EMB and industrial flavored electronic dance music and cold wave.
Arnaud Rebotini – Shiny Black Leather
Blackploid – Cosmic Traveler
During the first track I was considering skipping this EP altogether, lucky I didn’t. This is a collection of some oddball electro tracks, which are too boogie to be IDM but too silly to appear seriously on a dancefloor. But it would be FUN to hear a track like Night Drive in a club. Although the one titled Pleasure Activism could totally fit a chiptune set.
ASHE – Strangers Dream
Moody atmospheres, triphop tempo, electronic music meets orchestral sound.
Hugo Massien – Metamorphosis
Bass-heavy slow to mid tempo electronic music. Genrewise it’s a mishmash: the highest percentage is probably house, but it’s changing every other track to dubstep, breakbeat, house, IDM, ambient. Good backdrop for work.
Rob Zombie – The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy
As good as any Rob Zombie record, it just delivers. Perhaps more musical than the usual, ranging a bunch of genres from the default industrial metal through hard rock and heavy metal to funk and even country, and having melodies that may be beyond what one would expect from this guy.
FJAAK & Elli Acula – To The Peak (Steffi Mix)
This brings back amazing memories when my favorite breaks DJs played the kind of nu skool breaks that I loved so much. The Fjaak guys still haven’t missed a beat for me, and Steffi has been an evergreen favorite of mine who pushed this track just that one notch further.
dZihan & Kamien – IV
After Kruder & Dorfmeister’s new release here’s a new album by dZihan & Kamien. Alright, so what’s going on? Is nu jazz making a comeback or what? In any case this is a totally fine album, as good as any Couch Records release from back in the day. I’ll be instered to see whether this series continues or even someone tries something new with the future jazz angle. Maybe even Jazzanova produces something new AND worth listening to?
Biosphere – Angel’s Flight
I’ve been listening to a lot of ambient music lately. The days are quite busy, focus is needed for extended periods, and music that gives me peace and mental padding helps me keep up the drill longer. When I need to grind through a night of work I usually go for something harsh and fast, like hardcore metal or jungle, but I cannot run the sprint for several days in a row, so that’s when ambient kicks in and helps.
This is a very drone-like modern composition record, cinematic at certain places. The title track is the slowest form of catarsis I know—the soundtrack of a super slow motion capture of someone bursting into tears, or having an orgasm.
Octo Octa – She’s Calling EP
Breaks and house, focus changing from track to track, or within a track itself. It’s like a little kaleidoscope. (While tagging this post I’m amazed I haven’t had any Octo Octa releases here so far. I’m listening to basically all new releases from her.)
Lokey – Isolation Works Vol.01
Drum and bass, ambient, and (oddly) rave sounds in a blender. Kind of a strange mix but great for work.