Formication: Agnosia

  By

I had the misfortune of choosing to first listen to this mini-album by the UK duo known as Formication at about one o’clock in the morning, with powerful winds of 70km/h whirling at my window in the blackness. The ambience was creepy enough without the music, and when the first sounds of Agnosia began to fade in I feared it would be too much, but I listened, paralyzed.
Continue Reading

Mike Huckaby: My Life With The Wave

  By

Mike Huckaby reinforces the connection between intelligent Detroit techno and deep dub techno on a 12-inch so good it hurts. On “Wavetable No. 9” Waldorf Wave synthesizer notes are pushed to oozing decay under a cascade of Basic Channel metallic echo. The beat remains crisp while layer upon layer builds. It takes a couple of minutes until the bass joins, growling with menace.
Continue Reading

D’arcangelo: Eksel

  By

The album begins with a chopped hip-hop beat clunking along an ambient drone and some distant chords. This essentially goes on for 4 minutes—welcome to 1999. D’arcangelo have been mainstays in the realm of experimental electronic music ever since their first release on Rephlex back in 1996. Combining elements of electro hooks and ambient atmospheres into their experimental music, I have always anticipated their next release with excitement.
Continue Reading

Jason Fine: EP 01

  By

These days in techno what’s old is new again, with scores of records echoing sounds fifteen years past. On the one hand, there’s a rebirth of dub techno. On the other, there’s a revival of the intelligent Detroit style. Think Juan Atkins at his most melodic combined with John Beltran and Terrace. (The main labels along this line are AW-Recordings, Down Low, Frantic Flowers and Millions of Moments/Styrax.)
Continue Reading