Saturday 1 November 2014

Review: Paula Temple - Deathvox


Format: Vinyl & Digital

Cat.No: R&S  RS1412

This is Paula Temple's second release on R&S, a sequel to her Colonized EP. Now based in Berlin and also running her own label, Noise Manifesto, Temple offers a distinctive blend of contemporary techno with acknowledged industrial influences (a brave step as there's a clumsy but vocal backlash against such influences in techno at present).


'Deathvox' fades up elegantly into distortion and a relentless, galloping beat, soon strafed by harsh, machinic screams. Underlying this are (slightly) more musical elements that provide contrast with the main sequence. After a more ambient interlude it seems to accelerate again, with crisper drums and blasts of what sounds improbably like a Tibetan horn (perhaps her own voice transformed, as the press release suggests). Given her statement that “I wanted to create a sonic movement completely transhuman, captivating, and capable of tingling every chakra in the body” this makes perfect sense, even when the beats drop away and the sound comes to the fore before the chase (which is what the faster sequences feel like) resumes, although it's still interrupted again before the end.

'Monstro' is initially marked by idealistic synth chords that are soon pulverised by massive industrial percussion in the vein of Ancient Methods. It's a slow, pounding track that takes its time and also cedes space to the spacey synths again before its end.


Shifting gear again, 'Ful' opens with very sparse, tribal percussion, plaintive chords and a more muffled beat than the other tracks. Its half-yearning, half-confrontational atmosphere is very 90s, but in the best sense, and when a massive bassline drops later in the track it establishes a direct and inspiring connection to the insurgent energy of classic R & S releases.

Sunday 26 October 2014

Out now: DDR60 on VEB89



This video trailer for the DDR60 compilation features The Party Machine's 'A-SED Haus', a counter-factual hardcore post-new beat remix of East German reality.

For full details of the compilation, limited to 100 copies only, see the label website.

Review: MARCELUS Shine EP TRESOR269


This is the third EP by Marcelus (French producer Cédric Bros) Marcelus returns with the ‘Shine EP’, third 12" to be released on Tresor, which is increasingly coming to seem like a natural home for him.

Opener 'Red Dance' innovatively re-works the classic techno-minimalist sounds of Pacou's late 1990s Tresor releases. It's centred on brittle sounds with a metallic edge that produce a strong impact without sacrificing complexity.



'Worship The Bass' gradually intensifies and accumulates power and packs a strong punch, but is misleadingly-titled as it's not actually a massively bassy track. Instead Marcelus'  cold, filtered sounds compete thoughtfully with a muffled kick.



The B-side tracks (for vinyl listeners) are much more atmospheric and abstract, reminding us of the ambient side of Tresor's vast back catalogue. A filtered, metallic sound circles through 'Shine', accompanied by gauzy sounds and a disembodied female voice in a digital fog. It's certainly not a typical track and all the better for it.



'Astral' is suitably ethereal and makes for a graceful end to the EP. It's a deep and beat-less outro with a trace of the ambient textures of Harold Budd.


Sunday 12 October 2014

Review: Isolated Lines - Stride


Isolated Lines - Stride
Creaked Recordings CRDS44
12”/Digital


One of the more distinctive releases of recent months has been this set by the Swiss producer Isolated Lines, who is described as being influenced by “by old industrial and purely analog synth music.” Yet these are absolutely not backward-looking tracks. The temptation to wallow in fake, neo-80s nostalgia is completely avoided and has a very fresh feeling.


I played Stride at my recent Fluid set and it's both a very strong set builder and a great listen. It kicks in hard from the start, but when the militant hardcore bass sneaks in it becomes massive. Still, there's plenty of subtle detail and finesse in the mix and this is much more than a dancefloor tool. Definitely one of the more memorable tracks of the year to date.

In contrast, 'Raze' is more introspective and minimal, yet still focussed and dynamic. Around the halfway mark, the coldly bleepy sounds and drones are temporarily pushed back by brighter tones before the track returns to its original path.

'Uphold' is an unusual blend of darker bass and components that might have been assembled into a funky party track by other producers. It's full of minimalistic tension and marked by a very forward-thinking use of hovering bass stabs and eventually by darker bass elements that recall the more dance-oriented work of his Swiss predecessors Yello.

I was also strongly reminded of Yello on 'Induce'. The effect here is similar to Yello's more panoramic, wide-screen ambient tracks. The slowly pounding beats only intensify a surprisingly emotional conclusion to the release.

While I have to strongly challenge the press release's fanciful claim that this is "techno at its very darkest", these remain distinctive hardcore/minimal tracks that get under the skin and bear repeated listens (itself a victory in a time of endemic over-production).

