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Los Angeles native Sha Sha Kimbo undeniably lives for the rave. As exemplified through her every intentional move as a producer, DJ, promoter, radio host and label owner, Sha Sha radiates an unwavering love for amplifying, nurturing and supporting the culture of underground electronic music and the community that surrounds it, with her forthcoming release absolutely no exception to this.

Set for release as a digital download and limited edition cassette tape on August 13, the LA rave staple is happy to announce her debut EP on Evar Records, Total Chaos. A brilliant testament to the cathartic importance of staying up late and getting lost in a buzzing crowd of kindred spirits, Total Chaos harnesses the universal experience of having pent-up energy into massive, angst-ridden breakbeat anthems. Over six tracks, Sha Sha channels the hair-raising spirit of '90s rave along with her formative experiences with DMZ-via-Low End Theory dubstep and punk rock. Finding her place within LA's bass music, house, techno and rave scenes while defying easy categorization, Sha Sha personifies the no-rules electronic music ethos behind John Frusciante and Aura T-09's Evar Records. To supplement Total Chaos' three originals, Lyzza, Machine Girl and LCY provide three raw remixes highlighting various aspects of Sha Sha Kimbo's renegade rave spirit.

Drawing from the Los Angeles punk rock and '90s rave music that soundtracked her youth, Total Chaos personifies how she grew up on the dance floor, showcasing Sha Sha's tried and true ability to express rich, nuanced emotions through tracks that, first and foremost, can level a warehouse party. Kicking off the vibe on July 30, the EP's lead single "Save The World" is a perfect representation of this, with the jump-up rave cut employing a megaton breakbeat and sickly-sweet vocal samples over simmering base of dark, UK-influenced atmospherics. From the late night energy of the title track to the euphoric, dawn-breaking feel of "Limited Perfect," Total Chaos offers the refuge of a robust dance floor with the warm reassurance to be one with the universe.

Rounding out Total Chaos EP are three remixes that amicably and serendipitously support Sha Sha Kimbo's visionary aim to both explore the unknown and bring people together along the way. Brazilian-born, Amsterdam-based powerhouse Lyzza adds a full verse and a nest of serrated rhythms to her version of "Total Chaos," while New York's Machine Girl applies their trademark punk electronics approach to "Save The World." Meanwhile, Bristol's own LCY hollows out "Limited Perfect" into a haunting amalgam of post-punk minimalism and low-frequency pressure. A study of the opposing light and dark energies of underground dance music, Total Chaos presents a breakbeat-heavy vortex, sure to awaken everyone's inner raver.

Il Quadro di Troisi presents La Commedia Everything changes, all things evolve: four years after their eponymous debut, Il Quadro di Troisi return with a new album and a new line-up. The perfect circle traced by Eva Geist (aka Andrea Noce) and Donato Dozzy (aka Donato Scaramuzzi) becomes a triangle with the permanent addition of Pietro Micioni, who collaborated in the previous recordings and had been part of ll Quadro’s live set. Nothing stays the same, and the world is a lot different from what it was in 2020. The global crisis generated by the constant escalation of conflict and by the pandemic was mirrored by a time of individual crisis and personal, often irreversible transformation that underscored the entire period of the album’s composition. The influence of these turbulent times is felt in the writing: La Commedia is about turning a crisis into an opportunity and using change as a catalyst for rebirth. Much like the characters in classic Italian comedies, who are masters in using irony to face life’s hardships, Il Quadro di Troisi explores the vast and unpredictable terrain between the lighter and darker sides of the human experience, matching the magical with the mundane. La Commedia is about the many facets of life: each song is named after an archetype (e.g. the truth, the night, the Earth, the prophet), as though our existence were a tarot deck and its reading an exercise in collective consciousness. La Commedia marks the band’s embrace of a more traditional song form, shaped by a very personal and distinctive musical style. The distinguishing elements of Il Quadro di Troisi’s music – classic Italian songwriting with an electronic spin – meld into a unique mix that is both seductive and eerie, elegant and earthy, contemporary and timeless. La Commedia celebrates the band’s cultural roots while constantly moving into new territory, balancing nostalgia with a forward-thinking approach. La Commedia is a rare gem that confirms Il Quadro di Troisi’s relevance in the international music scene, as demonstrated by the number of top-level artists featured on the album: from Suzanne Ciani, a legend and a pioneer of independent music with a career spanning five decades, to Aimee Portioli, aka Grand River, a Dutch-Italian musician, composer and sound designer based in Berlin, along with Francesca Colombo’s eclectic violin (the de facto “fourth angle” of Il Quadro di Troisi’s frame), Fiona Brice’s strings, cultural agitator and icon of the Roman underground scene Stefano Di Trapani (aka Demented Burrocacao and a member of Trapcoustic and System Hardware Abnormal, among other projects), Maestro Daniele Di Gregorio, an excellent musician and a longtime collaboration of songwriting legend Paolo Conte, and Tommaso Cappellato, whose professional description goes well beyond “drummer” and who has been working with artists like Rabih Beaini and Maurice Louca. The cover of the album, as well as those of the singles, was designed by Francesco Messina, another icon of Italian music. Messina is a longtime Franco Battiato collaborator and co-author, a cult musician (his Prati Bagnati del Monte Analogo, made in collaboration with Roul Lovisoni, is considered a seminal record by the alternative Italian music scene), as well as a photographer, visual artist and the author of legendary record covers.

