Techno Новости

Back on the annual 7” excursion, Warning presents you this special split release by YOUR PLANET IS NEXT and JOTEL CALIFORNIA, adding new twists to eternal classics.

2023 Repress

Canadian duo M.S.L. debuts on the Clone Dub Series with a heady 4 track ep. Walking that fine line between classic headphone IDM and tripped out early morning dance floor cuts. Bleepy arpeggios, melodies and soaring strings, backed by the syncopated rythms of analogue drummachines. Very reminiscent of early F-com releases and, our own harbour city duo, Duplex's early works on Dub and Clone Records.

2022 Repress

Mr. Ho shows again why he is a favorite producer for so many! A double album full of bleepy breakbeat tunes and robotic electro, all with a strong focus on the dancefloor. His debut album 'Michaelsoft' is a perfect and sophisticated summation of the talented producers skill at making sonically slick groove-led music, ranging wide in genres and moods. The album is a journey of sorts, kicking off with the dreamy breaks of '000Baby' and the slightly broken beats of the spine-tingling 'Ngomee' before venturing into hectic and threatening electro with 'Quit Startin' and ghetto-funk stylings of '14me'. After listening to 'Michaelsoft' the listener is reminded once again of the subject of time, specifically the time the producer has spent silently honing and calmly perfecting his craft whilst the rest of the world seems to descend into chaos. Recommended!

Doodle's first V.A. compiles a Hodgepodge of spicy tunes with bangers on the A and trippy sounds on the B.

Our label is thrilled to share yet another mind-blowing electro/proto-techno track by Art Programming (Art P), following the release of "Genscher Pull N Push". This track was originally the final piece on their self-titled album, released on cassette in 1983 under the P.A.P. label from Bremen.

To this day, the track remains almost completely unknown within collector's circles. However, let's take a moment to imagine what might have happened had the recording been released as a vinyl 12" back in 1983. Could it have been a game changer? We will never know for sure. Nevertheless, one thing is certain: with its punchy Roland 808 rhythms, and catchy synth lines and vocoder, it undoubtedly qualifies as a classic German electro track, and one of the earliest techno/proto-techno recordings.

At almost 8 minutes in length, this track includes one of the most exhilarating breaks in electro music of that era, showcasing extensive drum editing and effects. It strongly resembles the sound that Detroit would become famous for in the years to come, but make no mistake - this record was produced straight out of Bremen, a relatively small city in Northern Germany.

For the flip side of the single, we enlisted Alexander Arpeggio, the owner of Mond Musik und Eine Welt label, to edit the track while preserving its original spirit. As a member of the acid techno project Aufgang B and the synth-pop minimal duo OTTO, he not only has a deep understanding for this kind of music but also possesses the ability to give the song a different feel with greater dancefloor appeal. He has slightly reduced the tempo of the track and emphasized the instrumental and break parts, resulting in an exciting remix that is DJ-friendly and has everything you could ask for.

The 12" release comes with the original Art Programming logo in a vintage style, packaged in a generic black sleeve with hype sticker. It is limited to only 200 copies. This is a serious gem that you won't want to miss out on, so act fast!

Berlin's infamous Ellen Allien proudly delivers her 7th solo LP, the superlative 'Nost'. Across nine seminal tracks, Ellen Allien demonstrates why she is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of Berlin's techno scene. A visionary who has cultivated a sound which continues to evolve and mutate into new areas, moving smoothly between the classic analogue squelches of acid to anarchic splendour and mesmerising, celestial soundscapes. 'Nost' is the work of an artist who has found herself, yet still pushes herself to go beyond her comfort zone, still creating, still learning and still yearning for more. This is Ellen Allien, this is Berlin and this is 'Nost'.

New double LP by new face Mandrake on ever-reliable Bunker. Emotive & gloomy synth-scapes that sound like a score to a movie that never was nor will be.

New double LP by new face Mandrake on ever-reliable Bunker. Emotive & gloomy synth-scapes that sound like a score to a movie that never was nor will be.

