Stray – Since You’ve Been Gone [Free Download]

Stray’s latest venture sees him giving away an 11 track mixtape of older beats, apparently in preparation for the creation of his first ‘real’ LP. The material bears all the hallmarks of his hip-hop infused style, eschewing his higher tempo explorations in favour of lush musical elements and slouching beats.

The tracks are a pleasure to listen to and display a real finesse and groove uncommon in so much of the electronic scene today. Check out the clips below and head over here to grab the full album.

Kiyoko – Fragments EP [Samurai Horo]

Synkro & Bering Straight’s Kiyoko project returns to Samurai’s vinyl-only Horo imprint with another lush EP of downtempo beats. Fans of the duo’s work will know what to expect – effortlessly beautiful compositions with massive, sweeping pads, soft percussion and a decidedly “less is more” approach. The whole EP is stunning but the achingly beautiful echoed guitar melodies of Lost Object stand out in particular. Check out the clips below and head to the Samurai Music store to grab this one now.

Ronin – Guillotine EP [Free Download]

Ever since I heard the excellent Battledrums EP I’ve been keeping a keen eye out for more releases from the rather talented Ronin. The evolution of his style has been interesting to watch too, and his latest work continues the trend started with the Once More With Venom EP and heads towards fairly D&B influenced territory.

Ronin’s cinematic style remains, as does the obvious influence of hip-hop, and the EP manages to bring together emotive piano and string elements with powerful bass and uptempo D&B-style drum work to great effect. It’s also been mixed for listening, with each track fading directly into the next to form a complete piece of music rather than four tracks with distinct beginnings and endings. Best of all you can grab the whole thing for free from Soundcloud. Highly recommended!

Nuage – Prints Of You [Translation Recordings]

Nuage returns to Translation with the first glimpse of material from his forthcoming LP for the label. Lifestyle sees him teaming up with Gerwin for a deep, mellow slice of 170BPM electronica aimed firmly at the living room rather than the dancefloor, while Prints Of You drops the tempo and explores similarly lush territory; soulful influences abound and the musicality is breathtaking.

The release also features some excellent remixes, with Silent Dust turning in a hyperactive footwork rework of Sunday Morning and Planet Mu alumnus Ital Tek turns in a skittering, bleeped up mix of Prints Of You.

Clips of a fair bit of the rest of the album’s tracks have also now surfaced, the highlight of which for me is another Gerwin collab; Slow Moves brings together shimmering synth work, a laid back drum shuffle and some suitably manipulated vocal snippets for an effortlessly cool slice of downtempo electronica with a housey switchup after the breakdown. That housey theme gets explored further on Indigo Girl and Keep Me Warm, among others, with plenty of smooth melodies and head nodding kick-lines. It seems like lower tempo beats will dominate this record which is a shame given Nuage’s talent for deeper D&B, but the quality of material on show here is still great.

You can pre-order the vinyl sampler or the CD/digital version of the album via the Translation bandcamp – physical copies will be out in the wild on September 8th with full digital for the album following on September 29th.

 

I Am Legion Remixes [Division]

I Am Legion return to your speakers after last year’s debut LP with a tasty selection of remixes spanning the electronic spectrum. D&B-wise Russian neuro badmen Teddy Killerz turn in an absolutely disgusting remix of Make Those Moves, dBridge gets on the controls for a psychedelic D&B refix of Loose on the LeavesWarp Speed Thuggin’ gets the Phace deutsche-robotik treatment and Alix Perez turns in a heavy hitting new mix of Dust Descends.

Outside of the 170 realm there’s a deadly grime rework of Farrda from the genre-hopping Perez, a top-notch wonky trap-ish cut of Jelly Fish from EPROM and a big chunky electro remix of Choosing For You from Nightwatch. Something for everyone then! Check out the beats below and grab this one from your favourite store now.

Gridlok – Motion Picture [Free Download]

It’s always interesting to hear what D&B artists get up to creatively when they’re not rinsing the 170+ tempo range and Gridlok’s latest album explores distinctly slower territory. Blending his knack for heavy hitting beats and bass with a ton of atmosphere and a healthy dose of hip-hop, the LP explores a grimey, industrial sound across 13 brand new tracks.

Highlights include the creepy dub and interesting percussion of Daisy, the lurching offbeat psychedelia of Seasick and the sheer head-nodding hip-hop groove of Big Sound, but honestly the album is a stellar listen from start to finish. Best of all it’s absolutely free! Check out the clips below and download via Soundcloud.

Tiuu – All Good Things [Blu Mar Ten Music]

Blu Mar Ten Music continue their catalogue of top notch leftfield electronica with a new single from Russian producer/singer Tiiu. Fans of Synkro’s brand of “is it Dubstep, is it D&B or is it a film soundtrack” type beats will definitely appreciate the work on show here, but that’s not to say it’s a copycat job. Oozing atmosphere with its reverb drenched pads and natural sounding percussion, All Good Things is so slow as to be practically ambient, and fantastic for it. The ghostly vocal echoes are a particularly deft touch in amongst the tapestry of sounds.

Tiiu teams up with fellow Russian producer Faib to craft a slightly more beat driven Dubstep composition on the flip; the same warm atmospheres are employed here but with a little more insistence to the drums than on the positively soporific pace of the A side. Simple but effective bassline reverberations reminiscent of Distance’s growling, sludgey style provide a nice counterpoint to the more musical elements of the tune.

Check out the clips below and grab this one on digital from Blu Mar Ten’s online store now.

Frederic Robinson – Live Signals [Blu Mar Ten Music]

Frederic Robinson continues to push the boundaries of 170BPM electronica with another outing on Blu Mar Ten Music, this time in the form of a live album. Chris BMT has long made much of the incredible performances Frederic puts on and this album provides a snapshot of his intricate, airy percussion, live violin and soothing melodies. The music really speaks for itself so give the preview a listen below and grab yourself a copy from SurusiTunes or Beatport.

Frederic Robinson – Vamp EP [Blu Mar Ten Music]

The follow up to Frederic Robinson’s excellent Mixed Signals LP just dropped on Blu Mar Ten Music and as with all of his work it’s a treat for fans of the deeper side of 170 BPM electronica. As well as the original mix of Vamp Til Ready (one of the album’s standout tracks) we’re treated to an extended live reinterpretation of the track, which captures the essence of the original while embellishing it nicely.

The true highlights of the EP come on the brand new material though. Synkro comes in on remix duties with a fresh take on Mixed Signals, lending it his trademark shuffling percussion and airy reverb-drenched atmospheres. I can’t think of a more appropriate producer to have picked and the rework is stunningly beautiful. Finally Frederic himself comes up with the rather Gold Panda-esque Wheels, dropping the tempo to 130 and getting a house vibe on; from the driving back beat to the odd rhythms of the lead sounds it’s an interesting look at the man’s talents at a different speed.

Check out the clips below and grab this on digital now from your favourite retailer.

Q&A – Quentin Hiatus

After the excellent release he put out recently on Translation, we’ve been keeping our ear to the ground for word of more material from the Arizona-based producer. The man has been hard at work in the studio on his debut album and it’s an interesting beast, blending influences from across the electronic spectrum and beyond to create a unique take on the 170 sound.

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