D Vinilo y CD

Review: Los Angeles based producer Alex Gray aka D/P/I of CHANCEIMAG.es returns, this time on French imprint Shelter Press with more avant electronics excursions on the Composer LP. Thee seven sound collages are said to be an experiment in rhythm, where human error is introduced to basic sounds (such as a djembe or conga) via midi controllers, introducing complex processes and effects which naturally developed into compositions. Gray himself hopes his album "can act as a beacon of creativity for future generations, who are currently being completely saturated by marketing content for products and media that will do nothing but confuse and distract them.

Review: When not collaborating with former Factory Floorer Dominic Butler as the charmingly titled Green Gums or Bronze Teeth respectively, Richard Smith finds a fitting home for his solo L/F/D/M work on Alessio Natalizia aka Not Waving's Ecstatic imprint. There's "Lego Train Crashes" on the A side: this is tough and noisy arpeggio driven techno done properly, placing him up there with masters of the art like Silent Servant and Frak. "Elek F" is straight up Drexciyan electro-funk, but truly one of the better tributes we've heard to the aesthetic in a while. On the flip there's "Take A Chance" and just like its namesake you could really. It's the most restrained effort on here but still pretty crunchy: good to use mid-set perhaps? Finally "Rum & Black" is the kind of crusty and overdriven lo-fi nastiness which has landed him releases for Glaswegian noise merchants Clan Destine Traxx recently.

Review: Richard Smith, AKA L/F/D/M, made his debut on Optimo Trax in 2013, with an EP bristling with analogue acid and robust machine jams. Last year's follow-up for Clan Destine Records, LHF 3, was similarly minded. This debut album switches things around a little, supplementing his usual hard-wired, hypnotic rhythms, motorik attitude and hazy melodies with a gaggle of more experimental cuts (see the freaky ambience of "New X" and new wave-era shuffle of "Book of Five"). It's not a dramatic stylistic leap, of course, but one that makes perfect sense.