House News

"Ramas", branches in Spanish, is El Búho's third album of original material and stands for a celebration of the art of collaboration. Feat. 19 collaborations with artists from 12 countries, the album was born organically out of collaborations, mutual appreciation or a desire to experiment and try something new.

Some of the tracks were started in person, such as "Sky City", born out of a spaghetti-western jam in Thornato's Queens studio or "Gaviota" inspired by the the seagulls of Brighton following a shared show with Rumbo Tumba in the city. Meanwhile others such as "Elefta" with Hungarian producer Stas or "Kuuma" a track made with Finnish multi-instrumentalist QOSQI were created over long-distance with the producers never actually meeting face to face. The album also contains tracks from long-term friends and collaborators like Chancha Via Circuito, Barda and Wonderwheel head-honcho Nickodemus.

Musically the album references the blend of Latin American traditional music with original electronic music on tracks such as "Resiliencia" with legendary Chilean producer DJ Raff, an homage to the recent protest movement in Chile, or "Absolut," a track sculpted from an unfinished melodic idea by Argentine electro-folk trio Tremor. Meanwhile songs like "Nevar" and "Kif Kif Kuf Kuf" with Didacte and Kraut, both part of the Shika Shika collective, take El Búho's sound in a new direction, embracing a more melodic or impactful and rhythmic electronica.

At it's heart of "Ramas" was Perkins' desire to challenge himself creatively, forcing him to see his own ideas and production style from a different angle or see ideas started in one direction come back completely transformed by the collaborator. The result is at once surprising and diverse but El Búho's signature sound and aesthetic is the thread that runs through all of the tracks, the trunk to each branch.

Carrying on the spirit of collaboration, El Búho made an open call for collaborations with dancers & choreographers in his community. Overwhelmed by the response, the album is accompanied by 18 original choreographies by dancers and dance groups from 12 different countries, from Mexico to Taiwan, South Africa or the Galapagos Islands. Each chose the track that most inspired them and shot a video of their dance in a unique and beautiful natural location, in doing so creating yet more ramas or branches for the project.

If you want a snapshot of where techno stands in any given year, and a preview of where it’s headed, look no further than Drumcode’s A-Sides compilation. Since 2012 it has marked the label debuts of countless vital Drumcode artists and affiliates, from Layton Giordani, Wehbba and Boxia, to Amelie Lens and ANNA, no less.

Every year, new names are unearthed, tried and true techno contributors serve up their best, and icons of the industry land their debut on Adam Beyer’s storied label. The 2020 edition hits with 13 tracks, eight coming from label debutants.

First up for part two, Victor Ruiz & Thomas Schumacher link and the result is ‘Intuit’, a sleek futuristic roller that hits you square between the eyes. Anfisa Letyago, a DC first-timer, then shows why she’s one of the scene’s most highly touted new artists with the brooding beast ‘Are You In’.

Rounding things off Loco & Jam power through with a brooding cut filled with sustained synths and cascading percussion.

'Banoffee Pies Records' drop their 12th release in the original series with a solo EP from New York based Tristan Arp. With a string of intricate music on the likes of Human Pitch and a recent LP entitled "Suggested Forms", which offers a wider exploration into his work, Tristan's passion for sound design echoes in this record.

All four tracks offer an environment somewhere between a feeling &
a dancefloor with obscure influences in polyrhythmic drum patterns and a clear combination of digital and analogue processing. "Swept Thru" opens proceedings with a spiral of rhythms and heavy percussion leaping in energy throughout, before the spooked out Vox takes control on "Oblique House" with deeper movements in a haunted club tune. The B side opens with the title track "Slip" in a powerful whirlwind arrangement of sub bending sounds before the final colour is added to the palette in "Circling Music'' with emotive jingles in a more retained and patient mood.

You can hear Tristan's other work within the Asa Tone project - a trio group well worth the trip, offering a deep variety of works exploring field recordings taken and formulated in Indonesia beneath a tree canopy deep in the jungle. This same energy and mood spills into this release. Music for feeling. Much love BP x

Mastered: Optimum, Pressed: MPO & Distributed by KUDOS.

