Back in stock: Breakbeat

Review: Mystics Arts is young label from Belfast that welcomes vocal duo Black Bones aka the DJ and production duo of Aaron Black and Timmy Stewart. Both men have been at this for many years and bring considerable know how, studio chops and dance music understanding to an EP that is aimed square at the rave. It's all about hands in the air breakbeats, old school rave energy, lush chords that come on stronger than the rush of an E and are steeped in the culture of pirate radio, illegal parties and warehouse sessions. A timeless EP that will light up any dancefloor.

Review: Dark Entries welcome back the inimitable Doc Sleep aka Melissa Maristuen for a superb new album of ghostly and ethereal house and techno. This is a welcome follow-up to last year's ambient and IDM exploration, Birds, and shows another side that draws on Maristuen's years of queer clubbing. It fuses aspects of New York house, Berlin techno and West-coast breakbeats and is "a love letter to the West Coast's magnificent natural landscape, the light of the Pacific sunrise." That is reflected in the sublime synths and silky rhythms which manage to both move your body but also captivate your mind. It's another cracking album from the Doc.

Review: French label Battle Weapons does it again here with another superb reissue of a dynamic fusion of vintage soul-jazz and catchy beats. They come from Hardly Subtle featuring Peggy Lee, whose iconic vocals soar over Hardly's masterful production to utterly alluring effect. The track pulsates with a gently infectious energy and infuses organic drums with modern electronic rhythms. It is a great one among many from Peggy Lee, and on the flipside you're treated to a superb Wonderlove edit of her sumptuous take on the Otis Reding classic 'Sittin On The Dock Of The Bay'.

Review: Returning from a brief hiatus, Spin Desire launches its third release and it is one dedicated to spotlighting talented artists who are currently flying under the radar. This time, they present Mculo, a UK-born, Berlin-based artist known for his versatile production skills. Mculo's four-track EP offers a deeper journey than previous releases, showcasing peak-time house, UK-infused breaks, hazy after-hours vibes, and a captivating downtempo finale. It's a nice journeying EP that is unified by its sense of crisp design and fresh rhythmic invention. A fantastic work from an emerging artist who we shall now very much keep an eye on.

Review: When it comes to 90s Dutch dance music we tend to think of formative techno and the monolithic rise of gabber, but there was also some golden house music being produced around that time. Now German label Anacalypto is taking a trip into these less explored realms to offer a finely curated compilation with eight deep cuts for the discerning dancefloor. Max 404's sublime 'Infinite Legs' is an ambient house fantasy of the highest calibre, while Galaxy's 'Axis' is similarly trippy and soft around the edges, setting the tone for the deeper, techno informed shades of house we're in for across the collection. This is elegant, heads down gear which has been coveted by diggers for decades, now available freshly remastered and pressed up in one place.