Arboretum Vinyl & CDs

Review: Listening to Vasundhara, the debut EP from Drop, it's easy to discern that the person responsible for the music works in sound design. Berlin-based Giuseppe Bifulco is behind the Drop project and the skills accrued in his trade are put to devastating effect on the four tracks that feature here, which all pull the rhythmic mainframe of skeletal techno deep into the abyss of harsh feedback and sonic devastation. Fans of Emptyset and Dabub will find much to enjoy here as Drop explores the concept of natural/human order. Challenging listening of the most rewarding style!

Review: Berlin's Arboretum collective has certainly got their own thing going, a rather special kind of look to their releases. The imprint has been active since 2012 and specialises in audio-visual works, the images of which are beautifully printed on their record sleeves, and their second outing from newcomer Mogano is a perfect match between sound and vision. The EP travels across percussive soundscapes, where hollow kicks and dubby subs are swallowed by grainy layers of noise and majestic flurries of strings. "Annunaki" is considerably harder in style and is remixed by Downwards resident Kerridge into a hypnotic bundle of steely drums and cut-throat sonics, while title track "Sycomore" is apocalyptic, fiery and rotten at the core. Wonderful stuff, act fast!