Beats News

Grace Ferguson is a Pianist, Composer and Sound Designer based at Eastmint Studios, Melbourne, whose works seek to position the audience in a space conducive to subjective inflections, inarticulate knowledge and felt encounters.

Her debut LP release 'Voler' (out on Music Company) was met critical acclaim and reached number #4 on the Australian Independent Record (AIR) charts. The album now gets a limited vinyl pressing in a custom die cut sleeve.

Underground garage music from U.K artists, Highrise & label boss Marc Cotterell

Waking the Dreaming Body is the follow-up to Tucson artist Karima Walker's 2017 standout album Hands In Our Names, which garnered praise from Pitchfork, MOJO, and Bandcamp. The album includes dense harmonic arrangements of synthesizer, guitar, piano, percussion, field recordings, tape loops and Karima's dulcet singing voice. The final result is a 40-minute dream-narrative of her conscious and subconscious minds that oscillates between the rich textures of her ambient work and the melody and poetry of her melancholic, Americana-tinged songwriting, their ebb and flow recalling liminal states of half-sleep where images and emotions are recalled and forecasted from the previous night's dreams. Night falls in regular intervals throughout the album, forming a natural dialogue between waking and dreaming.

Príncipe’s dreamiest act supply a special batch of fizzing electronic exotica and ambient vignettes echoing the Black Atlantic waves of Drexciya, Iasos’ blessed new age harmonies, and the windswept wist of Zoviet France On their prodigal turn to Lisbon’s finest label following 2018 album ‘Apologia’, the trio of Alberto Arruda, António Arruda, and Sara Eckerson aka Niagara distill their wide-ranging influences in sloshing rhythms and briny electronic textures with a sense of mystery that is patently their own.
Their music on ‘Filho & Pais’ feels more enigmatic than ever, largely leaving regular percussion aside and letting their spontaneous hardware jams froth and lilt with an enchantingly loose, rhythmelodic sensibility and natural ecologic.
Like the Atlantic Ocean they live by, Niagara’s music feels eternally in churning flux, shaped by the elements and lunar cycles, rather than human hands. The relative absence of urgent drums leaves each piece more fluid and expansive, as epitomised on the gorgeous lather of glinting synth voices in EP highlight ’46 x 92m’, and what sounds like them riffing on a Drexciya intro in the retrofuturist enigma of ’Tília’, while the salty spray of ’21:44’ sounds like an early AFX ‘SAW’ number found in a Cornish rockpool. However, their rhythmic intuitions lead them to some of the most beautifully elusive patterns resembling sea creatures scuttling around coral under gulf-stream
heated waters on the three ‘Ano-‘ parts, helping shares up the release as a wonderfully imaginative package holiday to warmer climes for those who need it.

Timelash is the evolution of Embassador Dulgoon’s cryptozoological sci-fi opus ‘Hydrorion Remnants’ converging with Corum’s surreal sonic mapping as ‘Beguiling Isles’. The combined cinematic vision jettisons listeners through a psychedelic wormhole far beyond the usual perception of known audio latitude.

Aguirre Records has gone all out to inject this tribal dino DNA double slab of wax presented as twelve expansive and mesmerizing tracks of historical mutations linking early communication developments with speculative astrobiological impressions heard as mysterious & riveting melodies that wash over dizzying percussive styles and suspenseful ambience.

A variety of unexampled sounds take shape throughout as tectonic tablature, reptilian choral movements, bubbling bioluminescence, tube calls, orogenic bells, crustacean chatter, lost continent scales, high plains drifting riffs, and primordial soup lapping splashes revealing to listeners a living mural that is ’A Morphology of Wonders'.

The conjuring of cratonic creature harmonics resonate wildly from this interdimensional duet, emerging as Neopangaea music of now

10" Grey Vinyl
Following on from last release's b-boy junglist outings, this time the ill behaviour comes in the form of two reggae-tinged Amen rollers, bringing new meaning to the word "delicious"

just a few in this bloody world...

The ambient/cross-genres record label Concentric Records (Simone Merli / Soundwalk Collective & Luca Calo / Born In 1986) - launches Colliding Wind, the second compilation of its introductory release trilogy. Featuring music by Christina Vantzou, Echium, Etapp Kyle, Jana Winderen, Kareem Lotfy, Soundwalk Collective, Tragic Selector (Daisuke Tadokoro & Terre Thaemlitz), the album is composed of a wide spectrum of ambient, field recording-based and experimental works, exploring unexpected sonic spaces and evocative landscapes.

COLLIDING WIND is inspired by the powerful force that is produced when a minimum of two beings or elements are combined and acting together. Science explains us that a colliding-wind binary is a binary star system in which the two members are massive stars that emit powerful, radiatively-driven stellar winds. The location where these two winds collide produces a strong shock. As we reference the state of world chaos today, a colliding-wind is a reassuring reminder of the inspiring thought that the act of coming together as one produces exponentially powerful results.

The opening track is SOUNDWALK COLLECTIVE’s ‘Running On Emptiness’. Commissioned by Sasha Waltz for her 3-hour epic choreography ‘EΞΟΔΟΣ I Exodos’, the piece is composed out of moving architectural structures and their echoing resonances. Back in 2012, the Collective has placed 147 contact sensors on all surfaces inside and outside of the Berghain club: concrete walls, steel staircases, water pipes, ventilation tunnels, air ducts, metal frames, ... mapping out the whole structure and progressively recording the entire movement of the building under the impact of the music, with the intention of exposing the silent voice of the building. This composition reflects the sense of a space that is left behind in between the margins.

Raised in a small town in western Ukraine, ETAPP KYLE was trained as a classical musician before his first teenage club permanently changed his musical trajectory. Over the past few years, his cavernous and often hallucinatory techno has dovetailed into an obsession with spatial qualities of sound. “10K was originally recorded in 2017 as a simple piano-leading ambient track during a home studio session. It was developed further only in 2020 after Simone & Luca invited me to contribute to the project. A sudden burst of inspiration came during a mix-down session when I tried to re-record the original timbre of the piano. Eventually, while experimenting, it went a completely different direction and the track turned into its present form. Thanks to Simone for an encouraging word while I was working on the track.” - Etapp Kyle

TRAGIC SELECTOR is the duo comprised of Daisuke Tadokoro and Terre Thaemlitz. “This piano piece was originally composed for an event with the Japanese Butoh dance ensemble Dairakudakan. The focus of Butoh seems to be stopping and holding the body in place. Globally speaking, from classical ballet to dance parties, most forms of dance emphasize movement. Perhaps the core of Butoh is more akin to learning to sit in a chair. In that sense, there are similarities to some forms of Western contemporary dance. But most contemporary dance still emphasizes movement. Butoh has a lot of stillness. In order to be still - to stop the body - a dialogue with gravity becomes necessary, which is how this piece gets its title. Pianos create sound by hitting strings with hammers. The hammers of a grand piano strike in conversation with gravity. The vertical hammers of an upright piano resist speaking with gravity. The high- grade electric piano used for this particular recording has a hammerlike mechanism. Whether or not it is in dialogue with gravity, I am uncertain." - Daisuke Tadokoro

KAREEM LOTFY (Arabic: كريم لطفي) is an electronic music producer, graphic designer and visual artist from Egypt, who lives and works in Cairo. Lofty’s work engages critically with current political and social issues. Influenced by Internet culture, he is fascinated by the intercultural mix in his native Egypt. ‘Molten Tactics’ offers a palpable departure from his usually lush and visceral ambiance, notably heard on Kelela’s AQUAPHORIA mixtape and PAN’s mono no aware compilation (the latter was sampled in Kanye West’s ‘I Thought About Killing You’). The track’s obscured granular synthesis creates a vacuum of feeling, leaving remnants of field recordings to guide the rest of the composition. It teases Lofty’s classically soulful and foreboding style – but only for a second before trailing off into the abyss.

CHRISTINA VANTZOU’s ‘Dvorjacked’ is a rework of Dvořák's "American" Quartet - Movement II (Lento). “It’s a fragment of the piece, one phrase really, and it's just old enough to be in the public domain which is of interest to me. I used a modular synthesizer called the Morphagene to loop and process the recording. I wanted to work with a piece of existing chamber music and I was especially looking for something that sounded like a love song. The process I used to decompose and recompose is modelled after mid 20th Century tape experiments so the piece points to early sound sculpting. The vague familiarity of the work is an important element. All of my work deals in some way with deconstructing existing musical forms and re-thinking them while considering how memory operates and how the brain deals with familiarity and abstraction.” - Christina Vantzou

JANA WINDEREN is an artist who currently lives and works in Norway. Her practice pays particular attention to audio environments and to creatures which are hard for humans to access, both physically and aurally – deep under water, inside ice or in frequency ranges inaudible to the human ear. ‘The Listener’ is a sound composition created from hydrophones and Sound Field recordings in and by the River Orne in Normandy. Freshwater biologists count underwater insects and use this data as an indicator of the water's health. If one identifies the sound of the specific underwater insects with their varying ability to survive forms of pollution, one can possibly, through focused listening, reach an understanding of the health of the river. «The Listener» (6 channel audio installation) was part of the exhibition Second Nature and the project Nature and Renaturation: A Sensory Overview of a History of Changing Watercourses. A three-year-long project which started in 2014 by Thierry Weyd, Esam Caen-Cherbourg (Art Academy) and Camille Prunet, Research Coordinator chez École Supérieure d’Arts et Médias Caen/Cherbourg

As part of the next wave of artists innovating within dub techno and experimental ambient zones, ECHIUM looks to loosen up its strictures while playing deep within its unfathomable dimensions, literally urging a dematerialisation of mindsets and musical structures with literal titles such as ‘Collapsed Senses’ and ‘Glacial Rust’ matched by meticulous sound design that connotes and evokes their meaning in the most elusively abstract, lushly sensorial terms. The result is the creation of imaginary spaces that smudge the listener’s perceptions of artificial and organic texture, tone and spatial dynamics. ‘Compulsions of Reality’, explores the emotions built into daily existence. A divergent semblance, exhaled through the sonic process. Locking sections of minute particulars, in time. This personally represents a gateway to the symbiotic understanding of how I no longer depend nor want, and why I had to stop, to become.” - Echium

The Initiation has been made. An oath has been taken. Now we see the return of AKOV to Bad Taste for the end of 2019. This time The Syndicate stands beside him, with members Maztek, Billain, Exposure, Mean Teeth, Zombie Cats and Vegas forming the inner circle. These varied personalities banded together to forge a joined creation and imprint their thoughts upon time itself. ... The last piece of the puzzle is you. Will you become part of The Syndicate?

