Leftfield / Experimental / Electronic Recommendations May 2016

Review: Martin Herterich aka Stockholm's Sand Circles' "Motor City" originally appeared on Los Angelino imprint Not Not Fun back in 2012 but gets a re-issue on Danish noise merchants and purveyors of 'new world entertainment' Posh Isolation and you can see why given the similarities to Loke Rahbeck and Hannes Norrvide's work as Lust For Youth ie: brazenly decadent tributes to early '80s synthpop and new wave right down to the analogue recording techniques. To be honest it's all quite gorgeous really, from the grinding Oberheim arpeggios to the rusty blasts of the Linn Drum through to the crackle and fizz of the tape, you could imagine this being the alternate soundtrack to Keith Gordon's film adaptation of The Chocolate War.

Review: Dark Entries has always been rather canny when it comes to their Italo-disco reissues, often unearthing obscurities from one-shot artists who disappeared just as quickly as they arrived. Ghibli was one such artist. He only ever released one single, I'm Looking For You, back in 1985. That it still sounds fresh, despite its' obvious period features - bubbling, Bobby Orlando style synthesizer sequences, bold chords and a heavily accented Italian vocals - is testament to the skill of the record's original producer, Alfredo Baraldi. As with the original pressing, this Dark Entries edition comes back with the superior Instrumental version.

Review: Nenad Markovic's four releases for ESP Institute were amongst the strongest releases on the label to date. Hopes, then, are naturally high for the Serbian's debut on Ron Morelli's L.I.E.S imprint. Opener "13" sees the Belgrade producer indulging his melancholic side, with bittersweet chords and mutant electronics wrapping themselves around a dense, Afro-influenced rhythm. "Mecanica Number 1" takes this new-found rhythmic funk into a more distorted, L.I.E.S-ready direction - think ricocheting hits, post-industrial textures and redlined rhythms - while "LVIV" sounds like the aural accompaniment to a druggy jog through a South American rainforest after dark.

Review: Dario Dell'aere cut his teeth in obscure Italian synth-pop outfits Ice Eyes and Fockewulf 90, before attempting to launch a solo career in 1985. While that didn't go all that swimmingly, his lone solo single, Eagles In The Night, has long been considered a hard-to-find Italo-disco classic. Here, it gets the re-issue treatment from Dark Entries, who as usual replicate the original track listing and artwork. Slower and more atmospheric than many Italo-disco tracks of the time, Eagles In The Night draws influence from eyeliner-clad new wave pop of the period, with Dell'aere's unusual English vocals stretching out over chiming melodies, bubbling synth lines and dreamy chords. The potency of the original production is confirmed by the superior Instrumental version lurking on the flip.

Review: While Tim Hecker has a well-earned reputation for extreme electronic experimentation, he's always been capable of delivering releases shot through with intense beauty. It's this side of Hecker's output that's explored on Love Streams, his first album for three years. Effortlessly melodious, fluid, and constantly evolving, it pairs fuzzy, drone-inspired textures, melancholic atmospherics and ear-pleasing ambient melodies, with flashes of steel drums, manipulated string arrangements, and the distinctive sound of an Icelandic choir. It's a sound palette that ensures a stream of memorable, eyes-closed moments, from the Tangerine Dream inspired "Voice Crack", to the loved-up bliss of the two-part "Violet Monumental".

Review: Berlin's Office Recordings has always released sparingly, and this is perhaps what has saved them from becoming too attached to one genre or trend, and instead travelling at their own pace and on their own agenda. The label introduces newcomer Trux to the scene, a mystery artist who props up out of nowhere armed with eight pellets of ambient and drum experimentation - we're listening. Aside from the lo-fi, over-layered patterns of abstract pieces such as "Aziol" or "Pattern" itself, other tunes like "Ada" or Skarb" recall the Actress sort of dynasty, and the artist manages to conjure airy grooves made up of drone plates and intangible drum circles. It's an alchemistic sort of sound, and one that is surely set to earn Trux plenty of fans. Tip!

Review: German experimental electronics figure and Nonplace boss Bernd Friedman is back, this time on Doug Laurent's Risque imprint which has been a bit quiet until now. First track "Masque" is a sturdy minimal house jam with the immaculate and focused style of highgrade production found on Ricardo Villalobos or Uwe Schmidt's recordings. Nothing fancy or full throttle, just beauty in its restraint and execution. Second track "Peluche" somehow merges dub techno aesthetics with jazz sensibilities on this odd yet compelling fusion but we are talking about Burnt Friedman here; this guy has experimented with all kinds of crossover over the years and is what makes his work so compelling.

Review: Brussels-based twosome Different Fountains has made some of the most interesting electronic music of recent times, with their distinctive sound somehow joining the dots between moody outsider house, and experimental electronica. Here they present the third part of their Organism series. They begin with pool, a thrillingly bass-heavy fusion of dub-house rhythms, hissing cymbals, delay-laden electronics and horror-influenced late night creepiness. There's something a little less unsettling about dreamier flipside "Limbo Rift", whose bubbling beat patterns, chiming melodies, cut-up vocals and freaky chords nevertheless evoke mental images of paranoid late night rambles through deserted forests and abandoned housing estates.

