Suche:mystical machine

Hot off the heels of Aluxes, his 2018 Lumière Noire debut EP, young Mexican DJ/producer Iñigo
Vontier is inviting Chloé's label on a trip to the far corners of the body & mind with an album of
demented grooves, psychedelic take-offs and imaginary comic strips of mystical rituals. A
bewitching debut full-length. Mexicans may never possess the sonic science of the Germans,
the hedonistic madness of the English or the gift for synthesis of the French, but, as proven by
Iñigo Vontier's first full-length for Lumière Noire, their universe is much more exciting than
anyone would have ever thought.
The DJ/producer fully asserts his origins by brandishing the album’s title "El Hijo del Maiz" ("the
son of the corn") almost as an emblem: "in Mexico, corn is eaten daily. It has long been defined
as 'the gold of America', and I consider all Mexicans as children of corn". A spiritual and
embodied vision Iñigo's first Lumière Noire release, the four-track Aluxes, set the tone of the
young talent's distinctive interpretation of dark disco, which creeps up on the dancefloor from its
iconoclastic side. The two tracks and two remixes (one by Flügel, the other by Inigo himself)
featured on the 12" for lead single "Xu Xu" (featuring Red Axes-affiliate Xen's irrelevant vocals)
was a full-bodied confirmation that Vontier sees the dancefloor as an arena for the occult –
whether from the peoples of the equatorial jungle, the Middle East or, even from indocile
machines. But, while the spiritual element seems part and parcel of the Jalisco native’s output, it
is in no way the only ingredient of this first long-player: "this album best reflects my own vision
and spirituality, and the way I feel it" he says.
Whether contemplative or frenetic, the collection of tracks that make up “El Hijo Del Maiz” takes
the kitchen sink and throws it out the window: languid rhythms, haunted vocals, and mysterious
percussion fuel a discombobulated house set that scrambles the listener's five senses, leaving
one disoriented and exposed to the vagaries of vertigo. Following the demented, dystopian “Xu
Xu” EP, which explored an imaginary jungle that harbored Mayan and Egyptian pyramids,
Middle Eastern accents are once more present in the off-kilter “Bo Ni Ke” and its Japaneseinfluenced vocal trickery, which Moroccan flutes à la Jajouka transform into a feverish trance.
With the following three tracks, Iñigo Vontier raises himself to the same level of excellence as
the Pachanga duo (of which pride of the Mexican scene Rebolledo, is also known as a prolific
artisan of deconstruction): “Awaken”'s slumbering voice, heard as through the veil of hypnosis,
slowly introduces a techno beat which, as in follow-up “Time”, literally brings the listener to a
levitative state. In a housier vein, yet continuing in the same psychedelic, 90s-infused spirit,
“Don’t Go Back” disrupts the genre’s usual signatures with an out-of-tune keyboard that is
becoming the artist's trademark, destabilizing the listener into a drunken vertigo, with a good
helping of sexiness: "I think the sexy dimension definitely brings a kind of magic to music," says
Vontier. “I'm sure I felt this magic during my DJ sets, and I like to think that sorcerers use this
element in their practices. I might consider myself a bit of a sorcerer when I take over the DJ
booth, by the way." A mood and sound that can once again be found – in a quieter, more
bucolic version – on “Chiquitita” (feat. the flute stylings of pioneer DJ Rocca, now a partner of
cosmic disco legend Daniele Baldelli). The more cinematic, fast-paced and dreamy beat of the
no less captivating “Little Monster” might evoke the mischievous spirit of the Mayas' minor
mythological creatures, while ode to the magical herb Marijuana (feat Thomass Jackson)
proudly tramples into the debate that such a provocative title inevitably provokes: "psychedelic
drugs are powerful tools to reach a higher level of consciousness about what surrounds us, but
we must learn how to complete this psychic journey by ourselves, notably through meditation
and love.
In the end, El Hijo del Maiz is an album-length confirmation of Iñigo Vontier's uniqueness, and
his adherence to Lumière Noire's policy of letting artists fully express their vision – while letting
their passions guide their idiosyncrasies and explorations of innovative electronic signatures