Il Quadro di Troisi presents La Commedia Everything changes, all things evolve: four years after their eponymous debut, Il Quadro di Troisi return with a new album and a new line-up. The perfect circle traced by Eva Geist (aka Andrea Noce) and Donato Dozzy (aka Donato Scaramuzzi) becomes a triangle with the permanent addition of Pietro Micioni, who collaborated in the previous recordings and had been part of ll Quadro’s live set. Nothing stays the same, and the world is a lot different from what it was in 2020. The global crisis generated by the constant escalation of conflict and by the pandemic was mirrored by a time of individual crisis and personal, often irreversible transformation that underscored the entire period of the album’s composition. The influence of these turbulent times is felt in the writing: La Commedia is about turning a crisis into an opportunity and using change as a catalyst for rebirth. Much like the characters in classic Italian comedies, who are masters in using irony to face life’s hardships, Il Quadro di Troisi explores the vast and unpredictable terrain between the lighter and darker sides of the human experience, matching the magical with the mundane. La Commedia is about the many facets of life: each song is named after an archetype (e.g. the truth, the night, the Earth, the prophet), as though our existence were a tarot deck and its reading an exercise in collective consciousness. La Commedia marks the band’s embrace of a more traditional song form, shaped by a very personal and distinctive musical style. The distinguishing elements of Il Quadro di Troisi’s music – classic Italian songwriting with an electronic spin – meld into a unique mix that is both seductive and eerie, elegant and earthy, contemporary and timeless. La Commedia celebrates the band’s cultural roots while constantly moving into new territory, balancing nostalgia with a forward-thinking approach. La Commedia is a rare gem that confirms Il Quadro di Troisi’s relevance in the international music scene, as demonstrated by the number of top-level artists featured on the album: from Suzanne Ciani, a legend and a pioneer of independent music with a career spanning five decades, to Aimee Portioli, aka Grand River, a Dutch-Italian musician, composer and sound designer based in Berlin, along with Francesca Colombo’s eclectic violin (the de facto “fourth angle” of Il Quadro di Troisi’s frame), Fiona Brice’s strings, cultural agitator and icon of the Roman underground scene Stefano Di Trapani (aka Demented Burrocacao and a member of Trapcoustic and System Hardware Abnormal, among other projects), Maestro Daniele Di Gregorio, an excellent musician and a longtime collaboration of songwriting legend Paolo Conte, and Tommaso Cappellato, whose professional description goes well beyond “drummer” and who has been working with artists like Rabih Beaini and Maurice Louca. The cover of the album, as well as those of the singles, was designed by Francesco Messina, another icon of Italian music. Messina is a longtime Franco Battiato collaborator and co-author, a cult musician (his Prati Bagnati del Monte Analogo, made in collaboration with Roul Lovisoni, is considered a seminal record by the alternative Italian music scene), as well as a photographer, visual artist and the author of legendary record covers.

Fresh off of a remix for Grimes’ “My Name is Dark”, producer Julien Bracht has been powering through Cv19 studio seclusion on full-power, with a distinct vision for brighter days ahead. Bracht’s new album, “Now Forever One,” an emblem of dark analog synthwave, is set to drop June 11. Bracht’s first solo album under his own namesake is cut with surgical precision for the shoegazing astral sound travellers who long to break out of their pandemic quarantines, and reconvene for techno-induced ascension. The album’s first single, “Melancholia,” and it’s accompanying video, is already breaking hearts and charts. An exquisite sonic hybrid of communal revelry and profound introspection, “Now Forever One,” focuses Bracht’s multilayered craftsmanship on resolving this era’s angst with sensory exploration and optimism. As a lifelong drummer, Bracht’s insatiable musical energy lead him to bang out his first 3 EPs within one year of first being signed in 2011-12. In 2015 he founded the band Lea Porcelain with Markus Nikolaus in London. Their hypnotic post-rock debut release in 2017, “Hymns to the Night,” gained instant acclaim from UK tastemakers Lauren Laverne, Steve Lamacq and Zane Lowe, to name a few. The lads broke back onto the international stage with dates on several major festivals around Europe, including the Leeds/Reading Festival, Great Escape Brighton and Latitude. Rich output combined with the inclusion of live drums in his solo live sets quickly gained Bracht recognition and slots on the global tour circuit. “Now Forever One” forges Julien Bracht’s transition from techno djing, while continuing the explorations of texture and timbre over functional song structures from Lea Porcelain, to a more open-ended search for the aural sublime — the substrate on which music, life and light glide to create momentary nodes of meaning in an increasingly meaningless sociopolitical atmosphere. These are crucial themes to Bracht’s process and approach. “The intention in my music is to strengthen people’s awareness and minds… I want us all to gather in spirit and stick together.” The album exemplifies Bracht’s hunt for elemental juxtaposition with the warm Prophet 6’s sawtooth howls and bright pads against chillingly indifferent pulsing basslines and percussion. Clocking in at just under 65 minutes, “Now Forever One’s” tracks are sequenced to take the listener through the full emotional arch of a 15-hour rave, with an emphasis on those moments of collective epiphany where heaving techno floors become the perfect microcosm for an idealistic and interconnected future. Interspersed with improvisational one-takes, the album submerges the listener in polyrhythmic meditations, of which “Streets” and “Nocturne” are standout examples, and soars on the vaulted synth melodies of future dance floor favourites “Melancholia” and “Dreams of Euphoria.” Sascha Ring of Apparat & Moderat puts it perfectly: “I played “Melancholia” the night I got it at Mutek Festival in Mexico City, and instantly knew it’ll shine on a big floor at the right time. It’s just the right balance of majestic melodic deepness.” The sounds are both triumphant and exploratory. Greater than the sum of its parts, Bracht’s latest release hints at the artist’s emerging potential for nailing our moment’s zeitgeist; learning to live smaller while constantly seeking higher heights. Inhabiting the fertile ground between solitary rumination and dance-floor convenance, the launch of “Now Forever One’s” lunar expedition into the techno oblivion of pandemic lockdown is oddly fitting.

