if everything suddenly changed – what would that be like?
qnete’s ep is not the question and not the answer. it’s in a hiatus between hopes and fears, still maintaining an eager energy. within a short period of time all tracks were recorded straight to tape, raw and improvised. they remember the sun bath before the storm, when you feel that something is about to roll over you. they express the urge and need to sometimes just jump into the cold water to face what’s coming next. they linger in the nervous energy when you’re lost and don’t know what to expect. but they also talk about the hope of finding a safe place.

romanias snejl black teams up with qindek for its 4th release. what we get are 3 tracks, carefully sculpted, ultra-pure visions of techno. each is thoroughly uncluttered, and given just enough color to be compelling. simple kick drum, undulating sounds that provide something distantly related to melody, and very subtle backdrops that pair a soothing hiss and quiet drones. nothing is superfluous, everything is essential.

modern love very rarely reaches out to artists outside of its immediate surroundings, it’s happened just a couple of times in the last 14 years. but there’s something about philippe hallais that compelled the label to ask him if he wanted to do something together. philippe has released music on a bunch of cool labels (l.i.e.s., the trilogy tapes, delsin, in paradisum), but hearing the first tracks recorded for lighthouse stories, it was obvious philippe was hitting on something new: a kinda weird slow/fast dance music that sounded like a footwork variant sewn up with an exotic production style that was impossible to pin down. these tracks eventually splintered off into different directions, held together by a strong sense of narrative and motion harking back to a teenage obsession with turntablism, detroit electro and ghetto house, and eventually juke and grime. although he’s spent the last few years focusing on more industrial dancefloor variants, for lighthouse stories philippe turned to these foundational influences, as well as his love of mixtapes and sound collages full of unfinished ideas, skits and experiments, all things that inform the flow of this new album. lighthouse stories captures a sense of nostalgia well, but is also a futuristic vision full of that exploratory, vibrant spirit that’s so hard to find in electronic music these days. frames of reference are hard, but in places it reminds us of the dusted swagger of anthony shake shakir, the acquatic drexciyan movements of ultradyne, a loose-limbed take on shangaan, and of actress at his most submerged. but ultimately, it’s an album made by a producer looking to his personal history while forging new ground, pushing ahead with little regard to convention and ultimately ending up with something completely unique: a kind of intimate journal rendered in bright colours and odd shapes.

special remarks : 180g vinyl, fullcover.
the fifth release on our lehult imprint introduces the unique sounds of yet another talent from our crew. after already appearing on our third release, the 8040 ep is dj assam’s first full length release, that showcases his deep and textured productions. in between slightly skipping grooves, atmospherical chords and thumping basslines, dj assam manages to create a atmosphere that offers just the right tension between seductive warmth and dark melancholy, between intimate proximity and distance, between uplifting groove and thoughtful introspection. it comes in a beautiful full-cover showing the deep forest of lehult, as visual counterpart to the sounds of the ep.

no fancy business class air lounge mumbo jumbo this time, no.8 just got clearance for take off and this one is first and foremost for the pilots. the a side hits you loud and direct like a cessna centurion engine, accessible, reliable and just damn good in the air. now if b1 is some kind of an adventurous but gentle doppel-decker, manoeuvrable­ small craft, then low altitude b2 breaks the cloud cover to take you on that magic night-flight you might later be uncertain if it ever really happened. limited edition - vinyl only !

2016 reissue! ... of course best known as the dj of most mysterious drexciya, sherard ingram (urban tribe) has been a strong pawn in the resistance of underground music... now, out of the shadow of detroits underground, one of the godfathers of the electronic scene joins forces with belgiums underground label mewe/weme. immediately, the first track is confirming dj stingrays drexciyas membership while the second track is a dive into the (un)known abyss. and further with robotic and futuristic anthems reminding us all that big brother is more than just fiction... theres a 68.71 percent chance you re being watched right now

