The founder of Hot Mix Records delivers a bangin full length to follow up his EP on Chicago Mathematics. Here he continues with more amazing sounding house tracks.
album
Perseus Traxx – Bunker 3099 [BUNKER3099]
Finally out of little Britain, ahum, sorry, out of little Paxton, Mr. Rogers is currently thriving on his newly acquired medication of high-quality codeine, all thanks to the benign blessings of the pharmaceutical industry: His house is definitely jackin’ it deeper and browner than ever before, almost sounding like a Ron Hardy shooting up at the end of a hard day’s night back in the days of the warehouse.
Benjamin Damage – Heliosphere [50WEAPONSCD12]
Sonic sci-fi techno album reminiscent not just of early Plaid, Black Dog Productions, Boards of Canada or Luke Slater´s 7th Plain project, but also classic dancefloor classics by the likes of Surgeon, Regis, Dave Clarke or Jeff Mills that knew how to keep a crowd entertained. Bringing to mind the flavor of 1994 without losing the sense that we’re into 2013 as of now. This is dance music with conviction and an album straight and beautiful.
J Dilla – Lost Tapes, Reels, and More [MM032]
Moodymann’s Mahogani label releases another posthumous J Dilla release, titled ‘Lost Tapes, reels + more’. Despite his untimely passing in 2006, J Dilla’s legacy has remained strong thanks to the enduring qualities of his back catalogue, the endeavours of the J Dilla Foundation and the Yancey Media Group, not to mention the countless Dilla themed reissues and projects that have surfaced in the wake of his death. Moodymann’s Mahogani imprint have of course played their own part in ensuring J Dilla’s enduring legacy with the release of the Dillatroit EP last year, a 12-track release of previously unreleased J Dilla material done in collaboration with the aforementioned Yancey Media Group and J Dilla Foundation.
Seba – Identity [SECOPSLP001D]
After 16 years releasing on the most influential labels in Drum&Bass, label owner and musician Seba is proud to announce his first album release on Secret Operations, “Identity”. For over a year, Seba has been writing a follow up to his first album “Return to forever”, released in 2008. This was no easy task, as Seba believes an album must be consistent and reinforced by a clear artistic approach and direction. A single is easy, Seba wanted to create an album and not a compilation of singles. The album is designed to display Seba’s musical “Identity” and the mechanics of his inspiration, as well as showcasing the production skills and confident musicality, which has had him releasing music for 16 years. Seba’s Drum&Bass productions are heavily influenced By Techno, House and even elements of Alternative Rock. “Identity” shows you Seba’s ability to work in other genres of music as well as alongside talented vocalists. A listening experience, carefully designed for a listening audience as well as a nightclubbing crowd.
Steaua de Mare – Steaua de Mare [ABR012]
Ambassador’s Reception label present the Romanian band Steaua de Mare, with their unique Smokey psychedelic sound. The whole concept of Steaua de Mare was founded on past sounds and the bygone entertainment rituals which existed before the 1989 revolution (that atmosphere extended well beyond and into the nineties). Steaua de Mare was a sixties seaside complex in one of the now fading Black Sea resorts Eforie Nord. As people relaxed in the sun and ate good food, traditional songs were played by restaurant bands which gave Steaua de Mare the idea to pay homage to this way of life by combining the sound of that era together with the new recording techniques of today. The band: Bogdan Stoian (violin, synths) Andrei Dinescu (percussion, drums, violin, synths) Ion Dumitrescu (bass, synths, drum-machines, drums) Horațiu Ș (synths, electric piano) Eugen Imecs (drums, percussion) came together after many years of jamming and decided to pool all resources together in two different studios around Bucharest. Their unique sound comes from many directions. They bring elements of Prog, dub, psychedelic rock, Turkish and contemporary gypsy music mainly from Romania and Bulgaria into the mix. If you then add that they are irreversibly contaminated in analogue and early digital sounds then maybe you have a passing image of this hybrid sound. Steaua de Mare add a unique twist on local standards with the help of Roland Juno 60, Yamaha CS-5, Elektronika EM-25, Junost-21, Poly 61 and their beloved Wurlitzer electric Piano. A wide range of influences from Can to Ork Universal, from psychedelic attitudes, kraut adventures to outer national delights like Bulgarian Chalga.
