hailing from montreal, m.s.l is the project of edouard le & his pal francis latreille

listing somewhere between the cognitive and the corporeal comes the third release from gratone.-the periphery of a building-, a live remix work featuring long-time collaborators audun kleive on percussion and jan bang on live sampling sees the young norwegian label expound on the territories between extended jazz and the dance floor through a four track lp. veterans audun kleive and jan bang tap into something innate that moves perpendicular to the techno ethos perpetuated by the label s previous releases. -the periphery of a building-, is a work that brings the past into the present and draws a red thread between genres. it juxtaposes disparate ideas between the dance floor and jazz, and ensnares itself in the tangled web of tradition and progress in a bold indefnable musical dialect. upholding the ethos of gratone by negating expectation -periphery of a building- also calls in a new era for the young, but fertile label. -periphery of a building- is kleive and bang reconsidering live punkt remixes* of etenesh wassie & mathieu sourisseau, atomtm and clarinet factory & floex. in their selection of source material for the gratone lp, they eradicate, and then reconstruct tradition. *the punkt live remix concept puts third-party musicians, producers and composers in a real-time remix situation during a punkt festival live show. fiona talkington: stian balducci s gratone (grey tone) label inhabits an exquisite genre-defying world.the latest release features two of norway s legendary, pioneering musicians, live sampling guru and co-director of the globally acclaimed punkt festival jan bang, and audun kleive, a musician whose work over the decades has repositioned the language of drumming. together they forge an exquisite, adventurous path, as delicate as chamber music, as powerful as rock, and engage with samples with respect, a spirit of adventure and a creative vision which is simply inspiring. limited 180gram vinyl in hand stamped recycled cardboard jackets with silkscreen print.

nice price deal !!! following on from the in demand subliminal kid release earlier this year, this sick new ep from label boss matt o brien serves up a fulsome diet of deep, dark and mindbogglingly wonky house and techno, in a release that is the apex of matts production skills to date. kicking off, the aptly named gauntlet throws down fuzzily tweaked and flanged raw beats, married to dizzying, tremelous synths, darkside stabs and general dancefloor frenzy. dodaso flips the script, sounding like a million orthogonal genres colliding and combining in deep dub sub space, underpinning the delicate melody while splurges of colour obliterate your senses. this is very different to anything else out there and will appeal to a wide range of djs and floors. rounding off the ep, blackwood freestyle at first sounds deceptively simple, hiding its dark secrets like an insane clockwork puzzle, unfolding like hell raisers lament configuration with each listen revealing uni-maginable contortions that pull you further into the groove.

incredilbe package with remixes by schatrax, kink, todd sines as .xtrak, kink and the subliminal kid. the result of schatrax take is a typically beautiful and deep reworking. todds remix of dodaso is typically fucked up and funky in true .xtrak style. kinks version of the gauntlet remains quite faithful to the original whilst also instilling it with his own trippy and unique style. last year peder mannerfelt, aka the subliminal kid, sent me a track which became the only track released on off-key through a demo submission. blackwood freestyle has mutated under the hands by the subliminal kid into a rolling dub inflected groover.

desroi debuts on avian. shifted s avian label returns to fore with a heady, five track offering from german producer, desroi. in keeping with the label s finely tuned aesthetic concerns, the music draws from a reduced palette – keeping the colours muted & the tone driven and direct, focusing instead on drawing out pleasing textures & subtle rhythmic anomalies via intricate use of delay and reverb, to arrive at a sweet spot between dance-floor potency & the more cerebral posits of the techno genre. tethered at the base by cavernous low end, heady drum machine programming drives the work – often married with a single warping synth motif shifting about the sonic periphery, modulated carefully across the course of the recording s run time to create both moments of heads down introspection & outright hysteria. like much of the best work on the label, the music has a diy quality that belies its complexity, but at the same time lends to its undoubted effectiveness. desroi s ability to harness the full force of such a limited collection of elements is testament to the producer s skill as an artist within the genre, creating a powerful sense of cohesion on his avian debut.