While 2020 has been a pretty bleak year, the Utopia Music family has come back and this time it’s a really meaningful release for the crew. The 25th instalment to their back catalogue features collaborations between the late Andy Skopes alongside Madcap. Here are a few words from the people responsible for making it happen:

Elliot (Madcap): “Recording with Andy was always a pleasure. We had worked on a few tracks in the past & my first vinyl release back in the early 2000’s was a collaboration with him. We’ve developed a great friendship over the years & talked about getting back in the studio. ‘Tap The Bottle’ included in this EP was the first one we completed out of about 8 tracks. All recorded, finished & signed before his deeply sad passing. This 12” is one of the most emotional projects I’ve been involved in & of course I miss Andy a great deal. I’m pleased to finally have a release on Utopia & want to express my appreciation to Mako for believing in the music & letting us do our thing. Peace x”

Stephen (Mako): “This release means a lot to me in many ways. Elliot and Andy were originally penned to have the first release on Utopia so to get a 12" with them after 11 years is a dream for me. The music stays true to what both of them have held so dear for so long, this 90's vibe of 808 sub bass, breaks and sick samples. Andy is missed every day and I see releasing their music as a celebration of his life rather than a mourning of his death. I must send shout outs to Madcap for being an absolute badman, I have huge respect for you brother x”

Each track of the three picked for this release has all the soul, organic beats and vibes people have come to love Utopia for.

Kristian Craig Robinson, aka Capitol K, is a multi-instrumentalist and record producer with a long history in London’s most interesting under-the-radar music places and spaces. With a musical story like his, you can expect side streams. New record ‘Birdtrapper’ is “the sound of an initiation rave in a utopian hidden village”, and his latest exploration of Mediterranean audio mythos following from ’Goatherder’ (2018). The six track mini-album was similarly formed from ritualistic improvisations performed in Malta (where Capitol K was born), using home-made flutes, reed pipe, bamboo percussion, drum machine, bass guitar, but this time features a wider use of synthesizers, with the alternative dance floor in mind. Where ‘Goatherder’ was an awakening of genetic primitivism, ‘Birdtrapper’ is an evocation of sonic bird callers, proto-rave abandon, ambient resonance and an ecstatic captive state, along with the previous work's visions of hunters, temples and scrub land music
‘Goatherder’ caused a quiet kind of quake and was beloved by The Quietus, BBCR3 and 6Music. Vinyl Factory described it as “like a series of manipulated field recordings that have an ancient, ritualistic quality … Goatherder shimmers with Balearic strangeness, rooted in an earthy outer-national dance music tradition”. For the last seven years K has been behind the consoles at the heavily influential Total Refreshment Centre, recording and mixing records with the likes of Trash Kit, The Comet Is Coming, Rozi Plain, Alabaster DePlume, Dry Cleaning, Flamingods Cykada, Ibibio Sound Machine, BAS JAN and John Johanna. It’s not just recording. He’s also become an influential if understated mentor to a new wave of producers and bands. His experience in studio environments is long and storied, including stints at Studio Plateaux on an island in the middle of the Thames and in the Royal Symphonia’s squatted rehearsal rooms. Capitol K has released seven albums and the 'Birdtapper EP' follows a legacy of influential releases on early 2000s electronica labels including Planet Mu and XL. Aside this he also runs the record label Faith & Industry. It’s a friends and family, love not money affair and he has released music by Champagne Dub, John Johanna, Super Best Friends Club, Blue House & Clémentine March.

This double 10" vinyl features some absolutely enormous remixes that are not to be missed! Hamilton (Dj Ham) steps up to the plate and delivers a blisteringly dark remix of an already dark tune. Tough and rough, this one has a bassline that shakes the speakers to death and is built to last in his customary RAM records style.
Abyss gives us a glorious old skool drum and bass remix, in line with the 1994 sound, full on amen cuts, heavy sines and deep atmospherics.
Lowercase and Psycangle move the whole track into early 90's Ruffneck Records / Malice territory, with a furious old skool gabber remix, hard as nails and noisy as hell.
But perhaps the best is saved for last, because Sunny & Deck Hussy do the near impossible and take a dark tune and flip it on its head, making it euphoric and deep without losing the essential character of the original.

Club / DJ Support
Shimon, Andy C, Randall, Ray Keith, Chase 7 Status, Zinc, Jack Frost, Billy Bunter, the Fat Controller, Glowkid, Slipmatt, Dj Jedi, Dj Luna-C, Dj Brisk, Clayfighter, Jimni Cricket, Bustin, Sc@r, Doughboy, Saiyan, Dave Skywalker, Liquid, Hyper On Experience, Ant To Be, Ponder and many others

Bristol's Ido Plumes debuts for Livity Sound's Reverse series with a stunning three track EP of aquatic textures and UK style grooves.

The 'Away From The Reign' EP is the first glimpse into the sonic world of Ido Plumes, ranging from the nimble dub mechanics of 'Noise Water' to the 2002 schooled Sub-low echoes of 'Which Way is Up'.

Livity Sound is a label set up by Peverelist in 2011 as a vehicle for a raw and exploratory strain of UK techno, rooted in the heritage of UK dance music and sound system culture. It has since become one of the UK's foremost protagonists for cutting edge underground music.

Asturian Jheal Bashta draws inspiration from one of the most energetic episodes of his region’s recent history, that of the mining protests, to conceptualize his new EP, a work entitled Shot To Diginity.

“Broken agreements and an uncertain future, this was the trigger that made the miners rise up again and return to the barricades,” explains the press release of this work that they describe as “root techno for discontented people.

It was released through Traces Records, becoming their second reference,

repressed !

The fifth record on New York Trax IMPORTS was produced by Le Talium who is a legend to any connoisseur of the obscure fringes of hard French electronics. “Inalterable” EP, as profound as it is abrasive, is a journey from otherworldly glitchy soundscapes all the way to a relentless hardcore maelstrom.

Lucas Croon half of Bar and also known for his work with Duesseldorf projects like Stabil Elite and our uncle Themes For Great Cities delivers a four track EP full of downtempo synth and rhythm excursions. It's starting slow with a travel through the human spinal chord shaking it at a Suzuka Grandprix After Party in 1984 where you were praying on your knees in front of the Spiritus Sanctus because of too much champaign. You got me All tracks recorded at Pferdestrken Studio Dsseldorf. Cover artwork by Holger Kurt Jaeger, Layout by Jannes Becherer.

Hooversound have steadily been growing since they dropped their debut release from Hyroglifics and Sinistarr back in March. SHERELLE and NAINA haven’t let 2020 interfere with their plans to continue to share gems the label have been sitting on for a while. Since then, the Hoover duo have followed up in June to deliver a powerful EP from Deft, alongside releasing an experimental dubstep record from emerging producer HØST back at the end of August, which included a rowdy re-work from Om Unit. Next up on unstoppable Hooversound, the ladies have combined two of their favourite artists on a split EP, bringing together two individual tracks from Private Caller and Mani Festo for the first time on one four track project, on “Hooversound Presents”.

Hailing from the Midlands, Nottingham based DJ and producer Private Caller has turned a lot of heads recently. He takes his inspiration from Jungle, Grime, Hardcore and heavy Techno. Known for the way he uses old Jungle Breaks and 90’s Rave music, Private Caller brings a new and refreshing take on underground Dance, which has led him to work with Tumble Audio, One Puf and Hardcore Energy to name a few. Enter Mani Festo, a producer and DJ based in London, with roots deep in Hardcore and Jungle and has had ongoing support and plays from several established radio DJs here in the UK. Mani Festo is known for his heavyweight breakbeat sound and his collective/ label (alongside Denham Audio, Borai, LMajor) ‘Club Glow’, who have been making a lot of noise this year with their resurgence of rave and breakbeat crossovers alongside captivating visuals. The
roducer hasn’t gone unnoticed having released on iconic labels such as Rupture, E-Beamz, Warehouse Rave and Swamp 81.

What makes HOO04 so unique, is the combination of both these artists on one project. Both Mani Festo and Private Caller deliver their signature styles on their individual tracks, making the entire project an explosive yet nostalgic blend of breaks and rave. Each track is a standalone anthem, but together, the four tracks combined are a nostalgic acid trip, that belongs in any club or radio set. Having already had support from LCY, NAINA, and Nastia, it also gained a lot of attention in SHERELLES recent Dekmantel mix.

Debut release from the Moroccan Record Label Astrofever Records.

For the first release from Astrofever Records, Moroccan Producer and label head Mohcine Zouitina known as Polyswitch delivers four cuts combining dreamy synth lines, ethereal sonics and solid jazz-infused grooves. Thriving on eclecticism this release is a hybrid of both new and old school, conceived for day and night it can be cleverly used in a club situation as well as for home listening.

Repressed

VIBEZ93003 is regular pressed & designed as a Clear, Transparent "Coloured Vinyl" and shipping to You, first, in a Uni Cover with printed Logo of the Label "VIBEZ'93" and second, also in a transparent Sleeve.

The Death To Digital series comes to a (perhaps temporary) end with volume 5. And what a way to end, with four slamming tracks that maintain the original concept of diversity in style while staying true to the Kniteforce ethos of, well diversity and style!”. Sunny & Deck Hussy drop a traditional styles beakbeat piano anthem, while Shadowplay brings something that is not quite everything. Abyss shocks us all by making something a little happier than usual while retaining the heaviest of beats and bass, and Idealz brings a rolling, thoughtful d’n’b tinges lick to close the series. Big stuff.

