CIGNOL Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Irish electro don Cignol is back on Furthur Electronix with more of his top class sonic excursions. He opens this latest EP with 'Glee Arch' which pairs far-sighted chords with celestial pads and broken rhythms. 'Keyss' is a melancholic piece with meaningful chords front and centre and pixelated keys macing around the edges as the woodpecker beats provide the motion. The tenderness of his synths and keys continues on 'Electrob' which has more plaintive melodies paired with bristling beats and then closer 'Staying On Drugs' is a colourful and loose rhythm that feels like it might all fall apart.

Review: Thanks to a swathe of superb EPs over the last few years for the likes of 2020 Vision, Lunar Disko, Further Electronix, Altered Sense and Unknown to the Unknown, long-serving electro producer Cignol is enjoying something of a career renaissance. As a result, some of his earliest releases have become in-demand and hard-to-find - hence this reissue of his long-overlooked, but utterly brilliant, 2010 debut album, Switching For a Living. Offering an attractive mixture of sci-fi seeped, far-sighted tracks informed by 1990s IDM, deep electro, downtempo, ambient and acid, it's a coherent but varied affair that has well and trily lasted the test and time - thanks, in part, to Cignol's intention to make it a genuine "listening album". Recommended.

Review: The Spanish Hypnotic Collective label attempts to capture its take on the Detroit Legacy with what looks like a new series of various artists' EP. There is plenty of Motor City soul in the gorgeous synths of Cignol's muted acid and deep house opener 'Distance' which is a soothing and reverential groove, but then its pure party from Barce, Alex Martin offers up 313 style tech and three further tunes on the flip explore blistering electro with high-speed funk and cosmic intent. Mission accomplished and we're already looking forward to the next one.