A few weeks ago, I was sitting late in the evening just before sunset at Chlodwigplatz in Cologne. For a few years I sat here almost every evening with my best girlfriend, until the café we liked so much fell prey to gentrification and general indifference. For that long, we just sat here in this place and watched people rush to the train stop, go shopping, or heading home. Usually at some point, a homeless person we know briefly came by and we gave him some money. The square and its people are a mixture of very beautiful and incredibly ugly. It is full of contradictions. Like so many things in life. Chlodwigplatz is the heart of this part of town where I have lived for over 20 years. Sometimes I see Julian walking by, somehow elated and always elegantly dressed; we greet, talk briefly, maybe he goes to do sports or to his apartment a few streets away to make music. With Julian, I never really know whether he is happy or very sad. But you can see right away that he feels a lot. Probably we both live here in this city, in this neighborhood, for exactly this one reason. This evening, the sky over the city is a sea of light and colours. The unique meteorological spectacle of nature is reminiscent of impressionist painting, and it is so overwhelmingly beautiful that the social networks are full of photos of this orgy of orange, yellow, blue and gray. It looks like the sky is on fire. I have to think back to this sight when I hear "Sky Without Colours" for the first time and look at the cover. The artwork by Frederike Wetzels and Franziska Stetter for Julian's first solo album looks like a minimalist, reduced abstraction of my memory: a calm surface that very gradually goes from a cool blue to warm reddish colours at the bottom of the picture. But in contrast to the described moment, so colourful and euphoric, the title of the album sounds like a deep melancholy, telling you something about absence and loss. In fact, this album is carried by a very special emotion, it is not a work that communicates with the outside world in bright colours and loud words. Instead, it functions like an inverse image of that glowing sky over the city, almost bursting with intensity: it rests entirely within itself, and yet it burns ablaze. Julian Stetter simply turns the inside out, but he does this without pathos, without kitsch. He gently shifts the lines between club and pop, between song and track, - like a painter he blurs the boundaries (and his traces) and lets the transitions slowly blur. Aydo Abay is Julian's voice, moving through him and through the album, expressing, formulating, giving voice to all that the producer himself lacks the words for. In the beautiful title track "Sky Without Colours", in the floating "No Cure" and finally in the slightly gloomy broken "Mountain Of Geeks" you think you hear Neil Tennant singing, so beautiful, so clear and precise, androgynous and always a little sad Abay sounds here. In the instrumental sketches Julian draws on his long and successful experience as a composer of soundtracks and music for film and theater. The opener "Calm" and especially the last track "Sleep", which embrace the album from both sides, are such little masterpieces that, between ambient and the exceedingly nuanced and careful use of sounds and rhythm, invite the brain to take nightly walks. And there is always this emotional ambivalence, laughing and crying eyes at the same time, looking forward, confidently saddened. Hardly a straight bass drum, no fat beats, - Julian Stetter doesn't need any imperatives at all for an album that sounds musically as well as atmospherically like from one cast; it is rich in spirit, intensity and resilience, full of elegance, passion and of excellent timing. Deep down, it is animated by a remarkably self-assured humility. Listening to "Sky Without Colours" and writing about it actually helped me perceive the person behind producer and DJ Julian Stetter differently. The next time I see him at Chlodwigplatz, I will still ask myself whether he is happy or sad. Only the sky, I now see with different eyes.

Local Action is proud to present Cyclorama, the long-awaited debut album by Ariel Zetina.

A resident DJ at Chicago’s iconic Smartbar, a long-standing Discwoman family member and a key part of the city’s dance music and Lgbtq+ communities, Ariel has established herself as one of the most exciting electronic artists operating today - through releases such as 2020’s acclaimed MUAs at the End of the World and 2017’s Organism, and her meticulous approach to DJ mixes - as recently evidenced on Sestina, her 2020 contribution to Mixtape Club.

Written across 2021 and honed this Spring, Cyclorama is Ariel’s most impressive and all-encompassing work yet, showcasing her as a producer, vocalist and also curator, pulling together an ensemble cast of her peers in Chicago (Cae Monāe, Mia Arevalo, Dannn) and some of the most exciting names in contemporary club music (Violet, Bored Lord).

