Token Belgium Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Jeroen Search has got a signature sound that is all about stripped down techno to its bare components and layering them up into minimal productions that come alive with wiry synths and plenty of FX. 'Light Spinner' opens up here with a real sense of paranoia in the bleeping sonar pulse and twisted drums. 'Six Requests' is even quicker and more direct with its oversized hi-hats and malfunctioning synth circuitry. Two flip side cuts bring mind melting acid manipulations and dubbed-out, low key and linear techno workouts. An essential outing as ever from the always fresh studio of Search.

Review: Things are getting serious once again on Token as Norbak weighs in with some expertly sculpted dark techno with an artful twist. The Portuguese artist has continually shaped out a unique path across releases for Axis, Mord, Hayes and MindTrip, and so the story continues with the unique rhythmic disturbance of 'Teste' and the industrial strength funk of 'Sopro'. There's a unique flair in every inch of this EP which marks it out from the dominant Berghain techno sound, making this essential gear for anyone who wants their peak time set to leave an impression.

Review: Hot on the heels of his full-length LP 'Sky Scraping', Luke Slater is back as Planetary Assault Systems with one of the albums key tracks 'Devotion', which wasn't included on the 2LP. Truncate steps in for a hard hitting remix on A2, while Slater provides a new exclusive hypnotic track 'Eden Tide' as B1. Barker then closes out the record with a meditative eye closer to smooth the edges of a rougher record.

Review: Everything about this release looks massive: the legend Luke Slater, on Token no less, with an EP titled Say It Loud. Indeed from the first beat of 'Bang Wap' you know you are in for a wild ride with one of techno's expert technicians, on this powerful and functional DJ tool in typically futurist aesthetic. The restrained fury of 'Bolt' is similarly looped and stripped down but still capable of taking you into cerebral realms on the warehouse dancefloor. Over on the flip, the title track is a jacking old school jam centred around its thunderous 909 rhythm patterns and ending with the cyclical and hypnotic energy of 'Shine'.

Review: Back in 2014 James Ruskin graced the mighty Token with a track for the Aphelion compilation, and now seven years later the UK techno legend is back with a fully-fledged EP. Ruskin's sound takes no prisoners and that's instantly apparent on 'From The Ashes 1', which fires off a nightmarish lead synth loop which will send your brain into disarray with one flick of the fader. 'From The Ashes 2' is a more submerged, funky affair with some growling, dubby impulses and the kind of sound design flair Ruskin weaves so expertly into his tracks. 'From The Ashes 3' is a different beast altogether, keeping the drums stripped back and letting some bombastic synth lines shape out a sound big enough to fill a cathedral.