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Various Artists Tectonic Plates Volume 4
Label: Tectonic

With a label as central to the last decade of dubstep as Tectonic, there's a temptation to frame its releases in terms of the genre's chronology and merely view each new offering as something that's looking ahead, glancing behind, or creating a parallel present. It's the latter possibility which makes the fourth volume of the Tectonic Plates series such an exciting proposition. While the Bristol record hub has always delivered the goods, it does so with less hype and crossover potential at stake than many of its more fashionable counterparts. The imprint's relatively low profile could perhaps be traced back to label boss Pinch and his ear for dense, overcast, techno-inflected sounds that hold true to dubstep's darker, moodier roots. That said, there's something a little more complicated at work on the label's new compilation, Tectonic Plates Volume 4, which breaks up the imprint's inherent darkness with a few rays of sunshine—namely, by putting an extra focus on artists who have loosely redirected what it means to be a part of its esteemed roster. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/07/2013

Clouds Man Out of Dubs EP
Label: Fifth Wall

Fledgling Brooklyn imprint Fifth Wall's third release sees the record hub branching out beyond the work of label bosses Divvorce and Hound Scales for the first time, adding Scottish production duo Clouds to its roster with the Man Out of Dubs EP. It seems a logical fit: Clouds is one of the so-called "New Jack Techno" artists affiliated with Tiga's Turbo label, and deals with a dark and oddly playful type of club music that has a lot in common with both of the Fifth Wall owners' output. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/07/2013

Kyle Hall The Boat Party
Label: Wild Oats

First emerging as an unfeasibly brilliant teenager born in Detroit and raised on its techno, Kyle Hall became revered for his seemingly innate grasp of the moods and fluctuations of his hometown's music. Since 2010, however, the DJ/producer's release schedule has almost come to a halt—aside from a recent 5" that dropped on Record Store Day 2013, The Boat Party is Hall's first solo release in two years. That said, his recent low-key production presence testifies to an intense devotion to the sound he loves; when he's not DJing, working as Funkinevil with London's Funkineven, or collaborating with fellow Motor City native Kero, Hall spends time running his Wild Oats label at breakneck speed. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/06/2013

Name in Lights "Naughty"
Label: Free Association

By all accounts, the past two years have been a relatively good time for vinyl collectors. Both brick-and-mortar and online retailers are flush with the fruits of a number of new labels which specialize in short-run, white-label 12"s. One of the latest entrants to this arena is Free Association, a shadowy Brooklyn-based imprint putting its first foot forward with "Naughty," a track from Swedish disco-house trio Name in Lights. Between the original version and remixes from Axel Boman and Cameo Culture, the record offers DJs something functional, but nothing too far out of the ordinary. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/06/2013

Mathew Jonson "Automaton" b/w "In the Stars"
Label: Crosstown Rebels

Although he might not receive the accolades of, say, Ricardo Villalobos, Berlin-based Canadian Mathew Jonson has honed a labyrinthine corner of techno all his own. There are few producers whom one could imagine delivering tracks upwards of 30 minutes, but Jonson is absolutely one of them; while initially based on linear rhythms, his snakelike arrangements seem to constantly flex and twist into new shapes. Neither track on "Automaton" b/w "In the Stars" is anywhere near that long, but both bear these hallmarks, sounding like they could go on indefinitely. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/03/2013

Secret Circuit Tactile Galactics
Label: Beats in Space

Eddie Ruscha recorded his first project as Secret Circuit in 1995 on a four-track cassette. Entitled Cosmic Sword #1 (and now up on his Bandcamp), it contained a handful of wonky, lo-fi, electro-acoustic jams where psychedelic guitar riffs circled around bubbling drum-machine beats. In the years since then, Ruscha has overseen a quietly prolific career; he's self-released a series of cassettes and composed an LP for Emotional Response under his Secret Circuit moniker, and has worked on projects with Rub N Tug's Thomas Bullock and disco stalwart DJ Harvey. Tactile Galactics is his first LP for Tim Sweeney's Beats in Space label, and it feels like his most polished and approachable record to date. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/03/2013

Kode9 "Xingfu Lu" b/w "Kan"

Pick
Label: Hyperdub

One of the things that has always been particularly likeable about Hyperdub boss Steve Goodman (a.k.a Kode9) is that the progression of his own music seems to be linked to the curation of the label in a very natural way. The development of his productions—from his early experiments at the more spacious end of dubstep to the grime and synth-led funky of 2011's Black Sun—has followed an arc that vaguely matches the progression and growth of the Hyperdub roster. That's not to say that one is necessarily a reflection of or the direct product of the other, but there has always been an obvious organic back-and-forth of influence between the two. As such, while this latest double-header release—Goodman's first in about two years—may be something of a departure from his Black Sun-era output, it feels like a natural and not unexpected evolution. Both "Xingfu Lu" and "Kan" see the UK veteran embracing traits that have been prominent in Hyperdub releases over the past 18 months—from the juke-inspired rhythms of DJ Rashad to the melodic flexibility of Laurel Halo—and, as a result, the record feels like a strong representation of Goodman's empire as a whole. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/02/2013

Cosmin TRG Gordian
Label: 50Weapons

With the benefit of hindsight, Cosmin TRG's debut LP, Simulat, makes more sense within the man's trajectory as a producer now than it did when the record saw its original release back in 2011. Perhaps his sophomore full-length is fated for a similar path, because Gordian comes a bit out of leftfield at first blush. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/02/2013

Portable Albatross Remixes
Label: Süd Electronic

Portable's "Albatross" has aged well—well enough to forestall questions about why the song, which opened Alan Abrahams' 2007 album Powers of Ten, is sprouting remixes from big underground names Kowton and Anthony "Shake" Shakir six years after its release. When it comes to sculpted, polyrhythmic propulsion, neither Bristol's nor Detroit's finest can top Portable's stuttering original, and only Shakir reckons with Abrahams' benumbed, goony techno-pop vocals. Both remixers trade in a few degrees of detail for a more direct conduit to listeners' bodies. The net effect may emphasize the individuality of Portable's music, but it doesn't come at the expense of the remixes. In truth, everyone involved comes out looking pretty good. Read more » 

  • Filed under: review
  • 05/02/2013
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