Juno Recommends Electro July 2021

Review: 20/20 Vision's intrepid explorations beyond the ionosphere continue apace with the latest gaseous exchange in their Exit Planet Earth series, once again welcoming a stellar hit list of electro operators onto spacebound wax. First up is label mainstay Carl Finlow, who once again exercises his considerable production prowess with a lithe and limber body popper, while Plant43 takes things stripped and sinister with the deliciously dark 'Forcefield Deactivation'. Mr Ho and Xiaolin team up for the spacious techno thumper 'No Change To How I Feel', and Alfred completes the set with twinkling delights of 'Galaxy Quest'.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: Carl Finlow is something of a cult hero in the British electronic underground, having turned his hand to many aliases and styles without pandering to hype, and that's surely why the discerning For Those That Knoe label have deemed him worthy of a showcase release. His works as Silicon Scally are a particular highlight, channeling the seediest streams of Detroit electro and injecting a little of that UK verve and swagger into the mix, with invariably stunning results. Watch out for the seductive bite of "Dark Matter" and the dystopian funk of "Deep Dissolve", but in truth every selection on this choice double pack is worthy of some serious platter time.

Review: DJ Nasty started 2021 with a killer EP of bombastic, high-octane electro jams on Bass Agenda Recordings under his popular alternative alias, Detroit's Filthiest. This relatively speedy follow-up has a slightly different vibe, with only hard-wired closing cut 'Mythological' - all fizzing analogue synth-bass, rising lead lines and energetic electro beats - being as fearsome and intense as the tracks on his previous EP. That's not a criticism though, because the added depth, warm and musicality of the three other tracks is impressive. For proof, check the punchy, drowsy and bass-heavy 'Play on Playa', whose twinkling piano solos are a wonderful thing, and the laidback jazz-funk-meets-electro sunshine of EP opener 'Horizontal Bop'.

Review: Pretty much any DMX Krew record could be bought on sight, such is the consistently high quality of the Bedford-born producer's productions. Even so, we're particularly enjoying his latest electro excursion on Breakin'. In its original form, 'Night Creatures' is a sparkling slab of starfall, acid-fired electro gorgeousness boasting a fine spoken word vocal from Blak Tony. An acapella of that vocal is also included on side A, alongside a tougher, TB-303-fired Dub mix. Over on the flip DMX Krew switches to warehouse-ready rave mode via the throbbing electro-meets-80s house goodness of 'Bounce Your Body', before offering some Aux 88 style hedonism on 'Dynamic Jit'.

Review: The legendary Plant43 has his much loved and quick to sell out December 2020 EP Storm Control reissued in limited quantities here. The three tracks are electro perfection right from the off. The title cut 'Storm Control' is all glassy lines and slick boom bap, with celestial pads and plenty of spaced out signifiers. 'Hydraulic Machines' gets a little more pensive and roomy, with room to let the lush chord progressions really sink in while a knotted bass and drum combo carries on below. 'Sparks In The Grey Light' then slows things down yet further, with star gazing melodies and pixelated chords bring a future retro feel over a mournful baseline.

Review: It is not often that you see names as diverse but high quality as Neil Landstrumm, Matias Aguayo and Egyptian Lover on the same EP. Each is a leader in their own respective field and here they are joined by the equally innovative Tamburi Neri for a fantastic various artists release on Italy's Serendeepity. Neil Landstrumm serves up the EP highlight with 'Squweee,' which is a thrilling fusion of juke, electro and bass music. That bass drills deep, with claps chattering away up top and a vocal repeating the tracks title next to the odd blast of manic synth. It's unlike anything else and is sure to blow the roof off.

Review: Detroit's Filthiest is a master electro producer who puts many of the current crop to shame. This time out he sets his machine to warp speed and heads off on the thrillingly quick 'Space Invaders.' Things get a little deeper and more cavernous on 'Essence Of Darkness' with its silky drum loops and warming bass undercurrents. 'Pillow Talk' veers towards jungle territory with bittersweet pads and elegant, elastic drum programming that gets you locked in. Closer 'Euphoria' has beautifully tender chords over rugged drum breaks and the whole thing tugs at the heart strings in unique fashion.

Review: Fresh from delivering a superb debut album on Pinkman - the IDM, acid, breaks and electro fusion of Generatie Desinteresse - former Brkntoys artist Gamma Intel makes his bow on Mechatronica. He hits the ground running with the wild, acid-fired breakbeat-electro insanity of 'False Memories', before blurring the boundaries between electro, experimental drum and bass and trippy drug-chug on the odd (but genuinely superb) 'Magnetic Practice'. His love of early jungle style breakbeats is explored further on 'Fluid Theory', where a menacing, elongated analogue bassline rides skittish and crunchy drums, while closing cut 'School of Common Sense' is a thrillingly weird, out-there trip that flits between oddball modular ambience and moody, hot-stepping post-dubstep grooves.

