soul sugar drop their own reggae version of marvin gaye’s -i want you-. french outfit soul sugar – the brainchild of guillaume “gee” metenier – deliver yet another soulful reggae 12”, this time a cover version of marvin gaye’s 1976 classic -i want you-. jamaicain native leonardo carmichael sings lead vocals and legendary drums and bass duo sly & robbie add their flavor to the mix, with two versions on side b. marvin gaye’s single -i want you- was a big step forward for his sound & vision and marked a change in direction – from hip motown soul to a more sultry, disco sound. marvin s vocals are notably intimate and the lyrics are more explicit, more personal. an original soul classic, -i want you- is memorable for its unique combination of lush harmonies, a mesmerizing groove and the apparent sexiness of the theme itself. soul sugar s discomix version combines a smooth mixture of reggae, soul and funk over beefy bass lines, designed for heavyweight sound systems. sly & robbie, rhythm duo known for their studio work on countless reggae classics since the 1960s deliver their version, taking us back to the golden age of reggae, the days when it was typical for jamaican musicians to record their own versions of american soul tunes ... ace producer jahno dubs the mix live and direct to tape, from his very own n.o.f studio

p.e.a.r.l. returns home with this brand new ep, after some exquisite releases in his very own falling ethics label it’s time for a new adventure in our label. sergio’s sound has a distinctive raw and dry appeal, focusing in sound sculpture and direct grooves, always pushing the edge of his equipment, using just the necessary elements, away from saturation and trendiness.

after breaking out of our holding facility in early 2017, we tracked the humanoid alien lifeform known as darling to a deep bunker in amsterdam. while we were unable to gain entry tio the inner chamber, an operative successfully placed an eavesdropping device close by. while monitoring the lifeform s movements, we were able to record eight musical compositions of varying lengths that it had created using a range of analogue and digital electronic instruments. we have called this collection tulipa moves. you will notice that the tracks utilise a variety of rhythmic patterns, explore unearthly but attractiuve sounds and are capable of stirring strong emotions in human listeners. we direct your attention towards the lilting, softly spun melancholia of composition 03 (codename so did we) the fluid, beat-free bliss of composition 05 (codename the m song), and the up-tempo positivity of composition 07 (codename kiss the glass), whose chiming, intertwined melodies and snappy rhythmic energy reminded us of so-called intelligent dance music. we were astonished by the quality and intricacy of these alien creations and those we have not described in detail. it strengthens our belief that darling is a lifeform with higher intelligence and otherworldly musical ability

still hope is their second single and the follow up to motorway jam (their double a side with palms trax from late last year) which sees them collaborate with anthony anaxagorou, a british born cypriot award winning poet and essayist, whose poetry and fiction have appeared on bbc newsnight, bbc4, itv and vice. hearing his lyrics via their good friend simbad, secretsundaze connected with anthony and still hope is the fruit of their labour. the original is a potent and political spoken word piece delivered over a rolling house groove. definitely one for the deeper moments with its late night heady feel and full vocal not letting up. the poems in the heart floor version strips the vocal back and adds dramatic strings for a more direct dance floor approach. ex slum village detroit producer waajeed released a couple of killer eps in 2017 on his own dirt tech reck imprint so we had to get him aboard for the remix. his detroit hardcore dub does what is says on the tin and is a peak time slammer while his searching dub goes down a jazzier, spacey route with live sounding drums and dreamy pads.

oktave records returns for the third installment from the label, once again featuring owner and proprietor jeff derringer at the helm. the factions ep shows jeff at his most direct and robust, with three tracks of meticulously constructed techno. pressed on solid orange vinyl.

diffuse reality presents a new vinyl. powerful techno direct to the dance floor.

junes kicks off a new imprint, dote, with a full-length exploration of the direct yet dreamlike sound he s made his own. with his usual flair for crisp grooves and ghostly palettes, a view reveals a broader range of nuanced vibes. second wind and stop, elate show a playful buoyancy, and a sense of discovery in tracks like balancing act and two-sided embrace add a narrative pace to the collection. there s time for some of the creeping, spaced out atmospheres that hallmark some of junes previous best, but with tracks like packaging, the realisation of this sound is richer than ever. there s a restless feel throughout the work, too – especially evident in the closer spooked – and a feeling that we ve been on a trip that doesn t end here.

