say you love me wasn’t “om” alec khaoli’s first solo recording but the 1985 ep solidified the bass player and songwriter’s standing as one of south africa’s most consistently innovative pop auteurs. he built a career on ubiquitous rock, pop and soul hits with groundbreaking bands like the beaters, harari and umoja. but khaoli’s seemingly endless fountain of music continued outside these ensembles, where he usually played bass and contributed songwriting and vocals.

nothing would be possible without ryhtm. from a heartbeat to a tough bass line, every part of music is linked to the strength of rhythm.gregory louis, aka esss, understood this a long time ago. as part of the cutting edge of the french house music scene at the end of the 1990s, he experienced electronic music before the digital music revolution, and kept a fascination for the authentic analog sound, its warmth and its texture.inspired by this era of time and his love for indie music, esss was born. esss is a tribute to those years and revisits the fundamentals of indie funk through electro songs and sounds, cross bredding them with influential and special touches from electronic legends -john carpenter- and -giorgio moroder-. stay tuned, esss is coming

fokuz recordings eighty eight - this is fokuz is the labels 2017 various artist compilation including tracks by label regulars anthony kasper, satl, mutt, the vanguard project, silence groove and remixes by break, gerra & stone and others. for the 12” vinyl sampler drum & bass legends in the making spectrasoul and technimatic pick up remix duties for phaction’s fantasy and departure by anthony kasper. two quality soulful and intricate cuts for the dj’s aiming to make dope moves.

damon yates, aka martianman, set up 4th planet recordings to release music by people which includes some of his more favorite artists. artist that simply need to have more music released. it involves the same basic idea that he had when starting up the martianman volumes which is to release original, high quality jungle with a completely underground feel. not only the bass and drums are important for the vibes but the whole feel of the music is in play. it can be completely futuristic sounding or full of old school vibes though out. however it’s served up just know that it is underground.

ikpathua returns to noorden with three splendid cuts shaped by varieties of dub techno, leftfield and uk bass. machine woman adds two distinctive remixes of »oboo« to the package – a creaky dancefloor-version and a stripped-down ambient one.

benjamin brunn is back with two long turn jams. -i dream, sometimes i think- is a brunn signature track build on a detroitish bass line that fits perfectly to bright, melodic synth chords. -(t)issue - a shoe - uwe- on the flip side is made of reduced pattern music slowly growing into solid space loops. growers in full effect.

miami deep and tech house label sports is hitting its third release with the sultry tones of greek producer salt, who offers up two original tracks of lean and mean tracks to get pumping to. quantum xl features punchy bass, dubby fx and seductive chords that burrow right into the heart of the night, while imago loop takes a sharp turn into dreamy broken beat crafted with light, airy drums and woozy pads for the most blissful of listening experiences. on the remix front, sylphe offer up a re-dub of quantum xl that fattens the bass up further and works more percussive angles into the mix, while martinez deftly swaps imago loop-s breaks out for a slinky micro house beat.

conceptual records presents you its third vinyl only release univers parallele written by a music producer from canada, montreal claire. inspired by her tour in europe in 2016, claire finally embodies her absolutely cosmically sounding ideas in three original composition: pyjama jazz, sometimes i turn into stars (on side a) and parallel dimensios (on side b), in which she uses futuristic sounds, analog drum sections, deep bass, jazz sections from the 30 s and her own vocal. the last track of this release is a tribal dance mix from a talented modern musician of romanian origin living in ibiza plusculaar (on b2). mixdown and mastering by pheek. covert art from djack arta a moldovian artist. plunge into the fascinating musical journey to a parallel universe with conceptual.

hidden orchestra kehren mit ihrem neuen album dawn chorus zurück auf tru thoughts. der produzent und komponist joe acheson, der eine komplizierte, aber expansive klangwelt kreiert, eine sammlung aus vogelgesängen und anderen feldaufnahmen, reich an detail und charakter. in den songs verflechten sich diese schnappschüsse mit bass, schlagzeug, percussion und eklektischen instrumenten - darunter klavier, elektro-harfe, zither, türkisches ney und cello zu einer art persönlichem audio-tagebuch. die cd kommt in einem dreifachen klapp-digifile, während die vinyle in einem klappcover + download card untergebracht sind.

after delivering the fh05, label co-owner pablo tarno is back at the controls with the fh09. the a-side features the more clubby cuts, ranging from the broken beat and dramatic jazzy piano chords of “horizons” to the more driving house beat and playful synth melody of ‘gunkan”. the b-side is all about the laidback grooves, “bitchplease” is a heavy dubby bass affair with serene pads that will lighten any mood, while “preemo” brings back pablo’s deep trip hop roots, closing off the record with a classy slowed-down number.

