Firecracker Recordings Schallplatten & CDs

Review: During the 1990s, techno talent Being put out some essential records on the late great andrew Weatherall's Special Emissions label. He also produced for Lord Sabre on works as Two Lone Swordsmen with Keith 'Radioactive Man' Tenniswood and collaborated with Claude Young, so his credentials are unquestionable. Here he distils all that into a moody techno record with machines that brim with soul, rhythm that are full of invention and warm, cavernous grooves as good for home listening sessions as they are club workouts. 'Space Again' is an epic Detroit cut, 'The Akward' is ace new age business and frankly the whole thing needs your attention.

Review: It's always been tricky predicting what Firecracker Recordings will release next, though few would have expected an EP of freestyle, darkside drum machine jazz from Berceuse Heroique, Nous and Bedouin regular Healing Force Project. Sounding like early 23 Skidoo replayed on drum machines and samplers, there's much to admire about the hectic rhythms, foreboding textures and dusty samples at the heart of Gravitational Lensing. It's all pretty out there, paranoid and intense, with the fizzing drums, mangled horns and metallic percussion hits of "Random Walks" just edging out the experimental jungle-jazz madness of "Apophenia" in the "top tracks" stakes. It might take a few plays to really sink in, but there's no doubt it's worth the effort.

Review: The latest one from Edinburgh's Firecracker is by Steven Legget, who over the years has recorded under the aliases Four Hands, Artwhore and Gamma; with releases on a variety of labels from Signals and even Claremont 56 eight years ago. Starting life as a performance in the Turkish Baths located in Newcastle upon Tyne's City Pool (one of the last remaining civil saunas in the country), this soon evolved into a stunning full-length album of ambient/neo-classical compositions. Pieces from the original performances were layered with field recordings collected on the islands of South Crete, and later accompanied by cello and electronics. All profits from the sales of this LP will be donated to the charity Waves for Water, which helps developing nations gain access to sanitised drinking water.

Review: Les Gracies are a French-American duo comprised of Eric Douglas Porter (Afrikan Sciences) and Gael Segalen (IhearU). According to Scottish imprint Firecracker "their music explodes the boundaries and reunites from segmented forms.. from recognisable concrete elements of everyday life to a unifying abstraction, improvisations, mutations, polyrhythmic and hypnotic groove". So strap yourself in for these seven transcendental and life affirming tribal journeys on offer here. These are jagged and off-kilter offerings through the more difficult end of listening, as heard on oddball workouts like "Symetric Relatives" or "The Entry Dance" Then there are interesting moments of Calypso cum industrial slo-mo techno ("Pan") or Andy Stott style knackered house jams like "Compoly". Ending with the quite compelling sound collage that is the title track. In in all a tremendous effort and highly recommended.

Review: Yes! Pretty soon after Vancouver label 1080p issued Much Less Normal by local artist Lnrdcroy, there were rumours surfacing regarding label interest in licensing the album for a wider release. In the end it was Edinburgh's Firecracker Recordings that secured dibs on Lnrdcroy's fine collection of whimsical electronic odes to British Columbia and they've done a typically superb job of bringing it to the vinyl and CD format. Like the remastered vinyl version, this CD edition features a slightly amended track listing to that original 1080p tape with two productions not making the transition. However in their place is new Lnrdcroy track "Kendal in Kalusia", an epic 13 minute finale that will have you enraptured.

Review: Yes! Pretty soon after Vancouver label 1080p issued Much Less Normal by local artist Lnrdcroy, there were rumours surfacing regarding label interest in licensing the album for a vinyl release. In the end it was Edinburgh's Firecracker Recordings that secured dibs on Lnrdcroy's fine collection of whimsical electronic odes to British Columbia and they've done a typically superb job of bringing it to the vinyl format. Put simply it looks amazing. This remastered double vinyl edition features a slightly amended track listing with two productions not making the transition. However in their place is new Lnrdcroy track "Kendal in Kalusia", an epic 13 minute finale that will have you pulling the needle back again and again.

Review: Firecracker Recordings first Mac-talla Nan Creag release - a collaborative ambient and drone affair shot through with audible references to traditional Celtic music and ancient rituals - was something of a triumph, so it's little surprise to find that this follow-up is just as good. Producers Lord of the Isles, Hoch Ma Toc and Other Lands (AKA Fudge Fingas) have once again delivered the goods, serving up some sensational, otherworldly sounds inspired by an archeological dig on Ben Nevis. The centrepiece is undoubtedly the slowly unfurling brilliance of "Ballad Of Glen Nevis", a 17-minute epic full of delay-laden Celtic vocal harmonies, gentle pianos and out-there ambient refrains, but there's plenty of similarly inspired material to be found elsewhere on the set. Just give the clips a listen - you won't be disappointed.

