Review: Like a long and blurry session at the storied Robert Johnson club, Time Travel brings the listener on a real musical journey. It moves from the low-slung disco of Massimiliano Pagliara's "Sometimes at Night" into the deep, ponderous house of Portable and Maximillion Dunbar, moving into more dance floor focused grooves thanks to Benedikt Frey and Orson Wells before Frankfurt DJ Roman Flugel drops the brilliant wide screen electro of "Girls With Status". While Time Travel does largely document music emanating from the German city, it also goes back to the 80s to include the eternal Italo classic, "Flucht" by Zwischenfall.
Review: Lennard Poschmann may not be as famous as his artistic name sake, but as his first album for Live At Robert Johnson shows, he is keenly aware of electronic music's cinematic power. This is audible on the lush ambience of "Welcome" and "Zerphyx", while similarly emotive sounds are underpinned by a hyper-speed, Juan Atkins style rhythm on "Rise" and "A66", where a warm, buzzing bass supports Poschmann's sublime synths. At times, the album veers too close to other producer's tropes - the delicate "Situation" is the most Aril Brikha track ever made - but like his enigmatic predecessor, Wells throws the futuristic electro of "Trianon" and the bleep-laden soundtrack of "Sincere" to keep his audience guessing, in Third Man style, right till the very end.
Review: Live At Robert Johnson's first Lifesaver compilation, released in 2013, offered an essential snapshot of the infamous club-turned-label's expanding roster, delivering tracks from respected heads and relative newcomers alike. This second installment ploughs a similar furrow, on one hand showcasing woozy dancefloor gear from familiar favourites (see Roman Flugel's formidable, sci-fi tinged analogue jam, "Tender Hooligan", and the beatbox electro-meets-spiraling synth-scapes of Lauer's "Language"), and genuinely impressive music from lesser-known names. In the latter category you'll find some genuine highlights, including the deliciously Balearic electronics of Chinsaski ("Futuresex"), and the Uncanny Valley style, semi-organic deep house chug of Benedikt Frey.
Review: Orson Wells, AKA producer Leonard Poschmann, isn't exactly a new name - he's delivered contributions to split EPs under a variety of pseudonyms - but this is his debut solo EP. And what a debut. "Leaving", the EP's lead cut, is a bona-fide tear-jerker of epic proportions, built around Steve Summers/Confused House style rising and falling synthesizer lines, bittersweet melodies, squelchy acid tweaks and raw-but-stripped back drums. The equally melancholic "Searching" sounds like Lamont Booker's more introspective moments dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century ("New Age House" for a new century, perhaps), while "Jungle Warrior" feels like early Detroit techno, pitched down to a deep house tempo, with an added shot of feverish voodoo. As for the title track, it's stunningly beautiful. In a word: fantastic.
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