nagano native yoshiki tsuchiya aka mirugas roots are deeply embedded in jazz music. his studies included jazz and funk drumming as well as the catalog of the legendary strata-east label. miruga presents four emotionally deep cuts which fit perfectly on moods & grooves. each track in the spirit garden ep tells a unique story as seen through the eyes of yoshiki. into the zone is a plea for people of all countries to come together based on recent world events, in heaven above is a prayer for those lost in japanese natural disasters such as the one at the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant. the pain, sorrow, and absence of love is felt in without words, while scenery in my mind is an insight of mirugas dream or philosophy: dont stop or look back, keep moving, and make things happen. if you appreciate the original spirit of what was once known as deep house, then you are sure to find pleasure in this offering from miruga.

tiefenrausch returns with a various artist ep. gathering three unique dub techno musicians linked through deep chords and driving basslines. while biodub and upwellings already contributed their part to the label, the new member star dub joins in with his raw vision of dub techno.

keepsakes, charlton and myler join 138 in cvlt as the third installment to their txtrl imprint. aukland based producer keepsakes opens up the record with bricks of joy a soothing yet crunchy tune with an undisputed bounce while dutch producer charlton heads into quick hypnosis with reggie smoker on the b side irish mad man myler delivers a relentless jungle belter opulence 138 closes the record with i just called to c if u care

backed with strong remixes from dustin zahn, cosmin trg, & doubt, one step ahead is the massive vinyl debut from gabriella vergilov. her refreshing take on techno is a perfect match for enemy. gabriella is an upcoming bulgarian artist based in belgium who rides the fine line between house and techno. her music was recently included on dvs1s fabric 96 mix along with the soundtrack for a film entitled >le fidele.< reach out to me and one step ahead break away from the dark techno norm in favor of a more delicate and emotive approach. emerald drops the percussion altogether, but locks the listener in even deeper with its highly hypnotic groove. on big room duty for this release, dustin zahn delivers an acid-drenched rendition featuring his trademark groove while maintaining the originals feminine undertones. meanwhile, cosmin trg turns in a unique remix that can only be described as heavy and arcane. mistress records and dont be afraids doubt finishes off the package with a very deep and dubby remix which stays true to the originals vibe.

exos label x/oz continues to grow as a distinct voice in the world of minimal techno, this time around inviting russian producer nikita zabelin to explore his sound with a sizable ep of finely crafted techno and thought-provoking ambience. -confusion- is a consummate slice of hypnotic techno crackling with heavily processed energy, while -pluton- drifts into rich beatless territory. there s more experimental fare afoot with the fractured tumbles of -curtains-, but -trans siberian express- is on hand to lock things back into a sturdy rhythmic framework. exos also takes the time to remix -brooklyn train- into a noirish dub techno workout.

sascha borchardt (a.k.a monoloc) will start a label, unterland, with a new ep.
the label will serve as a vehicle through which the german producer takes a step away from the club environment by presenting new sonic interpretations, including experimental, minimalist, and atmospheric. material will come from monoloc himself and friends, and the focus will be on “dramatic” sounds with drone and noise influences. think movie soundtracks and film music, albeit with both feet planted in the electronic genre. each release will aim to “tell a story” through 8 to 10 productions.
unterland will launch in end of march 2018 with a collaborative ep by monoloc and beauty of inconsequenz, a unsearchable and unidentified project with no previous recording history. the eight tracks are all based heavily on field recordings, the sound is dark and deeply atmospheric with dubstep influences. while distanced somewhat from the 4/4 format, the tracks are cerebral and hypnotic.
from there on, there will be 3-4 releases per year, each of which will be accompanied by high quality artwork as curated by borchardt, who will work closely with selected photographers and artists to provide imagery that aesthetically compliments the music.

a mixture of live recording and studio post-production, on jupiter sounds unique to any other album sun ra made. the arkestra reflects a disco pulse right back on itself, and delivers one of the most cohesive albums of their career. the title track is a masterpiece of gentle atonal harmony, while ufo pushes along at a cracking disco-ish pace with fierce brass and spacey dub effects. this is a timeless ra classic.

