Review: Many Hands is a fresh label helmed by Jona Jefferies and Kava that here kicks out an eclectic EP with four tracks from various members of its musical family. Dan Aikido opens with '0800 TXT4 Herb,' a smooth fusion piece that builds a laid-back groove, blending fretless bass, jazzy keys and soulful vocals all reminiscent of Rare Silk's 'Storm.' Ernie Ruso's 'Stroke It' offers slow, sensual r&b infused with P-funky wah-wah effects while DJ Nomad's 'African Boy' brings upbeat pop house next to funky organ and a female reggae MC.Jefferies' closer 'A Change Will Come' samples Dr. Martin Luther King Jr with a rave-inspired beat and soulful piano. Cracking stuff.
Review: This EP is the first collaborative work by Andrea Belfi and Jules Reidy. Berlin-based and hailing from Italy and Australia respectively, the duo blends compositional precision with improvisational freedom. During a residency at Berlin's Callie's-a 19th-century factory turned arts space-they and engineer Marco Anulli crafted four expansive tracks in which Belfi's masterful drumming interlaces with Reidy's shimmering guitars and electronic textures. The opener layers just-intoned guitar figures over delicate brushwork and climaxes with a synthetic surge and tracks like 'Oben' and 'Alto' explore shifting grooves, propulsive rhythms and dynamic soundscapes.
Review: Blundetto unveils a captivating folk single here that features the ethereal voice of French singer Juliette Magnevasoa. 'La Playa' is an acoustic-rich cover of Marie Laforet's 1970 classic and this rendition has a new vocal whose unique timbre adds depth and all-new charm. Together, the artists create a delicate harmony of softness and melancholy and blend soothing tones that evoke timeless beauty. Already heralded as a classic gem, this subtly evolved new version of 'La Playa' offers a serene and heartfelt sound for intimate moments.
Review: On paper, this may seem an unlikely collaboration - Japanese ambient and deep acid stalwart meets eccentric Finnish lounge, jazz and exotica veteran - but it's a genuinely brilliant EP. 'Big City Takes' genuinely makes the best of both Calm and Jimi Tenor's talents, with the latter's eyes-closed vocals, evocative flutes and shuffling exotica rhythms fitting perfectly with the former's stirring strings and immersive ambient electronics. Tapes remixes, first delivering a jazzy hip-hop informed head-nodder before serving up some ambient dub/digi-dub fusion, before Calm delivers his version of a second Tenor collaboration, 'Time and Space' - an ambient jazz masterpiece. Vendetta Suite's warming, subtly tropical Balearic rework of that track is also brilliant. Tip!
David Dingess - "Hyper Love" (Toni Rossano edit) (4:17)
Jaegerossa - "The Buzz" (6:07)
Cruisic - "Inspector Norse" (Slowly remix) (4:47)
FSQ - "This Is Carribean Disco" (A Tom Moulton mix) (6:28)
Review: Midnight Riot help the listener carve out their own personal Balearic headspaces with their new compilation Balearic Headspace, likening the "experience" of Balearic not just to a sound, but an affect, one that cannot be experienced without specific records or specific times and places. Do we believe it to be true? We may or may not, but that doesn't distract from the whopping curation job here, with most tunes on offer consisting of both total newness and reworks/revisions by the Midnight Riot crew; this 12" is a four-track selection of a wider 19-track digital comp. Our highlight has to be the ultra-smeary Tom Moulton mix of 'This Is Caribbean Disco' by Fsq, which floats atop a serious floe of stretched-out axe bubble and echoing crosstick, as its lyrics deal in word-painted themes of being held underwater. As mindfully, cognitively Balearic as it gets!
Review: Burnt Friedman and Joao Pais Filipe's collaborative efforts began back in 2018. The former using synthesis and electronics to paint subtly but incredibly specific aural pictures, the latter focusing on the drum and rhythmic end of things. At times their music feels entirely designed for the dancefloors of underground electronic clubs, in other moments it's something very different indeed.
This latest EP lives up to those broad brushstrokes. '21-30' is a lush, almost tropical sounding workout that offers a complex percussive pattern, and combines these with gentle shades of melody, harmony, hook and distorted note. '22-105' brings elements of glitchiness and robotics into the mix. Meanwhile, '18-140' would work well as a brooding building tool (or section) of a 'proper techno' mix, with '23-130' bridging gaps between the lot.
Nuit De Fievre (Pellegrino Nottata Stellata remix) (5:08)
Review: Be Strong Be Free's 7" series is on fire this year and now comes back with a third instalment. It is 'Nuit De Fievre' and it comes from label owner Gratts, aka the "Belgian down under," who revisits disco's golden era by assembling a stellar studio team starring the Moody Mae band in the company of Reinhard Vanbergen on violin and Jaj from Paris on vocals. What they cook up in return is elegant boogie and disco that will chime well with fans of Dimitri From Paris. The B-side features Pellegrino's jazz-funk rendition, adding Mediterranean flair straight from Vesuvius. Both sides promise deliciously uplifting grooves for any disco enthusiast.
