Suche:machine punk music

"Dueños de Nada" announces itself as a strong and tough proposal. It comes with the intention to get away from what we are used to hearing from the Chilean producer. As a first album, and by incorporating broad influences into a range of genres, industrial sounds and punk, the debut by Tomás Urquieta feels huge and accurate.


The "Dueños de Nada" sample, which belongs to Martin Sorrondeguy, is used by Urquieta to assemble a classic techno piece mixed with a new sound proposal, and by uniting these elements, a catharsis and collective osmosis movement is generated on the dance floor that does not need further explanation.


The proficiency that Tomás has developed when creating percussion doesn't go unnoticed either. It is the sensation of a new breath in his music, a replacement, a much more mature sound is demonstrated by the high instrumentation mixed in with a full on Techno base. The rhythms are wild, futuristic and with a completely personal vision. There are tracks that lock you up and there's others that leave the need for a club ajar. It is a heavy album, political, metallic but very organized. There are voices in Spanish of direct protest towards the system, voices where he invites us to be part of a march to despair, a liberation march for the dance floor . If we could summarize "Dueños de Nada" we would say it's a cry for freedom, a cry which asks us to enjoy the feeling of complete freedom across 11 tracks that embrace this anarchy in which Tomás Urquieta invites us to join.

One afternoon in 1975, friend and fellow music traveler, Harold Schroeder, showed up at Poo-Bah Record Shop where Tom Recchion worked selling records and experimental music to people, forcing them to buy albums that he swore would change their lives. Harold asked if Tom wanted to share in a studio space close to the shop. After seeing it Tom immediately said "YES!". They moved in and divided the space in half. On Tom's half he made drawings, paintings, performances, video, sculptures, installations, and music. Harold had his all set up for music with his newly acquired Steiner-Parker synth and guitars and things. At the beginning they played under the name The Two Who Do Duets. Soon the late-night jam sessions that took place in the back of Poo-Bah moved over to the fourth floor of 35 South Raymond. It was pretty beat up and derelict, the way one imagines an artist's studio to look. They could make all the noise they wanted. No one else was on their floor. The music heard on this LP has remained unheard since it was recorded and was created just before and right after the inaugural concert by the Los Angeles Free Music Society (LAFMS) groups Le Forte Four, Doo-Doettes, and Ace & Duce. That concert took place in late January 1976. The sessions on this release feature members of the newly formed and expanded Doo-Doettes, which now included Dennis Duck, Juan Gomez, Harold Schroeder, and Tom Recchion, as well as Ju Suk Reet Meate from Smegma and Ace, of Ace & Duce. 35 S. Raymond eventually became a sort of LAFMS headquarters, with Chip Chapman of Le Forte Four, artist and future Extended Organ vocalist/guitarist Paul McCarthy, and soon to become singer for Nervous Gender, punk/folk artist Phranc, who along with many other artists and musicians, moved into the building. 35 S. Raymond allowed for free expression and explorations of all sorts. Some wild parties ensued, not to mention the luxury of endless hours of experimentation. Parking was free and so was the art and music. Ace found the tapes for side one ("Tom's Studio") in his archive and Ju Suk Reet Meate found the tapes for side two ("50 Of Every American Are Machines") and edited them both for this release. No overdubs or remixing was emplo

Goatherder is the seventh album from underground London producer Kristian Craig Robinson, AKA Capitol K. This ace manipulator of audio and punk warlord of groove has crossed a tapestry of styles and approaches with his own secret compass since 1998.

Along with everything from Chinese pop to the marching band music of the United Arab Emirates in his early musical vocabulary, the influence of rave, new wave, grunge, and noise-core would collide to create a bold new sound. His early studio experiments gave birth to his debut, Sounds of the Empire (Planet Mu, 1999) built upon a heady balance of samples and live sources that placed Capitol K at the forefront of the UK's electronic scene. The follow-up, 2002's Island Row, was released via XL Records, with lead single Pillow becoming a daytime Radio 1 crossover. Nomad Junk (2005) combined Asian field recordings into a vibrant psychedelic collage, while Notes From: Life On The Wire With A Wrecking Ball (2008) paid homage to London's squats and free anarchistic artistic spaces of which K was a part for many years. Andean Dub (2012) was an exploratory South American-influenced album of heavy synth laden cumbia sound system tracks.

The last seven years have seen Capitol K's stature as a producer elevated with his establishment of the renowned Total Refreshment Studio and recording work with musicians such as the Mercury Music prize nominated The Comet Is Coming, global dance act Ibibio Sound Machine (Merge), the pan-Arabic Flamingods (Moshi Moshi), Serafina Steer and her BAS JAN project, and contemporary folk artist Rozi Plain, among many more.

This latest work was developed and recorded in his native Malta, where he built a studio in a cave (a former goat stable). K gathered bamboo instruments collected around the world, including an ancient Quecha reeded pipe (his new-found lead instrument), and various resonating vessels and percussive objects including dry fennel storks collected from Punic troglodyte sites, and atonal flutes built from fresh cut farmland reed. Ritualistic improvisations took place over a series of seasonal visits, awakening genetic memory and plant communication.

Back in London the tracks were interfaced and expanded with post-industrial machine beat and bass guitar lock down. Homage is paid to New Age synthscapes, while a Spirit Jazz overtone arrives from K's recent years as the sonic muscle behind a plethora of luminous albums born in his Total Refreshment Studio. Goatherder follows on from the 2016 collaborative incarnation LOOSE MEAT and sonically abridges 2012's Capitol K album Andean Dub.

Outside of studio production and his solo repertoire as Capitol K, Kristian has toured as guest musician with multiple bands over the last 15 years, including Brazil's Cibelle (Crammed Discs), Archie Bronson Outfit (Domino) (whom he also co-produced), and recently Du Blonde (Mute Records).

His last project, Loose Meat, was a collaborative album of poetic dance music received lots of radio play in the UK and toured across the country for a year, performing a number of festivals.

He established the Faith and Industry record label which handled his subsequent releases and through which now he releases a number of other artists that he develops and produces.

