techno

release date (vinyl / cd / digital): 21st of October

“I've intended to do an album for a long while. The tracks draw upon ideas going back to various points over the last 12 years or so - some of the hooks I wrote years ago other bits are brand new. In some ways I wanted it to reflect a personal arc and the way I tend to do things  - never rushed”

‘Frames of Reference’ is the some 12 years in the making debut album from UK based techno producer Ø [Phase].

Best known by his work on the Belgium based Token Records his style ranges from gritty minimal techno to Detroit influenced material. His debut ‘Module Overload’ was released on London’s Lost/Cosmic records in 2000 and was followed by a string of productions for London's Surface/Inceptive Records and Ben Sims Ingoma imprint.

The move to Token came in 2007, he shortly after began DJing professionally and has since performed at parties across the globe whilst becoming a regular guest at Berlin’s techno Mecca, Berghain performing alongside esteemed peers and supporters such as Marcel Dettmann, Len Faki and Ben Klock. His continued works have seen constant support throughout the techno world and have featured in CD mixes by Robert Hood, Dave Clarke, François Kevorkian and Fumiya Tanaka amongst others. Alongside his production work Ø [Phase] is also a mastering engineer and on/off artwork designer. Starting out at London’s prestigious Sony Music/Whitfield Street Studios, he has cut records for numerous underground dance acts as well as working on projects for mainstream artists.

Now after a string of acclaimed releases on Token and a selection of remixes for the likes of Robert Hood, Mark Broom and Peter Van Hoesen comes Ø [Phase]’s debut long-player ‘Frames of Reference’. Opening with the brooding and building swirl of ‘Binary Opposition (Process 3)’ Ø [Phase] sets out his template of evolving, richly textured atmospheres underpinned by shards of dark and light. ‘The Bwiti Initiate’ revolves around a bouncing techno rhythm that could most certainly traverse the house/techno divide whilst ‘Distracted’ and ‘Misaligned’ are the kind of unadulterated, pummeling, cavernous techno tracks that have made Lost such a party institution.
Then we have tracks like the soft beating ‘Just Another Dance’ providing a lighter edge, embellished with warmth and strings and the thick, densely woven tapestry of ‘Shadow Caster’ which goes from experimental to dancefloor and back again with consummate ease. The off-kilter lilt of ‘Perplexed’ drags us further into the dark before keys and a hint of a melody draw us back upwards for air whilst the fat driving bass of ‘Dirtro II’ and funkier edged menace of ‘On The Edge’ show a virtuoso producer at the top of his game. The closing introspection of ‘Self Deceit’ wallows in subtle nuances before a mid section synth and string intervention pulls us back from the brink before finally descending into the void.


Tracklist: 

2LP 
A1. Binary Opposition (process 3)
A2. The Bwiti Initiate
B1. Distracted
B2. Dirtro II
C1. Misaligned
C2. Just Another Dance (album version)
D1. Shadow Caster
D2. Self Deceit

CD & Digital:
1. Binary Opposition (process 3)
2. The Bwiti Initiate
3. Distracted
4. Dirtro II
5. On The Edge
6. Perplexed
7. Misaligned
8. Just Another Dance (album version)
9. Shadow Caster
10. Self Deceit

www.facebook.com/ashleyphase
www.residentadvisor.net/dj/phase 
www.tokenrecords.com
www.facebook.com/tokenrecords 

Frames Of Reference

Ø [Phase] - Self Deceit

Label: Mord 
Artist: Bas Mooy 
Title: Rage, Remedy & The Lash EP 
Cat No: MORD006 
Format: 12" and Digital 
http://mord.bandcamp.com
Art by Ziggy Klesha APCboyz

