Search:theme

Following the huge success of the lead single "Settle Down" (played twice on one show by David Rodigan!), Blend Mishkin and the Roots Evolution band deliver their stunning debut album "Survival Of The Fittest" for NICE UP! records. Having spent most of his professional career behind either a computer screen or pair of turntables, Athens based producer Blend Mishkin (real name George Mantas) has been putting in work since the mid 90s with releases on labels such as Pork Recordings, Tru Thoughts, Shadow Records and many more. For this, actually his 8th studio album, he decided to do something a little different and step out from behind the computer. A chance meeting with some like minded musicians led to a conversation about them re-creating some of his past tracks for a potential live show, but after much thought it was decided that something brand new and fresh was needed. After numerous sessions and jams, a collection of tracks had begun to take shape. Recorded live and then taken back to the lab for mixing and dubbing, "Survival Of The Fittest" is the fruits of these sessions. The next step was to scout for vocal performers to bring the rhythms to life, with the focus on using both international and local talent to give a wide breadth of influences and themes. Lining up are Rebel Salute show-stopper and Juno award winning Exco Levi and seasoned veteran Skarra Mucci from Jamaica, UK reggae/dancehall don Gappy Ranks, Italian raggamuffin KG Man, Mandinka Warrior from Denmark and fellow Greek BNC amongst many others. Retaining an authentic vibe whilst keeping it current, "Survival Of The Fittest" is a truly modern roots reggae album.

Continuing on from Vol 1's theme of established artists working in disguise, 'Music First Vol 2' delivers another sonic assault with this absolute rollercoaster ride of a record. The mysterious Scorpio T opens the EP with 'Neptune Rising', a squelching acid-bass boomer that can simultaneously spiritually elevate and physically devastate any dancefloor. Rounding off Side A it's followed by Scandalous Arthur's 'Acid In My Mind', a lo-fi tape-hissed jacking beast of a banger that sounds like it's genuinely been brewing in a vat of highly toxic acid for at least 25 years and guaranteed to melt your mind. On the flipside comes JaX DaX returning from Vol 1 with the low-frequency moody slo-mo electro workout 'Fucking Computer' that oozes bad attitude and booty-shaking basslines in equal abundance. Bringing the trip to a close is Kyrenic Azalee with the self-titled 'Kyrenic Azalee', an x-rated new beat tour-de-force of epic proportions that will fry minds and bodies with its relentless energy. Limited edition so don't sleep on it, not that it would let you.

For more than a decade, The Bunker New York has been a nexus point for the transnational techno community.
A chance meeting at The Bunker in 2011 brought together Gunnar Haslam and Johannes Auvinen (also known as Tin Man), who became fast friends and collaborators soon after, conceiving a joint project called Romans. The Bunker New York is proud to present Romans' Ambulare Aude, a collection of atmospheric acid techno tracks following the project's debut on Auvinen's own Global A in 2014."The Roman theme opens a world to explore beyond both of our past endeavours," says Auvinen, explaining
the conceptual genesis of the collaboration. "In the same way Ennio Morricone may have conceived the 'Spaghetti Western' genre by fusing together various contemporary motifs and moods to conjure the spirit of a past era, we're imagining stories and scenes from the Roman era, trying to manifest narratives while celebrating the distortions we see looking through the murky lens of time." And while Morricone may be a conceptual reference point for Romans, their sound is anything but—instead offering up a pair of murky, psychedelic acid-etched cuts (Emona, Delmenium) buffered by a gradually unfolding up-tempo floor-burner
(Coptos).
The record is the result of several extended improvisational jam sessions in Vienna and Brooklyn in which both
artists would play off of each other in the studio. Accordingly, each of the three tracks have a slight aleatory
air about them, as though both artists are being led down an unforeseen musical path, not entirely certain of
where it leads. This culminates in Delmenium, the record's B-side, a true techno journey, featuring an emotional, metallic synthesizer coruscating against a melancholy background.
"I like to think what we make sounds simultaneously like both of us and neither of us. We both push each other
in different ways," Haslam says, recounting their production process. Auvinen adds that "(Collaboration) offers a chance to hear from someone else's perspective. Working with others, I'm often reminded of how radically different the way people hear things, and relate to them in a musical context, can be."

Following a three year hiatus from Cadenza, the label is delighted to welcome back Felipe Valenzuela and Dani Casarano for a third release on the Luciano's imprint. Both producers are respected individually for their prowess in the studio and as DJs, but as a combined force collaborate with magical effect in the studio. Together the pair run Melisma records and considers each other as musical soulmates. The pair's familiarity with dance floors across the world is reflected in these two tracks for Cadenza, continuing the labels rich musical history of electronic dance music fit for all purposes. 'Instinct' opens the release with an instant bubbling groove, supported by a groovy bass melody, crunching claps and shimmering rides, dancing around the tracks core rhythm. Subtle drum edits, reverberating snares and warm pads grab the listener's attention, whilst the tracks central rhythm maintains the pulse and lively feel of this exceptional production. A versatile slice of intricate house music that will find it's way into many sets this Summer. 'Impulse' sees the pair venture into more avant-garde territory; exploring themes of dissonance, syncopation and tension and release. Lo-fi electronics and discordant pianos notes create a unique pallet of sounds responding to each other. Offbeat string arrangements and shimmering synths evolve over the 14+ minutes track duration. Perfect headphone electronics with stacks of detail and fresh touches.

