Cerca:perfect sense

Back in 2014 when we first released the self-titled Chupame El Dedo we weren't sure if people could hold their mojitos while banging to their music. In 2019 we seriously advise to keep your hands free while listening to their second album. Formed by psych cumbia master Eblis Alvarez (Meridian Brothers) and Pedro Ojeda (Romperayo), the man that found the perfect cocktail mix for acid + folk + tropical beats, Chupame El Dedo are ready to mess around with Satan. 'No Te Metas Con Satan' it's a humorous title for music that expels cartoonish metal-vibes mixed with tropical rhythms. It's a pitch perfect title for a record that's never at the right pitch. The humour makes way for the funny stories that Eblis and Pedro explore in their lyrics. Souk's fourth release is a daring adventure in global beats. Frequently it comes to mind the universe of Quasimoto, Madlib's abstract hip hop that sounded delicious in the early 2000s. Chupame El Dedo lives in the same kind of power trip, fuelled by intense salsa rhythms dressed with heavy metal images.
That's where Satan comes into place. The Devil wears many clothes, but none are as multi-coloured and trendy as the ones we see in 'No Te Metas Con Satan'. We are advised of that during the first side of the LP. Each song dares the listener, with a multitude of ideas, sometimes dissonant ones, that find their way to make sense. An example The first song 'No Te Metas Con Satan' sounds like a perverted version of 'Da Ya Think I'm Sexy' and when you think it's over, it starts again, repeating ideas and leaving you extremely confused. What the fuck just happened Chupame El Dedo happened.
And it goes on. Flip to the other side and 'Alexandra Candelaria' says hi. A 7:43 minute long sinful & hilarious soup opera. No-one is ready for this. Laughter mixes with intense head banging, while we listen to what would happen if Jodorowsky made a Cartoon Network show. A damn good one. Maybe it's a good idea to not mess around with Satan, but you'll be in serious trouble if you don't listen to this. Seriously.

In 2019, the World is shaking... our man Too Smooth Christ, prolific & sensitive composer invite to expand your body and mind beyond with its new release Emogreen Thoughts EP. Bringing you a good dose of Acid on one side, featuring two bangers flirting generously with Chicago House vibes and Detroit Electro gems, keeping the floor filled and your senses in orbit on the other side with two trippy, cosmic ambient sound scapes, perfect for creative excursions. The FUEGO 004 will come in a limited number of 300 copies, watch out!

Rivertones - the recorded music of Caught by the River - have repressed their classic 2012 Dylan Thomas-in-dub 7" Under Dubwood by the Dubwood Allstars.

Although Under Dubwood might seem an incongruous mix - the words of Dylan Thomas, the voice of Richard Burton and the studio sounds of King Tubby - the resulting single actually makes perfect sense - a gloriously woozy psychedelic skank that places Llareggub somewhere just outside downtown Kingston, JA. Since its release five years ago, Under Dubwood has been a staple on BBC6 Music and was used as soundbed music for the BBC's coverage of Dylan Thomas' centenary in 2014. It remains hugely in demand from the Caught by the River shop and has been sold out for the last eighteen months. The identity of the Dubwood Allstars remains a mystery to all at Rivertones.

On the B-side of the Under Dubwood 7" is River Theme by the Time and Space Machine (aka acid house stalwart Richard Norris of the Grid and Beyond the Wizard's Sleeve). River Theme is a hypnotic, fuzzed-up garage groove that's equal parts Dirty Water Club and Trash.

Seasoned Producer Oliver Kapp Takes Us Back To The Glory Days Of Underground Techno Where Pounding Sound Systems Ruptured The Space Time Continuum For Fun. The Old Guard Will Already Know That Kapp Has Pedigree, From Running And Releasing On His Own Record Labels Indulge And Raygun To A String Of Appearances On Stockholm Ltd, Logistic And Gigolo, His Dedication To The Cause Is Unquestionable. Which Is Why His First Appearance On Cocoon Recordings Is Long Overdue. What We Get Are Dj Friendly Tools Designed For That Time Of Night When The The Second Hand Stops Ticking. Kapp Presents A Perfect Collection Of Timeless Warehouse Techno, Like The Genre Itself There Are No Beginnings Or Ends, Just A Constant Barrage Of Hi Octane Machine Funk, Underpinned By Heavy Duty Beats That Somehow Manage To Induce A Sense Of Weightlessness On The Dance Floor. Scaling Down The Bpms To A Sub 130 Tempo, The Ep Is A Masterclass In How To Balance The Old School With The New. - loud Whisper Is Both Tough And Relentless, Generating An Hypnotic State That Ensnares The Dancer In Suspended Animation As Strobe Lights Flicker Across Closed Eyelids. Scattered Hihats Motor Forward And Trance Inducing Sequences Splice And Dice Causing Mind And Body To Drift Apart. - mantash Is An Altogether Gentler Excursion. Loose Tribal Rhythms Slalom Through The Metronomic Kicks Before Giving Way To Distant Chords That Embrace The Dancefloor In A Warm Fuzzy Glow. This Lush Vibe Extends Over The Rest Of The Track While The Beats Roll On, Accompanied By Delicate Melodies That Enhance The Ride. Euphoria And Delirium Combine On The Aptly Titled - rapture , As Chopped Up Vocal Fx Alternate Across A Hard Hitting 909 Pattern Complete With Angular Snares And Ride Cymbals That Bang The Box Into Submissio

Dean Zepherin is truly a producer who has managed to find his lane and appeal.
Born and raised in London - a suitably eclectic city for a man of his musical persuasion - he is renowned for his consistently genre-pushing productions.
In other words, a perfect match for Local Talk, a label not afraid to go beyond the classic 4/4 sound and explore different styles within house music.

Opening track Blue Moon is an organic, warm and enveloping chunk of deep house bliss and there's no doubt that Dean loves his house served with with plenty of horns.
Next up is Flying High, a jazzy uptempo house cut smothered in expansive percussions, trading organ and trumpet solos over elastic synth lines.

Music that speaks to the senses

Already having garnered support from the likes of Mixmag and other vital taste makers around the globe, Overdue's continued onslaught is led on by none other than the highly talented, US based artist Dalek One. Keeping the torch brightly lit, the eerie soundscapes and forward-minded arrangements, spellbound within the "Witchcraft EP" serve as a perfect follow-up and yet another example of superb quality.

Going straight for the flip-side, "Witchcraft" lunges straight into a tribal encantation of overdriven tape - rhythms like water luring you towards mammoth bass surges - ecstatically driven forward by bold drums and unparalleled groove. Swaths of low
frequencies hitting your every fibre alongside enthralling percussive movements - danger of high impact on sound systems guaranteed.

Lowering the needle on the other side, "Breakthrough" does literally that. As it sets off with a rainy storm - industrious drone and thunder - metallic clangs propelling us onward into what turns out to be an absolute destroyer, full-on armageddon kind of banger. Heavily overdriven bass surges kick some sense into you as the off-kilter drums and experimental switch-ups keep you yearning for more. Minimal sound system
music executed at its finest.

Finishing off this highly combustible collection of music, "Terror Strike" leaves no prisoners as its tribal atmosphere baits unsuspecting listeners into a low frequency rapture, showcasing Dalek One's intricate sound design once again.

Just before Maceo Plex's Ellum Audio label reaches its half century, the influential outlet serves up a standout EP from fast rising talent Fred Lenix.

Iago Frederici is a young Brazilian music producer who merges new era electronic melodies with his unique perspective of Latin American and Turkish cultures. Always expressing himself well, he is a regular face in Sao Paolo who is driving the thriving local scene forwards, and this new EP is sure to win him plenty of new fans across Europe.

It kicks off with 'The Rails', a bristling tech track that is run through with wiry synths and frosty filters. It's cold and austere and perfect to shake up a big warehouse space with a real sense of futuristic drama.

Next comes 'Manipulated Dead', an excellent electro tinged number that builds the suspense with some edgy drum work and rumbling synths. A sense of cosmic ambiance lights up the background and make this a track with real feeling.

The slick electro bomb 'Manipulated Living' closes things out with excellent drum programming and taught kicks. The slippery synths bring real fluidity to the grooves and some distant pads enrich the whole thing with a sense of real serenity.

These are three fantastic tracks from a producer who is all set to blow up.

Clutching At Straws is a brand new label established by Brian Ring. Born in Cork, Ireland. Ring has been residing in Berlin for over 4 years, during which time he has lent his dancefloor-focused, predominantly house sounds to a range of renowned labels including Freerange. Running Back and Bordello A Parigi. A producer who values a vehement quality-over-quantity approach, Clutching At Straws represents the first time Ring has helmed his own imprint. Featuring two originals as well as a remix from London producer Kiwi, the Reflections EP is most definitely deserving of the wait.

We kick off with 'Acid Sunrise', a classy house cut that envelops the listener in a warm glow from the off. Full of colourful motifs throughout, it's part acid/part Balearic-tinged sound is the perfect antidote to Europe's current climes. Characterised by a nimble, catchy-as-hell baseline, this one is pure dynamite of the sort that will sound at its most pronounced as the first signs of morning begin to enter the dancefloor.

Next up is Kiwi, a producer who's been making power moves of his own lately thanks to a host of well-received cuts for the likes of Jennifer Cardini's Correspondent, Tennis' Life & Death and Optimo's Optimo Music. His dramatic reinterpretation of Ring's 'Forest Walk' , is a highbrow gem that's full of gorgeous melodies and all-round positive vibes, with the man in charge changing the narrative quite exceptionally toward the track's final phases.

Culminating the record is the sounds of 'Emergency Tool', a real statement track that's sure to leave DJs and dancers in a frenzy over the next few months. An upfront banger of the sort that wonderfully incorporates both house and techno elements, it starts off on a fairly innocuous tip before unfurling into an uptempo beast. Full of clever bells and a vocal that demands us to 'move!' (as well as a wailing cop siren that only heightens the sense of mania), 'Emergency Tool' is a track that's destined to be used by discerning DJs when they really have to step things up a notch.

Limited to 150 copies.

TUTTI is comprised of eight soundscapes: an audio self portrait comprising of manipulated sound recordings from Cosey's life, music and art:
'It's the only album I've made that is an all encompassing statement expressing the totality of my being. A sense of the past in relation to the present and everything in between.'

These eight pieces were originally conceived as the soundtrack to the autobiographical film 'Harmonic Coumaction', and performed live in February 2017, part of a series of events that accompanied the COUM Transmissions retrospective which opened Hull UK City of Culture 2017. Later that year, 'Harmonic Coumaction' was presented as an audio-visual installation for Cosey Fanni Tutti's solo exhibition at Cabinet Gallery, London.
Cosey Fanni Tutti explains: 'Working on the COUM Transmissions exhibition also coincided with writing my autobiography - collating archive material and re engaging with my past. My work is a continuum, the past feeding the present and vice versa. The album is an interpretation of my past and present, of my understanding the shifting perceptions of how they inform one another. One form creating another through a metamorphic process.'

On TUTTI, the music has been updated and enhanced with elements of the original tracks re-recorded and further processed specifically to create a unique stand-alone document, separate to the live performance and installation. Recorded at Cosey Fanni Tutti's studio in Norfolk, the album, as on her debut release, Time To Tell, merges Cosey's art activities with her exploration of sound: The album's autobiographical theme is not locked into any specific time or place, the 'voices', instruments and sounds together span decades of my life, music and art. In this context my name 'TUTTI' shifts from its role as a noun to perfectly represent the concept of the album, also acting as sign for me the artist.
TUTTI is Cosey Fanni Tutti's only solo album release since 1982's Time To Tell. Time To Tell was recently given its first release on vinyl, on a long awaited official deluxe edition. The interim years between solo releases has seen a blisteringly prolific output as an artist and musician. Renowned for her art, her work in the sex industry, as co-founder of Industrial music and Throbbing Gristle, and her pioneering electronic music solo and as Chris & Cosey, Carter Tutti and Carter Tutti Void, she has created throughout with the motto 'my life is my art, my art is my life'.

Cosey's autobiography ART SEX MUSIC was published to worldwide acclaim by Faber & Faber in 2017, a Japanese edition has just been published with further translations and an audio book to follow. TUTTI

Belgium DJ / Producer ED1999 kicks off the debut release for his newly minted 'Porpax' imprint with 'Melodius Hubbub, a 4-track EP of hypnotic dark Techno saturated with modular wizardry. The release confidently displays ED1999's production power as well as the serious direction the label is aimed at taking. The music featured clearly inspired by the energy found in Tbillisi, Berlin, Detroit and anywhere else heavy duty underground music is celebrated.

'Path Of Hope' is a punchy mover heavy on the reverb, with washes of metallic gray atmospherics floating in and out of the steady analogue drum patterns. The track grows in energy throughout with additional claps, hi hats and melodies generating an absolutely effective tension building weapon.

Title track 'Melodius Hubbub' is pure hypnotic Techno at its absolute finest. Black as midnight elements drive the energy to dark territories. ED1999's perfectly positioned sonic peaks and valleys of thick musical textures ensure the dancefloor never loses a moment getting lost in the incredibly positioned hypnosis of sound.

'Winding Course' is centered around a gurgling synth ride which gives the track an uneasy and twisted vibe throughout. Additional melodic effects join the main synth, adding a romantic sense of danger and dancefloor movement. Akin to ED1999's brilliant ability to keep his music restrained and effective for serious club-goers.

'Sleazy Nook' is the darkest of the dark tracks found on the release, with shudder inducing effects and ice cold soundscapes residing alongside the winding rhythms. A truly intense breakdown midway through the track generates a clever sense of sinking, with only the kick drum returning to keep people safe from going under.

2018 played host to a bumper crop of sounds from some of Philly's grittiest, including Great Circles mainstays M//R and Chaperone. To close out the year that was, we are pleased to present Heckadecimal's 'Murder Tape.'

A Minneapolis-based producer and acid auteur, Heckadecimal has been a fixture within the vibrant Midwestern electronic music community for nearly 20 years. Founder of the legendary 'Anti-human' events and co-curator of the ever-prolific Always Human Tapes imprint - alongside Ryan Wurst and Peter Lansky - Heckadecimal's reputation is one of unrelenting creativity and tireless advocacy for sonic experimentation. His work has found its way to light via a slew of pseudonyms and stage monikers, including The Worm, noface and Wonder Sirens.

In short - Heckadecimal lives and breathes the sonic matter that he leaves pouring out of studio monitors, busted bar systems and finely tuned rave stacks, wherever his travels take him.
Live performance lies at the core of Heckadecimal's practice. When he stormed through Inciting HQ in Philly earlier this summer, he took command over an arsenal of hardware that reminded us of how Octave One or Shawn Rudiman might show up. These were machines that he had lived with; touched with custom modifications, hand-drawn stickers and pockmarks incurred in battle, one got the sense that the gear was a personal extension of the artist.

Perhaps it's a bit maudlin, but we feel a certain kinship with this project. Indeed, these tracks at times feel very much of a piece with the gnarled tonalities in which our stable typically traffics; all low-slung riddims that reach at equal lengths towards mutated IDM aesthetics and post-Packard Plant techno extrusions. These are future perfect grooves that glide along under the vast Midwestern sky, providing a fertile communication conduit with the City of Brotherly Love.

Give thanks for acid. Great Circles will see you in the New Year..

Following his incredible debut album 'Talisman', Whiney has stepped back into the lab to cook all manner of big, beefy dancefloor beasts. The 'Waystone' LP boasts his most widespread set of influences yet with drum & bass fusions of trip-hop, grime, UK hip hop and ambient across 14 outstanding tracks.

Album highlights include the tumbling jungle rumbler 'The Capital' that scatters down with snappy amens in a perfect storm. Plus the unmissable 'Triple Duppy Demon'; a menacing tribal stalker rearing its head in a display of raw beats and bars from Manchester's own Levelz crew member Truthos Mufasa, alongside a production pairing with Hugh Hardie.

'Waystone' also sees the triumphant return of the dream-team-supreme! Hospital's wordsmith Inja joins forces with Whiney on 'Mission'. This certified heater is a grisly tirade of dancefloor chaos, a worthy successor to fan favourites 'Flashlight' and 'She Just Wanna Dance'.

Of course Whiney's second long-player is also packed with showstopping solo productions such as 'Dismissed', 'Slingshot' and half-time triphop switch up 'Darkest Night'

Fina's next release comes from Mathew Ferness, an exciting and already hotly tipped rising star for just his second ever EP. It features three tracks that showcase his musical house style with a remix from Helsinki's Saine.

Ferness hails from a small town near Montreal in Quebec, where he was an outcast obsessed with music. With no access to record shops, parties or scenes Mathew started taking matters into his own hands DJing in his teens taking inspiration from J Dilla, he soon began producing his own beats on a sampler and drum machine.

An exploration of analogue sounds, DAWS and most recently electronic music have all lead him to the rich sound he has now. His last EP on Beat changers was championed by Rhythm Section International and Radio 1 tastemaker Bradley Zero and this latest EP is likely to prove just as popular.

Pad laced opener 'Escapade' is a summery deep house jam with breezy acoustic guitar and warm, punchy drums of the sort to get any floor cutting loose. 'Solitude' is more paired back, with thoughtful piano keys laid over deep rolling drums. There is a musical romance and beauty to the synths that elevate this one above purely functional fodder, and then 'At First Sight' awakens your senses once more with broad synth smears and perfectly rough-edged drums which create pure deep house soul.

Saine is a producer with a range that goes from hazy hip hop to dusty house on labels like Odd Socks, Andy Hart's Voyage and this one before now. After his 2017 EP Mint, he returns with a remix that is bubbly and laden with colourful melodies and open-air house grooves.
This is EP full of rich house music that is for mind, body and soul.

