Review: Following the release of a swathe of fine collaborative singles over the past couple of months, Keinmusik regulars Adam Portm Rampa and &Me unveil their second collaborative album, which lands four years after its acclaimed predecessor, You Are Safe. Send Return is an undeniably attractive, collaboration-heavy set, with the experienced trio cannily blending elements of tech-house, deep house, soft-touch techno, street soul and nu-disco to create a wonderfully warm, woozy and melodious hybrid sound. Highlights include Yet Full collaboration 'Paris' -a kind of 21st century take on Soul II Soul - the sleazy, Italo-influenced throb of Bell Towers hook-up 'Pay To Play', and the summer-fresh deep house warmth of 'Saving My Luv', featuring Little Dragon.
Review: Kiasmos is the duo of Icelandic composer olafur Arnalds and Faroese musician Janus Rasmussen. To celebrate the tenth anniversary of their iconic debut album, it now gets reissued on a limited blue vinyl pressing of only 2000 copies. This album has been streamed over 100 million times on Spotify and is a cornerstone of experimental and ambient music that has inspired many artists around the world. Following the success of their recent album II, this anniversary release reminds us of the pair's beginnings when two friends were simply experimenting and creating music together in the studio. It has aged well and prices a great release from busy modern life into a world of supple rhythm and delicate, tender melody.
Review: Sheffielder Matthew Relton - initially known as Kidnap Kid, but now releasing as Kidnap - has been on quite a musical journey since first emerging as a boisterous garage and UK bass producer early last decade. His first full-length, 2020's Grow, showcased his maturation as an artist by focusing on songs and instrumentals that tended towards the tactile and picturesque. On this follow-up, he's leaned further into the "artist maturing" theme via a blend of picturesque songs (voiced by regular collaborator Ian Stannard, Gabrielle Apin and others') and ambient instrumentals shot through with yearning, oblique nostalgia, delicate instrumental arrangements and plenty of sweeping, cinematic chord sequences. It's not pop, per se, but it is hugely accessible with tons of crossover potential. Expect to see him on festival stages in the months and years ahead.
Review: The remix has long been a staple of underground dance music culture and for its next release German label The Other Side has pulled together a whole album's worth of them. They find various key talents all their own minimal spin to tracks by Pheek and Kike Mayor. Up first is Audio Werner with the first of two remixes of 'Caveat' that is all silky tones and waves of rippling synth. Elsewhere 'Red Square' (Flabbergast remix) is a curling and rubbery rhythm with dry hits, 'Mad River' (Lowris remix) is a curious and lumpy roller with tripped-out spoken words and 'Matcha Breaks' (Mihigh remix) is a late night wonder.
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