The best new singles this week

by Juno Daily on 01.12.2022 at 17:53pm.
Last edited: 07.12.2022 at 10:31am.

The creme de la creme of the week’s 45s

SINGLE OF THE WEEK

There aren’t too many producers operating in dance music’s cultured outer reaches that command as much respect from their peers as Morgan Geist. The New Jersey native is frequently name-checked as a source of inspiration by some of the scene’s finest producers, which comes as no surprise considering the potency of his catalogue. His expansive but identifiable sound is routinely compelling, and since debuting back in 1994 he’s supplied more than his share of subterranean anthems — recorded solo as well as via landmark collaborations including Metro Area and Storm Queen. Back in 2001, the ‘Super’ EP he released on his own Environ label could, alongside some of his other work, be described as defining a glistening moment in space and time. The 90s rave peak was morphing into a strobe-lit electroclash clamour, and deep in the backroom — a few steps away from the in-your-face neon swagger — Geist was among a select few skilfully occupying the underground’s musically rich, disco-fused perimeters.

More than 20 years on, he presents a long-overdue follow-up to the record, with ’Duper’ sharing much with its still charming predecessor. Both EPs contain three varied but coherent cuts, with each led by a striking lead number. If in 2001 it was the sumptuous strings and stripped machine drums of ‘24K’ that won over the most admirers, then it’s likely ‘Twighlight Express’ will assume the floor-filling role here. The melodies are spellbinding, the bass intoxicating, and, once again, Kelly Polar performs and arranges majestic strings that powerfully elevate the music. A little more aberrant, the quirky melodies of ‘Black Test Car’ veer tantalisingly off-piste, as jagged drums drive the wonky top-line into cheerful chord progressions. Finally, the singing 303 of ‘Feeling Is Mutual’ enchant as they unfurl, with squelching bass and crisp machine drums steering the track through glistening chords and evolving melodies. This is stunning material across the board, with Geist once again proving his mastery in magnificent style.PC

Cyrus Posatron / Digby Yakiddin – Zodiac Bath Bomb (Noid)

Having resumed releasing via their recently resurrected Droid imprint earlier in the year, the ever-lovable Idjut Boys breathe new life into another fabled branch of their creative tree. The Noid label brought much unfettered delight from its late ‘90s launch until it dipped below the radar in 2010. Serving as a home to some of the duo’s silliest monikers (Major Swellings, The Phantom Slasher) and most joyful tunes, Noid also played host to likeminded friends from the meta-disco universe, with the likes of Harvey, Ray Mang, Rune Lindbaek and Mudd popping up on the label from time to time. With so many memorable titles to look back on, not to mention cheeky nom de plumes to chortle over, the label’s reappearance is sure to bring a smile to the faces of even the most jaded of Balearic silverbacks and in-the-know collectors.

Re-launching with a pair of suitably tongue-in-cheek pseudonyms, the Idjut’s assume the roles of Cyrus Posatron and Digby Yakkidin, serving five varied but approximately disco-centred jams on the ‘Zodiac Bath Bomb’ EP. However humorous the overall intention, the music is, as ever, profoundly on point and devastatingly effective. The title track throbs and builds with magnetic thrust, as grainy space delays echo over thick bass and loosely woven rhythms. The exotic melodies of new wave-inspired ‘Spark Life’ find plenty of room to manoeuvre as they dance over stripped drums and undulating synth bass, before we take a rhythmic trip over the b-side for the conga-led roller ‘But Why Jeff’, with its snarling synth sweeps and spoken word vocals. Next, all kinds of parameters are pushed to their limits via the delightfully extra ‘Landfill’, with cosmic melodies furiously undulating across a propulsive prog-rock dalliance. Finally, the psychedelic synths and fuzz guitar strums of the gloriously limber ‘I Just Called To Say I Love You’ see us out in sparkling stylex, the live drumming and trademark delays contributing to a wonderfully unabashed and saucer-eyed finale.

Space Drum Meditation – SDM 005 (Space Drum Meditation Germany)

The name ‘Space Drum Meditation’ says it all, really. Now on their fifth self-titled release, the Hamburg duo have perfected the craft of producing their own niche brand of ‘ritual’ techno, in the tradition of fellow artists in the sound such as Don’t DJ, Immaculate Rivombo or Eiger Drums Propaganda. The difference with SDM is their liberal use of texture; their music is at once happily squashed, nice on the ears, and capable of inducing experiences that one might call deep, mystical, dissociative.

