Review: Welcome to the Slippery Yard, a new label out of Spain which is sure to turn heads with this fine first release - a psychedelic blend of techno from various artists. A Morgan's 'Air' is urgent and cosmic a la Jeff Mills, Dc11's 'It's All An Act' layers up deft synth details with sleek linear rhythms and Judy's 'Bide Luzea' is a hurried, pulsing, late-night mental techno trip. A further deep and heady trio of tunes features on the B-side with Bassywax's sub-aquatic sound world on 'Amona Left Us Overnight' taking the headlines for us.
Review: B 2DEP'T were a curio of the early wave of techno in Japan in the 90s, releasing a handful of cassettes and mini-albums but remaining a cult concern rather than breaking through to major success. For those in the know, their productions were way ahead of their time, and Junki Inoue seems absolutely hip to this as he signs them up for a release on his archival label Saisei. If you enjoy the boundaryless exploration of the early techno boom and prefer brightly melodic motifs to match, you'll love this record. It's brimming with oddball personality and it's more than punchy enough to cut it with modern club fare.
Review: Hand-wringing nighttime synth-Talo movements from B Ai, the curtly named new Lirica Archives signee and Motivation club night founder, based in China. While she opens this hat-trick of tracks with a rather functional, FM-driven drama, 'Hope', it's really the Diego Santana featurer 'Murderbot Diaries' that gets us going; the track breaks down into a supremely lasery, tubular, harmonically next-level strobing, conjuring alt-visions of a seedy but gaudy cyborg entertainment district. B-sider 'Once' Tron-ifies things with sweeping sines and popcorn leads, whilst 'Only We Know' utilises transitory crash cymbals and further slinky melodies, constructing a closing tech-funk number.
Review: Marco Bailey and Sigvard's serve up some certified techno gold here on nice clear red vinyl via the Fundaments label. This collaborative EP opens up with the retro-sounding goodness of 'Faded Game' and its marching bottom end. It's an all-out raver that never quits. 'Live For Yesterday' is deeper, with a more nuanced atmosphere and layers of drums and synth that rise up though the mix. 'Smooth Mind' ups the ante with more loopy and strobe-lit synth energy and 'Out Of The Past' closes with more buffed metal loops and rolling drum machine sounds.
Review: James Bangura steps into the ring with his new Shadow Boxing EP which is named in honour of his grandfather, Carroll Daniel Smith, who boxed for the US Army in WWII. It's a punchy take on tech house from the off, with 'Hazy Recall (Airdrop mix)''s off-grid beats swinging in from all directions with same the potency as a Mike Tyson uppercut. 'Drown It Out' has a garage swing to it as it slips and sides as fluidly as Mayweather's defence and 'Shadow Boxing' floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. Last of all is 'Analyze, Socialize' which will have you on the ropes and sweating in no time.
Review: Magazine 131 is not the hundred and thirty-first Magazine label release, but rather the first single to be taken from label co-founder Barnt's acclaimed 2014 full-length, Magazine 13. It features two reworks of album favourite "Cherry Red". Tale of Us and Recondite join forces on the A-side, delivering a creepy but strangely inviting version built around a pulsating, modular-sounding groove and trippy, top-end electronics. Magazine co-founder Jens-Uwe Beyer opts for a different approach on the flip, lacing sparse, melancholic melodies and ghostly strings atop a sparse but thunderous, kick drum-driven rhythm.
Review: The icy techno sounds of Cologne's Barnt make their way across Europe here to Studio Barnhus's Swedish bunker. Across five fresh cuts, he brings plenty of experimental flair but also some playful rhythms to a forward-thinking EP that sounds like little else. 'Aqua Melopella' is an unsettling opener with glistening synths scurrying like ants over a sparse rhythm, 'Aqua Breeze' establishes a marching beat and 'Aqua Bass' brings twanging synths and frosted loops that keep you on your toes. 'Millennium Silver' is another tune blend of dystopian synth sounds and distorted lines that speak of human destruction and last of all 'Millennium Melopella' offers moments of ambient reflection.
Review: Barrow Boy is a lesser-spotted alias of the great UK techno talent, Ben Sims. With this project, the Machine man veers into rave-flavoured sounds that are designed for maximum and immediate impact. Here they come on the infamous Retro-Vert label on a suitably garish acid-yellow vinyl. 'Berwick Manor' sets the pilled-up tone from the off with big beats, ravey stabs and retro flourishes. 'The Living Dream' is just as dense and full throttle in its aural assault and 'Dungeons' layers up gallivanting drums and razor-sharp stabs. A No Vox mix of 'Berwick Manor' shuts down with unrelenting energy.
