Tag Archive: review

Wonky Dynamo, Never Loved Before

In the history of smart marketing there have probably been better ideas than calling your freshly minted label Cunting Records, but perhaps owner Lee Latmir knows something about trend forecasting I don’t.

John Roberts, Glass Eights

On his debut album, Glass Eights, John Roberts embodies the unrestrained creativity of house music progenitors while offering an aesthetic that is wholly his own.

James Blake, Klavierwerke

Unlike the blown-out R&B histrionics of his first R&S record, CMYK, Londoner James Blake takes the humble source material of his own piano and voice and stretches, chops, and dices it on follow-up EP Klavierwerke.

2AM/FM, Final Approach

Final Approach for Crème Organization’s JAK sub-label is easily one of the most personality-filled compositions to emerge from 2AM/FM (Tadd Mullinix and D’Marc Cantu).

I:Cube, Mérovingienne

As house gets deeper and deeper, it’s nice to have I:Cube issuing 12″s like Mérovingienne that bring grins to the sometimes dour faces of modern house music.

Jack Sparrow, Circadian

Conscious of the ever-changing face of dance music, Jack Sparrow strives to create something timeless and universal on his debut album, Circadian.

Nochexxx, Ritalin Love/Timepiece

Nochexxx’s debut for Ramp Recordings synthesizes a variety of elements into unceasingly fidgety arrangements that nevertheless stay deftly away from disorder.

BBH: Larry Heard, Missing You

Alleviated Records continues reissuing classic Larry Heard sides, following the seminal Mr. Fingers with 1999’s just as potent Missing You.

Seulo, Cabin Fever

Jim Rivers continues to use his Seulo moniker to peddle the deeper side of his music on Cabin Fever, his third release for Four:Twenty Recordings.

Nebraska, Four For Four EP

Returning to Rush Hour for his latest, the Four For Four EP, Nebraska absolutely makes good on the collection’s title.

Barker & Baumecker, Candyflip

Candyflip, a collaborative EP from Sam Barker and Andreas Baumbecker, manages to find yet another unexplored aspect of dance music for Ostgut Ton to interrogate.

Flying Lotus, Pattern+Grid World

Where Flying Lotus’s 2010 album Cosmogramma was a spiritual space odyssey, the follow-up EP, Pattern+Grid World, is an altogether more rough and tumble, experimental set of tunes.

Terrance McDonald, Mind Over Matter

Aroy Dee and company at M>O>S Deep have done us all a favor by bringing Terrance McDonald’s 1991 single Mind Over Matter back into circulation.

Leif, Remember

With the success of Leif’s first collaboration with vocalist Donna Lea on the Priority EP, it’s little surprise he’s kept her close for his next act, Remember.

Jichael Mackson, Just In Time

Although uneven, Jichael Mackson’s Just In Time finds him as untamed and confounding as ever.

Unknown artist, Waveshape/Atrium Munitions

1XA, anonymous in name as they come, manages to do the whole mysterious-techno-release thing one better on their third 12″, Waveshape/Atrium Munitions.

James Teej, Seven Day Mend

Seven Day Mend, the first single from James Teej’s debut album, neatly encapsulates the Canadian producer’s appeal and hints at his weaknesses.

Matthew Dear, Black City

Black City, Matthew Dear’s fourth album, often feels like a series of deeply personal vignettes conjoined by a few widescreen thrillers.

NDF, Since We Last Met

Confounding DFA watchers, NDF (the pairing of Bruno Pronsato and Sergio Giorgini) create something beautiful and slightly abstract on Since We Last Met. Ricardo Villalobos contributes two remixes.

Nick Turner, Love Is Reel

With Love Is Reel, new talent Nick Turner puts slo-mo house labels on notice that he’s ready for the big leagues.