limited edition of 300 copies with unique artwork made by russian street artist (grisha), which were carefully adapted to sleeve design by mikhail myasoedov. the vinyl lp contains 4 selected tracks from the full 8-track album.
after 9 years of silence, here’s the 11th album from the unclassifiable brussels-based duo. with their usual tamping drums (just mention the two parts of “the decision to exist” or “same area”, led by a ferocious 808), a regular bass guitar hammering, some bare minimum poor voices, threatened violins, skinbound flute and oboe here and there, a distorted furious piano everywhere and finally some tiny cautious optimism (the extra-human guitar in “enough slaps”), the whole is carefully assembled in order to obtain an accurate picture of life on earth. “pain” and “pleasure” are different aspects of the same mental construction.

ltd 2016 repress , with his first release on co-owned smallville-label lawrence aka peter m. kersten celebrates another tribute to more than 20 years of house music. wether it is the magic sound of nick holder or modern grooves of labelmates like melchior, pronsato and christopher rau- this ep is full of inspiration. beyond the club influences kersten was mainly driven by slow detroit jazz from the early 70ies and classical minimal music which make the colorful taste of this ep. with sorry sun lawrence invites to another adventure into the miracle of a cosy dancefloor letting only the music shine and the people close their eyes and smile. sorry sun, here comes the night.

on a fishing trip two years ago, the two main guys behind africaine 808: d leyers and nomad - went to a tackle shop to buy some creepy crawlies (saltwater worms), not knowing that they were about to make a life changing discovery. in front of the shop a blind man was jammming on a little electronic organ, stomping his feet, singing, growling and basically making a scene. the boys were quite impressed with the fella, who introduced himself as blind double d . they offered to bring him home and record him. he turned the offer down, but offered instead that they could record him on the spot in front of the tackle shop - if they bought him a bottle of good bourbon. he explained that he would never set foot into a studio again in his life: he was sick of music production and the music industry in general, and that he just wanted this bottle of bourbon and to be left alone. the boys got him the bottle, and recorded blind d.d. on the spot with a tape recorder they borrowed from the tackle shop. unfortunately, the tape was stored in one of the tackle boxes over the trip, and some of the creepy crawlies crawled into the tape and stank it all up. this added some extra funk to the recording. with dirk and nomad s usual studio trickery and production skills, they created the two versions of this very very funky, creepy, stanky track. we hope you ll enjoy it as much as we do.

dave ajus, the freee lover ep has landed as the 1st new artist release on the newly re-launched mff and setting the benchmark for the label. with a huge worldwide fan base and instinctual passion for delivering fresh sounding quality material, the name dave aju has become synonymous with originality and diversity. the freee lover ep offers 3 original tracks from aju and an amazing remix from germanys soulphiction. find a lover & givin it dub are 2 signature aju cuts, deep and soulful tech house featuring original vocals and just the right amount of jack. freeeze takes route firmly in the leftfield. a discordant downtempo number, with muted jazzy chords and twisted grooves, a sure fire track for sunrise dance floors. to top off the package, soulphiction inject some peak time energy back into freeeze, offering a beautifully produced, perc lead tech roller.

re-issue of the 1977 debut album from prince.

just one year after the release of brazilian disco boogie sounds compilation, favorite recordings presents the 2nd edition of its acclaimed series.

spring has arrived just in time for -dov e l amore-, a four track 12inch by david vunk & mima. this special collaboration of rotterdam s main italo producer and a classically trained pianist/singer from the former yugoslavia has resulted in a bunch of energizing synth pop gems that will keep you dancing all the way through summer!

rnt pushes the boundaries of their ever-expanding reserve imprint once again, bringing the tropical soul of fatnotronic into the fold. a sprawling 12 inch + bonus 7 inch pack, onde anda spans a range of equatorial flavor, showing the sao paulista duo s knack for bringing just the right touch of today to classic and obscure brasilian sounds of the past. and with beautifully illustrated packaging, this one s a treat for both the eyes and the ears! pressed on 12 inch with a bonus 7 inch both heavyweight vinyl both in a full picture sleeve.

