Audio Love 14.4.14

Music

Soulphiction – Glitz (Circus Company)

Soulphiction is a longtime favourite of ours here at the Ransom Note (which you can see from our recent “Talks” feature with the man himself) and so it’s great to see him teaming up with the legendry imprint Françoise for a 12”. If that wasn’t enough for you there’s even a Patrice Scott remix of his “Jinx” to boot.

Both tracks are very very good. “Glitz” is a slow, chugging monster based around that wonderful guitar lick of “Hold Tight” by Change. On the flip the Patrice Scott remix of “Jinx” is a fiddly, acidic number which offers a nice contrast to the disco tastic A side.

Out now on wax from juno.co.uk

Sandman – Sandman (Take the Elevator)

Marco Bernardi’s Take the Elevator imprint is back with their second release and it’s BOSS!!! Following on in the same vein as their inaugural 12” this is a four tracker of rough, demented, oddball electro. This doesn’t mean it’s the same unplayable sludge that seems to be quite trendy these days though. All of these tracks will fit nicely on the dancefloor, but might just freak out a few dancers.

Out now on wax from juno.co.uk

(Joe Europe)

Joey Anderson – After Forever LP – Dekmantel

Dekmantel, a label that really does the hard to approach field of electronic albums properly (think back to Juju & Jordash's Techno-Primitivism LP from 2012 for example), and the highly original Joey Anderson are frankly an epic coupling. While perfectly able to produce EPs for the more esoterically inclined DJing market, while general consensus built around his talent and vision, the long-player format provides space for Anderson's idiosyncratic intergalacticism to breathe freely.

Attention has been drawn in the past to Anderson's ability to input groove into his music without recourse to more commonly used percussive structures (where the hi-hats at in this track man?) and this makes for material that will not be to the taste of "banger-philes", but then this wasn't probably aimed at that them either (go somewhere else if you want a dozen tracks of the same tired tropes). Oozing tense charm, upping the ante bit by bit, we're eased gently into the freneticism of the album's peaks. Running a wide gamut of tempos and incorporating elements of house, trance, techno and even Vangelian soundtracks, it would take a larger space than that on offer here to describe each track. It suffices to say that each time you think you've got a certain track nailed down, Anderson throws a curveball into the equation; it's a sonic voyage for deep mind-space exploration, full of hidden nooks and dark corners. And all the while retaining an essential dancability to it, a hard act to pull off but one that he does so with seeming effortlessness.

As someone who detests the simplistic concept of 'rating' music in reviews, I'm glad that I don't have to score this. It's mathematically impossible to give something 11 out of 10. Delivered on two 12"s it's a true "sit back, drop the needle on the record and zone-out" album but the digi-formats include two tracks from last year's 'Fall Off Face' EP as a bonus for those so inclined. Currently on pre-order at all quality vendors. (Joe Bonez)