Techno (すべて) charts

Review: Boris Barksdale's Eternal Remorse originally saw the light of day on Portugese label Eye For An Eye as a digital release back in 2018, and now it's getting a vinyl pressing. A physical release feels appropriate for this pointedly dusty release, which leans in on synthwave influences to create a thoroughly dark and gnarly atmosphere. '5.0.5' steps out on a tough, dishevelled rhythm section, with seriously degraded synths falling apart behind the jackhammer drums. '7.0.8' takes the intensity up a notch, hitting with an industrial bite, while 'Sentier' channels even more of that Ministry-flavoured malaise with its disturbing yelps and screams. 'Sramota' has the hallmarks of a mid 80s bedroom beatdown from a blackened soul, 'Take Notes' delivers yet more pounding, percussive punishment, and 'Geezer' rounds things off with a bleak and troubled slab of EBM dragged from the underworld to stalk amongst all nightcrawlers and ne'er-do-wells.

Review: Having built his reputation via a trio of must-check EPs on Bokeh Versions, Mars89 transfers to Alex Hall's "mutant electronics" imprint Natural Sciences. The producer is a neat fit on the imprint, with "2020" containing a quartet of creepy, hard-wired, industrial-tinged cuts that seem eerily fitting for these troubled times. He begins with the bone-rattling beats, machine-gun percussion hits, ricocheting metallic clonks and gut-punching bass of "GoodThing", before successfully fusing mutilated industrial sounds and paranoid rhythms on "JoyCamp". Over on side B, "DayOrder" is a strangely swung slab of mind-altering electronica that defies easy description, while "MiniLuv" is a thumping stomp through lo-fi techno territory in the company of a steroid-fired monster.

Review: This Bristol based imprint is onto its third edition after smashing previous 12"s from homegirl Shanti Celeste and the mysterious Fred. Not much is known of next debutante Chekov either but if this EP is any indication: he's certainly on to great things. He could be a Bristolian, if the slowburning and bass heavy roller "Bierce" is any indication: it has a gritty industrial aesthetic to it too. "Rotlicht" (which translates into red light from German) is a dirty, late night house jam powered by dusty analogue elements and a lo-fi vibe. On the flip "Toothru" is the most mellow offering on the EP, where a woozy arpeggio is set adrift above a broken beat and some hypnotic pads letting this less is more approach really shine.

Review: Yu Asaeda's been putting out a whole range of quality, bass-centric sounds under the name ENA since the late 2000s, but these have come out on a rather sporadic basis. Appearances for the infamous 7even Recordings was followed by material on Samurai Horo, the excellent Hidden Hawaii and, more recently, the Samurai label's offshoot, Horo. Divided: Body is so much more than a mere 'bass' EP, and it actually manages to veer off into some pretty strange and imperceptible sounds that remind us of the material emanating from the PAN consortium. For instance, the opening "11th Divided" manages to create a raw, loose groove out of fractured synth sounds, which is followed up nicely by the swarming drones operating in the higher ends of "12th Divided". Over on the flip, "13th Divided" launches a subtle yet hefty groove made up of what sound like bass pops made from a monophonic synth, which leaves "14th Divided" to linger in its dreary pool of fuzzy drones and washed-up sonics. A massive, merited TIP!

Review: The next release on Persephonic Sirens comes from Inventory With Hamilton, which is the new project of label chief Michael Wollenhaupt (aka Ancient Methods) with Wahiba Khadri - who collaborate for the first time since 2018's The Jericho Records. Parting Galaxies On A Forlorn Leaderboard features four diverse sonic excursions that are presented in a singular style, yet still consistent with the label's dark aesthetic. From the electrifying imaginary film score of 'Petit Oratorio Des Oiseaux Migrateurs' which leads into the pitch black EBM pulse of 'Angstblute' over on the flip, and ending with the haunting cold wave of 'Lethe' - prepare to enter the void!