It – Era Vulgaris EP [USR009]

IT - Era Vulgaris EP

Undersound Recordings presents a new release by It. Ivan Iusco, the artist behind the It moniker, has been running Minus Habens Records since 1987. Its Disturbance sublabel has been responsible for releasing forward thinking techno and experimental releases from a range of well known artist such as Marco Repetto, Aphex Twin, Speedy J and Atom Heart among others. Here we present three tracks that have previously been released on his Era Vulgaris CD album in 1996. The EP ranges from techno to more abstract broken beats on the flip side, displaying the versatility of It as a producer and encompassing the sound of the first years of Disturbance.

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It – Era Vulgaris EP [USR009]

Heinrich Mueller – False Vacuum [WEME313.20]

This is the first time any of Heinrich Mueller’s highly sought after remodels/reworks have been compiled together. Many have been previously available only on limited releases and have patiently been awaiting discovery by a wider audience. These 9 specially selected examples embrace all facets of his approach. First up is the ultra smooth and minimal ‘Fadin’ Away’ by The Hacker from 2000, probably one of his most sublime and timeless creations. Then jump forward to 2011 when he serves up an infectious and sparse slice of robot funk for Albert van Abbe’s ‘NCS_0009121010’. By the time of Alek Stark’s ‘Halo 6’ (2014) he’s still got the dance-floor on his mind, but it’s located on an alien or perhaps underwater world in some dimension parallel to our own. In 2009 he works for the first time with fellow Drexciyan traveller DJ Stingray and delivers the hard edged but still quite delicate ‘Drone FX’. Jump to 2005 and he conjures the playfully disjointed ‘P.O.M. (Time Dilation Mix 2)’ for Duplex. In 2000, when he had a close relationship to the label, International DeeJay Gigolo, who were releasing Dopplereffekt and the first fruits of Der Zyklus, they commissioned him to make a series of groundbreaking mixes. On one of which he got to mesh his own futuristic vision with that of Stanley Kubrick on ‘Dave’ by Station Rose. The other closes this collection and is another of his most accessible works, with the best bassline, ‘What Use’ by the legendary ’70s San Francisco band, Tuxedomoon. In 2011 he also produced a darkly atmospheric and relentlessly mechanical interpretation of DJ Stingray’s ‘The Sadist’. In 2003, another of his best production efforts, again aimed off-squarely at yet another form of mutant dance floor, came out of a total revamp of an untitled track by The Advent. Fittingly this was originally included on Recreations, an album where artists were invited to do what Heinrich Mueller does best.

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Heinrich Mueller – False Vacuum [WEME313.20]

VA – Finnish Electro All-Star Vol 2 [DUM040]

Kim Rapatti a.k.a Mono Junk presents the second volume of Finnish Electro All-Star on his DUM Records imprint – active since 1992. The new release is the latest chapter of Mono Junk collaborating with friends. The A-Side features collaborations with top Finnish electro duo Morphology. “Electro Por Favor” is a pulsating driving electro track with a killer bassline and vocals by Rapatti. Raw, apocalyptic, solitary remix by Mono Junk follows the original. The B-Side features collaborations between Mono Junk and a very special guest: Goner a.k.a. Martin Maischen. The two included tracks are deep electroid techno excursions made last year in Berlin.

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VA – Finnish Electro All-Star Vol 2 [DUM040]

Assembler Code – Mental Escape EP [INTLC002]

ASSEMBLER CODE - Mental Escape EP

Assembler Code is finally flying solo with this 4 track electro assault ‘Mental Escape’. Plugging into the title track ‘Mental Escape’, it’s a rugged machine driven work out through IDM & Industrial landscapes formulated to present his vision of futuristic electro whilst still providing all the nostalgic Rother & Drexcyian nods we all love. Now that the tone has been set, ‘Simulant’ follows suit. Entering the celestial sphere via some haunting sci-fi strings, we’re slapped in the face with slamming percussion followed by a relentless acidic modulated baseline that takes us from one planet to the next at light speed. The Journey wouldn’t be complete with out his old partner in crime Jensen Interceptor coming on board for a ride. ‘Type 2’ is a classic case of past meets present. Scrapyard industrial groove ready to split speakers at your next warehouse party married with a selection of classic Alpha sounds to keep all the purists in check. The thunder continues to the very end. If you’re a tape saturation fiend begging for your next 808 crack hit, prepare to have your back bent in half with euphoria as soon as ‘Hal’s Machine Tool’ is injected into your ears. In short, 4 minutes & 44 seconds of hard nasty robotic electro booty sweat.