Jose Finagandara, Juan Diego Lllescas & Ground - "Something Sign" (5:39)
Akira Arasawa With KUN & FRANKY-CH - "Yunnan" (8:18)
Review: Especial Specials has joined forces with Osaka-based imprint Chillmountain Recordings to offer up another Enjoy Your Self EP. This one once again showcases the talents on its roster with label head Ground kicking off with a beatdown meets trance sound on "Utau Narukoyuri'. After that slow burner come tribal percussive sounds from 'Arauma' (Kobato Dub), sunny cumbia on 'Something Sign' and a meandering Balearic journey from Akira Arasawa With KUN & FRANKY-CH that is brought to life with new age flute sounds, bird calls, jungle drips and folkloric strings. A fantastic EP, then.
Review: Detroit's Deon Jamar dropped a fine album when he dropped Altars and it has been served up across several 12"s, with this being the single in the series. 'Divine Intention' is that single and it is a slow motion and cavernous downtempo sound with gentle synth waves washing over you as beautiful melodies soar up top. It also features dubs of the previous singles as well as the intro and outro from the album so is a useful tool that is sure to soothe any soul in a wide range of settings.
A Thousand White Kites Flying High Above The Sea (3:43)
Review: Leo James is back on his own Body Language label with a sixth tasteful take on breakbeat-driven sounds. He shows his range here with different grooves all exploring different moments. 'Better Days' is one that has you gazing off to the middle distance, lost in the rueful pads. 'Olive Grove' is a slowed-down and dubbed-out sound with lots of lovely reverb and 'Burst The Gates' is a deep digi-dub style cut with angelic vocals. 'A Thousand White Kites Flying High Above The Sea' is the ambient laced downtempo closer for late-night dreaming.
Review: Under the Jaz alter-ego, John Zahl has been serving up laidback, Balaearic-minded edits of musical obscurities since the mid 2000s. Initially, that was for Claremont 56 offshoot Sixty Five, but in the last decade he's also appeared on Passport To Paradise, Rotating Souls and, most recently, Pinchy & Friends. Here he returns to the latter label with four more rubs of atmospheric cuts from the dusty corners of his record collection. He begins with the wonderfully throbbing, solo-heavy dancefloor synth-scape of 'Cloud Worship', before successfully tinkering with a tactile, semi-organic proto-house gem on 'Pick a Toy'. Over on side B, 'Puzzle' is a tidy revision of a cosmic-minded, French language Balearic synth-pop gem, while 'Friday Night' is an eccentric, off-kilter slab of new wave disco oddness.
Review: This one oozes more cool than George Clooney sat poolside and sipping on Kool-Aid. It is the seventh offering in this fine series which features the most iconic reworked, retouched and edited tracks from the legendary soundscapes of Pikes Hotel in Ibiza. There is no better place to ask up the gorgeous vibrations of 'Mata' with its steamy trumpets and genre-breaking beats than under the Mediterranean sun. The flipside 'Xiprell' captures the essence of laid-back sophistication and the warmth of Ibiza with arching prog guitars and pensive chords draped over the most go-slow live drums.
Review: Deep house on a 7" is a rather rather thing but this 45rpm certainly is worth your while. It is the first we have heard from Jazztronik, all producer and keysman Ryota Nozaki, since his Universal Language album last year. He has been at this now for 24 years and brings all that know how to these two jams. 'Evoke' is a lively broken beat workout with squelchy bass and improvised jazz keys that are restless and energizing with rich leads. 'Beat Hopper' (The 3rd Session) appears on the flip with more innovative keys and party-pumping broken beats. A tasteful duo for sure.
Review: Having already caused a stir with their various solo releases, old friends Klein Zage (real name Sage Redman) and Joey G (Joe Gillick) have decided to join forces on an EP inspired by their time living together in South London. While the EP is musically varied, there's a sonic coherence to the three original tracks thanks to the presence of Redman's spoken word vocals throughout. We're particularly enjoying the deep, emotive beauty of 'A Little Dissonance', though punchy, shuffling and spacey opener 'Folks Not Guys' pushes it close. Over on the flip we're treated to a trio of remixes: Ariel Zetina's intense, trippy and high-tempo take on 'Folks Not Guys', Local Artist's warming and rolling, Rhodes-sporting 'Disco Dub' of the same track, and DJ Python's pleasingly weird, mind-mangling version of 'A Little Dissonance'.
Review: Those delighted by Tallin's Porridge Bullet great job of documenting the late '80s and early 90s period of Estonian music and eager to learn more of the Eastern European country's music heritage should delve into the discography of Frotee. The label's latest release throws the spotlight on Estonian soul singer Velly Joonas, specifically the covers of European songs she recorded during the 1980s. "Stopp, Seisku Aeg!" (or "Stop! Stall the Time!") is a cover by Joonas of "I See Red" from Frida, with the Estonian providing her own lyrics over backing from amateur group Vstretsa and seems quite faithful to the soft skanking 1982 soul number. Complementing this is a wonderful cover of "Feel like Makin Love" which Frotee suggest was laid down in one hour.