Alessandro Parisi – Draconia [LXRC012]
New album on Lux Rec. Alessandro Parisi recorded this album just with a Roland TR-707 and a Roland JX-3P. The heritage from his home in the northeast of Italy is clearly present in the music of Parisi. Back in the late seventies and early eighties Pordenone was an industrial city with a vivid underground post punk and wave scene. Cold weather electronics. Fog and darkness surrounds the place to this day and deeply pervades this record: the history of a city called Draconia. Who will do wrong shall not be forgiven.
In Trance 95 – Shapes In A New Geometry [MW043]
Minimal Wave announce the release of a cassette of new music by Greek legends In Trance 95. After last year’s successful Cities Of Steel And Neon album release, In Trance 95 came together once again and have been working diligently in the studio on all kinds of new material. Aside from their recent raved about shows in Europe, this cassette is a taste of what they have been up to at Airdawn Studio in Athens, Greece. Quite dark, industrial and sometimes experimental (with glimpses of smokey dance floor atmosphere), these tracks are stark, heavy and cold.
Q4U – Q1 (Deluxe Edition 1980-1983) [DE040]
Q4U was born the winter of 1980-1981 in Reykjavík, inspired by the British punk movement. It’s original members were Elínborg Halldórsdóttir (Ellý) (vocals), Berglind Garðarsdóttir (Linda) (vocals), Steinþór Stefánsson (guitar), Gunnþór Sigurðsson (bass), Helgi (drums) and Már (synthesizer). Helgi and Már soon left the band and Helgi was replaced by Kormákur Geirharðsson (Kommi) on the drums. By early 1982 they self-released a full length cassette, “Skaf Í Dag” and appeared in the documentary “Rokk í Reykjavík,” which showcased the Icelandic punk scene. This version of the band ended and only two members continued on. In the summer of 1982 Ellý and Gunnþór recruited Óðinn Guðbrandsson (guitar) and Árni Daníel (synthesizer) from the band Taugadeildin. Their drummer was replaced by a Roland TR-808 drum machine they named “Elísabet II”. signaling a change in the group’s sound toward synthesizer-driven post punk. In August 1983 Q4U reinstated Kormákur to record a final set of demos and then called it quits. This compilation collects 16 songs from 1980-1983. SIde A features the original six songs from the “Q1″ EP, plus 2 songs from the “Rokk í Reykjavík” soundtrack. Side B collects 4 demos from 1982 and 4 demos from 1983, all presented on vinyl for the first time ever. Q4U began with a stylish, aggressive punk image before experimenting with drum machines and synthesizers, which almost nobody did in Reykjavík at the time. The later sound had gothic leanings,often compared with Siouxsie and the Banshees and Xmal Deutschland. Their body of work is united by the powerful vocals of Ellý, who mostly sings in Icelandic about controversial, political experiences, much like Ari Up of The Slits.
DJ Overdose – Bizarro World 2LP [CRECLP001]
The bomb that should have dropped way back when. After a career spanning almost two decades DJ Overdose debuts on Creme with his first full length album, upon which we remark with carefully considered understatement: ‘A veritable tour de resistance in film noir electronics, Bizarro World is a dank and dark alley made flesh. Overdose’s heavy soulful beats and soundscapes snatch your dreams right from under you like a shadowy kleptomaniac, masterfully pairing melancholy and ennui with fear and voyeuristic tiger-lurking-in-the-bushes paranoia. So lock up your future plans or you might very well find yourself without any’. For those who don’t know, DJ Overdose is one of the OG’s of the La Haya underground, one half of Novamen and the other half of The Hasbeens with classic and sought after releases on Bunker, Viewlexx, Murder Capital, Clone and Strange Life to name a few. In his spare time he doubles as a hand model for Bruce Willis.
