Thursday, September 30, 2021
Quantum Seduction - Wave Particle Singularity (Hot Haus)
Title: Quantum Seduction
Artist: Wave Particle Singularity
Label: Hot Haus
Cat Number: HOTHAUS059
Genre: House
1: Self Control
2: Self Control (M4A4 Remix)
3: Quantum Seduction
4: Cadmium Telluride
A game of two halves this. Both versions of ‘Self Control’ come across as a little bland. Skippy drums helped along by handclaps, keys and a swirling synth in the original, all of which are played with in order to produce a more manic mirror image in the M4A4 Remix. ‘Quantum Seduction’ is a different proposition altogether. Similar percussion is used to ‘Self Control’, but couched in a more profound ambience which nods very much in the way of ‘Deep Burnt’. Finally, everyone’s favourite ode to the composition of solar cells, ‘Cadmium Telluride’, is a more relaxed track, with nice, squelchy keys and that indefatigable UK garage energy.
Wednesday, September 29, 2021
Hand Over Control - Dustin Zahn (Blueprint)
Title: Hand Over Control
Artist: Dustin Zahn
Label: Blueprint
Cat Number: BP061
Genre: Techno
A1: Hand Over Control
A2: Rising Tides
B1: Studio 5/4
B2: Wet Hot Heat
With ‘Hand Over Control’, Dustin Zahn has kept up Blueprint’s high standards without breaking any new ground. This is notoriously hard to do in techno, but while there is a feeling that everything that can be done has been, it is still possible to take the dancer and listener to machine funk nirvana. Zahn’s maxim of “I like it dark enough for the boys, but groovy enough for the girls” is well adhered to on this package, which is four tracks of loop-driven techno; two of which (‘Hand Over Control’ and ‘Studio 5/4’) are wonderfully dense, linear tension builders. ‘Rising Tides’ is there or thereabouts, but slightly less damaging on the Richter Scale, and ‘Wet Hot Heat’ a Miillesque journey into the heart of barrel organ on crack with added bounce.
Tuesday, September 28, 2021
The Weight Of Uncertainty EP - DC Salas (Futureboogie)
Title: The Weight Of Uncertainty EP
Artist: DC Salas
Label: Futureboogie
Cat Number: FBR082
Genre: Deep Disco
1: The Weight Of Uncertainty
2: The Weight Of Uncertainty (I:Cube Remix)
3: Gliding Future
4: They Don’t See It
Nice this. The title track is a splendid voyage into synthetic glitter ball territory with more than a touch of the balearics. There’s a solid foundation of beats upon which are draped all manner of post – italo coagulants. I like it, but feel it occasionally loses some of its intensity. The I:Cube remix is a voyage into disco’s Devonian period. Its first two minutes are a miasma of whirling, dawn-of-time synths which disappear at times, but are thankfully present enough to make listening an immersive experience. Both ‘Gliding Future’ and ‘They Don’t See It’ are that little bit rawer, the former showing off some muscular percussion programming and the latter dabbling in some elemental acid. It’s a polished release that will do the business. However, it’s the remix that stands out.