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Assembler Code – Mental Escape EP [INTLC002]

VA – Some Have to Dance… Some Have To Kill… TWO EP [MEC033]

DMITRY DISTANT/GESTALT/DEEP PILL/BLAC KOLOR/VIKTOR KALIMA/SANITAGO/RENDERED - Some Have To Dance Some Have To Kill Two

Second instalment of Mecanica Records compilation focused to obscure techno/EBM/electro. A selection of new and unreleased tracks by six projects from different latitudes. The opening track is a collaboration between Dmitry Distant (Latvia) and Gestalt (Russia) with a dark electro tune that works perfect as warm-up. Deep Pill (USA) offers a versatile technoid tune and Blac Kolor (Germany) closes the A side with a hard and hypnotic piece. Viktor Kalima (Finland) opens the B side with a body music attack, followed by Santiago (USA) with four minutes of pure psychosis and dementia, and Rendered, the duo formed by Daniel Myer (Germany) and Clément Perez (France), closes this sonic trip with a strong and massive cut that will leave you attached to a never ending loop in your head.

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VA – Some Have to Dance… Some Have To Kill… TWO EP [MEC033]

Savage Grounds – In Not [MSQ004]

SAVAGE GROUNDS - In Not

Authors of the 4th release of the Mosaique label are the project Savage Ground, known for its works on Lux Rec, Pinkman Broken Dreams and Enfant Terrible. The project hides two people – Daniele Cosmo (owner of Lux Rec) and CCO. “In not”” is a mixture of synth wave, analog distortion, experimental dance electronic music and vocals. The EP contains 4 tracks that divided the two sides of the plate into two different moods.

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Savage Grounds – In Not [MSQ004]

INIT – Wildcard [HVN049]

INIT’s music has the rare quality of transforming bleakness into a soothing experience. In the duo’s new EP, ‘Wildcard’, this mechanism is more intense than ever. And that might be because of the particular circumstances that surrounded its inception. Two years ago, Nadia D’Alo and Benedikt Frey decided to move from Darmstadt to Berlin. Adjusting to a rough area of a big city when coming from a quiet town necessarily brings a change of perspective. For Nadia and Benedikt, that meant experiencing the city life as outsiders while trying to figure out what they wanted from it. ‘Wildcard’ is the sonic result of this process, and proof that changes always bring growth.

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INIT – Wildcard [HVN049]

VA – SPC 139 [SPC139]

For over 18 years, Spectral Sound, the dance music imprint of Ghostly International, has thrived at the forefront of techno and house. Now, Spectral brings the past alongside the present with its latest release, a compilation that offers a vibrant cross-section of the current moment in underground dance music. Despite the wide-ranging selections on Spectral 139, a throughline of classic style and infectious energy emerges from the up-and-coming and established artists alike. Rising talents such as Minimal Violence, Russell E.L. Butler, and Earth Trax x Newborn Jr. bring unique perspectives to their hardware-centric productions.

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VA – SPC 139 [SPC139]

Thought Camera – Astral Pilot [OE007]

One Electronica brings us more rough sounds from Northern Ireland. The seventh release from the label sees the debut of Thought Camera, a young producer from Carrickfergus, on the northern shores of Belfast Lough.
The EP is as diverse as it gets, with four tracks ranging from acid and techno to synth wave. It feels like Thougth Camera recorded his thoughts and projected a mental image of a post apocalyptic rave.

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Thought Camera – Astral Pilot [OE007]

Annie Hall – Statics EP [MUSAR004]

HALL, Annie - Statics EP

Indebted to vintage electro and IDM, Annie Hall’s music is no throwback, always looking forward and moving dancefloors in the most unexpected ways. The Musar release includes 4 original cuts, plus a Mattheis remix.

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Annie Hall – Statics EP [MUSAR004]

Grand River – Pineapple [SPAZIO015]

Dutch-Italian composer, musician and producer Aimee Portioli alias Grand River is back on Spazio Disponibile. After her debut record on the label in 2017, she now serves up her first ever physical long player, Pineapple. The record draws on Portioli’s love of electronic music and sound design, as well as her background in traditional composition and formal training on a range of musical instruments. An experienced sound engineer and composer for national radio, she crafts absorbing film scores, experimental and ambient projects and takes in symphonic calculations that blur the lines between traditional composition and research-based modernism. All that is evident on Pineapple, which is named after the most peculiar of fruits and is just as peculiar, but ultimately satisfying, across ten remarkable yet rewarding tracks. They are often long pieces which take in wallowing electronic landscapes, with real ambient beauty next to a subtle sense of narrative that is absorbing throughout. Unusual sound sources and a masterful sense of suspense characterize the album and make it as fascinating as it is enjoyable.

