LP,180g, 2027 REISSUE - REMASTERED FROM ORIGINAL TAPES, CAREFULLY REPRODUCED ORIGINAL ART
When Alan Parker recorded the killer library soul-funk LP The Voice of Soul with session vocalist Madeline Bell in 1976, some bright spark at Themes decided to also release all of the backing tracks as a separate, and equally innocuously title LP called The Sound of Soul. Thank goodness for bright sparks.
Released as a collection of unobtrusive musical backings in various rhythmic styles', the LP's original description dryly explains these tracks have been issued without melody and are therefore particularly suitable for use behind commentary. Female vocal versions of these tracks are issued on TIM 1021 The Voice Of Soul and it is possible to edit from vocal version to instrumental version or vica versa where commentary or scene changes occur'.Madeline Bell was backed by The Rhythm Section, who were for all intents and purposes the Themes International Music house band. So what we end up with here is entire album of instrumental work-outs by a band comprised of the formidable talents of Alan Hawkshaw on keyboards, Alan Parker on guitars, Barry Morgan on drums, Les Hurdle on bass guitar and Frank Ricotti on percussion.
Without Bell's vocals these backing tracks are given all the room they need to breathe. Each one more than stands up on its own.
The Sound of Soul is a real diggers' delight and, unsurprisingly, a must-have counterpart to The Voice of Soul.
As with all ten re-issues, the audio for The Sound of Soul comes from the original analogue tapes and has been remastered for vinyl by Be With regular Simon Francis. We've taken the same care with the sleeves, handing the reproduction duties over to Richard Robinson, the current custodian of KPM's brand identity.
Due to high demand, MEU has revisited two of Mr. K’s classics, previously only available as 12-inch extended mixes, and asked the master editor to pare them down to 7-inch size.
A true top-five peak record at the Garage, Thelma Houston’s “I’m Here Again” was “a highlight whenever Larry played it,” Danny Krivit recalls, “and he played it a lot!” Danny’s edit is a homage to Larry and Frankie Knuckles – in particular a similar private edit that Frankie did back in the day and shared with Krivit. “It was on reel to reel and I didn’t copy it correctly and lost it,” Danny remembers. “Reels were problematic! When I tried to get it again from him, unfortunately he had lost it too.” The song (likely an attempt by Motown to capitalize on the previous year’s monster hit “Don’t Leave Me This Way”) is, in its original form, a virtual retake of Thelma Houston’s breakout single, from the subdued, schmaltzy intro to the “oooh BABY!” leading to the chorus. What sets “I’m Here Again” apart though, is the incredible second half of the song. Naturally, it is here that Mr. K’s edit focuses. Over a vicious groove reminiscent of the Originals’ “Down To Love Town” breakdown (Michael Sutton wrote and produced both “Love Town” and “I’m Here Again”) Houston delivers soul-stirring ad libs as the band crackles with electricity behind her, the piano chasing a descending string riff so eagerly. Pure dancefloor peak energy! And the very first time having all these parts on a 7"!
For our flip, Danny has reached deep into the earliest foundations of his voluminous collection, and come out with a psychedelic pop classic rearranged for today’s sound systems and setlists. Recorded in the Beatles’ Abbey Road studio at the height of the Summer Of Love, the Zombies’ “Time Of The Season” is firmly linked in pop culture to the late ‘60s and the Vietnam era, breaking big in the summer of 1969. Krivit’s edit highlights the parade of lush sonic textures that ornament the hip composition, from the iconic, exquisitely echoed bass-clap-exhale riff that opens the song to the cascading Hammond organ solos of Rod Argent. “It’s a song from my childhood that really struck a chord,” Danny says. “Over the years I often played a rough edit which always seemed to go over great. The song seemed to get better and better, and age like fine wine.” We agree!
These two songs have both appeared on previous (separate) MEU 12-inches, but are presented here in custom new edits for the 7-inch format.
In continuation with the “Untitled” series, it is time to unveil the fifth chapter. 9-tracker with the talented artists which have gathered to make this disc come to life with the broad spectre of dancefloor ready frequencies that it contains. With some familiar faces and some new comers this is ready to be presented to the world of us music lovers that have big lust to non-standard beats. This LP is destined to land in the right persons hands who will treat the speakers rough and loud just how they should be treated with the material presented on it. The “Untitled” series continue thanks to the professional audio trips creators the spaceship sets space sails for the new edition soon.
