Back in stock: Leftfield

Review: A fierce meeting of minds you may never have expected, but that makes total sense - the mighty Bjork crossing swords with Fever Ray in an exchange of remixes with blistering results. Iceland's foremost musical visionary is in full warrior mode as she tackles Fever Ray's "This Country Makes It Hard To Fuck", delivering a nightmarish techno jackhammer full of monolithic kicks and sheet metal scrapings. Then Bjork's "Features Creatures" gets two versions from Karin Dreijer - first the Fever Ray remix that pumps and locks in an otherworldly mechanism that wouldn't sound out of place on one of Bjork's Mark Bell-produced albums. Then comes a sprightly version from Dreijer's other project, The Knife, which bounds along at an urgent pace with a skippy rhythm section and plenty of hyphy synth vamps.

Review: Leftfield heroes Don't DJ and NWAQ (aka Newworldaquarium) nudge their own sonic boundaries on Fashion, a fantastic mini album for on Meakusma. The tracks were recorded live at Meakusma Festival 2019 and at a residency preceding the Belgian event and fuse weird percussive techniques, glassy synths and airy light house with abstracted techno sound. It's a collage of sonic experiments that burrows deep into your brain one moment ('Central Bern/No Burn') and then sooth you the next ('Vanessa'). It's is the collision of two distinctive styles and thrilling new ground that is found as a result that makes this such a compelling record.

Review: Rod Modell's Music For Bus Stations, released by Silentes in Italy, is a masterful exploration of ambient and dub techno that immerses listeners in a transcendent soundscape. Known for his Detroit roots and innovative use of old-school recording techniques like tape loops and echo devices, Modell crafts a sonic experience that seamlessly integrates with modern architecture. The album serves as a generative backdrop, enhancing the atmosphere of bus stations with its ethereal and progressive sounds. Designed to complement rather than clash with architectural elements, the composition creates a constantly evolving, organic sound tapestry. By utilising polyrhythmic elements and shifting sonic phenomena, Modell's work induces a state of calm and reflection. Inspired by avant-garde bus station designs, such as those by Domitianus Arquitectura and Bluck & Morgen, Music For Bus Stations transforms everyday spaces into immersive sound environments. The result is a living, unpredictable auditory experience that elevates the mundane to the sublime, perfectly capturing the essence of ambient exploration. Act fast if you want a copy, Rod Modell fans are die-hards!

Review: This collaborative album from Rob Modell (Deepchord) and Taka Noda (Mystica Tribe) presents a brand new and compelling East-West dialogue in the mode of noir ambient dub. It also provides ample opportunity for these two greats of the genre to take a break from the monikers and operate under their own names - reflecting this one's specialness. If the album cover is anything to go by, this is could almost certainly be described as the equivalent of the film Chungking Express condensed into musical form, but musically, Glow World is just that - a glowing world - hauntingly pitting rain patters, chord releases and consonant yet conflicted pads into great overhead swarms of sound.

Review: Following 2023's When A Worm Wears A Wig, Robin Stewart returns with Crinkle and delivers a set of warped dub techno tracks that apply advanced dub logic to precise, pointillistic rhythms. Channelling influences like Peder Mannerfelt and Rrose, Stewart revives classic genre tropes with a fresh perspective that dives deeper into the physicality of sound and focuses on bass throbs over aggressive kicks. Standout tracks like 'Stomach' surprise with lolloping off-grid beats soaked in lysergic textures while 'Compact' delivers a more traditional peak-time vibe with innovative processing. The title track brings everything together with mind-bending spectral rhythms.