Back Catalogue

Review: Trust Maurice Fulton to surprise us. Having seemingly abandoned his Syclops pseudonym following the critical and commercial success of the superb 2008 full-length, I've Got My Eye On You, he's resurrected it for a surprise sophomore album. Predictably, A Blink of An Eye is a bit good. Picking up where the previous album left off, it delivers a warped fusion of titanium-plated electronics, leftfield acid jack, freestyle jazz flourishes and intergalactic mutant disco. Formidably twisted but hugely enjoyable, it gleefully charges off in many different directions, mixing shirts-off anthems (see the brilliant "Sarah's E with Extra P"), with curious percussion jams (the afro-centric "Jump Bugs") and curiously blissful, Boof-ish excursions ("5 In"). Stellar stuff.

Review: The double header of Truant/Rough Sleeper is the second EP from Burial in 2012, and arrives with as little fanfare as the superb Kindred EP did early this year. Unlike that more dancefloor focused record however, this EP harks back to the producer's earlier sound. Of course, being two longform compositions clocking in at 12 and 14 minutes respectively, they're hardly conventional works; each utilises the same liberal use of spectral atmospheres, emotive vocal samples, hollow 2-step beats and nods to jungle as we've come to expect from the producer, but with complex structures that come across more like two sides of an old mixtape recorded from a pair of decrepit turntables. Of course being a mixtape from Burial, this is special stuff indeed - consider it an early Christmas present to yourself.

Review: There's always been something a little loved-up about the scattergun, genre-bending productions of New York's Drew Lustman, AKA Falty DL. Yet previously, his desire to fuse cutting-edge rhythms with vintage rave references sometimes got in the way. Hardcourage, his first full-length for independent behemoths Ninja Tune, takes a more 'softly-softly' approach. Whereas his last full-length, 2011's You Stand Uncertain, was a kaleidoscopic invitation to start the dance, Hardcourage gently beckons you towards a loving embrace. While there are still plenty of skittish rhythms present, they're wrapped up in a warm orange glow - all serotonin-soaked chords, cascading melodies, bluesy vocal samples and near-Balearic compositions. In many ways it's a startling about-turn, but one that comes heartily recommended.

Review: Primarily comprised of previously vinyl-only tracks released by Kieran Hebden on his own Text imprint over the past 18 months, you'd be forgiven for wondering if Pink should be treated as a proper Four Tet album or not. The answer is an emphatic yes; although several of these tracks are more dancefloor focused than we've seen previously, the melodies and textures are unmistakably Hebden. "Locked" for instance has the loose rhythmic structure and bass weight of dubstep but the kind of acoustic textures of his Rounds era material, while "Lion" combines Border Community style minimal techno with the unmistakable Hebden glockenspiel. "Jupiters" experiments with swung garage beats in an unmistakably UK Bass style, while "128 Harps" is a whipcrack MPC workout given his light melodic touch and "Peace On Earth" is a beatless 11 minutes of analogue kosmische. But it's the centrepiece of Hebden's Fabriclive mix, the brilliantly moody "Pyramid", and the loose limbed jazz-house of "Pinnacles" that really set this album apart from his other long-playing efforts, two examples of timeless dance music which demonstrate why after nearly 15 years in the game Hebden is only improving with age.

Review: Under his Erdbeerschnitzel guise, producer Tim Kelling has consistently delivered excellent material that's notoriously hard to pigeonhole. Tender Leaf, his second full-lenghth, follows a similar pattern. His default setting seems to be bright but woozy electronica heavily laden with nu-disco synths and curious, off-beat deep house rhythms. There's plenty of that here, alongside more dancefloor-centric tracks that shift further towards loose deep house (see "Semantics") and skittering, bass-music inspired beatscapes that glisten with high-speed rhythmic intent. There's also a deliciously wonky house/nu-disco/R&B fusion ("Through The Night") that's almost worth the admission price on its own.

Review: On the basis of the material FaltyDL has released with Ninja Tune thus far, his forthcoming third album Hardcourage should rank as one of the more interesting albums to surface in the first quarter of next year. Following the excellent throwback styles of "Hardcourage", the New Yorker showcases his seemingly endless palette of styles with "Straight & Narrow", a wonderfully colourful and vivid sounding production. Dominated by some deft vocal chopping, it's the way these cooing elements intertwine with the beguiling synth noodling and crisp almost handclap style beats that resonates deeply. Ballroom duo Mike Q and Divoli S'vere naturally latch onto the most obvious elements in the vocals and clapped beats, laying them atop a breathlessly frenetic rhythmic mainframe, Four Tet hogs the flip with a dewy eyed, slowly percolating seven minute remix that will tug at the heart strings of his legion of fans, while Gold Panda delivers a typically prismatic reworking that outdoes Hebden's effort in the melody stakes.