Known for a broad swath of genre-obliterating club tracks on crucial labels including Critical, Exit, and 50Weapons, Sam Binga approached us earlier this year with a radically different kind of project, a collaboration with Welfare, true junglist and label boss at D&B bastion Rua Sound. The result of their team-up is Conamara Fieldworks. Its unique inspiration and patient process are best described by the duo themselves:

"In early November 2016, we set off through the bleakness of an Irish November into the wilderness that is Conamara, County Galway, Ireland, with about half an idea of what we wanted to do. Our friend Laney had been kind enough to allow us the use of a 300 year old cottage overlooking the sea, itself belonging to her family through generations which she was bit by bit restoring to its former glory. The isolation was perfect - very little in the way of creature comforts, no network coverage, but plenty of turf for the stove and Guinness for the belly.

Our routine for the next few days consisted of trudging the length of the rugged coastline in search of interesting sounds we could potentially process into usable elements for some kind of dub/dub techno-inspired composition...This took us inside tidal caves and abandoned ruins, across sheep fields, up and down mountains and winding country lanes, in and out of the odd pub, under upturned boats and (carefully) across huge washes of seaweed-covered shoreline. Using our handheld recorder (shouts Danny Scrilla for the lend) we assembled a palette of varied noises, constantly battling with the peaking and distortion created by the incessant Atlantic gusts.

Each evening, following some intense huddling around the stove and vital Irish home cuisine and stout, we'd examine and dissect what we had collected that day, sometimes discovering the most interesting material firmly planted in the background of the soundscapes. A certain amount of (but not too much) processing later we had the bones of a few short loops of each sound which made some kind of musical sense when played alongside each other.

Binga suggested staying true to the craft and keeping the rawness to the foreground by attempting to develop the loops into full compositions via live desk mixing, arrangement and effects. We said our goodbyes to Conamara and a month or two later said our hellos to the Dubkasm shedio. Following a crash course from the dynamic duo, we set to work for the day, learning as we went along and enjoying to the full the unpredictability, intuition and sheer vibes a dubbing session can bring, particularly in a studio kitted out with some fine analogue gear which undoubtedly helped us to keep that damp, saturated feeling that Conamara had sown."

The resulting collection of music speaks for itself, and does so in its own language. It is meditative, deeply textural, and richly saturated, with awesome sound design, generous bass weight, and dubwise finesse. Referencing ambient, concrete, and dub techno while never letting any genre dictate its path, Conamara Fieldworks is a deeply rewarding and intensely involving listen. A restrained yet transporting remix from the one Ossia completes the set.

2018 played host to a bumper crop of sounds from some of Philly's grittiest, including Great Circles mainstays M//R and Chaperone. To close out the year that was, we are pleased to present Heckadecimal's 'Murder Tape.'

A Minneapolis-based producer and acid auteur, Heckadecimal has been a fixture within the vibrant Midwestern electronic music community for nearly 20 years. Founder of the legendary 'Anti-human' events and co-curator of the ever-prolific Always Human Tapes imprint - alongside Ryan Wurst and Peter Lansky - Heckadecimal's reputation is one of unrelenting creativity and tireless advocacy for sonic experimentation. His work has found its way to light via a slew of pseudonyms and stage monikers, including The Worm, noface and Wonder Sirens.

In short - Heckadecimal lives and breathes the sonic matter that he leaves pouring out of studio monitors, busted bar systems and finely tuned rave stacks, wherever his travels take him.

Live performance lies at the core of Heckadecimal's practice. When he stormed through Inciting HQ in Philly earlier this summer, he took command over an arsenal of hardware that reminded us of how Octave One or Shawn Rudiman might show up. These were machines that he had lived with; touched with custom modifications, hand-drawn stickers and pockmarks incurred in battle, one got the sense that the gear was a personal extension of the artist.

Perhaps it's a bit maudlin, but we feel a certain kinship with this project. Indeed, these tracks at times feel very much of a piece with the gnarled tonalities in which our stable typically traffics; all low-slung riddims that reach at equal lengths towards mutated IDM aesthetics and post-Packard Plant techno extrusions. These are future perfect grooves that glide along under the vast Midwestern sky, providing a fertile communication conduit with the City of Brotherly Love.

Give thanks for acid. Great Circles will see you in the New Year..

The name Hugo Mari might not ring a bell just yet, but we've got a feeling this is about to change real soon. He's released a handful of EP's under his former alias Books on Omena and XVI including his own edit series on the latter label (check out his killer track 'in the groove or his jazzy deep house collaboration with Zodiac called 'Feel it in my Bones'). Considering he's also remixed well known artists like afrobeat legend Dele Sosimi and grime master Trim, you might share our view of this amazingly talented and versatile producer. His 'Change ur ways' EP for Heist is soulful, jazzy, deep and energetic with three varied originals and a classic soulful house remix by man of the moment, NDATL label head Kai Alcé.

'Get Loose' features the silky-smooth vocals of Zodiac, some lovely solo work on the Rhodes and a 'free jazz' vibe on the horns. There's a constant funk bassline looping throughout the track to keep the energy going while the loose arrangement as well as the drum programming give the track that care-free feeling of a never-ending live jam. With that, 'Get Loose' is a great club track that crosses the boundaries between funk, jazz and house.

The title track still has that jazzy feeling but moves towards a quirkier territory with some 'Frits Wentink' style harmonization, detuned piano's and loosely chopped samples. There's a definite gospel feel to the track, thanks to the choice in vocal chops, which is complemented perfectly by a filtered disco bassline. The percussion layer and rhythmic elements are full of energy without ever crossing the line where of subtlety that makes this track so catchy.

On the flip, there's 'Feel ur senses', the most straightforward deep house track of the release, that gets its mood from an ongoing tremolo on the Rhodes pads. Space bleeps, bells, a hidden arp and 'reverbed-out' hits give the track an almost balaeric sound that will certainly put a smile on your face.

The B side is complemented with a vocal and instrumental remix of 'Get Loose' by Kai Alcé, who has been throwing out one killer tune after the other, remixing Volcov's Isoul8 project (one of our favorites of the year), as well as kicking out releases on his own NDATL label. Kai goes for a full-on soulful house vibe, giving his own chord progression center stage along with a set of rimshots. He chooses to leave the horns out, and instead work the vocal, Rhodes, and cowbells from the original to great effect, adding a little solo work of his own on a bell-like piano where he freestyles happily throughout the track and copies the vocal for added harmonies.
The instrumental version is perfect for those moments where you're done with all the vocals and just want a tight soulful groove.

We couldn't be happier with this release so play it loud and get loose!

Yours Sincerely,

Maarten & Lars

Limited Edition White with Red vinyl w/DL
For fans of Electronic / Jazz hybrids like: Anenon, Arve Henriksen and RinneRadio

Transformation is the debut album from Parisian multi-instrumentalist Axel Rigaud.
Rigaud's style as a whole is the exploration of the crossroads of electronic music and jazz. By blending steady big bottomed analog synth arpeggios, shuffling beats, and swirling jazz influ- enced reed instruments Rigaud makes the juxtaposi-tionional a compelling and interwoven whole.
Only a few moments on the album does one genre eclipse the other. Even when this happens one finds that the sax or flute are being electronically manipulated or the elec- tronics have that all to special swing.
While seemingly new ground for n5MD Miles, Coltrane and Weather Report are often in the rotation at n5HQ. So it makes perfect sense that Rigaud has found a home for his debut on n5MD.

Ukrainian label Muscut celebrates its anniversary - Muscut X (10) Test Pressign II - is the tenth record in a row. The first release was published in 2012 on 7 inches and was called simply Test Pressing. Like six years ago, the current vinyl is a compilation of Muscut's 'residents', as well as new friends of the label. Test Pressing II is 12 inches on which there are exactly ten tracks. Both sides are significantly different in color of mood. Party A starts with dub-drone sketches of key figures of the Odessa underground - Wildstyle Crew and Bryozone. Then we hear the mantra-like M2 - the work of the creative union of Nicola Ratti, Mads Emil Nielsen together with Nikolaenko. The Canadian sound-artist Mark Templeton continues the line of rhythmic textures crowned with unhurried percussion - it is in all senses of Soft Education at number four. The first part is completed by an exquisite curtsy from the Andrew Pekler label frequenter called Underwater Nocturne as a soundtrack for the perfect tea ceremony.

The second side confidently sets a completely different compilation rhythm from the very start - the tribal tribal dance from the Berlin project Native Instrument instantly introduces into a trance. It is followed by a warm, enveloping minimal synth track from the Ukrainian trio Nisantashi Primary School. The middle of the second side is decorated with the pensive house-ballad of St. Petersburg producer Fadeev known as AEM Rhythm Cascade. Another Russian settled next to him - Muscovite Oleg Buyanov, aka OL, with a massive broken dub Nutmeg. The final composition consists of burning afrosint motifs from luminary Odessan Vakula.

Debut physical release from Scottish newcomer Andrew Greens AKA Ash Is. Hailing from Edinburgh and at the heart of club culture in his city, he is running parties and sharing stages with the likes of Baltra, Bwana, and other forward thinking international artists. This release comes packed with 3 affecting club tracks, each serving a different purpose. Ash Is fuses elements of rave, house, techno, and electronica to serve up moments of euphoria & tenderness. Fluttering arpeggios, dusty breaks, warm pads & feeling laden melodies often feature, capturing a sense of post-club emotion. These are three heavy hitting cuts that truly carve out a lane of his own.

Return of the UK producer Allen Saei aka Aubrey on the mighty Barba label is another bold statement in the discography of this well-versed artist. Building on the relationship with the Burek/Barba/Pomalo family established through remixes of Information Ghetto's "Inspiration" track (Burek 2013), DJ Stingray's "Communication System" (Barba 2015) and his solo "Clock Funk EP" (Barba 2017), for this record Aubrey presents us with a continuation of his previous Barba release, simplistically titled "Clock Funk 2" EP. As is to be expected from a guy who's been spending time in the studio for better part of the last three decades, this 12" is pure techno, in the best sense of the word. As mature and consistent as the previous record of the series, we have Aubrey building on that ground and expanding the range into more abrasive and rough on one side, and even more subtle and humane on the other. A1, titled "Clock Funk 2" is among the subtle ones. Beautiful cascading keys, glitchy synth bleeps and lead lines intertwine into a gorgeous composition grounded by a driving bassline and counterpinted with distorted ride cymbals. Uniquely sounding track which draws influences from many corners of the planet. A2, titled "Sel Moulo" sets a point for the other side of the spectrum. The heaviest and roughest, it locks the frame in which this EP works. Direct, abstract and firmly aimed towards the dancefloor, this cut is for the peak moment of the night when its combination of jacking beats and trippy leads will just push the craziness off the edge. B1, the most humane and gentle track on the EP, "Triads" is a perfect match for the A1 cut, although slower and calmer. Again, the similar approach is used, where the perfectly tuned combination of small synth and keys elements form a complex image which will stay ingrained into anyone's mind once you play it in the right moment. Again, it's hard not to reach for the word "beautiful" when describing this one. B2, Ghost Mist, is on the other hand a match for the heavy A2, but also not as intense. A repetitive affair, with abstract synth lines and disharmonic pads serving as an emotion injection just when they're needed. Common thread moving through all four cuts is an infectious groove intertwined with synth lines that would not be misplaced amongst the best examples of space-influenced techno music firmly grounded on the floor. All that, pressed onto a heavy duty 180 gram vinyl and beautifully packaged in an original artwork by local artist EmaEmaEma.

Mickey Pearce is back in business with 'One Hundred Smiles', a new album of swaggering UK club music experimentations, and a new label Box Of Toys.

His first album, 'Michael' (2016), saw him exploring new territory; crafting a strange and melancholic landscape of beatless textures and leftfield house and techno. Approached with a fresh perspective, 'One Hundred Smiles' slows the tempo and ups the collaboration.

'The last record was a reflection of my situation around that time. This one is like stepping out from under a cloud. It's about the joy of collaboration; meeting and working with new people. It's also about the ambiguity of smiles, and the complicated relationships we form.'

The album features appearances from rising UK talent Poté, Taiwanese vocalist Meuko Meuko and Greek electronic pioneer Lena Platonos.

'Poté is a crazy talent. We've done a bunch of sessions and made a load of tracks, two of which ended up here and one of which is going on his next record.

Meuko Meuko is an artist from Taiwan. We communicate entirely via Instagram. She'd send me translations of the lyrics in Instagram messages, but I'm still not sure if I've chopped them into any sort of sense. The instrumental was called 'Slime', and she misread that intentionally or unintentionally to mean 'smile' and sent me all these crazy lines about 'your lovely smile' and it was just perfect. I love her.

Lena Platonos is a legend, and someone I was honoured to work with. The day she told me she had been playing and enjoying the record around her friends was a good day.'

'One Hundred Smiles' is the first release on his own label Box Of Toys. The label is named the same as his 2017-2018 radio show series, which featured the album's guests as well as Randomer, Machine Woman, Airhead, The Maghreban and Object Blue.

'One Hundred Smiles' is released on LP and digital via Box Of Toys on 2nd November 2018.

Hot on the heels of Rapid Eye Movement's journey of discovery and growth comes the EP 'Split: Remixes' featuring reworks of the quartet of cuts originally signed by label founders Memorial Home and VII Circle.

Invited to apply their own reflections onto the material are rising producers Nur Jaber and Wrong Assessment as well as renowned artists on the underground experimental scene Edit Select and Reggy Van Oers.

First up is Nur Jaber's take on VII Circle's 'Metaphysical Functions' showing how the young Berlin-based Lebanese artist is as much inspired on remix duties than in crafting her already much acclaimed productions. The perfect mixture of dark and intense driving techno beat with haunting ambient-driven melodic motifs and dramatic breakdowns encompasses much of what her sophisticated sense of sonic exploration is about.

Up next on a heavier kicking note is 'Dogma' refashioned by Milanese fellow Wrong Assessment who transmits his vision of both minimal and hard pounding techno by merging a strait rugged beat with undulating synth lines and bouncy cymbals that will drive the audience to an insane rave-spirited dance floor venture.

Following the path, Tony Scott a.k.a Edit Select's interpretation of Memorial Home's 'Second Floor' is a clear example of the unique and forward-thinking sound that the Scottish techno scene 'veteran' has developed throughout the years. Deftly combining a tension-building drum and bassline work with layers of hypnotic synth textures that makes the track both suggestive and trippy-hitting in equal measure.

Concluding the journey is Reggy Van Oers (RVO)'s rework of Memorial Home's 'Ampere' which evinces this quest for organic and mental techno soundscapes inspired by classical and cinematic music, characterising the both complex and powerful crafting signature of Dutch Telemorph label's owner.

Between dark shadows and brightness, REM confirms with this new release that quality and free-minded artistry are the key pillars of the platform's curation philosophy.

The Rapture's Luke Jenner ventures firmly into the dance floor, this time in full force, on Glittering Jewel, the Brooklyn-based producer's debut EP under his Meditation Tunnel guise. Following his initial outing, La La La, on Life and Death's vinyl-only sub-label, Blitz Series, Glittering Jewel sees Jenner step up with three outsider cuts, dripping in personalit Cloaked subtly into the backdrop, Jenner's unmistakable croon features throughout the disk - a highlight across the board. While dilapidated drum machines, crunched beyond recognition, propel the record into techno territory, Glimmering Jewel retains the artist's bespoke youthful sense of blue-eyed naiveté. Red Axes come through with an unclassifiable, stripped-down reinterpretation of Fire Fly, the perfect pair to deconstruct and re-contextualize the original material. Carefully pressed on high-quality, transparent vinyl, LAD039 stands as a testament to the label's shifting auditory ethos. Artwork by Michela Picchi.

Takashi Kokubo - A Dream Sails Out To Sea (get At The Wave) (lagrec003)
Recorded In 1987 As Promotion For A Luxury Air Conditioning Line, Takashi Kokubo's Balearic Gem A Dream Sails Out To Sea Gets First Ever Official Release From Lag Records, Complete With Previously Unheard Music.

Originally Only Available As A Sought-after Promo By The Name Of Get At The Wave, Takashi Kokubo's Mini-masterpiece Of Halcyon Mastery Finally Re-emerges For The First Time Since 1987 With A Remastered Vinyl Edition Courtesy Of Uk Label Lag Records.

A Dream Sails Out To Sea (get At The Wave) Comes Not Only With A New Title, But Also A Brand New B-side As Taken From Get At The Wave's Original Recording Sessions. Never-before Released, The Epic Ocean Breeze Makes The Perfect Companion For The Sonic World Kokubo Created With His Original Release, Imbued As It Is With The Same Serene Sense Of Understated Beauty.

The Original Story Of A Dream Sails Out To Sea Is As Interesting As Kokubo's Own Backstory As A Musician And Sound Artist. Originally Composed To 'soundtrack' A High-end Air Conditioning Line From Japanese Electronic Giant Sanyo, The Album Was Meant To Transport The Consumer Into A Paradise Far Away From The Heat And Hurry Of Urban Life. One Listen To Something As Splendorous As Underwater Dreaming, And It's Mission Accomplished.

Takashi Kokubo Meanwhile Is A Musician Whose Work, Without Many Knowing It, Has Perhaps Touched The Most Lives In Japan. Composer Of Environmental Music Such As Nationwide Phone Alerts To Warn Of Oncoming Earthquakes, And The Fruitful Jingle Of A Standard Contactless Payment, Kokubo's Oeuvre Also Includes Anime Soundtracks And Works In The Avant Garde Realm.

It Is With Kokubo's Blessing And Original Masters That The Lag Records Release Has Been Made Possible, With A Remastering Courtesy Of Jerome Schmitt At The Airlab. A Dream Sails Out To Sea (get At The Wave) Also Comes With New Artwork By Ella Mclean In A Standard Sleeve On Clear Blue Vinyl Lp.

