Cerca:electro pop

From the whip-like crack of Yako's signature staccato vocals and impossible-to-memorize lyrics to the relentless overdrive tempo of their oneof-a-kind prog-core, Melt-Banana have long resided in a cybertopia of their own devising where the limits of technology and human capability are old-world concerns as quaint and cumbersome as bartering with a blacksmith. The demos for Fetch, their first studio album since the severely fried pop-punk of 1997's Bambi's Dilemma, were completed in March 2011, but the Fukushima earthquake changed everything, including
their ability to concentrate on recording. Which stopped completely.

Once they felt ready to return to their music, they decided to approach the songs on a sound-by-sound basis, choosing each tone with meticulous attention to detail, affirming their personal connections, being themselves naturally and openly.


Fetch scrapes glam shimmers off punk's outermost fringes and forges them into a rather intensely technical Deanscape packed with fantastical hybrids. Agata's guitar riffs, seemingly composed in tandem with skipping CD players, are more bad-ass than ever, bright and fractured like the soundtrack for a CC-Hennix-scored biker flick. The album is juiced with electronics and post-rock production, tempering what could easily be a
tiresome and predictable frenzy, yielding unexpected associations: Kate Bush climaxing on Walter White's blue meth; demos of late-period Wire playing metal run through Wasp synthesizers and Autotune; unripe wild
lychees keeping time on an Ankgor Wat tin roof during a monsoon.

They've been performing live as a duo since summer 2012, and will do the same for their '2 do what 2 fetch' tour in support of the album. After nearly 20 years of playing with a live rhythm section, their use of a PC, while opening possibilities for a variety of drum and synth voicings, does not signal a move away from the traditional live band sound, as heard, for example, via the future transmissions from downtown Noiseapolis on
2009's Lite Live: Ver. 0.0. Yako and Agata say they need to feel real band sounds onstage as much as someone in the audience. This is a group that routinely excels at several kinds of impossible simultaneously, so of course any new challenge they come up with for themselves is sure to blow the doors off your Mini Cooper. - First record as a duo expands the M-B sound
into multiple dimensions - LP includes digital download card; first
pressing on clear vinyl

Bordello A Parigi. Ali Renault. A gin and tonic combo if there ever was one. The UK synthesizer savant lands with a four tracker of leftfield electro pop. 'Altro Mondo' screams out of the traps, bulbous bass lines elbow sweetened chords and snapping beats. 'Fume' grows from the same soil. Analogue warmth is brushed, even bruised, by the crack and whip of rhythms; a touch of EBM bitterness blended with Italo hope. Nowhere is this more evident than in...'Nowhere', a buckled dancefloor romp with the king of Milano, Fred Ventura, offering vocals. Uabos maintains the tension for the finale, uplifting house currents coursing through his remix of 'Lenticular'.

'I take my guitar and strum and sing some tings and blow people's mind. But I ain't trying to do anybody's music. I'm doing what I feel' - Shadow

When it came out in 1984 the far-out album Sweet Sweet Dreams by Trinidad & Tobago's Shadow (aka Winston Bailey) was described as 'way ahead of its time'. Undeservedly it was panned by critics and, unable to reach markets, disappeared into the dusty record collections of a few music aficionados. Now, more than three decades later that cosmic dance-floor UFO is about to take off again, change all that and set the record straight. Remastered and cut by Frank Meritt at The Carvery the album is truly a masterpiece.

But who is this Shadow behind Sweet Sweet Dreams Shadow is a man of understated magnitude. A truly enigmatic artist, he first emerged in Trinidad and Tobago during the 1970s, becoming a part of the tapestry of Caribbean music and reinvigorating calypso at the time. Calypso, the indigenous folk music of Trinidad and Tobago, has roots in West African kaiso rhythms, French Creole influences, and the hardships endured by the African slaves brought to Trinbago, whose descendants still use it as a tool for satire, self-expression, and social commentary. Calypso has also given birth to several other music genres, including soca, with its uptempo beats and festival context. Shadow effortlessly moves between both.