madrid-based producer manuel anós returns on his own non series imprint to release his new ep just after his remarkable solo debut on tresor. psyk brings now to ‘origin, 2 tracks in the manuels most basic and stripped down aesthetics to explore his sonic origins through loops and wires.

danism makes their debut on noir music with the emotional reciprocated love featuring the vocals of legend arnold jarvis. we fell in love with this stringled and super smooth song from 1st listen at the nm offices. deephouse like it sounded back in the day and in general just a timeless effort by the cambridge based guys. deetron, deux tigres and city soul project deliver the remixes and all of them are spot on quality with a more clubby edge. so instead of keep hyping this brilliant release. let the music do the talking.

coming straight out of melbourne with plentiful attitude, producer/multi-instrumentalist silentjay teams up with fellow hiatus kaiyote backing vocalist, jace xl to present sacrifice, a mini album of epic proportions. at once sincere and heartfelt, the songs do not shy away from the playful influence of 90s rnb - a sound that is a defining influence on this ep, which despite clocking in at just under 30 minutes, attains a level of artistry and conceptual cohesiveness that many artists could only dream of. another very serious record, from an impossibly fertile melbourne scene that is quickly becoming the envy of the world.

a1 nubian mindz - deep in raves: well known for his versatile and rich production, colin delivers once more. with a quite suitable name - deep in raves is just that. a deep plunge into dark and rave-like atmosphere. after a short intro layered with an ominous voice, massive bassline takes over and drives the track through the darkest curves. enriched with short percussions and a synth stab this is quite a stomper best experienced on a good club soundsystem, preferably in the dark. a2 volster - nebula: almost obsessed with audio purity, volster manages to combine new and modern sounds with old-school genre roots. nebula is all about complexity. although it is based on an electro foundations, it s so much more. space filled with an oscillatory synth motion perplexed with smooth pads that gives the impression of an interstellar properties. no detail is left unengaged, from the 808 that keeps everything in motion to the subtle amount of panning. this is a beautifully crafted story by a producer who is slowly but steadily growing into one of the best croatian artists. b1 lucretio - dracula: the most famed beard of cadoneghe/italy has pulled another magic gem from his music source. widely known for his relentless tendency to push the analogue spectrum to it s extreme, lucretio surprises once more with his ability to blend simple pieces into an effective sub storm with almost comic like features. dracula is not your conventional tune and it s pretty obvious why as soon as you put the needle on. broke down rhythm is heavily fueled by polished but enormous sub background with sparse and ¥in your face¥ shots. seemingly random notes take a gloomy and powerful form during the break and soon the lurky atmosphere comes into picture. this is truly brilliance in it s full simplicity. if only bram stoker could hear this, he would probably be both stunned and amused! b2 james booth - jxst do it: one of our goals on vakum is to be on a lookout for a new and promising talents. berlin based james booth surely fits the bill. jxst do it is a seriously crafted track with rich rhythmic section wrapped in a steady build up. after the initial break-beat intro sliced in short chunks, subtle 303 bassline takes over and the rhythmic game begins. booth delivers a perfectly timed cuts accompanied by a diverse palette of percussions. this is a perfect piece for those build up moments in the club..

those secret squirrels just can t get enough! after a brief period in the woods they are back with even more tracky disco and proto-house business. funky, chunky, raw and dirty, they drop two more gems that are guaranteed to power the dance floor all night long. surrender to the squirrels! resistance is futile.

this promising israeli talent delivers two slow burning tracks oozing with eastern influence and informed by the modern sounds of dance. part of the 84% creativity crew, naduve presents his second release with cocktail d amore in the form of a two track ep which revels in it s dark and seductive energy. -no good news- builds over it s 7-minute run layering mystic vocal synths and coupling them with splashing hats and tight shakers to give just enough beat driven energy to keep a crowd to attention. the flying guitars and staccato synths of a trip in tel aviv slither over half beat percussive structures to give this track a sinister feel ideal for late, late, late nights. wunderkind man power drops a tab on a trip, giving it a fresh take perfect for psychedelically inclined moments.

