Recently put on the circuit via the digital branch of the Afflicted In Techno-label is "Stress", a new single release crafted by the imprints founding duo Afflicted. Opening with the title cut "Stress" we see the production team exploring a well bouncy take on uptempo Techno greatness built around fluttering mid-range modulations and a well distinct, cowbell'esque main motif accompanied by various layers and sequences for ToolTechno lovers whilst a surprising break- and slowdown weighs in a bit of extra thrill before the so-called 'Rame Remix' brings forth slightly Acid-leaning modulations alongside a pounding, reverb-heavy drum foundation as well as a mind-melting breakdown for primetime Business Techno abuse whilst the 'XAOK Remix' comes in more of a faster, metallic and dystopian fashion for high-octane late night sets working sweat-dripping crowds and the mixers eq's to the max. Furthermore "Mega Man" has Afflicted on a whipping, heavily bass-warped PsychoTrance meets ClubTechno tip which surely would've been a staple in Steve Mason's BFBS radio shows around 1994 whereas the concluding 'Arzax Remix' of this cut brings on storming double bass drums, hyperprecise hi-hat works and a spatial, hypnotic motif that hits the centre of every punters heart like a flash of polished laser beams. Killer.
Opening Performance Orchestra / Bill Laswell / Iggy Pop - The Acid Lands feat. William S. Burroughs [Sub Rosa 500]
Put on the circuit on November 6th, 2k20 as the 500th - sic !!! - release of the long time standing Sub Rosa-label is "The Acid Lands", the first recorded release of Prague's Opening Performance Orchestra's homage to William S. Boroughs' 100th birthday performed first at Move Sound Space Festival in Ostrava back in 2014. The recorded and updated original version was realized in cooperation with Bill Laswell and Iggy Pop as narrator, taking us on a nearly 25 minutes lasting trip into ever morphing (Neo)Cosmic structures build from a combination of electronics, tone generators and theremin sweeps as a backing foundation for deep, gravelly and highly captivating Spoken Word spirituality as well as autobiographical cut ups and plunderphonic, partly heavily distorted layerings whereas Laswell's additional 'Ambient Mix-Translation' dives deep into a 2k20 update of Kosmische Musik / Deep Listening Music for planetariums and space projections and the additional bonus cut "Naming The Seven Souls *Mix-Translation" weighs in a focus on Burroughs reading pieces of his original works, focusing on - hence the title - the seven souls mentioned and dealt with in the mythology of Ancient Egypt. This is a trip.
DJ Muthafukka - Turkish Delight EP [Dancefloor Socialism 006 Promo]
Fresh on the digital circuit via Dancefloor Socialism is the labels cat.no. 006 which sees DJ Muthafukka presenting his tune named "Turkish Delight" which is, in its original form, a quite strange attempt on fusing galopping PsyTrance structures with what we think are supposed to be meandering, extremely sped up mandoline or zither lines of, well..., Turkish origin. Furthermore the "Turkish Delight *The D3VI7 Psy Remix" transforms the original melody into a bitcrushed, cut-up and weirdly captivating sequence whilst pairing this lo-fi variation with a slower, more rolling beats and bass foundation for a change. More of a Novelty Music release, this.
Listen Again: DJ Blazik & baze.djunkiii Mix Session on Rave FM [282] (22.01.2k21)
So here we go with baze.djunkiii's first guest mix appearance on the Polish FM pirate radio circuit in 2k21 - watch out for his 60 minute spanning TechHouse selection aired in the second half of this show. Enjoy!
Mads Emil Nielsen - PM016 (2020 Remaster) [Arbitrary 03RE]
Recently re-issued via the Denmark-based imprint Arbitrary is "PM016", a four track tape album by Mads Emil Nielsen which, originally released as limited C30 cassette edition in 2014, is now available for the first time in both vinyl and CD formats for a broader audience. The journey into this re-mastered version of the artists very first solo release starts with "Glow", an intense exploration of creepy, muffled rhythm signatures accompanied by cold shimmering midrange drones as well as influences of abstract Dub-infused Electronica which is followed by "Sway", a maelstrom of a track built on a foundation of continuous low end pulses in conjunction with more cold Drone loops and a clean, eerie and somewhat retrofuturist sci-fi atmosphere before evolving into an all embracing organic piece of Ambient beauty. Furthermore the subsequent piece "In Circles" sees ominous shiftings of subsonic masses in absolute isolation alongside glistening and somewhat glitched out atmospheres evoking memories of Oval's "Systemisch" album for a reference and the final "Endeavour" weighs in a tender, touching variation of most beautiful, slow pulsing Deep Listening Music for a closing. Recommended and defo highly relevant today.