Shadow came from a humble but musical family and started writing songs as a youth while tending cattle in the fields. To his family's initial chagrin he chose calypso over church music but his talent and drive were undeniable. In the early days of his career Shadow's style was cramped when working with some of the more conservative music arrangers who felt that calypso and soca should fit a mould. But after a while Shadow teamed up with more innovative arrangers, including Arthur 'Art'de Coteau, who followed their and Shadow's intuitions resulting in a long line of hits.

'The first time we met for me to arrange his music we had a heated argument on the arrangement for one of his songs, I was theoretically correct but Shadow was musically right. Shadow broke all the traditional musical rules and made his own and that made him a musical giant. He changed the face of Calypso music in 1974 with the release of "Bassman" a tune in which Bass and magnificent horn line took central stage changing Soca music for ever. What Shadow did with his music was to put calypso on the International Dance circuit, giving it a totally different groove. You could take his music and swing it in any direction, Disco, Pop, Calypso, you name it. His music was different from anything that existed before'. - Carl "Beaver" Henderson, one of Trinidad's veteran producers.

This inert creativeness culminated in Sweet Sweet Dreams which was arranged by Shadow and deals with burning and ever-relevant themes like love and the ups and downs of relationships. a surprising fact for someone mainly known for his satirical and political lyrics. It prompted his manager to wonder if Shadow had written the lyrics while in a state of 'tabanca' (a word used in Trinidad and Tobago to describe lovesickness).

Sweet Sweet Dreams was recorded at the legendary SHARC studios, located on a hill in Chaguaramas (near Port of Spain) and despite a fantastic sound and monster Soca-boogie tunes like 'Lets get it together', 'Lets Make it Up' and 'Way, Way Out' the album was a commercial flop, probably due to the fact that it didn't sound like anything else coming out of Trinidad & Tobago at the time: It fused a range of different rhythms and new sounds, primarily heavy synth riffs.

Shadow took the album's lack of success in his stride with usual aplomb:
'When I did Sweet Dreams I expect something could happen. But nothing big happen because I have no big market and no distribution and all this thing now. So I just cool myself and move on to another song. I wasn't doing just one song. I used to always have plenty songs at the one time. And be writing music'.

What Shadow didn't realise back then was that the proto-electronic cocktail he had mixed in 1984 would only find the recognition it deserved three decades later. Life has swung full circle: Sweet Sweet Dreams has come true and been elevated to holy grail status becoming one of the most sought-after Caribbean disco records in existence.

For this re-release we carried out extensive interviews with Shadow and the musicians and have included as bonuses exclusive photos from Shadow's personal collection and the dancefloor filler tune 'D'Hardest' was added as a bonus track.

Green Vinyl

Back in the days at the west-Saxon highlands there was a missile, which marked the starting point. When Credit 00 saw the legendary rocket rise on Tetris' final screen, it was the first time he became aware of electronic music at all. Since then it actually hasn't changed that much. He keeps pushing that buttons that belong to the impressive pool of music machines towered up next to his bed.

After moving to Dresden in 2000 to study fine arts, his passion for synthesizers and drum machines got nurtured through visits of Dresden's club-canalisation. He quickly made himself a name as a DJ, who is just doing his own thing and got popular for that reason. As a part of the Idealfun-crew he started hosting parties always in the twilight zone between legal and illegal. This led to Robo Dance', Dresden's only and (also for some other reasons) best Electro club night featuring guests like DMX Krew, Luke Eargoogle or Imatran Voima. The track Credit made with Randy Barracuda of Imatran Voima has probably been created some time after the show. Apparently, Randy was not in good shape anymore and so Lebensraum' unmistakably bears Credit's hallmarks.

For his own music he's inspired by cannibal movies, number theory and birds. Still, his music is not easy to pigeonhole. After all, he loves Synth Wave, Electro, Afro, Kraut, Kosmische, Disco, Italo, Miami Bass and other Proto stuff - a lot of machine music.

The Micronaut creates the soundtrack for those moments when the screeching of the subway and the steps on the wet pavement have echoed away into the dark city sky. Those moments when the ghosts of fumes and stop lights haunt the empty streets, when behind glowing windows dreams and urban exit strategies get ready for bed. When everybody is close to each other, but everyone is on his own. When the city comes to a standstill, but the wheels inside the heads of its inhabitants keep spinning. Stefan Streck discovers the musical equivalent for this epic atmosphere somewhere between Bass Music, Electronica and Pop. The cinematic soundscapes of his nocturnal City Blues have a somewhat tragic vibe, which is very noticeable both during the impulsive, passionate live shows of The Micronaut and on 'Forms', his third studio album on Acker Records, distributed through Kompakt. Between moments of deep melancholy and sudden eruptions of blissful euphoria he creates a feverish state of tension.

