001.Features

Marco Shuttle – Sing Like A Bird (Reprise) [EE009]

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Marco Shuttle returns to his Eerie label for his first full release since 2014’s debut album, ‘Visione’, with a new two track single that sees Shuttle return to more dancefloor driven territory. ‘Sing Like a Bird (Reprise)’ is a fresh version of the track originally released last year on Peter Van Hoesen’s Time To Express label, to which Shuttle fans will have become familiar with in recent sets. It maintains the original’s hazy reverbed flavour, but in the form of a more groove-oriented and psychedelic edit that sidelines much of the original’s vocal track in favour of a snake enchanter-like synewave melody, for a less lyrical but equally musical new take. The B-side ‘Back Here’ is an older track that Shuttle has been holding back for a while, waiting for the right moment to reveal this atmospheric, melancholic and melodic track, in which intricately delayed layers of piano keys progressively unfold through a rich percussive background made of 808 rims, deep bass kicks, heavy toms and jazzy hats and rides.

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Marco Shuttle – Sing Like A Bird (Reprise) [EE009]

BNJMN – Amygdala [DSR/E007]

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BNJMN returns to his regular label home of Delsin with a brand new mini-album of experimental cuts that continue his journey into ever more decayed, lo-fi and gritty sound sculpture. This new release features six tracks and kicks off with ‘Microgravity,’ a shadowy exercise in suspensory dub that ripples and groans, growing in menace over its static laced three minutes. Next, ‘Womb’ is a vast chamber of glory synths and rippling pads that sounds like it comes from the after life, ‘P-Tr’ is a high tension, nerve jangling brew of glassy electronics with heavy kicks buried deep below and ‘1987’, a fuzzy, darkened brew of spacious kicks, whirring machines and bubbly tape sounds that are seriously foreboding. ‘Oder’ is a more emotional work where multiple synth lines echo about and emit cautious rays of light, then finally ‘Amygdala’ is based around a frazzled, oversized and spraying bassline that is backed by radiant pads and a dystopian house groove and it rounds out another expertly outlier collection full of strange yet compelling tracks and textures.

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BNJMN – Amygdala [DSR/E007]

Dario Zenker – Dedication [IT029]

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2016 marks a decade since Dario Zenker released his first 12″, the Whatever EP on Balkon. Here, he returns to the Ilian Tape label he co-founded with brother Marco for a first solo missive since his 2014 turn on The Trilogy Tapes. There’s much to admire about Dedication, from the starburst synths and booming, broken techno rhythms of opener “There Is Hope”, to the Roman techno revivalism of “Gianluca Cazzeti”, and the skittish, funk-fuelled intensity of the Dave Clarke style “For Internal Use”. Arguably best of all, though, is “Spice Universal”, a delicious combination of dub-flecked loop techno and the undulating, far-sighted futurism of Detroit.

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Dario Zenker – Dedication [IT029]

Etapp Kyle – Axiom [KLOCKWORKS016]

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The young Ukrainian producer follows his debut on Ben Klock’s label with this innovative, unusual techno record. “Axiom” is reminiscent somewhat of DVS1, with its meaty bass snaking its way through an insistent, minimal groove. By contrast, “Sakura” resounds to microscopic beats and hypnotic, tonal bleeps. It’s just as subtle as “Axiom”, but far more understated. This proves to be a temporary diversion however, and straight afterwards, he drops “Lyrae”. Tight claps, insistent pulses and bristling percussion make for a functional but distinctive dance floor track. Last and possibly best of all is “Luna”. Its melancholic bass and windswept, mysterious melodies make for a beautiful, unexpected end to this release.

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Etapp Kyle – Axiom [KLOCKWORKS016]

Psyk – Works [TRESOR282]

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Psyk takes the stage with a four-track solo EP ”Works”, also including a digital bonus track. On both side’s first positions, with ”Definition” and ”Balance”, Psyk delivers electrifying tracks teetering on the boundaries of hypnosis. On the inner-rims, Psyk slows down the pace with ”Stigma” and ”Lowdown”, introducing some industrial tones to his techno equation.

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Psyk – Works [TRESOR282]

Basic Soul Unit – Under The Same Sky [DKMNTL028]

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Stuart Li, better known as Basic Soul Unit,  brings his rugged house to the Dekmantel imprint for the very first time, serving up this finely crafted follow-up to his 2012 debut album. Delivering ten Detroit and Chicago-inspired house tracks of the finest calibre, Li’s offset and grubby bruk drums are a constant nod to the dance floor, while his melodies lean towards an unparalleled industrial edged emotion. From the LFO-like synth-line and crunchy jack of ‘Fate In Hand’, to the Levon Vincent-esque techno shuffle ‘n mutter of ‘Landlocked’ and the Morphosis-gone-wild style of ‘Unwavered’, on the to the dark subbass welt of ‘The Rift Between’ and the relentless floor destroyer ‘Temptress’: ‘Under The Same Sky’ sets the bar fly high for raw yet extremely original house music.

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Basic Soul Unit – Under The Same Sky [DKMNTL028]

Hesperius Draco – Northern Sages EP [FRV019]

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HESPERIUS DRACO - Northern Sages EP

Frigio Records are delighted to announce that Alessandro Parisi is once again donning the darkened robes of Hesperius Draco. Following the acclaimed Cathar Rhythms this supremely talented Italian artist delivers. The five track mini-album continues the Draco search to balance tainted techno, sinister synth and soulful sounds. The underhanded rumblings of “Tronitum Domini” introduces before filth encrusted bass blurs the menacing visage of “Mjolnir”, claps scarring the already grimacing sounds. To end the first side, the medieval blast of “ASI Kingdom (Mitt Hjerte)” is track that surely won’t pass unnoticed. Skies crack with thunder by analogue alchemist Drvg Cvltvre on this interesting remix of “Fenrir Eye” which original version ends the release with Blackened clouds build for the intense and tapering approach.