Reissue of this 1976 LP from Zambia. Deep minimal African music, lovely compositions over scarce drum machines and (fuzzy) guitars.. Beautiful music with a deeper message in the lyrics which is explained better in the long review below. Some words from the label. There is music that falls right into place, a perfectly articulated expression of a few distinct influences. Then, there is another kind of median music, something more mysterious, the result of time, place, technology, and alchemy. Zambian writer and musician Smokey Haangala’s Aunka Ma Kwacha (The Money is Gone) released in 1976 is an example of this more mystical metallurgy, falling somewhere between psychedelic Zamrock, US folk, Kalindula, and Sundown Beat (music played after dark) from Tongaland. The unique mix of languages on the album (Bemba, Tonga, Lozi, and English) also suggest this complex cultural crossroads. Underlying the whole album is the insistent beat of a simple drum machine, which was totally unheard of in Zambia at the time, and parallels pioneering experiments by Francis Bebey, Sly Stone, and Shuggie Otis, utilizing a technology which would later come to define dance music. Then there’s the album’s original artwork by Peter Kependa, done in style similar to the infamous Jamaican dancehall illustrator Wilfred Limonious, interpreting the album’s title and primary theme; the burden of financial inequality.

In this sense the album is political, but the theme is extrapolated and explored through its impact on personal life; love, marriage, social status, and diet. The album is full of cautionary tales, folklore and references to magic, aspects of Zambian culture simultaneously mystifying and alluring to outsiders, part of what attracted Western readers to Nigerian writer Amos Tutuola’s hallucinatory Yoruba folktales. After becoming a household name in Zambia for his music, writing, and television appearances, Smokey Haangala died at the age of 38, the very week his book The Black Eye was published, abruptly ending his brilliant and ascending career. We are lucky to have his inimitable work to remember him by, Aunka Ma Kwacha resting comfortably in the pantheon of re-visionary works by Rodriguez, Kissoon Ramasar, TJ Hustler, and William Onyeabor.

The “Under Frustration” project takes stock of the contemporary Arab electronic scene, and highlights its astonishing diversity, by deconstructing Western clichés that are still fantasizing about a culturally homogenous Arab world.
In a context of post-revolutionary disillusion, this ambitious trilogy sets itself as a manifesto of a new, futuristic, underground wave that aims to uplift the Arab voice, once again. With this new release, Arabstazy allows the listener to walk among Shiite, Shaabi or Stambali lands - revealing new mystical sounds, reserved for trance ceremonies and ancestral rituals; all vivid in the eyes of the collective members, musicians, producers, videographers and photographers, nowadays, scattered between the United States, Tunisia, Germany, France, Sweden, Irak, Lebanon and Poland.
Vol2 includes unreleased tracks of Dj Haram, Praed, Hello Psychaleppo, Okydoki and many more.
Curated by Arabstazy, produced by Shouka, published by InFiné.

Dutch techno duo D&S - or Dennis & Stephan to their parents - hail from Rotterdam and have a penchant for the classic sounds of Detroit. Their previous releases on SK Black, Orbis Records, Indigo Aera's AEX compilations, ARTS and Girada Unlimited have earned them support from the likes of Adam Beyer, Marco Bailey and Ilario Alicante, and this tasty new EP for Abstract Reasoning looks set to find similar favour.

The pitter-patter of classic drum machine hi-hats drive the title track along with swooping, filtered pads and gentle licks of acid, the track gradually evolving into a veritable bubble bath of 303 goodness and gated synth swells. Incidence continues the theme, with gentle cymbal rides splashing over continually evolving acid blips and bleeps while mystical waves of chord melody envelope your senses in a foggy haze.

The second half of the EP flips the script beautiful with two broken beat tracks that show they have a real prowess for melody as well as rhythm. Lost In Sequence's thumping kicks are punctuated by the rolling tribal percussive elements and looming, sorrowful pads. Intricate rhythms and beautiful use of reverb and other FX create a dreamy atmosphere throughout. Partisan sees a morphing, resonant synth motif pulse over another pleasingly thick kick rhythm, and swirling, ethereal layers of atmosphere. All in all it's a superb release that has something for the dancefloor as well as the home stereo.

Soft Machine is a surreal wander through the mystical sonic forest. A vision curated and designed by Chicago native Justin Aulis Long. A Cyclopian point of view while gazing through a wide lensed scope, which exists in the liminal spaces where light meets dark and angelic forces bath in the sludge and stardust of unfiltered eroticism.

Eye of the Minotaur - collage 001 is a collection of artists working in varying musical practices that are channeling the solitude of mutantness, strolling through the familiar yet unfamiliar halls of the uncanny, refusing ordinary structures of the mundane, grasping the cold humor of cynicism, basking in the dichotomy of cosmos and chaos, and invoking the energies of Eris and Eros.

Setting the ground is Ciarra Black, a Berlin based New Yorker who makes no apologies for her bare knuckled soundscapes. DuPont Street is a ritualistic unification of discordant entities that summons visions of Pazuzu (lord of the demons) and Inanna (goddess of love) fornicating beneath The Tree of Life. Razor edged synthesizers slice through the atmosphere with the precision of an avenging angel’s flaming sword, while a psychedelic drum code activates ritual movement of the body.