Review: Ruled by Passion, Destroyed by Lust marks the fine debut of The Asphodells, Andrew Weatherall's latest collaboration with close friend and creative foil Timothy J Fairplay. Their compatibility shines through, taking their shared interests and inspirations and playfully tosses them together to create a stylish, coherent whole. The album displays its dark underbelly proudly, but there are more than enough shards of light to inspire those salivating after the bold melodies of Two Lone Swordsmen or the naive, child-like bagginess of Weatherall's Screamadelica era work. At times reminiscent of New Order and others cripplingly paranoia inducing, this ten track set concludes in sublime fashion with the duo's dreamy, cosmic disco-era cover of A.R. Kane's "A Love From Out Of Space".

Review: Andrew Field-Pickering is a unique talent. Under the Maxmillion Dunbar guise, he's treated listeners to a string of gorgeously kaleidoscopic releases that join the dots between sparkling electronica, E'd-up disco, next-level Balearica and effervescent deep house. With Woo, his first release for RVNG INTL, he's at it again. "Woo" is deliciously fluid, pitting brightly coloured electronic melodies and darting synths against stuttering drum machine rhythms and cascading chords. The beatless "Shampoo" is similarly lucid, delivering a steamy tropical shower of glistening electronics and synthesized steel drums. It's only the formidably robust "Drift" - a Disco Nihlist-ish exercise in analogue groovery - that breaks the spell. Essential.

Review: London based producer Om Unit returns with next release "Aeolian" on Reso's Civil Music. Never restricted by genre, he traverses juke, dubstep, R&B, hip-hop, garage and all shades of the "bass music" spectrum, with a jungle influence sometimes creeping in. Opening with the esoteric "Ulysseus", this one is all about the rippling, rain-dancing rhythms and steady, stomping beats. Moving on to "Dark Sunrise (feat. Tamara Blessa)", we are treated to a storming dubstep banger with super sweet vocals in a dark, thunderous soundscape. "Fumes" is a more sparse and spaced out little number with dreamy, ethereal synths; while "Lightworkers Call" brings in the talents of Kromestar for another dark, nocturnal venture. "Slowfast Matrix" brings in a flurry of quirky rhythms to the equation before "Ulysses" is given the remix treatment twice over. Essential, no question.

Review: On Luxury Problems, Mancunian producer Andy Stott builds on the knackered house and techno sound showcased in last year's brace of brilliance, Passed Me By and We Stay Together. The album will contain eight tracks recorded in the last 12 months, with five of the songs featuring vocals from his old piano teacher who Stott hadn't seen since he was a teenager in 1996, with the opening track "Numb" seeing her looped and layered vocals exuding a cinematic quality. The paranoid, dense, slow-moving qualities that Stott has made his signature remain, but they've been toyed with and manipulated, and the vocal elements feel like a calculated gamble - one that has truly paid off. Highly recommended.

Review: Whereas certain trends and producers regress or digress at a moment's whim, ESP Institute remain steadily on their own unique stylistic path overseen by Andrew Lovefingers Hogge from his NYC base and propelled gently on the wave of critical acclaim afforded to the litany of diverse artists that release on the label. Following serene and sublime dancefloor emissions from Michael Ozone and Young Marco, ESP Institute invite you to bask in something even gentile with the self titled debut album from Land Of Lights. A collaborative project from ESP regular Johnny Nash and former Spectral Empire producer Kyle Martin that's been in gestation for some time, Land Of Lights comes with the advance warning that "if you don't have time to really listen, please do not buy this record. If your mind is not ready to unwind, please do not buy this record". "Flares" sets the tone that justifies this warning, laying down all manner of meditative textures before any discernable rhythmic force appears. While that opening track is undoubtedly the most expansive production from Nash and Martin, the subsequent five productions retain the sumptuous levels of production throughout and it'd be a truly angry man to reach the end of "Higher Love" in anything other than a blissful high.

Review: Since first popping up in 2009, Rebolledo and Aksel Schuaffer's Pachanga Boys project has attracted a lot of attention. Given the curious contents of this in turns zany, inspired and downright odd debut album, it's easy to see why. Split between silly skits featuring tongue-in-cheek female spoken word vocals and fully formed tracks, it's like a stripped back South American/German take on the formidably over the top musings of Mungolian Jetset. By and large, the rhythms are sparse but heavy, featuring fuzzy basslines, distorted drum machine grooves and curious electronic pulses. It's good fun, sitting somewhere between bonkers electronica, wonky house and camp leftfield silliness. Throughout, it's bursting with weird and wonderful ideas.