Confused Machines' are excited to release an E.P by the composer and producer Ishai Adar (aka Oosh). Adar started his musical journey in the mid 80's as the keyboard player of the legendary Israeli post-punk band 'Nosei Hamigbaat', together with his high school friend Ohad Fishof.After his withdrawal from the band, he released 'Her': An innovative, experimental, electronic dance album, rare in the Israeli music scene of the late 90's. In this album, he fused 80's synth-pop influences ('Depeche Mode', etc.) with a cutting edge techno sound, which still sounds up to date. This album influenced the local underground electronic music scene of the late 90's.Following the album 'Her', Adar became a prominent composer and created soundtracks for motion pictures such as: 'Year Zero' (2004), Oscar-nominated 'Beaufort' (2007), 'A Film Unfinished' (2010), 'Bethlehem' (2013) and 'Mr. Gaga' (2015).In his current project '12', Adar revisits the synth-pop sounds which shaped his musical taste. He infuses profoundness and character to musical genres such as new-wave, Italo-disco, Euro-pop and contemporary dance music forming - multi-layered, euphoric and romantic melodies. A killer acid-techno remix of the track 12 by the legendary Rude 66 is included in the E.P.

Taking a turn to some of its roots, Emotional Rescue offers a reissue of Ramjac Corporation's UK house/breaks anthem Cameroon Massif!. First released on the increasingly cult-status Irdial Discs in 1990, this was very much the sound of the big bang explosion of Acid House morphing and splintering, as subsequent multi-genres developed, formed, imploded and reformed in new ways that still subsists today.

Within the melting pot of anything goes, chemically-enhanced optimism that spread across the UK during that return to the summers of love from 1987 onwards, the nascent sounds coming from Chicago and Detroit were mixed with a hybrid of 80s British influences, taking in European synth pop, US electro, new beat, hip hop and reggae. Out of this appeared a new sound, mixing that love of techno and house with dub bass and break beats into a proto-jungle swirl.

Like many growing up through the ever-evolving 60, 70s & 80s British music scene, Paul Chivers' early years of learning piano and guitar, moved from Beatles era pop to take in punk, jazz and anything an eager musical mind could explore. Developing a long-term interest and study of Cuban and Afro-drumming, his acquisition of an Atari and sampler soon moved to programming of both drum machines and TB303 and with that, Ramjac Corporation was born.

Playing live at some of the earliest raves in 1988, as often through luck and "right time, right place", including the infamous Back To The Future and Energy parties, Ramjac went from playing from 50 to 10,000 ravers in a matter of months, as the nation was gripped, depending on your cultural standing, by either a mixture of drug apocalypse paranoia or ecstatic celebration.

It was a meeting with Akin Fernandez, founder of Irdial Discs, that led some of the first studio experiments and creation of Cameroon Massif!. Utlising Akin's in-house studio and production skills, alongside Chivers' jazz influenced outlook of improvisation over arrangement, the track took shape, mixing the live programmed percussion, heavy doses of phase, delay and reverb and Sun Ra inspired keys that resulted in a number of mixes of Massif!.

Collected here are the original 12" "Massive" and "Massing" mixes, plus a special live version taken from the "Live At The Brain" reunion gig of 2009. The sought after 1990 versions and original Live mix are taken a step further with this 13 mins + mix, in essence a resampling and remixing reversion with didgeridoo and live on mic MCing, that gives a real glimpse of those early live sets. With more Ramjac Corporation material upcoming and a live reel-to-reel show appearing soon, the return of Cameroon Massif! is now.

Parrish Smith makes his Dekmantel debut on the label's sister-techno imprint, UFO, with a blend of avant garde electronics and industrial.
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With the 'Sex, Suicide & Speed Metal EP', Dutch producer Parrish Smith works outside of the realm of genres and tempos, creating his own unique template of saturated, electronic post-punk, having won accolades from the likes of Nina Kraviz, and Ron Morelli along the way. An analogue purist at heart, Parrish Smith has already amassed a cult following with regular appearances on Red Light Radio, in which the anarcho-experimentalist broadcasts sessions of heavy industrialism, breakbeats and body music.

Parrish Smith's music brings together classic analogue gear and a love for the fusion of aggressive industrial sounds. With title track 'Sex, Suicide & Speed Metal', Parrish Smith channels his inner Alan Vega, with some screaming guitars, and 65bpm machine-crunching body beats, lurching into a sultry space of slick wave music. 'Mute' jacks up the feeling of tempo, rife with energetic drum machines, pulsing synths and retro-fitted vocals, similar to the sound of something Daniel Miller might have released himself back in the early 80s. 'SKINS', delves further into the mechanical, with a grinding bass that bleeds through the track's entirety, while 'Fall into sin' sees him explore the world of deconstructed, gothic-pop yet further. Parrish Smith will be DJing, and performing live as Volition Immanent at this year's Dekmantel Festival, to fulfil the festival's charter of provocative, and intoxicating, energetic beat-filled music.

New Zealand based EBM auteur Body Beat Ritual makes his debut on Bergerac with an incendiary EP of full throttle intense dark wave bangers. Growing up in North West England immersed in hardcore punk and rave culture led to musical experiments and Body Beat Ritual is his unique splicing of both aesthetics.
Using a combination of hardware, audio samples and midi sequencing, Body Beat Ritual reclaims the moment when underground musicians in Manchester, Chicago and Ghent put down their guitars and picked up drum machines and sequencers bringing the intensity, rawness and aggression of the band environment to the dancefloor. Mortal Sin is a certified smasher. Absolute dancefloor decimation whenever it's played out. No more description necessary. No Mercy evokes the Lost Boys vibe with an equally high octane raw workout. Trent Reznor meets Jeff Mills at a DAF gig on a flatliner. The EP closes with Body Politics which lowers the tempo to a chuggier zone, with an ode to female empowerment which keeps up that Body Beat pressure and intensity.

Bulkhead present their debut album - Aft Pressure - due June 1st on 2MR Records. In 2015, during the coldest Toronto winter on record, two old friends - Pop District and Patrik Benjamin - locked themselves away in the studio to experiment with a medley of hardware. Both solo artists in their own right, they had overseen their own projects prior, but had never considered how a collaboration might sound. Exploring the polarity of extreme cold and immersive warmth with a distinctly analogue feel, the duo carved themselves an aesthetic. And so Bulkhead was born. Using a raw, organic palette they repudiate formal structure and polish, opting instead for a freeform blend of unhindered mechanical techno and fuzzy ambience - slambient, if you will. Debuting in 2016, their 'Worker's Kampf' cassette album on LA imprint Far Away Tapes sold out quickly, warranting another release on 2MR featuring highlights of the cassette on 12' and digital. Continuing with the purveyance of abstract arrangements and machine wizardry, their forthcoming album - Aft Pressure - is a striking exploration of the intersection between frenzied techno and harmonic warmth.Fragments of techno and EBM mutate without strict guidance, rebuilding themselves into new forms with stunning physical qualities. Whilst many of the tracks might file under dance music, the DIY spirit of the album transcends a nightclub, occupying a peculiar space between the uncensored grit of the post-punk scene and some melancholic form of ambient minimalism. Angular percussion slices its way through dizzying synth leads whilst serene harmonies wander on their own accord. Darting melodies are made all the more powerful by their harsh timbre as drum-less excursions provide a cinematic backdrop. Aft Pressure is a statement of intent, blurring the parameters of dance music culture with equal doses of insanity and serenity. At the same time, it's also a hell of a lot of fun...

