PUGILIST Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Melbourne's Pugilist opens the proceedings on Modern Hypnosis's third various artists EP. It is the sort of hi fidelity and rhythmic precise techno that you might find on labels like Livity Sound. 'Flip Trix' is couched in plenty of warming dub undercurrents with upright drums and funky percussive patterns. Henry Greenleaf then goes into overdrive with his double time and mind-melting drum programming on the frenzied 'Stopper Knot' and Ebb shuts down with the broken rhythms and raved up synth fizz of 'GTAM' to make for an adventurous EP indeed.

Review: Melbourne's Pugilist, known for the compelling 'Negative Space' EP, teams up with fellow Australian artist Pod for Iridescent, their debut collaboration on Of Paradise. Across nine meticulously crafted tracks, the duo embarks on an exploration of contemporary dance music. This isn't just a collection of tunes; it's a shifting soundscape, rich with textures and unpredictable in form. From cavernous dub basslines to ethereal atmospheres, Pugilist and Pod deliver a dynamic, genre-blurring journey. 'Haus' and 'Myriapoda' stand out, blending deep rhythms with intricate melodic detail, while moments of ambient serenity wash over, creating a truly immersive, genre-transcendent listening experience.

Review: Hardcore drum & bass flavours lent an ethereal, darkside sonic twist. Welcomed to the Samuari Music shogunate for the first time ever - despite a longtime, shared presence on the scene - Pugilist, Tamen and Onyx make for a thoracic, thudding collab. Suspensory pads lock us in vial-pods of stasis on the opening 'Conquer', on which our somatic reserves end up totally vampirised by precision shellage. Scapular breaks break our kneecaps on 'ESS', which comes squared off by tweezed hats, while 'Resu' and 'Mise' go on to bloodlet a jungular jugular, with the final track meliorating the soul with its tuned 808s, sculpted distortion and pulsate, futuro-spa ambiances.