ALTONE Vinyl & CDs

Review: Yuki Takasaki aka. Altone delivers tactile dub techno tonage with 'Wonderscape Numinous', his latest miracle EP to hit the Primary(Colours) shelves. Honouring traditional dub techno sounds while also treading new counterweighted waters, this is a short symphony of reverberative basslines and delicate synths, reminiscent of skulking Tokyo streets, gripped by a hooded curiosity for the urban alley, the railway underpass, the red lit skyline. Brendon Moeller brings a UK bassier womp to 'Self Replication' - itself a self-replicating track, as there's not one but two versions - replete with silicate sound design that both sloshes and tinkles away in the mix's midfield, like a quantum energy source, overflown with potential.

Review: Altone aka. Yuki Takasaki is a champion channeller of dub techno trueness, having made many a wave on the Tokyo underground scene already; his efforts come to a renewed head on the new EP for Primary Colours, 'Wonderscape Numinous', a high-impedance, phantom-powered trip through figurative J-scapes; to 'Self-Replication', 'Adaptive Swarm' and 'Wonderscape Numinous', we imagine a simulacrum web of nanobots splayed across the city, their many lens refocusings and field reconfigurations emitting a syntonic electric hum. The closer is especially beautiful, haunting the nighttime itinerant ear with cutoff chord ricochets and an endless fumbling foley sound; the sound recalls a restless cyborg, endlessly fiddling with its field recording equipment as though it were a dopaminergic Rubik's cube.

Review: Altone, an emerging talent in dub techno, delivers the Invincible Nature EP on Denmark's Echocord Records, a label revered for over two decades. The EP showcases Altone's knack for crafting deep soundscapes. Side-1 features 'Naturally Unnatural,' presenting two distinct takes: the first is sparse and minimal, epitomizing classic dub techno, while the second version is more techy and aggressive, adding an edge to the composition. Side-2 brings remixes of 'Unnaturally Balanced.' Thomas Fehlmann, a legendary producer, lends his expertise to the 'Naturally Flowing' remix, infusing it with a fluid, dynamic quality. The 'Another Channel' version rounds out the EP with a quintessential dub treatment, staying true to the genre's roots. Invincible Nature EP is a compelling showcase of versatility in dub techno and Echocord's enduring influence in the scene.