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Hesperius Draco – Northern Sages EP [FRV019]

Richard Fearless – Overview Effect [DRONE005]

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When Richard Maguire is in the mood to make spacey, off-the-wall grit-house, he prefers to go by the name Richard Fearless He’s back on his Drone label with “Overview Effect”, a raw, percussion-driven house cut that falls into the mood end of the spectrum, but contains enough charm and energy to render it a magnificent weapon on the dancefloor. However, the real best is within “Metal Dub” on the B side, and the track’s name describes its sounds only too well, a sublime cascade of wobbly bass tones and rattling drums.

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Richard Fearless – Overview Effect [DRONE005]

Sneaker – Algerian Rai [RAT006]

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SNEAKER - Algerian Rai

Sneaker is going deep with his interpretation of Rai music on RAT 6. “Rai is a type of Algerian popular music that arose in the 1920s in the Algerian city of Oran, back then known as “little Paris”, it was a melting pot of various cultures, full of nightclubs and cabarets, it was the place to go for a bawdy good time. Out of this milieu arose a group of Male and Female Muslim singers, who rejected the refined, classical poetry of traditional Algerian music. Instead, to the accompaniment of pottery drums and end-blown flutes , they sang about the adversity of urban life in a raw, gritty, sometimes vulgar, and inevitably controversial language that appealed especially to the socially and economically disadvantaged.” sounds like the definition of Rat Life! Put some drum machine patterns on top of it and here we go: long overdue Sneaker solo EP on Rat Life Records!

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Sneaker – Algerian Rai [RAT006]

Shanti Celeste / Funkineven – SSS [APRON020]

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In recent times, Bristol’s Shanti Celeste has proved more than adept at blending tough, body-popping electro beats with picturesque electronics and luscious, eyes-closed melodies. She’s at it again here, following up two excellent outings on Future Times with the brilliant “SSS”. Expect just the right blend of tactile, eyes-closed melodiousness, snappy drum machine work, and a fluid bassline that subtly doffs a cap to Syclops’ “Where’s Jason’s K”. Apron boss Funkineven offers his own interpretation on the flip, bringing it closer to early 808 State territory, while adding some neat, boogie-influenced synth touches and saucer-eyed piano flourishes.

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Shanti Celeste / Funkineven – SSS [APRON020]

Fred P – Modern Architect [EOS001]

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For the best part of a decade, Fred Peterkin has impressed with his ultra-deep, soul-flecked take on deep house and techno. Here, his Soul People Music imprint gives birth to a new sub-label, Energy of Sound, with the New York producer delivering a double-pack’s worth of previously unreleased cuts. Naturally, the standard is abnormally high throughout, with Peterkin variously serving up sumptuous, dreamy fare (“Down Under”, the San Francisco ’90s deep house revivalism of “Don’t Be Afraid”), chunkier deep house rollers (“Memory P”), crunchy dub house (“Dub In The Sky”), and throbbing, tech-tinged brilliance (“Tokyo To Chiba” and the European-sounding “Sybian”).

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Fred P – Modern Architect [EOS001]

Charles Manier – American Manier [BOP004]

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Tadd Mullinix returns to the lesser spotted Charles Manier avatar for the second album release on his Bopside label, and the first under this guise following releases for Nation and Ghostly. The resulting 11 track album is mostly new material with a lineage of inspiration that can be traced back decades, from box banging EBM club trax to spectral beatless excursions. Drawing influence from a variety of sources but still a cohesive, engaging listen – ‘American Manier ‘ is destined to become a future underground classic.

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Charles Manier – American Manier [BOP004]

Chris Alexander – Music For Murder [GDLP003]

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Journalist turned producer Chris Alexander is something of a hive-mind of information when it comes to obscure horror film music, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that his new album sounds like a pitch-perfect tribute to synthesizer-heavy, Italian “Giallo” soundtracks, and the horror-disco style perfected by John Carpenter. It’s made up of tracks Alexander wrote and released – usually via obscure, CD-R only labels – over the last decade. More importantly, Murder Music is actually rather good, with Alexander offering a perfect balance between clandestine synthesizer motifs, panicked beats, clanking industrial textures, hypnotic guitar lines, and chords that seem to creep up from behind.

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Chris Alexander – Music For Murder [GDLP003]

ASSS – 100 EP [DTLSND006]

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At first sight, ‘100 EP’ is the most abrasive techno output of Portland duo ASSS. Alex Smith and Sean Sumler have crafted an excellent four-track assault of propulsive drum sounds filled with industrial textures. Across the frequencies of ‘101’ to ‘104’, dense dynamics and unpredictable manipulation of modules reflect their own spontaneous, improvisational style into a new highly destructive release.

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ASSS – 100 EP [DTLSND006]

Delta Funktionen – Wasteland [RAM-X-CD01]

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Delta Funktionen presents the compilation cd of the Wasteland Chapters. Spread over 4 EP’s, from which the first two have been released on Rado Matrix in June 2015 and the other two in September and October 2015, it tells the story about an intergalactic journey towards the planet Wasteland, somewhere deep into the Andromeda Galaxy.

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Delta Funktionen – Wasteland [RAM-X-CD01]