Monday, September 27, 2021
Departing Like Rivers - Shackleton (Woe To The Septic Heart)
Title: Departing Like Rivers
Artist: Shackleton
Label: Woe To The Septic Heart
Cat Number: SEPTICLP03
Genre: Defies Categorisation
A: Something Tells Me/Pour Out Like Water
B1: The Turbulent Sea
B2: Shimmer, Then Fade
C1: One Of Us Escaped
C2: The Light That Was Hidden
D1: Few Are Chosen
D2: Transformed Into Love
One of the most singular artists working in music, never mind of the electronic variety; Shackleton’s productions sound like nothing on Earth and always way ahead of their time. This is his third album on his Woe To The Septic Heart label, and it’s every bit as immersive and impossible to pigeonhole as expected. Not that I would be so stupid as to try. Listening to it is a pan cultural experience. Walt Whitman wasn’t wrong when he said “(It) contains multitudes.” This is particularly true of the longer tracks: ‘Something Tells Me/Pour Out Like Water’, ‘The Turbulent Sea’ and ‘Transformed Into Love’, but only because you can squeeze that little bit more in. The influence of post punk sampling techniques and Cabaret Voltaire/Richard H. Kirk is very strong, and I’m also reminded of the gamelan escapades of 23 Skidoo. Vocals and spoken word are used as instruments to plug gaps in the musical narrative and as sonic layers in their own rite. The whole collection has a hallucinatory quality that never wavers and gives the listener the impression that they could be anywhere in the world at any time as long as that location is heavily imbued with mysticism and spiritual disorientation. I have rarely listened to an album that weaves so many disparate strands together in order to create a piece of work that is so cross-culturally pervasive. One minute you feel you’re listening to the soundtrack of the souk, the next your cloaked in Britsh folk It’s an amazing listen and one that I advise doing so while in the company of mind bending narcotics, or maybe not . . .
Sunday, September 26, 2021
Saturday, September 25, 2021
Friday, September 24, 2021
Thursday, September 23, 2021
Parallel Series 7 - LaFontaine/Orbe (Mote-Evolver)
Title: Parallel Series 7
Artist: LaFontaine/Orbe
Label: Mote-Evolver
Cat Number: MOTE061
Genre: Techno
1: 3015 – LaFontaine
2: Kokkur – LaFontaine
3: 9DVR – Orbe
4: Trimax – Orbe
The ‘Parallel Series’ on Luke Slater’s Mote-Evolver is a split release run which on this release hosts LaFontaine and Orbe, aka Fernando Sanz. Orbe’s compositions are very much of the industrial trance variety, and sound a lot like what was coming out on Prologue around a decade ago, all kick and grain. Not bad and testament to how influential Prologue has been. LaFontaine, who sounds like French Football’s centre of excellence, has an interesting, off-kilter track with ‘Kokkur’, but ‘3015’ grates. It’s dissonance doesn’t work for me, and it ends up sounding overdone. A bit too scooped neck black tee shirt innit.
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Phoenica - 9th House (Hot Haus)
Title: Phoenica
Artist: 9th House
Label: Hot Haus
Cat Number: HOTHAUS064
Genre: Hi Nrgi Haus
1: Phoenica
2: Phoenica (Loods Remix)
3: Orion
The emphasis has always been on upfront beats and groove with Hot Haus, and this double header plus remix from Phoenica is no exception. The title track is a full bodied bass-driven beast which would be ideal for over zealous aerobics classes everywhere. The Loods remix operates on a more detailed level, not departing radically from the original, but speeding things up and sprinkling trance dust. The more subtle ‘Orion’, which holds the sonic relish, is the best thing here though.
Tuesday, September 21, 2021
We Continue Part 2 - Kerrie (Cultivated Electronics Ltd)
Title: We Continue Part 2
Artist: Kerrie
Label: Cultivated Electronics Ltd
Cat Number: CELTD07
Genre: Techno/Electro
A1: Respect To The Drex
A2: Return To Nazca
B1: TT Drone
B2: We Continue
Kerrie comes correct once more with her second outing on Cultivated Electronics Ltd which presents four tracks of deep electro goodness. There are levels of subtlety embalming each track, so much so that I’m occasionally reminded of the myriad similarities between techno and electro and am glad that I haven’t been put on the spot in order to clarify the difference based on this release. In layman’s terms different electro tones & textures are manifold within this quartet; ranging from the more lusciously layered and dense (‘Respect To The Drex’ & ‘Return To Nazca’) to the stripped down and slightly off-kilter (‘TT Drone’ & ‘We Continue’). Probably the most recognisable electro excursion is ‘TT Drone’, with both A1 & A2 straddling the techno divide, the water bring muddied due to sonic embellishment. The title track is out on its own with its skittish rhythm that, when paired with disorientating auricular agility, unpredictably joins the machine funk dots.