The Croatian humanoid with a Detroit electro soul called N-Ter, with five high voltage tracks filled with bass sequences, analog beats and contrasting melodies that take you on a journey to the unknown. ''Ezzential Electro'' is the biggest project Electro Records has done so far. It consists of 36 vinyl records produced by artists they consider essential for the current underground electro movement. The first six parts of the series come in beautiful white silkscreen printed sleeves on recycled cardboard and include a real puzzle piece on the front cover, indicating which part of the series you have in your hands.

Limited repress!

Junction Forest is a new label operated by Junction Records Store, out of Seoul. The first release is from our associate Tim a.k.a S.O.N.S and is a trance 3-tracker with a few twists.
It is titled after an (in)famous forest in the middle of Seoul, straightforwardly called... Seoul Forest.

Some words from S.O.N.S about the release:

So I got some complains about my last album, reportedly containing no danceable tracks,
"I tried to play it out and everybody left" said one angry customer. "I thought it sounded fine but it clears the floor 100%" wrote another one.

Well this time I took a different approach.

On the A side, you get Tteuggeopge (meaning "Hot" in Korean) - it's a mixture of acid techno and psy-trance breakdowns, with some vocal samples taken from an old Korean movie, a jazz intro and a long 9.09minutes build up (figures are never chosen randomly) which I hope won't let the dancefloor unmoved - if you dare to play it!
On the flip you get the ambient version... no! I was joking! you get 2 other trance tracks
Psychic Link is a mixture of Hard & Goa Trance sounds with breakbeats samples & a surprising deep tribal interlude in the middle to cool down the room for a minute.
And finally Snow White And The Seven Mushrooms is an angry bad tripping tribute to 90s progressive house sounds. Like if Robin S took too much acid and is haunted by some supernatural creatures.

First release in 5 years from US-born, Lisbon-based musician. Dark, moody, and heavy dance and downtempo. Gatefold double LP with full color sleeve

In the centre of deep space we tune in to the radio broadcasts from an old Class T interstellar spaceship. The emissions endlessly resonate the frequencies of the seventeenth release on the label HC Records by one of the titans of the Valencian scene, The Lost Boys, new pseudonym of the DJ and producer Raszia.

With releases on labels such as Bass Agenda, Subsist or Hxagrm Records, the artist mesmerises our senses with the Exiles of Mars Ep, available in both double vinyl and digital.

Syncopated rhythms are the protagonists across four original tracks together
with remixes by four electro legends: Boris Divider, Estrato Aurora, Dark Vektor, and Filmmaker.

The EP’s first cut is a remix of "Wall Of Bricks" by the legendary Boris Divider, which gives the track an air of crystalline, synthetic and cosmic sound, very much in line with his latest works on the Generative Operations series. Next, we find the original version, where the kick drums are heavier, the synths and basses more colourful and the acid sequences take centre stage in an odyssey of sidereal intensity.

On the record’s flip side, a feeling of overwhelming melancholy takes root in our soul. Valencian Estrato Aurora mentally transports us to the mysterious red sand of Mars in a precise exercise in symphonic minimalism with his remix of "Exiles of Mars", which mutates the original idea with velvety pads, synths and a slow and rapturous hypnotism that sinks us to unfathomable depths.
The Lost Boys' original concept on B2 is a combination of Miami Bass-style breaks and a demonic mantra-like main synth line, backed by what seems like an infinity of pearly effects and secondary melodies, pushing the track towards a crescendo punctuated by a dry and sharp snare.

The second disc’s opener "Bust My Moves" is a masterclass in deconstruction and reconstruction by Dark Vektor with his "Electro Escuadrón Remix”. The genius from Terrassa provides powerful lyrics loaded with a message about the modern rise of the 808 movement. We return to the original Lost Boys version on C2, a futuristic martial discourse takes shape with combating breaks combined with rave chords and brief episodes of respite, almost dreamlike, in the middle and end of the track’s exciting development.

