Review: Scottish artist Barry Can't Swim has made big moves in the last year or so and finally, he capitalises on his ever-growing momentum with a debut album on the mighty Ninja Tune. The multi-faceted talent explores his most broad and diverse range of sounds to date here with 11 sublime tracks that move from deep house to jazz, heavy and percussive Afrobeat to lush ambiance. Each of the tracks feels like a fine technical achievement with complexity at its core but never at the expense of good vibes, such as the choral harmonies on 'Always Get Through To You', smart samples of Brazil's Trio Ternura on 'Dance Of The Crab' and digital and organic blends on 'Woman.'
Review: Is there any producer who has broken through as spectacular and made such an impressive mark in the last year than British producer Fred Gibson aka Fred Again? As well as producing plenty of high profile projects for other artists, his own diary-like albums have brought plenty of freshness to dance music. This was the first of them, back in April 2021, at the time an outlet for him to explore "a year of finding love and mourning its loss".
Review: Johannes Kolter is Kolter, an artist formerly known as DJOKO, and now a hotly tipped breaks and garage head who has already got plenty of attention. Here though he makes a grand and widescreen statement with the first release on the all-new Pilot label. It is a stylish and adventurous record with plenty of killer cuts from the downbeat hip hop opener to the deep house delights of 'Journey' via the elastic and energetic future house kicks of 'Roboflow.' Showcasing both a knack for well craft synths and expert drum programming precisions, this record plays out like a mini DJ set with all the twists and turns you need to keep you on your toes and fully engaged.
Review: Beyonce's last album was widely heralded as a triumph by all. It found her diving into house music and working with scene stalwarts like Luke Solomon and Honey Dijon. It won a Grammy for its efforts. Now, even though plenty of the originals were ready to work a club dancefloor, we get treated to some remixes. They all focus on the standout single 'Break My Soul' and we get funky and soulful stuff from Terry Hunter, broken beat from Will I Am, house thumps from Honey Dijon, and filter-heavy stuff from The Queens. Add in the Nita Aviance club mix and the original version and you have a useful package indeed.
Camelphat vs Artbat - "For A Feeling" (feat Rhodes) (5:30)
Inbetween The Lines (3:20)
Camelphat vs Yannis Foals - "Hypercolour" (3:29)
Spektrum (feat Ali Love) (5:19)
Dance With My Ghost (feat Elderbrook) (4:06)
Easier (feat Lowes) (5:10)
Camelphat vs Au/Ra - "Panic Room" (3:34)
Camelphat vs Skream - "Keep Movin" (feat Max Milner) (4:01)
Wildfire (feat Lowes) (3:20)
Camelphat vs Elderbrook - "Cola" (4:04)
Camelphat vs Cristoph - "Phantoms" (4:54)
Camelphat vs Jem Cooke - "Rabbit Hole" (3:10)
Not Over Yet (feat Noel Gallagher) (3:32)
Camelphat vs Eli & Fur - "Waiting" (5:30)
Carry Me Away (feat Jem Cooke) (5:06)
Camelphat vs DEL30 - "Reaction" (feat Maverick Sabre) (4:46)
Camelphat vs Will Easton - "Witching Hour" (4:14)
Expect Nothing (3:11)
Camelphat vs Cristoph - "Breathe" (feat Jem Cooke) (6:15)
Review: Given that they started their ascent to EDM superstardom over a decade ago and have already released a string of genuine crossover anthems, this debut album from Camelphat is undeniably overdue. So, was it worth waiting for? If you like their brand of festival-friendly dance music hedonism, then you will genuinely love it. The assembled 21 tracks scattered across three action-packed slabs of wax draw influence from many interconnected styles - mostly electro-house, tech-house and techno, but also indie-dance, synth-pop, nu-disco and more bass-heavy flavours - and repackage them as distinctively Camelphat style productions, complete with contributions from numerous collaborators and guest vocalists (Noel Gallagher, Skream, Jake Bugg, Yannis Foals, Jem Cooke and Christoph all feature).
Review: Fred Again seems to be one of the most talked about artists of the year. Part of that centers around the astonishing Boiler Room set he served up, but also plenty of credit is due for the music he makes. A lot of that is summed up here on Actual Life 3, the third installment of his series after the previous two back in 2021 and recent collabs with the likes of Swedish House Mafia and Future. It shows off his mastery of a range of different sounds and scenes across 13 fun and fresh tunes that are backed with emotive beats and catchy hooks as well as some standout vocals.