'Garage bands suddenly obtain cult status and become the antithesis of their initial appeal'

Garage Class were a group of reluctant outliers who produced one of the finest contributions to the wave of UK DIY music that emerged during the late 70s and early to mid-80s.

Hailing from Alsager in North West England and comprised of Tim Shutt (vocals) Phil Murphy (lead guitar) Clive Williams (guitar) Lynne Sanders (bass) and Phil Bourne (drums / bass on studio recordings) Garage Class originally went by the name of The Pits before their then manager Steve Hurt imposed an alias which, though unpopular within their ranks, would nevertheless reflect the shambolic art they would eventually capture on their first and only single.

As The Pits the group offered a loutish inflection on glam-punk flamboyance, evoking Johnny Thunder hitting the north and remaining disowned yet undeterred in a dreary old boozer. But as Garage Class the group distilled a roughcast and homespun primitivism that felt quintessentially their own. In this they proved too unruly to be assimilated into any wider scene. Early gigs descended into acrimony and recognition proved elusive. Yet what they managed to make back then now sounds like an extraordinary article of underdog ambition.

Released in 1984, four years after it was originally recorded, the Terminal Tokyo single is an unlikely triumph of exceptional messthetic punk. Though raw and unpolished the songs here are precariously pop-minded and indisputably anthemic. The titular A-side reveals the dry and detached drawl of Shutt aka The Subliminal Kid, a sharp, jaded and poetic voice that has some of the most iconic lines never heard in punk. Accompanied by second-hand guitars, on-the-fly handclaps and a chorus like a terrace chant this is the cult hit that never was, a heroically artless masterpiece that has all the ragged character and misfit euphoria of Swell Maps and The Buzzcocks if they were more impulsive and boisterous, and left to their own devices in the remote margins of a Cheshire town. The original B-side is here substituted for I Got Standards, a track that, until now, has somehow remained unreleased. An ideal twin to Terminal Tokyo there's the same brusque and dog-eared quality to the band's delivery, as well as the same upfront emphasis on strong hooks and insistent momentum. Yet again, Shutt is on impeccable form, perfecting an inflated, adolescent antagonism that has all the sardonic, malcontented charm of similarly 'shirty' buggers like Dan Treacy (Television Personalities), Patrik Fitzgerald and Mark Perry (Alternative TV).

Although never accepted in their own time both tracks represent a brief but inspired moment of fervent imperfection, one that epitomized the best of a diffuse and autonomous underground movement spearheaded by The Desperate Bicycles and built upon by the likes of Amos & Sara, The Homosexuals, The Cleaners From Venus and Family Fodder. Like them Garage Class were situated at a point where punk, art, humour and a sense of stubborn independence all intersected.

In the years since Terminal Tokyo has accumulated a retrospective appeal among certain trusted circles, with Jon Dale celebrating the single in his exhaustive and essential Story of UK DIY for Fact Magazine, and original copies regularly changing hands for a foolish forty quid or so. With this inaugural release on the Outer Reaches label Terminal Tokyo is not only restored for the very first time but given a worthy expansion courtesy of JD Twitch (Optimo).

Continuing his own fascination with the fringe history of UK DIY - documented on his own outstanding compilation Cease & Desist: DIY! (Cult Classics From The Post Punk Era 1978-1982) and in his re-edits of Crass Records classics for an early release on RVNG INTL - Twitch reinterprets I Got Standards as an incisive, dubwise outing that pictures Jaki Liebezeit and Muslimgauze on a bender in England's provinces, tasked with remixing the raw product of local punks. A new slant on Garage Class' crude magnificence, built to play loud on contemporary soundsystems.

Although the latter part of 1980 spelled the end for Garage Class with members moving on to other projects (Bourne fell in with The Colours Out of Time, Murphy went on to front The Regular Guys and Shutt eventually left to form Happy Refugees) this reissue attempts to give their fleeting time together and the unique single statement they made the treatment it deserves. If this means Garage Class have obtained cult status, their initial appeal remains. Just listen for yourself.

Children Of Tomorrow will celebrate soon its 10 years anniversary. The label was created by Emmanuel Ternois back in the day and being joined by Arnaud Le Texier in 2011. Since then they focused on Techno producing amazing artists, to name few: Terrence Dixon, Zadig, Tensal, Antigone, Oscar Mulero, Jonas Kopp, Samuli Kemppi etc... Children Of Tomorrow is now presenting the first album from Arnaud Le Texier. After almost 30 years Dj-ing around the world and almost 20 years producing. Signing many releases over the years and always busy delivering dance floor releases, it's been a long wait to finally get an album from ArnaudOn his first album we can feel that he wanted to tell a story and to express something deeper with his production experience. There is a different variety of Techno that stretches from ambient / broken beat / hypnotic / raw Techno along with subtles grooves, wondrous atmospheres & sonic textures. On A side the album opens with Dusk, an ambient atmospheric mid-tempo track with sonic sounds that is a perfect intro.Pattern 2 starts with drones and blip sounds and a broken beat groove follows with a pad that sounds like a voice coming from the space. The track ends with some modular click sounds that make the whole track clever. Followed by the album title Granular Therapy, a deep techno track with modular bass line and melancholic pad. A perfect track to play in after or to warm up a party.The B Side is more dedicated to the dance floor with Black Nympheas that is a proper dark modern techno with a grinding bass line and magic drones. A simple beat makes the track evolve in a nice way. Blade Pass frequency is 4/4 effective Techno with a 909 kick, a syncope acid bass line and a pad that sends you to another dimension. It is a powerful track but with a sense of deepness and sensibility that Arnaud can achieve sometimes. This side closes with Binary Sun Dawn which is an ambient track with melody that has a jazz feeling mixed with dark atmospheres, sonic drones and water drops. The C side opens with Mono Driver, a minimal track with a little synth that stays until the end repetitively until it makes you travel and lose your mind. Deep and dance floor at the same time.

Then Snapper is a more percussive track with some shinning bells and a grinding modular bass line.

The last track Virgo Consortium is a cosmic broken beat with dark atmospheric drone, simple bass and phasing efx. The D Side starts with Midi overdub which is a beauty. A mix between ambient and broken beat. The pad has the deepness that transports you somewhere else with an angel choir on top. The beat is spacial and groovy at the same time with smart high hats. This reminds Arnaud's past ambient production but with a modern approach. Surely a special track of the album.

Hideous Engine is more dance floor with metallic bass line and 4'4 beat going towards a sonic pad that closes the track.The last track Dawn is ambient with drones and blip sounds and an acid bass line modulate. A perfect end of the album.This album is an accomplished journey that makes you dance and travel from dusk till dawn. Arnaud Le Texier shows a coherent vision and illustrates his vast diversity in the techno world. Hopefully we won't have to wait 20 years to get another one.

When looking for music to be released on Magazine, our guideline has always been energy. The key question remains the same: Does the artist have something important to say Does it have a sense of urgency Alex played us these tracks while visiting the Magazine studio in Cologne earlier this year and we were consumed by unadulterated rage. This is anything but a conceptual release, Alex has not released this kind of music before. A side of Alex manifests itself through these techno tracks, that most might not have known before. Brutal yet beautiful, furious yet fragile. A Berlin native who shaped his sense for techno by striving through his hometown and its infamous raves, Alex is now one of the prominent protagonists of that scene - not only when regularly playing at Berghain. The EP harnesses this experience perfectly, fully preserving the energy of the creation process by recording directly to tape. Most productions may have suffered from this primitive method of locking sound into position, but not these tracks from a techno master.

Last spotted tomfooling as Tryck & Ton with Edvin Edvinsson, and prior to that as Tiedye on Mike Simonetti's Italians Do It Better imprint, subversive Swede Anton Klint makes his debut on Simonetti's latest label 2MR with two more vitally trippy, heavily dub-informed originals.
'Mun' chugs at a stately 107. Rippling in places, squiggling in others, there's an unabashed FX weirdness bubbling and popping over the insistent shimmering dubwise groove. Tweaking, freaking but running at such a smooth temper there's space between the chaos, Anton is balancing some heavily hypnotic alchemy here.
'Strupe' takes things even lower and slower. A dusty bluesy chugger, unhurried-yet-relentlessly building with a great sense of cosmic drama, listen and marvel as more elements are precision introduced throughout the seven minute trip. A masterclass in modern day honkytonk.
Remix-wise we're thrusted into the later hours with a technoid twist from Andre Laos. Maintaining Anton's original's trippy charm and measured pace but re-amping it with grittier foundation, teasing risers and an insurgent synth strike, it's the perfect complement to one of 2MR's most singular releases to date. Open wide.

The very first release of 2018 from Eureka!, is the well known Parisian sampling master S3A (Sampling As An Art) with his perfect definition between underground quality emotional house music and dancefloor efficiency.
He released from Lazare House Records, Hold Youth, Concrete Music, Local Talk, Phonogramme and Faces and with his background culture based on a solid knowledge of house music, soul, funk made him one of the most promising house artist of the French scene.

Mountain Charr contains 3 tracks in completely different styles. 'Doop Doop' is definitely a sound of S3A, with characteristic vocal cut up by adding powerful horn section and melodic piano loop.
'Emotional M1' is classic yet warm and cosy low deep groove track that is playable regardless of a time or place, from lounge to dancefloor.
To complete the package we have 'Denials', a more down tempo offering, but its melody is fascinating and yes, sexy.

This EP definitely brings you his predominant sense of sampling.

Artwork by Kouhei Asakura

"For the final part of SchleiBen 5 - 8, Emotional Response welcomes two Scottish based artists to close out the series. In Jon Keliehor you have a world and music traveler with history from psychedelic rock to fourth world exposure, alongside one of the best electronic producers of the last decade, Lord Of The Isles. As the drummer of West Coast folk rock / psychedelic band The Daily Flash, Keleihor spent much of the mid-60 based in and out of Seattle and Los Angles, playing alongside the likes of Jefferson Airplane, Cream and The Doors, before an increasing interest in meditation and philosophies outside of the 'rock' realm led him to England in the early 70s where he become involved in dance theatre. Teaching Advanced Rhythmic Music Studies at the London Contemporary Dance School, his music composition style became influenced by his studies of world music. Finally settling in Glasgow for over 20 years, while running the Luminous Music label and Gamelan Naga Mas, his earlier recordings for labels like Indipop, Touch and Bruton have seen a recent revival, with music appearing recently on contemporaries Optimo Music and Invisible Inc. The wonderful recordings included here span over 3 decades, from sessions at the Luminous Studio at The Diorama Theatre, London in the early 80s, through to recent field-work based recordings in the Cairngorms. Reconfigured and updated, a common thread appears through the pieces - a sense of longing and appreciation - as Jon's knowledge of outer-national instrumentation alongside equally extensive travels around the globe gives the recordings a seamless blend of organic craft. The tonal consonances within unlikely combinations of instruments, with tuned glasses (tarang), tabla, jaw harps, clay flutes and ocarinas, Chinese instruments that include Xiao-Bo and Xiao-Ping, large Noah bells, small and larges gongs all employed, the recordings have been reconstructed, edited and updated via sampling and digital processing. Featuring the playing of John "Jhalib" Millar - the extraordinarily gifted musician and tabla player - who has appeared with an EP on sister label, Emotional Rescue (ERC029), sadly recently deceased, the contribution acts as a tribute and more. To close, the music of Lord Of The Isles is an excellent companion to Jon's work. Neil McDonald's list of club-based releases on labels CockTail D'Amor, Ene, Firecracker, Permanent Vacation, ESP Institute and Phonica is comprehensive and exemplary, however within his productions has often been an other-worldly element, a space between the beats and occasional fully ambient pieces. Approached originally for series one of SchleiBen, the 7 pieces included were worth the wait, a journey in themselves and the perfect completion. Spanning almost 5 years, the majority were written during an extended exile in the Cairngorms. The lifting, ethereal, but melodic nature of the music fits that aesthetic. Blue skies, snow, long walks, space to think, but with a longing and appreciation of family and friends. The solitary nature found in SchleiBen 8 and the geographical incidence of both artist's recordings including sessions in the Scottish Highlands fits the series ideals and is a nice closure. Enjoy and listen. "

"Things take a psychedelic turn for SchleiBen 7 with a welcome to the label of arch exponents of mind expansion in NYC's Georgia and the unlikely but no less diverse inclusion of Balearic stalwarts A Man Called Adam. Having Georgia in the series might not now be a surprise, however discussions with this open, genuine duo started during a visit to New York over 3 years ago and so here, finally realised in this fluid journey of confident pace and harmony, is the best of their freeform evocations. A duo in the everyday sense, Brian Close and Justin Tripp are video / music production teamsters of unnatural talent. Having gained a status of their own that has seen them release for the likes of Palto Flats and FTD, the five pieces that form their contribution drip with psychedelic intent. Culled from archives, the interest is how the tracks - made over different years, locations and situations in life - meld in to something poetic simply by being placed within a specific format. Avant-chimes ebb to rhythmic pulses and erudite teachings before dark percussion and Eastern melodies reach a clattering, but gentle finale. With an upcoming collaborative album with Secret Circuit due on the label later in 2018, as well as recent works with RVNG Intl's Matt Werth and recordings for Sacred Summits' brethren Firecracker Recordings, it's a warm, effusive glow of a welcome. In contrast, the inclusion of A Man Called Adam in the series may indeed surprise but is a false comprehension. The "Sketches" included here show AMCA away from their Balearic pop incarnation of the last thirty years and towards the academia that both members Sally Rodgers and Steve Jones have pursued in the last decade. With both completing PHDs, Sally ('The Diachronic Impact of Technology-Led Abstraction in Oral, Written and Music-based Poetries') is a senior lecturer at Leeds College Of Music, while Steve ('Mobilise: The Carry Principle, Sound and Mobile Media') is based out of de Montfort University, now is the perfect time to highlight the diverse sound environments they have been working in. The music that makes up these recordings are drawn from sound works and audio experiments completed in recent years. From sound toys and apps to home made glass organs and electro-acoustic sound, custom patches to spoken word manipulations, the sketches are excerpts - some evolved from commissions for the National Science Museum, BBC Radio 4 and live performances with the world renowned video artist Milosh JL - fused especially for this release. Bringing these generated pieces in to an audible "mix" creates a discourse of their work in performance, interactions and visual media. An intellectualised album therefore, but still in the premise of the series to allow artists to present something new, unique, discrete, hidden even, all with the aim of giving the recipient the chance to sit back and (un)listen. "

e mighty Man Power returns to Correspondant. One of the earliest labels to champion his explorative technoid landscapes, and deliver his debut album, the Mexico based composer makes a welcome return with three truly singular trips...

'The Zen Of Xen' comes in two segued parts, comprising almost 13 minutes of full intergalactic immersion. Laced with the alluring deep-dream vocals of Tel Aviv's Xen, anchored with tripped-out humanized harmonics and weaved with soaring pads, it's a genuinely emotional narrative that's been cooking away on Man Power's creative wishlist since he first met Xen at a show five years ago.

Elsewhere 'Heart For Yes, Life For No' will have you spitting rainbow emojis all night. An incredible piece of vibrant melodic techno rooted in synthesis, galvanized with emotive layers, driven by feels it sets us up perfectly for the fantastical finale 'Hubris'. Cosmic, soft-focused, sparkling but topped with a choral chant that comes in from nowhere and arrests every sense as the elements rise and fuse with theatre.

By far one of Man Power's most techno-focused and biggest records to date.

WHITE RING mark a triumphant return with a brand new full-length Gate Of Grief, due out on Rocket Girl on 22 June 2018. Their debut album arrives a full eight years since their benchmark EP, Black Earth That Made Me, which sold out almost instantly, making their records some of the most highly sought after on the underground scene and earning them a cult following across the globe. Swerving from aggressively abrasive to beautifully ethereal, musically they draw from varied and challenging palette, whilst tackling themes of loss and acceptance due to struggles with drug addiction and existential dread on a broader scope.

WHITE RING were originally formed by Bryan Kurkimilis and Kendra Malia, before they were joined by Adina Viarengo, with Bryan and Adina currently touring as a duo. One of the most acclaimed proponents of the "Witch House" movement, WHITE RING blend heavy, distorted electronics with eerie, unsettling vocals. However, their new material, created over the course of seven years, pushes the boundaries further, subverting genre ideas and mashing them all together, with industrial, metal, rave, chopped and screwed, rap, grunge, neo folk, post punk and new wave all in the mix. As Bryan Kurkimilis explains; 'We treat our influences like tools to create a certain feeling. We are interested in covering more ground than sticking to a certain formula.'
Bryan and Kendra originally met on Myspace in 2006. At the time Bryan lived in New Orleans and Kendra was in New York, and they didn't even meet face-to-face until 2008 after they had already released a few singles. In 2010 they released the EP Black Earth That Made Me, which was a collection of songs that they mostly recorded before they met in person. The record confounded expectations by selling out immediately on pre-order, making it very rare and highly sought after, with copies going on Ebay for large sums. It was reissued by Rocket Girl in 2011 and still continues to sell in voluminous amounts.