Ethnomite Pux / Dr. NoiseM - Double Floppy Split EP [Dr. NoiseM Tapes]
Put on the circuit on December 24th, 2k20 as a limited edition of 10 - sic! - copies worldwide via the artist-run imprint that is Dr. NoiseM Tapes is the "Double Floppy Split EP", a titlewise self-explanatory joint venture between the elusive Dr. NoiseM and James Cleeland a.k.a. Ethnomite Pux. Opening with Cleeland's "Floppy 1" on the first of two floppy disks the long-standing producer explores a dubbed out, collage'esque take on extremely flangered mid-range Noize featuring well eerie background layers of muffled, probably field recorded and surely haunted vocal bits which are about to sit well with a highly advanced Illbient audience whilst Dr. NoiseM's "Drop The Records" on the second floppy weighs in a 190 seconds lasting trip into feedback-heavy HarshNoize brutalism sporting some surprisingly harmonic, yet obviously twisted, sequences - at least as far as the genre goes.
28.01.2021 baze.djunkiii presents Freak Beats For Dark Rooms Volume 1 @ Radio Flouka / Paris, France (2100 GMT+1)
The year is 2k21 and Radio Flouka-resident baze.djunkiii is going in with a bang for his second season of broadcasting with the station. His new mix, dubbed βFreak Beats For Dark Rooms Vol.1β for a title, moves all the way through 25+ years of electronic music, travelling from solemn, contemporary and very ecclesiastical Ambient towards raw and brooding, ominous Techno derivatives, via ecstatic, yet intense and rarely heard HardHouse cuts towards a grand finale of full on Rave power.
Imagine the story of an entire club night told within a 60 minutes vinyl selection.
Scheduled for release on January 29th, 2k21 via the elusive Hedonic Reversal imprint is "Tundra", the latest seven track cassette tape album produced by Xavier Longas under his artistic moniker that is Refectori. Inspired by the frozen "Tundra" biomes of the northern hemisphere Refectori's journey into the realm of more experimental music starts with "Cierzo", a stripped down, yet highly dynamic take on slow moving Dark Electronica backed by angelic choirs, eerie movements and large scale reverbs followed by a claustrophic maelstrom of bass heavy, slow moving sonic masses sporting a quite Industrial-leaning feel in "Quadre" before "Inorganic" goes down a similar route, mixing up the qualities of its predecessors in a more aggressive manner, resulting in some kind of doomed soundtrack for post-apocalyptic warfare. With these tracks setting the tone for things to come we're facing more glacial, humungous and vantablack sonic landscapes in "Sequia" even though there seems to be some evidence of hope or a silver lining at the horizon towards the very end of this tune, "Esdevenir" takes Dark Ambient to a next level in terms of voluminous low end abuse whilst "Inseguretat" focuses on building complex electronic layers around a dry loop somehow involving what seems to be an out-of-tune electric guitar micro-snippet for (dis)harmonic reasons whilst the final track "Tujma" weighs in a cold, yet surprisingly dancefloor'esque take on what might be filed under the flag of Angelic Broken Techno that might even resonate with a Hardcore connaisseurs - think: Taciturne x Fischkopf Hamburg here - for a closing. File under: music for crevices and gargantuan ancient subsurface vaults.
Our man Ufuk Γzbayar a.k.a P.T.B.S. comes at us with some hard-banging Techno fire. The man is well ready to cause proper havoc and full on wreckage on international dancefloors for a reason.
