ARTICLE
2006 10 Favourite Labels

ALBUMS
aMute
Art Ensemble of Chicago
Asphalt Jungle
Joseph Auer
Avia Gardner
Tommi Bass
Caural
Cdatakill
Christ.
Conjoint
Contriva
Cursor Minor
DJ Soul Slinger
DJ Wally/DJ Willie Ross
DoF
Electric Penguins
Encre
Flashbulb
Fuckpony
Funckarma
Cedric Gervais
Eglantine Gouzy
Greater Than One
Greg Haines
François Houle
Housemeister
Jan Jelinek
Eleni Karaindrou
Kode9 + Spaceape
Takagi Masakatsu
Mini
Move D
The New Law
Nuuro
Qwel & Meaty Ogre
Rant
Max Richter
Janek Schaefer
Svarte Greiner
Thighpaulsandra
Unwed Sailor
Geoff White
Wilt
Yellow6
Jesse Zubot

COMPILATIONS/MIXES
4 Women No Cry Vol. 2
Analog for Architecture
Assemblage Sessions
Jimmy Van M
King Unique/Nubreed
Monza Club Ibiza
Pop Ambient 2007
Rub-N-Tug
Thankful
The Rorschach Suite

3"/7"/10"/12"/EPs
Baseheadz
Big Toe
Franco Cangelli
Richard Chartier
Deadbeat/Monolake
Depth Affect
Diebombshelters
DJ Koze
Eltron
Johan Fotmeijer
Hellothisisalex
Mitsuaki Komamura
Múm
Ozka
Seekers Who Are Lovers
Strategy
Tandem 5
Andi Teichmann
The Twilight Sad
Ray Valioso

Cursor Minor: Danceflaw
Lo Recordings

Of course the helmeted figure on the cover of Cursor Minor's third album references Daft Punk but that's about the only connection between them: the latter crafts electro-pop songs while Cursor Minor opts for epic electro dance tracks. Rubbery synths grind and sputter, vocoders roar, and chugging beats slam throughout the disc's almost eighty minutes (one might also treat the release as an hour-long collection that includes a steaming 20-minute “Miniminermegamix”). Opener “This Is Electro” reads like a manifesto and sounds like it too, a chugging, eight-minute epic of swelling synths and distorted vocoder belches. Cursor Minor flirts with acid (“Open the Box”), schaffel (“Spassfaktor”), and sometimes pushes the machinery so hard (“Skunk Works”), it sounds like it's squealing for mercy. The album enters a poppier mode in its closing tracks: the synth-streaming “Ain't Talkin About Love” is the closest the album comes to a ‘single' (even if its hammerhead bass lines would scare off most radio programmers), and the comparatively sweet “Errors In My Mind” brings the album (not including the bonus mix) to a sunny close. A well-nigh definitive exemplar of electro, Danceflaw is the perfect place to start for anyone seeking an introduction to the genre.

December 2006