adesse versions brings his cut and paste ethos to razor-n-tape with a varied pair of edit heaters. on this stellar 12inch, rnt takes it back to their early format of one track per side, and these two cuts can certainly carry it. bumpin nyc is an anthemic latenite boogie cut, with a hypnotic bass line and hometown shoutout, while sistem- flips an afrobeat sample into a dark and groovy club track. vibes for days!

for over ten years, até has been fine-tuning his craft in his studio in antwerp. together with his partner he founded the athea label as an output for his music and his partners visual works. athea releases are limited to 300, hand stamped copies.
title track ‘guardian angel’ is a drum-oriented stomper, with até’s beloved alpha juno all over it. ‘dark days’ conveys images of dystopian winters with endless nights trough deep strings, resonant bass lines and garage infused drums. closing off the ep is ‘deejay d’, a hissy and fragile electronica jam to warm up your broken heart, bringing you comfort and solace in even the darkest of days.

nice price deal !!! jazz monkey consists of two chicago natives and avid house junkies, jay nice and jerome o. they come together to bring you their first house single. we start with soul power produced by jay nice, here he provides a funky bass groove with hard hitting drums and a soulful guitar, which is followed with enigmas down tempo track with laid back keys, powerful congas, and solid hitting kick drums. jacks groove produce by jerome o., is a party anthem that will get the crowd in a frenzy with hype bass drums, congas, crisp snares, and great vocals. train of thought is a definite throwback track that reminds you of a acid house record from the eighties but with serious drums and modern progamming. jazz monkeys mission strives on providing the best in house, disco, electronica, and afro beat to all who seek good music.

sicknote, j bionic and dissect are back with the second volume in the paws recordings series.
nowadays intros with relentless, rolling beats and percussion that chugs away before building you up to the kind of exciting bass drop that invokes a dancefloor energy straight from the 90’s. this is a groove that will rock any system.
occurrence begins building through a plethora of percussive treats and sounds that conjure up cosmic landscapes and alien horizons before lifting into an interstellar journey that has you moving through the stars at lightspeed.

shiro is the samurai music offshoot created specifically for emerging artists first solo release on vinyl.
torn is a new face to the samurai camp and our first signing from russia. a st petersburg native, torn has been developing over recent years into one of the most interesting producers in the half step community with his tracks featuring heavily in the sets of many of the scenes most prominent dj’s including homemade weapons, loxy, clarity & presha.
the grethen ep is a gateway to the torn sound. ‘stagnation’ is the most traditional drum and bass of the ep with it’s bouncing, grunting lurch. ’grethen’ goes down low and deep, while ‘self reflection’ is the tune bound to populate many dj sets with it’s tribal percussion. ‘insomnia’ ups the intensity with frantic, restless energy to close the ep. more torn music to come on samurai later in 2017.

for over two decades, dread recordings have time and time again maintained their seminal output with every release. managing to present a crossover of old school and more modern day techniques, they’ve given fresh life to the jungle riddims which made drum & bass so prominent during its inception. and for this subsequent release, label head honcho ray keith steps up to the plate, bringing with his a deliciously rolling selection of bass heavy proportions. with a massive back catalogue and an even more impressive roster, the figurehead’s addition goes on to expand the credibility heralded by both the artists and imprint. dread recordings continue to impress, with a history documented through their stellar releases.

intergalactic, retro-futurist broken beat-ish track by legendary drum&bass producer seba teaming up with o persson under the east bound moniker. daniel savio follows with a laid-back spacey synth journey, spiced with a 70ies sci-fi flavor, yet with a modern approach. the b-side meanwhile takes off with a dark, yet progressive techno groover by young talent bonaca, ending with daniel araya s analogue-rich bomb, with a body-music type of vibe. operating under the radar, but romb records have so far been pushing an immensely diverse, yet cohesive soundscape of quality underground electronic music. the thirteenth release is no different, neatly summing up the label s genre-defying philosophy, presenting a four track collage of electronic mastery. that s how you do it!