A preoccupation with ancient carved faces and/or tribal front profiles is a consistent theme with their music. While SDM004 dealt out five extraterrestrial sonic worlds of divine bioorganics under the rule of a face carved in gold (its idolatrous visage is printed on the inner label), SDM005 swaps this out for an Afrofuturist bust: a person in a rich headdress whose eyes and face have been completely overtaken by divine geometry, post-noumena.

The music on the 12” is fitting for surrendering to higher psychotic states such as this, but no track is without a sense of danger or sinisterness. ‘Nagamani’, for example, plunges us into a dense canopy of sound; we can almost smell the machine lorises, psychedelic Rafflesia, and entheogenic dewdrops all effusing between the beats of this dark plodder. ‘Brahma Kamal’, meanwhile, named after a rare medicinal plant found in the Himalayas, commits to forward propulsion at techno tempo, with a central aerophone motif riffing off a kind of dubstep or broken beat rhythm.

‘Dance Of Tandava’, referencing the concept of the divine dance of the Hindu god Shiva, reveals unto us said deity’s backing music. It sounds like a spooky wonky techno track beset by deep growling drone-snarls and wolf-howls. And though it appears first, we leave the best till last; ‘Astika’ ups the efficacy of said drones, pitting them against deep swells, impacts, rattles and tribal drumming to produce a real sense of falling into belief. This is top-quality mixed-trip spiritual dance music.

JIJ

Neel – The 808 Archive (Non Series)

While he can display a versatility which stretches from blistering peak-time techno assaults to the immense immersion of Voices From The Lake, Italian producer Neel is perhaps best defined by a certain no-nonsense quality in his music. There’s never a sound out of place, an errant whim or unexpected curveball. His music can be experimental and loaded with interesting sound design, but it’s always incredibly focused and intentional. Non Series is a natural home for him then, carrying steely strains of modern techno which favour minimalism and intensity.

In this context, heading into an EP entitled The 808 Archive sets ones expectations quite clearly, and while they’re not entirely disrupted, there’s more to this EP than you might assume from the outside. The label’s succinct text is right on point – “808 workouts by Neel” indeed. But this isn’t a case of bog standard, over-familiar patterns and those excessively mined drum sounds being rolled out in a predictable fashion. Neel has gone in hard on a limited approach and sought to wrench something distinctive from the process. To hear ‘Ginga’ firing up, you wouldn’t instantly default to calling it ‘an 808 track’ – not in the same way you would hearing the likes of Egyptian Lover throwing down an electro beat. Clearly some of the sounds have been processed and distorted, and he’s created a smoky, brooding atmosphere in the process. It’s reduced and hypnotic, as one would expect, but crucially it’s also engaging and immersive, and certainly not a clichéd roll out of typical 808 sounds.

‘Naeba’ follows suit by creating a densely knitted pattern and trickling the higher percussion into the mix through some light dub processing. There’s clearly some desk magic at work here, but the style remains resolutely stripped down and drum focused, faithful to the concept without being stifled by it. ‘Djagurd’ picks up the thread from the previous track and adds a little bite to the mix, allowing some gravelly hats into the mix and overdriving toms to create a looping melodic phrase. As the sound fills out, it starts to lose some of the subliminal appeal of the first two tracks, but it’s still an impressive display of how to make an 808 sound interesting with limited means.

It’s ‘Dongmak’ that really steals the show though, tucked away on the B2 but creating the most enchanting effect thanks to the canny tuning of the toms to create a simple musicality which rounds the track out. With light delay and reverb processing, the resulting decays create a moody chord like tone which fills out the track without having to divert from the imposing presence of the x0x box. Of course, this is still stripped down techno pitched at those who love to lose themselves in the nagging, cyclical swirl of machine music, but Neel demonstrates the power to be found in limiting your resources and pushing them as far as you can.

Giordano – Transmute (Voitax Germany)

Few labels can be said to have pushed the boundaries of contemporary hard dance as far out as Voitax have. Likewise, some releases don’t need any concept underlying them, largely for the reason that they’re best suited to the dancefloor first and foremost.