the visionary talents of multi-instrumentalist zach witness have sprouted full life in this world, lending his sonic touch to the bulk of erykah badus latest album, but you caint use my phone (motown records). this project was brought to life with erykah badu at the badudio and world witness studios in zach witness hometown, dallas, texas. this project put him on a unique trajectory, harnessing his intricately designed fusion productions into the periphery of an entirely new audience around the world. his forthcoming debut ep, electric revival: rise of an outkast nation, is the first project to find the light of day after this expansion phase, initially created as a birthday gift to zach witness friend and collaborator, andre 3000. the catalyst behind the creation of electric revival has a very specific initiation point. during the recordings for but you caint use my phone, erykah badu called on andré 3000 for collaborative assistance. this would result in the albums last track, hello, created at the home studio zach witness has lived in his whole life. this moment in time compelled zach witness to create an offering for andré 3000, and this was in the form of an entire body of music. electric revival takes on the stories of the lives entangled around societys most crippling and hopeless of situations. the social and political intentions of the ep paints a very defined purpose in this context. experience the transformative sounds of zach witness and his debut manifesto.

litüus returns to avian.
sparse and reflective, the chicago native’s work occupies a curious space on the periphery of the techno genre. by stripping back the music to all but its most vital elements - most notably the sequence, but at the same time maintaining a sense of urgency in its articulation, litüus crafts exquisite, ghostly shadows of busier, more fleshed out material. neither intro nor outro, but rather suspended in some middling point of formation - what remains is a remarkably pure examination of minimalist, experimental synthesis.

somne debuts on just this. the italian producer, whose real name is federico maccherone, presents his first release of 2017 – a solo ep marrying the same ethereal, wide-angle synthesis and intricate drum programming that appears on standout work for boddika’s nonplus imprint and the afterlife label. more than ever, maccherone shows his range – rolling, meditative recordings sit comfortably alongside some more overtly dance floor material, with both approaches bound by the same high-end production values listeners and dj’s alike have come to expect from the somne project. in various ways, the ep offers a certain degree of insight into maccherone’s dual identity as a producer of both clinical, dance-floor fare as well as a cerebral, leftfield work – and in turn, how the artist draws together these two strands of creative endeavour to craft unique and profoundly emotive electronic music. nods to classic idm and ambient sit at the periphery of the recordings, although the main focus is on the propulsive, contemporary techno derivatives – from warping, half-time opener divided love, with its crisp, white noise washes and clinical use of distortion – through to endgame’s exacting, peak-time drive. and whilst the form shifts across the ep from half-time, polyrhythmic work to more direct 4x4 compositions – everything remains bound by the same exquisite, otherworldly atmosphere that touches on the grandiose whilst maintaining a gloriously introspective bent.

the debut homemade weapons lp ‘negative space’ is still fresh in peoples playlists after a unanimously acclaimed release, and has gone on to be used as a benchmark for d&b lp’s that exist on the edges of the music’s periphery. combining function and form with equal emphasis, negative space is an lp full of tracks that dj’s play in clubs as opposed to being largely relegated to online mixes. to follow on from the lp, we selected 3 samurai artists to rebuild their favourite tracks from negative space and have combined this with a tidal track vip from homemade weapons made initially for his dj sets. ancestral voices, the untouchables, and sam kdc all turn in unique interpretations.

new york native shawn o’sullivan returns to avian as 400ppm with debut lp, ‘fit for purpose’.
as an artist, o’sullivan has long since explored the juncture between hard-hitting, functional dance floor material and more lofty, conceptual work. from a purely structural standpoint, the artist’s return to avian bears all the hallmarks of previous output under the alias, utilising the same palette found on early ep’s for guy brewer’s label. stripped back and driven, the music marries caustic drum-machine polyrhythms with warping, pitch bent leads and characteristically atmospheric use of reverb. it’s a decidedly dance floor offering, but the music comes refracted through o’sullivan’s own lens, with plenty of elegant references to a career spent exploring much of the techno genre’s periphery, from noise to new wave. crushed vox bubble up from beneath wrought-iron percussion and the artist takes time to step away from high energy 4×4 workouts to explore more complex rhythmic structures and harsh, low tempo grooves.

