Back catalogue: Leftfield

Review: Xeno & Oaklander's Via Negativa marks their eighth venture into the realm of retro-futuristic synth-pop, blending meticulous electronic craftsmanship with emotional depth. Recorded in their modernist Connecticut home, which doubles as a two-story synthesiser lab, this album balances visionary ambition with technical precision. The duo, Liz Wendelbo and Sean McBride, translated embryonic piano sketches into intricate modular systems, layering harmonics, tuned percussion, and spectral devices that create rhythmic textures. Yet, despite its complexity, the music resonates on a human level. The title track opens the album with shimmering synths and a sleek vocal interplay, setting a cinematic tone for what's to come. Each track plays with mood and persona, capturing the band's fascination with theatricality and drama. It's a collection of widescreen anthems that feel both timeless and firmly rooted in the cybernetic present.

Review: Xmal Deutschland commemorate their influential 4AD years (1983-1984) with a brand new release, literally presenting us with Gift. The collection celebrates the band's profound impact on British audiences in the early 80s, marked by a unique and half-devised lyrical language, as well as a magnetic feminine mystique commandeered by the women in the group. Their breakthrough support slot with Cocteau Twins accompanied the first two albums to come out via 4AD, which grabbed audiences by the collective ear with a painter's stroke of hard-graded darkwave and goth. Gift brims with a penumbral presence, while the titular "gift" is intended as pharmakon, both a present and a poison; Xmal's music is appropriately contradictory and complex, skating thin ices of beauty and elusivity. This limited-edition 3xLP boxset includes Abbey Road remasters of their albums Fetisch and Tocsin, along with tracks from related releases like Incubus Succubus II and Qual, packaged with striking artwork and a photo booklet. The magic of Xmal Deutschland lingers like radiation and has an indelible half-life.

Review: X.Y.R.'s latest offering delves into the depths of human experience, exploring themes of escapism, introspection and the search for meaning in a world that often feels chaotic and unfair. The album opens with the expansive 'Lost Horizon', setting the tone for a journey into introspective soundscapes and contemplative melodies. 'Melting Shapes' continues the exploration of inner worlds, with its shifting textures and ethereal sounds evoking a sense of fluidity and transformation. 'Despair' confronts the darker side of the human psyche, its melancholic melodies and haunting sounds reflecting the struggles of those who feel lost and disconnected. The B-side features the epic 'Invisible Lifeforms', a twenty-minute odyssey that delves into the hidden realms of consciousness. With its blend of ambient textures, tribal rhythms and meditative sounds, it creates a truly immersive experience that invites deep listening and introspection. X.Y.R.'s music is both calming and unsettling, offering a sonic reflection on the complexities of human existence.