Czarface opens another portal. On Czarface Meets Frankie Pulitzer, the boundary between comic book canon and hip-hop reality dissolves. Frankie Pulitzer, also known in certain dimensions as FacePuller, is no ordinary collaborator, character, or catalyst. He is a hybrid entity: part human, part alien force, fully embedded in the expanding Czarface universe.
Following landmark team-ups with MF DOOM and Ghostface Killah, Czarface continues its “Meets” saga with a full-scale crossover event that pushes deeper into story and sound. Frankie’s presence is both lyrical and mythological, bringing a chaotic, shape-shifting energy that challenges and complements Czarface’s razor-sharp precision. Dusty drums, cinematic soundscapes, and razor-edged bars bring the classic Czarface sound, yet mutated.
The universe widens with appearances from Busta Rhymes, Method Man, and El-P (of Run the Jewels), each adding their own gravitational pull to the project, thus grounding it in hip-hop legacy while amplifying its larger-than-life scope.
Obelix is the brainchild of UK producers Richard George and Corine Trembath, whose timeless take on house and techno has long been cherished by underground heads and vinyl collectors alike.
With releases on Pacific Records, Mosaic and Stickman, their music occupies a distinctive space between early house and techno, raw, hypnotic and deeply musical, built around rolling 909 rhythms, expertly programmed 303 acid lines and the unmistakable character of analogue hardware.
Following an extensive dive into their DAT archives, Pariter presents The Lost Tapes, a collection of previously unreleased recordings made in the mid-1990s. Carefully restored and curated by Yossi Amoyal, the material retains all the rawness, warmth and analogue
character of the original tapes, offering a rare glimpse into a particularly fertile period of UK underground dance music.
The two part release is completed by Whatever, their sought after classic originally released on Offshoot, a timeless slice that stands alongside the unreleased recordings as an essential piece of the Obelix story.
The Lost Tapes documents a sound that has lost none of its power, raw, hypnotic and unmistakably timeless.
Cari Lekebusch is one of the architects of the Swedish techno scene whose influence naturally spilt out over the wider European landscape as part of the second wave in the late 80s and early 90s. Under his Yakari alias, he explored a tear-jerking and trance-infused style that was about looking outward to distant worlds beyond our own. This EP is a classic example and was originally released in 1994 on Loop Records. 'Positive Transphere' is an absorbing opener with dirty bass offset by sprawling synths, 'The Sound Ordeal' gets darker and more involving emotionally, before 'Lotus Trance' explodes in bright colours and new age love. 'Water Of Tranquility' is a more deep, insular closer. An EP that has aged perfectly and will still turn heads 30 years on.
Classic 90's Larry Heard production for this x-rated* track by Ch? on the updated re-issue of "The Incident". Originally came with four mixes on Trackmode Recordings from 1994. Now with extra "Prototype 1" version unearthed from the Alleviated archives. *NOTE: disclaimer included on original 12" release: "The scene expressed in this recording is a fantasy in the age of promiscuity and HIV (let alone full blown aids). The truth is, be careful about who you love and always wear a condom".
MASS returns with their fourth release, welcoming the prolific Norwegian producer Rub800, plus Ukrainian talent Shakolin on remix duties.
Dedicated to the heartbeat of communities, this four track EP moves through a space between inner reflection and collective movement. Title track ‘Lighter Lomvie’ appears twice, first in it’s raw, peak time form, then later via Shakolin's deftly hypnotic interpretation.
The B-side turns inward with ‘Mindtrip’, a tripped out weapon littered with clever samples, before arriving at ‘Community’, a spirited closing track full of colour.
Obelix is the brainchild of UK producers Richard George and Corine Trembath, whose timeless take on house and techno has long been cherished by underground heads and vinyl collectors alike.
With releases on Pacific Records, Mosaic and Stickman, their music occupies a distinctive space between early house and techno, raw, hypnotic and deeply musical, built around rolling 909 rhythms, expertly programmed 303 acid lines and the unmistakable character of analogue hardware.
