Today Only: Leftfield sale vinyl

Review: The enigmatic Black Swan's Repetition Hymns is a gorgeous collection of 19 short pieces that all add up to a great sense of momentum. Well suited to the slow passing of time that we have all endured during lockdown, the ambient pieces range from frosty and angst ridden to more pure and heavenly. As each imperfect loop unfolds, it changes in infinitesimally minor ways that only reveal themselves if you really give yourself over and get deeply immersed for the duration. Ad you should, because it is a great and rewarding use of time.

Review: When Marie Davidson announced last year that she would be, "retiring from club music", many wondered what she'd do next. Renegade Breakdown, her first album recorded with a full band (L'Oeil Nu), answers that question. It sees the Canadian artist and her new collaborators deliver suitably arresting, personal and ear-catching songs built on mixing and matching a surprisingly wide variety of musical inspirations, from Blondie, classic disco and mutilated heavy metal guitars, to Kraftwerk, Billie Holiday, Fleetwood Mac and Daft Punk. It's a big shift for the previously highly experimental artist, but thanks to her skill as both a a producer and performer, one that works magnificently well.

Review: Tabernacle turn their attention towards the industrial side of their musical repertoire with this hard-hitting release from Russian and French outfit UVB76. Hot on the heels of their S A N album on Teenage Menopause, this formidable duo serve up a searing blend of classic EBM pressure and contemporary flair, veering from the Skinny Puppy-esque stomp of "Extend" to the bruising Vex'd-tinted dubstep flex of "Ckahep". "Rust" locks into a jagged, darkside techno rut, while "Helm" gets artful with space and noise sculpture. "Citizen" offers the most measured track on the release, an uneasily submerged kind of electro noir for tortured souls.

Review: Legendary Blackpool post-punk, later electronic band Section 25 - consisting of brothers Larry and Vin Cassidy - first formed in 1978. Initial associations with Factory Records and frequent touring partners Joy Division were more than enough to propel them into the limelight, and the ensuing glory translates well into the modern day - as evidenced by Retrofit, their seventh album. First released in 2010, the album features new versions of some of their classic songs, such as 'Looking From A Hilltop', 'Dirty Disco' and 'Girls Don't Count'. A nostalgic, dreamy, and honest Northern electro/synth sound predominates, harking back to an unmistakable golden age. Now reissued on Factory's Belgian counterpart Factory Benelux, we hear a fresh LP remaster and a new track, 'Uberhymn'.

Review: King Underground have started a cute series of 7" releases that looks back to the golden era fo library music. The genre was born as a result of TV, film and radio programs needing music to add drama, atmosphere and mood without the expensive licensing costs of using existing tracks. A wealth of musicians thus recorded endless instrumental tracks of all shapes and sizes and now we're treated to some of the best of them. Sam Fonteyn's 'One Way Trip' comes as warm and cool versions with the first bring a low slung bit of vibes-laced funk and the second a more mysterious piece lead by a flute.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: Gravity Graffiti has been doing great things with its series of split 12"s already, but now the Italian label goes one better for its tenth release with this mighty double pack of heavy hitters. First up is the ever-untouchable Yoshinori Hayashi, who gets as straight up as he possibly could with the freaky house burner "Dissociative." Telephones is feeling particularly dubbed out and groovy on "Kalimbalimbo", while DB.Source and Riccardo Schiro take things strung out and textural on "Montevago". Dynamo Dreesen is in rave mode for the pepped up and delightfully weird "Reactivate", leaving the final side to Oyvind Morken & Kaman Leung's chugging "Tunnel Visjon" and the rubbery side swipes of Acidboychair's "The End (At Any Speed)".

Review: There's not a huge amount we can say with certainty about O$VMV$M. The act is based in Bristol, UK, and certainly reinforce preconceptions of the city as a hotbed for leftfield stuff. Whether that's politics, art, or, in this case, music. Or perhaps all three. Beach Road is as much an exercise in sound-as-art as it is music per se, and as such is a strong statement about the lack of vision and imagination stalking streaming services and record shops alike in 2023.

None of which is to say that O$VMV$M's six-track EP isn't packed with incredible music. 'Diablo', one of the wildest, strangest efforts here, is disjointed mutant pop-electronica that seems like someone is warming up for an MPC showcase, and exemplifies our point. It's pleasurable to hear, but fascinating to take apart. Similar points can be made about the sparse, glitchy percussion of 'Beach Road' and 'Follow', making this one for the deep dive enthusiasts.