2016 repress! as the old english phrase proclaims: good things comes to those who wait. sure these recordings from inner have been in our possession for quite a time now. but then again, why even worry? timeless art doesn t get antiquated - it just keeps on working. shadow hide the hunter!

born in canada, fatima camara was raised in a large portuguese family where traditional song and dance were as integral to her family gatherings as food, laughter, and wine. before we sleep, her debut album, is as a collage of the diverse musical influences that have defined each chapter of her storied life: bass guitar lines wrought with the new wave sound that marked her formative adolescence, drums that echo the electronic music she migrated to during her early adulthood in toronto’s dance music scene, and an overriding melancholy that signals the conflicted feelings she has when considering the thin layer of dust that has collected upon her chair at the family dinner table since she made her move to berlin. &#8232,,,apart from music, fatima appreciates happy accidents, blended horizons, and unlit corners.

2016 rsd release , incl slamming french house classics & remixes ... just 8 great beats

full range milton bradley techno sound: dark, industrial leaning to 1990s style acid.

&me has established himself as one of the most exciting artists in the scene and returns to saved with his unique offering called shadows. the german artist demonstrates just why he is in such demand, with the record possessing an organic element with has become a signature part of his output. the vocals from dwayzo lawrence combined with the piano and arping synths create a masterpiece which will be rocking dance floors for months to come.

after cutting his teeth supporting berlin s keinemusik crew, fabian braunbeck branches off with his own original ep. moody & beautiful, its lush textures clearly show an artist who has paid attention while working with some of the industry s best, yet has a voice all his own, not to mention he s picked up a few tricks on the way. the ep s title track needs absolutely no introduction, just press play. we welcomed back our good friend ruede hagelstein to remix the a side and as the partyers at panorama bar would agree now for weeks on end it works!. the b-side is a much more percussive and moody affair, getting a remix from fellow berliner filburt who puts his own mark on the originals cornerstones.

the btrax records label is back after few years off, and we are sure that new ep will not disappointed you. we are very proud to put out 1 stunning track made by one of the label artist : camille rodriguez from paris - france. electronic music drives his life for over 10 years now, he has developed his own style incorporating all his influences. he is passionate about the live, and create that way with synthesizers, sequencers, bar and samplers... he likes pushing himself sweating behind his machines, improvising at every moment, keeping control of every sound in order to play more intuitively, getting a better communication with the crowd... “andalusian 2.0” comes in two guises, the original mix which delivers some perfect techno keys and claps over its stomping techno beat, giving it live performance style flavor. the traumer remix takes it into darker warehouse territory but still retains the warmth and groove. kaine’s remix delivering some tough dub techno workouts that still have just the right amount of funk and groove.

vent is receiving another dose from enfant terrible cindy, and it’s just like the relief of the hair of the dog that bit you. relentless and distorted, cindy weaves hypnotic spells of repetition, reminiscent of basement hardcore, punk and no-wave influences. seldom has one heard such artistry using solely a 909 hihat. to round the package of, rebekah adds her take on the aesthetic and holds nothing back.

basement galaxy is a technological concept that will surge from mind expansive soundtracks to no holds barred dj lineups bursting with technotensity. with ardent focus on the underground to the masters of the overground, without constraint, deserving voices shall be heard. the first installation of the basement galaxy soundtrack series features house/techno pro baller, jerome sydenham. here, sydenham give us a glimpse into his techno remix savoir faire. this 8-track techno boner features tracks from craig, planetary assault systems, truncate, radio slave, raiz, kyle geiger and bobby dowell, tom laws and xhin. the remixes of raiz - keep secrets and planetary assault systems - gt were collaborations with the legendary function (sandwell district)

new years deal - following on from the admas/andras fox 12inch mpr007, major problems raids compassion crews vaults for this killer double comp, featuring 11 tracks from frak, admas, plustwo, big city orchestra, philip jeck and more. compassion cuts, tapes & acetates runs through a rarified selection of raw house and most-wanted italo 808 and vocoder jams, proto-house dope synth workouts private press gospel and some experimental tracks that just wont be defined. dont look, hide! all tracks restored and mastered by thomas p heckmann and cut by andreas at schnittstelle. out on 2x12inch gatefold lp, with simon landreins full-colour artwork presented in a laminate gloss finish.

