Articles
Ten Questions with: KILN
Nicolay's Top 10
Kate Simko's Top 10

Albums
Abrahams + Cooper
Aloof Proof
Ananda Project
Auburn Lull
Evan Bartholomew
Tomasz Bednarczyk
Craig Bethell
Christopher Bissonnette
Bitcrush
Peter Broderick
Gavin Bryars
Cecilia::eyes
City Rain
Claro Intelecto
Cloudland Canyon
Datassette
Event Plot / G L Mr Gorsky
The Flashbulb
Flica
Sascha Funke
Further Details
Carlos Giffoni
Glowworm
Goldfrapp
Ralf Gum
James T. Cotton
Mary St John
KILN
Jasper Leyland
Ljudbilden & Piloten
Francisco López
Daniel Menche
Miguel Migs
Mochipet
Pridon
Strategy
subtractiveLAD
Kuniyuki Takahashi
Urban Soul
Rick Wade

Compilations / Mixes
Ambient Not Not Ambient
A Number of Small Things
Apparat
B.I.P.P.P.
Garden of Forking Paths
Wait til the Ice Melts
You Don't Know

3" / 7" / 10" / 12" / EPs
Mlle Caro & Franck Garcia
Dabrye
Death is Nothing to Fear 3
Manuel De Lorenzi
DINTF EP
Domink Eulberg
Simon Haydo
Alton Miller
MLZ
Nos Phillipé
Peverelist
Van Rivers
Sebrok
Kate Simko
Ralph Sliwinski
Telepaticos

Dabrye: Get Dirty
Ghostly

James T. Cotton: Like No One
Spectral

Dabrye (real name Tadd Mullinix) offers a small reminder of what made his Two/Three release so special with an EP follow-up that includes a previously unreleased tune from the Two/Three sessions and makeovers of “Air” and “Game Over” by Kode 9 and Flying Lotus respectively (plus instrumental versions of each). “Get Dirty” chops heads in that inimitable Dabrye style, with AG throwing down over a banging groove that'll leave you dizzy and disoriented. Hyperdub majordomo Kode 9 twists Dabrye's “Air” original inside out, replacing its doom-laden vibe with something closer to bass-heavy synth-funk. Doom's vocal turn is about the only element from the original that remains though it's slowed slightly for this funkier treatment, and Kode 9's relatively restrained handling allows the MC's clever rhymes to be heard more clearly. In his “Game Over” remix, LA's Flying Lotus underscores Jay Dee and Phat Kat's lethal bark with a lurching slam but otherwise leaves the tune's epic crunch intact. Though they're bonus cuts, the instrumental versions are worth a listen too, even if only to sample the lulling bass flow in the Kode 9 mix. Yes, Get Dirty's a stopgap and, compared to most EPs, its contents are meager but even a small dose is enough to re-confirm Dabyre's genius and induce anticipation for the presumably-titled Three/Three.

Mullinix's latest James T. Cotton opus burns up the territory like an out-of-control steamroller moving at light speed. As psychotropic and relentless as 2004's The Dancing Box, the album-length Like No One is the next chapter in Mullinix's fresh reinvention of acid techno. It's also stylistically broad, with lethal stormers such as “Got to Let You Know” and “Sensational Rhythm” as much about funk as acid. Regardless of style, the album's seething “Jakbeat” material takes no prisoners, and the intensity doesn't drop one iota when collaborators Melvin Oliphant (aka Traxx) and D'Marc Cantu are brought aboard for Saturn V and 2AM/FM throwdowns. Throughout the eight tracks, thick synth lines mercilessly drill holes in one's skull as showers of ringing hi-hat patterns churn furiously. Mullinix often anchors the ferocity with rubbery kick drums and handclaps, which thereby prevent the dizzying tunes from spinning out of control. High points include the acid patterns that strafe the galloping roar of “The Boxx” like a satanically-possessed M16, the shredded voice patterns that stream over the rubbery pulse in the Saturn V track “Come Into My Life,” and the cut-up voice hook that boosts 2AM/FM's firestorm “Sensational Rhythm.” The set isn't perfect—dissonant machine convulsions almost render “Possessed Amplifier” unlistenable, and the ten-minute “Sensational Rhythm” is overlong—but the material is strong otherwise. Like No One indeed.

April 2008