They started playing live in 2009 and rapidly grew a reputation for their captivating performances, usually bringing their own lighting equipment and putting on a spectacular laser show. They have played for large crowds in their hometown of NYC and toured the UK in 2010 in support of their sold out split 7" with oOoOO, playing InTheCity and SWN festivals - which were their first shows outside of New York. They have since shared the stage with the likes of Cold Cave, araabMUZIK, Liturgy, Blank Dogs, Gatekeeper, Blondes, oOoOO, Clams Casino, and others.  
They started recording Gate Of Grief in 2010, with the hope of exploring new musical territory, however they took a while to find their path. Bryan and Kendra had some tough personal battles to fight, a sense that pervades the whole album. Thematically it delves in to some pretty dark places whilst exploring the concept of time and what it does to people, relationships and society. As Bryan explains; 'There is a lot of tragedy in this album but there is also hope at the end of it.'
By 2016 pressure was building to finish recording, however due to Kendra's ill health, they needed to bring in someone new to assist with vocals. Fortunately they found Adina Viarengo, who had played in various bands and gave them the impetus needed to complete the album. Shortly after meeting in Brooklyn, Bryan and Adina moved to Joshua Tree, California to finish recording the album, before settling in Massachusetts. Her vocal style fitted in seamlessly with what Kendra had been doing, and although she sang on half the songs, it's almost impossible to tell who is singing on which track, thus making her the perfect addition to the band.
Gate of Grief can be considered the second part of Black Earth That Made Me, or rather, they are the first two chapters in an overarching trilogy about evolution. As Bryan explains; 'First you are born but then you realize what you are and what is against you and it's a flood of emotion that you can only hope to hold on for and let it pass.'
The album title, Gate of Grief, refers to the real gate between Africa and Saudi Arabia that is believed to be the spot where the first humans migrated out of Africa and went on to populate the rest of the world. The album art ties in with this concept, with an image depicting a group of settlers in the USA in early 1900 during a parade. They were actually from a cult in the early 1900s in Bryan's hometown of Fort Myers, Florida.













M 13) Burn It Down

Superb acid dancefloor techno tribe party timer... And, a splendid A2 killer from Vikkei... a tune that no one shall forget as a 136 BPM downtempo techno acid loud un-doom perfection. MASTERPIECE

Pseudocode in a kind of free form minimal electronique concrete mood. There`s even the odd suggestion of a pop tune here and there, maybe even some danceable beats, if you`ve got one leg shorter than the other. While Xavier S. contributes most of the lyrics and vocals, Guy-Marc Hinant plays often the core melody on guitar or electric piano, Neffe's contributions are particularly noteworthy throughout, as he weaves together the bulk of the sonic cloth through overdubbing and mixing.one of his parts are remotely virtuosic (hence his self-identification as a non-musician), but they are always unexpected and perfect in and of themselves, emotionally and sonically, and in that sense they are deeply musical.This could be seen as the missing link between Slaughter In Tiny Place and Europa - third and final LP by Peudocode.All songs are unreleased. Recorded and mixed between 1980 and 1981.

Fresh on Francis Harris' Kingdoms imprint comes Rasmus Juncker's 'Ophold' - six tracks of sublime atmospheres and textures. The Danish musician, sound composer and DJ fits perfectly with the label's aesthetic, joining the dots between ambient, leftfield electronica and modern classical.

Juncker has a background in studying jazz drumming and has been playing improvised music within the jazz domain for many years. He also started to DJ at the age of 14 and was introduced to the world of electronic music production at the same time.

When Rasmus started to think about his debut album he spent several months trying to find his own way to combine his favourite musical influences, improvisation, electronics and classical music. 'Almost a year later', Juncker says, "I went to a sensory deprivation floating tank in Copenhagen while researching for another performance and while I was lying there, floating in the water, deprived from most of my senses, I got the idea to do something drastic in my musical process. Philosophers like Immanuel Kant describe this deprived state as a mental 'Cesura', which became some sort of guideline for the album."

So Juncker decided to start working on the album by leaving the process as well as the final result completely open. 'I wanted to create sounds and music that I had no idea what they would sound like, but would feel like a mental 'Cesura', an 'Ophold' (in Danish)' he states.

He invited musicians, one after the other, to his studio. "I had an electronic musician to improvise patterns and new interesting sounds based on my experience in the deprivation tank. I chose some of the takes and some weeks later I invited a jazz guitarist to listen and improvise on top of what he heard. Then a classical string quartet and a double bass player came to my studio months later, and finally I recorded myself on percussion and drums.

Throughout the recording process I've been experimenting with special microphones in various setups, used noises from the recordings and the room became absolutely essential for the pieces." Juncker states.

"The material I used was all first take improvision which I arranged, layered and edited into compositions. The final pieces were mixed by Andreas Pallisgaard with the same improvised and experimental approach of the recording and the production. None of the musician met each other, but their sounds developed into something completely fantastic I think. The presence of the acoustic instruments and the depth and complexity of the synthesized layers gave some kind of an indescribable sounding music from another galaxy.

Track by track:

'Norddrum' starts proceedings - ethereal, grainy sounds merge and disassociate, as a distant rhythm gradually finds its way to the fore.

The second track, 'Sora' , clocking in at under 2 minutes, is an interlude full of strings, pads, and percussive hits, rich in feeling. This strong sense of sound design and seemingly disparate sounds woven together into a whole carries through into 'Eksotisk Tirsdag' - the strings, plucked instruments and electronics harking back to 4th world adventurers like Jon Hassel and Brian Eno.

'Cyklus' dives into drone textures, pulsing and modulating to create an unearthly soundtrack.

'Havekunst' is another 2 minutes interlude, this time bringing a fully charged rhythmic barrage to the front.

'Cesura', the final track is in essence the EP's centerpiece - a sprawling 8 minute journey that traverses tense, fibrous sections and on into pulsing modular passages, before opening up into glorious moments of wonder and brightness. It's a hugely bold yet fragile endeavour, in line with the whole release.

After putting out Kito Jempere's well received Sea Monsters album last year, Hell Yeah now serve up another selection of remixes of it. Accomplished musician Jimi Tenor, plus Miskotom and Max Essa all contribute before a 7", also taken from the album, lands later in summer. First up is Jimi Tenor, the legndary Finnish musician who has released on Warp, collaborated with Tony Allen and has his own band as well as occasionally playing sax with Kito Jempere Band at live gigs. He flips Puzzled into five minutes of stripped back and moody electronics with plenty of his own flute playing in the track. Busted drum sounds, spooky sci-fi synths and scattered hits make it woozy and late night and utterly absorbing. Miskotom—a newly emerging pair made up of Mik and his wife Andra, both based in Vilnius, Lithuania with credits on Pleasure Unit and Balearic —then reimagine 'Ampa' as a beatdown but of deep house with trudging drums staying low and shimmering synths drift out in all directions. Crunchy hits bring a subtle sense of funk and reverb drenched vocals bring a heavenly feel to the soul drenched grooves and summery keys.
Then comes Max Essa, the Japan based Brit who is a regular on this label as well as the likes of Is It Balearic. His first remix is a huge one that is sure to soundtrack many a boat party this summer. It's a gorgeous rework of 'Ampa' that puts achingly blissful vocals front and centre as low slung bass and slowly turning drums sink you into a pan-pipe laced reverie. Secondly, Essa offers a Dub Reprise that removes the vocals and places all the focus on his churning drums and new age grooves.
This is another perfect package of masterfully electronic horizontal sounds.

Since the early 1990s, keyboard player Jessica Lauren has been a familiar part of London's alternative music scene. Jessica's keyboard skills have augmented the live performances and studio recordings of world renowned artists such as Jean Carne, Tom Browne, Dexter Wansel and James Mason, Japan's United Future Organisation, and UK soul diva Juliet Roberts.

Her previous Freestyle album 'Jessica Lauren Four' (2012) highlighted Jessica's minimalist approach, something rare and refreshing in the jazz world: she instills her compositions and playing with a refined sense of space which makes her music as much about what she doesn't play as what she does.

The albums' opener - Kofi Nomad is a deeply percussive afrocentric epic, featuring the beautiful baritone saxaphone of Tamar 'Collocutor' Osborn, one of the most in demand woodwind players working today, underpinned by a powerful foundation of percussion courtesy of Richard látúndé Baker, Phillip Harper and drummer Cosimo Keita Cadore.

Jessicas' amazing skill for writing simple, understated yet superbly memorable and catchy hooks remains undiminished. Highlights in this new collection are almost too numerous to mention, but Amalfi is a breezy bossa, which conjures up images of easy living days and sun dappled Mediterranean coastlines, whilst the angular and brooding Simba Jike has something of an Eddie Harris style deep, dark groove over which Jessica riffs and solos beautifully on grand piano - and Tamar once again blows freely, whilst 'level' Neville Malcolms' upright bass figure roots the entire thing in a solid, almost primeval sound.

The albums closing statement Argentina is a masterpiece of pathos and perfectly demonstrates Jessicas' approach which is almost akin to a minimalist architecture style of composing and playing, such is the strength of its atmosphere and subtlety.

A wonderful companion piece to the totemic Fed, we proudly announce the first ever vinyl edition of Korp Sole Roller by Plush. Liam Hayes' magical fourth full-length LP was previously only available on a rare Japanese import CD. Produced and arranged in 2010 by Pat Sansone (Wilco / The Autumn Defense), it finally arrives in a limited edition of 500 copies.

The common impression of Plush is that of an underground rock myth, lent greater poignancy by the lofty vision that galvanised his music. Yet while he has long been a cult concern, clued-up celebrity fans periodically declare their profound love for Hayes' maverick genius. Indeed, after Jason Schwartzman introduced Plush to Roman Coppola, several stunning songs from Korp Sole Roller soundtracked Coppola's A Glimpse Inside The Mind Of Charles Swan III.

As ever with Plush, it's easy to imagine you are listening to a privately pressed rarity from the mid-late 1970s. Or one of the criminally neglected jewels from the discography of Jimmy Webb or Burt Bacharach. The sound on Korp Sole Roller does differ crucially from Fed, however. It is more streamlined. These 10 gorgeously seductive creations careen around ornate string and wind instrument arrangements and producer Sansone's deft work is likely the reason for this. Yet, brilliantly, it still possesses that sun-warped take on classic pop-rock, that Plush specialises in. That peculiar "down-lifting" phenomenon of performing upbeat songs in an enigmatically mournful way.

Upon completion, Korp Sole Roller barely received anything resembling a release. Press coverage was zero because none of the major magazines or blogs knew of its existence. His management at the time essentially buried the album in order to concentrate on other releases. Looking back on this decision, it really made little sense. Everyone involved in its creation of these near-perfect gems is extremely proud of it. Liam himself has described it as the favourite of his albums. Pat's delicate work is astounding. Remastered especially for this special limited edition, it is presented in a sumptuous gatefold jacket with high-end art photography throughout, including full colour inner sleeves. Finally, here's your chance to own a slice of kaleidoscopic pop history.

Sam Vicary A.K.A Hunrosa (meaning "to dream") is an electronic music producer capturing the wild organic senses of his childhood and anchoring it with a darker 2am undercurrent. Based in Manchester, he is principally a bassist and currently a member of The Cinematic Orchestra, Paper Tiger and The Dominic J Marshall Trio, as well as performing with Manu Delago, Imogen Heap, Matthew Halsall, Anil Sebastian and Stuart Macallum.

His latest offering 'Ransome' is a heavily rhythmic journey, full of textured hand percussion and soaring strings, accompanied by the beautifully melodic vocals of Alice Higgins drifting overhead. The Clap Clap remix sees the Black Acre mainstay exploring expansive territories, polyrhythmic hand percussion and textured electronica perfectly intertwine, drenched in dub ambience, heightened by scattered arpeggios and swirling synths. The music is inspired by a coastal upbringing, represented in the music via field recordings, as well as being aided by visual stimulus throughout the writing process.

Dutch artist Mokona returns to Templar Sound for his third release on the label with 'Love in Restricted Areas', described as being set in a private laboratory complex deep inside a forest, recorded during the summer after long nights of medical research.

* 'Love in Restricted Areas' continues the lush and serene soundscapes explored on 2015's 'Breathless' EP, while mixing more club friendly tracks like 'Perfumed Steel' and 'A.N.G.E.L. Guard System' with the meditative as found in 'Heart Sync' and 'Natalie's Aquarium Lab'. With a strong cinematic feel permeating throughout, and having taken his name from a character of the manga xxxHOLiC, which explores Japanese mythology and culture, it makes perfect sense that a track like 'Cupid's Bow' feels like it could have been lifted from a Studio Ghibli soundtrack.

* Though hard to pin down to a single genre, Mokona has produced a beautifully layered record that is just as fitting for head phone listening as the chill out room.

Quality is the key word from Copenhagen based Music For Dreams and here is another home run. Willie Graff splits his year between DJ residencies in New York and Ibiza. In this new outing with studio partner Darren Eboli, the influence is, as the title suggests, clearly NY-based. Over only four tracks, the pair manage to craft a stunningly comprehensive exploration of the essential elements of dance music.

Opening track "Love Flight" staggers into a lush string-driven groove that recalls the glory of Metro Area meets Wally Badarou vibes. Minimal yet playful, it lounges somewhere in the depths of the house tradition, calling on familiar sounds while throwing in odd details along the way (harmonicas). It takes both skill, devotion and a sense of humor to pull this track off, making for a strong opening. "Moon Tan" lingers on a metallic hook that drags you into a plethora of percussion followed by a rubbery soft baseline. Dubby key work would suggest this was a new wave band jamming at Compass Point, while the icy chill of the xylophone transports you into 80s italo territory.

"Second Sun" pulls out the bag of boogie tricks, relying on a firm but humble baseline and smattering drum machine claps. Nile Rodgers-style guitar licks guide us onwards into a well-orchestrated jam that builds up and breaks down with perfect timing while dreamy chords reach for the sky. "First Light" keeps the groove tight while dipping over towards more Balearic temperatures. Steeped in a watery atmosphere and gentle organic percussion, it focuses in on a trance-inducing arpeggio that lulls you in to the swaying Badarou-style synth swirls that intercept it.

The Shadows is the new album from Leeds-based six-piece Tomorrow We Sail. Building on their debut release For Those Who Caught the Sun in Flight (Gizeh, 2014) over the course of three years, this new work combines perfectly the soaring atmospherics, gorgeously intertwined vocal harmonies and dramatic shifts in tone and dynamics that have come to characterise Tomorrow We Sail's sound. Yet, there is a new sense of urgency here. Very much an album of its time, The Shadows draws upon the same sense of connection to both past and present that defined its precursor but features storytelling that's even more defiant and deeply personal.
Like its predecessor, the record features seven songs but from the chiming guitars of opening track Side By Side it is clear that the stately pace of For Those Who Caught the Sun in Flight has made way for a far more dynamic and driving energy; perhaps best captured in the righteous anger of The Ghost of John Maynard Keynes. Tomorrow We Sail still invoke a keen sense of measured grace in their songwriting - from the sweeping, elegiac title track, through to the sparse, restrained, yet haunting beauty of Winifred and To Sleep. Urgent, yet assured, The Shadows demands your attention.

Long-term Soma collaborator Tony Scott drops his debut album with the label under his Edit Select alias, the perfectly crafted experience, 'Cyclical Undulations'. Having released with Soma under his Percy X moniker for years and having countless hits under his belt, Scott reinvented himself as Edit Select. Known for his dark, expressive and expansive music, Edit Select has become once of the most well respected and renowned artists in the genre. With this latest full length, he continues to explore the furthest reaches of the Deep Techno spectrum.

The Cyclical Undulations journey begins with Insta Grain, a mesmeric odyssey of ebbing pads and sparse percussive elements that seem to drift of into the expanse. A perfect opener before the first foray into more 4x4 territory begins with Above Ground a pulsating affair before Two Step Phase, a more stripped back affair, reminiscent of earlier Percy X works in it's 90s heyday. Undulation, more propulsive in it's approach, melds warping synth hooks alongside spectral tones. Horizon#1 follows in a similar vein yet drift into slightly more hypnotic territory as recurrent tones lead the track. Scott flourishes with yet more machine-throb crafting Close Up & In The Beginning She Was, both stacked with subtle nuances of his stylised percussion lost across dream like states. The later half of the album has a distinct minimalistic approach yet seem to provide maximal output with every beat. Horizon#2 is dark and ominous yet still characterised by a tough percussive element. Contact, produced in collaboration with Claudio PRC, delves into more submerged sounds with heavy sub bass and echoed drums, finishing of with Towards The E; a shuffling broken beat affair with after hours vibes and an endearing ethereal quality.

Cyclical Undulations demonstrates a mature sense of production from Edit Select. An assured collection of material, each track providing a striking insight into a true artistic mind.

orrespondant welcome Berlin duo Hinode Having established themselves with a string of well received cuts on their own Science Fiction imprint, they were spotted by chance by label boss Jennifer Cardini on a recent record-shopping jaunt. With a raw, no-rules sense of machine funk running through everything they create, they're the perfect match for Correspondant and make their label debut with four numerical delights... 'I' lights the analog fire with raw sleaze and off-beat mischief. Unkempt and wily, it sets the tone for the entire EP: 'II' writhes snake-like with its slinky kicks and purring textures, 'III' slurs with bass groans and shakes with paranoid, alien melodies while 'IV' closes with much more of a tunnelling, sense-blurring experience. Total machine harmony, unbounded synthetic creativity, made to mix and wholly outer-planetary... Hinode and Correspondant are a match made in the stars.

Fina Records strides into 2018 with another fresh new house EP, this time from PASO aka Pascal Pamme. Over the last few years this French artist has released on the likes of D.KO Records, Increase, and The Groove, and always showcases his knack for loose limbed, organic house grooves laden with jazzy keys and soul-infused synths. The four cuts he offers up here once again prove he is a producer with a truly authentic and musical style.

The warm and golden 'Idocracy' kicks things off with gently shuffling kicks, noodling chords and twinkling keys that together make for a perfectly cozy and intimate house track. 'Fuzy' is another perfectly louche and disheveled number with woody kicks stuttering beneath effusive Rhodes keys. Vinyl crackle and tinkling percussive sounds add to the immediately aged and lived in style of the track and mean it is one that will get smaller rooms well and truly involved.