Review: If you have had your ear to the Balearic underground over the summer you might well have heard some high-profile selectors dropping cuts off this latest missive from US label Just What The World Needs. It is another sublime three-tracker that kicks off with the string-laced and upbeat disco delights of the A1. Second up is a much more slow and sensuous sound that sinks you in deep to a beach lounger as the sun fades into the sea and the sky turns flame red and orange. Things pick up again with the third and final cut - a percussive jumble of organic hits and drums overlaid with a heart-melting vocal sample and deft melodic details that drift by like wispy clouds.
Noriko Kose & Haruka Nakamura - "I Miss You" (3:31)
Joachim Kuhn - "Housewife's Song" (4:35)
Review: Insense Music Works finished off 2024 on a high by serving up this brilliant pair of wonky jazz sounds. Noriko Kose & Haruka Nakamura's 'I Miss You' pairs pensive piano playing with alluring vocal sounds and raw beats into something heady and beguiling that almost seems to shift space and time with its smeared designs. Joachim Kuhn's 'Housewife's Song' on the flip is a busier sound with mad jazz keys, cascading piano chords and a vibrant sense of energy that flourishes ever brighter as the track unfolds.
Review: Effortless fusions of broken beat and rabbit hole prog-acid on this latest from Speed Dial. After a slight hiatus, the imprint is back, and is here joined by a slew of underground talent, coming together as one for a combinative set of 'Rhythm Rituals'. Surprisingly for a set of rituals, the three A-siders proffer three wordless mudras (as opposed to incanted mantras), with Mtty's 'Ahhhhh!cid' laying down a two-stepping breaks dust-storm replete with bells, ufologic risers and ectoplasmic synth flatulences; and Pocket's 'Smoke Signals' imparting the ways of long-distance telegraphy by way of a deeper four-wheel drive, with indo-Australian chants sampled therein. B-side helmers DJ Relax and Local Support offer two contradistinct Balearic beats, the former track veering more chuggy and auto-suspensive, in contrast to the latter's emotive, e-organic builds and vox gates.
Review: Luv Shack's compilation style 'Disco Biscuits' series is the very definition of reliable, with each new EP delivering killer cuts aimed at the more cosmic end of nu-diusco dancefloors. Volume five in the series arrives with four more tried-and-tested workouts and little in the way of forgettable filler. Check first Rising Seed's 'Back For More', a driving slab of spacey dub disco/cosmic disco fusion in which intergalactic electronics and samples sitars ride a Prins Thomas-esque bassline and beats, before admiring the chugging and squelchy nu-disco shuffle of 'Suffering of K.P' by B.Visible. Over on the flip, Peletronic's 'Drifting' is a glassy-eyed slab of immersive deep house/nu-disco fusion, while Jon Gravy's 'When U Leave' is a stomping slab of peak-time house headiness rich in bustling beats, memorable melodies and hands-aloft riffs.
Jay Sound - "Reflections Of Love" (feat Josefine) (6:33)
Review: Fusion Sequence is a new offshoot from the Mellophonia label that kicks off with a heavyweight release both literally - its 180g vinyl - and metaphorically. It features seven different artists offering up one track each on what is a widescreen exploration of fresh deep house. They are A Vision of Panorama, Eternal Love, Pool Boy, Wolfey, Laseech, Larry Quest and Jay Sound and between them everything from cuddly depths to more moody late-night deepness is covered on an EP that brings plenty of new perspectives. A fine inaugural 12", then.
Review: After an initial collaborative album released in 2019, French instrumentalist-producers JB Dunckel and Jonathan Fitoussi have reunited for a twin rumination on memory, and its necessary dialogue with the present moment. Namechecking such musical memories as the motorik beats and kosmische builds of the 70s, all the way through to Detroit house's signature 4x4 march, the pair offer a starkly minimal, Parisian, post-punky dance record here, mixed in with layered, industrial atmospherics. Active recalls of marimba minimal ('Marimbaloum') and Moogish doom liturgy ('Atlantica') also lay among the memory traces here, just waiting to be rediscovered by both listener and interpreter.
Review: Now here's a rarity for you. Not even many of the most committed megafans know that Brian Eno, Holger Czukay and J.Peter Schwalm, accompanied by Raoul Walton and Jern Atai, performed a secret live music show, outside the esteemed Kunst-und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, the Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany, situated in the city of Bonn, in August 1998. Forming a part of the opening party of Eno's Future Light-Lounge Proposal multimedia installation, this furtively-recorded album hears an exclusive slice of incidental "high-altitude food music", of course made during Brian Eno's airborne ambient era. Now reissued via Gronland, this five-piece cut of sophisti-ambi-krauttronica makes for a welcome surprise.
Review: Five years after its first release, Emotional Response is serving up this welcome reissue of Alexis Georgopoulos and Jefre Cantu-Ledesma's classic Fragments of A Season. They came together after five years of superb releases and reached new highs here even though they aren't necessarily household names. It saw them turn in some wonderfully expressive compositions played out across all manner of organic instrumentation. The richness of the production and the highly developed ideas embedded within this gorgeous LP should resonate for a long time to come, not least because the pieces are all so easy on the ears.