Conceptually, Cyclorama draws heavily from Ariel’s background as a theater writer and producer. Popularized in 19th century German theater, a cyclorama (or cyc) is a large curtain, placed on the back wall of the stage. This creates an illusion of extra depth in the background, and often is used to represent the sky. In Ariel’s words, “I imagine all the tracks on this as the lights and action projected onto the cyclorama. The whole album is like the cyc, a representation of the sky. Or an imagined sky. An imagined dancefloor. An imagined theatrical production.”

As well as drawing conceptually from Ariel’s background in theater, the album draws on a personal level from Ariel’s journey as a trans woman of color - most directly on Cyclorama’s three vocal tracks, ‘Gemstone’, ‘Slab of Meat’ and lead single ‘Have You Ever’.

On ‘Have You Ever’, Ariel collaborates with Cae Monāe, a dear friend and fellow trans woman of color. “‘Have you ever been with a girl like me before?’ and all the lyrics refers to the fear and anxiety that cis men who are attracted to trans women feel, and also any woman that doesn’t fit the mold of a stereotypical woman”, Ariel explains. “Cae and I - and many trans women - have been in so many situations where society tells cis men they cannot be with trans women and this explores that and gives power to all trans women in this situation. The techno reflects that, as well as the “Spell my name” section at the end, showing the true power of trans women.”

On ‘Slab of Meat’, Ariel delivers a hypnotic solo vocal performance that builds in intensity with each line (“I am treated like a slab of meat both emotionally and sexually sometimes, especially one left in the freezer on the back burner. Why did you bring this meat home from the market? For what? You’re wasting meat!”), while ‘Gemstone’, a collaboration with Mia Arevalo, continues the empowering themes of ‘Have You Ever’ in a different context:

“[‘Gemstone’ is] a call for trans women to take time with your transition because it will all happen eventually. As two girls who have started our transition almost a decade ago, I think we have both seen that we have always needed to take our time to take our time. Reminders not to rush or compare yourself to other girls. I love the metaphor of gemstone months representing different periods of transition. I’ve been so many different women in recent years, and I'm excited to continue my journey.”

It’s immediately followed by album closer ‘Tropical Depression’, the title of which is a reference to Ariel growing up with tropical depressions, storms and hurricanes affecting her hometown of Jacksonville, Florida as well as her family in Belize City:

“This track for me is about living day to day and continuing while dealing with my really intense clinical depression. The sample comes from “Why can’t you let me go?” but is supposed to be transformative and not necessarily legible. How we hold on to our trauma and depression like a protective shell. This is an attempt to deal with it in a different way.”

The Cyclorama album cover, directed by Dylan Bragassa, stars Ariel alongside Monāe and Arevalo in an imagined theater production. In Ariel’s words, “a theoretical performance starring only trans women of color - I wanted an ensemble shot to represent the ensemble nature of this album! Love how Dylan combines so many ideas to create a very unique image that asks so many questions.”

The making of a maiden album can be a capricious process. One moment of outright musical flow paired with another period of sustained creative struggle are feats experienced by seasoned producers the world over. So when Miraclis was forced to hole away in his makeshift studio - in the midst of a global pandemic - the stage was set for something magical. Now it will see the light of day for the very first time.

Having released two singles on Secret Teachings to critical acclaim already this year, Chilean talent Miraclis will accomplish a milestone achievement in July with the release of his debut album: Origin Of Truth.

Difficult experiences were fundamental to the creation of such work, as were Miraclis’ inherent musical interests. He explains: “Origin Of Truth had its birth during the pandemic. I created it as a way of communicating to myself the sensations and feelings that were spinning around my head at the time. I've always been inspired by Bristol trip hop, as well as classical rock, and these genres definitely contributed to the making of these melancholic tracks. In a way I wanted to fuse all the musical influences that were part of my childhood, up until this point now, so this album really means a lot to me. It was my way of communicating, when there was a lack of social contact and communication itself was hard to come by.”

It's this meditative quality that initially drew Damian Lazarus to the project. “It’s a record that has its roots in electronic music, but it’s a very alternative, very deep, melancholic album. I find it both soothing and stirring at the same time, and that’s a quite interesting juxtaposition in that it feels edgy but delicious at the same time,” says Lazarus. “The fact that this was written in this place surrounded by the most incredible desert landscapes makes this a very important piece of work to me. It doesn’t sit in any particular genre, which is why it feels right for a Secret Teachings release. It hints at so many genres that I as a DJ am quite into, and it feels like a first as it’s unique and unclassifiable. That mystical, esoteric, edgy feel makes this a perfect release for the label.”

Sonnet opens proceedings, with ghostly vocals residing next to raw instrumental elements throughout. Miraclis’ signature guitar riffs soon converge on saddened keys, paving the way for Scienter. It takes the form of an instrument-based, electronic-inspired cut, building slowly before reaching a crescendo midway through via an enrapturing acoustic solo.