Following an extensive dive into their DAT archives, Pariter presents The Lost Tapes, a collection of previously unreleased recordings made in the mid-1990s. Carefully restored and curated by Yossi Amoyal, the material retains all the rawness, warmth and analogue
character of the original tapes, offering a rare glimpse into a particularly fertile period of UK underground dance music.
The two part release is completed by Whatever, their sought after classic originally released on Offshoot, a timeless slice that stands alongside the unreleased recordings as an essential piece of the Obelix story.
The Lost Tapes documents a sound that has lost none of its power, raw, hypnotic and unmistakably timeless.
Night Luv is a new label founded by Italy's Simplr that wants to bring people together, whether times are good, bad or sad. Drop the needle on this inaugural 7" though and the times will surely be rad: it's a tweaked, chopped, screwed and filtered take on a stone cold soul classic with a smoky vocal fragment and deployed teasingly through the mix. The drums are rough and raw, the synths swirl, and the whole thing has an excitable energy. The K Lost Acid dub, meanwhile, is a little more club-ready with some chunky low-end drum funk.
The Apricots, composed of Alexandra and DJ Slim Fit, debut on Limo Trax with 5 tracks that combine acid flecked machine workouts with UK bass weight. The Romanian duo and couple expertly marry the sounds in a package that begins with the emotional but sub-heavy 'A Split Second' and later finds itself lost in the sauce of the head-spinning 'Undertow.' It's pure underground tackle.
COLLECTING ORDERS FOR 2026 REPRESS
London-based RUKI joins forces with Japanese producer DJ Himitsu for a playful and percussive EP rooted in the natural world. DJ Himitsu’s polished productions collide with RUKI’s love for nature, creating an energetic and esoteric four-tracker.
Opening strong with the rainforest-infused rhythmic house of ‘Mint’, the EP then turns to the hypnotic percussion of its title track ‘Sometime’. On the flip, ‘Matane’ offers a buoyant, uplifting contrast in 4x4, while the low-slung psychedelic-infused breaks of ‘Door’ close proceedings in a surreal fashion.
Pressed on EcoVinyl, ‘Sometime’ removes up to 50% of the record’s traditional carbon footprint by repurposing the offcuts from coloured pressings
r.hitect opens a new chapter with a refined vinyl release that signals both evolution and intention. Exploring subtle textures, intricate rhythms, and a deeper, more introspective sound, this record marks a shift toward a more personal sonic identity.
The release also introduces Croquis, a new label concept focused on capturing music in its purest form — raw, spontaneous, and essential. More than just a label, Croquis is a space for stripped-back expression and meaningful sound.
This vinyl sets the tone for what’s to come: minimal, emotional, and deeply authentic.
Hypnotic Mindscapes returns with its sixth release, introducing Lisbon-based artist Jorge—by way of NYC—through a tightly constructed, high-fidelity four-track EP. Progressive-tinged tech-house meets crisp vocoders and understated oscillations in an acoustic inspired techno format, designed for peak-hour precision. Electro-breakbeat accents cut through deep, rounding out a sharp and focused trip.
Unusual Traxx welcomes Young Adults, the Dutch duo who have been making their mark in the underground scene with standout releases on Mood Waves, Private Parts, Seven Hills, and more.
Their four-track EP is a powerful showcase of groove and sound design, built around solid basslines, otherworldly synths, and some of the strangest vocals you are likely to hear. Each track is designed for a different moment of the night, taking you deeper into dark, sweaty rooms where anything can happen.
Pressed on limited edition vinyl, with only 200 copies available. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.
Seb Zito breaks a brief hiatus with a release on Kepler’s Perspective imprint, unveiling a refined new sound rooted in the golden era of UK tech house. Rolling basslines, tripped-out sonics and relentless looping grooves channel the raw energy of the genre’s formative years, reworked with a distinctly modern edge and serious dancefloor impact.
Built firmly for the after-hours, this four-track EP explores the deeper and more hypnotic corners of Zito’s sound, showcasing the depth and versatility of the original FUSE resident’s ever-evolving palette.
Some records are made for the hour when the light goes long and low - when you can feel the day slipping and want to hold it a little longer. Escaping Sunset is a deep house collection built for exactly that stretch: warm, unhurried, and turned toward the last of the glow. Like the hourglass on its label, it's about the kind of time you can't keep - so you turn the glass over and let it run again.