Review: Originally released in 1998, Mixmaster Morris & Jonah Sharp's Quiet Logic surprisingly flew under the radar when it came out.- perhaps because of the huge amount of electronic music being released at the time. The pair have some of the most important albums and tracks in their respected genres and are arguably two of the most important figures in the electronic music chill out scene from the 90s, and when you add the input of Haruomi Hosono from Yellow Magic Orchestra on two tracks, it becomes an even more essential listen. Chill out heads unite!
Review: In 2020, Nicolas Jaar composed Piedras for a concert at the Museum of Memory & Human Rights in Santiago, Chile, which honoured the many victims of Pinochet's dictatorship. The project evolved into Archivos de Radio Piedras, a radio play shared via Telegram between 2022 and 2023. In 2024, it became a 24-channel installation at MUAC in Mexico City. The music, partly attributed to the fictional Salinas Hasbun, explores themes of memory and identity. The play unfolds in a future with an internet blackout, where characters use DIY radio to mourn Hasbun's disappearance, with the unstable radio frequencies symbolising shifting truths. Now served up on vinyl, the album is a blend of ambient, found sounds, experimental rhythms and eerie synth design.
Review: Bristol has a lot to answer for when it comes to atmospheric downtempo stuff. The birthplace of trip hop is still commonly associated with the genre decades after its inception, but this shouldn't make anyone think for a second the city has sat idly by gorging on the fatted calfs of Massive Attack, Portishead and the like without pushing further experimentations in the art of sombre, slow, emotional electronica. Jabu are a great case in point, and if the world were different, fairer, and less overwhelmed with band names you can bet your bottom dollar this South West England trio would be household treasures by now. Having released a number of genuinely mesmerising albums packed with meditations on loss, landing on exalted labels such as Blackest Ever Black, here they present a generous helping of unreleased and previously unheard bits and pieces that led to the back catalogue we now have. Tellingly, everything here was always worthy of release, so it's great this has finally happened.
Review: Sydney-to-Vancouver dance debonair Jack J presents Blue Desert, his second album for Mood Hut. Friends of the label will know J's sound - warming house musical pumps come deep future Balearics - and yet on Blue Desert, we hear the sound tempered by a newfound indie vocal performance by J himself, and that's not to mention its expansive tracklist-trajectory, which, when followed in full, details a head-hung but still hopeful tale of rue and recompense. Of the highlights, opener 'Wrong Again' opts for the true-blue choice of a DX7 organ blearily blent with an open chorded jangle guitar and a sequencer-gated trance line, as J muses on taking a past life too seriously; 'Down The Line' brings impressive Oort clouds of reverse reverb and desert new wave; and 'My Other Mind' even echoes Squeeze, as J continues to lyricise over misunderstandings and perspectival shifts on life. Sight of the dance is not lost, however; 'Pink Shoes (part III)' ends things on a gushing iso-stab, rendering the beach disco in clear-as-day clarity, just over the dunes, at the foreshore's end.
Review: From his beginnings as the bassist in John Lydon's post-Pistols band PiL, to collaborations with The Orb and Sinead O'Connor, Wobble is a musician deeply steeped in dub and experimental soundscapes. Crafted in a bedroom studio - as the name would suggest - it blends dub fusion, ethereal wave and global beat into a mystical and introspective journey. Tracks like 'City' show a spectral dub-pop aesthetic, while 'Fading' leans into kosmische abstraction with an ethnic flair. 'Long Long Way' brings an atmospheric mood, contrasting with the minimal, haunting dub of 'Sense Of History' and the organ-driven dirge of 'Hill In Korea'. The industrial textures of 'Journey To Death' add a stark, musique-concrete edge, while the Middle Eastern influences of 'Invaders Of The Heart' create a hypnotic stroll through uncharted sonic terrain. The album crescendos with the hallucinogenic 'Desert Song'. A daring, sombre work that defies easy classification - but demands repeated listening.
Review: London-born, Lisbon-based Leifur James returns with Magic Seeds, his third album and a testament to the transformative power of new surroundings. Leaving behind his established presence in the UK electronic music scene, James sought the luminous inspiration of Lisbon, a move reflected in the album's themes of growth and renewal. Magic Seeds follows two distinct predecessors: his debut, A Louder Silence, a blend of IDM and avant-garde influences, and its remix EP featuring artists like Bruce and FaltyDL; and the more experimental Angel in Disguise, lauded by the dance music press. James also garnered attention with 'Wurlitzer', a striking blend of neo-classical and sub-bass. Magic Seeds is his most personal and collaborative work to date, born from improvisational sessions with drummer Leo Taylor, violinist Raven Bush and producer Oli Bayston. These sessions, inspired by Talk Talk's Spirit of Eden, were later meticulously shaped in Lisbon, resulting in an album that blends organic instrumentation and electronic textures, echoing influences like Massive Attack and Madlib. From the spectral opener 'Smoke in the Air' to the life-affirming 'Alive' and the evocative 'Euphoria', Magic Seeds explores themes of rebirth, societal re-evaluation, and environmental awareness. With nods to 90s electronica and UK bass, the album ably showcases James' dynamic range, his ability to conjure both euphoric highs and introspective depths.
