VA - Workshop 10 [2010, vinyl, workshop]

april 2010

lbl: Workshop

#: WORKSHOP 10

electronic

deep house

320kbps

A. Lowtec  - Untitled

B1. Schweiz Rec.  - Untitled

B2. Ron Deacon  - Untitled

note: "Ten releases into their catalog, Workshop seem to have more momentum than ever. After releasing some of last year's finest records—namely Reagenz's Playtime and Kassem Mosse's Workshop 08—the rubber-stamped imprint returns with another untitled EP, this time featuring Lowtec and two new artists, Schweiz Rec and Ron Deacon. Much like Playtime, the new record draws from the more colorful end of Workshop's palette, with deep, shadowy tunes on one side and disco-tinted house on the other. Though less subtle than some of their previous releases, Workshop 10 is surely one of the label's best. 

Taking the entire A-side to himself, Lowtec provides the record's moodier selections. The first tune is the EP's best: as dark as it is warm, with a breezy rhythm, dramatic strings and vaguely mournful diva vocals. It's a surprisingly melancholy track for Lowtec, who normally leans toward more cryptic house and techno, as heard on EPs like Workshop 06 and Angstrom. The second part of Side A is equally surprising: a smoky, broken beat affair, ala Burial or Actress, but delivered in perfectly polished tones. It's unclear exactly how these songs are related—though divided by a period of silence and a series of loud pops, Workshop 10's A-side is widely listed as having only one track. In any case, both parts are exceptional—the first bursting with club potential, the other making for contemplative home listening. 

On the B-side, Workshop's two newcomers brighten things up considerably. Schweiz Rec contributes an organ-dominated number with a cartoonishly blissful vibe, disrupted now and then by a weird, distorted squawk. Ron Deacon follows with a sunny, disco-influenced house track, whose strutting rhythm and warbling melody make it Workshop 10's most club-ready selection. Both artists make impressive debuts, and help expand the record's pop sensibility without compromising its enigmatic feel. " - Will Lynch, RA.

[7.8]

huge chunk of crude iron

[HF]

buy it here.

[discogs]

Guido - Anidea [2010, cd, punch drunk]

may 2010

lbl: Punch Drunk

#: DRUNK 16

electronic

dubstep

~200kbps

1. Anidea

2. Orchestral Lab

3. Woke Up Early

4. Cat In The Window

5. Beautiful Complication featuring Aarya

6. Mad Sax

7. You Do It Right

8. Take Me Higher

9. Way U Make Me Feel feat Yolanda

10. Tango

11. Shades of Blue

12. Tantalized

note: "‘Anidea’ is the debut album from young Bristol based producer Guido, who alongside Joker and Gemmy, has trail blazed his way to the forefront of UK dance music. His two 12” releases, ‘Orchestral Lab’ and ‘Beautiful Complication’ on Peverelist’s Punch Drunk label in 2009, and recently completed remixes for Island Records and Tectonic Records, have garnered Guido extensive press coverage from specialist underground blogs to The Guardian broadsheet.

This album is the first to emerge from the trio, who have already made an indelible mark on UK underground music.

Guido cut his teeth in the embryonic mid-decade Bristol Grime scene, producing instrumental’s for MCs and vocalists culminating in his ‘Unleashed’ mixtape in 2006. His production style shares the ultra vivid colour, melody and rugged texture of golden era Davinche, Skepta and Ruff Squad’s Rapid but also the playfulness and pop sensibility of Timbaland or Neptunes without losing underground edge or appeal.

The album will be preceded by a digital single, ‘Way U Make Me Feel’ featuring a vocal from Yolanda who has recently been touring with Massive Attack and who also featured on Pinch’s recent ‘Get Up’ 12” on Tectonic." - extramusicnew.

silicon [7.0]

r'n'b victim

[fixed / 21 july 2012]

Pariah - Detroit Falls / Orpheus [2010, vinyl, r&s records]

april 2010

lbl: R&S Records

#: RSLTD1001

electronic

dubstep, uk garage

320kbps

A. Detroit Falls

B. Orpheus

about producer: 'Pariah is a 21 year old music producer called Arthur Cayzer originally from Scotland and now living in London. We don’t know much about him, but we do know his tunes are amazing!'

note: "The two tracks on this debut single were the his first ever finished productions and snapped up by R&S under the noses of a whole bunch of interested high profile labels. They continue the R&S tradition of releasing forward thinking electronic music, and follow the lineage of Aphex Twin, Model 500, Patrick Pulsinger and Derrick May.

