some may have thought the trail was cold, but battant (chloe raunet and joel dever) have just been running as far as they can. not running away from something, just keeping on moving. from the headless wave of their first lp, towards the strange shores of their second album, as i ride with no horse that is produced by its a fine line (aka ivan smagghe & tim paris) and will be released worldwide in october 2011. first glimpse: shutter. this is one of the many places where they now stand. a dry, sparse yet catchy romp. on their own edge (between early cure and meth country if you need ready made tags), electronics still dance in the corner, reigned in by the sharp its a fine line (tim paris & ivan smagghe) production. the live take of clearcut is what it says. ghosts in the machines, spookiness never in vain, this is a real song. the idea of a cover of westbam and nenas classic old school, baby had been in the mind of the team for a while. this track is a part of our history. not an easy tackle but we like to think they have made the anthem theirs. going beyond the anecdote, here is a seriously rocking wink with early support from optimo, james holden, tiga, chloe and more.

returning to the kitchen after an over extended jaunt in the bathroom, the sound diggers grant us with another slap happy handful of flavor with their new piece entitled >dont flap just jack<. here at flapjack we do encourage everyone to wash their hands before returning from the bathroom to the decks. with the nasty low down n dirty grooves that are all over this ep, i am not so sure the sound diggers washed up very well, or at all. as we say in the business, when you get dirt in your salad, eh, its just a lil flava.

naughty stuff in here!

at last the albion vinyl sampler sees the light of day! we have waited far too long for this hotcake, but as they say >the best things come to those who wait<. we have pressed up four crazy disco gems here on the vinyl sampler. we start with >leslie< by the nevaboston team originally released in 1978 on a rare as rocking horse shit italian 7 inch albion gives it his subtle but effective treatment blending both parts together to create a new take on this killer piece of music (wait for the horns to drop for maximum dance floor devastation). oh and i nearly forgot to mention this is exclusive to the sampler never ever released norma jordans >feel me< also gets the albion snip and this delightful tracks begins with a quite a dark intro, mutating acid & disco until normas inviting voice comes to the front and absolutely smashes any dance floor into smithereens. once again it’s limited edition with no repress so buy now or cry later.

the sun is shining, the drinks are flowing and the music is bumping. summer is well and truly here and what better way to top off the best season of the year than with a 4 track summer sampler from the blockhead camp. as we have come to expect from team blockhead, they have provided us with another solid release with 4 tracks of pure bumpy tech house that would appeal across a far and wide ranging dancefloor. deep basslines, high top shuffles and infectious melody hooklines will keep the feet stomping and heads nodding. give it a spin and see the floor bounce!

the highly anticipated squeaky lobster ep has been worth every second of the wait. in terms of sample / synth selection, song structure and sound quality, no expense has been spared. hi-fi synthetic drums intertwine with lo-fi sampled kicks & snares whilst heavy stretched out synth bass lines are topped with bollywood-esque string samples, 80s guitar bridges & plenty of other orchestral mayhem. the lush, thick melodic layers mount up into a frequently spine-tingling whole whilst the rhythm section, although outside the box, does by no means neglect the headnod factor. the incredible feat here is that although no 8 bars are quite the same as the next, a sense of unity is preserved within each genre-defying track, making it the stuff of epic journeys. you may start your listening experience in front of your turntable, staring at the record spinning, but you will end up somewhere quite different, squeaky lobster has made sure of that. as man from phone number 770021 would say: >this is $50.000. good luck.<

released in 1999 produced by tedd patterson harry choo choo romero on remix duties here must have

