Ebola - Brodmann Area (2008)

Acroplane
Lastfm

9.2

/Grime, Electro, Ambient, Avant-garde, Crossover, Experimental electronica, Industrial techno, Experimental electro/

Comment: Ben Hudson aka DJ Psylage (also known from a group, called Baconhead – with Paul Bowyer) comes from Devon, UK. Before this 6-pieced issue, however, he released music of diverse styles on such labels as Mutant Spider, Wrong Music, Sublight, and Proboscus. Similarly to his previous issues the dominantly instrumental Brodmann Area does have lots of cues to a loads of different styles, offering splashing industrial techno/and electro beats, grime-drenched dystopic-ness, slap-up tekno overthrows, digital glitch and eerily hollow ambient shades and much more worth to be discovered from this classic patchwork. The EP should not be misunderstood – this is not intended to be issued for dance floors, instead of it for your peripheric brain cells. Furthermore, by its ideological point, it is rather a hint at old school music for sure.

Claro De Luna - Quedarse

Steffaloo - My Heart Beats (2010)

Bandcamp

8.4

/Minimal, Electronic pop, Free folk, Experimental pop, Singer-songwriter/

Comment: Steffaloo is a musican from Los Angeles, USA who has issued some singles, one EP and one LP (and collaborated with Blackbird Blackbird, for instance). This mere one and half minute long single is pulled out through slight, autotuned vowel experiments and restraint slo-mo bounces subtly surrounding it. Is it either folk, electronic music or...? However, as a soul mate she go with iron like nylon, and Meredith Monk in the same scope but a little from different directions.

Edvenjah - Still in Germany (2008)

Kreislauf

9.0

/Downtempo, Techno, Neoclassical, Crossover, Darkwave, Psytrance, Tekno/

Comment: Sultry, gurgitating techno sequences (in true, which frequently evolves into tekno/and psytrance rhythm frequencies) are variegated with serious, sometimes dark-hued/martial synth progressions-orchestrations in the background; and mingled seamlessly with mesmerizing, atmospheric layers embellished with floating, elliptical paces around it. Furthermore, it makes sense through an diverse row veering from stomping sci-fi rhythms to corroded, lo-fi-inflected beats. Indeed, the 5-track album seems to have acquired the meaning of a buffer zone between the neoclassical music, downtempo, and intellectual techno. A rare yet delectable appearance.

Dreams - Simple Steps EP (2010)

Bandcamp

9.5

/Baggy, Dance rock, Alternative pop/rock, Indie dance, Alternative dance, Madchester, Indie rock/

Comment: this 4-pieced set from Portugal seems to have borrowed its roots from the scene of 90`s baggy/dance rock/madchester (reminding evidently of Primal Scream, Wordsmiths, Flowered Up, and Happy Mondays). Indeed, these roughly sounding, massively stomping beats and hispid, organically flaming vocal manners and abrasive guitar walls ring out really retrodelic whilst Dreams and those abovementioned bands used to make much more sense than nowadays peaky, way-too-much produced rave rock examples (!!!; Klaxons; Bloc Party etc). All in all, I got sentimental and excited and feel myself really fluttered. I recommend to search for old indie compilations on vinyl and listen to Clinker`s self-titled album and Abstract Green`s Romeo Echo Victor (Deluxe).

Joxfield ProjeX - Electric Apple

BeachesBeach - FourFour (2011)

Bandcamp

8.7

/Poptronica, Chillwave, Glo-fi, Sampledelica, Electronic pop, Tropicalia pop/

Comment: The title "BeachesBeach" sounds witty, isn`t? However, it might be visualized as a transcendent shore to be designed to collect such kind of pop tendencies oozing from the scenes of glo-fi/tropicalia pop. Indeed, sublime tropical beats are overlapped with beatific vowels and warm electronica. Last but not least - catchy crossings are genuine part of BB`s soundscape. The use of sample-only techniques used to hint at some similarities having in common with Phaseone and, Rimar - Columbus-based producers.