CD Album Recommendations August 2012

Review: "If you do not hear this" a distorted voice says at the start of Shed's third album, The Killer, before deploying a low bass frequency, "or that, you will not feel it". It's a statement of intent which is followed through with some of the heaviest material of the producer's career - whether it's the dense ambient of "STP3/The Killer", the tunnelling, waspish drone of "I Come By Night", or the screaming oscillations of "Day After". Despite being an album grounded by monolithic rave-era breakbeats, it's also an album of contemplative moments - the thermal current melodies of "Gas Up" and "The Praetorian" chief among them. The artwork says it all - this is an album made for the body, and our advice is to turn it up loud and let techno's greatest contemporary producer work his magic.

Review: House music survivor Mr G returns with his second studio album, released via Matt Edwards' Rekids imprint. Although he's been on the scene for two decades, Colin McBean only dropped his first full length album, Still Here, in 2010, and he follows it up here with 11 tracks of stripped back, no nonsense deep house and techno. The late nice, big room bounce of opening cut G's Riddem" is a definite highlight, but be sure to check the raw "Clearing Space", the rolling machine funk of "Pumped Up" and cheeky trance homage "Remember This!"

Review: Given that they released their first 12" nearly 20 years ago, it's somewhat surprising to find that Cellar Door is the Idjut Boys first "proper" album of original material. There have, of course, been other albums - a 2002 collaboration with Quakerman on Glasgow Underground, 2009's Rune Lindbeak hook-up as Meanderthals (on which they were rumoured to have done most of the work) and a string of typically dubbed-out disco re-edit collections (Phantom Slasher, Noid etc) - but nothing that could be called a definitive Idjuts album. Cellar Door, then, should perhaps be seen as a neat bonus rather than the culmination of a career that has stuttered between sublime brilliance and aloof eccentricity. Listened to on those terms, it's even better than you'd expect. First of all, it's a proper album in the old fashioned sense. Clocking in at under 40 minutes - like many of the greatest albums of the vinyl era - it shimmers with Balearic intent. Seemingly inspired by their recent work with Mudd and the Claremont 56 label - see the sun-bright guitars of opener "Rabass" and blissful reprise "Jazz Axe" - it's noticeably brighter and breezier than much of their work. Another obvious inspiration is veteran Balearic types A Man Called Adam, long time pals and occasional collaborators. Sally Rodgers' vocals are all over Cellar Door, from the soft focus Ibizan laziness of "Shine", to the Rumours-era Fleetwood Mac dreaminess of "Going Down". With the Idjuts usual delay-laden production style to the fore, it's an uncomplicated, singalong delight. Cellar Door, then, is an enjoyable and suitably laidback listen. Heady and intoxicating on one hand, sweet and country-tinged on the other, it's a grown up, radio-friendly set that should please those with a penchant for glistening Balearica.

Review: A true product of the Wolf + Lamb family, Deniz Kurtel's second album comes drenched in the kind of 21st century boogie that has made stars of Soul Clap and the like. It's a thoroughly clean affair, as the Moog basslines and melodramatic pads get streamlined and twisted into a dark pop balladry that fits neatly into the trajectory being plotted by the new wave of US producers. With sizable contributions from Tanner Ross, Soul Clap, Wolf + Lamb and Thugfucker amongst others, lovers of this silken strand of house music will be in neo-romantic bliss.

Review: Brighton duo Spectrasoul grace Shogun Audio with their debut album Delay No More, following a slew lauded 12"s for the likes of Critical, Exit, Subtitles and Metalheadz. It's been a hotly anticipated LP in D&B circles and beyond, and it lives up to the hype with 13 tracks of dubby, nourish D&B pop. With guest vocals coming from the likes of Tamara Blessa, Terri Walker, MC Fox and Echo Park, there's plenty of variation to the beats, which range from classically-tinged, James Blake-ish introversion ("Knuckle Waltz", "The Curb") to more straight forward D&B rollers ("Sometimes We Lie"). Recommended.