Floating Child comes next, brimming with a darker intensity courtesy of broody synth pulses and rhythmic hi-hats, as Shiver arrives next. There’s a rock-leaning sensibility to the piece that gives way to earnest lyrical offerings, opening swiftly into the breakbeat-esque world of Perceptions. Hard-hitting drums act as the focal point, with electric chords adding depth and intrigue, whilst Bright continues in a similarly heartfelt vein.

Introspective pads leave us feeling pensive, ahead of Interstellar taking us on a celestial journey through warped bass tones. Acting as the LP’s penultimate number, it’s a four-and-a-half minute showcase of guitar-based musical goodness and one that perfectly sets the stage for Trapped, a closing saga of suitably emotive proportions.

Miraclis earned his stripes as a DJ under the name Max Clementi in his native Chile, as well as Spain after a stint at the Barcelona SAE Institute. Playing and writing music since his parents gave him his first guitar at age twelve, he found himself inspired by synth wave, electronic pop, trip hop, and psychedelic rock of the ‘80s and ‘90s, drenching himself in music by the likes of Massive Attack, Tricky, Depeche Mode, and Nine Inch Nails. However, it wasn’t until he had to move back to Pucón to take care of his father during the pandemic that he began working on what would become Origin Of Truth.

Serendipity seems to play a large part in Crosstown Rebels’ new label Secret Teachings. Just look at the story of how Damian met Miraclis in the first place. It involved a chance midnight encounter in Pucón, Chile at a woodland campfire after the DJ was locked out of his hotel room. This meeting of minds was the start of a remarkable friendship, where Miraclis invited Lazarus to stay at his house and break bread with his family. The two kept in touch, exchanging music and ideas as a result.

Debut album by Dutch producer w1b0, who passed away in August, to be released in November on U-trax.

Wibo Lammerts' sudden death on August 15thshocked the worldwide electro community, and also left the record label, that had been working on the debut album with the artist known as w1b0 for the past two years, dumbfounded and in grief.
Wibo had jokingly always called his upcoming debut album 'his legacy', which now sadly has become a painful truth. With the support of Wibo's family, U-trax is now doing the only thing that doesn't feel totally wrong: proceed as planned, and release 'When Humans Ruled The Earth' on November 11.

W1b0 made quite a name for himself with heavy electro tracks that he released on labels like Bass Agenda, Hilltown Disco and Discos Antónicos. Standing at 202 meters, and combined with a cheerful character, most people remember him as the gentle giant of electro. For this album, Wibo wanted to steer away from the dark and heavy electro he mostly made until then. The idea of having a platform to create delicate electronic music in different styles, and make it a showcase of his versatility, was very appealing to him. And that is where he and U-trax found each other.

The full-length album (over 75 minutes on cd and digital) comes after 'The Pilex Program EP', released in October, that featured a remix by Detroit's Ectomorph of 'Pilex Driver' and saw 'Program Yourself To Feel' remixed by a well-known Dutch producer that recently created the new 'techno alias' Human Form. As usual with U-trax, the album comes in three different editions, with the 11-track double vinyl version containing the Ectomorph and Human Form remixes. The CD and digital version boast original versions only, plus four additional tracks: 'Alternate Reality Interface', 'Mixed Matter Fluctator', 'Synthetic', and 'In There'. The cassette version more or less has the same track list as the CD/digi version, but has both aforementioned remixes and a bonus track in the incredibly hypnotizing 'I Wanted You', a track that unfortunately couldn't be on the CD and vinyl versions.

Buyers of the physical releases get treated on superior quality products, another trademark of U-trax. The vinyl edition boasts over one hour of music, on two 180 grams, green vinyl discs, in a black & white & neon green gatefold sleeve. The eye-catching artwork is created by Utrecht artist Leffe Goldstein, known amongst others for his psychedelic beer can designs for Utrecht brewery Maximus. Wibo, being the beer lover he was, had zero doubts about having Leffe Goldstein do the cover for his album. The CD has a total playing time of 75 minutes and comes in a beautiful 6-panel digipack, while the cassette will have full-color on-body print and comes in a plastic-free Maltese cross fold-up sleeve.

Buyers of the physical releases get treated on superior quality products, another trademark of U-trax. The vinyl edition boasts over one hour of music, on two 180 grams, green vinyl discs, in a black & white & neon green gatefold sleeve. The eye-catching artwork is created by Utrecht artist Leffe Goldstein, known amongst others for his psychedelic beer can designs for Utrecht brewery Maximus. Wibo, being the beer lover he was, had zero doubts about having Leffe Goldstein do the cover for his album. The CD has a total playing time of 75 minutes and comes in a beautiful 6-panel digipack, while the cassette will have full-color on-body print and comes in a plastic-free Maltese cross fold-up sleeve.

Opener 'Acid Whip' is one of the oldest compositions on this album, in which a dark 303 bassline hums over layers of spacey strings. Wibo named it after the legendary Whip It party in Amsterdam's De Melkweg. 'Alternate Reality Interface' then presents bouncy rhythms toying around with all sorts of analog (bass) synthesizers, before we go really deep with the epic ambient techno track 'Wandering Souls'. Then things get a little lighter spirited: 'Mixed Matter Fluctator' is an electro track that builds on sounds created by Matt Buggins. It has very strong Detroit influences, the city Wibo loved so much and that he made a pilgrimage to with a group of friends that called themselves 'The Techno Tourists'. The tempo goes up a notch in 'Program Yourself To Feel', that halfway opens up in wide science fiction strings that evoke memories of Star Wars, the movie series that Wibo was a great fan of, and that was the source of many of his tracks' names. The Human Form remix opens the vinyl edition of this album and is a downright belter of a track.