critical music reaches its 100th release in its 15th year, celebrating with the landmark album fifteen years of underground sonics. spanning the broad spectrum of drum & bass that the critical sound represents, the exceptional 15 album is as bold as it is beautiful and looks to serve the test of time in the d&b history books.

tomahawk records is a new label that resists genres and hones in on the curation and sound of new artists. the label is keen to push undiscovered artists out into the periphery and give them the support to help grow as individuals.
the first release which is just round the corner is by the australian duo anthony fade, two hidden gems found on soundcloud. their process is a simple combination of hardware and software instruments and heavy use of ambient recordings and various samples. the ep titled “like that” contains four tracks of late summer vibes, dreamy vocals and a massive dose of energy getting ready for winter.

having made his label introduction with his remix of label newcomer villete’s “rillia-, darand land gets to spread out and show off his unique brand of euphoric and uplifting deep house on his debut ep for the label, ‘discover you’. the title track is classic darand land, with bright piano chords, buzzing organs and a thick chicago house bass line. siren-like pads fade in and out from the periphery, as electrifying percussion elements come into play. frank & tony take a turn and apply their signature style onto the former track, adding a chunkier kick with bright as day claps and hi-hats to propel the track through the opalescent haze draped over the melodic elements. on the flip, “marcela’s sense” is a blissed out, head down late night affair. cosmic pads swirl around glistening keys and repressed organ chords, as toms bounce among the steady hi-hat ride, lulling the listener into a state of euphoria. the ep closes out with the atmospheric, peak time detroit house cut, “souls awash-. a serpentine bass line runs the show amidst swelling pads and in-your-face kicks and percussion. as with all of his productions, the track shines in the smaller details that float in and out of focus throughout, lending the track’s weightier elements an even greater sense of gravitas.

philpot and pauls musique chief tobi ettle starts this year a new series of releases from young and well talented producers around the periphery of the label and record store. the range of musical direction will be very open minded but in general there will be dub techno, deep and minimal techno as well as electronic beats with some italo disco and experimental approach. first is done by steppin wolf originally from basel and now staying in frankfurt/main. before he was living in stuttgart and he was frequenting the pauls musique record store always bringing updates of his latest production. here hes now dropping a deep piece of techno with several acid splash and some kind of a boards of canada-feeling. watch out also for his current release on kanns division mana-all-nite. thanks for purchasing a real copy!

key vinyl don their scouting caps once again for another split ep featuring fledgling and debuting talents. first up is the plant worker. this french dj and producer isn’t exactly new to the game, but as the plant worker he’s been slowly journeying down harder, rawer trajectories—as the name may suggest. with a trio of eps out already, “iota 001” and “iota 002” continues his exploration into purer techno forms with two cuts of deep, probing, loopy floor material. then on the flip, key vinyl unveil the first works from masked newcomer transient x4. “lost in perceptions” is a jangling sic fi trip to techno’s bleak and pitch-black periphery, whilst “ways to space” sends its cosmic theme off for a spell in the basement, coming out as a monstrous peak-time send off.