repress 2016 - the king of afrobeat is reinterpreted by the uks lodger. true sunshine music just in time for summer! for the third in the stamp series, we turn our attention to west-africa and the black president himself. englands lodger has crafted two superb reinterpretations that are part edit, part remix and all parts dancefloor dynamite. odoo and afro cuts may be instantly recognisable yet they are cunningly extended, subtly tweaked in all the right places and most importantly retaining the source materials core, that inimitable nigerian funk. limited vinyl pressing - hand stamped.

here at bearfunk we have been pretty busy as of late it was a casual visit to geneva just like any other. we had just finished a buzzing set and soon after we found ourselves talking to a five bearded academic types. it turns out they were a bunch of theoretical physicists out on a cosmologists night out. they work them hard at cern and that day the large hadron collector had been a real beast rebooting five times before lunch. they were pissed off and needed a new challenge. we offered them a job on the spot and they promptly moved to our london hq working on a wage of tea, vinyl and nandos. we set them a challenge. build us a time machine! they started soaking up all those bearfunk-groove-boson particles and. you know what? they did it! a time machine of our own. our first task, jump back in time to 1985 and retrieve us something really cool. set controls to the manhattan office to celluloid records. fresh from their hit with herbie hancocks rockit, spearheading rap with fab five freddys change the beat and afrika bambata stompers the legendary label is preparing to release the debut album from nyc-paris emigre lord funk.

the classic burial album is re-pressed on 180g double vinyl and, for the first time, updated to include the beatless atmospheric tracks that up until now have only been available on the cd album and the digital album. please note - these are not re-issues, theres no new music, nothing remastered - just revised, improved.

das debüt-album von la boum fatale als 12 inch vinyl mit downloadcode inklusive.

** repress 2016 ** hnny strikes again with his second 12 inch on local talk this year. the lead track tears puts hnny back in peaktime territory and as with previous tracks yearning and for the very first tim, hnny shows you do not need many ingredients to serve classic house flavours, just the right amount of grit and a irresistible vocal. first out on the b-side is gymnastics, a blistering disco number or as tooli described it >a 100% string-stomper<. ending this 12 inch is no tears, a dub version with all the key details from tears but also goes deeper and with more added efx. an absolute guarantee to jack your body. local talk is talking to you

** repress 2016 **
hnny is back on local talk, and this time hes giving us noth-ing! after smash hits for the very first time, yearning and tears weve reached the fourth release on local talk and it s just as magnificent as his previous tracks. this single-sided and limited 12 is packed with all the trademarks of a great hnny track, its easy to see anyone would fall for this release - its got all the things weve come to love and enjoy from his effortless productions, clean melodies, vocal lines and harmonies that fit exceptionally well & distill the very essence of what house is about.

what do you do when you are part-time bored, when you are part-time broke and – even better – when you claim to make and live dance music (of course, also part-time)? well you are obviously running a record label. this is what johannes albert does since 5 fun years and 20 releases. releasing his own music on vinyl but also his mates stuff. frank will celebrate this anniversary among life & happiness early 2016 with two 12 inches and a lousy tour. fred p lifting us up right from the start with his “energy cloud”. soulful drum workouts make peace with heavenly layers. far out bliss. next in line is good friend iron curtis who is calling for sweet operators. flip side offers our session victim boys first time on the label. lets have some moody juice wit hauke & matthias once and for all! hidden beauty is the kind of track you wouldnt expect from tim toh of philpot fame. well its a beauty and now not so hidden anymore. lets just be frank shall we?

