https://ffm.to/lost_188

THE MFA and Lost Language go back a good 20 years - from sweaty nights at Turnmills, to West London pub hang outs, and a subsequent 2004 release on our sister label PRECINCT, with the mighty MOTHERLOAD / SPHINX. Fast forward to 2023, and after some mutual love in the insta DM's and a very happy accident with some stems, we've finally bagged a mother-fucking original, the wonderful SPECIFIC OCEAN.

Fresh from releasing their debut album "Lights Out" on Traum Schallplatten, and an accompanying live show peppered with Border Community and Precinct fan faves, our boys Ali and Rhys are clearly in fine fettle. The MFA make the best noises, and we're spoilt here. A cinematic intro gives way to a huge gated riff, the rave dial turned all the way up (natch), before the wobbliest of whistles has us all floating off into the ether. 

To say we are bullish on this fast n' fresh underground trance sound would be an understatement, so to have two of our current favourite producers form a parallel tag team is a dream come true, with Claire's Accessories (Underzone, Harmless) and Astral Bandit (Area 127, FEED) morphing into ASTRAL ACCESSORIES for this very special two headed snake of a remix, which "Claire" described as Post Apocalyptic Balearic. Amen. 

EL-EL 23

The MFA - Specific Ocean [CLIPS]

https://ffm.to/lost190

LOSTLEGEND's INTO THE SKY (LOST186) was a standout tune for us in 2023. A beautifully produced, uplifting prog trancer, with a delicate ascending riff, and an ethereal vocal that whispered 'remix me, remix me' every time we heard it. So after a few (loads of) twists and turns, our first musical offering of 2024 is the much anticipated remix package of LOSTLEGENDS's INTO THE SKY (LOST190)

DAVE MOTH (Federation, Hardbody) heads up the package with an 'eavy 154BPM trancer that wouldn't have sounded out of place at Sundissestial Leeds back in the day. Think Ian M's 'Deep Swarm' repeatedly stinging Reflekt's 'Need to Feel Loved', on plus 8. Pass us the poppers, mate. Tough, tight, with zero fat, we're massive fans of Dave's sound, and you'll be hearing more from him as we continue our countdown to LOST200.

Keeping the NRG high, ASTRAL BANDIT (Area 127, FEED) finally make their remix debut on EL-EL, giving the vocal a hardcore twist, and adding an infectious new riff, that is exactly the kind of trance we live for, here. Totally Yugen, and totally worth the wait.

STANDARD FORM had a great 2023 with the release of Tracks in Crimson Dust (LOST181) receiving a huge amount of love and support, alongside releases on Pure Trance and Krafted, and here our fella takes things down an almost Creamer & K / Rapture-esque route, with a techy vibe that perfectly suits the vocal.

Seeing us out is CONNOR WOODFORD who last appeared on EL-EL when he remixed the aforementioned LOST181 to excellent effect. Connor specialises in that pumping VANDIT esque energy, and we've got that here in spades, weaving in a new riff and baseline, that adds a whole new flavour to LOSTLEGEND's original.

C U IN THE SKY - EL EL 24

LostLegend - Into The Sky (Remixes) [CLIPS]

Chris Johnson's Locomotion (LOST171) was originally released back in 2020, with a widescreen prog trance remix from EL EL stalwart Relaunch racking up several plays on Paul Van Dyk's VONYC Sessions. Top marks. There was clearly more mileage in the original's driving-stabby-vandit esque riff, though - so we were truly made up when Speedmaster Records head honcho / trance pioneer Paul Copping heard it, liked it, and agreed to rework it.

Berlin based Speedmaster Records has been (and continues to be) a driving force within the fast, melodic, new school trance scene, releasing high nrg music from Part Time Killer, Funk Tribu, Technokool, and SIOC. With this in mind, Paul's remix of Locomotion finds another ratio gear, pitching things up, and adding a techy Marco V style drive over a tough and chunky groove. Choo-Choo!

