New releases last two weeks: Techno

Review: Underworld's sixth LP A Hundred Days Off heard them wean their sound down to a finer but still full Brit-rave sound, not to mention a readiness on their part to break the charts compared to their earlier, yet by all means more esoteric, studio projects such as Dubnobasswithmyheadman. Praised by Uncut as a "beautiful and baffling enigma", the record gave birth to such wonders as 'Two Months Off', 'Trim', 'Ess Gee' and 'Dinosaur Adventure 3D', tracks whose long-form structures and brutalist trance ballistics would continue to prove lactic boons for the stylistic milking. Sheffield art collective The Designers Republic were commissioned to design the iconic balloon-head cover by label V2, also enshrining a spectacular modern art and modern music crossover in this ingenious record.