Hello,
Techno takes over the big screen - if anyone could ever be trusted to bring the club experience to a cinematic format, it is Richie Hawtin, and this is just what he did. 'MAKING CONTAKT' is the documentary film of his Minus label's monumental 10-year anniversary tour, and is now available for exclusive download from zero".
April was thick with other milestone releases as well - so many in fact that we decided to split our monthly newsletter by genre for the first time - feel free to scroll down to find your favourites. Marcel Dettmann, The Black Dog, Ikonika, CocoRosie and Caribou are just a few names we'll drop to keep you on your toes.
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FEATURED RELEASE
Video-Album released 29-04-2010 on Minus
In 2008 the Minus bandwagon embarked on a tour of proportions previously unheard of in electronic music. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of Richie Hawtin's genre-defining label, the CONTAKT tour visited nine cities on three continents over the course of a year.
The exceptional series of events not only featured Minus' most prominent artists, such as Magda, Troy Pierce, Marc Houle, Heartthrob and Gaiser, but also an impressive array of cutting edge technology, pioneering new methods of collaborative performance as well as audience participation via RFID chips and mobile devices.
Ali Demirel, who accompanied the tour as its visual designer, directed the 80 minute documentary 'MAKING CONTAKT', which gives intriguing insights into the inner workings of the massive project. From the concept stages to the final show in Tokyo, 'MAKING CONTAKT' reveals the tour's highs and lows in a wealth of interviews and live footage.
Insightful, captivating and genuinely funny at times, 'MAKING CONTAKT' is a tribute to the spirit of constant technological and artistic innovation that drives the Minus label and its creative mastermind, Richie Hawtin. The cinematic format of the tour documentary might be a well established genre in rock music, but with 'MAKING CONTAKT' Hawtin and Demirel have created the benchmark road movie for the techno generation.
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TECHNO / HOUSE ESSENTIALS
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Marcel Dettmann's long awaited début album finally sees the light of day. The minimalistically titled 'Dettmann' is almost entirely constructed from reduced percussive loops, which radiate the primeval energy regularly felt between Berghain's booming speakers. Essential!
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One of last year's most talked-about techno producers delivers his debut album. Parts of 'Entropic City' rival Newworldaquarium's slowness, others Marcel Dettmann's industrialism, but 'Entropic City' always sounds deep, organic and innovative. Big album.
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Compilation released 02-04-2010 on Dial
Hamburg's influential Dial label celebrates its first 10 years with '2010', not a 'best of' compilation, but a collection of brand new material by the Dial all-stars: Phantom/Ghost, Efdemin, Lawrence, Pantha Du Prince, Rndm, Carsten Jost, John Roberts, as well as new signings Kassian Troyer and Isoleée. Huge release.
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Accomplished producer Dan Curtin releases his ninth full length album 'Lifeblood': Clearly aimed for the dance-floor, the album's 16 tracks are begging to be played out in dark clubs and during early morning hours. Great return of one of techno's most consistent producers.
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Cocoon's high-profile 'In The Mix' series continues with none other than Dinky, who assembles 28 tracks under the motto of 'free music': 'Musica Libre' is indeed a perfect display of Dinky's free-form approach, traversing abstract electronica, minimal techno and soulful house. Recommended.
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Album released 26-04-2010 on Bine
Another priceless gem from the inexhaustible archives of Move D, 'Interference' was recorded back in 1995(!) together with Rising High's IDM pioneer Kingsuk Biswas a.k.a. Bedouin Ascent. Five timeless analogue jams that sit somewhere between deep house, electronica and bleepy techno-jazz. Brilliant.
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Album released 12-04-2010 on Hum+Haw
For his third album, the follow-up to his highly acclaimed 'Paradolia' from 2006, Alex Smoke makes full use of the creative freedom his own label allows for. Arguably his most refined effort to date, 'Lux' features highly original techno tracks next to mature melodic electronica and processed beat abstractions. Killer album.
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The Trickski boys join one of our favourite labels of the moment, Delusions Of Grandeur, for 'The Warm Up', a slowed down wild-pitch slammer with distinct vocals that's bound to have you walk up to the DJ to eye what he's playing. Save yourself the embarrassment and check it now. Hit.
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Nebraska's third EP for Rushhour continues the fashion of his previous fine disco infected house productions. Our favourite is 'Masala Dosa', which convinces with a jazzy piano and a killer groove. For all of you who are into Soundstream and the like it is strictly recommended to get your hands on this.
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The man with the red face returns with two cuts of ecstatic prime time dancefloor business. 'It's Just Muzik' is a ten minute apocalyptic monster with recurring vocals and ravy synths. 'Stargazing' is a more dreamy affair, playing out other worldly atmospheres to truly cosmic effect.
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Maxi-Single released 05-04-2010 on SCSI-AV
Seminal electro label SCSI-AV returns with a follow-up to its brilliant 'Lost Trax' release from 2006. Classic faceless and timeless Detroit techno, 'The Sequel' featuring LFO-style bleeps and electro-tinged grooves, 'Birth' focusing on melancholic string arrangements. Music for those who know.
