Review: The legendary Black Hole continue to reign supreme in trance world as one of the true flagships, and this new series of EP's is prime example. Four outstanding productions which between them have been getting heavy plays from the likes of; Markus Schulz, Daniel Kandi, Lange, Eddie Halliwell. Oen Baren brings a spine chilling eeriness with 'Ictus', while '1492' from Bruve Cullen delivers a wonderfully deep progressive moment. Picking up the pace and power is Urry Fefelove & Abramasi on 'Levitation', and there's a more driving cut from August Vila on 'Visions'. Every one of these tracks is a smash in their own right. Check it out!
Review: Somatic is Bruce's debut album and sees the UK producer tight walk a fine line between experimental electronics and rhythm-heavy club tracks. This latter side of his work is represented on tracks like the hypnotic, vocal-sampling "Elo" that weaves its way to a tripped out climax, on the grinding, visceral "What" or on the teased out "Meek" - where Bruce uses layered percussion and textured sound scapes to deliver a slower but mesmerising effect. Elsewhere, there are dubbed out pieces like "Ore" and the funk bass and atmospheric synths of "Patience St Pim" that demonstrate Bruce is not a conventional electronic producer.
Review: Larry McCarthy aka Bruce has previously released on Livity's offshoot and Hessle Audio, so it makes sense that he would appear on Hemlock. This three-tracker starts with the melancholic, downtempo "Before You Sleep", which sounds like it could have featured on a Portishead B-side, especially as it radiates low-end menace as it progresses. McCarthy gets down to dance floor business with "In Line". Frenetic rhythms and steely drums collide with dubbed out, filtered effects to create a tripped out dance floor roller. "Sweat" is another unexpected track, with McCarthy fusing haunting sound scapes with dissected, abstract rhythms.
Review: Given Chris Farrell's passion for supporting local talent, it was probably only a matter of time before he teased an EP out of fellow Bristol resident Bruce. The Hessle Audio affiliate is on fine form on The Trouble With Wilderness, utilizing both sides of the 12" to touch on a variety of moods and styles. The title track sits somewhere between throbbing Bristol techno, sparse electronica and drowsy deep house, with Bruce working wonders with only a handful of key elements. On the flip, you'll find the melancholic, heart-aching ambient chords and field recordings of "Waves (For Yasmin)", and "Summer's Got To End Sometime", a melancholic chunk of melodious deepness that counts among the producer's most evocative efforts to date.
Review: First surfacing in impressive fashion with two heavyweight records for Hessle Audio and Livity Sound offshoot Dnuos Ytivil in 2014, Bruce has been carefully considered in his output since then with just the odd remix here and there. It is Hessle Audio that signals his return, issuing the highly sought after "Steals" which has been burning a hole of expectation in the internet for the past six month. Naturally, "Steals" hogs the A-side, peppering a moody post-bruk, tribal-minded groove with distorted electronics for the pleasingly percussive opener. He explores deeper pastures on "Relevant Again", fusing fevered electronics and exotic sound effects with a dub-wise, hip-hop tempo groove. A fine EP concludes with "Petal Pluck", an ambient/IDM excursion that puts a contemporary spin on mid 1990s Aphex Twin.
Review: UK producer Bruce finds himself following up Hodge's first release on Dnuos Ytivil with more quality, off the beaten track techno. The Livity Sound sub-label provides the emerging talent with his first record and "Just Getting Started" is a frenetic session of looped tribal drums, mechanical atmospheres and full-on rhythms drunk on swing, while a more subdued "Tilikum" is awkwardly syncopated to start, before building into something deep - to then dropping back into a funky Chicago bassline groove.
Review: After a stellar debut on Livity Sound's Dnuos Ytivil sub label, man like Bruce adds Hessle Audio to his prospering profile with Not Stochastic. Representing the crucial UK label's first release of 2014, the standard of productions on show from Bruce demonstrates Hessle Audio's quality over quantity approach continues to pay dividends. The triplet also demonstrate Bruce has quite a few strings to his production bow, with the general vibe differing from the weighty swung techno of that excellent Dnuos Ytivil record. From the off, Bruce exudes a trippy style of sonics that bring to mind the work of Dynamo Dreesen or SVN.
Review: The idea behind Diynamic's long-running "Four To The Floor" series has always been deliciously simple, with each successive EP offering up another collection of club cuts that have been extensively road-tested by boss man Solomun. This 14th edition is naturally up to the same high standard of its predecessors. Bruce Loko kicks things off with the dusty house grooves, chiming melodies and evocative strings of "Dimension (featuring Sebee)", before Laroz charges into sweatier peak-time territory via the bassline-driven, cowbell-sporting warehouse sleaze of "Under Your Skin". Super Flu opts for a druggy, slightly paranoid tech-house flavour on future big room favourite "Acumulee" while Matt Sawyer's self-titled contribution wraps jangling Jew's harp and twinkling piano loops over a heady and exotic, Innervisions style groove.