User29834755543 - Force EP [User Recordings 021 Promo]
Back with a review on one of the weekly digital releases put out by the ever active imprint that is User Recordings we're looking at the "Force EP" this time, a two track single created by User29834755543. Opening with "Desert Force" the quasi-anonymous artist brings forth roughly 6 minutes of screaming, Noize-infused Acid which seems to use highly squeezed and mutilated electric guitar riffs as source material for its modulations whereas "Untitled 2" provides more of a tripped out, brutal take on raw, unprocessed Acid madness that once would've found a home on praised labels like Propulsion 285 in the first half of the 90s.
More musical greatness coming from the vaults of long standing production legend Lagowski who's been in the game for roughly four decades now only to hit us with a serious Rave belter in 2k21.
Nihiti - A New Kind Of Weather [Lo Bit Landscapes 012 Promo]
Released via the Lo Bit Landscapes imprint on December 3rd, 2k20 is "A New Kind Of Weather", the latest five track album outing carved out by NYC-based band outfit x project Nihiti. A longplayer influenced and infused by desaster with both the hard hitting pandemic situation playing into the creation as well as the suicide committed by the brother of the bands primary songwriter, two events which made Nihiti's already dark musical approach turn just a little darker. This said, the opening title track perfectly reflects the bleak times of the album production, meandering in between a droning, deep and somewhat TrentemΓΈller'esque PostPunk x DarkFolk x PostWave vibe and ritualistic Shoegaze Metal whereas the subsequent cut "Shudder Into Silence" fully indulges in blurred out guitar feedbacks and eerie electronic atmospheres garnished with snippets of probably live captured radio communication slowly falling together in a well cinematic Synth / (Neo)Cosmic / Berlin School manner before "In The Sands" presents a surprisingly soothing and chill, yet somewhat haunted, slightly twangy and surely Downbeat-informed take to PostRock- / Shoegaze-infused songwriting. Furthermore we see Nihiti transferring Roy Orbison's alltime classic "I Drove All Night" into a tender yet unexpected, low end-heavy Dark Ambient meets quasi Spoken Word piece whilst "The Practice Of Injury" floats like an opaque angelic and transdimensional figurine in a realm of eternal darkness and an unmentioned bonus cut turns out to be an even more ritualistic, psychedelia-heavy and thundering variation of "A New Kind Of Weather" for a closing. Defo an album for isolated late night listening. Check.
Various Artists -The Versus Series Vol. 02 [Afflicted In Techno]
The next highly limited lathe cut 12" put out on the circuit via the Afflicted In Techno-imprint is "The Versus Series Vol. 02" which once again sees the German production team Afflicted on double remix duty. The first track the team lays their hands on is Gregor Size's "Cerebral Lapsus" which is revamped and reshaped into a well uplifting uptempo Rave bang0r sporting highly captivating, Breakbeat-informed breakdown sequences and the sweetest little HardTrance-leaning melody we've heard in quite a while whilst the result of Afflicted's remix skills applied to Pulse Part's "Echo Chamber" on the flip is more of a well relentless, spiralling, hard-banging and slightly psychotic Acid stomper for the darkest hours of a night well spent in humungous strobe-lit warehouses. 100% R-A-V-E music.
For his first broadcast appearance of the year baze.djunkiii is about to make a return to the Polish pirate radio circuit this Friday with a 60 minutes selection of classic uplifting TechHouse tunes which will be aired as a guest mix throughout the "Mix Session" show hosted by DJ Blazik on Rave FM 98.5. Broadcasting to the underground massive in three cities for the night baze.djunkiii is coming at you with one hour of pure dancefloor goodness... and a few sneaky surprises as well!