first official reissue of the extremely rare full-length album by lagos-based bandleader shina williams. clean copies of the original currently sell for up to £500. the record was born in 1979 when shina put biddy wright, fred fisher, saliu alabi, prince bola, tutu shoronmu, tunde willimas and several other decorated nigerian musicians – who played with the likes of fela kuti, sjob movement, sonny okoson, king bucknor amongst others – together to record. the result is ‘african dances’, a timeless fusion of afrobeat, electronics, boogie and disco. includes his most well-known song, ‘agboju logun’ that williams knew was ground breaking – “i want to show the whole wide world that africa is alive with modern musicians to reckon with anywhere,”. this album version is a different mix to the two-track 12” that came out under on earthworks, rough trade in 1984. official mr bongo reissue. replica original artwork. licensed direct from shina williams.

following a string of releases on jungle gym records and u.t.t.u. related mini-label vector works, intimacy returns to his hq of dm hardware for the “welcome to my life” ep. across three reflective and cosmic originals, producer parks perdue unleashes an array of extra-lush pads, and deeply melancholic acid bass. sci-fi atmospheres and nods to classic rave and electro squeeze their way into bricked waveforms… rough but not too rough distortion… and a hard hitting but bubbly remix by belgian producer innershades rounds out the 12”, solidifying it’s direct and inspirational intent. with “welcome to my life”, intimacy adds another gem to his astral catalog.

“lost tracks vol. 2” contains 4 previously unreleased demos recorded between 1997 and 1999. the duo fused 80’s european new wave/italo disco with 90’s detroit electro acts like le car and dopplereffekt. by utilizing verse-chorus structures, they playfully shook up the loop based hard techno and electro that was popular at the time. their studio set up at the time was a korg ms-20, roland sh-101, tr-606, tr-808, siel dk80, and boss dr-660 drum machine. the songs are direct, spontaneous, seemingly improvised in places. miss kittin sings about falling in love in the new millennium, snuff movies and controlling the unknown trip to death, all in her cheekily derisive french accent. all songs have been transferred from the original dat tapes by the band and remastered for vinyl by george horn at fantasy studios. the vinyl comes housed in a glossy jacket featuring a black and white photo of the duo taken in 1996. each lp includes a postcard with liner notes from miss kittin and the hacker designed by eloise leigh. as miss kittin says of these demos, “we were naive, innocent, adventurous and we didn’t expect anything in return”

we present to you the second release on minor notes recordings. this is the brainchild of moscow s guydee, who is part of the new breed of excellent house artist s coming out of russia at the moment. romantik ep is an intimate groove collection direct from the heart of anton bogomolov aka scruscru, based in nizhny novgorod. scruscru has been quietly going about his business for the past few years releasing on labels like vintage, jazzve & vensa recordings. he s an actor in both his everyday life and music. on this wax you can find all shades of his emotion accurately packed into his true school house beats. the ep comes complete with 4 cuts that will rock any dancefloor including a remix from traxsource number 1 deep of 2017 black loops with a divine take of finding all your love to round the package off nicely. dj support - laurent garnier, gerd, dj nature, hot toddy, jimpster, aroop roy, seven davis jr., simbad, lay-far, jacques renault, art of tones, shur-i-kan, and many many more.

vinyl only – after a few releases outside of his homebase okain is back on talman with a 4 tracker. from the floorshaker « eurostep » to the melancholic texture of « stay true» you ll get a direct connection to his mind flow.

with mel011, it is melodies internationals immense pleasure to direct their focus towards both soul and house royalty, selecting and reissuing two of frankie knuckles scarcer remixes of an all-time classic: womack & womack, mpb (missin persons bureau)

soma are proud to present the debut album from one of techno’s most prolific and renowned producers, tensal. as one half of the duo exium, hector sandoval has already carved out a career in techno spanning over 20 years, with countless release on their self-run nheoma, warm up recordings & pole group, to name but a few. in 2014, he started the tensal project as an outlet for his own productions which allowed him the scope of pursuing the more direct and minimalistic approach with his music and also his djing. after hooking up with the soma camp in early 2017 and releasing a collection of well-refined singles, tensal delivers his debut album, graphical. searching to go beyond the realm of standard techno, tensal lends his considerable production experience to this project and creates a sophisticated and immersive album experience that flows gracefully between idm and techno.

living legend cosmic force is welcomed on something happening somewhere for an all-out electro affair including a collaboration with national treasures legowelt and orgue electronique. as the name implies, transmitting illicit logic is a tale that can’t be understood solely with our binary brain cells. reality always escapes the corridors of the mind and fails to be caught in it’s believed opinions and oppositions. cosmic force is here to guide you through the maze and helps you to relax these muscles, trading it for a more direct energetic connection that will put you into hyperspace.

