Electro Recommendations February 2015

Review: After a fine debut release from Dollkraut, the Pinkman affiliated Charlois label resurfaces with Love & Columbium, a four track EP conjured by the spectral presence that is Timothy J Fairplay. The Crimes of the Future co-founder is on fine form here, conjuring up the spirits of lost Giallo pioneers for a quartet of haunting dancefloor numbers rich in analogue sound. Fairplay's music has been edging up the tempo scale of late, and it really suits the rough hewn finish with "Limbo 90" a particular highlight. If you can imagine a zombified Bruno Nicolai reworking DJ Mujava's "Township Funk" then you are on the right vibe to enjoy this.

Review: Radioactive Man on Reinhardt! Lead track "White Light Monochrome" channels a mechanical rhythm, with a tip of the hat to electronic music founders Kraftwerk. Intensively building to the 3 minute plus mark, before haunting keys lead the way, descending into a cybernetic electro workout. "Future Driver Space Ranger" takes to the audio freeway, mainlined for Detroit. Imprinted with Tenniswood'S unmistakable style, finely honed snares layer up around distorted low end frequencies, coursing in a hypnotic expedition towards the outer districts. Channeling the tendencies of Bauhaus and Joy Division, the warping "Transponder" documents the ever prevalent post-punk influence within the output of Radioactive Man. In close pursuit EP closer "Mechanical Music Menace" levels the floor. Beaming into the stratosphere, live bass pulsates through the system as man and machine fuse, xylophone keys take front and centre taking us beyond the stars.

Review: The recent opening of Bristol hardware shop Elevator Sound by Marco Bernardi left us pondering whether the Glaswegian producer ever actually got any sleep. After all the man is a veritable production machine, with new records being announced as others are released! Mantela is Bernardi's latest slab of dark electro and represents a welcome return to the Abstract forms label he last graced two years ago. There's a wonderfully detuned feel to "Come Join Us" whilst the excellently named "Bakongak Infastrudel" seems to fizz away at the brink of total malfunction but keeps it together - wait for that bassline! The demented feel abounds on the flip too which will definitely appeal to the freakier electro fans out there.

Review: Though best known for their archival endeavours in the realm of early 80s synth pop and industrial music, Dark Entries never seen afraid to stray off compass if the mood takes them. Take this Split EP for example, which sees Josh Cheon's West Coast label travel back in time to unearth some nascent Detroit electro from Nu Sound II Crew and Magnus II. Linking both project is Sam 'DJ Maestro' Anderson, a Detroit native whose body of work has been issued on labels as diverse as Metroplex and Suge Knight's Death Row Records. This split EP gathers together tracks from both projects, with lyrical themes of outer galactic travel abounding on a set filled with primal Detroit electro energy and naivety.

Review: After a period on the sidelines, the Clone Crown Series returns in triumphant fashion with the first of two planned releases from Gary Gritness, a new project from French artist Tim Becherand. An experienced studio hand, Becherand has credits on works by artists as varied as Orlando Voorn, Dam-Funk, Grant Nelson, and Boddhi Satva to his name, and also experience of playing in various ensembles. The Frenchman resurfaces as Gritness for Clone some 4 years after his first appearance on a split release by My Love Is Underground and this is a much more comprehensive display of his production range. Clearly indebted by the sounds of US cities Detroit, Oakland, and Atlanta, the four tracks here are quite unique with the fast paced flex of "Ridin' With Runner Joe" a notable highlight.

Review: Seemingly creatively reinvigorated by last year's Skanfrom album from Sleeparchive producer Roger Semsroth, Toronto label Suction Records are approaching 2015 with vigour commencing with this fine debut album from June. The main creative focus of Berlin-based Greek artist Tsampikos Fronas, June caught the ear of Suction with the release of the Golden Era 12" through his own eponymous label last year and the eight track Dominion is a chance for the artist to fully showcase his brand of synth wave. Hardware step sequencers were used to sync and control the arsenal of classic synths and drum machines at June's disposal with Martial Canterel and Xeno & Oaklander artist Sean McBride offered as a compelling comparison by the label. Classic synth-based electro done in a modern manner!

Review: Known for his role in The Pain Machinery and Severe Illusion, Stockholm native Anders Karlsson has more recently begun to explore similar strands of industrial and EBM in a solo capacity as Celldod, issuing several limited cassettes over the course of 2014. Those without the facilities to consume cassettes will be happy to see some of this Celldod material now issued on vinyl thanks to the efforts of Canadian label Suction Records. Some six tracks deep, Pulsdisco features material from the two cassettes of the same name Karlsson released last year and those that like their EBM minimalist and without vocals will find plenty to enjoy here.