with summer just round the corner, hell yeah come up with some essential—and fully, officially licensed—new cuts from balearic gabba sound system edit master enzo elia. he touches up some historic italo house with his usual masterful touch and will have you yearning for boat party season before the tracks have even finished playing. if you loved the italian s take on soft house company what you need, you should go crazy for this new offering. up first is italo-piano-house classic morenas s hazme sonar, which is eight minutes of diva vocal athletics, big synths and pumping retro drums that will make you punch the air. fun and fulsome, it is a sure fire classic house winner this summer. jazzy doll s ladybird is next and in enzo s hands becomes a rubbery, ducking and diving house cut with big hand claps, bubbling bass and loose limbed percussion that is ripe for raves on the sea.

as both a producer and the helmsman of the outis music label, dino sabatini has carved out a distinctive musical style that shows a great reverence for both ancient archetypes and future possibilities for change (see, for example, his mnemosyne co-release with edit select, in which each track is dedicated to a separate greek goddess).

what a treat we have here! the long awaited medlar debut on riverette is finally here: after a string of amazing releases on wolf music and having remixed a few of the biggest acts on the scene such as disclosure, medlar gives us 3 tracks that showcase what a talent this guy is. first of on a1... chills, that’s all we need to say, one of the most anticipated tracks on soundcloud, on b2 we have his take on acid and what a take that is. on the flip side we have a track for the weirder side of the dance floor just as we like it, something in between house and techno. if this wasn’t enough there s a remix too, by up and coming and classy as hell act fyu chris it’s freaking amazing!

mood 24 brings you the first in a limited vinyl only series in the form of mood series. each track has its own story to tell from artists silat beksi, gorbani, herck, leparente. *secret circle* from silat beksi has a very minimal feel, simplistic drums, repetitive groove combined with spacey atmospheric pads and synths. gorbanis track *the jaw* is more drum and percussion oriented with subtle fx shots and and groovy sub bass. hercks *gura sada* is very atmospheric, lots of organic noises. but its that main synth that gets you moving which the entire track is built around. *flashback* from leparente is deep and groovy, pieced together with a wicked bassline and main synth/pad that you can feel in your soul. ears open, this is just the beginning.....

dj support : shonky, steve lawler, politics of dancing, danny serrano, darius syrossian, julien sandre, timmy p
imperative is a groovy house track with delayed vocal stabs & a sampled female vocal running though with added with 808 clicks, chords & a snapping snare. the system2 remix of imperative is just as cool with a rolling breaky drum loop giving it a 90s house feel, again the vocal leads the track with the groovy bass & chords built around it. first up on the b side once again is a cool groove with sampled vocals & electronic bleeps echoing through the mix. last but not least the juliche hernandez remix of once again has a more 90s feel to it. fast paced with great percussive hits & a chunky bassline to lead, all in all great release aimed firmly at the dancefloor.

italian artist fabio monesi has been busy these years working hard in the studio while also running the wilson records label among his other production projects. here we get three tracks of no nonsense party jams sure to burn the floor. from acid storm to palladium, all bases are covered on this ep with big basslines, punching acid and well placed samples chopped just right for you and all your dj needs.

for mimi music, komplexx (poolside recordings / silhouette noir) has delivered a melodic techno / progressive crossover. this moody tune is deep yet melodious and builds beautifully. it’s just one of those tracks that works, with its genre-crossing coolness and excellent production. the remix is provided by our lovely house-specialist sascha dive (deep vibes, cocoon, raum). the german master turns the original into a brooding techno affair which is driven by thumping bass and sparse percussive elements. the remix keeps building until there’s nowhere left to hide, turning the track into an absolute floorfiller!