Waited All Night (feat Romy, Oliver Sim & The Xx) (2:34)
Baddy On The Floor (feat Honey Dijon) (3:35)
Dafodil (feat Kelsey Lu, John Glacier & Panda Bear) (3:31)
Still Summer (3:17)
Jamie XX & Robyn - "Life" (3:29)
The Feeling I Get From You (3:40)
Breather (6:15)
All You Children (feat The Avalanches) (4:12)
Every Single Weekend (interlude) (3:17)
Falling Together (feat Oona Doherty) (3:29)
Review: A full nine years on from the generation-defining smash success that was In Colour, comes In Waves, the upcoming second studio album by former indie band heartthrob come electronic-music matinee idol, Jamie xx. We don't imagine that the success of In Colour is easy to top, so we don't blame Jamie for waiting almost a full decade to follow it up. That said, the lead singles on this one do a pretty good job of marking the album's shift away from the summer-jammy and/or sentimental electronica ballad focus of In Colour; 'Baddie On The Floor' and 'Life' verge on French house and future house in turn, and suggest something of a shift in interest for xx towards the faster ends of things. Jamie xx's intended aim, in releasing label Young's words, was to recreate the thrilling volatility of an 'almost mystical' night out, "one where you return home in the cigarette ash dawn, the specifics of the last eight hours already blurring, but aware that these feelings will remain a crystalline memory." We eagerly await the ensuing, full-length story of heartbreak and introspection promised by the remaining tracks.
Review: Peruvian artist in Berlin Sofia Kourtesis has been on an unstoppable rise since she first emerged with a pair of EPs on Studio Barnhus. Brought into the Ninja Tune fold back in 2021, she's developed her debut album in the whirlwind of a rapidly growing profile and the personal struggle of her mother's terminal cancer diagnosis. Through her tenacity, she found a gifted doctor who was able to treat her mother and give her a life expectancy no-one would have thought possible, and so Madres doubles as a tribute to her mother and to the medical professionals who achieved what was thought impossible - as such, it's a powerful, sincere listening experience which fuses deep house with melancholic pop in mesmerising fashion.
Review: Fred Again's latest album Actual Life 3: January 1 - September 9 2022 is the third installment in a series of albums by the British artist which has received positive reviews from music critics and been praised for its experimental sound and emotional depth. The LP features songs that document his personal experiences and thoughts over a period of time. His musical style can be described as a blend of electronic, dance and pop with introspective and emotive lyrics, often incorporating samples from various sources, including personal recordings to create a unique and eclectic sound. The album features collaborations with various artists, such as Kieren Hebden, Jamie XX and Skrillex, among others.
Dennis Ferrer & Disciples - "Whisper" (feat James Yuill - John Summit remix) (5:40)
Ferreck Dawn Vs Izzy Bizu - "Life" (5:56)
Ferreck Dawn X Jem Cooke - "Back Tomorrow" (5:58)
Review: Defected gather together some big hitters for this VA release which will appeal to all those who like their house music pitched for the biggest rooms possible. John Summit takes us to the top with 'La Danza' and Dennis Ferrer & Disciples get some epic remix treatment courtesy of Summit once again. Ferreck Dawn and Izzy Bizu face off on the B side with 'Life', which brings some powerful pop hooks into the mix atop a catchy as hell house beat. That leaves it to Dawn to tackle Jem Cooke for a version of 'Back Tomorrow' that's just as anthemic, giving you everything you need to move a massive crowd.
Review: Toolroom head honcho Mark Knight has pulled out all the stops here and joined forces with some of house music's biggest names. His ow-slung new tune 'The Greatest Thing Alive' is a collab with the one and only Chicago don Green velvet plus James Hurr and it has already made an impact on global dancefloors since its digital release in October last year. Between these talents they all dig deep and cook up something perfectly chunky and detailed with fresh percussion. It's the sort of tune that will blow up in Miami and has the addition of Green Velvet's take on the classic 'Mannish Boy' from Muddy Waters.
