Manuel Saharan is an Argentinian artist who has been deep in this scene for almost a quarter of a century. He remains pretty prolific and more importantly pretty inventive. He drops a steam stream of music and most of it sells out in quick time. For his latest outing he heads to Yung Dumb out of Canada and cooks up more twisted takes on house and techno. There are acid gurglings underpinning the opener then a Fred Everything remix strips things back to dubby drums and rubbery 303s. Things get melodic and reflective on 'Mellow' and then 'No More' is a gorgeous synth piece that is full of heartache and forlornness.
Review: Giles Smith and James Priestley have left an indelible mark on house and techno culture in the UK, not least thanks to their fabled Secretsundaze parties. These days they're taking that iconic stamp into the studio, and following up on strong turns for Mule Musiq and Phonica last year they're finally dropping a full length EP on their own label. The quality is as high as you would expect, from spicy, snarling fire starter "Mezcal" to the transcendental swirl of "Stand Up". On the B side, "Testing" takes things a little deeper with a heady stomp and a tricky disposition that will satisfy all the selectors.
Review: Aaron Andrew's Chubby label doesn't rush things. Since launching in 2018 and now only just hitting its sixth release though the music sure is worth the wait and is proof that quality will always win over quantity. Leonid's twin brother, Al Smith opens up with the cuddly and cosmic depths of 'Drama Room' before getting more dark and unsettling with his twisted synth modulations on 'Full Of Music', which then becomes a gorgeous downtempo cut with star-gazing pads and splashy hits within the Specter remix. Dan Piu picks up the pace for some delightfully warm deep house dynamics on 'Days Gone' and 'Snows Of Solaris'. Last of all is the more scuffed up, heads down deep house murk of Rai Scott's remix of Dan's intro tune, 'Day's Gone'.
Review: According to JD Twitch's sales notes, Luke Solomon and former Greenskeepers man Nick Maurer decided to join forces as Powerdance in reaction to "the bland, soulless dance music that's infiltrating clubs the world over". Certainly, there's little bland or soulless about opener "Mysterious Space Plane", which not only jacks harder than Ron Hardy after a face full of amphetamines, but also boasts a typically eccentric vocal from Maurer (this, incidentally, is given additional prominence on the accompanying, beat-less Reprise version). Elsewhere, "More Fire" takes TB-303-driven acid house into deep space, while "Fire Beat" offers a stripped-back, percussion heavy take on the same cut.
Review: Steve O'Sullivan's Mosaic label is back with a second volume of its dubs series, this time on nice yellow vinyl with Sub Basics and Fletcher given one side each to shine. Sub Basics goes first with 'Mediterranean', a lovely liquid dub with bottomless depths and perfectly smooth, frictionless drums. Lovely soft melodies drift in and out as the echoing hits and icy hi-hats help oil this most heady of grooves. On the flip, Fletcher offers up 'Sludge' which is a little more tense and menacing, with darker bass and more texture as well as distant groaning pads that keep you guessing and on edge.
Review: UK mainstay Subb-An makes a welcome return with this fresh new EP on Aesthetic. It finds him in great form with opener 'Seeing Colours' heading off down a nice liquid minimal route with crisp tech drums and twinkling synths up top to bring the magic. On the flip side is 'Plants', a rather serene and sublime cut with more rolling drums and plenty of deft synth designs that bring a certain celestial charm to the fizzing leads. Snad's remix then shuts things down with a more driving sense of tech house rhythm to complete a tasteful EP of heady sounds.
Review: Following up that excellent Synchronicity on EP Phonica AM a couple of months back, hero of the Birmingham scene Subb An returns with more underground quality with this new one on the mighty 20/20 Vision. 'State Of Flow' is an emotive and breathtaking affair that's equal parts acid, progressive breaks and UK tech house with a seething Reese bassline lurking throughout that underpins angelic vocals. Over on the flip, remixes come from Adam Pits who takes you beyond the strobelights to reach for the lasers on his ravey take, followed by Armec's menacing experimental techno rework.
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