Mar 14, 2018 New Music Downloads Dimi Angelis, Fixon, Flug, P.E.A.R.L., Fixeer, Maccaaria – Illegal Alien X Years Vol. III / IARLTDX003. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Review: The second instalment of the Raw Trax series sees Surgeon deliver an exhilirating, grimy take on techno music using just some basic equipment. The untitled 'A1' cut follows the direction of the first release, with a hammering drum track underpinning noisy riffs. He ups the ante on 'A2', where the slamming rhythm is infested with buzzing bee acid lines, before returning to pared back kicks and razor-sharp percussive bursts for 'B1'. Rounding off this second volume is the frazzled electronic noise of 'B2' - like the rest of the Raw Trax series, it should be required listening for anyone considering a dive into the world of techno production. Review: Long-serving DJ Justin Cudmore has put out releases on labels that have been affiliated with his DJing such as Interdimensional Transmissions and the Bunker. However, he now widens his gaze with this debut on Phonica's White offshoot.
Like those previous Eps and his own DJing, the sound of Chicago and in particular acid, looms large here. 'Twisted Love' resounds to a rolling, drum-heavy backing, breathy vocal samples and some of the most tweaked, tripped out 303 lines known to humanity. On 'About to Burst', the mood is not as intense, but Cudmore still manages to imbue the spiky, percussive arrangement with the type of wired acid action that will get spines tingling and pulses racing. Review: Tracks from Max Cooper's One Hundred Billion Sparks album from 2018 get remixed by a veritable who's who of underground electronic music. Barker turns 'Phi' into a jittery, broken beat piece, while in Synkro's hands, 'Rule 110' turns into a stop-start slice of drum'n'bass, with the original version's melodies unravelling over its hyper-speed breaks.
Parra For Cuva and Roly Porter's takes on 'Hope' make for more reflective, immersive listens, particularly the Porter version, with its expansive, hymnal ambience. In contrast, DJ Tennis & Barratt pick up the pace with their edit of 'Reflex', turning it an undulating groove, while Robag Wruhme's version of 'Volition' is a superior piece of glitchy minimal house. Review: Arrow Of Time is Joel Mull's first artist album in eight years and serves as a reminder that he is one of techno's greatest and most enduring talents. Issued on Swedish label Parabel, it starts with the heart-beat pulses and haunting ambient swirls of 'Irreversible' and the brittle electro drums and woodwind of 'Up That Hill'. While 'Gleaming' sees Mull focus on the dance floor, the drums are low in the mix and the melancholic, frosty melodies take centre stage. This tempered approach does not last however, and 'Northern Spheres' and 'Caver' are Mike Parker-style, frequency shifting grooves, while 'Mnemonics' and 'Colorblind' are wonderfully sleek, streamlined techno tracks - both as straight and deadly as an arrow.
Review: Issued on Moerbeck's label, Mute takes the listener back to early / mid-90s techno. 'Have You Ever Had A Dream' conjures up feelings of wide-eyed wonder and fear, like an innocent stumbling upon Sven Vaeth's Omen residency for the first time. This is achieved through an airy ambient intro, followed by thundering beats, skull-rattling percussion and then some unintelligible background ramblings. The title track dispenses with any pleasantries and oozes menace as concrete kicks and cheese-wire percussion take hold. Only when it breaks down to a vocal that asserts 'everything is swimming in silence' does a human element become apparent.
'Sabotage' and 'Lost Signal' are decent, acid-soaked tracks, but neither captures the naked ferocity of the first half of Mute. Review: Manchester legends 808 State return from a 20 year hiatus with their new Initial Granada Report EP. On digital format only, this will be followed by yet another EP towards the end of August - all leading up to the new album. Features 'Ujala' a funky and bouncy tribal house epic with jacked vocals that shows these guys haven't lost their groove at all. The hypnotizing acid mayhem of 'Tokyo Tokyo' shows they're still up to old tricks (and still some of the best!) and the fierce breakbeat action of 'Bataglia' harks back to the days of big beat - and is like something out of an action movie car chase scene. Review: Clouds, Quail and Turtle inaugurate their new Headstrong imprint after a series of parties in Glasgow with the same name.
As you can tell by the artists on on offer here: it's gonna be a pretty noisy affair. First you will find preferred special guest from London Randomer: who goes straight for the jugular on 'Myanmar' galloping like a racehorse through your speakers and supported by immaculately programmed polyrhythms and druggy vocal loops. Unlike the previous title, it's actually 'Spooky Hermann' that delves into the exotic; with its hypnotic tribal rhythms and Millsian melody that slowly and woozily drifts out of tune: very clever. Then, the Perth Drug Legends aka Clouds deliver the school yard anarchy of 'Overflow Ya': a rapid fire attack to the senses, followed by the body-bashing peak time assault that is 'Nitrous & Oxide'.
