Review: Roman Flugel has stayed at the top of his game for nearly 20 years because he possesses the uncanny knack of reinvention. On this release for Hypercolor, he manages to stretch that diversity out over the course of six tracks. From the glorious melodies of "Teenage Engineering" through the rolling 808s of "Church of Dork", the gushing acid tones of "Make it Happen" into the sublime deep techno of "Picnic for Players", this release covers more ground than an Argentinean scrum-half. Monday Brain is one of the most well-rounded and stylistically assured records that the veteran German DJ has released to date - and that's really saying something.
Review: Following a couple of releases on the Hype_Ltd offshoot under the Analogue Cops guise, Restoration Records founders Lucretio and Marieu get a chance to put out some solo tracks on Hypercolour. Lucretio steps up first, kicking off with the bass-heavy, 8-bit deep house swing of "Vampire Killers", before once again reaching for the cheap-sounding synths and hustling rhythms on "Shinobi World". Marieu opts for a tougher, all-encompassing sound on the boompty-influenced "Corona", all thumping beats, speaker-bothering bass and occasional vocal samples. He continues on this theme with "McGraw", which sounds like a tribute to the Dixie Jazz-sampling madness of one-time classic regulars Mike Dixon and Greenskeepers.
Review: On the Sugar Cane Chronicles Frenchman Gary Gritness follows up a great EP on Clone with some vintage sounding jams covered in the right amount of dust again. With the exception of second track (and highlight) "Stayin' Strong Hard" which is a classic EBM jam that's nice and dark, the rest is pretty optimistic and uplifting nu-disco. "Preachin' Some Tight Game" has the right amount of boogie and analogue soul that would make even Tensnake stand up and notice while the deep disco of "Fly Girls" is worth listening to for the rich tapestries of gorgeous and glistening synths.
Kerrier District - "Techno Disco" - (4:40) 112 BPM
Tom Demac - "Four Leaves Right" - (7:54) 120 BPM
Luke Vibert - "Stabs Of Regret" (FaltyDL remix) - (3:52) 95 BPM
Garnier - "Confused" - (10:38) 130 BPM
Lucretio - "Vampire Killer" - (6:22) 134 BPM
J. Wiltshire - "False Awakening" (Tuff City Kids remix) - (6:45) 128 BPM
Last Magpie - "Separation" - (9:09) 126 BPM
A Sagittariun - "Delta House" - (6:33) 107 BPM
Zoe Zoe & Enoah Ballard - "1234" - (5:41) 124 BPM
Losoul - "Time & Space" - (8:11) 122 BPM
Roberto Clementi - "Novism" - (5:56) 122 BPM
Review: London's Hypercolour crew have now become synonymous with quality house and techno, and although they are originally rooted in the UK strain of the genres, recent years have brought along a whole new heap of styles and talent on their catalogue. First up, we should give credit to Axel Boman and the ridiculously hummable tech-house groove that is "Depression 01", followed supremely by a hard-hitting house banger in the name of "Lynn" by the unstoppable Dense & Pika. Other choice cuts on here include Kevin McPhee's nasty "CC-XXX-YY-NNNNN", Jimmy Edgar's sexier-than-ever "Hush", Lucretio's smooth "Vampire Killer", and...of screw it, it's all pretty damn killer. HOT.
Review: Luke Vibert has made many great records over the years, but few are quite as well crafted as his 2004 debut album under the now familiar Kerrier District alias. Inspired by a mixture of Metro Area, Black Devil Disco Club, cheap synthesizers, early New Jersey garage, Italian house and, of course, classic disco, it remains a touchstone in the development of nu-disco. This timely reissue features freshly re-mastered versions of all ten tracks from the original album, plus the six tracks which made up 2006's Kerrier District 2 12". These include the loved-up, late '80s loveliness of "Ce Porte", the 808 cowbell and vocoder laden "Disco Nasty", and a typically eccentric Ceephax remix of "Sho U Rite".
