Review: Roar Groove main man The Revenge returns to Dirt Crew with a third serving of tried-and-tested dancefloor treats. First on the menu is "Times Get Tough", a bouncy, breezy and deliciously positive loop jam (complete with chopped-up vocal samples from an '80s soul classic) that recalls the Scottish producer's fine early work for Instruments of Rapture. There's a choice of main courses - the locked-in peak-time deep house hypnotism of "Subconscious" and the skipping, sub-heavy Red Zone shuffle of "Searchlight", while brilliant retro-futurist closer "Come Down" is as good an early morning palette-cleanser as a sizeable serving of home-made Lemon sorbet.
Review: There's a great meeting of musical minds here, as Berlin DJ Amount hooks up with Schlepp Geist, best known for his work on Katermukke. The title track is based on a searing bass and raw percussive elements as a dramatic falsetto plays out over the arrangement. "Bay of Joy" sees Schlepp Geist raise the tempo, but the same sense of musicality is present. Coupled with bass tones that contain an epic feeling and vocodered vocals, it makes for an understated but still epic affair. The release also features dub versions of both tracks: with the vocals absent from the dub take on the title track and "Bay of Joy" reduced to a more dance floor friendly take, there really is something for everyone on this release.
Review: Recorded last year and selected from "a six-month period of weekly studio sessions in self-medicational [sic] hyper-focus mode", this release explains why Du Lac is one of the unsung heroes of Dutch house and techno. "Gut Elixer" starts the release in hyperactive mode, with flailing snares and brooding bass imagining a dark, modern take on Chicago house. In contrast, "Snake Funk" is stripped back and reduced, while on "Ganzfeld Cookie", Du Lac heads back to the nervous percussive ticks and crashing drums of "Elixer". Rounding off this abstract but effective release is "Bot (Westside Genesis mix)" . It sees Du Lac change focus somewhat with robust break beats, but the same twitchy percussion prevails.
Review: After a release on sub-label Unterton last year, Phase Fatale aka Hayden Payne now makes his debut on the mother imprint. Taking inspiration from industrial's dance floor and experimental strains in equal measures, the common bond across Reverse Fall is Payne's adherence to dark electronic sounds. This takes form on the pounding, Front 242-style title track and "Blackbox", where a tunnel of glitchy percussion paves the way for a peak time, pounding rhythm. In contrast, on "Empty Whip" percussive bursts simulate whip lashes doled out over a buckled, broken electro track, while on "Incision" brooding sub bass and murky textures collide to bring this bleak but compelling release to a finale.
Review: The latest missive on admirable Amsterdam institution Night Noise comes from an unfamiliar artist, San Francisco's Dance Station. In fact, the outfit is a collaboration between old friends Layne Fox (member of long-running dub disco collective 40 Thieves) and former Leng artist Josh Praus. Title track "Sirens" is an absolute doozy, all told - a cosmic, deep space dancefloor excursion influenced by the arpeggio-driven throb of Patrick Cowley, sleazy Italo-disco and ricocheting, delay-laden proto-house. The duo hurtles further towards the stars on "Beige & Yellow", a spacey chunk of acid-fired cosmic disco straight out of the top drawer. LA Decadense reworks "Sirens" and adds a fuzzy dub disco flavour, while "Roliva" delivers a wonderfully psychedelic take on "Beige & Yellow" that's probably capable of making perfectly sober people hallucinate vividly.
Review: Laurene Exposito is back on Amsterdam's Knekelhuis with a follow up to her well received debut album. This new record is said to be very personal - life changes and her love life are said to be central themes. All tracks have been recorded at Exposito's home in the Rennes, France using all analogue equipment. Starting out with the seductive coldwave tribute "Yellow Density" which features some inventive synth action that reaches near acid moments over her deadpan vocals. Title track "Cocktail Mexico" goes for some Dopplereffekt style electro shenanigans and "Go Forward" conjuring up comparisons to early Tropic Of Cancer on this hazy lo-fi goth journey.
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