Back catalogue: Breakbeat

Review: FOXBAM INC is back to build on the momentum of their first EP with a second one that packs a mighty punch. This one kicks off with EBY, who this year has been cooking up acid for 40 years and here offers the warped low ends and garage-techno power of 'Goldtooth'. Foxtrot vs Ma Bla then mashes up old school samples with earth-shattering bass on 'Deep Down Inside' and bRz vs Stije is a double-time hard techno stomper with warped synths and twisted bass that is inspired by and named after ISCO, a concept from Einstein's general theory of relativity that makes predictions about the dynamics of black holes.

Review: The first anyone heard from Robert Fleck was an early drop on Well Street back in 2018, and it's been quiet since then. Anyone following Well Street knows it's a hot tip for upfront artists in the fractured fissures of the UK underground, and Fleck makes a welcome return to prove the point. There's a lot of different touchstones you could point to on this release, from nimble-footed broken beat and a whiff of nu jazz orchestration, not to mention a bass music sensibility and an appreciation for deeper strains of UK techno. But more than all that, Fleck merges his unique spread of influences into something fresh and unique, comfortably slipping between conventional genre markings with the kind of flair we've come to expect from Well Street.

Review: The Florence label is back with more of its high grade funk here with the eponymous artist or artists behind another healthy dose on this new 7". 'Dancing' is a raw sound with slapping drum hits and plenty of noodling synth lines that elevate the whole thing next to big horns. But the icing on the cake is of course the raw vocal lead that is offset by some more sooth female coos. A more funky and bouncy break is the foundation of the flipside joint 'Be My Baby' with its alluring vocals and raw 60s aesthetic serving to get you up on your toes.

Review: Aiden Francis brings a superb mix of influences to this EP, from trance to breaks, house to tech house and it makes for a third fine offering from this young but promising Ellipse label. 'Atacama' opens up with blistering pace and molten synths tightly woven over the propulsive drums. 'Twilight' is another track seeped in lush melodies and with a throwback techno sounds that is full of subtle dancefloor electronics. 'Awareness' (Sunset mix) is one to get the hands in the air as the trancey chords and acid rain down. Energy levels don't dip on the flip either on this most powerful and consuming of space-techno trips.

Review: Tal Fussman's new EP 'Focus' is a dazzling experimental techno gem. Following up releases on the likes of Survival Tactics and Innervisions, Fussman this time crops up on Drumpoet Community's catalogue for a stylistically fragmentary, but still somehow unified, five-tracker. It's hard to put our fingers on the je ne sais qoui of this EP's charm, though one thing we can nod to is its overarching glassy feel, whether evoked by the brittle front cover or refractive synthwork throughout. The arc of the EP is dub techno-ish, then IDM and breaksy, and back again, reflecting a stylistic unpretentiousness despite the producer's clearly, unusually cogent talents.

Review: There's a reason that Future Sound of London's 1991 debut single, 'Papua New Guinea', is periodically reissued: it's a stone-cold classic that sounds unlike anything else. In its original mix form, the track combines traits borrowed from early breakbeat hardcore (booming bass, house-tempo breakbeats) with saucer-eyed vocal samples, twinkling pianos and sounds more often found in ambient house and chill-out tunes from the period. This remastered, hand-numbered vinyl reissue boasts all of the 1992 remixes (as well as the original mix), including a suitably psychedelic, tribal-tinged Andrew Weatherall revision, the duo's own spaced-out ambient style 'Dub' mix, and a sax-sporting Manchester re-wire courtesy of 808 State's Graham Massey.

Review: It's testament to the enduring quality and far-sighted nature of Future Sound of London's iconic 1991 single 'Papua New Guinea' that it keeps being 'rediscovered' by new generations of DJs. It has been a while, though, since any new reworks dropped - hence this 'Rebooted' edition. L Major kicks things off with a suitably cosmic, psychedelic and slow-building proto-jungle style offering, before Nishiesque flits between passages of hot-stepping, synth-laden d&b and slo-mo 4/4 chug. House heroes Soul Central reach for vintage hip-house breakbeats, ambient electronics and the original version's most life-affirming elements (the bassline, twinkling synth melodies and heady vocal samples), while Dee Montero re-casts the cut as a proggy, tribal-tinged tech-house roller.

Review: The influential 90s IDM and techno act Future Sound of London continues to delve into their early career with the reissue of The Pulse EP Vol 2, originally released in 1991. This EP exemplifies the early techno sound, blending rave elements with the more intelligent and linear side of electronic dance music. Side-1 kicks off with 'Stolen Documents' (Jazz dub) by The Future Sound of London, a track that perfectly melds jazzy undertones with dub influences, creating a sophisticated and immersive experience. Following this is Smart Systems' 'Zip Code' (Stress Ball mix), a piece that balances high-energy beats with a stress-relieving ambiance. Side-2 begins with 'Innate' (W O W mix) by The Future Sound of London, a track that delves into deeper, more atmospheric realms, showcasing the group's innovative approach to soundscaping. Indo Tribe's 'I've Become What You Were' (Insider mix) closes the EP, with a pulsating techno rhythm that encapsulates the essence of the early '90s rave scene. Before their signature chill out sound was made, FSOL his some of their highest notes here with these early EPs.

Review: London underground night train riders Deadbeat Records prioritise techno-breaks handmade for late night and early morning dancefloors, times when both the best and worst comes emerges from each of us. Their inaugural Deadbeat Breaks compilation hears six out of ten full digital curations brought to a shadowy, space-invaded black vinyl truncation, with modern talking synth vomits from Olly Rant, booty bass hups from Hunter Starkings, hackney parroting hurtles from Rnbws, and a closing breakstep broil from Hooverian Blur.

Review: FSOL continue to be a prolific force in the sonic universe of their own making. The Environments series they started in 2007 has come to a head with a trio of albums over the past year and this is the last of them. There's a pointed callback at work on Environment 7.003, the cover explicitly referencing seminal early album ISDN, and the album is scattered with subtle nods to those mid 90s glory days. But The Future Sound Of London has always been about pushing forwards and that's precisely what Brian Dougans and Garry Cobain do on this resplendent suite of electronica, sure to satisfy the die hard fans without lazily rehashing old ideas.

Review: Tracing The Future Sound of London's back catalogue right back to 1988, when 'Stakker Humanoid' blew minds with a blueprint that would go on to define the standard formulas for British electro and breakbeat before either had been drawn, you quickly realise the journey back to where we are today involves passing landmark after landmark. It's hard not to consider Rituals as another. Marking a return of the outfit's Environments series, which already had six innovative instalments preceding this, hit play on opening number 'Hopiate' and you're immediately transported to every great morning after a night of amazing hedonism before. Pretty, reflective refrains and warm, Earthly details parting for a moment of silence before unifying rolling drums kick in - soundtrack to the best rave at 9AM you've either been to or not. Cue another 12 tracks that are equally transportive and explain so much about why, decades after these tones first hypnotised youth, we're still lining up for more.

Review: The Future Sound Of London are well-known for their intense sectioning-off of various albums into sagas. Conceived as far back as the late 1990s, the 'Environments' album series has been routinely topped up on a slow but steady basis, and has thus far manifested as a grand total of seven psychedelectronic odysseys. 'Environments Seven', which came out earlier in 2022, is testament to the duo's madcap penchant for sagaizing; indeed, this seventh instalment in the LP is split into a trilogy, and 'Environments 7.02' is the second in said trilogy.