Review: This is the third album from Barnet-based drum and bass producer Luke "Utah Jazz" Wilson. Like his two previous sets (released in 2008 and 2010 respectively), Groove Therapy delivers a fluid, liquid take on drum and bass that frequently touches on soul and jazz. Check, for example, the bluesy Alex Reese collaboration "Everything Is Everything" (one of the album's highlights), or the jazz pianos and steppin' beats of "Conrad Funk"; both tracks are typical of Wilson's intoxicating and admirably grown-up take on D&B. See also "Crossing Frontiers", an impressively atmospheric cut whose haunting chords recall the Pet Shop Boys' breakthrough hit, "West End Girls".

Review: It's been ten years since Pig & Dan first set their stall out as purveyors of vaguely progressive tech-house. Since then, they've released just one album - Imagine on Cocoon back in 2007 - but impressed tech-house DJs and critics with a series of well-received singles. Here they celebrate 10 years in the game with a second album of original material, this time for Glaswegian techno and house stalwarts Soma. It's perhaps not an ideal match - Pig & Dan's shuffling, soft focus take on techno seems at odds with the label's fun time remit - but Decade is at least an impressive collection of club tracks. There are few surprises, but plenty of atmospheric, bubbling cuts to tickle the fancy of tech-minded DJs (see the excellent "Doing It For Yourself" and percussive "Natives").

Review: Hyperdub's year of excellence continues apace with the release of Playing Me, the long awaited debut album from Cooly G. Emerging as a key figure in the UK funky scene some four years ago via some highly prized Dub Organiser CDrs, Cooly's musical progression has been charted via a series of EPs for DVA Music and Hyperdub. On this thirteen track album what is most apparent is the confidence this South London producer has in her own singing, a voice that sounds dipped in pain and anguish at times. At others Cooly utilises her vocal delivery as an integral part of the music, which draws from all manner of UK music history of recent times whilst very much sounding part of her modern house template. Oh and there's a Coldplay cover to end the LP too...

Review: Not a week goes by without a new Rayko release dropping, making him the disco edit scene's version of Marco Dionigi, a man who finishes an album on average every 13 seconds. Dragon Soul, though, is the Spanish re-edit king's first full-length. It rather surprisingly hangs together well as an album, offering a typically dubbed-out mix of sparkling boogie, comfy deep house and, of course, cheeky disco. Highlights wise, there's plenty to excite, from an excellent re-dub of D-Train and the sweaty disco of "Love Wars", to the oh-so-sensual "Conscious Of My Love" and the jazzy gorgeousness of "You're No Better Than A Common Thief".

Review: Despite still being in his 20s, Niels Luinenberg has already released a string of acclaimed EPs and has showcased his impressive DJing skills through gigs around Europe and a series of excellent online mixes, as well as this year's Inertia compilation. Can he now take the next step and translate his skills to the album format? "Frozen Land" starts the album in contemplative mode as austere synths unravel over slow-paced, shuffling drums. It's followed by "Enter", where robotic vocals and seared acid lines underpin a slow-motion, ominous bass. Together, these tracks make for an atmospheric opening. Traces then shifts from the esoteric to the visceral, as "Redemption" rides heavy claps and rough acid lines; "Target" unfolds to cavernous drums and heavy tribal beats, while "And If You Know" features scatter-gun percussion and a "Losing Control"-style pitched down vocal sample. The parting shot, "On A Distant Journey" is perhaps the album's finest moment. It sees Luinenberg draw inspiration again from the classic techno and electro sounds that feature in his sets. Delta Funktionen may not have Forward Strategy Group's experimental edge or Shifted's unique sound design, but on Traces he proves himself to be one of the few to thrive in this most adverse setting for techno producers.

Review: Four years on from the release of his second full-length album Toinen, Klas-Henrik Lindblad (best known, of course, as Sasse), returns with his suitably titled third long player. Given his experience and continued fascination with joining the dots between deep house, techno and tactile nu-disco, it's no surprise to find that Third Encounter is a warm, rich and musically varied set. Throughout, Lindblad flits between Larry Heard inspired analogue deep house jams (see opener "Fingers Inc"), near Balearic piano house (check the gorgeous "Eagle Eyes") and icier, heavily electronic fare (the Orbital-ish "Der Groove"), stopping occasionally to throw in the sparkling nu-disco number ("Analog City").