Review: Fans of the Firecracker label will know that concepts such as release dates are malleable at best, and should instead focus on embracing the music when it eventually arrives. First announced last summer, Everyone Is A Door sees Italian producer Panoram step up with his debut album that expands on the vivid, freeform approach first seen on a 2012 EP for the supposedly Mongolia-based Scenario label. Panoram seems more than happy to flit between classic disco, funk and Dilla when looking for inspiration, with the twelve tracks leading you on a journey that's refreshingly psychedelic and filled with squelching funk. Everyone Is A Door comes across as a rich listening experience with plenty of ammo for the more adventurous selectors out there and presents Panoram as a fine addition to the Firecracker family.

Review: Rome-based Panoram is something of a mystery. Very little is known about him, and he's hardly prolific - in fact, this debut album is only his second release, after 2012's acclaimed (and now devilishly hard to find) Accents 12" on Scenario. The mystery is heightened by his scattergun approach to music-making; Everyone is a Door's 10 tracks variously take in warm, jazz-flecked analogue pop, Eric Satie style piano movements, quirky ambience, Boards of Canada-ish IDM and decidedly cosmic synth wig-outs. Throughout, there's an off-kilter, soft focus feel to proceedings that's never less than thrillingly atmospheric. Everyone is a Door, then, is an impressive debut album; expect to hear more from the mysterious Roman in coming years.

Review: First announced over 15 months ago, Firecracker finally come through with You've Never Been To Konotop (Selected Works 2009-2012) a rather finely presented collection of tracks from the self styled 'Slavic Spiritual Warrior" Vakula. The main recording alias of Ukrainian Mikhaylo Vityk, Vakula first emerged in 2009 with a succession of singular deep house explorations for respected hubs such as Dekmantel, Ethereal Sounds, 3rd Strike and Firecracker offshoot Shevchenko an as the extended title suggests this twelve track LP focuses on unreleased material from this same period. Musically, the tone mirrors Vityk's material for Shevchenko, taking the mainframe of house and melding it with elements of "Ukrainian folk melodies, esoteric cryptic rhythm patterns, field recordings, interludes and overgrown organic effects hidden beneath acres of cosmic murk." Let's take a moment to appreciate the rather unique double gatefold sleeve with hand-drawn, silk screened artwork too.

Review: First announced over 15 months ago, Firecracker finally come through with You've Never Been To Konotop (Selected Works 2009-2012) a rather finely presented collection of tracks from the self styled 'Slavic Spiritual Warrior" Vakula. The main recording alias of Ukrainian Mikhaylo Vityk, Vakula first emerged in 2009 with a succession of singular deep house explorations for respected hubs such as Dekmantel, Ethereal Sounds, 3rd Strike and Firecracker offshoot Shevchenko an as the extended title suggests this twelve track LP focuses on unreleased material from this same period. Musically, the tone mirrors Vityk's material for Shevchenko, taking the mainframe of house and melding it with elements of "Ukrainian folk melodies, esoteric cryptic rhythm patterns, field recordings, interludes and overgrown organic effects hidden beneath acres of cosmic murk."

Review: Firecracker Recordings continue to enjoy a most wonderful 2015 with Mac Talla Nan Creag the end result of several artists affiliated with the Edinburgh label spending some time in the Scottish highlands recording with traditional instruments, hardware and no small amount of Whisky! Lord Of The Isles, Other Lands, House Of Traps and local Edinburgh folk artist Wounded Knee are involved in one form or other throughout this illuminating 15 track collection. "NM 8222 0270" and 'NO 6594 9300' are lush ambient works reminiscent of Pete Namlook, whilst "Thrun' is droney feedback in the same vein as Rrose's recent LP for Further. "Forever played" and "Grugaigian Chant" are the perfect culmination of folk and electronics that this album can offer. All in all brilliant compilation that pays homage to the country's traditional music yet presenting in a modern electronic format. Highly recommended!

Review: Firecracker Recordings continue to enjoy a most wonderful 2015 with Mac Talla Nan Creag the end result of several artists affiliated with the Edinburgh label spending some time in the Scottish highlands recording with traditional instruments, hardware and no small amount of Whisky! Lord Of The Isles, Other Lands, House Of Traps and local Edinburgh folk artist Wounded Knee are involved in one form or other throughout this illuminating 15 track collection. "NM 8222 0270" and 'NO 6594 9300' are lush ambient works reminiscent of Pete Namlook, whilst "Thrun' is droney feedback in the same vein as Rrose's recent LP for Further. "Forever played" and "Grugaigian Chant" are the perfect culmination of folk and electronics that this album can offer. All in all brilliant compilation that pays homage to the country's traditional music yet presenting in a modern electronic format. Highly recommended!