VA – System Updates [DDV2.0]

January 21, 2019January 21, 2019 hipodromecompilation, datadisk, drox, electro, sol37, southern outpost, the sentinelLeave a comment

After 10 years of deep hibernation, Southern Outpost’s sub-label, Datadisk, brings the first in a series of ‘System Updates’ (think Direct Beat style bonus beats). Southern Outpost label boss, The Sentinel has compiled 9 byte-sized electro tracks/tools programmed specifically for DJ’s who like to throw down. The updates were developed by 3 programmers, from opposite ends of the planet. The Sentinel (Southern Outpost/Datadisk), Sol37 (Southern Outpost) both Australian ex-pats now based in San Francisco and Drox (Analog Cabin) based in Sydney, Australia. The tracks are on average 2 mins long, which mean they get straight to the point and are ready to deploy at a moments notice. For the advanced DJ, utilizing 2 copies will offer the opportunity to extend and remix the updates 24,310 ways. The release was mastered at Dubplates & Mastering and pressed at R.A.N.D to ensure the release is at the highest sonic quality.

VA – From The Dark Volume 3 [CE028]

January 21, 2019March 15, 2021 hipodromealpha606, animistic beliefs, calderin, compilation, cultivated electronics, electro, joonam prada, morphology, nomadic, sc-164, silicon scally, sync 24Leave a comment

VARIOUS - From The Dark Vol 3

Following volumes 1 & 2, Cultivated Electronics label-head Sync 24 hails another world-class line up to the helm to bring ‘From The Dark’ to a strong close with Volume 3. Finnish duo Morphology kick things off with ‘Sentinel’; a gritty stepper with a sinister synth riff, followed by Alpha 606’s ‘Zombie King’ of wiggy arpeggios and off-kilter analogue delays. Flip for the B1 where Silicon Scally enters with a raspy and cutting, harmonious jam. B2, which is a collaboration between CE head-honcho Sync 24 and NYC based Joonam, Prada, is a 140bpm big-room monster, with a reverberated low end and quivering moans of spooky voices. On the next disc, is Miami-based Calderin with a sickening groove that draws you in and holds you where you are from start to finish. Following up is Brooklyn based techno stalwart Donor under his new SC-164 electro alias switching things up with earthy snare rattles and a tweaked-out, panicky synth lines. Nomadic (of UK electro label Touchin’ Bass) then rolls out an addictive chord progression above tight, snappy beats, while masked, Dutch duo Animistic Beliefs close out the series with winding, morish pads that draw from a sci fi sound-palate, showcasing a glimpse into their astounding live set-up.

VA – Material Eléctrico Vol. III LP [BFE051]

January 14, 2019September 15, 2021 hipodromeb.f.e. records, bässt, black zone myth chant, burka for everybody, celldöd, circa tapes, compilation, industrial, klack, kyle dixon, minimal synth, sam de la rosa, santiago, synth wave, violet poisonLeave a comment

VARIOUS - Material Electrico Vol III

Great compilation on Spanish wierdo label Burka For Everybody. The third volume of the series Material Eléctrico, a compilation of international mutant electronic underground. A tour around experimental electronics covering abstract rythms (Santiago, Black Zone Myth Chant), industrial EBM / new beat (Celldöd, Klack, Violet Poison, Bässt), minimal wave (Circa Tapes, Sam de la Rosa) and the great collaboration between Sam De La Rosa & Kyle Dixon.

VA – Life & Death on a New York Dance Floor Part 1 [REAPPEARLP001PT1]

December 2, 2018December 2, 2018 hipodromealan vega, compilation, david byrne, dinosaur l, disco, experimental, gray, jazz, johnny dynell, reappearing records, tim lawrence, tuxedomoonLeave a comment

