Actress – LXXXVIII LP [ZEN295]

‘LXXXVIII’ is the ninth Actress album to be created by Actress (Darren Cunningham) and the very first presentation of Actress’ voyage into luxury sonics.
A lifetime in the making, ‘LXXXVIII’ is the culmination of 25 years’ honing mind-shorting, soul-igniting audio infusions for dance floors, rave dens, festivals, and concert halls. ‘LXXXVIII’ pays dividends to meditate on an instrumental facet of its creation: game theory. Indeed, deep strategic thinking – more readily associated with economics and chess than artistic practice – was fundamental to Actress’ process as ‘LXXXVIII’ was channelled into existence.

vinyl / CD

Actress – LXXXVIII LP [ZEN295]

Suzanne Ciani & Jonathan Fitoussi – Golden Apples Of The Sun LP [OBL06]

Obliques and Atmospheric present their new album “Golden Apples of the Sun”. It is the result of close cooperation between Suzanne Ciani and Jonathan Fitoussi. The American electronic music pioneer has joined the French composer to sign a four-hand album around mythical synthesizers like Buchla, Moog and Ems. Mainly recorded in California, facing the Pacific Ocean, the white sound of synthesizers mixes constantly with the sound of the waves and wind. The music generated is directly blended with the surrounding elements of nature. It is both organic and live, hypnotic and rhythmical, powerful and dreamlike.

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Suzanne Ciani & Jonathan Fitoussi – Golden Apples Of The Sun LP [OBL06]

Felipe Gordon – Psychedelic Melancholia LP [HD16]

Felipe Gordon presents ‘Psychedelic Melancholia.’ With his new album, the praised Bogotá phenomenon producer shares the melancholy of a period of his life and the emotions that come with it. Through eleven tracks punctuated by collaborations with the finest artists on today’s lo-fi scene, including Saib and Made In M, among others, Felipe Gordon introduces a new sound while maintaining jazz as the primary influence. Drawing from hip-hop, boom bap history, and the transcendental energy of Indian music, ‘Psychedelic Melancholia’ showcases his eagerness to explore diverse genres. Creating its own hypnotic, infectious sound, enter the colorful world of ‘Psychedelic Melancholia.’

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Felipe Gordon – Psychedelic Melancholia LP [HD16]

Cosmica Bandida – Lagrimas Saladas LP [TERRAM007]

Cosmica Bandida’s debut studio album “Lagrimas Saladas” is an amalgam of sounds influenced by the diverse backgrounds of the members, who find themselves in Munich a city where the leftovers of cosmic music and 70s disco meet cumbia and tropical vampirism. Dark cumbia and psychedelic music collide with the moods of space disco in an album that engages the body. On the flip side, a group of eight remixers has united to deliver remixes for all the Club enthusiasts out there. Lipelis sets vinyl lovers on fire with his Dubby Disco Remix of “Salsa Bandida”, while MaSpaventi, Volta Cab, Los Pulpitos, and Hektisch Sprengen DJs bring their soulful and dubby trip-hop torch songs to the release. Prepare yourself for Grischerr & Heap’s glitchy and deconstructed industrial reggaeton remix of “Pájaro del desierto”, along with a powerful deconstructed club beatdown by Kobermann. Jacques Satre’s psychedelic stupdep remix adds the perfect finishing touch to the package.

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Cosmica Bandida – Lagrimas Saladas LP [TERRAM007]

Roger Gerressen – The First Android Church Of Claude Shannon LP [CHXIV07]

Elevating the paradigms of electronic music, Chapelle XIV Music unveils “The First Android Church Of Claude Shannon,” an immersive LP from Yoyaku household Roger Gerressen. Bathed in the aesthetic allure of retro-futurism and the imaginative dimensions of classic sci-fi cinema, this opus synthesizes the arcane with the avant-garde in a masterful tapestry of sound. Comprising six intricately crafted tracks, the album serves as an auditory odyssey that transcends the borders of genre. Whether enveloped in the nebulous ambience of a discerning DJ set or fueling introspective home listening marathons, these compositions resonate with an arresting quality that’s evocative yet profoundly innovative. Within the multi-dimensional soundscapes of this album, listeners find a harmonious blend of homage and innovation. Drawing inspiration from Claude Shannon—the mathematical genius and pioneering mind behind modern digital circuit design theory—”The First Android Church Of Claude Shannon” stands as a testament to the synthesis of past and future. With Roger Gerressen at the helm, the boundaries of electronic music are redefined, creating an aural experience that is both cerebral and soul-stirring, beckoning the listener into an uncharted territory of sonic exploration.