the ep opens up with -plastic motion,- a techno track that is full of layers of subsonic pulsations, monolithically consuming the entire a-side. the sounds of the sirens are balanced against heavily stylized basslines moving in and out of the framework while bursts of white noise appear through the fog, creating a telekinetic hallucination. the b-side starts with the title track -confess.- a ruthless song that crushes together bass-heavy broken beat rhythms with straight-ahead kicks and snares. it s about to burst out of its seams any minute as psychedelic synths and buried vocals command it all to stay together.

on this 12- album engraved on 140gr. black wax, the two benelux rave veterans, x&trick and drvg cvltvre are heading back towards hangarsploitation yet without forgetting modern navigation techniques. black metal and punk multiple faced artist vincent koreman s (alias ra-x) vessel totes two low tempo tracks that are dropping doomish, grainy, noisey and caustic drums constellated with distorded and reverberated subterranean squeeking tb s howls. slightly faster and sprouting out of a rather recent analog ship, the two pieces from bug klinik s overlord are yielding cold, severe and daring drum programmation while some of the purest hooverish neo rave secretions are poured over and tightened through sick tb s laments.*as the mastering was done at wax moth audio studios* be sure this wave torpedo is ready to stick high voltage in your technics needle!

babe roots are a relatively young duo from turin, italy, making a unique brand of atmospheric, techno-infused dubwise. on our radar since their splendid debut 7 inch on rohs! records in early 2016, we are very pleased to invite them into the zamzam fold with two mesmerizing and contrasting tunes. * be still* is a deeply meditative yet driving dub techno trek in classic fashion, featuring rastaman kojo neatness intoning on righteous living, working the land, guarding the tongue, and avoiding babylonian schemes and traps laid by the wicked. maternal bass and shimmering reverbs envelop a heartbeat rhythm of kick, shaker and distant snares for a timeless vibe that shows mastery of the idiom while updating it for contemporary sound systems. * rawness* is an extraordinarily deep 140 journey that opens with rich pads and swirling atmospherics, creating a psychoactive ambience that builds into a steady kick. the full riddim hits and plunges us even deeper with restrained, syncopated drums and percussion. churning bass powers us through the dense, hallucinatory fog as tendrils of electricity probe and zap, and serrated snares cut through the tape haze and studio clouds in the last third. carving out a gorgeous edge between deep dubstep and dub techno, * rawness* hits all the marks and will find a home in a huge range of sets.

promo support for new album ruthless day -the more i hear this the more i m loving it. as a starter while we wait for the main course which will be the album this is just perfect.- -it s fabulous and it sees the return of one of my favourite uk vocalists â&#128,&#147, the pocket rocket that is gizelle smith- - craig charles (bbc) -such a powerful singer...a real british soul talent- - eddie piller (acid jazz)

for the first time iron curtis enters the ring over the full ep length for uncanny valley. there hasn t been much of a discussion whether or not this is something for uncanny valley when iron curtis approached the four label heads with this new pile of dance floor material. these tunes are too good. iron curtis must have been particularly inspired by the muse while producing these four outstanding house tracks. you ll feel a comprehensive knowledge about dance music s history when listening. no doubt, the franconian who is now based in berlin has spent a good time of analysing house music s techniques. -sweet romancer- is the best example for his studio eloquence. modulated synths, a classic bass line and a whole batch of drum ideas are combined into a wonderful track. the interplay between subtlety and vitality characterizes -nixdorf danse-. plus, you won t forget those strings. on -triroom- he proves that he has a knack for melodies as well. finally, -take me home- should provide a lot of emotional moments on the dance floor with its dramatic piano and crescendo-like synth line.

sha d underground trax comes forward with his first private pressed release, hailing from birmingham with a passion for basslines and vocals, the scalpel ep aims to deliver just that with a mix of electro, freestyle & boogie cut up, chopped and reworked focusing on the drums and raw basslines while bringing the silky vocals to the fore and removing all the cheese, for those of you who buy records looking for the dub versions or step pettibone remixes this is the perfect record for you, built by the dance floor for the dance floor, late night low slung sleaze business.

