Back in stock: Techno (All)

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged, record slightly warped***


Primal percussions mix with burring, masc voices and telecom synths on Luke Alessi's 'After Five', a wonderful debut 12" by the Melbourne native. Going in, we're asked by the artist to picture a riotous cocktail party gone a little roguer than polite society usually may ordain, and while, of course, Barry White sultrily hoarsens in hushed baritones down below. In fact, the opener of this record samples Love Unlimited Orchestra's 'After Five', a star track from the side project which White led. Much like White's symbolic identification with sensual, smooth lovin' in the West, 'After Five' follows white's tip that 5AM is the threshold between day and night, and that, after having crossed it, any given raver should expect no less from their fellow revellers than behavioural alterity. Two remixes from Pablo Bozzi and Aldonna go on to "en-trance" the first track, implying baggy-eyed comedowns, while the wild A2 hears us emerge on the sands of a tropical atoll, where coconut castanets and foreshore marimba await to greet us.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


Polish sensation Charlie delivers the instrumental mix of title track, 'Spacewoman,' on Wrong Era. It is a real gem that features powerful percussion and mesmerising, infectious arpeggios that stay true to her authentic Proto-Italo style. Charlie's mysterious vocals craft an esoteric narrative with lyrics like "I fly where infinity expands" propelling listeners deeper into her universe and the euphoric chorus offers a transcendental experience that only adds to the interstellar journey.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


On Rave On Time, her third EP of 2020, Charlotte De Witte giddily pays tribute to the throbbing, warehouse-ready techno sound of her home city of Ghent - and particularly the intense, mind-bending brand particularly associated with R&S Records in the early 1990s. De Witte sets the tone via the razor-sharp and insanely heavy title track, where ragged acid lines and spiky synth stabs leap above a stomping techno groove, before opting for drums, drums and more drums on the restless 'There's No One Left To Trust'. Acid techno is the order of the day on 'The World Inside' and 'Common Era', while triple-time closing cut 'Wahr Ist Sie Dann' is an odd, alien-sounding treat.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Record slightly warped***


Dynamic Forces are indeed on show in this slamming new slab from Arts. There is a real sense of control to the opener 'Lyra' despite its forward motion and punchy kicks, while 'Vaulting' gets much wilder and looser with its manic synth lead and raw onset of percussive pressure. Switching up things once more, 'Parallel' is a dubby techno tool and 'Shimmer' reverts to the careful tweaking of a deft lead synth over incendiary beats. 'Radiant' and 'Meraki' bring more raved-up and bouncy peak-time techno fun. This is a very useful and varied 12".

Notes: ***B-STOCK: Bag opened, product unused & in perfect condition***


White 'UR003' print on black Gildan t-shirt.

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