The Fantastic Planet EP sees Höppner collaborating with Japanese DJ and producer Gonno on three bouncy, club-enabled tracks, steeped in early 90s House and UK Electronica vibes.
ostgut ton
Nitam – Cancellate [UTON09]
New varied sonic themes with an overall fresh sound. Although still being young of age, Nitam outlines once again his interest in dance music from the late 80s and early 90s, presenting himself schooled by classic Detroit House as well as Chicago Acid House, but all without limiting himself to a restricted pallet of styles or catering towards musical expectations.
Etapp Kyle – Continuum EP [UTON008]
As with his previous releases Etapp Kyle captures his playful, multi-layered Techno endeavours with single-word track titles: Continuum EP starts off with Opto, an atmospheric track with fazing bleeps, ensouled synths and subdued claps – a prime example of his great feel for musical detail. Ahora builds upon this vibe with more asynchronous drum patterns, well placed drips of melody, distant pulses, mesmerizing pads and hints of rattles amongst other percussion. The EPs title track Continuum is distinctive through its use of industrial hammer jabs and reduced, puzzling synth pads that are counteracted by a more dominant, steady and stubborn kick drum. Limb contrasts unconventional pulsating, hypnotic synth tones with sharp claps and snare sounds, and rounds off this 12“ of all new, puristic and futurist Techno, catering as much to the darker corners as to the brightest spots of the dance floor.
VA – Zehn/Drei [OSTGUTLP2003]
Drei of Zehn comes with original tracks by Function and Substance as well as Len Faki remixing L.B.Dub Corp.
VA – Zehn – Zwei [OSTGUTLP2002]
The second volume of Berlin institution Ostgut Ton’s ten year anniversary release. This particular volume features Berghain resident and label mainstay Marcel Dettmann offering us “Encode II”. Once again this is A grade techno by one of the modern greats. Regular guest at the club and Dial artist Efdemin serves up “Unten Links” a driving and adrenalised groove based around a nice arpeggio, rapid fire woodblocks and evil samples. New addition to the family Kobosil gives us “Saldae” a restrained yet furious stomper with doomy strings and sonar blips.
Kobosil – We Grow You Decline [OSTGUTLP021]
Berghain young gun Max Kobosil gives us his debut album. We Grow They Decline is surprisingly more restrained than you’d expect from Kobosil given his reputation as a DJ and of course those pretty fierce EPs he released previously on MDR and Unterton. Most tracks on here are slower, deeper and reflective takes on the techno sound and show a sense of maturity in this emerging talent’s studio prowess. Kobosil delves even deeper into Ambient and Industrial soundscapes. Drawing influences from Musique Concrète via Electronic Body Music towards present-day Techno, the tracks combine gritty textures with melodic hints and contrasting bleak off-beat rhythms with Drone passages.
Kobosil – 91 [OTON091]
Berlin’s Kobosil made his debut on the Ostgut Ton off-shoot, Unterton, back in 2013 and the 12″ was received with mighty praise both within our headquarters, and from the techno community as a whole. He has now earned a spot on Ostgut’s main catalogue with the 91 EP – surely named after his year of birth. On the A-side, “Avernian” grumbles and punches its way through heavy kick drums and a sea of distortion, but “Athtar” ditches the beats and heads down the inevitable ambient-drone wormhole. Flip onto the B-side and you’ll find the alien-like sounds of “Konvergent”, alongside the more straight-laced slice-and-dice techno of “Per”.
VA – Ostgut Ton: Zehn [OSTGUTLP020]
Its been zehn years, ninety-two 12”; EPs, twenty albums, fourteen DJ mixes, seven Unterton releases, two compilations, one 7 single and one cassette. Within this time, Ostgut Ton has grown as a label not only in terms of catalogue numbers and musical variety, but also in terms of experience, professionality and as a musical haven for Berghains and Panorama Bars residents.
Steffi – JBW25 [OTON090]
Steffi revisits her Power Of Anonymity album with three completely new versions of ”JBW25” by Further Reductions and Answer Code Request. Brooklyn-based duo Further Reductions left a big impression on Steffi with their 2014 Woodwork LP on Cititrax. Now Shawn O’Sullivan and Katie Rose turned ”JBW25” upside down and inside out. The original version’s hypnotic synth bleeps are still there, but rhythm-wise Further Reductions live up to their name: Their version is a stone-cold and arhythmic interpretation of ”JBW25” with additional vocals, pushed to the absolute fringes of dancefloor compatibility. Berghain resident Answer Code Request contributes two versions to this release: While his ”Vision” adds a tough drum beat, percussion and a stronger focus on the Ambient textures of the original, his ”Revision” is more break-heavy, melodic and dreamy while setting a darker tone and mood overall. With the original version and its Techno and Electro drive this 12” comes full circle a good fit for record bags travelling to various party settings and moods.