3 teens kill 4 was born in the summer of 1980 in the east village of new york city. they took their name from a new york post headline. the group consisted of doug bressler, brian butterick, julie hair, jesse hultberg, david wojnarowicz. there was a conscious decision not to have a front person or lead singer. david made cassette tapes with voices and sounds that he held up close to a microphone, fast-forwarding and rewinding. julie tried different rhythms on a korg rhythm machine. brian played a casio drum machine and jesse was on bass. doug joined the group in time to make the debut album. he was a music lover who understood how to avoid covering over the band’s non-musicality. their debut 7-song mini-album “no motive” was recorded in fall 1982 and self-released in 1983.

this june session victim return to delusions of grandeur imprint with their third studio album. listen to your heart is the result of a year of cross-continental scripting, started in their hamburg studio and wrapped up stateside in san francisco’s room g studios where the duo had worked on their 2014 lp see you when you get there. here we present the second of three lp samplers containing four tracks each, cut nice and loud for the vinyl crew. shadows gets things rolling with a classic session victim housey groove, looped up pads and hooky spoken vocal samples. filtered string stabs bring a warm and soulful edge whilst dub delay touches add a floaty element to get lost in. next up we have unchained which drops the bpm’s for a widescreen, slo-mo jam clouded in a smokey haze with jazzy touches, recalling the halcyon days of pork recordings. flipping over we have a brand new lp version of previous single up to rise, another sublime slice of blissed-out house music with a wonderful organic and live sound palette. echoing rhodes licks join the lead guitar tune for a balearic beauty which will be stuck in your head long after the sun sets. closing this second sampler we have over and over, which winds things down somewhat for an inspired, bass-led roller. an impeccable demonstration of retro-inspired yet forward thinking house and downtempo music, listen to your heart sees session victim at the top of their game.

if mega-psychedelic tripping house excursions are your thing then it s entirely possible that derrick carter s sound patrol orchestra may have exactly what you need. no exaggeration. tripping among the stars indeed. the other version of this jam lifted from the sweetened - no lemon lp from 1994 is maybe a little better known, but these mixes right here are worthy of all your attention too! 3 non-stop funk excursions into the cosmos with derrick and co. joining you and guiding you with their cosmic voices. it s hard to pick a favourite as all included are very different beasts yet somehow essential. honestly, this ep kinda shits on most things that you may hear currently and this stuff is from 1997. the still trippin mix is definitely a standout, a free, weaving, 12 minute plus colliding jam that just opens up and evolves real lovely, exactly the kind of record you want to hear around 7am on a smoky dance-floor somewhere. pure after hours perfection. the other mixes are just as potent, with a heavy cowbell laden dc dub mix that s brimming over with live drums and handclaps and a superb bass laden wamdue kids mix that takes off into the stratosphere of deep. basically, this whole record has it covered. literally, it shouldn t leave your bag anytime soon. essential new (old) school chicago gear that just won t quit. thank the heavens we all get the chance to trip again with this beautiful repress! essential. remastered and repressed with the involvement and welcome assistance of the mr.derrick carter, chicago usa.

vinyl only! giant records new release is a limited edition, hand stamped and numbered run, limited to 150 copies. comes from ettore angrisani aka highest sound levels who hails from naples - italy. two killer cuts here from ettore. first cut is - colours of underground - some late night heady vibes here that has all the hallmark s of those great italian deep house classics that have gone before. colors of underground - comes with a remix from grant dell. a nice stripped down dubby groove with dark atmospheric stabs and great use of ettore s tripped out keys. the second cut - sub-remote concept world - see s ettore take us on a dark twisted journey into a druggy spoken word - jam - with a sub bass that will shake many a dancefloor. sub remote world - comes with a sweet remix from sascha dive. sascha s mix lightens the mood and brings a nice subtle house vibe to the track with emotive keys - strings and an infectious peak time bass-line.

it’s been two years since jef k’s excellent silver network label was in action, so it’s great to see the french mainstay back in action, and with the excellent shade on board no less. the london-based artist brings an addictive, chicago-tinged kind of deep house to the table with “london social club”, all mr fingers bass and deeper-than-deep pads. “initial pass” is no slouch in the slouching department either with its luxuriant chords weaving around a subtly stomping beat. parisian legend ark takes to “london social club” and does a fine job of chopping up the original with his micro-editing ways. “all alone (shade morning remix)” is the perfect closer with its dreamy melodics and 80s boogie inspired beat.

rich la bonte is a musician, writer and editor from upstate new york born in 1946. at age 11 he figured out how to record a piano backwards with his first tape deck and discovered monk, mingus and art blakey. in 1965 rich moved to ithaca, bought an electric guitar and started singing in garage rock band the huns. after the band dissolved, he moved to nyc and played bass and sang in the original cast production of the musical godspell. in the late 70s la bonte moved to hollywood with shari famous, released a a few 7” singles as dada2, and started flatdisk records, a vinyl subsidiary of dave gibson s moxie record company.

