Hello,
In a month not short on excellent club-ready releases it was the wealth and quality of experimental electronica recordings that surprised us most. From Mouse on Mars' bastardly bass music mutations over the jazzy timbres of Nicolas Jaar's 'Don't Break My Love' compilation to Paul Corley's exquisite piano drones, this month was excellent news for everyone who likes their music innovative, fresh, and unpredictable.
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FEATURED RELEASE
Sasu Ripatti returns to Raster-Noton for another album under his Vladislav Delay moniker, and 'Kuopio' is a truly stunning work.
Weightier and more definied than last year's 'Vantaa', it maintains a perfect equilibrium between the sprawling techno dubs of his early Chain Reaction recordings and the stochastic precision currently championed by producers like Mark Fell.
If anything, Sasu Ripatti's acclaimed style of experimental and inventive techno has only gotten better and more sharply defined over the past 15 years.
The album's nine long tracks subtly evolve and seamlessly shift between purely delay-driven experimentation and weaving subtle harmonic fabrics of sound that recall Ripatti's Luomo alter-ego's pop apeal. The prevailing polyrhythmicality of tracks like 'Vastaa' and 'Hitto' serves as a perfect counterpoint to the album's deep and warm pads and echoes. Mesmerizing and utterly recommended.
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FEATURED EXCLUSIVES
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Clone main man Serge teams up with Alden Tyrell to deliver three tracks of major jacking power. Both 'House Countdown' and 'Pump-O-Matic' are lovingly crafted tributes to the heyday of Chicago house, taking cues from artists like Armando, Steve Poindexter, and Paul Johnson. Ace!
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After the success last winter's far-out 'Nuclear Funk/Get Up Of It', Artuu dishes out another split single featuring two Detroit vocalists. 'Tune In' sees Diamondancer rhyming over cooing synths and boxing bass, 'Move' feat. Jerry The Cat with jackin' toms and a naughty synth melody. Sick-ass funk house.
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TECHNO / HOUSE ESSENTIALS
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Kris Wadsworth might have dozens of 12"s under his belt, but has never released an album, an oversight he's rectifying with the help of Get Physical in the form of 'Life and Death', a strong compendium of pumping Detroit techno, house and electro flavoured tracks. Recommended.
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After last year's more adventurous 'Translation EP' as well as recent outings on Music Man and 50 Weapons, his 'Range EP' marks a return to the big room techno floor for Marcel Dettmann, who pleases fans of his more straight-forward techno productions with four sparse and massively pounding tracks.
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From Sven Weisemann's piano dubs to Tin Man's autumnal house melancholy our favourite Polish DJ couple have compiled a worthy 'Body Language' volume that takes us on a journey from an empty, rainy side streets to a hot, crowded dance floor and all the way back. Check.
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Danny Wolfers' first album for Clone and it's a power house of jacking Chicago tunes, Italo acid and Carpenteresque synths. Legowelt is at his best when his oddly tuned pads and arpeggios are layered thick while his analogue drum boxes push mercilessly onwards - or when he's covering 'California Dreaming' of course.
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The follow up to his debut LP 2009's 'The Dance Paradox', the red-masked avenger excels effortlessly again in the album format. Busy percussive layers, skin-tingling synth pulses of 'It's In Rain', angular attitude of 'Moods & Mice', Hyperdub's Space Ape lending dark vocals, an invigorating sci-fi trip. Excellent.
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Both a killer selection of tracks and a great 70 minute mix, 'Non Stop' starts out with a dose of acid-hop, supplied by Khan/4E and AFX, before delving into raw, gritty, and seductive house and techno sounds of the moment, including Bok Bok & Tom Trago, Blawan, Actress, and Tiga's own new hit 'Plush'. Top notch.
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After a bunch of excellent singles German producer Erdbeerschnitzel drops his debut album via Mirau Musik. 'Tender Leaf' impresses with an even wider variety of styles than his trademark brand of deep grooving disco house, incorporating traces of jazz, dubstep and downbeat in a thoroughly modern way. Stunning!
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Album released 12-11-2012 on Tresor
Twelve years since Terrence Dixon's debut album on Tresor paid a personal homage to the art and ancestry of techno, the Detroit native returns with the next episode. There is no denying the heartfelt intensity of this record, the dark galactic soul of the Motor City reveals itself in all complexity. Top-runner for techno album of the year.
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After stints on Aim and Pampa talented producer Christopher Rau returns to Smallville for his sophomore album. 'Two' skillfully balances out the disco loops and Moodymann references with deeper and more abstract synth and sampler workouts. House music for the late hours.
