“Before This” is the third studio album by London based techno producer Ashley Burchett and the first release for his label Modwerks. The culmination of three years work, this project has been produced almost entirely by Ø Phase from the music to the artwork to the accompanying videos.
Token readies the third installment of the Ø [Phase] Versions series, that pays homage to Ashley Burchett’s illustrious discography, reissuing new mixes of classic material. On this third edition, Burchett turns in new, peak time interpretations of tracks Espresso, Obscura & The Crossover – alongside a stunning remix from fellow UK Techno auteur Steve Bicknell, who reworks Token classic Xylo 3.
Roog Unit is the new production duo fusing together the talents of Luke Slater and Ø [Phase] a.k.a. Ashley Burchett, the music being the result of many months of discourse and growing connection. The full dose of “Mesh” shows two producers clearly at their most focused and precise. Like their best work to date, it will get fans’ active imaginations churning – and leave them wondering what this collaboration has in store for the near future.
It’s some 15 years since Ashley Burchett first donned the Ø [Phase] moniker to lay down some surging London techno for Cosmic Records. A decade and a half on, he continues to impress with the moodiness and atmospheric intent of his hypnotic dancefloor concoctions. There’s much to enjoy on this second full-length – his debut album, Frames Of Reference, dropped in 2013 – from the intergalactic electronics and Drexciyan beats of “Remote”, and the looped marimba melodies and sludgy pulse of the title track, to the bleak, ghostly hypnotism of “Increment”, and hustling broken techno of “Nep-Tune”. This is proper techno for the dancefloor, with enough subtle variations and neat ideas to please all but the pickiest of listeners.
Belgian techno powerhouse Token welcome back another label regular in Ø [Phase]. This Versions 12″ represents an interesting move for Surrey-based Ashley Burchett, a chance to delve into his back catalogue and offer up some versions of some of the heavy hitting cuts that helped establish him within the techno community. Versions opens with an ‘Enhanced’ and buffed up take on “Flyby / Falling” from his 2006 Espresso EP for Ingoma, complemented by an unreleased demo take on “Bulk” from the same year. Another Enhanced version, of “Obscura Mix 1” is perhaps the finest cut here though Token completists will find much to savour in the stripped mix of Mass, the title track from his 2007 label debut.
The 52nd release on Token Records is a steely and mechanical two tracker from Ø [Phase]. ‘Tunnel Vision/Internal Conflict’ 12” captures perfectly the grainy, oddball approach which has garnered Burchett’s productions so much attention in recent years. This is techno for the small hours – frantically paced, disorientating and charged with adrenaline.
Speaker-rattling Techno sound designs. Straight-up haunting, hypnotic club tracks constructed with a real attention to detail and powerful thrust. Ø (Phase) releases his first new material after the critically acclaimed ‘Frames Of Reference’ album last year.
Arguably the two biggest R’s in techno at the moment remix [Phase], with Rodhad revealing a more emotive side to his techno, while Robert Hood delivers the goods like only he can. Rodhad’s interpretation takes away some of the original low-end heard in “Perplexed”, resulting in something that’s groovy, but still tough, while noticeable increasing the blue-noted tones of the track. Robert Hood’s love affair with “Dirto II” continues with the Detroit legend joining in on the cold temperaments for a clinical and percussively slicing remix. With rapid fire 12″s like this, it seems trying to match Token’s dominance of club techno at the moment would be a futile act.
Token brings the 2nd single, from the debut album ‘Frames Of Reference’ by Ø [Phase]. ‘Dirtro II’ is definitely one of the standout cuts of the album and shows Ø [Phase] in his darkest and deepest mood. On the b-side he is joined by one of his biggest inspirations & one of techno’s most legendary innovators: Robert Hood. The result is a carefully executed yet explosive peak time cut.
Phase strikes back after ‘Binary Opposition’ and does it with ease. Two tracks, two different sides of the spectrum. One takes you to the sun, the other one to the dark side of the moon. Astral travelling at it’s best.
Token presents two remixes by Ben Klock and Inigo Kennedy for Phase’s big ‘Binary Opposition’, which took the techno scene by storm.
The latest Token release sees the label mainstay Phase at the helm for two typically fierce and unrelenting productions. Essentially presented as two “Processes” of the same “Binary Opposition” track, Phase demonstrates his unerring talent for crafting deeply effective techno filled with detailed and wall shaking drum programming and subtle yet devastatingly effective rhythms.
New release on Token “Transantartic” from Phase. The title track sets the mood for what to expect with searing chords weaving in and out of the mix amidst a throbbing groove embellished with straight 808 jacks and bubbling metallic undertones. The sudden jolt into an explosion of colour and energy proves to be quite captivating. Elsewhere “Dome Argus” relies on a succession of alien sounds amidst the rough industrial thump to equally impress these ears, whilst Side B is dedicated to the scratched, textural mind altering techno purism of “Plateau Station”.
The Hipodrome Of Music 