Throughout 2020 Eglo Records released a set of vinyl only EP's from unknown electronic artist Destiny71z. The tracks featured were dark, jazzy, acidic experiments in house, techno, garage and electro, created using a stacked rig of drum machines and modular instruments, most notably the Buchla Music Easel. Alongside some new, previously unreleased material those three EP's have now been consolidated into an album, titled 'Six'. The project is the alter-ego of multi instrumentalist, painter, producer and Floating Points Live band member Mathew Kirkis. Across the albums 14 tracks the producer trips through the outer realms of dance music, taking a deep fried, hi-tech, cosmic approach.

For their first release of 2020, Kalita unearth New York-based band Cross Island's highly sought-after 1978 disco single 'East of the Apple'. Originally privately released on Raja Records as a promotional single to attract tourism and businesses to Long Island, New York, the record has since become highly prized by both DJs and collectors alike, in particular for its B side 'Just A Little Different' mix.

Here, as a 12" single, we re-release it officially for the first time, twinned with Al Kent remixes of both 'East of the Apple' and the band's unreleased recording 'Wave', both sourced from the original multi-track master tapes. In addition, Kalita accompany the release with never-before-seen press photos and extensive interview-based liner notes.

Future Under Class is hard dance for a crumbling earth.

Society is off the tracks.

It's time to eat the rich.

Substance, the second album by producer Moisture, sets out to deliver an immersive tech-noir fantasy of emotional and physical deconstruction. Inspired in part by William S. Burroughs 1959 novel Naked Lunch, the conceptual narrative of the album follows a humanoid subject through an urban landscape and the exploration of its depravations.

Sampling and filtering sounds from other music, movies and own field recordings, the tapestry of Substance is a three-dimensional world of hard industrial spaces and fluid organic matter. While it's conception is rooted equally in literature and film as well as music, one can draw comparisons in particular to Barry Adamsons 1989 album Moss Side Story, in that it also works as a chronological narrative; the tracks aligning to make a world of its own.

And while Adamson was aiming to create an imaginary soundscape of his native Manchester, the geography of Substance is based on the city of Malmö. Using field recordings from it's city streets, the album paints a rain soaked, neon-clad portrait of the city's hedonistic nightlife.

On the opening "The Marketplace" we are teleported to Bergsgatan at night (the track title a subtle nod towards Eden Ahbez 1960 song of the same name).

This introduction is similar in line with the experience Burroughs once had in 1957 upon entering Malmö for the first and only time, which he details briefly in Naked Lunch: "averted eyes and the cemetery in the middle of town (every town in Sweden seems to be built around a cemetery), and nothing to do in the afternoon (...)"

This image of Malmö portrayed with dread and loathing holds a longstanding narrative tradition over the cultural geography of the town. Yet it is often paired with an image of great promise and bohemian splendor, seemingly a paradox but often perversely intertwined. This duality has always been a vital mindset in the underground music scene of the town and its illegal after hours clubs. Substance is a work steeped in the grayscale prism of techno and its post-industrial fetischism. Yet in picking it apart, one can find elements of everything from post-punk, drum & bass, trip hop and new age.

The theme of depravation that soaks through Burroughs Naked Lunch seems oddly befitting to this side of Malmö (one wonders what the author would have made of it had he stayed longer) Through rhythmic excursions and the exploration of repetition, the tracks of Substance are arranged to convey this self-destructive longing for depravity. Michel Foucault's ideas on limit experiences serves as context for this peculiar form of endeavour, as he puts it: "the point of life which lies as close as possible to the impossibility of living, which lies at the limit or the extreme."

First 10" from the special series made for the U Know Me Records 10th Birthday.

Made only in 100 copies - hand numbered and stamped.

It's a vinyl version of Zura EP UKM 054 which was digitally (only) released on 31.01.17.

You can find extended version of the intro & Zura's remix of SONAR as a bonus track.

Zura aka DJ Papa Zura is a member of Soul Service Crew.