Drum & Bass duo The Prototypes, AKA Chris Garvey and Nick White release their much anticipated debut album 'City of Gold' on Viper Recordings. Already one of the hottest acts in the UK Drum & Bass club scene, The Prototypes are reaching new heights with their debut LP which showcases their trademark club sound, vocal anthems plus a few masterful tempo variations which will leave the listener wanting more.

This vinyl album sampler contains two of their biggest hits from last year with 'Pale Blue Dot' backed with 'Humanoid', both of which went #1 on the Beatport D&B charts.

'Pale Blue Dot'
Kicking off with a mysterious, immersive space-themed introduction, 'Pale Blue Dot' transports the rave into the far reaches of the universe. Building up the anticipation with rising synths, 'Pale Blue Dot' transforms into a dancefloor weapon. Crash landing with a stripped back, infectious melody and churning bass, the alien sounds of 'Pale Blue Dot' are sure to get the rave moving.

'Humanoid'
The B-side stays true to The Prototypes' heavy hitting, galactic-inspired sound, with the whirring 'Humanoid'. Exciting and rhythmical use of synth patterns alongside vocal interjections make this the ideal follow up to the hugely popular 'Pale Blue Dot.'

Uncto's seminal 2013 release Pain was an uncompromising exercise in rhythmical brutality amidst a conflux of themes of suffering, industry, man, and machine.
The record now sees itself reinterpreted and reimagined under the auspices of some of the scene's most eminent and accomplished forerunners in what is perhaps, as it arrives on an opulent red double-vinyl format, the label's most ambitious addition to its catalog to date.

Long-time trailblazers Exium first take on 'Dirty Minds' as they apply their unequalled peak-time treatment. While retaining the driving force of the original, the Spanish duo transmute its somber sense of narrative into a singular and infective pattern that unrelentingly maintains its intensity throughout. In contrast, Frenchman Mondkopf's reconstruction is a radical departure from its progenitor, almost as if the merciless titular oppressor ('Schinder') has been injected with an empathogenic truth serum and made to face the toll of his deeds. Serving as his final penance, the resultant insuppressible melodic radiance gushes to the fore as powerfully as his remorse and tears.
Continuing on the second record, Canadians Orphx draw upon the immense and unwieldy cyclicality of 'Judas Cradle' as they deconstruct the torture device into a prolonged yet unfaltering dirge. Harnessing the raw power of the original, they adroitly fuel and layer the modular solemn synths of the drawn-out nine minute epic. Finally, the unequivocal master of industrial cannonry, Ancient Methods (DE), takes on and reins in the unyielding beast of 'It,' leaving the monster not only tamed but fully subjugated to his will. Now capable of executing the most inscrutable order, itsees itself violently degenerated to the barest of elements and recombined anew, with the cadence of its frame shifted and staggered to the striding rhythm of a being more machine than flesh. Providing solace and closure are Uncto themselves, as they complement the compositions with two droning interludes.

Mastered by CGB at Berlin's Dubplates & Mastering, Pain Remixes will be available at fine vinyl retailers

Prolific Seattle producer Jon McMillion returns to Nuearth Kitchen with another crucial chapter in his epic tale of haunted house-music subversions. This EP offers four variations on a bizarre and engrossing theme. Don't It Make You (edit 1)' is a work of extremes: By some miracle of aural physics, it's at once one of McMillion's strangest tracks and one of his most accessible. He sets into motion a staunch, relentless house rhythm bolstered with congas, massed claps, synth-bass raspberries, and a badass male singer intoning, Don't it make you feel good, if you wanna get down/Just say it, say it again,' over which a miasma of enigmatic tones bubbles and swirls. Like Bohannon's disco-funk classics from the '70s, Don't It Make You' seems like a tease, even at 10 minutes duration, you wish it would roll on for at least 30. On Don't It Make You (edit 2),' McMillion strips things down to dance-floor essentials and erases some of the free-floating background weirdness.

The two remixes are revelatory. New York house icon Fred P. (aka Black Jazz Consortium) slides the track into a tighter pair of pants, but that just makes it swivel harder and slyer. He emphasizes Don't It Make You''s mysterious drones and then loops a female vocalist singing He keeps me' while dropping in some echoed male chatter to gently disorient. What a dreamy, soulful trip Fred P. conjures here. And rising German wunderkind Orson Wells layers and pitches up the original's cascades of bleeps, which becomes the dominant motif, and then subtly modulates said bleeps over the tune's seven minutes, while keeping that irrepressible rhythm strutting. McMillion's raw materials prove to be fertile ground for these two maverick remixers to flaunt their own fascinating quirks while maintaining the original cut's club-darkening and ass-moving functionality.

