LIES US Vinyl & CDs

Review: New York City techno veteran Adam X returns to Long Island Electrical Systems under the ADMX71 alias, where he once again explores the outer fringes of experimental electronics on his latest LP The Aging Process, existing at the intersection of industrial, EBM and techno. Beginning with the contorted noise soundscape of 'Speaking Via Telepathy' he soon unleashes the seething brain bash of 'Sensor-Tised' followed by the strobing tunnel vision of 'Walking Through Walls'. Elsewhere, there's more dystopian themes aplenty as heard on the static TBM pulse of 'They've Instilled Fear In Us', or the pitch black war funk of 'Leading The Way' and the muscular slow burner 'Leading The Way'.

Review: Ron Morelli's long-running and always forward-thinking L.I.E.S label looks to prolific producer Orion Agassi who hails from Spain and has proven himself as a real house mainstay. He backs up that reputation with six cuts of "straight up beat tracks for the club." They are inspired by the legacy of early WBMX mix shows and come with a hint of Latin flavour, with hammers percussion, snappy drum patterns and fiery vocals all making for a nice and wonky workout across a range of inviting tempos. A very useful album that has something for a wide spread of dance floor moments.

Review: UK producer Tom Carruthers really impresses with this full length for Rom Morelli's revered US imprint LIES. It is steeped in bleep traditions and old-school electronic sounds, but all with a fresh new perspective. Right off the bat, this record draws you in: there are early Chicago jack tracks like the opener 'Can You Feel It', melon-twisting deep cuts such as 'Cyclone' and chattery melodic jams like 'Fantasies' which all hark back to a different era. 'Forge' explores a mysterious world of interplanetary house, 'Quest For Rydm' echoes the sound of LFO and 'Channel Control' is pure dance floor heat. This is music for getting E'd up and losing yourself in the middle of a warehouse, and we love it.

Review: L.I.E.S man Tom Carruthers is back on his home label with a new double LP, Downtown Rhythms, that predictably pushes boundaries with a sound rooted in late 80s-early 90s New York House. Carruthers reimagines heavy-duty samples throughout here as he crafts tracks that echo the vibes of Todd Terry and Bones SP-1200. This 12-track collection blends funky, deep, and introspective elements and is rather suited for summer whether blasting from your car stereo or filling the club. True to old-school production, it features additional work from Risk Management's Benedek and Lipelis on some of the jams.

Review: Ron Moreli's famously sleazy LIEs welcomes back one of its regular artists in Lipelis, this time with his TMO project alongside extra goodness from keyboardist Eugene Piankov. The pair really go for it from the off, with anthemic house stomper 'Goes D Jam' offering up squealing 303 and 909s that ring out into the cosmos over crunchy drums. '112 Bright Jam' is slower, deeper, more heartfelt with its tender piano chords and 'Goes C Jam' is an acid laced piano celebration. Last of all is '107 Dark Jam' which is a heads down stomp with acid meditations for grotty warehouse spaces at 5am.

Review: Jersey City-based Jorge Velez has long been one of the US underground's most revered figures to those in the know. Largely predating the current fascination with lo-fi analogue productions, something shown on the excellent MMT Tape Series compilation which delved into his early archives, his work as Professor Genuis on Italians Do It Better and Thisisnotanexit was followed by the conceptual Hassan LP on L.I.E.S. which provided a soundtrack to an imaginary film based on a shadowy Middle Eastern cult formed in the 11th century. Here Velez return to Ron Morelli's stable with Territories, a six-track LP that passes through "menacing drones to EBM influenced floor tracks to Sakamoto-esque melodic experiments," with a "distinct atmosphere suitable for home listening or adventurous club play." Even for those who are familiar with the odd structures Velez creates with his hardware, this is a wild trip worthy of much closer inspection.