the german saying *ist der ruf erst ruiniert, lebt man voellig ungeniert.*, meaning once your reputation is ruined, your life gets easy, sums up a lot about furfriend s artistic doing. *freedom of filth* lives tightly along those lines and throws its full force of lushness at you, growing into an empowering industrial monster that makes you want you to rip all clothes off your body. if jfk did it, so can you. if big room sound is too much for you and you miss the simplicity and pervy voice of dingo tush that made the duo famous, you will wanna follow their instructions for self appreciation and have a listen to *touch myself*, a trainlike fuckfest for the dancefloor. make sure to bring some lube! following is a short live recording from the *fuck olympics* ... we are just going to leave this uncommented here.
pressing on yellow translucent vinyl.

when we started heist a few years back, our idea was to give a stage to talent in a same way as we have had a helping hand by the labels that have supported us from the beginning. therefore, i’s our pleasure to share this release with you by newcomers ouer, a berlin based duo with only a handful of tracks out so far on their self released debut last year. their approach to producing is very much jam based, and with a compact collection of synths, drum machines and a fair level of distortion, they succeed in creating their own sound with hints of classic electronic music from chicago and detroit. theres a nice mix of energy on the whole ep, the ascent being the most driving track of the package. fans of classics mcde tracks will love show off with its dreamy dx7 style chords and cracking acid lines. move over feels like a jam session that was way too much fun with some lovely solo work on the synths, whereas mess around goes down in similar free-ride style on the synths and again, has some lovely sampling going on. an impressive ep were just all too happy to have on our label. sincerely yours, lars & maarten

ark & pit spector continue their inspired journey with an extended ep full of groovy jams and absorbing rhythms for hold youth. the frenchmen have formed a potent alliance with a series of expertly-crafted, high-quality releases dropping over the last couple of years. on this new ep they go deeper into their sound explorations with five original works and a remix from their parisian buddy and hold youth member, le loup. first up, we go into bumping jazzy territory with ‘chauffage central’, a mesmerising cut with swirling pads, soulful vocal clips and a jaunty b-line. straight up after that, hold youth rudeboy le loup gives ‘chauffage central’ a funky little rework, throwing live sounding percussion, nubian vocal clips, trumpet parps and a pumping bassline into the mix which gives a totally different identity. the final track on side a, is a cheeky teaser called ‘petite ondée’. rolling out for just under two minutes the track has a muffled, jazz-esque feel to it with a warm rolling bassline and bright, sparkling piano keys. on the flip we kick off with ‘air conditionelle’, a lush, retro feeling with those oh-so-familiar heavy-hitting eighties snare licks. the bassline takes you to a new york city street and the whole atmosphere is that of an old school nyc neighbourhood, while a spoken-word sample adds a human touch just before the track comes to an end. ‘sub tropical’ goes a little leftfield with an unusual combination of sounds in tandem with a pulsating low end, occasional sax licks and punchy percussion to give it plenty of energy. ‘averse et contre tous’ closes out the ep with a slothish ride into the sunset – ark and pit spector show their experimental side presenting an odd union between blues samples, gruff electronic sounds and piano keys. another triumphant effort from ark and pit spector, in fact, some of the finest work to date. make sure you check it out!

holy wood’s ability to maneuver between true school techno, malicious reduced house, and motor city is ornamented with his very own mark. for resopal red , he delivers something like a summation of his work. -scar soul ep- is subterranean haunted techno with a broken heart, and will satisfy your needs

much-celebrated kompakt staple the field returns to the spotlight with new album the follower, his fifth full-length offering after from here we go sublime (kompakt rsd 02 cd 57), yesterday and today (kompakt 193 cd 72), looping state of mind (kompakt 241 cd 94) and cupids head (kompakt 290 cd 110). swedish soundsmith axel willner is well-known for his mastery when it comes to the allusive layering of loops, but it was with his last album cupids head that a newly-found, somewhat pressing snappishness started to replace the soft-hued sonics of his ambient-infused techno, imbued with a darker mood and stronger footing than before. a carefully gauged balance of stoic motorik and gloomy drones was key here - just as it is for the follower which goes even further in blurring the lines between concrete experimentation, body music and precisely laid-out arrangement, leading to one of the most rhythmically and texturally engaging listening experiences in willners catalogue.