Malandra Jr's hit Dance Warriors, supported and played at the best Festivals and events around the globe by Solomun, Etienne De Crecy and so many big guns in the industry, is ready to rock more dancefloors thanks to 2 new remixes by the Italian dj "godfather" Claudio Coccoluto and the super talented tech-house monster Riva Starr.

Jeremy Hyman steps up to FT with the first of two 12" EPs that are a coordinated blast of colorful, galaxy-edge plastic techno from the master percussionist who moonlights in Lifted, Boredoms, Animal Collective, and more. Always rhythmatic in exciting ways, Hyman's drum programming here is more arms than buttons, injecting a fly human element in the 12". "Slide" does what it says with amazing technoid bass work and a propulsive sense of timing, "Madness" hovers and falls and hovers again, and "Tinted Mirror" is some sort of Foodman-meets-Prescription-Records house symphony, rising and rising and rising. Tip!

Dass Strut die Kompilation "Jungle Music" nach 2010 noch einmal auflegt, wenngleich auch "nur" als 2LP, ist mehr als gerechtfertigt. Neben Tom Moulton war Walter Gibbons in den Siebzigern nicht nur einer der berühmtesten Disco-DJs, beide veränderten als Produzenten und Remixer die moderne Tanzmusik maßgeblich. Gibbons dekonstruierte ihm ausgehändigte Songs derart, dass sie mit dem Original nichts mehr zu tun hatten: er doppelte Instrumentalspuren, ließ Gesangspassagen weg, schnitt Rhythmusspuren um - am Ende hatte Gibbons neue Stücke erschaffen, der Remix war geboren. Ihm war es auch vergönnt, mit einem Remix die erste kommerzielle 12'' zu veröffentlichen. Trotz des Rummels um seine Person blieb Gibbons mit seinen kreativen Entwürfen stets den Tänzern und DJs des Disco-Undergrounds verpflichtet. Wie so viele Protagonisten aus dieser Szene starb Gibbons 1994 an AIDS. "Jungle Music" würdigt den Remix- und DJ-Pionier mit neun seiner bahnbrechenden, ellenlangen 12''-Edits. Manche davon wurden nie zuvor veröffentlicht, Gibbons hatte sie lediglich zum Hausgebrauch auf Acetat geschnitten. Abgerundet wird die Nachpressung durch eine Biographie von Tim Lawrence und rare Fotos.

Limited, Babyblau marbled vinyl

Round two for David Jackson! Just born in the heydays of the "Airport Disco" David provides us with the future of Italo Disco and beyond. Mr. Jackson makes music for mirror balls, strobe lights, fog machines and Richard Long sound systems. The title track "Airport Disco" is a heater at first sight. It will make you whistle along or go bang straightaway. "Oohhyyee" is a modern piece of uplifting, breaky & airy UK vibe and hits just the right notes and spots. Some folks claim the only good system is a soundsystem. Well "In My System" appears with powerful synth chords and yes, believe me you want to join this system too. For the advanced customer (vinyl only that is) you will find "Berlin" on B2. A bit of Schlager-Disco with a laissez-faire message. Another top artwork courtesy of Julian Bender. Now get into magic!

Making her debut Belgian-Japanese artist Aili teams up with one of Eskimo Recordings' most exciting new Belgian acts Transistorcake for the mesmerising 'Dansu'. Sung in a mixture of Japanese and English, 'Dansu' is a hymn to dancing the night away, the track's taut Motorik rhythms and lambent washes of synths blending perfectly with Aili's hushed vocals to create a hypnotic, languorously funky, track with echoes of artists like Can or Stereolab.

Gary’s Gang are the New York group of musicians best know for their US hit ‘Keep On Dancin’’, which reached #41 on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK #8 in 1978. The single sold over half a million copies around the world. The follow-up was ‘Let’s Love Dance Tonight’ (UK top 49 in 1979) and ‘Do It At The Disco’ and these three tracks have been sampled numerous times.

