Back catalogue: All genres

Review: Clarifying its vision ahead of its ambient and en-tranced origins laid out earlier this year, Sense Code's third release solidifies the Northern Italian label as a hub for introspective and refined electronic music. Following last winter's split EP, 'Sense 003' embraces a multi-artist approach, all the while further establishing Italy's baton-bearing role in deep techno. Formant Value's dynamic downtempo standout 'Deep Core' unfolds with ingenious, perpetual motive basslines set against penumbral textures, while crisper percussive nuances unfold across Biocym's dark forestation on the B-side, 'Forest Blackout'.

Review: Island Beats welcome the return of Dani Labb for his second release 'Inclementia', converging sonic memory and dystopian fiction: the DJ and producer from Rio Negra culls his inspirations from the the many grim realms glimpsed in the video games that defined his youth, daubing a claustrophobic, hard-acid breaks pixel painting. Though the game realms aren't named, we're hearing hellish sonic level design in this one, be that in the Half Life security breach voices of 'Locked Away' or the dungeon crawling Doom acid of 'Hijack'.

Review: Fierce electronic mavericks LNS & DJ Sotofett deliver a thrilling two-tracker that's built for serious warehouse action. The A-side is a teeth-clenching, bassline-driven beast that is raw, gritty and euphoric with static rhythms, stabbing synths and a halftime arpeggio breakdown that erupts into dreamy pads. On the flip, DJ Sotofett's 'Buzzy Breaker' starts minimal with just kicks, stabs and dubs, then morphs into a breakbeat monster with polyrhythmic tension and soaring pads underpinned with jungle-inflected drops. Both tracks harness deep, hypnotic repetition while sounding bold and system-ready so make for techno with real weight but also edge and purpose that results in high class DJ and dancer tackle.

Review: Motion Potion Records returns with a second release from the Australian label founded by Jono Xidias, Mehmet Alpdogan, and ritmiq. This collaborative project sees ritmiq teaming up with Lewba and Louis for the 'Signals' EP, a heady exploration of spacey club sounds. Standout track 'Transmitting From Space' (with Lewba) glides through cosmic synths, subtle breaks and hypnotic melodies so is sure to become a certified late-night burner. On the A-side, Louis and ritmiq deliver 'Interplanetary Prisoner' and 'Parallax,' which are both rich in mood and groove. ritmiq's solo cut 'Nebularae' closes the EP with high energy and dancefloor heat. Signals is a stylish, cosmic journey worth taking.

Review: The debut album from Ukrainian collective Noneside unites musicians and visual artists under the inspiring words of poet Taras Shevchenko, who said 'Make love, o dark-browed ones.' Framed by a painting from contemporary artist Iryna Maksymova, the music explores the trance and tech house that is destined to bring souls together on the dancefloor this summer and beyond. Shjva opens with fresh and mashed bass and sleek trance pads that are subtle but effective. Lostlojic layer sup deep, bubbly techno drums and bass with an angelic vocal tone and Saturated Color's 'Trancia' is a speedy, scuffed-up tech groove for late-night cruising. Peshka and Yevhenii Loi offer two more future-facing trance-techno fusions packed with feels.

Review: Netherlands techno titan Planet Rhythm goes full percussive gas giant on their latest V/A, 'Friction', a motorsport motivator full of accelerometric elan - one of several V/As to grace their revving catalogue in recent times. Ramon Tapia leads the motorcade with 'Friction', a stabbing aerator full of overtop claps and rims, while Louis Lp's 'Radioactivity' unsettles with its seething high ringing and affectively isolated chord-stab-melody. Deas' 'Hard Dreams' nods to the real, unshakeably material core of dreams, with its rancorous full-tone acids, while Ramon Topia closes with 'Fear', a restless, chord-throttling, hard trancey, speed demonic rally racer.

Review: Damian Lazarus's fifth studio album is another left-of-centre exploration of house and tech, often with a spiritual twist and hints of voodoo magic. It is heavy on collaborations and finds the Crosstown Rebels boss hooking up with the likes of Hem Cooke for the spine-tingling downtempo opener 'Searchin' while 'R U Dreaming? (feat Mathew Jonson)' is a more deep and bubbly late-night tech sound. 'La Hija De Juan Simon (feat Mestiza)' is laden with percussion and warped bass, and 'Sunrise Generation (feat Fink)' is a deft and progressive melodic roller that is sure to be huge this summer and beyond.

Review: Dutchman Danny Wolfers aka Legowelt is one of the most prolific artists in the game. He has several aliases which all explore ambient, synth, house and techno, but this is his most well-known. Synths Below Sea Level is another singular long player packed with his signature machine-made sounds and vintage synth textures. There are intergalactic acid odysseys like 'A1200 The Valley Energy', brilliantly lo-fi deep house mediations like 'Maybe You See Them Fly' with melodies so meaningful they bring a tear to your eye and forward-thinking cosmic techno bangers like 'MKS100 CZ Reference Pod 9' which bend space and time. Another gem with artwork by the man himself.

Review: Next up on AD93 is the debut collab between singer-songwriter Marlene Ribeiro (of drone-psychedelic band GNOD) and electronic producer Shackleton, together masquerading as Light Space Modulator. A ghost-tropical ramble through what can only be described as a deterritorial comedown forest, The Rising Wave amounts to a floral, melty eight-tracker, easing up on concept in favour of a loop-breaking, mangrovey musical mood. The improv psycho-echoes of GNOD are heard in full force here - with lead shocker 'These Things' provides an especially depth-swelling burier bass down below - but Shackleton's long-honed dubstep abstractions serve to focus the mix, keeping things as beatmatchable as they need be open-ended.

Review: For over 20 years, Clay Emerson and Ian Pullman aka Loess have quietly built a reputation for crafting intricate, deeply atmospheric electronica and Battens, their fifth album on Califonrian label n5MD, sees them refining their signature aestheticistill grayscale and shadowy, but now imbued with a subtle warmth. The Opener 'Strake' features layered static hums and a slow, hypnotic beat that cycles like waves against a submerged structure. 'Halyard' introduces brittle textures and crisp rhythms, evoking wind-swept landscapes. 'Crowhurst' builds tension with submerged chords and fractured percussion. The haunting 'Koepcke' carries a sense of disorientation and search for stability, while 'Endoctamb' recalls Chain Reaction's most introspective moments, yet with a looser, more organic quality. Closing with 'Rime', Battens embraces silence, with glacial melodies fading into the ether. Throughout, the duo masterfully manipulates sound and space, allowing moments of stillness to breathe between pulsing rhythms and submerged harmonies. There's an undeniable human element in how these tracks moveilike the slow, inevitable shift of nature itself. More than just an exercise in sound design, Battens is a transportive experience, cold yet comforting, stark yet alive recording.

Review: On her debut full-length, Istanbul-born, Amsterdam-based Loradeniz channels heartbreak into radiant ambient soundscapes. By layering up shimmering synth arpeggios, soft percussion and beautifully delicate and ethereal vocals, the album glides between a sense of emotional fragility and rousing sonic strength. Written, performed and produced entirely by Deniz Omeroglu, the artist's classical training and sound design expertise shines through on tracks like 'Cloud Sofa' and 'Sea Serpent' which balance intimacy with IDM-inspired textures, while closer 'Aftersun' glows with that quiet sense of sunrise euphoria. Sun Shone is a deeply personal and emotionally rich journey with plenty of reference points for us all amongst the melancholy and subsequent notes of catharsis.