Garage | 2Step | UK Funky | Bassline 216 Items

Full printed sleeve with illustration artwork. Limited run of 100 vinyl copies only. Having collaborated with Umwelt on the earlier Mothership compilation (an allied Midnight Shift x Voitax production), the German producer is now handed the reins for full creative curation over the course of six tracks with features from close pals Ngly and Cressida. Awash with a palate of dark and broken sounds yet with touches of warmth and humor, 'Soothing Songs For A Cultured Affair', burrows deep into the mind of the Voitax label boss. Lending from a rich musical upbringing, we witness the evolution of breakbeat and electro as seen through the eyes and ears of a producer at one with his machines.

Today Rozzma announces the ‘Khatar Sayeb’ EP, the artist’s first release for XL Recordings. He kicks off the EP release with ‘Hout’, a track that displays Rozzma’s knack for combining tribal sounds and contemporary urban/street music with a sharp, idiosyncratic flair. Rozzma is an Egyptian sound artist inspired by the era where sound preceded music – he finds inspiration in the similarities between the wilderness of prehistoric times and modern-day chaos. Having already performed his particular strain of music across the world and at festivals like Sonar and Unsound, Rozzma releases ‘Hout’ into the digital world with an animated video created by the artist’s close friend Mahmoud Shiha. “Hout is a celebration of beating the odds,” says Rozzma. “It’s about a specific state of mind where one finds comfort in the most extreme and unfortunate circumstances to beat the odds that one could instead fear.” The EP’s title ‘Khatar Sayeb’ means 'loose danger’. “The release challenges the idea that danger and fear are uncontrollable circumstances,” explains Rozzma. “We cannot fully diminish fear or danger. We can only condition ourselves to believe that safety exists during the absence of fear. It is however more dangerous to deny the uncertainty of danger itself. Danger is a very broad state with infinite circumstances. But it is also infinitely uncertain and mainly linked to luck. We do not control our luck; good or bad. And it is solely luck that dictates danger and safety. It is for that reason that one’s best chances may be to condition themselves to find comfort in danger. Loose danger to be specific.” Rozzma’s world is one of status quos being challenged, whether that be the real world, the historical world or specifically in the world of music. Rozzma won’t let you settle with what you believe. Everything deserves to be challenged.

Montreal duo Biochip return to Central Processing Unit with their new LP Crux Alley. The pair of Melissa Speirs and Julian Kochanowski turned plenty of heads when they first rocked up on the Sheffield label back in 2019 with debut drop Synthase. Synthase found Biochip twisting up Braindance, IDM and electro to their own ends, and Crux Alley is an album which hits similar sonic sweet-spots.
It's clear from the off that Biochip have brought their A-game here. Opener 'Mind Bubbles' has no time for pleasantries, dropping the listener straight into a nocturnal IDM-electro groove where bass dances nervily around shadowy synth pads. 'Mind Bubbles' is followed-up 'Polymorphic State', a tune whose laser-gun synth-bass plumbs even more energy into the pair's Rephlex-indebted sound. It's a hugely arresting way to begin an album, and the bold sonics here align Crux Alley with recent CPU releases like Bit Folder's Silicon Frontier and Annie Hall's Fum.
Other tracks on Crux Alley ease up on the frenzied feel of those opening numbers. Take 'Orbital Rendezvous', a cut which is still full of zippy melodies and keening keyboards but whose contemplative strut recalls the legendary electronic music duo referenced in the track's title. There's also a distinct cyberpunk flavour to this track, and this is brought out further on the vivid 'Dopamine City' and 'Tower 13' - it is at these points where Biochip most resemble the work of fellow CPU act B12.
Biochip record their music straight from the mixing desk, an approach that gives their tracks a spontaneous energy and one which sometimes leads Speirs and Kochanowski into novel sonic terrain. Crux Alley's 'Antagonist Part 6', for instance, is a spiritual successor to Synthase's 'Acid Billy' in how the overload of electronics almost pushes it into industrial-techno territory. Furthermore, while most of the LP draws on the Detroit electro continuum of Drexciya, DJ Stingray et al, 'Neutral Current' obliquely recalls the jazz-tinged house of Theo Parrish - although the wobbling synth chords and reverb-laced drums make 'Neutral Current' sound more like an extra-terrestrial reimagining of the Motor City legend's music.
Biochip continue to mark themselves out as one of contemporary electro's most exciting new acts with the Crux Alley LP.
Riyl: Cygnus, B12, Annie Hall, Orbital, Silicon Scally