Released via the ever active Norwegian imprint Hubro Music on January 8th, 2k21 is "Folklore" - fully titled: "Folklore (traditional customs, tales, sayings, dances, or art forms preserved among a people)" - , the first album for the multi-member choir project Trondheim Voices on the label. Taking care of compositions by Stale StΓΈrlokken and Helge Sten this 13 track spanning album is not only the first quasi acapella-release on Hubro Music we've laid our hands on, if one dismisses sparse occasional percussions as well as tender electronic background textures hidden deep within the mix, but also one that relies on nothing but ethereal, angelic and floating vocal movements instead of fully formed words or phrases and therefore providing more of a deep, universal, solemn and somewhat spiritual, if not even ecclesiastical, listening experience which triggers spirits and senses buried deep within, touching base with our subconscious memories in a way that sermons of gregorian monks do - or rural, native chants in the plains of Africa or the highlands of The Andes mountain range. Touching and untouched, beautiful - and sometimes beautifully eerie as especially prevalent in the otherworldly "Illumination I" or its hyperminimalist successor "All Stand. Head Erect. Eyes Open." which are our favorite cuts on this longplayer by far. Check.
John 3:16 - Tempus Edax Rerum [Alrealon Musique 095 Promo]
Released on November 30th, 2k20 as a limited edition cassette tape album - and a digital version - via the highly experimental and avantgarde-focused label Alrealon Musique is "Tempus Edax Rerum", the latest album outing by Philippe Gerber under his artistic nom de guerre that is John 3:16. Split in five subsequently named parts and stretched out over a total running time of roughly 57 minutes - at least this goes for the promotional CD-r version we're dealing with here - we're drawn into a large scale cinematic realm of doomed Dark Ambient from the very beginning of the album onwards by droning electronic textures accompanied by what seem to be klaxon'esque, pitched down brass instruments sending their fanfares into a vantablack vortex, a neverending maelstrom of brooding intensity, whilst incorporating elements of (Neo)Cosmic / Synth / Berlin School vibes later only to drift into further Deep Listening Music studies as well as sequences of Tribal-infused Ritual Ambient and other Ambient-leaning goodness of the course of the albums entire runtime to provide a highly recommended musical trip into the deepest depths of your own inner consciousness. Check!
Put on the circuit via Jena-based imprint Audiophob on November 27th, 2k20 is "Stonecoldsoul", the first full length album project realized by the duo named Rendered which is comprised of Clement Perez and Daniel Myer. With previous releases on labels like Fleisch, Omen Recordings or the famed Aufnahme + Wiedergabe expectations are high for the longplay format spanning a total of eleven tracks and 66 minutes runtime which is - apart from the previously unreleased cuts "Newwave" and the aptly named closing tune "Theendoftheworld"- in fact more of an aggregation or roundup compiling a selection of Rendered's musical outings previously only available on limited vinyl editions. This said, especially "Newwave" takes things to a next level when it comes to bleak and soul-crushing Industrial Desolation Techno for dystopian, post-apocalyptic zombie raves, "Holeinthehead" provides a relentless tool for fast mixing DJ's and their hypermedicated, black-clad crowds marching forward for days on end whilst cuts like the title track "Stonecoldsoul" or "Thedestroyerofallbeauty" are the DarkRave soundtrack for hedonistic nights out in venues like Berghain or Tresor and the "Girlscoutinacoma" dreams of dancing in the ruins of shattered cities to eerie futurist RoboPhonk and precisely hitting, Industrial-informed Techno drums. Heavy electronic music. Not for the weak-heartened.
Scheduled for release via Noble Label as their cat.no. 229 on January 22nd, 2k21 is "Ex.Life", the second full length album created by Japanese producer Shohei Amimori for the imprint. Being the versatile producer that he is Amimori has employed quite a variety of styles and musical approaches throughout his career in experimentalism and full on Pop music as well as within the field of Production Music for brand advertisements whilst settling on an angle of minimalist piano melodies in conjunction with Future Pop informed electronic backings and kitsch-dripping romanticism paired with hints of Easy Listening-leaning, warm and comforting melancholia alongside an innate, sometimes playful, friendliness for the majority of the fourteen tracks on this longplayer, weighing in bits of Space Exotica in tunes like "c4jet", diving into droning, spaced out Ambient floatations in "Slow Up" which could turn into a Mixmaster Morris' favorite before "Scanning Earth" provides echoes and memories of electronic cowboy twang - think The KLF's masterpiece "ChillOut" here for a reference -, "Yarn Phone" dabbles with a more Berlin School kinda vibe for less than three minutes and "Impakt" takes us back to late 90s / early 2000s Electronica dancefloors whilst adding a bit of jazzed out madness to the mix just to pick a few. Yet there's one exception from this mostly harmonic focus which is the "Non-Auditory Composition No. 0", a study in a new compository technique developed by the artist as a way to create music whilst 'the performer must perform without hearing his/here own sound' - a basic rule in this technique which, however this was achieved, results in totally tripped out Space Dub modulations and a twangy, Psychedelia-induced variation of what the BBC Radiophonic Workshop once achieved in the early days of experimental electronic music cut-up composition and therefore turns out to be our favorite and most beloved piece on "Ex.Life" for a reason.
