after showcasing the debut releases from the high on wye quintet (magic mountain high, soulphiction and steevio) and monoak, the freerotation label returns with a various artists 12” featuring four more artists intrinsically linked by the annual festival. anthony child, aka surgeon, has been a regular fixture since first appearing at freerotation in 2011. his recent exploration of modular synthesis and use of the buchla music easel has found a home in the ambient yurt at the festival, and equally has manifested in album projects such as 2015’s electronic recordings from maui jungle vol 1. “unconscious fearless determination” follows on from this more experimental, less dancefloor-focused side to child’s work, while still pulsing with the techno fundamentals that quickly defined him back in the mid ‘90s. duckett hails from north wales, and has been a key part of the freerotation fabric since the beginning of the event. after some releases on mindtours, mindyourhead and sthlmaudio back in the mid-‘00s, his music has started to reach a new audience through releases on untilmyheartstops and a clutch of lauded live performances. “breaks my heart when i remember that day” captures the alien synthesis and emotional heft that singles duckett out as such a remarkable artist. steevio is the co-founder of freerotation and mindtours records, responsible for a huge swathe of techno releases reaching back to the ‘90s. as well as his releases on mindtours, he has recently appeared on untilmyheartstops and in collaboration with pev on schmorgabsord, and is set to appear on russ gabriel’s new label rivers of groove. with its expressive swells of off-kilter melody and snaking drum lines, “pendulum” continues the thread of exploration steevio has been following on his journey into experimental modular techno. tom ellis has been prolifically issuing forth material in a soul-enriched space in between house, techno and funk for more than ten years. from running the acclaimed trimsound label to releasing albums and singles on telegraph, archipel, hartchef discos and more recently ethereal sound to name but a few, tom’s recorded work and immersive live performances continue to reach out to new moods and timbres. “as a take” finds tom at his most reflective, layering on dubby effects and organic instrumentation in a truly meditative end to the ep.
