Environ US Schallplatten & CDs

Review: The Remnants EP was the second record produced by Morgan Geist for his own Environ label. Originally released in 1996, it is a highly valued release on the second hand market but has now been reissued and beautifully remastered. Here, the New Jersey native was inspired by England's take on the sound of Detroit. From the bleepy electro influence of "Current", to the soulful tones of "In Your Electronic Arms" (reminiscent of his debut album The Driving Memoirs) and the absolutely emotive Mondrian remix on the flip - don't sleep on the chance to snap up this beauty right here.

Review: Following the success of his Storm Queen project a couple of years back, Morgan Geist has kept a low profile. Having returned to action earlier in the year with the Latin freestyle-inspired Calling Card 12" under The Galleria alias, the Metro Area man veers off in another direction with the architecture-inspired Megaprojects One. Created, in his words, using "cheap little drum machines and rejected old synths", the four tracks draw on his most famous early inspirations, most notably vintage Detroit techno and early Chicago house. Of course, the curious melodies of Metro Area are still present, but the quartet of dancefloor workouts - the futurist "Clarence", quirky "The Idiot Track" and bumpin' "Trackstar" being our picks - are arguably more in keeping with his earliest, mid 1990s releases.

Review: It would be fair to say that Morgan Geist's Megaprojects series is an attempt to go "back to basics". Not only are the tracks created using - in his words - "cheap drum machines and vintage synths", but also pay tribute to some of his earliest inspirations. In practice, that means doffing a cap to fluid and ear-pleasing early deep house on the glistening "Manic Cinq", pitched-down Italo-disco and bass-heavy early British techno ("Fuzzy Detail") and tactile, breakbeat-driven late '80s house (the rather wonderful "Buy Freedom"). Arguably best of all, though, is closer "OCGC", whose psychedelic acid lines, tactile synth bass and cheery synth melodies make the track sound like a cross between vintage Metro Area and Orbital's "Halcyon".

Review: Straight A's is pretty much what it says on the tin - the A-Sides from Metro Area's seminal first four singles, from 1999 to 2011, reissued and analogue remastered on four sides of wax. The inclusion of the masterpiece that is "Miura" should be enough to entice those who have been coveting the track on vinyl for some time, but "Atmosphrique", "The Art Of Hot" and "Caught Up" are equally as timeless jams that remind you of the days before "nu-disco" became such a dirty word. Essential!

Review: Anyone with a passing interest in dance music will be familiar with Metro Area's one and only self-titled album. It is now 20 years old and has never been bettered in the two decades since it was released. The US pair also released a highly regarded selection of EPs back in the day on Environ, and the label has decided to reissue them. But not before having them recut and remastered by the one and only Matt Colton. These new editions feature some versions of the tunes that have never been reissued before as well as the original, extended 12" versions of all songs. There is no reason not to pick up all four 12"s, frankly.

Review: Metro Area pretty much set a gold standard for modern disco with their eponymous debut album. Now, two decades on, they remain untouchable when it comes to this sort of sound. To mark their 20th-anniversary Environ has lined with the renowned mastering engineer Matt Colton to have the duo's first four 12"s recut. Each one features the original, extended 12" versions of all songs, some of which have never been re-released. Metro Area 3 features the elastic bass and suspensory grooves of 'Caught Up', pumping arps and cosmic pads of 'Tonky Pumpz' and the shimmering jazz-funk-disco dazzle of 'Evidence'.

Review: It might be 23 years old, but Metro Area's second eponymous EP still sounds as fresh, timeless and immaculately produced as it did at the turn of the Millennium. Here the three-tracker returns in freshly remastered form. The real standout is arguably near nine-minute A-side 'The Art Of Hot', a deliciously deep, sparse and glassy-eyed affair in which echoing strings (courtesy of Kelley Polar and chums), sustained chords and electronic pots-and-pans percussion rise above an undulating synth bassline and crispy disco drums. Elsewhere, 'Machine Vibes' is a more warming and melody-rich skip through deep nu-disco pastures featuring a rather lovely flute solo, and 'Wafer' is a bass guitar-propelled skip through spacey, house-not-house awesomeness.

Review: Has there ever been a more significant nu-disco release than Metro Area's 1999 debut? It was certainly an outlier on its original release in 1999 and inspired countless others to attempt (and usually fail) to follow in their footsteps. All these years on, it still sounds fantastic - as this remastered reissue proves. Opener 'Atmospherique' effectively defined their timeless, NYC-inspired sound - think the warmth of deep house mixed with spacey synths, disco percussion and squelchy bass - while the subtly Latin-tinged 'Pina' sounds every bit as incredible in 2023 as it did at the turn of the Millennium. 'Rainy Street Feeling', which didn't make the cut on their celebrated debut album, is a real treat, too - a classy hybrid of loose-limbed deep house, sultry strings and nu-disco electronics that's worth the admission fee on its own.

Review: Given the runaway crossover success of the (utterly superb) Storm Queen debut "Look Right Through", it was inevitable that producer Morgan Geist and vocalist Damon C Scott would try and repeat the trick. This follow-up single treads similar ground to its illustrious predecessor, lacing Scott's evocative vocals over Geist's delightful vintage house grooves (which, of course, come blessed with the Metro Area man's usual 808 disco sheen). It's a touch deeper than the super-hooky "Look Right Through", but that's no bad thing. While it's unlikely to scale the heights of its predecessor, "It Goes On" is still an excellent record. The dub, in particular, is spot on, and if a recent chat between Geist and Tim Sweeney is any indication this will be the first of many more Storm Queen releases.