A1- Son of Sins 
A2- Ann Meth 
B1- Rage 
B2- Kaayman Regiment 

Release Date: 20.01.2013 

*** 
Son of sins. 
Black days, asphalt jungle. 
Silence, 
while she was out there. 

*** 
Supported by: Blawan, Surgeon, Dave Clarke, James Ruskin, Tommy Four Seven, Speedy J, Chris Liebing, Joseph Capriati, Gary Beck, Perc, AnD, Marcel Dettmann, Truncate, Lucy, Pfirter, Black Asteroid, Rebekah, Truss, Forward Strategy Group, Chris Finke, Giorgio Gigli, The Public Stand, Mark Broom, Happa, Radial, Darko Esser, Clouds, Paul Birken, Cassegrain, Kriz, Developer, Mr. Jones, Lag, Sunil Sharpe, Charlton, Svreca, D. Carbone, Juho Kusti, Jeff Derringer, Pacou, Paula Temple, Erphun, P.E.A.R.L. , Thomas Hessler, Boddika, Paul Mac, Henning Baer, Luis Ruiz, Gareth Wild, NX1, Sandrien, J. Tijn, Joachim Spieth, Exium, Nuno dos Santos, Octave, Markus Suckut, The Black Dog, Raiz, Xhin, The Zone, Blindspot, Samuli Kemppi, Hans Bouffmyhre, Fran Hartnett, Christian Wunsch, Wire, Sawf, Inigo Kennedy, Hector Oaks, Kontort, Adam X, Rich Jones aka Operator, L.A.W, Ritzi Lee, Mark Morris...

www.facebook.com/mordrecords

BUY AT BANDCAMP

Mord 006 - Bas Mooy - Rage, Remedy & The Lash EP (previews)

This month's podcast is mixed by Jake Conlon, a young DJ/Producer from Birmingham, UK. A few months back he released his Danica EP on Decoy Records which gained support from Surgeon, Perc, Ben Klock, DVS1, Richie Hawtin and Blawan.  

Tracklisting;

1. Derlich - Thrill
2. Survex - Stap (Villix Remix)
3. Skirt - Wish Is In The Maze (Inigo Kennedy Remix)
4. Survex - Ghost
5. Perial - 1996
6. Kwartz - Black Chromosome
7. CTRLS - Displacer (Sleeparchive Version 1)
8. Shifted - Suspended Inside
9. Ross Alexander - Aaraex
10. Ø [Phase] - Misaligned
11. Dare&Haste - Chong
12. Mael - Wired
13. Perc - 405 (Unilever Dub)
14. TRVE - Krook (Urbano Remix)
15. Shifted - Pulse Incomplete
16. Rich Oddie - Bloodstream
17. Inigo Kennedy - VHSK II
18. Demo - Untitled

For my information follow Jake here;

https://www.facebook.com/jakeconlonmusic

Jake Conlon - Danica EP ; 

http://www.beatport.com/release/danica-ep/1216914

As always thanks for listening! 

Decoy Podcast Series 03 featuring a mix from Jake Conlon

Exclusive track from my forthcoming EP on Cult Figures 31/3/14

A2 Rebekah - Liebkraft - Cult Figures 03

After the successful release of Exium on Modularz, we welcome label boss Developer to nheoma. The result is a split ep with 4 tracks, something not to be missed.

Release date: 03/03/14



Exium / Developer - The Payback EP - nheoma 016

Preorder: http://nightschoolrecords.bigcartel.com/product/lssn025-prostitutes-nouveauree-12

Prostitutes – aka Cleveland, Ohio marauder James Donadio - flexes a whole new set of muscles on Nouveauree, his first work for Night School. Sticking to an all-analogue machine-based strategy, Donadio has warped and stripped his palette to create a juddering force majeure across 5 tracks and 28 minutes of power play.

With previous work on labels such as Mira and Spectrum Spools, Prostitutes has deconstructed Techno forms and re-invigorated 4/4 structures to delirious, often psychedelic effect. Nouveauree can be viewed as a purge, a palette cleanser, a slab of re-formed white-noise, bass-heavy kick drums and searing, improbable sampling. Mastered by James Plotkin and cut by Matt Colton, each sound and bar is perfectly placed for maximum stereo-field contamination.

Opening stomper “Late To Take It Light” merges echoing, obfuscated sound with a doom-laden kick before collapsing into an analogue, almost-improvised climax. “Hate’s In The City” ups the tempo with masterful, bass-heavy rhythm and faded static bursts before “Punk In The Street” jumps in, quite possibly the most audacious track of Prostitutes’ career. A definite highlight, the track is infected with a deeply offensive horn sample that does battle with a rumbling, deafening drum machine, a battle that is decided with one of the most extreme 15 seconds waxed this year. Side 2 allows Donadio some breathing space, with “Dragged It Home To Bed” reveling in a more rolling rhythm punctuated with lush frequencies and expert filtering. “So Goddamn Gaunt” rounds off Nouveauree, a harking back to the classic Prostitutes sound, claustrophobic samples interspersing the tight, natural funk that Donadio has made his own. 