Colin Potter Is A Sound Engineer And Musician Currently Based In London. He Has Worked Within The Fields Of Electronic And Experimental Music For Over 35 Years, Collaborating With The Likes Of Current 93, The Hafler Trio, Organum, Andrew Chalk, And Most Notably As A Key Part Of Nurse With Wound Alongside Steven Stapleton. He Started The Esteemed Icr (integrated Circuit Recordings) Label In 1981 Releasing A Clutch Of Wonderful Home Recordings Of His Own, Over Half A Dozen Small Run Cassette Only Releases.'the Where House' Was Recorded In 1981 At Ic Studio, A Converted Wash House In Sutton On The Forest In North Yorkshire. The Album Was Self-released On Cassette That Same Year Via Icr. This Expanded Double Lp Edition Features All 13 Tracks From The Original Tape On Vinyl For The First Time Plus 4 Bonus Tracks. 'the Where House' Is A Prime Example Of Early Uk Post-punk/industrial Electronic Music. combining Dub, Electro, And Krautrock Rhythms With Psychedelic, Kosmische Noise In Multiple Mutations Ranging From Almost Pop-wise Songcraft To Horizon-scanning Motorik Flights,' Says Boomkat. Most Of The Damage Was Done By Colin Using Guitars, Synths, Sequencers, Drum Machines, Percussion, And Modified Toy Keyboards With Fairly Primitive 4-track Recording Equipment. He Was Assisted On Some Of The Tracks By Stephan Jadd-parry (guitar, Percussions), Jon Caffery (guitar, Bass, E-bow, Percussion) And Nick Jackson (synth). All Songs Have Been Remastered For Vinyl By George Horn At Fantasy Studios In Berkeley. The Record Is Sleeved In A Replica Of The Original Cassette Artwork By Jonathan Coleclough. Every Copy Includes A Double Sided Postcard Insert With Notes From Colin.

Miss Kittin & The Hacker are the Electro duo of Caroline Hervé and Michel Amato from Grenoble, France. The pair met during the early 90s at a rave and soon after bought turntables and began DJing. In 1996, they started writing music heavily influenced by 1980s synthpop and post-punk bands like Fad Gadget, DAF, Liaisons Dangeuresues, and Yazoo, as well as Italo Disco. Bored by the techno scene at the time, they set out out to lighten the serious tone and bring a campy sexiness to the dour musical landscape. Upon hearing their demos DJ Hell signed them to his Munich-based International DJ Gigolo label and released their first 2 EPs in 1998 and 1999. Their debut album 'First Album" was released in 2001 followed by . in .

Lost Tracks Vol. 2' contains 4 previously unreleased demos recorded between 1997 and 1999. The duo fused 80's European New Wave/Italo Disco with 90's Detroit Electro acts like Le Car and Dopplereffekt. By utilizing verse-chorus structures, they playfully shook up the loop based hard techno and electro that was popular at the time. Their studio set up at the time was a Korg MS-20, Roland SH-101, TR-606, TR-808, Siel DK80, and Boss DR-660 drum machine. The songs are direct, spontaneous, seemingly improvised in places. Miss Kittin sings about falling in love in the new millennium, snuff movies and controlling the unknown trip to death, all in her cheekily derisive French accent.

All songs have been transferred from the original DAT tapes by the band and remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The vinyl comes housed in a glossy jacket featuring a black and white photo of the duo taken in 1996. Each LP includes a postcard with liner notes from Miss Kittin and The Hacker designed by Eloise Leigh. As Miss Kittin says of these demos, We were naive, innocent, adventurous and we didn't expect anything in return'

Recorded in the Autumn of 2017 at their studio in Vancouver's Deep Blue, MVX / U41A' is the first new music from Minimal Violence to be released on Ninja Tune's Technicolor imprint and the first to be recorded outside their usual home production space. The result is a record that intends to reduce pop music to its emotive qualities and apply that abstract nostalgia back into dance tracks. Their penchant for the heavier and more aggressive side of dance music is most evident in its infiltration of the duo's often raw and disorientating live set. Formed in 2015 the duo, consisting of Ashlee Luk and Lida P, have a string of releases to date with labels such as Lobster Theremin, 1080p and Jungle Gym Records. Drawing on Luk's years of experience playing in punk bands, they combine hardware sequencers, drum machines and synths, to weave together acid tinged compositions that derive inspiration from early electronic and minimal synth through to heavier UK rave and hardcore.

Coletivo Vandalismo kick-start a new 12" series for the Contort Yourself label. Hailing from the city of Porto the duo also DJ under the name GAM and released their debut LP on Lake Haze's Eye For An Eye label. Their music has an immediacy that seems to stem from a background in live performance as opposed to polished studio sessions - an improvisational punk aesthetic that manages to carry this EP so strongly. Wild, crashing fx and unrecognisable vocal distortions layer atop wonky 90bpm drum machine grooves and the pair even show off what may be their turntablism skills on 'Zombie Zombie'. There's a nod to early concrete on the closing track 'Black Sun's Demise' with whirring, mechanical noise motifs suddenly jolting us into punishing gabber-at-33-minus-8 territory. The DIY spirit is alive and well here and the feeling that things could fall apart at any minute just adds to the tension.

It's rare to come across a debut album that delights and surprises in equal measure, but that's exactly what you can expect from Human Call, the first full-length excursion from daydreaming dancefloor fusionists Earthboogie.The East London-based duo of Izak Gray and Nicola Robinson has previous form when it comes to creating beautiful, funk-fuelled fusions of soundsystem-ready rhythms, humid instrumentation and intergalactic audio explorations. To date, they've released a pair of fine EPs on Leng, both of which did a splendid job in showcasing their unique musical vision.Even so, this vision has never been clearer than it is on Human Call, a vibrant eight-track missive that fixes the sticky tropical cheeriness of African and South American dance music - be it Afro-disco, Afro-funk or samba - with a wide range of complimentary sounds, styles and influences, from spacey analogue electronics, sun-kissed Balearica and hazy West Coast jazz-rock, to chunky dub disco, snappy retro-futurist house and bouncy, dub-fuelled club workouts.Throughout, Gray and Robinson showcase an impressive level of musicianship, variously combining crunchy drum machine hits and dusty old synthesizers with razor-sharp electric and acoustic guitars, rich bass, cascading saxophone solos and hazy, life-affirming vocal harmonies.The result is a string of memorable highlights, from the sticky tropical-house-meets-dub disco futurism of 'Human Call' and fuzzy disco-funk righteousness of opener 'Overground', to the post-punk disco jauntiness of 'Stargazing' and samba-infused dancefloor bliss of Nina Miranda collaboration 'Silken Moon'. Cheery, absorbing, imaginative and hugely entertaining, Human Call offers a perfect snapshot of Earthboogie's distinctive musical world.