Review: After two very successful instalments of the Electr*c series thus far, Gilles Peterson returns with another chunky selection of artists that fit into the less organic side of his taste-maker tendencies. This time it seems that he has dug especially deep to find some fresh talent, so unfamiliar are the names on the line-up. In terms of style, there's a tendency towards rich melody across the board, from Aftawerks engrossing mellow acid workout to the contemplative juke dazzle of Jaded Laur, but there's also space for some more primal club tracks. Just check the ghetto tech flex of Frank Rodas' "Kick It VIP" for all the proof you need.

Review: Champion of freaky twists on disco roots, Justin Velor hands his tracks over to a host of remixers for this new 12" on the sturdy Brutal Music imprint. Psychemagik brings a lazy kind of deep house sound, letting languid chords and forlorn guitars hover in between the low slung roll of the beat, proving to be something of a foil to the rest of the EP. Cherrystones immediately ramp up the intensity with a ranging drum workout and swathes of shapeless guitar wails and distortion on a thoroughly oppressive tip. The Go! Team are last up, and they reappropriate "Galiano Rocks" into a squalling riot of punk attitude and effervescent energy.

Review: As the title track on his latest EP attests, Space Dimension Controller is back after a considerable break from the releasing game, with an EP of "deleted scenes" to whet your appetites for his forthcoming debut album. On the strength of the first track, it's already clear that things are different. The tender, melancholic house template has been replaced by a pumped up electro funk workout, rich with 80s boogie synth flourishes, Model 500 drums and an Egyptian-Lover inspired vocal hook about the aforementioned return. It's a drastic switch up, but nailed perfectly. "While I Was Away" cools things off with an aqueous. Italo-dub concoction, and "It's A Cold Planet Without You" heads into a surprisingly breakneck electro rhythm with pneumatic synths of an ambient disposition. Drifting off on the weightless drone of the Eno referencing "Music For Spaceports", SDC has firmly announced his return with a strong update on his previous form.

Review: Since playing a starring role (often alongside old pal Hans-Peter Lindstrom) in the Norwegian space disco and Scandolearic movements of the mid 2000s, Prins Thomas has wandered off in all sorts of different directions, filling his first solo LP with Krautrock-inspired darkness. This second solo album displays some of the same influences (see the post punk bass and dark percussive builds of "Peppadans 1"), while moving back towards the sound with which he made his name. It's an interesting mix, all told, encompassing intense, paranoid moods ("Bobletekno (Permiks)"), sparse percussive workouts ("Bom Bom"), and shimmering Scandolearic builders (the how do you pronounce "Symfonisj Utviklingschemming"), all wrapped up in his trademark prog rock-influenced production.

Review: For her latest long player, Tokyo Dawn informs us that this Swedish-Canadian soul singer and 'first lady of modern funk", opens up wider than ever before. We'll assume they mean musically, and if so, they couldn't be more right. In a big leap from her Art Slave album, this newie sees her collaborate with a pan-international selection of artists hailing from a as far afield as Detroit and Senegal. Highlights include the bonkers stop-start romp of "Just Like Magic", the otherwordly synth-jazz of "One" and the glistening, slow (e)motion overload of "All The Funk I Need (Stray mix)".

Review: Lurching forth on Actress' Werk Discs label with an appropriately strange twist on standard house and techno maneuveurs, Moire appears swathed in mystery and proudly sporting the disregard for convention that has defined his label boss to this date. With Heidi Vogel sending in some vocals stored in a jar not quite big enough for them, lead track "Never Sleep" has the potential to become very large indeed. There's a bleak, spartan quality to the arrangement of rasping drums and head-nailing bass splats, while the rhythm keeps a reassuring looseness about itself. "Drugs" heads into equally uneasy territory, using fearsomely large bass notes and paranoia-inducing arpeggio sequences to feed into a malevolent brew of mind-annihilation. Not even the sweeter synth strings that come in can save the oppressive atmosphere from pulling you down. For the Actress heads out there, Mr Cunningham pulls out a remix of stuttering magnificence that keeps driving forward while allowing everything to crumble and reform as it goes.

