The Moroccan label Casa Voyager returns with 4 electro tracks from Kosh aka Youssef Benjelloun to feed you data fantasies. The Casablanca based producer delivers a very efficient debut release. Death or serious injury could occur if ear comes in contact with this music.
A compilation dedicated to the early 80’s Spanish Synth Wave and Post Punk scene. First to be published outside Spain, this anthology explores the electronic music side of the independent music produced in the days in the Iberian Peninsula: Synthetic pop music with industrial sounds including futurist Art Rock, dance-floor productions and low-fi experiments on cassettes. Classics or true hidden treasures, this selection of nineteen songs is symbolic of the musical dawn that Spain experienced during the decade marked by the return of democracy and by the creative freedom initiated by Punk music. “La Contra Ola” covers the years 1980-1986, and the most striking thing about this LP is the diversity of sounds that these artists were using. Unlike the stale synth wave that swept across the UK in that Neo-romantic sway, the likes of Esplendor Geometrico, Derribos Arias, Linea Vienesa, or Tres, to whom this comp is dedicated to, used their own native influences to express their vision of electronic punk music, and the results can be heard all over this magnificent anthology. It’s a piece of history that we finally have more knowledge of, and we thank the ever-reliable Bongo Joe for it.
The 22nd “Issue” on Regis, Silant Servant and James Ruskin’s Jealous God label is predictably impressive. Undoubtedly the most notable inclusion is “The Bond”, a rare collaboration between Marcel Dettman and Silent Servant that looks to the sleazy, arpeggio-driven thrust of Electronic Body Music for inspiration. It’s the EP’s one genuine “peak-time” moment and strong enough to carry the whole 12″, though happily Pye Corner Audio’s flipside excursions are also impressive. Check, for example, the undulating, fluttering, post dub techno cut “Delay Gratification” and the swirling, hypnotic dancefloor melancholy of inspired closer “The Future”, where a lone acid line rises above a dense and poignant backing track.
Being closely connected to the label, it was only a matter of time before Daniele Cosmo was released on Pinkman. At long last, he makes his debut appearance with co-conspirator CCO as Savage Grounds. What they came up with is a tight two tracker presenting full speed, minimalistic punk electro workouts. Both tracks, while boasting with furiosity and dread, as is often the case in the Broken Dreams releases, carry an infectious groove that is guaranteed to get bodies moving in the highest gear and right into the abyss.
Miron Ghiu, once in his youth a winner at international philosophy competitions and a journalist specialized in music and new media, has been experimenting for almost 10 years in the field of sound art, both on his own and as a member of the ambient /drone/noise Nava Spațială duo. He finds his inspiration in Dada and deconstructivist techniques and he likes to play with chance and improvisation. He feels best in art galleries, where the audience actually listens to the surrounding ambient music without looking for beats to dance on, but also in music venues. He has created the sound design for a few theatre plays, peformed in various independent spaces as well as on the stage of a major Romanian theatre. He is also a DJ. Most of the music he composes, either ambient or noise, is available on several Soundcloud accounts and on several discs released in various parts of the world.
Last year, Jeff Mills provided the soundtrack for a curious Japanese film by Tatsushi Omori called And Then There Was Light. The movie was based on a novel called Hikari, which focuses on a teenager who kills his girlfriend’s other lover while mistaking their affair for sexual assault. The dark tone of both novel and film naturally shines through in Mills’ refreshingly electronic score, which flits between moments of quietly spacey ambience, creepy intensity, Reichian minimalism (see “Danger From Abroad”), icy soundscapes, industrial strength intensity (the panicked “The Players of Consequence” and “Lost Winners”) and, on the “Hikari Mix” of “The Hypnotists”, full-throttle Detroit techno with Giallo overtones.
Initial Programs is a new project by respected ambient producer Mick Chillage. It is also Mick’s first ever vinyl release and sees the Irish artist focus on deep, acid-tinged techno and melodic electro.
Pater Noster presents their fifth release, Aposynthesis by Overloper, a side project of Ekman.The A-Side brims with tension both contemplative and active. ‘Hope You’re Close’ is a deep burner, with heavy, pounding bass and an entrancing hook ascending to space. This then escalates into the urgency of ‘Aposynthesis (Need More Sisa)’, in which a driving, rolling rhythm is juxtaposed with an old school, dutch-style rave synth.The B-Side encircles around acid. On one hand, it is coyly playful with ‘Carpe Noctem’ turning cavernous in Innsyter’s dark interpolation of the other.