Review: It feels like Romy's debut album has been a long time coming, but it's absolutely worth the wait. Stepping to one side of the imposing shadow of her band The xx, the world-famous singer-songwriter has taken her time to deliver something sincere and vulnerable which opens up her world and celebrates the places she's found sanctuary. Having worked extensively with production wonder boy Fred Again, writing for other artists, the two finally funnelled their creative chemistry into songs for Romy which now result in a perfect nugget of pop-club with aeons of space for all the feelings to swirl. It's immediate and catchy, but elegant in equal measure, and certain to lodge Romy in the pantheon of modern pop titans for sensitive souls.
Waited All Night (feat Romy, Oliver Sim & The Xx) (2:34)
Baddy On The Floor (feat Honey Dijon) (3:35)
Dafodil (feat Kelsey Lu, John Glacier & Panda Bear) (3:31)
Still Summer (3:17)
Jamie Xx & Robyn - "Life" (3:29)
The Feeling I Get From You (3:40)
Breather (6:15)
All You Children (feat The Avalanches) (4:12)
Every Single Weekend (interlude) (3:17)
Falling Together (feat Oona Doherty) (3:29)
Review: Jamie xx's long-awaited new album, In Waves, marks the next chapter in the career of one of the most sought-after producers of his generation. With In Waves, Jamie captures the emotional crescendos and thrilling volatility of a mystical night out. As you return home in the cigarette ash dawn, the specifics of the last eight hours blur, but the feelings remain a crystalline memory. In Waves is a melancholy paradise of bliss, heartbreak, and introspection. It tells the story of a journey where you merge into the divine pulse of shadows, light, and dance floor rhythms. It's a strobe light epiphany about the limitless possibilities and spiritual capacities of humanity. Nine years after his debut solo masterpiece, In Colour, the London producer has not only surpassed the heights of its predecessor but has also rendered all supernatural adjectives and analogies understated. Jamie xx's reputation for creating deeply evocative and transformative music is all found here, setting a new standard for electronic production.
Review: Toolroom sits at the top of the tree when it comes to big room house music. Mark Knight's label has mastered the art of maximal sounds and this eighth volume of the Tooroom Sampler series is another one that will do plenty of damage. Essel's 'Sweat' is a rigid tech cut with stiff synths and libidinous vocals, then Shiba San and Ayarez get direct with shuffling tech house cut 'Twist It' complete with big skewed synths. Friend Within's 'Pilka' keeps the energy levels high with fizzing synth loops over textured drums and a fat bassline. Maur x Westend and Cami Bear close out with some brighter melodies to get hands in the air on 'Over.'
Turned Your Back (Atjazz extended remix instrumental) (5:03)
Review: J Axel and Eva Essa find magical harmony on this new collaboration on the Do It Now Recordings Vinylized label. 'Turned Your Back' is a perfectly heart-melting, life-affirming bit of soul-drenched and intimate deep house with gorgeous vocals and super smooth drums all healing you to your core as the gentle rhythms wash over you time and time again. It's a faultless original but one that is also ripe for remixing and who better than Atjazz who slightly ups the tempo but keeps the deep, wavy rhythmic vibes and adds a little cosmic magic in the synths. A sublime package indeed.
Neverender (feat Tame Impala - extended remix) (6:42)
Neverender (feat Tame Impala - Rampa remix) (6:27)
Neverender (feat Tame Impala - Kaytranada remix) (4:41)
Review: A momentous move from neon-soaked electro outfit Justice hears them team up with the like-minded thrower-backers Tame Impala for a "why didn't anyone think of this before?" EP, 'Neverender'. Released hot off the plate of a recent Alexandra Palace show, the just duo are heard to tip the lady's scales towards miscarriage, following their last LP Hyperdrama with a single tort of regret. Kevin Parker's unmistakable countertenor floats above the track's nightridden house mix like a beamer trailing its driver's emotions in its exhaust fumes: "Because I remember / The hardest of times I / don't forget / Neverender." An ode to "can't unsee", it also comes backed by remixes by Kaytranada and Rampa.
Review: Aiming squarely for the charts once again come German and American minimal maestros Adam Port and Stryv, together joining forces with the irresistibly tremolo'ing voice of singer Malachiii. Few songs in the contemporary climate do so well as those which blow up on social media, and 'Move' is one such case. The present zeitgeist's mode of "hip ennui" is achieved with great celerity here, with the track's instrumental weaving an excessive yet insouciant trance around Malachiii's neon croons. Impressively echoic, it's the fusion of minimal techno and contemporary Afrobeats - both fervently identifiable styles - that make this one catchy.