For the last 20 years London-based author and party organiser Tim Lawrence has dedicated himself to excavating the history of New York City party culture and bringing some of the most powerful aspects of that culture to London’s dance scene, from where it has ricocheted around the world. Having conducted the first set of major interviews with David Mancuso, Lawrence started to put on Loft-style Lucky Cloud Sound System parties with David and friends in London in June 2003. In early 2004 he published Love Saves the Day: A History of American Dance Music Culture, 1970-79, which tracked the influence of the Loft on the wider New York DJ, dance and disco scene. In 2009 his biography of the iconic musician Arthur Russell became the first book to map the wider downtown music scene. These beautifully written and politically insightful histories have educated, inspired and celebrated the previously overlooked foundations of contemporary dance music. Lawrence’s most recent publication, Life & Death On The New York Dancefloor, 1980 – 1983, published in late 2016, shines a light on ‘one of the most dynamic and creative periods in the history of New York City’. Falling between the more regularly celebrated sounds of disco, house and techno, the period produced a uniquely hybrid series of sounds that never acquired a settled name. This led them to be largely ignored by historians and even DJs, yet the power of the period’s music and the scenes it birthed, Lawrence argues, remains undeniable. Met with a rapturous response, Life and Death On The New York Dance Floor saw Lawrence on the road for most of the next year as he spread the word about the characters, the records, the clubs and the bands that shaped the post-Disco, post-Punk, and burgeoning Hip Hop landscapes of New York City during the early 1980s—a period when freedom still ruled.

VA – The Black Book [IDEAL175]

November 18, 2018October 14, 2021 hipodromeambient techno, compilation, drone, dungeon acid, experimental, ideal recordings, jasss, robert aiki aubrey loweLeave a comment

VARIOUS - The Black Book

Epic, brilliantly curated two hour collection of new and exclusive material celebrating iDEAL Recordings’ (1998-2018) 20th anniversary featuring JASSS, Stephen O’Malley, Jim O’Rourke (an epic 17 minute trance-enducer – honestly worthy of its own LP), Ectoplasm Girls, Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, Prurient, Puce Mary and many others…

VA – The Library Music Film: Music From & Inspired By The Film [LEGO148]

November 4, 2018November 2, 2018 hipodromealan hawkshaw, brian bennett, compilation, funk, geoff astow, jazz, légère recordings, piero umiliani, shawn lee, soundtrackLeave a comment

The Library Music Film follows record producer, composer and library music enthusiast Shawn Lee as he travels from his recording studio in London, through Europe, and California, USA to search out and interview the great pioneers of library music. Collecting rare, unreleased vinyl is big business. Library music was only available on vinyl and only given to industry professionals. There were very small production runs; sometimes only 200 copies of each album were pressed. Most of those were destroyed through the Nineties with the advent of CDs. Finding these records is extremely rare and therefore some of these records go for well over a thousand pounds. Shawn Lee opens the record boxes of some of the most notorious collectors, getting a glimpse and having a listen to their favourite wax. Delving into the vaults of the classic library music houses, meeting the people behind these incredible themes at Music De Wolfe, Warner-Chappell, Bruton Music, Bosworth, Flipper Music, KPM, Tele Music and Capitol Media Music as well as talking to some of the modern record labels that are compiling and re-issuing these quintessential pieces.

VA – From The Dark Volume 1 [CE026]

October 29, 2018November 8, 2022 hipodrome214, alienata, assembler code, compilation, cultivated electronics, delta funktionen, electro, exterminador, jensen interceptor, rico casazza, stratowerx, sync 24, techno, versalifeLeave a comment

Sync 24’s Cultivated Electronics rounds off 2018 in style with the “From The Dark” Series. 3 x V/A LP’s showcasing some of the leading lights of modern electro alongside some solid newcomers. Focussing on the spookier side of the genre FTD brings in the various shades of darker electro tones from across the Globe. Volume 1 kicks off the series with with some super dark selections from Sync 24 & Alienata, Australia’s hottest electro exports of the moment Jensen Interceptor and Assembler Code, Seattle Electro Veteran 214, CE newcomer Rico Casazza, Radio Matrix Boss & Tresor resident Delta Funktionen, Caught London Sleeping Head Honcho Stratowerx, Delsin & Clone affiliate Versalife and Berlin based CE newcomer Exterminador.

VA – Global Surveyor 4 [DE-025]

October 22, 2018December 30, 2021 hipodromeanthony rother, carl finlow, compilation, dominance electricity, electro, hardfloor, heliopause, patronen, silicon scally, techno, visoniaLeave a comment

The German label Dominance Electricity presents Phase 4 of the Global Surveyor various artist album series (launched in 1998). Featuring heavy-weights of the international Electro genre such as Anthony Rother, Hardfloor, Silicon Scally aka Carl Finlow and Heliopause (a project of Germany’s Dynamik Bass System & Detroit’s Keith Tucker of AUX 88) and many more, this carefully selected collection includes a total of 24 productions out of 13 countries / 5 continents ranging between clubbish acid power, deep space cruiser, playful kraftwerkesk melodic downtempo and ambient synth magic.