With the above in mind, ‘Transmute’ is proto-conceptronica at its best. The new EP / mini-album from producer and DJ Giordano proves the point of Voitax’s curatorial chops; 6 breaksy-halftime-techno extravaganzae unfold over a dazzling 30 or so minutes, which when combined with its album cover, convey the mood of something demiurgic emerging from its cocoon. In the tradition of Varg2TM’s recent collaborations, 3XL, Frog Of Earth, or any other music that might be worthy of the name ‘bioorganic breaks’, the tracks that metamorphose from within said cocoon are continually energetic and uptempo.

If the metaphor weren’t clear enough yet, it’s as though the entire EP narrates the life-cycle of a sonic butterfly. The first standout track we’d like to mention is ‘Friction’; perhaps indirectly nodding to the drum n’ bass producer of the name name, this is a subtly-crafted, ambient neuro-jungle track and the fastest of the lot.

The caterpillar phase – which might be described as comparatively sluggish – is well-portrayed on ‘Sidia’, with highpassed gabber kicks going some of the way to represent the ‘undulating wave’ motion of the caterpillar’s body. From ‘Elsewhere’ onwards, our larval friend finds itself trapped by the prison of the self, in pupal symbiosis with the organic panopticon of breakbeats that surround it. A close runner-up for the title of most attention-grabbing track is ‘Length Of Contraction’, which excitedly pulsates through AFX-style chord sequences and menacing halftime grooves.

JIJ

Shaka Man – Coronation Binghi (Bless You)

Hailing from Cambridge, Jamaica but now based in LA, Shaka Man is a true reggae lifer. His primary work is as a drummer, but he’s fronted many a record on his own terms from ‘87s Baptism By Fire LP to the 2030 A.D. album in 2000. On this record for Sound Metaphors sub-label Bless You, we get distinct insights into the Shaka Man sound from it’s more experimental side to the true-skool roots songwriting.

It’s the former approach which makes for a truly attention-grabbing release, as Shaka takes to the kit and leans in hard, bringing an avant-garde kind of dub processing to bear on his raw and rasping drum takes, creating such wild blooms of delay that it could easily tear a dance in two. Listen to the rattle of that snare and just try not shocking out.

On the flip, ‘Chain Reaction’ comes in a classic one-two version configuration, although the label choose to lead with the dub before opening up to the vocal. It’s a sweet, heavy hearted groover which sounds fathoms deep in dub, and equal parts anthemic and DIY in its full form. Shaka Man might be something of a cult figure in reggae terms, but this record shows off his instinct and flair within the bounds of the reggae tradition.

Sjush – Danger Dance (Techno Is The Devil’s Music)

This is Irish musician and DJ Sjush’s first ever release with a label – Techno Is The Devil’s Music – and it hears the artist scour the depths of warehouse techno, pushing the boundaries of what might be acceptable within its realm.

‘Danger music’ broadly describes any music that inspires associations of injury, danger, or pain. G.G. Allin’s fecal-fetish punk shows are a popular reference for the style; Lucas Abela’s bloody modular glass-blowing are a less cited modern example. At the more depraved end of the spectrum lies Yamantaka Eye, who allegedly once dismembered a cat’s corpse onstage.

When it comes to techno, however, its inclusion as part of ‘danger music’ gets a bit more abstract. Technically, many illegal raves are ‘danger music’ shows by virtue of being hosted in locations without proper health and safety precautions in place. This reviewer recalls attending a three-storey rave in an abandoned car park in Barnet; railings were nowhere to be found in this vast concrete hall, while every level was open to its GHB-high attendees.

‘Danger Dance’ does a stellar job of conveying the risk of attending certain raves. The EP’s ‘hard’ kicks have a sort of compressed softness, gluing together every ingredient – 909 hats, womping basses, rave stabs – into a sort of druggy blur. There goes our sense of good judgment. Our fave is the track ‘Grainfeeder’; the most intense of the lot, its syncopated stabs hardly have any tone to them, and are undercut by a scrapy sound, almost like a crocodile’s snarl.

