Lone

Review: Long before it became the done thing to pay tribute to the loved-up, saucer-eyed bliss of Italian dream house and early British rave, Lone was producing killer dancefloor material that drew heavily on these styles. It's perhaps fitting, then, that the long-serving producer has returned to these roots on the second edition of his Ambivert Tools series. This is best exemplified by the lolloping drum machine rhythms, "Pacific 808" style chord progressions, and blissful synthesizer flourishes of "A Mind's Eye Melody", which is as colourful and loved up as a sunrise hug following a pretty momentous night out. The rushing bliss continues on "Under Cherry Blossoms (Mind's Eye Reprise)", a near overwhelming chunk of intense ambient beauty. Tucked in between you'll find the picturesque techno hustle of "Looking Glass".

Review: One of the joys of Lone's Ambivert Tools series has been the sheer rush-inducing cheeriness of the whole thing. Melodious, colourful, giddily positive and shot through with heaps of Sunrise-era rave nostalgia, each of the EPs has come packed with music that makes you want to dance with a goofy smile on your face. You'll be glad to hear that both tracks on volume three are likely to have the same effect. On side A you'll find "Temples", a mid-tempo, breakbeat-driven affair rich in swooning Motor City chords and spiraling, intergalactic electronic melodies. Flip for "Hyper Seconds", a fluttering 4/4 excursion that sounds like Orbital (circa the Brown Album or Snivilisation) jamming with Juan Atkins. Pure sonic bliss.

Review: Matt Cutler aka Lone has been praised for his classic house perspectives that have earned him releases over the last 10 years on R&S, Werk Discs and of course his own Magicwire imprint. He presents the next installment in !K7's esteemed DJ Kicks series, where he claims to have stepped out of his comfort zone. As a producer, first and foremost, used to programming his own material across several albums, he used the same approach in compiling the material on the mix. The three tracks on offer on this EP are exclusive productions from the Nottingham based DJ - and taken from the mix. The emotive, late-night groove of "Saturday Night" (DJ-Kicks) takes you all the way back to the early 90s of Chicago, while on the flip we get treated to the raw and pulsing lo-fidelity jack of "Arc" and the sublime beatless journey that is "Alpha Wheel 4" (Ambient mix).

Review: While now revered just as much for his kaleidoscopic, all-action club tracks as his similarly colourful downtempo explorations, it should never be forgotten that Lone began life as a maker of skewed, head-in-the-clouds beats. For this fine contribution to the DJ Mix series, the DJ/producer has decided to take us on a whirlwind tour of his influences and inspirations, brilliantly joining the dots between sunrise-friendly ambient, melodious electronic, blazed hip-hop, dazzling experimental beat-scapes, loved-up house and futurist techno. It's a thrillingly eclectic set, but one that holds together brilliant. While this is in part due to the use of a number of his own productions, it's also testament to his immense skill as a DJ.

Review: While now revered just as much for his kaleidoscopic, all-action club tracks as his similarly colourful downtempo explorations, it should never be forgotten that Lone began life as a maker of skewed, head-in-the-clouds beats. For this fine contribution to the DJ Mix series, the DJ/producer has decided to take us on a whirlwind tour of his influences and inspirations, brilliantly joining the dots between sunrise-friendly ambient, melodious electronic, blazed hip-hop, dazzling experimental beat-scapes, loved-up house and futurist techno. It's a thrillingly eclectic set, but one that holds together brilliant. While this is in part due to the use of a number of his own productions, it's also testament to his immense skill as a DJ.