hidden orchestra kehren mit ihrem neuen album -dawn chorus- zurück auf tru thoughts. der produzent und komponist joe acheson, der eine komplizierte, aber expansive klangwelt kreiert, eine sammlung aus vogelgesängen und anderen feldaufnahmen, reich an detail und charakter. in den songs verflechten sich diese schnappschüsse mit bass, schlagzeug, percussion und eklektischen instrumenten - darunter klavier, elektro-harfe, zither, türkisches ney und cello - zu einer art persönlichem audio-tagebuch. die cd kommt in einem dreifachen klapp-digifile, während die vinyle in einem klappcover + download card untergebracht sind.

repress 2017 , a sagittariun arrived in late 2011, fully formed, and with a strong agenda to release musical dispatches from the front line of the constellation. he has indulged in astrological techno, spiritual house music, bass heavy dub rhythms and ambient paths. this his first ep for secretsundaze supplying three original tracks in his trademark style.

das komplex or marcin to his parents has been steadily putting out incredible music for the last few years, building on an extremely well tailored collection of tracks they have started hitting all sorts of people s radar, no one more so than dj harvey who has been supporting his releases at some of his big shows. a1. under feet - whilst the people of australia are dancing, the people of poland are sleeping. or vice versa...starting off with some lcd fuelled vibes before a psychedelic phasing disco loop appears out of the smoke before twisting the track out in a slightly different direction. a2. w podwodnym pasniku - funky bass, filtered chords and a familiar vocal sample combine for this almost early french house sounding track circa 96. b1. bearded dwarf - very much sounding like prins thomas has been at work here, a big room scandinavian sounding house track (via poland!). big atmospherics, other-worldly vocal samples, lovely guitar snatches and driving piano with the addition of some tribal flute! b2. when - our favourite cut from the ep, cleverly using a herbie hancock sample and layering with disco sounds, vocals and a deep driving bass line to produce his trademark atmospheric, moody house sound. as always pressed on 180gm vinyl. please hunt down and destroy dance floors accordingly. keep sydney open

cadenzas head honcho luciano teams with house music legend david morales up for esperanza a long awaited release that will fire up the summertime. david and luciano composed the track together but then each one refined his own personal mix. lucianos flow latino mix is a long tribalistic ground moving crescendo with a sub-frequency dense kick and sparkling nuyorican flavoured percussions. the hand drums ensemble ride a magnetic bass provoking a state of hypermnesia slowly reaching a climax of celestial chords. this subtle spectral progression finally breaks down a feeling of positive trust and spiritual healing. david morales red zone mix is a lengthy dramatic ascension with a darker feeling. stretched textures are the background of a constellation of scattered percussions, over which fast paced hi-hats subliminally introduce evocative strings and arpeggios, as they were coming out, at last, as the hope from the pandoras box.

second edition of subsonic device s compilation series. 2x12- vinyl album feat. dynamix ii, debonaire, bass junkie, dark vektor & more! eight artists, double vinyl and lots of bass ...

ekoplekz returns with his fourth album for planet mu, in the shape of 10-tracker “bioprodukt”. the unique lo-fi, woozy sound of bristol’s nick edwards stays intact while he veers towards the nineties for inspiration: the bleep and bass sound of the north of england is one touchpoint and the acid gurgles of the 303 are another.

german electrofunk purist ceeonic checks in with ground control. originally released on the label of miami bass legend debonaire, the two crisp and powerful productions perfectly catch the vibe of 1980s electro classics by the likes of egyptian lover, pretty tony or world class wreckin cru, taking it into the 21st century.

ausgekoppelt aus ihrem album -sagittal future- (chp recordings ltd.) praesentiert sich der electrobass-clubhit -rezonation- hier in drei neuen versionen, inklusive extended mix, instrumentalem bonus beat mix und und einem vocoder-acapella, die die herzen von fans des neuen wuchtigen miami bass sounds ala jackal & hyde, dynamix ii or code rising hˆher schlagen lassen werden.

hailing from the first wave of american west coast electrofunk that brought us classic from the likes of the egyptian lover and dr. dre, cli-n-tel—a member of the legendary world class wreckin cru—released the song -2030- on unknown dj s label, techno hop, in 1986. more than 30 years later, it has become an essential of the genre and is now celebrated with this overdue rerelease.