we met fred ventura in 2006 over emails sent to italians do it better headquarters. he was one of the first people from europe to start writing the label prior to after darks release. it took us a few months to realize that this was fred ventura, the cult italo legend from milan. like a true gentleman, he had never bothered to mention it. since the early 1980s fred ventura has released numerous singles in europe & toured the world extensively as a solo artist. last year, johnny was in bologna on tour with desire & fred came out to the show to drink champagne & bring us some copies of the reissued tapes of fred’s early post punk group state of art. the lightbulb lit up & we asked him if he had any home recordings of his solo work. months later, he sent us 83 tracks of cassette recordings between 1982 & 1987. they had been sitting upstairs in a dusty box at his parents house in italy for the last 25 years. these tracks have only been heard by a handful of his closest friends. we were completely floored & honored! finding a beautiful treasure completely untouched & preserved is so rare. the songs are raw & honest written by a romantic with a love for an anthemic chorus & a drum machine running through his veins. think early minimal depeche mode with an italian heart. ornew order covering madonna produced moroder. yes, its that good. here we have the first official italians do it better release of these songs on a 4 song 12inch ep. this vinyl only release is a teaser for the >dont give up< 18 track lp out in a couple of months. so in the meantime, slip on those gucci loafers, rev up the alfa romeo and head down to the discotheque because life is too short

mit dem wunderbar sommerlichen vocaltrack >right in the dark< erscheint nun die dritte single aus fritz kalkbrenners sensationellem debütalbum >here today gone tomorrow<, das jüngst für den kritikerpreis des echo nominiert war. auf >right in the dark< weiß der bruder von paul kalkbrenner mit seiner außergewöhnlichen stimme zu glänzen wie auf kaum einem anderen stück des albums. der song ist auch der favorit der beteiligten remixer. deren besetzung kann mit robag wruhme und henrik schwarz kaum hochkarätiger sein. robag wruhme ist zweifellos einer der männer der stunde. sein neues album auf dj kozes label pampa ist zu recht in aller munde. seine version von >right in the dark< weiß denn auch spielerisch die hohen erwartungen zu erfüllen. henrik schwarz ist seit langer zeit einer der lieblingsproduzenten von fritz kalkbrenner und der suol-crew. der berliner versteht es in seinen tracks wie kaum ein anderer, spannung aufzubauen. die gelingt ihm auch in seinem remix von >right in the dark<, der in dem moment, wenn die 4/4-kickdrum einsetzt, unter garantie jeden club der welt auseinandernimmt.

following on from the furious 601 release we revisit the aquasky single and ask some mates of ours to go in on the remix tip and try and add some of their own bass induced mayhem and here, ladies and gentlemen, is the end result. not for the faint hearted or those of an uneasy disposition.

new release alerts for jay lumen. following rise on nic and mark fanciullis saved records, 2000 and one label boss snapped jay lumen for a new single on his big room 100% pure records label ... you like lil louis - why fall ? here the techhouse version

the more perceptive among you will no doubt twig the musical direction of an ep entitled >the deepness< by 2deepsoul before the needle even hits the groove. if you hoped it was going to be brimming with ocean deep grooves and burning chords - deep house in the truest sense - then youd be right. malcolm moores altered moods recordings brings us the debut release from 2deepsoul, aka rai scott and brad peterson, who set their stall out with a title track dripping with moody synths and hypnotic drums n hats. >escaping insanity< meanwhile is underpinned by a delicious acid line - perhaps the most outright floor-friendly track on this here 12inch. the metronomic pulse of >harmony< is augmented by a majestic one note synth loop that gently soars above - a rasping hat soon joins the fray along with the gentlest of string flourishes. >continuance (theory of lazy clap)< is equally bewitching, with a title and arrangement that wouldnt sound out of place in the dj sprinkles catalogue<

the good the bad the ugly the evil is a full on and brandnew 4 track ep from our cologne artist roland m. dill. roland has worked here with a stronger live-set up resulting in tracks more organic. developing from within rather than being developed, the tracks seem to have a stronger hypnotic edge to them. according to the titels the track all show diffferents characteristic. starting with the evil this track is not very obvious but works very much by itself, whereas the good is a perfect intermezzo for djs who really build up their sets with a lot of skill. the ugly is a mental track... it has stunts, it screams, it sees no end... this is mandness on the highest level and also the bad is written in this veain.
played by: martin eyerer, umek, sian, stephan bodzin, patrick pulsinger, orde meikle/ slam, paco osuna, mihalis safras, dubfire, john digweed, deepchild, jens lissat, blind minded, sebastian russell, gow, zidan, scott byrne, danny tenaglia ...