The two tracks on this single wear the influences on their sleeve, referencing the hip hop beat collages of Dilla and the moody atmospheric 2 step rhythms of Burial, but still contain the rich Pariah DNA which will be even more apparent on his future R&S singles. The stuff we have heard so far has blown our socks off taking influences from sources as diverse as Levon Vincent, Fennesz and classic Detroit techno as well as the likes of MJ Cole and Steve Gurley.

Already a name on the lips of the hip blog crowd (featured on Pitchfork, Gorilla Vs Bear, No Pain In Pop and Rcrd Lbl) and in demand on the European underground DJ circuit this debut 10” is likely to become a collectors item and catapult him onto much bigger things." - label.

[8.0]

yt preview:

horseback battle hammer

[HF]

buy it here.

[R&S Records, official, £5.49]

David Tagg - Pentecost [2010, cd, install]

april 2010

lbl: Install

#: INST010

electronic

ambient

192kbps

1.   Pentecost 1

2.   Pentecost 2 

3.   Pentecost 3 

4.   Pentecost 4

5.   Pentecost 5

6.   Pentecost 6

note: "When the hard work of the day is done, and you go home and begin your nightly routine of winding down, there are only so many things that reciprocate that relaxed stillness. Here at Install, we're happy to say that we have the exact soundtrack for many of your sleepy evenings to come: David Tagg's newest album PENTECOST. Following in the wake of his Cold Spring Harbor EP, and utilizing a process that included using his grandfather's reel-to-reel tapes of organ playing for source sound, David has created what could be described as an "ambient novel". A superbly vivid work of musical nonfiction that tells the stories of 1000 photographs, long since forgotten memories and a crackling, eroded legacy, now exhumed from the dusty wine cellars of Tagg's sentimental estate. What all this wholly amounts to is a landmark recording, full of cool, subdued tones and soft shadowy movements. PENTECOST could be David's strongest ambient moment, if not only for consistency, but also for potency." - label.

7.8

for holistic disciplines

[4shared]

buy it here.

[Install Sound, official, $12]

The Black Dog - Floods [2007, vinyl, soma quality recordings]

10 december 2007

lbl: Soma Quality Recordings

#: SOMA 231

electronic

dubstep, techno, idm

~128-224kbps

A. Floods V3

B1. Floods V3.2 (Surgeon Remix)

B2. Floods V3.1 (The Bass Soldier Remake)

note: "I like drums. I really like drums. The original of ‘Floods V3’ has amazing drums. Not always the most danceable drums, but the kind that skitter across your brain like spit on a frying pan. The kind of drums that you want to dance to even if your body might not be able to manage. This is the kind of track that if you made up one movement to go with each sound, you’d end up dancing like one of those cut-up Lasse Gjertsen videos on YouYube.

Bass Soldier turns in, unsurprisingly, a very bass-heavy version. He keeps the essence of the looseness of the drum tracks, but expresses it in a more straightforward drum and bass fashion that could potentially drive people wild if dropped at the right time in a techno set.

Surgeon’s remix, I must admit to finding somewhat baffling. It uses a lot of the same sounds but twists them into a very direct and very very industrial sounding groove. It puts me in mind of early 90s Nitzer Ebb with its lurching awkward rhythm and harsh sounds. Full marks for uniqueness but I can’t help feeling it’s a shame to take the complex, funky and engaging rhythms of the original and reduce them to this." - Jacob Wright, RA.

7.3

gargantuan metallic klunk

[4shared]

buy it here.

[Soma Records, official, £5.00]

Ramadanman & Midland - Your Words Matter [2010, vinyl, aus music]

may 2010

lbl: Aus Music

#: AUS1027

electronic

house, uk garage

320kbps

A. Your Words Matter

B. More Than You Know

note: "Although London producer Ramadanman has made a name for himself as one of the founders of the excellent Hessle Audio imprint, today he is releasing a single on another label, the similarly high-quality Aus Music. Made in tandem with his old friend Midland, "Your Words Matter/More Than You Know" finds Ramadanman exploring dancier territory than usual and delving into some classic garage sounds, not that we're complaining." - xlr8r news.

7.3

yt preview:

dubstep goes around the corner

[HF, fixed / 5 may 2010]

buy it here.

[Boomkat, £8.99]

Actress - Splazsh [2010, 2 x vinyl, honest jon's records]

17 may 2010

lbl: Honest Jon's Records

#: HJP50

electronic

wonky, experimental, dubstep, techno

320kbps

1. Hubble 

2. Lost 

3. Futureproofing 

4. Bubble Butts and Equations 

5. Always Human 

6. Get Ohn (Fairlight Mix) 

7. Maze 

8. Purrple Splazsh 

9. Senorita 

10. Lets Fly 

11. Wrong Potion 

12. Supreme Cunnilingus 

13. The Kettle Men 

14. Casanova 

producer: Darren J. Cunningham

note: "Werk Discs manager Darren Cunningham, AKA Actress, will release his second album this May on Honest Jon's Records.