Disco is back! From Paris to Melbourne, Berlin or Athens, a new blend of 70s inspired disco sound is currently taking the dancefloors by storm with artists like Monika, L'Imperatrice or LeonxLeon, creating a stir on the international scene. Paying their dues to the pure form of Disco, these new artists, far from mimicking the cliches, are adding an unmistakable millennium twist to the genre. This is Disco 2.0




D B1 | Monika - Secret In The Dark (Juan MacLean Edit)

Serpente is the alias of Bruno Silva, a prolific and consistent fixture of the Portuguese scene. Silva has operated under numerous aliases throughout the years including the much loved Ondness name. With past releases on Not Waving's Ecstatic and Discrepant, among others, Silva's next release is a long awaited addition to the Alien Jams catalogue, an album called "Irmãs," Portuguese for "Sisters."

Comprising of two 17 minute tracks, both "Da Clara" and "Para Celeste" are intrinsically linked, mirroring and then inverting one another. Sisters share recurring motifs, typical of the Serpente project, both tracks artfully transform the strictest percussive forces into expressive and mind expanding mantras. Redolent of their live incarnations, Serpente gigs often involve a transformative and immersive experience, and "Irmãs," embodies this spirit, embracing melodic digression in a sustained and flowing state.

Electronic four-piece Big Yawn invites five revered artists to reconstruct their debut album No!, originally released in March 2020 through Research Records.

The remixes convey a unique combination of darker textures and brooding sounds, clearly indebted to their source material.

The release features interpretations from Sleep D, Jay Glass Dubs, Maria Moles, Bullant and Raymond Scottwalker.

Rhythm merchants Sleep D (Butter Sessions) up the tempo and weave their signature expansive production in their fearless take on 'Reflex'.

Prolific producer Jay Glass Dubs (Bokeh Versions) flavours the 'Body Double' refix with looping clattering drums and glitchy murk, creating a compelling arrangement.

Like a drift into a warm gorge, percussionist Maria Moles (Nice Music) inserts gentle sustained synth work into 'Doodle Damage'.

Bullant (Flightless Records) pulls the listener out abruptly with a rework of 'Skinrat', a house-streaked churner.

Raymond Scottwalker (Fallopian Tunes) wraps up the record with another rework of 'Reflex', creating a mind-bending, aggressive industrial rejig.

Big Yawn's remix EP is a dynamic pairing to No!, entrusting an exceptional group of musicians to adhere to the spirit of the record, yet take it in a totally re-imagined direction

Maze & Lindholm, widely critically acclaimed since their first LPWhere The Wolf Has Been Seen-released by Aurora Borealis in 2018-bring out yet another aspect of their ever fruitful collaboration.While their debut album was constantly balancing between contemplation and anxiety (never quitepitch dark but often on the fence between extremelycontrasted moods) the live rendition of theirnew opus offers a profound sonic meditation.

A River Flowing Home To The Seanever tries tocompete with the world's deafening din nor embraces its inherent violence-as "Where The Wolf Has Been Seen" often did-but rather emphasises a certain relation to silence while magnifying it.Celebrating its rarity and approaching its own production as an intimate yet enthralling experience. As opposed to a river forming into a torrent, the piece flows at a quiet paceand invites us toexperience a state of inner tranquility.

'The Extra Ordinary' EP is the debut release from London based musician, composer, producer and singer Emilee. Also known as Moggli, Emilee boasts a vast back catalogue collaborating with the likes of Maya Jane Coles, Andrea Oliva, Shlomi Aber and Marc Romboy. This release welcomes five dreamy originals packaged alongside a pairing of club focused remixes courtesy of Maya Jane Coles and Andrade & Sam Clarence.

Maya Jane Coles fully digests the original work before totally revamping 'Rodeo' in a truly unique way as warming rich chords billow around a chugging masterpiece of house rhythms. Andrade & Sam Clarence continue the dreamlike state with Memory Land, once again taking the ethereal voices from Emilee and pairing with a rich, punchy bass line.

Another limited edition PUSS release, each copy with a stamped kiss mark.