First release of five in the Kavalanic Languages series by label founder Gunnar Haslam. Four cuts of vibrant, psychedelic techno.
Timespan is a carefully curated journey through almost 20 years of Shawn Rudiman’s music productions. The tracks collected here (the majority of which have not been heard outside of Shawn’s studio) showcase a producer with seldom matched knowledge of studio techniques, while also hinting at his world renowned live performances.
Mor Elian hits Radio Matrix with the 4 track ‘Fairplex Drive EP’. A classy deep cerebral electro excursion that acts as the soundtrack for a journey through lifelike landscapes towards nighttime city drives slowly moving into desolate deserts dwells and ending in fallout.
Flash Forward release another beautiful gem from the italian producer Emanuele Luzzi aka Onirico and Oneiric. For the first time after 26 years, Flash Forward is been issuing the alternate take version of a 1991 UMM gem by Onirico, ”Tribal Echo”, a hypnotic-tribal-surreal tone recorded live into the DAT tape, a new terrific version of one of Onirico most exciting tracks. Listening to it, you could enter some kind of trip through the darkness, a very emotional journey in which imagine the sunset rhythm fighting with flashing shadows, the neverending battle between good and evil. As in the first issue, the other side is produced by Man-D.A. , ”Not A Dream” was also conceived many years ago but only today is released after being revised, modified and remastered.
Otakhee is a unique and creative musician from South Korea with his own broad musical spectrum. Recognized first with his psychedelic-avantgarde jazz album “Smoked Jazz” released in 2012, he surprised the scene again in 2015 with an abstract hip-hop album, “Psychedelic Weather”. His unique soundscape with elements of minimalism and industrial music along with the veteran emcee M.E.D. created the album’s own esthetics, nowhere else to be found. After the release of “Psychedelic Weather”, he expressed his interest in dance music, especially in deep house and techno.
Acid beast and young hardware wunderkid, Lou Karsh, packs four belters into X-Kalay’s latest EP.
Organic Analogue’s time-slipping journey into classic/future-gazing electronics continues with the arrival of Marvis Dee. This new 12″ is in fact the brainchild of Jeremiah R, the Dutch electro maverick. As Marvis Dee he’s been equally busy over the past two years, with a spin on deep Chicago house. On the Alpha EP, Marvis Dee has ample space to explore the boundaries of his sound across six original productions that strike a unique, curious chord even as they display the comforting hallmarks of hardware house music. With jacking 707 drums, punchy basslines, tumbling toms and soaring pads notes with sweet-natured harmonic. This is not house music to spell out how you should be feeling. Orgue Electronique is the perfect match for the woozy tones of Marvis Dee, and so the Dutch mainstay takes to “I Can See It In My Dreams” and delivers a powerful revision to the original production. It’s a respectful approach to the remix tradition that aligns with the overall ethos of the Alpha EP.
La Chinerie’s CDH007 Chienne d’Humanité comes from Metaphore Collectif, Marseille based artist Donarra. A delicate mixture of greased synthesizers, Balearic pads, strong Chicago beats & subtle Detroit Electro.
Dublin’s Modern Magic welcomes Bari’s Armonics for the label’s third release. A trained pianist and resident DJ/curator of the We Talk event series in his home city, Armonics draws influence from electronic music across the past 40 years: Chicago & acid house, italo- & electro-disco, new wave, synth-pop and vaporwave. His ‘Italowave’ style is a fusion of these retro-futuristic and cosmic styles, forged through Armonic’s production processes which include cassette recordings, vintage synths & modern Korg/Roland gear. Accompanying the EP’s three original tracks is an anthemic, piano-led remix of ‘Red Eye’ by International Feel act Black Spuma, aka Phillip Lauer and Fabrizio Mammarella.
This 6 tracks LP travel through again into the unique sound of the early 80’s Italo Disco built with spacey analog sounds, some cheesy atmospheres and a touch of primitive Trance chords. Marcello’s taste is very clear and specific when we speak about Electronic Disco and this LP is totally inspired by artists like Farina/Rago, Sangy, Alexander Robotnick, Alessandro Novaga, Doris Norton and also from his experience collecting and playing this shit during the last 20 years.
The Hipodrome Of Music 