Review: Batu has long been in a class of one when it comes to crafting meticulously hi finely rhythms and sounds. He now steps out to launch his own new label A Long Strange Dream, with a five track EP that runs the stylistic gamut from ambient to raw and futurist techno. Churning bass and hefty hits one up 'Traverse' which rides on a menacing bassline and is action packed from front to back. 'In Tongues' is a thumping technoid banger and 'For Spirits' is a wild rhythmic work out with disrupted low ends and groaning synths. 'Through The Glass' is the Beatles closer that allows you to catch your breath.
Review: Batu and Nick Leon united for this surprise release late last year and it now arrives on lovely vinyl where it sounds sublime. The four-track EP blends Latin and UK club influences with a psychedelic twist on Batu's label, A Long Strange Dream which, since its 2023 launch, has gained recognition for pushing experimental club sounds of the highest order. 'Rezz' kicks off with shuffling tight percussive rhythms and 'Yiu' is more intense in its high-fidelity loops. 'Tuvan' is a minimal broken beat stepper and 'Palo' closes with some snappy Latin rhythmic invention.
Review: Techno veteran Gary Beck returns to our attention with a reissue of his 2012 underground hit 'Video Siren', reminding the listener of how UK techno is done properly. Returning to his own BEK Audio imprint, the track now hears three new, impeccably chosen mixes from among Beck's favourite technoicians: Clouds, Anne and Mark Broom. A lineup made in heaven, the first of these three brings to the track their patented fright-fugs and frigid sound-frays to the fore, marring it in a boundless but no less well-balanced bed of grit-texture. Anne and Mark Broom do similarly as much, but the former artist prefers to pitch down Beck's original vocal sample work for a gender-bending, murmurative undergird, while the latter prefers instead to autopan and phase-delay said vox all around, while indulging a classic pre-drop filterpassed kick tease.
Review: 'Beltram Vol. 1' is arguably R&S Records' biggest release, thanks to its inclusion of the timeless track 'Energy Flash', which through various unexplainable forces has become instantly recognizable as the defining track of Netherlands rave. Revered for its reversed strings, low-murmuring voices (that infamous "ecstasy" sample) and crisp-clear acid lines, the track is backed up by three further bangers: the resonant sonic alkali Jazz 303, the gated-piano'ed Subsonic Trance and the early downtempo / big beat cut Psycho Bass. Here it is again, as timeless and essential as ever.
Review: Joey Beltram's second EP for R&S Records, which was originally released in 1991, is not as celebrated as his first, which famously included the peerless (and hugely influential) 'Energy Flash'. Yet, as this reissue proves, it remains a perfect distillation of the New York producer's breathlessly heavy, industrial-tinged and distinctively intense brand of techno. For proof, check 'My Sound', where raw, rave-igniting, Belgian-style lead lines dance atop a typically stomping, bass-heavy groove, and the fiendishly nasty, breakbeat-sporting, industrial-influenced mind-mangle that is 'Sub-Bass Experience'. Elsewhere, 'The Reflex' is a deeper and more psychedelic interpretation of Beltram's trademark sound, while 'The Melody' is a bustling breakeat techno shuffler built upon deep organ bass, occasional electro beats and sparkling lead lines.
Review: John Beltran, the iconic Detroit ambient techno producer, returns with the Il Ritorno EP on Roots Underground records, offering four new tracks of emotional techno that reaffirm his legendary status in the genre. It starts off with 'Il Ritorno,' a track featuring a heavy Detroit groove, atmospheric rises and delicate melodies sprinkled with keys. Following this is 'City Sunset,' an uptempo, melodic gem that epitomizes Beltran's signature style, evoking a sense of nostalgia and delivering goosebumps. On thje flip, 'Finally Home' stands out with its memorable melody, reminiscent of the beloved Ten Days of Blue era, bringing back the essence of his 90s work. The EP concludes with 'Carrettera,' a high-energy track that leaves a lasting impression and closes the EP on a triumphant note. Beltran's Il Ritorno EP is a great blend of emotive techno that showcases his ability to evoke deep feelings through his brand of techno.
Review: Benales returns to Construct Re-Form with five new electrifying dancefloor tracks in the vein of techno. Beginning from an orthodox Birmingham-school position but then gradually moving outward into ever-slighter expressions of nonconformity, it would be difficult to predict the stylistic move from echoic loomer-alarmer 'Cuphead' to the scratchy-stabby hard cutoffs of 'Grip', but hey, we're all for such movements.
