NO MORE - Love, Noise & Paranoia (1979 - 2019) [Rent A Dog]

Ten years in the business is a long time for a band. Twenty years is a dream most of them never even can aspire to reach. Double that and you'll get to an astounding four decades on stage, an impressive achievement that our Kronshagen-based friends of NO MORE are celebrating in 2019 with the release of their new album "Love, Noise & Paranoia (1979 - 2019)",  a compilation piece which caters a selection of 13 tracks spanning their entire musical career to their fanbase - their monster hit "Suicide Commando" included amongst previously unreleased material and re-recordings of beloved classics. Whilst the collage'esque opener "Inside 1979" feels like a dark, brooding time capsule perfectly depicting the intense, greyscale atmosphere the band was born into in the late 70s  / early 80s which is also reflected in songs of this era like the raw "So Unreal" and "Our Dreams" whereas "It Feels Like 1925" indulges in a certain take on melancholia meets JazzNoir. On the other hand recent re-recordings of pieces like the highly dramatic "Istanbul", the krautsy "Teenage Years" or the tense, dancefloor smashing "Do You Dream Of Angels In This Big City?" provide a careful touch up for songs well known and appreciated by NO MORE's fanbase and previously unreleased cuts "What About Us", another thundering peaktime affair, and the dark'ish PostPunk ballad "A Different Kind Of Woman" defo prove why the band's signature sound still remains relevant up to this day and after all these years. Defo an impressive collection of songs, this. Highly recommended.

øjeRum - Alting Falder I Samme Rum [Sound In Silence 065]

A new addition to the roster of the Greek Ambient imprint Sound In Silence is the Copenhagen-based artist named Paw Grabowski who's operating under the guise of øjeRum since 2007, with a highly increased output volume since 2014. With the album named "Alting Falder I Samme Rum" consisting of seven numbered tracks of the same name we see the Danish artist building a sonic landscape of warm, organic and highly comforting, repetetively bubbling synth melodies reminiscent of early 90s ChillOut floors and IDM of this specifically explorative era, immediately evoking memories of long gone scene staples like Berlin's Interference Records in their overall friendliness whilst adding soft, beautifully lush string works and rich, well calming pads to the sonic recipe to provide nothing but pure relaxation and a classic Ambient blueprint that should be included in every electronic music lovers collection - although only 200 hand-numbered copies of this masterpiece are available worldwide. Top notch. Get.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Wabi Experience - Wabi Experience [Mikroton Recordings 074]

Coming in without further detailed press information from the Russian label Mikroton Recordings is the same titled album by Wabi Experience on which, according to the notes on the CD cover, 'no musical instruments were used during making of this album'. This approach seems to be true for the eleven tracks presented over the course of 41 minutes, although executive producer and designer Kurt Liedwart alongside the sampling and sequencing duo Federsel & Tarnovski manage to create a lively, slightly nervous and well fascinating artificial sonic realm which seems to either depict a far flung future or the musical creations of a an entity existing in a simulation within a simulation, fusing Phonk-driven Electronica with Ambient sequences in cuts like the opening tune "Never Mind" whilst bringing forth an amalgamation of dry, creepy, digital Illbient and beautiful pads as well as isolationist guitar tones in "Breaking Thumbs" whereas cuts like the "Outsider Tango" are even referencing genres like glitched out Dub in conjunction with Clicks'n'Cuts, "November Is Gone" combines atmospheric DarkAmbient and elements of ritualistic FutureTribal and "The Fourth Floor Of Sadness" brings forth a super dark, dystopian sci-fi vibe of score'esque quality just to name a few. Good stuff, this. Check.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Xposed 4Heads - Stuck In Orbit (Official Video)

Our statewise friends from Milwaukee take space themes to new extremes with a catchy little song here that's about to evolve into a big time SynthWave / WavePop banger as soon as it hits dancefloors all over the globe.

Traxman - 4 Da Lyfe

A killer Juke / Footwork cut taken off of the new forthcoming Traxman album "Tekvision Volume 2" which is about to be released on July 2nd, 2k19.

Ken Vandermark & Terrie Ex - Scaffolding [Terp Records 030]

Released via the Dutch Terp Records-imprint on May 10th, 2k19 is "Scaffolding", the new full on collaboration album forged by Terrie Ex and Ken Vandermark who've shared stages and recording experiences numerous times over the years and have been performing as a distinct duo since 2014. With their recent longplayer the pair caters a menu of ten impressive improvisation pieces stretched over the course of 34 minutes, fusing and forcing their instruments - tenor saxophone, clarinet and guitar - into a turbulent, brutalist maelstrom of jumpy sonic freestyle and total musical freedom, redefining the boundaries of and between music and pure noise even for experienced listeners whilst catering an alarming, intense crescendo that's defo not one for the faint-hearted but a recommendation for all listeners who like to search for extremes in whatever genre. Even though tunes like "Instant Extant" unveil a deeper, intimiate and more Post-PostRock related side of the duos work as well. File under: Free Improv for the headstrong.

Album artwork on Instragram!

Arovane & Porya Hatami - C.H.R.O.N.O.S. [Karlrecords 067 Promo]

Released on April 26th, 2k19 via Karlrecords is "C.H.R.O.N.O.S.", the third collaborational album effort created by electronic music staple Arovane alongside Porya Hatami which consists of a total of five new tracks opening with "Ellipsoid", a nearly ten minutes spanning excursion into scraping, atmospheric Ambient territories with a well calming, meditative twist reminiscent of early Oval works alongside faded piano tones whereas the follow up "Cycloid" slowly revolves around a steady flow of super soft pads and subtle panoramic strings accompanied by vintage surface crackles and a certain, well obvious melancholia. Furthermore we see "Catenoid" providing a beautiful blueprint for slowly evolving Ambient music in 2019, "Helicoid" caters a warm, yearning and organic vibe with a little maritime twist and the final cut "Cissoid" harks back to all embracing Oval'esque goodness again for a well intimate, hyper calm closing. Ambient for lovers.

Sascha Müller [Supersix Records Extra 086]

Fresh on the circuit via the unstoppable, ever busy imprint Supersix Records is Sascha Müller's new untitled twelve track album which sees the Uelsen-based producer embark on another journey into quality electronic music. Opening with a "Homage An Dr. Böhm's Hobbyton" we're drawn straight onto the dancefloor by a positive, playful take on lo-fi Electro, "Hypnoticum" provides a droning, spiralling and, well, hypnotizing Techno / AcidTechno affair for dark psychedelic dancefloor experiences whereas "I Have Seen The Earth For 2 Minutes" brings back a fusion of dubbed out Ambient pads and spaced out ChillOut Electro once highly popular in legendary TV shows like the infamous HR3 Space Night whereas "Induktorspule" will resonate with friends of raw, dark ToolTechno and underground oldskool bunker parties for a reason. Furthermore "Interference Muster" kills punters brains within seconds, providing a well trippy variation of spiralling Acid garnished with interesting clap rhythms and bouncy background beats, "Jack Me" deals with stripped down to the bone electroid MinimalTechno and an impressive, fluttering low-end, "Jack My Radio" comes across like a love child of Robin Rimbaud's Scanner project and, again, bouncy, loop-oriented Minimal Techno and the "Japanese Gameroom 2" brings forth a rare glimpse into Sascha Müller's vision of athmospheric Intelligent Drum'n'Bass for the oldskool heads. With "Kernkraft" the German producer presents a sweet minimal synth melody atop of raw, slightly distorted and merciless Rave Techno, "Klangformung" is on a jumpy, jacking and well positive Acid trip, "Klostermesse" uses ecclesiastical choirs as a backdrop for busy Electro structures and bouncy 4/4 beats to form a Rave anthem par excellance and the final cut named "Kommerz Epos" drifts off into beauteous vintage Ambient territories backed up by decent electroid breakbeats for a warm, all embracing closing. Great stuff.