Nicholas Bussmann - The News Trilogy & Revolution Songs In An AI Environment [T--p Records 002 Promo]
Another highly conceptual and recently released album thought out by Nicholas Bussmann is "The News Trilogy & Revolution Songs In An AI Environment" which has been put out on the circuit by Austrian label T--p Records these days. Split in two parts the first two cuts - "Shanghai News Choir Sing The News Blues" as well as "Cottbusser Chor Sing The News Trilogy" - see a multi-tongued set of singers singing and performing various news snippets in their respective languages, in parts simultaneously which turns otherwise clear and unambiguous information bits into a data stream hard to grasp and decipher whereas the second half dubbed "Revolution Songs In An AI Environment" is comprised of seven piano pieces performed, written and conceptualized for robot controlled grand piano in a greater exhibition context which surely are about to draw the attention of a Modern Classical / Contemporary Classical audience to this album due to the highly dramatic movents of pieces like "1970" or the lighter, more playful and dynamic attitude of the subsequent "1978". Avantgarde music for those who know.
Kapital Band 1 - Internationale SolidaritΓ€t [Ni Vu Ni Connu Promo]
Released only recently via cryptically named imprint Ni-Vu-Ni-Connu is "Internationale SolidaritΓ€t", the new - and third - album effort created by Martin Brandlmayr and Nicholas Bussmann under their conjunctional moniker Kapital Band 1 who are coming at us with two extended compositions on this longplayer. Stretched out over a total of 42 minutes the two artists explore an improvisational universe built off of drums and a robot controlled grand piano, an unusual setting fusing automated piano precision with what seem to be random, partly even erratic and surely somewhat subdued percussion movements in the background of the mix. Yet, what comes across as a quite chaotic and hard to grasp affair in the first place starts to develop a brash, noir'esque and somewhat DarkJazz-infused charm for avantgarde-informed listeners even though we presume a majority of folks outside what might be called a conceptual art bubble for the lack of a better description might not necessarily be able to fully embrace or endure this album to experience the surprisingly tender and harmonic closing sequences which round off "Internationale SolidaritΓ€t" on a well peaceful note.
Released via Stockholm-based imprint Haphazard Music on January 8th, 2k21 is "Grain", the new conceptual longplay album effort created and forged by young Swedish Jazz guitarist Kaspar Agnas. Focusing on an approach of slowly developing one single idea per track instead of being carried away by incoming waves of creativity the roughly 36 minutes spanning album opens with "Amnis (Creek's Dream Of Ocean)" which is a quite avantgarde-leaning combination of tectonic low end movements in conjunction with turbulent, disturbed and dissonant midrange guitar layers moving forward through a neverending, well intimidating and overwhelming crescendo of sorts followed by "1992", a similarly agitated take on Post-PostRock introducing an interesting contrast and interaction between softly struck foreground chords layered upon hectic, experimental mid-range guitar techniques as well as droning, slow moving sub pulses. The subsequent "Far Away, Closer" is a ruminant, repetitive study on semi-acoustic single and ever so slightly shifting double chord strikes which stands out as our favorite cut on this album due to its hypnotic, insular nature before "Mirrored Memories" finally layers a sequence of single chord strikes in a quite intricate way, causing the chords ever ringing reverbs to amalgamate in a beautifully hypnotic drone for a tender, fascinating and highly emotional closing. One to check out for all connaisseurs of PostRock, Post-PostRock and Abstract Shoegaze.