Review: Sweden's Sebastian Mullaert is now receiving his dues a after a long stint on the techno scene. From his days in minimal techno duo Minilogue (and let's not forget their previous forays into trance) to running the brilliant Wa Wu We imprint - it's fair to say he's a modern legend. Who'd have ever guessed that Mullaert would make an appearance on vibey London institution Hypercolour? "Windmaker" is typical Mullaert; moody and melodic, hypnotic and deep. Not many can record a live jam and capture results so epic. Ukrainian deep house hero Vakula is on the remix front, exploring another side of his recent pursuits in techno music; this one is seriously smoked out dub techno.
Review: After releasing Luke Vibert's acid-heavy Ridmik set, Hypercolour boss Jamie Russell asked the Cornishman if he had any disco-flavoured Kerrier District material knocking about. He answered in the affirmative, and 4, Vibert's first full-length under the alias for a decade, was born. Although the project was initially inspired by Black Devil Disco Club's warped electronic disco (and, presumably, the smoother grooves of Metro Area), a decade on Vibert's approach is noticeably different. While the fluid synths, undulating disco basslines and cheery grooves remain in place, the intoxicating depth of the original has been replaced by a cheekiness more readily associated with Vibert's Wagon Christ pseudonym. It is, then, a different beast than previous Kerrier District outings, but no less entertaining.
Review: If you give Luke Vibert instructions to make an acid banger, chances are he'll come up with the goods. So it proves on Halloween, his second single for Cedric Maison's Hypercolour imprint. The title track is particularly intense, with in-your-face drums and ragged, abusive acid lines brushing shoulders with ghostly melodies, horror chords and dystopian vocal samples. The Cornishman provides a slight breather in the shape of "Jack U Whole", whose bubbling acid lines and murky vocal samples ride an 808 electro-influenced groove. Space Dimension Controller remixes the latter track, dropping a 1988 style acid jacker that sounds like a long lost Trax Records release.
Review: Oh my, it's number six in the Patterns series for London's Hypercolour! The previous compilations have all been absolute gold, blending house and bass-heavy clusterbombs like there's no tomorrow, so we're pretty psyched about this latest affair. There's plenty of exciting from all over the sphere on this one, namely some new appearances from Analogue Cop Lucretio and his lovely and soulful "Do It Forever" track; an absolutely cracking house-electro hybrid by Marco Bernardi in the form of "Japanese Firecracker", and a whole load of other bangers by the likes of West Norwood Cassette Library, Canada's Kevin McPhee, Luke Vibert and even Smallville's Christopher Rau! Essential comp vibes!
Review: As the title of his latest release suggests, mystery man (or woman) A Sagittariun has been around for a while. It's no surprise then that this release, like the rest of his catalogue, draws on older sources for inspiration. "3--4-3" is constructed from clipped drums, a shuffling rhythm and features the kind of wide-eyed, jazz-tinged keys that you'd associate with classic Prescription releases. Rolando's version of the track features this melodic element, albeit underpinned by a tough, linear rhythm and splintered percussion, while label boss Alex Jones' version is all about a splurging, noisy bass and a low-slung rhythm. The best track on the release however is "Delta House", a slower groove full of demented jazz squalls and a woman moaning ecstatically.
Review: Gary Gritness returns to his regular haunt, Hypercolour, for this highly conceptual long player. In essence, The Legend is a soundtrack to a 'cyber-funk' tale of street hustling, and unsurprisingly, Gritness has found a way to respires this through the medium of electro funk on "Back with a Vengeance" and "Bent Cop Hustle". On "Big Marcus Knows the Score", he shows hitherto unimagined levels of depth with a mournful, synth-laden piece that's not radically dissimilar from Carl Craig around the time of Landcruising. "Laser-Sighted Smoke" reveals another string to his repertoire as he drops a subtle, Drexciyan workout, while the delectable "Fishnets and a Nine" sees him end up in an electro-tinged easy listening world.
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