Review: SHDW's label marks its twentieth release with this weighty compilation. Drawing on some of the most respected names in techno, volume three is full of peak-time bangers. There's the lean, rolling techno of Chlar's "Inside Us", while Dax J showers the listener with waves of acid tones on the steely, peak-time "Celestial Dub". The Advent's "Randomized" is a bruising and quite brilliant industrial techno workout. While Blawan's hyperactive "Don't You Dare Squawk At Me" hovers just below the 160 bpm mark, not all of the compilation is as intense. Vocals are mixed with chiming chords on Gary Beck's "Fold" and Z.I.P.P.O's "Broken Game" is a deep Detroit techno track.
Review: The Exhibit series aims to showcase emerging artists who operate at the raw end of the techno spectrum. While not a new act, label owners Slam get the ball rolling with their own "Exhibit 3", which revisits the raw, jacking sound of their Snapshots release. EJA's "Detachment Theory" represents a more contemporary take on underground techno. Led by a pumping, heads-down groove and relentless, doubled-up claps, it also features mysterious synth builds. Similarly atmospheric sounds inhabit Skjöld's "Stearic Acid" - but on this occasion, they are woven into a stripped back, percussive groove. Favouring a more abrasive direction, ANNĒ's "Keinlicht" revolves around a visceral rhythm and ominous synth lines, echoing vintage Steve Bicknell.
Review: Ostensibly a response to techno being 'in such a sorry and predictable state', Full Pupp's latest compilation goes off in a number of wonderfully captivating tangents. Label owner Prins Thomas' "Mere Apokalypso" is a tripped-out groove, while his take on Synk's "Tool Mix" is an acid-laced chugger. In contrast, JaddajaddaPlay's "Bird No Bird" goes down a percussive route. Despite the title, techno does make an appearance. Blackbelt Engh Rhythm Combo's "Frydenlyn" is a rolling tribal affair, while trance influences bubble to the surface on Christian Engh's dubbed out "Khonsu" and Karolinski's high-paced, melodic "Slutt A Mase Eg Har Ikkje Spelt Pa Ei Veke".
Crystal Geometry - "The Intelligence Briefing" - (3:46) 138 BPM
Ket Robinson - "La Passion Tue L'Amour" - (6:30) 138 BPM
Review: KR celebrates its fifth birthday with this diverse techno compilation. KR050 gets off to a frenetic start with Clotur's "M33, a peak-time track that resonates to building acid and a firing, angular rhythm. Similar energy levels also fuel the grainy techno of Joton's "Cyber Machinery" and Roll Dann's contribution - the chord-heavy banger that is "Suga Nit White". But it's not all peak-time tracks. Benales looks to Detroit for inspiration to deliver the raw minimalism of "Undo", while a more contemporary take on stripped back dance music prevails on the murky "Lost In The Loop" by KUSS. And Metapattern's "25 Min" is a distinctive, ebm-inspired jam.
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