Dafodil (feat Kelsey Lu, John Glacier, Panda Bear) (3:31)
Still Summer (3:17)
Life (feat Robyn) (3:29)
The Feeling I Get From You (3:40)
Breather (6:15)
All You Children (feat The Avalanches) (4:12)
Every Single Weekend (interlude) (3:17)
Falling Together (feat Oona Doherty) (3:29)
FU (feat Erykah Badu) (3:39)
It's So Good (4:35)
Do Something (2:21)
Let's Do It Again (7:22)
Kill Dem (3:43)
Review: Jamie xx's long-awaited album, In Waves, marks the next chapter in the career of one of the most in-demand producers of his generation. With this release, Jamie replicates the emotional crescendos and thrilling volatility of a mystical night out, where memories blur but feelings remain crystal clear. In Waves is a melancholic paradise, weaving together bliss, heartbreak, and introspection. It tells the story of a journey merging into the divine pulse of shadows, light, and dance floor rhythmsia strobe light epiphany about humanity's illimitable possibilities and spiritual capacities. Nine years after his debut solo masterpiece, In Colour, Jamie xx has not only surpassed its heights but has also made all supernatural adjectives seem understated. This version of the new album is available on black & white vinyl triple album and black & white vinyl 12", offering a tangible experience to match its ethereal soundscape. In Waves is a profound, immersive journey that solidifies Jamie xx's status as a visionary producer.
Waited All Night (feat Romy, Oliver Sim & The Xx) (2:34)
Baddy On The Floor (feat Honey Dijon) (3:35)
Dafodil (feat Kelsey Lu, John Glacier & Panda Bear) (3:31)
Still Summer (3:17)
Jamie Xx & Robyn - "Life" (3:29)
The Feeling I Get From You (3:40)
Breather (6:15)
All You Children (feat The Avalanches) (4:12)
Every Single Weekend (interlude) (3:17)
Falling Together (feat Oona Doherty) (3:29)
Review: Jamie xx's long-awaited new album, In Waves, marks the next chapter in the career of one of the most sought-after producers of his generation. With In Waves, Jamie captures the emotional crescendos and thrilling volatility of a mystical night out. As you return home in the cigarette ash dawn, the specifics of the last eight hours blur, but the feelings remain a crystalline memory. In Waves is a melancholy paradise of bliss, heartbreak, and introspection. It tells the story of a journey where you merge into the divine pulse of shadows, light, and dance floor rhythms. It's a strobe light epiphany about the limitless possibilities and spiritual capacities of humanity. Nine years after his debut solo masterpiece, In Colour, the London producer has not only surpassed the heights of its predecessor but has also rendered all supernatural adjectives and analogies understated. Jamie xx's reputation for creating deeply evocative and transformative music is all found here, setting a new standard for electronic production.
Waited All Night (feat Romy, Oliver Sim & The Xx) (2:34)
Baddy On The Floor (feat Honey Dijon) (3:35)
Dafodil (feat Kelsey Lu, John Glacier & Panda Bear) (3:31)
Still Summer (3:17)
Jamie Xx & Robyn - "Life" (3:29)
The Feeling I Get From You (3:40)
Breather (6:15)
All You Children (feat The Avalanches) (4:12)
Every Single Weekend (interlude) (3:17)
Falling Together (feat Oona Doherty) (3:29)
Review: In Waves is Jamie xx's second full-length solo album, and the patented thematic follow-up to 2015's In Colour. The former album marked the height of a certain formative summer in dance music history, in which the UK at large opened its eyes to the potent admixture of its various musical heritages and seemed to meld them into one (perhaps this was best represented by Jamie's membership of a chart-topping indie band, and nonetheless simultaneous indulgence of solo beatcraft and DJing, which saw to a technicolour crock of collaborations we never thought possible, such as with Gil Scott-Heron and Young Thug). In Waves, however, posits the question of where we might've gone since. Channelling as ever Jamie's essential "soft-rounded" drums and clean, yet sample-heavy embellishments sifted from various classic soul and funk records, In Waves nonetheless sacrifices the sentimental ballad-dirges heard on In Colour for a more club-bound portrayal of a comparatively disinhibited night out. Livelier than In Colour, we're transported right on back to a certain kind of dancefloor, one that we'd felt remiss of for almost a good half of the decade in between the two albums.