As the needle passes beyond the next threshold it is met by a towering totem, bristling with the illuminated light of the sonic astral plane. Erected from the foundational matter that birthed the Detroit electro punk sound, Eyes Up continues to add to the narrative that is drenched in deranged electronics intuitively mangled in a post punk tradition. Dystopian percussive rhythms generate an unorthodox domain where muffled utterances present an aural Rorschach test. Could this be the riddle of the Sphinx, or an ancient spectral being that possesses secret knowledge? Only its creator, Stallone the Reducer, holds the key.

Fixed at the axis of the journey, Perfect Headache Forever, a mystic operating within the DIY spaces of Chicago, levitates on a transcendental mass that is equally melancholic and optimistic. Her voice hosts a strength equal to a pantheon of titans. Armed with a magical electronic musical box, she weaves narratives that are prophetic. Itself Ecstatic is a voyage through a misty soundscape that begins at one point, but ends in a distant other, in accordance with a system of divination.

Gazing into the murky waters of the oracle’s cauldron, Circling Vultures, (a collaborative effort by Justin Aulis Long and Kenneth Zawacki) channel and evoke the spirits of Antonin Artaud and Geroges Bataille. The poet’s voice, engaged in an act of mutilation and self cannibalization, howls while projecting visions of sacred conspiracies, sensations of vertigo while peaking over the edge of the abyss, and the looming weight acquired from the solitude of the Minotaur alone, sitting silently at the center of the labyrinth. Accompanying the mystical bard’s verbal declaration is a triggered mechanized synth that roars with the vitality of Cold War era Wave music, which is then juxtaposed against applications of loose keyboard playing. The artist’s hand is revealed against the calculated actions of machines.

Bringing the document to its finale, Libby Del Barrio, a multi disciplinary artist based in San Antonio, performs a closing ritual in a manner that only she knows. Setting fire to the Elysium Fields while personified as Moze Pray, Del Barrio rejects plastic narratives that aim to pacify. No Tears, is an unapologetic account of life’s feedback loop around the Wheel of Fortune. Sacrificial actions through ceremonial performance reveals a gateway founded on truth and torment. Moze Pray’s ability to combine musical production, poetic vocalization and ritualistic body performance is charged by chaos and amalgamates into a product of pure expression that defies the rose colored filters aiming to conceal harsh realities.

Working with artists like David August and Daniel Brandt, Frieder Nagel is known for managing projects in venues ranging from theatres to clubs, for concerts to audiovisual experiments. He finally signs his first solo work Distract Robots to be released on January 18 on InFiné and invites his listeners to get lost in an universe that spans from euphoric to devastating excitement. - mastered by Zino Mikorey, the magician behind Nils Frahms latest album.

Frieder Nagel invites his listeners to get lost in a universe that spans from euphoric to devastating excitement. He is known for managing projects in venues ranging from theatres to clubs, for concerts to audio-visual experiments - working with artists like David August, La Boum Fatale and Daniel Brandt (Brandt Brauer Frick). The first time he appeared on stage, in 2016 at Berlin's infamous Radialsystem V, armed with several synthesizers, effects, drum machines, one grand piano; and backed by the German Symphony Orchestra (DSO). This critically acclaimed debut was streamed by Boiler Room later and led to further collaborations with Philharmonie Essen or his ensemble show at Reeperbahn Festival.

Now finally Nagel Žs first solo work Distract Robots will be released by French label InFineŽ. This 12" has become an album in miniature with a final polish by mastering guru Zino Mikorey known for his work for Nils Frahm Žs All Melody. This EP offers up a mystical world, full of warm synths and detailed sound clusters morphing into each other to form utterly dark and dystopian ballads. Nagel gets lost in obsessively endless sessions with his instruments. He isolates himself and spends night after night drifting away from reality. The result is that his tracks carry moments of utterly deep relief and deliverance, as well as despairing sadness and stoical escapism.

Techno Album of the month March 2018 in Mixmag UK!

Central to the Israeli club scene, Deep'a & Biri have long been defying expectations even within a community they helped construct. Serving as resident DJs, activists and bookers for Tel Aviv's legendary Barzilay Club, the pair helped build a transcendent club scene. Hugely influential artists such as Robert Hood, Derrick May, Rødhad, Ben Klock and Moritz Von Oswald passed through the club, enjoying legendary crowds and what they could surely sense was a genuine air of anarchy, rebellion and unadulterated rave pleasure.