here is some more disco ammo from mdd. >me for you for me< may be based on a classic, but the crowd reaction when it was played at a recent warehouse party shows theres certainly still life in the old dog yet. john luongo thought he d nailed it when he put the breakdown before the verses? pff.. what verses? then theres >think< – not the usual sound we have come to know from al kent possibly – no strings? no percussion?? ah, but theres a squelchy synth. finally theres waltered states. this is possibly what it would sound like if walter gibbons and ron hardy went on a bender then made some edits together.

so here we go again, dj mehdi and riton are carte blanche. cant stop, wont stop. the new ep is called white man on the moon, and includes smashing jack on the moon, and next single with you, featuring alexis taylor from hot chip on vocal duties. the new mixtape is called house party 2: the pyjama jam. and last but not least, the new tour is called carte blanche revue, its worldwide, its djing and tr-909ing, its rollerskate dancing, its popping, and its locking (for real)

for all the wonderfully subtle shell-breaking he did on his full-length, mark e falls back on old, slow habits for his new single, >the day<. and welcomely, we might add. pitching things down to a basement lounge floor crawl, the midlands dj/producer wraps his always chugging kicks and snares in serpentine synth-bass, jazzy, tripleted hi-hats, and moaning, wordless soul vocals. its grasp is tantric—hinting coyly at ecstatic release, but never fully delivering. for the vinyl junkies that bought stone breaker and missed out on it the first time around (it was absent from that version), this release should be a no brainer. but >the day< isnt carrying all the weight here. a new track called >special fx< will have sample hounds—particularly those with a thing for classic electro-pop—salivating. and the oft imitated, never replicated prins thomas shows up on the flip for a (naturally) eleven- minute revamp of >the day<, livening up the bass and drum patterns, adding in strings, piano, guitar, organ, and ending up with something that totally could have emanated from a camaro at some point in the early seventies. (albeit, one owned by someone with interest in eleven-minute instrumentals.) it even has a fade out!

from the far away sound to the one that explodes in your face, from chicago to berlin, from delay to mute, tube & berger vs. fank sonic create here a timeless dance tune! we are speaking about >the swarm<. put steve bug in a room with dj pierre and this is what you might get. small stunts... reductive rhythm... controlled cool drive... a winner.
played by: umek, paco osuna, yousef, orde meikle/ slam, laurent garnier, john digweed, joseph capriati, igor tchkotoua (pig & dan), steve parry, alex tepper, jens lissat, sebastian russell, zidan, beatamines ...

its needless to add many words to the big success of >the elephants< original release. we however could not resist to have it remixed by some of the worlds hottest producers. and here they are: great names, great music!! go for it

as pete isaac from jelly jazz said, makala does tasty club rocking tunes that fuse old school rumba, salsa, reggae, swing and mambo with breakbeats and chugging 4 to tha floor beats. remix action here from our friends and heroes dusty and dubben. both delivering amazing takes on the originals. watch out for makalas new album, coming soon!

it really is a great pleasure for exclusive to welcome back jef ks wonderful silver network label with their latest single from, valentin feat. the morvans. valentins electronic musical heritage stretches back to the early days of rave. as a wide eyed and open minded 18 year old he became hooked and soon immersed himself in the ever evolving culture. in the early 90s he worked for bpm, the very first underground parisian record store and it was here that he built a vast knowledge of the exciting us labels and producers. by the end of the 90s valentin was a regular on the dj and after-hours circuit, but as the rapidly developing >french touch movement< began to make its mark, it was time to find new inspiration