rare an ultra limited blue print cover edition form this 2 minimal tracks direct from moscow

released on trax in the golden year of 1989 chicago s virgo aka friends eric lewis and merwyn sanders, along with peers such as larry heard and frankie knuckles, gently pushed house music towards a more musically sophisticated realm that hadn t been explored previously. across 8 tracks virgo took us on a deep exploration of sound that was both masterfully arranged and produced and in direct contrast to a lot of the rudimental and jacking drum tracks that were the flavour of the day. there are few debut albums in the electronic sphere that can claim the title of classic , but this is surely one of them. a defining turning point in dance music, the dawn of what would later be referred to as the deep house movement and sound is all evident with the grooves of this legendary record. often listed as one of the greatest lp s of all time , this self-titled odyssey remains an essential, must have record that never loses it s magic, flawless in every way and still trailblazing today. every home should have one. remastered in conjunction with trax, repressed from the finest audio sources available. often imitated, never replicated! 100% legit.

having played at on loops 1st birthday in 2017 after guesting on moxies nts show the previous year, we are delighted to welcome lk back to the family for our seventh release. hailing from leeds, hes been a producer on the rise for a few years now after standout releases on labels like shall not fade and ruff draft. previously releasing under the alias viers, as lk he offers something with a more soulful touch. each offering on the three-tracker brings something slightly different to the package. title track ‘dreams has been made with the dancefloor in mind, whilst the summery ‘(i wanna) make luv 2 u is drawn from laid-back soul and motown influences. slow burner ‘summer of 93 closes the ep, with a direct nod to the slinky vibes of 70s disco.

bergen is the next, and natural step in the expanding career of dutch producer tom trago. the acclaimed producer behind voyage direct will release his fourth lp, with the label and crew he s built a close relationship with over the past ten years - dekmantel. with a new studio and approach to music, bergen is trago sounding at his very finest, returning to his roots with a focussed, and dedicated production ethos.

knowledge is a tool, and like all tools, its impact is in the hands of the user. arts white was born to give a platform for every single player in the game that has high-level tool skills in techno, the focus is primarily dedicated to useful and chirurgical direct functional material.
all on white label style, black and white 12”.

hard, direct, pure techno banger.

eomac is back in 2018 with a brand new album. after an intentionally quiet release schedule in 2017 to focus on developing a new label and presenting a monthly show on radar radio, he returns to the album format with the 11-track reconnect. it is his third studio album proper and the first on his burgeoning eotrax imprint. continuing where bedouin trax and temple of the jaguar left off, reconnect moves even further from the contemporary dancefloor and club environment and deep into uncharted territory. drawing influence from traditional irish music, haitian voodoo drumming, the raw old-school jungle of source direct and the abstract rhythms of autechre, eomac has crafted a dense, multi-layered and polyrhythmic exploration of percussion, texture and movement.

hard work is the first release on industria, robi insinna s brand new project label.

back in 2001 robi insinna founded the seminal relish label in direct response to a then- dominant sound in club music. its catalogue is as vast as it is varied and foreshadowing the music he d go on to make himself under headman/manhead. fast forward to 2018 and after more than a decade he s on the move again launching new project label, industria with not quite an album, not quite an ep, hard work. robi felt there was no reason to split projects the way he did with his aliases and as such the debut will be released under robi s own name.
industria will be focused more on vinyl releases, but not solely vinyl. the project will encompass all area s of robi s work and ties together elements of his art and visual design projects.
limited to 150 numbered copies.

malina moye, die vom guitar world magazine als eine musikpionierin und eine der besten gitarristinnen gefeiert wurde, hat für sich eine eigene nische in der heutigen musikszene geschaffen als eine von nur wenigen künstlerinnen in der geschichte, gelingt es ihr, den graben zwischen rock und soul zu überbrücken. darüber hinaus ist sie eine der führenden gitarristinnen ihrer generation. moye hat das talent, das aussehen, die energie, einfach alles, attestierte die huffington post. das seventeen magazine konstatierte: auf der bühne liefert malina eine berauschende mischung von funk, rock und soul ab. the examiner erklärte moye zu einer der besten 10 u.s. independent-künstlerinnen- und das billboard magazine nannte ihre zusammenarbeit mit bootsy collins explosiv. hier kommt nun ihr neues album bad as i wanna be. eine bärenstarke sache! vinyl (schwarz/180g/direct metal mastering)