On the D side, rough frequencies verging on distortion materialise through our ship's speakers as we pick up the Colombian Filmmaker’s remix of "Data Recovery For Brains". A psychotronic final appetiser that combines harshness and elegance in the use of the rolling kick drums and saturation of the sound, it is without a doubt the ideal soundtrack to narrate the collision of two galaxies. The closing of the EP features the original track, in which The Lost Boys show us his most mental and lysergic side as the track progresses along a slow and comforting broken rhythm, made dynamic by clever use of diverse acid sequences and clairvoyant stellar melodies.

The complete artistic experience is enhanced in all dimensions with accompanying artwork by
Daniel Requeni and videos elaborated by Frank-F.

Mastering as usual by Steve Voidloss at Black Monolith Studios in London (UK).

2023 Repress

Avoidant Records present a special 12" vinyl sampler taken from the Various Artists compilation, "Defend Your Planet"

Clut006 delivers.

This time with a split Ep from a superb Stigma and from the “master” Dawl.

Raw, heavy, aggressive basslines and cosmics linear synth are common element to make you understand how to burn the floor. You can have an Intence perception about how to Riding high through the vibe.

Volte-Face's BleeD releases a third and final 12" of the year, welcoming two Secondnature (Seattle) residents, Archivist and Fugal, into the fold for a debut collaborative EP. The EP actually came about when Volte-Face heard 'Undertow' on one of Archivist's mixes, enquired where the track could be purchased, only to find that it was a one-off collaboration with no plans for a release. The idea for an EP was proposed and, despite the transatlantic journeying required to make it happen, the record came together relatively quickly. Former Secondnature guest, the Northern Electronics/Semantica affiliated Acronym, rounds off the EP in resounding fashion with one of his most direct efforts to date. With early support from DJ Nobu, Peter Van Hoesen and Daniel Avery.

c-lektro is back with number 9 in the series!

Once again, Perm has turned just the right knobs to give you the perfect soundtrack for your personal journey into Techno wonderland. The Leipzig based wizard simply knows how to leave dancers both dizzy and beatific. When those strings in "03-VIII" come together to its climax you're more than ready to embrace the night. The focus in "03-IV" is more heavy on the drum work with just the right amount of subtle tripping hazards. "03-III" builds and builds without ever bubbling over while the mighty "03-VIII" comes with a Boom-Tschak-Electro feel to it. The artwork comes courtesy of Carl-Johannes Schulze.

PRZ reports for duty for the 9th release in the Hilltown Disco series with six no-nonsense, commanding, electro-cuts, delving into intergalactic territory with "Red Material".

Chateau Royal boss, Gal Perez has featured twice on Hilltown Disco's charity compilations, making Perez a familiar face on the label. Tel-Aviv based, PRZ spent over a year finely-tuning 'Red Material', flexing his rich and extensive production levels.

The 12" features some of the most intense and twisted, bass-heavy tracks the label has released to date. With fizzing drum machine beats, deep, space acid-lines, and the occasional disgruntled cyborg, Gal creates certified future-classics for the Hilltown Disco imprint.

Repress

Alder and Fasme are two young producers based in Nantes. Influenced by acid house and braindance, their tracks exude a sweet perfume of loony 303 that Ceephax would not deny. A pure lesson of delightful electro made of violence and beauty!

We are proud to present the first EP (12'' vinyl) of _ILL COMMUNICATION_ (formation composed by Unkle Fon and Javier Gantz) with remixes by Not A Headliner and Jonas Kopp.

*Utopia Society* is a techno record label based in Madrid, Spain.

