Search results: planet mu

Review: Xylitol is the alias of producer and DJ Catherine Backhouse, also known as DJ Bunnhyhausen. Building on her slowly snowballing status as a co-host of the radio show Slav To The Rhythm, which focuses on vintage central and eastern European pop and electronica - as well as co-writing a book on Yugoslavian pop culture - Backhouse's debut album 'Anemonies' is the essential musical component for aiding the task of stomaching her many multifarious outings. Taking as her cue the art of illustrating molluscs, anemones, cnidaria and other aquatic creatures, Xylitol uses Anemone as an album-form outlet for the exploration of fizzing, extrambient jungle missives; tissued, papillary hardcore. The name Xylitol is an indication of what's in store for you here: impeccably reasoned intellibreaks, and piqued, pitched-up samples, both of which invoke childhood pelagic fantasy; virtual underwater verde. The whole record is an odyssean island hop, and we thoroughly recommend it.

Review: When electronic musicians invent new words, you know you're in for an accompanying sonic treat. u-Ziq aka. Mike Paradinas' latest record Grush aims at something between a crush and a grunt - as if to suggest the violent hydraulic floorings of the former and the cave-manic disinhibition of the latter. Sonically, this follows suit with Paradinas' as-ever ascendant, wompy-breaksy sound, which this time comes peppered with additional flavours of black MIDI and generative sound-spurts honed at live shows; the ultimate aim of the album is to replicate the nonstop feel of a live tour, with each track here having been meticulously road-tested and polished for home listening (or not - get out there and dance to the thing, couch potatoes!)

Review: Mike Paradinas is well known these days as the man behind peerless label Planet Mu but of course he was also a core part of the IDM firmament back in the 90s. He had a super run of albums that sat right up there with the best of them in their own way and now many of them are being reissued. But Magic Pony Ride is an all new long player and his first for his own label since 2013. It has his signature happy melodies and wordless vocals - he was writing it while mastering an anniversary version of his Lunatic Harness classic - with wide open spaces sucking you in to their midst as the jungle beats ride on.

Review: Jerrilyn Patton's dark energy finds a new form on this beguiling new album Akoma. The title meaning heart in Akan, once again this maverick multi-disciplinary artist bares all in a totally unique way. At points intriguing and intimate (the playful bounce and momentum of 'Open Canvas', the spider-like patter and skittishness of 'The Precision Of Infinity' the classic glitches and switches of 'Sodalite') At others moody and moving (the powerful staccato strings of 'Summon', the cold percussive minimalism and stirring chants of 'Eye Am') At all times captivating and genuinely unlike anything else around. Featuring the likes of Bjork, Philip Glass and Kronos Quartet, this is a powerful body of work from all directions.

Review: Planet Mu, despite its advancing years, remains right at the cutting edge of electronic music. Its releases are never less that boundary nudging and constantly moving with the times. Back with a new album after Hyper Flux in 2017 did so well, Herva experiments with homemade hardware on this record. For it, he managed to build a "point-to-point mixer from scratch" and as such moves away from sample based music here. It is a thrilling conception that draws form IDM, electronics and its very own rule book when it comes to rhythms, timbre and texture. Mind being stuff for sure.

Review: After the massive impact of Vex'd in the breakthrough years of dubstep, it was big news when Jamie Teasdale chose to swerve in his own direction and emerge as Kuedo. Released in 2011, Severant was a bold statement of intent which didn't wholly shirk what had come before, but placed emphasis on the kind of romantic synthesis you'd readily associate with Vangelis and saw trap and other influences sneaking into the mix. In hindsight, Severant is typical of the times we live in, drawing on a glut of influences and presenting its own idiosyncratic vision, but above all that the emotion and intent of Teasdale's ideas make it an enduring, captivating listen.

Review: Johnstown, Pennsylvania isn't the first town on everyone's lips when it comes to deep dive electronics. But then, sadly, most people still don't seem to have encountered Nondi. Better known to some of those who have as Tatiana Triplin, the US producer and head of the 'net label HRR has developed a cult following for her experimental takes on some already quite leftfield electronic genres: breakcore and footwork, alongside Detroit-hued techno. What's remarkable about all this is the fact she confesses to only really having direct experiences of these genres online, as oppose to amid the sweat and frenzy of the situations they were first intended for. While this might lead some to assuming her work lacks authenticity, nothing could be further from the truth - it's all so authentic because the interpretations are entirely hers.

Review: Alan Myson's latest album as Ital Tek - his eighth for Planet Mu since debuting in 2008 - is an album of contrasts, offering aural darkness and light, intensity and becalmed beauty - and sometimes within the same track. It's rooted in ambient, experimental electronica and what would once be called IDM, but Myson has gone to great efforts to avoid stylistic cliches and well-worn tropes. As a result, it's unpredictable but addictive, with distorted creep-outs ('Heart String') and unsettling soundscapes ('Darking') sitting side by side with cuts smothered in glacial beauty ('The Next Time You Day') and melancholic, slowly unfurling sonic bliss ('Shattered').

Review: RP Boo is a footwork originator widely credited as being a pivotal and foundational figure. He started producing in 1995 inspired by the house sounds of Chicago and broke through in 1997 with 'Baby Come On' which is credited as being the first proper footwork tune. Legacy Vol.2 is a collection of cuts created between 2002 and 2007 that tell the story of Boo's musical evolution as well as that of footwork itself. There is everything from the darkness of 'Eraser' inspired by visiting club War Zone on the west side of Chicago to 2005's 'Pop Machine', which was made when Boo worked at Speedway Oil Change and made use of a temperamental soda/pop machine. This is vital music history, frankly.

Review: Finnish producer Vladislav Delay is releasing their sophomore album as an industrial drone narration of the juxtaposition of returning to urban life after exploring the northern arctic (an idea explored in his previous works). After a long walk or meditative experience of peace, the moment when we thrust ourselves out the front door onto the main road - that is Isoviha. No track better encapsulates the synthetic incessant noise of city life than 'Isonuha' with it's synthetic incessant noise. Industrial crushing and experimental cymbal crashes fight each other in this bloodsport of a track. 'Isoviha' is intense and heavy on the soul, a reflection of it's anti-synthetic narrative.

Review: Saint Abdullah is the fraternal partnership of Mohammad and Mehdi Mehrabani-Yeganeh, two Iranian brothers now based in the US. Their collaboration with Ireland's Eomac first manifested in Patience Of A Traitor for Other People last year and now they follow up in quick fashion with an expansive album for Planet Mu. Chasing Stateless maintains a commitment to broadcasting Middle Eastern sonics which has been consistent throughout the Saint Abdullah catalogue, but the approach isn't obvious. Rather, snatches of speech samples or a particular choice of tuning sets the mood around deadly, blunted beat downs from the low slung hip-hop of 'Pretense Of Neutrality' to the uptempo electronica of 'No Negotiations And No Dialogue'.

Review: Planet Mu has been one of the breeding grounds for juke and footwork even before many people over in Europe had cottoned on the hyper-rhythmic US style. They continue to put out the genre's fresh sounds, this time with Chicago man DJ Manny pushing the template into fresh new realms. He climbs high on the BPM counter here with his 160+ beats staying soulful, with plenty of hook melodies and well-treated and deployed vocal samples adding character to the physicality. Minimal techno, r&b, jungle and more are all referenced in this brilliantly driving album.