Review: Given the clubby, fun nature of their music, it's not surprising 2 Bears have become the most popular off shoot of the Hot Chip phenomenon. Joe Goddard's project with fellow larger than life scene stalwart Raf Daddy see their Southern Fried classic "Church" get the Darkstarr treatment. It's an all round classy release - with the typically on point production from DJ Cosmo and Ashley Beedle across the Rub and Dub versions more than matched by the presentation. This 10 inch has hand silk screen printed artwork and label courtesy of artist James Morrison and represents the final instalment in Bitches Brew series of highly limited ten inches. Musically our favourite is the Rub, simply because the live sounding deep bump is the perfect backing for the rising crescendo of chorus harmonies.
Review: "Tropical Melons" has become a highly sought after track for the Detroit sound collector, hence this strictly limited one sided 10" release. "Tropical Melons" is supported by: Sven Vath, Luciano, Ricardo Villalobos, Bart Skils, Benny Rodriques, Shinedoe and Joris Voorn.
Review: Beware. This tune is a sniper - once played on 'proper' soundsystem (e.g. Berghain Berlin or The Fabric London) "Pak Pak" show its real face. A bass groover, acid disco bouncer! "Pak Pak" comes as a one sided 10".
Review: Brad Peterson and Rai Scott aka 2Deepsoul go limited edition and hand numbered for their white coloured 10" Earth Energy Part 1 EP on Spanish label Minuedo. Bubbling and acid toned squiggles dance upon staccato hi-hats and choral melodies in the upbeat and sweat sounding house cut "Serenade". Analogue warmth is ever present throughout the "The Silence of Winter", as hypnotic leads and LFO infected synths influence serenely sung vocals and top end EQ twiddles. A collector's must have.
Review: Having soared us through the dense black marsh earlier this year, Portuguese deepsmith 3WA takes us through even swampier, intense territories with this Crucial debut. "Viagem" is like stepping into a deep boggy cave where the drips from the stalactites get heavier and the ground swallows you like quicksand. "Encanto" then hauls your keister out of there with insistent hang drum percussion and rolling kicks before blowing you dry with powerful flutes and pipes. Charmed.
Review: Portugal's 3WA is next up on the long running UK label Boka on a special, limited edition 10" vinyl with a unique metallic sticker design. This outing follows big tunes for 3WA on the likes of Crucial Recordings, Foundation Audio and Earth & Stone and serve sup more big bass drops and heavy rhythms. 'Sea Witch' is a cavernous tune with shards of lighting beaming down through it from above as flute leads hypnotise and the drums tumble ever further down below. 'Whale' then stutters on wobbly bass with watery chords up top adding to the sense of space.
Review: Peddling heavy, sweet subs that ooze out of the scoops like syrup, Portuguese low end maestro 3WA makes his debut on Infernal Sounds with four utterly stinking brouhahas. 'Scavenger' starts the commotion on a deep but stern note and things get more and more twisted throughout the EP... 'Minotaur' grunts and growls with a over-sized toxic bassline while 'Mutt's flips from cosmic and percussive to straight-up deranged. Last but not least 'Wandering' finishes the EP on a last lingering groan. Refreshingly woozy.
Review: Foundation Audio team up two heavy hitters for this ode to heavy sound system music as a way of marking the label's 100th release. This limited edition hand-stamped 10" kicks off with the booming bass and snappy hits of 'Bumba' with its snaking leads and low end wub-wub recalling classic era dubstep. 'Poverty' then pairs some heavily treated vocals with glitchy, glassy sound effects, a rugged and weighty low end and plenty of futuristic and caustic textures. These are dread fuelled bombs designed to be played nice and loud.
Review: Sir Hiss and 4AM Kru set up a dialogue between London and Bristol, a stellar dialectic giving rise to a supreme form of lo-fi jungle. 'Earshots' samples a bhangra vocal cry, mixing it up with the scratchy factory movements of cut-throat jungular breaks. It marks a break from Sir Hiss' usual grime parlance, and adds to a refreshingly-named new series handled by their parent label Embrace The Real, called 'No More Mailouts', an explicit callout of PR in the electronic music industry which aims to lead by example. Power to em.
Review: Mark Phillips and Rob Lawrence made some of the heaviest industrial music during the 80's, and certainly some of the best the UK has seen, under the name 5X0D. This 1982 reissue was way beyond its time back then, bringing together the energy and cutting edge of techno and acid together with the chilling ambience of early synth music by the likes of Kraftwerk and the rest of the German 70's lineage. Take away the vocals and "Negativ Terminal Data" literally sounds like an early Chicago experimentation by the house legends of the day. It's certainly a recommended title and a highlight for this week's digging selection.
Review: With "Zwischenwelt" 78 Plus create a highly recognizable and charming sound of their own. They are definitely not limited to a certain fashion or genre but always reinvent themselves by the versatility of their music. This time they do it on 19 Industries.
Review: New label Tell Zero Records hits the ground running with a 10" ambient white label that really impresses. There is some lush, slow motion tribalism on the A side that dives deep into the exotic. On the flip, the second beatless journey features some sombre and evocative Olafur Arnalds style piano playing over some haunting field recordings assembled into a captivating collage.
Review: Monsieur Cedric's Serie Limited is back with some sexy house with a French touch, this time courtesy of Osaka based producer and DJ 99Letters who takes a break from releasing on his eponymous imprint. It is sombre and emotive deepness on offer here with dusty and smoky elements supported by glacial pads on the A side. On the flip things get a bit more hectic such as on the wild acid techno thump of "Bass Raw Bass (Monsieur Cedric Rave mix)" which is reminiscent of early nineties UK rave vibes but the Steve Frisco remix of "Fruity Mango" is an angular and disjointed remake with broken, rusty drum patterns soon getting a hip-hop groove happening behind its messy but captivating collage of samples.
Custard's Last Stand (DUBfinity vocal version) (6:55)
Review: A Mountain of One pair off in a versus battle with dub maestro and longtime studio wizard Dennis Bovell for new dub versions of 'Custard's Last Stand.' This is the first new music from A Mountain of One in a decade and it marks the inaugural release on their new AMORE label. This tune was recorded over Skype during the pandemic and shows that the pairing of Mo Morris and Zeben Jameson and have lost nothing since we last heard from them - it is snaking atmospheric, deep dub with plenty of heady pads and cinematic designs. Welcome back!
Review: 10 Seconds is a series of beat-driven vinyl releases from Canadian artist A Track. He is best known for being a part of the globe-trotting EDM circuit and has been for decades. He also runs his own Fools Gold label and puts out from time to time a series of beat experiments smashed out on his SP1200 drum machine. This series kicks off with a nice red 10" and four cuts of floor-wrecking electro that are raw and brain-frying. They're not big, they're not hard, they're not smart, but they are sure to be damn effective.
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