Next is a somewhat experimental intermezzo named 'Synthetic'. Erratic beats and pounding bassdrums get accompanied by very subtle eerie-sounding strings, before melancholic synthesizers and piano chords take over. This is an excellent prelude to the epic 'Hologram Computing', a track that is one of our favorites. It slowly and softly builds and builds, before a pounding bassdrum breaks loose and a hypnotic arpeggio takes you to higher planes. Not ready to letting the listener relax, w1bo then serves 'Beilstein Reference', which again presents his trademark cocktail of down-to-earth electro rhythms and catchy melodies, covered in all sort of little sounds and noises, giving the song a lot of energy. What follows is 'Hit me', a track loosely based on a song by Dutch indie rock band Mr. Joe Abe. Wibo met the band's singer on a camping site while being on holidays and the two decided Wibo should do a remix of one of their songs. Nothing was left of the original except the vocals, and the result is a remarkable cheerful, poppy electro song.

'Anticipated Input' is one of the more recent tracks Wibo made for this album, combining electro, acid and, yes: epic strings. But not all is peace and quiet on this album, as 'Pilex Driver' shows. This is w1b0 going experimental in a danceable fashion: Industrial sounds make the track sound like we're passing a construction site that is playing loud electro music. On the vinyl version of this album, Ectomorph totally decomposed the original and made it into a mysterious, almost subdued, and totally brilliant electro track that sees a main role for the retro Roland CR drum machines sounds.

TFHats, Wibo's fellow member of the Transhumanism collective, added lyrics to 'Cartesian Coordinates'. His vocals add a pleasant New Wave flavor to this song, that has breaks that remarkably reminds one of Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. What follows is the most personal track on this album. 'Fornan' is a song that Wibo made for his wife Nanette, and was added as the last piece of the puzzle that creating an album is. The warm Detroit techno atmosphere in this electro song couldn't be a more beautiful tribute to his love, and mother of their two young boys. The album then takes a surprising detour through a 1980s landscape with 'In There', that features the Joy Division-esque vocals of another one of Wibo's friends, indicated only as Vincent. The super slow and gloomy track is a treat for anyone that loved the darker side of New Wave. The album has a worthy closer in the sensitive, yet playful 'Schlegel Diagram'.

ciccio bomba cannoniere (chunky monkey)
Is the sound weapon of the A-zienda rthz, illustrated by the render called M.E.R.I.C.O.O. (Erect, rechargeable intelligent machine with organic dog) This project of a definitive media A-ssailant presents all the necessary elements for the domination of social hierarchies:
trace of a human face for identification
a stalker server for omnipresence in digital field
a system of locomotion for moving in any field
a genetically modified dog for keeping counterfeiters away
comfy clothes and an M60 around the neck
The name derives from an A-ncestor rthz called Merico. Police officer who in the late 1800s left a tavern and rode on the back of his mule Cina with the objective of stopping a train so that he could light his cigar. And this happened. Merico was then tried and dishonourably discharged.
- rathauz, translated from Italian -
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"*warning In my research for this piece I downloaded an app I found buried in the press release, drove around an airfield as a wolfman with a rifle, then unlocked a wrestling concept album on Youtube by jumping towards the light, became a subscriber for 20 Euros a year to get access to exclusive content and almost bought 5 grams of dirt harvested from the area surrounding the Rathauz studio.*

ciccio bomba cannoniere is a gateway drug, a gateway into the cybernetic multimedia cvlt of Rathauz.
And while a physical release might run counter to the insanely futuristic drive of the Rathauz, it's probably the album of the year so buckle up.

For the uninitiated the A side might play out like merely the best goddam side of actually fun techno you've heard in 2020s. Rollicking acidic galompers. Tbh most techno can get in the bin these days but this swinging evil continuum championed by Acidic Male / Giant Swan / Missterspoon is more than right by us. Rathauz add internet dial up noises, reggaeton shuffle, distorted screams and frayed EBM arps into this heady heady mix, showing they're about twice as interesting as the top 10 techno on Bandcamp already. Seriously RA would be creaming themselves to hit the recommend button if they could grow a spine in the office between them.

But Then side B gets rolling with boom baps and distorted guitars in a kinda frat-trap circle pit. This is the sound online Rathauz disciples know and love; electro-punk-trap-pop twisted genius. Their scifi vision and demented humour reminds us most closely of our beloved Kinlaw & Franco Franco if Franco had spent more time living in Milanese squats. Policepunk=S.W.A.T. is classic anarcho scuzz hxc on speed and trap and.....maybe Show Me The Body albums and not enough sleep. Venetia-monitor rips off the riff to Smells Like Teen Spirit in glorious Midi chaos. TLC is the most fun you can have in 2 minutes.

After listening we have only one question: Where ARE THE Techno Punx Making Actual Fucking Punk EH? And why not do it on the same album?

