaginary sometime in the early 2010s (though seeds were sown much earlier). This Wagram compilation charts the earliest stirrings in the sound, from the circuit-breaking Moog experiments of Giorgio Moroder through to the nightridden vrooms of Kavinsky, and the fuzz-static analog snows set to sample-funked beats of VHS Dreams.