Soft Grid - Agency [Antime 025 Promo]

Put on the circuit via the Berlin-based Antime-imprint is "Agency", the sophomore album release by Soft Grid and their first full length release after their 2016 debut "Corolla". Spread out over 38 minutes playtime the trio brings us five new cuts on this longplay piece, opening with "PPPY CNNN", which starts as a tense, yet dream-like take on naturalistic DesertIndie before thundering, complex drums provide quite a bit of a drive alongside krautsy basslines and meandering synth figures whereas the follow up that is "Airplane" weighs in a rocky, muscular attitude fusing (Neo)Cosmic vibes with bits of Psychedelia, proper BluesRock and killer vocals meant to be stuck in your eardrums for now and ever. Furthermore the subsequent "Mother Tongue" goes deep into banging Indietronica realms, providing a well thought out electronic drum foundation, intricate melodies and beautiful widescreen choruses that are about to resonate with followers of labels like Anticon. as well, "A Century Behind" brings forth a well epic synth intro reminiscent of large scale FuturePop only to take a surprising, and massive, turn towards stripped down Indie / PostRock fusion meandering  in between Downbeat sequences and thundering stadium rockisms before the final title track "Agency" weighs in brutal military drums and a sweet contrast provided by the bands vocal harmonies as well as large scale electric guitar solos for a bit of an extra thrill before coming to a well peaceful and even slightly folksy conclusion with super soft pianos and echoes of echoes of a jazzy vibe.

Synaesthesis - Another Point Of View: Lithuanian Art Music [Music Information Centre Lithuania]

Put on the circuit recently via the cultural institution that is the Music Information Centre Lithuania is "Another Point Of View: Lithuanian Art Music" which sees the ensemble Synaesthesis play, perform and interpret a variety of seven compositions stemming straight from the heart of the countries art music scene. Led by renowned pianist Marta Finkelstein the group openes with "Cell", a work composed by Ricardas Kabelis in 1992 which presents itself as a hypnotic, meandering and ever spiralling piece of (Neo)Classical music with an undeniably tense and score'esque quality before "State Of Mind (Observance)" written by Julius Aglinskas brings forth a beautiful, dramatic and piano-driven Ambient vibe as our favorite piece on the longplayer whereas Ramunas Motiekaitis' "After Sunset Cycles" indulges in tender prepared piano minimalisms evolving into curious, light-hearted intermingling structures over the course of 8+ minutes. Furthermore the "Canon Mensurabilis" by Rytis Mazulis sees Synaesthesis perform thrilling, intense, trance-inducing serial repetitions of a well psychedelic nature, "From Another Point Of View" by Dominykas Digimas brings forth dark'ish, vibrating string arrangements and a certain ruminant vibe whilst Rita Maciliunate's "Koan" incorporates elements of Jazz Noir / Score Noir into a tight, stripped down and outerworldly compositional approach and the final cut "ASMR", composed by Andrius Arutiunian, introduces a tender Spoken Word piece accompanied by a full on score of ever changing elements ranging from Post-PostRock and Desert Blues to dreamy pianos and way beyond. Recommended.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Niklas Adam - Undulate [Sofa Music]

Released on May 31st, 2k19 via the ever active imprint Sofa Music is "Undulate", the label debut for Oslo-based, 1986-born composer Niklas Adam who is presenting two well-extended compositions on this longplayer. Opening with the nearly 16 minutes spanning "Gestures, Percussion Solo, Jungle" we see explore Niklas Adam a specific take on percussion-focused minimal composition in which the empty, silent space between the short sonic outbursts seems to be even more important than the sonic information itself, providing a regular yet non-regular sequence of sonic events, each of these similar yet different to its specific precursor. Later on throughout the course of the track we 're even facing retrofuturist, electroacoustic or modular bleeps with a certain computational tongue-in-cheek twist and an undeniable sense for captivating low end sweeps. The follow up, the 19+ minutes long "Other Solutions And Mimicking Object A" brings forth a more Clicks'n'Cuts-oriented approach to composition, fusing highly detailed and perfectly sculpted digital tones with what seem to be Field Recordings and respiratory sounds, more modular sweepings as well quirky reprocessed vocalisms which come in as an unexpected, full-on surprise and immediately turn this already great track into a winning one even before epic organ emulating synths weigh in an extra portion of fully fledged gravitas for a closing. Highly recommended, this.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Visible Cloaks, Yoshio Ojima & Satsuki Shibano - FRKWYS Vol. 15: Serenitatem [RVNG Intl. / FRKWYS Promo]

Put out on the circuit on April 5th, 2k19 via the RVNG Intl. sister-imprint FRKWYS is "FRKYWYS Vol. 15: Serenitatem", a collaborational effort put together by Portlands Visible Cloaks in conjunction with Japanese avantgarde musicians and vocalists Yoshio Ojima and Satsuki Shibano who've been active on the scene since the 80s and took part in experimental radio transmissions throughout the early 90s. Opening the nine track journey which came to fruition after an initial meeting in Tokyo and unfolded via sending files back and forth as well as through  the use of generative music production software with "Toi" the collaborating artists provide a deep, spatial and spaced out take on minimalist Ambient music which harks back to early electronic music composition and a certain retrofuturist feel which is followed by "Anata", a combination of heavenly pad beauty and slightly modulated Spoken Word readings whereas "You" brings forth an Ambient vision of crystalline (Neo)Classical synthesizer composition surely influenced by traditional Asian aesthetics. The subsequent "Atelier" presents a beautiful, non-disturbing and ultra chill take on the Ambient genre, "S'Amours Ne Fait Par Sa Grace Adoucir (Ballade 1)" indulges in elegic organ emulations and the follow up "Lapis Lazuli"  opens up a deep sleep dream world built of beauteous parts and hypnotic vocals, a combination somehow evoking memories of Jam & Spoon's legendary Ambient Dance albums "Trip-o-matic Fairytales 2001 / 2002" for seasoned ravers. Furthermore "Stratum" fuses deep, piano'esque meditations and incoming message notification sounds to a calming, yet well intredasting effect, "Canzona Per Sonare No. 4" amalgamates sinewave test pulses and widely unprocessed (Neo)Classical pianos and the final "Toi (Tokyo Mix)" concludes the album on a scenic, tender panorama vibe that puts many contemporary Ambient and Balearic tunes to shame in terms of soft perfection and caressing sound aesthetics. Define: hyper chill.

