Back catalogue: Techno (Alles)

Review: The latest album from the techno and IDM juggernaut The Black Dog, Other Like Me, is a stunning piece that creates a collage of atmospheric, deeply textured tracks. The album is another excellent example of their enduring influence on the electronic music scene, offering a diverse array of sounds and moods across its tracks. The album opens with 'She Never Wrote Back,' featuring a haunting introduction that sets a mysterious and evocative tone. The track unfolds with intricate layers and a melancholic melody, drawing the listener into what lay ahead. 'With You I Still Feel Alone' combines a wicked techno beat with a majestic melody, creating a powerful contrast that is both energizing and emotionally resonant. The driving rhythm and soaring synth lines is sure to resonate on a nice hi-fi system in a personal listening sessions. Another standout is 'Dressed Up Auslander' which brings a downtempo beauty to the album that includes nice chord changes that evoke a sense of introspection. The track's lush, melodic textures provide a peaceful respite amidst the more intense offerings on the album, showcasing The Black Dog's versatility. With 'Mark Up,' the album dives into a realm of crushing beats and menacing sound effects. This track is a hard-hitting, industrial-inflected techno piece that's both aggressive and deeply atmospheric. Lastly, closing the album is 'I Am An Artist, a beautiful ambient outro that feels like pure heaven. The track's serene, expansive soundscapes provide a perfect ending to the album, leaving the listener with a sense of calm and reflection. Other Like Me by The Black Dog is an album that highlights the group's skill in blending haunting melodies, powerful beats, and atmospheric textures. Each track offers something unique, contributing to a cohesive yet diverse listening experience that solidifies The Black Dog's place as pioneers in the techno and IDM genres.

Review: Second time around for The Black Dog's acclaimed 2008 album Radio Scarecrow, a set which reportedly took the Sheffield-based trio two years to record (in part because the sub-bass they conjured up was so deep and heavy that they could only work on tracks for a short period of time). Now remastered and pressed to red vinyl, the set remains one of the veteran IDM combo's most potent and cleverly constructed full-length excursions - an entertaining, non-stop trip that cannily sashays between bilious ambience, melodious electronica, bass-heavy electro and futurist techno of the sort that recalls the angular Brutalist structures of their home city, a theme explored in more detail on their latest album, My Brutal Life.

Review: Around 2008 The Black Dog landed on Soma with Radio Scarecrow. At this point the shape-shifting project was well-established as a separate entity from the early Warp years, as original member Ken Downie was joined by Martin and Richard Dust to extol a faintly gothic strain of electro-techno romanticism. 'Ripheadv9' is a fine case in point - a three-dimensional sound world shrouded in grey cloud but shot through with flashes of technicolour light. There's industrial pallor, synthetic melancholy and a heavy payload of atmosphere in abundance on this finely sculpted modern masterpiece, which has been revived with even greater detail thanks to this remastered CD edition on their own Dust Science label.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to corner of outer sleeve but otherwise in excellent condition***


Album number six from Sheffield's electronic heroes The Black Dog was closer to their debut, Bytes, than anything that came in between. "We never set out to make it like Bytes," group member Martin Dust has since explained. "My idea was to create something you could come home to after you'd just ben to a club or gig, that would start at the right pace and then just wind down into a great album and just chill out." Suffice to say, they achieved that and then some. Silenced is an example of downtempo that still feels like it has one foot in the rave, sounds informed by 4AM highs and 10AM quiet, here made precious through the use of blissful and complex tones that envelop and encase your mind. A record everyone should own.

Review: Album number six from Sheffield's electronic heroes The Black Dog was closer to their debut, Bytes, than anything that came in between. "We never set out to make it like Bytes," group member Martin Dust has since explained. "My idea was to create something you could come home to after you'd just ben to a club or gig, that would start at the right pace and then just wind down into a great album and just chill out." Suffice to say, they achieved that and then some. Silenced is an example of downtempo that still feels like it has one foot in the rave, sounds informed by 4AM highs and 10AM quiet, here made precious through the use of blissful and complex tones that envelop and encase your mind. A record everyone should own.

Review: Originally released in 2005, Silenced captures the essence of The Black Dog's enigmatic allure, transporting listeners to otherworldly realms with its lush, tuneful compositions and angular genius. Each track on the album is a testament to the group's unparalleled ability to surprise and entrance, evoking a sense of both unease and beauty. For fans of The Black Dog, Silenced serves as a welcome treat, while also serving as an entry point for those new to the group's mesmerising soundscapes. Definitelt one of their best full length albums yet to date.