quête:sound 00

In the wake of Blocks & Escher's recent outings on Metalheadz, Critical, and Zomby's Cult Music, Narratives present the first solo
excursions on the label from one of its founders, Blocks. Varied, emotive and beautiful, the Séance EP is innately Narratives Music in sound and yet unlike anything the label has delivered previously. The Séance EP fleets between ethereal vocals, forlorn strings and analogue bursts of glassy synths, while drum machines dance with live kits that would be fitting of 90s Mowax records. Bass lines loom heavy throughout, simple and driving rhythms that bed the delicate keys and story telling harmonics above. As immersive as it is succinct, Blocks has created an extended player awash with feeling and juxtaposition; again displaying why Narratives Music has been lauded across electronic music from the likes of Goldie and
Com Truise to Zomby and Rob da Bank. Forming the veritable gem of the collection, is the vocal laden 'Haven', a collaborative piece between Blocks and the hugely talented Jennifer Hall. Live instrumentation of bowed strings and bass provide canvas for the heart wrenching tones of Hall. Doc Scott describes the track as 'Deep, deep blues'. More akin to a personal reflection of the artist than the frenetic speed of a club, more Twin Peaks meets Portishead than dance floor energy; this is music at a Drum & Bass tempo by a producer that doesn't want to be caught in a debate on style or subgenre. In essence it seems to emphasise a recent quote by Blocks, 'Drum and Bass is anything you can get away with'. Label support from Goldie, Kuedo, Doc Scott, Rockwell, Benji B, Paul Woolford, Zomby, Friction, ASC, Jubei, Teebee, Pedestrian,
Rob Da Bank, Midland, Kasra.

Luciaen, AKA Lucien Nicolet, presents the second chapter in his Basaec series, with Origins. The new label from the Cadenza Records boss looks back to the roots of his production career, whilst presenting a wholefully futuristc take on electronic dance music. Origins (Wild Origins) leads release #2, a collosal twelve minute piece of neo-classical electronics. Waves of arpeggio synth dominate the beatless track, its mighty stabs and light percussion propelling the track along at great speed and urgency. The heads will no doubt hear inspirations from Detroit techno in here, but you can't put this piece in any genre box, rather it's a huge musical showcase from one of dance music's most enigmatic figures. The Great Amael finds Luciaen in more familiar territory, a lo-fi bubbling groove and dusted Hammond organs hustle along whilst the live percussions shine through. Energetic and infectious, the tone softens with the oceanic pads that provide its classic melody and threatens to envelope the listener in a wall of beautiful sound.

Chewed up and spat out the other side of the UK's Acid House scene, Neville Watson was bitten hard by the house music bug and has not looked back since. His brand of deep, raw and jacking house has been released on labels like Clone, Dissident, Rush Hour and Creme Organisation.
Neville says 'I kind of like music that sounds like it's all about to start falling apart at any given moment. There's plenty of clean music that I do like but as a rule I like it rough'
Music by Neville Watson / Drawings by Craig Richards / Mastered by Keith Tenniswood / Vinyl 180 Gram

117 Presents Forbidden Codes.
This compilation project is compiled and envisioned by DJ Trace, a veteran of UK dance music.New School players Verb and Quartz take on two classics to kick things off.
Mutant and Sonar get a modern and minimal touch up on crystal clear 10" collectors vinyl. Three more 10's continue this sonic experience featuring a group of the finest underground producers in today's scene.Kid Lib, Tim Reaper, Gremlinz & Homemade Weapons, Friske, Fade and Genotype appear over 3 plates.
Artist's on the LP display their 2014 vision which compliments the direction that 117 is heading.This moves far away from the soulless noise that plagues in various electronic dance music genres today. They use in this compilation, modern studio techniques enhanced with a passion and respect for the history of drum&bass.This LP is not to be filed under throwaway music.
Breaks and vibes unite to reminisce the days agone whilst outlining a new blueprint that pushes the boundaries of music technology.The essence of the 117 sound is explored and continues into the 24 digital tracks written by a gifted selection of hand picked talent from around the world.
Now is your turn to be possessed by the sounds of the 'Forbidden Codes' Released 28th April via ST Holdings.Mastered by Beau @ Ten Eight Seven, London.

