This collaboration between composer Yokota and Too Pure band Rothko features vocalist Caroline Ross, and all three equally shine. Opening with the hip-hop beat of “Deep in Mist,” faraway pianos, elegant bass, and lazy vocals prep for the mutations ahead-“Water‘s Edge” invokes the pagan poetry of Dead Can Dance, while “Path Fades Into Forest” is a warm, acoustic guitar-based track. Beats reappear in “Clear Space,” where a harmonica is as affecting as Ross‘ voice. Susumu & Co. have built careers subverting preconceptions about sounds, and discovering new ways to put them together-their combined experience makes Summer golden.
SupremeEx Nuntype
Like Biggie, SupremeEx has a story to tell. But it isn‘t your typical rap story-it‘s more of an epic sci-fi tale with heavy anime influences and talk of advanced technology and primitive species. If that sounds too “nerdy” to you, slow your roll; the music is the real story, and this is devastatingly effective headphone material. S.Ex is a painstakingly precise producer with a carefully crafted signature sound: taut rhythm sections with plenty of electronic bleeps and bloops and great arrangements, but none of glitch-hop‘s ugliness. Soul of Mischief‘s Tajai advances the story verbally, but the music is the perfect mise en scène.
Various Artists Lounge Grooves: The Sophisticated Soundtrack Of Nightlife
Your mama always told you not to judge a book by its cover, right? That‘s normally a good idea, unless you‘re looking at Lounge Grooves. Despite the title and corny pop-lounge cover art, the two discs of this comp are filled with two solid mixes that run the gamut of both East and West Coast house, all culled from the vast catalog of America‘s premier house distribution company, Syntax Records. JT Donaldson‘s disc adds acid, dub, and jazz flavors to a relentless jacking groove, while DJ Joeski‘s mix brims with upbeat Latin house flair and more soulful vocal tracks. So don‘t be fooled, fool!
Jirku-Judge Private Eyes
No, it‘s not a techno boffin cover of Hall and Oates, but it‘s something nearly as pleasurable and without any postmodern ironic smarm. Abstract techno masters Tomas Jirku and Robin Judge meet up for an easy-going collaboration that gets both the big picture and the little details right. The echoing rhythms owe equally to minimal techno and Timbaland, while the tinny-yet-catchy lead melodies of tracks like “Double Trouble” sound like the 8-bit chipset reconfigured for a packed dancefloor.
Head-Roc Negrophobia!
Let‘s face it: overtly political music is usually wack, and don‘t even talk to me about Cornel West. But now, Head-Roc is here to inherit the political rap mantle from Public Enemy, an appropriate position for this D.C. native. With an eye towards flow and hot, swinging beats, Head-Roc tackles issues as diverse as the legacy of slavery, modern day Black empowerment and imperialism from Christopher Columbus to George Bush without preaching or putting heads to bed. Noam Chomsky himself would dig Roc‘s whispered Ying-Yangian foray into the sticky politics of the Middle East on “Free Palestine”-somebody email him an mp3!
Various Artists Flo-Motion Volume 2
Need more proof about the sorry state of commercial radio in the States? Spin Flo-Motion Volume 2, the second mix of representative tracks from DJ Nick Luscombe‘s satellite XFM radio program. Luscombe‘s program specializes in downtempo, but don‘t expect an hour of limp n-th generation trip-hop dregs here: he opens with Jonny Trunk‘s gorgeous, filmic “Zeus,” eases us into HKB Finn‘s unhurried rap “Confession (I Am),” and later transitions from the deep tech-dub of One Deck And Popular‘s “Inner Space” to Nathan Fake‘s epic bleep house number “Dinamo.” Perhaps we can get radio this good over that newfangled internet!
Marc Miroir & Tom Klein Cannot Fly
With Italo disco and electro-tech at an all-time high, this subliminal funk thriller offers a slightly headier vibe. Fusing tribal tech-house, a melodic minimal bass hook and sultry straight-eighth hats, its edgy themes will complement demanding, restless crowds. Using several distinctly dissonant synths in the lead, harmonic overload is not too far off. Heavily on rotation from DJ Hell and alike, only purely erotic players need apply here.
Force Staccato Force Staccato EP
Originally released in 1990, this classic Oliver Lieb/EBM-inspired minimal techno installation has not been available for 14 years. Complementing the title cut, Detroit‘s Ectomorph and label chief Adam X submit their own electro and industrial-fused remixes. Prepare to relive the catacombs of Dorian Grey in Frankfurt, and remember there is no future without the past.
Suburban Knight Digital Warrior Episode 2
Without hesitation, this Detroit underground swordsman drops a vial of acid between the electro-tainted speakers. Delivering a trip laced with ‘90s analog techno flair, you can expect loopy Roland synths to drive the floor into a frenzy. Sublime yet moody, this EP encompasses a bit of atmosphere and a heap of mystery. Flip for a shuffled electro twist with a bouncy, butt bumpin‘ bosca-style beat.
Chronobius Ts
It takes a serious sweat-recycling, smoke-laden afterhours club to appreciate the likes of this cut. As grinding metallic pads drone an industrial haze, relentless distorted loops of meticulously twiddled drums pummel all those who healthy enough to stand. An epic break of psychedelic proportions kicks things into overdrive, while a subtle melody attracts shaking fannies.