Cunningham has been an active member of the UK's underground music scene since the turn of the millennium, both as an artist and a label head. He cut his teeth DJing alongside Kode9 at Hyperdub's early club nights, then released his first record as Actress in 2004. That same year, Cunningham launched his record label, Werk Discs, which pressed early 12-inches by Starkey and Radioclit as well as Zomby's first full-length. In 2008, after four years of silence, Cunningham released Hazyville, a stark and enigmatic debut album whose title perfectly suits its general aesthetic. On record, Cunningham's sound is murky, rough-edged, and unpredictable–a style he describes as black world wizardry and that's earned him comparisons to Theo Parrish, Newworldaquarium and Anthony 'Shake' Shakir. 

According to Cunningham, Splazsh will be more stylistically diverse than his debut album. "Hazyville was heavily locked into a certain mood aesthetic," he said in an interview with Resident Advisor. "[Splazsh] is not a concentrated sound working from the same palette. It's blocky and dispersively fragmented." The new record will be available on vinyl and CD as well as via digital download. " - RA News, 31 march 2010.

9.0

gozssh!

[11 11 2014]

buy it here.

[Rush Hour Store, pre-order]

Kris Wadsworth - Get Your Wadsworth [2008, vinyl, morris / audio]

14 may 2008

lbl: Morris / Audio

#: morris61

eletronic

deep house, tech-house

320kbps

A. Ripped Open  

B1. Det Sound  

B2. Sorta Down

note: "This is the first record released this year that has really put a smile on my face. With its blatant lack of pretension and no-nonsense honesty, 'Get Your Wadsworth' has the depth and the versatility to be a staple in thinking house/techno sets for a good while. 

'Ripped Open' sounds painful, and there's a wailing vocal sample to match, but put that down to the masochistic pleasure of jacking one's body until the joints have been dislocated because that's what this tune makes you want to do. This is an idiomatic dance track that is on one level incredibly familiar and yet it’s also refreshingly different.

On the B-side, 'DET Sound' is full of delicate touches, including a cheeky little sax riff meandering through a dream-like soundscape. 'Sorta Down' slows things down a touch and has a melancholic feel offset by jazz-funk phrasing of the deftest type. The sampled squeak is also a nice touch, sounding like over-zealous lovemaking on an old mattress. 

This is simply emotional and visceral music that has the power to remind you why you fell in love with house in the first place. " - Paul Corey, RA.

9.0

dubesque rockers

[4shared]

buy it here.

[discogs]

Kowton - Basic Music Knowledge [2010, vinyl, idle03]

may 2010

lbl: Idle Hands

#: IDLE003

electronic

house, uk garage

320kbps

A.  Basic Music Knowledge

B.  Hunger

note: "For some time now, Bristol has been a torchbearer for the deeper, more cultured side of UK bass music, with a gaggle of top-notch labels—Tectonic, Punch Drunk, Apple Pips and Immerse, primarily—spewing out quality releases with alarming regularity. Idle Hands, which runs out of the town's much-loved Rooted Records, looks to be no exception, having already graced us with two excellent 12-inches, and now this: young Joe Cowton's second release under his Kowton moniker, and most likely the darkest slab of slow house-meets-UKG you'll hear all year.

A-side "Basic Music Knowledge" sounds like something the Pink Panther would come up with after a heavy night out with the Workshop crew, its plodding bass and slinky hats establishing a suavely sinister groove. Chugging away at a sleazy 115 BPM, a muffled 4/4 kick—submerged deep in the mix—keeps it all locked together, while a chirpy, chipmunky female vocal evokes garage's champagne-swilling glory days (albeit minus the champagne, or the glory). B-side "Hunger" plunges fathoms deeper, losing a couple of BPM and ramping up the bass, which, aside from clickety hats and sparse, menacing FX, is all the track really consists of. It's amazing what 2-step sounds like at this tempo—tense, sweaty, claustrophobic—and that it works so well is just reward for Kowton's dark, daring approach." - Max Bacharach, RA.

7.3

aqueous haze

[HF]

buy it here.

[Honest Jon's, £5.99]

Ross 154 - Until My Heart Stops [2004, vinyl, m>o>s recordings]

18 march 2004

lbl: M>O>S Recordings

#: mos0002

electronic

deep house, minimal techno, electro, oldschool

192kbps

A. Until My Heart Stops...

B. Kaoz

producer: Jochem Peteri aka Newworldaquarium

note: "[...] Till my heart stops" is probably the older of the two, and has survived the humid environment of the mystical washing facilities rather well. I guess he likes to shower long, but never too long. "Kaoz" is a small part of the now infamous "My old piano" sessions at the hangout of Haarlem DJ-collective Kaoz Connection, which where heavily inspired by KLF, The Orb and J-J-J-jack fever. Named after the always-present Diana Ross evergreen "My old piano" on 33rpm these sets they were a pretty mad mix of live electronics and odd tunes, and always ended in either a neighbourhood riot or a civilized police-request. Unfortunately most of these sets are lost forever, but somehow someone managed to press record while the 154 was doing some serious knob twisting. [...] " - distributor.

