the 100 best harstyle tracks of 2012!

come take a journey down memory lane with us on back 2 the old skool garage classics, the greatest collection of garage anthems ever compiled!this essential album retrospectively maps out a journey through garage with over 60 vocal anthems across 3cds and provides a documentary of the seminal tracks which have shaped clubland and beyond. just some of the anthems on this epic anthology include shola ama imagine, monsta boy sorry and tina moore never gonna let you go alongside chart favourites like artful dodger movin too fast, dj luck & mc neat masterblaster, pied piper do you really like it and shanks & bigfoot sweet like chocolate. not forgetting the darker side of the bassline - those with a penchant for mcs can get their fix on early grime foundations from so solid crew 21 seconds,ms dynamite boo and oxide & neutrino bound 4 da reload.

from the word go, >its all true< has a spring in its step as opening track >itchy fingers< features lofty bpms in a range never explored on record by the group before and then, just as suddenly, the band shift gears to the sparse, brooding >playtime<. from the confident stomp of >you ll improve me< and the sophisticated pop of >a truly happy ending< to the epic album closer of >banana ripple<, >its all true< is by far the junior boys most accomplished album to date.

the yearly summit of keiji haino, jim o rourke and oren ambarchi continues with imikuzushi, which finds the group extending the power-trio strategies of last years highly praised in a flash everything comes together as one there is no need for a subject (bt05) and bringing to them a newly sustained intensity. for this performance, haino limits himself to electric guitar and vocals, forming complex networks of slashing rhythm work, noise squall and chromatic shredding, moving at times to near-silent passages of howled vocals and isolated, hanging guitar strums. the tendency towards driving free-rock which surfaced on moments of the trios last release is cemented here, with o rourkes fuzzed-out, non-linear bass riffing moving the music into almost garage-rock areas, combining with ambarchis drums to form a bedrock of hypnotic, metronomic pounding which transforms itself effortlessly into passages of flowing free-time. like all of hainos best work, the trio transcends any rock genre exercise to enter a non-idiomatic zone of ritual intensity, creating a music formed purely out of instrumental and group-mind possibility. presented as four unedited excerpts salvaged from an epic show that lasted well over three hours, the sometimes raw nature of the recording only adds to its directness and harshly emotive quality. francis plagne, melbourne, nov, 2011 released as a 6 panel digipak cd and as a limited edition double lp in a lavish gatefold with printed inner sleeves. design by stephen o malley with high quality live shots by ujin matsuo and stunning images by tokyo based photographer and sound artist shunichiro okad

cementing a year that saw a string of sublime stellar releases from mario & vidis, the dynamic force give house music a new accessible heartbeat with their album changed, set for release next spring. mario & vidis title their debut artist album after their future classic anthem, changed,an apt advocate to the new age slow house sound they have mastered and unmask themselves as purveyors of a hive of activity in their lithuanian home. spanning two discs and twenty tracks they cover much musical terrain, striding through epic soundscapes, hypnotic pop melodies, wandering into pure soul and running away with the finesse of raw house music on the second disc.changed opens with the atmosphere heavy introducing to you, lightly tickling the senses.

the mortimer trap is an epic 77min variation of morton feldmans for bunita marcus constructed by german experimentalist and techno icon thomas brinkmann and australian sound artist oren ambarchi. pulsating waves of claustrophobic ambience generated from who-knows-what patiently builds into a throbbing rhythmic pulse of gorgeous sonic density. since the 80s thomas brinkmann has experimented with sound, its textures and its construction methods. his custom built two-arm turntable on concept 1, the sampling of damaged records on klick and various experiments with carved-groove vinyl are just a handful of career highlights that mark brinkmann out as a true musical pioneer. oren ambarchi, primarily known for his solo guitar records for the touch label, has worked with a diverse array of artists such as keiji haino, fennesz, phill niblock, jim o rourke, voice crack, keith rowe and sunn 0))). ambarchi and brinkmann first worked together in in japan in january 2011 in a trio with mika vainio. the mortimer trap is their first collaborative work as a duo.

ministry of sound present the ultimate guide to the biggest festival anthems rocking summer festivals, including examples single -ctwykm- and -louder- by dj fresh. mainstage acts such as dizzee rascal, pendulum, prodigy and calvin harris are present on the opening cd, with an eclectic mix of bass bombs from the likes of vato gonzalez, toddla t, james blake, sub focus and more on cd two. the third disc is an epic collection of big room bangers including alex gaudino & kelly rowland s smash hit -what a feeling-, david guetta, deadmau5, afrojack, laidback luke and other a list djs.