Ghetto Traxx is back again. Sorry for the delay, but working life has hit us harder than we thought. Finally Gtr02 - 'Return of the Sexmachine' is getting really close. Same as the debut a year ago, it is packed with a variety of sounds from friends of the ghetto. This time featuring 4 Tracks by Skuum, Toni Moralez, DJ Frankie and Mchy i Porosty. Prepare for machine sex (and love) and get ready again for maximum rave bangerz which will get you back to the toilet. To all our friends from the ghetto: If you wanna know, how to earn 10k€ monthly without leaving your homestudio, join our telegram channel: t.me/ghettotraxx

CoOp Presents an all-new double-album compilation entitled 'Plug One'. It features a plethora of global talent from in & around the world of bruk and beyond - some already well-established in the field, some very much on the come-up and some brand new artists - this compilation is an acknowledgment of a continually evolving sound from the label formed by IG Culture & Alex Phountzi a few years ago. 'Plug One' affirms this electric movement, with a deeply fluid current running throughout, with tracks ranging from the cosmic psych jazz of Lcsm, to the classic UKG tweaks of Groove Chronicles, to the thought-provoking vibes of Reginald Omas Mamaode IV, to a veritable who's who of 2020 bruk talent including Xtra Brux, Sivey, Evm128, Cengiz, Wonky Logic & many more. From its beginnings as a classic club night and label in the early 2000's, CoOp always carried an undefinable and potent creative energy. A sense of freedom and uninhibited exploration was positioned at the core of CoOp's sprawling community and consciousness, communicated via movement and sound. From this seed and throughout the years that followed, this same energy permeated the worldwide underground music ecosystem. As CoOp's legacy continued to influence new generations of music makers far and wide. The syncopated rhythms, soulful keys and infectious grooves synonymous with the broken beat sound, now known simply as Bruk, became entwined with new concepts and progressions, leading to new movements carrying on the essence of the bruk energy. IG Culture and Alex Phountzi took the helm of their CoOp Presents label in 2018, with the vision of championing these new waves of emerging artists, continuing the all-important exchange of energy at the heart of the original CoOp movement, but also giving room for the music to be pushed into new and uncharted territories. With burgeoning producers from around the globe being drawn to the explorative and expressive nature of the project, an incubator was created, providing a space and platform for these ideals to take on new shapes and sounds. Just as every generation must rewrite its own history books, CoOp Presents was born from a combination of influences, ideas and personalities, and in turn is now encouraging the next generation to do some re-writing of its own. 'Plug One' will be released on vinyl & digital on CoOp Presents in November 2020.

With 3 releases under their belt Council Work return with the 4th installment on the label, the 'Crouching Tiger EP'. Sticking with the formula of the last EP, there are 2 originals from the label owners themselves Frankel & Harper, coming in the form of stripped back UKG number 'Crouching Tiger' as the A1, and then bringing heavyweight moodiness on the A2 with 'Conquering Lion'. First up on remix duties on the B1 is Italian producer, DJ and Music On regular Leon with a dubby, rolling take on the title track. Hotly tipped UKG producer ZeroFG steps up to remix the B2 and brings some serious dub reggae vibes mixed with some rude garage flavours to round off the EP and give a great contrast to the original.

New 5 track digital release from Sumgii for Swamp 81 sublabel, 81. Mastered at TenEightSeven

Interplanetary Criminal returns to Time Is Now with four future UKG classics in the making.

Bristol based artist, Sunun with a killer 6 track EP - the first 12" of the year on Idle Hands (ran by Chris Farrell) . A member of the city's Young Echo collective she has made waves with her abstracted take on dub for Bokeh Versions and Cold Light Music, gaining praise from Adrian Sherwood along the way. Her most recent release was a collaborative EP with Giant Swan’s Robin Stewart. Over these six tracks we are invited into her sonic world, described by the artist herself as “a step towards rhythm tracks, with shallower themes and confidence, with priority to the ancient components; the drum and voice” Adventurous, brooding and unique - this is an EP you need to hear. Proceeds from the EP will go to Ace, a charity organising 1:1 music sessions with teenagers in the local area where Sunun has been doing work.

Time Is Now returns with four future UKG anthems from rising producer Main Phase, this one is for the ravers.

EU

Interplanetary Criminal returns to Time Is Now with four future UKG classics in the making.