· Bart Davenport's 7th album since his 2002 solo debut
· West Coast yacht rock meets '80s English pop
· Produced by L.A. Takedown's Aaron M. Olson
· Confirmed live dates in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, San Diego, Vida Festival (Spain)

Recorded in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, Blue Motel is the new album by Bart & The Bedazzled, a brand new musical enterprise by Bart Davenport and his seventh album proper since his solo breakout in 2002. Alluding to Los Angeles with the lights down, it's an amalgam sound of '80s English pop and West Coast yacht rock jams, sprinkled with cinematic flourishes clearly influenced by the understated production of L.A. Takedown's Aaron M. Olson. The jangly pop aesthetic, resplendent with choppy chorus tinted guitar, snappy snares, sax and bass is underlined with life trodden stories about day jobs, dating, financial insecurities, lost innocence and most prominently, time travel.

The album lives somewhere in an imagined past (or future) that is curiously both the 1960s and 1980s conveying the groups's nostalgia for a fantasy world with a cheeky cynicism, despite a perception of a world that is, for Bart, on the downfall. To that end, Davenport's songs are, as always, delivered with a happy and sad sensibility reminiscent of the great Burt Bacharach. From the surreal yet humorous 'The House That Built Itself' to the sad surf music of 'Halloween By The Sea' or the romantic L.A. noir of the title track, Blue Motel arrives with a spoonful of tears, a nod and a wink.

The Bedazzled band lineup, united by their love of the 'Elegant '80s', includes the guitar of Wayne Faler (Dream Boys), drums, percussion and beats by Andres Renteria (Jose Gonzales) and post-punk bass lines from Jessica Espeleta (L.A. Takedown). The four friends from Los Angeles, united in their affection for the more sophisticated sounds of English '80s groups like Prefab Sprout and Style Council give the setlist a more distinctively pop flavour compared to Bart's soulful last outing on his album Physical World, also released on Lovemonk. Blue Motel features regular appearances from female vocalist Nedelle Torrisi (Domino, Asthmatic Kitty) who notably adds the lush layers of harmony on 'The Amateurs'. Saxophonist Billy McShane is also featured on three songs with improvisations that evoke the scene of whales in outer space.

Producer Olson often incorporates soundtrack and avant-garde elements in his own work. His gift for song arrangement, understanding of the synth and penchant for subtlety all shine brightly on Blue Motel.

DsorDNE (pronounced Disordine) is a project from Torino, Italy that evolved as group out of the electronic experimental post punk project Novostj in 1987. At the core of DsorDNE is Marco Milanesio, musical engineer and co-founder of the HAX record label, joined by a revolving cast of musicians. Their spectrum ranged from experimental to structured electro-poetry and Soundtrack like instrumental electronic music. In 1987 they released their first track on a split-single with The Legendary Pink Dots. Between 1987 and 1994 they released 6 full length albums, 3 split-EPs and appeared on various cassette compilations. à Un Sole (Itâs a Sun) was the groupâs only vinyl full length originally released in 1990 on HAX. Itâs 8 tracks of electro-beat poetry and experimentation recorded between July 1989 and January 1990 by Marco Milanesio (music) and Roberta Ongaro (vocals) with guests Claudio Burdese (guitar), Danilo Beltrame (guitar) and Cristiana Bauducco (vocals). The album is broken up into two distinct halves. Side A contains four chunks of hard hitting, percussive patterns and rushing bass sequences. Dark, moody female vocals force their monologues through the machinery in their native Italian tongue. The traditional song structure is carefully avoided by giving lyrics equal opportunities be they recited, half-sung, whispered or spoken. Side B displays moodier moments, less savage attacks and subtler sensuality, veering towards the more melodic and existential. All songs have been remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The record is housed in an exact replica of the original jacket featuring a black and white drawing with silver metallic spot color housed in a clear PVC plastic cover with a three color screen-printed design. Each copy includes a 11x11❠double-sided lyrics sheet with English translations as well an 8x11❠sheet with original press notes from 1990 by Marco Pustianaz.

7"

Xen & Yovav return to Malka Tuti in 2018 with full thrust and eyes to the future. After being responsible for the first 2 releases on the label, this time the enigmatic singer and the influential producer collaborate and deliver 2 original songs. Hayom Etmol is a 100% good vibe diy post-punkish poppy song with a flowing synthetic bass line, balearic guitar riffs and dreamy vocals. The B-Side, Shavit, is a vocal led song, with a repetitive guitar bassline and, trip guitar riffs and a minimalistic drum machine. low fi in its production Shavit feels as if it has been dug out of an abandoned 80s record store in the outskirts of Glasgow or Amsterdam, with a strong cold wave feel to it.
This 7' will be the first in a series of more diy approach to electronic music, song writing and production. Some exciting names on the bill so hold on to your chairs...
Hayom Etmol's artwork design was made as always by Morey Talmor, with a printed inner sleeve designed by the Israeli artist Kobi Swissa and a special silkscreened outer PVC sleeve.

A great strong man with a brush in his hand once said: everything you can imagine is real and art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. So is making music just another form of keeping a diary In terms of Ana Helder, the Argentinian girl with the special twist, the answer is: maybe. More than two years after her last release on Cómeme she is back with a hand full of tracks. Five to be precise. She got more, but this is what the Müstique's received. They are mean, dirty, harmful, amorevolous, seductive and addictive. Surrender tunes from a producer and DJ that does not think in boxes. Her three Eps 'El Groove De Tu Corazón', 'Fiebre De Marte' and 'Beating PC' mark some warped grooving heights in the edgy catalogue of Matias Aguayo's label Cómeme. Also on the French label Astro Lab she already dropped the 12inch 'Soy Canalla' with a playful psyche tune, that additionally got remixed by folks like Les Disques De La Mort seducer Ivan Smagghe or the mysterious West-German ghost-(w)rid(t)er Frank West. Furthermore, she re-tuned tunes from Chilean friends like Alejandro Paz or Mamacita and sang on songs of colleagues. For Müstique she now looked into her always-growing production crate and found some post-punk waving funk odes, which want more than just to dance this mess around. They bring soulful LSD-melodies for Jazz lovers with techno legs that like to get high on Liquid Liquid. They are electronic but yet so organic. And they move deeply while spreading the feel of a meditative rest. When Diagnose heard them first, he came to the idea of writing a script for a flick that tells the story of a music-making machine, which has more to offer than answers. It forms sound with no traces of reality, but is so human that humans fear it. Why did he think that way Only because of what Ana Helder recently got to say Well, let the music play...