Kasper Skullerud Vaerges & Andreas Wildhagen - Troposgrafien [Nakama Records 015]

Put on the circuit via the Norwegian label Nakama Records just recently is "Troposgrafien", the most recent longplay outing by the performing drums / percussion meets saxophone duo Kasper Skullerud Vaerges & Andreas Wildhagen. Recorded throughout times of rehearsal back in 2016 their new album presents a whole of five compositions stretched out over roughly 44 minutes, presenting a somewhat minimalist, acoustic interplay between the two artists ranging from intimate, more classical Jazz episodes to raw thundering excesses of FreeJazz and pure improvisation, at times both featured within one tune or, as it appearingly seems to be, switching seemingly seamlessly from the opener "Jord Og Muld" to the subsequent "Magma", which is the most violent and excessive cut on this album whereas "Ødet" seems to indulge in deep, heartfelt melancholia and a certain yen to see distant places of sorts. Furthermore "Skysoveren" engages in a more lively take on hyperintimate Jazz before the thundering craze starts once again, weighing in a hint of oriental vibes at times and the final "Grus Gjennom Luft" provides a mere 14 minutes of fully fledged FreeJazz for those who can take a hefty, yet meandering overdose of sonic events per second. Defo a specialists release for die-hard Jazz fans, this.

Crossed out album artwork on Instagram!

Ensemble Du Verre - Jet-Black Notebook (Live At Batterieraum)

A fascinating intimate live take of the first single taken off of Ensemble Du Verre's new album "Jet-Black Notebook".

Apologies...

...to all those who tried to tune in to my planned guest set at the Knospt. radioshow which was meant to take place from 10pm - midnight on the Hamburg-based station FSK / Freies Sender Kombinat last night.

Unfortunately and unexpectedly the station experienced technical difficulties and therefore the live broadcast couldn't take place as planned. Interestingly these kind of technical difficulties, amongst other factors, were one of the main reasons I decided to stop broadcasting my beloved show "Die Nachtschwestern" on the station 14 years ago - a show that still seems to be held in high regard by many of Hamburg's electronic music lovers as people hit me up up to this day to talk about the long defunct broadcasts of mine - and it is sad to see the FSK / Freies Sender Kombinat still being in the same desolate state as it used to be more than a decade ago.

Therefore I still feel my decision to leave the station was right and I won't return again, not even for a guest set.

Sascha Müller [Supersix Records Extra 085]

Recently released via his own Supersix Records-imprint is Sascha Müller's latest untitled twelve track album, the labels cat.no. 085, which opens with "Earthlander", a floating ca. 1994 take on melodic Trance in its original form whereas the follow up "Fresh Killed Landfield" presents a bubbly take on hypnotic AcidTrance for psychedelic journeys through time and space before "Future Punk Part 01" brings forth a killer variation of driving, cut up AcidPhonk garnished by a well eerie and cold vocal loop that drills a desolate hole right in the heart of your soul. Next up, "Future Punk Part 02" keeps up with the Phonk vibe yet presents a more electroid attitude and warm, 'troity IDM-pads reminiscent of a very Trance classic instead of wild modulated rides, the "Gefahrenzone" is more of a hounded, uptempo Electro affair accompanied by gooey IDM modulations that seem to run on halftime speed compared to the fast beat and "Geistige Aktivitäten" gets down with a dry, well-phonky Techno vibe, off-beat snares and an uber seductive electroid main motif for those who know, combining the best of many styles within one tune. Furthermore "Geprüft Und Abgesegnet" is more of a raw, chunky, unprocessed (Acid)Techno affair for the tool lovers out there, "Gesellschaftsspiele" gets every House floor to go down with deep killer pads and a classic, yet rarely heard, Breakbeat-based groove foundation that seems to be coming straight from the 90s whilst "Götterdämmerung" relies on dark'ish low frequency movements and hypnotic Acid lines atop a slow, electroid antigroove foundation for the most experimental DJ-sets out there. Progressing into "Haare Schneiden" we see Sascha Müller exploring dry, stripped down MinimalTechno once again, "Handyman" keeps things minimal, yet on a way more funky level and with a sweet, trancey touch becoming more and more evident as the tune slowly builds up over the course of 8+ minutes and the final cut "Holodeck Warrior" sets dancefloors ablaze with a classic, spiralling and well-hypnotic variation of storming, yet psychoactive AcidTechno for a final sonic meltdown. Good stuff.

HIN - Warmer Weather EP [Sound In Silence 064]

Released via the Greek Ambient imprint Sound In Silence on May 29th, 2k19 is the "Warmer Weather EP", the well suitably titled debut by the duo HIN which consists of Jerome Alexander and Justin Lee Radford. Put on the circuit as a limited, hand-numbered run of 300 copies their firstling opens with "The Lower Heat", a deep, organic, yet advanced dancefloor friendly take on tender Indietronica with a slight affinity for DreamPop whereas the follow up "Blue In Alkali" stays on a DreamPop-infused path whilst crossing even further into Indie-territories vibewise whilst still relying on a foundation of intricate electronic beat structures and even elements of Post Dubstep and Glitch in terms of production, building up into what could be named an anthem for lovers for a reason. Furthermore "Beneath The Lake" provides more of slightly off-kilter romantic uber-tenderness and is a little too sweet and sugary for our tastes, the "Red Sun" sonically shines through intimate piano tones and detailed, glitched out rhythm signatures that might be referred to as a more uplifting, sunnier and well Pop-friendly take on a Boards Of Canada-influenced sound and the final cut "Home"surely is about to resonate with followers of the SlowHouse / Romantic House movement for a reason. This is maybe the liveliest, beat-focused release on Sound In Silence so far and defo an interesting twist in the labels catalogue.

Various Artists - Groundzero Teknocamp 004: Jackerz C90 [Groundzero Teknocamp 004]

Put on the circuit via the underground imprint, as well as real life event series, Groundzero Teknocamp as a limited to 150 copies cassette tape album is "Groundzero Teknocamp 004: Jackerz C90" which brings forth a very special approach towards an album release in capturing two very special live joints for the audience. On the A-side we're thrown back more than two decades with Null Object "Live At Fuzz Box - 18th Of December 1998", a wild session opening with one of the loveliest Techno bootlegs we've ever come across before progressing into raw, merciless Acid, HardAcid and distorted, stomping Techno jams which, although carefully remastered, seem to lack a little subbass - maybe due to the age and medium of the original recording. On the B-side we see the American Techno- / Acid- / electronic music-legend Freddy Fresh present "The Yaya23 Sessions" in which he's switching to dark'ish, hypnotic uptempo AcidTechno gears from the very first minute, bringing forth a hounded, raw underground attitude that will be well received by lovers of TribeTekno and Teknival culture as well as by the regular Rave- and Acidhead for a reason.

