Electro charts

Review: B12's 1993 debut album, Electro-Soma, has long been regarded as one of intelligent dance music's "must-have releases". Offering a decidedly intergalactic blend of otherworldly techno, ambient and deep space electronica, it remains a brilliant piece of work. Here, Warp Records give it the reissue treatment, packaging the peerless original album with a second disc of early B12 rarities and hard-to-find cuts recorded during the same period. There's naturally plenty to admire on this bonus disc, from the shimmering electro bustle of "Transient Pathways" and Motor City futurism of "Debris", to the intoxicating ambient brilliance of "Go With The Hiss". That this material is every bit as good as the tracks included on Electro-Soma is testament to the (then) duo's rarely matched brilliance.

Review: Returning to the turn of the 90s, when British dance music gave birth to two interconnected styles that put heavy sub-bass front and centre: bleep techno and breakbeat hardcore. Exploring these origins, as well as their countless mutations and imitations, Dutch label Musique Pour La Danse present a major new retrospective, cherry picking the cream of the crop of 90s bleeps, breaks and bass. Featuring tracks from Terra Incognita, Tek 9, Boneshakers, Ubik, Break The Limits, Techno Excursion, Trak 1, Three Sons, and KLF, this rare and expertly curated selection of tracks is available in CD form as well as in vinyl format.