Kelli Ali reteams with former Sneaker Pimps bandmate Liam Howe on new album Ghostdriver, a sultry trip-hop journey through London
Ghostdriver
COD3 QR 001
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COD3 QR is an electronic music label with a clear directive: maintain a cleansed palette for listeners by releasing music without artist names attached.
Strom
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On Strom, trio PRAQ! have their trippy, chilled moments, their big brassy break downs and some flat-out dancefloor stints.
Forest People Pop
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The playful and twee nuances of Piotr’s compositions shine through on Forest People Pop.
15 Years of Motech
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DJ 3000’s Motech label celebrates 15 years with this compilation bringing together 15 artists from the Detroit imprint.
Voyager
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Vitalic’s new album Voyager is a cruise through a disco cosmos of low slung beats and hypnotic vocals.
EPM Selected Vol. 4
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EPMMusic’s fourth compilation includes tracks by Robert Hood, Dan Curtin, Ben Long, D-Knox, Paul Mac, Carl Taylor, Kristian Heikkila, Lee J. Malcolm and Esteban Adame.
Charcoal Eyes: A Selection of Remixes from Amsterdam
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Dave Clarke remixes acts such as Placebo, The Soft Moon, I Am Kloot, Neon Judgement and Amazing Snakeheads on this collection of tunes recorded in his Amsterdam studio.
Incense EP
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Michigan-born and Los Angeles-based Zach Thorpe releases his debut EP “Incense” on Bit-Phalanx Music with a selection of remixes.
Away From Here And Now
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Earth is Flat’s Kamil Boguslawski and Kamil Ilcewitz moved from Poland to the UK so they could create electronic music in a more fertile place. The results of that move are heard on Away From Here and Now, their debut mini album on Bit-Phalanx Music.
Manipulator
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You can tell Cardopusher was a fan of the electronica scene in the early 2000s. The influences from taste-making labels such as Warp, Planet Mu and Rephlex can be heard throughout his first album on Boysnoize Records - Manipulator.
Obsidian
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Billed as a fitting end to 10 years of the 50 Weapons label given Damage was the first artist outside of Modeselektor to release on the label, Obsidian is described by Benjamin as a personal project, “a collection of fragmented memories from all the music I’ve ever liked, distorted and restructured into a full length techno record.”
Bahar
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Although this is Derek Piotr’s fifth studio album, Bahar is his first on electronica label Bit-Phalanx. Known for his abstract compositions exploring the human voice’s relationship with electronically-produced beats, for the first time Piotr injects his classical training into his solo work and added an instrumental element by utlising four woodwind players. The result is typically experimental for Piotr that requires commitment to his glitchy, abstract sound. If you’re willing to be part of that experiment, you’ll find Piotr’s electronic music laboratory is full of fascinating specimens.
Modeselektion Vol.3
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Modeselektor’s Modeselektion series has become a beacon for the electronica sound of now according to the German duo. Gernot Bronsert and Sebastian Szary get together the newest tunes – some exclusives – they regard as hot, and fuse them into two mixes for another volume of bass heavy selections.
Zukunft
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Despite being called Zukunft, German for ‘future’, Tesla286 is very much a blast from the past. They have crafted a forward-thinking electro album with an old school Detroit vibe, think nods to Kraftwerk but heavier references to Dopplereffekt and the Rephlex Records output. Released on Housemeister’s reactivated AYCB label, there’s much to love about the retro stylings harking back to early computer music with lots of blips and bleeps with a dash of samples from a seemingly digital voice.
Existence Is The Sound Of Love
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Birmingham’s politically-charged rapper Jimmy Davis explodes into life on Existence is the Sound of Love with a The Streets-like appeal of everyman views and tales. “Intro” has grinding guitars to enforce the emphatic rallying cries from Davis. He oozes confidence in his stride, and he is also adept at finding surprising beats such as the interrupted melodies of “Kiss the Clouds”, surely an anthem for future gigs. His edgy start continues with the dreamy female chorus of “Stars Together” contrasting with the rhymes from Davis which remain strong throughout.