andreas tilliander released his first album as mokira at the very turn of the millennium on almighty raster noton. 11 years later, the latest mokira album time axis manipulation was issued on ulf erikssons kontra-musik and now it s time to pick up where we left off with chill out . there s an air of happy retrospect and light solemnity surrounding the new album - enhanced by the fact that it marks kontra-musik s 50th release. with chill out , mokira attempts to bring back the dreamlike state from those magical late nights of his youth spent in front of mtv s chill out zone, to go back to his ambient roots using contemporary techniques and perspectives. the result? well, imagine lee scratch perry and klf enjoying an episode of stranger things on a crappy vintage tv after being hard at work burying old tape recordings in perry s tropical garden. imagine them sitting together totally at peace in a big, cosy sofa while a heavy haze is building up in the room, pleasantly affecting the eerie images on the screen. we always knew kontra-musik s 50th release had to be something quite out of the ordinary. as expected, mokira didn t disappoint us one bit. the vinyl lp is accompanied with a download code for a mixed version of the album, containing almost double the amount of tracks. the mixed version makes it easy for the chill out listener to just sit back and let go of reality for a while, just like mokira did 25 years ago in front of his old tv.

another alias returns with the second installment of white of my eyes. wome002 continues along the path laid out by 001, but takes it a step further into varied moods from the sledgehammer-esque -heave- to the melancholy -creep on the couch. while keeping with his off-kilter rhythms and erratic synth work.

drumcode favourite bart skils kickstarts the new year with his sixth ep for the label since his debut on drumcode in 2012, bart skils has been one of the label s most regular contributors, with the dutchmans brand of functional, hook-driven techno a go-to weapon for adam beyer from his stellar shadowprint ep in 2014, to last year s classy remix of mobys go. one of the netherlands hardest working ambassadors for techno, he is the organiser of the beloved voltt love summer festival that s has been a favourite of beyers for many years. his latest work for drumcode, bells of the revolution continues his impeccable reputation for quality with everything he does, with four cuts all with their own distinct storyline. the title track is characterised by dark driving grooves and bubbling acid line that slowly evolves into a lush melodic riff. ocean drive nose-dives into deeper techno territory, while maintaining a sense of exquisite tension throughout. vocalized follows, a stomping acid techno cut that slides into the deep courtesy of skilfully programmed vox and elegant licks of melody. the ep concludes with retrodade, a track thats been one of the biggest in beyers sets in 2017 and features the famous vocal from rozallas everybodys free. the sample was used with kind permission from the iconic 90s singer

the x vinyl series continues with label head florian meindl at the helm with the upcoming release metaphysics. synonymous with deep, dark techno, florian does not disappoint with this 4 track ep, enlisting in demand producer and rabe label boss denise rabe on remixing duties. playing live with his modular synth set up, florian began working on the concept for what would become these three original tracks while playing shows over the last month. the live jam character can clearly be felt in the first two tracks metaphysics and holomorphic function. florian s original bell s theorem has a deep melodic structure. with denise rabes interpretation, the track is contorted through some serious distortion pedals and broken beat to match her dark take on the synth line. the outcome is an impressive piece for one of those never ending nights in concrete walled rooms with oversized loudspeakers.

the bielefeld based combo „system of ice“ is shaking the dancefloors with their raw and energyloaded analog live sets for a couple of years now. the more we re happy to announce an exclusive limited vinyl edition of their „drift ep“ on nulectric reords. in case of our second vinyl-project, they delivered two synthiebased dancefloor tools which can be played in various speeds and situations. „drive“ and „cream“ are both tooly synthmonsters which are suitable for up- and downtempo purposes. greyscale supports them with an even more clubdriven techno remix as her very first release. while she went forward, tension closes the ep with a contemporary reduced and broken dub edit of „drive“.

after gunnar haslam inaugurated kalvanic languages with his deep-minded techno styles, now it s up to supposed newcomer bill westerby to follow up with another round of elevated machine learning. k-stream was a smart choice for the lead track, bubbling along on a warm acid line and shuffling a wealth of dubby processing around in the middle distance. down a back alley in cholon is a slightly more wound up affair with a bleepy lead and a firmer jack powering the drums, but the end results are actually more meditative than that description might have you believe. caye de crabe is a more overtly tripped out affair with polyrhythmic phrases weaving in and out of each other while westerby lets rip on the parameter tweaks in a fine display of machine wielding prowess.

