Brand new material by Marcos Cabral following his False Memories 2xlp archive release earlier this year. On the Capri Social EP we see Cabral offering three varying tracks all touching upon the outskirts of house, techno and beyond as he captures the energy of the machines to create effective and engaging psychedelic excursions.
Irish electro producing artist DeFeKT will supply the second Electronic Explorations 12″ release. Strong analogue sounding electro techno, raw industrial edged tracks.
It’s been a busy couple of years for the producer behind the Shifted project. On top of an extremely well-received album for the Mote Evolver label, the producer has edged further out into the fringes of electronic music under a number of aliases, taking in noise/ambient variants as Covered In Sand, as well as more distorted, technofied productions under the Alexander Lewis moniker, a sound described by the Blackest Ever Black label as “S-M techno.” His new album as Shifted, Under a Single Banner, finds the producer converging these strands into a lucid re-imagining of techno, starting off from the toughened, purist templates honed down by the likes of Sandwell District and Marcel Dettmann, and stretching out into more textured, sometimes noisy, often introverted and melancholy signatures. It’s a perfect fit for Bed Of Nails, a label that’s given a platform for the more direct dancefloor mutations of Dominick Fernow’s own productions as Vatican Shadow, Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement, and Christian Cosmos, as well as familiar Hospital Productions affiliates such as Kris Lapke under the Bronze Age guise. There’s a rich and earthy warmth to Under a Single Banner that’s perhaps at odds with the puerile fixation on all things noisy at the fringes of techno these days, but for the most part, the tension and momentum keeps the album definitively aimed at the floor without ever resting on its laurels.
Madteo’s return to Morphine. Really expanding his electronic pallet for this one and going into some heady experimental realms. Insider continues down the distinct path the fast talking Queens resident Madteo took on last year’s Sahko long player with “The Hiding Hand Principle” a particular highlight. It’s a sparse, sinister affair, with a high pitched drone wailing just under distorted vocals lurking just out of earshot, and a crawling kick drum that seems to drag itself along the ground like a wounded animal.
Farah (formerly Darling Farah), joins Don’t Be Afraid for his first release of the year, and his first under the newly shortened pseudonym. The itinerant young producer adopts a uniquely non-conformist approach to house and techno on this EP, as evidenced by the arcade game-sampling Cloudy Apple and the deranged funk of Lockhead. Speak On The Spotlight meanwhile presents a deeper option, whilst Humming and Pieced Apart hint at Farah’s sound design credentials.
Chiffre opens with “Tegal E”, boasting strong kicks, intricate percussion, fierce bass lines and a haunting synth lead which introduces the listener to Hakim’s deep cerebral textures, patterns, and rhythms. Up next, a remix of “Nabodani” by DJ Spider takes things to the next level with heartthrob kicks, jazzy percussion loops, and menacing soundscapes. Opening the B-side, we have Murdoc’s remix of “Vatitio”, a smooth rendition of the original featuring winding bass lines, unique synth pads and rhythmic pauses throughout the progression of the track. Concluding the release is the final track, titled “Gangsta Glide”; a strong composition returning us full-circle, back to Hakim’s dreamlike spheres of heightened reality.
A collection of hits, misses, new loves, and future head scratchers running the gamut from floor ready beat tracks (Legowelt) to post chill out room bleep-hop (Daywalker & CF) to industro-wave anti beat experimentation (Svengalisghost) with no restrictions or limitations. As with last year’s American Noise compilation, disc one revists prime cuts from the nearly 30 releases the label will have released by the end of 2013, while disc two compiles unreleased tracks exclusive to this cd. A document of the immediate energy surrounding these musicians here and now, maybe one can call it club music for people who hate going to the club? or simply “Music for Shut Ins.”
The road to Hell is paved in gold. One that guides to Disorder, Repression and eventually a last leap into OD. Yes, boy, this is Life. Unfair, menacing, dark and twisted, like the new EP from R-A-G out on Lux Rec. The Dutch trio presents its first release outside the M>O>S legacy and delivers three excessive tracks wandering on the fringes of the jacking zone, analog techno and wavy obscurity. Walk in, embrace Life. Hear it pulsates, disappear.