every summer, a migration takes place that puts mecca to shame. a small island, just of the coast of spain, is the destination of a frenzied crowd of party pilgrims from all over the world. the balearic sounds of ibiza have set the tone for the worldwide dance community for decades and its sizzling club-scene knows no equal. this popular party island isn t just the breeding ground for global summer hits, it also sets the trends for the european clubbin season. after a soothing warm up with one of the warmest springs in recorded history, it s time for the big league. big & dirty house sounds ibiza 2011 is the perfect soundtrack for the hottest season of the year. get yourself a hammock, a tropical cocktail and close your eyes and imagine the perfect ibiza beach club. sun, sea, beaches, blue skies and more images of summer will pass you by while listening to this joyful double album, expertly mixed by mell tierra & essential grooves, two of holland s fastest rising stars in house.

demissions is the album every in-the-know electronica fan has been anxiously awaiting for the last ten years. phoenecia, the duo who put experimental electronic music on the map in the us with their soul oddity releases, their infamous schematic label, their early releases on warp and their brilliant albums brownout & echelon mall, are back with new album destined to be as ageless & influential as any of their previous contributions. what strikes the listener at first is how seamlessly the songs throughout the album integrate acoustic percussion with electronics, most notably on the twelve-minute epic first track two-part invention for bodhran & computer.

the album is just a few seconds under an hour long, consists of seventeen tracks and covers every style from wonky reggae through pop-funk, street spitting, straight up hip hop, sung ballads and epic death-disco. it deepens much of what mr manuva has already achieved over a glorious decade of innovation, but also throws in enough new ideas and adventures to last most creative artists a lifetime. we think it is his very best work since run come save me. we re wondering (whisper it) whether it might be his best album ever.

previously existing as progressive/melodic house entity solarity, dusky are london based musicians alfie granger-howell and nick harriman. as comfortable writing elegant orchestral pieces or stirring piano motifs as they are jackin house and epic techno grooves, their diverse sounds are united by the duos singular aim--to compose electronic music with depth, soul and originality. stick by this is the duos debut album.

azuli return for their flagship compilation with three of the biggest house stars around at the moment. olav basoski, james talk and ridney will take the helm of this years offering, serving up a tough, peak-time mix of house music.

the ever on point citrus recordings is stepping up for its 5th artist lp. after having released the debut albums of mindscape & jade wich all went on for critical acclaim its time for citrus to get ready for its 3rd artist album. this time its time for the debut album of fourward! hailing straight from lower austria the four men collective fourward started out producing music in early 2007. the boys knew each other for quite a while and shared the love and passion for drumandbass music. for them it was always a main issue not to stick to any particular tiny subgenre only, but to develop a sound of their own. all members have different musical backgrounds which fit together perfectly and provide a great studio vibe. days went by and the boys finished a couple of tunes properly and it wasnt long until austrian drumandbass producer duo body&soul showed interest in their works. also international artists like bbcs very own crissy criss began to support their music giving them airplay on his radio show. as a result of their effort fourward has released quality tunes on labels like subsonik sound, planet funk and fokuz. the year 2010 they experienced the so called breakthrough with releases on nasca recordings and fokuz followed by an epic 12inch for the legendary label virus recordings! the guys definitely didnt stop there and being on the road now broadened their horizon even further. resulting in a series of tunes perfectly fitting together in this cd. diversity and musicallity are keywords for this album. listen from low blow to you and me, quality drum n bass!!

amiable new york city-based alt-rockers spin doctors hit it big in 1993 with the jam band hits -two princes- and -little miss cant be wrong,- both of which fueled many countless collegiate afternoons spent hacky sacking and devil stick juggling amidst a sea of red plastic cups. released in 2011, the best of spin doctors, which doesnt differ too much from 2000s just go ahead now: a retrospective or 2009s playlist: the very best of spin doctors, features 18 tracks culled from the groups three albums for epic. front-loaded with the groups two biggest, aforementioned hits, the collection loses steam as it progresses (though there are some tight, 70s-inspired nuggets to be found like -mary jane- and -cleopatras cat-), due in no small part to the groups penchant for always staying in its comfort zone.

no other music has held such revolutionary possibility as hip-hop and to celebrate 30 years of this innovative genre ministry of sound brings you the latest instalment in our epic anthems series. the inspirational pioneers of this unique culture are all present on this essential release that begins with classic club anthems from artists such as run dmc, a tribe called quest, dr dre, cypress hill and gang starr this anthology is summarised with a taste of where the scene has developed into the modern era with a collection of #1 smashes that still blow up the dance floors across clubs worldwide.

continuing their policy of investing in white-hot, breakthrough talent, toolroom records enlist australian dj/producer dirty south to provide a mix for the prolific toolroom knights series. the strength of this double disc release lies with a carefully selected array of floor-destroying house tracks that have been hand-picked from a vast array of production talent from across the globe. there is a cunning blend of classic us sounds, techno and electro-influenced cuts and dirty souths own releases that bubble together in a mammoth, musical melting pot.

after all these years of tireless producing manuel goettsching seminal epic movie music like concept die mulde - limited to a strictly 400 copie edition. a glowing gem - a total collectors item to have and behold!!