5 years of leftroom are celebrated here with an ep from bristols waifs & strays / leeds laura jones & miamis lazaro casanova

here is the follow up of its ok. this ep has the the perfect ingredients for a banging bigroom groover for the later hours. produced by italys most wanted heads who know how to bake a cake made in italy

here comes the new echocord colour. after some big releases with luke hess, mike dehnert and sebastien san here comes the new one which is a split ep of the copenhagen heroes mikkel metal & resoe. after his latest 12 inch on echocord, mikkel metal again shows us his more techno-side of his universe, with this killer peaktime bomb, and still with his own unique deep sound. after his resent album on echocord, resoe here presents a more dancefloor-orientated track, for the fans of dettmann/klock, shed, sandwell district and pattern repeat.

italian techno heavyweights markantonio and rino cerrone finally name their collaborative ventures after ten years of gigs and productions together, and the name is junction hands. revolution is back is the first full release under the junction hands moniker, following a well received outing as part of the recent the napoli connection ep on adam beyers drumcode and it sees the two veterans deliver some of their strongest work yet. the title track is a pacey number with a reverb soaked yet warm atmosphere which underpins an aggressive, simple and incredibly effective bass/drum loop which gains intensity throughout. sharp sounds puncture the groove here there which keeps things interesting but its the discordant stabs in the break which push things into overdrive. the equally hypnotic and driving thing for hands follows but manages to do so with an increased feeling of woozy menace. synths feedback on themselves to shattering crescendos before subsiding into waves of noise while the groove relentlessly works its magic. with junction hands theres yet another must-check name coming out of the neapolitan scene.

outstanding explorative techno for the fearless, comes in killer gatefold sleeve - absolutely & highly recommended!

parisian label my love is underground calls on the service of kool vibe, a veteran dj & clubber from paris. although now in his 40s, this is his debut release, but to hijack a well worn phrase, its been worth the wait. mr vibe has clearly spent many a night on discerning dancefloors, and the three tracks on offer here are produced with the steady hand of someone who knows their way around a house tune.

with his latest and 8th artist album >tiefenschön< the timerwriter aka jean f. cochois convinced the critics once more after his latest mix compilation out of his compilation series >deeptrain< became compilation of the month in mixmag uk. here we have the new single >superschall< which is the final track of the album plus one non album track and a remix by m.in.

the x-man has been locked away in the detroit psychiatric hospital for the last 30 years. as his release date drew near ppu had a moment to sit down and talk with the man behind the mask. ppu - how did you end up here? xman - my music style, often described as aggressive funk, was deemed by the state of michigan too mental for the listening public. ppu - what does the x stand for? xman - x is an executioner. ppu - what do you plan to do after your release? xman - i am here to eliminate everyone in funk.

the aliens dropped their first tune >exterminate< and >their here< to critical acclaim setting the dub step forums and dance floors alight. the guys now come with their second release and drop two brutal dub step bass heavy steppers on us. there is a lot of chatter about who the aliens are with names of a number of top dubstep artists in the frame. however it doesnt really matter who is behind this release as the music clearly speaks for itself. these new tunes have been causing chaos on the dance floor with their destructive basslines and nasty switches and being supported by the cream of the dub step scene including kromestar, skream, n type, hatcha, walsh, f1 and the aliens.

vinyl set compiling >the crackle of my soul< & >up here in the clouds< albums plus debut 7 inch release from klanggalerie. limited to 500 copies. recorded between 2001 and 2010.

we all knew very well that we had reached a point of no return. there was no need to talk about it. and although there was hardly enough time for us to reflect on our shared experiences, we were sure that everything was going to be alright. all four of us were sitting there, facing each other, sad, yet full of confidence. never again we would allow any meatball to bully us around. we have had enough of this useless on and off, and of all this stupid jobs of even more stupid users. from now on, we will programme our chips ourselves. >go to hell! no one will ever touch my board again! in the future, i will solder it myself, and the way i want it to! robotica, here we come!<

the most eagerly anticipated dance album release of the year is finally here!

there is always an air of excitement in the office when the new dissonant drops with us. it may only be on its third release but marc antonas wonderfully fresh new imprint is making waves, and for all the right reasons. theres no relentless pr entertaining, popular genre chasing or laptop-loving >live< collectives here. no fuss, no bluster, just incredible music.