On the B-Side, Borderline Records boss Activa - who has since signed some of Chris's music (and shared our musings re the untapped old-school-love-parade-energy of Locomotion) has given us the rework he's been playing out in his sets. A faithful re-spray that tightens, tunes, and touches things up in all the right places.

EL EL 24

Chris Johnson - Locomotion [CLIPS]

Portugal 99 / Inhabited Island

Laurence 'Arksun' Rapaccioli and vocalist Ashley Tomberlin formed Luminary in the mid 00's, with their debut 'My World' being picked up and released on Lost Language in 2005.

Tiesto licensed the Andy Moor remix to his Balearic inspired ISOS 4 compilation that same year, forever cementing 'My World' as a classic of the genre.

So 17 years later it was about time we put out some remixes, opting for 3 deeper cuts, the first of which comes from the brilliant Slam Duck.

Fresh from remixing Gai Barone, our Russian friend keeps things minimal and driving, with an infectious bass-line that sits beautifully underneath Ashley's smoky vocal, before breaking down into an emotive piano led drop.

Spoilt for choice, meHiLove offers up another sun-kissed progressive take, alongside a dub that utilises the chopped up vocals in an airy, uplifting remix.

Amir Abbasi completes the package with a borderline electro, analogue take, twisting the vocal into something much darker.

Luminary - My World (meHiLove Remix - Radio Edit) [CLIP]

Luminary - My World (meHiLove Dub Mix) [CLIP]

Luminary - My World (meHiLove Remix) [CLIP]

OUT NOW: http://nxf.be/LOST183

STEVE JONES made his EL-EL debut back in 2021 on remix duties for Japan's CONURES & CLEAN TEARS (LOST172). Full single release I WANT MORE boasts the same beefy production, with a massive electro-esque kick-snare combo, and riff that brings to mind the trancier end of synth wave.

PATRICK EVANS, who has been busy releasing music on Perfecto, Melodic Beats, and Elpida, delivers a smooth and melodic rework of Steve's original, while CLAIRE'S ACCESSORIES (Underzone, Harmless, CRUDE etc) drives us home, ramping up the BPM with a deep and twisted rework for those harder European dance floors.

Steve Jones - I Want More (Claire's Accessories Remix) [CLIP]

What was once Lost is now found… After an extended timeout, lasting more than a half-decade, Ben Lost has returned to the director’s chair of Lost Language. One of trance & progressive’s most eminent imprints, over its near 15-year label lifetime it has been the springboard for the careers of an axiomatic list of famed producers. To mark his retaking of its A&R reins, and a new waypoint in the label’s history, he’s mixed the fifth episode of its hallowed ‘Exhibition’ mix-series.

Ben launched the ‘Exhibition’ line during the label’s early millennial era, quickly helming it into a singular position in the mix collections of trance and prog fans alike. Now, almost a decade after he mixed his last one, the prodigal one’s returned to expo the ongoing development of Lost’s musical language. The album features tracks and mixes from array of new talent. In amongst its progressive foothills, trance peaks and Goan inclines are tracks and remixes from Manmachine, Ovnimoon, Superpsychics, Cosmithex and Sonic Entity, as well as more seasoned sound shapers like Guy J, Activa and Neptune Project. Ben has tasked many of them with remixes of the label’s vastly respected back-catalogue, with new directions & tangents lent to tracks by Space Manoeuvres, Miro, Barraka, Accadia and C.M.

Out Through Lost Language 10th March 2014

Of its release, Ben says: “Exhibition V’ is our new year-zero. A holographic slice of who we are, where we’ve been and where we’re going. Our collective’s heritage is rich… and it’s only going to become more so.“”

Musically, Ben’s latest exhibit opens in the blackly chromatic night-time thrall of ‘Late Reflections’, the latest from Canada’s fast-emerging Bernie Allen. Setting its stage with a progressive depth, it segues into a new take on Space Manoeuvres’ evergreen ‘Stage One’ courtesy of Bedrock’s Guy J. Hot on its heels comes a tribally spin on Barraka’s ‘Song To The Siren’, with Holland’s Jaap Ligthart immersing his rework in its ocean deep vocal.