VA – Danzas Electricas Vol. II [MMLP2002]

October 15, 2018December 2, 2021 hipodromecompilation, ekstern, electro, eva geist, heninspace, houschyard, industrial, konsistent, macadam mambo, minimal synth, sacha mambo, sauerstofff, service, synth wave, wostoLeave a comment

The ‘metallic’ compilation Danzas Electricas is back for a second volume. Curated by Sacha Mambo, it presents only artists from nowadays and takes distance from the edits to push original and weird electronic music of close artists friends from Dresden, Copenhagen, Berlin, Prague, Lyon and Hamburg. Some of them are already relatives of Macadam Mambo : Konsistent, Wosto, Heninspace, Eva Geist or Sacha himself and it introduces new acts : Ekstern (Nixxon & Spacelex), Service, Houschyard or Sauerstofff to present a good mixture of Kraut, Punk, Industrial tracks, which never fall into dark.

VA – Air Texture Volume VI [AIR006]

October 14, 2018May 19, 2023 hipodrome214, actress, afik naim, air texture, ambient techno, answer code request, as one, basic soul unit, compilation, deep techno, dj stingray, kink, late night approach, martyn, shed, steffi, tracing xirclesLeave a comment

The Air Texture Series asks two Producers/ Performers to select a double CD worth of unreleased music. The only guidance is the music should not be main floor bangers, other than that we get out of the way, allowing them autonomy over their selection. This time Steffi and Martyn were asked to step up. Exciting, since as residents at Berghain/Panorama Bar – two of the most important dancefloors in the world… how would two such respected artists approach our experimental ethos.

VA – Alternative Funk: Volume 2 [PLA024]

October 10, 2018August 30, 2024 hipodromebene gesserit, capital funk, compilation, dee nasty, disco, experimental, funk, kosa, melsjest, platform 23, post punk, psyclones, randall kennedy, scoop!, vox populiLeave a comment

The 2nd collection of songs selected from the Alternative Funk series released Vox Man and VP 231 Records. Originally appearing in 1985 across 1 vinyl and 2 cassette albums these cult collections have long been in collectors (and bootleggers) sights and finally see the first official reissue. The series covers the weird, wonderful, esoteric, exotic and quirky sound and puts them in a reset context that immediately gives clarity of the original’s curation. This volume opens with some DIY electro stealers, first with Dee Nasty’s Orientic Groove, where the early French hip-hop pioneer lays down a battle commence of beats, slapped bass and YMO keys, before the second offering from Scoop! and their rap attack, juxtapositions the past series and leads to label heads Vox Populi! & Man and their continued look at the rudiments of cut up manipulation and scratch techniques. The avant rappears with 3M’s percussive marker and legendary Amus Tietchens’ is ever challenging, before Melsjest’s post-punk meets the Weirmar possibly steals the side as Vox Pop spoken outro joins those (micro)dots. The cult of Randall Kennedy returns with another garage-fuzz gem. His stories for wackos’n’weirdos end all too soon and are followed by Liquid Liquid’s Dennis Young, diving deep with Intuition, before Stanalis returns with another winner. Bene Gesserit is a killer and welcome addition, before Kosa return with more industrial clippings and volume 2 heads to the door with Capital Funk’s electro-punk bomb – possibly the series champion – while the slap bass-scratch of California’s Psyclones leads to a music hall end in the homage to mum’s favourite, Chukk. What these Volumes again highlight is how the DIY aesthetic of so many independent labels was supplemented and spread via collections of friends, contemporaries and often, literally pen pals, to mail in their offerings that are then picked for wider ears. While some of these artists have become known, just as many are who and whats, but they sit side-by-side as warranted and often killing the scene of what Axel and co sought to be…the Alternative Funk.