Cos you are never gonna get to crowdsurf at Tresor, kid. The bouncers will make you disappear and you Will miss your flight back to Kansas.

God bless Drowned By Locals.
Vinyl with printed sleeve (with the best art you've probably ever seen)."

- Miles Opland, Rwdfwd -
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A-Biography (translated from Italian)
RAT is the surname Hauz is the survival place, we make house music in the municipality of the web like the pharmaceutical industry.

Rathauz is the A-zienda or company that produces perceptible frequencies from its works in reinforced concrete located in a farming plot forever ploughed and fertilised, the whole area surrounded by barbed wire. You can visit the works through A-ndroid A-pplication A-zugo ( play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rthz.Azugo&gl=IT&fbclid=IwAR3VKIQzcLIoipGeeEBpGkE6vJg0NXC6MGe9_Ev6X5aRFi_W2gp8xN_n7iE ). Its workers have been embedded into the factory's walls and their names disappear absorbed in the structure. When they A-ppear they always wear their A-gro wear; wrestler shirts (emblems of expository hyperreality). In their productions they insert their singular individuality and relativistic abilities merging into a single quantum machine. They are the perfect emblem of the band: two brothers who share blood (a-), surname (Rat) and produce frequencies made at home (house music) but are almost always in conflict. Often during the A-ssembling of the frequencies they A-ttack each other as was reconstructed in WRESTLA-live, each product is then a derivation of a complex human skimming. Rathauz is focused A-utonomously on the primary sector, secondary, tertiary everything in the quaternary. They sow, grow, distil, peddle and often are the first consumers of the complexity of the material, creating their own A-utarchic world. They compete with other international labels but while those are associations made of many identities with different styles (the many Artists), Rathauz is the assembly of any frequential style recast by a single unique A-rtistic individualism, which has to overcome such role becoming the inhumane machine that produces and exports. The A-zienda only exists in relation to the A-utoproduction of the media, everything is developed only by the two laboratories. Both have productive activities in full with their identifiable subjective relativisms and these are not secondary but coexistent with the A-zienda A-ctivity. While the single A-'s (both laboratories with their own identities) work in a global context, Rathauz is simultaneously and exclusively dedicated to the cultural, media and technological development of the Italian state. This doesn't mean productions are inferior or superior but of a certain quality that differs from the products of individuals. The themes of both representatives in their individualistic projects are the visions of two Europeans squashed by imported capitalism and globalisation while Rathauz gathers the traditions and cultural movements of a particular region of Italy, Veneto, under the influence and the techniques of an imported capitalism and globalisation. Either when displaying their individual identities and when they act as the A-zienda, they confront a global context, but if they happen to emerge with their individualism of relative beings on the sea of international connection, the A-zienda is always the maker of a locally defined product, precise and calculated, which does not deny the inspiration but refines it to the limits of incomprehensible complexity. The A-zienda is a company that produces product (a metaphor for the identity of any artist under a label) but ultimately being the A-rtist as well, there are no thematic links or expressive limits, that is within the view of Italian cultural implantation in many demographic A-spects. The name Rathauz is the union of two concepts rat and hauz as A-forementioned, and yet the Anglosaxon A-nti-Italian sound that emerges recalls the great capitalist Corporations. Before launching the project Rathauz we had to clear the road as Rat-truppen. We fought club after club, we broke moulds with too-powerful basses, moshing where it was previously culturally inadmissible (only white shirts). With our dj-sets we imported the sound textures that later became the culture that "A-cquired value". Rathauz and many like it. As we moved from record to record many evenings a week we continued to produce a sound material yet to be emitted and which later contributed to lay the groundwork for the stable A-zienda. The first A-bsolute A-lbum we produced was in *2003 "Music Fear" (both laboratories had 8 and 12 years respectively) and this was the real starting point seeped in electronic textures, house and Drum'nBass and you can hear a first example of modern Base Trap, where we created a rap beat with a horror sample and used a distorted kick.
P.S.:
Usually as in the case of track 3030 (which deserves pages of in-depth A-nalysis), the sound is not only the basis but it is linked to the themes of production and later happened to become a sound standard as in the case of hdma where the distorted bass we came up with was an emulation of the stereo system at maximum volume of A- friend's car.

Original text by rathauz:
ciccio bomba cannoniere
È l'arma sonora dell'A-zienda rthz, illustrata con il render di M.E.R.I.C.C.O. (Macchina, eretta, ricaricabile, intelligente con cane organico). Questo progetto di definitivo A-ssaltatore mediatico presenta tutti gli elementi necessari alla dominazione delle gerarchie sociali:

parvenza di viso umano per l'identificazione

Uno stalker server per l'onnipresenza su campo digitale

Un sitema di locomozione per muoversi su ogni campo

Un cane geneticamente modificato per non lasciare avvicinare alteratori

Abiti comodi e al collo un M60

Il nome deriva da un A-ntenato rthz chiamato Merico. Carabiniere che a fine '800 uscì dall'osteria e salì in groppa della sua cavalla Cina con l'obbiettivo di fermare un treno per farsi accendere un sigaro. E ciò avvenne. Merico fu poi processato e congedato con disonore.