Review: Tel Aviv-based duo Red Axes is something of a curiosity. While their history lies in the new wave/post-punk scene, since signing to Cosmo Vitelli's I'm a Cliche label they've delivered a series of heavily-electronic tracks that sit somewhere between stylized dark disco, claustrophobic house and Balearic nu-disco. This latest three-tracker continues this trend, delivering tracks that don't neatly fit into any one style. The title track is warm and melodic, featuring sweet synths and strings over a decidedly Balearic groove. "Walk Alone" is darker and chuggier, sounding not unlike a contemporary take on Nitzer Ebb after a few calming spliffs. "Josef Cookies", meanwhile, sits somewhere between ESG and A Certain Ratio - a pleasing sound indeed.

Review: Returning to Nicolas Jaar's Clown And Sunset stable after his debut in 2011, Valentin Stip is delving into more of his folky electronica with excellent results. "Wit(z)" floats suspended in a murk of melancholic elements before a more discernable rhythm cuts through to bring the track into focus. "Hiathaikm" is a more low-slung affair that revels in mournful keys and a delicate beat, while "Angst" is a bold study of reverbs and the vocals that fuel them. Across the whole release, introspection is the driving force, reaching for a rich spread of instrumentation and sound sources through which to weave a sad but engaging tale.

Review: By now, you should all know the story of Atoms for Peace, the new all-star leftfield rock outfit founded by Thom Yorke and Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich. Amok is the five-piece's full-length debut, following a couple of well-received singles on XL and 50 Weapons. While there are obvious similarities with the path Radiohead have taken over recent years - curious beats influenced by dubstep and IDM, haunting soundscapes and intoxicating compositions - there's far greater warmth and vibrancy to the songs than some of Yorke's other projects. Ultimately, it sounds like what it is: a bunch of experimental-minded mates getting together to make music. It comes highly recommended.

Review: Expect more sublime substance from the man like Synkro as he brings us his utterly divine Broken Promise EP on newly reformed R&S sub-label Apollo. Easing us in gently with the title track, it's all downtempo bliss here, with spaced out atmospherics, undulating melodies and clinking piano keys with nudging vocals beneath. This segues neatly into the next track "Why Don't You", which features clicking, hollow beats, pared down R&B vocals and stripped back sounds. "Memories Of Love", up next, offers a gorgeous, dreamy soundscape with futuristic bleepy melodies, whilst concluding cut "Knowledge" rounds things off in style with humming bass and rattling beats.

Review: Drawing on the usual combination of close associates and fresh talent, Modeselektor are plaing curators once again and serve us this hefty 18-strong collection of shockingly modern beats. There's rugged and ranging electronica from Clark, Prefuse 73 and Mouse On Mars, while Modeselektor themselves keep things decidedly techno. By and large though the strongest informer is electro, from Lazer Sword's manic delivery to the deadly Detroitisms of Diamond Version. A special mention goes out to Martyn for the swinging glory of "Red Dancers", a rough and ready jacker with bandy legs and bawdy acid in its veins.

Review: Full Pupp boss Prins Thomas presents this intriguing four track release, whereupon he leads an "Orkester" of friends in recreating tracks from his own archives. Featuring no less than nine other musicians, Prins Thomas lead them in reinterpreting three tracks from his debut long player as well as the lead track from the 2010 Morfar EP. Committed to tape in no more than two takes, the resultant efforts were subsequently mixed down by "Todd" Terje Olsen and come pressed one a side on this double LP release. Tracks such as "Snake Music" are certainly more appropriate for losing yourself in on a decent pair of headphones but the navel gazing, body moving brilliance of "Uggebugg" has retained its inherent Norse Disco brilliance here in newly rechristened "Hamar Bluesklubb" form.

Review: Shangaan Shake is the complete document of the remixes Honest Jon's commissioned to pit leftfield Western artists against the Shangaan electro of South Africa. It's an all-star cast, from house heroes to dubstep tinkerers. Mark Ernestus turns out an elegant slice of dub techno, while DJ Rashad and RP Boo throw down a sweaty slice of footwork action, and Peverelist plies a typically complex rhythm at a slower, seductive tempo. Out of all the remixers, Theo Parrish is the one unafraid to maintain the original BPM, which leaves his remix stark against the multitude of other tracks. Essential.

Review: On Voices From The Lake, Donato Dozzy and Neel have created a sound that is both familiar and alien. In places, the album is reminiscent of 90s trance and ambient techno and there are moments where this writer was convinced that he had heard specific references to Swedish producer Patrick Sjeren's long forgotten Trax Beyond Subconscious project. Thankfully though, Dozzy and Neel have taken such sources as starting points and added their own 2012 perspectives. On "In Giova (Alternative Mix)", this takes the form of menacing bass pulses and restless acidic squeaks. "Twins In Virgo" meanwhile is more direct, with a rippling bass underpinning spacey synths and "Circe & ST" resonates with chiming bells emerging from the understated, stripped back rhythm.