VA – Alternative Funk: Volume 1 [PLA023]

October 10, 2018August 30, 2024 hipodromecompilation, disco, experimental, kosa, minimal synth, philippe laurent, platform 23, post punk, randall kennedy, scoop!, vox populiLeave a comment

Platform 23 launches with the reissue of the seminal Alternative Funk compilation series, presenting a selection of music across 2 volumes. Known for the highly heralded “Folie Distinguee” album in 1985, what is often over looked is the fact there accompanied 2 further “Alternative Funk” cassette compilations that same year. Coming within the Audiologie series on Vox Man Records, these “Various Artist” selections were indicative of labels that sprung up in the early 80s around the DIY post-punk scene. As founders of Vox Populi!, Axel Kyrou and Francis Man, working with close associate Pierre Jolivet’s (aka Pacific 231) VP 231 label, released a number of cassettes, 7″ and LPs between 1982 and 1988, as much to self-release their own music as to push new or contemporary artists. Here then is a snapshot of the Alt Funk albums, selecting songs that avoid recent or upcoming reissues, to dive deep in the series from industrial to cold wave, proto-dub percussion to avant spoken word pieces. Featuring the likes of Son Of Sam, Philippe Laurent, Fist Of Facts – with a long lost first ever recording – and Human Backs, stepping out from semi-cult name dropping to sit alongside unknowns and never heard from again in Scoop!, Kosa, Zoohtee and the wonderful Randall Kennedy. What is apparent is an idiosyncratic nature to the selections. In the same way many independent labels of the time – such as Auxilio De Cientos’ Terra Incognita volumes or Final Image’s Nightlands – created a label snapshot by pulling together far and wide contributions but retaining an overall ‘sound’. The Volume 1 and 2 reissue achieve that, mixing experimental with electro, post punk with noise, to offer more than the sum of their parts – an Alternative Funk.

VA – SPC 139 [SPC139]

September 25, 2018November 21, 2023 hipodromecompilation, d'marc cantu, earth trax, ghostly international, gunnar haslam, house, jtc, matrixxman, minimal violence, russell e.l. butler, spectral sound, technoLeave a comment

For over 18 years, Spectral Sound, the dance music imprint of Ghostly International, has thrived at the forefront of techno and house. Now, Spectral brings the past alongside the present with its latest release, a compilation that offers a vibrant cross-section of the current moment in underground dance music. Despite the wide-ranging selections on Spectral 139, a throughline of classic style and infectious energy emerges from the up-and-coming and established artists alike. Rising talents such as Minimal Violence, Russell E.L. Butler, and Earth Trax x Newborn Jr. bring unique perspectives to their hardware-centric productions.

VA – All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace [PSR003]

September 22, 2018November 11, 2021 hipodromebuttechno, compilation, delivery, electro, fallbeil, industrial, innsyter, ixvlf, kluentah, morah, myn, public system recordings, techno, templeyard studios, tripolar cell, wostoLeave a comment

Public System presents a monster collection of the grubbiest, punked out lo fi deviant electronics from the true underground. Some names are more familiar, such as the excellent Templeyard Studios with the uneasy clatter of ”Take66”, while Buttechno brings a blistering array of tones to the forefront for some truly adventurous acid abstractions. There’s a lot of lesser known delights to revel in though, from the boxy beatdown of IXVLF, the darkwave electro thrust of Kluentah and the intricate percussive science of Meze. This may be dirty dance music for wayward souls, but there are some seriously fresh ideas lurking on this ludicrously valuable package.

VA – Dynamics Of Pressure [VO001]

September 12, 2018June 18, 2025 hipodromebakunin commando, compilation, diana berti, industrial, synth wave, vague output, violet poisonLeave a comment

Vague Output is a party, collective and label out of Baltimore that opposes any teleological understanding of underground electronic music. The label debuts with a perfect collection of EBM, Italo, Synthwave, and Proto-Techno from Veleno Viola label head Francesco Baudazzi’s alter egos Violet Poison, Bakunin Commando, and Diana Berti.

VA – Kale Plankieren: Dutch Cassette Rareties 1981 – 1987 Vol. 2 [KH016]

August 27, 2018September 17, 2019 hipodromeanother, compilation, de fabriek, eric toornend, experimental, knekelhuis, minimal synth, synth wave, the hi-tones, van kayeLeave a comment

After last years excellent discoveries from Volume 1, another batch of ‘lost’ and unreleased Dutch (cassette) material is coming back to the future. For this sequel we dug deep into the Dutch lowlands and again found some independent music that’s still relevant today. In the process we met even more amazing musicians and heard great stories from a distant-not-so-distant past. Expect a wide palette of DIY and experimental sounds by artists from Groningen, Zwolle, Arnhem, The Hague, Rotterdam, Tilburg and Deurne.