Andu Simion, a Romanian producer with deep roots in the European minimal and microhouse underground (Tzinah, Palinoia, Diffuse Reality) and a careful hand for groove - teams with Thomas Wood, a deep and raw house producer (Circle of Us, Berg Audio), across the A-side: the title track and then "Onde Viola." On the flip, Sickdisco - now based in Belgrade, and as at home in deep and minimal house as he is among the minds behind punk outfit ВсадникиЖКХ (The Horsemen of Housing & Commercial Services) - lays down "Beats," before Nicolas Barnes, the Riga producer and ECOUL SND founder already woven into the MixCult family, closes the record with "Phantom Lights."
Adlibitum Tum Tunes is a division of MixCult Records
Bambino Recordings is back with the highly anticipated repress of Toka Project's 'Ego Trip’ EP due to overwhelming demand for the vinyl. W&P by Andrew Riley, renowned as one-half of the legendary Inland Knights. Originally released 21 years ago, this timeless classic is now available once again. Secure your fresh copy now before it sells out! The tracks still sound as fresh today as they did 21 years ago, one of the very reasons they have been in constant rotation in many of well known DJ’s sets for years. Expect deep, tough, bumping underground house aimed to liven up any dance floor.
Straight from Girona, Roto lands on SPHERART Records with Sardaukar, five cuts of stripped-back electro. Dry drums, heavy basslines and raw machine funk run across the record, from broken grooves to colder, more introspective moments. Direct, restless and full of character, Sardauka carries Roto’s own language from start to finish.
Back after its first release, Life Enigma returns for a second chapter: a dark and warped dispatch from the void.
This time, the London-based artist of many aliases Zuul takes the reins, exploring moodier territory at the low end of the frequency. The result is three slow-burning, horror-flecked cuts that sit somewhere between electro and new wave, each driven by a sinister vocal. The release is rounded off by a more dancefloor-oriented remix from C.ru.z on the B2.
On the A-side, My Mind Is Mean is a driving, sub-heavy opener with menacing synths that do the title justice. It's Hell In There, It's Horror shifts into something more melodic and upbeat, with eerie textures and an ominous undercurrent.
And when we thought things couldn’t get any meaner, Ask Me sinks into haunted, mid-tempo bass hypnosis on the flipside, while C.ru.z’s remix leans further into its darker side with an even nastier groove.
Professor Roth's debut EP, self-released on his newly formed label Maestro, is music that feels half remembered. Familiar enough to settle into, strange enough to keep shifting beneath your feet, it lives in that sweet spot where groove and abstraction lean into one another. Dusty textures, hazy melodies and understated rhythms never demand attention, yet quietly refuse to let go. Every track feels like another realm of the same dream: warm, weightless and just slightly out of focus.
‘Daydreaming’ is an inviting first step into the haze, opening the door without ever fully revealing what's on the other side. Gentle movement carries drifting melodies that seem to appear and disappear with every listen. An ethereal vocal breakdown creates the feeling of being quietly carried away from its hypnotic groove before pulling you back under its spell. Patient and understated, ‘The Way It Is’ lets the groove do the talking while subtle details gradually come into focus. Dubby percussive chaos is softened by warm, lifelike pads, encouraging your body to move while your mind wanders elsewhere.
As the name suggests, ‘Swells’ arrives in waves. Layers fold over one another, building and dissolving without urgency. There's a beautiful tension between motion and stillness, leaving the track suspended somewhere between the dancefloor and a reverie. ‘Shades’ is a fitting close that blurs the edges even further. Soft, hypnotic and quietly psychedelic, it feels less like an ending and more like waking up slowly. Content to linger in that in-between a little longer, glitchy samples drift through swirling soundscapes, keeping the dancefloor gently spun until the very end.
Sucre Discos returns with its second vinyl release, continuing to shape the label’s identity with music made for the dancefloor.
For SUCRE02, Donnie Cosmo, Andy Somoza and Santiago Ritacco join forces across four cuts packed with groove, personality and pure club energy.
Rooted in the spirit of 90s house, but with a fresh and contemporary approach, the EP moves through infectious basslines, playful rhythms and timeless grooves designed to keep bodies moving.
SUCRE02 keeps the label’s essence alive: club music with personality, made for the dancefloor and for selectors looking for house with groove, soul and quality.