Cassette artwork on Instagram!

Adrian Corker - Music For Lock Grooves [SN Variations 005 Promo]

Scheduled for release via SN Variations on July 5th, 2k19 as the labels cat.no. 005 is Adrian Corker's "Music For Lock Grooves", an interesting take on using locked grooves cut on real acetates - yes, dubplates that is! - being played back as a foundation for musical composition. Interesting, not only because of the limited loop / cycle length yet also because of the progressing decay occuring throughout the playback and recording process as acetates tend to wear out and break down easily when played repeatedly, even more so when used as a very limited locked groove. Split over six sub-parts the promotional CD version contains only one track of roughly 20 minutes total playtime which provides a quite enthralling sonic landcape of spiralling, ever meandering nature, weighing in elements of Ambient, Electronica, electro-acoustic composition and Musique Concrete, seemingly - and maybe due to their repetetive, yet still alway varying nature - opening communication channels with ones inner self, the subsurface layers of the unconscious, touching on ancient grounds and therefore is recommended to all collectors and lovers of experimental electronic music for a series of highly focused listening sessions. Fascinating.

The Crystal Apes - The Hunt

It took a while until this piece came together but now Hamburg's The Crystal Apes are finally back with a new song, still on a unique and continuous hunt to explore songwriting and arrangements beyond any beaten path.

P.T.B.S. & Sascha Müller - Rebels [Urbangroove Records 013]

Put on the circuit via the Italian label Urbangroove Records as their cat.no. 013 is the new "Rebels" single crafted by the production team of P.T.B.S., better known as Ufuk Özbayar to his friends and parents, and longtime electronic music staple Sascha Müller. Released as a digital single and a limited to 7 - !!! - hand-numbered copies run of hand-cut 12" vinyl the duo is opening with "Leblebi" which offers a highly functional take on proper spaced out Techno with excellent high frequency filter works and masterly crafted breakdowns whereas "Androids" on the flipside focuses on a groove a little more stripped down and mechanical that's about to resonate with both followers of classic driving MinimalTechno - think Robert Hood et al. here - as well as with those who've been brought up on the stomping HardHouse / Techno fusion that used to be popular amongst DJ's and punters around the mid-90s due to it's highly effective dancefloor attitude. Good stuff.

Vinyl artwork on Instagram!

Dr. NoiseM - The Love God [Dr. NoiseM Tapes]

Coming up as a limited edition of 20 clean pink'ish tape copies worldwide, all individually wrapped in a folded A4 cover poster featuring some lovely vintage porn cut-outs, is "The Love God", the new album outing by semi-legendary German experimental music producer Dr. NoiseM. Released without a proper accompanying tracklist we're confronted with a massive, one-side spanning maelstrom of raw grinding HarshNoize on the A-side which easily alters and destroys our perception of space and time with an overdose of sonic events per microsecond whereas the flipside indulges in ear-piercing midrange modulations, rhythmic Noize pulses and an even more brutalist approach to the genre, weighing in elements of Break- and GlitchCore, catering soul-sucking DeathNoize and haunting ColdAmbient sequences layered on top of low frequency havoc and turmoil, pure overwhelming Noize outings and more harsh goodness for true lovers of one of the most underground genres of electronic music around.

Ensemble Du Verre - Jet-Black Notebook [Batterie Records 027]

Fresh on the circuit via Sönke Düwer's Batterie Records-imprint is "Jet-Black Notebook", the latest album release by the label masterminds long-time running project Ensemble Du Verre which caters a menu of eight new tracks and reveals a slight musical shift away from the 2016-released longplayer "Rooms". Unlike its predecessor which defo had a thing going for minimalism and melancholia touched by a slightly vintage atmosphere we see Ensemble Du Verre approach the songwriting process from another angle, heading towards a more Pop - yet, far from commercial - vibe present from the intimate, tender and romantic opener "Flawless" onwards, brings in a surprisingly bass-heavy take on FutureSoul with the subsequent "No Money Can't Buy" featuring Jan-Philipp Kelber on vocals duties, harks back to the deep vibe of "Rooms" with "Consciousness" whilst dabbling with a combination of autotuned vocals and an intimate, minimalist Jazz-infused backing and provides a massive JazzPop hit with Nora Becker on vocal duties when it comes to the title track "Jet-Black Notebook". On the flip Ensemble Du Verre picks up on a similar note, yet provides more of Downtempo / TripHop / Dope Beats vibe for advanced and musically well schooled dancefloors with "A Case Like Our's" whilst the "Song Of Songs" combines a tender, yet seemingly raw and unprocessed beat foundation with quite a complex vocal performance which, at some points, seems to be a little incoherent, slightly off-tempo and meandering in comparison to the rest of the album, "For Someone" brings forth a ballad'esque late night feel with interesting electronic background works, beautiful mid-track breakdown and more digital vocal tuning for a contemporary approach on voice processing before the final cut "Out Of Sync" is more like in sync with its minimalist piano melody, rumbling bass and sparse, yet distinct Downtempo beat arrangements as a foundation for a well-thought out closing that surely will sit well with fans of the ever developing musical outfit that is Ensemble Du Verre.

Poor Isa - Let's Drink The Sea And Dance [Aspen Edities 007]

Put on the circuit via the Itegem-based imprint Aspen Edities on May 24th, 2k19 is "Let's Drink The Sea And Dance", the first ever album by Poor Isa, a collaborational duo formed by the two Belgian artists Frederik Leroux and Ruben Machtelinckx. Presenting an array of nine brand new tracks here, all built on the foundation of combining woodblocks and prepared piano, the duo brings forth a very intimate, organic and tender approach to the creation of sound with warm, melancholic and inward-looking arrangements of ambient'ish drones in combination with sparse, yet complex rhythm signatures in the opening track "Oceanfuls" whereas the follow-up "Sill" seems to follow a twangier path with bit of cheeky, tumbling humour hidden in its minimalist arrangement whilst the intro of "The Sun At Two" even seems to border electroacoustic experiments before drifting off into a wonderful take on Score Noir musically. With "Elsewhere" we see Poor Isa revealing a slighty darker angle on their work, combining plucked banjo strings with an uneasy, slightly off-kilter background vibe hinting towards darker entities from worlds beyond our lurking just  outside our periphal vision, "Izu" pulls off a minimalist zen homage to what might be described as slightly Asian sound aesthetics before the "Seagarden" harks back to long, ambient'ish tones and overall beauty paired with a feel of maritime melancholia only familiar to those living by the sea or a big harbour for a reason. Furthermore "Noonstroom" and its spiralling, scraping rhythms build another bridge to the ghostly otherworld, channeling contorted communications from ghostly beings when played after midnight at full moon, "Shroud" sees both a curious humour and flickering unease fall together within one composition and the final "Sunday Lemons" are more of a tender, caressing experience for a closing than a sour or bitter goodbye. Beautiful stuff - recommended!