Club / DJ Support
Billy Bunter, the Fat Controller, Glowkid, Slipmatt, Dj Jedi, Dj Luna-C, Dj Brisk, Clayfighter, Jimni Cricket, Bustin, Sc@r, Doughboy, Saiyan, Dave Skywalker, Ponder and many others

This double LP brings to light the music of Robert ÆOLUS Myers, featuring recordings from 1982 to 2006 that were previously available only on cassette or CD.
The music within A Retrospective tells the story of a man whose music elevates its listeners to a place of inspiration and enlightenment. Often ethereal, ÆOLUS' music is driven by synthesizers, melodic flutes, sweeping patterns, and subtle rhythms to seed inspiration from deep within the listener.

One might assume that ÆOLUS carved a new path for electronic music in Hawai'i, but the islands never quite fully embraced the burgeoning New Age scene that ÆOLUS found himself a part of during the 1980s and the early 1990s.

Few artists in Hawaii have produced a body of work, let alone embarked on a musical journey, such as the one that ÆOLUS has created.

For Aloha Got Soul, this release marks a new chapter of bringing rare and relatively unknown music of Hawai'i to the surface.

Melbourne producer Adam McCoy, aka Citizen Maze, returns to Analogue Attic after his widely acclaimed 'Serenity in the Woods' from 2018.

The signature depth and versatility of McCoy's productions is again at the forefront in 'Northern Angelique', with 5 musically rich compositions that lend themselves to a broad range of listening occasions.
The first 3 tracks are contemplative and psychedelic, before the record takes on a deeper and darker tone for the remaining 2. Each track feels connected through a sense of simultaneous intensity and gentleness.
McCoy says it was the angelic nature of a vox synth, reflections from long beach walks in solitude and the thought of a flight to central Australia that inspired the release. Field recordings from coastal Southeast Asia feature throughout.
Hamish Mackay features on guitar..

Trancemission over; Transmission begins. Delta Rain Dance is an experimental artist and label project delving into contemplative, and melancholic states, with a record that blissfully glides between ambient, and delicate-percussive, electronic states. A hybrid puzzle of melodic cuts, DJ tools and drum tracks, that can be mixed together to create new amalgamations of the source material.

'Trancemission/Transmission' showcases a musical narrative that transcends genres and moods, switching between flashes of dubbed techno, abstract percussive electronica, and stark downtempo vibes.

'Trancemission/Transmission' is a record structured around progressions, heavy on sound design and imagination. It takes the listener into different astral planes, from tranquil moments of temperate melodies, to off-kilter periods of electro. Ghostly radio transmissions, dubbed out Rhodes, underwater frequencies, and broadcasts from beyond the digital ether. It is a modern take on 'Music for Airports', albeit written for a post-millennial audience, one that grew up on Dilla, Vatican Shadow, Grouper and Digital Mystikz. Drum tracks, locked grooves, and sparse sketches of melody and reverb soaked harmonies. Delta Rain Dance has produced a body of work that exists in two halves; the trancemissions operating as celestial, ambient skits; moments of dreamlike serenity, while on the flip, carefully programmed beats infer moments of Detroit, dubstep, and IDM, gently providing the framework to the album's intricate, grainy basslines, and saturated overtones. The two halves of the record can be mixed together, and like a puzzle that needs to be solved, tracks fit together perfectly, creating an interactive musical game, in which the DJ can create new sonic interpretations of the album.

Germany's rising newcomer DJ and producer Desroi will deliver his debut album on Semantica by early November. He has gained wide attention with his Dwell in Motion EP on Avian in 2018. Each artist has a special story to tell about their musicianship. Techno producer Desroi, who in every day life goes under the name Frederic Lindemann, has a relatively no-nonsense one. Observing from the outside, his production process seems to be one of tight structure and focus, holding great modernistic vision. Desroi studied Composition at Folkwang University of Arts - parallel to his already ongoing career as a DJ, producer and label owner - having graduated in 2018. His craftsmanship combined with a more theoretical academic view gives him a distinguished position on the scene. Desroi is curious about exploring the bridges between contemporary music and techno, and he recently said he is less interested in arrangement, melodies and harmony, and much rather focuses strongly on textures, rhythms and new sounds. Listening to his compositions these quotes makes nothing but sense; Desroi's techno is entrancing and layered but holds no unnecessary clutter.

Ltd repress

Rumour has it that in the mid 90’s NASA thought they intercepted the first recorded transmissions of alien life. It was believed to have come from a species far more advanced than humankind, and sounded like acid. Aliens on Acid. The origin of the sound was the production duo of Tony Pegas & Don Corrieri, AKA Alienage.

In a basement somewhere in Baltimore, circa 1995, the pair found themselves deep in an acid trip experimenting with synthesisers and drum machines. What followed over the next two years were seven records that warped bodies and minds, released through the iconic Gargoyle Records. The sound was directly informed by countless nights on the dance floor, showcasing trippy, hard-hitting breaks and rolling bass lines that have since rattled speakers for decades.

For the first part of their white labelled, ‘Editions’ series, AGT Records are putting out four tracks from this era, remastered and ready to blow. The A side features two unreleased tracks that perfectly sum up the unique Gargoyle brand of dance floor firepower, starting with “Mindreader” a killer rhythm assortment composed of signature Alienage elements, followed by “Funky Dreamz” where a proggy acid baseline takes over. On the flip side are two tracks which are nearly impossible to get your hands on, including “House Rhythm”, a collaboration between Don and DJ Who and the “Shitty Samples” remix from the legendary “Who’s Who” remix compilation put out by Defective Records in 1996. The music propels forwards, with acid lines that swirl around sharp breaks and pulsing baselines, each capable of igniting any modern day dance-floor.

All the tracks on this EP showcase the best of the Baltimore rave sound. 25 years later they have found their way back onto the turntable, all in good time.

Up next on Made Of Concrete is Gathaspar with his Gathsoland Ep .

With Straight sounds and dark beats, Gathaspar takes it down to the realm of shades. After the vocal-heavy intro of Gathsoland the subkick abducts you into areas of unknown soundscapes. Through the stormy pads of The Vision in cooperation with Echologist the EP is brought down to a round figure by the combination of traditional elements of techno and modern interfaces in the last track The Lover Of Ursa Major.

The 5th entry on the DDQ series continues to rake the kerbside muck of 'club music', presenting 2 disparate visions from 2 label heads.

KUMP's mastermind Gil.barte opens proceedings with the stuttering bodysludge of Guédé and Egareur. Two kleine nightmusiks to drag you out of meatspace, with the Kyuss-ala-PCP throb of Guédé especially sure to find favour on fog-bothering 8 AM+ floors worldwide.

Tempos pick up and lights turn down on the B-side, with Lostsoundbytes (Vastechoses label head), driving disintegrating delays and snares into 3 Belgiqué-nouveau tools, keeping the rhythm & textures bumping throughout.

Artwork by Thibaut de Wolf

Manchester club lynchpin Henzo smashes the debut platter on DJ Python’s Worldwide Unlimited with a bevy of dembow and garage-bred bangers that speak directly to the city’s transnational
dancehall links As the story goes, Henzo heard DJ Python plays his beats at the club he was managing in MCR’s hipster warzone - the NQ - and the pair soon hit it off, leading to Henzo now giving Python’s brand new label, Worldwide Unlimited, a killer starting point with ‘Not Like That, Not Like You’; four variations on a hyper-tropic sound that Henzo has been pushing for the last half decade and more with his Strange Riddims raves, whose upfront policy of dancehall modernism - from grime to reggaeton, hard drum and anything-goes Manc pressure - supremely informs his debut EP, proper.
Version for version Henzo confidently fires himself into the forward tier of Manchester producers, striking a heavy vein of mutant dembow-meets-Mahraganat pressure in the acidic bashment of the title tune, before stepping up the ghosted dub dynamic on a driving ‘Less Of That Mix’.
The other slow banger ‘For Your Consideration’ revolves a vocal snippet saying “speak to me” - one of Python’s often-used phrases - so was naturally elected to the EP, rolling out a bubbling,
sticky dembow-electro groove in the ‘Sauna Mix’, and a ruder UK-styled 2-stepper pivoting off woodblock snares in a screwfaced ‘Gym Mix’ Worldwide Unlimited is envisioned not only as a label, but a small gesture towards community uplift. 100% of label-side proceeds will be split between the artist and a local charity. Proceeds from WWUNLTD022 will go towards The Rec. Centre in Manchester,
org) a casual space in which artists, DJs, interviewers and teachers can create, record & hang out. Members of the BAME & LGBTQIA+ communities, as well as people on universal credit and/or benefits, are offered free usage of the space.

The 6th vinyl release on BTG sees a newcomer to the label and a relative newcomer to the scene taking the reins. In his short time on the electronic radar J-Shadow has already had releases on Nous Disques, Car Crash Set, PRIME, The Collection Artaud, eatmybeat, Dissident Sound and Dream Eater.

BTG006 sees a full showcase of his sonic array driven by rough bass, ghostly pads, acute percussion and influences from the entire electronic spectrum. Embers is a grimey monster that drives with purpose and energy from the very top, J-Shadows signature sounds instantly invade your ears as the track builds into a weapon capable of destroying any dance floor. The release then swoops down to a grizzly techno-esque stomper, with a slower build than title track “ Embers, The Awakening serves to show off this producers more subtle techniques that allow for an almost 7 minute journey into the belly of a Berlin beast. As if that wasn’t enough the final original on this EP “No Gravity”pays homage to the higher tempo sounds that BTG have been trail-blazing for some time now, a 160BPM pile-driver with murky bass, knifelike breaks and a wonky build that will keep the listener on their toes.

BTG006’s B-Side sticks to the remixing ethos of the label with two legends taking the helm. B1 is a Danny Scrilla flip of the title track Embers which needs no explanation, pure energy from the top and then Etch fly kicks The Awakening into a 123bpm air pumping foot stomping techno track designed to sub bass to destroy tower blocks.