* 'Limerence' is not only Misantrop's debut outing, it is also the inaugurating release of his own label Foul-Up.

* The sound pops out of an industrial mindset, but the title piece reverses out of garage/classic house that nods to 90s r'n'b. On 'Nocturnal Emission' friend Jon Marius Brogaard Aeppli's guitar solo is vogueing out on the floor, psychedelic rock meets psychotic blues by way of sheer UK sound.

* Featuring a wobbling bass on the techno-leaning 'No. 3' - adorned with a reference to classical composition in the cluster strings. 'They Don't Know' puts on a bit of electro, noise and some giallo synth arpeggiation. There's shine, atmosphere and a rather fascinating depth of field.

* 'Limerence' draws its inspiration from all over contemporary music and noise grounds - not wearing its 'influences' in the most opulent manner but well declaring its material with confidence. If the finished product doesn't have the uniformity of a proper industrial product, so much the better...

* Misantrop is out to change the way you listen to music, no matter how chaotic the journey is, showing off a vision that's both deeply human and richly transcendent.

For fans of: Kyle Hall, Actress, Shed, Drexciya, Levon Vincent, Helm, Anthony Shakir, Drexciya, Actress, Mica Levi, John Carpenter, Burial, Aphex Twin

POP AMBIENT - our longest-running compilation series after Total - sees a new instalment for 2017, featuring exclusive material from acclaimed genre veterans and series newcomers JENS-UWE BEYER, YUI ONODERA & SCANNER, MAX WÜRDEN, LEANDRO FRESCO, THORE PFEIFFER, KENNETH JAMES GIBSON and SOULSAVERS remixed by WOLFGANG VOIGT.
Following his own cues from preceding entries, Pop Ambient chief curator Voigt again strikes a perfect ratio of established producers and debuting guests: our complete Pop Ambient solo album crew makes an appearance, from JENS-UWE BEYERs atmospheric soundscapes on the tracks FINAL 9.1 and FINAL 10, to THORE PFEIFFERs glitch romance GOOD LIFE, LEANDRO FRESCOs beatific drone fests SONIDO ESPAÑOL and EL ABISMO, as well as KENNETH JAMES GIBSONs melancholic epic HER FLOOD KNOCKED ME TO THE GROUND (BUT I WAS ALREADY THERE. Other returning artists include ANTON KUBIKOV of SCSI-9 fame (with electronic reverie DEKKA) and Cologne soundsmith MAX WÜRDEN, who was last seen releasing wonderfully immersive albums on BineMusic and Wolfgang Voigt's very own Exponate series. His guitar-infused, dubbed-out cut FERNFELD and the mysterious electronic mantra 186.000 MILES PER SECOND are particularly striking renditions of the rich sonic narratives possible in Pop Ambient.
For the 2017 release, we welcome Tokyo-based Pop Ambient novice YUI ONODERA with his tracks CROMO1 and CROMO2, which both serve as opener: a trained musician and architectural acoustic designer by trade, Onodera embeds diverse influences from traditional sound design, film scores, contemporary composition and electro-acoustic experimentation in his work, resulting in intricate drone sculptures and sound skylines. This skill set gels naturally with the sonic sensibilities of iconic experimental composer SCANNER who teams up with Onodera for the cut LOCUS SOLUS - it's an incredible honour to have such a towering figure in advanced electronic music on board. Wolfgang Voigt himself makes an appearance as remixer, turning the track HAL from electronic-rock-gospel duo SOULSAVERS' 2015 album "Kubrick" into a voluptuous and immersive sound journey. It's the cherry on top of a particularly fluffy cake that will prove irresistible to any connoisseur of ambient music.