Review: Dutch duo Dam Swindle have spent much of the last 12 months masterminding the 10th anniversary celebrations - and numerous releases - of their popular Heist Recordings imprint. This excellent and wonderfully nostalgic four-tracker is a great way for them to return following a near 12-month gap between EPs. On opener 'Touch Me Again', they add eyes-closed, early Orbital style female vocal samples, breakbeat blasts and bubbly acid lines to a joyous, piano-powered house groove, before going deeper into chunky and dreamy house retro-futurism on the heady and life-affirming 'Hang On'. Their love of strong melodies, memorable chords and rubbery basslines comes to the fore on the joyous 'The Joy of Melancholy', while 'Forever and Ever' is an organ-rich, gospel-tinged fusion of vintage US garage sounds and colourful synth sounds.
Review: Sydney label Club Sweat deals in big, accessible, effective house tunes that are designed to bring a smile to your face. The latest in a long line of such tunes is from Hot Creations man Lee Foss and Franky Wah. Their superb 'Name Of Love' has it all - effortlessly smooth and rolling house drums, the sound of chanting children and silky pad work. Finishing it off is a carefree vocal from SPNCR and the whole thing is just divine. The Torren Foot remix is much more angsty and edgy, with big percussive energy, sizeable drops and rock solid, kicks for teeth-gritted late night dancing.
Review: If there is a more hyped artist in the world right now than Fred... again we aren't sure who it might be. The lad who grew up close to Brian Eno and has since worked with him in the studio is a global star who has also collaborated with Four Tet and Skrillex, played all over the world, won various awards and dropped several albums now presses up his acclaimed USB to gatefold double vinyl. It is a collection of his early singles that captures his lo-fi, lived-in, diaristic sounds across a range of experimental electronic styles.
Angels & Queens (Paul Woolford Special Request mix) (7:19)
Angels & Queens (3:18)
Angels & Queens (Paul Woolford Special Request radio edit) (3:34)
Review: We first got wind that the unstoppable music making machine and generally positive life force that is Leeds legend Paul Woolford would be remixing one of the hottest new bands of recent years some time ago, so we're delighted to finally get our hands on the results. Assuming his Special Request alias but in truth sounding more like what Woolford does under his own name, this remix of Gabriels's 'Angels & Queens' is all about bringing hands in the air festival house energy, big piano chords and allowing the original vocal to bring that gorgeous sense of soul. It's a perfect meeting of pop and dance, as is often the case with Woolford's remix work.
Mark Knight, Darius Syrossian,James Hurr - "I Got All This" (5:56)
Low Steppa, Jewel Kid - "Big Busta" (5:05)
CASSIMM, Mahalia Fontaine - "Say Yeah" (5:48)
Wh0 - "Sunglasses" (6:58)
Review: Toolroom is a house label for big moments big tracks, big rooms, big DJs and main stages. This 15th sampler offering gives a snapshot of where the label is at right now with some new cuts from its biggest players. The boss himself, Mark Knight, kicks off alongside Darius Syrossian and James Hurt n 'I Got All This' which is bouncy and full of energy. Low Steppa, Jewel Kid offers the deeper, low sung and bass heavy menace of 'Big Busta' and CASSIMM, Mahalia Fontaine then come through with 'Say Yeah' (extended mix) which is a a passionate vocal anthem which throws it back to the early days of house. Wh0's 'Sunglasses' shuts down with a blaze of melodic stabs and filtered sweeps to lift you off your feet.
Review: Royksopp declared their 2014 album The Inevitable End to be the last time they would release a traditional album, and after eight years they lived up to that promise this year with a new audio-visual approach titled Profound Mysteries. The first instalment appeared in April, while the second volume landed in late summer, and now they're underlining the project with this appropriately epic conclusion. Drawing on collaborators such as Alison Goldfrapp, Susanne Sundfor and Jamie Irrepressible, we get another 10 slices of glittering, melodious synth pop magic from one of the finest duos to do it.