Released via the ever active imprint that is We Insist! Records on December 18th, 2k20 is "Kakuan Suite", the new ten track longplay effort conceived by Giancarlo Nino Locatelli, Andrea Grossi and Cristiano Calcagnile under their conjunctional alias Trio Pipeline. Performed on a setting of instruments consisting of clarinet variations, double bass as well as drums and percussion pieces following a storyline which we admittedly fail to fully grasp even though it's outlined and laid out in the accompanying press sheet the album goes down a stripped down, more traditional Jazz-lane with a slightly noir'esque undertone whilst drifting off into dynamic uptempo improvisations in pieces like "Roti" or "Orti" without touching base with the more extreme ends of the FreeJazz / Improv spectrum which surely makes the entire "Kakuan Suite" accessible for a broader audience and the entire album a proper companion for a Sunday afternoon listening session, preferrably accompanied by a glass of brandy and a quality conversation.
Put on the circuit as triple CD set via German imprint Audiophob on December 25th, 2k20 is "25", the latest extended album by Mirko Hentrich a.k.a. Spherical Disrupted celebrating his 25th anniversary release with an eleven track menu of new material as well as collaborations dubbed as "25 (Future)" whilst "25 (Past 1)" and "25 (Past 2)" provide a retrospective of previously released pieces, special studio versions as well as a plethora of remixes, cuts and versions Hentrich was invlvd in - either as Spherical Disrupted, solo or in projects like Experimentum Crucis. With a total of 32 tracks and an overall runtime of 225 minutes one cannot deal with each and every track in full on detail reviewwise but with tunes like the ghostly, gooey and hounded Dark Ambient meets IDM opening title "25" which somehow takes us back to dark, atmospheric pieces catered by acts like Future Sound Of London throughout the early 90s whilst the subsequent "Basalt", a collaboration with TC75 on vocals, fuses slow-motion EBM with a certain, well captivating NuBeat vibe. Following the concept of minerals and geologic composites "Quartzite" and "Granite" provide both beautifully scenic and, well..., spatial - Space Ambient / Deep Listening Music as well as classic soothing Ambient / ChillOut vibes before the 10 minutes long 'Yura Yura Remix' of the Spherical Disrupted / Darkrad collab named "Transneptunian Objects" rounds things off for the first CD with gnarly, slowly evolving, vantablack and nothing short of tectonic midrange synth drones and panoramic string build-ups as a foundation for ghostly, echoing whispers. On "25 (Past 1)" cuts likes "Accretion Disc *Terminal Mix" weigh in more brooding, yet strangely comforting Synth / Dark Ambient signals accompanied by intense, shrieking modulation sequences, the 2005-released "Ghost Of Jupiter *Nebula Mix" brings forth more of Spherical Disrupted's trademark Space Ambient / (Neo)Cosmic once accessible only to a selected audience due to being featured on a limited to 150 cassette tape compilation whereas "DTLF *Autismversion" caters a Deep Listening Music-oriented take which provides an interesting contrast to the more Rhythm Industrial-leaning variation of the same track also featured on this retrospective. Furthermore inspecting "25 (Past 2)" reveals tunes like Yipotash's "Overrun *RunStopRestauration" which can be described as a lo-fi variation of Ritual Rhythm Industrial, KiEw's "Zentrifuge *Inertia Mix", originally released back in 2004, once again harks back to deep, dark'ish and brooding 90s IDM / Electronica whilst Xabec's "No Disko *Transformed Completely" serves 11+ minutes of claustrophic, vantablack Ritual Ambient for summoning most evil demons and Mandelbrot's "Staring Holes Into Walls (Void.................................)" - yes, that is 33 fucking periods in the track title. We counted. - enters deeply solemn, ecclesiastical Drone Ambient territories paired with metallic rhythm signatures just to name a few. A highly recommended and well extensive trip into the darkest underground caverns of electronic music.