Two original tracks performaed by Damaskin. Mental and ambient techno, with soft bassline and dark atmosphere, this is the sound of Damaskin, deep and weakness at the same time. On the other side a perfect techno remix of Cassegrain duo, 7 minutes of a killer-dark-dancefloor-oriented track. Limited to 200 copies distributed world wide by Triple Vision
Keys words: Eternal, mistery, open-ended rhythms.

KRAKE is an annual Berlin based festival for challenging electronic music. Krake means - octo- pus' and the festival is organised in a comparable way: reaching out to selected locations during one week presenting the best in electronic music whatever style it is. The festival is not huge, not expensive, does not have big sponsoring deals or four different colour are passes. It's just a good and so far successful try to bring back the focus on artists who dare to step off the beaten tracks.
KRAKE 002 contains mostly exclusive tracks of artists who played at the Krake festival in 2013. The A-side starts with a dark ambient drone by DÄMMERN, followed by a pop-fueled two-step hit by PHON.O. Next in line is Irishman EOMAC with a warm and deep IDM track already char- ted by none less than Thom Yorke of Radiohead, followed by - Resolution', a little melancholic stepper by BILL YOUNGMAN.
The B-side is being opened with a techno track by grandmaster MONOLAKE in his most typical dubby percussive style. For the next track FRANK BRETSCHNEIDER reduces the sounds to the max again to deliver a percussive track as minimalistic as can be. Legendary techno producer CRISTIAN VOGEL, known for his constant search for new values, closes the compilation with an avantgarde piece of noise and drones.
Outstanding, we'd say!

Following the release of virtuoso new singles Mr. Cover Up and No-Operative across January and February, seminal DnB duo State Of Mind are to present their fourth album, Eat The Rich, on March 31st. To be released by Black Sun Empire s Blackout imprint, the album celebrates some of the best work of their career to date, underlining their remarkable pedigree and with it, their ability to fuse darker, hard-edged sounds with genuine dance floor mcredibility. Famed for their rugged basslines, steely percussion and huge, driving synth lines, State Of Mind also showcase different sides to their craftsmanship on Eat The Rich, with a number of vocal features taking centre stage. As well as NZ
rapper PercIEve s appearance on the storming, tear-out anthem Mr. Cover Up, the duo also join forces with promising songstress Sacha Vee on the wonderfully eerie Black Raven; although still bullish in style, it highlights a softer, more thoughtful side to State Of Mind. Heavyweight second single No-Operative is also an album highlight, as are further future dance floor anthems like Where You At and Put It On, as well as two unique collaborations with fellow revered DnB figureheads Black Sun Empire. To compliment the rich diversity of sound on offer, the idiosyncratic, breaks-driven heat of Fast Life and the outer-worldly, synth-laden intro on U Control Me complete what is a stunning, career-defining album.
With a European tour in support of the album set to commence in March, ahead of further headline dates in Australia and New Zealand throughout April, Eat The Rich is set to cast State Of Mind into the spotlight like never before.

PRAYMOND is a French Artist and long time record collector. After years of travelling and playing across Europe and America, he decided to release his first EP. This record is not just an elegant DJ tool but it's also a really smart take on how to bring a discrete touch of acoustic in a music usually dominated by analogue and digital sounds. 3 tracks on this EP. Huguette uses a lot of acoustic elements to deliver an epic dancefloor track Chamalowe slows the tempo in order to make the pattern heavier Timeless Memory is a tribute to Dub Techno with an acoustic take, touch of Platon records

Atmospheric, darkness, emotional, deep and organic, Architectural returns with a very special album. A musical piece with a soundtrack essence that transport to the darker and disturbing forests. The cd edition has a second cd with a previous tracks compilation released on Architectural recs.

Informa Records 7th instalment 'Depth Surroundings EP' exhibits four original works from Deepbass (Informa Records, Dynamic Reflection) & nAX_Acid (Aconito Records, Phorma) Both artists have provided stripped back hypnotic productions immersed in deep tones and intense evolving atmospheres.
INFORMA007 stays true to the label's distinctive sound while it delves even deeper into
the depths of the abyss.

SHADELEAF reaches out to the tribes and comes home with a serious crop to see us through !