Review: Electronic pop trailblazers, Royksopp, announce the second part to their expansive Profound Mysteries project, Profound Mysteries II. They declared their 2014 album The Inevitable End to be the last time they would release a traditional album, and after eight years they lived up to that promise this year with a new audio-visual approach titled Profound Mysteries. This second instalment of three is the andante-minuet of said electro-symphony, in which the band unveil a gargantuan selection of self-generated tunes, in contrast to the totally collaborative third part).
Review: Caribou shares his latest record, this time for City Slang, Honey. The timely follow-up to 2020's Suddenly, Honey comes preceded by the forerunning singles 'Broke My Heart', 'Volume' and 'Honey'. Caribou aka. Dan Snaith has more than proven his mettle as a multifarious artist, with the toweringly popular Odessa album only scratching the surface of what could otherwise be described as a much more experimental, tricky and salubriously varied discography. Honey plays up the pop-oriented capabilities of Snaith's many-tentacled sound, circling the intentionally mystified identity of the artist himself; 'Come Find Me' asks the listener to come find Snaith, while its corresponding music video features a childlike figure in a Brave New World-style jumpsuit, dancing to the song, as if to suggest a coquettish playfulness, poking through the swellingly progressive, end-of-summer house track. Adding to the pangram of bright and hopeful post-folktronica hits, Honey is sure to attract all the late-summer dance bees.
Review: Ben Bohmer's upcoming album Bloom marks a significant milestone in his musical journey, offering a reset from the pressures of his previous successes. The album, shows his growth as an artist, emphasising spontaneity and a return to his improvisational roots. The lead single, 'Best Life,' featuring Jonah, explores themes of life's fleeting nature and the importance of cherishing each moment. 'Best Life also represents a sonic departure for Bohmer, signaling his intention to break free from predefined musical boundaries. The album promises a diverse range of styles and tempos, featuring collaborations with artists like Lykke Li, Oh Wonder and Enfant Sauvage. Overall, Bloom appears to be a deeply personal and musically adventurous project that reflects Bohmer's evolution as a musician.
Heaven Takes You Home (feat Connie Constance) (3:34)
Jacob's Note (feat Jacob Muhlrad) (1:04)
Moth To The Flame (feat The Weeknd) (3:56)
Mafia (3:33)
Frankenstein (feat ASAP Rocky) (3:29)
Don't Go Mad (feat Seinabo Sey) (4:22)
Paradise Again (3:30)
Lifetime (feat Ty Dolla Sign & 070 Shake) (3:28)
Calling On (4:39)
Home (3:46)
It Gets Better (3:10)
Redlight (feat Sting) (3:54)
Can U Feel It (4:23)
19:30 (1:58)
Another Minute (3:30)
For You (5:16)
Review: Complementing the EDM trio's latest world tour 'Paradise Again', this charts the best of the supergroup's latest music following their prophesied split. Nevermind 'Don't You Worry Child' or 'Save The World'; this is a completely original affair, with monumental features from The Weeknd, Ty Dolla $ign and ASAP Rocky. A surprise to most fans following their nearly decade-long hiatus, this is not one to be missed, featuring an update in sound and their most energetic sonics to date. We came, we raved, we loved.
Review: "As human beings, what we don't know vastly overshadows what we do know. As teenagers, we would discuss our own fascination and preoccupation with the infinite and the impossible - the most profound mysteries of life." Svein Berge & Torbjorn Brundtland
Royksopp unveil Profound Mysteries, an expanded creative universe and a prodigious conceptual project, on numbered gatefold vinyl for the first time. Profound Mysteries is as mystifying as the title suggests, much like Danny L Harle's 'Harlecore' the house cuts and hardcore dance tracks of 'This Time, This Place...' and 'Breathe' are broken up with echoing ambience sprinkled with the heavenly vocals of Susanne Sundfor on 'The Mourning Sun' or the sinister 'Press R', reminiscent of Anamanaguchi's 'USA' with its text-to-speech warning messages.
Review: On his first release of any sort since dropping his debut album, 'The Serve of the Abnormal', last year, Denis Horvat makes his bow on Afterlife with an EP that drags tech-house and minimal house in dark, trippy new directions. For proof, check opener 'Cha Cha', a menacing, EBM-influenced affair that peppers a chugging, early morning groove with rising and falling lead lines, creepy counter melodies and rasping, trance style stabs. The EP's inherent sense of clandestine atmosphere comes to the fore once more on shuffling, moody vocal number 'Precious Unica', before the Copenhagen-based producer opts for a more forthright darkwave meets-peak-time-tech-house flex on 'Momentum of the Arapaima'. Closing cut 'Majstor', meanwhile, is an incredibly trippy, K-hole trance number underpinned by a wonky triple-time beat.
