Technon

Cari Lekebusch - Simplicity

<p>Label boss Christian Smith brings the pain with this twofold attack, showing yet another facet of the evolution of his sound.<br />
 The spacious stabs get things going on &#8220;Delivery&#8221;, in combination with a persistent bassline and spoken-word samples reiterating the title. However, it&#8217;s the frantic snares that creep up on us which steal the show and kick things up a notch or ten.<br />
 On &#8220;Matrix&#8221;, Mr. Smith (no pun intended) takes a more mystical turn, again filled with percussive elements, but letting enough room for hi-register chords to take control until the end of the affair. Chords that almost create a nostalgic vibe, without, however, sacrificing any of the drive.</p>

Christian Smith - Matrix (Original Mix)

Kaiserdisco - Jet Stream (Original Mix)

Back at our mammoth Stay True Scotland broadcast earlier this month, one track came real close to bringing The Caves' roof down during Nina Kraviz's powerhouse headline set. "I Wanna Go Bang" very nearly executed its titular statement – well, if the song was more about wrecking balls and less about...oh, never mind.

The vocals that stalk the track, so wholly devoid of humanity, rub up against razor-sharp claps and serious bounce in the subs. It's weighty warehouse techno of the highest order, set to devastate dark basements and big tents alike throughout the year. Simply put: Icelandic producer Bjarki has delivered a bomb.

Grip the physical via трип from July 15th onwards.

Bjarki "I Wanna Go Bang" - Boiler Room Debuts

[Pre - Album Single]

This September, Christian Smith will release his next full artist album titled Input-Output consisting of 11 original productions once again displaying his prominence within the realms of underground music. Each track embodies Christian’s message of creating authentic techno, with powerful percussion and melodic basslines echoing out throughout the entirety of the album.

''Explanation is a typical Christian Smith techno tune. I used an analog synth sequence as the main hook, and added a powerful groove and break to the track. Been tested many times and always delivers. Subzero is a very vintage inspired track. It’s rather slow at 120bpm, so that I could give lots of space for the powerful bass line and the TB303 acid line. What I like about this track is that its old school yet futuristic at the same time and works really well on the floor.’’ – Christian Smith


Buy on Beatport

Christian Smith - Explanation (Original Mix) [TR219]

Out now https://perctrax.bandcamp.com/album/igneous

Perc Trax is proud to announce the first collaborative EP from Randomer and Perc, two artists working in different areas of the UK dance scene, but who share a similarly uncompromising attitude towards pushing their sound forward. 

Randomer's connection to Perc Trax has grown from his set at the Perc Trax Boiler Room session in late 2014 to his first appearance on the label with his recent remix of Ansome's 'Back Alley Sally'. 

Across this EP the two producers fuse together Randomer's intricate rolling rhythms with Perc's aggressive snarl to serve up three tracks of screw-faced north London grot.

Buy at Bandcamp

Perc & Randomer - Flooring

Drumcode returns with its 6th installment of the internationally celebrated A-Sides series. Renowned for fostering a shared space between industry tastemakers and rising talent alike, the careful curation that goes into each volume is a fine example of why Beyer’s brand continues to go from strength to strength.

Techno titan Adam Beyer has grown Drumcode into a force to be reckoned with; the label has become synonymous with forward-thinking, functional techno and even after 20 years, Drumcode continues to find new boundaries to push, and ways to solidify its legacy as the world’s number one techno label. 

2017 is no exception, with Beyer’s imprint hosting it’s first stage at Tomorrowland, not to mention the expansion of the critically acclaimed Junction 2 where the Drumcode stage is the centrepiece and Adam plays the key role of festival director. The Drumcode phenomenon continues to grow each week, chiefly fuelled by Drumcode Radio, Adam’s radio show that’s broadcast in 57 countries via 86 stations and to a global audience of 16 million techno fans per week. 

The A-Sides series acts as a perfect vignette of Drumcode’s cutting-edge sound; functional yet inspired techno, all tracks tried and tested by Beyer himself. Vol. 6 continues this tradition with a collection of 16 multi-faceted cuts from a mixture of both emerging artists and experienced label friends. 

The heart-throbbing bass in Amelie Lens’ electrifying piece ‘In Silence’ sets the tone for the dark and dance-floor-ready energy that Vol.6 carries the whole way through. Other standouts include Mars Bill’s rough’n’ready ‘Mohave’. Pulsating and precise, ‘Mohave’ has highlighted many of Beyer’s sets recently as has Wehbba’s monster track ‘Fake’, which fans have been anticipating the release of all year. 

Label-favourites Dense & Pika also feature on ‘A-Sides’ Vol. 6 with their hard-hitting ‘Just a Beat’ and a huge track from Beyer himself who has joined forces with Enrico Sangiuliano to bring us their undeniably infectious ‘Preset Heaven’. 

With many more notable selections from the likes of Julian Jewell, Timmo, Tiger Stripes and Pig&Dan, A-Sides Vol. 6 is another impressive addition to the label’s prolific release roster and a testament to why Drumcode remains at the forefront of the electronic world.

Adam Beyer & Enrico Sangiuliano - Preset Heaven - Drumcode - DC178

Underground Poetry

Mad Poet (Original)

Drumcode favourite Harvey McKay returns to the label with a darker new sound.

The Glaswegian has been a regular contributor over the years, highlighted by the memorable ‘The Illusion of Control’ EP in 2014 and his newer work with brother Ryan under the Alias moniker. Earlier this year Drumcode released the duo’s ‘Pentatonic’ EP and featured a mix on Adam Beyer’s radio, which included ‘Black Dolphin’, kickstarting the hype on the track.

Named after the infamous Russian prison, the title track is dark, tough, deeply textured brooding affair, with a menacing touch than runs through its core. McKay then brings in a huge synth line and changes up the dynamic of the track, giving it a powerful and driving feel. ‘Retox’ is a dark and twisted heavy-hitting cut, driven by aggressive drums and bassline, while a hypnotic synth line sustains a sense of tension throughout the six-minute track. Concluding the package is ‘Cover Up’, a fantastic stripped back exploration into dark atmospheric techno territory that’s tailor made for the winter warehouse raving season.

Harvey McKay - Black Dolphin - Drumcode - DC182

Returning victorious to M-Plant after the Floorplan album and EP takeover, Robert Hood, whose work under his own name has continued to garner equal support with the ‘Paradygm Shift’ series for Dekmantel, brings the heat with this triple-tracker in May.

The original minimal techno master wastes no time with opener ‘Clocks’. There’s a sense of urgency as the track builds, looping into its crescendo with waves of staccato hi-hats. Tick tock, tick tock.

Over on the flipside there’s a familiarity in the opening chords of ‘Low Life’ that will resonate with fans of Hood’s work. Instantly recognisable, it’s stamped with his ability to bring funk and groove to the colder stomp of techno.

Final opus, ‘Go’ brings a spiralling samba tempo to the dancefloor. The punchy drumbeat is interwoven with sweeping cymbals for a highly effective infectiousness, like a call to arms, or better still, the Brazilian call to carnival.

Robert Hood - Low Life

The Black & White EP

Freeway

LIFE21

LIFE21 - 02 - Siber - Succubus

H-Productions proudly presents (HPX102) Jack in the Box, by Cari Lekebusch. 3 stripped down trax with effective jacking dynamics and no nonsense approach.

Technon

martinp