Buds Bloom News

The first outing of Ferg’s solo trip is here. Titled Buds Bloom, this well-rounded project delivers a smooth listening experience whilst only scratching the surface of his blossoming sound. Enjoy four tracks that plant the seeds for what’s to come.

Forest Drive West returns to Mantis with a double pack of crooked, finely chiseled rhythms and porous, tactile atmospherics. Hovering comfortably between the distinct energies of drum & bass and techno, Joe Baker has helped define the creative upsurge in crossover tempos and tones with a practice that focuses on mood and presence rather than genre tropes. His first releases appeared 10 years ago on influential labels like Livity Sound, Rupture and Hidden Hawaii. He reconvenes on Mantis after delivering the first release for the Delsin series back in 2020. The scope across these eight new tracks is steeped in Baker's trademark restraint and subtlety, but equally he explores a broad scope of energies and tempos. From ambient, spacious downtempo and slow-motion, heavily dubbed drum mantras through to crisp, techy drum funk and dancehall-coded swagger, the range within the distinctive Forest Drive West sound is more versatile than ever. It's a range cemented further by the guest appearances on the album, as Patrick Russell comes on board for snarling, D&B-coded workout 'Uromastyx' and DB1 lends his chops to mesmerising closing breakbeat trip 'Planes'. Exquisite sound design with a mysterious streak binds these various approaches together. With club impact matched by spatial immensity, Mantis 1920 furthers the surefooted, intentional sound Baker has been shaping out as Forest Drive West for the past decade.

Giom's Supremus Records has been dropping digital heat for more than a decade and now, in collaboration with us, they are making their vinyl debut with the Giom Classics series featuring tried and tested gems that have been fully remastered. 'The Message' is first up and back in 2015 when it originally dropped quickly became a favourite of the don Bill Brewster. It's patient, low-slung and slow burning with an irresistibly hypnotic effect. 'People' then gets more party with chopped vocals and disco samples all bristling with energy and big drums carrying it onwards and upwards. 'Last Dance' closes out with more warm, soul-infused and patient house depths with musical chords and another well-chosen and expertly deployed vocal that adds just the right amount of fire to amp up the energy.

After more than a decade shaping dancefloors and curating sound, ROOTS steps into a new chapter with the launch of its vinyl imprint: ROOTS LTD — a platform dedicated to exploring the essence of “the sounds of Roots.”

The inaugural release comes courtesy of Romanian mainstay Gojnea76, delivering a refined four-track EP built with the dancefloor in mind. Drawing on the spirit of ‘90s tech house, the record blends solid basslines, groovy vocal cuts, and rolling pads into a cohesive and timeless journey.

With his unmistakable signature, Gojnea crafts a debut that feels both nostalgic and forward-thinking — a proper statement piece to mark the beginning of ROOTS LTD.

The Zurich rooted duo H:B:E:M (Antinio Di Benedetto & Alfonso Bianco) deliver a deep and hypnotic journey on Moto Music 22, blending raw techno energy with emotional and atmospheric depth. The opening track “In Orbita” sets the tone with a driving bassline and a subtle oldschool hit sample, perfect for dark peak time moments. The talents from Prince De Takicardie take things into proto trance territory on his remix of “Jupiter Love”, injecting a warm, nostalgic and uplifting vibe. The original “Jupiter Love” dives into mental, melodic deep techno with an addictive bass and immersive flow. Spacetravel delivers on B2 a smooth and atmospheric reinterpretation of “Interstellar Overdrive”, keeping things hypnotic and refined, while the closing track explores breaky ambient textures with swirling rhythms and a dreamy, cinematic feel. A versatile and classy release built for both the floor and deeper listening.

Harry McCanna is a DJ and producer who might be known to you for his role in running NorthSouth records for nine years with Sam Bangura and Dale Mussington, as well as staffing the decks across the capital for at least a decade and half and taking up a residency at fabric when we came out of lockdown in 2021. Here, he launches a new label, focussed on "the hypnotic, trippy, steady side of things," with his first release under his own name, having released his productions under the Henry Hyde moniker since 2015. Hypnotic it may be, but it's not lacking either in sonic imagination - check the shimmering guitar trimmings, frothy pecussion and vocal flashes of 'A Temporarily Happy Man' - or funkiness, with the basslines to 'Stand & Deliver' and 'Red Moon' the very essence of prodding urgency. Add some sparing but very effective use of neatly edited breakbeats - see the economic propulsion of 'Hard To Leave' - and you've got four track that will slip into the mix very smoothly but come with their own distinctive personality.