Vatican Shadow – It Stands To Conceal [HOS369LP]
In it’s third year of operations Vatican Shadow became an unavoidable issue on the international noise and techno agenda. Following Type, Blackest Ever Black and Modern Love editions, Dominick Fernow aka Prurient aka Vatican Shadow ploughed forth with his project, resulting in three tapes ‘Jordanian Descent’, ‘Ghosts Of Chechnya’ and ‘Atta’s Apartment Slated For Destruction’, collected here on vinyl for the first time. Disc one features both sides of his extended ‘Jordanian Descent’ meditations, some of his longest in this guise and given to incredible, unfurling loop repetitions; Disc two holds ‘Ghosts Of Chechnya’, one of his most concise and varied issues, eight tracks wide and tending towards gloomy, urgent, cinematic arabesques including the outstanding ‘Voices Came Crackling Across A Motorola Hand-Held Radio’; Disc three comprises the four parts of his amazing ‘Atta’s Apartment Slated For Destruction’ including the impeccable darkness of ‘Once This Fire Gathers Strength’.
John Beltran – Amazing Things [98DSR]
John Beltran returns on Delsin with a brand new album entitled Amazing Things. As a life long pioneer of ambient soundscapes, blissful downbeat and stirring techno, Michigan born John Beltran already has his place in history assured with a bulging back catalogue that takes in influential releases on vital labels like Peacefrog and R&S. This new 17-track album sees the man draw on his lifetime in music to craft an immediately timeless body of work that’s stuffed with genuine musicality, pregnant with emotion and laden with organic blissfulness.
Polysick – Daydream LP [AUDIOMER011]
These last few years Rome based producer Egisto Sopor has been turning heads with a steady stream of most excellent releases. A cdr on Legowelt’s Strange Life Records, a tape on 100 % Silk, a double LP on Planet Mu and an evergrowing series of jams that are put on soundcloud or on his youtube channel. All of which offer atmospheric acid tinged techno laced with idiosyncratic touches. He has thus developed quite a cult following among lovers of lo fi electronic music who eagerly await his next grainy video, that feel like lost transmissions from an early nineties MTV broadcast. Polysick doesn’t get out much and keeps a low profile which adds to his rather enigmatic standing.With his new LP ‘Daydream’, Egisto has created the perfect soundtrack to a midnight trip through darkened cityscapes. Starting out like a confused jam session it slowly takes off and twists into uncanny shapes conjuring up images of a futuristic nightlife that plays out under neon lights, with a feeling of dread constantly lurking in the shadows. This is techno that tells a tale; a storyboard that comes pushing through in muffled flashes. A chase scene through deserted back alleys, executed while hunter and prey are both in a half-awake state, stuck in an infinite loop. And when the ambient synth twirls unravel and a 4/4 pulse kicks in and tears through the dreamy state of conciousness, it never signals a reassuring release of tension. You might dance to it, but not without anxiously looking over your shoulder.
KMFH – The Boat Party [WO013K]
Wild Oats is proud to present the KMFH debut album The Boat Party. After a year of collaborative releases, Kyle Hall, under the alias KMFH, has produced a debut album; a fusion of original work, sample tracks, and raw edits. The Boat Party album artwork pokes fun at European summer boat parties and juxtaposes the destitute state of Detroit and its recent proneness to discarded luxury in financial crises. Mainly, the inability to leave and the sometimes pleasant isolation of a boat party is what the album exudes. The listener has a certain commitment to the material which definitely has its place on the dance floor. You can find tracks that have soulful, funky, and organic feels, while others have a more abstract, mechanical, and robotic sentiments. The Boat Party was carefully constructed which makes the album a cohesive mix of soulful etherealness and roughly raw sounds; KMFH’s cueing into the true aspects of Detroit.
