(Emotional) Especial 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Especial welcomes one Alphonse to the label. A true missing in action, last seen by his crew dancing atop a bus, here literally forced him to give up the tape of Same For Me. A peane to his life? Possi bly. Mixing techno beats and (proto) rave breaks, all under his own unique and heartfelt message. Discovered on the outskirts of Letchlade, down the bottom of an abandoned traveller site in a delapidated caravan with just the clothes he was in, while clutching an armful of reel-to-reels masters, a pack of 20 B&H and 1 can of Strongbow, Alphonse's story is one of party obsessive gone AWOL. Mumbling periodically, words deciphered and names dropped. Frome, Stroud and whisper it, Castlemorton, led to rehabitlation, a bath, shave and slowly enticing is musical knowledge to share. With a few scraps appearing here and there, including a micro(dot) of disco editing knowhow given, here though he finally is able to share his experiences by looking back through making music of the future. Same For Me starts with Sterns intent, all hats, kick and fx to the max, a Fantazia of expression, before toms and 808 snap and the sermon begins. But wait, where is the bass? Boom! Subs squeeze ribs while flute lifts minds skywards. "A valuable tool in life. Concentrate on something makes you happy..." To bring this in to fold, the Junior family member is given the tapes to show what he can do. The most subtle start lulls you in to a sense of is that it? There must be more. Building. Building. Break and...hands to the sunrise. "...Thank you. Same For Me. Same For Me."

Review: Collaborations are often the fortune of timing. With Andy having moved on since closing the Dissident label to launching his Cave Paintings project to Tim's departure from Battant and striking out as Andrew Weatherall's engineer and soon to be co-member of The Asphodells, an alliance was born between the two to undertake a series of live jam sessions at each's respective studios. A love of new wave, new beat, UK Bleep and Detroit techno all feature in B-Ultras and the aptly titled, Neu Beat. Both cuts are heavily soaked in the pitch black, smoke machine funk and strob-laden fug of Andy's (and co-hort Joe Hart) infamous World Unknown dancefloor. Running at around 10 minutes the tracks are essentially an examination of acid house's ideals. Clattering hats, throbbing basslines, stabbing keys and doses of 303. Keeping it pretty simple but all about a pure groove on and on. Backing these up is a remix of B-Ultras from Jamie Paton that accentuates the groove and drags the acid deeper down to some B-boy Dub throwdown - with more to follow from all protagonists in 2014.

Review: It's been a hot minute since Timothy J. Fairplay slipped on his Junior Fairplay guise, but he's done just that for this bleep-tastic new 12" on (Emotional) Especial. "End Of Love" is unabashed in its embrace of early Yorkshire techno tones, making a fine job of resurrecting the bleep spectre and letting it shake up the dance once more. Roy Of The Ravers is a smart choice of remixer, and he brings an off-kilter acid rub to the table in his idiosyncratic, braindance-inflected style. The B-side is equal laden with purposefully dusty dance grooves transplanted from the late 80s / early 90s, with "Faxes From The Future" hitting a particularly sharp point in its lazy breakbeat roll and the clanging harmonies of the stabs.

Review: Odopt have been responsible for some serious, sinewy heaters on labels like Born Free, 777 and Discos Capablanca. That should give you some idea of the kind of sonic sphere they operate in - rugged hardware house with a wavey bite and a playful instinct. It makes total sense then to see them sidle up to [Emotional] Especial with this four-tracker of surefooted deviant dance. 'A14' opens up proceedings on an ominous bassline and plenty of mechanical grind, while 'Keylat' jacks things up a smidge while resolutely wallowing in the muck of Odopt's studio practices. 'Sample Commerce Shot' is the catchiest cut on the record, riding a slinky beat and featuring a powerful lead hook that sounds beamed in from somewhere in a distant galaxy. 'Holy Motor$' finishes the record off on another brooding, death disco groover, bringing things full circle with the nocturnal offerings of 'A14'.

Review: Richard Sen's last outing on [Emotional] Especial - the bleep revival brilliance of "Songs of Pressure" - was something of a stone cold killer, so hopes are naturally high for this belated follow-up. The title track again digs deep for inspiration, doffing a cap to the starry futurism of Detroit, psychedelic acid and the drum-machine driven jack of early Chicago house. The flipside Dub of the same track takes it into uncharted territory, with hazy, drawn-out chords and post-production effects only serving to emphasize the heavy nature of Sen's vintage groove. Bonus "Shoc Horracore" explores similar territory, while offering a knowing wink towards obscure 1980s horror movie soundtracks and the bold synthesizer lines of Italo-disco.