Juno Recommends Breakbeat: May 2022

Review: Cologne's DJOKO has been exploring breakbeats and electro formations under the Kolter banner over the past couple of years, dropping some serious heat on Talman, Pilot and Body Movement. It's Pilot he returns to for this bang tidy two tracker of taut and crisp breaks which wouldn't sound out of place in a Plump DJs set circa 2005. 'Ying Yang' slips some vocodered spirituality in amongst a punchy beat and warm splashes of analogue synth work. The slightly saucier 'Drop De Tiddies' rides a break and works an old-skool hip hop sample before ripping into some chirpy lead lines, making for a fun and fruity dancefloor delight.

Review: Since joining forces as Soul Mass Transit System a couple of years ago, Baby J and D Jason have released a wealth of club-ready 12" singles, many of which explore their love of vintage UK garage. This EP on Vivid is a little more eclectic but no less celebratory or peak-time ready. For proof, check saucer-eyed opener 'Set You Free', where giddy old school piano stabs, stretched-out sub-bass and spinetingling female vocal samples ride a rolling breakbeat, and the revivalist hardcore hedonism of the ludicrously bass-heavy 'Nah Nah Nah'. They doff a cap to their bassline roots on crunchy breakbeat roller 'Phat Booty', before drawing a fine EP toa close with the two-step-goes-Niche heaviness of 'Smoke'.

Review: Mint Condition has so far proved adept at licensing and reissuing high-grade fare from the 1990s that many people may have missed out on first time around. This single from Dylan Beale, one of two he released as Eze-Ozo back in 1991, is undoubtedly essential: a two-track bleep & breaks excursion that strikes a perfect balance between the alien, sci-fi sounding weight of purist bleep and the rolling energy of early breakbeat hardcore. 'How To Stay Alive' is shuffling, crunchy and sub-heavy, with nods to trippy US deep house as well as early Warp releases, while 'Kick The Break In' comes from the same sonic space as the contemporaneous Original Clique and Ubik releases.

Review: Munich's pride The Zenker Brothers throw down a 'focused daily positivity practice' for Hidden Shelter, the latest release on their Ilian Tape imprint. The result is four tracks that read like a self-help manual: get motivated by the industrial strength breaks of 'Enjoy Reality', followed by the dubbed-out, greyscale stomp of 'Look Precisely' and find your vision. Turn over to side B and clarity awaits, albeit beyond the dense fog of the cavernous and glacial 'Focus On Positivity' and closing it out is the steely power of 'Practice Daily' which is rather typical of the duo's renown style and sure to inspire the potential in others.

Review: Matt Cutler has made many great records as Lone, with recent album Always Inside Your Head being particularly impressive. This similarly laudable EP offers fresh, alternative takes on album tracks. The headline attraction is arguably SHERELLE's B-side opening take on 'Visited By Astronauts', a wonderfully dancefloor-centric fusion of pulsing ambient chords, bittersweet lead lines and skewed D&B beats. Predictably, Cutler hits the spot on each of his three reworks too. The 'Mouth of God Part 2' version of 'Nautical Aerials' is a rush-inducing slab of colourful breakbeat dreaminess - sunrise-ready for sure - while the 'One Thirty Mix' of 'InLove2' adds ambient techno style acid motifs and stirring pads to an extra-percussive house beat. Throw in a terrifically meditative ambient mix of 'Echo Paths' and you have a great all-round EP.

Review: u-Ziq is Mike Paradinas, the label head at Planet Mu. And this, despite the title, is the first in a new series of EPs for the label. They are all based around the fact that his classic 1997 album 'Lunatic Harness' is now 25 years old and getting a special Anniversary Edition. The music here has been inspired by Mike going back through the archives and revisiting some of the sounds from the 90s - namely jungle and jungle tekno. Those templates are updated with modern thinking and modern gear but a fantastic sense of melody remains with sombre pianos, acid lines and amen breaks also chucked into the mix.

Review: The basslines might be big, but Berlin collective Cheap Fast Worldwide are keeping budgets tight with their brand new vinyl concern. Already an established podcast mix series, now a fully-fledged label, this launch release lays down everything we need to know as we flip and fly between the flavours. Cats like Lou Raw lay down golden woozy UKG skippery, B is all about the lo-fi flavours and warm and warping house and Olli Oski and EE bring the EP to a wonderful psycho dub finale. What an entry EP.