Track Of The Day: Holloware Squad - Surface Intention (Emissions Static)

 

An incredible, early piece of work from Carl Finlow, amongst others. ‘Surface Intention’ is the AA side to the magnificent ‘Moonax’. It’s a brooding, intergalactic monster whose power is in its restraint. I mean the drums don’t kick in until around half way through. It’s all about rewarding the listener, but it is also a bit of a tease. I like tracks where the different elements seem to have been atomised. Everything here feels like constituent base element meltdown. This what happens when you attempt to put a tune in a centrifuge and then try and make sense of it while your head is still spinning.

Track Of The Day: Sweater - Feelings Of The Future (Omnidisc)

 

It’s great when a track sums up its title in such a contradictory way. ‘Feelings Of The Future’ is one such expression. This would have been appropriate in the mid eighties, around the time I visited Berlin for the first time, (about to go for the second this June), and the cold war was in full swing. Not that I was A space-age synth disco connoisseur at that time. That would have made life more interesting. It did seep through though, from time to time. And whether or not I was immersed in it, this track IS it. The “looking back to look forward” aesthetic distilled into fine freaky minutes.

Track Of The Day: E.R.P. - Multipole Vector ll (We're Going Deep)

 

This has recently been released on the excellent We’re Going Deep’ which is overseen by Paul Wise, aka Stasis. The back catalogue is pretty special, so getting Gerard Hanson to contribute is the cherry on top of what has been released so far. All of the tracks are more than worth your while, and I’ve chosen this one because it underscores a lot of what makes Hanson such an outstanding producer. The elements within; sinister growling base, spacial awareness of sound, the disparate flourishes and embellishments which gather around the space but never seem to crowd it out, and the momentum it has, which isn’t always apparent in electro, but is definitely one of Hanson’s calling cards, all contribute to make this track unmistakably one of his. Tracks like this soundtrack our dreams and our imagination And although this is a reworking of one which is nearly twenty years old, it still sounds like the future.

Track Of The Day: Jay Tripwire - What Kind Of Voodoo? (Big Chief)

 

One of many tracks that Jay Tripwire has made over the years, and also one that perhaps typifies more than most a very particular era in house music. This tribal sound, imported mainly from the west coast of America, was everywhere around 25 years ago. You do have to wade through the tech house marshes to extract the good stuff however. So many labels and artists, but maybe only a handful were producing this sound with any real flair. It was absolutely huge in clubs like Wiggle and its various offshoots, and is having its day again. I guess the essence of it is fusing tribal percussion with dub and a thick low end. There are plenty of mutations though. Anyway, this is a lovely piece of work so get the drugs out and throw some shapes.

Track Of The Day: cv313 Plays Mike Huckaby - Our Life With The Wave (Intrusion Dub) (Echospace)

 

A lovely, sensurround dub excursion. Mike Huckaby, who died in 2020, left a wonderful legacy and this eloquent piece of abstract dance flies on the energy generated by its own sonic emissions. It’s another one of those tracks that you can get completely lost in and which unravels slightly differently each time. It’s make up a multitude of inflections based upon whatever you happen to be thinking about.

Justin Aulis Long | KALEIDOSCOPE

 

Track Of The Day: Blue Muse vs Studio Nova - Guerilla Tactics (Zodiak Music)

 

I remember buying this from Tag Records in Rupert Court many moons ago, It was a regular haunt for me and Mark Collings was as responsible as anyone for emptying my pockets of disposable income. It’s nothing remarkable, but its tribal overtones and wild pitch veneer make it pretty irresistible, One of those to break out as a slightly more interesting functional piece of sonic topsoil.

Track Of The Day: Air - Le Soleil est press de Moi (Source Lab)

 

Paris in the mid 90s was such a fertile bed of creativity and productivity were electronic music was concerned. And in amongst all of the house and filter disco there was also a very strong trip hop scene. Air sort of came along via that, while remains completely unique amongst it all. And this track, with its woozy ambience and cinematic scope feels like an abstract beat venture encased in amber. Frozen in time but still encompassing more than its era. A great track that sort of folds in on itself. Very introspective and made for a non specific headspace, while still having a universal feel. Dopplereffekt stepped up to remix duties, which sort of seals its magnificence.