7.3

repress!

buy it here.

[official site, REPRESS, € 8.00]

Claudio Mate - Dub Island [2009, vinyl, dpress industries]

april 2009

lbl: Dpress Industries

#: DPRESS 035

electronic

dub techno

320kbps

A. Dub Island (Original Mix)
B1. Dub Island (Quantec Remix)  
B2. Dub Island (Echoreshape Mix)
_
total time: 22:12

note: "Claudio Mate's voyage to 'Dub Island' results in an exemplary eight-minute dub techno piece, produced to perfection with all the requisite bass curvature and low end presence. There's an unusually insistent line in reverberant, compressed percussion running through the track as well, really bringing the production to life. By comparison, Quantec's take on the mix is a little more run-of-the-mill, but once again its a masterful command of the dub-techno art-form. Topping off all this is the 'EchoReshape' mix, bringing a more flattened out, energised 4/4 feel that's still loaded with layer upon layer of ambient texture. An excellent EP."

7.3

quantec, how do you plan for retirement?

[4shared]

buy it here. 

[Rush Hour Store, €10.50]

Kris Wadsworth - The Electric Truth [2009, vinyl, morris / audio]

12 march 2009

lbl: Morris / Audio

#: morris audio 64

electronic

deep house

320kbps





A. Sweatin' Cold  
B1. Soulution  
B2. Shootin' Moves

note: Kris Wadsworth has been a busy guy since his Morris/Audio release in May 2008. Releasing chart-topping tracks on hot labels like Hypercolor or Adult only (plus forthcoming stuff on Millions of Moments and Brut! To name but a few), Kris also turning out to be one of the most world's most watched artists. Now, Detroit's KW is back again to release on his favorite imprint, Morris/Audio! "The Electric Truth" is a continuation of where the first EP's "Det Sound" and "Sorta' Down" tracks left off. " How often does your set exorcise a motherfucker?", says the sample in "Sweatin' cold". It's Kris's trademark moods and funky-ass electric shit coming to fruition. "Soulution" is just what the play on words would suggest. Fat-ass electric beats and a surprising ansformation that is possibly a definition for tech-house. "Shootin' Moves" lends itself from Kris's checkered background. A distinct urban feel, yet refined enough to shock the life back into the chin-strokers. The "truth" be told on this one."

9.0

drop that funky tank

[HF]

buy it here.

[Juno.UK, £7.99]

Pulshar - Sacrifice Of Love / Mantistyle (Remixed) [2010, vinyl, phonobox]

19 april 2010

lbl: Phonobox

#: Phonobox007

electronic

dub techno, minimal techno, downtempo

320kbps

A1. Sacrifice Of Love (Original Version)

A2. Mantistyle (Deep's Edayar Rmx)

B1. Sacrifice Of Love (Even Tuell Dancing Alone Now Rmx)

B2. Mantistyle (Sistema Rmx)

note: "If delays hadn't postponed the release of this latest Pulshar single until now, it would have marked 2009 as a nearly perfect musical year for Pablo Bolivar. With his excellent sophomore album Recall on Regular, a mix for the revitalised Galaktika label plus a handful of solid singles, the return of his Pulshar project was almost the icing on the cake. 

The new track, "Sacrifice of Love," from the Barcelona-based duo continues on from where the Brotherhood compilation left off, only here everything has a brighter air of pop sweetness to it. Sergio Aphro's vocal is breathy and comforting, whereas Bolivar opts for softer, almost cooing, synths. The dub elements may also be subtle, but they still cast a warm shadow beneath the shiny façade. 

Pulshar normally brings out the best in their remixers, though Even Tuell's mix is somewhat disappointing. The staccato loops of vocals and prismatic beats get burned out looking for something more, like a bass run or a continuous melodic element, to gel everything together and break the inertia. However, Deeps Edayar and Sistema's previously unreleased takes on "Mantistyle" more than make up the difference. Edayar's remix is sonorous and seductive deep house with a well worked dub techno growl at its core to add a gruff streak. Sistema's intriguing mix is from another world altogether, blending a big '80s electro drum sound, acid synth pads and melodic licks." - Chris Mann, RA.

[8.5]

spring by the river

[HF]

buy it here.

[Kompakt.fm, 7,80 €]