Khotin – For U To Feel [HTH004]

After making his debut with a delightfully dusty scalpel job on Canada’s Common Edit imprint, Khotin spent 2014 showcasing home-made blends of new age deep house and intoxicating “intelligent techno” on 1080p and Normals Welcome. Here, he pops up on Heart To Heart with more melodious, dreamy, retro-futurist fare. There’s naturally much to admire throughout, from the relentless drum machine handclaps, swirling pads and crystalline hits of “AT03”, to the intergalactic textures, thumping kick-drums and spacey electronics of “XP Waste”. Best of all, though, is “For U To Feel”, whose bubbling electronics and picture postcard melodies are brilliantly offset by a clattering drum machine groove.

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Khotin – For U To Feel [HTH004]

Dego – The More Things Stay The Same [BLACKLP004]

The More Things Stay the Same is Dego’s sophomore solo LP – a collection of soulful, mid-tempo melodies laced with warm synths, impeccable beats and masterful musicianship rooted in Jazz Fusion, classic Funk and Electro. In making the album, dego digs deep into his life experiences. From the first track to the last, his sonic signature inscribes his impressions on the duality of life. Dego says: The More Things Stay the Same is about the state of play – truth can bring despair as well as hope. The two sit side by side. Like history often repeating mistakes, but also bringing learning and progress. For the LP, dego leads a team of stellar musicians and trusted co-conspirators: multi-instrumentalists Kaidi Tatham, Mr Mensah and Matt Lord, as well as vocalist Sharlene Hector of Basement Jaxx fame. Hip-hop artist TY also makes an appearance on The Middle Ground. With The More Things Stay the Same, dego carries out the vision of his influential 2000BLACK label and collective, formed in 1998 to continue the legacy of black music and to contribute to what makes soul, boogie and dance music great.

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Dego – The More Things Stay The Same [BLACKLP004]

Aurora Halal – Shapeshifter [MD002]

The 2nd release on Aurora’s Mutual Dreaming label with a nice collection of dreamy Legowelt-esque tracks. ”The EP dives deeper into the unique sound world introduced by last year’s Passageway, its 5 tracks a deftly conjured ride through liquid emotive states. Shimmering waves of dark hypnotic energy rise and fall, evoking both synthetic plasmoid menace and soft sighing warmth, all brought to life by Halal’s nuanced and rapidly evolving sound design.”

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Aurora Halal – Shapeshifter [MD002]

Food Pyramid – Oh Mercy [EES017]

FOOD PYRAMID - Oh Mercy

Food Pyramid align with Especial for a remix EP based around “Oh Mercy”, a track from their 2012 album Mango Sunrise. The warped breakbeat jam-fusion of the original is ripe for reinvention and gets the remix treatment from Especial in-house team Apophenia (aka  Piers Harrison, Stuart Leath, Tim Fairplay), Inhalt and Jamie Paton.

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Food Pyramid – Oh Mercy [EES017]

George Kamm – Durst & Hunger [MME6006]

Reinforcing the way things happen since the beginning on Macadam Mambo, London new comer George Kamm has selected and adjusted 4 cuts of Weirdo synth-pop, alternating dance floor killers and experimental nuggets. No need to say that its again high digging level, and extremely well done edits.

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George Kamm – Durst & Hunger [MME6006]

Borrowed Identity – XXX [CCS098]

Circus Company welcomes a new character into the fold in the form of fast-rising artist Borrowed Identity. Across the four tracks on the XXX EP, the perfect balance is struck between powerful rhythmic commands and psychoactive decoration, combining everything needed for a memorable club cut.

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Borrowed Identity – XXX [CCS098]

Credit 00 – Party Beats [UV028]

CREDIT 00 - Party Beats

Here are some plain and simple cuts by yours truly Credit 00 that push just the right buttons to make people move. The tracks were made exclusively for his live set but they are too good to keep them back. Without superfluous frills these four bangers scream “Party” in every note but as usual with Credit 00 there’s also a melancholic side somewhere behind those tricky beats.

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Credit 00 – Party Beats [UV028]

Mark Forshaw – Peer Pressure EP [SCN008]

Liverpool label Scenery Records continues to shine a light on local talent by next turning to Mark Forshaw for a new four track EP. Remixing is the singular Autodidakt Records boss Daniel Andréasson and once again the release showcases a gloopy, analogue heavy house and techno sounds with influences of acid and beyond.

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Mark Forshaw – Peer Pressure EP [SCN008]

Antoni Maiovvi – Tusk Wax Seventeen [TW017]

Antoni Maiovvi makes his Tusk Wax debut with this four tracker of neon tinged sci-fi soundscapes made for high speed chases, robot showdowns and replicant love scenes. Treating fans and newcomers to a sound they’ll surely love, Maiovvi balances between some kind of tech lounge and danceable electro on this soon-to-be sought-after two track vinyl.

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Antoni Maiovvi – Tusk Wax Seventeen [TW017]

Amir Alexander – Love & Fear! [AC007]

“A recontextualized hybridization of that which is familiar to create the foreign….
Using classic Chicago, Detroit and New York as a reference, I sought to explore new sonic possibilities while limiting myself to the classic machines and sounds of the era that inspired me to dedicate my life to this art-form.
Revivalism was not my intent. Perhaps neo-futurism if any ism’s must be assigned. That, and a strict code of minimalism. I aspire to use time, space, and absence, as well rhythm and sound, all in equal measure to create suggestive music (pun intended). Defined as much by what is not there as by what is. Music for travel. For Dance. For Contemplation. In a club among hundreds, or at home in bed.
An album. Along player. A fantastical voyage through the soul and mind via abstract, minimalist etudes exploring the range of emotions that are joined to a particular year in my life. Using as few elements as possible to create the most emotive material I could, these studies are recorded documentation of one student’s pursuits to master the craft of creating raw, yet elegant. Rich and sonorous, yet stripped down modern electronic music. For the club, at home, and everywhere between. Modern music for modern living.
I hope to contribute to the progression of the form and create excitement in the next generation so that some of them will also be inspired to expressively create and add on to the culture. Peace”

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Amir Alexander – Love & Fear! [AC007]

John Heckle – Wet Noises [MNSX003]

The secret to John Heckle’s impressive productivity is probably his admirable commitment to jamming with analogue hardware. Certainly, there’s a loose, all-action immediacy to this outing on Midnight Shift. Tinged by acid throughout, and with more than a few nods to both Detroit futurism and vintage British “intelligent techno” (most obvious on the early Orbital style, stargazing shuffle of closer “Frozen Planet”). The title track itself is particularly potent, offering a surging combination of stomping techno drums and intoxicating acid lines, while the bleaker “Alpha Deux” sounds like the musical foretelling of some kind of post-apocalyptic future.

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John Heckle – Wet Noises [MNSX003]

Roger 23 – Future Jack Programs To Respond (Section 1 & 2) [RHYTHM013.1]

First release in a series of two by the bad boy from Saarbruecken, Roger 23, bringing 3 crystal clear future jackers and deep & deeper techno tracks.

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Roger 23 – Future Jack Programs To Respond (Section 1 & 2) [RHYTHM013.1]