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.

soundway presents the debut ep from the mauskovic dance band - a potent, modern blend of afro-caribbean rhythms and space-disco. afro-colombian styles such as champeta and cumbia are integrated with 80s no-wave drum machines and synths: shaking and pulsing direct from amsterdam.

after a track, a tape and an ep released on acid waxa, opal tapes and dream ticket, respectively, binary digit logically sees his first lp, 38000 summer hits, released on stochastic releases.
this new album comprises 6 tracks of edm: emotional dance music. they were made and recorded during the hot summers of 2016 and 2017. everything you need then is freshness and coolness and this is exactly what they are giving. they combine the overall positivity of the summer and the melancholy caused by the insistence of the heat, of the light, of the endless nights. they were played directly from the machine to a 1/4’’ tape, which explains their very natural and direct development. 303-like bass, gnarly hi-hats, heavy kicks and digital licks are still to be expected here.

flawless, direct , pure techno

direct from havana, cuba daptone records is proud to present the debut single by orquesta akokan. featuring some of havanas most formidable musicians playing with a groove, a tumbao, that hasn t been heard for decades, orquesta akokán is a classic mambo-inspired force of nature. mambo rapidito, a lively up-tempo one-chord vamp in the vein of prado or more, boasts an undeniable energy ripe for a freshly polished dancefloor! on the flip, un tabaco para elegua, describes a tambor (an afro-cuban religious ceremony) over a slow, bubbling groove a perfect compliment to sipping distilled sugar cane. the two massive sides offered up were recorded at the pre-revolutionary 1940s era areito studios in centro havana where the spirit of aragón, tata güines and elena burke still reverberate through the walls.

hackney vandal patrol is a brand new project from long time friends and neighbours scott fraser & richard sen. focusing on their joint love of that deep miami/ new york house sound, vol i is the first edition in a series of ltd 12inches. heading back to richard s heritage of being a highly respected graffiti artist, each one is hand tagged by richard in his own unique style and numbered with an insert by scott. the first release, bound by faith is a straight up and direct for the dance floor miami style deep house cut, complete with reverend jesse jackson speech on the vocal version. for the dj crews there is a deeper redemption dub stripped back bass hit with added percussion and a re-programmed instrumental of the original. the hackney vandal patrol were once despatched to patrol the streets around the mighty london borough of hackney.

every tune of the 12- is deeply inspired by the origins of the mid 90s melodic jungle & d n b movement, namely by the greats of that era: peshay, source direct, ltj bukem and photek. ray & karl have worked together on a number of projects over the last year, the most recent one being a split 12- on the other planet of lyon. while ray has been connected to the lo-fi house scene and acts like baltra, dj boring and dj seinfeld, karl has been more low-key, producing music that s relaxed and organic, mainly inspired by naature and the musical movement around frits wentink and max graef. for this release they worked closely together, decided to stray off their usual paths and combined their different styles to form a well-rounded record.

excise is thrilled to host san francisco underground xture max gardner on the label’s 3rd vinyl release. max runs the legendary californian party crew direct to earth and he’s equally a hypnotic dj selector and highly skilled synthesist. as you’ll see on this release max’s tracks are not only excellent dj tools but also deeply interesting for close-listening: truly unique electronic music dif culty to pigeonhole into a genre. “mona loops” is an immersive experience on club speakers as an eerie high-pitched synth line twists in unexpected ways over powerful waves of bass. next max remixes label co-owner muon’s track “kmc” redefining its raw elements into a blitzing four and half minute romp held together by a jagged low-mid frequency lead line. “broken pinkies” is hard to de ne. all we can say is it embodies the feeling of the san francisco all night underground world more than any single song in recent memory. it begs for repeat listening. yan cook joins the excise family for a banging remix of “broken pinkies”almost shocking in its spin off the original. we’re huge fans of yan over here and this track embodies what we love most about his productions - groovy but with serious bite.

