Review: Electric Appliances is a concept by Berlin based artists Klas Lindblad, Jan-Eric Scholz and Antti Pussinen and run as a special Various Artist showcase series under the Moodmusic label. The second EP on this special series is called Venera EP and features again Tesla286, Antti Pussinen under his Pussitronix moniker as well new comer Tsodor! He delivers a burning acid number "Dinosaur Song" next to the even more acid and lo-fi cosmic sewer techno of "Hyena Hicup". Taking it further into a broken beat, bass troddin' territory is Tesla286 with the eerie, deep and diving "Nutopia". Hardcore vibes to fit the mood.
Review: With 15 tracks to choose from, this is a package that offers great value for money and much useful ammunition for DJs playing at the deep tech/minimal end of the spectrum. Sasse, Satoshi Fumi & Hiroshi Watanabe and Spiritcatcher all feature, but generally the emphasis is on more up-and-coming producers, with tracks ranging from the deep, atmospheric throb of ORDA's opening salvo 'More Over' to the string-drenched, glitchy prog of Fumi & Watanabe's 'Time Lapse', via the smooth deep house of Sasse's 'Eagle Eyes' and the Italo nouveau of Alessio Pagliaroli's 'Distractions', not to mention something of a curveball in the form of Nick Chacona's shimmering, female-vocalled disco-pop closer 'Fear'.
Review: Canadian expat in Berlin Ed Ed teams up with Finnish expat in the same city Kiki, who is usually affiliated with local institution Bpitch Control for these two new tracks on Sasse's Moodmusic. The woozy and smooth rolling tech house of "Day Of Drones" is perfect to set the early evening mood, with its trippy vocal loops and wonky synths. The remix up next by Clink boss Camea is much fiercer and suited to the peak time with its adrenalised 909 beat accompanying those wonky synths to great effect. Second original offering "Wave Of Drones" is a dark journey track that is really in harmony with the current sound of Berlin at present. Finally London duo Azimute's remix breathes even more nefarious vibes into the track sounding like a one way ticket to hell and back!
Review: The mysterious Renato is up next with the Cheap Talk EP on Sasse's esteemed Moodmusic imprint. The title track is a dark journey track with layers of hypnotising pads and sombre atmospherics; definitely a great effort! The second offering "Stranger" goes for some deep tech house flavour with a razor sharp baseline that begins to resonate progressively in sinister fashion. Finally "Solicitor" delves back into the darklands on a one way ticket to hell and back; Life & Death eat your heart out. What a brilliant debut!