For their debut V.A selection 'Please Come Correct' Thatmanmonkz has pulled in some serious talent from the fringes of forward-thinking House

Ny*Ak fires the opening beatdown salvo,'U Don't Understand', and cooks up another of those loose, low riding, sample heavy and heady jams, reminiscent of Berlin via early Sound Signature that made last year's EP for Intimate Friends via Rush Hour such an essential!

Next up Cape Town's Jumping Back Slash, who's been making some serious music, fusing elements of S.A House with Kwaito and, well pretty much anything else he can throw into the mix to move your assets.
'Bloodlines' however could just as easily have emanated from 8 Mile, a captivating piece of pure, crisply rendered machine soul back lit with township chants and emotive chords.

Mr 'monkz himself handles B1, and to say this guy's on a roll would be something of an understatement!
Much like Graef and Co, 'imgettintiredofyou' is Deep House that dines out on a diet of Hip Hop, dirty hertz in the low registers and deftly manipulated sample work throughout - killer stuff!

Finally our truly global selection winds up in Moscow as another hotly tipped up-and-comer Lay-Far gives us 'Many-Sided'.
Fans of last year's excellent EP on Fifty Fathoms Deep will know what to expect. Again, a loosely pieced together cut, hinting at West London vibes,and shot through with creative sampling and an undeniable ear for melody and groove that really shines.

Richie Hawtin, Someone Else, Amine Edge, Transmit Promo Radar, Luca Doobie, Mariano Mateljan, Guido Durante, Herck
Ceryx, Ovidiu Adrian, Indy Lopez, Edgar De Ramon, Javi Alvado & THC, Pantany, Claude Solis, Alessan Main , Elchinsoul, Michel De Hey , Marco Carola, Dirty Culture...
In time, Plusculaar has become an indispensable asset to our label so it is only fair that we kick off this Esemtrax Limited vinyl series with his "Rumänische" EP. After the massive success "Stai Jos" on Enough!Music, it is our turn to "take advantage" of his talent so we asked for some top quality tracks. The result is mind blowing! It contains his finest work yet, a blend of techno and minimal, the very well known "romanian sound".

TERRANOVA returns to the fore with the HEADACHE EP, another impressive assortment of floor-ready house weaponry - after the sublime sophistication of the PAINKILLER EP (KOMPAKT 262) and its accompanying remixes (FM X/PAIN 001), the new material shoves the pendulum back into more rugged club territory, showcasing the sort of sonic urgency and rawness the legendary project has become known for in the first place.

As missing links between the dystopian pop of TERRANOVA's turn-of-the-century work and the slick kinetic drama of their current incarnation on Kompakt, the three cuts of the HEADACHE EP congenially continue the multi-layered, nifty thrust of 2012's house nouveau epic HOTEL AMOUR (KOMPAKT 248 CD 95), but also manage to evoke the wonderstruck immediacy of an act burning through its first speakers. This becomes particularly manifest with the deployment of CATH COFFEY as vocalist for title track HEADACHE (also a primer for TERRANOVA's upcoming full-length). A member of iconic British rap outfit Stereo MCs in the early 90s and collaborator of Tricky, the singer was featured on TERRANOVA's initial outings and is a well-established presence in their early work. On the new 12", she reintroduces her unique brand of battle-hardened, deadpan soulfulness to the searing funk of the reinvigorated project.

HEADACHE, a cover of a song from Birmingham's iconic and controversial postpunk outfit The Au Pairs, as well as its instrumental sequel HEADLOCK are both fuelled by the propulsive beats and upscale hooks we've grown to expect from TERRANOVA, but there seems to be something else at work, too - a somewhat darker undercurrent that may or may not be part of the actual arrangement. In any case, this adds much-needed depth to today's dance floors, providing them with a riveting soundtrack for the most intense of prime times. There's no need for EP closer TOURETTE to hide behind its compatriots, either: it's a full-blown thrill ride in its own right, brimming with jittery sampling, arresting percussion and some pretty rad bassline abrasiveness thrown in for good measure. A well-placed shot at the dancer's solar plexus, this wraps up the HEADACHE EP nicely, giving players and punters another perfectly valid reason for post-apocalyptic celebration.