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Berlin's Milton Bradley releases his first EP on the label of the moment, Prologue. With three tracks of sparse and haunting, no-nonsense techno and echoing ambient, 'The Unheard Voice...' brings together Pan_sonic-styled minimalism, washed out Burial beats and STL-like sound collages. Perfect.
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Compilation released 16-04-2010 on Ware
Mathias Schaffhäuser presents the finest of his Ware label's great Warenkorb compilations: Deep house by Nieswandt & Schaffhäuser, slowed down grooves by Benjamin Brunn more experimental takes by Eulberg. With three exclusive tracks, this is highly recommended.
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More anonymous techno from the Horizontal Ground / Frozen Border camp, this time dropping two rough techno jams with a dubstep feel: The bleepy, below-120bpm 'Snakes Cave' and the reverb-heavy 'Thirteen Step'. Highly recommended transmissions from the electronic underground.
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Tokyo-based producer, Itokim, has been proving to be a consistent and inspired young producer. Here Nice & Nasty present a fine set of remixes of 'Till The End', off his recent 'Lost Colours' EP. Our favourite from The Parallel is a restrained take with the right amount of tension, just the way we like it!
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ELECTRONICA / AMBIENT ESSENTIALS
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Album released 12-04-2010 on Soma
If you have been travelling in Europe last week, chances are you would have a lot of time on real airports listening to this album. A response to Brian Eno's utopian 'Music for Airports', this is amazing ambient electronica, constructed from 300hrs of field recordings in classic Black Dog fashion.
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On her second album la grande dame of French electronic music continues where the journey of her debut album ended. Putting the dance-floor at the lower end of her focus, she masterfully blends and fuses minimal electronic music with experimental pop. Dix points!
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A wonderful release by Seattle-based 'The Sight Below': For his second album Rafael Anton Irisarri collaborates with Simon Scott, former Slowdive member and label owner of Kesh. The cover version of Joy Division's 'New Dawn Fades' is especially brilliant, featuring the voice of Jessy Fortino of Tiny Vipers.
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Treading a middle ground between Säkho-style abstract techno and percussive krautrock, 'Mask Talk' is the debut solo album of Kreidler's Detlef Weinrich. Its 10 tracks continue the cosmic disco motives of recent Kreidler productions, but on a more abstract and experimental level. Excellent.
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Ex-Funkstörung man Michael Fakesch returns with 'Exchange', a stunning collection of his remixes done for other artists. Originals from Mr. Oizo, Booka Shade, Matthew Herbert or Notwist are treated in Fakesch's slice-heavy way to emerge as booty breaks, fidget house or electronica tracks. Brilliant.
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Album released 26-04-2010 on Kompakt
London-based Walls are Sam Willis (of Allez-Allez) and Alessio Natalizia (of Banjo Or Freakout and Disco Drive), who seamlessly fuse Moebius-style synth-krautrock with modern ambient pop. A perfect match for Kompakt, Walls' debut album is a lush and dreamy listening experience. Great.
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Ed DMX returns with a great new full-length, packed to the rim with retro-futuristic electro tracks. 'The March To The Stars' is an entirely instrumental album, reliving the atmospheric synth operas of early 90s computer games. If only Soundblasters and SIDs had always sounded this fat!
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Fans of Dopplereffekt rejoice - Heinrich Mueller has started a new project together with vocalist Victoria Lukas, Zerkalo. Three slowed down electro tracks in his modern Arpanet style are given a distinct The Knife-like flavour by Lukas' voice. Essential fan material.
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Young Amsterdam producer Applescal steps up the abstraction level for an intriguing sonic journey - doing away with straight beats for good, his sophomore full-length combines ambient and broken beat electronica with finely textured harmonics.
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The first solo album by Mark Van Hoen (a.k.a. Lucust) since 2004, 'Where Is The Truth' is a perfect match for City Centre Offices with its refined ambient pop. Traces of Van Hoen's trip-hop past meet indie and modern classical influences on what is a mature album from a remarkable producer.
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ALTERNATIVE / POP / DISCO ESSENTIALS
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Compilation released 25-04-2010 on !K7
Juan MacLean gets to the roots of his signature style with his DJ-KiCKS for !K7. From DFA indie-disco hits to classic and Chicago house (Armando!), the mix features an excellent choice of tracks, suitable for listening as well as club play. Besides the 1:12h mix, all 17 full length tracks are included!
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The pioneers of combining indie pop and processed beats, Lali Puna, return with a new album, six years after their hugely successful 'Faking The Books'. If anything, Lali Puna's sound has become more refined, and songs like 'Remember' and 'Move On' are perfect, heart-warming pop gems.
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After assembling his recent big band album from 2.000 samples made by 350 people, Matthew Herbert gets personal with his latest project: 'ONE ONE' was recorded by Herbert alone, which is all the more remarkable since it's at a Thom Yorke-style indie pop album, and an amazing one at that.
