REBOOT Schallplatten & CDs

Review: "Keep it trippy..." There sure aren't that many Rhythm Cults out there that we know of, and this Barcelona-based sect is certainly one we'd like to join. Celebrating ten years in operation, the label here brings back a cross-section of artists who've helped sculpt its distinctive sound. The new anniversary edition aquaplanes the murky edges of house, techno, and experimental electronics, spotlighting the minimal yet girthy dance stylistics of Funk D'Void, Aquarius Heaven, Samuel L Session and more. From early signings to recent collaborators, we've a decades' worth of tunes on our hands here, all re-centring a darkly sophisticated house sound.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


Personality Disorder Music is only early in its adventures in the label world but is already turning some heads. The fourth outing from the crew brings together some accomplished underground mainstays for four tracks of twisted tech. There is an edgy vibe to the opener 'Deception' with its throwback breakbeats powering along warped bass, and spoken word snippets adding a sultry twist. 'What Are We Doing' is a stringy and skeletal minimal groove peppered with twangs and hits, sine waves and toms. The B-side melon twisters are just as good with 'Chaos' (feat Mari Kvien Brunvoll) in particular having a nice occult cosmic edge.

Review: Personality Disorder Music is only early in its adventures in the label world but is already turning some heads. The fourth outing from the crew brings together some accomplished underground mainstays for four tracks of twisted tech. There is an edgy vibe to the opener 'Deception' with its throwback breakbeats powering along warped bass, and spoken word snippets adding a sultry twist. 'What Are We Doing' is a stringy and skeletal minimal groove peppered with twangs and hits, sine waves and toms. The B-side melon twisters are just as good with 'Chaos' (feat Mari Kvien Brunvoll) in particular having a nice occult cosmic edge.

Review: The freshly minted Occult Vision label has a distinctively different ethos and approach. It was established to release full-length excursions (that's albums, kids) only, thus offering producers they work with the chance to stretch their musical legs (so to speak). For the label's debut, they've turned to long-serving Frankfurt producer Frank Heinrich. His first LP since 2016, On A Grind sees the German frequently blur the boundaries between tech-house and deep house, with solid and sub-heavy grooves being overlaid with a mixture of heady sonic textures, glassy-eyed vocal samples, glitchy percussion, twinkling keys and tipsy, mind-mangling musical motifs. Highlights include the jazzy tech-house dustiness of 'Tombant Jazz', the deep and heady shuffle of 'Sweat', the ragged, acid-fired hedonism of 'Outwork' and the sweat-soaked peak-time pump of the nostalgic title track.

Review: Percussion, rhythms and intricate polyrhythms have always laid down the foundations of Reboot's music ever since he first arrived on the scene three years ago. Since that debut, "Be Tougher / Letters" from back in 2007 on Luciano's Cadenza imprint, the talented German has made a fast and steep rise to becoming one of dance music's hottest properties. He has seen single and EP releases on Cocoon, Below, Love Letters from Oslo, Motivbank, Below and Ricardo Villalobos' Sei Es Drum imprint in addition to highly acclaimed mix CDs for Cocoon and Cécille. Shunyata, his first ever LP marks his return to Cadenza and keeps his ever flowing, tribal polyrhythms at the centre of its sound.


Its title is loosely translated from its Buddhist origins as ‘emptiness’ which is not used here in a negative sense but as a reference to the album’s state of impermanence and constant state of flux. Utilising the album format, Reboot manages to make the individual tracks start at one point and lead to somewhere completely different, keeping the entire record moving in a constant and kaleidoscopic motion. He builds these spiralling grooves or intricate polyrhythms by interconnecting instruments such as congas, bells, cymbals, woodblocks, shakers, steely drums and aluminium barrels, binding them together to weave an evolving groove. Added to that, stranger sound elements such as field recordings, cut up, distorted vocals, pings and gurgles permeate the percussion layers whilst a spongy bed of compressed bass fills the low end.


The focus is once more on the dancefloor as tracks like the peaktime "Hermano," the deepness of "Dreliach" the hypnotic "Me Show," and the darker vibes of "Save Me" all play testament to. However, there are also some more unexpected moments such as the skipping and melodic "Rambon," the spiralling "Down Pantha," the sedate opener "Uruana" and the sampled guitar that appears on "Sanchez Says." It's very structural nature makes Shunyata an album in the true sense of the word, demanding full and repeat listens to fully appreciate its beauty.

Review: Reboot's 'Be Tougher' features dark, empathetic, dazzlin, polyrhythmic, groovin trax on Cadenza.