while lifting his head up from the process of writing, finding producers and recording for his magnum opus, baatin “the slum lord”, a former member of slum village, left this plane of existence. most would agree that he was true to his nature and never a dull moment. well, keeping with tradition, a decade or so after his ascension, the hidden gem is finally revealed. “don’t stop” is the first 7 inch single release available via loveturl/ fatbeats from the full length recording “uno zero”. the single features production from detroit’s own darnell murphy and a remix from the dirt sonic scientist dakim that will have you feeling caught in the vacuum of a black hole...on loop. known for his way with language and words, “don’t stop” are 2 hard quotable slum lord verses that hit a little too close to home at times...”still optimistic in a phantom/pullin over to let u throw up before you panic” or “we back from the future/you use to the style the we missed”. big respect to the titus glover estate and hugh whitaker for the teamwork on this one. loveturl is ultra proud to present: “don’t stop” from baatin the slum lord.

irenicspc002 brings us two new tracks by bas amro, best known for his releases on freerange records and wolfskuil records. for this ep he takes an unusual straight-forward approach, chained is a driving dub track with beautiful chords, while nearing leans towards the deeper side of the techno spectrum. with both tracks being very suitable for the dancefloor, the b-side finds label boss roger gerressen changing pace, delivering a remix for the early hours.

exit safe mode, a project by the visionary margus lo&#776,,,vve, establishing himself in estonian technoid music, has converged its sonic baggage into the newly released debut album immerse. the spheres created and recorded during 2008-2017 are travelling in ambient landscapes, while deserving to be called genuine contemporary music for its clarity of thought and musical focus. these eight themes are reminiscent of the dubstep-ish flows of lo&#776,,,vves earlier projects l-ow and 1derl& that are giving way to more idiosyncratic lines. the depth of sound manipulations allows one to discover tones of life in the synthetic analog worlds and provides a body-forsaking sideview to the interpretations of stringed instruments. the created sonorous state of immerse serves as an introduction to more rhythmic future affairs of exit safe mode

2018 repress in black double hole sleeve! after their joyful meeting back in the cloverleaf days, smallville buddies jacques bon and christopher rau are finally back as a team to present two jams of rough-but-sweet house music. jacques is running the paris-dependance of smallville in france, though living in hamburg since a while. he recently released on berlin-based label aim. christopher rau, well-known in the world of house after records on pampa, ethereal sounds, dérive and of course smallville- just to name a few. together as bon & rau, they travel along the blurry side of the moon.

vinyl only! italian producer noha, delivering two different cuts for point006. the a side is a dance floor oriented track, while the b side will bring you straight into after hour mood.

“remains”, magda ter’s sophomore album, has been created over the past two years changing its shape several times. it is a compromise between static, experimental background music and soothing techno glimpses with some samples of acoustic instruments. as a result, the album has contemplative colours, although hidden beneath the surface of seemingly uninvolved sounds.
due to this fact ter’s music cannot be pigeonholed. one can even say that “remains” leaves the audience with a huge amount of space for their own feelings and interpretations of the individual sequences, while simultaneously dropping some vague cues. thus, we are dealing with one of the most intriguing electronic polish releases in recent years.

polytechnic youth enter the fray once again, continuing an already productive year (these new 45s are 4/5/6th releases in 2018 already!) with a trio of quite brilliant yet totally different 45s.
alpár aka hungarian bálint zalkai, is the co-founder of farbwechsel, the budapest based record label, and his own recordings of electronic compositions (often built upon random looping sequencers in a minimalist style) are key to the label’s release output thus far. his goal as he sees it is to “catch a random pattern, loop it and build up a piece with that randomly pulsing theme. just let to flow the voltages and sound waves and try not to disturb them or change their basic behaviours”.
the two tracks here were recorded with this approach very much in mind. the atmosphere of “mejiro” is “not unlike a bird observation. attempting to find the right spot, getting closer and closer to the bird, which almost controls you and your movements as you attempt to near it”. whereas “wakayama” is a more direct piece, and maybe the most melodic song alpár ever recorded. while “mejiro” is a woozy, cautious piece, “wakayama is like a tropical fruit or the ume, (the japanese apricot), colourful and full of flavour yet -with thanks to- the slowly humming theme in the background, an element of sourness grips you at the back of your tongue as it ends!
a beautiful pair of tracks released as a double a side 45 early march 2018. pressing of 250 numbered copies.