On the flip, 'Limited Perception' ups the ante, with quicker drums decorated with more languid chords, plenty of smartly sampled sounds and a breezy sense of groove that is heartfelt and effortlessly feel good. Last of all, 'No Matter Where You're From' has great female vocals stitched into long-tailed pads as lazy, swaggering drums lay down a perfectly imperfect groove. It rounds out an EP of masterfully atmospheric house for those who like their beats with real feeling.

An ethereal, unresolved presence fading into the stereo field, Hilja breathes into life with a haunted synth line and self-sampling vocal hook that instantly creates an enchanted space. Hilja is the debut album by Glasgow-based musician Maria Rossi aka Cucina Povera. Named after a style of southern Italian traditional cooking associated with precarity and making-do, a philosophy of simplicity and stoicism that applies perfectly to the spare but beautiful music Rossi experiments with. Hilja's marriage of minimal synth, field recordings and the hymnal dexterity of Rossi's vocal performances creates a new language, sometimes literally, to be spoken in some mythological Fourth World we've yet to create.
Originally from Finland, Rossi brings an acute sense of space, surroundings, and practicality to her working practice, with each composition often relying on a limited sound palette to create deeply affecting messages which transcend language. Cucina Povera's power is to communicate purely, often down to the solo-choir nature of Rossi's multi-layered voice, an achingly beautiful instrument which has seems to have an innate spirituality in its grain. The tension between the means and the end is at the heart of Cucina Povera, the invocation of a kind of secular spirituality at times using nothing but Rossi's voice. Indeed there's almost a Dogme-like purity to the arrangements: Elektra is a soothing song based around the lapping waves of Rossi's wordless backing vocals and a simple field recording of stones knocked together. Kehoitus is completely a cappella, a haunted fairytale told in glossolalia, evoking a quasi-religious experience with very little.
For music often minimal and simple there's a boldness that belies Hilja's status as a debut. Rossi allows each word, each sound and rhythm to exist in its own space, finding its own relationship with its surroundings. Mesikämmenen Veisu is perhaps the most ecclesiastical sounding composition here, burbling water trickles below a virtuoso vocal, with incredible arrangements in several registers undulating above. A meditation to relieve hunger and restriction, it's a perfect summing up of Hilja, a music ambient but completely earthed, finding enchantment in what you have to hand, the realism of magic, the magic of realism.
First Press limited to 300 with hand-screened sleeves.

Releasing an album into the world is a special moment for any artist but when you're an artist who grew up in remote northern Ghana with no schooling, spending a life herding cows and goats, building your own instruments and teaching yourself to sing, then there's a particular sense of occasion and celebration in finding recognition and an audience for that music.

This is the case for Guy One, an utterly unique artist who is writing and performing Frafra music, a style that originates from a small area in the north of Ghana. Whilst Guy One is already loved and adored locally by now - building up a fervent following in local villages in which no funeral or wedding would take place without his soaring voice and deeply rhythmic playing, before then transforming into an award-winning, TV appearing artist in Ghana - his music is now to find a much wider audience through Max Weissenfeldt's Philophon label (Jimi Tenor, Hailu Mergia, Alemayehu Eshete) on this Berlin meets Bolgatanga release.

Guy One's international debut #1 is an album rooted in tradition as much as it is the contemporary ("Frafra music Made in Germany" says drummer producer Max Weissenfeldt if he's forced to put a label on it) but given the fact that the traditionalism of Frafra music itself is a largely unknown force, the results are more even more potent and stirring in their creations. Choirs, trumpet, organ, bass, drums, synthesiser, vibraphone, saxophone and piano, the album is as bursting with instrumentation as it is ideas and innovation.

The album's perfect positioning between the old and the new and in taking that middle ground and launching it into completely new territory is enough to completely unglue the definitions of what music can be.

We are extremely happy to welcome Malouane to our roster for this third release. The atmosphere of Malouane is unique: raw, melodic and full of details with charm. "Long Way for the Homies" will recall artists like MCDE or Rick Wade, quite in the same vein: Jazzy, soul and house. The second, "Keep Yo Mama Clean" very catchy too: drums, beautiful basses and small samples interact with each other. These elements work perfectly, because Malouane has a real sense of musical arrangement, a real mastery of sampling. "This is supposed to be an Outro" is the last track of the original tracks: it is a little slower than the others but a great wealth: a real charm and a true personality emerges from this piece. The multitude of details and, again, the mastery of the sample make it a piece as much club as listening. Cody Currie has proposed his own vision. The young English producer made a great remix by putting his style and Clement's together. Finally, Times are ruff also offers their reinterpretation of Keep yo Mama Clean: softer and quite faithful to the atmosphere of this EP, with a small taste of Chaos in the CBD, the Dutch have done a remarkable job.

The third release in Danse Club's Black Series is a collaborative effort between Dutch tech house hero Lauhaus and countryman Rik Woldring with a standout remix from Boris Werner. Lauhaus has long been at the heart of the underground electronic music scene, releasing on go-to imprints like 100% Pure and Area remote as well as his own Soweso and We Dig. labels, whilst Rik Woldring is very much a talent on the rise who has impressed in Amsterdam with his unique after hours DJ sets. Together the pair crafts some infectious and charismatic grooves that fit perfectly with the increasingly essential Danse Club . Opening track 'Context' is a tight arrangement of looping bass, silky and silvery percussion and myriad sonic effects that create intrigue from start to finish. It's the sort of thing that makes you sweat on the floor but has enough detail to keep your mind occupied, too. Boris Werner, another stalwart of the Dutch tech scene, turns in a superb mix of 'Context'. His remix is deeper and more stripped back, with bobbling drums and perfect claps driving the thing along. Subtle pads warm things through and shadowy voices bring a sense of light night mischief to proceedings. Lauhaus & Rik Woldring then turn in 'Aint No Time', a liquid bit of shape shifting tech house funk that is rich with colourful melodies and well placed spoken word musings. It's music for the floor that is fun as well as functional and last track 'Spearmint' is just the same. This ones a bit tougher and more taught with rubbery synth and basslines wrapping round each other for 9 heady minutes as delightful synth patterns slowly smear and spread in the skies up top. Another cultured release from the Danse Club label that proves tech house, when done well, is still a hugely rewarding genre.

"limited pressing of 300 reproductions serigraphed, embossed and scented"

"I'm not at all sorry, now that he's dead,
He took my cheese and ate it in my stead,
He's punished by fate - God, you've avenged me."
- Aesop

"The Fox And The Raven" is the maiden release for Denise Rabe's self titled label, conceived to be the channel thru which her personal, unfiltered, haunting sound will find it's body and voice.

Exemplifying this with the 3 cuts on "The Fox And The Raven": driven, hypnotic, techno with a chasing sense of urgency, balanced with eeire lamenting melodies, perfectly fitting the tales of lore chosen to illustrate each release like a volume in an odyssey.

Concluding this chapter, a limited pressing of 300 reproductions serigraphed, embossed and scented, echoing how like fables, music, occupies a tangible moment in the listeners life and space.

Bursting through the vapour trails of previous Solar Phenomena pilot Antonio Ruscito, London's Roberto is invited to the take the controls of the forward-thrusting new label's third adventure.

With turbine pads raising hairs at 20 paces, opening track 'Into The Blue' is an alluring statement. Adorned with breathing atmospherics and stately kicks, it builds perfectly on Roberto's previous work both on his own highly respected label Fossil Archives and other eminent imprints such as Emmanuel's Arts and Dehnert's Fachwerk as a fusion of contrasts and shades.

'DX Waves' takes us up a gear as it heads nose-first into a techno vortex. Relentless, driving and hypnotic, there's a pneumatic funk to the drums while the riff ripples and stimulates with a warmth and fluidity that instantly recalls the legacy of Motor City while remaining plotted to a path of its own.

This sense of unbridled drive and energy continues on Roberto's final original of the EP: 'Chord Recall'. Here the drums take more of a central position on the stage as the warped, melting tones and textures wrap themselves around the punctuated kicks and occasional deep-splash cymbals. Laced with a deep sense of space and a bewildering sensation of an unknown destination, it s another innovative voyage for Solar Phenomena that's brought home with an exciting revision conclusion from the one and only Peverelist.

A Bristol beat explorer who needs no introduction, Peverelist's take on 'Chord Recall' takes off where his recent album 'Tessellations' left us at the start of the summer. With his loose broken drum signature, Peverelist provides space for Roberto's original textured elements to take place at the centre of the stage and roam and evolve freely and hypnotically. A fitting end to another exceptional and innovative exploration, both Roberto's originals and Peverelist's remix set us up eagerly for the next Solar Phenomena chapter

Silencio celebrates the first year of the label with a double-pack vinyl aptly titled Uno.
Comprising of new and established artists, the tracks on Uno collectively summarize the the feel of this label's year, while giving us a hint of what to expect in the year to come.
Click Box & Stefan Dichev kick off the release with 'Memories'. Presenting a collaborative production that will prove over and over again why sound is one of the strongest senses tied to memory. Engineered with emotionally responsive rhythms that roll into a rocksteady baseline, this track evokes feelings with finesse. "Memories" also features funky squiggle sounds and trailing even-tempered tones to punctuate its procession. This is one you'll want to relive every time the opportunity arises.
New comer Wave Particle Singularity has done it again. 'Virtue' is a tremendous track that will quickly establish itself as one of your new favorite things. The drum sequence, accented by beguiling background sounds and curious vocals, gallops throughout this selection with all its feet off the ground together in each smooth stride. Plus, it also comes fully equipped with a pleasingly unpredictable pace in the form of some moody, well-orchestrated changes that result in a perfectly adjusted attitude. Never a dull moment on the dance floor.
Guaranteed.
Kepler.'s latest offering 'Tool A' possess all the qualities one would normally associate with a fine wine because the taste left on the palate after its consumption is both complex and satisfying. During its ascent, effects that compress a thousand echoes into a single sample ride alongside an active baseline that ripples accordingly. Subtle, flavorful snippets bleep and bloop in complete balance, giving this cut a coordinated, contemplative vibe that brings everything into focus.
With his first track on Silencio, Yuuki Hori's 'Scene 5' is truly a unique item. This electromechanicaly exotic sounding export from Japan makes an impression with layers that are neatly stacked and minimal to the max. Its main feature, a sample that seemingly mimics the mating call of a male bullfrog, rhythmically ribbits in harmony with the beat, bellowing over the entirety of this track. All the various elements of this composition come together in a natural way that feels symbiotic and sounds superb.
Another Silencio first, Jorge Ciccioli's 'TD8' has a deliberate intention to create momentum, with a deep, penetrating baseline that rises to the occasion by descending the darkest depths of its own digital horizon. In the midst of the mix the listener is greeted with a clever chorus that effectively sounds like air vibrating, or in layman's terms "blowing", within an empty glass bottle. As it goes through the motions, observe how every note is noticeably nuanced in an effort to reflect the subtle changes that take place.
Closing out the release and year for Silencio, is Laughing Man with 'Reach Out'. Hard, heavyand heavenly are all terms that could be used to express the sentiment of this selection.
Notice how right from the get go this production profoundly pounds out its agenda with a solid, speedy beat that relentlessly rocks throughout the recording. Accompanied by aseries of wavy, spirited vocal layers, ringing bells and an inspired intersection of cymbals,this track is one hell of a ride that will enable you to make contact with the other side.

Solid, powerful and eclectic... Skudge has yet again delivered a fine remix 12". This time around we've got Blue Hour, whose slamming production work on his own, self-titled label has been delivering some of the finest techno in recent times. Blue Hour's remix is featuring on the A-side, where a pumping and pushing reinterpretation of 'Hunted' takes the lead. For the B-side, Skudge invited Parisian and underground House music purveyor Brawther, who literary beefs up 'Below' with his Steroids Mix. Fine tuning the original's core elements, while adding his special mix of rugged and dusty grooves with an updated sense of modernism: a perfect mixture of both House and Techno, a place where Skudge are coming from.

2022 Repress

HQ Gatefold, 3x12 140g Vinyl, black innersleeve, download code
EXTRAWELT are back! Although in fairness, they were never gone. On the contrary, since their first release on James Holden's Border Community Label dropped in 2005, Arne Schaffhausen and Wayan Raabe have been responsible for a plethora of classics including "Schöne Neue Extrawelt" and "In Aufruhr", their two seminal albums on Cocoon Recordings. The duo are one of the most booked live acts worldwide, commanding a huge fan base. Their performances are the stuff of legend, making them the absolute highlight at every club and festival they play. So it's with great pride and respect, that we can announce the release of Extrawelt's third album for Cocoon Recordings. "Fear Of An Extra Planet" completes the Cocoon trilogy and the excitement growing among their fans represents a new high in the history of EXTRAWELT!
Musically, of course, there's enormous pressure on EXTRAWELT to deliver, but this is dismissed with a playful disregard and they are clearly focused on the job in hand. The album title "Fear Of An Extra Planet" sounds cinematic, like some art-house science fiction film, without giving too much away.
However, from the first seconds of the opening track "Superposition", the album title makes 100% sense and sets the scene for the rest of the trip. We are immersed in wide open spaces and invited to explore dark and dusky worlds that transport us back to their Border Community years. Timeless and elegant, "Superposition" perfectly captures the epic, dream like quality that made James Holden's label so influential.
New Release Information Second up, "Gott ist Schrott" takes a much more minimalist approach with its retro 80s drum programming, monster bass lurking in the breaks and playful Rhodes/synth riffs that span the divide between early German techno and deep Detroit electro with a distinctive film soundtrack aesthetic. "Oddification" continues this theme, adding extra spice reminiscent of the techno-synth vibe of Detroit with a punchy, almost Prodigy-style breakbeat complete with shredded vocal samples that gives us a taste of what's in store. "Gentle Venom" then takes the breakbeat motif to the next stage. The main focus here is the classy sprinter of a bassline, peppered with a flurry of intricate and subtle effects and modulations, that immediately trigger an intense, movie-like 'in pursuit' feeling.
With - Das Grosse Flimmern" we cautiously approach the album's high point. It's still in keeping with the soundtrack aesthetics, but faster and with more urgency. Almost hypnotically, Extrawelt invade us with an energy and impetus that always radiates from their music. Next in line is "Silly Idol" and here Arne Schaffhausen and Wayan Raabe opt again for a more minimal tack, focusing even more intensely on the dance floor to reveal a pulsing, twisted heart to the album.
"Punch The Dragon" is the hidden gem of the collection, utilising and melting together the most bombastic and playful elements. This one is totally off the hook, a sensory overload in an acoustic widescreen format! Then we have the title track "Fear Of An Extra Planet" which perfectly sums up the album concept. It opens up like a film score, with minimal passages following dark sequences that morph into dreamy melodies, all grounded by cool, constantly alternating analogue drum patterns. If you're not listening closely, you might get the impression that three or four different titles are mixed together; such is the effortless flow of the album.
As we near our destination, "The Friendly Coroner" really does honour its name. The morbid charm of the title is captured by a fluid bassline and melodic arrangements that border on the absurd, until the funky drum beat finally drops. In our mind's eye we see a cheerful medical doctor removing his bloody gloves, hanging his smock in the closet and vibing out in his neon drenched workspace. And there we sit, glued to our cinema seat, submerged in the different textures EXTRAWELT have conjured up on "Fear Of An Extra Planet". Over the course of the last title, the strings usher in the final acknowledgments as the credits roll. The dramatic end of "2084" leaves us transfixed in front of a black screen in a large, dark room safe in the knowledge that we've just witnessed a science fiction epic.

We are very exited to present you a fresh and sharp Ep from Julien wich is a big fan of the label since the beginning.. Today we got the best of his music.JULIEN SANDRE makes its debut on French,classy label HOME INVASION with a 4-tracks EP, wrapped in elegance and charm but at the same time rich of kiiller grooves and energy between hypnotics synth associated with micro-house elements that will make you dance in clubs and will make you dream in the afters party.A side is the "deeply" part of the EP where RESTLESS looks perfect to move the floor with its fat rolling groove and tripping chords; title track SERENDIPTY express perfectly Julien's sound of the moment: minimal drums & refined pads for a dreamlike journey to the start till the end.B side is more micro-house oriented.
JUST MAKE SENSE remind us about tracks of gold period of minimal of early 2000's but updated to our days with a wild, floor killer beat & smooth stabs and effects.Closing track AUTONOE looks perfect for after moments. Minimal-jazzy drums imbued with hypnotic deep elements.

Musically and emotionally, Superpitcher's third full-length studio album, The Golden Ravedays is a one sound autobiography that exhibits the skill, feeling and style that the artist has honed over a period of twenty years, musically, and forty-plus-years, emotionally.

And full-length it is:

The Golden Ravedays is an epic album of 24 tracks that was released in January 2017 and is stretching over 12 respective chapter albums during a one-year period.
The sixth piece of The Golden Ravedays puzzle will be released on Hippie Dance in June 2017.

Number 6 of the series introduces two further tracks of the sound adventure that Superpitcher is taking us on this year.
Side A features Protest Song. If music is a way of transporting us to other places, Protest Song takes us to a desolate, scary and loveless environment, a burnt-down, burnt-out place where the flesh of its former inhabitants is smouldering, void of goodwill and kindness in a cloud of toxic and greedy smoke. It's all Kafka and Orwell and Suffering - the most twisted and eerie track so far in The Golden Ravedays saga. What is undeniably clear is an acute sense of regret and loss - a warning that it could have been avoided, had we only listened to our hearts and protested.
In the same vein on Side B we hear powerful Resistance. Produced after the Paris attacks of 2015 Superpitcher outdid himself with this strong message of Resistance. Where Protest Song paints a picture of under-worldly doom, Resistance's techno beat and insistent refrain sweeps us to the surface of the muck of hatred and intolerance we've politically been dumped in. A voice that seems like a trapped animal is calling out to us. What is it trying to say Is it crying out for help Is that animal all of us Resistance represents hope and encouragement and could be the perfect marching track to any demonstration against negative forces. Much needed in this age of bigotry where it seems like time has leaped backwards to a darker side of history. As for the dancefloor - Resistance is irresistible!