6th borough project make a welcome return to delusions of grandeur to deliver their debut lp entitled one night in the borough. here we have the final single in the series of 3 including four brand new full-length cuts from the album.

the duo justice comes here with their wonderfull 12 track debut album on ed banger !! ltd repress

here at bearfunk hq we firmly believe in perseverance. we keep asking questions until we get the right answer and with 6ft bear by our side the answer is usually yes. we kept asking ilija rudman to get in the studio and write us a killer lp but being the busy bee that he is it was hard for him to take the time out. we kept asking until he eventually caved in and went underground to record his first lp, >the reveal<. ilija is a devoted and passionate man when it comes to music. one of his prerequisites for recording an lp was that the recordings had to be made with the same techniques and equipment that inspired him to make music in the first place. so ilija hooked up with one of his studio mentors and got his dream line-up of synthesizers, roland jupiter 4 & 8, minimoog, roland sh2, juno 60 and his dream drum machines linn and oberheim dmx. these analogue machines fire up to create a warm and authentic vibe across the whole lp. we are reminded here that machines do have soul if used properly. we start proceedings with the wigged out boogie of >inspectors drive< which might be a little nod in the direction of wally badarous classic chief in< have all the ingredients of dj friendly hits. the lp reveals all the influences that ilija has experienced and it shows the talent that runs inside him as he is able to make such an amazingly retro lp sound like something from the future. we are sure in years to come this lp could become as important as the influences that inspired mr. rudman to make it.

6th borough project make a welcome return to delusions of grandeur to deliver their debut lp entitled one night in the borough. here we have the second single in the series of 3 including four brand new full-length cuts from the album.

although the damage music berlin label is still in its youth, the creative input is not holding its breath too long: after the success of the damage release dirty doering >loco remixes<, this issue presents a new 12ep that puts even more excellent and fresh urban breath into modern club music. first up is >whats the point?<, a collaboration with label chief alexander kowalski together with jake the rapper. by teaming up with jake the urban electronic guerilla, a cunning and highly-effective headbanging is produced, harvesting a moody and darkly infectious spoken text. >it all boils down< ... what unfolds here is an intense yet uncluttered soundtrack surrounding a mystifying message of sexually metapysical proportions crafted and totally engaging.
big with: nick warren, mihalis safras, pig & dan, peter horrevorts, chrisitan smith, joris voorn, cristian varela,..

6th borough project make a welcome return to delusions of grandeur to deliver their debut lp entitled one night in the borough. as well as a cd the album is being released as 3 individual singles plus a limited edition triple coloured vinyl pack. here we have the first single in the series of 3 including four brand new full-length cuts from the album. find a way kicks things off and sees the guys deliver what we know as classic 6th borough material ie. precision cut, edity disco and soul but heavied up with a fat kick and an arrangement which screams out for peaktime plays. iznae hits next with a brilliant wobbling bassline that brings a warehouse feel to proceedings before the groove drops into an unexpected breakbeat section that harvey mason himself would be proud of. if its loopy downtempo house you re into then look no further than if the feelings right. layers of loops build and drop, filtering in and out whilst grooving steadily along at a sublime 88bpm. finally, changin goes on a classic deep house mission with soft stabs and synth riffs supplying the interest while a rolling beat propels things along in an understated yet powerful way.

one of the west coasts favorite producers meets one of the west coasts leading labels. sfs dj rasoul (soulfood, large, naked music and many others) drops a gorgeous laid-back soulful houser, anchored by a nice vocal and rasoul’s trademark big bass and chunky drums. plenty of mixes to work with here, including the lush main mix, an alternative and a dub. lazy, groovy deep house for those extra sweaty dancefloors.