Future Brown greifen auf Themen wie digitale Interkonnektivität, globale Reisen und eine vitale weltweite Künstlergemeinschaft als Inspiration zurück. Von regionalen US Rap-Varianten zum UK Grime, von Dancehall bis Reggaeton - Future Brown spinnen eine zutiefst durchdachte Ästhetik, die intuitive Verbindungen zwischen diesen eigentümlichen Sounds aufbaut, um dann den individuellen Kollaborateuren eine Stimme zu geben. Kollaborationen wie mit Shawnna, Kelela, Johnny May Cash oder Sicko Mob schlagen Brücken über musikalische Grenzen und Klüfte hinweg, während Future Brown zur selben Zeit den eigentlich geographischen Abstand zwischen den einzelnen Künstlern bewusst machen wollen.

Hitting a particularly fertile patch with his music, A Sagittariun continues to ride the night skies with some heavy doses of cosmically sprinkled techno and kinetic electronica. 'Aruba (Overhead Mix)' is a seductive jam of Nuyorican (tech) soul, cloaked in warm synths with a breathy, human quality and deft melodies to ensure a smooth takeoff for the passengers. Lead cut on the vinyl is 'The Code Breaker', channeling some enchanting techno moods and themes on a no gimmicks, no cheap thrills, head & foot stomper, whilst 'Triangulum' prefers a mechanical rhythm of robotic tech funk, syrupy melodies and acidic motifs to deliver a dance in outer space.

House Of Black Lanterns is the latest musical project from Dylan Richards, the man behind the King Cannibal and Zilla monikers (on the Ninja Tine and Warp Records labels respectively). With an album and two singles out in 2013 on the highly respected Houndstooth label, Richards returns with a deadly EP for Hypercolour, backed with a very fine Mosca remix.

In its Original Mix, 'The Smack' is a dense and atmospheric production, the slow pace and chugging bassline evoking shades of early Chicago house but with a thoroughly modern UK twist. Filled with tension and drama, 'The Smack' is a big sounding record that cuts through so many genre sounds from dub techno to dubstep but sounds entirely individual and unique.

Mosca steps up to the remix, following on from the launch of his new label Not So Much, and remixes for Alland Byallo and Sweatshop Boys. Taking 'The Smack' up to an altogether skanking tempo, Mosca plummets the Basic Channel school of sound for the aptly titled 'Dread At The Controls' version. Spring reverb all over the joint as Mosca works the droning synths and fire & brimstone vibes over a watertight, dub heavy workout. 'Grey Leather Glass' takes things up a notch, continuing the HOBL theme of dark & shadowy techno sounds with heaps of drama and sinister twists and turns, like some cinematic score to a Wes Craven slasher epic, and '8 Million Stories' cuts up vocal chops, finger snaps and piano stabs over a brooding house production. Deliciously dark music from HOBL here....

8th vinyl from Gilesku series delivers another talent on display. A very intelligent work from one of the most promising slovenian producers you should pay attention to in the future - Vid Vai.
A three track EP opens with an intelligent minimalistic track 'Somewhere out there' - this catchy bassline, wicked and smart game of beats will definitely open your mind and take you on a ride. 'Eleos' is uncompromising dancefloor bomb with strong acid line, accompanied with warm synth theme which will take you back in time. To conclude this amazing EP, here is 'Hidden Projections' track, another 'acidish' gem that proves how talented Vid Vai is.

There is something singularly unique and peculiar in the degree to which seemingly unsettling themes and extreme taboos have been explored, most notably in the medium of film, in the land of Nippon. Free from the constraints of reality, notions of grotesque brutality, torture, fetishism, and sadomasochism, to name a few, have oftentimes served as driving motifs in the examination of the true nature of violence latent in the most repressed reaches of the human mind. Concurrently, in the realm of electronic music, many Japanese producers have often been able to cultivate and harness a daring yet distinctly refined and inimitable form of organized sonic chaos, one almost instantly recognizable to the occidental ear. The music of Tomohiko Sagae, and in particular his latest contribution to Furanum's catalogue, The Spurt of Blood, is perhaps a quintessential example of the confluence of the former themes and latter medium.
At the outset of the record, the beholder is faced with the 'Vacant Eyes' of a staggering monstrosity, a subdued and subjugated automata in the midst of a bleak dystopia, nearly lifeless but for the grudgingly conceded advance of its death march. As a battery of gratuitous aural violence led by a dominant synth is rapidly unleashed in the subsequent composition, a growing malaise transforms into fractured bone and psyche alike, with no distinction made anymore between the tearing of metal, flesh, or the fabric of the mind. Culminating in 'Severe Pain', with limits of endurance breached and descent into madness the only seeming form of respite, relentlessly rolling drums and hauntingly sublime howls provide the context for the dawning realization of pain as a virtue in and of itself, when a demented pleasure and the exhilarative liberation that lies therein begins to emerge. In the final act, reinterpreted by Furanum stalwarts Uncto, roles are tellingly reversed as the vacant eyes of the victim become that of the oppressor. With cold-blooded precision, the original is reengineered into a force of merciless domination, its elements machined and recalibrated for pure power.Words: PSD