Detroit's Burden Bros have long been looked upon with immense respect within contemporary dance music. Having been in operation since 1990 with their 430 West imprint they have long encapsulated the forward thinking vibe of Detroit Techno with their output over the last 20+ years, gaining praise from their motor city peers as well as fans worldwide. Having had success in the mainstream and an enduring underground presence they are well versed in the art of music.

This double-pack 'Cymbolic' originally came out in 1995 and found favour with electronic music fans who sought a deeper edge in their music. It's all here, the trademark drum programming, the epic sense that all of the Burden Bros productions have within them. This is dancefloor music, music for DJ's to utilise, tools, but tools with the deepest soul imaginable. Listen to 'Terraforming' or 'The Symbiont' - perfect examples of driving, almost tribal-esque rhythms fused with strings, synth pads and human feeling. 'Cymbolic' is for you if you're a fan of Detroit Techno, but it's also for those who enjoy the deepest electronic sounds. That's not to say it isn't funky though, these tracks will decimate most dance-floors, and therein lies the secret. Essential release here, that classic 430 (mid) West flavour re-mastered, re-pressed and re-released in conjunction with the Burden Brothers / 430 West Records, Detroit USA

Since the release of his 2 first albums on Favorite Recordings, Lucas Arruda has quickly established himself as one of the most talented young artist and composer from Brazil. His music is filled with fusion style, mixing influences and elements from his Latin musical background, with his genuine admiration for Jazz, Soul and Funk music.

In spring 2015, it was also not surprising to find Lucas Arruda back with a new LP called SOLAR, receiving great supports and feedbacks from international media and tastemakers. One of the highlight of the album was the song 'Melt the Night', on which Lucas asked legendary producer Leon Ware for his help, reminding his collaborations in the 80s with Marcos Valle, when they perfectly merged together the sophisticated Boogie and AOR touch from California, with the blazing sense of rhythm from Brazil.

Today, Lucas Arruda and Favorite Recordings proudly present a brand new single, announcing the release of Lucas' third efforts later this year. This new opus is pursuing the music direction set with SOLAR, mixing touch of Blue-Eyed-Soul, Pop, Soul and Brazilian styles together, and influenced by the path of legendary Brazilian producer Lincoln Olivetti, who recorded some of the biggest stars of Brazilian music (Marcos Valle, Jorge Ben, Tim Maia...).

In Lucas words: 'These two tracks represent the whole spirit of the new album. In this record I really wanted to honor Robson Jorge & Lincoln Olivetti. They are the main influence on this record. We recorded the basic tracks for the album in the same studio that Lincoln Olivetti did his last works. So, this was very important to capture the true essence of Brazilian Funk/AOR tradition. Hope you guys enjoy it!'

Inner8 is Daniele Antezza, a multi-faceted thinker and electronic music producer, member of Dadub duo, co-founder of Artefacts Mastering Studio, Dadub Studio owner and Holotone label manager, whose regular invocation of the term praxis begins to hint at his creative aims: a primary synthesis of contemplation and action that, in turn, encourages a secondary and entirely unpredictable set of syntheses dependent upon the listener's unique interpretation. Though the Inner8 moniker has been in existence for several years as a private nickname for, as Antezza puts it, his 'experimental anarchist sounds,' his recent releases are just now surfacing which will reveal just how much this project has to communicate.

Like many transplants to Berlin's pulsating sonic underground (Antezza moved there from Italy in 2009), his past work seems to communicate traces of the ecstatic with the argot of technical precision and / or scientific rigour. However, Antezza is not what one would call a 'Berlin artist' despite sharing these traits in common with the city's most visionary producers: his work gives off an impression of restless nomadism that has little to do with representing a localized scene. Rather than carrying on the territorial / parochial projects of reinforcing an arts scene's geographic boundaries (or even redefining the boundaries of a musical genre), Inner8 is more concerned with a holistic 'deconstructive approach' through which 'it's possible to reveal the paradoxes of the dominant thought, the paradoxes behind the status quo.' His fascination with concepts as diverse as asymptotes and particle physics, though often trendy among those looking for a seat at the table of the avant-garde, is a heartfelt fascination - moreover, these interests merge perfectly with his relentless theoretical questing.

Antezza's relationship with that city's Stroboscopic Artefacts techno label has been a particularly fruitful one, to the point where his sound work prior to Inner8 is almost synonymous with SA's own development. As one half of the psychonaut duo Dadub along with Marco Donnarumma, Antezza has sculpted deep and immense tracks that mesmerize with their harmonious interplay of force and ambiguity. After having co-founded and managed for years Artefacts Mastering Studio, he recently launched his brand new audio postproduction Studio (Dadub Studio), where Antezza lends his sonic signature to an eclectic variety of electronic recordings. That signature can be identified by its hyperreal sense of presence and immediacy, qualities that have become crucial to the presentation of a music that generally relies on only a few sonic elements per track to communicate its message.

Antezza also takes pride in the ritualistic quality of Inner8's live sets; a mobile laboratory of dynamic tension in which his theories manifest as massive physical vibrations (here we can also see / hear / feel just how well Daniele has absorbed the lessons of the dub 'sound system' aesthetic).

Hell Yeah is proud to present a new EP from an artist that has been on their radar for a while. That artist is Napoli's Quiroga aka Walter Del Vecchio, the Italian DJ and producer who also runs his own Really Swing label and has been given props by the in the know Test Pressing blog, as well as having all his tunes dropped by
Balearic Gabba Sound System at every opportunity.

One of the finest talents to come from Italy in recent times, Quiroga cooks up hypnotic and trance including sounds from a myriad of diverse influences from opiate jazz to shuffling funk beats, from shifty landscapes to library music.

First up is Viaggio a Tulum, a perfectly loose and jumbled mix of sunny vibes, feel good chords and clipped vocals full of soul. The sort of thing that has you day dreaming of lazy afternoons and drunken BBQs, it's perfect example of Quiroga's efforts style.
Non Dire Notte—featuring Acido and ReallySwing act 291Out members Luca "Presence" Carini on electric bass and Vincenzo "Warren" Ciorra on electric guitar—is even more lazy and elongated, horizontal and blissed out. Twanging guitars off set pixelated synths, squelchy chords and Afro signifiers bring the heat and overall you cannot fail to get lost in the groove.

Prati Bagnati is a serene ambient interlude that feels like laying on your back and looking into a deep blue sky and second ambient cut Bava is more textured and intense, with shifting drones and muffled voices bringing a sense of filmic unease to the table. Overall, this is a perfect window into Quiroga's most intoxicating musical world.

Support by Alexis Le Tan, Aficionado Djs, Coyote, Ibiza Sonica, Reza Athar, Gonno, Noema, Fabrizio Mammarella, Riccio, Bill Brewster, Private Agenda, Soft rocks, Tim Love Lee...

We welcome Ricardo Tobar for his debut label release. It's an honour; Correspondant is the latest in an elite line of select labels that the cosmic Frenchman has worked with over the years such as Cocoon or Border Community.

Consistent in all compositions, it's another pristine trip into the interstellar unknown. Each track measured, weighted and laced with Ricardo's signature creeping dynamic. Unhurried, elements gradually make themselves known and envelop your senses without you realizing. Deep, mystic and singular; the perfect debut.

Infernal Sounds is discharging its fifth hefty, system-affine release, adding another highly regarded talent to their roster. Having featured revered producers like Von D, Sepia, Causa, Shu & Perverse, the label has clearly positioned itself in the front row seat of the modern dubstep movement. Representing a combination of upholding the values of system music with a 21st-century take on sound - the next release, catalogued as 'IFS005' is stylistically congruent and adds to the discography in total.

It is now time for highly talented Sub Basics (Tom Woods) to augment the imprint's discography with his ridiculously massive incarnation of bass music. His debut vinyl release on the Canadian imprint 'Visceral Vibrations' in 2015 has garnered ample amounts of positive reception by esteemed figures in the scene like Versa, Syte and J:Kenzo. After an equally praised 10' dubplate release ( Give Dem') in 2016, we now find ourselves in the silence before the thunderstorm, that is this very record. His upcoming release includes three tracks, two of which will feature on vinyl (A. Horus/ B. Cartel), while the third 'Northern Lights' will be a Bandcamp-exclusive.

Diving into the sound at hand, his arrangements are closely aligned and firmly true to the origins of Dubstep - conjugated with extreme clarity, as well as preposterous amounts of weight and gravitas. The impeccable execution of his minimalistic sound design will leave this release rumbling on soundsystems around the globe - and will most stay a fan's favourite draw from the record bag for a good while.


Perfectly displaying a refined sense of dynamics with 'Horus', Sub Basics effortlessly squeezes every available ounce of air out of the system, while preserving an immense sense of space. The highly infatuating groove of 'Cartel' is mingled with a sweltering foundation - tied together through his meticulous attention to detail. As etheral pads complement the gnarly drum reverberations and bird's cries recoil - the listener is left in a surreal world of the 'Northern Lights' - apprehended by the sonorous magnitude of the bassline. Completed by creamy atmospheres with tape-echo-esque characteristics, this whole release is sure to tick all your boxes from top to bottom - IFS005 has already received support from J:Kenzo & Foamplate among others, therefore the pre-order is strongly advised.

Following their much-acclaimed surprise debut album VERMONT from 2014, Motor City Drum Ensemble's Danilo Plessow and Innervisions' Marcus Worgull reunite for more synth daydreaming on the suitably titled II'. The new outing continues where the first full-length left off, strolling further down the luminous and undulating path that the duo turned into, influenced in equal measures by kosmische, krautrock, minimal wave and synth soundtracks.
This latest batch of instrumental cuts opens with the strictly balearic vibe of NORDERNEY, a softly swinging, light-footed recording with a keen sense for structure. Featuring a guest performance from Robbert Van Der Bildt (aka Kaap) on guitar, it's a telling starting point for the album that - similar to Vermont's self-titled debut - successfully navigates between economic, careful studio arrangements and playful, incidental exploration further pushing into jam session territory. Van Der Bildt's guitar returns on the plucky, curious UFER, where Vermont showcase a renewed sense for jazz-like improvisation - same as on the cuts DSCHUNA, CHANANG and WENIK, which also include contributions from Dermot O'Mahony and Tadhg Murphy on strings.
Still, Vermont's synth contraptions remain the album's main attraction, with the extensive array of gear encompassing an entire panopticon of analog bling - from Arp Oddysey and Moog Prodigy to Fender Rhodes, Juno and Prophet, list-studying gear heads will find lots to drool upon. Consequently, tracks like CHEMTRAILS, UNRUH or GEBIRGE err on the machine side of things, expertly interweaving arpeggiated sequences for maximum atmospheric effect. Foreboding, slightly menacing synth motives as on SKORBUT or CHEMTRAILS are perfectly balanced with the casual ambient of HALLO VON DER ANDEREN SEITE and the nostalgic warmth of DEMUT - while the gentle push of the masterful KI-BOU even carries a whiff of classic deep house, linking the Vermont project to Plessow and Worgull's main careers as dance floor movers and shakers.
Continually intriguing, immersive and texturally rich, each one of Vermont's new pieces betray the experience, precision and determination of the producers involved - while opening up Worgull and Plessow'a vocabulary for patient experimentation and subtle discoveries. A musical treat for synth aficionados - and everyone else, if you ask us.

Following releases on labels such as Greco-Roman, TTT and Templar Sound, Dro Carey (Eugene Ward) returns to the scene with his new offering, the industrious yet delicate track 'Queensberry Rules' featuring the vocals of KUCKA, taken from his Dark Zoo EP, out now via Australian label Soothsayer.
Where his previous releases have been firmly focused on the smoke-riddled clubs, Queensberry Rules sees Dro Carey traverse new territory. Working with KUCKA and Collarbones' Marcus Whale on the track, 'Queensberry Rules' sees the Sydney producer creating a unique pop sound, however maintain the gritty DNA that he is so distinctively known for.
As Dro states ''Queensberry Rules' are the set of rules that outline the general code for boxing matches. It's a document about fairness and sportsmanship in a pretty violent activity. That immediately struck me as a great title for a demo. Working with KUCKA and Marcus Whale (of Collarbones) as a co-writer, I think their lyrics perfectly hit upon the sense of irony that I wanted the song to have.'
The track was the first official taste from his Dark Zoo EP which sees Ward push the limits even further within his musical explorations. Whether it's the pop moments of 'Queensberry Rules' and 'Dark Zoo' where he employs the vocals of both KUCKA and FKL respectively to elevate the sonic sensory overload to new levels, to the brooding club explorations that are 'Grow Lithe' and 'Hidden Halls'; the EP is his musical coup d'état from the outset - simultaneously sinister, restrained and intoxicating.
We are absolutely thrilled to present this little gem on Vinyl. This special vinyl release also includes not only the single, but two remixes from heavy weights Mall Grab and Cassius, and a very special new track titled 'Under' which is and will always only be available on the vinyl release of this. Dive in!

finally repressed

Back in February 2013, shortly after their impressive first release as a label, Music Is Love launched a double VA entitled Lovebox: an 8 track double-vinyl release that included tracks from 8 talented up-and-coming producers on their roster. By innovatively previewing the producers in this way, the label laid the foundations for what listeners could expect for each artists' subsequent EPs. The artists who released on it were not hyped up flavours of the month, but rather emerging talents who sat perfectly with the label's musical ethos - quality and original underground house with a contemporary, dynamic feel. Since the VA, the label have gone from strength to strength and have firmly established themselves as one of the most brightest house labels around in the UK.

Just over a year later and following in the success of its predecessor, MIL return with their second VA and with that, a chance for listeners to hear the new additions they've acquired, in addition to some already known faces. Liam Geddes opens proceedings with Untitled. A deep sense of soul permeates the whole track as a rumbling baseline imbues the beat with an ever-present sense of groove that never lets the head stop nodding. Geddes has really fine tuned and matured his sound over the past year, and this track is further evidence of his quality as a producer. The subtle percussive rhythms, electronic bleeps and synth nuances give this track a natural flow, as Geddes conjures something altogether more hypnotic, dark and purposeful.
Mr.KS, one of the newcomers to the label, outlines his coolly crafted style with track (Music) Makes Me Stronger. Brittle drums and deep warped synths suck you in and out and shape the structure of the beat, while afflicted chord patterns combine with the hypnotic repetition of a vocal sample to give the track a gesture towards techno but with a flow that pulls in house elements. Cassio Kohl introducers himself with a warm, melodic house number; rumbling synths circulate in the background of the track while ticking hi-hats and snares play off against the sumptuous vocal sample, which builds and falls back nicely into its original path until electronic glitches sporadically ease in and move the beat forward.

Jamie Trench has been making some serious headway of late and his track I Want You with Rebel serves a timely reminder of a producer on top form. A heavy, rolling baseline resonates intently, building against murky vocal samples, shuffling snares and off-beat key stabs that grow in presence and intensity - a track that will no doubt prove a high point in any DJ set. Label boss Oli Furness has a raw knack for creating crisp, heavy sounds and Take Monday Off remains on a similar path, albeit the beauty lies in the subtlety of arrangements rather than bigger hitting sounds. Chopped shimmying keys tease, filter and build fluently with urgent hi-hats and swinging drums that flourish harmoniously together, while an understated baseline adds weight and rhythmic groove typically inherent in Furness' work.

Italian heavyweight Tuccillo has released on some of the most reputable labels on the circuit - releases for 20:20 Vision and Freerange is evidence enough of his provenance - and this time he brings his baleric house sound with the impeccable sounds of DubFlanged Gru. Shimmering percussion shakes meander against the bumping bassline while the endearing, muffled vocals that threaten to break out are superseded by breeze-block keys that filter and descend into a chattering groove. Dutch producer U Know The Drill brings things back into heavier house territory with a no-nonsense, stripped-back stomper, the type of track we've been used to hearing on Dutch affiliates New Jack City's material. Heavy snares kick with a punch, and the deep drone-like vocal swings against the wobbling baseline and tapestry of electronic bleeps. Other sampled vocals and glitches weave in with the juxtaposing elements playing off one another to huge effect, ensuring that sheer energy pervades the track.

Jackson Ryland rounds off the heavy 8 track VA - scattering hi-hats and swirling pads build, while the shuffling drums roll on until fleeting chord flourishes and a musky vocal hook bring the track into wistful nostalgia. The elements of track balance superbly and are propelled forward by the intricate drum arrangements and well-crafted hi-hat/vocal combo.
The difference in approach and outcome from each artist results in yet another highly impressive outcome, with 8 high grade tracks that show another side to Music Is Love. The sounds are tougher and the mood is darker, but the premise of the whole MIL concept remains more apparent than ever with this release: sourcing fresh underground talent, curating original electronic music and evolving artists already on the roster.

Remember how badly we wanted to join them and be part of those sea-faring adventures: Jack London’s The Sea-Wolf, classic TV shows based on his novel The Road, on Radu Toduran’s novels... back then, a couple decades ago, the titles of these shows alone were enough to trigger some strong gusts in our hearts, salty squalls perfect for imaginary downwind journeys we dreamed of with billowing sails. We wanted to cruise alongside albatrosses, seagulls, and fellow sailors. Floating high above a three-masted vessel, we watched our own adventures unfold far below, an imagined movie scene complete with a whole crew that worked the rigging, and all the rest. Cutting waves. Amidst the storm and stress of sounds hitting our eardrums far out in the ocean. Combined with the sounds of rotors, of tropics crossed, of marimbas and cabin wood pounded, of strange music spotted in the distance. And even though it was merely for an hour or two that we were rescued by that seal-hunting ship “Ghost,” as Jack London had it, plus, even worse, often found ourselves surrounded by villains: it was a great escape, for we’d successfully set sails – to new and exciting places.