A-biography
"Ing: RAT is the surname Hauz is the survival place, we make house music in the municipio della rete like the industrie farmaceutiche."
Rathauz è l'A-zienda che produce frequenze percepibili dal suo stabilimento in cemento armato situato in un campo agricolo perennemente arato e concimato, tutta l'area è circondata da filo
spinato. E' possibile visitare lo stabilimento tramite l'A-pplicazione per Android A-zugo (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rthz.Azugo&gl=IT&fbclid=IwAR3VKIQzcLIoipGeeEBpGkE6vJg0NXC6MGe9_Ev6X5aRFi_W2gp8xN_n7iE). I lavoratori sono stati inglobati
nelle pareti della fabbrica e i loro nomi singoli scompaiono assorbiti dalla struttura. QuandoA-ppaiono indossano sempre la loro divisaAziendale; maglie di wrestler (emblema dell'iperrealtà espositiva). Nelle produzioni inseriscono le loro singole individualità e le loro relativistiche abilità fondendosi in un unica macchina quantica. Sono l'emblema perfetto della band: due fratelli che condividono sangue (a-), cognome (Rat) e producono frequenze fatte in casa (house music) ma sono quasi sempre in contrasto. Spesso durante l'A-ssemblamento frequenziale fannoA-botte come è stato ricostruito in WRESTLA-live, ogni prodotto è quindi derivazione di una complessa scrematura umana. Rathauz si occupa in modoA-utonomo del settore primario, secondario, terziario tutto nel quaternario. Coltivano, lavorano, raffinano, smerciano e spesso ne sono i primi fruitori data la complessità del materiale, creando il loro mondoA-parte. Competono con le altre etichette internazionali ma mentre esse sono associazioni con all'interno più identità con diversi stili separati tra loro ( i vari Artisti), Rathauz è l'assemblamento di qualsiasi stile frequenziale rielaborato da un solo ed unico individualismoA-rtista, che deve superare tale ruolo diventando anche l'inumana macchina che produce ed esporta. L'A-zienda esiste solo in base all'A-utoproduzione dei media, tutto viene svolto solo dai due lavoratori. Essi hanno entrambi attività produttive in proprio con i i loro relativismi soggettivi identificabili e tali non sono secondarie ma coesistenti all'A-ttività A-ziendale. Mentre i singoliA-( i due lavoratori con le proprie identità) lavorano in contesto globale, rathauz è parallelamente e prettamente dedito allo sviluppo culturale, mediatico e tecnologico dello stato Italiano. Ciò non significa che le produzioni siano inferiori o superiori ma di un certo tipo di qualità che risulta differente dai prodotti dei singoli. Le tematiche dei due esponenti nei loro individualistici progetti sono la visione di due europei pressati da un capitalismo e un globalizzazione importata mentre Rathauz raccoglie le tradizioni i movimenti culturali di una determinata regione d'Italia, Veneto, sotto l'influsso e le tecniche di un capitalismo e una globalizzazione importata. Sia quando hanno le loro identità singole che quando sono l'A-zienda si confrontano con un contesto globale ma se in un caso emergono con il loro individualismo di essere relativo a galla nel mare della connessione internazionale, l'A-zienda è sempre fautrice di un prodotto localmente definito, preciso e calcolato che non nega l'ispirazione ma la raffina a limiti di incomprensibile complessità. L'Azienda è un'azienda che produce prodotti (metafora dell'identità di qualsiasi artista in una etichetta) ma essendo comunque direttamente anche l'A-rtista non vi sono vincoli di tematiche o limiti espressivi, sempre però nell'ottica dell'implentazione culturale italiana in variAspetti demografici. Il nome Rathauz é unione di due concetti rat e hauz come giàA-ffermato prima, tuttavia il suono AnglosassoneA-ntItaliano che emerge richiama le grandi Corporation capitalistiche. Prima di avviare il progetto Rathauz Abbiamo dovuto spianare la strada come Rattruppen. Abbiamo combattuto club per club, rotto impianti per via di bassi troppo potenti, pogato in luoghi dove prima era culturalmente inammissibile (solo camicie bianche). Con i nostri dj-set abbiamo importato le sonorità che poi sono divenute la cultura che ha potuto "Apprezzare" Rathauz e vari simili. Mentre ci muovevamo di disco in disco facendo varie serate ogni settimana continuavamo a produrre materiale sonoro tutt'ora non rilasciato che ha contribuito poi a fornire le fondamenta dallo stabileA-ziendale. Il primoA-lbum inA-ssoluto che abbiamo prodotto è stato nel *2003 "Music Fear" (i due lavoratori avevano rispettivamente 8 e 12 anni) ed è stato il primo vero punto di partenza in quanto in mezzo a sonorità elettroniche, house e Drum'nBass si può ascoltare un primo esempio di Base Trap moderna, dove abbiamo creato un beat rap con un campionamento horror e usato kick distorti.
P.S:
Spesso come nel caso della traccia 3030 (che meriterebbe pagine diApprofondimento), il suono non è solo base ma legato alle tematiche della produzione e poi casualmente diviene culturalmente uno standard sonoro come nel caso hdma dove il basso distorto che abbiamo ideato era un'emulazione delle stereo a volume estremo dell'auto di un nostroA-mico.