Go! Finger

Review: Madrid's Go! Finger is the latest label to make the migration from cassette to vinyl with their debut 12" featuring music from their last tape! Brooklyn selector Chupacabras no doubt made links with the Go! Finger founders during his time in Barcelona, spending four years in the Spanish city "sweating it out in the underground illegal party scene" before becoming a resident at Sala Neon. All the tracks on I See Light are culled from the Forgotten tape released on Go! Finger last year with two Chupacabras cuts backed by remixes from Legowelt and Willie Burns. Those two names are probably reason enough for many to investigate but don't make the mistake of glossing over the wonderfully strange original version of "I See Light" from Chupacabras, which pairs strange wind instrument with an insistent raw techno groove.

Review: The Go Finger label has been digging into the undergrowth of synthwave sounds and deviant electro for a few years now, more recently graduating from the tape scene to put out EPs of leftfield electronic adventures on wax. This EP in particular is quite something, calling on the vintage talents of Das Ding in all their eerie, warped, pulsing, analogue refinement. "Conun Drum" is a curiously playful trip through noirish cityscapes by way of strobing lead lines and militaristic machine beats, while "Life Is A Tool In The Hands Of Strangers" takes a more uptempo approach without losing the bombast of their melodic arrangements. Dutch electro champ DJ Overdose steps up for the B side, dropping the overcast and creeping "I See No Stars At Night" and the dishevelled robot beatdown "Potje Freaken".

Review: Swedish outliers Frak have been on rampant form recently, channelling their 30-plus years of machine battering into material that stands up to demands of the contemporary scene with ease. "Starter Pack" is a muscular workout with a choice selection of gnarly synth lines, while "Congestion" has some wiggly filter sweeping and the off-kilter acid freakery you'd expect from the Scandinavian techno heroes. "Bruhn Agitation" takes things slower and meaner, leading you into a dungeon of deviant techno delights. Totally workable and yet still undeniably different, Frak continue to be a treasure for those who like their machine music rugged and raw.