Direct Drive EP vinyl

Having made his name with releases for Tresor and Deeply Rooted, French producer Marcelus has adopted the well worn role of label boss with the Singular Records operation, but you can't fault the music that's surfaced on the label thus far. Marcelus himself helms this fifth Singular transmission, with a four track grip that really demonstrates his variety and prowess for techno that is both razor-sharp and trippy. Lead track "Direct Drive" encapsulates this approach perfectly, as a dusty, booming groove jack hammers its route through a wall of abstract sound design that feels oddly liquid and rubbery at the same time. "Savage Pattern" leans more on the abstract side of things, with a minimalist, almost tribal backbone wedged deep into a production that feels almost ominously alive. "Oneness" could easily be mistaken for a Terrence Dixon track, whilst "Incantation" is the sort of techno you want to hear testing the intricacies and acoustics of a confined warehouse space installed with a Function One.

Ben Sims, Stojche, Flori, Life Recorder, Ethyl, Dave Miller, Alex Font, AntonZap, Juno Recommends Techno, 3.14, Doo, Fulbert, Regen, Gareth Wild (EarToGround Records)