180 gr - vinyl only
laurine frost steps up for the second release on marionette. this is an exploration of all things deep and percussive. ghostly, momentary quirks and modular tinkering fuse with popping drums and sampled live drums. the wonky knob gets turned up to eleven on the b-side with scattering jazz rhythms and resonant space age pulses firing in the periphery.

the austerity policies imposed by the governments of northern euope countries has impoverished the mediterannean lands. the failure of bruxelles bureaucracy has smoothed the way for th return of the ottoman empire. austerity is a collective of protesting producers coming from the periphery of the european union. their tough-­&#8208,sounding music is a reaction to the unfair decison of the troika, their message of peace is conveyed through hardware hard-­&#8208,core house music.

metropolis- is it an actual city or a digital fantasy a construct formed inside a synthetic brain? either way this is the soundtrack to a city that exists somewhere. a place that comes alive at nightfall and breathes artificial light until dawn. where millions of human threads interweave, and a machine conciousness drifts by on the periphery, searching for an intimate connection. limited pressing.

ebm leaning, dark, heavy, fresh techno ep - tip!

saste004 is the fourth release in the stellate series: sounds gathered from the experimental frontiers and outer edgesof electronic music. for each stellate series release two tracks are created by four different producers. collectedtogether here are eight tracks from the periphery of electronic music.

ok, to call this album long awaited or highly anticipated would be a non sequitur. what lies here before you is sculpted out of the blood and tears of 5 years of life, and all the dreams, imagination, tristesse and longing that goes along with it. the name orgue electronique shouldnt be new to you, cause it isnt. for over a decade it has been lurking in the periphery of house music - forever too early or too late for the trend, be it as a solo artist or working alongside legowelt. but it seems the apotheosis is finally here, in the form of this mesmerizing double album: wholly matured and further enhanced by collaborations with luminaries like robert owens, alden tyrell and cult hero fre2k. but to just dismiss this as a retro house record would be to sell it short in a big way. sure it was influenced by the usual bunch of pioneers and icons, but this is not an epigone, this is music that is. its warm and generous, made up of real emotions, of moments frozen in time and of the impassioned cries of a soul on the run. thats right, this aint no hipster shit dime-a-dozen facebook house gonzales! to finally let it go after so many years is - for all the parties involved - a strange yet exciting moment, not unlike the birth of an elephant baby. out of a human female

having launched blkrtz to wide spread critical acclaim with his album drawn and quartered in june this year, deadbeat now enlist the aid of two fellow berlin residents who need no introduction for remix duties. working with the source material from the first quarter, scuba dons his scb guise and turns in a slow burning sci-fi techno monster sure to appeal to fans of monolake and his own early work. rife with reverb drenched sonar pings and mechanized groans in the periphery, the track lurches toward its epic crescendo like an alien infested star ship nostromo sliding slowly to its demise into the center of a black hole. bringing things back up into the light on the flip, efdemin tranforms the fourth quarter (calas house) into a chugging deep pocket house journey. riding the cusp of a rubbery bassline and molding the chords into a timeless house organ motif, the originals dubwise leanings are heard loud and clear through a cloud of crackling unintelligible vocal samples and thunderous spring reverb crashes worthy of king tubby himself. without a doubt two floor ready reinterpretations and a great sign of things to come from deadbeats new curatorial ventur

damian and clement of dop fame return to circus company with a new project of dubbed out late night madness featuring vocalist brian brewster. far more sinister then dops recent output, 7 days features 4 tracks which explore am acidic realm of dark ruminations and swamp dredged rhythms. >introduction< aquarius starts things off with a basic channel-esque wash of chords, noise and spoken word sure to appeal to fans of berlins longstanding dub techno tradition. >so low< comes off like a chopped and screwed take on italo heard only through the mixers effect sends, where modulating analog sequences and a thundering motorik back beat desperately swim to the surface of a blackened ocean gasping for air. >before u go< lightens the proceedings ever so slightly, upping the tempo and allowing the undulating synths lines to sparkle in the periphery, while the incessant vocal encourages all self-respecting punters to stay on the floor until the last track has passed ! its final groove. finally >universe< comes off like a lost out take from kool keiths dr octagon project with its classic jacking electro beat and sultry effected vocals.

