Invisible Darning brings together 4 unique acts, covering a wide spectrum of techno and electro. Crystal Maze’s Crossroad Blues kicks off the EP with slow mo tripped out techno. Dez Williams’ Hand on Mouth follows up with spaced out, stargazing electro. On the flip we have Switzerland’s Echo 106 – 100M Splutter bringing stuttering arpeggiated synths for an epic showdown. Closing the EP Albert Van Abbe resurrects his dormant The Pulse Projects for the brutalist crunching Grounds.
Privacy debut on Valcrond Video. Mr. Privacy would hang around all day eating stuff and listening to Siamese Dream with Luke until the office manager who keeps things in line was forced to ask them both to leave. A deal was struck: In exchange for a continued flow of free snacks and treats, Privacy agreed to provide these 4 tracks. In the same way Privacy is unable to resist a warm chocolate croissant, no one who plays records in public for a living will be able to resist these audio delights.
Overlord of Polish techno, FOQL, drops 2 originals and 2 remixes on this tape. Slabs of heavy, doomed out techno get complimented by remixes by Tapirus (aka Charlton) and the German techno duo Fallbeil. Peak hour madness.
The new imprint The Game presents their first release with 4 high-talented players: Skymark, Nas1, Jose Rico and Gari Romalis. Each producer delivers something different on this debut EP, expect crispy acid sketches, running MPC sequences, synths unleashed and a jackin’ low end.
Five guys jamming together, each throwing in funk-nuggets from a finely honed appreciation & a shared love of the good groove. This studio project was compiled from a free-wheeling desire to just team up and play together, see what happens.
MOS Deep is back with a fascinating four track EP, The Tales Of.. Part 1, that veers from slow and beatless to fast and energetic. It comes from R-A-G and is a soundtrack to a distant world with corrugated drums, free flowing synths and lots of mysterious forces at work.
TX Connect steps up for Lower Parts 09. Replacing Memories is a pounding voyage into the unknown. Pulsing acid and urgent FX ring out over banging drums.
ENDILL006 goes split. Scottish Stephen Lopkin and Greek DimDJ have delivered quality Detroit informed house tunes straight for the floors, except “Grave Roll” which can be nice opening track. 909 turns 707 and It’s not Endless illusion without proper synth lines.
Debut four tracker by Peeping Tom on the Pinkman imprint. Blistering techno and dramatic electro injected jams from this unknown Rotterdam based voyeur. Comes with an insert with pictures taken on the streets by the peeper himself.
Lush house and surf ridin’ techno from Italian producer Lock Eyes. Coming from within the heat-wave drenched depths of Puglia, Lock Eyes’ tracks are a crossroads where harmonious polyphonic synths meet rough-cut vintage drum patterns and sun-soaked dreams of future nostalgia.
Jean Nipon most recently known for his standout productions on Parisien label ClekClek Boom joins the L.I.E.S. stable. The a-side sees Nipon go straight for the throat with a Chicago-esce muted-synth beating drum track, not unlike early Poindexter or Ricky Smith productions- it is effective, dj ready, and geared for the club. The two track b-side takes a more mellow and dusty approach- without losing his sense of rhythm engaging drum programming push along tape warbled melodies as the tracks expand and release, balancing out and letting this ep breathe perfectly.
Grainy and overdriven machine house from Brazil on Berlin label 777 which sounds like it’s been recorded from tape. This stuff is properly dirty in a seriously lo-fi way… First track “Charlie” is dirty techno punk using a rusty pawn shop drum machine pattern and backed by growling black metal guitar feedback; pretty serious! Next up “Mini Folia” clangs and clatters about the shop with a skipping and antagonising melody plus more overdriven guitar grunt in the background. On the flip “Metados” is more uplifting and dare we say… soulful? This melancholic deep house number still packs some punch with its overdriven kick and bumping bassline though, don’t worry. Finally “Damas” is one more underground basement jam; a driving vintage groove with equals parts emotion and machine hiss and squeal!
After a promising start like “Night Drive” The Caribbean House is finally introduced by his creator/curator Billy Bogus through this four tracks EP. The Caribbean House is a live project that finds Bogus teamed up with Federico Bologna, from seminal Technogod and Ohmega Tribe collective, and Cristiano Santini, from legendary italian act Disciplinatha. Straight from electronic Italian suburbia of the nineties, skilfully mixed with Bogus uncommon approach, this is an outstanding blend of new wave and slow motion disco, strictly for midnight vultures. Let’s begin Very DJ friendly, “Ivory Pagoda” hits with a catchy rhythm which evokes some sort of deep techno vibes but with house-disco flavours and jazz aftertaste. “Il nuovo Dragone” sounds like an afro spin cycle with gluey synths and a hidden sick atmosphere. On the b side: “Haitian Party” is a lively piece that can also be crepuscular and “Ivy” comes full circle with a hypnotic afro-wave with a premonition.. This EP aims to break the rules through a bizarre idea of temporal continuity which may look like a bit of a paradox : from the dark vibes/atmospheres of the 80s via the glacial synths and the warm sampled beats of the 90s to the vaporous present day disco. If you are a DJ who knows history on the dancefloor but also like to experiment with the unusual you are definitely going to love this one!
With tickering hi-hats leading the first tracks on both side A & B Skymax enters a familier Finnish sounding disco (and part rock) sphere with kraut elemtents, synth-bass, a DJ Sotofett dub, a tango-fied slow machine ballad and a beatless 80s soundtrack conclusion to round it off. It has that utterly great and little-bit-hard-to-swallow Finnish quality stamp.
Antoine Harispuru, otherwise known as Golden Bug, has been delivering consistently excellent levels of disco-tinged house and electro over the last eight or so years, and it was only a matter of time before he’s pop up on Ivan Smagghe and Leon Oakey’s eclectic Les Disques De La Mort. The original mix of “Wild Boys” features Yan Wagner drooling over the beats in his familiarly lamenting, 80’s reminiscent style, and there’s a Lord Tusk mix on the back of it; the Londoner adds a subtle EBM flavour to the song, making harder and more penetrating on the dancefloor. “Ik Voel Je” is the weirdo in the crew, a magnificent piece of lo-fi psychedelia that stutters its guitar riffs amid heavy distortions and delays, while “L’Horloge” enters Kraftwerk territories thanks to its broken chops of mechanical voices and robotic beats.
The Hipodrome Of Music 