With the VOI 031 Voitax enters a new series of releases that will continue to expand the labels explorative musical and visual output with more talent. The series kicks of with no one less than IMOGEN, who was bursting out on the scene only a few years ago. Ever since, she established herself as an ambitious selector behind the decks and became a prominent figure in the world of dance music. Her first solo EP "What?" on Voitax presents a strong package of five tracks that clearly reflect the influence of her homelands prosperous electronic music heritage. A distinguished set of breaks are fusionend with Electro, IDM, and Hardcore without ever loosing touch to its groovy rhythmics. While this release is certainly loaded with strong dance floor material, the quality of her production process remains remarkable. The roughness and edginess of the entire EP reveal a strong connection to her 808 and modular system, that helped to create unique textures and granular soundscapes. Instead of resampling UK sample packs over and over again, IMOGEN is ambitious to create her own signature sound through a sequence of personalized studio equipment. With this approach she manages to fusion a punky style of 90's rave culture with sophisticated futuristic sound processing. Each track meets a different atmosphere, as the approach to rhythm, speed, sound and arrangement evolves from the beginning to the end - yet, they all remain part of the same story. We are delighted to welcome IMOGEN to the family and are looking forward to see this journey grow.

Tracks by T-Error, MagikBitum, Digitizer, Kind Human Being, Kitbuilders, DVS NME and Noise and Noise. The Time Capsule project, also known as 808 Box, is a project created by Fundamental Records. The six boxes released in recent years include 56 records with over 300 tracks from artists from every corner of the world. Some warehouse copies have surfaced of the 10th Anniversary 808 Box, and these will be available individually. These are new copies in perfect condition, with the original sleeves printed with the images of the classic Roland TR-808.

A new entity has made musical contact with Shipwrec. Alpha Vistor. The newly minted moniker of musician and sound designer Ivan Zapico, this four tracker debut is steeped in the traditions of electro. In the ghostly "Ciudad Fantasma" threats lurk in the murky shadows of basslines and beats, an unsettling atmosphere of menace penetrating speakers from the outset. Clinical percussion and an overarching unease introduce "20202020." Dark undercurrents of melody brood below shimmering glass chords in this foreboding work. The flip comes to life with "Malos Tiempos para la Guerra," an ominous prescience coming to bear in the track title. A hi-hat haze is broken by sweetened strings, a kick drum maintaining the intensity. When a snare arrives, it is accompanied by greasy acid basslines; brightness countered with shadow. The final encounter comes with "Templo de Cova." A soaked beat surfaces amid stabbing sythlines and twilight tones that break to triumphal highs, a reflective culmination to this ruminative record.

Dutch record label and shop Deeptrax has been tirelessly pushing the boundaries between rigid funk, electro, ambient & techno since 2016 and for release number 033, Singaporean Tserg delves in to the realms of science fiction. First up 'Dreadfully Distinct' conjures up themes of consciousness and the connections between man and machine in this Blade Runner=inspired soundscape, punctured with breakbeats and star-twinkling percussion, while 'Stardust' warps an electronic bassline among more day-dreaming voyages into the universe. On the flip the ambient stylings of 'Decisions; Derisions' wash over the listener as heartbeat bass kicks punctuate airy tapestries of space and sound, while 'Ready State of Mind' ramps up the tempo with light percussion and syncopated beats, all tightly wound around spaced-out samples.

Spencer Parker invites Swedish artist Billie Jo to Work Them Records with five driving techno cuts entitled 'The Ravenous' EP featuring a remix from Me Me Me boss Man Power.

Hailing from Stockholm, Billie Jo is a founding member of the .WAV collective and resident DJ at Gothenburg's Rottweiler when not performing at clubs like Tresor. She now joins Work Them Records, bringing an array of robust productions with her.

With its pounding drums and ghostly vocals, 'Erroneous' quickly sets the tone of the release, leading into 'Saturn' with its glassy textures and echoing effects. 'Ravenous' then takes us into murkier territories, generating a duskier aesthetic with its twisted sounds before British producer Man Power provides a vigorous reinterpretation under his newly minted MPX moniker, which focuses on raw club tracks, featuring hard stabs and acid licks.

With its saw-like lead and trippy atmospherics, 'Dir Vsseu' sounds like being pulled through a vortex, making way for the powerful 'Planet 9' which concludes the package with metallic elements and subtle pads.

French dynamo LB aka Labat returns for his second EP on Steel City Dance Discs. The Lyon-based artist delivers another collection of eclectic productions, displaying his trademark ability to source and integrate individuality and soul.