Monday, September 20, 2021
It Spills - Hassan Abou Alam (Naive)
Title: It Spills
Artist: Hassan Abou Alam
Label: Naive
Cat Number: NAIVE015
Genre: Break Beats
1: It Soills
2: Unkindled
3: Breathe
4: Khamaseen
5: All Used Up
Known as “Cairo’s foremost breakbeat master” Hassan Abou Alam has, with ‘It Spills’ managed to put his own stamp on a genre that is absolutely everywhere at the moment. And, more to the point, bring something new and distinctive to it. Each of the tracks here blend breaks, bass, deep complicated strange noises and an original take on syncopation. The ultimate effect is one of beat intrigue and fascination. What I like most about the tracks herein is that they are as abstract as one might expect while remaining cohesive and representational. Particular favourites are ‘Unkindled’ and ‘Kharmaseen’, whose aural emissions are just that little bit more twisted and, to my ears at least, completely typify this particular sonic approach. What it is though, I can’t say.
Sunday, September 19, 2021
Saturday, September 18, 2021
Friday, September 17, 2021
Thursday, September 16, 2021
Wednesday, September 15, 2021
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
Monday, September 13, 2021
Collective Continents II - V/A (Inner Shift Music)
Title: Collective Continents II
Artist: V/A
Label: Inner Shift Music
Cat Number: ISM 014
Genre: Deep House
01: Take Some Chances – Mark Hand
02: The Last Letter – Platform 001
03: Horizon – G-Prod
04: Aheeoo – Leo Gunn
‘Classy’ is an overused adjective when used to describe deep house. However, it’s the first word that involuntarily comes to mind when listening to this EP which, even though it is a various artists’ offering, finds each track united by the spirit of jazz and analogue warmth. Another thing is that although the jazz I like to listen to bears very little resemblance to what can be found within these grooves, there are enough residual inflections, encouraged by a driving rhythm, to maintain interest and movement. G-Prod’s ‘Horizon’ is my pick here. It’s a very useful piece of space funk which oozes panoramic magnitude. The whole EP is great though, with every track having been dipped in the Larry Heard gene pool, but offering something a little bit different respectively.
Friday, September 10, 2021
Thursday, September 09, 2021
Perceptual Channels EP - Bufobufo (Emotec)
Title: Perceptual Channels EP
Artist: BufoBufo
Label: Emotec
Cat Number: EMOTEC002
Genre: Break Beats
1: In The Reeds
2: Scrying Mirror
3: Silver Disc
4: Remote Viewing
If you’ve ever wondered about the ability of the uncompromising floor filler to tell a story, then look no further. With this release BufoBufo does just that originally and on his own terms. The beats are, as ever, the foundation, but the different ways they have been embellished show great imagination and belief. There are occasional flirtations with vocals, which seem to vaporize almost as soon as they appear, and I can clearly see the hip hop influence in both ‘In The Reeds’ and ‘Silver Disc’; which is what I like the most about this release, which is neither one thing or another. It does defy categorisation to an extent and comes across as an expression of deep hardcore, within the realms of which whole new worlds exist and constantly mutate.
Wednesday, September 08, 2021
Inertia EP - Black Cadmium (Transient Nature)
Title: Inertia EP
Artist: Black Cadmium
Label: Transient Nature
Cat Number: TN003
Genre: Techno
1: Gold
2: Inertia
3: Imaginary
4: Lady D
It’s fair to say that Black Cadmium have forged their own sound and that this sound, while still in its infancy, already sounds polished and assured. For the sake of argument I’m still going to call it techno but, as the press release sayeth, there are “grimy UK sounds” as well. The synchronisation of two of the most futuristic sounds currently surfing the air waves is never more fully realised as on ‘Imaginary’, which mesmerises on the strength of an undulating drone, claps and a kick which sounds like my heart after a 10k run. The title track is perhaps the least abstract piece here, but maybe the most effective, having a tribal, incantatory feel that is difficult to resist. Both ‘Gold’ and ‘Lady D’ are more melodically urgent and impatient, each making use of spectral synth swathes underpinned by pacey lower end. It doesn’t necessarily sink in first time around, but you’ll get it eventually.