Cute Heels is the project of Victor Lenis, a contemporary electronic artist living in Berlin, Germany. He grew up in Bogotá, Columbia during the 1990s, surrounded by the radial punk scene. Over the years, Victor's passion and fascination for synthesizers and drum machines to produce and compose resulted in his debut album 'Spiritual" for Dark Entries in 2014 as well as the Third Skin' EP in 2016. Inspired by equal parts Liaisons Dangereuses, Drexciya and Black Devil Disco Club, Cute Heels connects the dots between Detroit techno, early Chicago house and Belgium electronic body music.State of Mind' is a 4-track EP featuring the vocal talents of Berlin artist Aga Wilk, of electro-punk projects Walkman Music and 77TM, on the the title track. On the A-side are two fresh compositions recorded in New York and Bogota between 2016 and 2017. Victor says, 'State of Mind refers to the subconscious as dominated by real facts, natural, unnatural ,metaphysical or virtual and dynamism of the body as physical shield.' The track is a slow building foray into techno, elegantly suited for intangible moments. 'Golden Tears' kicks off with Cute Heels' signature metallic EBM funk played with punchy, percussive analog synths. On the flip we present two banging club remixes. The first is from LA-4A, techno DJ and producer Kevin McHugh aka Ambivalent, who adds a strong kick drum and lacerating hi-hats that build up to a mind melting breakdown with a full on acid squelch attack. The second remix comes from Noncompliant, Midwest US-based producer Lisa Smith aka DJ Shiva, who creates a raw, thumping exercise though off-kilter mechanics and punishing percussion. All songs have been mastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The record comes in a custom-made die-cut jacket designed by Eloise Leigh featuring suggestive rope bondage graphic printed spot black matte on black hi-gloss finish. Each copy includes a postcard.

'Coscienza Cibernetica' comes out with a remarkable Mannella's A side - here presenting his new live project as DAHRAXT - flavoured by a rare remix from one of most solid electronics music pillar: Tobias. (Ostgut Ton / Non Standard Production).
On Mannella's version, deconstructed vocals scurrying up and down the scales, muscular drum machine and razor-sharp synths, take over the atmosphere.
Tobias. strip it down, showing all his intimate post-punk background on a clever, steady and 'non-standard' vision of what electronic music can be.

A great strong man with a brush in his hand once said: everything you can imagine is real and art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. So is making music just another form of keeping a diary In terms of Ana Helder, the Argentinian girl with the special twist, the answer is: maybe. More than two years after her last release on Co´meme she is back with a hand full of tracks. Five to be precise. She got more, but this is what the Mu¨stique's received. They are mean, dirty, harmful, amorevolous, seductive and addictive. Surrender tunes from a producer and DJ that does not think in boxes. Her three Eps El Groove De Tu Corazo´n', Fiebre De Marte' and Beating PC' mark some warped grooving heights in the edgy catalogue of Matias Aguayo's label Co´meme. Also on the French label Astro Lab she already dropped the 12inch Soy Canalla' with a playful psyche tune, that additionally got remixed by folks like Les Disques De La Mort seducer Ivan Smagghe or the mysterious West-German ghost-(w)rid(t)er Frank West. Furthermore, she re-tuned tunes from Chilean friends like Alejandro Paz or Mama- cita and sang on songs of colleagues. For Mu¨stique she now looked into her always-growing production crate and found some post-punk waving funk odes, which want more than just to dance this mess around. They bring soulful LSD-melodies for Jazz lovers with techno legs that like to get high on Liquid Liquid. They are electronic but yet so organic. And they move deeply while spreading the feel of a meditative rest. When Diagnose heard them first, he came to the idea of writing a script for a flick that tells the story of a music-making machine, which has more to offer than answers. It forms sound with no traces of reality, but is so human that humans fear it. Why did he think that way Only because of what Ana Helder recently got to say Well, let the music play...

Ike Yard recombine their music looking across decades of post punk, electronic, soundtracks and come out with some of their best yet and enough to last the next 20-30 years (in Ike Yard´s very own words). Originally founded in 1979 New York City, members Michael Diekmann (keyboard, guitar, vocals), Kenneth Compton (programming drums, synths arrangements, bass, guitar, vocals) and Stuart Argabright (programming drums, synths arrangements, distortion bass, keyboards, metal perc) reformed the band once in 2007 and again in 2010. Each time different and with new ambitions. This time 'Sacred Machine' EP is defined by detailed drum layers supported by multiple basses and keyboards, some off-timing beat patterns that turn in a second of synchrony into a straight four on the floor kick and first time vocal collaborations.

Composition wise 'Sacred Machine' EP is recorded as a 'rehearsal'. As for Ike Yard songs would not be done so very many times in their existence, all threw in on each piece as they came into being. It sounds like a group that could have been doing records in Anthony Burgess and Stanley Kubrick´s 'A Clockwork Orange'. 'Night Klub' revisits Ike Yard´s original 'Night After Night' from 1981 EP. 'Sacred Machine' might be familiar to those who caught Ike Yard dates in Europe between 2007-2014 as one of the extended jams prepared for the dark ambient shows. 'Tear Drop' night airport music with sweet vocals by Camella Lobo of Tropic Of Cancer is followed by 'Spit' that explores Ike Yard NCR style with jittery beats, clomping, stomping cross cut beats. 'Slaves Of Janet' featuring Erica Belle brings to mind scenes in an S&M parlour with unused lyrics from the Factory America LP recordings.

