Retape – Signals On The Double [030EP006]

A gorgeous 6-tracker by Norwegian techno/electro/acid artist Retape. The EP takes off where Drexciya and related projects such as The Other People People Place left it in the early 2000s. The title track takes it away and is the most technoid of all with a driving bassline and open hi-hats while long stretched melodies finish it off; this one sucks you onto the dance floor as if it were one big whirlpool. The second cut “Coir” is a serene a downtempo 4/4 track that gets you overwhelmed with an otherworldly melody sneakily coming in about midway. “EMN” then, pulls you straight underwater with its hard hitting snares, plastic bassline and acid feel. The tempo goes up with “Cars”, a delay-heavy spaced out acid track for unstable dance floors. The following track “Rotation” is a beatless excursion into the world of clinical synthesized sci-fi music. The incorrectly named “Moving Down” is the final track and a true upper: high speed melodic electro with a touch of melancholia.

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Retape – Signals On The Double [030EP006]

House of Jezebel – Back In Dogtown USA [VD16]

Voyage Direct label turns to a man who needs little introduction: Dutch legend and man of many pseudonyms Danny Wolfers aka Legowelt. For this first outing on Voyage Direct, Wolfers resurrects the House of Jezebel alias and delivers two tracks of synth-laden analogue house goodness. “Back In Dogtown USA” sets the tone, as Wolfers layers rising chords, darting electronics and wide-eyed synthesizer melodies over a clattering analogue house groove. Wolfers’ ups the tempo dramatically on “I Took A Train In 1979”, transplanting us to the far reaches of our galaxy via jackin’ techno drums, picturesque organ melodies, drifting chords and intoxicating pads. There are echoes of classic Detroit techno, surging Rotterdam electro and vintage cosmic disco, yet it doesn’t really sound like any of these things.

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House of Jezebel – Back In Dogtown USA [VD16]

Head High – Mega Trap [POWERHOUSE505]

Right on cue, Rene Pawlowitz drops another set of Head High bangers just in time for summer. While previous releases from his Power House imprint have been short but sweet affairs, the brilliantly named Megatrap offers a full nine tracks of what Hard Wax have referred to quite concisely as “uplifting Breakbeat Techno in golden 1990s leaning style”. Those who have heard the previous Head High material will know exactly what to expect, but there’s still much excitement to be had in getting stuck into such a sizeable portion of throwback techno, the likes of which are likely to liven up any party. There was never any doubt, but Pawlowitz has done it again.

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Head High – Mega Trap [POWERHOUSE505]

Poisson Chat – Wave Memory [PCM006]

Two years after his last EP Terra Incognita, Poisson Chat is back on Poisson Chat Musique for a very special and personal record : Wave Memory, a mini album gathering six waves recorded throughout 2013, after the break-up of an important love story. This record is his diary, recounting his own experience about a meaningless, dark period in life.

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Poisson Chat – Wave Memory [PCM006]

ADMX-71 – Redacted [LIES052]

Adam-X should need no introduction as he and his brother, Frankie Bones, pioneered techno in a post-disco, pre-Guiliani, New York City through the late-eighties and onwards past the nineties with countless productions under their belts and throwing renegade parties throughout the 5 boroughs. Their record store Sonic Groove served as a hub for purchasing cutting edge electronic music from across the globe and was a meeting point for likeminded freaks throughout the city. Fast foward to 2014, New York City is a shell of what it once was, people have come and gone with the corporate infastructure having eaten its way through any and all subculture. No stranger to change Adam-X has adapted and explored numerous shapes and forms in his electronic music career from X-Crash, to Traversable Wormhole, to his ADMX-71 moniker, on this record, which he uses for more experimental and industrial productions. Througout the three tracks on this record, we get a subdubed yet extremely tense vibe as the carefully composed sounds push and pull against each other slowly trudging to the next destination. Subtle changes throughout, these tracks present a unique take on the traditional EBM sound which upon every listen one will discover something new. Highly recommended for those into the darker territories.

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ADMX-71 – Redacted [LIES052]

Femminielli Noir – Malas Influencias EP [MINDEP001]

Femminielli Noir continue their tour-de-force with some hard hitting rhythms on Malas Influencias. Acid drenched basslines squiggle within your soul like a demented and unhinged drug binge. Heavy warehouse style reverberation adds to the madness, echoing deep and large, like metallic structures being destroyed. Seeking pain in pleasure, this is your only choice. 12” varnished 350g premium quality paper sleeve, with obi strip printed on vellum paper.

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Femminielli Noir – Malas Influencias EP [MINDEP001]

Voiski – Culture To Trash [LIES049]

French producer Voiski returns to L.I.E.S. with another 12 inch of his diverse and refreshing style of techno. Spanning across the board we get epic dramatic builds, post shuffle headnodders and floor crushing sub-bass grooves over these three tracks. Guaranteed to cause major damage wherever and whenever this record is played.

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Voiski – Culture To Trash [LIES049]

Lapien / Metropolis – Marchland EP [PF006]

Nick Lapien has been sharpening his music sound a number of monikers; Metropolis, Nepal and his own name. On labels like Other Heights and Sequencias the Dutch man has moulded smoke stained Chicago, textured Techno and drifting Ambient. For Photic Fields this homegrown talent brings together two of his nom de plums under the banner of Marchland. Basslines bulge, pressing against dampened claps for “Ballad of a Man.” Banks of harmony drift off an analogue ocean, arcs of string dawning into a rich radiance. Submerged notes bend and blur with “Bobby Konders”, streams of synth flowing past columns of carved percussion. Rolling chords see Lapien don his Metropolis mask for “Black Motor Boogie.” Acid vultures circle with beady eyed intent, claws writhe and flex amidst a flurry of beat and pad. The shimmering keys of “The Gatekeeper” takes the listener throw a winding pass. Curving 303 contortions fold and reform under pressurised bursts of tom, cymbal and snare to end this journey into Marchland.

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Lapien / Metropolis – Marchland EP [PF006]

Wata Igarashi – Junctions EP [MDG001]

A diverse and elaborate EP from the seasoned producer Wata Igarashi to launch new imprint Midgar Records. Composed of four tracks exploring the depths of deep techno and house, Junctions is a restless concoction of halfway beats, which lays on background of pulsating noises and sound experimentations. Fluctuating between machine stuttering techno and dusty acid-laced house.

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Wata Igarashi – Junctions EP [MDG001]