Ulla & Perila fluff up ambient pillows for your anxieties under their Log alias on a gorgeous debut outing with Experiences Ltd, following from standout additions to the Documenting Sound tape series - think Wolfgang Voigt’s Gas soundtracking the Log Lady’s more rested dreams ‘Log’ sees the pair building on a blossoming relationship formed over 2020 lockdown, which resulted in a pair of low-key trips for Portugal’s silence box, and now this fuller suite of wistful gestures inspired by rambles in the forest. An obvious reference point is Wolfgang Voigt’s Gas recordings transmuting the ambience of the Black Forest into ambient gold, but Ulla & Perila’s take on this timeless notion is detectably more fractured and frayed, textured like fruiting brambles that gently snag the ankles, and decayed with a beautifully deciduous tone ripened for autumnal immersion.
Weaving synthetic micro-fibres and burnished pads into 11 gauzy visions, they coax a palette of iridescent melodies, ephemeral oneiric vox and crackling organic rhythms into scenes that describe or suggest a sort of sleepwalking sojourn into the woods, or a simulacra thereof. Their patient approach is simply enchanting, allowing their synthesised, micro-fibrous forms to naturally grow and sprawl, but with careful hands pruning the results into bonsai-like vignettes that steeply absorb listeners into sweetly naif, swirling dioramas of the real thing, bringing the outdoors inside..

Astonishing rhythmic inventions from Mark Fell and percussionist Will Guthrie, messing with meter and space in a pair of ingenious, boundary-probing pieces arriving as Japan’s Nakid label’s debut release. ‘Infoldings’ combines synthesis and sinew in unpredictable, pointillist arrangements where Guthrie plays against patterns derived from Max MSP patches by Fell. The album’s two tracks are in this sense different to the man-machine concept of Fell’s acclaimed ‘Intra’ album, where he triggered performances by Portugal’s Drumming Grupo De Percussão to play a metallophone designed by Iannis Xenakis. Here, the pair find common/contrasting purpose in a probing of the rhythmic signatures of Gamelan and South Indian Carnatic musics, with groundbreaking, unusual results. Recorded at HFG, Karlsruhe (where Fell is guest professor), and finished later in respective isolation, the two pieces were edited from iterations of call-and-response between Fell’s rhythmic patterns and Guthrie’s overdubs. They effectively propose beguiling and convincing solutions to electronic music’s problems with grid-lock, using illusive generative processing that appears to make physical actions seem unfeasibly effortless, while melting the computer’s clock to a realtime, free-hand syncopation. On the taut, snapping structures of these two pieces they enact a form of quantum origami that sounds like an MIT-designed robot playing cubist jazz with a sense of mischief and complexity that recalls Fell’s studies of brownian motion on ‘Scale-Structure-Synthesis’ (2011), and strikingly builds on his creative relationship with Guthrie that started with their ‘Oglon Day’ (2019) album alongside Oren Ambarchi and Sam Shalabi. In all, it’s one of the most liquid, forward iterations of computer music you’ll likely hear this - or any other - year

Clear Vinyl

Mark Fell and Will Guthrie join forces for the second time this year with ‘Diffractions’, the 2nd in a two part series pushing deeper into percussive R&D informed/inspired by Gamelan and South Indian Carnatic musics. If you’re into anything from Autechre’s Confield-era abstractions to Milford Graves’ fluid drumming or even the insular soundworld of The Necks, this record fucking rules.
Rhythm has always been central to Fell’s work, from his icy, repetitive minimalist excursions with SND to his legendary run of unashamedly funked abstract house experiments as Sensate Focus. Here, he continues to excavate that rich seam with an ongoing collaboration with Aussie percussionist Will Guthrie; “Diffractions” pushing both artists’ interests into sharper detail, toying with polyrhythms and unusual tuning to uncover a suite of transformative fidget spins and sonic storm clouds.
“Diffractions” features another two lengthy pieces of future-facing percussive abstractions that blur the line between synthetic and organic. Taking the influence of gamelan and fusing it with the heaving computer music that Fell has obsessively picked-at over the last four decades, the duo here zoom into a sound that’s almost effortlessly engaging; each piece is almost twenty minutes in length but they shift and mutate into polyrhythmic outer-realms and eerie universes of microtonality that are hard to fathom in one sitting.
There are trace echoes of free jazz hanging from the rafters, the post-everything chatter of Humcrush and Food drummer Thomas Strønen’s mind-expanding solo material or even Autechre at their most confounding. The genius here is that just when you convince yourself that this music could only possibly have been generated by a computer, Guthrie’s unmistakably human flex edges into focus - playing with your perception - your expectations - in the most bold, innovative way imaginable.

Ten years on from its digital-only release, Utter presents the legendary third Mu album on vinyl for the first time! What can we say? This is possibly the most bonkers and 'out there' Maurice Fulton has gone production-wise, from sub-heavy Hip-Hop to Country (!) to Thrash-Metal (?!) alongside a sprinkling of his signature genius House/Disco magic thrown in for good measure... all with Mutsumi's infamous vocals over the top. Limited pressing with fluorescent pink sleeve & insert. Remastered & cut by Rashad Becker at D&M.

Cheeky Rifts Intensity :P

in the labels 15th year history there only been a few reissues in the widely ramified discogra-phy. lydia lynch in 2006, hans-joachim roedelius in 2013, fumio itabashi ‎in 2018 and soon skymark ‎with his jazz album “primeiras impressões”.

the italian producer, composer, record collector and modern sun records label co-runner, that listens to the name marc friedli when he hands his tax report to the government, is no stranger to fans of modern brazil, disco, fusion, house, latin, jazz, funk, soul and all other organically swinging music that grooves classical and deep.

since 2007 he released a string of albums and ep’s on his own label as well as on imprints like neroli, mukatsuku records or rush hour, showing his impressive electric piano keyboard skills and unique communication on and with an array of vintage synthesizers like arp, proph-et, moog, roland or korg.

on his privately pressed, strictly limited to 150 copies album “primeiras impressões” he de-livered in 2013 nine gently jazzing tunes that process his experiences in the heat of the city of rio de janeiro.

they are intensely spiritual. they avoid ornamentation. and they bow before jazz history with a gentle respect, while adding an elegantly searching, thrillingly uplifting freshness to the genre with deep discreet minimal funk and light as a feather piano-melodies, as if the key-board were a saxophone.

Black-White Picture Disc

Tempo Records present SPEED, a new Tempo Records sublabel & project released on a limited collectors handnumbered 180gram coloured picture disc vinyl with original & legendary producers who helped shaping the Drum & Bass scene. After the DJ Trace & DJ Krust releases on Tempo's SPEED series here's the living legendary 'call & response' originator: Source Direct. On this release you'll find new Source Direct material with 'that' distinct trademark SD sound; superbly engineered breakbeats, the relentless sonic, rhythmic, tempo experimentation and haunting 'Blade' film-scape 'dark sounds from beyond' atmospheres accompanied with deep sub-aquatic resonant bass lines. If there's one production technique Source Direct applied it's the 'call & response' technique (the latter is also the track title of SD's contribution to 1998's Stephen Norrington's 'Blade' cult movie which starred Wesley Snipes). Vinyl collectors please check: This release comes as a strictly limited 600 copies handnumbered 180gram Picture Disc Vinyl pressing with a high quality polybag sleeve (including a handnumbered qty sticker on polybag corner) + all tracks mastered by Stuart Hawkes of Metropolis Mastering London. First come, first served, no picture disc repress!

Dedicated to the life and work of Robert Lax (1915-2000), the American poet who lived on Patmos, Greece, as a self-exiled hermit since the sixties. Jack Kerouac called Lax 'one of the great original voices of our times, a Pilgrim in search of beautiful innocence'.

The Chi Factory would like to give special thanks to his good Patmian friends Ulf Knaus and Nikos Eliou, who showed us his house on Patmos (everything is still the same since he left) and also his favourite old wooden door (see leaflet).

His great minimalistic poetry became a source of inspiration for the Mantra Recordings. His life on Patmos was far away from public attention - quiet and always surrounded by the skies, seas, cats and birds. Lax was a real dreamcatcher.

Shackleton’s Tunes Of Negation ensemble return for a ceremonious 2nd album trip into expansive psychedelic terrain following their acclaimed first chapter with a pineal payload where Gurdjieff meets Conrad Schnitzler in deep dub space.
Regrouping Sam Shacketon, Takumi Motokawa and Raphael Meinhart, with Heather Leigh guesting on album highlight ’Naked Shall I Return’, Shackleton’s open-ended project continues to soar across musical borders with growing confidence in their astral clinamen that suggests themes of impermanence, rebirth, and transcendence. It’s primed for gently getting out of your gourd and glyding the astral armchair highways in a way which has signified all Shackleton’s best work of late.
The six tracks are typically long enough to encourage full mind/body synchronisation and immersion, aligning your chakras in a slowly purposeful flow from the cascading organs and babbling drums of ‘Mountain and Waterfalls’, thru the spellbinding suspension of Heather Leigh’s possessed tongue in acres of Coil-esque synth plumes and militant snares on the outstanding centrepiece, ‘Naked Shall I Return’, with the rolling 15 minute epic ‘Impermanence’ illustrating Shackleton’s transition from dubstep pied piper to modern day shaman.
‘Like The Stars Forever And Ever’ is further evidence of mystic energy still out there in the ether between club music, the after-party-life, and lockdown bedrooms, and a sterling example of Shackleton’s vital role in the fabric of contemporary electronic music.

Four names you never heard of step up with four tracks that will smack you right in the kisser.

in we go... the title track is lifted from the great 'Visions from Limbus' casette (2015), while Kraut pleaser, 'Welson', and the ultra doomy Etranglé Par Tes Limbes are more recent creations to flow from Ernesto González's psychadelic fingers....

The prolific Russian Black Barrel debuts on Metalheadz with the 4-track 'Elevate EP'.

Drawing from early Metalheadz influences, sounds and ideas, Black Barrel has crafted his own unique take on it all ranging from the intricate edits and soulful KSR vocals on 'Elevate With Me' to the unparalleled funk and gnarly prominence of 'Hear The Sound'. It's further proof that Black Barrel is more than adept when it comes to producing full spectrum drum and bass.

Deep dub wise meditation courtesy of Spanish dub wizard Bukkha. Featuring the vocal talents of Ranking Joe and melodic flute work by Don Fe. Essential in these times of dread.

