“Studiomaster was born from an experiment I ran for a little over a year, releasing tracks exclusively on Bandcamp. I wanted to see how far music could travel without the institutional machinery of a label, without physical products, and without relying on mainstream platforms. The experiment worked so well that Studiomaster has now evolved into a label with physical vinyl releases. Throughout this journey, I found myself missing the physicality of music. So, to celebrate it, I decided to release something in a format I had never used before: the cassette tape. What better occasion to bring together a collection of previously unreleased tracks in the physical world and craft a mix the old-school way? Get your tape quickly, it’s limited!”
Demuja unveils ”Blueprint”, the first release on his label MUJA to feature collaborations with other artists, both familiar and fresh faces in town, Kylle Hall, Gonno, Retromigration, Makez, Basic Soul Unit and Hubie Davison. While it offers a variety of sounds, it stays true to its core, remaining focused on deep and underground house music.
Ediciones Espectro Oculto announce their first vinyl edition ‘Elementa Obscura Vol. 01’, a wave-infused compilation which moves through the dim & dazzling realms of electronic music. Includes works by Trenton Chase, synth wizard and legend Martial Canterel, Gravitational Waves boss DJ Nephil, cult czech producer & DJ Exhausted Modern, Fragedis and Argentinian duo Happy707.
Central Processing Unit releases have all been logged in an eight-bit binary numbering system ever since the Sheffield label arrived on the scene with Cygnus’ 2012 LP Newmark Phase. With 256 variations allowed for in the binary catalogue, CPU now hit the halfway point more than a dozen years into their run. In that time the imprint has grown into one of the most celebrated voices in contemporary electro, its monochrome sleeve design reaching iconic status and early releases trading for big money in certain circles. As such, CPU128 Classics serves as both a victory lap and a line in the sand, a survey of some of the highs in the imprint’s discography and a second chance for CPU aficionados to get their hands on out-of-print material.
Originally released in 2014, Strut re-introduces Hardcore Traxx: Dance Mania Records 1986-1997, highly sought-after definitive retrospective of one of Chicago’s most important and innovative house music. Emerging as a raw alternative to the powerhouses of Trax and DJ International during the mid-‘80s, Dance Mania continued to represent street-level Chicago club music into the ‘90s, helping to pioneer the Ghetto & House sound. Hardcore Traxx traces the full story of the label from its heyday.
Cold Blow presents Bonus Beats: Rare & Unreleased Finnish Electro 1990–2002, a landmark compilation celebrating Finland’s underground electro scene around the turn of the millennium. Featuring 12 rare tracks – including three previously unreleased – this collection highlights a fiercely DIY-driven movement that flourished far from Europe’s major electronic hubs, showcasing a distinctly Nordic approach to the genre. With contributions from notable names such as Jori Hulkkonen, Mr. Velcro Fastener, Mono Junk, and the late Mika Vainio, this release highlights the experimental and DIY ethos that defined Finland’s electronic music scene during this period.
Humphrey Aniakor started Duomo Sounds after a trip to Milan. The idea was to produce a new sound for the emerging generation. A sleek funky but refined, Nigerian disco sound. This compilation captures all of that intention with a broad array of artists. The music is sometimes sung in local Nigerian languages and sometimes in English but always with an African Accent. Modern grooves for an African market. After several months spent hanging out at studios in Los Angeles and New York, observing the musicians, producers and engineers at work. He went to nightclubs to study what kind of sonic textures made the crowd move. And when he felt he had gotten the hang of it, he returned to Nigeria to set up his record label. A label that would showcase the au courant, cosmopolitan face of the Nigeria’s emerging young generation. That would encompass the boundlessness of imagination, focus, persistence and craftsmanship. That would deliver music that touched the soul.
Yarrow Ballet returns with a temperamental twelve track VA compilation traversing from moody experimental electronics to dark industrial sounds, post punk and gloomy synth wave.