Schlammpeitziger's album yields even more fruit. Six weeks after the release of his longplayer "What's Fruit" Pingipung releases this 12inch EP with remixes. The motley set of six electronic musicians and bands dice Schlammpeitziger's countless melodies into a delicious fruit salad! Candie Hank (Patric Catani) deals with the title track "What's Fruit" and beams the mantra-like vocals of the original unerringly to the dancefloor. Andreas Dorau, the infamous hero of German New Wave music form the 80s, is a year long companion of Schlammpeitziger. He sings about autumn leaves, on top of the instrumental hit "Balcony Sofaune", which is transformed into a disco piece by Dorau's producer sdfkt. (Golden Pudel Club, Hamburg). Springintgut dedicates himself to the complex melodic layers of "Pipe Claphorse", waves a giddy tambourine and tops it off with a three voiced cello chorus. The B side is opened by Mouse On Mars who turn "Balcony Sofaune" into an ever growing and collapsing bass monster, while focusing on the bold brass theme of the original. Thomas Mahmoud Zahl slows it down with a head- nodder. He thwarts the melancholy of "Schneid ein Stück aus der Zeit" with a stoically bouncing beat, which dubs and grooves like it wants to go on forever. Dub-Master hey (one half of Pingipung's Hey-Ø- Hansen) sends the same track through his studio, offers new harmonies with his quiet acoustic guitar and sugars it all with a galactic vocoder.

The structure and the essence of this release, focuses on a current argument in which more and more people in this society are found to be the early protagonists, often without even realizing it.
The artist wants to tell and convey through his work, a point of view towards this theme.
As can be deduced from the title of the EP, the project is to express and represent a war of colors, which fight the monotony of everyday, always flat and dark.
The first track, "Daily March", wants to criticize this monotony through a full-bodied sound that recalls a real daily march, which many people are facing every day. All accompanied by a setting of hypnotic sounds that capturing the attention of the listener, carrying in a vicious circle in which one perceives the focus of the concept that the artist wants to communicate.
The second track, "Appearance Of Freedom" is the soundtrack for those who are trapped in slavery everyday life, believing to be free or at least trying to able to escape from the monotony, but then realizing that it is only an appearance. The sound of this second soundtrack fully embraces with the first, almost as if it were a single story that is going to evolve, arguing the rebellion that the artist wants to express in this state of being of the person in the present life.
To accompany the two original works of Kalos, there are two remixes by great artists, the first made by the Irish duo Lakker, which are able to communicate their idea of daily march through their strong version, being able to also expose them a very clear message.
The second remix is made by the Begian artist Yves De Mey, for the track "Apperance Of Freedom" where he captures in full the message of the track and re-edited, bringing attention to the full-bodied bass carefully distorted, creating a trip hypnotic evolving.

During the '70s, work days at Umiliani's Sound Workshop Studios were hectic; thousands of sessions were held in order to keep up with a very busy Italian movie industry: Hundreds of soundtracks alongside with music library were recorded and released on vinyl in very limited quantities for TV and film production use only. Those LPs are now proper collectors' items, extremely hard to find.

Filled with hypnotic bass lines, heavy drums and screaming fuzz guitars "Underground", the first LP of the fictitious group known as Braen's Machine, is one of the rarest and the most expensive of them all, always "reaching" sky high prices throughout the second hand vinyl market. A fast-beat jam with hammond scales and a twin lead guitar theme ("Flying") opens the A Side soon followed by "Imphormal", a classicfunk-beat-meetsfender- rhodes-and-psychedelic-guitar number. The music then switch to "thriller territories" with "Murder" which is based on prepared piano swells and a deeply hypnotic walking bass, reminiscent of the best Morricone's soundtracks for Dario Argento's movies. Two highly percussive songs complete the A Side: "Gap" is an improvised song with guitar and keyboards dwelling over an infectious drum rhythm while a marching snare and a vibraslap effect are the special features on "Militar Police".