PROSTITUTES - Hate's In The City (from Nouveauree LSSN025)

AS SEMBLY

AnD - Power Spectrum

PVS - Looper (Conrad Van Orton Remix)


Release date (3LP, cd & digital format): 3rd of November

TRACKLIST
1. Ø [Phase] - Insectoid
2. Lucy - Sana Sana Sana Cura Cura Cura
3. Ctrls - x.y
4. Rødhåd - Haumea
5. Planetary Assault Systems - The 808 Track (Parts 1 and 2)
6. James Ruskin - No Trace
7. Surgeon - Fixed Action Pattern
8. Inigo Kennedy - Arcing
9. Karenn - Pace Yourself

INFO
It was early 2007 when Inigo Kennedy inaugurated Token. Since that Identify Yourself 12” the Belgian label has gone from strength to strength, integrating both Kennedy and Ashley Burchett, aka Ø [Phase], into becoming integral cogs in the Token machine. In between releases by Grovskopa, Oscar Mulero and Go Hiyama, both Ø [Phase] and Inigo Kennedy dominated Token’s output, but it wasn’t until Burchett’s watershed Binary Opposition that Token received the shower of praise it deserved. Following this, label founder Kr!z issued three remix 12”s of that release which, including Token regulars, took in a profound cast of producers to reprocess “Binary Opposition” by the way of Sigha, Peter Van Hoesen, Planetary Assault Systems and Ben Klock. It was here Token stamped their authority on contemporary techno.

Since then Token has grown exponentially, bringing into their fold artists like Xhin, Mark Broom and Rødhåd, while Ctrls, formally one half of Northern Structures, has seen his solo career flourish on Token with the release of five records to date, and he joins Inigo Kennedy and Ø [Phase] as a label stalwart. Additionally this year, Orphx and Ancient Methods debuted their relentless Eschaton collaboration on Token, and Christian Wünsch’s Spherical Coordinates dalliance with Oscar Mulero has gained even more momentum with a second release called Kinematics Equations. Now, seven years after that debut Kennedy record, Token present Aphelion, a nine-track CD and triple vinyl grandstand of new and exclusive material from label regulars and like-minded artists whom Token founder Kr!z specifically commissioned for this milestone release.

The penultimate record before Aphelion was a second Token 12” by Rødhåd, another artist adding to the cultivation of the label’s sound and roster, and for this compilation the Berliner supplies his cosmically inspired “Haumea”. Joining the Dystopian founder on Aphelion are three of the UK’s most influential techno artists: Surgeon, James Ruskin and Luke Slater under his Planetary Assault Systems alias who provide Token with solo material for the first time after previously appearing on the imprint in remix form. Entirely new names to grace the label via Aphelion include Stroboscopic Artefacts founder Lucy, and Blawan and Pariah's Karenn project, while label faithfuls Inigo Kennedy,  Ø [Phase] and Ctrls naturally commit three Token defining productions.

Casting one’s eye over Token’s back catalogue and it’s clear to see the label is a staunch advocate of absolute techno, remaining steadfast in issuing quality material that remains true to classic strands of the genre regardless of its popularity flux. In that respect, Aphelion - a word used to describe the point in orbit when a planet or comet is farthest from the sun - provides a simple analogy that the magnetic force of Token, unfazed by the shadows cast by popular opinion, will proudly shine light on their artists and given styles. 

“We started in an era where our genre was very unpopular,” Kr!z explains. “And in the end that seemed a big advantage for us, because when everyone was giving up, we started our mission.” Regularly hosting label nights in prominent clubs around the world, Token has become a label supported by a wide-ranging body of artists like Âme and Ben Klock to Efdemin, Truss and Ancient Methods. With the label now branching out into album and compilation territory, Token’s duty to techno may not yet be accomplished, but it’s been a job well done.

www.tokenrecords.com
www.facebook.com/tokenrecords

Aphelion

Rødhåd - Haumea

Inigo Kennedy - Arcing

Full stream of CD1 of the 'Slowly Exploding' compilations.

CD1 is 11 new tracks. CD2 is a 66 minute DJ mix by Perc. Released on 10th November on Perc Trax.