versand ab 03.07.2017 , after a short break salty nuts is back with the first various artist release on the label. diego krause delivers a classic house tune which shapes the vibe and mood of the whole record. smabes is another special mannheim collaboration. sebastian werle (sedee) & fabe teamed up for a funky bass break beat tune which keeps emotions high...
on the flip: side the new, fresh duo mishel a & lost.act from moscow are adding maximum groove to the record with an advanced swinging beat that brings the right energy to the dance floors.
vinyl only release

mathew jonson’s “decompression” was first released on minus in 2004. to celebrate 13 years since it’s release mathew has commissioned 11 artists to remix this classic split over 4 releases. the first ep of the series features remixes from dbridge, konrad black and nathan jonson, each artists contribution provides a fresh approach to a package fuelled by the influence of drum & bass. dbridge steps up for two remixes, the first is warped and deconstructed, the second a high energy drum & bass belter. konrad black slows things down with a darker groove whilst nathan jonson’s ‘rewind to 96’ utilises rave tropes and chopped vocal samples. the package is a magnificent addition to the legacy of ‘decompression’ and coming next will be remixes from seth troxler, deadbeat, mike shannon and natalia escobar. mathew jonson’s “decompression” was first released on minus in 2004. this is the first release on mathew jonson’s new label entitled “freedom engine” mastered at scape mastering

first release on the label rhythm control barcelona, which is also the name of the record store owned by dj bruce lee. the a side comes with a track by phran featuring ivy barkakati titled -impulse-, old school flavored vocal house with a strong personality. this side is completed by an acidic remix by john barera. the b side is a track by phran called -yuka-, which samples cuban voices over minimal analog rhythms and an acid bass line. the remix is by a well-known dj from madrid, tr, a newcomer producing incredible tracks.

the second part of the jacob f. desvarieux anthology on endless flight brings three more productions of the fabled french zouk veteran with roots in guadeloupe.
the song “sika” by georges décimus, bass player of desvarieux’s band kassav, features outer-national synth works driven by salsa-like percussions and sweet steel-drum melodies, dancing around the seducing zouk guitar chords of desvarieux. a truely moving psychedelic zouk gem, that is for the first available on vinyl only since its release on georges décimus’s solo debut mini-album “la vie” in 1983.
the second song “avèou doudou” was firstly released in 1985 and was written by the martinique born zouk star and former kassav keyboarder jean-claude naimro. his tune spreads feathery synth-laden caribean boogy vibes, enlarged by his tempting voice and more zouk guitar magic by desvarieux. the third gem comes from the zouk pioneer patrick saint-éloi, listens to the name “do bay lan main”, was never re-released since 1984, features the former kassav singer saint-éloi on the microphone, electric piano, organ and mini moog and gets once again softly heated by jacob f. desvarieux’s enchanting zouk guitar virtuosity. as already on the jacob f. desvarieux: anthology pt 1. release, japanese producer for special affairs kuniyuki delivers a unique edit. his version of “sika” is made for eternalness dance floor moments. the steel drums dance with more magic than in the original. propelled by spaced out synth-sounds, echoed drums and the discreet guitar chords of desvarieux, kuniyuki’s version of “sika” is ready to be a mind-expanding summer hit on all open minded dancefloors around the globe.

label boss rdg returns to circle vision with three diverse sub workouts, from melodic soundscapes to murky bass, backed by a menacingly deep and dark remix from label family member, causa.

more bass-happy melody belters from acker dub.

the first release on youth - a new label from andrew lyster, comes from portland based artist yard. hailing from the dark woods of the west coast of the united states, yard brings together a collection of tracks from the archives alongside some new material. canopy and white fog were originally released on the album deciduous flood plains, and have been reworked for this release. marshall acid is pressed to vinyl for the first time having previously only been available digitally via event horizon. yard’s gritty sound evokes a spectrum of gnarled city life to organic atmospheres. the release comprises of field recordings, micro-cassette mangles, bass kicks, a live jam between x0xb0x and a modded tr-606 and water drops percolating through the mixes to get that urban hum and grit running up against the forest.

conrad van orton debuts on attic music for the 15th installment of label. “hypersomnia” is a collection of haunting techno tracks that sit on the darker side of the genre’s spectrum without loosing it’s dance floor appeal.
the 4 track spanning record opens up with the title track “hypersomnia” though techno sounds that revolve around a train-like whistle that repeats throughout the track’s poignantbuild. “green eyes” is an intrusive piece of work that closes down the a-side with it’s intense synth works. on the b side we find “iteration”. this growling piece of music has an almost live sounding quality to it. “ending point” is the toughest piece of work of the record which revolves around a fierce bass sound and a potent drum work.