A hard to find sci-fi Detroit techno classic - it's featured everywhere from Marcel Dettmann to Zip's SW sets.- gets a timely reissue complete with a new, super solid Delano Smith remix. It's hard not to love the original in all its futuristic glory, led by a sturdy four-to-the-floor pummelling but boasting a throbbing neo-disco bassline - imagine a lost Gorgio Moroder classic being remade by Jeff Mills in PurposeMaker mode. But the Delano Smith remix updates it for modern palates, ironically by delving back even further, to the early 70s model Kraftwerk from whom he borrows some very austere but classy synth sounds and a touch of electro syncopation. Take your pick according to mood, they both do the job admirably.
In the year 1997 a German house label called Superfly caused a stir in electronic club land. One of the most remarkable releases on this imprint was van Bellen‘s „Let me take you (on a journey)“.
The track introduced a new genre with grovvy and pumpin‘ beats meeting a harmonic composition of warm and chilly pads and strings.
Now it‘s time to reissue this timeless tune remastered plus a brandnew interpretation of noone else than Belgium‘s finest house export Maxim Lany plus two already released but still hot mixes by Guy Mantzur & Roy Rosenfeld plus Sebastien Leger (All Day I Dream).
A flash of light hits your eyes. Your ears hear muffled bass. As bright white fades to amber, you find yourself in a familiar place. A place you have been to many times. Though the edges of your memory are no longer sharp, the shape of it all is in your DNA.
The smell of rusted metal, dirt-covered floors that once hosted workers, machines and industry mixed with spilled beer and the sweat of a thousand bodies moving to syncopated music. As your vision comes into focus, you’re back there.
A warehouse in the former industrial part of town. You’re surrounded by hundreds of strange but familiar faces, each of you dancing into a frenzy countless times under the moonlight — moving, jumping, laughing and connecting.
Sunlight pours through warehouse windows or appears over a distant horizon.
The DJ plays a song that completes the journey you all just shared. You are desperate to hold on to the feeling of the last song that lands you safely from the night and into a new day. The feeling is deep. Pure.
Especially when communal ecstasy is juxtaposed against the edges of the warehouse floors, the intimacy of city lofts, the spiritual nature of open fields or forests.
The Custodian
I spent just shy of two decades in spaces like that — as a raver in early 1990s Los Angeles, then a DJ, producer, label owner and head of Moulton Studios in San Francisco.
The Custodian Project is a memoir of a life lived deep inside the culture and business of house music from 1990 to when I stepped away from music as a full-time life in 2015 — told through music, stories and DJ events.
Each release of new music draws inspiration from feelings, emotions and memories of that life — different rooms, different eras. It is an exploration to understand and capture what those feelings were, and in some cases still are.
The Music
This EP is the beginning. 1990. When I first found the rave and re-ordered my DNA based on the sounds, songs and feelings of that era that can be summed up in the title track — Sunrise Through Warehouse Windows.
All three tracks here are an attempt to reach back and touch those mornings again. To put the listener back in the warehouses or open spaces where we would dance as the sun rose over the horizon.
To capture what I felt back in 1990 when the night transitioned into daybreak. Bodies moving in unison. People, places and music all connect. An era before algorithms.
(tracklisting)
A1 — Sunrise Through Warehouse Windows — 7:51
B1 — *Truly Amazing — 8:16
B2 — Sunrise Through Warehouse Windows (Floating Beatless Mix) — 4:20
Written and produced by Chris Lum for Abitare Music (ASCAP)
* Written and produced by Chris Lum - Abitare Music (ASCAP) & Jay-J Hernandez Stopped in Time (ASCAP). Originally released on Leaf Recordings 2000
The Great Escape is the debut collaborative album from San Francisco Legend, Larry June & prolific super producer, The Alchemist. Through a process that felt very organic, the two churned out an extra healthy amount of music that resulted in what may be their magnum opus. At 15 tracks, the album includes tasteful features from some of Hip-Hop's most celebrated figures; Action Bronson, Big Sean, Ty Dolla $ign, Slum Village, Boldy James, Evidence, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Worthy, Curren$y & Joey Bada$$. Like a fine wine, sit back, let it breathe, and enjoy the neat yet exquisitely rich complexities of two of Hip-Hop’s smoothest figures.