Blue Distance
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Clara Moto moves on from her predominantly techno-infused debut Polyamour with a more personal album of emotional electronica. Named after a line from a poem by Sylvia Plath and fixed on the theme of remoteness, Moto delivers an emotion selection of songs with only a few nods to clubland.
Reunion
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Founding member of DJ and producer collective Jazzanova Alex Barck goes heavy on the vocals together with mood-morphing synths on debut album Reunion which has tender moments among more club-friendly tunes. He’s called in fellow Sonar Kollektiv artists and other guests to give emotional depth to the lyrics which ensures this is charming first LP from a man who has been DJing for 20 years – you can tell he loves his music.
Desolate Figures
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At fifteen John Heckle was playing nights in and around Liverpool, and a year later his first record was released thanks to boyhood hero Regis of Sandwell District fame. That was back in 2006, and he has since had time to be a resident at the Lemon Lounge and had a string of releases on Mathematics Recordings including Life on a Titan EP for which he won the 2012 Qwartz Electronic Music Award. Desolate Figures could bag him even more recognition.
Joy Departed
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Ahead of Austrian producer Clara Moto’s follow up to 2010’s Polyamour this autumn, she brings us five new tunes on EP Joy Departed. Now settled in Berlin, her refined sound is a deep mix of house and down-tempo dubstep which tend to hit an emotional response. A cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” featuring Lee Burton and Mimu is the most sumptuous as the pair take part in a dreamy exchange as tender synths evolve over a 4/4 beat.
Life within Lost Transmissions
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JayetAl are Winchester duo James Moore and Al Gaudie, a long-running partnership that has produced three albums of epic, driving soundscapes. Their last project saw the pair play a live soundtrack to film La Jetee (Chris Marker, 1962) which formed the basis for the Terry Gilliam-directed Twelve Monkeys, and enabled the set up of James on drums and Al’s electronic-orientated setup to explore their gentler side. For this new album, JayetAl have mixed their explosive mentality of old with the tender side of new for their most full-bodied album yet.
Blessing, Cleaning & Cutting
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Bristol-based, electro synth-pop duo Protest Crayon were formed with the intention of producing harmonically personable showbursts that encourage people to do claphands, shout and smile with a warmly human, vintage, electronic, indie synth-pop zing. Inspired by LCD Soundsystem, Elbow and Steve Reich, the former lead singer of folk-indie band The Cedar Neil Gay got together with Jilk drummer Paul MacMahon to use instruments, retro gadgets and toys to bring his music to life. The result is an inventive, poppy album with joyful sounds of stylophones, theremins, toy pianos and old knackered synths.
Paradise
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Robert Hood’s uncompromising dedication to minimal techno is given a dash of house, disco, funk and gospel under his alias Floorplan, but Alias makes few concessions to those genres beyond adopted the elements into his own distinct style. It has taken Hood 17 years to produce a Floorplan LP, his Funky Souls EP released in 1996 would mark only the briefest encounter, but he has used the time to take aim at the dancefloor and following three EPs since 2010 he’s seen fit to bring his Floorplan work together.
Band of Angels
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Former Sneaker Pimps singer Kelli Ali has quietly chalked up four albums since leaving the trip-hop band. During that time she’s experimented with a poppier side, delved into electronica and explored ethereal sounds. For her fifth outing Band of Angels, Kelli seems keen to blend the genres across an album with electronica, classical, dance, pop and folk exerting an influence.
Soma Compilation 21 - Mixed by Gary Beck
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Soma Records celebrate their 21st anniversary with a first mix compilation from Gary Beck of highlights from the last 12 months. Beck saw his debut techno album released on the label in 2012, and now bring tunes by producers such as DeepChord, Funk D’Void, Scott Grooves, Ricardo Villalobos and Alex Under together for a blend of classy electronic music.