Transformation – Sketch I [LIES-BLK005]

Deutsche trio killing it on a new LIES BLK. Sandro Stebnitz, Manito Rotschild, and Dieter Flegel met in the late-nineties in Oldenburg Germany while working on the loading dock of the Leifheit Housewares shipping division. Through their monotonous days of shrink wrapping ovens and loading palettes of stainless steel cookware onto tractor trailers, the trio would often relay tall tales to each other simply to pass the time. One such delusional fantasy was that the trio would one day ditch their warehouse jobs and start a band not unlike their mutual hero, Gary Numan. Their fantasy became somewhat of a reality when Dieter gained access to various pieces of musical equipment when his uncle Hans came upon a sudden and untimely death. Unphased by this tragic event, Dieter rallied up his small group and hit the garage, practicing and recording every evening in hopes of making it, just like Gary did. Here we have on record, the only document of their time in the makeshift studio, a 15 minute electronic jam simply titled “Sketch 1”.

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Transformation – Sketch I [LIES-BLK005]

Person of Interest – LIES 020.5 [LIES020.5]

Person of Interest, highly sought after and could be lurking in the shady corners under Brooklyn’s JMZ line. On his L.I.E.S. debut we get soupy remnants of what could be called garage house, pieces of high octane techno, and one slow burning grisled tooth number to close this three track EP out. A strong showing and undoubtedly one to keep your eyes on.

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Person of Interest – LIES 020.5 [LIES020.5]

Motor City Drum Ensemble – Raw Cuts (Remixes) [MCDE1211]

MOTOR CITY DRUM ENSEMBLE - Raw Cuts (remixes)

Given the “contemporary classic” status of Danilo Plessow’s Raw Cuts series – arguably a string of 12″ singles that helped redefine deep house for a new generation – the announcement of a surprise remix 12″ is enough to make even the most level-headed DJs go weak at the knees. Pleasingly, said remixers more than live up to the hype. Marcellus Pittman’s version – smooth and deep, but with enough raw disco cut-ups and wonky Detroit swing to impress those who like it raw – is particularly good, though Mike Huckaby’s locked-in deep house groover is not far behind. There’s also a superb version from Recloose, whose crackly, shuffling beats, sweeping pads and soulful vocal samples recall his earliest productions for Planet E.

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Motor City Drum Ensemble – Raw Cuts (Remixes) [MCDE1211]

General Ludd – Hitit / Kickout [CDR12006]

Tom ‘Dam Mantle’ Marshallsay and Rich ‘Golden Teacher’ McMaster’s debut under the General Ludd alias, The Fit of Passion EP on Mister Saturday Night, was a delightfully sweaty concoction – a riotous trip into percussive, off-kilter house territory laden with dense percussion, obscure funk samples and addictive rhythms. Here, they pop up on local Glaswegian label Clan Destine with an altogether murkier proposition – two tracks of fuzzy, horror-tinged, darkroom oddness. There’s a wayward, tipsy late night feel to the dense beats, nightmarish noises and curious samples on “Hitit”, while “Kickit” – complete with obligatory MC5 sample (as bitten by the KLF all those years ago) – layers throbbing sub-bass and spooky noises over a sparse but intense rhythm. Both tracks are neither house nor techno, but something altogether more intriguing.

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General Ludd – Hitit / Kickout [CDR12006]

D’Marc Cantu – 1210a EP [OE005]

The explosive initiation of One Electronica’s “1210” series comes from Ann Harbours D’Marc Cantu. The series will consist of one twelve inch and one ten inch vinyl. The extensive palate of sounds available on this pack range from slower ambience influenced grooves, outright “jak”, industrial grit pursuing to intense, pace-ridden, electronic mayhem; as heard in “Microdots”.