Review: Ali Berger has long been known for crafting soulful, dynamic house music whether through his label Trackland or releases on Spectral Sound, Clave House, Firm Tracks, and FCR. He also performs solo or with Davis Galvin as Hits Only when his unique touch always remains evident. This new 12" features four tracks that blend uplifting and introspective house vibes and it oozes class. Opener 'Sun Rising On Harmony' boasts an infectious bass line and melody, while 'Inside,' offers a classic acid house feel. On the B-side, you have the lovely 'Thoughts Like Light Snow' which delivers an alluring electro twist, while 'Mint Leaf' closes with a rich bass line and intricate details.
Have You Ever Played In Abidjan? (feat Tutsy N'zore) (6:37)
Review: Lyon-based Brazilian Pedro Bertho is an accomplished producer who now steps out with his own label, fittingly enough called Chez Pedro. It kicks off with a new EP 'Starlit Crates' which has already been teased by the well-received 'Have You Ever Played in Abidjan' (exclusive aired on Juno Daily), which paid tribute to that vibrant city and the Ivory Coast. 'Have You....' is a collaboration with percussionist Tutsy N'Zore, who adds great layers to Bertho's deep grooves, but there's loads going onelsewhere too.. 'Let Me Show You' has what sound like ambient recordings from a bustling market over bass-driven beats. 'Blue Hot Monday' is another humid and muggy deep techno mind melter and 'Shaved' is a crisp, tech-edged cut with frazzled synth work for peal time deployment. A great example of making functional, floor-pleasing grooves that have oodles of personality and character at the same time.
Review: A repress of Innershades & Betonkust's 2018 new beat sensation 'Forever In Boccaccio!' has long been requested by hardcore record collectors. And now it has become available and has been fully remastered and housed in a new sleeve design, limited to just 300 copies. It was first made, according to the two being it, in January 2017 "under grey Belgian skies," when they had been consuming lots of acid and new beat, which of course shows. The title cut is brilliantly dark and gothic but is backlit by haunting vocal harmonies and underpinned by a menacing bassline. The three other cuts explore similar moods and grooves with great authenticity.
Review: For his first outing of 2019, Adam Beyer has turned over the parts to his 2014 single "Teach Me" to Belgium's first lady of banging, acid-fuelled techno, Amelie Lens. She subsequently serves up two throbbing, peak-time ready revisions, with the A-side "Main Mix" offering a near perfect blend of booming, kick-drum driven beats, military snare fills, cut-up late night vocal samples and distorted, mind-altering riffs. As the title suggests, the flipside "Acid Remix" sees Lens indulge her love of mind-altering TB-303 acid lines, brilliantly wrapping them around a springier drum track, EBM-influenced melodic motifs and more pulsating, manipulated vocal loops.
Review: Drumcode label head and the so-called CEO of Business Techno steps up to his own mighty Drumcode with an outing which keeps him at the forefront of big room sounds, which is just where he has been for more than a quarter of a century. 'Ghost Kiss' hammers out edgy drums and ghoulish vocals bring character to the musical rhythms. On the flip is 'Pilot' with its flashy, trance-tinged synth energy and menacing basslines. 'Jack' is a hard and dark cut with motoring drums and sawtooth synths that bring plenty of on-point maximalism.
Review: Drumcode supremo Adam Beyer has become increasingly more prolific in recent years, signalling a creative renaissance that recalls the undoubted quality of his work in the late 1990s and early 2000s. His first outing of 2024, which follows a quartet of EPs last year, is predictably strong and packed to the rafters with future Drumcode anthems. Fittingly, he starts with 'Let's Begin', where mutilated vocal loops, mind-mangling rave noises and unsettling melodic motifs dance atop a typically thunderous and breathless big room techno groove, before opting for a dirtier, acid-flecked groove, metallic noises and sped-up hip-hop vocal samples on 'Computerized' (hip-techno anyone?). To round things off, he goes darker and denser still on the loopy techno power of 'Red Room', which pleasingly also boasts the same Aisha vocal sample as the Orb's 'Blue Room'.
Review: Adam Beyer continues to refine his vision of techno with a release that melds intricate sound design with driving rhythms. The lead track layers ethereal synths and hypnotic vocal refrains, morphing into a pulsing, primal groove anchored by precise percussion. It's a masterclass in atmospheric tension, balancing futuristic elements with raw energy. The second track delves deeper, driven by metallic basslines and siren-like hoover tones, creating a dystopian soundscape that's both immersive and ominous. Beyer's ability to seamlessly fuse cutting-edge sound design with dancefloor functionality reaffirms his status as a cornerstone of modern techno.
