Khemia レコード& CD

Review: Excuse the hyperbole, but we've yet to hear a mediocre record from rising star I Hate Models. Furthermore, "It Will Last Forever", the epic A-side to the French producer's latest outing on Khemia, could well be his strongest dancefloor workout yet. Raw, pulsating and mind altering from start to finish, it fixes razor-sharp, EBM-inspired riffs, psychedelic acid lines and mangled vocal samples to a thumping, full-throttle techno beat. His EBM influences take centre stage on intoxicating B-side opener "Walpurgis Night", where Zanias's drifting vocals rise above celestial chords and ragging riffs. To round the EP off, the brilliantly named DJ Varsovie Sex With Ghosts re-imagines that track is a deep and gently melodic techno shuffler.

Review: This typically forthright and mind-mangling release marks the fourth and final instalment in Khemia's Magnum Opus series. It delivers two unheard versions of tracks from aufnahme + wiedergarbe and Maniaque's growing back catalogue. First up on side A is SARIN's pulsating revision of Schwelfelgelb's "Fokus", which combines the throbbing drums and mind-altering bass of Front 242 or Nitzer Ebb style EBM with the kind of sharp, restless stabs more often found on basement or warehouse-friendly old house anthems. Meanwhile on the flip, vocalist HIV+ adds his drowsy, stylish voice to Blind Delon's dirt-encrusted, eyeliner-clad gothic synth-pop number "Fuzz". It's something of a chugger, all told, powered by an undulating, arpeggio style bassline and clandestine, foreboding synthesizer lines.