The label Bond is the brainchild of Swedish techno DJ and producer Petter B. The concept of the label is 'music by DJs for DJs'. The label focuses on releasing tracks that enable the DJ, rather than the producer, to be creative. It is based on that special bond which is created every time a DJ combines tracks, loops and sounds live into something new and unique.
This third release is a special collab release. The first track Petter B has joined forces with two producers from his hometown Gothenburg. John H and M.E.E.O have been part of the Swedish underground scene since they learned how to spell 303 and are both addicted to hardware gear. With their skillful crafting of the melodic parts and Petters feel for drums and arrangement this track was born. It is a melodic monster with a simple yet
effective arrangement.On the flip side there are two tracks made by Stockholm based producer Kimono. A familiar name to those fond of that Stockholm sound. He has done releases on famous labels such as H-Productions, ISL and BEK Audio. These two tracks are best described as tooly and effective weapons to be used and abused by any DJ wanting to spice up the mix. The two tracks made it in to Petter Bs crate immediately as demos. From that point they went through the same refinement process as his own tracks usually experience. Tweaking the sound and doing some fine tuning after testing it in his sets, something that has become known as 'that bond treatment'.

Repress!

Gost Zvuk is a new Russian initiative that showcases the best kept secret in Russian modern day house music. For the first effort Aleksei Nikitin comes up with an emotive 4 tracker that is bound to have you amazed by the richness of the sounds and the versatility of the EP as a whole. Recommended.

Steve Lee's (The Project Club) ABOVE MACHINE label returns with another superb release from acclaimed Italian duo Almunia
Their last single for AM was a best-seller, and their celebrated output through Paul 'Mudd' Murphy's Claremont56 label, including the recent Pulsar LP has seen the their blissful & uplifting Balearic sound win over many a new follower
'Find My Way' is a gorgeous, acoustic guitar led vocal number, conjuring up twilight beach side boogie, balmy breezes and ice cold drinks
Marius Circus gets to work on the B side, taking the irresistible melodies to a much later, darker dancefloor.
Laying a foundation of squelchy moog style bass and a toughened up rhythm track before heavily effected guitars sweep across the mix elevating the whole thing to near transcendental heights !
A superb release and addition to the Above Machine catalogue

Maricopa returns to Back To The Balearics to complete his stunning opus, Pastel Love.

And he continues where he left off building deeply textured songs packed full of simple melodies that really shine.
His music opts for subtle feelings and passing vibes over the more obvious structures of 'dance music'. The release of Part One led to a number of comparisons with the early work of Aphex Twin as well as more contemporary producers such as Four Tet.

Such comparisons don't come lightly, but Pastel Love demonstrates that a rare musical talent has arrived.

The release again has beautiful printed covers and looks as good as it sounds. Viva Maricopa!

Blank Code start 2014 off strong with their latest EP Rituals of Submission, produced by Luis Flores, with remixes by Black Asteroid and DJ Hyperactive. The opening track Discipline starts off with a nice creepy atmosphere supported by a solid kick and just the right amount of percussion to hook you into the tracks core rhythm, which stays consistent while the supporting percussion keeps the intensity of the track in constant motion. Black Asteroid's Discipline remix gives the track a whole new perspective, while staying true to the original's excellent use of classic elements. The straightforward kick and up­beats work perfect with this track's industrial bassline, while cleverly programmed analog synths carry the track with slow triplet rhythms, and quirky stabs that drift off to space.

Luis Flores' second original composition, The Word, follows the same philosophy as Discipline, with many elements coming together to form one solid rhythm. This is a huge sounding track with intricate metal percussion and pitch modulated stabs that form a dark and inciting hook which is overtaken by filtered claps as the track progresses. DJ Hyperactive gets down to business with his remix of The Word and lets his Chicago roots shine through as hats on all fours and hard hitting claps are used to raise the energy sparked by the deep kick and well processed stab.

Subdivision of Construct Re-Form, the purpose of Ars Mechanica is to explore a more mysterious side of the electronic music, an oniric and spatial travel, an endless dive into the sound.

For this second opus, we are pleased to invite the Dutchman Mike Storm, a very promising artist who explores Sci Fi techno sonorities.

He offers 4 powerful tracks to us : Interstellar journey

As per our collective minds; music is a universal language which is spoken and written around the globe. With his backpack loaded with records and his mind full of ideas, Tagtraumer has been exploring foreign countries and undiscovered sounds. Eight years have passed on his seemingly endless journey. Through different people, extraordinary situations, adventurous experiences and unknown vibes an elixir of magic is created. It is the engine and the resource that drives his artistic inspirations.