Both around their own Weilheim shores and elsewhere, brothers Markus and Micha Acher have launched various musical vessels, bands and free-floating constellations over the past three decades – and yet: amid all these other speedboats and unlikely sonic barges, The Notwist has always remained the mother ship. This new album documents the latest live incarnation of this very band, which also features Andi Haberl, Max Punktezahl, Karl Ivar Refseth, and Cico Beck. Recorded on December 16, 2015 on the second of three consecutive, sold-out nights at UT Connewitz in Leipzig, Germany, "Superheroes, Ghost-Villains & Stuff" indeed feels like a first-hand live experience caught on triple vinyl. That’s why it’s the definitive album of The Notwist’s career.

Although there is one song that points to the early, “louder years” of The Notwist – “One Dark Love Poem” off the album Nook –, the rest of the night’s set sees the band perform all the major hits off Neon Golden, The Devil, You + Me, and Close To The Glass. However, these are different, organically enhanced versions, new interpretations and combinations that feel much more alive; thanks to Olaf Opal’s incredible mix, they sometimes even outshine the original studio recordings. Listening to "Superheroes, Ghost-Villains & Stuff" feels like watching these songs evolve and change, moving from one frame to the next, much like a baroque triptych.

What starts out like ‘wimmelbook’ imagery, the music soon folds and unfolds like a Moebius strip: Sans bottom or top, sans inside or outside, the inside becomes the outside and vice versa. It’s all about sonic interconnection, about music as entanglement, music as reconciliation. The rather majestic, cinematic (indie) pop and experimental, kraut- infused jazz, the spirit of the enlightenment and baroque playfulness, the traces of modernism and minimal music, dub leanings, hip-hop lessons, and even hints of house music: here is where they all come together, reconciled in a sound that’s both melancholy and romantic. And ultimately, the spirit of these songs is set free – and the band has released itself, is free at last.

As for the album title, it’s lifted from the song “Kong,” and encapsulates Markus Acher’s motto. Throughout the track, the water theme first appears as a dangerous threat: a force that’s strong enough to wash away an entire house; and yet the fluid state keeps transforming and eventually releases that sense of threat into something rather hopeful, a new musical beginning, a melodic departure that ultimately leads to euphoria and a renewed spirit of adventure. These are the strong gusts mentioned above, it’s the spirit of discovery, the urge to set sail together. The crew’s back at it, working the instruments, the rigging, with sails a- billow, launching the next voyage of discovery, assuming the East in the West and vice versa. And thus the adventure saga continues.

Pico Be (Das Weiße Pferd)

Some believe that the environment in which you make music - from the studio space, to the location itself - has a profound effect on the creative process. Immerse yourself in the world around you, the theory goes, and it will shape the music you make. Listen to Gorthleck, the third album from veteran downtempo alchemists Benjamin Smith and Paul 'Mudd' Murphy, and you can almost visualize the craggy, windswept and breathtakingly beautiful environment in which it was made. Reconvening after a near seven-year hiatus last summer, the duo headed up to the Scottish Highlands to spend a week recording in the surrounds of Gorthleck House, nestled on the shore of Loch Mhor in Inverness-shire. Earlier this year, they returned to the same venue, with its' stunning views of the tranquil loch and rocky, wooded hills rising in the distance, to complete the nine-track set. Certainly, the immersive environment and famously changeable weather seems to have inspired the longtime friends and studio partners. The album's epic centrepiece, the nine-minute Mhor', sounds like an emotional love letter to the body of water they strolled alongside every day. Its' undulating synthesizer line - reminiscent of classic Tangerine Dream and the Orb's A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain' - mimics the slow ebb and flow of water across the loch, while Smith's shimmering guitar lines mimic the glint of sunlight reflecting off the surface. Elsewhere, the audio references are a little more subtle, but no less relevant. The hazy jazz guitars, twinkling pianos, rich grooves and fluttering clarinets of Nether' sound like the perfect accompaniment to a single malt whisky-fuelled sunset session at the water's edge, while the quietly foreboding aural textures, layered guitars and urgent electric violin of Enos' evoke memories of watching storm clouds gathering behind distant Highland mountains. The same could be said of Mr Coats' - a track arranged in steamy Mexico, and blessed with all the humidity you'd expect from such an excursion - while you can hear gale force winds whistling around the rafters on Dogwood'. As for Errogie', it's as bracing as a crystal clear morning in the Highlands, chilly, but hugely life affirming. The duo's previous two albums, 2007's Blue River and its' 2009 follow-up, Le Suivant, were both hugely evocative, but neither captured a distinct a sense of time and place quite like Gorthleck. Listen carefully, and you could almost be there with them, watching the sunrise and sunset.

140-gram 4xLP, heavyweight package including CD. One time pressing of 500 copies worldwide. The follow-up to highly acclaimed Sailing Off The Grid album

"Expect the story of life as a self-reinforcing structure that never reaches the perfect balance. The concept behind the album is to bring awareness that the balance is an illusion and that's why it's called 'At The Turn Of Equilibrium'. Petar Dundov

Petar Dundov, a stalwart of the Croatian scene and a fine purveyor of sophisticated melodic techno, has been a prominent and respected name within underground dance music for over two decades. Throughout his career, the gifted Croatian has achieved much praise and recognition through releasing no less than four acclaimed artist albums ('Sculptures 1-3' in 2001, 'Escapements' in 2008, 'Ideas From The Pond' in 2012 and 'Sailing Off The Grid' in 2013) and performing at some of the world's best clubs and festivals such as, I Love Techno (BE), EXIT (RS), Awakenings (NL), Berghain (DE), Womb (JP), Air (NL), Fuse (BE) and Space Ibiza (ES).

The inspirational eight-tracker, 'At The Turn Of Equilibrium', is Dundov's fifth long-player and encompasses all of the inimitable production qualities of his previous albums whilst exploring a broader set of moods and themes, delivering what feels like his most accomplished work to date. Dundov explains, "This time, in addition to using more sound textures I introduced parts with classical instruments like piano and strings. As the album is about life and how it evolves, from purely a physical body to a thinking person, the songs are sequenced from faster, simple-rhythmic, cyclic, body moving tracks to slower, more complex layered, beatless mind tracks."

The album's impassioned opener, 'Then Life', commences the release by taking us on a captivating journey of complex melodies and soothing ambient textures. The album continues by showcasing a wealth of hypnotic masterpieces such as the dark and slow-burning 'The Lattice', the thought-provoking 'Before It All Ends' and the Kraftwerk-esque 'Midnight Orchestra'.

Other highlights include, the Vangelis-influenced up-tempo groover 'Mist', the lush ambient soundscape 'New Hope', the uplifting and emotional 'Missing You' and the hugely stimulating synth-driven melodic work-of-genius 'Everlasting Love' which concludes the album.

'At The Turn Of Equilibrium' is a very absorbing and imaginative album that's been driven by Dundov's eternal quest of translating sound into emotion. Developed like a well-constructed DJ set, the album has not only been designed to invoke personal insight for music to be the catalyst for understanding but also make sense as a listen, highlighting Dundov's unparalleled talent, depth and versatility as a DJ/producer.

After the killer club versions of Bella Ciao, Leo Mas & Fabrice team up with Italian ambient master Gigi Masin to deliver the already legendary Laguna Mix.

As you probably know Gigi has worked on the label with Tempelhof (watch out for their sophomore album Tsuki...), has made albums as Gaussian Curve (with Young Marco and Johnny Nash) and has worked on many great modern classical albums.

His version is super slow, littered with emotive piano chords and breezy ambient atmospheres that make it perfect for sunsets.

Also on this 12", Leo and Fabrice combine once more for an On Air Remix that is invitingly sparse and gentle sways to and fro with gorgeous trumpets, twinkling keys and a slowly, blissfully building sense of Balearic tension.

Awaking from the dreamstate of Gryningen's hazy library inspired 10", we find Aficionado's expert selectors well rested and in the mood for a dance.
Utilising their extensive network of global connections, Moonboots and Boardman enlist Hungarian producer San Laurentino to raise spirits and pulses with a deep and diverse collection of body movers.

Perfectly conjuring the nostalgic melancholy its title suggests, opening track 'First Love' takes us by the hand for one last dance under the stars.
Cinematic pads sweep around a snapping drum pattern as a signorina from Rimini embraces a Basildon boy, seeing out the summer season to the hair raising chords and spine tingling sequences of a San Laurentino's masterpiece.

While that holiday romance might have come to an end, 'Back To The Stars' leads you off in search of new experiences. Emotive pads, undulating bass sounds and celestial keys vie for attention while the solid kick, intricate percussion and lively hats play out a swaying rhythm. Then all of a sudden the track changes tack completely, tripping out to a modular melody and sinuous techno bassline before reaching a soul soothing conclusion.

On the B-side 'Long Way Home' lulls us into a false sense of security via a gentle drumbox bossa, before thick bass stabs and a tough new beat rhythm take control of our bodies. Once again San Laurentino packs the track with atmospheric chords but this time adds delicate guitars and subtle piano, balancing the steely rhythm section with deep emotional resonance.

Closing the EP with unrivalled sophistication, 'Amici' sees San Laurentino drop the tempo and concoct an irresistible low slung groove before expanding our minds with wavering pads, hypnotic chimes and misty synth vox.
The perfect finale to an EP certain to leave you misty eyed on the dancefloor. Officially Aficionado

Written and produced by Nico Lahs mixed at "acusticsoundstudio" by Nico Lahs in Bari/2014

A mind focused in the future in every sense, characterized by a high sense of professionally. These are maybe the best words to describe Nico Lahs, young musician of worldwide's underground music scene. It's the tale of a child full of dreams, a tale about his love for drums grew up til today, becoming a true complete symbiosis with music at 360°. Nico's figure is complex like a puzzle, the result of a youth written by experiences and extremes hardly recognizable in common places. Behind his deep expression he hides at one side the charm of a party animal and on the other side the perfect accuracy of the pure musician; all features that leave, in a way or another, an unforgettable sign in every person who gets in contact with him. With a so particular personality and a always strong desire of freshness Nico is able to transform every performance, every set in every contest, unique in its own way.
Today his music is appreciated and supported by the biggest professionists and lovers of the international underground scene: a clear sign that the role of this musician in the future's global panorama will be as an absolute protagonist.

180 gr vinyl - vinyl only release

Apes Go Bananas is the new imprint from Steve Bug and Clé, and also the moniker for his new project with long time friend and collaborator Clé. The vinyl only debut release sets out the stall in fine style - this is straight up dance floor rocking house music with a sense of fun and plenty of influence from the golden age of the art form. First up, Kerri On pays homage to one of the greatest, with Mr Chandler's signature crisp drums and deep, jazzy chords present throughout. Bug and Clé relive some classic New York deep house vibes yet retain a strongly contemporary take. Bananas is more late night in approach - the driving 909 and dirty descending synth line evokes a sweaty warehouse, complete with smoke machine and lazers. Yeah You Know fits perfectly into this three track EP - a tightly programmed rhythm track replete with a shuffling breakbeat is the foundation for a simple yet highly effective synth line and a classic cut-up house vocal. Yeah, Apes Go Bananas know house.

Since the release of his first album in 2013, Lucas Arruda has quickly established himself as one of the most talented young artist and composer from Brazil. His music is filled with fusion style, mixing influences and elements from his Latin musical background, with his genuine admiration for Jazz, Soul and Funk music.

In spring 2015, it was also not surprising to find Lucas Arruda back with a new LP called SOLAR, receiving great supports and feedbacks from international medias and tastemakers. One of the highlight of SOLAR was the track 'Melt the Night', on which Lucas asked legendary producer Leon Ware for his help, reminding his collaborations in the 80s with Marcos Valle, when they perfectly merged together the sophisticated Boogie and AOR touch from California, with the blazing sense of rhythm from Brazil.

Willing to enlighten even more this timeless song, which could easily be produced in the early-mid 80s, Favorite Recordings decided to give it a brand new suit and found the perfect tailor with Nu-Funk raising producer, XL Middleton. Part of the modern-funk movement and based in Pasadena, XL has released volumes of work, the sound of which embodies the party feel, bringing music back to where it was before it found its way into upscale clubs, while at the same time mixing it with a futuristic brand of funk inspired by legends such as George Clinton, Roger Troutman, or Morris Day.

The result is a stunning remix, bringing 'Melt the Night' into a futuristic Boogie-Funk world with massive basslines and heavy beats!! This great vinyl 12inch comes with Original and Instrumental Versions on the B-Side, to finalize a perfect package for DJs and diggers.

Riding high on the success of a second release that introduced A-Scott & Chad to the Constant Sound fold, the third instalment finds Burnski back in the saddle to offer up "Changes", getting into a more techno-oriented frame of mind without losing that warmth and playful sensibility he has made his own over the years.

After strong remixes from Trus'me, Steve O'Sullivan and Cab Drivers on previous releases, Constant Sound 003 gives another opportunity for the label to call upon the finest in the business to reinterpret the original material.

In keeping with the heads-down workout tones of Burnski's original, it makes perfect sense to invite an artist as accomplished as Deadbeat up for a remix. Scott Monteith has long been a stellar example of how to push dub techno in thrilling new directions and it shows on his version of "Changes".

Kris Wadsworth has just as much to say for himself after years spent crafting heavyweight house and techno with a mercenary instinct matched by lashings of machine soul. He reduces the original track into a stripped down techno dub perfect for late at night.

It's yet another step forwards for a label committed to delivering nothing but the highest quality house and techno for those who seek a touch more depth from their music.

Over the past few decades, there has been a seismic shift in Brazil's musical landscape. A plethora of varying musical undergrounds has developed across the nation. While Rio and São Paulo have been overwhelmed with networks of talented musicians for a long time, creative life is now bursting all over the country. Amplificador exists to document and propagate the wonderfully diverse music currently blossoming from Brazil's vivacious and geographically varied musical undergrounds. Presenting an up-to date insight into Brazilian music, this compilation draws together some of the components of 'Novíssima Música Brasileira' (brand new Brazilian music), ranging from afro-grooves to rock, to modern samba and MPB. The music reaches back across Brazil's incredibly rich musical and cultural traditions, while also taking in influence from other movements around the globe.



Having begun life in 2012 as a Brazilian music blog run by Marcelo Monteiro, Eduardo Rodrigues, Mateus Campos, and Ricardo Calazans, the aim of Amplificador is to document and propel to wider audiences, Brazilian music of the '00s and '10s generation. This is a task made more significant by obvious changes in the way music is consumed. 'People are no longer obliged to listen to what the radio and TV are presenting. There is a whole new generation that wants to listen to new bands and new sounds and we try to connect those bands with other bands, producers, fans and even the mainstream.' These changes in technology and the way music is discovered and shared have developed parallel to the proliferation of these emerging scenes. The ostensible decentralization of the music industry means the promoting and filtering work of journalists and blogs, like Amplificador, have become increasingly important, as people try to keep up with the tsunami of new music and media flooding the country on a daily basis.



Marcelo uses the example of the Mangue Beat movement to explain a trend in contemporary Brazilian music that looks both inwards, to Brazil's own musical traditions and outwards, to movements around the world to create a novel, localised identity: 'The 90's Pernambuco art-social movement was inspired by Coco, Maracatu and Forró all mixed with modern riffs and grooves. The mythical

revolutionary Chico Science, his Nação Zumbi, Mundo Livre, Siba, and many others do this blend perfectly. There are also the references to the older generations and masters - Gil, Caetano, Luiz Gonzaga, João Gilberto, Tim Maia, Jorge Benjor - as a constant inspiration for all bands.' This is very much the case for the Brazilian artists of today.



Music is unquestionably informed by place. Brazil has always been famed for its regional differences in this sense. Indeed there are still pronounced variations between the scenes of Rio, Sao Paulo, Natal, Goiânia, Belo Horizonte and Belém for example, there are also great divergences within cities and while technology has brought changes to the way musical influences are shared, there are cultural differences, rooted in folkloric traditions, that aren't going away. Expressing his appreciation for this fact, while highlighting the potential of Brazil's spread of musical flavours, Marcelo explains that 'what we have now is new ingredients to make an even better mixture.'

This compilation heavily features music from a scene in Brazil's current musical make-up, which draws inspiration from African music, particularly Afro-beat music. Abayomy Afrobeat Orchestra from Rio formed because of their shared love of the music of Fela Kuti, uniting initially in 2009 for a jam session in his honour. But what sets Abayomy apart from other groups of a similar nature, is the fact that their sound also brings with it the songs and rhythms of candomblé. In this sense, Abayomy was the first band of its kind. The thirteen members of the orchestra have a palpable current of Rio's musical heritage - its rhythms and culture - running through them. So while their sound is distinctly African, it is also inherently Brazilian. Similarly, Zebrabeat Afro-Amazônia Orquestra draw upon traditional guitarradas and carimbos from the state of Pará and fuse these with the poly-rhythms of Afrobeat to create another regional hybrid, which stays true to both its Amazonian and African roots, yet which results in a very fresh, Brazilian sound. From Belo Horizonte (capital of Minas Gerais), Iconilli are another key band on Brazil's Afro-groove scene. With influences as varied as funk, jazz and psychedelic rock, congado, mining harmonies, maracatu, coco, ijexá, carimbó, Iconilli somehow manage to balance all of these sounds in such a way that makes it impossible to pin them down. From the Northeastern city of Joao Pessao, Parayba, Burro Morto's pshychadelic afro sound leans more towards rock and funk influences, with hint of regional Brazilian rhythms such as frevo and forro. They add another flavour to the Brazilian afro-groove scene: just one of the many exciting facets of Novíssima Música Brasileira.