following up to three albums on kompakt since 2011, the latest being signs under test (kom321/komcd119) in 2015, los angeles based house and techno producer john tejada returns to the cologne-based imprint with his thirteenth full-length, dead start program - an eleven-track journey spanning a prismatic array of styles and patterns, from john s signature soulful techno tunes to the further mazy, hypnotic motifs of his trancey electro hybrids. be it solo or through a host of multifaceted collaborations, tejada keeps himself busy on all fronts in and off the club environment, be it by contributing the 44th number in fabric s seminal mix series, playing drums for detroit legend daniel bell (as dbx), testing the limits of acid with tin man or joining forces with the hilarious self-proclaimed disinformationist reggie watts as wajatta. since his beginnings and the drop of his debut 12inch, waxing , released through his own label palette recordings over twenty years ago, john has been carving out a lane of his own combining and assembling elements from all ends of his wide-spanning spectrum of reference in a way that allows a more direct transition from the realm of the mind to the circuits of the machine, as confirmed by the deliberately limited studio setup used in the making of the present album. navigating across the lines, from the arrhythmic machine spook of the album s opener autoseek via the straight out thumping and jacking pulse of hypochondriac and heavy-lidded breakbeat of sleep spindle onto the kosmische-infused vibrations of telemetry, vibrant slo-mo inertia of loss and wistful club-ready winds of duty cycle and heal, john threads his way through genres and tempos with optimal chameleonic effect. cloaked in a beautiful sleeve art courtesy of johns long time friend juan mendez aka silent servant another key contributor to the los angeles scene worldwide

the brilliantly beguiling r-zone series hits release number 20 with another genre defying four track ep by no one knows who. as always, the music looks backwards to go forwards and frantically blends breakbeat, rave, acid, house, electro and techno into wild new forms. the geometry of shadows kicks off with a flurry of pinging kick drums, rushing synths and smeared chords that manage to be physical yet serene at the same time. chrysalis is deep detroit style house with gurgling basslines and warm future soul synths extending off into the cosmos. ship of tears then races through the galaxies as asteroids, shooting sci-fi synths and glassy melodies all fly by in enchanting fashion, acid is buried deep within and the drum programming is busy and direct. the parliament of dreams closes things down with more haunting celestial pads and cold acid lines that are all backed by boom-bap breakbeats. its dance floor euphoria of the highest order once more.

ltd decks edition with fullcover artwork only available on decks.de - this debut from longstanding east german maestro mathias kaden is no exception a bucket-list ep for the gera-based artist whose followed and collected from winks label since inception, nova is both a personal showcase and a homage to a label thats inspired his tension-heavy signature. adding to a discography that boasts some of most respected techno labels possible (vakant, mule musiq, watergate, desolat, freude am tanzen), the nova ep flexs kadens darkest and deepest tendencies and includes certain signatures that many of the best ovum releases share: acid, a direct and effective single word sample, versions and a dj tool that will blow your dancefloors heads off.

this debut from longstanding east german maestro mathias kaden is no exception a bucket-list ep for the gera-based artist whose followed and collected from winks label since inception, nova is both a personal showcase and a homage to a label thats inspired his tension-heavy signature. adding to a discography that boasts some of most respected techno labels possible (vakant, mule musiq, watergate, desolat, freude am tanzen), the nova ep flexs kadens darkest and deepest tendencies and includes certain signatures that many of the best ovum releases share: acid, a direct and effective single word sample, versions and a dj tool that will blow your dancefloors heads off.

red ember records proudly presents the debut 4-track ep from goiz. a distinctly warm & deeply personal sound direct from the floridian underground. “big ol’ goiz” speaks truth with sublime chords, bulbous bass and inquisitive synth conversations, weaving through back-room deep house, electro and organic bustling rhythms.

david gtronic is very well known for being a fundamental member of the famous vatos locos crew and for his badass releases on dissonant, kina music or sci-tec records. david was born in colombia and he s now based in berlin, from where he delivers this awesome ep called kryptoo.a kryptoo is a minimalistic journey of rough, metallic, cosmic percussions and spongy bass lines. deep pads and chords in constant evolution make these tracks a true hypnotic experience. topping it up we ahave dan farserelli remixing sequence, probably the punchiest and most direct track in the album

sonikku comes riding back into the lobster tropical gardens with a flurry of sparkling, arpeggiator-driven ambient jams featuring three extended reworks from nts regular mobbs.
sonikku’s originals apply a drier and skit-length pop approach to synth-based home listening. building a borderline-saccharine melodic base to each track then upping the sheen and the tropical & twinkling production. shots of balearic appear in earth temple, christmas jingles echo from the depths of diamond dust, while sky garden channels a more direct emotional palette of warm synthesizer heartbreak.
mobbs’ approach is to allow each track to breathe around it’s core strengths over a longer time frame, whilst enhancing and encouraging each element to make it’s space and time to enter the track. the shifts and swaying structures turn shorter synth ideas into fully blown journeys that become almost hypnotic by the end. a soft, dream-like ride into bliss.

