
Chicago producers Hakim Murphy & Ike Velez are bringing the heat with their contemporary take on raw classic Chicago house sounds. Here they give us “Body Flicker”, “Fan Nation”, & “Outer Path”.

Chicago producers Hakim Murphy & Ike Velez are bringing the heat with their contemporary take on raw classic Chicago house sounds. Here they give us “Body Flicker”, “Fan Nation”, & “Outer Path”.

Rising out of the unknown, Detroit producer Elizabeth Merrick-Jefferson makes a worthy debut on the Argot label. “Go Home” is a flurry jacking drums and gnarling synths that sound like Kraftwerk on overdrive, while “John Kronk” – cut from the same cloth as the aforementioned – is less hectic, with a melodious synth line and lighter percussive elements nipping softly in the background. “Astronomical Twilight” sees Merrick-Jefferson round out her debut EP with animated electro beats, subtle phasing effects and chiming Drexciya-like arpeggios that sound like they were played at high terrestrial altitude in a hypobaric chamber.

After emerging from years of seclusion below the Chicago underground last year, Marquis Cooper aka Svengalisghost, returns with all new material recorded this winter somewhere between the woods of North Carolina and the streets of NYC. An advocate in creating what he calls the “Anti-Beat”, Cooper takes what he’s learned from the traditional machine experimentation of the early pioneers, reconstructs and retransmits the sounds which lie somewhere in the realm of unhinged synth punk or industrial forward-thinking beat electronics. These tracks are truly the essence of house, and a vicious circle it is.

Split release with Steve Summers and Nick Anthony Simoncino. From NYC to Perugia, via Thug Records comes ‘Brothers From Other Mothers’. Jason Letkiewicz aka Steve Summers kicks things off and delivers 2 signature cuts of sleazy late night coercion with ‘Casual Encounters’ & ‘The Trace’. The flip crosses the Atlantic and lands in a rural stronghold for the underground, Perugia Italy. Simoncino relating 2 equally provocative dark room work outs with ‘Pleasure Zone’ and ‘Battle Of The Pacific’.

DJ Jus-Ed has again crossed the lines of being stereotyped or dubbed as a house music producer. He has once again taken his world travel experience and put it to music. He’s addressed all the needs for a big room dance floor in this EP. A perfect blend of House and Techno. This release is exclusively on underground quality website.

Next release from Frole Records is from the neapolitan talent Livio Improta. Livio presents us two tracks: “Alba” with its deep melodies and “Say What” that stands out for the analogic sounds that remind the first Chicago House tracks. Also remixed by berliners Snuff Crew with their unmistakable touch.

Upcoming deepness from the inimitable Chicago Skyway (Sean Hernandez) with Altered Moods Recordings executive director Malcolm Moore in on the remix for the title track.

An esteemed selector, producer and Panorama Bar resident DJ, Steffi presents the fifth mix CD in the series. Reflecting all the angles of her classically inspired, raw and profound sound, we are treated to a rather grand lesson in House music. To accompany the CD release this 12” features 3 new and exclusive tracks selected for the mix, from New York’s Fred P (a.k.a Black Jazz Consortium), Amsterdam’s Juju & Jordash, and Detroits’ Big Strick. Each track contributes its own special element to the equation, helping define the sound of Steffi’s Panorama Bar DJ sets.

“Foundation” is the new EP fromlis’ Especially Good, the most exciting band from Detroit in recent memory. The eight track EP showcases the trios dynamic energy of Julio Dominguez’s vocals, Joe F synthesizers and drum programing and Paul Kiry’s bass – culminating in songs that are equally raw, brutal and honest. The sound of E.G. exists in a space of its own, but one can hear influences of Throbbing Gristle, Factory Records and Detroit Techno in the rhythms and sonic textures throughout “Foundation”. Recorded and mixed in Detroit by Sam Consiglio and Adam Lee Miller (of Adult). Released on Est. 83′ Records, a sub-label of FIT SOUND.

The official re-release of the most sought after and expansive German minimal synth, dark wave, electro album! Originally released in Germany, 1983 on Leo Music.

The superb Light Sounds Dark return with perhaps our favourite release so far in the shape of Dark Matters Too: Tales Of Enlightenment. This 13 track collection was allegedly compiled with the august help and knowledge of Intergalactic Communication Network, a group said to include the following individuals; Rick Strassman (M.D) and Slawek Wojtowicz (M.D), Mutant Beat Dance and Beppe Loda. Whether we believe Light Sounds Dark or not, Dark Matters Too: Tales Of Enlightenment remains a superb compendium of rare and obscure dark wave, primitive electro and cosmic slop with not a artist the Juno review team recognises! The opening two tracks demonstrate the sheer variety here with ramshackle shamanic underworld funk of Dementia Precox followed by ultra-rare vocoder jam of Popsong’s Factory (think a Japanese Felix Kubin). Beyond that CHBB’s “Go Go Go” sounds like the pummeling prototype to the superb recent Streetwalker LP and “Giving Head To Kilian” could be mistaken for White Savage Dance era Karl O Connor.

Cititrax presents remixes for The KVB by Regis, Shifted, Silent Servant, In Aeternam Vale and Worn.

Let’s Get Lost label’s 21st offering welcomes Italo Disco innovator Daniele Baldelli into the fold with an eight track, double 12″ cosmic transmission. Naturally given the length, Baldelli canvasses an array of styles, like the post punk and jazz fusion of “Dark Sax”, the pulsating future disco of “Teens & Teens” or the Studio 54 referencing “Portorico”. Baldelli also dips into some more down-tempo, ambient and darker italo stylings with “Tunnel”, while taking a Latin approach with “Conflitto Mexicano”.