Flatland Frequencies
Kalamazoo may not get as much of a mention in the mythologies of House and Techno as Chicago or Detroit but in the mid to late 90s it was certainly a place with its own artists and a unique style.
This EP is made from previously unreleased recordings made by D-Knox during that era. As well as Sonic Mind there was Black Nation Records, which is name-checked on the first track of the EP, owned by Jay Denham this is another not unknown but probably undervalued label in the history of Techno.
Something about acid house gets me instantly bobbing my head like an idiot. Fingers start pointing at some unknown thing of importance in the near distance, daft grin on my face. Listening to ‘Joyful’ resulted in a display of such symptoms, which persisted throughout the 7-track mini album.
New Beat may no longer be a new style of music but its revival has been coming on for full force. Moscovite label and event organizers System 108 offer this mighty fine release on wax in a limited run of 300 copies.
The death of Spain’s dictator General Franco in the mid 1970s saw the birth of a movement of creativity and hedonism know as La Movida (The Movement). The spirit of liberation and experimentation that was unleashed saw the release of much pioneering music.
Originally released in 1982 on a self-released single-sided cassette album this track is as cold as they come. Elisa Waut was a Belgian band, from Bruges, and was centered around brother and sister Hans and Elsje Helewaut.
Synth-driven star scapes abound, with this intense LP from Patrick R. Pärk on the infallible Frequency Domain
Dallas based producer Cygnus debut release on Glasgow’s label of the moment, Craigie Knowes. He programs his beats funky and the chords deep. Five tracks of timeless electronic soul music. An accomplished piece of musicianship. What more is there to be said?
For those of us living overseas, it’s painful to witness the footage of people and wildlife currently affected by the huge bushfires raging across Australia. It can also be tricky to know how to help, or who to donate funds too in these kind of situations. In this case, some awesome musicians from Melbourne have rallied round the world’s electronic music community to donate tracks for a fun-raising compilation, with all proceeds going to Wildlife Victoria.
Criss-crossing arpeggiations evolve and envelope with the opening ‘Vacca Wall’. If Briget Riley adopted synths instead of paint, you’d be halfway in visualising this track before hearing it. A hypnotic 17 minutes.