Review: Purple Disco Machine's 'Dopamine' came out last year in a blissful burst of singalong vocal house goodness, with Eyelar up front on the mix creating a fully fledged anthem which was a deserved hit for the German producer. Now comes a remix 12" which casts 'Dopamine' under the watchful eye of John Summit, a young producer with serious pop nous to his beats. It's a shoe-in for big rooms and big stages where you want to enrapture the masses, and if the A side isn't enough you've also got the Daft Punk-tinged disco delights of 'I Remember (Club Dub Mix)' on the flip. Purple Disco Machine's name is a byword for catchy club classics in the making, and so it goes on this new 12".
Review: Jeigo dropped a thrilling debut album Cerulean back at the end of 2022, worked in a tune with Elkka for her DJ-Kicks mix and also dropped a mix for Bicep not long ago. Now he follows all that up with a firing four-track EP on Tread Records that again collides different club sounds, great samples and hooky melodies. 'Hatchet's Cave' is hands-in-the-air house euphoria with blistering drums and warped pads, then 'Move X' is a gritty tech bouncer and 'Compulsions' is a bubbly one with crisp hits. Nervous Horizons label boss Anunaku remixes the title track into a bass-heavy banger too.
Touch The Sky (feat Simon Doty - extended mix) (6:46)
Reminiscent (extended mix) (6:11)
All Night Long (extended mix) (5:42)
Review: Three years after his last album the Anjunadeep label, Marsh is back with another serene exploration of his singular deep house sound. Endless is another ambitious album across four sides of vinyl that features plenty of associates guesting such as Wassu & Mariel Beausejour, Jodie Knight and Simon Doty. It has a range of emotions that go from deeply intense and personal to more expansive and optimistic, all with compelling grooves and well-executed sound designs in each tune. This is another triumph for Marsh, who by now is a master of his craft.
Review: Having last delivered an album way back in 2014, Royksopp's return earlier this year with Profound Mysteries was naturally greeted with glee by fans of the esoteric, melody-loving Norwegian duo. This partner album has been framed by the pair as their loving tribute to the music that made them - the formative aural passions that framed their sonic outlook during the 1990s. So, amongst nods to icy, Eno-esque ambient and the moody brilliance of Depeche Mode, there are tons of riffs on early '90s UK dance music, including a handful of tracks featuring elements clearly inspired by such gems as Meat Beat Manifesto's 'Radio Babylon' and Adamski and Seal's 'Killer'. It's all impeccably executed of course, and while it's a bit more boisterous in places than some of their output, it still sounds like a peak Royksopp record.
Review: The Magician and A-Trak join up once more and this time add in Griff Clawson for their latest new single, 'Love On You.' It is the sort of big, inescapable record that radiates good energy and positive feels from the off. The expansive rhythm section comes with some heartfelt piano keys and makes an indelible impact. This collab came together when these artists made mates in Oasis Wynwood during this year's Miami Music Week and it finds them bring their considerable know how into one potent new cut.
Sinnerman (feat Ed Graves - Henrik Schwarz remix) (8:15)
Sinnerman (feat Ed Graves - Henrik Schwarz dub) (6:40)
Review: In its original form, on Hot Since '82's 2020 album 'Recovery', 'Sinnerman' is a woozy, impeccably atmospheric chunk of slowly rising deep house brilliance featuring suitably soulful lead vocals from Ed Graves. So what has long-serving German producer Henrik Schwarz done with it on these surprise 2023 remixes? For starters, he's stripped back some of the enveloping pads and chords, instead basing his brilliant A-side 'Remix' around bubbly electronic lead lines, simmering strings, tech-tinged drums and twinkling piano motifs. Add in Graves' superb vocals, and you have a genuine anthem-in-waiting. The almost overwhelming emotiveness of Schwarz's re-production comes through loud and clear on the accompanying 'Dub', which features only snippets of Graves' vocal and more prominent use of the (synth) strings. In a word: brilliant.