While African-inspired music features heavily on the compilation, it is just one of the many styles within. Ive Seixas has a fresh approach to MPB, based on traditional rhythms and instrumentation, punctuated by a pop sensibility, coupled with a powerful female vocal. As an artist she is a product of a 'Do It Yourself' outlook to creativity, taken from her love of rock growing up. In 2013 she embarked on a project of street performance: wandering, like a lonely troubadour with just her guitar. Ive and her project began to gain notoriety and shortly after, her first EP was recorded, featuring some important names of South Rio's underground scene. 'Cervejas Populares' taken from the EP, is a beautiful, sombre piece of modern Brazilian pop, with a traditional samba rhythm. Another artist of the new MPB scene is Fabricio, from the city of Vitoria, who's 'Feito Tamborim' melds rock and funk and is also clearly reminiscent of the old Brazilian masters. It's an appreciation for the national musical heritage, alongside a keen ear for melody and an acceptance of foreign influences that results in these promising new sounds of Brazilian MPB.

Sao Paulo's super group of the underground 'Passo Torto' have been at the helm of an emerging scene in the city: an innovative approach to samba which draws in and experiments with afro grooves, jazz melodies and rock structures. Their sound is naturally very Brazilian, but the nylon twang of Faira Lima Pra Ca, interspersed with ominous strings and light rolling percussion, seems reminiscent of Captain Beefheart or Tom Waits, as the band lament their frustrations with their native city through their music.



The Future of Novíssima Música Brasileira looks very bright. The main challenge (and purpose of this album) is to get the music beyond Brazil's underground and into view of international audiences. In the last 10 years this goal has become somewhat more attainable, as the Brazilian government has begun to see the internationalisation of the nation's culture as a strategic objective, with public projects gaining increased investment and backing. The continuing project of Amplificador is to reinforce this international bridge by writing, filtering and promoting the scene as a whole. There is a wealth of great music currently blooming in Brazil and using new media tools, Marcelo and the team, alongside many others, will passionately continue to get the voices of Brazil's underground heard.

'We Start Over' arrived on the desks at International Feel and it felt perfect for us. Deep electronics, a lovely mood, forward thinking and a gorgeous vocal from Trudie Dawn Smith. Lots to play with from a remix perspective and a great original track in itself. Steve Cobby is a British producer, musician, composer, and DJ, based in Kingston-upon-Hull, Yorkshire. He co-founded Fila Brazillia in 1990 and released 10 critically acclaimed LP's and produced over 70 remixes for artists as diverse as Radiohead, Busta Rhymes, Black Uhuru and A Certain Ratio. Cobby now releases music via his own label Déclassé label. His latest and third solo LP 'Saudade' was released in March 2014 and received considerable critical acclaim.

The first 12" consists of the original version and on the flip a remix by Apiento & Lx (their first track together since the underground classic 'The Orange Place' ). The remix is slow trance in its purest sense, made for lasers and dark nightclubs. It's already receiving club play and has been named by Andrew Weatherall and Sean Johnston's ALFOS as "one of the records of the summer". High praise.

On the second 12" the reins have been handed to Gerd Janson & Phillip Lauer a.k.a Tuff City Kids - two people making some of the finest house at their at the moment with Janson also getting massively known globally for his DJing. Their remixes are made for the clubs. The 'Garage Dub' is classic New York house that is as deep as you like and one of those hooky ones that does everything perfectly. The other, 'Private Acid Mix ' goes heavy on the beats and drops the 303 in a fine style with the vocal looped and twisted.

As you would expect from International Feel this is classy and classic club music covered from all angles from a balearic original, a deep chug remix from Apiento & Lx and the Tuff City Kids bringing the house vibe. Deep deep deep.

Factory Benelux presents a new studio album by cult Manchester postpunk group Crispy Ambulance, issued in a
limited edition of 500 vinyl copies to mark Record Store Day 2015.
In many respects Compulsion is the second album Crispy Ambulance might have recorded in 1982 after the release of
The Plateau Phase, with six of the eight tracks written and performed live at that time. To these are now added Rain
Without Clouds, an outtake from The Plateau Phase newly restored from the original multitrack masters, and WMTP.2
with added synth lines by producer-cum fifth member Graham Massey, of 808 State and Biting Tongues.
Almost uniquely, Crispy Ambulance has retained the same line-up since the group was originally founded in 1978: Alan
Hempsall (vocals, keyboards), Gary Madeley (drums), Robert Davenport (guitars), Keith Darbyshire (bass).
'There's a sense of feeling compelled by irresistible forces,' explains Alan Hempsall. 'Compulsion is an apt way to
describe our constant urge to go back and make music with people we've known since childhood. While the world may
have changed, our music continues to be the product of the same influences - the passing of time, the changing of the
seasons, the content of our sleeping dreams, and the existence of space.'
Cover art by Peter Staessens. The package also features a free digital download of the album.
Praise for The Plateau Phase: "One of the best albums Britain's second city has unleashed" (Q, 03/2006); 'Perfect,
wonderful and with a compelling gravitational pull' (Record Collector, 03/2013); "17 years on The Plateau Phase
sounds like what it probably always was: urgent, postmodernist psychedelia with less debt to Joy Division's music than to
the universal abstract existential tension that comes with being young" (Uncut, 12/1999); "Cold and ferocious, but with
enough inventive melody to lighten the black abyss of the overall mood" (Les Inrockuptibles, 02/2012); "An enthralling
glimpse at a moment in musical history when the DIY ethos of punk gradually gave way to experiments with electronics
and song structures" (NME, 01/2000); "Mixes driving rock, gritty new wave and odd atmospheric stuff" (Option, 1990)

Following the digital premiere of the track 'Nobody knows' at the beginning of September, myr. is an artist who remains shrouded in mystery. His debut EP 'Nobody knows Avalon' is set to be released through recognised Cologne label PNN on January the 19st, yet as the title suggests, still very little is known about the man behind the music.

myr.'s wish to withhold information is made obvious through the choice of track names on the EP: 'Nobody Knows', 'Avalon' and 'Homii' are all titles clearly designed to provoke the listener's curiosity, whilst upholding a sense of the enigmatic.

Although some might argue that such conscious obscurity is little more than a publicity stunt, surely at a time when the cult of DJ and celebrity are often intertwined there is something refreshing about myr.s decision to step-back. You only have to look at the homemade, monochrome videoclip that accompanies 'Nobody knows' to realise that myr. is about as removed from the glitz of DJ culture as it is possible to be.

It is this determined distancing from the norm that comes through is his music. The minimal sound is carried through by an underlying warmth, a grittiness that sets it apart from the often near-perfect production of popular techno. The first two tracks 'Nobody knows' and 'Avalon' create a sense of anticipation, with minimal, ambient beats that build, the listener is left with itchy-feet and a hankering for more. In the final track on the EP 'Homii' there is a change in tempo, the monotone beats make way for some slowed-down, trippy vocals that open the listener up to myr.'s versatility as an artist.

'Nobody knows Avalon' is an EP that represents a return to something raw and removed from popular music. As for the mystery surrounding myr. Well if you can't put a face to a sound then the only option is to listen.

This next release demonstrates exactly what can happen when you merge a formidable heavyweight with one of the genre's most promising talents. Jaguar Skills needs little introduction; he's infamous for his ninja-like DJing skills with years stacked behind the decks.

As a result, it was no surprise the artist tried his hands at production alongside Chord's impressive musicality. Already unstoppable from its conception, 'Lust' could only be released on an imprint known for its high quality. And RAM Records is proud to unleash this toe-tapping, catchy piece of sonic artwork on the dnb community...One that's already taken the radio airwaves by storm.
Opening with a rhythm that curls itself around your aural senses, prepare to be pulled into 'Lust' by its funky groove and well-chiselled hooks. The vocal delight of Matti Roots really brings light to the seasonal feel this track creates; an arpeggio of notes underpins each high-hitting voice crescendo. Bright but not without substance, Chords' production style is instantly recognisable. This debut from Jaguar Skills serves as a perfect platform for the high standards this mix-maker is about to set, as well as the benchmark which Chords has already carved.

On the flipside, Break holds onto the A-side's sunny disposition, yet throws down a riddim that hits as heavy as a freight train. The foundations laid by the producer are slightly different, as it rattles forward with clinking percussion, alluding to the kind of drop Break is renowned for. With his distinctive, boundary-pushing drum rolls and bouncy, booming and concise hits, there's no mistaking a sound which adds another dimension to the remixes' original.

You're also served up with another dish which is vastly different from house-guru Monstro. like the previous edit, the record's humanism winds up within the first thirty seconds, however the seismic impact of its drop rolls out into a house-bassline that thumps with every bar. A genre transition which doesn't fall short of the original's production prowess, prepare to hold onto your seats because this serves as the optimal way to wrap up two striking remixes of an already impressive track list.
Dominating playlists for years to come, this release from RAM is yet again taking the genre to another level. But considering the parties involved, there was no other direction for this record to take.

Dutch DJ, producer and Wolfskuil label boss Darko Esser is to self-release his sophomore album, Anipintiros, in April 2014. The eight track album comes four years after his debut and is his first as Tripeo, the techno leaning alias he has been working under most often in recent times.

Working as Tripeo has reinvigorated Esser, who under his own name has been producing his unique take on electronic music for a decade now. 'It was liberating to have another persona take over,' says the man himself. 'I have been so inspired and productive ever since that I woke up one day with the thought 'I'm ready to do another album' and started straight away that day.'

Tripeo music is aimed squarely at the dancefloor, and there sure are some full blooded cuts on the album, but so to are there concessions to the listening experience, meaning deep, dark passages and more leftfield experiments help tie the whole thing together into one cohesive and coherent whole. 'Like all albums, this is a very personal statement,' explains Esser. 'It's just me trying to translate the overwhelming inspiration I feel right now into sound. That, and making the record as diverse as possible without losing the purist identity of Tripeo.'

That identity shines through right from the off on the album, which has been made using a knowing blend of both soft and hardware. 'Anipintiros #1' is a firmly rooted, rubbery bit of deep techno that works you into hypnosis and comes detailed with plenty of otherworldly ambiances. From there, Tripeo explores gallivanting techno run through with celestial pads on 'Anipintiros #2' and tripped out, ever shape shifting and dusty minimal sounds on 'Anipintiros #3'.

'Anipintiros #4' channels the widescreen and pumping techno of Detroit's finest whilst 'Anipintiros #5' is a more industrial and muscular track of the sorts that would sound perfect in the bowels of Berghain. 'Anipintiros #6' is one of the busier and more kinked techno rhythms with punchy drums and fax machine like melodies, before 'Anipintiros #7' thumps with real menace and 'Anipintiros #8' hums and hisses, spits and stutters like the suitably epic and melodic comedown you need after such a captivating ride.Everything, though is backed with serene synth work and an otherworldly sense of alien spirit that runs through all great techno.

There is plenty to get lost in throughout Anipintiros and it proves once again that Esser is someone able to coax far more feeling out of his machines than most.

DJ FEEDBACK

Early support from Blawan, Rødhåd, James Ruskin, Reeko, Exium, Mike Parker, Ben Sims, Rolando, Pfirter, Craig McWhinney, Cadans, Sandrien, Nuno Dos Santos

With their debut album on Hamburg's taste making hafendisko, Deo & Z-Man proceed their research in contemporary electronic music beyond stylistic boundaries and present a wide-ranging lucky bag of songs. The Italo-rooted brothers melt influences from modern House music, HipHop, Electronica and even jazzy elements into a fresh and life-affirming total work of art. And here it is in all its glory - 'No Bullshit' . With a healthy dose of tongue-in-cheek humour and a seemingly endless supply of fresh ideas, Deo & Z-Man might have pulled one of the most creative albums of the year. Effortlessly gliding between wigged out house for the dancefloor, synthy space weirdness, hip-hop infused beats and twisted, smoked-out electro pop - 'No Bull-shit' is a rare thing, a collection of esoteric and eclectic influences that hang together perfectly as a proper album. The boys have long since created their own special vibe through their well received singles, live performances and DJ sets - mixing musical knowledge, party rocking skills and a sense of fun that is all too often lacking these days. Even more rare is to capture that magic in the studio over the course of an album. Yet 'No Bullshit', as the name cheekily suggests, nails it. Listening to the album it's easy to see how Deo & Z-Man cut their teeth with HipHop - tracks like 'Tamastar Santini' (feat Janos), 'Two Blue Bros' and 'YRUAG' reveal a background of beats and rhymes that infuses the whole vibe of the album. Equally at home in the club, recent single 'XTC', 'Chopped Memories' and 'Tales of Love' are lessons in leftfield club dynamics - deep, musical grooves that hint at the brothers' leg

Back in stock!

Some friends think that Shihab the man owes the balance of his soul to his beautiful Danish wife. They may be right; for Eros is the very essence of what Shihab plays.Yet Eros is a god with many a face. A tale of tender mournings Shihab's flute is telling in MAUVE - a piece that translates its title into delicately changing colors of sound. In UMA FITA DE TRES CORES he has his instrument wooing with the proud self-reliance of Latin grandezza. Calmly, softly, almost blandishly Shihab blows the solo flute in the Jimmy Woode composition MY KINDA WORLD. Serene and somewhat playful his own title ANOTHER SAMBA comes along - a most uncommon composition by the way: lasting for sixty bars as if growing independent out of itself, with solos that appear to be additional spinnings rather than improvised choruses; and yet; a perfect, self sustaining melody no element of which is superfluous. In the last of the pieces for flute, in Klook Clarke's THE WILD MAN, which is based on a flourish of trumpets, Shihab for the first time reminds of the sombre, the demon-like face of God Eros. He contrasts flawlessly intoned passages with challenging phrases, phrases raucously sung into the flute - really, he is a 'wild man' who is playing like that. This raucous challenging sound prevails throughout the four baritone-titles ('Shihab never withholds long to caress', Campi says). Shihab blows the instrument the same way he speaks: without any delay, directly coming to the point. And he treats it like a voice, not aiming at an artificially homogeneous sound in all the registers, but at their different modes of expression. In the high pitches the horn gains a brilliant tenor-like quality - for instance in PETER'S WALTZ, dedicated to Shihab's son Peter, and in Kenny Clarke's simple drum fills comprising theme JAY-JAY. In the deep register Shihab produces snotty sounds filling lady's ears with horrors like Pan - thus in JAY-JAY and in the boppy blues SET UP . Shihab's sense of a scurrilous humor breaks through in SEEDS (which reminds of the West-African heritage of jazz with its multiple rhythms and its renunciation of harmonious development - only the eight bars of the bridge base on a progression of chords): not only does he omit the notorious bombastic chord by the ensemble after his own final cadenza, he even ends with a minor second above the keynote. Seems as if Shihab now unrestrictedly conveys to his music all the experiences and emotions he formerly did not deal with in a musical way. Shihab the man need not be disturbed so that Shihab the musician may improvise passionate choruses. It would be unjust, however, to forget the choruses of the four other musicians for those by the 'born leader'. Francy Boland, taciturn and always introverted: he plays an extrovert, a masculine piano. Even with spare single note lines he produces a piercing and ringing sound that hitherto nobody except him has discovered, a bluesy sound bespeaking the very element of frustration that lies within the title of the trio number WHO'LL BUY MY DREAM. The unfailing feeling for rhythm the musicians of the CBBB praise with the arranger Boland, becomes manifest in the piano solo on SET UP. Francy's improvisation is rhythmically styled in a Monk-like manner, and yet no accent could be set differently. Maybe this is the secret of the Shihab-Combo. 'Rhythm is our business', this credo of Jimmy Lunceford could be the one of the five musicians as well. Sadi hits his vibes as dryly as if wanting to bring its ancestors to memory, the wooden chimes of West Africa's coastal tribes. To reach the fullest poignancy possible, he intentionally calms down even the resonance in MY KINDA WORLD. In UMA FITA DE TRES CORES Jimmy Woode bears out the crispy jazz beat against Sadi's Bongos and Klook's Latin-American percussion all by himself. Moreover - and that, too, is connected with the school of the Duke who was the first in the history of jazz to discover the instrument's potential as a melody instrument - Woode rips a marvelous counterpoint to the inventions of the other melody instruments, take for example PETER'S WALTZ. And then there is Kenny Clarke. Klook. On the entire record he only uses his brushes. Means by which different drummers only know to bring forward impressionistically blending noises: He drums a vigorous beat with them, fanciful fills, a solo, melodious and at once skillfully playing with cross rhythms in JAY-JAY. The 'born leader', the 'outstanding baritone saxophonist of modern jazz' (Joachim-Ernst Berendt), he could not wish himself different sidemen for this record overdue since some years.

Its been six months since we enjoyed the freshest sounds from Dissonant boss Marc Antona. The release of his 'Darwin' ep for Truesoul and our heavily supported 'In Flagranti' ep, bookended April of this year and saw Marc preparing for his summer residency in Ibiza. The party island played the perfect host to the Frenchman as electrified the floor of Marco Carola's hugely successful Music On parties. Three months on the spiritual white isle was always set to influence and inspire and it was these experiences and special moments that Marc sought to share through his new productions. Our first taster of these summer sessions is the double-header of 'Sorry For The Violence' and 'Thats The Way To Do It.' We are treated to trademark Antona grooves powered by organic percussion and crisp drum work that gives both tracks an uncluttered spacial feel. You can sense the summer breeze flowing through each. As the winter chill draws closer our new Dissonant release allows us to hold tight, those final rays of sunshine.