For Club Vision’s 15th anniversary, we wanted a record that would move beyond genre classifications, reflecting a project always driven by passion and musical discovery.
Giuglio’s CV11 follows this philosophy, with five tracks exploring different rhythms, atmospheres and sonic territories while coming together as one coherent journey.
“Spell Caster” opens the EP with dark, hypnotic Techno, blending deep basslines with an ethereal and melancholic melody. “Back in Time” moves into warmer Housy and Progressive territory, echoing the label’s sonic roots.
On the B-side, “Dumb” delivers a direct and dynamic energy, while “Transfer” brings the record to its peak with a dirty, acidic bassline and sharp melodies, built purely for the dancefloor.
The EP closes with “Made Man”, a deeper and more trippy track that brings the journey into a suspended, introspective dimension.
Prepare yourselves for an electrifying journey as Temudo makes his mark on Sciahri's label Sublunar, with a mesmerizing EP that encapsulates the essence of the artist's multifaceted techno mastery.
Hailing from Portugal and renowned as the co-owner of Hayes, Temudo has left an indelible mark on the techno landscape, affiliating with illustrious labels such as Klockworks and Blueprint. With a distinctive sonic signature, this EP, unveils the various dimensions of Temudo's sonic vision.
The sonic odyssey commences with 'U where my first second choice,' a pulsating blend of energy and hypnotic allure. Transitioning seamlessly into 'Asset 2,' the track resonates with an authentic, relentless stomping groove that is nothing short of captivating.
On the flip side, the EP unveils the warmer and groovier sounds of '2029' alongside the minimalistic and unforgettable tones of 'Affection.' These tracks beckon listeners to transcend to an alternate dimension, where the boundaries of techno are pushed to their limits.
The "La Musica Habla EP Purple Splattered Vinyl Edition" by 5universos is released as a 12" and focuses on stripped-back club sounds that move between minimal house and tech house. Striking bass sequences, pinpoint percussion, and sparingly placed melodic fragments create room for subtle tension; Balearic-tinged textures and dub elements stand out as stylistic markers, giving the tracks an airy spaciousness and allowing DJs to craft clear transitions in the mix.
The project is headed by Cristian Cosignani, who releases his own productions under the name 5UNIVERSOS and also runs the label of the same name. 5 Universos simultaneously serves as a vinyl store and a platform for curated releases, enabling the label to maintain a close connection to the club and DJ scene while keeping its program firmly focused on physical editions.
Sonically, the release relies on clear arrangements and a DJ-friendly structure: long, hypnotic sections, subtle filter work, and a focused low-end range invite creative mixing. The Purple Splattered Vinyl Edition underscores its collectible nature without placing the musical intention to front and center; the result is a matter-of-fact, dance-oriented EP that puts the characteristic style of 5universos in the spotlight.
Berlin Sessions II continues the dialogue between Ray Kajioka and Eddie Hale, two producers working across techno, electro and experimental ground. Explorer opens with a rolling low end and clipped hats, built for the peak. Seven, Kajioka alone, strips back to a stark Detroit pulse, drum machine logic laid bare. Home returns the pair to shared ground, warmer pads over a steady kick, built for the room rather than the mainroom. Eleven closes with Hale solo, electro accents and a looser, more experimental swing. Across four tracks the record moves between drive and detour, functional enough for a set, strange enough to stand apart from it.