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Grand River – Pineapple [SPAZIO015]

VA – All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace [PSR003]

Public System presents a monster collection of the grubbiest, punked out lo fi deviant electronics from the true underground. Some names are more familiar, such as the excellent Templeyard Studios with the uneasy clatter of ”Take66”, while Buttechno brings a blistering array of tones to the forefront for some truly adventurous acid abstractions. There’s a lot of lesser known delights to revel in though, from the boxy beatdown of IXVLF, the darkwave electro thrust of Kluentah and the intricate percussive science of Meze. This may be dirty dance music for wayward souls, but there are some seriously fresh ideas lurking on this ludicrously valuable package.

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VA – All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace [PSR003]

The Pulse Projects – Soon To Be EP [PATRON005]

The Pulse Projects is the moniker of Albert van Abbe’s electro-focused venture. His forthcoming release on Patron Records leans heavily on the gritty and murky sound that we know from the versed producer/DJ, who has been around for quite some time now. ‘Soon To Be’ is a forceful four-track EP that includes a lot of weighty patterns, compelling soundscapes and some wobbly acid-flecked grooves. But most of all, the EP demonstrates how effective, yet meaningful distorted kicks and breakbeats can be.

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The Pulse Projects – Soon To Be EP [PATRON005]

Sonic Insomniac – Unconditional [OUR005]

Manchester’s Ourtime Music return with something of a electronic masterpiece After a 14 year hiatus, Salford’s elusive cosmic composer returns to his Sonic Insomniac guise with a debut LP of the finest underwater electro & crisply rendered electronica.

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Sonic Insomniac – Unconditional [OUR005]

Estrato Aurora – Excavation & Survey [APPIAN012]

Appian Sounds introduce a new EP by Estrato Aurora. Hailing from Valencia, and with a phenomenal array of hardware at his disposal, Estrato Aurora has built up a beautiful deep Techno EP. 4 tracks that can be played during sub-heavy warm-up duties, deep into the night for a heads-down foggy vibe or early in the morning for something a bit warmer, tripping and uplifting.

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Estrato Aurora – Excavation & Survey [APPIAN012]

Mutant Beat Dance – Mutant Beat Dance [RHM027]

Mutant Beat Dance has returned to Rush Hour. The debut album from renegade trio Mutant Beat Dance  (Traxx, Beau Wanzer and Steve Summers) takes the wild and free sound of Chicago’s Music Box era into the 21st Century. Over 25 tracks the album mines an oft cited but rarely understood ground at the intersection of Post-Punk, Minimal Wave, Industrial, Disco Dub, EBM and proto-House / early-House. “Mutant Beat Dance.” is an epic journey into a classic American ideology that had its apex in Chicago. Traxx has been working on this concept in various forms throughout the last decade on release for Discos Capablanca, Rong Music, Hour House Is Your Rush Records, L.I.E.S. (Long Island Electrical Systems), Light Sounds Dark, Rush Hour and his own Nation label finally refining his concept into its most thoroughly developed explored on this the debut M.B.D album that was started in 2015. Mutant Beat Dance was originally a duo made up of Traxx, and self-described weirdo, Chicagoan Beau Wanzer. Given the scope of the new project it became logical and necessary to expand the unit to include its newest member Brooklyn based Steve Summers. Together this hard-working trio has completed an album with an enormous diversity of song styles unlike anything they have ever done before. Unique in its musical range and content from obscure electronics with subliminal messages to funk laden machine grooves, industrial soundscapes, Detroit dirge, cryptic ankle bitter anthems and beyond this is a genre-bending challenging epic of an album.

vinyl / CD

Mutant Beat Dance – Mutant Beat Dance [RHM027]

Vectorvision – The Star Dwellers EP [LR008]

Vectorvision is Brian Bishop, the man has decided to release his first twelve full of electro vibes. His tete-a-tete with the machines produce four electro tracks that share a unique combo of cold, industrial and robotic soundscapes. This will appeal folk that want it darker, that can see the apocalyptic future around the corner and really need a soundtrack to enhance their visions.

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Vectorvision – The Star Dwellers EP [LR008]