Belaboris – Once Upon A Time LP [DE041]
Belaboris was born in 1982 as the brainchild of Finnish producer Kimmo Miettinen. He would put together an all-girl band that looked great in photographs but were backed by professional musicians. The first line-up was Vilma Vainikainen on main vocals, Sisko Vainikainen and Rita on back-up plus Jake and Mari who did not sing at all. The backing band behind Belaboris was a local New Wave group called Tyhjät Patterit ( which translates to Empty Batteries). The main songwriter was Esa Ijäs (guitar, synthesizer) along with his bandmates Ari Ijäs (bass) and Martti Jalonen (drums). Belaboris’ debut 12″ single “Kuolleet Peilit” was released in November 1982. “Once Upon A Time” collects songs from all three EP releases and the “Olipa Kerran” mini-LP as well as two unreleased demos never before on vinyl. In Finland the synthetic Futurist/New Romantic pop was simply called “Futu”. Belaboris were in their own peculiar, undefinable no-woman’s-land, in between the Finnish Futu and Gothic scenes. Between 1982 and 1984 Belaboris crafted catchy, melodic synthpop with the occasional guitar. Their lyrics were stylistically “kitchen sink melodramas” with occasional Gothic elements inspired by movies. The name Belaboris, is a combination of the horror actors Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff.
Medio Mutante – Eadem Mutata Resurgo [MR019]
Medical Records present it’s first “modern” release showcasing a full LP compilation of material by American minimal synth band Medio Mutante. The band’s sound is also a mutation of their 1980’s influences, using vintage analog synthesizers and drum machines in creative and unexpected ways. Drawing influence from such acts as El Aviador Dro, Absolute Body Control, Front 242, Duotronic Synterror, Oviformia SCI, Yukihiro Takahashi, Medio Mutante integrated it’s childhood love of late 80s/early 90s Hip Hop, Latin Freestyle, and New Wave into a hybrid concoction that is truly unique. This full LP is composed of the band’s long out of print 6 song limited EP from 2007, their limited 7″ from 2009, and 4 previously unreleased tracks.
Ancien Régime – The Position LP [MNQ032]
The Italian band Ancien Régime with theoir first album on Mannequin Records. “The Position” evokes new wave and synth-pop memories, delivering epic vintage sounds and wrapping them all with catchy riffs and melodies. Still, despite this fascination with the past, the band’s work stands out as a distinctive, highly personal take on the genre. The album is opened by the single “Negative”, with its dark gloomy vocals and war-like drumming. “Negative” is, in fact, the quintessential Ancien Régime composition: wave, biting snare, interweaving synths and guitars, reverbs, delays.
Streetwalker – Future Fusion [CITI007]
Chicago duo Streetwalker, comprised of molecular biologist Beau Wanzer and electronic music aesthete Elon Katz, wrote their debut album ‘Future Fusion’ over the course of two years. Through endless experimentation and analog improvisation, they have constructed an entirely new sound showcasing vibrant hand-played synthesizer, vulnerable vocals, and serpentine drum lines. Streetwalker’s distinct song structures are characterized as much by restraint, timing, and subtle shift as by the cyclic abandon of the loop.
Omar-S – Thank You For Letting Me Be Myself [AOS7000CD]
Alex Smith aka Omar-S with his new album on FXHE. The fourteen tracks on this disc demonstrate Smith’s studio prowess and his dynamic range as a producer – from uplifting house to raw techno beats and acid.
Hieroglyphic Being – Imaginary Soundscapes #9 [MATHPLUS09CD]
Long awaited album, “Imaginary Soundscapes”, from Jamal Moss brings nine breathtaking compositions of raw electronic goodness that only he can concoct. From soft atmospheric sound environments to banging warehouse beat tracks, this is pure sonic bliss.
The Hipodrome Of Music 