Review: Over the last five years, Good Timin' supremo Jex Opolis has developed and fine-tuned a trademark sound that's more focused on dreamy synth sounds and dusty drum machine beats than any specific style or sub-genre. It's Me Jexy, his latest album, continues in this vein. After opening with the head-nodding, street soul-inspired warmth of 'It's Music', the Brooklyn beat-maker lays down a series of loved-up, breakbeat-driven turn-of-the-90s deep house gems ('Belly (Dance)', the impeccable 'Drive Safe', before using side two to variously offer up 8-bit electro ('Blue Quills'), tactile, synth-laden instrumental hip-hop ('Grab The Camcorder') and hard-to-pigeonhole slabs of colouful, tactile home listening bliss. In other words, it's another dreamy and kaleidoscopic excursion that's on-point from start to finish.

Review: Parisian label Partout has impressed those who watch the techno and electro underground thanks to a string of high-quality EPs. On Everywhere they set their sights a little higher, delivering a first compilation packed to the rafters with tidy tracks from a wide variety of European producers. There's plenty to enjoy, from Corp's album-opening acid-flecked deep space jacker and the sub-heavy, intergalactic electro of Saverio Celestri's 'Santo Stefano', to the crunchy breaks and revivalist electro flex of Le Loup's 'E Motion' and the quirky, cilourful electrofunk goodness of UHU's 'Lyntas Jazz', where spacey lead lines dance atop thickset synth bass and snappy beats.

Review: Back in the mid-to-late 2000s, Ed Chamberlain delivered a trio of EPs for Baselogic that set out his stall as a new generation IDM and electro producer whose melodic and rhythmic approach was favourable compared to the Black Dog and Plaid. This fine retrospective gathers together many of the tracks showcased on those EPs, alongside a handful of other tracks produced by Chamberlain during the same period. It's a wonderfully evocative and emotion-rich set all told, full of atmospheric and melodious concoctions - as well as a few nods towards wonky electro and Rephlex style "brain dance" - that tend towards the timeless and futuristic. If IDM and electronica floats your boat, we'd recommend grabbing a copy.

Review: Last month marked the 50th anniversary of the release of Blue, Joni Mitchell's most celebrated album. To coincide with this momentous birthday, the legendary singer-songwriter has decided to put out a box set containing remastered versions of first four studio albums she released, all of which were initially issued by Reprise Records. The peerless Blue is on there, of course, alongside her beautifully sweet and stripped-back 1968 debut, Song to a Seagull, the unconventional harmonies of Clouds (1969), and 1970's Ladies of the Canyon, arguably the first album in which Mitchell genuinely developed her artistic vision. The remastering work is superb, with each finger-picked riff and strummed chord audible in stunning definition.

Review: Grenoble-based Sekhem is back with its second various EP. This one features French producer Mohammed Vicente on the A side with the ferocious acid breaks of 'The Death Of Snake' as well as Moya81 with the early '80s synth pop of 'Synthetic Mind'. Over on the flip we have got international talents such as veteran Madrid producer Do/Or/Die who delivers the slamming sci-fi beats of 'Bleep Wave' while Italy's Davide Piras (Subwax Excursions/Mont Lake) does his best impression of legends Dopplereffekt on 'Rewind'.

Review: Everybody give a warm welcome to Electrowax, a brand new sub label from the prolific RAWAX crew. There are no prizes for guessing the musical MO of this new one, which kicks off with Saint Petersburg artist Kirill Junolainen aka Konerytmi. His six tracks are superb, right from the off. 'Pori Jazz' is all acid line and leggy drums, deep space pads and sleek future visions. There is hyper speed drum workouts on 'Ikkunat,' then 'Konekieli' gets more dark and textured, with blistering bass and pinging cow bells. Elsewhere the likes of 'Koodi' get more playful with bendy bass and trippy pads all making you want to get loose.

Review: The third release on Riga-based Electronic Leatherette's new sub label Heretic Electro is a various artists EP, featuring three underrated heroes of the underground and one debutant - all serving up killer machine funk. On the A side of Caustic Dreams we have Star-Kid with the dark sci-fi beats of "Apex" followed by Lectromagnetique who goes deeper into dystopia on the acid- tinged robot warfare of "Entropy". Over on the flip, they welcome The Last Robot who makes a promising start in production with the deep mechanics of "Saturn".