"I've been making tracks in groups for the past couple of years and these three were loosely based on a Lovecraft style story, where an investigator shows up at an unfrequented hotel and discovers a supernatural cult. Bit of a reach? Maybe"

grey marbled vinyl / incl. dl code

The first ever release by IMANU (f.k.a. Signal) on VISION. EGO showcases a variety of styles in the 172 BPM range and features a couple of long-awaited tunes.

Vermonische Melodien is a collection of compositions by DJ-producer M.RUX, made with old VERMONA machines from Eastern Germany. The nine Electronica tracks can’t conceal their influences from Exotica records of the 1960s as well as their fondness for vintage music technology. We hear voices singing lullabies (“Magische Time”), mumbling chopped up syllables (“Seelnatrax”) or reciting a Shakespeare quote (“Bakelit”) - are they real? Yes! But they are mostly generated by the world’s first speech synthesis hardware, the IBM 704 from 1954, and processed into off-key melodic beauty with vocoders. "I’ve always been curious about musical visions from the 1970s", says M.RUX about his inspiration for Vermonische Melodien. "Those nifty Vermona machines can today be seen as future machines from the 1970s. They seem almost mystical to me. Like relics from an epoch long ago… and I wanted to find out how music from that time could have sounded." On the album M.RUX uses, above all, equipment by Vermona, a brand from Eastern Germany manufacturing electronic musical instruments until 1990. The drum machine VERMONA ER-9 (1976) was the first instrument M.RUX ever possessed. It forms the rhythmical backbone of his studio on this record. The melodies on the other hand have mainly been played on a Vermona Formation-1, a suitcase synthesizer from 1980. Although these two machines are joined by countless other instruments and effect units, their particular soft sound is present in every single moment of this soothing album. "I also take a deep bow to the late Reinhard ‘Lacky’ Lakomy", M.RUX adds. "His releases were the first electronic instrumental records on the Amiga label which has been a huge influence for my work in general and this record in particular." M.RUX has appeared as a solo producer with his “In the Hold“ EP (2016) on his own YNFND imprint. Before that he had become famous for his edits which gently transform songs by Nina Simone, Townes Van Zandt, Tom Zé and many more into slow, dancefloor-ready gems. Pingipung is proud to present this first full-length album by M.RUX. He is not only a talented multiinstrumentalist and original producer but also a skillful remixer - as he has shown twice to the Pingipung audience in the last two years with his touches on Umeko Ando’s Ainu folklore songs

On his debut album producer and Squama co-founder Martin Brugger hovers through Ambient, (upbeat) Downbeat and unfulfilled build-ups.
Conceptualized as a blank soundtrack, the music was sent to fellow artists who shared their visual and verbal associations which became the source for the artwork and tracktitles, effectively making the album a collective effort.
Evident in all of his recent projects is Brugger's passion for working and thriving within closely set limits.
The only audio sources in the process of making the album were his record player and a Dave Smith Prophet 08 synthesizer. In an antithesis to most sample-based music, Brugger takes the more ephemeral moments of recorded music and uses pitching tools as a magnifying glass to dive deeper into the sound and bare layers that normally remain unheard.

LTD PURPLE EDITION

just a few in this bloody world...

Outban comes with the 2nd episode

FILM Recordings will release the debut LP from Denial of Service.

The album follows up EP's Sensou (2015), and more recently Contour & Shape (2017) - but marks the producer's most expansive release on the label thus far by some margin. Clocking in at 15 tracks, the lengthy opus draws from the same palette found on previous work - drum machine driven, heavily mutated Electro and IDM sit alongside low slung Techno cuts and arpeggiated EBM references. As ever, the production is stunning - crisp and plosive, as much a record for the club as it is a tempered headphone experience; whilst the mood channels that same dank, claustrophobic energy found on previous missives.

As a body of work, the LP displays the distinctive touch of a production veteran. The transformative shifts in structure on opener A Fine, New Mother Now belie a kind of boldness found less often across the contemporary electronic music landscape; and the drum programming on IDM-leaning explorations Autoimmune & Supercell bear the hallmarks of a perfectionist with time on his hands and in full control of his art. Space and the placement of sonic components plays a huge role in the artist's work and the 3 Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch displays this canny knack for generating both textural, wide angle soundscapes whilst maintaining that wrought-iron edge to drums and percussive elements - even more fervent, noisy compositions like Dr Manahattan manage to keep hold of this remarkable balance. It's impressive stuff, a fine and well worked meeting point between artistic vision and engineering prowess.

An elongated discussion, no doubt - but worth hearing every word. Each twist and bend, however sharp, remains carefully placed and beautifully recorded. Dryer works Slither & Junkie Foxtrot towards the LP finish offer a less introspective, more hard hitting angle to the work, and by the time the listener arrives at dual closer the Daisy Chain - Adults - they're ready for its heady catharsis.

The debut album from Denial of Service is a trip, and the line between club space and home listening environment is decidedly blurred - an emotive exploration of true psychedelic Electronica, delivered direct from the source.

Dj Revive gets his first vinyl release after numerous digital and CD EPs. A rapidly rising talent in the ever expanding old skool breakbeat hardcore scene, Revive has a knack for heavy, pounding beats and the sort of euphoric piano and vocal lines that remind you of Dj Force & The Evolution or other prime artists of that era. This EP doubles down hard on his previous work, while leaning further forward with meticulous production and epic soundscapes! With the full support of Kniteforce Records and a remix from head honcho Luna-C, this one comes with perfect pedigree.

Lontano Da Dove? by DsorDNE is a four-track LP written and recorded between 1996 and 1999 - at Acqualuce studio in Alpignano, Torino - by the mind of Marco Milanesio and Luciano Gelormino. Additional guitars were provided by Danilo Beltrame on piano zeroquattro (extended) and vocals by Snowdonia founder Cinzia La Fauci.

It was conceived to be released at the time but only a few promo copies were distributed. After about 20 years, the original recordings, which were considered lost, were found by Marco, who remastered them in his O.F.F studio and brought it back to life.

The all album is an organic work, who mash spoken ethereal voices and dubby basslines with tr-909 beats, borrowing elements from trip hop, techno and industrial.

The original EP already was a feast for sore ears, but these remixes shine even brighter. A meeting of legends is happening on the vinyl version with interpretations by RVDS aka Richard von der Schulen-burg, IDM-veterans Future Beat Alliance and - a name which needs no introduction - Move D.
RVDS uses a quick 303-flavour paired with ritual flutes from Tibet in Melodica style and bleating Rave Sheeps, while Move D goes down a dreamy acid route, freely roaming through the widely reverberat-ing halls and floors of deep house. And Future Beat Alliance presents a deep, deep oomph of down-beat electronica for the later hours. (Superdefekt)

The latest drop on Sneaker Social Club comes from D&B standard-bearer Jasper Byrne, aka Sonic. While he’s been active in the scene for over 20 years, in many ways Byrne’s strong artistic identity and omnivorous spread of influences embodies the current rude health of creative D&B. In his refined, detailed and dynamic productions you can hear ideas that reach far beyond playbook genre totems to arrive at something genuinely fresh and unique.

DJ Support
Anthony 'Shake' Shakir, Pinch, Clouds, Sean (2 Bad Mice/ Deep Blue), Sherelle, Marco Zenker, Pugilist, Banoffee Pies, Nastia, Julia Govor, Rockwell, Nathan Micay, Cosmin TRG, Glenn Astro, Double O, Kate Miller, Caldera, El Hornet (Pendulum), Smokey, Mantra, Sarah Farina, Etch, Nikki Nair, FFF, Warlock/ Hooverian Blur, Stones Taro, Om Unit, DVS1, Minor Science, J-Shadow, Mani Festo, J-Shadow, EICH, Axel Boman, Ciel, Extrawelt, Itoa, Dr.Banana, Coco Bryce, Tailor Jae, Nick Craddock, Darwin, Solid Blake, Doc Scott, Flore, John Morrow (Foul Play) +more

“Twee” is Tsepo’s debut mini-album. The beautiful 6-tracker strikes a balance between breaks, percussive house, and glitchy ambient. Tsepo has been around as a DJ for over 8 years. He played Trouw, Heidegluhen, Lowlands, Shelter, DGTL, Wildeburg, and more. On “Twee”, he combines emotive melodies with expertly produced beats. The diversity of the music is perhaps best expressed in how easily the glitchy ambient works "Dough" and "Max" go together with the resonating techno track "La Vaca Vega" and the uplifting title track "Twee". "Extebarri" (where a hard snare is the basis of a driving melody) and the downtempo "Tribeca" round off the release effortlessly. Tsepo knows what he's doing and his years of experience in the DJ booth echo on this wonderful, well-crafted debut.

Wislov’s new EP is incredible. And it is already one of the favourite releases in the history of the labels, receiving praise from all around. It is that good. It is slower than the usual KB output, hence the EP name, but it is a perfect 1991/1992 EP of rock solid BIG tunes. I honestly believe if this had been released in those early years, it would have sold in huge numbers and been one of THE anthems of that era. All 4 tunes are perfectly executed in Wislovs authentic style, and the EP is simply brilliant. From the huge vocal high of “Mr Rave…Noyz” to the hard edged techno styled “They Are Mutants” each track brings the authentic feel of early rave back to life!

Pink Vinyl

Machinecode is a duo comprising Current Value and Dean Rodell, a pair of artists who have shaped a unique sound in bass music and techno throughout their careers. Everyones and Nothings is an exploratory body of work that is immediately identifiable with the Machinecode audio aesthetic, and that moves through genres with ease - from 130 bpm leftfield bass, to Dr.Octagon-inspired halftime, techno, ambient and experimental dnb. It is layered with mystery and myth, exploring conspiracy, the stories that people tell each other, and the things that are whispered about in obscure corners of the Internet. The album artwork is by Zeke Clough (of Skull Disco notoriety and more) and an accompanying video by animator Oskar Alvarado retells and reimagines the folklore behind the Mesoamerican serpent deity, Kukulkan.

"V/A - Underground Sonics Part 2" split.