New year, new Skrufix release and this one is on vinyl once again! Following a return to form with stellar releases last year from Things With Wings with some Nigerian inspired beats, our 2-Step King, The Crane and an extremely well received release from new boy, Skwirl, we continue with quality production levels and one hell of a release from Nathan Jonson.

After a successful decade of releasing music under the Hrdvsion alias (Wagon Repair / Sound Pellegrino / Planet Mu), 2015 saw Nathan reach a turning point in his musical career and re-launch with a new direction under his birth name. The Jonson family are clearly one of good musical stock, his brother is the formidable Matthew Jonson and Nathan has recently released on 20:20 Vision as well as his brother's new Freedom Engine label, among others. We are therefore more than a little bit chuffed to get him on-board for this new EP, 'Space Between Breath'.

The release kicks off with the title track 'Space Between Breath', an ideal opener that builds into a lush, intricate Techno track accompanied by bouncy synth sounds. Label regular, The Crane brings his usual 2-Step talent to rework the first track exceptionally. On the flipside, things kick off with a darker feel and acid sounding synth lines on 'The Transfer', followed by a fine finale in the trippy and chugging sound of 'I'm All We Got.'

It's quite the release all round to be honest! And we're very excited to finally get this one out there. Look out for more excellence to come later in the year as label regulars, Turtlez and Skwirl prep new EPs, alongside some surprising new additions along the way!

Having discovered electronic music at the end of the 90’s, Thomass grew up going to raves where trance was one of the main styles played at this massive partys. The influence it had on him was planted deeply into his DNA and this EP is the interpretation he has these days of the genre. He moved on to different pastures soon after but the style was already in him. Thomass now takes the old fashioned elements he still likes and takes them to new directions. Fueled by gated chords, dreamy arpeggios, trippy vocals and percussions this tracks are destined to take you back into the past and bring you right back to the present. Forget what you learned. Trance not trance.

Disk 2/5

Fortuna Records return with an exceptional reissue of a mid-80s early electronica LP by keyboardist Raviv Gazit. The album was composed entirely on the Synclavier synthesizer in the basement of the Tel-Aviv University in 1985. Gazit was ahead of his time composing cold yet blissful electronic music for film and theatre which he later released as an album. An unexpected yet extremely welcome addition to Fortuna's killer catalog.

Snips is the founder of Barbershop Records and co founder of Livin Proof, with over 15 years experience as one of Londons most prolific DJs and over 10 years worth of production credits across Hip Hops underground. 2018 has seen Snips emerge as a budding solo artist, fusing the production styles of Hip Hop, House, Soul and Funk in the same fashion as he is known to do behind the turntables.

With his debut album "The Barbershop" making waves on both sides of the Atlantic and his Single "The Product" On Classic Records garnering support from a cross genre selection of heavyweights such as Karizma, Benji B, Eli Escobar, House Shoes, J Rocc, DJ Spinna and Henry Wu, Snips returns on his own label Barbershop Records and delves into Edit territory for his second instalment of the "Snips Edits" series. This time cleverly turning a handful of Hip Hop classics into club ready anthems over Snips' original productions.

For Record Store Day 2020, Far Out Recordings presents a special 'poisoned vinyl' edition of Ivan 'Mamão' Conti's critically acclaimed Poison Fruit album. The 180g splattered colour LP is accompanied by an exclusive bonus 7” with a previously unreleased track from the original Poison Fruit sessions ‘Katmandu, and ‘Ninho’, a track never before released on vinyl.

From an artist in their seventies, you probably wouldn’t expect to hear an album like this. But Brazilian drumming legend Ivan ‘Mamão’ Conti has been experimenting and innovating for the last half a century. As one third of cult Rio jazz-funk trio Azymuth, Mamão was at the root of the group’s ‘samba doido’ (crazy samba) philosophy, which warped the traditional samba compass with jazz influences and space age electronics. Even with his lesser known jovem guarda group The Youngsters, Mamão was experimenting with tapes and delays to create unique, ahead-of-its-time sounds, way back in the sixties. More recently Mamão recorded an album with hip-hop royalty Madlib under the shared moniker ‘Jackson Conti’.