Album artwork on Instagram!

20.06.2019 Knospt. @ Radio FSK / Hamburg

Exactly, to the very day, 14 years after baze.djunkiii sacked his former radio show "Die Nachtschwestern" on Radio FSK /  Hamburg with a one hours farewell edition of his favorite and most important tracks played on repeat throughout the show - tracklist  here! - the Intrauterin Recordings label head makes a return to the station due to an invitation to the monthly Knospt.-show which has been on air in Hamburg for years on end now.

Regularly transmitted live from the Fabrique Basement located in the infamous Gängeviertel the show focuses on a broad variety of mostly experimental electronic music and will see baze.djunkiii focus on contemporary Grime / Dubstep / Bass Music, a style he well fostered and pioneered on air throughout his time at the station in the early noughties, as well as harking back to the formative years of the mentioned genres, bringing back some rare and rarely heard classics from back in the day for a reason. Tune in!


decks:
baze.djunkiii [Intrauterin Recordings / Combat Dubs]
Knospt.

file under: Grime / Dubstep /  Bass Music

live transmission starts: 22oo CET+1 - tune in online!

terrestrial frequency 93.0FM / cable 101.4FM - both in the greater Hamburg area.

for live audience:
Fabrique Basement
Gängeviertel
Valentinskamp 28A
20355 Hamburg
Germany

9T Antiope & Siavash Amini - Harmistice [Hallow Ground Promo]

Put on the circuit via the Switzerland-based imprint Hallow Ground on June 9th, 2k19 is "Harmistice", the new collaborational longplay effort by Iranian artists 9T Antiope and Siavash Amini which was created solely via online communications. The four tracker opens with "Blue As In Bleeding", a nine minutes cut evolving from pure sinewaves into a grinding maelstrom of electronic and industrial Noize with a well brutalist twist, later contrasted by tender vocals of 9T Antiope's singer Sara Bigdeli Shamloo which seems a little out of place in the context of this specific sonic environment which also goes for the follow up "Purple As In Pain" which tries to fuse chanson'esque ballad vibes with longing, isolationist drones, violins highly compressed drums and processed Spoken Words. Furthermore "Black As In Burst" opens on a well promising tip with Death Ambient atmospheres and an intense story of war told by a female protagonist, leading up to raw, brutal sawtooth bass outbursts able to shift and disturb tectonic plates, providing our only favorite track of the album, whereas "Silver As In Silence", despite musically intense and brooding, once again suffers from the conceptual vocal approach that not seems to be fully working with the harsh musical backing from our point of view. Buy for the excellent "Black As In Burst" only.

Fredrik Rasten - Six Moving Guitars [Sofa Music]

Released via the Norwegian label Sofa Music on May 31st, 2k19 is Frederik Rasten's debut album "Six Moving Guitars" which is the result of a conceptual and performance related collaboration of three dancers and three guitarists, employing elaborate choreographic strategies to achieve results in specific sounds and interferences of the six instruments involved in the recording of the album. Musically the five tracks spread over a total playtime of 38 minutes offer a very close up and intimate listening experience throughout which we see each single instrument following a distinct, quite repetetive pattern which - due to varying intervals of repetition and tuning - interfere with eachother in a variety of ways, delivering quite interesting tonal shifts, off kilter outbreaks and rhythmic changes, slowly revealing different layers of the individual composition whilst still providing a quite naturalistic and overall harmonic soundscape even for the curious, non-musically educated listener who might not be able to follow the theoretical approach behind the album concept. Define: total calmness.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Intrauterin Tapes 009 - Distribution Update #1

baze.djunkiii - The Gangster Files (Intrauterin Tapes 009)

limited to 70 copies neon-glow UK Garage / Sublow / Jungle / Drum'n'Bass mixtape is now available via

- deejay.de / Germany
- Juno Records / UK
- Otaku Records / Germany

click links to proceed.

Monsta - Monsta III [Opa Loka Records]

Released via Opa Loka Records on May 10th, 2k19 is the second ever album by Israeli producer Boaz Bentlur a.k.a. Monsta which is, quite aptly, entitled "Monsta III" and brings forth two epicly long cuts defining the projects direction for 2019. Coming from a background as bass player with an interest in so-called psychedelic music Monsta starts the journey with the 28 minutes spanning "A3", an epitomy of a perfect crossover between ever floating Post-PostRock and PopAmbient, bringing forth slow organic movements and ever present Dub fx droning and zoning out whilst sculpting a cocoon'esque sonic architecture that will be embraced by every Ambient head and ChillOut fanatic ever whereas the subsequent "B3" indulges in beauteous, tender pads and a time rerendering blueprint for the most Ambient music ever stretched over nearly 37 minutes without ever getting old, repetetive or annoying at any given second. An instant classic for sure. Get!

Album artwork on Instagram!

Trond Kallevag Hansen - Bedehus & Hawaii [Hubro Music]

There seems to be a thing going on with the combination of Hawaiian twang guitars and Nordic / Norwegian Music these days as the Hubro Music camp has been putting out another album focusing on this specific vibe with Trond Kallevag Hansen's "Bedehus & Hawaii" on May 24th, 2k19 on which the composer is accompanied by pedal steel player Geir Sundstøl over the course of nine tracks and approx. 37 minutes of playtime. Together, alongside a set of guest musicians, they carve out a sonic, and instrumental, space of their own, bordering both Easy Listening and Exotica in a certain way,  bringing together influences of Folk and Polynesian vibes in a way that might well fit in into the backdrop of a sweet cocktail setting on a lazy hot summer evening for some, yet has something off'ish and doesn't seem fall into place as effortlessly and perfectly as in Sundstøl's latest album "Brødlos" which made excessive use of twangy steel guitars as well. Therefore "Bedehus & Hawaii" does not live up to the labels standards unfortunately and isn't a must have, even not for die-hard fans of the Hubro Music catalogue.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Henriko S. Sagert - Rock You *Felix FX Remix

Deep, slightly progressive late night vibes from Berlin. Check.

Pestilential Coffin - Samhain Single I: Die Zwölfte Stunde [Dangerous Diskettes 006 Promo]

Coming in as a promo from the underground imprint Dangerous Diskettes is Pestilential Coffin's most recent 3.5" Floppy Disk named "Samhain Single I: Die Zwölfte Stunde" which is put on the circuit as a hyperlimited run of 10 copies worldwide. Featuring the single track "Die Zwölfte Stunde" which clocks in at about 4 minutes length we see the labels head honcho Paha Henki elaborating on a ruminant, solemn and ritualistic as well calm and crackly vision of Ambient crafted to soundtrack black masses and other black celebrations carried out in secret, probably parochial circles to summon long forgotten demons hidden in sealed, sacred underground vaults. One collectors item for those loving Dark Ambient projects like Kostnice or Ich Wollte, Ich Könnte.