“‘Jack it Operator’ comes with the incredible Fracture remix. This all came about because I went to Jungle Jam at The Cause in Tottenham just before Christmas last year. John Foul Play was spinning and dropped my recent release on Sub System; “X Amount of Dubs”. I was also lucky enough to have my old Kemet classic ‘The Box Reopens’ given a rinse by Uncle Dugs, so I was buzzing. Not only that but Kenny Ken played an amazing set with a slew of jungle rollers followed by an epic back to back between Fracture and Sherelle.

Dutch High Fashion Music unleashes another crown-jewel. ‘Maestro’ Celso Valli (known from his productions with o.a. Matia Bazar, Andrea Bocelli, Jovanotti, Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti) produced ‘Hava Nagilah’ back in 1979, as part of the classic Azoto “Musicmakers” album- and Norwegian Prins Thomas gave it an epic 10 minutes rework – second to none!

‘Mix and Fairbanks’ re-edited “Anytime Or Place” and the 1980 smash summerhit “San Salvador” into really up-to-date versions ready for the summer! Artwork by former Memory Records sleeve designer Emilio Tremolada, making this one a must have.

Violostries (1963/64), 16'39

Premiered and recorded in April 1965 at the Royan Festival - France, by Devy Erlih (violin) & Bernard Parmegiani (sound projection).

Violostries represents the intersection of several musical research directions, presented as two simultaneous dialogues - composer/performer and instrument/orchestra.

After a short introduction tutti very spatialized:
1. Pulsion/Miroirs: multiplied by itself, the violin is projected into the four corners of the sound space.
2. Jeu de cellules: concertante piece for violin and audio medium, the latter being made up of very tightly woven microsounds.
3. Végétal: slow and invisible development following a continuous time, resulting from an internal and permanent processing of the matter.

Capture éphémère (1967, 1988 version), 11'48

This work was composed in four tracks in 1967 for quadraphonic diffusion.
Remixed in stereo in 1988.
Premiered at the Studio 105 of the Maison de la Radio, Paris, May 1967.
Sounds - noises that circulate as time unfolds - continue to exist despite our recording them.
Breaths, fluttering wings: ephemeral microsonic sounds streaking space, sound scratches, landslides, bounces, vertigo of solid objects falling into an abyssal void, multiple snapshots forever frozen in their fall. As many symbols leave inside us the permanent trace of their ephemeral brushing against our ear.
Some day, a desert, a sound, then never again....
Somewhere, in my head and body something still resonates... resonance, what could be more ephemeral.

La Roue Ferris (1971), 10'45

Premiered at the Festival des chantiers navals, Menton, on August 26, 1971.
Sound projection: Bernard Parmegiani.
La Roue Ferris (Ferris wheel) spins, merging with its own resonance, stubbornly perpetuating its variations. It only sketches a regularly evolving movement around a constant axis. Each of its towers generates thick sonic layers that penetrate each other, producing a very fluid interweaving. The crackling of the origin eventually metamorphoses into sonic threads whose lightness recalls high-altitude clouds, cirrus clouds, haunted by the cries of swifts twirling in the warm air. The wondrous arises and dies off, leaving us with an illusion of duration.

Brian is back behind the controls for another slammin’ release via Jungle Cakes. He’s linked up with Yemi Bolatiwa and Ricky Tuff for a full on combination of summertime vibes for these two tracks which have the label's roots fully implanted in their DNA.

Debut 12" release from Bulu & Etch's new label BTG

Created as a means to explore styles and sonic territories they may not explore through their own avenues, BTG was set up as a means for complete creative freedom not restricted to tempo style or dancefloor formularity.

The first release, an extension of Etch & Bulu's Radar Radio selections which can range anywhere from Hip-Hop to Psychedelic Rock and Jungle to Dubstep.

Yo Yo Riddim by Etch was conceived whilst Etch was logging death certificates on prescription codeine, "big up Dr. Bidwell". Then thrown into unidentified territory by Turkish space wizard - Gantz, who transforms this track into a churching gutteral beast.

On the flipside, we have an original from one of the greatest young minds in DnB & Jungle right now, Ilk. His constantly recognisable razor sharp production are at the forefront in this track - Yes, Ruff!, with an equally jarring remix from FrenchAstrophonica & 31 Records alumni, Moresounds, which builds and builds until it explodes.

BTG001 has already received support from Fracture, Sam Binga, DJ Barely Legal & more...

A benchmark project that has been in fruition over the past year, 'One Against Time' is the magnum opus of John Dimas' career. It is a pivotal milestone that embodies his depth of knowledge and his personal fascination with the mysteries of life and the universe. Spread across 14 tracks, 'One Against Time' sees Dimas really broaden his artistic capabilities, drawing from a melting pot of influences and woven together by his desire to channel a feeling of intrigue and curiosity taking a journey outward into the deepest recesses of outer space while simultaneously traveling inward to that same area of deep space inside his own soul...

A benchmark project that has been in fruition over the past year, 'One Against Time' is the magnum opus of John Dimas' career. It is a pivotal milestone that embodies his depth of knowledge and his personal fascination with the mysteries of life and the universe. Spread across 14 tracks, 'One Against Time' sees Dimas really broaden his artistic capabilities, drawing from a melting pot of influences and woven together by his desire to channel a feeling of intrigue and curiosity taking a journey outward into the deepest recesses of outer space while simultaneously traveling inward to that same area of deep space inside his own soul...

Black Vinyl Edition

The Log and the Leeway follows a 6 year journey of personal exploration and drastic change for Bram Bosteels and his singular Kaboom Karavan universe. What entails is a sound-curiosity of rare format, following a metamorphosis that goes beyond the musical.

Early in the process, Bram was struck by the word/concept of a Leeway : the gradual departure from an intented course due to external influences. Following a boyish fascination for explorers travel journals, logbooks and the far fetched corners of the world, he could not have forseen how fitting of a title he had chosen. Drastically all of a sudden one day, completely unexpectedly, Bram experienced his own father dying in front of him from a rare disease. Shocked and confused by this intense encounter, his perspectives and musical course departed from its original path. But at the same time it was an enlightenment and a necessary influence for him to realise the initial idea and finish this album, started over half a decade before.

The ones familiar with Kaboom Karavan already know that nothing really sounds quite like it. Bram’s musical (and non-musical) universe is of the rare breed that seems to be entirely his own. Self-contained, but never opaque. Quite the opposite actually. Bram never pushes us away, instead, by listening to his music we are given view to a synesthetic wunderkammer of images, places, objects and possibilities. Distant but magnetic, alien but intimately familiar, Kaboom is folk music from another dimension. Listening to The Log and the Leeway is like waking up next to a bonfire in the middle of a swamp wearing somebody else’s clothes: You may not know how you got here, but whatever is happening seems to very directly involve YOU. What will happen?

Note from Erik K Skodvin (Miasmah): All the sounds, fabrics, instrumentation and stories that binds The Log and the Leeway together go far beyond what can be touched up in this simple writeup. As someone who have followed this journey since the beginning, and seen it shift from lighthearted fun to the most crepuscular personal experience, heard the stories behind (almost) every field recording and gone through boundless amounts of clips, visual details, notes, and inspirations – I can only say that it is with great pleasure and certain nostalgia I can present this record in full through Miasmah and close this quite extraordinary chapter. Bram is without doubt the most fascinating person I know. Like I told him in April 2020 during a trying time: “If everything fails, we´ll open a Kaboom Karavan museum” - an idea that might not be as far-fetched as it sounds.

Featuring: Cover painting by John Lurie. 16 page booklet of Musical illustration / collagés by Walter Dhoogh & Erik K Skodvin that more or less connects (or confuses) the dots between the music and stories behind. Mastered by Lupo at Loop-O

Keep your eyes on the horizon, he said...

It has been 2 years since Kindimmer's last release on Poker Flat. Much has changed in that time. After a challenging process of personal transformation that included relocation from Berlin to Bristol, he is now ready to share what musical experiments he has been working on during this time.

The tracks that make up this LP trace the ups and downs of going through changes in life, and trying to find your place in an ever-changing world. Hopefully you can relate.

Two years ago I played at Studio 9 in Vilnius, Lithuania. The following day I missed my flight home and ended up spending an extra day, which gave me a chance to explore the city with my friend Linus, who took me to the Contemporary Art Centre. It was there I spotted a book named 'Rojus', that Linus told me translated as 'Paradise'. The word and striking cover of the book stuck in my mind. A few days after returning home, I turned on to a National Geographic documentary named 'Designed To Dance', explaining the courtship rituals of Birds Of Paradise. As I watched, i jokingly began drawing similarities between these birds' attempts to captivate and impress the opposite sex with dance, and the way strangers try to attract one another in clubs and interact on the dance floor. This gave me the idea of creating a record of functional club music, sequenced as if it were a club night, from doors to closing, using samples of these Birds Of Paradise and their habitat. Thus, Rojus. Leon Vynehall 2016

Next we come on to Jimmy... if you go back to early 90’s there were a bunch of ‘name tracks’ in jungle; Johnny Jungle, Scottie and of course Ricky! R-I-C-K-Y!!!” Missing had been keen to bring back the names! I mean, who can forget their favourite ‘name’ track? Any time you hear that name said or shouted down the street you automatically started reciting that tune in your head. But the list of names was short, another one was needed, homage had to be paid, and a fresh name added to the exclusive collective."

Nikki Nair rounds off 2020 with a return to Scuffed Recordings for the ‘Trying To’ EP, featuring three new originals and a remix from Hermeth.

Prairie is the project of multi-instrumentalist and producer Marc Jacobs, hailing from Brussels with roots in The Netherlands. On stage, Prairie plays with two or three musicians and together they re-create a free association of musical ideas and atmospheres. Prairie has played in selected venues and festivals across Europe and for instance toured with Apparat.

“And the Bird Said: Cut Me Open and Sing Me” is the second full length album on Denovali Records.

This album was inspired by the silence of the birds, by the tone between a mother and her daughter, by the Sandsnipe twins, by constant wailing sirens, by the memory of a Vangelis track. Composed in the city, in his studio Les Lacs and in the mountains of the French Cévennes, Jacobs integrates his various recording locations into his magnificent sound design. By using various recording techniques, analog gear, guitar pedals, synths, amps and human voices, “And the Bird Said: Cut Me Open and Sing Me” creates a fountain of sound layers which coalesce to synthetic and noise infused manipulations, dramatic crescendos and subtle field recordings.