With his first album in over twenty years, and the first to be released on vinyl since his 1984 classic The Human Factor, Mamão shares his zany carioca character across eleven tracks of rootsy electronic samba and tripped out jazz, beats and dance music. Featuring Alex Malheiros and Kiko Continentino on a number of tracks, the Azymuth lifeblood runs deep, but venturing into the modern discotheque (as Mamão would call it), Poison Fruit also experiments with sounds more commonly associated with house and techno, with the help of London based producer Daniel Maunick (aka Dokta Venom) and Mamão's son Thiago Maranhão.

Take a bite of Mamão’s psychoactive Papaya and join the maestro on a weird and wonderful stroll through the Brazilian jung

Electro Swing Ist Ein Echtes Phänomen. Seit Zehn, 20 Jahren Sorgt Dieenergetische Mixtur Aus Moderner, Elektronischer Tanzmusik Und Swing Der1920er- Bis 1950er-jahre In Den Clubs Der Metropolen, Im Radio Sowie Aufvielen Partys Für Furore. Kein Wunder, Electro Swing Geht Direkt In Die Beine:still Stehen Unmöglich. Bart & Baker Sind Zwei Der Renommiertesten Stars Derszene. Sowohl Ihre Dj-sets Als Auch Edits Bekannter Songs Bescheren Seitvielen Jahren Landauf, Landab Gute Laune Und Zaubern Ein Lächeln Ins Gesicht.für Das Französische Label Wagram Haben Die Zwei Connaisseure Ein 180-gramm-vinyl Mit Einem Dutzend Hits Kompiliert, Das In Keiner Plattensammlung Fehlensollte. Auf Dem Sammlerstück Vertreten Sind U. A. De-phazz, Mr Scruff, Swingrepublic, Lazy Flow Sowie Zwei Remixe Von Ella Fitzgerald Und Fred Astaire.

Upcoming, very talented Amsterdam DJ /producer debuts on Rush Hour with a loud 12-inch two-tracker, New Dance. After his remix for Bassekou Kouyate on Joe Claussell's label and the strong "Testify" track co-produced with Jamie 3:26, he now goes solo with these two Italo infused dance floor igniters ....

March 2017: Alessandro Alessandroni's 'Afro Discoteca' is released on a blasting 12'' containing 4 cosmic/disco tracks drawing influences from African music – never published before these incredibly powerful and evocative recordings were rescued from an old dusty tape found in the Maestro's vaults.

The EP became an instant classic for diggers and worldwide tastemakers, bringing the name of Alessandroni to new audiences,
far beyond the circle of film scores and library music aficionados.

March 2019: Four Flies asks to a rock band (CALIBRO 35) and three amongst the most brilliant and visionary Italian DJs and producers (Jolly Mare, L.U.C.A., pAd) to rework the original tracks, giving them new life for refined modern dancefloors.

The result is a stunning collection of electronic/cosmic/balearic reworks, which respects the spirit of Alessandroni's compositions, projecting them into our present

'Objet Melodie' is a combination of real instruments, synthesizers, drum machines and samples, involving genres from different countries of the world.

It's like being on a surreal oasis, where music is eclectic but also meditative or just for a dance. Interconnecting with the whole planet, imagining or living in different countries and trying to relate with diverse cultures and experimentation.

Lorenzo-Giulio Morresi, 'Objet melodie' producer, combined real instruments like Roland TR-707, Roland JUNO-60, a Gibson Memphis guitar, marimbas and steel drums with percussions samples taken from his personal record collection.

The other musicians involved are Stefano Ubaldini who plays the intro in 'Rituel' with an amazing hand-made guitar called 'Slitar', inspired from an Indian Sitar made with a broken metal window he picked up in a London backyard.

Fabio Mina is playing flutes on several tracks, like the Hulusi from China and the Nose Flute from Hawaiian islands. Giuseppe Diamanti plays tenor sax outros.

'Objet melodie' is inspired by sounds, technologies and traditions from planet earth, with the hope of staying interconnected as much as we can.