Mutual Rytm spawns new sub-label ‘Versus’ with debut EP from longtime techno associates Regent and Chontane. Continuing to expand its creative world, SHDW’s Mutual Rytm imprint now introduces ‘Versus’ - a new sub- label crafted for creative symbiosis between two artists across one shared release. Opening the series with authority, Regent and Chontane man the debut offering - two close friends and native Berliners who have been shaping techno for more than 15 years. Both long-standing members of the Mutual Rytm family, having released multiple times here before, the pair have always created music informed by life immersed in their local scene. Having both mutually influenced one another over the years, here they present their shared interpretation of techno with individual artistic DNA, forming a unified sound that represents the best of both worlds. Regent goes first, leaning towards functional, anthemic, dance-floor-focused techno. ‘Ephemera’ is tight, minimal but forceful; ‘Slow Burn’ has synth tension rising through the dark, next to glitchy percussion; and ‘Afterglow’ lets in more light, bringing otherworldly synths that hang above the groove and consume your focus. Chontane then explores a more musical and unconventional approach. ‘Plaxaric’ is supple, warm, and deep techno that tunnels into an abyss. ‘Grounding Factor’ is just as economical in design, but with introverted funk and evolving layers of sound. ‘Mental Lab’ spins out into complex rhythms inspired equally by IDM, jungle, and techno. It’s a mental workout as well as a physical one. Both artists add a pair of digital bonus tracks. Regent’s ‘Control Room’ and ‘Rarely Enough’ deliver elevated, hypnotic tools, before Chontane’s ‘Escore’ and ‘Outside In’ bring extroverted drum patterns along with contrasting melodic unease
Mutual Rytm welcomes new school tastemakers Klint and Hemka to sub-label Versus for imprint’s second drop. SHDW’s Mutual Rytm welcomes back two standout label alumnus for the second edition of Versus, a newly-launched conceptual sub-label focused around two artists whose sound works individually and in unity. Hemka made an impressive and well-received debut with her full solo EP back in 2025, while Klint appeared on ‘Federation of Rytm IV’. Both artists hail from France, and have crafted a well-earned reputation for their own distinctive approaches to sound design - pairing locked in grooves with cosmic synth escapes. Across the EP, each artist delivers three individual takes on techno to make for an essential collection of high-end cuts, exploring the label’s ethos of creative symbiosis between two artists on one shared release. Klint’s tracks lean towards minimal yet highly effective, dance floor-focused DJ tools, starting with the lithe, stripped back menace of ‘Prism’, before the sparse eeriness of ‘Dobermann’ keeps you looking over your shoulder while remaining trapped in the groove. Third cut ‘Romance’ is more bold and muscular, with contoured drums and icy pads ramping up the tension and energy. Hemka then dives deeper into a hypnotic and anthemic direction while introducing her own voice into the mix. ‘Leave It’ is textured, percussive deep techno with shadowy whispers, while ‘Breathe’ has a dark, grinning undercurrent and scintillating snares fluttering over the drums. ‘Mindness’ then pairs spoken word atmospherics with taught drum pressure and an ethereal backlit glow. In addition, Klint's digital only cuts ‘1112’ and ‘Blue’ marry minimal synths with meticulously defined drums that hit hard, while Hemka's ‘Push’ is an anxious percussive trip, contrasting with the introspective emotional core of ‘Live To Tell’.
This solid jackin' house EP feat. PAKA PROJECT is packed with groove and a summer-ready vibe. Crafted with DJs in mind, perfect for layering, cutting basslines, and blending.. Cool brass elements, soulful textures, and hints of blues-style vocal samples woven throughout. Full pic sleeve.
Zonate welcomes Sancra for its seventh release. Hailing from Italy, Sancra's sound strikes a fine balance between dark, driving energy and groove for the dancefloor, coupled with the emotional elements that regularly feature in his work.
The A-side delivers two peak-time cuts that put this on full display. Beyond The Skies takes a darker tone, blending Sancra's unique neo-trance and techno style. The Truth Behind The Mystery leans further into euphoric territory, built around a catchy, emotive melody.
Flipping to the B-side, The Road For Heaven reveals Sancra's versatility - a breaksy electro cut layered with a growling vocal. B2 closes things out with a dystopian ambient track, as eerie as it is hypnotising.
With his Periodical EP, Isaiah delivers a six-tracker rooted in the foundations of early techno, built around percussion, groove, and stripped-back functionality. As a driving force in the underground scene, both as a DJ and the founder of the Frenzy and Vulged collectives, Isaiah meticulously designed this EP for selectors and club settings.
Opening with 'Monthly', the EP sets the tone with a punchy kick, crisp high-end percussion and a driving bassline, while smeared textures and subtle effects create depth within a minimal framework. 'Yearly' intensifies the approach, with sharper hi-hats and layered mid percussion pushing the energy forward, maintaining a hypnotic yet no-frills momentum.'Hourly' keeps the focus on rhythm, pairing dense percussion work with a bouncing bassline that locks into a steady groove, while occasional pad accents add flashes of brightness.