Clouds - Dread Networks (Perc Remix)

Release date (vinyl & digital format): 8th of December

This year has proved to be Token’s biggest with the Belgian label releasing music from Surgeon, Rødhåd, an album by Inigo Kennedy, while also debuting Ancient Methods & Orphx’s Eschaton collaboration and welcoming back Oscar Mulero & Christian Wünsch’s Spherical Coordinates project. Following the release of Token’s unyielding Aphelion compilation, a collection of exclusive productions label founder Kr!z outsourced from famed artists like Luke Slater, James Ruskin, Lucy and Karenn, Token looks inward again by inviting back to its ranks hardened UK techno martial Makaton.

Steve Bailey, aka Makaton, has been releasing hard-line techno since 1999 with all but two of his releases coming through his own Rodz-Konez operation, a label that’s also put out music by Inigo Kennedy, Regis, Female and The 65D Mavericks. One of those two records not released on Rodz-Konez was Makaton’s 2009 Token debut, Leave Them All Behind, a record described by Resident Advisor as “hypnotic, swathed in enigmatic chord sequences”, which was, until now, his last.

After a five year hiatus Makaton makes a storming return to Token and releasing music with this Ra Ra Replica EP. To be expected, Bailey delivers a ruthless body of work incorporating hardcore components of British techno like he’s always done, be it the shuddering industrialisms of “Spit To Lubricate”, frenetic 909 workouts of “Night #1” or the psycho cluster synths of Lead You Astray. It’s not all cavernous cannonades of booming techno however, with Makaton also providing the dense but groovy drum-track “Dstablise” in a production that sculpts loopy electro tones with bleepy Warp-era synths made fit Token’s inured framework.

TRACKLIST
1. Makaton - Lead You Astray
2. Makaton - Night #1
3. Makaton - Spit To Lubricate
4. Makaton - Dstabilise

www.tokenrecords.com
www.facebook.com/tokenrecords

Ra Ra Replica

Makaton - Spit To Lubricate

Makaton - Night #1

Violent - Modular Theory

Techno producer duo I/Y make their debut on the Dynamic Reflection label with their 'Objection' release. 'Objection' is a dark yet dance floor ready track, driven by playful rhythmic synths, pulsating low ends. The well designed stabs and atmosphere in 'Primary', ensure it can be played at almost any moment in a set. Furthermore, Sweden's trip master Acronym delivers two outstanding takes on the EP's A side, adding an amazingly layered amount of depth, while maintaining the driving force of the original. Essential dance floor material!

Digital available at Bandcamp: http://bit.ly/1xiG679
Vinyl available via Triple Vision: http://bit.ly/1Bnk5j3

Objection EP

Primary

Bandcamp

IY - Primary

Young Scottish Techno Gods @thisisclouds return with part three of Tannhauser Acid Works. 

Hardcore hooligan anthems. Fear-inducing, awe-inspiring, warehouse acid. Limited vinyl. Digital bonuses. 

BUY NOW: 

12“:
Juno: http://bit.ly/1coPblo
Phonica: http://bit.ly/1KWLxLx
decks: http://bit.ly/1GYC42c

digital:
Beatport: http://btprt.dj/1E1SJA0
iTunes: http://apple.co/1Iw1gl8
Juno: http://bit.ly/1QAGhAe
Traxsource: http://bit.ly/1EvyXgP
WhatPeoplePlay: http://bit.ly/1zS4dLl
Spotify: http://spoti.fi/1FZ81LN
Rdio: http://bit.ly/1Ff0vgV
Google Play: http://bit.ly/1PdkCRu
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1RucAlP
Boomkat: http://bit.ly/1Ess5lj

www.facebook.com/thisisclouds

www.turborecordings.com
www.facebook.com/turborecordings

Tannhauser Acid Works III

Clouds - Moncrieff Mad Squad

Magical Planet Rose party, Nimma nights...

Darko Esser @ Planet Rose (warm up for Ben Klock) 15-09-2012

Artist: Exium
Title: A sensible alternative to emotion
Label: PoleGroup
Cat.Number: PoleGroup16
Format: Digital, CD and Vinyl
Release Date: 2013 -may 20 (vinyl), June 3 (digital)

www.exium-music.com
www.facebook.com/exiumlive
www.polegroup.net


techno

Daniel Nilsson 5