Review: Well this is deliciously conceptual fare from Young Echo man Sam Kidel. The notion of hold muzak should be all too familiar in the modern age, and Disruptive Muzak sees the artist totally flip the concept on its head. In its simplest terms this album is the result of a prolonged programme of Kidel phoning up various government hotlines, playing his 'ambient muzak' compositions down the line and recording their oh so amusing befuddled responses. That's how the near 20 minute lead track plays out, whilst the accompanying DIY version features only the music should you, the listener, be inspired to try Kidel's methods out yourselves the next time you are left holding on the phone.

Review: Lecce, Italy sure has its fair share of emerging producers at the moment such as Marcello Napoletano, Robert Crash, fellow Optimo Trax alumni Underspreche and now Michele Mennini who presents his next offering for new mysterious imprint Les Temps Perdu. Starting out with the deep cosmic vibes of "Hyper Martino" which drones away until those acoustic drums come in and pound away at the half way mark. "Aspera" is a dark and beatless soundscape featuring some brooding textures beneath a creepy organ melody; very interesting. On the flip there's a totally kick-ass remix by Tel Aviv duo Red Axes throwing down their trademark sound somewhere between indie- psychedelia and house. Finally the remix of "Aspera" by the Multi Culti affiliated Dreems from Montreal gives the track a nice low-slung acid retouch.

Review: Martin Herterich aka Stockholm's Sand Circles "Motor City" gets the remix treatment. Originally appeared on Los Angelino imprint Not Not Fun back in 2012. These fine revisions are by fellow purveyors of Scandinavian underground electronics. Northern Electronics main man Abdulla Rashim's take on the title track is even more haunting and emotive than the original while Swedish trio Yen Towers take on "Endless Nights" is rather savage in its restraint and quite chilling, truth be told. Finally Astro:Dynamics affiliated Quiltland's remix of "Motor City" retains the old school charm of the original in a great modern synth-pop interpretation.

Review: 2MR is a curious label, indeed. For starters, its founders Mike Simonetti and Mike Sniper have released just about all sorts of electronic music on it. The second release by Russian artist Kedr Livanskiy is just as nutty as her debut, except that this time we have even more sound experiments to play with. Mixing up lo-fi techno through the likes of "Razrushitelniy Krug" or "Winds Of May", together with grainy shades of house on "January Sun", and even broken-down echoes of post-hardcore with "Otvechai Za Slova" the artist has managed to create a truly captivating record, and perhaps also one of the freshest and most daring pieces of music that we've heard since the turn of the new year. Warmly recommended.

Review: France's Zombie Zombie are perhaps the most representative outfit of Versatile's wet and wild discography, and the duo have served up some real fire power on the label over the years. Two years on from their last album, Etienne Jaumet and Cosmic Neman return with a new full-length offering that originated as a soundtrack to Elsa Guerin and Martin Palisse's abstract Slow Futur juggling performance. "Hyperspace" opens with a soft-spoken tribal groove, a sublimely hazy and dubbed-out opener to let those synths warm up their muscles before the electro-leaning buzzes and low-ends of the quirky space-house jam that is "Slow Futur". "Blue Screen" is as majestic and hollow as it is cosmic, and its airy groove made of blocky synth rolls is mightily refreshing, while "Extra Life" goes back to an 80's flex thanks to its metallic drum pattern and deep, far-reaching synths. A glorious return to action from the cosmic brothers!

Review: A new Hidden Hawaii release has the ability to get our taste buds going and our mouths salivating from the first moment that we hear those warm glows of echo hit our ear drums. This is particularly true when it's coming from the likes of FLXK1 and DB1, two relatively unknown entities up to this day, and a pair of artists who truly understand the essence of dub techno. From the subaqueous bleeps and mechanical drums of "Track 1", through to the hollow, washed-out drones of "Track 2", and even contorted breakbeats of "Track 3" and "Track 4", this EP has everything you need for a full meditation session, whether that be in a club or on your headphones. No Apple buds, though, please.

Review: Stroboscopic Artefacts head honcho Lucy on Samurai Horo? You better believe it! Recorded live to tape in his Berlin studio, these four experimental soundscapes work together in a perfect continuum. "Eat" helps you surrender to the void, assisted by fascinating modular synth textures and field recordings creating another auditory world. "Drink" shows more restraint with its beatless, reductionist groove covered in the just the right amount of dust and rust, gradually building in tension and resonance over its eight minute duration. But it's the immersive sci-fi aesthetic of closer "Relax" which really nails it; featuring sonar blips, hypnotic/ evolving pads and and some of the most sublime synth textures you'll ever hear.