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As the renowned Berlin club on the river celebrates its tenth anniversary, they impressively compile 27 exclusive tracks from Henrik Schwarz, dOP, Jesse Rose, Soul Clap, DJ Sneak as well as core artists Sebo K, Ruede Hagelstein, Tiefschwarz, M.A.N.D.Y, Lee Jones and more. Essential for Berlin party-heads!
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Since debuting on Jamal Moss' Mathematics, Liverpool's John Heckle has excited many a house-fan with his raw-and-ready analogue house ditties. Crème Organization release this extended EP not shying from sweaty psychedelia, afrofuturistic mystique or limbering synth-work outs. Highly recommended.
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Always good for a surprise or two, DJ Koze's Pampa label drops this gorgeous pair of remixes. Die Vögel remake Dntel's 'My Orphaned Son' as a sweet and subtle, piano-driven house groover, while Koze himself takes Matthew Herbert and Dani Siciliano's classic 'It's Only' to a whole new level. Excellent.
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Following on from Smallpeople's 'Salty Days' LP this year, Julius Steinhoff drops his second solo maxi on Smallville. Re-working of classic house elements with slanted, muted melodies in 'So Glad' to the wonderfully hazy cotton-wool deep house of 'Speak No Evil', quality tracks.
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One of Berlin's most prolific producers Mike Dehnert has to be admired for the quality standards he's been maintaining release after release. His latest 'Umgangston EP' for Delsin is no exception with four solid techno bangers, from the moodily swinging 'Andruck' to chord-driven slammer 'Refillable'.
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SIberian producer Unbroken Dub gets fresh on Delsin after a stream of releases on Berlin imprint Rawax. 'I Want To Make This Louder' slips grainy dub techno glaciers over a pumping kick, 'Det Special' sees smokier hazes scratch over distorted claps and 'Insane' ringing glass-bell signals into the stratosphere.
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Chapter three of Luke Slater's Deep Heet series continues in a universe of its own. 'Voltan', inspired by the Mayan god of drums is a beastly fella of beautiful complexity, 'Pygar' bleeds in crystal melodies across huge expanses, 'Turn' and 'Flat Tire' in sharper focus with muted melodies and fragmented rhythms. Top grade.
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With Shackleton and T++ having set such high standards for the fusion of broken techno/dubstep and African percussion, Berlin-based Italian Dino Sabatini hasn't chosen an easy field. While 'Shaman's Paths' can't compete with the above two's strongest works it makes for a hypnotic listening experience.
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'Next Life' is a confident showing by Viennese duo Ogris Debris, who eschew the potential cheesyness of their monotonous pop vocal house style with interesting production ideas and of course an adventurous set of remixes by Philpot's The Reboot Joy Confession and Affine's own Sixtus Preiss.
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Edinburgh's 6th Borough Project returns to Delusions Of Grandeur with this excellent EP. Both versions of the slow and hard hitting title cut drive it home with a massively bouncing bassline, wild pitch synths and vocal snippets, while third track 'Just a New Day' takes an only slightly airier course. Banging.
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Maxi-Single released 18-11-2012 on Soma
Rod Modell follows up his recent second DeepChord album for Soma with two long and intricately layered dub-techno jams. 'Spiral 1' gradually evolves dreamy arpeggios to great effect, whereas 'Spiral 2' exudes a slightly more gloomy mood with dense, echoed chords. Check.
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The next chapter of Aux 88's Black Tokyo project, after 2010's full length and remixes. 'Magic' sees shimmering Detroit techno injected into sci-fi overload of Tokyo's neon-lit streets. Two versions of 'Astral Projections' featuring Ice Truck and Erika Tele are more meditative, one jacking and one beatless. Sweet!
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Taken from Brian Chinetti's excellent 'Strange Paradise' album earlier this year, 'Our House' featuring legendary house vocalist Robert Owens gets a flurry of ace reworks. Kink and Neville Watson oozing the sass-factor, Willie Burns lathering up old-school charm and Crème Orga's DJ TLR dousing deadly sci-fi spirits.
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DUBSTEP / HIP-HOP / ELECTRO ESSENTIALS
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From Werk Discs to Planet Mu Philadelphia's Starkey has always maintained a unique (US-American?) perspective on dubstep, and 'Orbits' is again a big album, uniting grimy bangers, symphonic instrumentals, and vocoded pop tunes in truly remarkable fashion. Recommended.
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50 Weapons' shooting star Bambounou drops his debut album and it's an excellent amalgam of contemporary bass music styles, from slowed-down electro over broken house to hi-speed juke, all realised in Bambounou's sparse, laid-back, and pleasantly lo-fi manner. Excellent stuff.
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Rush Hour sniffed out New York producer last year and released 'Specialty Party' followed by this, his debut LP. Somewhere in between warm NY garage house and its colder clipped derivative UK garage, with jazz, soul and disco influences forming a cohesive, refreshing and transatlantic compatible sound. Top.