Thursday 14 August 2014

Live at Fluid, Friday 15th August

I'll be playing a more techno-focussed set than usual, but naturally with a few wild cards thrown in.


Hysteria, Basement, 578 Kingsland Road, Dalston. Free from 21.00 to 22.00, £5 after. Running until 03.00. Set time: 00.00 - 01.30

Saturday 22 March 2014

Review: Container - Adhesive (Liberation Technologies LTECH007)

Artist: Container
Title: Adhesive
Label: Liberation Technologies
Cat: LTECH007
Format: Digital / Vinyl

The latest release on Mute's developing Liberation Technologies label presents the work of American producer Container (Ren Schofield). The label seems like a natural home for an aggressively experimental EP that seems to acknowledge the influence of other, now historic, producers.

Opener Glaze has an almost poppy beat offset by harsher noise textures. It also recalls the work of Nova Mute artist 2nd Gen and also has a trace of the early electronic spirit of Mute.



Slush is harsher and more abrasive track with an aggressive, punky sound full of nagging details. In contrast, Complex is quite Punky in spirit, featuring raw textures and a strange niggling sound that might be a flanged voice sample. Whatever the source, it's been successfully designed to grate and to prevent things getting too linear.

The title track is based around a harsh, scouring pattern with sudden blares and bleepy details. It's a very rough and urgent track, as reflected in the media overdose theme of the video:

Thursday 6 February 2014

Review: AnD Kundalini (Electric Deluxe)


AnD Kundalini
Electric Deluxe
12'' // Digital Download EDLX034

Dimitri from Manchester duo AnD has a very clear mission statement: "It's all about getting hard man, harder and harder and harder." While for some artists a move to Electric Deluxe might signal a softening or a move away from dancefloor brutalism, AnD retain their hard, uncompromising edge while also opening out their sound to new textures.

Kundalini punches in hard from the start. 'The Jellyfish' is the most conventional or linear track. Featuring a heavy kick and harsh details, it splinters and fragments dramatically in the last section before the kick punches back in at -2.32. Played loud, this colossal moment will knock the unwary off their feet. Euphoric devastation.


The bleepy sequence that structures 'Dysekt' only slightly softens the massive, potentially internal organ-rupturing kick and detuned rave elements. When the kick returns at 4.53 after dropping away for a while it's hard as hell and even more massive.

'Dtadtmat' has a relatively subtle introduction but is soon dominated by heavy, rolling, bass and strict beats. These are later joined by harsher metallic elements. In contrast, 'IcDbYc' is an ominous bleepscape, quite similar to the dark industrial visions of Australian artist Black Lung, and a worthy sonic successor to his work.

After the storms, the (relative) calm. 'DTR' is a very filmic 10 minute track featuring an eventually almost overpowering bass frequency. It has a very industrial atmosphere but a more contemporary-sounding percussion gradually creeps in. Despite its rough, abrasive textures it's an atmospheric track of great depth and precision.

It's really too soon to describe this powerful set of tracks as one of the releases of 2014, but if it doesn't turn out to have been one of the best of the year it will have been a truly exceptional year.






Tuesday 28 January 2014

Review: V/A Sulla Giostra Nell’Ombra



Artist: V.A.
Title: Sulla Giostra Nell’Ombra
Label: Violet Poison
Cat: VPN005
Release: 23rd-Jan-2014
Format: 12” Vinyl Only (Transparent)

Although only on its 5th release, the Violet Poison label is already attracting strong interest. The fifth release is a suitably uncompromising compilation. While even some techno listeners will find these tracks too extreme, they sacrifice neither force nor subtlety.

O/H is Richard Oddie of Orphx and Dave Foster of Teste. Their track 'Delirium Tremens' kicks in hard from the start. Its pulsing analogue basslines have more than a trace of Pan Sonic and are offset by harsh noise frequencies, shaking loose all manner of sonic debris.


Irish producer Sunil Sharpe offers the pleasingly-titled 'Ground Skull' which is not quite as brutal as its predecessor, but equally dramatic. Built around atmospheric alarm bell frequencies, it also features a very dirty acidic noise sequence and a very abrupt ending.

'Function' by Belgraders Ontal initially sounds like it's going be a all-out assault, but while there's no shortage of fiercely dragging industrial percussion and noise, it doesn't punch through as expected, but keeps to a steady on/off beat marked by mechanical rasping and half-joyful, half-ominous chords.

CSA's 'Overture', may not be quite as confrontational or fast as the others, but it's a very intense and ominous piece – a blend of churning noise, twisted high chords and orchestral ambience with definite industrial overtones. A suitably uneasy ending to a very intense slab of vinyl.