Leftfield / Experimental Recommendations September 2015

Review: Thankfully, Richard D. James has decided to finally release at least some of the output that he's been banging on about since mid-2000s. In a number of interviews, the might Aphex Twin hinted that he has vast artilleries of tracks stacked up and unreleased, probably more on purpose than out of laziness...or maybe not. What we do know is that AFX is reborn after the string of acid 12"s released about 10 years ago on Rephlex, that saw the alias become one of the most popular of James' alter egos. Orphaned Deejay Selek is a collection of tunes that contain all of the Twin's magic and unpredictably, but that also cut straight to the point and head to the middle of the dance floor. This is banging brain dynamite coated in the man's iconic style and flair. Welcome back AFX, and many hats off to Warp for making it happen.

Review: It's been some four years since Kuedo released Serverant on Planet Mu, a debut album that marked him out as a fine maker of sci-fi tinged, synthesizer-heavy electronica. The grandly titled Assertion of a Surrounding Presence sees him in a more reflective, largely downbeat mood, countering his usual crystalline melodies with darker influences, both from the worlds of electronica and IDM, and dance music at large. Some may hear mangled interpretations of ghetto-tech, footwork and '90s tech-step in his beat patterns, though these are used sparingly and - for the most part - don't detract from Kuedo's principal vision. It's a formula that, across the six tracks, results in some beguiling compositions.

Review: Did you know that Lima, Peru, has earned a reputation as South America's party capital? Or, for that matter, that the City is home to a thriving "tropical bass" scene, where a dedicated band of homegrown heroes giddily fuse dubstep, techno and electronica? Peru Boom aims to chart the rise of this healthy but internationally under-represented scene, via tracks from all of the city's major players. For those not schooled in the scene's intricacies, it makes for fascinating listening, as traditional South American rhythms and vocals get mangled, re-arranged, and fused with heavy sub bass lines, fizzing electronics, humid melodies and tipsy, 8-bit funk.

Review: Japan's Gonno is back with a brilliant full length on the always superb Endless Flight, after stellar releases in recent times on Beats In Space and International Feel. A truly emotional album with eight well-crafted compositions, in all their ethereal and uplifting glory. There's the heart wrenching ambience of "Beasts In Your Mind" and "Already Almost", the slightly pop-inflected and totally feel good vibes of "Green Days" and "Hippies" and not forgetting the sublime deep house grooves of "Worst Day ever" and "Revoked" which are ever so typical of any Endless Flight release. A tremendous effort.

Review: It would be fair to say that Dominick Fernow is one of experimental music's more esteemed and prolific exponents. So far this year, Fernow has issued albums as Exploring Jezebel, Vatican Shadow and Prurient for Blackest Ever Black, Modern Love, and Profound Lore respectively. The latter, Frozen Niagara Falls, makes the transition to triple vinyl having first been released on CD and cassette format back in May. Cited by many as Fernow's most accomplished album to date, it's easy to see why here with Frozen Niagara Falls an end-of-days mixture of intense white noise, snarled, often screamed vocals, and fizzing, industrial electronics. Occasional bursts of crystal clear electronic melodies and bittersweet ambience offer brief respite from the madness.

Review: In 1981, prolific film director John Carpenter made Escape From New York, a near-future dystopian action film which has inspired a whole generation of movie producers and musicians. Mr. Carpenter also took care of its soundtrack, originally out on Milan Records and reissued in 2000 by Silva Screen, and again now. If you haven't heard it before, it's a true journey into the depths of electronics. The double LP contains 27 songs, all representative of the chilling scenes in the film, ranging from vintage drones, to flurries of orchestral instrumentation, and even bursts of new age sounds. It's a mood record, and one which should be enjoyed with an open mind and an attentive set of ears. A classic.

Review: Arc Light Editions are steadily becoming the masters of outsider reissues. In the last few years, the productive label has resurfaced valuable material by Arthur Russell, among others, and this summer they have turned their attention to Finnish electronic pioneer, Pekka Airaksinen. The original edition of Buddhas Of Golden Delight has never received a proper re-edition until now, and it has remained rather expensive on the second-hand market. This is no surprise, however, as Airaksinen's use of drum machines and electronics still sounds as fresh as ever, and the LP sits perfectly with the current state of affairs in the experimental music scene. From the grainy, watery beats of "Sakiri", to the oddball drones of "Kandrasuryapradipa", this is pure sonic drifting at its most daring. Lovers of modular electronics, please go ahead and indulge. This is warmly recommended.