Skincare’s title track of the same name is a pure house throwback featuring labat’s trademark punchy 808’s, swirling synths and hypnotic vocal line guaranteed to have you moving on any dancefloor.

Dry Tears is the latest release from the Bruto Industries label and their first release in 12" format. On this occasion, xKukum, one of the founding members of the label, presents his first EP.

The record, which was recorded in late 2020, traces an emotional journey from the distortion of reality caused by melancholy to the determination to move away from it. The EP consists of four original tracks that guide the listener through this journey, with influences from EBM, Dark Wave, Techno, and more. On side A, we find more introspective and melodic tracks, while side B offers sounds more focused on the dance floor. As a special addition, Colombian artist Filmmaker contributes a remix of the track "No More Dramas," complementing the atmosphere of the album with his characteristic powerful sound.

Like previous releases from the label, this work has been mastered by Dan Böhler, who has provided the EP with a sound quality that will not disappoint genre lovers. The artwork is done by Marcos Abella, who completes the concept with an imagery influenced by manga and cyberpunk aesthetics.

Curtis Electronix reaches its 10th drop presenting the second album from his owner and founder CEM3340, MACCHINE. The double 12" draws together 8 new tracks all made and recorded using only hardware. Spanning from pumped up machine-led cyber-funk beats, to darting powerful techno out-kilters, but always maintaining a stable focus on CEM3340 personal signature, it explores those ravines where techno and electro collide. "MACCHINE" is pure dedication to the machines. With no compromise.

Following the Four Tet, Batu, Damian Lazarus, remixes of electronic hero Krust’s critically acclaimed album ‘The Edge Of Everything’, the A-list versions keep flowing with Calibre, LCY and Flynn each re-working a different track from the LP on Krust - TEOE Remixes #2.

Fellow D&B don Calibre turns ‘It’s A Lot’ into a warm, glowing two-step roller with serrated analogue bass and a subtly masterful musicality befitting of his classical training.

Rising new school queen LCY is clearly a kindred spirit, rivalling Krust with her future-facing breakbeat science that’s equally as compelling and inventive as the original, but also totally unique.

Rounding off the remixes with a rugged halftime head-nodder and bringing things full circle is Krust’s brother Flynn; a fellow member of 1989 ‘Wishing On A Star’ hitmakers Fresh 4 alongside Krust – and also a jungle legend in his own right – as half of veteran duo Flynn & Flora.

With such inspiring source material, it’s unsurprising that all of the remixers have brought their best game to this impeccable collection.

Our next foray into the world of 12” vinyl sees three classic cuts from Tyrome - aka Kris Vanderheyden and Pascal Deneef, remastered for today’s standard and pressed onto glorious wax for that nostalgic feel. Tyrome formed in 1996 and quickly gained a following with their brand of electronic dance music. Their first outings appeared on the famous Bonzai Trance Progressive label where they’d deliver these three top-notch joints before appearing on other labels. Kris is a Belgian techno and electronic music producer who is considered one of the leading pioneers of the Belgian techno scene. He is also known by his stage name Insider, as well as The Assistant and he belonged to a host of groups including Quick Reverse, Cherry Moon Trax and Tripomatic Allstars to name just a few and he contributed heavily to the Bonzai sound of the 90’s. Pascal is also a name synonymous with the 90’s techno sound in Belgium. He worked closely with Kris on several projects including Indicator, Technodrive, Total Remedy and Quick Reverse. His repertoire also includes the monikers Big Jim and Emoryt (Tyrome spelt backwards) and has appeared on a raft of labels over the years.

On the A-side we get a taste of Tyrome’s most famous groove, the 1998 joint ‘Electric Voodoo’, with its instantly recognisable vocal sample. A highly charged and energetic slice of trance with a nice techno edge that always gets the crowd moving. On the flip, the B1 slot holds the much deeper grooves of ‘Noxious’ which saw the light of day in 1996. Dark and mysterious, the beat mesmerizes as a melodic siren fades up to the backdrop of erotic voices. A definite contender at any late-night session to keep the party flowing. Concluding the release in the B2 slot, the 1997 cut ‘Monkey Way’ has the honours. A feisty number with a driving groove thanks to a powerful bassline and rhythmic percussions. The track is laden with stabbing synths and pent-up energy just waiting to be unleashed onto the floors.