at the tail-end of 2017, xl recordings reissued jonny ls seminal d&b album sawtooth on vinyl for the first time. a move that further cemented the records game-changer status, dj mag hailed the record as being still the future, while resident advisor said 20 years later, sawtooth still sounds like an outlier. so after showcasing this 20-year-old classic, xl recordings are today releasing a 12inch containing remixes of the most iconic track from the lp, piper. with efforts from peverelist, overmono, powell and zomby, these remixes go some way towards showing the influence jonny ls music still has on a wide range of contemporary electronic artists.

fockewulf 190 was a new wave group from milan formed in 1980 by vittorio barozzi aka victor life and dario dell aere. in 1979 the duo met outside a cinema and began a lifelong collaboration of projects: diamond dogs, ice eyes, demode boulevard and fockewulf 190, named after the model jet planes dario fanatically built. musically, the duo were inspired by the human leagues reproduction and john foxxs metamatic, while they took visual cues from the new romantics visage and ultravox. with the fockewulf 190 moniker, they created their own dark blend of italo disco and new wave, and released two singles in 1984 and recorded an album?s worth of music that eventually saw the light of day in 2010.

astropolis records adds to misericordia’s w.lv.s (electric rescue and the driver) four remixes that amplifies the rave vibe of the ep released last year, with more power and agression, with four distinguished guests from techno and hardcore spheres: french veteran the hacker, the mysterious and rare lunatic asylum, the pilar maxime dangles and techno hardcore figure torgull. a must have for all lovers of the french techno and hardcore scene, a wild ride taking you straight to hell!
the hacker rebuilds blacksmith in his vintage and industrial spirit between electro, acid and techno, while the lunatic asylum rework of misercordia will catch you up in the dark room of dance, with delicious breaks and metallic spirals melodies added to this rave anthem. flipside, maxime dangles is turning misericordia in a muscular but melodic late night techno assault with dark vocals and his typical synths and chords, while torgull’s version steps up the darkness with a techno hardcore rework, raw, heavily haunted by vocals, textured and sensory.

opener laguna is a loopy, liquid track of fluttering drums and rubbery kicks that never lets up. ortica is more gloopy and wonky, with firmer kicks and aqueous sounds dripping off the groove, while lyra is beautifully delicate and intricate, with underwater life forms drifting by as gentle xylophones sounds dance around. the masterful minimalism continues on the dark, undulating and alien vilipendio, and things round out with the paranoid voices and panning synths of mekong , an unsettling track that has you looking over your shoulder.

after an excellent first release featuring freerotation lynchpin steevio, russ gabriels rivers of groove label returns with a pair of excursions into lush, bubbling techno from gabriel on his own. as a first generation uk techno stalwart, its little wonder that he can turn out productions as accomplished as these, but there s no sense that he s treading water. ambulate bears the hallmarks of modular production, all twinkling, morphing synth tones chiming around a delicate beat, while dover calling favours a snappier electro palette, but both stand out from the crowd for the sheer quality in the production, the warmth in the composition and the needlepoint focus given to every shred of detail in this crucial cuts.

butterfred is back with two sick jams! night jam,clocking around the 100bpm tempo,is a detroit affine creamy late night post ukg piece of butter,while rugged jam,also around the 100bpm pulse,dwells in an industrial raw mid 90s breakbeat riddim cypher for the hoods out there!