VA – Compact Wrecks [COM1]

August 22, 2018December 12, 2019 hipodromealphonse, compilation, dawl, dj fett burger, dj normal 4, electro, house, klasse recordings, klasse wrecks, luca lozano, mr. ho, privacy, technoLeave a comment

Klasse Wrecks present the first release in the new Compact Wrecks series, a new set of releases coming on Compact Disc. Compositions on COM1 come from label founders Luca Lozano and Mr Ho in addition to producers associated with the label, namely Omega III, Fett Birger, Privacy, Your Planet Is Next, Dawl and Alphonse. The compilation, which clocks in at just over an hour, ranges from frantic jungle and breakbeat-infused acid to chilled-out trance, making time for forays into bleep, electro and house

VA – Prophecy & Progress: UK Electronics 1978-1990 [PM24]

July 26, 2018August 9, 2019 hipodromeattrition, clock dva, colin potter, compilation, david harrow, electro, experimental, five times of dust, industrial, john avery, john costello, minimal synth, naked lunch, peripheral minimal, peter hope, post punk, schleimer k, synth wave, v-sor x, vice versaLeave a comment

Peripheral Minimal presents ‘Prophecy + Progress: UK Electronics 1978 – 1990 LP’, a thirteen-track compilation that represents the burgeoning Electronic music scene in the UK. This isn’t simply another synth pop compilation, or some nostalgic frippery, but an eclectic mix of acts that were experimenting with newly available technology at a time when the punk scene had imploded and the music press was busy coining new genres as an attempt to continue its legacy. In the bubbling underground were a myriad of experimenters recording in relative secrecy in Industrial cities like Sheffield or post-war London, at a time when the Tories came back into power and utterly altered the political landscape, and produced a generation of, ‘Thatcher’s Children’ (selfish, arrogant and materialistic). The antidote seemed to be quiet rebellion in the shape of dark and alienating soundscapes by acts that are now considered ‘pioneers’, or achieving cult status, in a new era of throwaway pop and trite ‘new wave’ impersonators. This compilation is an attempt to rekindle those heady days of experimentation and to encourage new generations to rebel and forgo the fashionable posturing that comes with anything vaguely ‘interesting’.

VA – Jura Soundsystem Presents Transmission One [ISLELP003]

July 15, 2018June 24, 2020 hipodromeambient, astral engineering, blindboy, compilation, dub, experimental, funk, isle of jura recods, jura soundsystem, kash, ken dang, kevin griffiths, minus group, smackos, tabou combo superstars, trevor bastowLeave a comment

The first in a series of compilations by Jura Soundsystem is a blend of Dub, Ambient, Downtempo, Boogie and Proto House with a focus on music never before released on Vinyl, sought after out of print titles and some special versions edited specifically for the album. The intention with this project was to delve deeper into the reissue pond and unearth some lesser known tracks and artists. Highlights include Smackos (AKA Legowelt) Ambient epic ‘We Can Watch Alf In The Hotel Room’, never before released on Vinyl, the Dub / Psych hybrid of Minus Group’s ‘Black Shadow’, Kash’s sought after ‘Percussion Sundance’ and special edits of Ken Dang and Tabou Combo. The end of the album includes some soothing Ambient tools.

VA – Napoli Segreta Vol.1 [EAS018/NG02]

June 23, 2018May 12, 2023 hipodromecompilation, disco, donatella viaggiano, donn anna, early sounds recordings, funk, ng records, oro, pino amorosoLeave a comment

Early Sounds announce, in collaboration with NG Rec, first volume of Napoli Segreta, a meticulous selection of the rarest and most sought after compositions of the 70’s and 80’s Napolitan disco and funk scene.” Everybody is haunting for the essence of the city and its sound. Such a haunting is so cruel that originality risks the extinction within the goat of fake authenticities, being them musical, cultural or artistic authenticities. Enough is enough! It is time to react. It is time to give back to the city what somebody wish to be steel forever. Time before samplers colonized the global acoustic imagery, here, in Naples, for Naples, throughout its metropolitan spaces and rhythms, such beautiful tracks have been recorded that once you listen to them they remain indelible. And after years spent following the footprints of legendary characters beneath a urban underground that crawls with anecdotes and passion, immersed in bloody quests into oceans of vinyl records, dusty tapes, in the midst of emotional vicissitudes, parties, sea, recording studios and seagulls…