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Roger Gerressen – The First Android Church Of Claude Shannon LP [CHXIV07]

Citi Express – Living For The City [AFS055]

Cover versions of international songs have long thrived in South Africa’s music industry. Often unable to license the original tracks (until the early 90s the result of an international boycott of the country) labels instead hired producers and session artists to re-record them for the local market. Early house music in South Africa was no different. When Ron ‘Robot’ Friedman, former bass player for local rockers Rabbitt, was winding down his label On Record in the early 90s, he reached out for new inspiration as the popularity of ‘bubblegum’ disco waned. For one of the label’s final releases he hired young DJ/producer Quentin Foster, obsessed with the new soulful house sound coming out of the US, to take the reins on a studio project dubbed Citi Express. The result offers a glimpse into those early days of house, a uniquely South African take on a global sound that still resonates today — reissued for the first time on Afrosynth Records. 

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Citi Express – Living For The City [AFS055]

Starlight – Starlight [AFS054]

South African production duo of Emil Zoghby and John Galanakis were responsible for a string of high-quality disco singles in the early 80s, typically cover versions of international hits — Klein & MBO’s ‘The Big Apple’, Sly & the Family Stone’s ‘Family Affair’ & David Joseph’s ‘You Can’t Hide (Your Love From Me)’ — backed with their own compositions. When Starlight hit the market with an album in 1983, it featured only one cover, the local hit ‘Picnic’, along with five of the duo’s original compositions, including their similarly styled response, ‘Picnicing’, which replaces the original’s sax with spaced-out synth stabs. Then there’s ‘Jah Jah Love’, an ecstatic disco sermon of dancefloor dynamite weighing in at over eight and a half minutes. Other tracks on this landmark album — ‘Let’s Go Dancing (Boogie Boogie)’, ‘Keep On Moving’ and an eponymous instrumental — offer a similar fusion of classic disco with newer Italo and proto-house influences: machine music with a human touch. Remastered from the original master tapes and reissued for the first time, Starlight is available on vinyl and digital platforms, 40 years after its initial release, via Afrosynth Records.

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Starlight – Starlight [AFS054]

Dario Zenker – Reflection LP [ITLP17]

Ilian Tape co-founder Dario Zenker has consistently served up some of the label’s best releases and now he goes long on this double album, Reflection. He calls it “a Reflection through wild times channeled into 63 minutes of machine funk” and we call it 12 tracks of devastating techno on both an emotional and physical level. His tracks often fix with wispy synth lines that bring subtle light to the dusty drums and muggy atmospheres and on the likes of ‘Da Conducter’ he offers up thumping house with grainy lo-fi pads and muffled leads that hook you in deep. The vast rhythmic variation and switch-up in tempos and moods throughout this album is what keeps it so fresh.

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Dario Zenker – Reflection LP [ITLP17]

Fasme – Bloom LP [AF051LP]

Nantes-based Tom Ferreira (Fasme) joins Analogical Force with his first and highly anticipated album titled ‘Bloom’. Well known in underground circles for an impressive live PA, Tom delivery 9-tracks (recorded live) where he deploys his entire arsenal of analog synths. ‘Bloom’ immerses us in a 303-powered world, crunchy machine drums with big emotive melodies, rushing piano motifs and swirling chords.

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Fasme – Bloom LP [AF051LP]

Philipp Otterbach – Correct Me If I Am Incorrectly You LP [OFFEN028]

Berlin based Philipp Otterbach debuts on Offen with a seven tracks album, “Correct Me If I Am Incorrectly You”. Post-music phantasmagoria for the world in which the past became more unpredictable than the future. Deconstructed entertainment for hopeless romantics and testament to Otterbach’s unique artistic language.

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Philipp Otterbach – Correct Me If I Am Incorrectly You LP [OFFEN028]

Anatolian Weapons – Earth LP [STRD-XIV]

The Athenian producer Aggelos Baltas alias Anatolian Weapons captures on the album “Earth” the feeling of an optimistic future that grows on the soil of the sweet bitterness of the present and the past. Under his pseudonym Anatolian Weapons, Baltas combines polyrhythmic percussion and wailing tones of Greek folk music with a thrilling and open Krautrock attitude. The album “Earth “takes us on a mystical journey through the northern Greek highlands, backed by Baltas’ unique machine-assisted folk, infused with psychedelic drones and exuding an aura that is neither then nor now, neither there nor here. Instead, it exists in a small pocket of its own cosmos. A crossroads of dimensions. A mystical offering to nature and the divinities. The album reconstructs a sonic narrative of ancient traditions, enhanced with psychedelic and space-rock elements. In the reverb cycle, one hears a certain agrarian reinterpretation of the world, filled with harvest rituals and celestial incantations.

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Anatolian Weapons – Earth LP [STRD-XIV]

Weith – Intimate Entropy LP [Brokntoys]

Weith returns to Brokntoys with “Intimate Entropy”, a new exclusive album comprising sixteen tracks. The result of two years of composing and research, “Intimate Entropy” traverses a wide sonic landscape, ranging from drone pieces to tension-filled meandering journeys. Dense and rich in details, Weith presents an introspective, melancholic, and immersive listening experience.