Review: Laurent Jeaneau's Discrepant imprint delivers another burst of magnetic outsiderism thanks to this latest LP by Algerian bass wizard, El Mahdy Jr - this being his debut for the label and only his second full-length work. The North African beat experimenter has previously put out material on the excellent Zam Zam and Aisha Devi's Danse Noire, and we're always curious to hear his very own brand of morphed n' warped electronics, a pleasure on the ears and a blow to the chest. Ghost Tapes travels across the two sides of the wax plate, with Mahdy going deeper and more cavernous than ever before thanks to flurries of field recordings, vocal samples, fuzzy drones and swarms of dubbed-out noise. A good old mash-up of everything that we love. Hot.

Review: One of several intriguing artists to be commissioned to rework music from Bjork's Vulnicura album, Hemlock boss Untold takes a novel approach on his Chroal mix of "Lionsong". Bolstered by additional vocal tones from the same choir that appeared on previous Bjork LP Biophilia, Untold seeks rhythmic inspiration from his own discography, specifically "Flexible". The track originally appeared as a single-sided 12" back in 2009, and it brims with the madcap energy of early Untold beats, all woodblock percussion and scuffed found sound snippets. It's an unlikely partnership of sounds, but the legacy of Bjork's distinctive voice atop edgy electronics makes the whole wild cocktail go down smooth.

Review: Belfast label Touch Sensitive Records delivers The Host's second LP, and only his second release altogether under that alias. The Host is actually Northern Irish bass scientist Barry Lynn aka Boxcutter, a producer who has put out a vast amount of material on Planet Mu, and a string of EP's on Scuba's Hotflush Recordings, among many others. Touch Sensitive has decided to go for his more abstract work, however, and judging by their previous compilation by London's Cherrystones, these guys are into the deep end. Esalen Lectures is an album that requires patience and an open mind to allow its moody soundscapes to enter your mind. Once tracks like "Submersion" or "Primate Change" gather their momentum and rhythm, though, The Host's arrangements will stick in the back of your mind like no other contemporary drone and ambient music. From dubbed-out sonic swirls to twisted blends of drone, this is gorgeous and comes heavily recommended.

Review: The Bossfyte duo come through with their debut EP on Detroit Underground, and it's on 7" format for all the boogie collectors to reminisce over. The pair had thus far released only a couple of mixes and we hadn't really heard their studio skills until now, a subaquatic blend of sounds for the more skilful DJ. "Lil Dog Toes" is a fine Michigan special, a tune that finds its form amid blurry electro shots and twists itself into a slow-paced techno bruiser, complete with morphed and detuned vocal samples.

Review: Lorenzo Senni's Presto!? Label - home to some of the most forward-thinking electronic music of the last five years - resurrects Theo Burt's 2009/2010 recordings, and compiles them into an album, Gloss. The tunes were, apparently, not meant to be released but when Senni heard them, there was no way he couldn't put them out and we couldn't agree more. We know you probably hear this a lot, but this LP is a true stand-out among the endless flurry of electronica releases out there today, and Burt's style is both singular and fun. Taking their main shape from 80's Casio keyboards, these eight tunes are vibrant and diverse, where Theo Burt mixes up everything from synth-pop, to ambient, and more. Our favourite moment resides in "Track 6", a jittery neo-romantic tune that gets wilder and more seductive with each new listen. Top draw!

Review: Texas club music icon Lotic continues Bjork's makeover on One Little Indian with another beautiful 12", cropped and packaged in a gorgeous silk-screened bag. Bjork's "Notget" had already been retuned by Lotic, but this time he returns to the turn with his Fromdeath version, jumping from solitary drones to broken shreds of power electronics, tribal drums and gun shots. It's a jagged, wayward affair for the more adventurous disc jockey, and one that will please both the floor shakers and the brain melters - this tune is only a shadow of its original self, and it comes as this week's top of the tips..!

Review: The Marx Trukker, an electronic deviant residing in Berlin who loves to stick in the shadows of the music scene, returns to Cologne-based Noorden with his third EP for the label. Much like his previous effort back in 2014 - on which The Zzzzra accompanied him - the producer offers a scintillating blend of IDM-filtered beats, coated in an inimitably exotic style. "Among The Climetree Harbors" is itself a perfect balance of airy melodies, subtle effects processing and raucous beats; "Where I Was A Child" is less loose, bringing forth a more structured beat and a beautifully melancholic wave of synth tones. On the B-side, you have the sparse chimes and dusty percussion way of "And My Daddy Was A Polyphonic Prayer", and "I Once Got Up & Then Kept Lying", a fluffy little pseudo house number containing more of Trukker's gentle waves and sonic meditations. Tip!