It’s inevitable: Every year, several releases come and go without receiving their critical due. I like to think I’m on top of shit, but sometimes I slack. So in that spirit, I hope to atone for some of the gems that eluded notice in 2005.
London’s Fabric label pumps out two mix discs a month, and most of ’em are dope. Rob Da Bank‘s Fabric 24 gives eclecticism a proud name, encompassing melodic techno (Michael Mayer, Nathan Fake), disco-house (Vitalic), indie rock (Fiery Furnaces, Futureheads), Congolese soukous (Pépe Kallé), and O.G. acid house (Mr. Fingers, Frankie Knuckles). Death in Vegas‘s FabricLive 23 deviates from that group’s Kraut/psych-rock leanings into elegantly retro electro and straight-up techno—and it’s shockingly great. Diplo‘s FabricLive 24 vividly expresses his “rock the party by any means necessary” ethos. Whether it be mainstream hiphop, vintage electro and Detroit techno, IDM weirdness, reggaeton, new-wave chestnuts, baile funk, or Cat freakin’ Power, Diplo picks the suavest selections for your groovin’ enjoyment.
Acid! Now that I have your attention, focus it on these overlooked tabs of greatness: Phuture‘s Phuture and Other Classics from DJ Pierre (Trax) and Acid Evolution 1988–2003 (Logistic) by Atom™. The former’s an 11-track retrospective of the Chicago acid-house pioneer’s still-vital variations on feverishly mutating, hypnotic Roland 303 squelches. Acid Evolution finds Atom™ (AKA Señor Coconut) creating 16 distinct facsimiles of relentlessly acidic electro/techno for each year in the disc’s title. Give that man a lifetime supply of Rolands!
Sutekh has been one of the most consistently adventurous techno/IDM producers of the last decade or so. On Born Again (Leaf), the crafty San Franciscan flexes his devious remixing chops over two discs, subtly enhancing already sterling tracks by Geoff White, Alva Noto, Auch, Swayzak, Portable, Murcof, and others. (Seek also Sutekh’s fantastic new mix of his Context label’s catalog titled Context Unravelled.) Speaking of Murcof, allow me to quote my XLR8R review of his fab Remembranza: “Murcof engineers a painstakingly intricate mosaic of classical/chamber-orchestral atoms into somber, haunting compositions for 21st-century ears.” It’s a holy wow.
Also wowsome are the Swedish female trio midaircondo and their Shopping for Images album on Type Records. Like Iceland’s Múm, midaircombo traffic in croissant-light, electro-pop torch songs for mopey aesthetes, but the Swedes are much less cloying and more soulful. Finally, Pier Bucci‘s Familia (Crosstown Rebels) submerges us in pastel-hued techno enchantments that refute the stereotype of electronica’s emotionally void core. Aided by Armelle Pioline’s sucrose-intensive vocals, this Chilean producer leverages rosy-petalled textures and mesmerizing rhythms into tracks for all seasons and reasons. Scary thing is, Bucci’s brother Andres is even better than he is, if the latter’s 2005 Mutek gig is any proof (and it is). DAVE SEGAL