Mixing fluidly, seamlessly & harmonically, he continues to churn the progressive waters deep with Hazem Beltagui’s glacier cool treatment of Amir Abbasi’s ‘Angelus Sine Sensu’ and Mindwave’s stunning Dub of Miro’s ‘Paradise’.

As it moves out of its overture, the mix makes its first upwards gear shift. Underground legend Taucher gets acidic on an astonishing reboot of DJ Orion & J Shore ‘Brotherhood’. Chile’s Ovnimoon meanwhile deepens the LFO on Miro’s ‘By Your Side’, synthesizing its hypnotizing vocals with trance-noir tones.

‘Exhibition V’s midpoint sees it open itself up to a hotbed of the label’s new Goa trance talent. The ballistic brio of Freesoup’s 303-powered ‘We Who Have’, the quake-inducing bass of ‘Where’s Cynthia’, Sonic Entity’s masterful shakedown of Filteria’s ‘Perpetually Delayed Voyage’ and their own strobelite symphony ‘Genome Evolution’ each take their turn to charge the mix.

Lifting towards its finale, Ben angles in the third edge of Lost Language’s new triangulation. On their Third Eye Remix, Neptune Project recast Accadia’s classic ‘Blind Visions’ as a string-swelling, Everest-like euphoric creation. Activa meanwhile rules just as upliftingly over C.M.’s epic ‘Dream Universe’.

Across the progressive, euphoric, melodic and Goa trance strata, the album showcases the label’s onward vision. Lost Language’s fifth ‘Exhibition’ opens March 10th.

02: Space Manoeuvres - Stage One (Guy J Remix)

04: Amir Abbasi - Angelus Sine Sensu (Hazem Beltagui Remix)

Raw, melodic and brimming with dream punk energy, ASTRAL BANDIT (Harmless Records, Underzone) make their LOST LANGUAGE debut with DIFFERENT KIND OF FRIEND, a track that evokes the Balearic Trance atmosphere of EL-EL's early years, but with the innocence and urgency of a new Trance underground, where delicate riffs are coiled around hardcore BPM's, and the production is tough, tight, and minimal.

LOSTLEGEND taps into the golden age of late 90's Trance with a Signum / Gamemaster inspired remix, whilst US producer VERGIL, fresh from collaborations with Pro Athlete and Transki, serves up a deep and muscular Tech-Trance rework for his label debut. Expect more from both this year.

As we continue with our Vaughan Oliver inspired explorations into the macro, Danish artist MAGNUS GAARDE NEIGAARD provides us with a stunning image, exploring the dichotomy between Water, Fire, and Earth, and the absurdity of destabilisation, via the medium of heat and glass.

You can find more of their work on Instagram @nejgaard

EL EL - 23

LOST185 02 - Astral Bandit - Different Kind Of Friend (LostLegend Remix) [CLIP ]

LOST185 03 - Astral Bandit - Different Kind Of Friend (Vergil Edit) [CLIP ]

https://ffm.to/lost187m

In 2022 we released OTTO K's Motion in Emotion / Sea of Souls double header (LOST182), and he's back once again with another heavy split, both tracks fully loaded with their own killer remix.

A STRANGE DREAM is signature OTTO K - deep and atmospheric, with a riff reminiscent of Depeche Mode at their melancholic best, while DUPLICITY takes things even deeper, with subtle melodies and ghostly vocals fading in and out of the psy-prog fog.

Never name the well from which you'll never drink - and Tim Bourne says this will be his last prog-trance production (for a while) - so we're honoured that he's chosen us, remixing A Strange Dream into a sublime prog trancer. Delicately melodic, with intricate percs peppered over heavy grooves - all the more impressive considering he had to mix and master this one using his Apple AirPods, inspiring him to name it his 'Pod' remix.

Fresh from releasing the superb 'Among Mortals EP' on Vertige Records, Montreal's INSIDE BLUR makes her Lost Language debut with a stunning remix of Otto's Duplicity, and we could not be happier with the result. Her remix is a fast n' moody, acid-laced tech trancer - hard, beautiful, no fucking about - just the way we like it.