Tuesday, September 07, 2021
The Exiled - V/A (No Static/Automatic)
Title: The Exiled
Artist: Various
Label: No Static/Automatic
Cat Number: NSA002.1
Genre: Electro Mainly
1: The Exiled – Ara-U
2: Not Afraid - Manao & Elektor
3: X’mon With The Real – Dagga
4: Bass Atomic – Ara-U & Dagga
5: Generator – Confidential Recipe
6: Hung Up – ELO
7: Decode – Manao
8: X’mon With The Real (Arrival Mix) – Dagga
This is a compilation with very good intentions behind it. The artists are Venezuelan and the proceeds will be going towards the funding of a poverty relief charity. ‘The Exiled’ refers to the artists themselves, who currently live in Colombia, Argentina, The UK and Germany. Whether the situation will improve enough for them all to return home is anyone’s guess. What is certain is that their new homes have provided them with the inspiration to make good music and to become integral members of their respective local scenes. This collection embraces electro more than anything else, but makes use of updated rave tropes and, unsurprisingly, dabbles in break beats. Ara-U’s two contributions are both super intense and an accurate indication of the general mood dictated by the track selection. ‘Not Afraid’ ‘Hung Up’, ‘Decode’ and ‘Generator’ all chime in on a similar frequency, while both versions of ‘X’mon With The Real’ take breaks into an extreme context, with the remix upping the ante on the original. All in all a great release which doesn’t compromise on quality.
Monday, September 06, 2021
I'm Not Like Other PPL - Tred (Lobster Theremin)
Title: I'm Not Like Other PPL
Artist: Tred
Label: Lobster Theremin
Cat Number: lt091
Genre: House
1: I'm Not Like Other PPL
2: Dead Droid
3: Secrets
4: Don’t Need A Thing
5: All Messed Up (Digi Only)
Having listened to this EP all the way through I suppose I should cut any possible future crap and say “contemporary hard dance” isn’t my thing. If that is indeed what this release has been branded, then there’s not much more to say on the matter. This is not to ignore Tred’s obvious production skills, but the high velocity that pervades each track, except
‘All Messed Up’ I find lacks funk and depth. The press release refers to “an old school, psychedelic experience” where the “old horror film vocal samples” are concerned; but any such feeling is obliterated by the sheer pervasive Duracell bunny timeline. It’s the digital only relative restraint of “ All Messed Up’ which provides the releases highlight, for me anyway. ‘Don’t Need A Thing’ is the best example of its type here though. A roaring depth charge of energy which seems to decompose and coalesce multiple times within its lifespan.
Saturday, September 04, 2021
Friday, September 03, 2021
Imaginary Mixing
At the moment my house is in a state of disrepair. We have lived here for 14 years, but in all that time had not had any work done on it. That changed in spring this year. We started off by having an annex built in the front garden, followed by a new shed in the back. So far so reality tv home improvements programme. At the beginning of June the big stuff started. We entered the realms of the middle class aspirational lifestyle by having a kitchen extension. The work is still in progress, but should hopefully be finished at the beginning of next month. During all this upheaval, playing music has been difficult because my decks are in the room next to wear all the renovation is taking place. So, apart from playing cassettes, albums, stuff that I can switch on and leave for a while, the permanent stench of disruption has, to a large extent, kept me off the decks. (I should also add that this room is the most comfortable place in the house for my partner to work).
With this in mind, I have been imagining more mixes than ever before.