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D’Marc Cantu – 1210a EP [OE005]

VA – Maud Sarr EP [RB001]

Here comes the first release of the brand new label named Roze Balletten. The label’s first offering is a various artist EP with tracks from Creme’s Innershades, Belgium’s Raw Sketches and Hotflush producer Locked Groove. Innershades opens the label’s account with ‘Volksverheffing’, which is a classically inclined bit of house music with a prominent bassline that dances about with real elasticity. The kick drums are as weighty as Kerri Chandler’s and the singing synths bring some Detroit futurism to the table in classy fashion. Raw Sketches, who also works as Ekleltiker and Tunguska, goes for a much slower, deeper, more purposeful vibe on his track ‘Spilzucht’. It’s one that wanders mysteriously on lumpy drums as sinewy synths perform acrobatics in its midst and will tie you in knots by the time its finished unfolding and evolving. Last but not least, Locked Groove comes hard with his firm techno workout. Machines go wild at the heart of it all and the ticking percussion is angry and insistent: it’s somewhat freaked out and acid in the latter half, working both itself and listeners into a noir frenzy.

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VA – Maud Sarr EP [RB001]

VA – London Housing Trust 005 [LHT005]

A nice mixed bag as ever, featuring label partner Prima’s first solo effort – grooves effortlessly and into darkest Africa , other half of LHT Alphonse brings the drama with – Acid Melody – youngest member Jamie Blanco makes a welcome return – with his trippy little Black Jack and finally newest recruit Asok crunches out this classic sounding piece of 4 to the floor goodness.

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VA – London Housing Trust 005 [LHT005]

Chris Moss Acid – Slam The Box [MATH074] (FREE DOWNLOAD)

Chris Moss Acid returns to Mathematics after a 6 year hiatus with a manic furry onslaught of squelch & tweaks to rupture the mind. Hard hitting acid tracks and good old fashion four to the floor rhythms.

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Free download from Chris Moss Acid on soundcloud!

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Chris Moss Acid – Slam The Box [MATH074] (FREE DOWNLOAD)

D’Marc Cantu – Physical State EP [ANSATZ1002]

D’Marc Cantu has long been a standard bearer for hardware revivalism, having first released his drum machine-heavy blends of vintage jack and starlight rave revivalism on Creme Organization back in 2007. Here, he pops up on Ansatz with a superbly varied trip into warehouse-friendly territory. There are a couple of rush-inducing doses of strobelight-enhanced rave revivalism territory (the frankly nasty “Heater” and brilliantly wide-eyed “Surface Dweller”, which sounds like it’s been ripped from pirate radio sometime around 1992), a Larry Heard-ish foray into tactile analogue deep house (the brilliant “Grey”) and a thrillingly industrial-sounding fusion of jackin’ beats and clanking bleep melodies (“Box Sound Scape”).

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D’Marc Cantu – Physical State EP [ANSATZ1002]

Hotel Lauer – Brudis [PLAYRJC029]

On a rainy late September day in the mid eighties, 7 year old Phillip Lauer didn’t know what to expect from that little new born G, who was referred to as his brother Jacob. On the other hand, Baby Jacob wasn’t very sure of what to make of this – back then still sporty – youngster either, who behaved like his boss. To make a short story long… it took them almost 30 years to finally find out – behind the helm of the infamous Pyramide 2 Studio when conducting this fine piece of home made dance music: the Brudis EP.

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Hotel Lauer – Brudis [PLAYRJC029]

VA – Subwax Record Store Day Series 2014 [SUBWAXRSD2014]

ALEXANDER, Amir/HINODE/SAMUEL ANDRE MADSEN/CHRIS MITCHELL - Enjoyment Of Servitude (Record Store Day 2014)

Versatil EP with strong tracks by Amir Alexander / Hinode / Samuel Andr Madsen / Chris Mitchell. Special Record Store Day 2014 release.

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VA – Subwax Record Store Day Series 2014 [SUBWAXRSD2014]

Soulphiction – Glitz [CCS085]

Michel Baumann has long been a steadfast measure of everything 4/4 electronic music should be, both as SoulPhiction and Jackmate and as a curator of Philpot Records. Coming up from the same hip hop roots that inspired Circus Company in the beginning, he channels a sample-fuelled, jazz-inflected sound that would buckle under the weight of the soul contained within were it not for the strength and presence of his rhythm section. Strong Patrice Scott remix.

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Soulphiction – Glitz [CCS085]