direct, hard, minimal, detroit-style techno.

marks back with three seething cuts at the state of berlin affairs. a restless message to the hands of capital. killer steppers coming off last years cult classic here comes a fucking startup campus and outings on bristols nocorner. post-modern dnb with shades of latter-day source direct and the rattle of golden-era skull disco. supported by the likes of ben ufo, lee gamble, ramzi and trevor jackson - premiered by phile, nerve and mos howieson

musik genießen - klang beurteilen! mit den hörtest-empfehlungen der stereo-redaktion. direct metal mastering, pressung auf audiophilem 180 gramm virgin vinyl.

die stereo hörtest-edition vol. iii präsentiert dem musikliebhaber wie dem klang-gourmet exzellente aufnahmen aus dem programm von chesky records auf unterschiedlichen tonträgern:
- 180 gramm lp, direct metal mastering
- hybrid-sacd
- dvd-rom mit hochbit-dateien in 24bit/192khz, 24bit/96khz & 16bit/44.1khz plus mp3 in 320kbit
- blu-ray audiodisc zur direktwiedergabe plus files in unterschiedlichen auflösungen

a warehouse jive for number 5 on running backs misfit melodies series. introducing new artist and shrinking violet pistachio, ilox cuts house music out of a techno cloth and vice versa. one of three direct cuts between chord memories, distant voices and space echoes, complemented by a drone piece for the times before, after and in-between. classic soundscapes with a modern drive. nutritious as a nut.

ever throughout a long-standing chameleonic career in nightlife colleen martin has been one to challenge expectations and confidently confront boundaries. having established herself now firmly within the techno scene as lady starlight, she continues to do so on her ep for figure, presenting a statement of bold and pounding beats. ‘which one of us is me? showcases a completely intuitive approach to making music, with every track coming together as a direct stream of creativity, channeled straight into the solely analogue hardware. it imbues each composition with a strong sense of immediacy, a quality that only further intensifies the raw energy transmitted. this pure form of expression translates into a record brimming with artistic authenticity - enveloping, moving and deeply impacting.

finally here we are with the fourth release on last drop records, signed by the london-based stavrogin. collectors takes a more subdued approach from his debut on australian label 3bs, focusing on ampdriven ambient textures and digital experimentation. sixty acres is a juddering mass of static textures and penetrative low end, forcing itself to a crumbled close. title track collectors is something like the afterglow. weary and destitute, the track stumbles through heatwave soaked atmospheres, fragmented voices stuttering like a malfunctioning android. are these actual miles? is perhaps the most direct, with its tremors of noise punctuated by a rhythmic pulse. this is a feature italian duo ichinen have capitalised on in their closing remix, reducing the track to a warbling, dead-eyed drum workout.

conceived along the space of a few years and part of a big collection of unfinished experiments stored on cassette tapes, this eight tracks selection well represents fred ventura s late 80s and early 90s infatuation with chicago house, detroit techno, early warp records and even a secret passion for ebm. using a basic set up made of roland juno 106, roland jx-8p, oberheim dx, roland tr909 and an akai sampler, these tracks were never officially mixed and meant to be released until today. minimal and hypnotic, dry and direct, both sides of the record show an instinctive approach to rhythms and basslines, typical of those days where computer didn t have a predominant role in the creative process.

the superb forbidden planet is a shiny early electro cut with a great funk bass line, a real instrumental groove and fantastic melodies that shimmer like a hot sun. it s filled with joy and sounds as fresh today as ever, the way it ducks and dives and offers real warmth. the francisco remix keeps the funk vibe but changes the groove to be a more chicago house style cut. as such it has a rasping bassline, big drums and coarse percussion that make you want to jack. the masterful ali renault—a go-to disco and synth specialist who runs cyber dance records, human shield record company and most recently his own vivod imprint—then turns out a hypnotic version that is more driven and direct for the dance floor, with robotic bass and epic reflective synth lines. it s a cinematic track with great analogue textures that goes back to the future. the last original is the excellent stay with me , a cosmic love song with breezy trumpets and dreamy disco vibes as well as soulful vocals. italo melodies and infectious percussion finish it off and make it an instant crowd pleaser.

the 1973 rock classic back on vinyl, remastered under lou’s direct personal supervision.