Cheeky Rifts Intensity :P

"I've been making tracks in groups for the past couple of years and these three were loosely based on a Lovecraft style story, where an investigator shows up at an unfrequented hotel and discovers a supernatural cult. Bit of a reach? Maybe"

Higher Intelligence Agency was founded in 1992 by Bobby Bird during the heady days of Birmingham's legendary Oscillate nights, where he improvised & performed live, developing HIA's signature sound, as well being a resident selector. The first HIA album the ambient dub classic 'Colourform' was released on Beyond Records in 1993 followed by a second album, Freeloater, collaboborative albums with Biosphere (Polar Sequences/Birmingham Frequenceis) and Pete Namlook (S.H.A.D.O 1 & 2) & Deep Space Network (DSN meets HIA) & in 2020 released the album Preform, a collection of tracks from the dawn of HIA

Discatron is the new E.P by Higher Intelligence Agency, a 4 track 12" vinyl release with a bonus track included with the 24bit digi download (download code included with the vinyl) mastered & cut by Stefan Betke (Pole)

Discatron takes its name from a unique portable 7" vinyl player invented in Birmingham in the 60's

After the vinyl re-issue of HIA's classic debut album Colourform earlier in the year, Headphone Records now releases a re-mastered Vinyl & 24bit Digi release of the second HIA album Freefloater.

Recaptured from the original session tapes recorded back in 1995, freshly remasterered & cut by Stefan Betke of Scape-mastering / Pole, both the vinyl & digi files reveal a new depth & detail in the tracks that the listener will not have heard before. A fine-tuned upgrade to what was already a classic HIA album.

Origional Reviews:

"Hermetic it may be, but 'Freefloater' is superb. Birmingham's HIA have evidently spent the last 12 months with their heads jacked deep into their machines, gaining complete empathy with the gear. Chattering rythm boxes are swathed in modal, dubby synths, whats lacking in darkness and danger is compensted for in wit, intelligence and slink. All action remains patterned on the surface, so theres little more to say other than its a deeply satisfying listen". The Wire

" The new release from Birmingham's ambient dub-meisters carries on from last years hugely popular Colourform, an album that twisted heads in chill-out rooms throughout Europe and the States. The band describe what they do as 'low tempo blip- hop', a tag that captures the vibe of the music in which the space in between is just as important as the notes. In a perfect world this is what NASA would play to space shuttle crews in orbit. Also quite good for doing the housework". Hari Kunzru - Wired

"One of the finest examples of ambient electro released to date, Freefloater manages to be at once complex and accessible, laying melodic hooks over funky, often syncopated rhythm patterns and austere bass figures. Warm and detailed, it's easily HIA's best work". Sean Cooper (All Music)

"Its been quite a wait since 'Colourform' and the ambient dub explosion. At the time, HIA were at the forefront of a new electronica that sounded streets ahead of the happy house and rave anthems that abounded. Now, with the release of 'Freefloater' HIA are firmly established as clear leaders in their field. This album has a coherence and serenity that surpasses all comers, and a maturity and understanding of its craft that is second to none. Ten instrumental pieces that slowly seduce without a fuss, music that allows you space to give full reign to the imagination, clear of clutter and natural as day and night. Electronica as freeflowing natural music. No harshness, no teeth grinding nightmarish visions, just stripped down flowing soundscapes. Open yourself to the pure pulses and vibrations of HIA". Fly by Night (Planet)

We are excited to welcome another friend from abroad to the catalogue; Paula Tape. Hailing from Santiago, Chile and residing in Milan, Italy, Paula reveals her passion for rhythm through two distinctive cuts. Agua Congas slinks along, driven by a thick bass lick and insistent mallet dyad. Classically dubbed out guitar and vocals air the mix out, while a saw lead slices through, opening it all up. On the flip, Playa Frenes leaps in with slamming percussion and a bass hook that'll blow your monitors, watch out! Crispy guitar solos rip in, resting for a moment, losing no momentum. Stepping back, Project Pablo was lucky enough to bend the A side stems into a lush stomper. Vocoded harmonies wash over the OG's mallet melody, and the rest just coasts along... Enjoy!