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After releases on Hospital, Urban Graffiti and Subway, Alex Melia aka Reso brings his breakcore dubstep to full circle returning to Civil Music to drop his debut album. From lurching basslines of 'Creature', IDM-influences 'Virtua Rhythm', distorted d'n'b of 'Nempo' and a few melodic interludes.
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Russian producer Proxy presents the first part of his debut album, the raw rave energy of his idols the Prodigy apparent. His production talent nimbly flitting between breakcore, drum'n'bass, the noisiest sawtooth dubstep with ethnics twists. If you still live with your parents, this one will definitely rile them.
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EP released 23-11-2012 on Pomelo
Part of the Mahogani Music family, Kemetrix blazes a unique path through soul, funk, ghettotech and sci-fi electro styles. 'Soulbrother #3' brings both KDJ's deepness and Stingray's futurism to the table, merging both sides of Detroit's 20th century musical heritage, Motown and Metroplex, in singular fashion.
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Multi-instrumentalist James Kelly, best known up until now for his role in black metal band Altar of Plagues, makes his solo debut on the talent-spotting Left_Blank imprint as WIFE. Evocative atmospheric electronics, gritty seething textures and haunting vocals moving the post-dubstep template forward.
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Beloved San Fran party-crew Icee Hot drop a suitably jumping release from former SF-native Lando Kal. One of the few doing the UK bass/techno/house fusion and still keeping it fresh and exciting, three steaming hot dance tracks including a remix by Shake and Montreal duo Grown Folk. Check!
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ELECTRONICA / AMBIENT ESSENTIALS
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Following up on his vinyl-only full-length debut from 2008, Madteo drops his sophomore album via revered Finnish label Sähkö. 'Noi No' alternates spacious experimental pieces with murky, soulful underground house and brilliantly combines these styles in tracks like 'Rugrats Don't Techno for an Answer'. Outstanding album.
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Nine months after 'Parastrophics' appeared, the MOM duo go upside down with a mini-album entitled 'WOW'. As quirky and broadly genre-challenging as ever, they err towards club-oriented styles, on UK bass, acid, hip hop and juke tangents, concocted in their ever-unique way. Sweet!
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Earlier this year, Nicolas Jaar released a compilation in the unusual format of an aluminum cube called 'The Prism'. Now the tracks are available more traditionally, with mostly unreleased tracks from Jaar and fellow C&S colleagues. Highly crafted, heart-tugging electronica with juke or jazz-inflected excursions.
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Compilation released 26-11-2012 on Soma
Another excellent entry in our favourite Soma compilation series, 'Soma Coma 6' brings together exquisite techno and electro dubs, tranquil ambient and spacious drones. Highlight contributions come from Joe Stawarz, Onmutu Mechanicks, The Black Dog, Rod Modell, and Alex Under. All exclusive and essential.
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Delving further into the gripping, desolate terrains marked by their three EPs so far, the UK duo accomplish an impressive amount with their debut LP. Melting shadows of grinding industrial, the darker side of the hardcore continuum and brooding epic electroacoustics with utterly visceral effect. Incredible.
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Brian Eno's first solo album on Warp, following two recent collaborative albums. Revisiting the themes and textures of his pioneering ambient albums such as 'Music For Airports' and 'Music For Films', 75 minutes of tranquil resonances with delicately procured live instrumentation. Crème de la crème of ambient.
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Album released 05-11-2012 on Infiné
Rone's second album after 2009's 'Spanish Breakfast' is once again a fest of glittering electronica, not ashamed to pair classic bit-crushed beat edits, reminiscent of the early Skam days, with disarmingly naive melodies and occasional outbreaks of bombastic, orchestral pop music. Dreamy and magical.
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Just two years since the incredible 'Does It Look Like I'm Here', the Cleveland trio return from their solo projects to Editions Mego. Still doing retro like no other, they shed the swaths of fuzzy synths of their previous record, to mesh proggy tranquil sunny guitars, soaring post-rock and cosmic synths. Delish.
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Co-curated by Ben Frost, Icelandic label Bedroom Community is on the rise with yet another excellent album, this time from Reykjavik-based engineer Paul Corley, who steps into the spotlight with four solemn and haunting pieces of prepared piano, strings and electronics. Mesmerizing!
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Album released 23-11-2012 on Miasmah
One of the most intense albums this month comes from Gabriel Saloman (of Yellow Swans fame). 'Adhere' works with melodic drones, layered synths, sparse pianos and (towards the end) clattering drums to build a unique dramatic arc across the album's seven parts. Brilliant!