Beautiful Deluxe Artwork, Limited ot to not to is an experimental RnB project by VA native Ian Mugerwa that combines low fidelity electronic recording techniques with unconventional song structures to produce music that serves as homage to dusty old blues recordings. At 19, Ian left his hometown of Fairfax for Richmond, where he slept on friends' floors for several months while recording Goshen. During the day he would "hunt dussy" and during the night he would haul borrowed equipment over to the VCU music facilities and record until the morning. He was moderately successful on both fronts. The resultant recordings form a coming of age album, a snapshot of Ian from the ages of nineteen to twenty. Ian's goal was to explore new aesthetics in black music through use of nontraditional methods, creating less polished, less sterile RnB in the process. Such methods included layering 40+ cello tracks to create the illusion of an orchestra, or collaging four, separate, 4-minute tracks of improvised percussion into one. Most drums were recorded last. Despite the focus on experimentation, it was important to Ian that he be crafting pop music. It is his belief that an impactful artist has, at least to some degree, a moral responsibility to deliver their art to the maximum amount of people (to efficiently help art as a whole progress). In other words, if restraint can be exercised, it ought to be. Similar artists include James Blake, Phil Elvrum, Mark Hollis, and D'Angelo.

Sebastian Maschat a.k.a. Stoneage Kid has been around in the House Music scene for about 15 years now: Cult Stoner House with - Extra Produktionen', drummer in Erlend Oye's - Whitest Boy Alive' and numerous other projects.- Stoneage Kid' is an hardware / MPC based act, with own vocals and a very distinctive Electro Pop aesthetique. His first EP on - Smile for a while' creally sounds like Captain Comatose meeting Isolée in some purple haze panic room...You'll find melancholic Drum machine jams, some serious synths, lotsa vocoder and a lot of bassline-bumping. Phillip Lauer delivers a refreshingly cheesy remix with God singing solo and the Holy Ghost on drums - just as expected.- Hang On To A Dream' is quite a special tune, written and sung by German Indie veteran Otto von Bismarck. This Remix version is really something for intimate connoiseurs of both Pop and House Music.

As Claremont 56 speeds towards its' ten-year anniversary, label founder Paul Murphy continues to champion little known producers and previously unheard artists. Over the past 12 months, the label has showcased material from rising talents
such as Bella Figura, Simon Peter, Paraiso and Oma & Amberfame. Now, Claremont 56 is adding another new name to the roster: Statues. Essex-based trio Bradley Lucke (production/bass/percussion/keys), Mark Crooks (keys/production) and Grant Carruthers (vocals/guitar) has been making music on-and-off together since they were teenagers, and last year decided to come together under the Statues alias. They submitted a number of demos to Paul Murphy, who was so impressed by what he heard that he offered to help produce and write an album with them. As debut singles go, 'Alaula' is stunning. Reminiscent of many softly spun
moments from the Claremont 56 back catalogue, it builds slowly and breezily via subtle waves of organic and electronic instrumentation. Carruthers' impassioned vocals pop in and out of the mix at opportune moments, peeping above alluring acoustic guitar, bass, synthesizer and Rhodes parts. Throw in
tumbling, life-affrming piano lines and swelling cello parts - both provided by friend-of- the-family Robin Lee of Faze Action - and you've got another near- perfect chunk of sunset-friendly, horizontal brilliance. On the fip, Murphy dons his familiar Mudd alias to provide a superb Piano Dub. Building the action around a sparse, delay-laden percussion track, Murphy teases out the track's most potent moments, in the process creating something
that lingers even longer in the memory. Lee's superb piano and cello work naturally takes pride of place, as Murphy expertly emphasizes the track's impeccably atmospheric nature.

Gerd Janson and Phillip Lauer are creatures of habit. Every week, the two club veterans meet up at Phillip's studio and spend an entire day making tunes. And while Gerd often likes to joke that his role in the arrangement is limited to making coffee and looking at his cell phone, it's clear that the two men have forged a potent partnership, one that's been responsible for an astonishing amount of dancefloor heat over the past few years.

Incredibly, this German pair has managed to maintain a relatively low profile, despite the steady stream of music they've released via well-respected labels like Unterton, Delsin, Internasjonal, Permanent Vacation and Live at Robert Johnson. And then there are the remixes—Azari & III, Scuba, The Juan Maclean, Fort Romeau, Avalon Emerson, Massimiliano Pagliara and Sinkane are just a small sampling of the artists who've enlisted Tuff City Kids to work their studio magic.