Jean-Michel Jarre X Martin Gore - "Brutalism" (take 2)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Brian Eno - "Epica Extension"
Jean-Michel Jarre X Deathpact - "Brutalism" (reprise)
Jean-Michel Jarre X French79 - "Epica" (take 2)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Adiescar Chase - "Synthy Sisters" (take 2)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Armin Van Buuren - "Epica Maxima"
Jean-Michel Jarre X Nina Kraviz - "Sex In The Machine" (take 2)
Jean-Michel Jarre X NSDOS - "Zeitgeist" (take 2)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Irene Dresel - "Zeitgeist Botanica"
Review: Second time around for Jean-Michel Jarre's 2022 album Oxymore, a loving tribute to French composer and 'music concrete' pioneer Pierre Henry. As the title suggests, this version features new remixes of album tracks (all of which feature sounds originally created by Henry) by a disparate group of musical talents. That makes for an interesting mix of interpretations, with armin Van Buuren's sizable trance translation of 'Epica' rubbing shoulders with a trippy, off-kilter electro take on 'Sex In The Machine' by Nina Kraviz, a moody Martin Gore interpretation of 'Brutalism', Irene Dresel's raw techno revision of 'Zeitgeist Botanica', and ambient pioneer Brian Eno putting his spin on 'Epica'.
Jean-Michel Jarre X Armin Van Buuren - "Epica Maxima" (5:16)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Nina Kraviz - "Sex In The Machine" (take 2) (5:04)
Jean-Michel Jarre X NSDOS - "Zeitgeist" (take 2) (5:08)
Jean-Michel Jarre X Irene Dresel - "Zeitgeist Botanica" (5:45)
Review: He might be in the autumn of his career but Jean Michel Jarre remains an innovator in the field of electronic music. His last album in 2022, Oxymore, was another pioneering exploration of rhythm and sound that has now been reworked alongside a series of collaborators all picked by the man himself. The nine-track selection brings wholly new perspectives to the originals which he calls "a vibrant collection of musical dialogues." An immediate standout for us is the track with Nina Kraviz which is crunchy, distorted minimal techno, while 'Epica Extension' with Brian Eno is laced up with otherworldly melodies. A great work from a mix of great artists.
David Sylvian & Hildur Gunadttir - "I Measure Every Grief I Meet"
Philip Jeck & Claire M Singer - "Sketch Two"
Jah Wobble & Deep Space - "Jeck Drums 2 Basses"
Drums Off Chaos - "Keep In Touch"
Gavin Bryars & Philip Jeck - "8 Piste"
Chandra Shukla - "The Ark Has Closed"
Jana Winderen & Philip Jeck - "Pilots"
Review: The late ambient turntablist Philip Jeck's life is triumphantly celebrated on this latest compilation from UK A/V label Touch. Rpm cycles through 16 unheard snapshots laid down over the course of Jeck's career, connecting the dots of his life through the works of both kindred spirits and Jeck originals. Whether it be a storied live performance with Faith Coloccia or the in memoriam live night recorded at Iklectik by fellow avant-gardist Chris Watson, this compilation refuses to think confinedly about whose work should be included; Jeck's touch left a lasting impression not just on his own music, but of those of his contemporaries and friends. Much of the new material on this record was made by Jeck while he was in a hospital bed, laptop used as the final means to edit and sequence these friend-sourced gems.
Put Love Into Your Heart (feat Adam Evald & Jimi Tenor)
The Sound Of Love (feat Hard Ton)
Love Myself But I Can't Make It Love
Footsteps (feat Alina Royz)
In The Countryside (feat Lena Tronina)
I Can Make My Happiest Life (feat Celebrine & Mutafrukt)
Vacation Song
Reka (feat Moral Kiosk)
Blue Plastic Bag In The Sea Of Green (feat Mutafrukt)
Wasted (feat Mutafrukt)
Before Music Dies (feat Hard Ton & Mutafrukt)
Absent Ascent (feat Lovvlovver)
Sleeping With TV On
Over The Rainbow (feat Celebrine)
Shorespotting (feat Adam Evald)
Lovers (feat Kito Jempere Band - End Credits)
Review: Saint Petersberg-based Kito Jempere has a strong reputation among dance music fans and critics for his ability to deliver incredible house music at an exceptional work rate. But he's also incredible at producing less 4x4, dance floor oriented stuff. Like Part Time Chaos Part Time Calmness, the latest addition to his more experimental-downtempo-cinematic oeuvre. Describing this collection as the score to the "movie I've never made but have the soundtrack for", PTCPTC is a beautiful trip into the unknown, bringing together emotional folk, flamenco-jazz, 1980s Balearic and synth wave seemingly inspired by life in coastal locales. It's ambient, it's new age, it's electronic and yet somehow live and organic and none of the above. Ultimately, it's dense with bold ideas and deceptively complex business you'll find it hard to escape from.
Review: Building on the success of his previous two full-lengths, Oscar Jerome's third solo album suggests he has not yet stopped growing as a songwriter, guitarist and producer. Following his time with Kokoroko and his acclaimed 2022 album The Spoon, this latest work delves into personal, reflective themes and was produced entirely by the man himself. It takes in folk influences from John Martyn and Joni Mitchell with the funk of Prince and early Carlos Santana as well as contemporary broken beat and jazz flair. The Fork explores self-reckoning through intimate narratives with each track offering emotionally rich storytelling and nuanced guitar work all making this his most personal and ambitious album yet.
