Palette US At Juno Download

Review: Despite being a veteran of the scene, Arian Leviste remarkably only just drops his solo production debut now. Out on friend and long time collaborator John Tejada's Palette imprint, "Better Get Used To It" serves up three varied tracks of driving drums, synths and bass.

Leviste has been releasing music alongside John Tejada since 1994 but only now lets his first solo effort loose. Throughout this time, he has been exclusively involved in Tejada?s work, helping on projects ranging from EPs on 7th City and Pokerflat to full length albums on Mods and Grooves, Playhouse and of course Palette Recordings. Leviste has in fact made plenty of solo music during those sixteen years but had previously never wanted to release it. The long wait is over now however, as he unleashes three tracks that were more than worth the wait as he made them in his own studio for Palette.

"Senioritis" gets things going with driving drums, blipping basslines and swirling synths. Twisting and turning throughout its entirety, the track swings back and forth amongst carefully crafted bleeps and beeps. "Better Get Used To It" goes deeper, taking the listener on an epic journey with melancholic melodies and sombre atmosphere. Cut up, echoed vocals wash over the downbeat soundscape, completing the dream-like sentiment on the seven and a half minute masterpiece. Turning it up at the close, "Change the Station" is a modular synth experimentation over a jacking rhythm. Pumping beats jostle for position with bouncing hooks in this club focused rider.

With a solo release finally under his belt, Arian Leviste proves that there is more to him than just his work with John Tejada. Having flexed his production muscles so well here, Leviste seems to hint that there is more to come and we therefore, simply better get used to it.

Review: Maxwell and Tejada make a welcome diversion on their latest Palette missive. Although "Where's The Cable?" will satisfy those who can't get enough of their detuned hooks, slinky, ice-cold minimal rhythms and bassy climaxes, the most rewarding results occur when they go down a less travelled path. "Whoops There It Is" is a killer warehouse groove, its gurgling acid sequence and grainy FX making it sound like the bastard offspring of Absurd Recordings and Moustache Techno. But the biggest surprise is on the title track, where the duo's floaty melodies weave their way in and out of a purring electro bass and shuffling 808s.

Review: John Tejada is one of the undisputed kings of melodic techno and on this joint outing with Josh Humphrey, he shows why he enjoys this reputation. The title track sees him expertly mix a pulsing bassline and subtle, hissing percussion with a key-changing, trancey melody line. "Bifur Gates" manages the same balancing act, only on this occasion it's dreamy, deep chords and heavy, swinging drums that provide the expertly-weighted counterbalance. Only "Unanimous Arc" is more skewed in favour of earthy elements, with an insistent acid line niggling its way through the arrangement, but even here an eerie organ riff provides some respite.