The mood relaxes slightly on the opening of the B Side with a lazy jazz groove on "New Experience" but the rock influences are soon brought back on the following track "Fall Out". "Obstinacy" is all about keyboards with syncopated rhodes themes and distorted hammond sustained notes whilst the fuzz guitar is back again screaming through the left channel on the last song of the album, "Description". We could happly say that that was the golden age of the Italian music library. But who's behind the name "Braen's Machine" On the original cover the songs are credited to the composers Braen and Gisteri. Braen was a pseudonym often used by Alessandro Alessandroni, an extremely skilled and versatile musician, and one of Umiliani's closestcollaborators. He could write, conduct and arrange, he could sing (ever heard "Mah Na Mah Na"), he could whistle (ever heard Morricone's "For a fistful of dollars") and he could play almost anything: guitar, bass tuba, accordion, sitar and the list grows..... His first album "Alessandro Alessandroni e il suo complesso" (Sermi, 1969), had transformed the Italian library music from orchestral sound beds into the psychedelia we all love; the extremely fuzzy guitars are very "present" on "Underground" too. For a long time Gisteri's real identity was rather mysterious; often wrongly attributed to Umiliani. Gisteri was the pseudonym of Oronzo De Filippi, art name of Rino De Filippi, music supervisor to the Italian public broadcast company (RAI) between the '60s and the '70s. De Filippi composed other notable pieces such as "Riflessi" (Edipan, 1975) and "Nel mondo del lavoro" (Sermi, 1972).

De Filippi passed away few years ago but we were able to contact Alessandroni to talk about this LP. Remembering "Underground" recording session as one of the thousands he took part of, Alessandroni told us that this record was produced very quickly, in two days maximum. This was made possible by a team of wonderfully capable session musicians and the creative genius behind the mixing desk; this incredible combination helped to focus on the mood of each track even more. Unfortunately there are no liner notes but Alessandroni's memories and speculations, based on other music tracked in the same period at Soundworkshop by resident engineer Claudio Batussi, led us to identify this as the most probable lineup: Munari on drums, Majorana on bass, Vannucchi on keyboards and Alessandroni himself on guitar. For this reissue the sound has been restored and the cover art reproduced exactly as it was.

This is the first release of the low awaited Sampling As An Art Label. Owned by Parisian house artist S3A, the four tracks of this ep are merging the 4 aims of the Concrete Parties resident: Dynamism, Musicality, Groove and Aliveness. After several years of active productions on labels as Phonogramme, Hold Youth, 4Lux, Concrete Music, Local Talk and Faces Records; S3A decided to make is own structure to promote his vision of music and produce the artists he loves. Let's welcome this truly ethical Label!!
Looping Strings' and 'Seekin'sunshine' are two feet stomping anthems, with massive sampled themes. 'The First Year' and 'The 4th' are more musical and emotional beautiful productions. This Ep is very personal and is released to last decades!

Fatima Al Qadiri is a multidisciplinary artist and musician from Kuwait. In just a few years, she has quickly built a reputation as a conceptual artist, exploring themes informed both by her own background and global pop culture, through a number of highly acclaimed EPs, multimedia projects and writings. She is also a founding member of the production team Future Brown. Fatima's debut album is called 'Asiatisch', and as the track titles suggest, the record provides a simulated road trip through an imagined China. Musically, the album is an homage to that quietly influential sub-strain of grime, often loosely termed 'sinogrime' due to its preoccupation with Asian motifs and melodies, pioneered by the likes of Wiley and Jammer at the beginning of the 2000s in East London. 'Asiatisch' is a provocation which asks more questions than it answers. The title is the German word for Asian. Unlike its title, however, the music on 'Asiatisch' revolves around the fantasies of East Asia as refracted through pulpy Western pop culture, in particular Hollywood, literary fiction, music, cartoons and advertising. Fatima asks what is meant by the term 'Asian' in a digital age of viral interchange and the hi-speed trading of cultural bytes; the concept of 'shanzhai' proves pivotal, a term whose meaning stems from a wild, out of control zone of banditry, but which has come to be used to refer to the Chinese counterfeiting of Western brands and goods. While a number of producers have made takes on 'sinogrime' over the last few years, 'Asiatisch' is really the first record that attempts to articulate this weird complex of sonic interchanges between the West and China. With the exception of the opening track, 'Shanzhai', a haunting cover of 'Nothing Compares to You' with nonsensical Mandarin lyrics, and the shimmering 'Loading Beijing', 'Wudang' and 'Jade Stairs' which sample and distort classical Chinese poetry staging an epic confrontation between China's ancient soul and the onslaught of the industrial factory machine, most of the tracks blend mallets, bells, gongs, flutes, steel drums and choral atmospherics with the searing synth-brass and the skittering drums of grime, playing melodies that are inflected as much by classic R&B as to synthetic versions of traditional Chinese music. On "Dragon Tattoo" for example, stereotypical iconography of imagined China is slotted into a threatening, robotic R&B format. The carefree pirating of Western brands blurs into a soft-synth pirating of Chinese musical signs.'Asiatisch' is wrapped in pristine artwork by Babak Radboy from Shanzhai Biennial, and the music was given a 3D sheen by in demand mixer Lexxx. Proclaiming both its love of both ancient and imagined China, 'Asiatisch' is a rare album that is both icily beautiful and conceptually layered.