JIJ

Ben Sun – Alluvial Sketches (Phonica)

Australian producer Ben Davidson resumes his sonic explorations under the now-familiar Ben Sun moniker, riding in on Phonica Records with the deliciously immersive ‘Alluvial Sketches’ EP. Now based in London, Ben has been responsible for some seriously alluring work in recent years, with a limber sound that skilfully combines compelling hooks and melodic threads with a gently deviant core. His winding, meditative arrangements have arrived on the likes of Delusions Of Grandeur, Razor N Tape and Voyeurhtym, presenting evolving soundscapes that flit between future disco, deep house and nu-jazz. Though all tracks here are wonderfully engaging, arguably the pick arrives in the form of closing track, ‘Siren’.

With its hallucinatory synth hooks, phasing chords and evocative vocal lines, it’s certainly the most floor-focused of the set, powered by throbbing bass and crisp drums as Sun’s characteristically sprawling arrangement steadily unfolds. Elsewhere and only slightly less propulsive, the heady disco licks of ‘Trip’ are powerfully seductive, while the heads-down thud of ‘Mellow Madness’ carves out a mesmerising groove as grainy strings echo over pulsing bass and loose rhythms. Completing the selection, the bewitching textures of ‘Glow’ prove entirely captivating, an intoxicating blend of hyperactive synth lines and smokey pads meandering over sparse, conga-led drums. Plenty of subaquatic shades to enjoy here.

Mark Ambrose – Dream Mode (Curated By Time)

In the folds of UK tech house history, Mark Ambrose has left a considerable which seems to now be getting fair recognition in the fervent digger culture. There’s a certain sound which Ambrose was incubating alongside other South Coast acolytes such as Schatrax and Aubrey, where the blur between the techno and house qualities in the music might well get nerds in baggy record label t-shirts resorting to fisticuffs over genre definitions. It’s a sound which was rugged and pumping enough to satisfy a harder, tech-minded crowd, but it never sacrificed groove, melody or atmosphere in the process.

Spanish label Curated By Time have already looked back to Ambrose’s Smoky Clinic EP, originally released on his own Crayon label in 1997, and this time we’re revisiting Dream Mode from the same year, on Aubrey’s Solid Groove label. The opening track is the kind of cut you’d expect to hear woven in the mix of an especially on-point selector – the likes of Eric Cloutier or Eli Verveine to name but two. It’s the kind of tech house which reaches head and shoulders above all the disposable gear with an ineffable quality – is it the murky, steadfast bassline, the trippy, blippy material on top, the doped-out pads? Who’s to say – it’s just magic.

‘Colonel’s Measure’ has some more explicit clues to the appeal in Ambrose and co’s approach, leaning as it does on hip-hop style sampling to create a dirty, discoid tech roller that’s rugged and funky as hell. ‘Redial’ is no slouch either, keeping things squarely focused on the drums with minimal licks warping around in the middle distance. It’s very much of its time, but true quality never dulls and they quite simply don’t make them like this any more.

Jazz N Palms – Milano (Hell Yeah)

When it comes to polychromatic sounds from the wider Balearic universe, Italian label Hell Yeah can always be relied upon to deliver beguiling sonic delights. Deftly defying genres with far-reaching rhythms and melodies, the label’s careful curation ensures that its catalogue maintains consistency despite its expansive nature.

The latest EP arrives from Ibiza-based DJ Riccio under his Jazz N Palms alias, re-imagining Piera Martell’s 1978 gem ‘Exotica’ with an elegant contemporary flourish. After hearing the original version on a Phil Mison mix, Riccio was inspired to conjure a novel take on the music, with reformed lyrics and a new setting for the song’s narrative. Transposing the scene to 1980s Milan, the song tells the tale of a teenager daunted at the prospect of relocating to a big city, with the honeyed lyrics sung by Giovanna Lubjan with the blessing of the original composer, Salvo Ingrassia.

The breezy, soul-jazz instrumentation was performed by the Italian 291Out ensemble, its gorgeously poignant feel ripe with the evocative innocence of youth. Shimmering guitars glide amidst late-summer keys, the rising sax solo exploding into life as splashy drums expertly set the tempo. Featured in both vocal and instrumental versions, ‘Milano’ is an exquisite follow-up to Jazz N Palms’ well-received ‘Ses Rodes’ LP — and yet more enticing material from the ever-giving Hell Yeah camp.

This week’s reviewers: Patrizio Cavaliere, Oli Warwick, Jude Iago James.