Review: Maga's first '...and friends' compilation on Children of the Future, which appeared in the summer of 2020, was an expansive, 36-track beast that boasted a wealth of high-grade material from a mixture of established producers and rising stars. This belated sequel is a little more manageable - a solid 13 tracks this time round - but no less alluring. In fact, such is the high quality level throughout, picking highlights is tough, though our current favourites include the druggy, chugging dancefloor psychedelia of WhoMadeWho's 'Panopticon', the gently melodious and uplifting progressive house revivalism of Tim Engelhardt's 'Insides', the All Day I Dream style melodious dreaminess of MIICHII's 'Together', the Afro-tinged tropical house bounce of 'Modern Liquidity' by Rapha Fernandes and the warming, wall-of-sound roll of Maga's 'Tell Me'.
Review: Last year, Kapote joined forces with regular home Toy Tonics to release Teutonik Disaster, a compilation of his own re-edits of late '70s and early '80s, "German new wave funk". 12 months on he returns to the same label with a new collection, Mushroom House, which boasts a mixture of Balearic, Afro and cosmic-influenced cuts from the imprint's vaults. Highlights come thick and fast throughout, from the rubbery, dubbed-out Afro-house bounce of Ponty Mython's 'Slippin' Into Darkness' and the dusty Afro-disco haziness of Munk's 'Nigerian Jam', to the intergalactic electro trip of the Asphodells' killer remix of 'The Circular Path' by the Deadstock 33s, and the deep space Italo-disco chug of Baldelli's sparkling 'Phobos (2020 Version)'.
Review: For their eight studio album, Danish three-piece Whomadewho have decided to call on the production and mixing talents of an impressive array of friends and like-minded contemporaries. As a result, Sychronicity is a pleasingly eclectic affair full to bursting with tracks that blend their usual punk-funk and jazz-influenced sounds with the trademark styles of their invited collaborators. This results in some genuinely inspired and ear-catching cuts, including Mano Le Tough hook-up 'Oblivion' (think Radiohead meets Italo-influenced synth-pop and tech-tinged deep house), some low-slung disco-punk mayhem made alongside the Adana Twins ('Shadow of Doubt'), an unsurprisingly quirky hoe-down with Axel Boman ('Anywhere in the World'), the Kraftwerk-influenced 'Hamstring' with Michael Mayer, and a dash of tactile tech-house dreaminess crafted in cahoots with Robag Wruhme ('If You Leave').
Review: Whomadewho return to Kompakt with a flurry of activity that includes a series of Eps and an album, all under the Synchronicity banner. The pair last released an artist album on the label back in 2012 and this time around their work features a wealth of collaborators. One of those like-minds is Kompakt boss Michael Mayer, who lends his expertise to the sleazy electronic disco of "Hamstrung" a highlight of this taster EP. On "Chaser", Whomadewho team up with Rebolledo to deliver sun-kissed 80s disco rock, while "Falling Out" sees them work with Terr to drop a chugging, cosmic groove. Rounding off this fine EP is the post-punk stylings of "The Aftermath" s split production with Adana Twins.
Review: As you'd expect given their length of service and impressive back catalogue, the line-up of guest producers on Whomadewho's second EP of collaborations is eye-catching to say the least. Arguably the most headline-grabbing name is Ame member and Innervisions co-founder Frank Wiedemann, who lends a hand on the dreamy, otherworldly post-punk pop shuffle of "Peter Pan Me". Those looking for more dancefloor potential should check out EP opener "Oblivion", a slowly building slab of introspective vocal deep house moodiness co-produced by Mano Le Tough, and the more Balearic, sun-kissed warmth of gorgeous Marc Pional hook-up "Sooner". Or, for that matter, the cowbell-laden disco-punk-goes-acid house headiness of "Der Abend Bergt Keine Ruh", which the Danish trio made in cahoots with Perel.
Review: For Danish electro-pop trio Whomadewho, 'Synchronicity' means "the simultaneous occurrence of events which appear significantly related, but have no discernible causal connection." In recent years, they have been exploring those relationships with different remixes and collaborations, and here they present the first instalment in a new concept series. First, they team up with Swedish enfant terrible Axel Boman on the mesmerising polyrhythmic deepness of "Anywhere In The World'', then veteran Greek producer Petros Manganaris aka Echonomist gets into the studio with them next for the super slinky tech house of "Interloper" creating an ethereal backdrop to Tomas Barfod's unmistakable vocal delivery. Finally, we see them team up with Hanseatic heroes Adana Twins on "Immersion" which is a surprising effort from all parties, where they wander down the left hand path on this delightful dark disco number.
Review: Contemporary, vaguely disco-inspired electronica from the more arty, experimental end of the spectrum is the order of the day on this EP from Danish trio WhoMadeWho, who've played with the likes of Hot Chip, Daft Punk, Soulwax and LCD Soundsystem. 'Obstacle' itself in its original form has a Moroder-esque throb that's topped with a melancholic, indie-style male vocal. The Marvin & Guy Disco Mix will be the one for most disco jocks, while Chaim & Jenia Tarsol serve up an Italo-tinged refix aimed at the "melodic techno" floors. Bonus track 'Bait', meanwhile, is an indie-dance near-instrumental with some neat fluttering female vocal snips.
Review: Spanish producer Daniel Inigo (better known as Animal Picnic) and Argentinian counterpart Santiago Garcia join forces to rework a WhoMadeWho track that was first released back in 2016. Where the original was all about the quirky, Hot Chip-ish leftfield pop charm, the Santiago Garcia & Animal Picnic Remix is redolent of the post-punk/pre-house era, when Mute Records was the last word in cutting edge electronica and The Normal's 'Warm Leatherette' sounded like a bulletin from the future. And if you're finding the vocal a little 80s Euro-sounding for comfort, the good news is that it comes with an instrumental attached.
Review: A split/collaborative EP from Watergate this one, with 'Montserrat' credited to WhoMadeWho but presented in Artbat Edit form, while 'Closer' is credited to Artbat but has WhoMadeWho as a featured artist. The former is a broody, moody affair in which a muted, percussive intro is slowly joined by atmospheric synth drones, simple 4/4s and a walking bassline, before risers and other synth sounds pave the way for the electric geetar solo that provides the track's real USP, accompanied by a plainitive male vocal. 'Closer', meanwhile, sticks more closely to the European "melodic house plus indie-style vox" formula of recent years.
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