DEEPCHORD Vinyl & CDs

Review: After a slew of teasers out earlier this year, Deepchord (Rod Modell) eases ever deeper into his overarching chordal masterscape, continuing the 'Functional' theme expressed in his music in recent years. Functional Designs is first full-length LP from the producer in five years, and the teaser 'Strangers' promises more musical development than ever before heard from the enigmatic Detroit producer. It might be best describable as 'progressive dub techno'; airier and more breathable than his early, more subdued works, we're thoroughly impressed by the movement from percussive resonances ('Strangers') to fully ambient finites ('Drassanes').

Review: Deepchord serves us the second taster of his upcoming full-length, 'Functional Extraits', out later this year, piling on yet newer layers of texture to his trademark dub techno sound. On this sneak preview EP, 'Glyphs' pulsates through a bed of rattlesnake shakes, swirling ambience, and thunderous knocks, as though it's documenting some bioorganic brain's inner workings. 'Orbitals' entrances us further, inviting us into a melancholic garage rave submerged in a gas giant, while 'Leafiness' barely utters a kick through its emulsive pulses.

Review: A welcome return from Deepchord, who shows the newset of dub techno players how, exactly, it is done. After 5 years, he returns to Soma Records with 'Functional Extraits 1' here, charting shuffly and subtle trips through echoic hallways ('Mapping') and rain-pattered biomech rainforests ('Shale'), and scanning the post-Earth wasteland for any semblance of a real reggae chord. With the final track almost entirely consisting of texture and bass, we can happily declare this to be next-level dub techno.

Review: Few producers do the dub techno sound better than Rod Modell and on this second Atmospherica instalment, he shows why he is so revered. "Exploring The North" is dense and subdued, the hisses and crackles ebbing and flowing fluidly over a powerful sub-bass. "Pinewood Lodge" is more atmospheric and floaty, its chords flitting about like fireflies over a camp fire on the first night of autumn. Rounding out the release is "Shot Point". Immersive, hypnotic and ghostly, it washes through the speakers like waves crashing on a deserted beach at midnight. This is electronic music that is designed to get lost in.

Review: There is little to say about Rod Modell's Deepchord project apart from the fact that it has been one of the most consistent techno projects of the last ten to fifteen years. The man has done it all and seen it all, landing on labels such as Modern Love, echospace, his own Deepchord, of course, and even Scotland's long-running Soma. He's back on the latter with three aptly mental slices of dub techno, with "Exploring The North" dominating the A-side with a fast yet subtle bass drum surrounded by an ocean of masterful sonics that have been transformed thanks to the mounds of effects laid upon them. "Pinewood Lodge" is a similar sort of beast, and it reminds us of an early-morning rave-up on some far-away planet, while "Shot Point" is for the real dub enthusiasts, a simple sea of delayed harmonies woven together by sounds of the ocean.

Review: The ever-busy Rod Modell has a new album due on Soma later this month. Ahead of that set - his fourth for Slam's long-running label - he's decided to put out this taster 12". Curiously, though Atmospherica Volume 1 doesn't contain any tracks from that album, instead serving up three new treats. 12-minute A-side "Fargo" is undoubtedly the star attraction, offering a chunkier-than-usual take on his weed-enhanced dub techno grooves, paranoid textures and loopy electronics. "CMOS Therapy" is even more up-tempo in feel, with urgent rhythms, surging motifs and notably fizzing cymbals. Finally, "Night Song" sees Modell trek deep into the jungle for inspiration, returning with a muddy chunk of dub techno humidity.

Review: In 2005, DeepChord inaugurated Mike Huckaby's legendary S Y N T H label with two 12"s called Electromagnetic Dowsing and Electromagnetic Dowsing (The Final Step). The label has always been a deep house meets dub techno enigma with much of its limited catalogue becoming something of unspoken folklore, and Rod Modell now adds to the legend by releasing Electro Magnetic Dowsing: The Lost D Side, what could well be the final instalment of his Electromagnetic Dowsing series, on his own label Echospace. This fourth production sees DeepChord in full flight with blankets of textures hugging a rock solid four-four beat petted by subtle keys and echoing percussion. More quality from DeepChord once again.

Review: Even by dub techno standards, Rob Modell seems to be unfeasibly productive. There's been a veritable deluge of Deepchord-related releases this year - all up to the Detroit-based producer's impeccable standards, of course - with the first Luxury 12" on Soma arguably standing out. This follow-up is predictably strong, with Modell expertly crafting two starry, melodic and admirably hypnotic compositions. Choose between the twinkling melodies, rolling chords and starlight grooves of "Luxury 3" and the bolder, more sci-fi tinged "Luxury 4", whose undulating percussion, fluid chords and dub-style live mixing guarantee eyes-wide-shut thrills.

Review: One of the best compliments you can pay a minimal techno producer is that they have an ability to make a lot with few elements. While Deepchord's layered, textured sound could be described as maximal techno, on this release for Soma, its simplicity is its strength. In reality, not much happens over the course of the ten-minute plus "Luxury 1", yet its dubby beats, sub-aquatic chords and occasional diversions into dreamy reveries is over before the listener realises it. "Luxury 2" is more dance floor-friendly, but despite this, the break beats are gentle and unassuming and the melodies subtle yet insidious. It makes for a straightforward but seductive combination.