black bones return, and its no surprise they re 3 for 3, as another back-breaking digging session has unearthed some sacred remains, ready for modern dancefloor re-animation ! kicking off with a peak-time, synth heavy, symphonic disco damager, before moving into dense undergrowth for a spot of hip-bone shaking first world anthropology on the flip an immaculately dubbed colon examination ends with a carnivalesque payoff, while they wrap things up with a rib-tickling dubwise depth charge ! limited, hand-stamped vinyl 12 inch

on their latest release, the magic movement presents a concept ep by luca musto, in which he reflects on the story of his provenance. dipped in blues and marinated in jazz, this release is a diverse journey in all the ways: once upon a grind kicks off with a reflection of his father s immigration from italy to germany. the strong groove of this moody gem reveals luca s roots in hip hop, making heads nod without any trouble. next up is parabel , a hypnotic slow-house jam, with rich textures and alluring vocals which tells of new adventures on the road. let me down opens the b side with dense soundscapes, sprinkled with dreamy synths and strings, while iorie closes the curtain with a dubby and stripped down remix of the track on b2. -be water he said, this state is tremendous.-

have patience as you journey through these four meditational tracks while you keep an eye on the horizon and what s to come. dont be afraid, take your time, walk slowly and don t run.

paper tree sneaked out into the world for a moment a few years back and then vanished. lee burridge loved the track so much that he continued to harass rebelski, sometimes standing outside his window in the flower bed, for weeks on end until he finally agreed to let lee release it on all day i dream. not content with a single track lee went back to rebelskis garden and tapped on the window repeatedly until he agreed to make some more beautiful tracks. obviously pestering producers in this manner bares fruit. the paper tree ep ranges from a beautiful solitary solo piano piece that wouldn t be amiss in a british period piece drama where someone dies unexpectedly leaving the survivors to deal with it, all the while maintaining their stiff upper lip. fly the kite made us want to go outside and do just that. so we did. it was epic. circles and squares joins paper tree as one of those dance floor moments best experienced with ones eyes closed. myriad is the sound of a young lady robots jewelry box (yes, we predict robots will be wearing jewelry in the future) that she(bot) pines to hear when she s all grown up and rusty. omoshiroi is, well, its just so damn pretty. good work rebelski. good work.

taking its title from a minoan legend that deals with rage, greed and destruction, the latest release from abyss x expands and reconstructs conceptions of aural space and time. out on february 23 on danse noire, pleasures of the bull finds the multi-disciplinary artist and producer flirting with the sounds of hard jazz while mystifying the parameters of experimental music across several distinct movements, thus allowing the listener to break free from their sonic principles.

guttural, pained screams from beyond converge with mangled corrosive rhythms on the sophomore ep from dint for horo. ‘hooker’ convenes an impromptu post punk band out of undead skeletal pulses and spits a frustrated barb to anyone in earshot. ’shovel’ slams nails in relentlessly with an excruciating vocal refrain grinding over the band of zombies undulating bass riff, decaying as it loops. ’skewer’ drags the undead to the dance-floor with a primitive rhythm that rises and ducks, wringing out the intensity with macabre vocal commands reaching through a wall of distortion. on remix duties, ontal turn shovel into a peak time industrial techno weapon, while anfs grinds skewer into a jagged amen experiment, and codex empire fuses shovel and skewer into an anthemic sludge. oake wraps up the experience by taking hooker into another realm, convening another band of tortured souls stuck in purgatory, wrecking the rhythms with adrenaline-fuelled pitch black energy.

we got to know dan only, an exciting emerging artist from the toronto underground, when he collaborated with jesse futerman on our recent deep love 2017? compilation. his debut record, released on adam marshalls new kanada imprint, introduced his deep instinct for electronic music and unique, boundless approach to deep house. an avid collector of old school gear you can hear the analogue warmth throughout this intricately detailed yet heavy hitting four-tracker. its clear opens. a solid house jam, its thumping drums and resonating melodies follow a steady bass groove ready to heat up the dance floor. be major…believe leads in more gently before warbling key lines and synth details layer over gritty percussion pushing the mood closer and closer to bursting. this one conjures images of summer nights and distant coast lines. on the b, simmering vocals and tropical rhythms dance amongst straight forward house energies on dont you understand. rich with subtleties, its somehow smooth while seriously impactful. finally we have truffles. a very modern twist on disco vs house its an original italo infused gem with an edit feel, that maintains the vibe of an 80s era hedonistic night throughout. perfect as a peak time mood elevator or blissful, hands-in-the-air closing record. were convinced dan onlys future is bright and are overwhelmed by the quality and musicality of this, his first solo ep on dirt crew recordings.