Evighet proudly presents its sixth release, EVIGHET006, featuring the distinctive sound of Healing Force Project, the long-running creative vision of Italian artist Antonio Marini. For more than a decade, Healing Force Project has explored the intersections between electronic experimentation, free jazz and electroacoustic research. His work unfolds with a rare sense of spontaneity and depth, merging intuition and technical precision into a sound language that feels timeless and deeply personal. Over the years, this unique approach has earned him a cult reputation across the underground and avant-garde music scenes. EVIGHET006 is the result of a free creative process, a series of recordings shaped by intuition rather than concept or structure. Within this collection, elements of jazz, drill-inspired beats and dubstep textures emerge and intertwine. The music alternates between dark tonalities and unexpected shifts toward melodic and almost folkloric moments, inviting the listener into an evolving, immersive experience. A highlight, “Playing Tabla and Smoking Weed with Aliens”, reveals the hypnotic pulse of the tabla, guiding the piece through a steady percussive flow that feels both ancient and futuristic. Elsewhere, rhythmic improvisations and fragmented breaks form intricate layers that dissolve and reform with subtle tension. With this release, Healing Force Project continues to move along his own path, shaping sound as a form of exploration and reflection. EVIGHET006 captures an artist in constant evolution, translating instinct into form and intuition into movement.

Dungeon Meat and SlapFunk sit right at the vanguard when it comes to house music that truly kicks. It's deep but driving and never too much of a slave to tradition. This is a second collaborative outing that welcomes emerging producers to submit tunes for the chance to feature. Khun goes first with 'Prince,' a delightfully well-swung sound with subtle synth tones and room for the atmosphere to land. Nay Barr's 'Kidnapped' is a more hunched over slammer with a firmer groove, while Patrizio Scope's 'Terdiek8' gets more loose with squirming FX and liquid bass. Yugwan's 'Fungeondunk' is a razor-sharp garage, tech and house fusion to get the floor sweating.

Lanzieri, the Uruguayan hero, once again elevates the sound of his nation with a solid release in which he clearly manages to narrate a story that unfolds across the 4 tracks of the EP.

The narrative is dense with dark atmospheres and unexpected twists; the flow is steady and the storytelling clear. The sound is harsh yet mellow, the background broad and diverse, with traces of trance, electro, and even trip-hop. A solid release on the new Auto Crash Test.

The eighth release on the BINÄR-Label is an EP consisting of an opening, two peak time and a closing track by Mary Yuzovskaya. The focal point was on the storytelling which includes a deep sound over dance floor oriented cuts ending with a warm hug. The tracks are mastered by Ricardo Esposito.

down2present the fifth release.
d2e005: matthias’ beat of blades

three deep cuts by the one at the helm, which without doubt will throw you into a whirl.

2 tracks
45 RPM

Compiled by Rey Colino.
Design by AJAM.

Drama On The Corner makes a powerful return with "ORIXA", its second EP, with a vinyl release on
Betino's Records.
Designed as both a collector’s record and a club-ready release, ORIXA draws deeply from Adrien de
Araujo’s brazilian roots, reimagining Brazilian funk, samba-funk and 70s rare groove through a bold,
modern and warm production.
With these six tracks, the duo delivers instant classics, blending candomblé rhythms, broken beat, soul
and forward-thinking house music

For the first time in more than a decade, Paul St. Hilaire (AKA Tikiman) presents a solo album – 100% Tiki.

Over his 30-plus year career, St. Hilaire has become one of dance music’s quietly legendary figures. Born and raised in Dominica, he moved to Berlin in 1994 and has lent both his voice and his musicianship to some of the most iconic electronic music from the German capital – and beyond. Renowned for his collaborations with Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus (AKA Rhythm & Sound), he has also appeared on records with Deadbeat, Rhauder, Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers and Stereotyp (G-Stone Recordings), amongst others.

However, few know the extent of St. Hilaire’s compositional and technical mastery. From his home studio in Kreuzberg, which includes an extensive collection of vintage hardware, self-built instruments and notebooks scribbled with endless lyrics, he has created a vast archive of material spanning ambient dub, avant-jazz, lush techno and lovers rock.