Matthew Kirkis aka Destiny71z is back with the third and final instalment in his tweaked out EP series. 4 more experimental club cuts, dripping and acidic, created using a stacked modular hardware set up. These playful cuts bounce through house, techno, garage and electro with an aquatic touch. Loose, electric and stunning throughout.

"Unbroken Dreams of Light" V/A Blueberry Records 2020 Side A;Who is Glen Faba? Hint: I could tell you but then I'd have to undo it. Arable sounds like philip glass if he took some K. Ruby Rod, a track which made the rounds in my live set for 3 years. I'd open with it in front of bands and everyone would take about 7 steps backward from the stage. '5' Todd Osborn sent me a zip of music after my hard drive crashed and I lost everything. I got the complete Blue Note recordings and a collab with Luke Vibert. Here it is. Side B;UC is deadly with the 12" versions. Track comes with cool techno sound effects as well. Horsepower Productions deliver a super rare hardcore artifact from their archives! Side C; Cousin Cockroach on Blueberry!!! You already know. Spurge - a total delight to know and watch out for more from this young beat scientist. Tune is called Deadass. Xglare - Jessee kills it, check her Morph EP on Blueberry - the balance between light and darkness in her sounds astound. Dasychira is slowly turning into a preying mantis and this is what that sounds like. Pretty much exactly. Bénédicte has been busy crafting away at their debut EP for Blueberry, I can't wait for you all to hear it. Softillusion is a dreamy warm blanket. Side D; µ-Ziq on BBR, another dream. We are coming full circle here for this IDM fanboy's wildest dreams. Brrd - I had to straight up jack this 2 minute section from a beat mix that Stewart sent me a few years ago. You can master from an MP3 folks! Focus Group 2. Meet my piano. Her name is Olympia, and my friend Margot named her. The Other Functions - my friends no wave alias is better then yours. Tenant - the rent is still to damn high. Peak acid programming here.

The long awaited debut release from the London based collective lands with three classy tracks from Danish stalwart and long term affiliate of the party, Martinez. The EP glides between breaks, dub techno and an intergalactic B -Side. An opening release sure to light up any dancefloor.

‘Soy Piccolo’ is the firecracker debut EP from Sydney DJ/producer Unpin. Comprised of 6 high-energy dancefloor bombs, the EP traverses a broad range of sounds through acid-house, electro and experimental club cuts.
On this release, Unpin’s work is heavy on breaks and 303’s, balanced by a subtle pop sensibility with precision-picked vocal cuts tying the release together. All killer, no filler, the release is a gritty, yet confident body of work from one of Sydney’s most promising rising stars.
This is the debut release from Sydney imprint and party collective Velodrome. Released digitally in mid-March, the record has garnered attention online including blog coverage on Resident Advisor, Purple Sneakers and Colors Studios. The two singles from the record have also received consistent airplay on two of Australia’s largest independent radio stations, Triple J and FBi.

2022 repress

Mysterious UK Garage imprint Time Is Now returns for its second outing, this time equipped with four club weapons from rising talent Interplanetary Criminal.

Council Work returns with the next installment of their journey, this time with the Militant EP. Two original tracks from the label bosses Frankel & Harper, and keeping in theme with the previous releases, obtaining remixes from their favourite artists in the scene, they've enlisted 2 big remixers, this time from Salty Nuts boss and Cocoon regular Fabe, and Orbital London head honcho and rising UK star Jack Michael. The EP sticks to the signature Council Work sound, showcasing underground UK flavours with lots of garage and jungle influences, whilst showcasing more minimal and breaks textures and vibes.

incl. MJ Cole Remix

3 of Shadow Child’s “Connected” collaboration album tracks get a makeover from Rimbaudian, MJ Cole and Bodhi.
Rising talent Rimbaudian reworks the only solo track from the project, “Steak Fingers”, and takes the original bumping stripped back groove on a more melodic journey with its stunning arpeggios and new string parts. The backbone of the original remains but be prepared to take a trip to a new stratosphere, with his stripped version which is included too.
Bodhi step up next to remix “Gacid”, twisting and turning the original acid patterns and grooves to make a special rework that gives a nod to early Detroit with new drum programming and pads. The Welsh duo bring the heat.
MJ Cole delivers what must be one of his finest remixes. “Um” the collaboration with Bodhi, already offers a trip that flirts with Jungle, lo-fi and the hypnotic but MJ Cole brings his signature vibe to the table with new keys, groove and provides something that feels as if it belongs in the realms of his seminal hit “Sincere”.