As the duo held down dozens of parties with dozens of DJs, there was no 'eureka' moment for their emerging sound; just a steady stream of brilliant, inspiring electronic music, much of which left an indelible imprint on the pair. Now based in Berlin, for Deep'a & Biri, things are much the same, even if the landscape and the city is different. Always rooted in the fertile ground between machines and emotion, on their second full-length LP, 'Dominance', the duo demonstrate their unique grasp of the sensitive, unfolding relationship between man and machine. Steadfast in their insistence never to remain in one lane in terms of their sound, 'Dominance' flawlessly segues between forcefulness and weightlessness. From beginning to end, this is not a record afraid to show its teeth with an uncompromising, instantly recognisable techno palette that kicks the foundations of any sound system with menace, anger and determination, particularly on tracks such as the dense 'Voltage' and pulsing throughout the more industrial flourishes of 'Ecole De Nancy' and 'Seeking Solace'.

Beyond these grittier, although never mindless, moments of authority, a sense of escapism and curiosity imbues the album. 'Alpha Cephei' offers the first hint of Deep'a & Biri's more wistful concepts, producing a smoke trail of twinkling electronics out of a smudged but distinctive bassline. That understated sense of emotional catharsis carries throughout, to be found between the complex-yet-familiar bells that drive 'Flow Diverter's' rhythm to a Detroit-indebted landscape that will surely instantly elasticate any keen dancers, while 'False Memories' offers big-room techno fulfillment with none of the character or sincerity removed for cheap thrills. Saving the most remarkable moments for last, the pair sign off 'Dominance' with the poignant and purifying 'Astral Trails', fusing an ethereal, ambient landscape with the more pronounced rhythms of their hardware.

The album's distinctive artwork comes from the studio of Jewish orthodox artist Avraham Guy Barchil, who forged a powerful connection with Deep'a, both was immediately drawn to 'weird atmosphere, amazing technique and emotions involved with his work'. Perhaps one of the most interesting painters from Israel, Avraham is known for his unique perspective, taking his inspiration from the Zohar - the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. The ambiguous figures represent mystical aspects of the Torah (the five books of Moses), as well as material on mysticism and mythical cosmogony.
Ensuring their natural, conscious touch always remains at the forefront of this unapologetically machine-driven music, Deep'a & Biri have produced an album in the lineage of their heroes and greatest influences. Cerebral yet satisfying, deep yet always engaging, 'Dominance' both reasserts and evolves Deep'a & Biri's forward facing and singular sound.

Signing on the second release of the label Blue Night Jungle, the duo DudMode disturbs its machines and inspirations around a wild and mystical acid techno - sometimes minimalistic, sometimes extravagant. Two faces of a same coin which the Lyon guys are trying to explore by inviting, for the whole B face, two french artists they feel very close with : Jibis, head-speaker of a new techno beat both dense and aerial , Vardae, owner of the label Allegorythme Records and great defender of a more mental and obscure vibe. « Une Nuit Dans l'Herbe » (« One Night In The Grass ») EP marks the strong come back of lyonnese rave culture's children, already sanctified by a long and sensual experience on the stage.

'Intraverso is a journey in that momentary 'inbetween land' that many of us experience sometimes. It explores the turmoil of feelings of when one gets stuck in the middle, floating in between ambition and complete stillness'.

Fabrizio Lapiana is a well-known name on the contemporary Italian techno scene. He has been involved in music since the 90's when he started DJ'ing in his hometown Rome. To date he has over two handfuls of releases on labels such as Figure Jams, Arts and M_Rec Ltd - as well as his own imprint, the well renowned Attic Music, founded in 2008.
Intraverso is Fabrizio's debut album, set for release on his label. The record is a very personal journey, according to the artist himself. You here find him examining different territory than where he usually heads within his productions. The album, which consists of nine songs in total, was composed between April 2016 and February 2017 in his studio in Rome. Written in a state of 'introspect', we here see an artist in motion. Changing. Evolving. The perfect moment to explore something new and unveil a different side of yourself to the world.