Throughout it all, there have been whispers of a proper Tuff City Kids album, and now that Adoldesscent has arrived, it will be all but impossible for the duo to linger in the background. After all, the LP is anything but shy—thanks in part to hooky vocal turns from the likes of Annie, Joe Goddard, Kelley Polar and Jasnau—and even the album's instrumental cuts feature some clear nods to various eras of dance-pop, from the boogie-inflected funk of 'Wake People' to the breakbeat techno of 'Boilered' and the tweaky rave nostalgia of 'Nordo.' Elsewhere, first single 'Labyrinth' is an infectious bit of new wave, while the guitar-driven 'Scared' recalls the gloomier side of '80s pop and 'Tell Me' is perhaps the record's most playfully soulful moment.

DJs will likely gravitate toward the darting strings of 'Aska' and breezy vibes of 'Farewell House,' yet Adoldesscent isn't entirely focused on the dancefloor. Dreamy opener 'Ophmar' evokes the legacy of John Carpenter, while the crunchy 'R-Mancer' offers up a sort of psychedelic synth freakout.

Much like the Tuff City Kids themselves, Adoldesscent isn't about any one style or sound in particular. It is, however, a cohesive effort, along with proof that the different corners of the electronic spectrum have a lot more in common than we'd all like to admit. More importantly, it's a whole lot of fun, and isn't that what dance music is supposed to be about anyways

Bocal 5 were a No Wave art group composed of Doc Pilot (synths, vocals), Zouka Dzaza (bass), Florian Guillou (synths), Mickey Lepron (electronic drums, bass) and Evy Tinguette (lead vocals). The project was born in November 1980 in Tours, France as the brain child of Doc Pilot. Between 1981 to 1986 Bocal 5 recorded one 7' single and a cassette-only album before taking a year off in 1984 to launch X-Ray Pop. Influenced by Erik Satie, Brigitte Bardot, Suicide and Young Marble Giants, they call their music "minimum naive new wave."

Musique Électronique' is a 19-track compilation of songs recorded across 1983, most of which have never been released on vinyl before. 16 tracks appeared on the From Bocal 5 To X-Ray Pop' album originally released on cassette by Sound of Pig in 1984. Both tracks from their debut 7' originally released in MB5 1984 are included and show a progression in sound as a result of newer recoding equipment and techniques. Also present is a song from the tape compilation Andreas N°3 L'Animal" released by Fraction Studio in 1984. Armed with a Korg 770, MS-10, Prophet Pro-One, Roland TR-707 and TB-808 they crafted their own brand of quirky synthesized electronic pop. Songs are short, concise and well structured, richly textured, moving at a quick speed with hardly a pause. Evy's pouting, tongue-in-cheek vocals (sung in French) come together for a catchy, sensuous, danceable, eccentric psychedelic ride. This collection shows the group's sense of humor, vitality and carefree playfulness.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each jacket displays a bright neon green collage of photos and ephemera from the band's archives designed by Eloise Leigh that exudes the project's DIY spirit. Each copy includes a 6-page xeroxed booklet with photos, original artwork and press clippings.

Xerophkz is back with a second EP on the self titled label. The second release furthers his journey into uncompromising, expressive electronic music, and there is a lot to choose from on this record. From lush ambient electronica and emotive synth driven soundscapes, to frantic almost rave influenced techno and abrasive textural show stoppers this release represents a fresh and unique counterpoint to the popular structures and formats of modern techno. With only two releases to date this artist is already one to watch.

Given the underground acclaim heaped on Marie Davidson's previous albums - ultra-stylish affairs that blend elements of minimal wave, dark Italo-disco, off-kilter electro and moody ambient - it's little surprise to see her popping up on Minimal Wave offshoot Cititrax. The album's nine tracks are largely sharp, rough and fuzzy, with sparse-but-dense drum machines rhythms underpinning bouncy, delay-laden synth lines, thrusting electronics and Davidson's sleazy, spoken word vocals. It's an attractive combination that guarantees thrills throughout, from the almost claustrophobic throb of "Denial", to the mutant electrofunk bounce of "Good Vibes".