EL-EL 23

Otto K - Duplicity (Inside Blur Remix) [CLIP]

Darkskye - Beneath The Rafters (Claires Accessories Remix) [CLIP]

The MFA - Specific Ocean (Astral Accessories Remix) [CLIP]

The MFA - Specific Ocean [CLIP]

Into The Sky (Connor Woodford Remix) [CLIP]

LostLegend - Into The Sky (Standard Form Remix) [CLIP]

LostLegend - Into The Sky (Astral Bandit Remix) [CLIP]

LostLegend - Into The Sky (Dave Moth Remix) [CLIP]

Locomotion

Chris Johnson - Locomotion  (Activa Rework) [CLIP]

Chris Johnson - Locomotion (Paul Copping Remix) [CLIP]

There would be no EXHIBITION : RAW, at least not as we know it, without the spectral presence of DAVE MOTH, a name that threads itself, unassumingly yet insistently, throughout the architecture of BEN LOST’s award-winning compilation.

But, as with all hauntings, the origins are displaced, nonlinear. The beginning, if such a term can even be applied, goes back to 2020; a year already thick with collapse and strange opportunity. It was MOTH who introduced LOST to Archie - who together were operating under the brief, brutish banner of HARDBODY - with Archie simultaneously farming hard trance pastures that would soon go on to bloom under the alias CLAIRE’S ACCESSORIES. And for LOST, it was CA’s 2021 remix of Venus by FEDERATION that signalled a shift towards a tough, speed-drenched sound that circled back to what initially excited him about trance in the wild 1990s.

But DAVE MOTH was never simply a producer. He emerged from the art-damaged debris of the early 2000s, co-founder of THE FILTHIEST PEOPLE ALIVE alongside GAVIN IT, a project less musical act than acid-drenched détournement, somewhere between DIVINE and SIGUE SIGUE SPUTNIK. From there, Peterborough’s hardcore scene swallowed him whole, going on to tour Europe with the old school / communal HHH on lead guitar.

The early 2010s offered another shift / reconnection. MOTH reunited with LOST, alongside SOLARSTONE, joining aforementioned trance romo’s FEDERATION on guitar, just in time to cowrite and perform on their debut album F, a record saturated with the residue of rave utopias and post-punk entropy.

Parallel to this, MOTH straddled space / acid / hard rock projects in RIDDLES, MAGIC MOSS, and MARSHES - the latter fronted by LOST - before taking a 180 4/4 turn in 2024 to collaborate as SIDE WOUND, whose Leftfield and Lydon after a handful of mitzis debut Tremor Dollar (with Paul McGregor of ULTERIOR) sounded like a late capitalist death disco in an abandoned Meadowhall shopping centre.

Now, RACKET SPORTS (LOST194) marks DAVE MOTH’s solo debut on LOST LANGUAGE: full throttle, high-speed drama, foot to the floor at 154. Haunted wails under steel city kicks and warehouse clangs, channelling the gated spirit of REACTIVATE-era chaos. It’s the kind of gear LARRY THE LOBSTER might’ve smuggled up his CERVICAL GROOVE in a warehouse circa 1996.

FACTORIA, whose DARKSKYE remix was pitched up into the Gods by LOST on his latest EXHIBITION comp, returns with a technicolour remix that finds that sweet spot between peak-time euphoria and undercurrent tension - FSOE via AA Meeting, if you like. While Norwegian talent AFGANG, whose original RACKET SPORTS remix helped set the tone on EX: RAW, brings a club-ready dreamy donk twist alongside a darker, swampier ‘Forest Flip’ version.

Rounding off the package is another DAVE MOTH original CRYSTAL DAWN. A riff-heavy hard trance trip, filled with PSY-FI FX, unhinged fills, and dangerous / playful drops, a record that points backwards and forwards all at once, into rave’s unresolved future.

Mrak E Fischer (T-Punk 25)

Lost Language Recordings

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