by Juno Plus on 01.02.2010 at 10:54am
Artist: Tiga
Title: Sex O’Clock
Label: Turbo
Genre: Electro house/Electroclash
Format: 12″, Digital
Buy From: Juno Records, Juno Download
2009 was a watershed year for the Turbo label, fronting up massive releases from the year’s big winners – Zombie Nation, Proxy, Brodinksi and, of course, Tiga himself. The Omnidance compilation was a veritable who’s who of this year’s popular techno-banger sound. Whether you’re a disc-carrying convert or not, you can’t but admire Turbo’s relentless release schedule.
Turbo swing right into the twenteens with a remix EP of Tiga’s “Sex O’ Clock”, a new single lifted from last year’s Ciao. However the title and Tiga’s Shoe-like vocals, belie the brooding, twisting house of this release. Eschewing the original, three musical polymaths, each with roots in DIY techno and analogue machinery, have contributed a new remix for this EP.
Jamie Lidell cuts and thrusts through feral, fuzzy synths. Just a slight hint of Lidell’s stage show funk shines through the fog. Messy, exciting electro-funk.
Matias Aguayo, owner of up-coming label Comeme, flattens things out. Supplanting the original’s stabbing, acid vibes with Argentinan street rhythms and warm, analogue tones, it keeps to Aguayo’s tested formula. Any fan of Comeme’s 2009 releases will find something here.
Trevor Jackson, wearing his Playgroup house moniker, injects an extra level of driving acid groove, building up into spooky, Blade-running synth pads. All sass has been stripped away from the vocals. This is a twisting grind into moody realms of big room acid. Totally hypnotic and equally pumping. Grab the dub if you’re not into Tiga’s trademark vocals.
Review: Duncan Byrne
Tags: Electro house/Electroclash, Jamie Lidell, Matias Aguayo, Playgroup, Tiga, Turbo Recordings
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by Juno Plus on 13.11.2009 at 10:36am
Featured DJ Chart: Matt Walsh
It’s been a watershed year for Londoner Matt Walsh, with the release of the debut Clouded Vision EP on his own imprint, some fine remixes on esteemed labels Turbo and XL and a slew of DJ slots at festivals and clubs across the UK and Europe. He’s a man with a finger very much on the pulse of electronic music – a connoisseur of everything from deep techno to peak time disco. He guided us through his top 12″s for November (plus a CD or two).
Tags: Azari & III, Basic Soul Unit, Canyons, Clouded Vision, Matt Walsh, Peaches, Turbo, Turbo Recordings
Category: Features & interviews | No Comments »
by Juno Plus on 12.11.2009 at 09:40am
Artist: Jori Hulkkonen
Title: The Man From Earth
Label: Turbo
Genre: Techno
Format: CD, Digital
Buy From: Juno Records, Juno Download
Jori Hulkkonen loves his vintage synths – indeed he’s the conductor of the world’s first Acid Symphony Orchestra, comprised of 11 mad/brilliant Scandinavians armed with dinner suits and Roland TB-303s.
It therefore comes as little surprise that Man From Earth, the Finnish producer’s tenth studio album, has its fair share of acid house stylings. It’s at once moody and melodic, with Hulkkonen deftly using his machines to produce ethereal beats one minute and storming dance floor fodder the next.
Some of these tracks have been lurking in the recesses of Jori’s collection for nearly 20 years (the chorus on “Man From Earth” comes from a song Hulkkonen originally wrote in 1991, aged 17); some are more recent productions. And despite – or perhaps because – of this, the album maintains an incredibly cohesive, mature feel.
The slow burning growl in “Dancerous” is one of the album’s highlights, as are Jerry Valuri’s vocals on “I am Dead” and “Man From Earth”. Elsewhere Turbo boss Tiga chips in with a vocal cameo on “Undercover” under his alias as the Dove. The vocals on that track – “undercover as a music man, I bide my time and plan, I have a greater calling” – could quite easily be an ode to Hulkkonen, who often boasts about a stellar career in which he “has never become popular”, thus allowing him to work unencumbered by the strains of stardom.
The quality of this album suggests he’ll be lucky if he remains “undercover” for much longer.
Review: Aaron Coultate
Tags: Acid Symphony Orchestra, Jori Hulkkonen, Techno, Turbo Recordings
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by Juno Plus on 07.11.2009 at 13:22pm
Artist: Proxy
Title: Who Are You?
Label: Turbo
Genre: Electro House
Format: 12″, Digital
Buy From: Juno Records, Juno Download
Enigmatic Moscow producer Proxy must be every audio engineer’s nightmare. His new EP, as usual, shows little regard for small PA systems. “Who Are You” stomps off with a tribal bounce, before slamming into Proxy’s signature subby drawl.
All the while a vocal hook regurgitates itself over the cacophony. Simple stuff that will deliver for any big-room jock at bass friendly venues. Watch that gain knob… “8000” is Proxy’s own Eastern Jam. Sub-continental sitars and flutes syncopate over a crunchy, up-tempo bass line.
When that descending scale of screeching bleeps kicks in, this track absolutely takes off. Definitely the pick of the bunch, so don’t waste it on your iPod.
Review: Duncan Byrne
Tags: Bloody Beetroots, Proxy, Turbo, Turbo Recordings
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