Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Befitting of the label's name, Drumsauw aka. Joseph Sutherland keeps to the Code with a fresh three-tracker of megatechno heaters. Starting things off with the entraining but no less driving dreamer 'Focus', we're met with riveting sixteenthy knocks and dour breakdowns, a formula devoutly followed throughout; the B offers up two further alarmist pummellings of the third kind, with 'Set Back' repeatedly jabbing the podiatric floor with pressurised weight-kicks and offhand "push it" voxxes, and 'Escape' continuing to sound said alarm while insisting that we "escape" the laboratory, now quarantined to sift out those hesitant to dance.

Review: Originally released in 1994 and now reissued in 2024, confirming the resurgence of interest in the classic jungle sound, 'Watch Out' is a hard-hitting jungle track with a relentless 'Amen' break, while 'Media' offers a more complex and atmospheric soundscape with a deep, broken bassline.. 'Watch Out' immediately grabs attention with its pounding bassline and heavy drums, the tribal percussion adding an exotic flavor, while the heavy Amen break provides the relentless drive that characterises jungle at its best. The track is relentless and hypnotic, perfectly capturing the energy of the early scene. 'Media,' in contrast, is a more experimental tune. The jungle breakbeats are present, but they are more subdued, providing a backdrop for the track's deep bass notes. Together, 'Watch Out' and 'Media' offer a snapshot of the golden era of jungle music. They are essential listening for anyone interested in the genre's roots and its continuing evolution.

Review: French outfit Disco Records - whose name is a masterclass in SEO - returns for four new disco edits, this time housed in a deep purple sleeve. On the A, we hear nominally unchanged, but sonically-tampered-with, versions of Billy Frasier's 'The Mind Blower...' and King Tutt's 'You Got Me Hung Up'. The B-side, meanwhile, flaunts two further excellent cuts reworking The Hippolytes and Ozone, the latter of which is a particularly intoxicating slice of laserific, finger-licking boogie.

Review: TV Hill Records starts things off rough and curiosity-rousing, with a technical itch from OG AG (Andrew Grant) in collaboration with fellow producer Dimneonsum. A mid-paced deep techno calculator, 'What's Up Everybody' pares back any semblance of emotion for pure robotic urgency, with every sound moving in juddering clockwork lockstep in an abstracted world of pure, preservative mathematic topology. Opener 'San Fran' pits nervous FM loops against an equally anxious Shepard-tonal riser, while calmer moments such as the beatless 'Drakey' still disquiet with their eerie glassiness. One for the bleepy heads, the only humanistic element is the revelatory vocal sample on 'Found Out'.

Review: See-Saw records out of the Netherlands were a well-respected label very early in the rave era. Starting way back in 1991, the label was known for being one of the first rave labels in the area but also respected for their variety of styles like house, techno, hardcore and trance music. Their third record and one of their most desired The Jewel EP by Diamonds & Pearls aka Gijs Vroom, is getting a welcomed reissue on the Late Night Burners label. This reissue is a mirror to the original that features the heavy piano house monster 'What You Do To Me', the Euro house gem 'What You Do To Disco' and the Chicago influenced 'Rockin' Your World'. We can't say enough great things about the beautifully mellow ambient house track 'Perspective' which perfectly captures the amazing chill out sound of the time. A very worthy and welcomed reissue from beginnings of of rave post the New Beat era in the Netherlands.

Review: Mathew Dexter invites us into his singular techno sound world with this fresh new EP which inaugurates the new Subplanet label. 'New World opens up with main room vibes and nice arpeggios that have a hint of Italo charm to them. 'Godspeed' then layers up more hypnotic synth sequences to build a sense of unresolved tension over darker and more edgy beats. 'Sunbeam' offers a more heady vibe with some mystic flute style leads up top and transcendental synths that warp and weft to great effect. 'Retrograde is a prickly, bouncy, textured closer with euro-centric synths and plenty of melodic colour.

Review: Twilight is the latest piece by long time DJ, producer and remixer, Dominic Dawson. The Japanese label Flower, has released this single to 7" complete with a remix for the second side. The title track is a catchy and funky house track that while the remix is a bit more Balearic and beachy. Both versions have their place in any house setlist and will set the tone for any eclectic DJ set. With the DJing background Dominic has, he is a great guide to setting the mood with music. Like the title artwork suggests, this is perfect music to watch the sun go down to.

Review: Dan Formless' "Fried All Day" is a minimalistic tech house track that becomes the second release for the upstart label Bank of Switches. The original track is characterized by its repetitive beat, sparse instrumentation, and hypnotic atmosphere. The title 'Fried All Day' evokes a sense of exhaustion and overindulgence, which is reflected in the track's strangely hypnotic rhythm and quirky sounds. The Alex Arnout remix takes a more driving approach, with a more upbeat and melodic approach. Overall, this record is essential for lovers of minimal tech house and techno. Showcasing Dan Formless' unique and uncompromising style he is bringing the fun back to dance music enthusiasts with this one.

Review: The present face of IDM is here heard occupied by dream duo D'Arcangelo and Karsten Plum, whose latest joint effort for Acid Avengers bowls us over with its acid tweezings, pangs, twingings, twangs, thrums and flits-past. The pH scale skyrockets to the point of insanity on Pflum's side, with 'Hornfish Acid' and 'Aroe Acid' jointly corroding the full length of the Earth's core with their snippy but incisive sizzles and 'ows, until we reach a forbidden underworld uncannily reminiscent of Oz - except the faces of the protagonists are horribly twisted into a yellow, illegal-raved rictuses. D'Arcangelo's 'Gawain' does equally as much with its eerie sprung-verbed chroma-chords and muted but moving melodies; so too does 'Walker Two' raise the tempo to silly speeds, coming as a veritable velociraptor of Druqks-y breaks and drill bits, all let loose from the barrel at a surely illegal rate of fire.

Review: The self-titled debut album from Elvis-meets-Jim Morrison gothic crooner Glenn Danzig, originally landed in 1988 and marked the first ever LP distributed by Rick Rubin's Def Jam Recordings (now there's a piece of punk pub quiz trivia). Following on from Danzig disbanding Misfits and releasing the debut Samhain LP Initium in 1984, the horror-punk maestro would be incentivised by Rubin to alter the project's name in order to retain full creative control moving forward, leading to their sultry, macabre debut of blues-tinged, retro metallic death rock, complete with depraved lyrics and haunting swagger. Although not legally permitted to be credited due to label issues, Metallica frontman James Hetfield provides his signature gruff vocals on both 'Twist Of Cain' and 'Possession'.

Review: Tyler Daley is a UK hip-hop mainstay and the vice of the brilliant Children of Zeus. Here he branches out with his own solo album, Son of Zeus - see what he did there? It comes on the band's home label of First World and bares plenty of their signature sonic hallmarks - dusty, undercooked production, lazy hip hop beats, and gorgeous vocals that sit somewhere between neo soul, golden era boom-bap from Tribe and something else a little unique. It's a warm world where yearning bars, lush harmonies and hooky melodies all float around the stripped back but bumping beats. Superb stuff.