Present moments of the past, sound reminiscences of the early 90s Valencia, slide through the grooves of our next reference to internally shake and stir those motionless minds and entities that gravitate imperceptibly around us like white noise due to the implantation of the system, so that they awaken to the understanding of their own purpose.

The architect behind this premise is Asymetric80, the pseudonym behind which Gonzalo Sendón from Barcelona promotes his musical inquisitiveness and tries to roll out his rage before the uncertain moments in which we find ourselves while destroying the dance floor. Thus, he gives us Static Minds, the thirteenth vinyl reference on HC Records. It is a release with four original songs and two remixes by Siarem and WLDV in the physical version, which are completed with five extra songs in the digital one.

On side A, first of all, we find Hidden Visions, a blast that invites us to reflect on the origin of freedom of speech through a forceful bass drum, arpeggiated basses and synths that come together with surgical percussions and a structuring discourse passage.

Next, we find the remix of Hidden Visions that Siarem has created. Here, our already habitual on the label, provides further pression with a dreamy EBM key adding and twisting layers, without losing the forceful, arpeggiated and vindictive orientation of the original.

The last track of the first side is Nahual, where the predominance of a great arpeggiated bass and a clear and overwhelming snare drum are combined with varied melodic sequences that invite us to dress up in our best clothes and set out on the route from Barcelona to Valencia to burn our favourite club dancefloor.

Already on the B side, Astral Body takes us back to those crazy nights of frenzy and musical experimentation, a specialty of the Levant thanks to the new sounds coming from central Europe, but with the intention of making us let loose the held back internal rage by dancing with our fists raised high due to the euphoria incited by its elaborate layers of basses, arpeggios and winding pads.

Next, WLDV delivers his version of Astral Body, taking us to a more combative terrain in which all the heavy weapons have been deployed on the battlefield to reverse the anesthetized and collective state of our society through a continuous bombing of percussion and synthesizers as lysergic as destructive.

Fractal closes this episode of long-awaited awakening, a track that captures and cloaks you through its tangle mess of synthetic melodies and forceful percussive pulses to remind us that there is something, something beyond what they have so resignedly and effectively inoculated us with.

The finishing touch to the physical reference is provided by the digital part, where we find the definitive epilogue to this declaration of intent that thus reaches the category of mini-album. Archetype, Symbiosis, Timeline, Hologram and Fragments, with a big download of crystal-clear snares and percussions and grandly intertwined melodies and arpeggios, raise the ante around inner rediscovery after beating society's rotten operating system in the shade of the dance floor.

Last but not least, we have our usual comrades Dani Requeni in charge of the artistic section and graphic design and Steve Voidloss offering the purity of his mastering process handcrafted at Black Monolith Studios in London.

bbbbbb welcomes powerful split EP ‘Clubs Are Closed Vol.1’ as Bjarki & Kuldaboli and Krokodil drop fresh heat on the imprint.

A hub for boundary-pushing and innovative productions across techno, electro, and beyond, Bjarki’s bbbbbb imprint continues to serve as a must-visit platform showcasing Iceland’s finest talents across its family of core artists. Latest offering ‘Clubs Are Closed Vol. 1’ sees founder Bjarki join forces with bbbbbb mainstay Krokodil to take command of the A-side as they deliver a pair of powerful efforts, while the B-side sees Kuldaboli and Erling Bang combine under their Krokodil alias to close the show.

The release welcomes the long-awaited release of opening cut ‘Ú jeje’, a favourite from Bjarki’s 2019 sets, alongside the rousing, high-octane ride of ‘Karmageddon’ (Deepfake Mix). On the flip, the impactful sonics of Krokodil’s B1 ‘Kops Are Comin’ take hold, a production emerging deep from the archives and already supported by the likes of VTSS and SPFDJ, before closing the package via the warping electro spheres of ‘SurvivinTheDanger’.

repress !