Quintessentials is very happy to present their 50th release! To celebrate this, we invited some buddies to bring the deep beats. And damn they did! Mat Chiavaroli, one of your main artists who is getting stronger and stronger, opens this jubilee release with upbuilding powerful tune, just the tune the get Quintessentials 50 started! Great to see profilic dutch producer Nachtbraker (Heist, Quartet Series) on the label too. We love his style and he will soon be as popular as Ajax Amsterdam! His subtle and dirty "Bronco" fits in perfectly. The definitive club tune that grooves and grooves and grooves comes from Ponty Mython (Dirt Crew). Alexandr is a cool guy and this is defo a cool tune. Last but not least is Soul of Hex (Freerange, Vicario). Our mexican friend is going very raw this time. Yes, why not call it electronic body music (remember)! As we are gentlemen, we added a Quintessentials sticker in the vinyl edition. Go and get it!

Synths Versus Me is a prolific duo formed by Vanessa Asbert and Nico Cabañas. They already put out a bunch of releases edited by Oráculo Records. Minimal Synth, EBM and Cold Wave from Lloret de Mar (Spain).

This 12' EP (ltd. 300 copies) includes two brand new tracks and two exclusive remixes. The original version of 1987' is an atomic bomb of pure vintage EBM in the vein of Signal Aout 42 and Front 242. The remix done by Dirk Da Davo from The Neon Judgement keeps the feeling of the track but adding some drums, guitar samplers and sequences trademarked by this Belgian legend. On the b-side there is the original mix of Aimless Device', an electro-pop tune with catchy melodies, analogic bass lines and female voices. The remix prepared for this track by the new american sensation Boy Harsher is a surefire dancefloor full of hypnotic beats and dark atmospheres. All tracks remastered by Eric Van Wonterghem at Prodam Studios (Berlin).

ears ago he started putting together some selections for a friend of his: Luca. The intention was to pick songs to be played during car rides, and like any other kind of ritual, this too would come with strict rules. You'd have to go throw the whole selection of 100 tracks without skipping, because every single one was important. Be it the sounds, the arrangement or its creativity, each track was there for a very specific reasons. It quickly became a monthly event which for several years evolved in a deep musical research without genre boundaries: Disco and psychedelic, soundtracks, library music, exotica, electronic and dance music, italo, new wave, pop or prog. Tracks of each and any historical period and provenance had been featured in this special compilations. But it wasn't always that easy to come up with the right piece and eventually Francesco started producing a few on his own to fill in the gaps. After six tracks, it was quite clear that there was a project developing, one in which he could finally experiment freely, leaving behind the rules that often come with dance tracks. Of course, no name could have been better than the one of his friend that had inspired everything And so L.u.c.a was born. Now, while preserving the same mind set, L.u.c.a is back with an album that embraces a new-hippie vibe, strongly pervaded by a mystical naturalism. This is a whole new universe in the making, where rumbling magmatic atmospheres evolve gradually in a journey through an idealist new world, celestial interludes revealing a full take over of nature, with a pervasive library feel that dates back to the great Italian masters, carrying on Edizioni Mondo's legacy.

TOTAL compilation series hardly needs an introduction: we rummage through the Kompakt releases to select our favorites from the past year that reflect our best and unsaid tracks, compiled and packaged as a cohesive whole.

For TOTAL 16, the 2xCD and digital track listing features 25 prominent cuts from artists such as THE FIELD, WEVAL, REX THE DOG, TERRANOVA, HUNTER/GAME, FRANKEY & SANDRINO, JOHN TEJADA, BLOND:ISH or PATRICE BÄUMEL.

On top, TOTAL 16 includes eight exclusive tracks which happen to make up the 2xLP vinyl track listing. What you have is a dynamic assortment and comprehensive profile of Kompakt's current label portfolio, including both newcomers and veteran producers in peak form.

Keeping up a good old TOTAL tradition, we also planted brandnew material from core artists and friends - check out exclusive tracks such as MICHAEL MAYER's aptly named ACTION, an absolutely rinsing acid cracker, or MATIAS AGUAYO's stellar KOMM, sitting comfortably among his best and most stirring work to date. Meanwhile, JÜRGEN PAAPE drops silky, atmospheric synth pads on EDEN and THE MODERNIST teams up with Hot Chip's JOE GODDARD for the pop-infused THE PRICE OF LOVE. Another highlight is the debut release from exciting newcomer LAKE TURNER: BEACON FIELDS is a misty- eyed, melancholic piece focussing on exquisite electronic textures and sweeping melodies.