Review: Adam Beyer seems to be in a superb run of late and this is his second vinyl outing in as many months. Desert Queen is pure Beyer, and pure Drumocde - drum-led techno for the main room with sweeping synths and grand vocals that are designed to impact crowds of thousands. The A-side actually brings a touch of trance energy and hard techno funk with its slamming, flat-footed drums, coarse synths and brightly lit arrangements. 'Soulful' then flips the script with a more funky groove that rocks back and forth and has funky basslines and a pitched up r&b vocal that works strangely well in the unusual context.
Review: Two right legends of techno unite here for the latest release on Drumcode. Label chief Adam Beyer presents 'Restore My Soul' featuring Chicago hard techno veteran DJ Rush, their relationship stretching back nearly three decades from when they both started out in the' 90s. The title track is aimed squarely at the main room dancefloor; a seething, mental groove featuring Rush's stern vocal delivery atop, before taking the energy levels into the peak time on the adrenalised thrasher 'Control'. Over on the flip, you are treated to a rework of the title track by DJ Rush himself in his typically stomping and orotund style.
Review: The latest from Swedish techno legend is a full-throttle techno assault, pushing Drumcode's legacy forward with relentless energy. The title track is a peak-time juggernaut, built on heavy chords, pounding kicks and a futuristic intensity that commands the dancefloor. With its driving momentum and anthemic hooks, it's a high-octane statement from two producers at the top of their game. On Side-2, 'Living In The Moment' ventures into atmospheric territory, teetering on the edge of trance with sci-fi textures and sweeping builds. Its long, tension-heavy progression culminates in devastating drops, overloading the senses with a euphoric yet punishing crescendo. With Drumcode nearing its 30th year, this release proves there's no slowing downithe label continues to deliver high-impact techno designed for maximum effect. Beyer and Brown's collaboration is a successful dose of tension, release and unrelenting intensity.
Adam Beyer & Enrico Sangiuliano - "Preset Heaven" (8:17)
Timmo - "Muzik" (6:11)
Pig&Dan - "La Bruja" (6:37)
Julian Jeweil - "Nasa" (6:11)
Review: Some serious peak time weapons for the main room on offer here, from the ever reliable Swedish label Drumcode. Usual heroes of the label such as Luigi Madonna, Sam Paganini and Joseph Capriati step aside for some other equally reliable staples. On the A, side label boss Adam Beyer teams up with Enrico Sangiuliano on the evocative and life affirming "Preset Heaven" which takes its cues from early trance with its amazing chord progression. It is something more typical of the label next, on the pummelling warehouse stomp of "Muzik" by Bulgaria's Timmo. On the flip, there's more trance nostalgia on offer again - this time from legends Pig & Dan on the hypnotic/melodic bliss of "La Bruja" which we could imagine melting the minds of festival crowds well into the new year. Finally they save the best for last with French peak time specialist Julian Jeweil, serving up the furious, tunneling and strobe-lit ultraviolence of "Nasa" which will have your adrenaline going from the first beat. It has been a stellar year for the powerhouse label, with great releases by Moby, Dubfire and newcomer Layton Giordani.
Adam Beyer - "Take Me There" (feat DJ Rush - Carl Cox remix) (6:24)
Matt Guy - "Give Me What I Want" (6:16)
ADHS - "2STEP" (6:22)
Kaiserdisco - "Get On The Dancefloor" (6:51)
Review: The big room techno don that is Adam Beyer is back with more potent techno weaponry on his own Drumcode label, this time with part two of the 12th volume of his A-Sides series. His 'Take Me There' is first up in remix form and Carl Cox flips it into a surging peak time roller. Matt Guy's 'Give Me What I Want' is an emotive banger with big synth energy and reverberating vocals while ADHS's '2STEP' hits hard with its flaming drums and trance-y synths. Kaiserdisco then brings dark, stomping warehouse energy to their raved-ready 'Get On The Dancefloor.'
Review: Adam Beyer shares his first collaboration with Vintage Culture, 'Lift Me Up' featuring Kyozo. A suspenseful covenant formed between three huge-room techno striators, 'Lift Me Up' was born from a fruitful back-and-forth shared on the road to Sonus Festival in Croatia. Packing a clenched sawtooth lead - one that hardly requires the development that the track nonetheless indulges by way of tuned impacts and chord transitions - this one ends up a dramatic build, as a vaunted vocal lines abjures us to "lift me up", as we listeners end up, paradoxically, the ones uplifted.