Review: Glasgow grime producer Konchis engages his Jetsam alter ego for a wavier sonic serenade than we're used to from him. Tapping into his dreamier, more emotional side for an album length narrative, the Scottish scientist switches from tripped out swooning harmonies wrapped casually over Dilla-ish beats ("End Of Stars") to woozy cries over fuzzy synth riffs ("Cathedrals") to soul-jarring deep sea strangeness ("Mermaids"). Otherworldly, cosmic and mischievously off-kilter, Konchis has found the perfect muse in his alter ego right here. One of a kind.
Review: Ilian Tape have tapped up Jichael Mackson here for a double album of expressive and forward thinking electronic sounds. The atmosphere generally futuristic and intriguing, with tracks like 'Shangri La' riding on gentle breakbeats amongst air pads, 'Banana Jazz (Quartett)' is a high speed and live sounding jazz-breakbeat workout, 'A Jichalicious Something' is dubby and IDM inflected lushness and 'Good Morning Sunshine' is an interplanetary trip with distant cosmic pads and organic piano chords soothing mind, body and soul.
Review: Jim Baron is a well-known DJ, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who co-founded Crazy P and who assumed new alias Jim for solo work back in 2021. His debut album Love Makes Magic is a superb mix of lush harmonic vocals, with funky back beats and a mix of organic brass and electronic synth sounds. It is music based around the work of the guitar but with plenty of sunny but eyed soul and subtle beach vibes that make it a gorgeous listen, especially as the days get longer and the sun that bit warmer.
Where The Leaves Are Falling (Brown Fang remix) (5:30)
Phoenix (Crooked Goth) (10:51)
Across The Street (Generalisation dub) (7:08)
Ballad Of San Marino (Mang Dynasty remix) (7:34)
Oxygen (Flying Mojito Bros Refrito) (7:18)
Still River Flow (Begin remix) (5:49)
Phoenix (X-Press 2 On Fire remix) (10:33)
The Ballad Of San Marino (Chris Coco extended dub version) (11:01)
Review: Jim (James Baron) is a UK producer making his brand of Balearic, folk and rock music. Generally, pushing the boundaries of Balearic, this double pack compilation houses remixes of tracks from his most debut album 'Love Makes Magic'. The lineup of producers lending their talents to this double pack is quite impressive. Uk house music legends X-press and Chris Coco just to mention two. This release encompasses a wide array of styles including downtempo, dub as well as house music all keeping the folk and Balearic soul of the originals. A true remix packet that brings these originals to different heights.
Review: Earthly Measures and Multi Culti have teamed up to create the collaborative label Cult Measures. Their debut release is an 8-track album that blends deep, cosmic, and experimental sounds with Afro percussion and jazz influences into something truly fresh. This versatile album is designed for both home listening and peak moments on the dance floor, not least the opener 'Submarino' which is a jostling fusion of Latin sounds and vibrant percussive energy. 'Belafon Balafon' brings summery steel drums and 'PushMePullYou' is a dense rhythmic workout. With its rich textures and unique fusion of styles, this project sets a strong foundation for the new label, highlighting a commitment to innovative, boundary-pushing music.
Review: JJ Ulius, solo exclave of the bands Monokultur and Skiftande Enheter, shares his third solo LP for Mammas Mysteriska Jukebox and DFA Records. Volume III continues his brand of quirky, Mellotronic, flauneuristic indie. With Ulius described as a "world-building artist" by DFA, and his album as a "big step forward" compared to the earlier two volumes in this LPs series, this balming collection of tunes is a paean to personal maturation, and to feelings of restlessness mellowed by slowmo days. With each song written over beats played in by Tor Sjoden of the wild-eyed Stockholm group Viagra Boys, these are beats that were themselves inspired by tracks by Patrick Cowley, CAN, Count Ossie, Black Devil Disco Club and others, in all of whom Julius would find inspiration.
Review: Swedish-British singer-songwriter Jay-Jay Johanson is now well known for his uniquely melancholic vocals and this new album Labyrinth is another fine example of that. The title track is airy and delicate, with his tender, spoke-sung vocals drifting over a gentle piano. 'The Maze' comes as a Tomas Nordmark Labyrinth Rework with swirling pads making for a churchy vibe as the voice of Johanson hangs poignantly in the air above. Elsewhere 'Paris 2' is a little fuller, with downtempo percussion and busier piano chords and 'The Girl with the Moog in Her Hair' has great retro synths for a subtle cosmic outing.
Blow Monkeys - "Save Me" (Neville Watson dub) (8:04)
Cisco Cisco - "If You Want Me" (Jay Shepheard remix) (7:11)
Bongo Entp - "Drommen" (SIRS remix) (5:48)
Darlyn Vlys - "Wuzu" (Tyu Tribe remix) (7:18)
Kimo - "Whirl" (6:50)
Discoscuro - "Discoscuro" (6:10)
Popular Tyre - "Feel Like A Lazer Beam" (7:35)
Class B Band - "Repli-can" (edit) (6:04)
Bal5000 - "Bleu Infini" (7:52)
Phil Kieran - "Find Love" (Andrew Weatherall remix) (7:43)
Das Komplex - "89" (8:05)
Brioski - "Calling 626" (edit) (5:20)
Review: Sean Johnston's A Love From Outer Space is a masterclass in mood and restraint. Over two LPs, it captures the ethos of Johnston's club night, favouring steady, low-slung rhythms and cosmic textures over high-energy peaks. The tracks are sequenced with care, creating a meditative flow that rewards deep listening. This is dance music for introspection, where each layer reveals itself slowly, embodying a philosophy that values depth and subtlety.