Jacobs focuses on melodies, sometimes hidden melodies, or straight out melodies that took him back to various musical influences, current ones but also from his past, lurking into pop and loving imperfection. The lyrics of "Cut me Open" are the spine of the record, the scenario where various species of birds lead the way, and where each track is a short chapter of the flight.

Jacobs once again showcases a deep sensitivity to narrative and rich cinematic textures by creating a technicolor soundtrack.

"... Like Ben Frost, (Prairie) exudes a certain harshness while tempering his work with moments of sublime beauty. This isn’t club material; it’s music for the hammer in one’s hand, the confrontation of the demon, the soul-shattering revelation." (A Closer Listen)

"It is time for man to set a goal for himself. It is time for man to plant the seed of his highest hope. His soil is still rich enough for it. But that soil will one day be poor and exhausted, and no lofty tree will any longer be able to grow on it. Alas. There will come a time when man will no longer launch the arrow of his longing beyond man - and the string of his bow will have unlearned to whir! I say to you: one must still have chaos in oneself to give birth to a dancing star. I say to you: you still have chaos in yourself. Alas. There will come a time when man can no longer give birth to any star. Alas. There will come the time of the most despicable man, who can no longer despise himself."

This excerpt of Nietzsche's "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" sets the mood for the latest album of Sardinian sound researcher Eugenio Caria. "In Origine: The Field of Repentance" is a concept album dealing with the origin of man and its impact on the cycle of creation and destruction which drives the evolution of the universe. This time Caria invited one of the world's major trumpeters, prolific Sardinian jazz artist Paolo Fresu to collaborate on the album. Fresu's unique trumpet sound is recognized as one of the most distinctive in the contemporary jazz scene and on this album Caria and Fresu succeed in perfectly merging their contributions into a coherent entity. Fresu is not accompanying Caria and Caria is not accompanying Fresu. Instead they both drive each others plays, building and rebuilding, forming and reforming meticulous pieces of analogue-electronic music that invoke the feeling of a pure timelessness.

Subheim adds a new chapter to his catalog of shadowy raves with ΠΟΛΙΣ – the fourth long player. Pronounced "Polis," the Greek word for "city," ΠΟΛΙΣ doesn't so much evoke the rapid cadences of life in a modern metropolis as it does the unspoken tension between longing to escape and being trapped in some kind of concrete stasis – living together with millions of souls in an expansive emptiness.

Subheim uses ΠΟΛΙΣ as a vehicle to depart from traditional songwriting structures, crafting each track as a piece of a larger sonic collage. Songs come out of nowhere, abruptly come to end before they even get a chance to start or introduce new motifs and surprise reprises long after we expect the next track to cue up. These stutter-start forms reflect the four years it took for the record to take shape: a series of failed musical experiments, indecision, balancing an unstoppable creative drive with the unavoidable emotional ebb and flow of life.

Though this is clearly Subheim working at a new level, listeners will recognize the sound of ΠΟΛΙΣ instantly as his, with both hints of the IDM/electronica of Approach era and the unmistaken human element that is present in all his work. The natural, off-grid time feel of the record is effortlessly augmented with field recordings and found sounds, this time around with the addition of more grit and power, and with heavier use of analog synthesizers.

Despite the album being born out of a feeling of alienation from one’s surroundings, it's impossible to ignore the sense of hope that runs through this LP. In ΠΟΛΙΣ, we hear an arrival at a deeper understanding of oneself, an inner peace amidst the decay and a cautious optimism that comes from someone who just happens to feel most at home in darkness.

The Magic Movement welcomes Anatta to the family with her Fields Of Play EP.

Following her debut Album on Random Collective, her new EP comes as a four-track package:

In the original mix, Anatta invites us to discover a sonic world between pitched down UK House and future-primitive downbeat.
Rough Drumbeats, quirky synths, and catchy vocal chops guide us through a sophisticated arrangement with unforeseen twists and turns.

Salon des Amateurs resident Tolouse Low Trax delivers the 'Knights & Wheels Remix' in his signature style: While a hypnotic vocal loop hooks you up from the very beginning, minimalistic and dreamy synths slowly submerge the listener into a jam of stripped-down Lo-Fi funk.

The 'Beat Mix' by Rio de Janeiro's sound wizard Carrot Green and long time family member of the label, speeds up the tempo, and puts together a groove of classic electro boogie vibes with a P-Funky bassline that sounds like a futuristic liaison between Afrika Bambaataa and George Clinton.

Increasing the UK house vibe with strong drums and a wobbly bassline, Noema's 'Acid Ghetto Style Remix' works the mysterious vocals of Anatta into a delicious hook and creates a highly animating and fun dancefloor monster.

And now, let's get weird!!!

The Eskapist with his second statement of personality, handing in a seasonal Ep ranging from a seriously immersive Opener to the shuffling full-force rhythms of 'Islet Observer', gently flowing tides on 'Brittle' and finally some soulful electrifying alien techno, as 'Voluptuous Brittle' takes us home. This is where the Eskapist dwells, here we find freedom.

Repress..!

TD Edition!

Die besten musikalischen Außenseiter sitzen nie lange still. Sie mutieren stetig, verwandeln sich in neue Formen und weigern sich, in Schubladen gesteckt zu werden. Floating Points hat so viele Gestalten, dass es ohnehin nicht einfach ist, ihn irgendwie einzuordnen. Da ist zum einen der Komponist, dessen Debütalbum „Elaenia“ im Jahr 2015 begeisterte Kritiken erhielt, darunter als Pitchforks „Best New Music“ und Resident Advisor's „Album of the Year“ - und ihn von den Tanzflächen auf die Festivalbühnen weltweit brachte. Dann ist da wiederum der Kurator, dessen Plattenlabels gefühlvolle neue Klänge in den Club gebracht haben, und der auf seinem geschätzten Imprint Melodies International alte Klänge wieder zum Vorschein gebracht hat. Ferner ist da der Traditionalist, der Disco-Typ, der Maschinenmusik macht, der Digger, der stets auf der Suche nach unentdeckten Edelsteinen zwecks Wiederveröffentlichung ist. Und dann ist da noch der DJ, dessen offener und zugleich mutiger Umgang mit dem Genre ihn einst ein 20-minütiges Instrumental des Spiritual-Jazz-Saxophonisten Pharoah Sanders im Berghain spielen ließ.

Nach der Veröffentlichung seiner Zusammenstellung von funkelnder, analoger Ambient- und Atmosphärenmusik für die geschätzte „Late Night Tales“-Reihe, stellt Floating Points' erstes Album seit vier Jahren, „Crush“, alles, was man über ihn zu wissen meint, wieder auf den Kopf. Nicht minder als ein knallender Donnerschlag elektronischen Experimentalismus’, dessen Titel auf den langsam überkochenden Schnellkochtopf anspielt, den die aktuelle politische Gemengelage in der Welt suggeriert, in der wir uns derzeit befinden. So hat Shepherd einige seiner bisher härtesten und treibendsten Tracks produziert, mit Blick auf die britische Bass-Szene (aus der er in den späten 2000er Jahren selbst hervorgegangen ist), wie beispielsweise die zuvor veröffentlichte markante Lead-Single „LesAlpx“ (Pitchforks „Best New Track“). Auf „Crush“ sind allerdings auch einige seiner ausdrucksstärksten Songs zu finden: seine charakteristische Melancholie ist in den erhabeneren, sanfteren Momenten des Albums oder im Buchla-Synthesizer zu finden, dessen unheimliche Modulation das Album prägt.

Sein neues Album fühlt sich augenblicklich an - und lebendig. Es ist der Klang der vielen Seiten von Floating Points, die schließlich miteinander verschmelzen. Es bezieht sich auf die „explosiven“ Momente während seiner Sets, die normalerweise auftreten, wenn er unerwartete Genres zusammenwirft, aus dem ganz einfachen Grund, weil er sich darüber freut, diese Platte „jetzt wirklich laut hören zu können“ und dann die Nadel aufsetzt. Es ist „genau wie das, was passiert, wenn man zu Hause mit seinen Freunden Musik spielt und diese sich überall im Raum ausbreitet.“, erklärt er.

Limited Edition Artwork inklusive Booklet and Downloadcode

After his last release on Dirt Crew in 2017 we are more than delighted to bring back the talented Harry Wolfman.
With impressive records on labels like Phonica, Omena, Outplay and Toy Tonics in the last years he has drawn up a fine new selection of music that spans across many genres and moods. This is also the first release for us in the new year after a lil break and it continues to explore the more eclectic approach we are following for a while now since the outings of artists like Dampé, S3A and Dan Only.

Harry presents an exciting opener for his new EP, together with vocalist Christian Crow he has made the blissful and breaks laden “poppy” good feel tune “A Way You Come Home to Me” that shines a bright light in these darker months. Followed by the deeper club tune “Step by Step”, building around yet another vocal recording. This time it’s Harry sampling his own voice and looping it into a repetitive piece of good feel House music.

We are getting deeper on the B side with “Speaking Raman”, one of these signature Harry tunes, a playful dusty lo-fi piece of music build around a piano theme and embedded in deep bass and driving beats, his sound trademark on all of these more floor orientated tracks on the EP. To close out the record we added two of his cinematic, ambient electronica works that we personally love so much. The haunting “Always 3” is a deep sphere that sucks you in a meditational and soothing womb of sounds. Ending with the electroid cut “Green Trees”, it’s broken and fragile and gives this indie-tronica track a warm and gentle touch.

We hope you enjoy these tunes and that they may be your soundtrack to the upcoming warmer months.

Finally and just in time for Christmas 2020 Hastings of Malawi release their third LP - the antithesis of Christmas albums.

In this bleak vinyl mid winter the sleigh bells have been replaced with twelve handsaws, two motors and a dustbin, a duet between a walrus and an autistic child on an aeroplane, a chorus of pigs and Tasmanian devils, sounds from Japan, China, Africa, Italy, India and Hawaii, digital voice synthesis, sound sculptures, randomly generated music, geiger counters, free improvisation and a rocket engine.

As with their first two albums this record continues to explore themes of communication and communication breakdown.