Review: After a series of Eps on Pinkman and Brokntoys, Identified Patient aka Job Veerman makes his debut on Dekmantel. Drawing on industrial, ebm and electro influences, it's a tantalising affair that starts with the low-slung rhythm of 'The Drip' featuring Sophie Du Palais' seductive tones. On 'Let Me Do It', Veerman maintains a similar pace, but delivers a stripped back, menacing groove that resounds to an ominous bass, while 'Chantals Chant' sees the Dutch producer draw on the acrid 303 sound of Bunker to decorate his industrial rhythm.
On the final track, Veerman delivers the most dance floor arrangement, with 'Lucy's Comeback' throbbing along to a bleak ebm drum track. Review: Following on from releases on Suara and Noir, Ruiz makes his debut on Drumcode. It's an expertly weighted release that balances dance floor needs with some truly distinctive flourishes. The title track is built around powerful kicks and firing percussion before the Brazilian producer drops a pulsating electronic bass that surges and builds with all of the raw, twitchy power that you'd expect from a Terrence Fixmer record. On the flip, 'Unveil' sees Ruiz drop machine-gun blasts of percussion over concrete kicks; these elements act as a basis for crackling, detuned electronic riffs that will ignite any club like lightning strikes in the night sky. Review: 'Saturnia' is the first single from Benjamin Froehlich's album titled Amiata, which will be out May 10th. The Permanent Vacation boss serves up a moody and roaring epic here, awash in shimmering melodies, dramatic strings and steely rhythms perfectly crafted for maximum dancefloor drama.
The Munich-based producer then taps two current scene heroes for remix duties: London's Kiwi takes the track into even more raw, jacking and brooding territory with his rough around the edges version, while Italian duo Margot go into intoxicating and futuristic minimal territory on their expertly crafted rendition that we particularly enjoyed. Review: 'Talking 2 B Mad' is the third collaboration on Rekids between label owner Matt Edwards and upcoming producer Patrick Mason under the SRVD alias. Like the previous Eps under this name, it shows that the pair have perfected a hard-hitting techno sound. The title track cruises along in excess of 130bpm, its pummelling drums breaking down into frazzled trance riffs that have echoes of Thomas Heckmann. 'Twitch' isn't quite as frenetic, but once again, it sees them dive headlong into a driving percussive sound.
Powered by pounding kicks and littered with dissected vocal samples, these elements make for the most eloquent big-room techno that you'll hear this year. Review: Following his R&S debut last year, Berlin-based American Afriqua (aka Adam Longman Parker) presents Vice/Principle, which veers into psychedelic territory and is inspired by the cosmic departures of '70s krautrock and jazz. After several years developing a hefty catalog of releases, Parker has embraced his R&S signing as an opportunity to dive deeper into his signature, yet versatile sound. From the hypnotic and ethereal bounce of 'Melamed', the broken beat hi-tech soul of 'Noumenon' or the immaculate production of 'Cerch' which showcases Parker's classically trained foundations, he serves up a cohesive effort here which further demonstrates his abilities as one of electronic music's most innovative sonic heroes.
Review: After a series of releases for Delsin, including their 2017 debut album, Robin Koek and Nick Lapien aka Artefakt get the remix treatment on the label. First up is an inspired choice, Forest Drive West, who turns the title track from their debut Delsin EP, The Fifth Planet, into a dreamy, droning stepper. Evigt Morker is tapped for a version of the same track and delivers a droning, rolling techno groove that stretches out to infinity and beyond.
'Tapeloop', from their Kinship long player morphs into a dense, droning workout thanks to Polar Inertia's touch, while Valentino Mora brings the release to a reflective conclusion with a teased out, atmospheric take on 'The Blue Hour'. Review: Robert Hood has just put out an artist album under his own name for Dutch label Dekmantel. However, that release doesn't seem to have put paid to his Floorplan schedule, and he returns with this religiously themed release. The title track follows the same approach as usual for Floorplan, with the Detroit producer laying down a bumping, tracky rhythm and a screeching gospel diva vocal. On 'Made Up in My Mind' and on a new 'Lyric' remix of 'Never Grow Old', a similar aesthetic applies, with uplifting piano keys and bouncy grooves providing the backing for euphoric vocals.
The only exception is the jarring, grinding 'He Can Save You', but in general, this is a deeply spiritual affair. Review: Label boss Scuba dons his SCB alias to deliver this split release with Wehbba, who has previously released on high-profile labels like Drumcode and Tronic.