Tikiman Vol. 1 is a heady, downtempo tour de force of patois metaphors on education, displacement and personal vs. global histories, as is evident on slippy album opener “Bedroom in My Bag”: Mister, mister / Where are you going? / I’m heading for a faraway land / What are you having in the bag in your hand? / Help us to understand / He said, I’ve got my bedroom in my bag.

Overall, the album’s lyrics reflect on life between Berlin and Dominica, specifically St. Hilaire’s hometown of Grand Bay, where he has worked with various musicians famous for the island’s different genres of carnival music. St. Hilaire himself always favoured the island’s more “discrete” music, developing a sonic synergy between two different geographical strains of groove and minimalism, and combining them with foundational Caribbean mixing techniques, which provide the basis for his songwriting and distinct
baritone.

Tikiman Vol.1 offers a rare insight into St. Hilaire’s complex artistry, from the eyes-down grooves of “Little Way” and the guitar-heavy digi dancehall experiment “Keep Safe,” to the subtle hypnosis of “Ten to One” and the softly crashing synth waves of closer “Three And A Half”, evoking not only beaches but also coasts and borders. It’s a fitting expression of both the breadth of St. Hilaire’s work, as well as his history as one of the few black, Berlin-based artists who, despite remaining largely overlooked, has influenced the city’s electronic music culture since its beginnings.


Credits
Written & Produced by Paul St. Hilaire
Mastered by Stefan Betke
Artwork by Grant Gibson

Kynant Records was founded in 2015 by Richard Akingbehin, a British-Nigerian radio programmer (Refuge Worldwide), music writer and DJ. Originally specialising in deep techno and featuring artists such as Cio D’Or, Terrence Dixon and Donato Dozzy, Kynant has since launched a sub-label Kynant EX which focuses on ambient, dub and experimental electronics.

With their self-titled release on Titrate Records, Post Coma presents two twenty-minute times even dissociation — treating the improvisation as a shared descent into the inner psyche. Listening as much to each other as to the remnants of their own decisions, the music emerges as a kind of cognitive experiment — a document of mutual attunement and the debris that gathers in its wake. The result lies suspended between motion and conclusion, leaving space for what lingers beyond.

futura continues its journey with an EP of 4 underground, raw tracks, perfect for the most attentive dancefloor

We return to 2005 for the next chapter in the Drugsex repress series, revisiting DSEX003 – Hasty Retreat, a record that captured a rising UK producer shaping his sound within the underground. Produced by Rob Mooney with production from Dave Robertson (Reset Robot), the release reflects a period of exploration and technical refinement in his early career.

The A-side, Hasty Retreat, is a driving tech-house cut — tight, physical and weighted for the dancefloor. Robertson’s engineering contribution to Mooney’s fresh ideas and south coast underground house sensibilities added precision and sonic depth that would foreshadow his future work as Reset Robot across house and techno channels.

On the flip, and exactly the same as the original cut Up All Night appears in its remix form from label head honcho Rob Pearson. Pearson’s reinterpretation ensured it fitted like a glove on the Drugsex vibe . Rob deepened the groove, balancing pressure and atmosphere in a way that typified his trademark Croydon Tech sound of the time.

Looking back twenty years, the early Tech House coming out of South London feels as fresh as ever. These records weren’t about tricks or big drops — they were about deep grooves that you could lose yourself in, hypnotic basslines that carried the night, and subtle percussion and atmospheres that rewarded careful listening.

Soul Quest Records reaches a milestone moment with its 20th release, welcoming a debut that feels anything but new. Enter Sean Green… a mysterious new name whose sound suggests deep roots, sharp instincts, and the quiet confidence of a seasoned producer operating under a fresh alias. While details remain deliberately sparse, the music speaks volumes.

The Sarge Returns: 4 Killer Club Reworks

The Slick One is back with another set of four electrifying tracks. This time, he dives into late ‘70s and early ‘80s classics, giving them a sleek, club-ready makeover. Expect familiar vocals, tightened grooves, and energy perfectly tuned for the dancefloor.

Featuring some of the biggest names in the scene, these mixes are designed to get any crowd moving. As always, this release is limited—grab it now buy or cry!