Is communication possible? What is the message? What is sound? What is on the surface of a record? What is beneath the surface of a record? Hastings of Malawi provide the answer to these questions in the form of a 38 minute poem called Axial Incidents.

*repress*

Phonica Records welcome the latest addition to their ever-growing stable of talent, Pick A Piper! The brainchild of one Brad Weber, usually found behind the drum-kit at Caribou's live shows, Angus Fraser and Dan Roberts, Pick A Piper Combines dance-music structures, polyrhythmic percussion, atmospheric sound design, loopy melodies and a focus on electronics and production technique to create a sound poised between the organic and the synthetic and Phonica White have been blessed with two killer remixes to release on a limited stamped and numbered 12'.

On the A-side one half of Junior Boys and increasingly prolific producer in his own right, Jeremy Greenspan delivers his first ever solo remix! His reworking of 'Lucid In Fjords' is one of the most epic tracks we've heard in a while - clocking in high on the BPM scale, Jeremy pulls out all the stops with an acid-tinged and dubby remix complete with covert pan flute sample.

On the flip Phonica fave Dan Snaith, dons his Caribou alias for an uncharacteristically abstract remix of 'Once Were Leaves'. Moody and bass-heavy, it builds around two other-worldly vocal samples; one pitched down, one ethereal, working in tandem to create an atmospheric backdrop for Caribou's downbeat drum programming. This is Caribou showing off a different side to his productions, one we personally would like to hear more of!

Minimal Wave present the reissue of a rare self-released record by Plugpoint Music called ‘Last Chance’. Plugpoint Music was the minimal synth project of Reiner Ossmann, who recorded the 12 songs on this album in his home studio in Germany in 1987 and released them as an edition of 200 copies. This gem of a record was never properly distributed and so essentially disappeared until it began circulating amongst various collectors during the last 15 years. The sound has been compared to the likes of Mort Garson and Cluster. It’s a true minimal synth classic in all of its eccentricity and lack of self-consciousness. The record has been remastered and is pressed on 180-gram black vinyl as an edition of 500 copies along with a lyric insert sheet.

It's been six years since Starion's incredible "Mind Bender EP" (RL09) circulated our orbit - a masterpiece seemingly beamed from a utopic late nite discotheque on a far-away star cluster, and one that immediately promoted the then Manctalo rookie up the ranks of the Red Laser hierarchy.
Subsequently dropping primo synth sizzlers with Tron-like precision via the label's V/A EPs, the producer returns with four more particle-splitting bangers for our nocturnal delectation.

Quintessentially Manctalo, 'Altered States' captures the producer's Streford-based, garage-cum-studio humming with activity. Encircled with everlasting chord progressions, excitable drum patterns and a plethora of star-studded synthesizers, the tracks glide through Starion's humble quadrant with a deep, guided desire to touch our hearts and power positive interactions.

'Mind Funk', with its spark plug percussion and intense squelch washes euphoric, gated vox through its shadowy, amorphous, electro-charged circuitry; leading us with trepidation into the vast unknown. Key title track 'Altered States' ionizes its surroundings with a charged and uplifting synth array containing a whole multitude of messages and motifs to decipher in the dance.

In one inspired moment Starion explores the archetypal realms of electronic disco through a colossally robotic rendition of 'Spacer Woman' before 'Condo Cruise' finally, ensures that Red Laser devotees have a brand new, radium-studded dancefloor gem to digest when the discotheques are open once more, its heart-tickling sequences and end-of-era majesty showing us a positive path thru the New Normal...

Housed in a limited risograph sleeve designed by Manchester artist, DJ and musician Glen Cutwerk it's another carefully mined nugget of Manctalo heritage humans and their AI-upgraded incarnations will enjoy for many millennia to come.

Drum & Bass duo The Prototypes release their much anticipated debut album 'City of Gold' on Viper Recordings following hit singles such as 'Pale Blue Dot', 'Don't Let Me Go' and 'Pop It Off'.

Already one of the hottest acts in the UK Drum & Bass club scene having 3 out of the Top 10 best selling tracks of 2014 on Beatport, The Prototypes are reaching new heights with their debut LP which showcases their trademark club sound and vocal anthems.

Continuing on the thematic thread of soundtracking an imaginary short movie, label founder DJ Tennis aka Manfredi Romano, asks some of the greatest contemporary club producers to take on the task of interpreting this idea in their own unique style. Romano explains that 'the score is a translation of our imagination, memories and emotions into music, with no protocols.' Opening the soundtrack, Vatican Shadow swaps his thunderous techno for a more cosmic and gentle approach, setting the tone for an equally serene soundscape from London based DJ and producer Midland. Japanese Future Terror head honcho, DJ Nobu, layers dense cerebral textures exuding the punk spirit of Life and Death. A similar rule defying energy can be heard by Ninos De Brazil who fuse carnival percussions with straight up old school techno. Both Scuba and Uchi bring the futuristic synths of a space age tomorrow we've all been waiting for. German producer Isolee interprets the task with his minimal productions and Italian producer Cosmo closes the compilation with Psychedelic Soundscapes turning into a distorted gabber missile. As the decade edges closer to it's decade anniversary, Romano proves yet again that Life and Death is a label which evolves through each reincarnation of itself, never failing to impress.

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Private Parts: The Park
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Private Parts: The Backyard
Lovely Music presents a reissue of Robert Ashley's Private Parts, originally issued in 1978. This newly mastered LP release is a must-have for aficionados as well as a perfect introductory work to Ashley's oeuvre. Among Lovely Music's first six releases, it came to be known as "the yellow record". No one had ever heard anything like it; Ashley presented an unvarnished exposition of the inner workings of a man's mind. And on the other side, those of a woman. These two episodes were the foundation for Ashley's seven-part opera, Perfect Lives (LCD 4917CD, 2017), which was performed by his ensemble throughout the 1980s and was completed for television broadcast by Britain's Channel Four. New arrangements of Perfect Lives, notably Varispeed's site-specific version, continue to intrigue and enchant.

Recorded at the Center for Contemporary Music, Mills College, Oakland, California, July 1977, produced by Ashley. Personnel: Robert Ashley - voice; "Blue" Gene Tyranny - keyboards; Kris - tablas. 180 gram vinyl, Stoughton Old Style sleeve, includes libretto.

OK SPIRIT is the new label by N.I.B., Kilian Paterson and DJ Neewt. The Frankfurt trio kicks off with a wild range of contemporary dancefloor adventures. The titel track 'Voces De Humo' is an epochal 17min journey by Bear Bones, Lay Low accompanied by two stunning remixes from DJ Plead and TNC6.

Good UK Drum & Bass at a nice price... So what ?

DJH was 15 when he wrote his first EP back in 1993. That EP became a near mythic release within the hardcore vinyl collecting circles with a price tag of over £700 on Discogs! Vinyl Fanatiks tracked down Danny and organised its re-release back in 2019, with the release selling out rapidly.

Bringing his 2020 story to a gleaming crescendo with an exciting new
chapter of music, Keeno graces the world of drum & bass with his very first solo album on Hospital Records, following his three previous triumphant albums on sister-label Med School.
‘I Live, I Learn’ is a divine body of work that goes above and beyond Keeno’s previous repertoire with a fresh outlook on the distinct, classically-infused D+B style that he is loved for.
Album title-track ‘I Live, I Learn (feat. F Vie)’ kickstarts the journey with a majestically cinematic introduction where Keeno’s multi-instrumentalist training shines through as earnest pianos and strings are seamlessly intertwined, laying down the canvas for F Vie to decorate with her beautiful melodies and heartfelt lyrics.
‘Behind The Glass’ instils immense euphoria and inspiration with the vocals of Kate Wild which uplift and teach the important lesson of self-love. Sublime flourishes and a bassline crafted with sonic precision elevate the irresistibly feel-good track into a world of its own. A future favourite of those who had his ‘Sick Music 2020’ contribution ‘I Wonder’ on repeat.
Transcendent atmospherics and soulful guitar grooves set the scene on ‘Severn Summers’ before splashy Amen breaks and jazzy chords ignite into an explosion of musical brightness. Exquisitely executed vintage vocal samples add to the cut’s sublime flair. This is liquid drum & bass at its finest.
Teaming up with New Zealand based singer/songwriter, and no stranger to Hospital Records, Thomas Oliver brings his infectiously enlivening vibe to ‘Sunflowers’. Pulsing sub basses, crisp breaks and a warm piano pair perfectly with the blissful vocals of Thomas Oliver. Other notable collaborations on the album include Whiney & Ebson on ‘Unreachable’, Etherwood on the well-received single ‘Fall Beneath You’ and rising star Telomic on ‘Listen Close’.
Keeno’s dedication to crafting his own unique sound has not gone unnoticed.
His remarkable productions have been supported by esteemed tastemakers, including a ‘Self-Certified Selection’ from MistaJam on BBC Radio 1, plays from Rene LaVice and his music being aired across the UK airwaves from 1Xtra to 6Music. On top of this, Keeno also hosts his widely renowned ‘Bristol Mix Series’ streams showcasing the very best established and upcoming talent in drum & bass. The success of his ‘Bristol Mix Series’ has led to his very own biweekly residency at Basement 45 in Bristol, where you’ll be able to catch Keeno spinning the latest D+B to his socially-distanced devotees.

For those who have been following Laurent Garnier for a long time, know how multipurpose this artist is, how his status as "best DJ in the world" is only a shortcut used by default. It should be recognised that this man is gifted with an extraordinary sense of combat, and that he has been fighting for many years to impose good music on the public. Laurent Garnier has always refused chapels and privileged actions; he does not support repetition, even less compromises, and certainly no downtime.

Living legend Phew follows up her brilliant Light Sleep album with another masterwork - Voice Hardcore - comprised entirely of her iconic, instantly recognizable voice, twisted, folded and layered over six mesmerizing tracks.

Bay Sine Recordings, originally known as Bunkr Music, started as a project of music blog Playhous net. A year after it's founding, Bunkr separated from Playhous and the name has since been changed to Bay Sine Recordings. Bay Sine was officially launched December 7, 2016 with a party played by the one and only DJ N-Type.