Amphia Romania 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Last year, Bucharest producer Vlad Caia impressed plenty of people with "Division I", a collection of experimental-minded minimal techno cuts that was the closest he's come - so far, at least - to releasing a debut album proper. This speedy sequel continues in a similar vein, offering up five more atmospheric cuts across two slabs of wax. He begins in confident fashion via the swirling, deep space pads, bubbly electronics and off-kilter tech-house drums of "Renaissance", before reaching for the droning analogue bass, jammed-out bleep melodies and smooth drums of bolder floor-filler "Cluster". Elsewhere, "Alkuon" sees Caia blend heavy sub-bass and swinging machine drums with sparkling electronics and liquid synth lines, while "Parallax" is a darker, moodier chunk of late night dancefloor science rich in "LFO" bass and off-kilter keys.

Review: We welcome any new release on Amphia with open ears, as it's one of the more finely curated Rominimal labels in our opinion. Following up great ones by Ferro, Christopher Ledger and Amorf, their latest one comes from scene stalwart Cristi Cons with his very first long-player. It features a wide selection of moods and grooves, all delivered in Cons' singular style as always. From the chilled-out yet immaculate beats of opener "Western Habits", or the blissful microhouse roller 'Flux', to the sunny open-air tech house of 'Soul Connection' and the downbeat IDM journey of closing cut 'Crossroads' - Out Of Cycle is a cohesive effort from start to finish.

Review: Amphia head honchos Cristi Cons and Vlad Caia team up again for another collaboration as SIT, exploring some interesting pathways to deepness that are more focused on such aesthetics than their usual solo endeavours which are more concerned with the dancefloor or getting really tripped out. Highlights include the sombre deep house of "Hallo" with those house organs reminiscent of Mr Fingers' "Can U Feel It", the dirty and groovy minimal funk of "Feel That Way" and the dark and tripped out afterhours groove of "Furtuna" which sees them return to their old ways in delightful fashion.

Review: Romanian minimal: often imitated, never bettered. Cristi Cons and Vlad Caia team up as SIT: this is one dream team if we've ever seen one! After the mesmerising and exotic intro of "Assemble" it's business as usual on the bumpy and deep workouts ''Permissive" and "Bootcamp" which of course come complete with mind bending and paranoid sound design that works a treat at those Sunday afterhours moments. Other highlights include the darkside sci-fi electro vibes of "Brooklyn: and the bouncy and downright epic 15 minute closer that is "Come Around" which features one seriously wonky bassline that'll wrap your brain in a knot; check it out! Tip!