OBSCURE SHAPE Vinyl & CDs

Review: This blistering four-track compilation from a Greek techno label Analogue, delivers a no-frills, high-impact set of weapons designed for dark rooms and peak-time chaos. Hector Oaks opens with 'Formal Basica', a tribal techno bruiser built on relentless percussion and searing momentum. This is pure machine funk with a primal edge. Obscure Shape follows with “'My Muse Is On Vacation'. a grinding, loopy hard techno cut that broods and boils with menace, pushing the tension without ever losing focus. Flip to Side-B and Jerm’s 'Forcing Function' plunges into industrial terrain, all metallic clangs and weighty kickdrums, evoking a brutalist rave landscape that never lets up. The closer is Endlec’s 'Total Control' which is a deep, shape-shifting techno track that thrives on constant evolution. Layers rise and fall with precision, threading hypnotic sequences into a commanding whole. Each cut stands strong alone, but together they form a formidable combination of well produced techno tracks that can do damage.

Review: Pounding rhythms, layered melodies and relentless energy define this high-impact techno release. Across six tracks, the sound explores raw, driving percussion, deep grooves and nods to classic Detroit and Chicago influences, creating a package built for the headstrong. Opening with 'Reborn Identity', the tone is immediately setihard-hitting tribal techno wrapped in hypnotic loops, chord stabs and a beautifully melodic undercurrent. DJ Rush takes it even further with a no-holds-barred remix, pushing the track into pure Chicago mayhem with scooping kicks and aggressive energy. 'All We Imagine As Light' follows with a deeper approach, leaning into rolling percussion and a groovier, more hypnotic flow. Flipping over, 'Broken Circle' injects raw power into the mix, designed to move crowds with its high-energy pulse. 'Instinct' shifts gears slightly, merging techno's intensity with house elements, weaving in Detroit-styled melodies and rich strings for an anthemic feel. The journey wraps with Volpe's remix of 'Instinct', stripping things back to a chord-heavy, dub-influenced sound that brings warmth and depth. Each track carries its own character, yet together they form a cohesive, floor-focused collection. Hard, deep and rhythmically relentless, this EP embraces the genre's foundational sounds.

Review: Obscure Shape's Zukunft is a dark, high-tech techno experience that delves deep into the realms of futuristic soundscapes. Released on Planet X Records from Iceland, this album is packed with intense, brooding tracks that keep the energy relentless. Side-1 opens with 'Die Ruckkehr,' setting a powerful tone with its pulsating rhythms, followed by 'Zuruck In Die Zukunft,' which continues the dark, driving atmosphere. 'Children Of Men' closes the side with haunting, cinematic vibes. Side-2 introduces 'Verblendung,' a track that builds tension with its deep, swirling bass, while 'Inception' and 'Der Poet' push the boundaries of techno with intricate, layered beats. Side-3's 'City Of God' and 'Imagination' explore more experimental territory, with 'Genetic Bliss' offering a pulsating conclusion. On the last side. it all comes to conclusion at a high note with 'Easy For Ecstasy' and 'Wandervogel,' both tracks blending intensity and atmospheric depth.

Review: Obscure Shape is impressing plenty of techno fans with his solo work since leaving his long-standing partnership and now for the first time following that move, he lands on Clergy. 'Elemental' opens up with lithe, hurried techno energy that is topped with sparse hits and backed with suspenseful pads. 'Die Huter Des Lichts' then cuts a little more loose in its lops with a frazzled lead taking centre stage and spraying about wildly. Opening up the B-side is a collaboration with his pal Parallx. Their 'Im Lauf Der Zeit' is pure Motor City machine music with raw soul. 'Seiten Des Lebens' then gets more textural and tense and 'Der Pfad' closes down with some glitchy drum patterns and dubby low ends.

Review: Is there a more reliable and always on form pair in techno than SHDW & Obscure Shape? The German duo's latest outing is another classy techno offering aimed squarely at the dance floor, each with its own subtly anthemic vibes and perfect for a wide range of settings, moods and moments. 'Eraser' is in your face and full of angst and edginess with clipped vocal shouts and incendiary hi-hats. 'Dancer In The Dark' is full of more blistering synth leads, smeared dub chords and closely stacked kick drums and 'Disturbing Behaviour' has a more lithe and acrobatic feel with lashings of acid. Two more B-side tunes take things to boiling point.

Review: Premade heavyweight Obscure Shape and classically trained musician Conrad team up; Berg Audio proudly welcome them as a new duo addition to their roster, together under the name Urban CC. Throwing back to real-deal minimal-ambient techno of a steezy kind, something between Maurizio, Move D and Ghost, 'Pegasus' and 'Marly' cycle through fluttering dub techno and 1-2-step garage respectively, the latter bringing an eyebrow raising combo of yearnsome garge vocal science and pulsewidth techno shots, post-drop. 'Hadban' sneaks a cheeky drum & bass bullet train onto an otherwise techno-centric platform, marking Sleepnet-style vocal etherics and sold-on-us liquid. 'Shagya' finally restricts the mix, with a dubtech-house full of beeping, filtered vocal shouts; a Strictly Rhythm-meets-Chain Reaction contraction.