That hypnotic, big-room sound is audible on 'Survival', where steely drums are fused with wild acid pirouettes. The title track is less intense, and sees the duo deliver a pulsating groove that's framed by steely percussion and ponderous vocal samples. 'New Culture' is more stripped back, with this unlikely pairing focusing again on those steely drums, underpinned this time by an insistent filter. 'Green Planet' is similarly focused, as rolling, Palstikman-style percussion and acid drones unravel over solid kicks. Review: Acclaimed Italian duo Mind Against return with a four-track EP of spiralling, hypnotic techno on acclaimed label Hotflush - for the second time since 'Elysium' / 'Pulsar' (with Locked Groove) in 2015.
From the tunnelling adrenaline rush of the title track which is sure work the floor under the strobelight, there's also the brooding heads-down factory floor stomp of 'Forevermore' and a bit of material more familiar of the duo on the epic dance floor drama of 'Mirage' - complete with its wonky bass line, intoxicating melodies and euphoric pad layers all geared for some moments of pure zen in the main room. Review: Recent Kompakt signing Anna Miranda teams up with Miss Kittin for this frenetic, visceral ode to raving. In its original format, 'Forever Ravers' resounds to a grinding bass, peak-time rhythm and Kittin's own unmistakable vocals about being eternal ravers. On the flip side, there's a fine reshape from Anna; the 'Raving In Space' remix sees her deliver a peak time arrangement, this time with wave upon wave of cold bleeps building up to an unforgettable climax. It's great to see Miss Kittin back releasing music, and Speicher 112 also provides the platform to showcase the production skills of her Brazilian collaborator.
Review: La Fleur is on a roll; having worked with Sasha and completed an Essential Mix, she now turns her attention to a release on Kompakt's Speicher offshoot. 'Tears' is based on a bubbly groove and tumbling drums, with a melody unfolding over these elements. If you listen close enough, it's possible to discern a vocal sample buried deep in the arrangement - marking 'Tears' out as a truly evocative pieces of music. On the flip side, John Monkman teams up with James Monro for 'Pesto Funk'; a slinky slice of tripped out techno funk punctuated by sonic belches, it's in stark contrast to La Fleur's melancholic approach. Review: Bubbletease Communications' releases are defiantly infrequent, reflecting boss man Maurice Fulton's desire to only release personal projects and those he's somehow had a hand in. Given Fulton's track record, this approach guarantees a high quality threshold; in truth, Bubbletease releases are rarely less than excellent.
This four-tracker from Tokyo-based DJ Nori, co-produced by Fulton, is predictably impressive. There's a touch of melancholic, acid-flecked stargazing in the shape of 'Spaceg' (all heady synth melodies, fuzzy bass and 808 cowbells), some out-there, beatless space calypso (the unwieldy 'We Don't Know'), and a mighty chunk of Syclops-ish wonk-jack ('80s Drugs'). Oh, and a moody, Detroit-influenced Fulton remix of 'Happy Sunday' that breaks into a space disco jam near the end. Review: Ritzi Lee follows 2016's Audiologics release on Mord with this storming affair. It starts in fine form with 'Refactored'.
A rolling, tribal techno affair, similar to vintage Ben Sims, its dramatic filters and dense kicks make for a powerful combination. On '9 am', he goes down a minimal route, with razor sharp, metallic riffs underpinned by a driving rhythm.
'Lucid State' is less intense, as scratchy percussive elements support a dubbed out groove. It's only a short respite however; 'Invected Machine' sees Lee bounce back with a peak time, angular rhythm before he embarks down the filtered route again on 'Entangled'. Review: With a few albums and releases on labels such as Pinkman and Computer Controlled to his credit, Norwell aka Bal?zs Semsei is making a name with his grainy take on electronic music.
That approach is brought sharply into focus on New Physics, his Lobster Theremin debut. 'Base-1' unravels to menacing synths, while the title track and 'Paradox Logic' are grainy electro funk tunes that feature blasts of analogue noise and tight, steely drums.
'Motif' sees Semsei again focus on experimentation - this time thanks to his use of a murky wall of bass - while both 'Humanoid Forms' and 'Train To Inamuragasaki' mark a return to the grainy electro that prevails on this EP. Review: Following the first installment of Journey Of The Deep Sea Dweller, Clone delves back into Drexciya's archives for the follow-up. Like the first release, the Dutch label has been granted access to tracks from the Detroit duo's earlier releases, including Bubble Metropolis and The Unknown Aquazone, which fetch hundreds of pounds online. Journey Of The Deep Sea Dweller 2 is also fascinating for the way that Clone have curated and programmed it. 'High Tide', from the ultra-rare, shamelessly expensive Uncharted EP issued on Somewhere in Detroit in 1997 kick-starts the release in abrasive mode as yelping analogue riffs and rolling snares rush in over a malevolent, insistent bass.