Hexagon – the sixth installment in our yearly compilation series – is here, bringing together six tracks that explore a range of powerful and intriguing musical directions. Clouzer kicks things off with a driving EBM monster, setting a bold tone right from the start. Next up, Gunce Aci delivers a high-tempo, hypnotic hard-hitter. Then, Radondo takes us in a darker direction with a haunting EBM piece that blends atmosphere with intensity, creating a sense of eerie tension. Ton Globiter follows with a high energy of a track, infused with his signature vocals that give the track an undeniable punch. Dream Days maintains the momentum, keeping the tensity high. Finally, KMBN wraps things up with an electro-tinged, leftfield track, offering a surprising and experimental finish to the compilation.
Dark Entries has raided the bathhouse to bring us Deep Entries: Gay Electronic Excursions 1979-1985, 10 tracks of obscure queer synth bliss. One of Dark Entries’ most important missions has been illuminating neglected facets of gay musical history, with crucial archival works by legends like Patrick Cowley, Sylvester, and Man Parrish. On Deep Entries, the label spans 6 years of gay electronics – from sultry to angsty to camp, these songs are overflowing with snappy 808 snares and sinewy analog synth leads. The ’80s were a difficult period for many in the gay community as they grappled with the horrors of the HIV/AIDS crisis. The 10 tracks on Deep Entries, varied in genre and vibe, are united in their portraiture of 1980s gay life, and the hope for love or fleeting romance. Previously unreleased cruising soundtracks come courtesy of Patrick Cowley’s “Love Me Hot” featuring vocalist Paul Parker and Boytronic’s “Tonight (Alternate Mix)” set on Hamburg’s famous “Mile of Sin.” Brisbane-based Megamen deliver the proto-electroclash number “Designed for Living,” which prefigures Madonna’s Marlene Dietrich rap in “Vogue.” Trans vocalist Paula “Ula” Villagrá declares, “Everyone is gay!” on Muzak’s “Happy Song,” a skittering tecnopop anthem. Dereck Higgins’ “This Was Something” rings like a lost Joy Division cut draped in bizarre effects, and Polar Praxis’ “(I Want) To Be Different” is a seething ode to alterity. Nightmoves’ “Nightdrive,” is best known as the brooding instrumental B-side to their epochal “Transdance.” Transistor Jet’s “Master Of The Universe (BW’s f-w)”, Maxx Mann’s “Just Like a Razor” and Bachelor’s Anonymous’ “A Stranger’s Bed” are mood music for the pleasures of BDSM and one-night stands. The record comes housed in a retro bathhouse fantasy sleeve designed by Gwenaël Rattke and includes a double-sided poster with photographs and lyrics. Deep Entries arrives on December 1st in honor of World AIDS day, and proceeds will go to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
For its landmark 20th anniversary, Apnea Records proudly presents XX, a double 12″ compilation that chronicles the label’s journey from its inception to its current cutting-edge form. Featuring both original innovators and fresh talents from its recent relaunch, this release is a sonic time capsule and a forward-looking statement. Spanning from deep techno to Detroit-infused house, Jamal Moss’s abstract house, electro, and E.R.P.’s signature machine funk, XX dives into the label’s broad sonic spectrum. With contributions from Alex Under, Damian Schwartz, Jamal Moss, E.R.P., Dopplereffekt, Thomas Brinkmann, and Kyle Hall & Kero, this collection serves as both a reflection of Apnea’s past and a bold vision for the future.
Immerse yourself in an electrifying fusion of analog textures and experimental soundscapes. This record is a bold, underground exploration where Electro, Techno, and Experimental collide in an uplifting yet distorted sonic journey. Crafted with an unwavering commitment to authenticity, the tracks embody the raw, unpolished energy of analog gear, delivering a gritty, dynamic experience. The artists—Filmmaker, Hanniball III, DJ Nephil, Mule Driver, Porosty, and DJ Sigils—bring their uncompromising vision to the forefront, creating a soundscape that rejects mainstream conventions. This record isn’t shaped by market trends or hype; it’s a pure expression of underground artistry, designed to break boundaries and let creativity flow untethered. With each track, the listener is invited into a world where the unexpected thrives, and where the only rule is to push the limits of sound.
