Back catalogue: Balearic/Downtempo

Review: The first of two EPs leading up to The Future Sound of London's much anticipated 2025 album only serves to build anticipated cause they're as good as you would hope. Side A is a dark ambient odyssey that drifts through ethereal choirs into ritualistic rhythms before landing in a surreal suburban dreamscape. It's immersive, haunting and unpredictably brilliant. Side B begins with a more introspective tone but gradually shifts into unease with baroque minimalism with modular synths, breakbeats and drum machines coming totters with ambient field recordings and meticulously curated samples. It's as intricate as you would expect of this pair and is a masterclass in an atmosphere full of depth and surprise.

Review: Here we go then. Listening to the first two track on Soft Power, Ezra Feinberg's intoxicating third album is quite simply exhilarating. We begin with the gentle and playful, inquisitive electronic balladry of 'Future Sound', which seems to be the very noise of stargazing itself, captured through keyboards and synths set to 'weird'. The title number is equally beguiling, strange and otherworldly. So by the time we're at 'Pose Beams', the track's more solid structure feels like we've finally grounded ourselves, ready for blast-off. That comes with the appropriately-titled 'Flutter Intensity' - which gathers its rhythm like rocket fuel before launching into the stratosphere once again. And it's here we stay, floating on planetary rings and gravity-free air, for the remainder. A record that lead you feeling very fuzzy inside.

Review: Lance Ferguson's work with The Bamboos and Menagerie has been critically acclaimed, but he is just as essential as a solo artist.This new release is a freshly scored soundtrack for the 1981 French film of the same name. It was a romantic thriller directed by Leroi Alarie that was once thought lost until a 35mm print was recently discovered. Alarie was dissatisfied with the original score so asked Ferguson to compose new music for the film ahead of its restoration and re-release. Ferguson's dreamy, instrumental funk sound does a great job of capturing the film's sun-drenched atmosphere and subtly infuses it with 80s vibes next to more contemporary sounds. It's fair to say that the soundtrack very much enhances this rediscovered European arthouse gem.

Review: This double record - originally released in 2002 - is a deep dive into the duo's creative process, reimagining the 1991 classic through multiple sonic lenses. The London duo bring an album's worth of reinterpretations, starting with the evergreen original version's ethereal pads and hypnotic breakbeats. T2 merges the iconic melody with playful elements blending dreamy basslines and warm builds with subtle psychedelic hues. T3 extends the atmospherics and psych guitar wails in the final stretch triumphantly. T4 drifts into ambient psych-rock while T5 is a harsher more abrasive version. T6 is a slow, genre-blending piece with psychedelic undertones and emotional weight, gracefully building toward a euphoric blend of organ notes, complex drum patterns and smooth saxophone. Finally, T8 closes with lush downtempo elegance, layering sitars, sax and processed vocals from the original track for a mesmerising finale. Old skool fans will lap this up all over again.