Lopasura again delves into picturesque soundscapes drenched in emotion and melancholy, illustrating a typically dystopian setting for its latest offering. The A-sides opening track by Mark Forshaw is lean and mechanical in its make-up with an off-kilter combination of thick, stuttering bass stabs and percussion; creating a rather menacing undertone.
As a stark contrast, 'In the Smoke' by The Acid Mercenaries is a nine-minute tracky, steam train of clean and crisp scuttling hi-hats and razor-sharp percussion that dance around the relentless 303 acid line and beautifully soft 808 kick to devastating effect. On the flip side, a thunderous bass drum and freakish electronics stalk the discordant and arpeggiated synth that opens 'Hierarchy of Heritage', evolving it into some kind of hellish themed marching tune for the underworld. Frey then rounds off the EP with a typically rugged yet deliciously intricate piece with Gdn, effortlessly maintaining an intelligent groove throughout.
'Connect Four' is a rather fitting title for this EP, given the undeniable chemistry between all the tracks in how a story is told and tension is created; as Frey has done with the two previous Lopasura releases. The introduction of three debut artists on this release has paid off however, nestling comfortably into the label's aesthetic without compromising on the quality.

There are many ways to move forward as an artist. You can reinvent yourself, keep track of fashions, or try bold new things. Tom Trago has spent the best part of 10 years pushing his sound in impressive new directions. Yet on his new album, the well-regarded Amsterdam-based producer has done things slightly differently. This time round, his influences come from much closer to home, and he has admitted to being inspired by the dancefloor-focused style with which he made his name.

Welcome to The Light Fantastic. We're sure you'll enjoy the trip.

Trago is an old hand at this kind of thing. Back in 2009, his debut album, Voyage Direct, impressed with its warm, disco-centric blends of full-throttle deep house and boogie-influenced synthesizer funk. He cast his net wider on 2011's Iris, choosing to work with a wide variety of international collaborators on an album that laid bare his myriad of musical influences.

On the Light Fantastic, he's decided to 'step back to move forwards' with a warm, involving set that puts the simple pleasures of the best dancefloor moments at its heart.

'I tried to go a bit back towards the style I was doing on Voyage Direct, so dancefloor beats with deeper impact,' Trago admits. 'I was trying to male tracks that work on the dancefloor, but also move your heart.'

In some ways, The Light Fantastic is Trago in 'back to basics' mode. Partly inspired by his ever-increasing travels around the world to DJ, it melds together a range of influences - deep house, vintage synthesizers, classic boogie, disco, Chicago jack, acid house, and even a dash of full-throttle rave revivalism on the raw funk of 'The Elite' - on a set that sounds like it was painted in vivid colours by an artist at the top of his game.

'I'm like a professor in a lab, trying to make little ideas work,' Trago enthuses, warming to the theme. 'The tracks are all there in my head, like a puzzle, and I have to make all the pieces fit together.'

The 'back to basics' theme extended to his choice of collaborators. Whereas Iris was notable for featuring an impressive cast list of international singers, musicians and producers, The Light Fantastic is more of a homegrown affair. While plenty of people lent a hand during the recording process, they were trusted locals from the Dutch electronic music scene, rather than outsiders.

'This time, I thought 'whoever walks in the studio can get involved',' he says. 'If they walked in, they could sing, play some synths or do some mixing. A lot of people came to hang out and ended up lending a hand. It's a much more fun way of working than sending your track to somebody across the other side of the World.'

There are many collaborations on The Light Fantastic, but listen out for contributions from Steffi, Ben Westbeech, 'studio neighbour' San Proper, Makam, vocalist Holly Wood and, most surprisingly, a local club owner who just happened to swing by the studio. 'Using my friends was a big part of the process,' Trago admits. 'One of the points of the album was using people who were close to home, part of the family almost.'

It's an approach that definitely paid dividends. Certainly, this celebration of Amsterdam's blossoming electronic music scene adds a little extra frisson of excitement to The Light Fantastic's impressive vibrancy.

By the time the rush-inducing positivity of 'The Wrong Right' gives way to the mutant alien funk of album closer 'Desire', you'll be ready to listen to it all over again. That's the thing with The Light Fantastic - it's a trip you'll want to take again and again.

Building upon the foundations laid by his stunning debut single for the label, 'Theme Park / Off Topic', Blu Mar Ten Music is proud to
present the second single from prodigiously talented young producer Frederic Robinson's forthcoming album, 'Mixed Signals'. A
natural successor to the aforementioned single, the two tracks on offer here, 'Bloom' featuring Stray and 'Shore', give a further insight
into the depth and diversity of his work and what you can expect from his debut long player when it drops later this year.
On 'Bloom' Robinson teams up with experimental electronic producer and fellow BMTM alumnus Stray, for a characteristically
forward-thinking and unique exploration of 170bpm's outer possibilities. Built around a skittering tribal rhythm, lush synths and
acoustic instrumentation weave in and out of the track's skeleton over a deep b-line punctuated by elegantly cut ethereal vocals. With
the pair fluidly building and deconstructing layers as the track evolves and effortlessly shifts grooves, the track's nuances make it as
compelling for home listening as it is fresh on the dance floor.
This is paired with the delicate percussive timbres and rich ambience of down tempo offering 'Shore'. Here Robinson's off-kilter,
organic rhythms combine with a dense patchwork of piano, strings and natural textures to create a track that is as beautiful as it is
haunting, aided by the distant call of Robinson's own vocals.
Already receiving support from revered taste makers such as Giles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbs and London Electricity, the depth and
quality of Robinson's music is quickly starting to make people stand up and take notice. Quickly proving himself to be an inimitable
talent, the new single is a worthy addition to his musical canon.