On the second half, 'Real' strips things back, centering around a rolling bassline and sparse percussion, with shimmering synth touches guiding the track into deeper territory. 'Everlasting' reintroduces a tougher edge, driven by a hard-hitting kick and a bouncing low end, while eerie synth elements add a darker tone. Closing the EP, Beau Didier, a rising force in the Techno scene and fellow Frenzy collective member, reshapes 'Everlasting' into a smoother, more low-end focused roller. Known for his heavy basslines and powerful rhythms, Didier brings the bassline to the forefront, softens the percussion and introduces vocal chops that expand the atmosphere.
On his debut EP on Regal's Backspin Records, the 8th release of the newborn imprint, Isaiahpresents a focused collection of percussive techno tools built for diverse sets, offering tracks for every moment while maintaining a consistent, groove-driven identity throughout.
In 2023, Kraków-based composer Martyna Basta and Los Angeles-based sound artist claire rousay were invited to Poland by Unsound for a short residency, where they spent a few days trading ideas and concepts, and brainstorming their first collaboration. Initially motivated to create lengthy, expansive pieces together, they also ended up experimenting with shorter vignettes, and ‘hotel room’ expresses these two extremes, featuring three long-form tracks and three brief, euphoric songs. “It wasn’t something we specifically planned,” explains Basta. “It just unfolded that way.” The most important stage of the process, however, was the period that followed the residency, when rousay and Basta began working on their sketches in isolation, trading drafts and sculpting the sounds independently before rousay handled the final mixdown. In the comfort of their own bedrooms, they were better able to reflect their individual creative routines, organically reaching a junction where their music felt truly unified. Even while they were in Poland, the duo joked that it might have been easier if they’d been holed up in separate rooms emailing each other.
Both artists have had an energetic few years: after steadily building a reputation for her diaristic and candid concrète experiments, rousay signed to Thrill Jockey in 2023, releasing the acclaimed ‘sentiment’, ‘a little death’ and the more eaze collaboration ‘no floor’; Basta, meanwhile, followed up 2023’s hallucinatory ‘Slowly Forgetting, Barely Remembering’ and her debut for Belgium’s Stroom imprint, ‘Diaries Beneath Fragile Glass’ with a studio album on !K7’s 7K sublabel: ‘Winged in Collapse’. The title of their collaboration reflects rousay and Basta’s hectic touring schedules in the wake of these releases, the constant feeling of displacement and the emotions that emerge when the environment is in flux. “I know we aren’t the only musicians traveling and creating work at the same time,” says rousay, “but being able to speak about that experience and all the things that come with it was comforting.” And the music itself, assembled from hypnagogic field recordings, spectral voices, electronics and filtered instrumental improvisations, sounds bewitchingly unmoored, not tied to a specific location but hovering around the uncanny space in-between.
Scratchy ASMR sounds introduce us to the opening track ‘zoom’, initially obscuring the duo’s elegiac harmonies. They are careful to let the various elements evolve at their own pace, with the fictile guitar drones melting into the foreground while Basta’s dissociated whispers and rousay’s illusory synths pick out the subtlest subliminal shades. It all builds to the piece’s dramatic third act, when layered chords ring out like organ blasts, enveloping the negative space. The shorter, more anxiety-provoking ‘denim’ is remarkably divergent, a dismantled folk memory pieced together from skeletal piano notes, vaporous choral echoes, haunting string plucks and pulsating feedback. Where the music aligns is in the mood itself, capturing a feeling that’s neither completely abstract nor fully referential. Not ambient exactly, ‘hotel room’ is a suite of soundscapes that gesture towards structure while repeatedly folding in on themselves.
On ‘Lost and Found’, wordless Autotuned ad-libs spiral around delicate guitar plucks and washing waves, coalescing into a faded Polaroid of opiated Americana, and on ‘Where Are You Now’, operatic squeals and corroded orchestral scrapes are juxtaposed with nauseous low-end tones. Evaporating until only industrial whirrs and music box chimes remain, the latter encapsulates the entire album’s chilling liminality, smudging saturated voices with casual electro-acoustic interjections before it erupts abruptly, transforming into a dense, pitch-skewed hymn. ‘hotel room’ plays like a surreal travelogue, teasing listeners with airy familiarities as it humidifies dry, awkward spaces. More a labyrinth of catacombs than a single, fixed chamber, it’s Escher-like – cryptic and seductive – and decked out with personal asides and intimate details that reward the most patient, curious listeners.