And here we are, just as promised, exploring the dark corners of Nick Lapien; the man otherwise known as Metropolis. This time around, he comes back with a pair of extended cuts that veer off into heretofore unexplored terrain, relishing in detail with a sharp focus on momentum and lyricism. ‘Glow’, the A side, uses a basic 2-note sine wave bass line and a 136 BPM kick as the backdrop for a 13+ minute descent into a thicket of static and clattering modular craftiness—a pathway into the unknown through auditory hypnosis. On the flip side, ‘Rebuild’, a milder 4/4 beauty, uses a soft bass riff for its duration as shuffling synth experimentation stretches the stereo field. A long trumpet solo by Mark Nieuwenhuis casts a soothing, mournful light into the piece. Immerse yourself into the sounds and let yourself be guided, let yourself be found.
After their wonderful EP from a year ago, the Fishermen are ready to take you on a diving trip with their very first album, an accomplishment in itself With “Patterns and Paths”, Thomas Jaldemark (YTA) and Martin Skoggehall (MRSK, Smell The Flesh) have crafted a rather mesmerizing story of abstract and figurative tropes altogether, and eerie is probably the best word to describe the general mood of this, but hard and raw eeriness! The affair starts with “Green Horn”, a gentle foreplay setting the tone for an imminent journey into the lightless abysses. “Hope Is gone” further enhances the incoming grim turn of events in a coil-like fashion before “Serpents” makes our feet and hips take over our fear of the unknown. The trance has indeed begun and we’re soon entering a hidden warehouse rave cave of un-earthy shamanism, the unforgiving stomp of “Get None”. “Dyspnea” manages to find a path into deeper regions the groove shift towards a darker funk with “Lost Teeth”, a caribbean techno banger that’d wake any zombie in the making! “The Four Skulls” suddenly hints of a safer journey with healing percs and melancholic pads, but “Rise” soon shatters those false hopes with an evil lurking motoric groove. Then, you hit “Scurvy” where the pace slows down a little only to introduce the seductive side of this gloomy adventure, a challenge to you feet inducing lascivious moves. Keeping you in trance, “In Solitude” kind of combines both previous tracks strengths with an added Twin Peaks value. Now finally reaching the far bottom of the ocean, the mood gets even more claustrophobic with “Sunken Mosque”, the last stage of this trance before maybe getting back to the surface. Indeed, if “Torments” might let you catch a breath of air, it is filled with minerals, the world above has changed, and you might very well feel safer back under the water, a reverse mirror to Mike Ink’s old Gas project.
Prolific, eclectic, and always evolving, Ben Sims’ name has been synonymous with quality techno for nearly two decades. His enviable career path mirrors the history of twenty years of popular music in the UK, drifting from hip-hop and reggae into the early days of pirate radio, the peak of acid house, and pummeling hardcore. Sims has always been a precocious listener – in his early teens he would DJ his school’s disco parties prior to gaining a reputation as an advanced talent on the rave and club circuit – and his experience is reflected in the timelessness of the selections on fabric 73. Beholden to no specific era or genre beyond the power of their pure transportive grooves, on fabric 73 Sims showcases the restlessly creative selections that continue to make him an essential and inspiring DJ for advanced techno listeners worldwide.
One year on from ‘Perceiver’, Peter Van Hoesen presents his first live album, documenting his performance during the Time To Express label night at Tresor on July 19th 2013. Armed with three synths, a drum machine, two iPads and some outboard effects, he covers a brace of new material woven with recent releases in typically disciplined and unrelenting PvH style, capturing his highly efficient energy transfer and breathless momentum in full effect and perhaps providing better context for his music than any studio album could.
The fourth Natch release present many ways to approach modern Techno. Ryc is an acid descent to the underground, driven to the depth by the darkest basslines whilst Raffaele Attanasio take off with a bangin’ remix really efficient on the dancefloor. Meddle shows the pure Natch style at its finest, which Mattias Fridell remix infect with a diverse and powerful rhythmic pattern.
“This mix has turned out pretty Dutch sounding and is exactly where my head is at at the moment. I could have put up a tracklist together for it, however some are unreleased tracks of mine, some are future Creme/R-zone shit and others I have no idea what they are as they are either demos or up and coming white labels….plus shazam needs the business”. Marco Bernardi.
The Hipodrome Of Music 