Dark Entries and Serendip Lab have teamed up to release 'Prototech', the first vinyl retrospective by German electronic trio Hypnobeat, recorded 1984-86. James Dean Brown and Pietro Insipido formed Hypnobeat in 1983, but it was the addition of Victor Sol only a few months later that found the project reaching, as Brown puts it, "the desired level of technical sophistication." In time, Tobias Freund also lent his talents (and equipment) to this loose-fit sonic scheme, where the protagonists sought a new, electronic manifestation of mankind's tribal music roots. Two cassette releases surfaced - 1985's "Huggables", and "Specials/Spatials" the following year. By this point the Frankfurt-based group had already explored fiercely mechanical creative expression through various configurations of hardware and personnel, revolving around core ingredients such as the TR-808, TB-303 and MC-202. The project lived on in spirit as Brown activated Narcotic Syntax in the 90s. While a more modern, digital concern, rooted in the Perlon label family, NS still channeled the Hypnobeat concept of a "new tribalism", not least on their "Provocative Percussion" double 12" released in 2006. For all the punky veneer, there are instances where these tracks reach staggering levels of sophistication, not least on "Slash! Buffalo Eats Brass" with its intricately programmed 303 lines and nimble beats that sound a far cry from most machine music made in 1986. Prescient "Can God Rewind" is also dazzling in the complexity of its percussion and the richness of its synth lines in C as they throb out a bastardised version of acidic Disco straight out of the rhythm collider. Elsewhere, some tracks are more primal in their execution. Visceral opening track "The Arumbaya Fetish" was a cathartic venting of Brown's least favourite sound on the 808, the iconic cowbell, while the astounding proto-Acid miniature "Moon Jump" places limber 303 lead lines in a hail of thunderstruck patterns. "Kilian" has a stripped down quality that speaks more to the industrial era that Hypnobeat was conceived in, and "Mission In Congo" is a raw, reverb-soaked drum workout that captures the percussive-obsessive nature of Hypnobeat perfectly. Six of the seven tracks selected on this collection were primarily powered by two 808s. "I am amazed that the release sounds like we really had a plan back then..." states Brown, but this accidental magic is in fact the raison d'etre of Hypnobeat. They weren't the only ones prefiguring the next big revolutions in electronic music in the mid 80s, but there certainly weren't many artists stumbling across modes of expression that sound so relevant today.

All songs are remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Housed in a jacket featuring cave engravings by Pietro Insipido of an archer and animal printed in a wallpaper pattern style designed by Eloise Leigh. Each copy includes an transparent insert of an x-ray photograph from 1984 of Romulus Cœurque holding the circuit board of a BOSS DR-55 rhythm machine.

Shoc Corridor was the London post-punk quartet of Paul O'Carroll (Voice, Synth), Andy Garnham (Synth, Drum), Chris Davis (Guitar, Bass, E-Bow) and Nogi Prass (Synth) named after the Sam Fuller film from 1963. Chris met Nogi shortly after moving to London in 1979 - they started playing music together, fell madly in love, and decided to form a band. They recruited Andy, who had previously played in a band with Stephen Luscombe of Blancmange, and lyricist and vocalist Paul. Their influences were wide reaching: Kraftwerk, Neu, Cabaret Voltaire, Brian Eno, PIL, and Joy Division.

The group recorded a 4-song demo during 1981 in a tiny flat Chris shared with Nogi in Notting Hill. As their collection of instruments grew they set up studio a few blocks away in Andy's flat at 20 All Saints Road. There they re-recorded Sargasso Sea' along with On Reflexion' on a TEAC reel-to-reel 4-track machine. In the summer of '82, the band was booked into Decibel Studios in Stoke Newington for two and a half days with Mark Easton of Shout Records, where they reworked the two songs. The group usually worked through studio experimentation rather than constructing their songs in a conventional way. Their equipment list included a Korg MS-20, Wasp, Pro-One, Roland TR-808, WEM Copicat, guitars, bass, e-bow and an assortment of effects pedals. On Reflexion' began as a Blancmange backing track, since Stephen Luscombe would sometimes use Andy's 4-track, Korg MS-20 and drum machine. Chris has memories of Paul disappearing from time to time to the neighboring graveyard for inspiration, where they had to procure him from to lay down vocals. Their debut 3-song 12' single, A Blind Sign', was released in October 1982 on Shout Records. For this re-issue we've included the original skeletal Sargasso Sea' 4-track demo from 1981. Evocative and dreamy, the music escorts you on a tour of icy landscapes, with Paul's rich vocals guiding the way.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. Each EP comes in an exact replica of the original jacket, designed by Chris Davis with artwork by Paul and Jerry Neal. Each copy includes an 8x11' 2-sided insert with liner notes, lyrics and photos designed by Eloise Leigh.

Tadd Mullinix's Charles Manier project returns with a third double-LP, Luxus Steroid Abamita, an edict of nine new amorphous transmissions and clustered, clangorous, hemi-synthetic funk. This is experimental machine music: it's inspired by the fringes of dance, but skirts petrified arpeggios and other stock Wave and Technopop emblems. Its spirit elicits Sheffield Post-Punk and Düsseldorfer NDW desiderata, but exploits are crisp, psychedelic, and expansive. Lyrics come as laconic Dada, sociopolitical impressions—in counterpoint to concrète tape smears, echoing guitar deluges, and entrenched in ever-shifting grime. A wide spectrum of density is proffered. Atmospheric zones are submerged, modulating knells. When tempos increase, sample & hold mutations make synthesizers sputter and writhe. The title track and opus, Yopo (Calcium Tree)' carry this with heavy pulses—storming like locomotives.

Phantom Forth were the brother sister team of Paul Luker (Guitar, Bass, Vocals), Debbie Luker (Drums, Guitar, Vocals) and Lorraine Steele (Keyboards, Percussion, Vocals). They formed in 1981 in Auckland, New Zealand. Paul began recording his own music after purchasing a 2-track from Oceania Sound. He formed a band with his flatmate and eventually met Lorraine through Debbie. With a shared love of Young Marble Giants and Cabaret Voltaire they started to rehearse at LAB Studio.

'The EEPP' was recorded in 1983 within a few weeks at Progressive Music Studios. Slated for release in February 1984, the mini-album finally appeared in November on Flying Nun Records. It contained seven moody sketches of Auckland. Their sound blends cold wave guitars, drum-machine propelled post-punk with female vocals. The core recording set up was a Casio-Tone VL, Boss DR-55 Dr. Rhythm, Roland TR-606 and an acoustic Yamaha bass. All original vinyl copies contained many clicks and pops and due to paper bits from previous jobs that pressing plant melted down. Included with this reissue are two early demos recorded at LAB in 1982, made prior to Lorraine joining the band, plus a recording from the Flying Nun live compilation 'The Last Rumba'.

All songs have been remastered from the original master tapes for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The vinyl comes housed in sleeve with original artwork collage designed by Paul Lurker. Each LP includes a two-sided 8.5x11 poster with notes and photos.