Xotox - Paleodisco *Club-Edition [Pro Noize Promo]

Fresh on the circuit via the Pro Noize-label is "Paleodisco *Club-Edition", the recent single taken off of the latest Xotox album "Silent Shout" which also includes the "Paleodisco *Club-Mix" we've already featured on these pages a short while ago. Apart from this cut we see the 'Remix By Tonriss' going for a harder, well groove-focused Techno vibe whilst twisting the tunes main vocal sample in a spooky, alienating way before the 'Remix By Yura Yura' explores distorted, outerworldly slo-mo Industrial Techno spheres. Furthermore "Military Sex *Xotox vs. Toys No More" comes in with a quite anthemic EBM attitude which also is about to work well with Electroclash crowds due to its dirty, yet straightforward feel, the 16Pad Noise Terrorist take on "Paleodisco" fuses buzzing, electrified basslines and a cascading synth melody with what is best to be described as complex, multi-tempo FreeTekno for Teknival crowds worldwide whereas the "I Dream Only Beautiful Nightmares *Remix By Denny Engler" gets deep into pumping MinimalTechno / TechHouse territories and provides raw sawtooth basslines reminiscent of Thomas P. Heckmann's work in his early 'Knarz'-phase and the well complex 'C-Dur Remix By Hirte Kalbalikum' of "Paleodisco" cuts things up for a reason whilst pleasing the needs of all BrokenTechno- as well as EBM/Techno-crossover fans with galopping beats, excellent filter works and brutalist sequences for the headstrong before the final cut of this single brings back the original album version of the title track for a closing. Check.

Promo artwork on Instagram!

baze.djunkiii Chart Haul 06/2019

Francisco Lopez & Miguel A. Garcia - Ekkert Nafn [Cronica / Tronicdisease]

Put on the circuit as a joined forces collaboration between the labels Cronica and Tronicdisease on May 21st, 2k19 is "Ekkert Nafn", a split album produced by experimental music legend Francisco Lopez and Bilbao-based sound artist Miguel A. Garcia. Opening with Lopez' nearly 32 minutes spanning "Untitled #351" we're drawn into a cold fusion of clean, sterile sonic events and crackles recorded in a far, desolate future, digital Noize eruptions and unprocessed recordings of waterflows followed by seemingly random breakoffs into near silence, computational noises as well as various sequences of Ambient / UnAmbient and Noize which, overall, make this composition quite incoherent in comparison to Lopez' early, and from our viewpoint: preferred, musical works. Furthermore Miguel A. Garcia presents 28+ minutes of "Applainessads" for a second part of the album, staying true to the cold, uneasy musical direction the album took in its first half, yet presenting a more coherent compositional approach with his slow moving swell of scraping midrange frequencies and slightly longing background atmosphere telling tales of melancholia and desolation which even become more evident as layers and layers of droning, klaxon'esque signals build up over the course of the track before the tunes overall focus shifts towards what seem to be buzzing recordings from a digital beehive accompanied by reverberating sonar beeps and angelic soundwaves for an extended, well minimalistic closing.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Verwesung - Tiefschwarze Todessehnsucht (Demo 4)

Coming in these days is a demo-version of Verwesung's album "Todessehnsucht" which has been released as single-sided cassette tape via both Depressive Illusion Records and Wulfrune Worxxx in 2017 and 2016 respectively. The project, set up by Paha Henki in 2015, is widely described as Obscure Black Metal on Discogs and well... this is what one gets when sitting through the seven tracks spread over 29 minutes here. A well garage'y, home-recorded aesthetic pretty exclusively focusing on the midrange frequencies of the sonic spectrum, a multi-layered guitar-apocalypse, indecipherable screams and tinny background drum terror characterize the production value and style of this album piece which is quite an experience and defo nothing to love for the faint hearted but provides well groovy and enjoyable moments in cuts like "A Tombstone With My Name" or "Transilvanian Fog" as well. Beware.

Chris Brokaw - End Of The Night [Glitterbeat Records / Tak:til]

The first release of a new partnership formed between the Glitterbeat Records / Tak:til stable and the American VDSQ Records is the European release of Chris Brokaw's new album "End Of The Night" which sees the renowned guitarist and collaborator of Thurston Moore, Stephen O'Malley and others aiming exactly at what the title implies: creating the perfect record to end a long homelistening session with a friend, an idea which emerged from such a session years ago. Aiming at this as an end result we see Chris Brokaw providing a 33 minutes journey of friendly, positive PostRock meets Jazz fusion cuts which will surely resonate with fans of imprints like Morr Music, Sunday Service, Alien Transistor, AdP Records and the likes of which gets as intimate as things can get and is best listened to with a close friend or a loved one on a cosy autumn sunday afternoon or throughout a heavy thunderstorm at night for a bit of what can be described as sonic comfort for sure. Is this the perfect record for "The End Of The Night"? Maybe not, but its a quite solemn and inward-looking one which will, and can, be enjoyed by fans of Shoegaze and even Indietronica as well. Check "Our Fathers" for maximum dubbed out deepness and a little PopAmbient vibe - think: Klimek in their early days - and "A Dip" for a touch of DesertBlues melancholia.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Konx-Om-Pax - Ways Of Seeing [Planet Mu 404 Promo]

Scheduled for release via Planet Mu on June 14th, 2k19 is "Ways Of Seeing", the third album outing by now Berlin-based prodcuer Tom Scholefield, better known under his artistic guise Konx-Om-Pax, who has soaked up the influences of his new hometown and brought them into a musical form and new direction workwise. The album opens with "LA Melody", a beautiful, Electronica-influenced take on dreamy Dope Beats / TripHop with a heavy dose of seductive bass before "Säule Acid" featuring Silvia Kastell switches gears and heads to the open air Techno dancefloor covered in cascades of positive, playful synth melodies, "Paris 5AM" brings forth obvious DubTechno-influences, "I'm For Real" featuring Nightwave indulges in more soft stab works whilst bringing back well glitched out (Neo)Trance for a reason and the Underworld-reminiscent titled "Rez" is as friendly and welcoming as Electronica can get. Furthermore "Optimism Over Despair" redefines the term Braindance for 2019 and does this with a boom (...and a lot of sparkling synth glitter as well) before the tune turns into another straightforward (Neo)Trance anthem, "Earthly Delights" are crafted from hollow, reverberating bassdrums, blurred melodies and echoes of DubTechno / AmbientTechno whereas "Missing Something" is more of a crystalline TechHouse meets (Neo)Trance affair bringing back memories of Donnacha Costello's finest work within the colour series on the Minimise label years ago whilst sneaking in an excellent breakbeat rhythm for all the oldskool ravers out there. In "Day Dreams" we see Konx-Om-Pax embark on an over the top melodic SlowHouse / Romantic House journey, "Magenta One" embraces vibes that would be described as SinoGrime by Fatima Al Qadiri and the final cut "The Paleontologist" dives deep into Ambient waters to close out this longplayer which seems to be a bit of a surprise for both the Planet Mu label as well as Konx-Om-Pax as an artist himself.