Scheduled for release via Γra Fonogram on January 15th, 2k21 is "Stiklinger", the sophomore longplay effort created by singer and composer Karoline Wallace which she realised alongside a vast array of fellow musicians. Inspired by her grandmothers approach to gardening and collecting plant cuttings, hence the title: "Stiklinger", as a source to enhance the biodiversity of named garden Wallace embarks on a roughly 37 minutes spanning journey through a total of six tracks on this album, fusing an expressive, rhythmic and oftentimes FreeJazz infused approach with childhood and field recordings, creating a dreamlike, somewhat surreal, ever meandering and shifting sonic world which, in combination with Karoline Wallace's wide-ranged vocal performance, evokes pictures of an oftentimes dramatic, sometimes tender - for a lack of a better comparison - BjΓΆrk throughout her "Post" (think: "Isobel" and "It's Oh So Quiet") / "Homogenic" / "Selmasongs" years if the Icelandic queen of everything had had a background in Jazz as well as 50s/60s movie scores when it comes to collage'esque pieces like "Om Du E 1.60 HΓΈy?" and not gravitated towards electronic music throughout this phase of her career. A really unique and avantgarde-leaning listening experience, this.
Scheduled for release on January 21st, 2k21 via the long standing SM Traxxx-label is "Traxxx Vol.32", the next forthcoming two track single by Uelsen's finest Sascha MΓΌller. Opening with "Track 63" we see the producer going on a journey into the realm of buzzing, well positive Acid Techno vibes with a UK-leaning twist which will defo speak to the countries squat / cybergoth scene for reason whilst the subsequently named "Track 64" provides a raw, hard-hitting and well uncompromising take on oldskool'ish Italian Rave Techno ca. 1991 / 1992 for those in the know. We do dig this.
Fresh for 2k21 is "Isolation", the latest cassette tape album put out on the circuit by German producer Andreas Davids - better known by many for his HardTechno / EBM / Industrial leaning works under the artistic guise of Xotox. Recorded and realised under his real name in a rehabilitation situation in 2k20 and released via the long standing Mahorka label the album is comprised of two tracks, each of them rolled out over course of an entire side of the cassette and described by the artist himself as deeply personal compositions. With "Klinik" on the A-side being a 2k21 blueprint for Cold- / Greyscale- / Desolation Ambient we're facing a deeply and intendedly bleak soundscape dominated by static background noise and echoes of icy winds blown over from distanced, barren plains whilst a lonely echolocation source is in search of answers hidden by poisonous mists whereas "Wald" on the flip side represents the darker, brooding and somewhat threatening side of the sonic spectrum, an ever moving state of unrest, a fluttering, intense observation of growling inner demons fighting and wrestling for dominance, renegotiating a chaotic hierarchy of sorts, duelling atop of ever shifting continental low end masses whilst moving slowly to the faint rhythm of ever beating wooden percussions hidden deep within the mix. A truly vantablack journey, this.
01. Luz1e - Ridin EP [Shall Not Fade 040]
Being a dedicated UK Bass Music connaisseur can be quite a frustrating thing these days as the increased output frequency of certain high quality labels and a diminished cash flow caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic don't match up and even the most avid collector and DJ has to skip on more essential releases than ever. Shall Not Fade is one of these labels putting out more excellent stuff than one is able to keep up with and they certainly nailed it with Luz1e's four track masterpiece that is the "Ridin EP". Walking the blurred line between a high speed take on modernist UK Garage, bits of (Future) Jungle and classic ElectroFunk / Ghetto Bass these tunes are made to get down dirty on any bass-focused dancefloor around the globe with only a limited quantity of 300 copies available worldwide and especially "Hyperfunk *Deep 8reak Cut" paying homage to the classic heydays of UKG.
02. Skatt Bros. - Walk The Night [Spaziale Recordings 009]
A little bit of a controversial one here as the Spaziale Recordings label is known for its - let's say - irregular, questionable business and licensing practices and therefore shouldn't necessarily be supported as accusations of one of its associates forging documents to acquire licensing rights have been bubbling for quite a while now. So much for a business perspective. From a DJ's and collectors point of view the prospect of adding a clean, sealed copy of Skatt Bros. epic 1979-released ProtoHouse / DirtyDisco cut "Walk The Night" to the collection is quite tempting and for the love of this sex hormone-oozing tune I did gave in this time because this one's a massive bang0r and so is the B2 uptempo anthem that is "Old Enough" for a bonus.