Blood Debts' is the compulsive debut album from Years Of Denial, the alter-face of London-based French musician/producer and DJ, Jerome Tcherneyan.

Though his formulative Marseille youth was spent exploring the darkest corners of post-punk, New Wave, not to mention Public Enemy and the inspirational Mille Plateaux and Basic Channel labels, Tcherneyan, already an extremely capable drummer, quickly extended his sonic palate toward and beyond the bass-heavy electronic isolationism, insistent beats and drone experimentation that's still very much prevalent in his work today.
One should not either pass over his integral contribution to the much-lauded, though stolidly underground "ghost-rock" unit, Piano Magic, which engineered sublime collaborations with Brendan Perry (Dead Can Dance), Simon Raymonde (Cocteau Twins/This Mortal Coil) and Alan Sparhawk (Low). Tcherneyan, always prolific, can also lay claim to impressive collusions with Bonjo Iyabinghi Noah (African Head Charge), Damo Suzuki (Can), 70's psych folk legend, Mark Fry to name but a few.
In 2005, Jerome founded and promoted the infamous 'Flesh' parties; guests including Andy Stott /Claro Intelecto/Edit-Select/James Ruskin/Kirk Degiorgio/Mark Broom/Oliver Ho/Sigha/Steve Bicknell and many more. These nights served as an invaluable education in Techno and Dubmixology; marathon sets played deep into the sunrise.
Skip forward a decade and the DJ bug is even deeper embedded, with Tcherneyan sharing the booth with, amongst many others, Orphx/Phase Fatale/Joefarr and London Modular Alliance.

Tcherneyan's muse and foil on 'Blood Debts,' his first for Oliver Ho's splendid and already essential new Death & Leisure imprint, is Maya Petrovna, an entrancing London-based vocalist, film composer and performance/physical theatre artist, whose voice perfectly evokes Billie Holliday, Diamanda Galas and all stations between.
There's a black neon heart at the centre of 'Blood Debts,' a fetishtic ritual of contorted flesh and altered states; a feverish, infectious paradox of primitivism and modernity. Years of Denial is the ghost in the machine.

Diseño Corbusier is the avant-garde electronics duo of Javier G. Marín and Ani Zinc, formed in Granada, Spain 1981. Like Sheffield's relation to London during the punk explosion in the UK, Granada developed an experimental music scene 400 kilometers south of Madrid. As a child, there were no records in Ani's house, so she grew up listening to the radio and was hypnotized after hearing 'Remember Love', by Yoko Ono. While attending university in Granada she responded to an ad in a music magazine by Javier, If you're into bands like Cabaret Voltaire or Flying Lizards, call me'.

The duo recorded their debut album Stadia' in 1982 and self-released as a limited edition cassette on their label Auxilio de Cientos. They drew influences from contemporaries like SPK, Throbbing Gristle, Esplendor Geométrico and DAF. They employed the 'cut-up' technique William Burroughs used to write his books to splicing their magnetic tape loops. Instruments used included a Korg Lambda, Boss DR-55 drum machine, Roland SH 101, and MFB 501 drum machine. The lack of money to buy more expensive instruments forced the duo to be more creative. Everything was recorded directly to a cassette player that was plugged into a Revox B77 reel to reel tape machine to add echo. Ani manipulated and treated her naive, menacing vocals to match Javier's processed rhythms. These early sketches contain atonal, arhythmic, thick shifting curtains of synth, loops and radio samples. For this reissue we've added 7 bonus tracks taken from various cassette compilations, as well as three previously unreleased songs. Elements of industrial music, primitivistic techno and vocal manipulation are fused with a Dadaist approach utilizing modern technology.

All songs were remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The front cover is an exact replica of the band's original design, restored by Eloise Leigh. Each copy includes a 4 page xeroxed booklet with photos, press clippings and liner notes from Javier. Powerful and evocative, soundtrack music for a rising storm or revolt.' Sound of Pig magazine 1985

Cute Heels is the solo project of Victor Lenis, a contemporary artist living in Barcelona, Spain. He grew up in Bogotá, Columbia during the 1990s, surrounded by the radial punk scene. Over the years, Victor's passion and fascination for synthesizers and drum machines to produce and compose resulted in various digital-only releases as well as his debut album Spiritual" for Dark Entries in 2014. Cute Heels has been called ''the new blood and spirit for the next step in techno music'' by Electro/Techno pioneer Juan Atkins. Third Skin' is a 4-track EP that connects the dots between Detroit techno, early Chicago house and Belgium electronic body music. Inspired by equal parts Liaisons Dangereuses, Drexciya and Black Devil Disco Club. On the A-side are two fresh compositions recorded in 2015. Third Skin' kicks things in a metallic EBM funk with a pounding bottom end. Lipstick Information' takes the listener on a dark, psychedelic and twisted journey through thrillingly intense arpeggiations. On the flip we present two remixes. The first is from Steffi, House and Techno DJ and producer born in The Netherlands and residing in Berlin. She picks up the pace for an uplifting, percussion-driven, DAF-eque dystopian stomper. The second remix comes from Michel Amato aka The Hacker, French born DJ and producer and frequent collaborator with Miss Kittin. His early musical influences of bands such as Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle and Front 242 shine through on this pumping and sophisticated remix ready for any dance floor.
All songs have been mastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The record comes in a custom-made jacket designed by Eloise Leigh featuring a photograph by Corinne Schiavone printed with hi-gloss finish. Each copy includes a postcard with with notes and image for fetish lovers

MISS KITTIN & THE HACKER are the Electro duo of CAROLINE HERVE and MICHEL AMATO from Grenoble, France. The pair met during the early '90s at a rave and soon after bought turntables and began DJing. In 1996, they began writing music heavily influenced by '80s synth and post-punk bands like Fad Gadget, DAF, Liaisons Dangeuresues, and Yazoo, as well as Italo Disco. Bored by the techno scene at the time, they set out out to lighten the serious tone and bring a campy sexiness to the dour musical landscape. Upon hearing their demos DJ Hell signed them to his Munich-based International DJ Gigolo label and released their first 2 EPs in 1998 and 1999. Their debut album First Album was released in 2001. Lost Tracks Vol. 1 contains 4 previously unreleased demos recorded between 1997 and 1999. The duo fused '80s European New Wave/Italo Disco with '90s Detroit Electro acts like Le Car and Dopplereffekt. By utilizing verse-chorus structures, they playfully shook up the loop based hard techno and electro that was popular at the time. Their studio set up at the time was a Korg MS-20, Roland SH-101, TR-606, TR-808, Siel DK80, and Boss DR-660 drum machine. The songs are direct, spontaneous, seemingly improvised in places. Miss Kittin sings about falling in love with an alien, sexy nightlife in Berlin, and explicit S&M leather play, all in her cheekily derisive French accent All songs have been transferred from the original DAT tapes by the band and mastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. The vinyl comes housed in a glossy jacket featuring a black and white photo of the duo taken in 1996. Each LP includes a postcard with liner notes from Miss Kittin and The Hacker designed by Eloise Leigh. As Miss Kittin says of these demos, 'We were naive, innocent, adventurous and we didn't expect anything in return."