The Membranes - What Nature Gives... Nature Takes Away [Cherry Red Records Promo]

Scheduled for release via Cherry Red Records on June 7th, 2k19 is the new album by The Membranes named "What  Nature Gives... Nature Takes Away" which is their first longplay outing since "Dark Matter / Dark Energy" back in 2015. Spreading out over 16 tracks and more than an hour of playtime the band which had their first release a mere 29 years ago fuses their trademark desolate and melancholia-inducing PostPunk style with heavenly (background) vocals of a 20-piece choir for a change, providing a sweet, interesting contrast to raw, slightly garage-y songs like the dark, greyscale'ish title track which is about to be a hit for creatures of the late night for sure whereas "A Murder Of Crows" provides a powerful, hard P-Funk attitude and "The City Is An Animal (Nature Is Its Slave)" weighs in thoughtful, intense and slightly apocalyptic Spoken Word poetry atop a brooding, yet laid back backing track. "Deep In The Forest Where The Memories Linger" somehow evokes memories of Metallica's "Black Album" even though the whole tune operates on a way more intense, deeper and psychologically twisted level musically and seems to reflect on echoes of legendary PostRock-outfits like Village Of Savoonga from another angle, "Black Is The Colour" brings us back to the dancefloor with a sweet uptempo swing and ProtoPunk-attitude, "A Murmuration Of Starlings On Blackpool Pier" dabbles with a highly dramatic, intense Jaws-score like theme, "The Magical And Mysterious Properties Of Flowers" brings both P-Funk and SkateMetal to mind, the dubbed out "Demon Seed / Demon Flower" rocks Indie - as well as Ska-informed - dancefloors for a reason and "The Ghosts Of Winter Stalk This Land" in a, again, proper Dub-referencing manner, kinda reflecting on the works of producers like Adrian Sherwood whereas "Nocturnal" is another big PostPunk / (No)Wave anthem for universal dancefloor abuse just to pick out a few of the many great cuts featured on this well-recommended longplayer. Get.

Dr. NoiseM - Glitch Camper [Dangerous Diskettes 001]

Coming in only recently was this limited to 5 - ! - copies only 3.5" Floppy Disk release by the notorious Dr. NoiseM put out on the circuit by the super underground Dangerous Diskettes-imprint straight outta Düsseldorf / Germany in early 2k19. Presenting a low resolution track on this one, the title giving "Glitch Camper", we see the mysterious producer cater a great take on captivating metallic midrange Noize, providing an intense listening experience with off-kilter harmonics, calming modulation and buzzing background sequences of a slightly retrofuturist, computational kind. Check.

Erlend Apneseth Trio With Frode Haltli - Salika, Molika [Hubro Music]

Released via the Norwegian Hubro Music imprint on May 24th, 2k19 is this next and newest collaboration of the busy Erlend Apneseth Trio, led by Hardanger fiddle maestro Erne Apneseth himself, with highly regarded accordionist Frode Halti which, together, cater a new longplay piece comprised of seven tracks, spanning approx. 33 minutes in total. Opening with "Mor Song" we see the collaborating artists explore a world of soft, dreamy Ambient pads and plucked strings for total relaxation, combining this deep ChillOut attitude with crackly Spoken Word recordings, the title track "Salika, Molika" brings forth a quite familiar female singing voice which we might've heard in another place before reciting what seems to be an ancient Folk song of the past atop an intense, grooving Balearic arrangement whereas "Cirkus" starts on what seems to be a Field Recording tip only to progress into spaced out Indietronics infused by quite a bit of Dub and other playful and mulitlayered musical goodness with, once again, a sweet killer groove for those in the know. Furthermore "Pyramiden" indulges in what can be described as a mixture of a vintage retrofuturist sci-fi intro followed by a well beautiful, naturalistic song structure waltzing over and through untouched meadows, "Takle" tackles more Field Recordings, tongue-in-cheek sample abuse and a combination of uplifting Slow- / RomanticHouse mixed with banjo'esque string plucking also appealing to followers of the ElectroSwing movement for a reason before "Solreven" slows down to musically depict the beauty of a hot and lazy late summer afternoon seamlessly progressing into the final cut "Kirkegangar" which beams us back in time where we are experiencing the beautiful Nordic Folk of our ancestor first hand. Nice.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Jörg Piringer - Darkvoice [Transacoustic Research 010]

Scheduled for release via Transacoustic Research on June 7th, 2k19 is "Darkvoice", the new conceptual album outing created by composer Jörg Piringer whose ideas revolve around the creation of an artificial electronic secret language not be understood at all, inspired by the idea and existence of certain coded language types like rotwelsch and the likes of which only are, or were, decipherable by those moving in certain circles at the times of their usage. Using manipulated voice and electronics as the base for the sounds on "Darkvoice" we see what once was the artists original voice totally warped and obscured, blending into stoical MinimalTechno-resembling dancefloor sounds in "Mmmma", dry, yet tongue-in-cheek RoboPhonk in "Menn", clean, scientific electronic signals bordering Max/MSP'core as well as Clicks'n'Cuts in "P A" whilst "Peed" presents an intense droning, buzzing high speed experience and "Dig" digs into a brooding variation of digital Noize which, in its various pulses and sequences, causes a state of unrest in the faint hearted for a reason. With "G-Singe" Jörg Piringer provides more of an abstract take on glitched out Phonk and overlapping, interfering rhythm signatures, "Raacc" heralds a forthcoming apocalypse in a well threatening manner and "Bbbbb" brings forth icey winds from a post-apocalyptic, exoterrestrial future for a reason. Furthermore "Teew" even takes a shot at abstract, yet dancefloor functional Techno, "El Sys" is deep into well humorous sound morphings and over the top hilarious bass melodies whereas the final cut  "Hoit" might be described as variation of Ritual Hardcore and secretive black digital celebrations for those in the know. Interesting stuff.

Album artwork on Instagram!

El Caballo Semental 001 - Distribution Update #3

NO MORE - 123456789 *baze.djunkiii & Herr Brandt Dream A NuDream Remix (El Caballo Semental 001)

limited to 200 one-sided, hand-stamped purple / violet whitelabel 7" vinyl copies is now available via

- Kernkrach / Germany
- Minor Mailorder / Germany

click links to proceed.

CarlYTOS - El Unico Diez: Buenos Aires & Sascha [self-released]

Coming in as super limited hand-cut release limited to only six - 6 (sic!) - hand-cut, hand-numbered copies worldwide is this bootleg / remix release crafted by Italian producer CarlYTOS who took a shot at Sascha Müller's vocoder heavy AcidTechno anthem "Work My 303" and mashed it up in a well specific, unique way on this nearly impossible to find cut. On the 'Original Mashup Mix' we see Sascha Müller's track layered by bits and pieces of an - Italian ? - live soccer commentary introwise before some traditional Latin music interplays with the storming Acid nature of the tune whereas the 'Percussion Mashup Mix' on the flip keeps things on a very similar level in terms of arrangement, yet emphasizes the drum and percussion side of things a little more for a bit of a heftier overall punch. Collectors item, this.