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For their fourth album CocoRosie once again dive deep into their fairy-tale world, twisting abstract folk, electronica and mock-classical singing into a sound completely their own. Adventurous, haunting and sometimes downright bizarre, 'Grey Oceans' is a highly intriguing album.
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New Permanent Vacation signing Pollyester impresses with 'German Love Letter', a great catchy pop disco track, complete with remixes by the brilliant Optimo and the Permanent Vacation boys themselves. Don't miss the nice video, staged together with long-time partner Dr. Mooner!
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Sally Shapiro has her 'My Guilty Pleasures' album remixed, and the line-up of artists involved is more than impressive. Junior Boys, Low Motion Disco, Bostro Pesopeo, Boat Club, and Venzian disco maestro Bottin all make this a highly accomplished remix package.
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His albums on Italic have made Popnoname the ideal artist to relaunch Kompakt Pop. 'Hello Gorgeous' sits somewhere between classic Kompakt sounds and elegiac indie pop, joined together by Popnoname's vocals. Comes with a jackin' house remix by Terranova and a sweet video!
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Stepping up to his much acclaimed 'Harbour Boat Trips' mix released last year, Danish super producer and DJ Trentemøller delivers a beautiful downtempo, krautrockish and almost folky track. For all those more into his techno productions, Gui Boratto's and Thomas Schumacher's remixes will do the job.
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Album released 09-04-2010 on !K7
Round two for Christian Prommer's jazzed up interpretations of techno classics such as 'Knights of the Jaguar', 'Groove La Chord' or 'Acid Eiffel'. Engineered to perfection by Peter Kruder, 'Drumlesson Zwei' turns these classics into his own.
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Veteran jazz, leftfield producer, Funki Porcini unveils his album 'On' for Ninja Tune. On this he puts forth a set of jazzy and spacey oddities that quite possibly have been in a time capsule since the late 60's. One for the headphones on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
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Album released 30-03-2010 on Strut
Brand new studio album from Mulatu Astatke, the father of Ethio-Jazz, whose fusion of jazz with Afro and Latin rhythms has witnessed a big revival lately. Centred around his signature instrument, the Vibraphone, and gently backed by brass, pianos and percussion. Masterful.
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DUBSTEP / 2STEP ESSENTIALS
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Torsten Pröfrock's T++ project takes a bow with the massive EP for Honest Jon's, 'Wireless'. Dense, washed-out techno sounds take influence from rhythmic developments in UK dance music, while incorporating East African vocal and ndingidi samples dug from Honest Jon's sound archives.
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Jahcoozi's third album comes forth via BPitch and shows the Berlin bass collective in top form. Booty bass collides with dubstep and a large dose of pop, covering the range from airplay to club workout. The 'Close To Me' cover might be a bit much, but the rest is sublime, contemporary bass music.
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Mark Pritchard and Steve Spacek ready their collaboration album under the name of Africa Hitech, and 'Blen' is their first single - a bleepy electro-grime stomper, accompanied by the more chilled-out dub flavours of 'The Sound Of Tomorrow'. As expected from Mark Pritchard (and Warp), this is pure class.
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Album released 05-04-2010 on Rinse
Not that we expected anything less from UK funky shooting star Roska, but his debut album for Rinse FM's label has 'hit release' written all over it. Roska combines influences from old-school house, dubstep, R&B with a timeless feel, catchy melodies and light-footed rhythms. Great album.
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Since her recent invitation to the Red Bull Music Academy, LA's Tokimonsta has garnered much attention for her brand of inspired instrumental hip-hop. The 7-track 'Cosmic Intoxication EP' delivers a small taster of this young lady's talent. Must have for fans of FlyLo or HudMo!
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Rumanian dubstepper TRG's second release under his Cosmin TRG name, 'See Other People' traverses far into funky house territory, bearing a solid Chicago house and Detroit influence as could be expected from Rush-Hour. Nicely polished beats, bleeps, vocals and a touch of Carl Craig on the flip.
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Getting big time support from the likes of Martyn, Mary Anne Hobbs, and Kode 9, remixing Ikonika's 'Idiot' on Hyperdub, and lining up a release for 3024, Altered Natives' star is seriously on the rise. He follows up his smash, 'Rass Out', with the sultry 'Believe In Me' and the ultra-heavy 'Raaatid Einstein'!
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EP released 19-04-2010 on Phlox
Gerhard Potuznik further elaborates on his new passion for dubstep with a great laid-back 4-tracker. 'Over and Done' and 'Cabin' make great atmospheric use of static strings and stabs, while 'Be Mine' and 'Castaway' bring out the bleeps and dub-chords. Consistent? Certainly.
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Excellent heavy g-funk infused EP by French producer Onra for Dublin based label All City, who have been blessing us with so much sick music in 2010 that we are having trouble keeping up. Long Distance is unresistably sexy and begs to be played out loud by all fans of Zapp, Hud Mo and Jonzun Crew.
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SBTRKT seems to be all over the place these days, remixing artists from Basement Jaxx to Gorillaz and Modeselektor. '2020' is a monster of a release, bridging the gap between classic house and dubstep with loads of depths and awesome drum programming. Belongs in every record case!
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