*This is the second solo album from Ken Camden who lives and works in Chicago. He also plays in the Implodes sound quartet. *Space travel is the dream of many and the reality of few. Since Yuri Gagarin rst shed the bonds of earth gravity in 1961, only about 500 humans have made the trip beyond the atmosphere. *Ken Camden travels to space while still grounded on terra rma. His vessel of choice is a guitar and some effects with which he journeys on fantastical expeditions and surveys the biggest territory of all, the one between your ears. *The glimmering sound elds he forms could be a soundtrack to an epic 60's science-ction lm, or a long forgotten grade school educational lm strip explaining how humans would be living on Mars early in the 21st century. *Camden's narrative rejects the dominant dystopian view of the future and posits that there are great voyages yet to be made in inner and outer space. *The album forms a gravity-free environment in which the listener is suspended, enhancing an aural excursion to the outer reaches of the musical Kosmos. *Press quotes for Lethargy & Repercussions: 'Transcendence achieved.' Tiny Mix Tapes 'It's an album that, although it's only been recorded once, feels forever embedded in the present tense when you listen to it.' Attn Magazine 'Ken Camden fuses the mystery of Eastern scales with Krautrock and Karl Stockhausen inspired themes, yet his sound remains futuristic.' Bearded 'Awesome record of shimmering, electronically modied solo guitar music. The pulsing, gated rhythms do have a certain (k) / (c) luster that reminds me of Achim Reichel and / or Steve Hillage, but the sound- palette is decidedly contemporary, with endless synchronized delays & comb lterings making the proceeding just so rich & dense.' Keith Fullerton Whitman *Track listing:

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.

17 years after first releasing a cassette EP from label boss Marsel van der Wielen under his Peel Seamus guise, Delsin is soon to hit the landmark category number of 100.
Truth is, taking into account choice re-issues and specials such as the recent house series, there have already been scores more than 100 releases. Nevertheless, in that time the Dutch label has become synonymous with a wide range of timeless sounds from house to techno to dub to electronica, nurturing and championing some of the most respect names in the scene.

To mark the occasion, the label is to release five new various artist EPs (100 copies will be special, limited and coloured vinyl exclusively available through the Delsin web shop with a collector's box) that will be compiled onto one special CD compilation come the final release.

'After many different life cycles, with this compilation I try to go back to the core of Delsin, to showcase more otherworldly/dreamy/soulful but still raw techno sounds from a selection of key artists who best represent the label,' says Marsel. 'The tracks are all individual offerings but are tied together with the common themes of the label, and as a compilation will paint a nice overall picture that is not shy of moving away from the dancefloor side of things.'

Across the five EPs you can expect tracks from newbies and old favourites alike, including Sawlin and Delta Funktionen, John Beltran and Bleak, Redshape and Convextion and plenty more. The first - like all of them - features three tracks, one each from Gerry Read, Unbroken Dub and Claro Intelecto.

Popnoname`s Change is the perfect Pop Song to sing along to and soundtrack a change in you. David Hasert creates Pop for the dancefloor, his remix is like a Dreamliner in the balearic sea, which goes ashore with the drums of Bertil Mark. David Hasert curates the NICE parties in Cologne and runs the Label LIKE.When Matt Karmil`s Remix starts, you know this is a hit. Sensitive and cool he captures the essence of the track while
leaving out all Pop Themes. The solitary beat splattered with white noise creates an eternal space to drift away to in the club

Struments Records starts 2013 launching Nuevo Dia EP, second release of the label from Barcelona. In this occasion the reference is signed by the Catalan duo Aster, which counts with high quality remixers such as Benjamin Damage and Dexter. Nuevo Dia, the homonymous topic that starts and gives name to this second reference Struments Records, backs seven minutes in which multiple and varied melodies of different natures mix up with rhythmic patterns coming from a dynamic bass and evoking feminine vocal samples. A cut treated with strong dynamism in which the allusion of movement is constant. In Placido Domingo an acid bass line goes along the minutes transforming into the main character. The theme goes on for five minutes at a slower pace responding to the classical patterns of acid-house, introducing initially percussive rhythms, followed by dynamic involving notes and ending with a fantastic melodic take-off. The remix brought by Dexter increases and decreases during seven minutes, converting the original melody into an easily adapting scale to the first hours of the night. Using vocal samples it gives a surrounding perspective and introduces a powerful bass perfectly suitable for this newer clubber version of Nuevo Dia. Benjamin Damage bends Nuevo Dia with frequencies and filters, darkening brief melodic spaces to introduce a powerful and raw drum which reveals a postindustrial background through the late hours of the night. The monotonic rhythms of this reconstruction include in itself a progression of a surrounding physical and mental dance.