Review: Later this month, Rod 'the God' Modell will grace Soma with a new Deepchord album in the shape of
20 Electrostatic Soundfields - his third for the Glaswegian label and ninth overall! If you've been following Modell's musical development over these albums you'll understand Deepchord material has become more experimental and conceptual. On the basis of this 12" teaser, the forthcoming album will fit snugly in with this evolution. Apparently sourced from the video soundtrack and installation music Modell accrued between 2008 and 2012, this picture disc contains meditative album track "De Wallen" and two equally absorbing B Sides not featured on 20 Electrostatic Soundfields. Immersive listening at it's finest!

Review: For Detroit techno there is Juan Atkins and Carl Craig, for dub techno there is Basic Channel and Rod Modell aka DeepChord. The Echospace label remasters a selection of tracks from a blitz of EPs DeepChord released in 2001. It's a rare opportunity to bask once more in the rhythmically-weighted and dissolvent ambience of Rod Modell and Mike Schommer early releases. All tracks featured on the triple marbled vinyl package either traverse well below the realms of charted sub-sonics or ethereally waver high above the clouds, secluded from dynamic tension, exploring subtle variations in pitched based harmonics instead. A must have for the dub techno lover.

Review: Written and produced by Rod Modell and Mike Schommer in Detroit for their incredible performance at the Detroit Electronic Music Festival. Now re-mastered and transferred from reel to reel tape recordings by Rod Modell.

Review: The Espectrum compilation series from AvantRoots has apparently been a year in the making, with the label striving to pull together only the finest exponents in Dub Techno. Volume 1 arrived back in April and set a pretty high bar in terms of quality, but AvantRoots have truly outdone themselves with this second edition. The label say they set out with a very precise idea for Espectrum, looking for tracks that were "carefully built with hypnotic, obscure, dense, and magical sounds with an eternal hook." It's no surprise to see the godlike figure Deepchord present and correct then, with the truly remarkable opening track "LS3/5a". From here, "Mozambique (Babylon mix)" sees Euphorion draw us deeper into the dub, whilst Duplicator's "Souldance" offers a more genteel take on the genre. Biobub rounds it out with the dancefloor cut "Napoli". Here's hoping for many more editions of the Espectrum!

Review: Long-serving producer Fluxion has decided to re-launch his Vibrant Music imprint, a label specializing in dub techno and ambient explorations that previously ceased operations in 2005. Fittingly, he's saved something special for the relaunch 12": a collaboration with Detroit dub techno don Rod "Deepchord" Modell as Transformations. The two-part "Accumulate" draws on the best of both producers' styles, delivering melodious, warm, hypnotic and spacey techno whose dub influences bubble away in the background without ever taking over. Rodell's ability to subtly tweak and transform dubbed-out melodic loops and hazy sonic textures is explored in greater detail on side B's "Part 2" version, which also boasts a heavier bassline and sturdier, kick-drum-driven percussion.

Review: Hot on the heels of their first collaborative 12" for Vibrant Music - the fine Accumulate Parts I & II - dub techno stalwarts DeepChord (Aka Rod Modell) and Fluxion (Konstantinos Soublis) join forces for a second salvo. The two-part "Bona Fide" is a typically evocative and hazy affair, offering an attractive balance between Modell's audio soup style sound design and the gently unfurling rhythms that have always been a hallmark of Soublis's productions. Both interpretations utilize a range of melodic elements - think twinkling, mixed-down pianos, fuzzy electric piano bass, dreamy chords, and so on - with the slightly livelier "Part 2" also making use of some exotic percussive flourishes. Naturally, both passes are warm, undulating and immaculately produced.

Review: One of the leading dub related labels to emerge in recent years, Avantroots project of taking dub as a genre to its furthest and freshest perspectives, while still showing the utmost respect for the history and the figures inside it, continues with this eye-opening contribution, 'Linval Thompson Meets Avantroots'. Featuring tracks from the likes of Deepchord, Pulshar, Deepnaut, and Braulio Lam, this latest project (as the name suggests) was led by the dub legend himself, Linval Thompson, who's list of credits and those he's influenced is pages and pages in length. 'World Crisis' is Thompson's key message, running like a refrain, re-emerging throughout the EP and finding new shapes with each artist's fresh approach. Deepchord's iteration, unsurprisingly, is the deepest of the collection, encircling and hypnotic it orbits Thompson's echoed vocals to perfection. Pulshar's take offers greater lyrical clarity, keeping the surrounding production minimal and delectably slow-paced, giving room for each element to breathe. Deepnaut's version is brighter, bubbling with the plucked samples of spaced-out electric guitar and expanding synth pads. Braulio Lam's offering, the final track on the release, is a more experimental, broken groover - chopping and shifting the vocals in a collage effect, refracting Thompson's message in order for it to be seen in a new light. A fantastic release to sink into - fully immersive and richly detailed.

Review: This legendary Deepchord and Yagya collaboration finally makes its way from digital-only to vinyl. Travelling through the mind-bending realms of deep, dubby techno and introspective ambient, this generous eight-track journey explores expansive terrains. The first track sees soaring atmospheres intersecting with patient, strolling rhythms and flashes of reverberating sound design. Another standout track, 'Number 4', reaches out to a distant horizon, waves of glittering synths meet the shoreline while rippling flute samples delicately skim the surface of glassy water. This is a soothing balm of a release, drifting delectably between flowing movement and calm serenity - an incredibly multi-faceted EP, suiting fans of ambient and the deeper reaches of techno alike.