Time Passages celebrates their ten years of existence with a stellar line up of artists; this is the full LP to complement a shorter EP. The mood on this one is decidedly hellish yet, of course, for that very reason, tempting to cop; this being the characteristic of the flagrant provenance of DJ and producer Binh, whose brand of sinister minimal techno and electro always turns up scorched, hardened into granite, by the embered airs of hardcore. The Berlin outfit welcome The Model and DJ Hell on the A1 side, with the first opening up his own private bacchanal into the hungry streets with ‘Eat More House’ – a motto we can really chew on – while Hell’s ‘Alienation’ plays on similar themes, with a central acid riff and sniper clap pattern. Barnt and Bezier steer and slow the B-side to a canter, the latter especially on the low-slung, ominously new beat-inspired ‘Roter Faden’, while the likes of Z@p and DC Salas go on to encrust the ensuing sides with a haunted clog of synthpop and new wave judder-offs.
Trust the Rust is back with a vengeance. The second compilation by Kri Records takes up where the previous one left off: rusty electro, occult wave, distorted acid and melancholic EBM. Alonzo opens the release with his signature 808 bass, Hayter pushes pitched-down vocals and filthy electro vibe further, while Chino delivers a diabolical ravey EBM banger. Serbian duo YusYus marches on with an authoritative synth anthem Masters Of The Future and Disco Morato finishes the A side with a hypnotic slow burner Ultime. B Side opens with a bang by Parand, followed by arctic electro mist crafted by System Disorder (aka Dj Nephil). Marco Segato smoothly blended electro and jungle with the track Subconscious, Zagreb collective Lab Personnel’s dark stomper might evoke fist pumps on the floor, while E.L.I.’s nostalgic piece Atonal Being rounds the release.
As the darkness creeps in from the depths of the north, the restless spirits of the underground rise from their eternal slumber. Like a chilling reckoning, the creatures of the night emerge from their graves, summoned by the pulsing rhythms and haunting melodies of Up Norths’s latest offering. This cassette tape release unleashes a malevolent force of EBM and dark electronics, conjuring an unholy alliance of sounds to possess your soul. Let the shadows consume you…”
Dark Entries returns to Mexico with Back Up Dos: Mexican Tecno Pop 1982-1989. Following 2021’s Back Up compilation, Back Up Dos delivers 10 more tracks of synth-pop and New Beat, 7 of which have never before appeared on vinyl. From mutant drum machine beats to irresistible synthesizer hooks, fans of the fringes of the 80s will find songs to stir their cold, dark hearts. But Back Up Dos does more than mine retro kitsch; it documents the development of a rich DIY music scene that is still underexplored. As affordable samplers and digital synths spread throughout the decade, post-punk and new wave gave way to more aggressive EBM and cyberpunk sounds. The scene also developed in opposition to the political climate of the times: the rise of the drug cartels and a reactionary turn in national politics. Using home recording techniques, these bands took cues from the electronic wizardry of the Human League and Wax Trax Records while reflecting the vibrant and chaotic Mexican cultural landscape of the era. On Back Up Dos, impeccable pop anthems from Casino Shanghai and Los Agentes Secretos sit alongside gnarled obscurities from Ford Proco and María Bonita, showcasing a decade of sly deviance and enthusiastic experimentation. Back Up Dos compiles synthetic music produced in Mexico at the crossroads from Tecno Pop to Post-Industrial, nourished by culture shock and stories of dystopian worlds.
Sciahri and his label Sublunar are thrilled to present “Veil Of Echoes,” a new project that brings together both emerging and established talents from the label. This release showcases a fresh dimension of techno and electronic music, celebrating originality by combining timeless cuts from the past with cutting-edge sounds of the present and future. Tracks by Temudo, Troy, Neel, Marcal, Kameliia, Kaiser, Roll Dann, Cirkle, Juri Heidemann and Kerrie.
With eight fresh tracks for the modern dance floor, Token writes another chapter of the Fuga series. Challenging new faces to complete the label’s sound, Fuga V is another focused compilation that balances spatial detail and rhythmic bite. Tracks by Singular Anomalies, Ketch, Justyn Nell, DHAEUR, Maasym, Ray Kajioka, Kameliia and Kashpitzky & Casual Treatment.
The Hipodrome Of Music 