Cititrax/minimal Wave Us 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: An-i is the excellent new project from Doug Lee, a man previously responsible for some superb dancefloor ammo as part of TBD alongside Justin Vandervolgen, as well as working with Lovefingers on more mellow fare as The Stallions. If you were one of the lucky few to grab his Bad News 12" with LIES don Ron Morelli then you'll be ready for the haywire nature of the Kino-i EP. Finding a perfect home on Minimal Wave offshoot Cititrax, the EP sees the Berlin based producer indulge his machine love on three variations of the same track that almost explode off the wax - must check for fans of Nation, LIES, Mathematics. Pressed up on fluorescent 160gm yellow vinyl and housed in a high gloss black and white sleeve.

Review: An-i is the alias of Berlin-based Korean-American Doug Lee, an artist with over two decades in the game already under several different monikers. This is the third EP to come under this name since debuting it in 2015 and finds him in an even more bold and adventurous mode than ever. Opener 'Rabble' is controlled techno chaos, a flurry of whirring machines and unrelenting drums that will frazzle your brain. 'Rubble' is just as intense, a big wall of rusted synth work and industrial noise mangled into something rhythmic and futuristic. 'Chapel Perilous' on the flip then offers up a spaced-out journey deep into the inner psyche. A welcome return from a truly singular artist that comes on fluorescent yellow wax.

Review: Sometime Trilogy Tapes and Zodiac 44 artist Buttechno (real name Pavel Milyakov) arrives on Minimal Wave offshoot Cititrax with his fourth album-length excursion. It could well be his best to date too, as we can confirm it has very few flaws, but plenty of atmospheric, ear catching fare to enjoy. He begins with the fuzzy, metallic mid-tempo techno creepiness of "March Cherskogo", before proceeding to flit between smooth horror-techno ("Back 2 The E"), melodious and spacey electro ("Elektroshirka", the foreboding "AXF"), mind-altering intergalactic chug ("Slow Durk") and sparse, crackling industrial techno (L.I.E.S-ish closer "808 Exec Dirty").

Review: The lesser spotted Minimal Wave offshoot Cititrax gets manoeuvred back into the spotlight for something special. Working together with Veronica Vasicka, South Florida electro punk icons Futurisk tasked four of their biggest fans with remixing their iconic track "Lonely Streets". Perhaps closest to their hearts is the remix from the legendary Chris Carter, which Futurisk's Jeremy Kosoline acknowledges was how they would have liked the original to sound back in 1982 had they the equipment and time. Alongside the shimmering analogue brilliance of Carter's version, NYC fixture Prince Language also steps up with a haunting mid tempo industrial disco version. On the flip, Citinite's Complexxion embellishes the track with some synth heavy retro electro goodness whilst Tom Furse of The Horrors adds yet another fine remix to his CV with a heavily arpeggiated lean.

Review: Minimal Wave offshoot Cititrax present this compelling addendum release to Immaterial Visions, the excellent LP from rising leather clad duo The KVB. An illustrious cast of producers have been invited to remix tracks from the album, with Jealous God/DNS pair Regis and Silent Servant joined by Minimal Wave act In Aeternam Vale and Avian duo Shifted and Ventress - the latter as Worn. Regis remixes "Dayzed" which is clearly a favourite of the Downwards icon, having previously selected the track for inclusion on last year's So Click Heels compilation; in O'Connor's hands the song is given a fizzing revision that relegates all sonic elements deep beneath the swaggering bass riff. Mere remnants of The KVB remain intact on Shifted's remix of "I Only See The Lights" as the intensity of feedback is transformed into a taut, minimalist growl, whilst Silent Servant offers a subtle smudged cold wave remix of "Pray To The Light Machine". Despite their massive discography, In Aeternam Vale are unknown quantities to many outside MW/Cititrax enthusiasts but the Lyon act are in fine form with their stomping take on "Lines" whilst Ventress debuts the Worn project with a swampy reverb-laden sinister cosmiche recast of "Old Life".

Review: The don of Birmingham techno Karl O'Connor serves up some live rarities courtesy of retroverts Cititrax. Features recently uncovered recordings of a Regis performance in NYC on January 4th, 1997 at the famed Film Academy. His unmistakeable sound and influence is integral to the DNA of the techno sound, blatantly copied but never matched. Some classics from the Downwards catalogue are contained on this EP in all their austere fashion. "We Said No" "Translation" and "Careless Pedestrian" from his seminal 1996 LP Gymnastics being highlights. The original tapes were discovered by Evan Kreeger, studio work/transfers by James Ruskin in London and audio mastered by Veronica Vasicka in New York.

Review: Self-proclaimed "techno body music" duo Schwefelgelb seem a neat fit with Cititrax, the Minimal Wave sub-label set up to handle contemporary electronic music rather than reissues. There's something particularly muscular, robust and otherworldly about their label debut, which remarkably is their first EP of original tracks for two years. Opener "Die Dunne Hand" sets the tone, with the pair conjuring up a throbbing, mind-altering EBM-funk workout that sounds like an unlikely Nitzer Ebb cover version of the KLF's "What Time Is Love", while "Auf Die Erde" sees them wrap crunchy percussion and dystopian vocal snippets around a surging EBM bassline. Side B begins with the stripped-back metallic mutant funk of "Die Augen Gehen", before the duo dives into chugging, flash-fried industrial/electro/techno fusion on the mind-bending "Das Blid Das Wiederkehrt".

Review: ** Repress ** If you've been keeping abreast of all things Minimal Wave this year, you'll probably have picked up on Veronica Vasicka hinting at a forthcoming split release from Silent Servant and Broken English Club, the new project from UK techno man Oliver Ho. We've certainly been eagerly awaiting it her at Juno HQ and it's great to see Violence And Divinity live up to and surpass these expectations! Silent Servant mans the A Side with two tracks that will be familiar to anyone that's been lucky enough to catch his live sets of late, indeed it's almost too easy to visualise the flashing strobes as the pummelling EBM lines of "Cut Unconscious" unravel and beat you down. The two accompanying productions from Ho's Broken English Club dovetail nicely, but veer off into more wave orientated territory, with "Divinity" sounding quite like some of the earlier material put out by In Aeternam Vale. In a word superb.

Review: Future Fusion is the killer debut set from Streetwalker, the collaborative project of White Car's Elon Katz and Beau Wanzer of Mutant Beat Dance/L.I.E.S. fame. The DIY ethos of primitive Chicago house seeps into the pair's work as Streetwalker, with the material that forms Future Fusion recorded live in one take. This was subsequently recorded without any overdubs or MIDI to one inch tape, with the resultant six tracks resonating with a loose, primal energy. Sitting uneasily between house, industrial, synth-pop and EBM, Future Fusion is one of those records that you simply cannot second guess. This being a Cititrax release, the presentation is second to none too, with some superb illustration work from the well respected graphic artists Spencer Longo, but in truth the music should be the real focus of attention here.

Review: Cititrax present the sinewy synthwave sound of Tornische, a project first showcased on label boss Veronica Vasicka's Resident Advisor mix from earlier this year. We don't know much about them, but neither does it matter when the music is this good. The reference points are clear, but Tornische don't sound bogged down by nostalgia. Their tracks bristle with energy, and the interplay between the vocalists is theatric and ineffably cool in the same breath. Meanwhile the productions are deceptively nuanced even as they stalk in the raw alleyways first traipsed by plucky '80s bedroom studio dreamers.