Because when all else fails, if I can go out into the world secure in the knowledge that I’ve laid down an hour or two of perfectly synchronised sounds, I feel better. When a mix goes well it does wonders for my mental state. This doesn’t mean that I’m all over the place until that happens, just that I’m uplifted after it does, no matter where I am to start with. What is ironic about my current situation is that I hadn’t been behind the decks much recently, but now that it’s impossible due to circumstances beyond my control, I want to play more than ever. “There shall be no limitations, save those personally placed”. Said no one in particular. And it’s at times like these that I wonder how often the common or garden DJ actually practices his/her craft. There was a thread on Twitter at the beginning of lockdown that expressed surprise that a significant amount of DJs don’t invest in their craft. They don’t own turntables, or balk at the idea of spending money on a pair of CDJS/XDJS. And I know that I’m dealing with different levels of devotion here, but I can remember playing lots of parties with DJs who turned up with the same records again, and again, over a period of years. This wasn’t because they’d hit on a future proofed playlist, I mean theior records weren’t very good anyway. They just didn’t buy records. They didn’t even bring headphones to the gig. You’d be on before them and the first word you’d hear would be “Hi Mate. Is it ok if I borrow your headphones for my set?” These people, with few exceptions, are the worse and can do one. They’re never buying you a drink, you can be sure of that. They’re taking your headphones off you and prematurely ageing them while playing their fixed ensemble of 20 or so records, each of which looks like they’ve been a plate for some fish and chips.
Anyway, rant over. I’m obsessed with many things, and one of those things is the art of DJing. It doesn’t matter if it’s vinyl or digital, either format is great. When I make my mixes I prefer a blend of the two. I’ve never been arsed about the really technical side of the art though, I lack focus and patience. This is something I will try and sort out however, once I get my space back. Like many, I’m buying far less vinyl now, but am still lucky enough to have quite a bit of digital sent to me. The main problem here though, is that I wouldn’t play much of this in a set. I will listen to a lot of it, and review some of it on these pages, but not play it, except in a radio show, another thing I’d like to re-establish. And I can’t believe that vinyl is still a thing. I mean I think it’s great but, it’s environmentally unsound and backward. Digital is where it’s at and any vinyl I buy from now on is purely based, not just on playability but collectability as well. Who are the best DJs as far as tehcnical skill is concerned? Derrick Carter will always be the first one that comes to mind. I have always been blown away when I‘ve heard him. His energy is second to none and he plays records I might not normally like and bends me to his will. This is his X Factor. Terry Francis and Eddie Richards for sheer grooviness. The skill might not be obvious, but how often have you heard them put a foot wrong? Two other Twitter threads I came across, both from the same day in May this year:
“IMO DJs should stick to one genre... I didn’t come to the club to hear your iPod on shuffle.”
“Do you reckon it’s a disadvantage being a multigenre dj? Do the cons out way the pros?”
The first one is provocative, the second speculative. Both espouse the same general viewpoint and, while I don’t think anyone should be limited by genre, I do agree generally with the first. The reason why is partly because of the sentiments expressed (there’s no way I’m happy with someone I’ve come to hear play a specific type of set go all “eclectic” on me), but also because it doesn’t matter anyway. Any DJ playing within the constraints of a particular genre should be able to add whatever he or she wants to as long as it maintains a groove. James Lavelle was infamous at Bar Rumba in the nineties for throwing anything and everything into the mix. His club night, “That’s How It Is”, that he ran with Gilles Peterson on Monday nights, while seminal, was often, according to some, a little “over eclectic” (whatever that means). There’s no doubt it stood at the crossroads of more than one converging scene, so part and parcel of this approach was already deeply ingrained. I went once, had a great time and don’t remember any wayward DJing.