Review: Dusky is by now an internationally renowned name on the (nevertheless) distinctly UK deep house scene, and is a master of his craft. Even for those who might smugly turn their nose up at the sort of Subsoul jackin' house, that Dusky takes after, it's difficult to not at least shuffle your feet at the minutest of listens to his new album 'Pressure'. Armed with the tropes of bassline, 2-step, and funky house to name a few, it's almost as if Dusky had cast a fishing net in the deep wells of emotion potentiated in the collective British underground soul. Every track here is a streamy, stereophonic, and texturally rich vocal house dazzler. Far less precious than his bygone competitors Disclosure, the buzzing feel of each track is testament to Dusky's attention to feel over technicality.
Carry Me Higher (feat Joy Anonymous & Danielle Ponder)
Henterlude
Back 2 Love (feat Jin Jin)
Brand New (feat James Vincent McMorrow & A-Trak)
Count On My Love (feat Daniel Wilson & Kon)
Godspeed (feat DJ E-Clyps)
Secretariat (feat Shaun J Wright)
Mercy (The Welcome) (feat Jacob Lusk)
Mercy (feat Jacob Lusk)
Your Mom Heart (interlude)
Happier (feat Clementine Douglas)
Review: The Blessed Madonna riffs on an immensely successful DJ career so far with the announcement of her debut album, Godspeed. So far, the public is only privy to the bonus single 'Happier', featuring singer Clementine Douglas, a pristine bubblegum dance number turbid with the bittersweet taint of melancholy on the part of the latter singer, and a driven, victorious feel in the production by theThe Blessed Madonna, personally known as Marea Stamper, herself. We can happily disclose, however, that the rest of the record is just as infectious and technical in equal parts, with earworming bass movements backed by stark breakbeat breakdowns and nostalgic moods, all cementing the moving story of Stamper's comeup on the international scene.
Review: Fred Again's new LP Ten Days is decidedly minimal in both visual and sonic feel, making for a well-put-together exercise in chic dance summeriness, one that manages to feel, paradoxically, nostalgic for the present moment. If the crux of Fred Again's appeal rests our vicarious enjoyment of his evidently voracious enjoyment of life, then this is equally as reflective in the music here, with 'Adore U' skimming through pitch-warped vocals sampled from Obongjayar's live performance dedicated to his sister and mum, as if to immortalise them in a rush of frenetics and lightness of being, and 'Ten' equally playing up the bare skeletals of snap-rims, warbly samples and ever more pitch-effecting, this time on Jozzy's vocals. Less earnest than his outing with Brian Eno, and more dedicable purely to the young adult gaieties of summer, Ten Days marks a little over a weeks' worth of fun, tinged with a tiny hint of melancholy.
Review: Austrian-born Salute has absolutely mastered the art of crafting simple, effective, emotional house bangers. His perfect loops seem utterly off the cuff and made in a second, but they never fail to really get you where it matters. After several outings on various labels, he now steps up to the revered Ninja Tune offshoot Technicolur with his latest slab of sublime house gold. Across four firing cuts he once again locks you in and swells your heart with his irresistibly uptempo and dusty drums and meticulously crafted synths, all embellished with perfect samples. 'Feels Like My Hands Are On Fire' is the winner here on another fine EP.
Review: Confidence Man's relocation from Australia to London has ignited a new era with their upcoming third studio album, 3am (La La La). Embracing their signature audacity, the duo - Janet Planet and Sugar Bones - have crafted an album that dives deeper into the realms of hedonism and euphoria, fueled by their nocturnal creative sessions. Describing the album as "darker, sexier, and more surreal," Confidence Man blend 90s and 00s UK rave influences with a contemporary edge, with tracks like 'I Can't Lose You' and 'Real Move Touch' (featuring Sweetie) Irie exuding an infectious energy that spans breakbeat, trance, and techno, echoing the punk spirit of legends like The Prodigy. Inspired by encounters with idols like KLF and immersion in London's queer club scene, 3am (La La La) promises to be a sensory trip through pulsating beats and unbridled creativity. It follows their acclaimed sophomore release TILT and collaborations that have expanded their sonic palette. This album introduces their wild, irrepressible spirit to a wider audience, offering an exhilarating escape from the mundane into their eccentric and exhilarating universe.
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