Function – Berghain 07
Nitam – Retold EP [UTON006]
Its debut release time for Nitam as the Retold 12″ surfaces on Ostgut-Ton’s intermittent sublabel concern Unterton. It’s certainly the kind of friendly, melodic stuff that the Berlin label gravitates more readily towards, with a healthy amount of techno powering the machines. “Retold” strides forth with big room intent but not at the expense of the depth of the track, for it is indeed a hypnotic experience to behold. “Neotyp” meanwhile edges in a touch more groove to make for a gentler overall mood, before the muscular pump of “Value Time” brings in some sturdy bass, edgy strings and swooping synth tones. “Exiam” finishes the EP off with a drum-led workout that will have plenty of DJs swooning with mixable delight.
Virginia – My Fantasy EP [OSTGUTTON083]
Steffi – Power Of Anonymity [OSTGUTLP018]
Berlin-based Dutch DJ and producer Steffi returns with her second album Power Of Anonymity on Ostgut Ton, featuring laid-back, melodic cuts like ”Pip”, ”Fine Friend” and the break-heavy title track next to more straightforward, hypnotic dance floor pieces such as ”Selfhood”, ”Bag Of Crystals”, ”JBW25” and ”Bang For Your Buck”. Besides her solo instrumental productions, Steffi’s collaboration with longtime friends Dexter and Virginia on the uplifting, percussion- driven vocal track ”Treasure Seeking” is the icing on the cake. Just like ”Power Of Anonymity” as a single piece of music, the album itself lives on an industrial-resonating structure of 808s, crisp synth stabs, pulsing staccati and dark, percussive drumbeats. With her second album Steffi recalls classic, landmark Detroit Electro, while creating her very own modern, retro-futuristic sound.
Continue reading “Steffi – Power Of Anonymity [OSTGUTLP018]”
VA – Panorama Bar 06 Part II [OTON082]
A second 12″ sampler for Ryan Elliott’s soon to drop Panorama Bar 06 mix opens with “Take It Slow”, a rugged house jam of the finest order from The Oliverwho Factory and proceeds to take in cuts from former label manager Nick Hoppner, Deadbeat, Dettmann and Sushitech mainstay Makam. Individually the standard of these exclusives is remarkably high and it will be interesting to see how Elliott has slotted them all together for the free to download mix. If we had to guess, Deadbeat’s superb glistening house burner “Woah” would make an appearance towards the end thanks to his high tempo, whilst Dettmann’s swirling layers of ambience on “Light” feel very much like a set opener.
VA – Panorama Bar 06 Part I [OTON081]
It’s the onset of a brave new era for Ostgut Ton as Panorama Bar 06 signals the label’s decision to halt the manufacturing of CDs for their much loved series of mixes. Due for free download via the Ostgut site on August 11, the Berlin operation have not forgone the vinyl format with all the exclusives gathered by mix curator Ryan Elliott pressed up across a pair of 12″ samplers. And boy did Elliott call in the favours with this first sampler featuring new and unreleased music from Newworldaquarium, Roman Flugel, Terrence Dixon, Tuff City Kids and Borrowed Identity. It is an overall exquisite selection, running from the ambience of NWAQ’s contribution to Flugel’s big room stomper and the sweeter, more playful sounds of Tuff City Kids and Borrowed Identity.
Tobias – Remixes [OTON080]
Mathew Jonson & The Mole, Peter Van Hoesen and Blue Hour deliver three of the album tracks in remix form.
VA – Masse Box [MASSEBOX001]
May 2013 saw the premiere of the choreography ‘Masse’, a co-production between Berghain and the Staatsballett Berlin. A whole evening of contemporary dance which has been set up by three different choreographers is in need of three different sound producers. The painter Norbert Bisky has been chosen to create the stage design. At the core of the dance night lies a tryptichon made out of pure sound: the music of Henrik Schwarz, Marcel Dettmann & Frank Wiedemann and DIN aka Efdemin & Marcel Fengler was taken as the starting point for developing the choreographies.
Marcel Dettmann – Seduction [OTON076]
For this remix EP Dettmann lets Deuce, Anthony Parasole and Ryan Elliot take control of the temptation.
Tobias – A Series Of Shocks [OSTGUTLP016]
Second solo album from accomplished Berlin based producer Tobias Freund. Continuing his exploration into ‘non-standard’ electronic music, and expanding on the rich sound palette charted in his first LP, ‘Leaning Over Backwards’, this new chapter presents 10 versatile tracks taking us ever further into the purist, evolving sonic world of Tobias. ‘A Series of Shocks is Tobias’ is an impressive return to longtime home Ostgut Ton. Beginning with the beatless melodic pulse of the Steve Reich-influenced “Entire”, Freund works his way through a range of clandestine techno compositions, touching on claustrophobic acid and intense late night thump (“Testcard”, “Ya Po”), scratchy Chicago jack (“Instant”), deeper moods (“The Scheme of Things”) and, most thrillingly, early ’90s influenced intelligent techno. It’s in these moments – “If” and tactile ambient breaks of “Cursor Item Only” – that A Series of Shocks really flies.
Answer Code Request – Breathe EP [OSTGUTTON075]
The first Answer Code Request EP on Ostgut Ton. Patrick Graeser has already caused a stir with his recent releases for MDR and his own ACR label. His debut 12” for Ostgut Ton begins with ”The 4th Verdict” and immediately shows clear direction.
The Hipodrome Of Music 