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With almost 40 releases to its credit and few creative slip ups along the way, there can be little doubt that Ali ‘Perc’ Wells’s imprint is one of the UK’s great modern techno labels. What sets Perc Trax apart is that its owner allows his artists to explore a range of creative avenues without losing sight of the label’s adherence to what defines it: techno music. Unsurprisingly, like most Perc releases, these remixes of “1909” are utterly distinctive: Millie’s version combines wobbly sub-bass and eerie atmospherics, in one fell swoop capturing the essence of two great UK electronic music traditions – the lurching swagger of bass and the menace of industrial. Perc’s own reshape sounds intent on achieving the same, but this time stepping rhythms are fused with bursts of droning noise and distorted, grainy drums that evoke memories of classic noisenik Landstrumm. By contrast, the original version seems restrained, but there is no doubt that the titanium drums and bad-ass bass will worry even the most resilient sound system. Finally, Perc welcome a transatlantic guest as New York DJ Derek Plaslaiko, who is due to release original material on Perc soon, drops a mangled, distorted bass over straighter 4/4 beats and steely rhythms. Forget the fads and hipsters - this releases shows UK electronic music at its most inspired.
Richard Brophy
