Under the Radar - November

TTeo is the moniker of Matteo Capreoli, a half German half Italian singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. That’s a mouthful! This is easily one of my (Michael) favourite releases of 2023 as it has euphoric, uplifting piano melodies being the primary driving force like the way Model Man employs. It’s so whole in its delivery, going through different genres, tempos, and sampling techniques. It gets more incredible the more you listen and adding context to the album makes it more incredible; Capreoli’s father used to be the drummer of the band Lovexpress from 1974 to 1979. He was serendipitously handed a batch of cassettes by his father of some of the bands live shows from the late 1970s. The cassettes form the basis of, and the inspiration for this LP. A must listen!

The Dub Techno producer adds four originals and a remix from Brodinski to his collection. ‘Quad’ and the remix of it are honestly quite nauseating with the use of terrifying screams but pushing past the first track leaves some amazing bangers in ‘Hot Trash’, ‘Blades’, and the Hash Mix of ‘Blades’. ‘Blades’ primary driving element is unique in that it is just exhale’s of air panning around the sound space with stripped back drum patterns. ‘Hot Trash’ is speedy bass laden with stab sounds interjecting through a rolling sound. Toma Kami is in hot demand playing in Paris, Lisbon, and a special London party in Ormside Projects last week for the record shop, book shop, and radio station, KINDRED, alongside Glimmerman and Ailish.

A truly special introduction into the label world from Dublin avant-electroniq party Ethereal Skies who gather 21 artists from Ireland and afar on this multifaceted V/A, springing up sounds in trance, hard-groove, dubstep, hard house & more. You’ll have heard us harping on about this release after our premiere of Small Bear’s 'Foamy Nites' entry. There are so many more stand out sounds on here including production debuts from HelloKT, along with contributions from rising stars like Dylan Fogarty.

After gathering steam with his release 'Honey Badger', Rhyw is continuing to show his immense creative expertise in bass and techno. Meant for the club. Meant to surprise. Meant to challenge you, and it is an exciting direction that Rhyw and similar artists are undertaking. Mister Melt is criminally underrated, with four intense squelchy bass tunes.

Otik has dominated the niche of dreamy UK Techno as of late, and while this EP receives acclaim from music heads, it goes under the radar of the masses. Cosmosis consists of eleven tracks with shimmering breakbeats, celestial sounds, and orchestral synths. Otik displays his versatile range with stress-reducing melodies in ‘Epiphania’ and ‘Geronimo’, soft-spoken positivity in ‘Non Believer’ and ‘Blue Hills’, and time-stopping, atmospheric ambience in ‘God Given’ and ‘Noontides’. The liveliest track, ‘Odyssey’, is our favourite. A fast jungle breaks tune with orbs hovering above.

Chloé Robinson & DJ ADHD are a constant strong pairing that provide club ready tunes that will have you dancing immediately with their recognisable sharp drum sounds. The pumpy, tech house tracks find a groove using fast release on the kicks and claps. The duo join on ‘0121 Do One’ while DJ ADHD goes solo on ‘Hablando Conmigo’, with an additional remix by Coffintexts.

Two A-sides and two B-sides from the internationally toured producer and DJ, Neil Landstrumm. The Edinburgh resident goes back to basics with Bass ‘n’ Bleeps with nearly thirty years of productions behind him. With all that experience, his releases of late become more intuitive to produce with heavier and looser rhythms. ‘Set in Plaster’ has some spooky dubs and warbly samples ready for any soundsystem.

Two hard hittaz from Berlin based DJ and producer, and Label owner at "Fever AM". If you like metallic techno from the likes of Blawan and LCY, you’ll enjoy this. ‘Eso Eso’ is a bouncy track with a sparkly vocal. Likewise, ‘Teke Teke’ has flirtatious energy with tube-like thumps and weird ghost notes that add to its distinctive appeal.

CONTENT.NET.AU are back on the drops with BAYANG’s limitless ‘Antarctica’ mixtape. Mining punk tones with elegant cloud hip/ hop and hardened lyricism, BAYANG describes the posited world of tha Bushranger, a skinhead with soul. These songs have love. They’ve got fuck-offery. Some of them even got that groove :o
Really enjoyable steppers including fun link-ups with Sevy, LILPIXIE, & more.

Typically weighty and weird from the Nostro Hood faithful. Bristol’s Elpac takes their turn on the imprint with vigour chopping through harsh-groove low ends, thick & jittery percussion, as well as an amass of oddball synth lines, sharp intermittent vocals, and mechanical backgrounds. There are illusions of dancehall within the track structures that Elpac joyfully manipulates into freakishly dense drum runners. You’ll find new trinkets and intricacies with each listen.

Cutting edge dubstep as always from Glasgow’s Kami-O. Suture’s deeply subdued energy calmly evolves with deep riding kicks and bass lines creating rippling sensations at its peak. ‘Sneak’ is a real bass hummer journeying through the dense wastelands of half-time with its blubbering low-ends and crisp drums.

Alarming drum thumps from one half of the Flood backroom. Cacophonies of Eastern drums and splintering bass thrusts pile on as Tension’s crushing breakdowns pave the way for that signature, intoxicating tribal flow we now come to expect from the imprint.

Over 100 Manchester creatives come together to provide aid for the people of Palestine through song & poetry. Brought together within a period of 7 days, it highlights the championed compassion of the people of Greater Manchester, with stunning tracks offered up from the likes of Mr. Scruff, Jack Ward, and INGI.

Failed Units return with the Fusion Tank initiative after the rip-roaring success of the DJ Pacifier and Folded Voices entry back in December of last year. Stolen Velour & Klahrk do damage on this double entry wreaking havoc with one stuttering breakcore thriller in ‘Fight Me’, and one clanky 4x4 techno runner in ‘Get Back To Work’, with both intensifying amidst heavy glitch breakdowns. It packs a seriously weighty punch for a two track EP.

When he’s not making Tiktoks, Fred Asquith is making techno apparently!? Don’t let his humorous side fool you, as he comes out with two interesting peak-time bangers. The respected label, Kneaded Pains, gives Fred a platform to showcase his impressive two track stomping productions and he takes it.

Glasgow on Glasgow as Drumheller arrives on Hang Tough. Exploring a wealth of atmospheres and foundations across 5 hits, Drumheller brings a sharpened groove to the sounds of Jersey, baile funk, drill and hard drum, blurring the lines between the genres on tracks like 'Serotona' and ‘Leopard’ in particular. J Wax brings a welcomed two-steppin’ electro interpretation of the title track into the mix also.

Cognitive brain dance from Plesk Parallel on London’s ever-intriguing All Centre. The warped journey of title track ‘Split Fountain’ rigorously explores the capabilities of the CR-78 drum machine, reverberating with drum clicks and abrasive sub-low kicks across delicate synth melodies. ‘Morpho’ channels 90’s & 00’s broken techno, shadowing the scape with stern kicks and more intricate synth work. A pretty faultless two tracker this.

The tantalising Edinburgh talent’s upward trajectory continues with this booster of her March EP soft like steel. Featuring one new original work with Welsh alt-pop act twst on ‘pressure’, with 4 club reworks from acts like Jensen Interceptor, Aloka, & Sonia Calico, adding another layer of bite to LVRA’s inimitable sound.