As with previous TOTAL installments, we collect these exclusives on a separate 2xLP edition, but like to add a handful of cuts that can only be found on the vinyl version - for TOTAL 16, these include ALEX UNDER's LLAMAN A LA PUERTA, a densely layered, slow-paced synth jam that makes for a inspired detour from the propulsive, lean beats the Spanish producer has become known for. SWEET 100 present a masterfully crafted study in hypnotic minimalism on SIX, while VOIGT & VOIGT hark back to the pounding, sensual abrasiveness of early Auftrieb releases on DENKEN SIE LAUT, crossbred with the tongue-in-cheek gloom of the brothers' later, more psychedelic offerings.

The Kompakt favorites from the past year, compiled and packaged as a cohesive whole, with cuts from THE FIELD, THE ORB, COMA, BLOND:ISH, HUNTER/GAME, JOHN TEJADA, REX THE DOG, TERRANOVA and many more..

Features exclusive new tracks from MICHAEL MAYER, MATIAS AGUAYO, JÜRGEN PAAPE, THE MODERNIST, ALEX UNDER, SWEET 100, VOIGT & VOIGT and LAKE TURNER

Not even a month has passed since Sierra Sam and Pascal Hetzel ´s CYRK project launched with the high impact homage 'Tribute' and they return with yet another respectfully rooted release.
Channelling the energies of Detroitian agenda-setters such as Inner City, Joey Beltram and Scott Grooves, CYRK celebrate the original template and ingredients that have gone on to inform every genre that's since passed. Easy to say... A dark art to master without repeating something that's already been done before. Safe to say that CYRK definitely have that art mastered...
Its deft ping-pong riff echoing through classic detuned synth tones and unrelenting beats refusing to stop even for the honeyed evocative tones of singer Christine Eusebio , 'Fantasy' is one of those tracks you'll feel you know but also understand its freshness instantly. The type of track that gets crowds grinning like Cheshire cats the second it pops on... Even though they've never heard it before. Rooted in history, coded in innovation, it's more proof that CYRK's three-headed formula is better than one.
Remix-wise both Pascal Hetzel and Gerome Sportelli remain in Detroit: Pascal looks towards the likes of Mills and UR's 'World Power Alliance' phase for inspiration with his heads-down, militant techno aesthetics while Gerome conjures up sensations of Cybotron and The Preps with his slinky, ice-edged electro adaptation. Both versions take Christine's surging, sensual vocals to new creative pastures... And they've invited you to do the same with the acapella version, too.
Celebrating a legacy while keeping it fresh, CYRK remind us where we've come from... And where we're heading.ind us where we've come from... And where we're heading.

Axodry was the duo of Andreas Talla 2XLC" Tomalla and Ralf "Ra/Hen" Henrich, who formed in Frankfurt, Germany in 1982. The two met at City Music record store where Talla 2XLC worked, supplying the local DJ scene with dance 12's. From 1984 to 1991 they released six maxi 12' singles. Both members were leading figures in the European electronic scene during the 80's and 90's, forming bands like Bigod 20, Tribantura, Micro Chip League, Moskwa TV, Pluuto and Robotiko Rejekto.

In 1988 they released the maxi 12' single You' on ZYX Records/Combeat. Influenced by Depeche Mode, Gary Numan and John Foxx, the duo crafted high impact Industrial, Synth Pop and Electronic Body Music. Their basic set up for recording at RaHen's home studio was a Moog Rouge, Roland SH-101, Teisco synthesizer, Linn Drum and Fricke sequencer. Ra/Hen performed dramatic vocals, which tell of a lost love found in dreams. Included here are the Beauty & The Beat Mix and the Beasty Dub Mix from the 1988 single. On the flip is the Razormaid Remix, performed by Art Maharg and Joseph Watt, that originally appeared on the "Welcome To The Technodrome' compilation in 1989. Also included is Mechanic', originally released in 1991 as the B-side for their final single Losing You'.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The record comes in a sleeve featuring the original black and blue cover art with hand-painted typography by Dr. Draw, The Gruesome Grapholoic. Each copy includes a postcard with with notes. What Else Is There To Say