The intro 'Early Morning Waves' opens the album with its own quiet dramatic tone, waves hitting the shore as we move into 'Bret'. A cloud-walking kind of melody welcomes you, accompanied by a curious beat driving the journey forward. A deep heavy bassline and almost ancient sounding melody rises in 'Onironauta' (reflecting 'Early Morning Waves' mystical mood) until more playful elements blends in. The contemplative bass elements continue in the title track of the album; 'Intraverso' is a track of mind traveling discovery, yet before drifting too far you are grabbed by a snare, a clap of white noise and a pulsating beat to keep you on track. Further on, 'Lost In Negative Thoughts (reshaped)' reveals itself with its heavy ominous drumbeats and a dark spun web of strings is joined by sounds of distant life and machinery. Then there is 'Distance' which is the album's first flirt with more dancefloor friendly territory. Still under a veil of ill-lit melodies, expertly programmed percussion and claps creates something for a more personal body move experience. Moving into 'Again' sees the expedition continuing journeying through the dancefloor, albeit in a deeper landscape where flickering extraterrestrial sounds watches you go along. In 'Backlit' you find the albums most organic moment, an ambient slow thoughtful walk through the consciousness of the producer - only to end up with the album's final moment; 'Freckles (beatless)'. Here we drift deeper off into slow ambient melodies with a comforting thoughtful bassline taking us to the end of our voyage.

Lapiana has composed an album where you get to travel with him on a sonic journey into the deepest corners of his mind, baring vulnerabilities as well as strengths. Intraverso carries a feeling of ancient atmosphere via its melodic language through its whole running time, perhaps since the foundation of the album is based on emotions and the mind. Thoughts, feelings and mental states that always have been with us, no matter the time and place. It is a mature debut album for an artist that proves he is willing to risk going into different areas than the tried and tested ground. One might say Intraverso is a record created for an introvert introspective dancer, willing to see what lies beyond that of which is visible at first glance.

The III Rivers juggernaut sets forth once again, release number 4 The Charivari EP, putting Voiceless in the cockpit and leading the charge.

Second Nature sets a dark, sultry and ominous tone as Voiceless deploys a plethora of sounds and moods that resonate with all the tense drama of the label's affiliated club night, Bohemian Grove.
Big laser beam synths dart through a thick pitch black haze while a factory line percussion section hammers on.

Always keeping a foot in the sonic warfare division, we get three locked grooves loaded and ready for battle, funky, electrified technoid wobblers that should fight off most opposition with ease.

Flip the disc and Opt-out opens with a controlled urgency as a barrage of kick drums sets the train in motion. Voiceless layers up rich, untreated piano chords against the backdrop of dark industrial chaos, percussion artefacts career around the mix and various elements are put through an aural meat grinder before the familiar and welcoming piano motif returns like a long lost friend, guiding us through the smoke hand-in-hand. A beautiful juxtaposition of soulful melancholy and cold, glacial machines.

Final track Charivari really hits the accelerator as a tough and mechanical rhythm jolts against blurred, radioactive pads and searing string lines before collapsing into a fractal breakdown introducing mystical, weaving high end leads. An eyes-down fist pumper of the highest order and one that commands excessive smoke & strobe light abuse late, late into the session.

One to close off one of their infamous soirees in style, hoards of mutant dancers leaving the industrial backdrop of the club's venue and crossing paths with the early morning dog walkers and Sunday strollers. Four releases in and we've lost none of the quality control, unique drive and free minded 'true spirit' (to quote Tresor's legendary catchphrase). The label goes from the strength to strength and with it, brings a whole new generation of techno shamans under their wing.

Annie Hall's new LP Random Paraphilia on Detund™ explores these experiences through five original tracks with remixes by Richard Devine, Valance Drakes and ERP.

Setting the stage for this intense journey into experimental electronics is Annie Hall's track DSM-5 which when spliced and diced in the remix by rhythmic mutilation master Valance Drakes establishes an ache deep inside mind and body. Together they offer a bold introductory to Random Paraphilia. Annie's collaboration with Shadow Huntaz in Bandit 28930 adds a male vocal and sets the stage for release of the pent-up pressure, through a remix by none other than Richard Devine, who emerges after months incommunicado from his new Atlanta based studio with Bandit 28930 Remix -- a remix for which many around the world have been anxiously awaiting. Prepare yourself for new Richard Devine frequencies creating what we believe to be the most blissfully disturbed / re-aligned symphonic nerve rhythms of aural affect. Annie takes the reigns back pumping a frenetic, raw, experimental sound in Sada Abe. Tables are next given to Convextion aka E.R.P. who captures her snare for a mesmerizing effect in his gorgeous idm electro soul Sada Abe remix. Annie's voice and rhythm machines respond with breakbeat-style in Foihtreiu diversifying the set with what only a graceful feminine touch can produce. Rounding the set out is Symphora featuring new synced visual work by CPU Bryant Place, SF based Obscura digital artist, complementing the mystical journey with a visual experience unlike any other.

Record Sleeve and promo video are by DMAS3 who once again completes the audio-visual package with elegantly futuristic visual art appealing to our desire for journey far and wide. Annie Hall's Random Paraphilia is personal, intimate and political. It is a highly-charged and dynamic 8-track LP beckoning us to explore the world anew.