Mother Tongue keeping the pressure high and unleashing straight away the follow up to the deadly Yellow Jackets Vol.1. This second Yellow Jackets double A sider features Chicago’s royalty Ron Trent and the extra talented multi instrumentalist Other Lands. Ron Trent ‘The Medi’ was actually constructed while riding trains and in hotel rooms through Italy, used as a secret weapon in special occasions…and we can hear why: a mind expanding suite that keeps evolving and going in places and spaces while constantly beating you hard. On the flipside Other Lands brings things down to more abstract realms with the floating almost Kraut inspired jam ‘Matter’.
Mannequin Records introduces in the family RXmode, Dutch producer/DJ of darkest electro on Earth. His new ‘Tunnel’ EP is delivering an highly contagious acid-electro.
Los Angeles’ Silent Servant returns to the fold with his first solo offering since his 2018 ”Shadows of Death and Desire” LP for Hospital Productions. Mendez wastes no time on the opener ”Cyber Luminescence” featuring Cabaret Voltaire’s Stephen Mallinder on vocals, with a modern take on classic synthwave displaying a heavier production style, with fluttering kr-55 hi-hats, synthesized snares, and a chaotic punk energy. This is not without melody and catchiness, as Mallinder drives the track full on; masterfully singing about a dystopian future which we very well may be living in at this moment. “Raw Optics” is Silent Servant in true form layering an atmospheric backdrop over driving raw sequences and vicious drum programming. “Solitude Illuminated” is the real centerpiece of the record though, as Mendez goes into a new territory finding a balance between uplifting slow house music and his signature shadowy techno. Where his classic “Lust Abandon” was more Distant Dreams pt. II, “Solitude Illuminated” is more akin to something like Dearborn’s house classic “New Dimension” but taking a fresh production approach on this bassline driven seven minute anthem.
For Number 6 on his Label Kluentah recrutes this mysterious guy called Kafkactrl. Six brain-throttling cuts of pure, ice-cold machine funk with melancholic pads and gut-punching basslines.
This double LP showcases the talent of Sour once again. The Florence based underground BuioClub owner has squeezed more acid juices out of of his analog gear collection. Eight excellent acid tracks carefully crafted to serve the dancefloor. Hypnotizing 303 basslines and solid kickdrums, driving hats, spicy percussion and captivating atmospheres.
Sweden’s Kvalia Records, an all-vinyl affair, continues on its path towards becoming a key player in delivering deep, psychedelic techno. For its 5th edition the label invites Psyk and Anthony Linell to join forces. “About Time” consists of two smooth, melancholic originals by Psyk and one pumping, icy remix signed Anthony Linell.
Coral Morphologic is the brainchild of Jared McKay and Colin Foord. A mending of minds, the arts, science, and the sea. Their lab in Miami lies close to the Florida Reef just offshore; the third largest coral barrier reef system in the world. This album composed by Jared echoes the voice of the reef. A reflection of its cosmic connection to our moon. A departure from the earth into deep space. We often wonder what intelligent life exists outside of our own aquatic world. Look and listen to the synchronous celestial satellites and the endless love song they sing.
This release is coming exactly 3 years after Gëinst ARTS, Accents Records and Inerit discussed about a new place where they could converge musically and artistically. A place to propose spontaneous and borderless music by avoiding any kind of standardization. This place is now called ITAE and this is the first release. ITAE001 is a first great demonstration of the esthetic that ITAE wants to share and develop over time.
EM Records again shines the spotlight on legendary Thai producer Surin Phaksiri in this second edition of his classic productions from the 1960s-80s. The first edition, released in 2019, focused on his innovative productions in the luk thung* style. This 2022 release features his stellar, glowing molam gems from the 60s-80s, drawn mainly from his golden era in the late 70s and early 80s. Surin Phaksiri is a highly esteemed figure in Thai music, rooted deeply in his native region of Isan in northeast Thailand, a producer with a deep respect for the traditional artistry of his culture, yet always moving forward, looking outward, listening ahead. The molam style of Thai music showcases the voice; indeed, the genre’s name means “expert singer”, and Thailand is blessed with an abundance of experts, singers with amazing control, grace, vitality and finesse.
Acclaimed saxophonist, producer and composer Yasuaki Shimizu will release Kiren, his unreleased album from 1984, on the Palto Flats record label. Kiren is Yasuaki Shimizu’s work for experimental dance music. Employing cutting edge production to create lush new wave soundscapes, it bridges the gap between his early 80s recordings and his later work with the Saxophonettes, filling a key lost chapter in his discography. By the early 1980s Yasuaki Shimizu had established himself on the Japanese new wave scene, producing many important experimental pop records and releasing several albums as the bandleader of Mariah. Following the release of his widely regarded solo classic Kakashi, from 1982, and the otherworldly Utakata No Hibi, by Mariah in 1983, he went into the studio the following year with frequent collaborators, producer Aki Ikuta and Morio Watanabe (bassist of Mariah), to record a mystifying collection of experimental dance music. Utilizing cutting-edge technology and studio trickery, Kiren showcases Shimizu’s trademark playfulness, marrying richly layered production techniques to off-kilter, sometimes traditional sounding rhythms and melodies. Portending his work with the Saxophonettes as well as forecasting trends in techno, new wave, and futuristic rhythmic music, this formerly lost album represents an important period of Shimizu’s artistic expression, an artist at his peak, while successfully exploring the intersections of fusion, synthpop, new wave, and jazz.
