[The latest entry in the MOTOR MIX series by rising Seattle techno producer Simic.]

Two Seattle record labels long-championed by The Stranger—Further and MOTOR—recently received high honors from the internationally recognized authorities Juno and Resident Advisor, respectively. Juno, an online retail shop based in the UK, named Further its label of the year for 2015. Resident Advisor, an online zine based in Germany, just bestowed MOTOR with label-of-the-month honors. The awards are testament to both imprints' keen ears for diverse electronic and experimental music that excels both on dance floors and in home-listening contexts. Both labels' rosters are loaded with artists who forge their own paths with distinctive approaches that elude easy categorization.

In its write-up for Further, Juno enthused:

Headed by Chloe Harris and Mark Cul, the year of Further wasn’t just recognised for its daring and prolific output, but moreover, for the way in which all matter of stylistic corners where covered when releasing music. Had we not known it was a small independent, albeit boutique label from Seattle, Further feels as rogue as a money-loaded major splurging on an experimental sub-label with all the benefits of having absolute artistic freedom.

In his feature for Resident Advisor, Andrew Ryce observed about MOTOR:

The MOTOR collective are a bit different from the techno heads who make up the rest of Seattle's underground scene. [Sam] Melancon comes from a more avant-garde background, and his cohorts come from scenes not typically associated with dance music. His label is all about misfits making dance music that digs deep into the region's psychedelic rock and noise roots, and through that, MOTOR has eked out its own individual style.

With Melancon delegating MOTOR's managerial duties to Nathaniel Young, who also runs the New York City label Blankstairs, you can expect to see greater reach and activity for MOTOR in the coming year. Further is getting off to a brilliant start in 2016 with challenging, surreal releases by Decimus (aka ex-No-Neck Blues Band guitarist Pat Murano), Nuel, and Strategy (Portland producer Paul Dickow).