Review: Stefan Betke makes a welcome return eight years after his last LP, Steingarten. In places his style has adapted, bringing in different shades of melodic colour and tone in amongst the glitchy constructs he made his name on. At times the sound feels very different to the hushed, austere minimal dub of old, but then there are tracks such as "Wurzel (live)" that directly beam back into the heart of the original Pole sound without repeating the same tricks. If anything the sound is more dense here, pulsing with thick textures without losing that razor sharp precision that marks Betke out as an auteur in his own right.
Review: Killekill associated imprint Krake have got something pretty special for their debut release - a diverse and fulfilling compilation of some of the most interesting electronic artists of the moment, ranging from techno to IDM and beyond. This is one for you to check out piece by piece but we thought we'd pick out a few tasty ones to get your juices flowing: Pole makes a rare appearance with the beautiful, dubbed-out half-steps of "Wipfel Dub", Cassegrain's "Serpent" is a fast-winding, semi-techno banger complete with one of the nastiest basslines since Surgeon's "Krautrock"; meanwhile Perc comes in with his pulsating techno camaraderie and Lakker's "Darcdub" is just militantly insane. All in all, a fantastic, wide-ranging compilation of new material from some of the darkest minds out there - check the other, lesser known faces too. We're certainly looking forward to the next chapter of Krake...
Review: For all the theories about field recordings and dub techniques, it's the title on Stefan Betke's latest release that best sums up where his sonic approach is at. "Lurch" does exactly what its name suggests, throwing down a mid-tempo rhythm that's slightly off-beat. Combined with a looped chord and a sample of what sounds like a cat's miaow - or it could have just been the late hour that this reviewer listened to the release - and "Lurch" shows why Betke remains one of electronic music's most idiosyncratic producers. The fact that its tempo slows to a crawl before it ends can only endear the listener to Pole's machinations. By contrast, "Moos" is austere, with a menacing sub-bass and metallic whirrs and clicks showing Pole's more introspective side.
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