Strut presents the first compilation of legendary Afghan Ghazal singer Dr. Mohammad Sadiq Fitrat a.k.a. Nashenas, recorded at the Radio Afghanistan Studios and later released on singles by the Royal label in Iran. Nashenas first made his move towards music aged 16 in 1951 when he approached Afghanistan’s national radio station, Radio Kabul, with an idea for a broadcast and, impressed with his language skills, they offered him a permanent job. “I was in close contact with some of the big names in Afghan music like Jalil Zaland,” Nashenas explains. “My father had a gramophone and we listened to other singers like Ustad Qasim Khan and Kundan Lal Saigal.” After unsuccessful initial forays into singing sessions for the station, he honed his skills as a writer, singer and musician, playing the harmonium. Inspired by a movie he had seen at the cinema, Nashenas wrote a new poem and sang on air again after the evening news, using the name ‘Nashenas’ (meaning ‘unknown’) for the first time. Following a wave of positive feedback from the public, he was given a new weekend slot and built his reputation through film song interpretations, famous poems set to music and his own compositions sung in Dari and Pashto. Nashenas would witness turbulent times as Afghanistan found itself caught up in the Cold War and the early ‘90s civil war until it became too dangerous to stay in the country. Through a friend in the U.N., he was able to seek asylum for himself and his family and take up residence in London, continuing to work as a musician and giving concerts globally. Most of Nashenas’ recordings during this period were only made for broadcast, later surfacing on singles through the Royal label in Iran. Life Is A Heavy Burden is compiled from these singles by Chris Menist and Mads Jensen. All tracks are remastered by The Carvery and both formats feature new liner notes including an interview with Nashenas. The album is part of the new United Sounds of Asia series curated by Chris Menist and Maft Sai of Paradise Bangkok.
Exploring hybrid music styles and outernational, borderless musical influences, DJ soFa’s Elsewhere compilation series continues with a sixth instalment, and the second to appear on Kalahari Oyster Cult. Always ahead of the tide, the Kalahari Oyster is a fine specimen when it comes to the discipline of next-level sound-snooping. Meticulously curated by Belgian sonic globetrotter soFa, Elsewhere XX showcases a dozen outstanding tunes, each dwelling in their own personal space between the imaginary worlds of post-kraut, DIY synth-punk and odd-pop ballads. Melting these genres with contemporary club music is the mission here. Doused in a thick fog of arcane machine talk, tribal rhythms and cosmic synths, Elsewhere XX is an invitation to escape the hall of LED-backlit mirrors that we’ve so mistakenly come to call our “reality”. Gathering artists from all corners of the globe – including Radio Hito, Anatolian Weapons, Eylul Deniz, Dame Area and Electronic Body Girl – soFa’s curation lays the groundwork for a unique and thoroughly immersive listening and dancing experience.
Belgian duo Marching Machines returns to Wrong Era with Melancholie 0100. With their own synth-driven sound, they draw four tracks of melancholic and psychedelic electronic disco journey, loaded with hypnotic dance floor energy that goes until the mind gets lost. Two remixes crafted by the mighty hand of Venice Arms, one of Curses alter egos, are topping up this release. He’s fooling around and unleashing his jungle demons on the “’’ardcore Remix” whilst for the other mix he wears his muddy boots, providing a bumbaclart chug-fest and space-ready pitched-down wobbler.
“Not So Whisky Tracks” comes, without any doubt, to present a matured vision of some of the usual suspects of the Romanian underground scene but also gathers new forces along the way. Enchanting soundscapes are here to take you in a dream like state, moving your mind and spirit through a complete adventure. The release is here to make you feel nostalgia and to make you dance. To make you feel adventurous and to make you wonder.
Distorted Sensory Perception returns with a deep & contemplative split EP from Dublin’s Cignol & Bristol’s Gilbert. ‘Vision System’ boasts 4 machine-made, melodic electro tracks to tug on your heart strings.
“Mascarpone return with a new EP entitled ‘Structures’. The record encompasses five tracks of dark EBM industrial music with dirty synths and machine drums. The main goal of this EP is to pay homage to artists such as Dopplereffekt or Kraftwerk, which are very important to me, but in my own way.”
The Hipodrome Of Music 