THE EXALTICS Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Robert Witschakowski has been a man on an electro mission (as well as many other side mission, to be really quite honest) for as long as we can remember. His furtherment of electro knows no bounds and it has often come in association with Dutch label Clone and its offshoots, though here he has his They Arrive EP reissued by fellow Dutch label Creme Organization. It landed first back in 2011 but has aged like fine wine and sounds as good as ever - there are a mix of creepy and atmospheric pieces, sick dancefloor rhythms and plenty more to enjoy here.

Review: You can always count on Clone's Repetitive Rhythm Research label to bring a proper, hard-edged strain of techno that matches brawn with brains. Next up on the label after a knockout record from Frequency is The Exaltics, tailoring their signature electro style to a blown-out 4/4 sound to incite a thousand sweatboxes. 'It Never Ends' is brilliantly jacking, with deep space synths on top, and 'Hammerheads From Outta Space' doubles down on brute-force kicks and dirtbag leads. 'Corroded From The Future' dips into dystopian acid from the depths, and 'Dumb MST Digital' caps the record off with a stripped back 303 workout for those who carry a torch for the glory days of Bunker Records.

Review: We've lost count of the various projects Robert Witschakowski has been involved in this year, but the Some Other Places series of releases on Clone's West Coast Series is up there with the German's best work as The Exaltics. This hand-stamped purple 12" is the third and final part and contains some fine electro for both the dancefloor and the living room. Opening this five-track release is the snare shaking and in your face ambient intro of "Getting Closer" which is followed by a melodic and grouchy key driven "Never Be Enough". The EP's highlights are "Can You See It" and "SL-W D-WN", which respectively are dubby and mellow and dusty and break beat. Seriously, does Witschakowski sleep?

Review: As the title suggests, Some Other Place Volume 2 is the second installment of a triptych of releases from The Exaltics for The Clone West Coast series. As with previous music from the Solar One boss, the four tracks here see The Exaltics look to both American and Dutch schools of electro but the results are nonetheless distinguished by his own unique signifiers. The title track sets the tone nicely as waves of sumptuous blurred noise ride a supple skeletal rhythm, whilst "Waves Of Fear" lives up to it's paranoid title with a marauding low end bass line the dominating element on a classic slab of darkside electro. "The Way Out" is perhaps the most conventional track here, with Witschakowski laying down an atmospheric but club ready 808 workout which is still a cut above thanks to the German's arrangement skills. Which leaves room for the slower, weirder and mushy excellence of "Different Ways".

Review: To mark a mighty impressive 20 years of PuZZling records in 2023, the label has put together this heavyweight mix of names for an EP that sounds as good as it looks on marbled vinyl. It's a truly global affair with artists from all over the world and The Exaltics kick off with 'All Of This', a typically rugged slide of electro. From there the quality never dips with Freddie Fresh jacking your body, the legendary Neil Landstrumm bringing his textbook machine madness and Umwelt closing down with 'Celestial Mechanics'. Old school electro, acid and techno heads take note, this is a must-buy.