Aside from that though, is there anything worse than turning up to hear someone play only to find out that they’ve gone down a route that you don’t associate with them and, worse still, something that kills the vibe? Admittedly this doesn’t happen very often, and if it does, it’s normally advertised. If I go to hear one of the Romanian minimalists play, I want to hear a groove that goes on forever, and not drum and bass. These guys often play such long sets that the range of music therein is considerable, often manifesting itself as a potted history of underground deep house and techno (that’s techno at a house tempo, the best sort). These guys are skilled technicians and it’s frustrating that more of their mixes aren’t available online. There’s almost certainly the influence of Villalobos here, who thinks that everybody should come out to hear him play and not have to rely on recordings. The man is out of touch if he thinks even a fraction of those who want to are able to. Although I agree very much with the idea expressed, it is touched by more than a little arrogance and could be related to the mindset of someone who seemingly doesn’t give a second thought about playing a party in Zanzibar at the height of COVID. He’s not the only one, there are many more, as mentioned already within these pages. So it’s at times like these that it’s necessary to state that it’s the music that matters and those who play it are just conduits. I couldn’t give a toss about these cattle in general. Those, who for me, are making the best noises are the multitude of unsung bedroomers. It doesn’t matter if they’ve never played a bar, the results of their efforts are largely indistinguishable from those of their more illustrious peers on blind tests. “No one has better musical taste than me”, and I believe that. I play the music I like in the order I like the way I like. And it’s not predictable. No two mixes are ever the same, even with the same records. However, I’m not up my own arse enough to not realise that there are plenty who do do it incredibly well and have very high artistic standards. At the moment, there’s no one like Eric Cloutier, whose ‘The Arsonist And The Architect’ series is conceptually spot on, and incredibly crafted. Mr Cloutier has raised the bar here, and has blazed a path for others to follow. “It’s mixing Jim, but not as we know it.”
Thursday, September 02, 2021
All You Need Iz Rhythm - Donnell Knox (Hot Haus)
Title: All You Need Iz Rhythm
Artist: Donnell Knox
Label: Hot Haus
Cat Number: HOTHAUS063
Genre: House
1: All You Need Is Rhythm (fest. Beata)
2: The Dog
3: Channelling Crystal Energy
Donnell Knox has a discography going back nearly 30 years. However, in spite of this obvious wealth of experience, he’s served up a massive turkey with ‘All You Need Is Rhythm (fest. Beata)’. It’s a repetitive piece of big room vocal house which outstays its welcome and grates. The vocal sounds out of place and not well produced. ‘The Dog’ is a funky piece of twitchy minimal techno which more than serves its purpose and ‘Channelling Crystal Energy’ a more full-bodied piece from the same stable, again though with a repetitive spoken word, as in the title track. This motif overwhelms somewhat and would have been more effective used more sparsely. An uneven package to these ears, with more negatives than positives.
Wednesday, September 01, 2021
uu002 - unknown artist 002 (unknown-untitled)
Title: uu002
Artist: unknown artist 002
Label: unknown-untitled
Cat Number: uu002
Genre: Synthetic Smorresbord
a1
a2
b1
b2
Like so much that is being released at the moment, the dominant motif here is the break beat. The quest to stand apart, however, can produce interesting results. A lot of what I am reviewing right now falls into this category, which can become a cliché in itself. The good news is that almost everything I am writing about gives me something positive to say. Who knows who is behind this release on this label. It really doesn’t matter. It’s anything but formulaic and is reassuringly inventive and abstract, working on a variety of levels. There is an omniscient feel to the whole package, permeated by a playfulness and capriciousness which isn’t easy to achieve. The “do tracks really need names” debate, of which I have been engaged in with myself for longer than I care to remember, is laid bare here, as any connection with lazy metaphors is not given a chance to flourish. A lot is encompassed within: hardcore, break beats, chin-stroking redux, IDM (never understood the term, but I’ll use it) and ultimately techno. It’s wonderfully imaginative and varied, defying easy categorisation, and makes one wonder who is at the controls.