Electro veterans “Middle Men” (Bass Junkie & Jim Kneen) return, to seek the future...

4 stellar Electro cuts in their distinctive machine funk style, feature on this their 4th EP outing, brought to you by the mighty Fdb Recordings:

Sound Synthesis returns to Electro Transmissions with four pure electro tracks with that acid touch we love so much in combination with his classic dreaming melodies...

Marvin Gaye and Tangerine Dream together in an elevator in Detroit !

All four of these amazing electro tracks were originally released in digital format by Bass Agenda. With co-operation from Andy Barton of Bass Agenda and all the artists. Picture Disc limited to 300 copies - no repress.

030303 Records taught us a lot about the many faces of acid throughout the 18 years of its existence. The label has specialised in all substyles of the genre, whether that's tracks inspired by early 80s proto acid, Chicago house, braindance or the eerie melancholy of Polygon Window. Good thing is, they haven't stopped getting better at it. Most 030 releases are now out of print and severely sought after and, with so many instant classics featured on it, this fifth compilation will be no exception. Caramel Chameleon kicks off with an epic cut, one that will appeal to fans of Roy of the Ravers. Perseus Traxx, Raving Kid and RAG aka Steven Brunsmann follow suit with acid on a deeper tip, with the latter adding a heavenly soulful touch to it. And how great it is to see American producer Korr? return to the label with a wonderfully spaced out introspective cut. Also standing out is Endfest's heavy electro/acid take on one of the most obscure mysteries ever to come out of Detroit: Shari Vari. Dwaalgast and De Beer Uit Allekmaar aka Cosmic Force deliver the last track before the lights go on - the aptly named A Wave Goodbye has a distinctive, bouncy westcoast-sound-of-Holland feel to it. An excellent compilation and a huge tip!

Back in 2018, two mysterious twelve-inch singles appeared in underground record sthops. Credited to Blotter Trax, a previously unknown outfit who cherished “faceless” anonymity, the pleasingly twisted and mind-altering music on show was a mutant form of electronic psychedelia. The included tracks were variously informed by analogue techno, acid, electro and minimal, but inhabited their own clandestine sonic space. These tracks were, we later discovered, lightly edited “straight to tape” jams, crafted on the fly by their creators in one of Berlin’s most admired studios.

By the time Blotter Trax delivered their follow-up on Clone offshoot Frustrated Funk a year later, the secret was out: the project was in fact a collaboration between two storied artists, techno titan Magda – a DJ/producer who should need little introduction – and serial underground aggravator (and man of many aliases) Jay Ahern, sometime Hauntologists member and acid techno royalty thanks to years spent releasing similarly shadowy EPs as T.B Arthur.

In the years that followed, and before the COVID-19 pandemic grounded them in Berlin, the pair took their incendiary, modular-driven live show to esteemed clubland institutions (Fabric included), on an acclaimed tour of Japan, and onto the stages of festivals across Europe.

Four years on from that appearance on Frustrated Funk, Blotter Trax are back in updated and expanded form. Now a trio thanks to the addition of bassist Hannes Strobl, the band is set to release their far-sighted, funk-fuelled debut album, Super Conductor – a pulsating, thrill-in-minute ride includes contributions from a swathe of notable guests (Nina Hynes, Ilhem Khodja and David Moss provided vocals, Shigeru Tanabu played guitar, Matthew Styles mixed the set and old friend John Tejada mastered it).

While rooted in electro and acid, the album is impressively low-slung, stylish and funky, with nods towards Blotter Trax’s mutual love of Arthur Russell, early ‘80s NYC downtown disco, leftfield new-wave pop and flash-fried punk-funk. Released by JD Twitch’s Optimo Music imprint, it charts the ongoing dancefloor evolution of a band whose days of mystery and mischief are now a distant memory.