Review: Ephemera is the debut album from Fergus Jones, formerly known as Perko, an Edinburgh-born, Copenhagen-based producer, DJ and founder of the FELT label. The nine-track album was created through collaborative efforts with musicians like Huerco S, James K and Koreless and explores Jones' personal and sonic journey while blending instinctive production with emotional depth. Tracks like 'Heima,' co-produced with Huerco S and James K, and 'Tight Knit' featuring Birthmark and ELDON, are perfect examples of the album's blend of raw emotion, intricate sound design and evocative vocals, all of which head into bold new territory stylistically.
Review: Grace Jones' fifth studio album, released on 11 May 1981, this album highlighted a legendary reinvention for the artist, moving her nearer towards the global fame that she's enjoyed for subsequent decades since. A sonic melting pot that blurred the lines between genres while retaining an air of effortless cool, it fuses of reggae's rolling basslines, the tight precision of new wave, the slick production of synth-pop and the ghost of disco's past. What made Nightclubbing particularly special was the way Jones fully embodied the musicinot merely performing songs but inhabiting them with an almost cinematic presence. Her deadpan delivery on 'Walking in the Rain' oozes detached swagger, while on 'Use Me', she turns Bill Withers' plea into an anthem of raw, unfiltered sensuality. The icy menace of 'Demolition Man' feels tailor-made for her, making The Police's later rendition seem comparatively tame. The reimagining of Piazzolla's 'Libertango' as 'I've Seen That Face Before' further demonstrated her ability to transform existing material into something wholly unique, haunting and hypnotic in equal measure. Sly & Robbie's rhythm section, along with Wally Badarou's textural synths, gave Nightclubbing an unmistakable grooveione that would be endlessly referenced by artists in the coming decades. From Massive Attack's trip-hop atmospherics to the sleek funk of LCD Soundsystem, the album's DNA is all over contemporary music.
Review: Virginia's Stimulator Jones channels all things jungle on Valley Center, his debut album on Craigie Knowes. Sam Lunsford is multi-talented genre-spanning artist; from songwriting to singing, programming drum machines to drumming, performing live to DJing, Valley Center flaunts it all; Lunsford's seamless genre-hopping skills with the outcome an LP packed with tracks that wouldn't sound out of place on LTJ Bukem's Logical Progression series or in the Metalheadz archives. From the skittery, airy and scratchy off of 'Submersible' to the more-than-deep abyssal movements of 'Kinda Deep' and the penultimate jump-up swang of 'Valley Winds', Valley Center is a full-length swim through a preternatural valley, whose meandering river flows with not only brackish waters, but also impossible liquids.
Jpye & Renato - "Va La-Bas" (feat Michael T) (5:43)
Jpye & Renato - "Tutto OK" (4:17)
Jpye & Leonidas - "Lazyjack" (5:48)
Jpye & Renato - "Take Off" (4:48)
Jpye & Da Roc - "Spinnaker" (4:44)
Jpye & Iamrobd - "Fingers Crossed" (4:52)
Jpye - "Freedom Ain't Free" (instrumental) (3:55)
Jpye & Da Roc - "Spinnaker" (instrumental) (4:53)
Review: Jean-Paul Altier's debut album as Jpye, 2021's Samba With You, was something of a slept-on gem - a joyously sunny and sonically colourful trip into Balearic pop territory that utilised the vocal and musical talents of a pool of trusted collaborators. The French producer and sometime Twonk member takes a similar approach on this follow up, with even stronger results. Laidback, summery and sunset-ready, Altier's entertaining and accessible tracks variously draw influence from jazz-funk, deep nu-disco, dub disco, downtempo and Latin soul, while also existing in their own sonic space. Highlights include the sumptuous opener 'Freedom Ain't Free', the delightfully sleazy 'Shiver' (a cover of an Italian disco obscurity), the Balearic dub shuffle of 'Tutto OK' and the yearning, emotion-packed brilliance of sunrise soundscape 'Fingers Crossed'.
Review: London-based DJ and producer Steven Julien's music blends contrasts and has done so across more than a decade on labels like Eglo and his own Apron Records. In that time he has explored various styles, from house and techno to soul and boogie, often drawing on his own life experiences for inspiration. His eclecticism extends to his contribution to !K7's wonderful DJ-Kicks series in a mix that features artists like Ryuichi Sakamoto and Todd Edwards along with Julien's own tracks. The mix takes you on a proper ride from a peaceful afternoon to a euphoric night on the dancefloor, with plenty of big moments and killer jams along the way.
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