7th sign warmly welcomes marcellus pittman to the label. with a distinctive sound that pulls together soul and electronic texture into a form without compare, marcellus already boasts a formidable track record. he is a member of the seminal 3 chairs alongside kenny dixon jr., rick wilhite and theo parrish. as if this werent enough, his remarkable releases on sound signature, track mode, fxhe, fit and his own unirhythm imprint have further cemented his position as the hottest modern producer around today. here we have three glorious tracks that show different sides to his character but all sharing a common purpose - to move bodies and minds.

a full length lp by ruins, an italian electro-wave duo. ruins formed in mestre in 1978 with the intention of experimenting with electronic devices and mixed media. they mainly created music out of self-expression without any intention of joining the mainstream. interested in multimedia, they had a strong visual aesthetic apparent via their album art, videos and projections. its where italo meets minimal wave. the -fire- videos are a must-see in order to grasp the full effect of the song, check out the first version here and rare second version here. the lp entitled -the art dance- features a collection of songs recorded between 1980-1984, some previously released, others never released before pressed on 180 gram vinyl and housed in a lovely hand-numbered glossy gatefold jacket lined with the bands history and photos, and accompanied by a lyrics insert sheet. tip!

james whats debut release for crosstown rebels is a two track single of sheer class! a hypnotic, hooky emotive pair of dancefloor weapons that will not fail to get under your skin. his deft production skills are championed here in this irresistible new single, truly sublime!

taking a break from compiling his latest masterpiece while simultaneously remixing and re-editing for various labels, al kent delivers another trio of peak time disco movers.. on the a side “feel it baby” is a classic everyone should know, twisted and tweaked for today’s loop-hungry dancers. the phrase “bassline to die for” was coined to describe this song. then there’s the strings… oof! flip it for you got it, an edit that’s been in al’s armoury a while, one that people always ask for.. so here it is. “drums to die for”? built around one serious serious disco break. lastly, theres loving living feeling. a super funky clav, rhodes and string groove that really packs a punch! million dollar disco is loved by dimitri from paris, pat les stache, solid state, cosmic boogie, greg wilson, peter adarkwah, the dead rose music company, horse meat disco, nik weston, chris harris and many many more..

zepp001 returns to delusions for our first release of 2011 and what a way to start the new year! the seattle based disco obsessive has been holed up in his recently completed studio in delphia (a city located on antarcticas southern shore) and its easy to hear the influence this strange and otherworldly place has had on the two original tracks here on this release

gb returns with >the xpander ep< fresh from his recently released >interprets…< project. here he flips styles & produces in the realm of electronic dance & ministers the marriage between analog synthesis & prayer ->the xpander< & >the dreamer<. hot!

massive tracks with along lasting appeal are on the rende-vous here.. ready to be enchanted. supported by norman nodge, 2000 and one, ivan smagghe, charles webster -always a hit every gig,.. artwork direction and design by dennis donahue

the second volume follows the story with the same phylosophy of the first one. different visions between techno, electronica/idm and electro. tracks generated by ideograma, arcanoid and miguel mendoza but now we introduce a new tesla agent: shadow runner. hes here to provide a dark and deep powerfull techno track.vintage electronics, future classic tracks, the ancient methods for the world of tomorrow, the tesla agents are here to control the voice of the energy. video: http://vimeo.com/17881668

the diversity of the material here is unique as hidden ensures every inch of the techno spectrum is covered from deep, late night insanity to vintage detroit analog electronics for the rare release these days that is broad and well rounded. featuring remixes from franklin de costa (trapez), andrea ferlin (sleep is commercial), alland byallo (pokerflat/liebe detail) and andrew grant (barraca music).