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Chris Madak's Bee Mask project returns to Editions Mego sub-label Spectrum Spools with this rather epic selection of intricate, otherworldly sonic journeys seeped in analogue charm. Smatterings of synths, aqua-suctioning bass, brash noisy counter-attacks and dizzying atmospheres, all exquisitely imagined.
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The second of four releases bringing together Jan Jelinek's diverse works, this time starting with 'Prime Time' a carefully woven collage of news broadcasts and film music, the remainder are new edits of previous tracks emerging you in Jelinek's masterfully rich sonic tapestries.
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As ever, dangerously exquisite, the third edition in the Stellate series is as jaw-droppingly beautiful as its precursors. Two bleeding glacier tracks by Kanding Ray, trudging dubby post-punk 'Unexpected' by NSI, two contrasting tracks by Xhin and Reformed Faction with grandiose haunting ambience. Unmissable.
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EP released 26-10-2012 on PAN
Lee Gamble, member of CYRK collective with previous releases on Entr'acte, steps over the PAN for this special release. Revisiting his old jungle cassettes, he extracts, abstracts and explores deep within the sonic fantasies of this lost scene. A darkly trippy, powerful ode to the death of rave.
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Hard-hitting electronics of the Bristol duo debut on Carsten Nicolai's renowned imprint. Their unmistakable weighty splintering noise more mechanically formed into frictional micro-rhythms, blistering seismo-bass lines lurching at near-bleeps - a perfect synthesis of their two worlds. Recommended.
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Album released 26-10-2012 on PAN
Kouhei Matsunaga releases the second installment of his 'dance classics', eight months since the first. Like abstract pieces of a huge dance music puzzle, he taps into punishing Detroit techno, breakbeat IDM, dubby extrapolations, skewed house chords. As ever an unpredictable yet unified vision. Recommended.
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ALTERNATIVE / POP / DISCO ESSENTIALS
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Returning with their second album, the zombie-obsessed French duo return. From the suitably dramatic war-like opener 'The Wisdom of Stone', otherworldly synth action, cosmic-krauty scapes of 'Watch the World...', 'Rocket#9's humorous pop appeal and a New Order cover, wall-to-wall loveable synth-horror quirk.
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Accompanying a mockumentary about alleged German new-wave pioneers Fraktus, 'Millennium Edition' is actually the product of Hamburg scenesters Heinz Strunk, Rocko Schamoni und Jacques Palminger, who not only demonstrate their sense of humour, but also their skills at recreating the absurdity of 80s pop music.
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Originally recorded for 'Red Dead Redemption', Rockstar's blockbuster video game, José González's 'Far Away' sees a single release in two different (both acoustic, in case you wondered) versions. Great song, don't miss.
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Maxi-Single released 05-11-2012 on Aeropop
Belgian neo-disco star Aeroplane teams up with house legend Jamie Principle for funky retro-pop slammer 'In Her Eyes' that's catchy enough to keep us going. Tiger & Woods plus Chopstick & Johnjon straighten things out for their remixes, while Louis La Roche's dated sounding nu-rave take we could have done without.
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The surprising team-up of Deetron and Hercules & Love Affair yields an equally surprising result in 'Crave', a cheerful piece of chiptune vocal house. Jamie Jones adds a quantum of bassline funk, Ripperton long, evolving synths, and Deetron himself completes the package with a big room techno version.
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A young disco producer might not seem the most obvious signing for a dedicated bass music label such as Civil Music, but if the artist in question is as hugely talented as Brassica, we certainly don't object. Four edgy neo-disco songs plus remixes by Om Unt and Capracara. Nice.
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Multi-instrumentalist and freethinking Oakland trio Religious Girls surge with riotous energy in their latest EP on The Notwist's label Alien Transistor. Choppy skewed rhythms, tight melodies and vocals somewhere between Animal Collective and Battles, with remixes on electronic and atmospheric pop tangents. Check.
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Where other producers' aspirations might stop at the proverbial big room, Vitalic's confidence is certainly stadium-sized. It's an ambition 'Rave Age' doesn't entirely live up to however. Its rave synths sometimes grate and its pop songs aren't of, say, Robyn's calibre. Check the quiet moments though.
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Watch out for latest Warp signing, young British singer/songwriter Kwes, whose debut album will come out via the revered British label in 2013. First single 'Rollerblades' combines his raw singing style with Money-Mark-style 60s references and a slight touch of Animal Collective psychedelia. Nice!
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Sisters Taraka and Nimai Larson channel the music of 10 fictitious bands, who according to the album's elaborate legend 'died during the apocalypse'. From hindi-pop to new wave and glam rock, the concept adds some genre-bending, self-ironic fun to Prince Rama's expressive, if slightly murky indie pop vision.
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