Review: Altone aka. Yuki Takasaki is a champion channeller of dub techno trueness, having made many a wave on the Tokyo underground scene already; his efforts come to a renewed head on the new EP for Primary Colours, 'Wonderscape Numinous', a high-impedance, phantom-powered trip through figurative J-scapes; to 'Self-Replication', 'Adaptive Swarm' and 'Wonderscape Numinous', we imagine a simulacrum web of nanobots splayed across the city, their many lens refocusings and field reconfigurations emitting a syntonic electric hum. The closer is especially beautiful, haunting the nighttime itinerant ear with cutoff chord ricochets and an endless fumbling foley sound; the sound recalls a restless cyborg, endlessly fiddling with its field recording equipment as though it were a dopaminergic Rubik's cube.
Review: If you're familiar with imprints like Nous'laer Audio, AD93, Tikita, or Semantica, but haven't yet explored the galaxy of sound coming from Ahrpe Records, now's your chance. Amandra is one of two heads behind said stable, and here the French producer shows everyone what time it is with a space walk through acid warbles and tribalistic rhythms. Neither of which give a particularly accurate description of what's here, but both are defining features of the tracks and EP as a whole. Whether it's the jazz-imbued shuffle of 'Prorokini', the phat wobbling steps of 'Brera Som Som' itself, or the wall of distorted percussion on 'Fanfaron', all four originals are standouts and hard to compare, while the cherry-picked remixes show just how much can be done with what's here, if the right ears are involved.
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: Apoena is the alias of Henrique Casanova, a DJ and producer from Brazil who heads up Allnite Music which presents his latest effort titled Oceanos Extintos. The mesmerising dub tech house of opener 'Eu Lembro' calls to mind classic Thibideau brothers, leading in to the frozen borders of the title track which will engulf you in its cavernous sound. Over on the flip, the steely and pummelling 'Trabalho Bracal' is by far the fiercest cut on offer, and the collaboration with Zenta Skai 'Fosseis' takes a u-turn on this trippy and contemplative electro jam.
Review: Hungarian-born, Dublin-based Phil Robertson has some pedigree but Arbilla is a new name he's operating under, and indeed there seems to be a slightly more musical, less relentless angle to his once defiantly minimal sound to go with the new moniker too. He provides three of the four tracks here, from the chunky and dramatic 'Stranger Things' and the breezy, spacious 'Fragrance' to the EP's glorious title track, with its Plaid-like syncopation and spiralling melodies. Mysterious techno 'supergroup' from Detroit, Scan 7 remix 'Virtual Reality' and they whip it into thunderclapping Underground Resistance shape. Greatness in evidence whichever way you turn.
Review: Tristan Arp's second album on Facta and K-Lone's Wisdom Teeth is a multidimensional exploration of sound blending pin-drop rhythms, ethereal vocals and swirling ambience. The writing started in Mexico City and was completed in New York and through the tracks, Arp fuses modular synths, cello, found sounds and spoken word to craft a rich world where nature and technology converge. Inspired by the idea of machines collaborating with nature, the album's hopeful tone envisions a future of rewilding and new possibilities across tracks that were performed live and improvised throughout. Many standout moments include the 10-minute 'Life After Humans' which ogres a beautiful escape.
Review: Italian-born/Berlin-based DJ & Producer Pasquale Ascion delivers his second LP since 2016, comprised of largely 303 centered sounds. Acidtraum is a journey into the dark side of the genre, with a dozen tracks that combine lysergic synths, heavy drums and haunting ambience. Further showcasing the Neapolitan producer's wide sonic repertoire, there are moments of bass-heavy electro as heard on 'It Began With That Sound', throwbacks to early hardcore rave sounds explored on 'Needless' (Troller Coaster Kaos mix) and wild Italo reinterpretations ('Tribute To Bad Passion') in addition to many straight ahead techno bangers.
Review: LILA mainstay Ayaavaaki and ambient veteran Purl speak different languages but used a translator to convey ideas to one another as they made this record. And they very much foment their own unique musical language on Ancient Skies, an album that blends ambient, drone and space music into richly layered soundscapes that are constantly on the move. Each piece is meticulously crafted and suspense you up amongst the clouds, hazing on at the smeared pads and swirling solar winds that prop you up. It's a record that would work as well in the depths of winter as a bright spring day such is the cathartic effect of the sounds. Beautiful, thought-provoking and innovative, this is as good an ambient record as we have heard all year.
Review: The seemingly unstoppable rise of De:tuned continues, as they take a break from serving up sci-fi techno, IDM and ambient techno to deliver something a lot more intense: a surprise EP from original House of God Birmingham resident DJ Paul 'Damage' Bailey. Channeling the spirit of his friend Surgeon while offering up something fresh, the two original tracks on show are undeniably inspired. 'Hadal Zone' adds weirdo noises, bleeps and mind-mangling electronic pulses to a slipped Afro-techno groove, while 'Decompression' is a wonky, triple-time workout full of Ket-addled electronics and wayward loops. Makaton re-imagines that track as a locked-in late-night techno throb-job, while James Ruskin turns 'Hadal Zone' into a buzzing, industrial-influenced electro-bleep number.
