Today Only: Electro sale vinyl

Review: Soul Jazz Records promise this is a one off and strictly limited pressing of Alien Starr's 'World Of Ecstasy.' It is a faithful reproduction of the original in terms of art and sound and has been restored from the label after they included it on their excellent recent Space Funk 2 - Afro-Futurist Electro Funk In Space 1976-84 compilation. tUSA in 1985 featuring big slap bass energy, hand claps, drum funk and electro boogie bass. .

Review: Written by James Ernard, 'How Close' is a poppy funk track with as much history as killer synths. Written after his previous Ohio-based group Perfect Element declined opening for Prince on tour, Ernard left to set up his own label (which met a similar end as he and co-founder Kennith also had a falling out over creative differences). 'How Close' is a sensational piece of 80s American pop history, with a killer synth line and earworm vocals that'll have you shaking your hips before even realising. Side B has a nippy little remix by an undisclosed producer (which is sometimes the case with such niche pieces of history), that nonetheless breathes even more life into such a colourful track. It's often the 7" records that tell us the full history of the music industry behind the scenes at that time, and this release is no different - a perfect addition to that niche 7" collection you've been building up...

Review: A deliberate exercise in Y2K aesthetics and cyberpunk electrance comes in the creative output of DJ Natural Nate - his latest EP for Hoodwink Recordings, 'Notes To Jiggabot' - which consists of four tracks eulogizing his cybernetic partner-in-crime, Jiggabot (several releases from this pair have come out since mid 2018) and seemingly the object of his fantasmic affections. Whether the likes of new numbers 'Chasing The Rhythm', 'I Will Shine For You' or 'Far Away' originate from some angelic conceptual otherworld or this banal material one, it's hard not to love the signifiers poured into the EP: US freestyle jaunts, pure femme vocals doused in reverb-reverbs and melismatic hums; hyper-compressed, lightsabre-sculpted beats and visual cues reminiscent of childhoods spent lost in postmodern futuristic fantasies, such as those of Deus Ex or Blade Runner.

Review: Following some great releases by DJ Cop Killer, Aerial and Santiago, Los Angeles label Private Selection is back with this one by Force Placement (aka Nu Sire) who throws down some fierce off world beats on their seventh missive. Whether it's the doomsday electro vibe of 'Lycanthrope', the space invaders smoking grass on 'Pressure Points' or the rise of the machines on the dystopian B side cut 'Seance' - the Sunken Coast EP is definitely one of this week's unexpected electro highlights - tip!

Review: Chris Korda's latest EP, we are reliable informed, "interrogates the myth of human superiority and the barbarism that flows from it." A high faulting concept for sure, but that doesn't mean this music isn't sure to bang on the dance floor even for those who haven't heard the backstory. The opener has a brilliantly odd monologue over a squelchy bassline and edgy technoid beats. 'K35' then paid thumping deep house drums with winky and off-grid chord full of colour. 'Lunch Break' is a broken jungle rhythm and 'SAZ' rounds out with glowing retro-future melodies and more thumping deep house grooves. A truly fresh sound for sure.

Review: Night Defined Recordings is an Austrian electronic music label based in Salzburg that has featured previous releases by Spanish veteran Eduardo de la Calle, Romanian upstart Serb and label chief Juergen Vonbank. It now presents the second edition in the NDVAX various artist series, featuring Finnish producer Mesak (Klakson/Cleaning Tapes) with the hard minimalism of 'Palek', as well as Erfurt, Germany's Mary Yalex with the unsettling ambient house of 'Running Out Of Time' and Workshop affiliated Even Tuell with the dusty twilight dub of 'In Circles' delivered in typically understated fashion.

Review: Following up some great releases by Voiron and Betonkunst, Parisian label Nocta Numerica returns with PQ17, a Russian producer said to be returning from a long hiatus. He shows huge potential and an inexhaustible amount of energy on his vinyl debut, "Somnus Ambulo", where he provides some immaculate and majestic perspectives on the electro sound. From the sublime cyborg romanticism of "Organismus", futurist electro-bass noir of "Disambiguation" packing just the right amount of punch for the dancefloor to the evocative neon-lit drama of "I'm All Right", which takes a more synthpop oriented route akin to Visonia.

Review: The Reflektor is a lesser known alias of U.S. based producer Gabriel Reyes-Whittaker, aka The Abstract Eye/Gifted & Blessed. Some of you may have heard his release under this moniker on Kyle Hall's Wild Oats label a little while back. Technoindigenous Studies serves as a platform for his many alter egos and side projects with this new EP titled Taino, a tribute to his own indigenous Caribbean ancestors. Whether it's the heady electro sounds of opening cut 'Bajacu' (Morning Light) on the A side, or the mesmerising deep techno cut 'Mucaro' (Night Owl) on side B, or the introverted late night computer funk of 'Karaya' (Moon) - this is what makes Gifted & Blessed what it is

Review: Bangkok-based Sarayu is an artist at the heart of the electronic music scene in Thailand, and co-runs the label More Rice. His latest releases comes courtesy of local imprint Boiled Wonderland titled Intelligent Jump Rope Music, featuring four club focused tracks with a darker edge. On the A-side, there's the atmospheric broken beat techno of 'The Bag' and the mental 'E30 Track' . On the second side, the deep and entrancing title track's knackered feel is complemented nicely by Belgian producer Locked Groove's hypnotic rendition.