Review: Having tumbled out of the stocks in a blur of drunken programming and maverick brushstrokes, it's safe to say that Gerry Read has successfully placed himself in a league of his own ahead of delivering an album to the world. Now that long-player arrives and it's as wild and ranging as you would expect. "Make A Move" is instantly a big hit with its stunning percussive rolls, mashed up scat singing and fractured piano stabs. There's an earthen soul at work in the samples Read is reaching for on the album, and while his style may be much more deliberately freaked out his intangible essence shares plenty with the likes of Theo Parrish and Moodymann. However where those artists are settled in a well-established groove, Read is still showing off and exploring just where his muse might take him.

Review: Pitched somewhere between the gritty, propulsive beats of Los Angeles, and the exploratory jazz of Cosmogramma, Flying Lotus's fourth album, Until The Quiet Comes is arguably the most delicate record he's ever produced. Described as a "collage of mystical states, dreams, sleep and lullabies", it steers away from bigger moments, choosing instead to present an understated patchwork of breezy jazz samples, dusty hip-hop beats smeared vocals seemingly inspired by DMT hallucinations. While previous efforts were wildly futuristic at times, Until The Quiet Comes is confidently classicist - and seals Flying Lotus's position as one of our generation's visionary producers.

Review: Ever expanding his horizons as a producer, Liam 'Indigo' Blackburn is shapeshifting once again on this new EP for Apollo. His core principals of glacial dub techno chords and pristine drums are prevalent here, but in the opening track "Sea Of Stars" the seven minute expanse moves from a downtempo funk to a slow house orientation through a bed of reverb and delay delivered with deadly poise. "Azha" is even more daring in its expansive, Eastern-tinged scope, as vast unfurling tones and chords create an inescapably heavy ambience. "Sunrise" is a more floor-friendly workout with focused drums of a techno persuasion before "Keerthana" dubs things out beautifully once again.

Review: Metaboman made his name as part of Krause Duo, a German live/DJ partnership that bizarrely blurred the boundaries between house, techno and hip-hop style MPC improvisation. Here he goes solo, delivering a debut album that neatly showcases his inimitable "Schrouse and Traschno" sound. In practice, that means a fuzzy, sweaty mix of feverish low-end bounce (see the seriously bassy "Kontrapiffle" and "Bibbig"), trip-hop techno (the semi-organic "Rauber"), skewed electronica ("East"), woozy party fodder ("Hot Shit", "Dubbyone", "Yokotono") and quirky vocal jams ("Wonderboy"). Oh, and some sleazy midtempo drug-chug with added sax ("Ultrakurper").

Review: Zero confirms what this writer had long thought about Subjected: he inhabits a world where darkness reigns. Indeed, the tone on Zero is predominantly bleak; from the white noise of "M" and the slowed down, scraping rhythm of "Vx800" to the hammering drums and slamming rhythm of "Tool 1", the wild analogue yelps of "SD 1" and the searing bass and stepping rhythm of "Vault 101", the album is not designed to chill out at home to. But that doesn't mean it is throwaway or disposable, and alone the epic chord builds and sheet metal percussion of "Concept 3" is more powerful than a warehouse full of drone albums.

Review: The debut album from Barker & Baumecker has been a long time in the making, but its timing couldn't be better. With techno at a point of divergence, as producers like Untold and Blawan make the move from the UK end of the bass spectrum into straighter 4/4 fare, Transsektoral seems to offer a Berlin perspective on the same theme. Although the stark, often dramatic atmosphere is that of an Ostgut Ton record through and through, the whole thing is peppered with broken rhythms and lurching bass (see "Crows"), and even some inventive R&B sampling reminiscent of the Tri Angle family. Of course it also makes its concessions to the Berghain purists with the spluttering, acid toothed techno of "Trafo" and "Silo", or the relentless "Buttcracker" but all things considered, this is one of the most vital albums Ostgut Ton have released since The Traveller - which is high praise indeed.

Review: It's another meeting of different Italian disco generations as cosmic disco veteran Daniele Baldelli and young(ish) hotshot Marco Dionigi team up for another joint EP. "Cosmic Efficacy" is a linear arpeggiated electro-disco journey to the stars, complete with electro-housey drum fills. In its "Slow Motion Remix" guise the tune is even spacier and highlights it's Moroder-isms even more. "Parallelo" on the other hand is much more abstract, with retro films samples woven over a coarse, electronic backdrop that resembles distorted cosmic interference. Far out!