Weith – Intimate Entropy LP [Brokntoys]

Filmmaker – Machinations LP [W10.17]

Colombian producer Faunes Efe known under his moniker Filmmaker, is one of the most productive and vital producers in the EBM, Industrial, Synth-wave and Electro community. He has quickly build a cult following amongst those with an affinity for dystopian electronics drenched in seductive darkness. Filmmaker keeps running engines with “Machinations”, a mini-album containing 7 cuts that blast a mechanical blend of Electroclash and Minimal Synth. This ride of prominent square waves, robotic beats and detuned atmospheres is born from mainly two instruments: a Syntakt & a processed guitar.

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Filmmaker – Machinations LP [W10.17]

Tom Carruthers – Future Wave LP [LIES197]

Tom Carruthers back in full form on L.I.E.S. with a massive 18 track tripple LP set. This has everything you could possibly want on it, going in heavy with the 88-92′ vibes all the Bleeps, Detroit strings, shuffling 909s, and Chicago 727s one can possibly want. Every track is a winner, full dancefloor fodder you’ll swear are lost classics unearthed from the grave. Carruthers has consistently proved he has mastered the formula to create perfect old school tracks that will have you jackin on the floor all nite long. This collection is what dance music is about and explores the full range of formative styles in all their intricacies from top to bottom. Undoubtedly his most comprehensive and definitive work to date.

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Tom Carruthers – Future Wave LP [LIES197]

The Black Dog – My Brutal Life LP [DUSTV118]

“My Brutal Life” delves into the profound aspects of our artistic endeavors encompassing brutalism, the environment, and humanity. Throughout our ongoing creative journey, we consistently gravitate towards these themes, documenting and exploring the human experience within these environments. Our unwavering fixation on Symmetry, Synchronisation, and Repetition are the driving force in our artistic expression. Moreover, we strive to peel away superficial layers to expose the underlying emotional strata of the human aspect, unearthing the often overlooked beauty within the ordinary. Although frequently disregarded, the human aspect resonates with echoes from the past, enlightening and guiding our artistic process. Even the failures encountered serve as poignant reminders of the delicate structures we construct. My Brutal Life constitutes a pivotal component within an enduring exhibition, meticulously crafted to delve into the aesthetic and human facets of brutalism.

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The Black Dog – My Brutal Life LP [DUSTV118]

VC-118A – Waves Of Change LP [157DSR]

On his fifth album as VC-118A, Samuel van Dijk is using his evolved electro practice to explore the notion of change – a universal constant which keeps us barreling towards unknown futures. 2021’s Spiritual Machines found van Dijk edging his sound into downtempo and experimental pastures. On the follow-up, Waves of Change, crooked machine rhythms and richly developed tones and textures spool from his trusted bank of outboard tools, while a subtle drop in tempo widens the space for the atmospheric sound design to weave its magic. Balancing the disciplines of machine-powered sequencing and hand-shaped sound to render his ideas in sonic form, the continued evolution of VC-118A results in another mesmerizing record steeped in craft and loaded with intention.

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VC-118A – Waves Of Change LP [157DSR]

Theo Parrish & Maurissa Rose – Free Myself LP [SS095/96/97]

New album from Theo Parrish & Maurissa Rose arrives on his own Sound Signature label. Hard to define, rule breaking and game-changing producer Theo Parrish is back with another of his challenging and superlative albums. This one is a collaboration with Maurissa Rose that true sooth the soul. It’s full of his usual deadly grooves, shamanistic percussive layers and jazz energies with plenty of his famous luscious, meditative loops. Add in the smooth vocals of Rose – which come in the form of a soulful stream of consciousness – and you have yet another unique album from this true maverick of the form.

vinyl / CD / cassette

Theo Parrish & Maurissa Rose – Free Myself LP [SS095/96/97]

Hieroglyphic Being – The Moon Dance [APNEA104]

‘The Moon Dance’ Mark’s the come back of one of Chi Towns most innovative and iconic figures to Apnea Records. Jamal Moss (Hieroglyphic Being) sound’s were first released on Apnea in 2007. Now, in 2023, he’s back with this double 12” album flooded with synth jazz and cosmic acid explorations in his signature and irreverent style.

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Hieroglyphic Being – The Moon Dance [APNEA104]

EYE – Honolulu / Saigon [KH047]

Laurène Exposito releases her 3rd album on Knekelhuis. Honolulu / Saigon is a collage of unreleased material, and previously on cassette released work. Some songs go even back to the era of Sabine and ties in wonderfully with Laurène’s previous work. She’s been performing some of these tracks back in the days.

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EYE – Honolulu / Saigon [KH047]