Terror Danjah's second Hyperdub album is 'The Dark Crawler', a well-paced and much more upfront and energetic journey through his musical world than his debut 'Undeniable'. The album revolves around the 'Dark Crawler' theme, a blistering grime track that pops up several times, vocaled by MC's Riko Dan, Mayhem, Deadly and Saf One, and then lastly Trim and Kossie. That's not to say the album is one dimensional or relentless. It's subtley balanced with the 'Dark Crawler' thread of tracks allowing the album to spin off in a web of directions without losing any focus. It's a much more contained body of work, paced to keep the listeners interest. From the 'Dark Crawler' intro into the cartoonish horror soundtrack of 'Mirror's Edge', which tricks you into thinking its just any dubstep tune, before scattering into Terror's signature broken kicks and claps. 'Dark Gremlinz' featuring D.O.K. is a classic peak-era asymmetric grime instrumental. The album then drops down into the 130ish speed of 'Air Max 90' featuring Champion, which builds from a soca-like drum drill stretching the rhythm to the point of collapse with a wonky synth, before concluding on a driving baseline house 4/4. The first 'Dark Crawler' vocal is next, with a ferocious performance from veteran Roll Deep MC Riko Dan, who drops bloodthirsty threats at a breakneck pace. Next, the tempo drops down again to the drunk funk of 'Full Hundred', with criss cross claps and a rasping bassline breaking down into live drumming and tight trap door edits. Things speed up a little again with the intricate 8 bar funky of 'Rum Punch', a hard drum tattoo rolling out over a heavy detuned bassline and intense bleeps. On the second 'Dark Crawler', mic duties are shared by Birmingham MC's Mayhem , Deadly and Saf One. Their hard vocals contrast with lush styled R'n'B of 'You Make Me Feel' featuring Meleka. The album then rolls out into the galloping drums and smooth G-Funk synths of 'Baby Oil'. Trim and Kossie drop the final 'Dark Crawler' vocal, with Trim dropping deadpan threats contesting with Kossie's focussed hysteria. Next up 'Delicately', with Ruby Lee Rider, starts in slow motion R'n'B mood, sweet Rhodes chords drift and bubble up as the track doubles up into dreamy drum and bass with a fluttering tabla keeping the time, and Ruby's tender vocals tempering the pace and aggression. Overall, it's a brilliant exercise in breathless rhythmic arousal. 'Moschino', on the other hand is a darker, chunkier and grimier mirror image to 'Delicately', switching up into a ferocious metallic riffage, before the album closes on an outro of 'Dark Crawler' again. Form, function, energy and talent fuse perfectly over 'The Dark Crawler' s length. Enjoy the ride.

The EP's exorbitant success and it's makers constantly evolving sound brings their relationship into late summer 2011 as Cadenza announce their sixty seventh cut; the 'I Ching' solo EP from Felipe Venegas. The two track EP triggers with "I Ching" and its spell binding intro of thundering gong crashes and jangling bells, betraying an almost story like theme as sporadic tom's and intense brass melodies converse with one another intensely.

Peter Presto is not only the founder of Pingipung, he's also the chap who did the first release on the label in 2002. Since then all of his dub sound has been available on 7inches, cause its simply the best format for these little gems. For Summer Of Seven he has reworked a theme from a classic computergame adventure in his very own vivid, happy-go-lucky dub style. Peter loves the melodies!

Everybody love soccer. Soccer is the world's official game. Soccer merges people and culture. So why don't we play it~ For this release our artist Franco Cazzola ( already producer for Carnival, Material, Upon you, Toys for Boys, Monique Musique ) discovered the famous theme "Stadium" wrote in 1978 by the italian Oscar Prudente.

A1 | In My Dreams (Cudder Anthem)
A2 | Soundtrack 2 My Life
A3 | Simple As
A4 | Solo Dolo (nightmare)
B1 | Heart of A Lion (KiD CuDi Theme Music)
B2 | My World f. Billy Cravens
B3 | Day N Nite (nightmare)
B4 | Sky Might Fall
C1 | Enter Galactic (Love Connection Part 1)
C2 | Alive (nightmare) f. RATATAT
C3 | CuDi Zone
C4 | Make Her Say f. Kanye West & Common
D1 | Pursuit of Happiness (nightmare) f. MGMT & RATATAT
D2 | Hyyerr f. Chip Tha Rapper
D3 | Up Up & Away (The Wake & Bake Song)
D4 | BONUS TRACK - Day N Nite (Crookers Remix)