Mbongwana Star is a newly formed band from Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratc Republic of Congo. Made up of a sprawling network of shanty-towns and night shelters, day-to-day life in the city is far from easy, but the band don't want sympathy. Tired of pre-conceptons around African music, Mbongwana Star ('Mbongwana' means 'change') are creatng their own identty, fusing traditonal Congolese rhythms with post punk and´electronics inspired by life in the townships around them,
'making magic out garbage' says producer and band member Doctor L (who produced Tony Allen's
'Black Voices' album). The result is revolutonary. This isn't an African band per se. It's a trans-global barrier-bustng sound
machine. '..an altogether unique vibe. We will be paying close atenton' - Boilerroom

Fantasma, the latest project of South African innovator and creatve pioneer Spoek Mathambo, is
a fve-man collectve which weaves together electronica, hip-hop, traditonal Zulu maskandi music,
shangaan electro, South African house, psych-rock and punk to form a unique, original and fresh
hybrid.
The godfather of 'Bacardi House', producer DJ Spoko joins with former Machineri guitarist André
Geld- enhuys, drummer Michael Buchanan and maskandi mult-instrumentst Bhekisenzo Cele to
complete the line up.
Fused by Spoek Mathambo's futurist vision, Fantasma pulls inspiraton from all corners of South Africa:
the sounds and spirits of townships and cites as well as the rural countryside. It is diverse not only in
its membership but also in its forward-looking music.

LTD. FULL COLOUR SLEEVE 12' (500 COPIES ONLY) INCLUDING FULL RE- LEASE DOWNLOAD
Fantasma, the latest project of South African innovator and creatve pioneer Spoek Mathambo, is a fve-man collectve which weaves together electronica, hip-hop, traditonal Zulu maskandi music, shangaan electro, South African house, psych-rock and punk to form a unique, original and fresh hybrid.The godfather of 'Bacardi House', producer DJ Spoko joins with former Machineri guitarist André Geld- enhuys, drummer Michael Buchanan and maskandi mult-instrumentst Bhekisenzo Cele to complete
the line up. Fused by Spoek Mathambo's futurist vision, Fantasma pulls inspiraton from all corners of South Africa:
the sounds and spirits of townships and cites as well as the rural countryside. It is diverse not only in its membership but also in its forward-looking music. The band will be in the studio this summer recording their debut LP set for release early 2015. Watch
this space.

Cute Heels is the solo project of Bogota´ born, experimental producer Victor Lenis. Since the early 2000's Lenis has been working on a myriad of electronic projects, including the management of the labels Black Leather Records and Romance Moderne, in his current home of Brussels. Drawing on the influences of the radical punk scene that surrounded him growing up in Columbia while nurturing his passion for synthesizers and drum machines, Lenis developed the broody, gloomy brand of electro-techno that is Cute Heels. Deemed by Juan Atkins as ''the new blood and spirit for the next step in techno music'' Cute Heels has released various digital only releases over the years, as well as his first vinyl release, an EP on Gooiland Elektro. His debut album Spiritual, rides the line between cold electro-techno and left field electronic body music. Inspired by equal parts Liaisons Dangereuses and Drexciya, Spiritual takes the listener on a journey over 8 tracks and 40 minutes of music. Listening to "Spiritual" you can see why. The songs on this full length reveal a sublime influence from Detroit techno, early Chicago house and new wave; advanced electronics for the dance floor, pumping and sophisticated. The album was recorded and mixed by Victor at Sensorium Studio in Zagreb, Croatia in November 2013. Each song has been mastered for vinyl at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley by George Horn. Each LP is packaged in a custom-made jacket by our in-house designer Eloise Leigh and incorporates the geometry of analog synthesizers and celestial rose patterns. 

*The product of a move from South Carolina to Berkeley, CA and the subsequent extended separation from loved ones, Toro Y Moi's third full-length, Anything in Return, puts Chaz Bundick right in the middle of the producer/songwriter dichotomy that his first two albums established.
*There's a pervasive sense of peace with his tendency to dabble in both sides of the modern music-making spectrum, and he sounds comfortable engaging in intuitive pop production and putting forth the impression of unmediated id.
*The producer's hand is prominent- not least in the sampled "yeah"s and "uh"s that give the album a hip-hop-indebted confidence- and many of the songs feature the 4/4 beats and deftly employed effects usually associated with house music. Tracks like "High Living" and "Day One" show a considerably Californian influence, their languid funk redolent of a West Coast temperament, and elsewhere- not least on lead single, "So Many Details"- the record plays with darker atmospheres than we're used to hearing from Toro Y Moi. Sounding quite assured in what some may call this songwriter's return to producer-hood, Anything in Return is Bundick uninhibited by issues of genre, an album that feels like the artist's essence.
*Born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina, Chaz Bundick has been toying with various musical projects since early adolescence. Having spent his formative years playing in punk and indie rock acts, his protean Toro Y Moi project has been his vessel for further musical exploration since 2001. During his time spent studying graphic design at the University of South Carolina, Chaz became increasingly focused on his solo work, incorporating electronics and allowing a wider range of influences- French house, Brian Wilson's pop, 80s R&B, and Stones Throw hip-hop- to show up in his music. By the time he graduated in spring 2009, Chaz had refined his sound to something all his own. Music journals across the board touted his hazy recordings as the sound of the summer, and he released his debut album, Causers of This in early 2010.
*Since then, Bundick has proven himself to be not just a prolific musician, but a diverse one as well, letting each successive release broaden the scope of the Toro Y Moi oeuvre. The funky psych-pop of 2011's Underneath the Pine evinced an artist who could create similar atmospheres even without the aid of source material and drum machines. His Freaking Out EP, a handful of singles and remixes, and a retrospective box-set plot points all along the producer/songwriter spectrum in which he's worked since his debut, and Anything In Return is another exciting offering that shows he's still not ready to settle into any one genre.