Craig Leon - Anthology Of Interplanetary Folk Music Vol. 2: The Canon [RVNG Intl. Promo]

Released on May 10th, 2k19 via RVNG Intl. is Craig Leon's "Anthology Of Interplanetary Folk Music Vol. 2: The Canon", the most recent sequel of his early 80s works "Nommos" and "Visiting" which both were heavily inspired by the art, music, legends and mythology of the Dogon people based in Mali / Africa. Once again teaming up with production partner Cassell Webb Craig Leon creates a new cycle of seven mystical tunes spread out over 41 minutes playtime on this longplayer, ranging from classic, beautiful Ambient realms to naturalistic Future Tribal, thundering tension and cinematic string sequences slightly touching on being a little bit too sugary, sweet and esoteric in "Four Floods Of  The Point" and the way moodier "The Twenty Second Step As Well As The Tenth" before exploring ritual drones accompanied by Tribal drums and finally landing on a spatial, brooding vibe over the course of the album that's maybe a little too cliche but still might resonate with die-hard fans of the Ambient / ChillOut genre.

baze.djunkiii Charts 06/2019

01. baze.djunkiii - The Gangster Files [Intrauterin Tapes 009]
See release info for details...

02. DJ Nate - Take Off Mode [Planet Mu Records 406]
See review for details...

03. DJ DR-660 - Sex Music [FTP 006]
Is GhettoBass making a return? According to the sound featured on DJ DR-660's latest four tracker it seems exactly like that. Super sexy cuts which do easily and nicely fit in between classic tunes once released by Electro Funk Records, Databass Records and the likes of despite showcasing a more intricate, romantic overall twist to the genre. Good stuff.

04. Dustin Zahn / Emmanuel - Modern Penetration [Enemy Records / Arts Records]
Raw dancefloor goodness. Four tracks on this split EP for peaktime Techno abuse with especially Emmanuel's "Visible Invisible" standing out as a perfect, yet updated emulation of epic late 90s TechTrance brought to us by labels like Hamburg's Superstition Recordings back in the day. This track was already mistaken as a beloved classic tune in a live club context despite being brand new on the circuit when I played it out which defo can - and should - be seen as a seal of approval for sure.

05. Deformer - Bukkakecore [Redrum Recordz 054]
Oh, what a joy this purple / violet 12" vinyl pressing is. Coming at us with a great name, matching gore'ish and defo NSFW artwork and sound we see Deformer provide four tracks mostly meandering in between DarkJungle / Breakcore terror with massive, complex beat structures and the occasional branch off into Hardcore and Crossbreed, bringing forth quite a few tongue-in-cheek samples and a good portion of super dark humor which we do enjoy quite a lot these days. Killer.

06. Mark Broom - Drift [Frame Of Mind 012]
A proper flashback with this one. Mark Broom sees some classic tunes re-released via the Frame Of Mind-label which puts six of his cuts out on the circuit again on translucent, light yellow vinyl here. With all tunes being proper bass heavy we're taken into the realms of fast-paced, well-crafted UK Techno and Wonky Electro here, rediscovering some forgotten, high quality tools for the experienced DJ for sure.

07. Alessandro Adriani - Fuoco [Mannequin Records 119]
One from the dark side, this. Delivering both dark'ish, tense yet atmospheric Techno with a slightly EBM-informed twist as well as distorted Industrial-influenced Electro bordering Phonk and even ElectroBreaks this fresh 12" release surely has something to offer for the more advanced dancefloors and DJ's out there.

08. Blitzzega - Chavalo [Forced Nostalgia]
Crossing over between SynthPop, ItaloDisco, Electro and a little bit of kitsch this 12" and the four mixes of the title track surely bring on a big smile to our faces no matter where it's played out - especially with the so-called 'MDMA Remix' on B2 throwing in a little seductive and well uplifting Acid melody for the real headz.

09. Palermo Disco Squad - Stadio EP [Bordello A Parigi]
ItaloDisco meets Electro meets a good portion of sweet kitsch - that's the secret formula of this four track EP and defo one that will work dancefloors proper everytime it's played out... or might catch stiff crowds totally of guard for a reason. If you could boil down the essence of summer into music this'd be the result for sure.

10. Spime.IM - Exaland [-OUS 019]
See review for details...

Oriental Winds Of The Baroque - Oriental Winds Of The Baroque [Simax Classics]

To be released via Simax Classics somewhen in June, 2k19 is the first same titled longplayer by Oriental Winds Of The Baroque, a multi-artist, multi-cultural album concept which is part research, part documentation and part artistic interpretation on as well as exploration of a possible cross-cultural spread and cross-pollination of (Folk) music before the baroque period, especially between and in the realm of Norway / Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the North African / Oriental parts of the know world inhabited by Moors and Arabs as main and dominant forces in the latter named areas. These connections are made and fortified by a five-piece group of musicians - Rolf-Erik Nystrøm, Nils Økland, Elisabeth Holmertz, Kouame Sereba and Jesus Fernandez Baena - within 13 compositions stretched over little more than an hour, meandering through various styles and incarnations of Traditional / Folk music from the many regions mentioned above, presenting them in a very intimate, distinct and direct recording style that makes the listener actually feel like a part of a live audience rather than a lonely (headphone) consumer whilst the band outfit is building, sometimes unexpected, bridges between the different types of music performed, making a clear statement about the initial theory and idea behind the project. Still, Oriental Winds Of The Baroque is not necessarily an entertaining album in itself and might seem well lengthy at times and therefore will rather be picked up by die-hard Worldmusic fans and music theoreticians than by a widespread audience looking for something more easy to digest in this specific field of sound.

Album artwork on Instagram!

Emily A. Sprague - Water Memory / Mount Vision [RVNG Intl. Promo]

Put on the circuit via RVNG Intl. on May 24th, 2k19 is the combined remastered re-release of Emily A. Sprague's albums "Water Memory" and "Mount Vision", both originally put on the circuit by the artist herself in the years 2017 and 2018 respectively. Now refreshed for 2019 by Taylor Dupree we get a full overview of Emily A. Sprague's longplay work so far which can be described as a friendly, floating, naturalistic and all embracing take on Ambient music, a cushioning, cozy and comfortable stream of sonic events, slowly evolving yet subtly busy and ever progressing, incorporating (Neo)Classical sample loops at times - see especially "Water Memory 1" for this - whilst tunes like "Your Pond" provide sweet, distinct and mellow Indietronica vibes reminiscent of early 2000s Morr Music stuff, "Synth 1" takes on the droning side of the genre and cuts like "Piano 1" even get into intimate, yet poly-layered and non-processed piano etudes for a few romantic minutes just to name a few. One for true Ambient lovers, this.

Syncopix - Headwind

Hamburg's long time Drum'n'Bass staple Syncopix rolls things out proper on Hospital Records these days.