Review: James Bangura steps into the ring with his new Shadow Boxing EP which is named in honour of his grandfather, Carroll Daniel Smith, who boxed for the US Army in WWII. It's a punchy take on tech house from the off, with 'Hazy Recall (Airdrop mix)''s off-grid beats swinging in from all directions with same the potency as a Mike Tyson uppercut. 'Drown It Out' has a garage swing to it as it slips and sides as fluidly as Mayweather's defence and 'Shadow Boxing' floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. Last of all is 'Analyze, Socialize' which will have you on the ropes and sweating in no time.
Review: Banyek is next up on the prolific Lithuanian label Greyscale with Alue, a new album that marks the imprint's 37th full-length overall. It is a typically expansive and immersive listen that takes inspiration from cities like Riga and Espoo. Dub techno, ambient and experimental all infuse the sound waves and the intricate craft of Banyek means you're always hooked onto some small detail as the gentle rhythms flow over you. There are stark melodies and more airy atmospheres, minimalism masterpieces and calming sounds a plenty as this most super exploration of tone, time and texture plays out.
Review: Well Curated is a series of releases and parties that - in its own words - "reflects the ethnomusicology of the last 50 years of music" - and aims to reach into all genres, merging classic styles and breaking down barriers. Steve Spacek occupies the A-side with the breezy broken beat and soul-in-space of 'Alone In Da Sun', while Lukid's 'Hair Of The Dog' is a more intense counterpart, with wobbling sub-bass and swirling, surging atmospherics hovering above.
Review: Bezier returns to Dark Entries with Valencia, a six track rumination on memory, geography, and transmutation. Multi-instrumentalist Robert Yang's Bezier project has appeared on Dark Entries many times over the last decade, most recently with the 2018 LP Parler Musique. Says Yang, "What started as a project to investigate the love of the sound and scenery while living in San Francisco quickly developed into a passionate search for interlocking melodies and driving rhythms." On Valencia, Bezier invokes twinned places. The Valencia Street of San Francisco is channeled, which was the center of the city's vibrant new wave scene in the 1980s. But also echoed is Valencia, Spain, and La Ruta del Bakalao aka La Ruta Destroy, the Spanish clubbing scene throughout the 80s and 90s famed for its aggressive and synthetic sounds. Valencia is a darker record for Yang, exploring themes of submission and catharsis with nods to SF's gay leather bars of the 70s and 80s. The high BPM salvos of "Valencia" and "Scrupulous" capture the frantic energy of Bakalao and Valencian wave acts like Oltima Emocion. Elsewhere Yang mines the dreamy space disco and Hi-NRG sounds they're known for, like on the brooding "Past the Marshes" or the anthemic "Reservoir", which features their partner Len.Leo on vocals. Bezier deftly navigates past and present, light and dark, pain and pleasure, the stasis of memory and the flux of time. Valencia was mastered by Alex Michalski, with EQ for vinyl done by George Horn. Gwenael Rattke designed the sleeve, which features an 80's punk zine-esque geometric grid pattern mirroring San Francisco street maps. Also included is a 5x7 postcard with notes.
Review: Bezier's Negative Velocity EP marks the launch of their new German-based label Korperspannung. Formerly a Californian artist and now a Berlin resident, Bezier has a career spanning nearly two decades, from illuminating the Honey Soundsystem collective to releasing on Dark Entries records. Known for weaving diverse cultural influences, lifelong music enthusiast Robert Yang collaborates with Bay Area drummer Dave Easlick here as live drum recordings morph into curves and ellipses to shape a multi-dimensional landscape. Tracks like 'Diabolical Embroidery' and 'Deep Sea State' showcase Easlick's drumming prowess and infused with Bezier's melodic craftsmanship, reflect a meticulous working collaboration.
Review: Bleep techno formed as a result of likening the arpeggiated bleeping of techno, with the sound of contempoary bleeps: small toy robots, Speak n' Spells, the digital chatter of sci-fi foley in franchises like Star Trek and Star Wars. Now, music editor Jurgen Laarmann argues vehemently that bleep is back, and in EP form, likens its resurgence with the advent of NFTs and cryptocurrencies. 'NFT', therefore, is a four-tracker like no other, with the banging original track coming together with Bleep stalwarts including Michael wells, Tricky Disco and Justus Kohncke.
Review: Blue Hour is very close to a quarter of a century of releases but just ahead of that notable milestone the label daunter and eponymous techno project step up with two bangers on a nice limited 12". 'Dimensions' is a brilliantly unbalanced techno workout with distant church bells bringing some unusual chaos to the high-speed drums and prickly percussion. It's a great one that will cut any floor loose. 'Sun Dogz' on the flip gets even quicker and fires lasers out like bullets. High octane stuff that is pure fire for the club.
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