03. Pugilist - Heavy Lies The Crown EP [Trule 007] Pugilist's Discogs bio describes the Melbourne resident as being focused on 'releasing multi genre bass music' and they're having a point here when it comes to his latest four track EP released via Trule which defo is another one of these labels to watch out for these days. Influenced by both Dubstep, Dark Garage and Sublow as well as being infused with elements of Future Jungle and well intricate overall beat science these cuts are amongst the finest, and deepest, in highly advanced Bass Music today.
04. Opus III / Kingz Of The Castle [Naughty '93]
That's a cheeky little bootleg 10" here coming at us in a wonderful mustard-marbled colour variation from the deep vaults of the Naughty '93 label. With the artistic originator behind these cuts being unknown both takes on electronic music classics "It's A Fine Day" by Opus III and Wamdue Project's "King Of My Castle" are at home in the grey area between classic Jungle vibes and more of a Happy Breakbeat-leaning variation of UK Hardcore and therefore will be heard in a variety of sets when the pandemic is over.
05. Age - The Orion Years [Hybride Sedimento 003]
It's been 25 years since Thomas P. Heckmann utilized his Ambient / Electronica alias Age to release "The Orion Years" via Mille Plateaux, an epic tribute to the early and groundbreaking German science-fiction TV series 'Raumpatrouille Orion'. Now remastered, updated and with a partially altered tracklist this album provides a sweet trip into the realm of spiralling Intelligent Techno, floating Acid Trance, Deep Space Ambient, Proto-IDM and beyond still and defo is a worthwile addition to every electronic music collection not only for those oldskool ravers who've spent hours and hours in ChillOut rooms of the 90s.
06. Nexus 21 - Made In Detroit [Network Records] Another trip down memory - or better: history - lane as Chris Peat and Mark Archer finally unleash a set of tracks they recorded at KMS Studios in Detroit, MI back in 1990. With the influence of Motor City being an integral part of their musical approach anyway it seems only logical that especially the string work in the beautiful Bleep meets House crossover that is "Don't Do It Like This" seem to scream D-E-T-R-O-I-T! in capitals whilst "Nexus" on the flip comes in with a harder, yet more uplifting Techno vibe and "No Statues" is going full on complex, emotional early Intelligent Techno / Proto-IDM for a closing.
07. Move D & Benjamin Brunn - Let's Call It A Day [Smallville]
Originally put on the circuit as a CD album via Bine Musik back in 2006 the Hamburg-based Smallville label has released this classic collaborational effort by David Moufang a.k.a. Move D and Benjamin Brunn for its first time ever vinyl release, bringing back minimalist, yet warm and all embracing Armchair Techno as well as tender, stripped down organic Ambient / Deep Listening Music with epic track lengths of up to 17 minutes for a new generation of vinyl enthusiasists of today. This is deep.
Coming in as a new release of Andreas Davids' a.k.a. Xotox' tongue-in-cheek side project Hackedei is the outfits new cassette tape single "Eins, Zwei, Metzgerei" - a title clearly referencing the 1994 Eurodance classic "Eins, Zwei, Polizei". As a single sided cassette with four tracks in total Hackedei's original take of "Eins, Zwei, Metzgerei" comes in as a distorted, somewhat clunky novelty pro-meat lo-fi cover version whilst the so-called 'Peter Maybaum Gruppe Remix' weighs in a good portion of electroid funkiness paired with slightly off-kilter Trance strings and weirdo lyrics like an amateur artschool fusion of a Falco'esque approach and projects like Music Instructor and the likes of. Furthermore the '480 Billion Go Vegan Or Die Remix' is on a well hounded over the top cheesy Happy Hardcore meets the lowest of low lo-fi recording quality tip whereas Hamburg's long standing staple Istari Lasterfahrer presents his 'Labskaus Remix Nach Husumer Art' which fuses bouncy TribeTekno, rolling Breakbeat action and a few well familiar samples nicked from beloved electronic music classics for those who know. A novelty thing, this.
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