Perpetual Rhythms US Vinilo y CD

Review: Perpetual Rhythms is already well-regarded as a bastion of quality amongst contemporary Chicago house labels, and now they've downright sealed the deal with this mammoth compilation from a stellar cast of local cats. There's too many to all list in detail here, so focusing on the highlights, Dcee leads things in with the tumbling cosmic jazz leanings of "Suavecito," Hakim Murphy teases with a spacious and daring exploration in the liminal zone between ambient and house, and Obsolete Music Technology gets invigorating with the bouncy "High Top Fade." Those tracks alone are enough to deserve your hard earned, but there's reams of other excellent forward-facing Windy City jams to sink your teeth into.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: Ghosts of the Sky is a new project from Taelue and Chicagodeep, the producers behind the occasional Perpetual Rhythms label. They begin in a murky mood with "Asylum", a low-slung, dub-influenced late night techno shuffler that makes great use of foreboding, horror-inspired chords, ghoulish electronics and delay-laden vocal yelps. It sounds like a contemporary take on the kind of gothic moodiness once offered up by Bauhaus. There's more of an unflustered aesthetic about "Squash", a throbbing deep techno jam that makes great use of undulating acid lines and picturesque chords. Flipside "Cycle Turning" closes proceedings by joining the dots between the yearning beauty of classic deep house, the far-sighted electronics of futurist techno and clattering intensity of analogue drum machine rhythms.

Review: REPRESS ALERT: The debut release from US label Perpetual Rhythms comes in the shape of an EP of collaborations and single drops entitled Secret Elements. Firecracker boss Linkwood provides some extra Chi-Town edge to the sombre melodies and science fiction synths of Specter & Chicagodeep's "Sonic Pulse" on his opening edit, whilst Chicagodeep's "Restless Nights" generates a mix of spacey, laid back vibes. The bleepy pulses of Taelue's "Social Anxiety" sounds close to what an Aphex Twin and Jerome Sydenham & Kerri Chandler house collaboration would result in, while the single rimshots and wallowing pads of "Rough Access Point" give the track a distinctly lonesome ambience.

Review: Perpetual Rhythms continue to offer up fresh variations on the deep house formula with this classy new drop from Taelue. Crooked electro experiment "The 4th Dimension" opens the record up to any number of possibilities, before the forthright pump of "Twin Flame" locks things into a haunting workout. "Rage Against Oppression" takes things in an angrier direction, all ragged and snarling production values with an acid-techno leaning. "A Bleak Moment" provides more space for exploration away from the floor, and then "The Sunken Place" sinks into sinister soundwaves driven by a nervy arpeggio. "Reflections" finishes the EP off with a trip into slow, spaced-out, acidic ambience.