long time friend of the label, neue grafik, steps forth with his most fully realised offering to date. this record has been a long time coming, born out of a encounter in paris back in 2016. this meeting of minds led to a blossoming friendship between fred ( neue grafik) and bradley ( rs intl) which has taken them across 3 continents, countless dance-floors and finally crystallised onto this 12-. the record itself takes cues from the broken-beat sound of london while paying homage to the parisian house dance scene. largely sample based, but also employing much more live instrumentation than ever before, neue grafik s music is informed by movement and in turn offers so much for dancers to respond to.

viers clocks back in on figure duty, showing up with up for another strong statement of his unmistakenly singular style. here he is working it from all angles: straight up and searingly stoic techno opener let my mind breath is grinding away grittily, while things turn surprisingly bouncy, as genesis dishes out electrifying boom-bap-breakbeats, transporting imagery of neo-futuristic tokyo streets. as night sets in, so does the kinetic groove of oyasumi, which twirls layers of energetic movement into a thick current, zooming through the citys deep gorges of concrete and fiber glass. closing track data entry 4590 finally provides some soothing ambient tones of melancholic longing, inviting to slowly drift away into white-washed nothingness and process the bright color storm that viers lets unfold on this intense record.

slow glass is not only the debut release by le frère it is also a very personal diary of the last two years of his life. all four tracks are based on recordings, samples and ideas he collected while travelling the world. with the concept of slow glass in mind le frere tried to catch moments of his life without stripping them of their dynamic and evanescence. the ep starts with lots of positive energy and light but already reveals glimpses of the shadows that slowly emerge throughout the following tracks. nice is a lightly humming version of an (almost) innocent summer morning. it s a collage of field-recordings, synth-pads and manipulated guitar sounds. candid is a light and open dialog between a simple guitar theme and a playful synth-arpeggio. v1b1n creates the dense atmosphere of a rainy caribbean afternoon dominated by field recordings and everyday noises. nttt8-sets a counter point to the previous three tracks as the energy of le frere s travels cumulates in nttt8, making it a more dance-floor oriented piece carried by a dark and heavy bass-line and almost rave-sirens.

a song dedicated to his wife and their marriage. the song contains so much captured emotions. from shimmering synths and old school orchestra hits to a solid walking bass line that solidifies the love for the dance floor. on the dub mix, santiago stripped the track down for a big sound system leaving a heavy bass line and strings throughout the track. esteban adame presents guaguanco. i wrote this track while playing with g2g and mike banks was always pushing us to electrify your roots. though my family is not cuban, cuban music has been a huge part of my musical development as a musician. the track uses traditional cuban rumba rhythms (guaguanco) to trigger synths and percussion samples alike to create a dense polyrhythmic cushion for the track to sit on.

the inimitable cc:disco! has partnered with hyped underground label soothsayer to curate the first in a collaborative series of compilations entitled first light. soothsayer presents first light: volume 1 compiled by cc:disco! is due for release in february 2018 digitally and on vinyl. australias reigning champion of tasteful electronic music, cc:disco! has procured exclusive tracks from emerging and undiscovered artists across genres such as boogie, balearic, funk, disco and house with each sound piquing her interest, culminating in a finished product that would undeniably slot into a cc:disco! set. her mission statement? less chin stroking, more dancing. it captures what cc:disco! is all about: the dancefloor. the very first taste of first light comes in the form of a salty and sweet track called really want that by jace xl. premiered via resident advisor, cc:disco! explains: i remember the first time i heard jace sing in a bar, at first i thought a dj was playing then i looked up see jace singing his guts out. he blew me away! jaces voice is amazing and to me, a huge part of whats going on in australian music, so its with open arms we welcome him to first light. staub comes back on wax for a third episode. following the no name policy from the parties which started 5 years ago in it is time again for unknown artist to shine. this new ep sees the shy producer appearing on 4 tracks of pristine techno. a1 is an atmospheric trip while a2 is more brutal, on the b side it is going weirder and darker. we think unknown artist tries to craft interesting techno cuts and that he loves variety. that it is the idea behind staub since its beginnings, it does not matter whether you are a newcomer or lady gaga, what matters is the quality of the music. this is what was again aimed with this third record.