Review: Bezier returns to Dark Entries with Valencia, a six track rumination on memory, geography, and transmutation. Multi-instrumentalist Robert Yang's Bezier project has appeared on Dark Entries many times over the last decade, most recently with the 2018 LP Parler Musique. Says Yang, "What started as a project to investigate the love of the sound and scenery while living in San Francisco quickly developed into a passionate search for interlocking melodies and driving rhythms." On Valencia, Bezier invokes twinned places. The Valencia Street of San Francisco is channeled, which was the center of the city's vibrant new wave scene in the 1980s. But also echoed is Valencia, Spain, and La Ruta del Bakalao aka La Ruta Destroy, the Spanish clubbing scene throughout the 80s and 90s famed for its aggressive and synthetic sounds. Valencia is a darker record for Yang, exploring themes of submission and catharsis with nods to SF's gay leather bars of the 70s and 80s. The high BPM salvos of "Valencia" and "Scrupulous" capture the frantic energy of Bakalao and Valencian wave acts like Oltima Emocion. Elsewhere Yang mines the dreamy space disco and Hi-NRG sounds they're known for, like on the brooding "Past the Marshes" or the anthemic "Reservoir", which features their partner Len.Leo on vocals. Bezier deftly navigates past and present, light and dark, pain and pleasure, the stasis of memory and the flux of time. Valencia was mastered by Alex Michalski, with EQ for vinyl done by George Horn. Gwenael Rattke designed the sleeve, which features an 80's punk zine-esque geometric grid pattern mirroring San Francisco street maps. Also included is a 5x7 postcard with notes.
Review: Bidoben steps up to Clergy with a potent new six track techno outing that is all about immediacy on the dance floor. 'Reduce & Yearn' kicks off with a hulking great drum line and pulsing synths that are topped by all manner of twisted stabs and paranoid sounds. '98 Fahrenheit' is just as edgy with shrieking synths keep you on your toes while the macho drums march on and 'Lenteur' then layers up more heavy bass and kicks with detuned effects, distant bells and general dystopian decoration. Three more linear but richly atmospheric cuts take up the B-side on this hugely effective 12".
Review: Sam Binga has established himself with boundary-pushing club tracks on labels like Critical and Exit and for this one teamed up with Welfare, a junglist and the Rua Sound label boss. Together they were inspired by the rugged beauty of Conamara, County Galway and began the project in a 300-year-old cottage overlooking the sea in a place free of creature comforts but rich in inspiration. Using a handheld recorder, the duo explored tidal caves, ruins and windswept coastlines while recording the ambient sounds they heard on the way and then turned them into these deeply textured dub compositions through live desk mixing at Dubkasm's studio.
Review: The Betonska label is on an ongoing mission to release and re-release hidden gems and wantless must owns from the past. This time it's D.Wave's unrelenting yet funky techno offering Biotone that gets pressed up. The title tune is pure, thrilling club music with high-speed Millsian techno vibes. 'Mellectro' plays with a broken rhythm and alien sound designs that are as good for brain as body and 'Oscilloclast' then dresses a perfectly fused jungle techno sound with warped video game pads and 'Paper Tigers' ends on an all-out peak time gem.
Review: No Signal Records' tenth release features legendary producer Jamie Bissmire. A key figure in techno since the 90s, Bissmire's solo work and collaborations, like Bandulu and Space DJz, have very much helped to shape the techno sound of recent times. His new EP does so once more and opens with the ambient track 'Subteranium' setting a moody tone with subtle synths and basslines. 'In Temporal' then kicks things off properly with a distorted 4/4 beat, while 'Lore & Order' creates a darker and more hypnotic vibe. 'The Tapestry of Fate' is a signature Bissmire track for the way it blends dark energy with relentless pressure. The EP closes with 'Woven Whispers' an atmospheric ambient piece that sends you away on a high.
Review: Bjarki, a new producer hailing from Iceland, makes his debut on Nina Kraviz's Trip with an effective two-piecer aimed at the dancefloor. "I Wanna Go Bang" is straight, hard-hitting and boasting an instantly memorable vocal which you'll probably be hearing around the dances this summer. "Orange Juice Man", however, is the complete antithesis of it's A-side cousin, where Bjarki opts for a deeper, chuggier kinda groove that's more suited to the corner-dwellers than the first-rowers.
Review: Black Merlin aka George Thompson is a veteran producer who makes a debut on the Transmigration sub label Crystal Ceremony and soon shows his class. First up is 'Morphik Uniform' with its wispy pads and supple minimal drums saving as a vehicle for interplanetary travel. 'Distance' is a bumpier ride as the broken kick patterns make you move while heavenly pads bring softness up top. There is a mind-melting Millsian element to 'Makio' than burrows deep into the darkest corners of the cosmos and 'Aft Xt' then ends in a hurry with unrelenting drums bubbling away beneath pulsating synths.
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