3024 At Juno Download

Review: A killer new double-tracker from Altered Natives, a man currently on outrageously good form following his "Tenement Yard" album, remixes of Ikonika amongst others and some awesome DJ sets to boot. Though he's already got a new album slated for July, these two twisted funky house workers bridge the gap until then. "The Bitch" takes the lead spot and builds on tech kicks with a rough and funky acid bassline, all the while keeping things urgent with old-school 808 fills and some deep atmospherics, in the vein of 3024 label boss Martyn. "Crop Duster" gets on an even more funky, soca-dippin' tip with some urgent hats and claps keeping the tune driving along nicely while a slowly filtered post-dubstep bassline develops underneath. These two are definitely gonna tickle fans of Martyn, Kode9 and Cooly G, and anyone who appreciates some quality, forward looking house period.

Review: Red Bull Music Academy participant Illum Sphere - aka Mancunian producer Ryan Hunn - drops the Titan EP on Martyn's 3024 imprint. To have an EP on the Dutchman's label is an accolade in itself - he's only the second producer other than Martyn to release on it - and it lives up to all expectations. It's genre bending, leftfield stuff, ranging from the rave cave mayhem of "Titan" to the meandering deepness "Technopolis", which brings to mind Floating Points. Highly recommended.

Review: Martyn always seems to be able to get the kind of material from artists for 3024 that goes outside their established comfort zone - see Mosca's Wavey EP for proof of that - and this EP from Jacques Greene is no exception. Eschewing his usual combination of futuristic R&B and 2-step, "Ready" is techno in the way that only Greene could do it - lightly shuffling garage beats and gentle vocal samples abound at the beginning, but are soon bulldozed aside by hammering kicks and cascading arpeggios. "Prism" is, melodically at least, what we'd expect from the Canadian; with glittering sequences streaming over its hollow kicks, but the dark house vibe underneath is one we haven't seen from him since "Baby I Don't Know (What You Want)". Fantastic stuff.

Review: Jon Convex returns to 3024 with a lead track that twists the trend of modern electro smartly with a smooth vocal turn from DBridge. The beat and synths growl and prowl in a thoroughly sinister fashion, keeping things simple and deadly, while the vocal lifts the taut atmosphere without ever cheapening it. "Zero" takes things down a house route with a punchy beat and muted synth deployment, making a functional beast that exists in the same world of urban dread that characterises "Lied To Be Loved". "Stay" is the outsiders choice here with a softer complexion in its 4/4 bone structure and more application of synths to bring a glow to the cheeks.

Review: Hotly tipped Bristol upstart and electronic music's current darling, Julio Bashmore steps up with a scrumptious selection of tuneage on the Batty Knee Dance EP. Released on Martyn's revered 3024 label, which is, as we all know, reserved only for the best, Bashmore achieves that same swooning appeal as a Girl Unit track combined with David Kennedy on a more soulful day, plus a sprinkle of Joy O's sexiness. And that's just in the title track. "Ribble To Amazon" is all delicate, perfectly poised beats and murmuring atmospherics, whilst digital exclusive "Grand National" adds a dose of humour with chiming chords and shimmying horns.

Review: Like the best labels, the 3024 operation overseen by Martyn seems locked onto it's own trajectory, slipping out records as and when they feel appropriate instead of regularly churning out material just so you know they are there. The label's first release of 2013 is a sampler that shines the light on the talent bubbling in Canada right now, securing original productions from recognised names like Kevin McPhee, Bruce Trail, Nautiluss and Gingy (no Bordello) The skewed take on techno that's so popular right now is evident across all three tracks with McPhee's "Version 5" a searing delight.

Review: The second set of remixes of Dutch producer Martyn sees three more top names take on songs from the incredible Great Lengths album. As a digital exclusive, UK Funky star Roska takes on one of the biggest tunes from the album, These Words. Dropping the tempo down a little, Roska adds his distinctive beats to the track, which work well with the vocal courtesy of dBridge. The effect is funky, but still retains the ghostly and moving vibe of the original.

German Ben Klock also puts a haunting Minimal edge on Is This Insanity? Losing the tabla drums but keeping the husky vocal from Spaceape, Klock's arrangement is thrillingly sparse and perfect, and a nice departure from the Martyn original. Manchester's Illum Sphere, who's been getting attention from Radio 1 to Radiohead of late, also does a neat job with the epic Brilliant Orange, adding some tastefully off-kilter and hypnotic beats to the originally dry, beatless track. Some essential remixes from an already classic album.
Ken Ishii - Daybreak

Review: Still an artist in relative development, Mosca pops up on 3024 with this choice selection of focused and funky house cuts. "Dom Perignon" draws you in from the off with its choppy groove and subtle break vibe, leaving the melodics to play a more subtle part by inferring the deepness of the track rather than spelling it out. "Orange Jack" keeps the same linear, floor-ready presence but lightens the mood with a string stab and a maddening vocal loop, leaving it to "Jager" to cause the serious damage with a technoid workout that could end up in some quite unexpected record bags.

Review: Having seemingly exhausted all the talent the UK has to offer, 3024 turn their attentions to the mainland with perma masked Berliner Redshape at the helm for the label's seventeenth release. Redshape's been popping up on some great labels of late - most recently Mr Janson's Running Back and Delsin offshoot Ann Aimee - and the two tracks on Throw In Dirt are up there with his best work to date. The title track descends brilliantly into the foggy depths of where your mind gets lost at 3am on a packed dancefloor - the opening clarity of locked groove jacking drums gradually being engulfed by pitched to hell vocals, sinister analogue bass and twisting melodies. It's complemented by the broader machine funk of "The Land" with sparser percussive rhythms kept company by gaseous bass and deftly chopped gospel vocals, all the elements collapsing on top of each other before a midpoint switch up towards streamlined tones brings respite.

Review: The adoption of a new name and a new sound by Marcus Intalex has been one of this year's success stories, with his rattling brand of warehouse appropriate techno under the Trevino moniker gracing labels as diverse as [Naked Lunch], Apple Pips and Craig Richards' The Nothing Special. With a forthcoming debut on Klockworks on the way, Trevino returns to Martyn's 3024, the label where this new name was first established. Then appearing on a split release with Instra:mental, Trevino comes through with a full release in Tactical Manoeuvre EP which brandishes three tracks that showcase the different styles and sounds of the producer. The murky warehouse vibes of the title track make it the Juno favourite here but all three productions here are clearly the work of a producer in a rich vein of form.