Review: Eeked out late last year on a test press, this immaculate bouquet of poppish French electro gets a full release. It's the first time Jauzas The Shining has appeared on LKT since his 2013 "Nuclear Invasion", and this time he's brought reflective poet Victoria Lukas along for the ride. While both "Cold Sweat" and "Coral Eyes" are sinister lullabies, "Fluid" is a much darker, dancefloor aimed original with heavily textured synth leads. The dancefloor focus is retained on the remixes as Ekman digs out a witchy brew of foggy techno and Orgue Electronique looks to Detroit and early UR for inspiration on his crystalline tech blend.

Review: Although Clone's series of remastered Drexciya retrospectives are excellent, it's nice that Tresor have decided to reissue the majority of material the Detroit pair released through the Berlin label in its original format. This way you get the music in the manner Donald and Stinson originally intended. The four tracks on Digital Tsunami were drawn from the same recording sessions that resulted in the sublime Drexciyan document Harnessing The Storm and thankfully got pressed on an addendum 12" after not making the cut for the double LP. With Tresor having just reissued Harnessing The Storm it seems only fair Digital Tsunami should be granted the same treatment. Some 13 years after it's original release and all the music here still sounds like it was drawn from the future, with Donald and Stinson excelling at rapid fire bursts of abstract subaquatic electro, such as towering highlight "The Plankton Organisation".

Review: Emerging earlier this year with two show-stopping collaborations with Dopplereffekt and Mad Moizel, Visiona steps up with his debut album Impossible Romance. A project that's built on a bedrock of classic electro, but uses a great combination of modern materials and references - including Visiona's own often-fragile voice, we bite down hard on gritty analogue bass with the early Belgium-bound tech joint "Human Dysfunction", we dance under stark Black Strobes with "Anonymous Heroes", we take a poignant trip around the saddest corners of the cosmos on "Die Reisen" and we're eased gradually back into reality with the stunning Eno-esque finale "The Old Man And The Girl In His Arms". Soft, synthetic and wholly human, Visiona has created a stunning debut album right here.

Review: The inaugural edition of the TRUST XV trilogy released back in June was a fine opening gambit from DJ Glow's long running TRUST label, with some electro from Clatterbox, VC-118A, and Morphology's Matti Turunen every bit as epically futuristic as the artwork. It's fair to say Glow has pulled out the big guns for this second edition of TRUST XV, with DJ Stingray Dez Williams and Scape One amongst the contributors. Both Williams and Stingray respectively demonstrate the abstract lengths you can take the genre with the strangely alluring "All That Remains" and lopsided lo fi banger "Infrastructure Renewal". From here Biepang and DJ Glow offer up more traditional electro cuts with the former's "A Silhouette For Every Surface" quite beautiful. Scape One and Microthol add a degree of darkness to proceedings with the two tracks that round out the compilation.

Review: Transmissions from London-based electro outpost Brokntoys don't come about so often and they rarely stay that long on the racks at Juno HQ. A fourth release, Guests Of Reality, arrives with a change in tack for Brokntoys, eschewing full artist releases of previous records for a split release that shows the strength of the Swedish electro scene. Fresh off a mind bending wave turn on Acido as Karl Lukas Pettersson, Luke Eargoggle commences proceedings in the fashion befitting of him with the harsh futurism of "Night Smoker," a fine collaboration with Kan3Da. Following this, Kan3da goes solo on the crisp sounding "Photoptarmosis" whilst the flip features more abstract fare from Obergman, Rutherford and Eargoggle again. A fine electro document!

Review: Alien Jams would seem to be a logical home for the kind of music Design A Wave creates. The mysterious moniker has been popping up sporadically over the past few years on 7"s, cassettes and more, but going solely on this latest three-pronged effort, the energy feeding into this release is coming from somewhere not of this earth. "I" is a stuttering, minimal jazz noodle fit for Miles Davis in his most electronic Tutu-esque period, before "II" smooths things out a touch with fulsome arpeggios and swooping chords that mask a sneaky time signature, but "III" is on hand to pitch back into more exotic realms with a fractious style that uses dubby chords for an anchor while the rest of the sonic matter comes under heavy effects fire.