lead track(s) from a forthcoming artist album due to drop later in the year ,) deep rumbling bass complemented with skippy 808 drums, an ever evolving organ line and a gospel vocal. from chicago… with love! a.a

dublin’s lime street music follows up on their debut release by marvis dee with another release from a shadowy alias in the form of esoteric orchestra. four machine driven jams packed with heavy drums, dreamy pads and lumbering bass.

nice price deal !!! bass bumper rmx, testpressing

the first trouble maker 12” is here in full disco-led summertime force! three sure-fire summer hits, that make you smile from ear to ear and transport you to those days spent dancing in the sun… “makes you” treads the line between disco and house perfectly and delivers a summer anthem straight off the bat! the combination of party drums, howling melodic bassline and stand-out vocals makes this a stand out first release from the newcomer hatterman. “one & all” on the flip takes things slightly deeper but the focus is still very much peak time elation! think lush pads, shuffling drums, disco tints and again a killer vocal! fans of kdj, moodymann, theo parrish are going to love this! fernandos live remix fuses live bass guitar, synth stabs, arpeggiators, guitar and slithers of the original to turn it into a cosmic-disco bomb! all three are set to be festival favourites over the summer, strictly for those who like to laugh, dance and cause trouble.

emerging from what sounds like the unknown depths of outer space, new artist icore drops a debut ep on osiris music uk lled with ve exercises in hypnotic, polyrhythmic tension. the a-side’s two tracks ’sigil’ and ‘status field’ feel like two parts of a whole, each establishing a minimal, kick-heavy march in 6/8 that would perfectly ll the cavernous hull of an abandoned mining vessel, lurching through empty parts of the galaxy to the sound of ominous drones and malfunctioning, high-end bleeps. the b-side is more cinematic in its scope, with opener ‘substance from shadow’ summoning a distinctly b-movie vibe in its melody, before both ‘claimed by night’ and ‘axiom’ retreat into darker, more ambient territory, the former thick in sub- bass kicks, the latter ramping up the dread with unnerving repetition.

nice price deal !!! two ultraphat groovy techno / techhouse infected killer tunes !! straight to the floor

barbir from les points delivers a truly inspiring ep for the 14th release on concealed. the musical range is wide, spanning from detroit flavoured house music and techno, to more futuristic breakbeat stuff with hints of electro. tied together with swirling acid melodies and deep pads, mixed with uplifting beat and bass jams, all laid down over 6 quite different cuts. as a special treat, we find two collaboration with louh on the b side as well... yay!

the second instalment from the bristol based fate and fiction stables follows the v/a ep from ishmael, thrilogy, admin and remotif with a big four tracker from label boss, lee pattison aka thrilogy. again, expect organic, bass heavy, deep house with dusty samples and an acidic, big room, 6am moment in the special the fate also, includes a signed, limited edition (1of 350), pink 12 inch hand-drawn print from bristol artist, anna higgie.

former half of the defunct pitch & hold duo under the banner of which he operated from 2006 to 2011, simon halsberghe steps up on brussels’ very own vlek with his debut solo ep as simon hold. first heard on vlek s 2016 mix for resident advisor as they were appointed label of the month by the high­ranking platform last autumn, maqam bruxelloise reflects the wide­angle beauty and compelling diversity of the belgian capital and its throbbing heart, a city at the confluence of cultures and languages. across a finely­layered interplay of synthetic modulations and intricate polyrhythms, hold lays out a riveting kaleidoscope of pattern­welded textures and prismatic synth motifs played and arranged accordingly to a contemporary interpretation of the traditional arabic maqam system of improvisation the track draws its title from. an ode to brussels all­embracing effervescence. translating as -soft drone- or -pleasant noise-, the gritty dhajij doux then welcomes you into a more disquieting, bipolar audio scenario that evokes the reality of living -in a sometimes difficult and hostile city-. a curiously matching negative of the opener, in this that it taps into the same generous and plural matrix universe as main source of inspiration, but eventually opens on a more nuanced outcome, here hold clearly shows a further abrasive facet of his work: harsh and vibrant, the track may be replete with a lead­heavy amalgam of sizzling bass and jagged drumwork thrown into the furnace, light and hope still manage threading their way through dark clouds and turbulence, slowly but surely turning this rough­hewn stone into a truly haunting gem.