And despite all the music media's talk and pontificating about Drexciya testing the boundaries of electronic music, invading our subconscious and bringing us to new worlds, it should not be forgotten that they were also entertainers par excellence. Even at their most obtuse, on the dystopian synths of 'Unknown Journey', the duo were sneaking in EBM basslines and memorable hooks. It's a similar story on the squelchy P-funk of 'Danger Bay' (also from Bubble Metropolis), which features a brilliant but daft 'ha ha ha ha' male vocal sample and 'Dead Man's Reef' (from 1997's The Quest), with its mock-horror riffs unfolding over phased hats and murderous bass.
The other misconception about Donald and Stinson was that they were merely an electro act. The warped, low-slung minimal techno of 'Bang Bang' replete with mock robo vocals dispels this myth - and could be the sleazy counterpoint to DBX's pure minimalism - as does 'Davy Jones Locker' (from 1996's True People: The Detroit Techno Album).
With its warped bass and mysterious piano lines, the lithe rhythms seem to cruise in a space between Detroit electro and UK jungle. The tendency to inhabit these grey areas is also audible on 'Journey Home', taken from the eponymous 1995 EP for Warp. On that occasion however, Drexciya push towards a 4/4 arrangement with their warm low ends and woozy synths making for one of the most nakedly emotive and personal takes on Detroit techno. In case the listener is in any doubt about Stinson and Donald's mastery of many sounds, the beautiful 'Neon Falls', with its dreamy synth hooks and innate fragility brings this second installment of Journey Of The Deep Sea Dweller to a close. Forget the hype, myths and half-truths surrounding Drexciya; just drop the needle on the record and dive straight in.
Review: Celebrating its tenth anniversary, Modularz delivers a split EP featuring label owner Developer and upcoming producer Roll Dann. 'Ritual Master' is every bit what you would expect from a Developer track - ominous, streamlined and deadly effective as he loops a hypnotic electronic riff over a pounding kick. 'Lone Mystic' reveals a different side to his canon, as he fuses a repetitive vocal sample with an eerie organ riff. On the flip side, Roll Dann immerses a tough techno track in colourful rave riffs to create an unusual hybrid, while 'Soul Bag' is a more typical Modularz track, as eerie tones unfold over a lithe, rolling groove.
Review: There's no info on the producers behind the latest missive for Modularz, but suffice to say that it'll appeal to fans of the label's heads-down sound. The title track starts the release in firing form, with oppressive kicks and a steely rhythm providing a basis for the pair to deliver a stinging, pulsating groove. On 'Jack And Verge', Nurbak & Temudo follow a relatively similar approach, albeit with sharper drums and a searing bass to the fore.
![Pulckerstrs Pulckerstrs](http://edmtitans.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/KHFF.jpg)
Rounding off this impressive release, on 'Value Of Icons' the production pair put their focus on tribal drums and the kind of loopy approach that will appeal to fans of Ben Sims.
Stanislav Tolkachev – February (original mix) (06:12)2. Bas Mooy – Mist (original mix) (05:33)3. Mari Mattham – Arancia Acida (Alexander Kowalski remix) (06:03)4.
Rebekah – Grey Exposure (original mix) (05:56)5. Dimi Angelis – Bossanova (original mix) (05:00)6.
Aleja Sanchez – The Acheron Passage (Electric Indigo remix) (06:29)7. Deepbass & Ness – Multidimensionalmanalien (original mix) (06:47)8. Fabrizio Lapiana – Absinth (original mix) (06:09)9. Fixon – Anguish & Fatigue (original mix) (07:02)10.
– Lost Basement (original mix) (06:10)11. Ricardo Garduno – Edge (Jeroen Search remix 2) (05:24)12.
Eric Fetcher – Askone (original mix) (05:43)13. DJ Saint Pierre – Appolllloo (original mix) (05:31)14.
NX1 – IA1 (original mix) (06:19)15. Isolated Lines – Degraded State (Fixeer remix) (06:30)16.
Bichord – Elements (original mix) (05:28)17. Dorian Gray – It Was Advanced (original mix) (07:06)18. Svarog – Working Time (original mix) (06:41)19. NORBAK – Miry (original mix) (05:48)20. Dig-It – Principio De Incertidumbre (original mix) (06:16)21. Flug – Pulckerstrs (original mix) (05:13)22. Unkle Fon – The Exorcist (Vaeg remix) (06:27)23.
Aempty – Voices From The Lake (original mix) (05:49)24. VII Circle – Unknown (original mix) (06:37)25.
Booz – Q13 (Ritzi Lee remix) (05:00).