a1: >i want to love you< €rix big screen mix. – only available on vinyl – well… it is moody to say the least, it could/should remind you of a detective movie or perfume advertisement: perhaps both?
a2: tyree coopers extended dub reemix ( – only available on vinyl – ) takes a spin on his chicago/berlin base, pushing the periphery theory, >who cares as long as its jackin!< which tyrees reemix is doing right down to the summer vibe piano ho-down in the middle!
b1: royal mix by dirk leyers. dirk submits a striking take on the title disregarding structure entirely, turning it into a submarinal practical knowledge, stadium ready!
b2: reedo mix by the maertini brothers. the mix they rendered is pure love! laid back, with a variation on the vocal neither angie nor €ric were prepared for, listen closely to the bassline!

first vinyl pressing of twin infinitives since the original vinyl issue in 1990. after moving to san francisco, royal trux released the highly experimental double album twin infinitives. this album remains an extreme work on the periphery of rock music, worthy of being compared to lou reeds metal machine music and suicides debut album. at only four subdivided tracks, none of which clock in under 15 minutes, the record has plenty of time to weave a mesmerizing web that is sometimes menacing, sometimes startling. for all of its high brow allusions, twin infinitives nearly reeks of vice, a dark, sordid feel pervades the record, and the listener can almost picture the band recording in a filthy apartment in the middle of the night in various states of intoxication and debauchery.

while the delusional machinery of everyday life blindly stretches the forces that shape our lives into an asinine periphery, an ultraviolet fantasy for weak minds, nature has only a fleeting sufferance for the reversal of its involuntary movements. maxwell s demon is not just a mathematical proposition, it is alive and kicking in the beige strip malls, sweaty megaplexes, and vertiginous mini golf parks of class optimism. as the ordered penchant for division increases, paranoia proliferates a thousandfold, and in this constant state of implosion the laughably purposeful complexities of human machinery reveal themselves as a collective sublimation from matter organized under the sign of a smoking gun. adultnapper lays down a fresh original mix and mastermind alexi delano cleans and tightens the cut

terence fixmerÕs path through the changing techno landscape of the past 20 years has been anything but direct. indeed, the french born producer, musician and planete rouge label founder has long been influenced by the periphery of continental european dance music subgenres from electronic body music, new beat and acid, before combining them into his own pioneering hybrid of futuristic, ebm-inflected techno with classic releases such as 2001Õs muscle machine or the collaborative between the devil lp with nitzer ebbÕs douglas mccarthy as fixmer/mccarthy. while the sound in recent years has been rediscovered and recast in diverse contexts by a new generation of producers, through the cortex sees fixmer gravitating toward a different kind of industrial-tinged electronics, led as much (or more) by analogue sequencers, melodies and ultra-saturated sounds of synthesizers than drums and percussion. across eight tracks at a compact but varied 40 minutes, the lp touches on an aesthetic hinted at in recent ostgut ton releases (2016Õs beneath the skin ep and 2017Õs force ep), revealing a sonic narrative through noisy, screaming synth/vocal riffs with a jagged, guitar- like post-punk sensibility.

flames & figures ist das zweite album von the seshen. ihr progressiver sound kombiniert synthesizer, drum maschinen, live percussion und hinrei§ende harmonien, die eine unverkennbare mischung aus r&b, synth-pop und elektronischer musik ergeben. die in san francisco ansŠssige siebenkšpfige band wird von sŠnger lalin st. juste und bassist / produzent akiyoshi ehara angefŸhrt. das duo wird von fŸnf bemerkenswerten musikern begleitet: sŠngerin kasha rockland, drummer chris thalmann, keyboarder mahesh rao, percussionist mirza kopelman und sampler kumar butler. sie supporteten live-bands wie hiatus kaiyote, thundercat, petite noir oder tune-yards. soundtechnisch irgendwo zwischen den koordinaten j dilla, little dragon, beach house und erykah badu anzusiedeln.

alland byallo has crafted ten unique tracks for the mighty uk imprint. bones, flesh stands out for its distinctive vibe and groove. from the opening track looking long to the closing singularity the album stirs and flexes, flies and touches down with elan, sounding raw, alive, organic and original all though. all the while being a record that moves the mind and the body from start to finish