vidab x returns with a new artist, faltin, who chooses to remain anonymous, plus a stepping rework by gowentgone aka label owners oliver deutschmann and stephan hill. faltin s phobos is a stripped down analogue masterclass. rolling and snaking, its arpeggiated lead growls with a hot headed tension, climbing while never losing balance and poise. the gowentgone stepper translates the original into a heavyweight, early-morning trip - a certain hybrid of broken beats and techno attitude that melts between genres. waves of euphoria are carried by rumbling drums in this essential version.

people places & things is the single project of manchester born & london based mike checuti. mike grew listening to a heavy mixture of horror & film soundtracks an equal dose of the early electro via the legendary spin inn records & then the hedonistic sounds of the hacienda & the more underground thunderdome nightclub. treating patient a is the first in a trilogy of releases by people places & things each pulling from the above mentioned influences but each ep having it s own variation whilst keeping the references points clearly audible along with people places & things own take of these sounds at the forefront. people places & things along with gabe guernsey of factory floor have recently just composed the soundtrack for the latest film for the forthcoming adidas spezial range which commemorates 30 years of acid house. artwork for each 12inch is designed by andrew jackson & each sleeve is individually hand printed thus having its own unique imprint and limited to only 200 copies. the press & publicity for the release and project as while will be handled by the rest is noise

for her first single, the sublime title loverboy comes out as a big urban spleen, released in a space made of asphalt and artificial paradises. groups like hooverphonic or even portishead play around this throbbing softness that is loverboy, splashing about in the electronic lounge of the 90s. the opener, alien lady features a flute-driven solo backed up by a funky guitar riff that then transitions into a tropical beat and tanja narrating the story of feeling a stranger in a big city, not understanding the social codes and clues ‘i don t speak the language in the way that you know’ while worth to you is a dreamy, glitched-out hypnotic track which maintains an edge of mysterious sexuality and her signature sense of intimate detachment. if the atmosphere coming out of lomboy’s work can be sometimes felt as prude and even shy, it certainly does not intend to hide with embarrassment the aphrodisiac scent that permeates it. on the contrary, this modesty perceived in the interpretation and in the production sensually envelops the different compositions, and imparts to this guilty pleasure the feeling of a stolen kiss. warped caress brings us to vertiginous heights and takes us into abyssal depths throughout the five tracks. this suggests at times a diegetic representation of this erotic world seen through the insolent prose and at other times a mimetic representation where each instrument plays an important part in every story told.

the second outing from yaleesa hall in this two-piece ep series on will & ink. the 13th release on the label packs a visceral punch across four fresh tracks that are perfect for dance floor deployment. first track daisy wright kicks off with minimal but impactful drum rhythms that eventually get cut up with tumbling sirens, hammering hits and blasts of dirty noise. it s hugely physical stuff, while follow up barbara adams is more stripped back and mysterious. icy hi hats tick, howling synths sound bring a sadness and the depth of stern field as sounds play out above, below and all around you is truly standout. harriet brown then sinks into a deeper electro groove with spangled bass, before a vip mix then slows things down to a dread fuelled dub wise swagger that eventually breaks out into oscillating, stuttering rave madness. it makes for one hell of a thrilling ride and kicks off a promising year for both yaleesa hall and the will & ink label.

following mor elian s cymatic ring ep, fam02 is coming up by rhyw, a 4 track ep following his most recent release on avian, rhyw, (also one half of cassegrain) presents a different side of himself while reinforcing his approach to techno. this ep is directed at the dance floor while still maintaining his signature sound design and raw sound combining broken beats and subtle melodies. written, produced and mixed by alex tsiridis