KiloWatts & Vanek - Perennials Remixes (Harmonious Discord)

Spring begins to bloom as seedlings lay down their roots, a sturdy foundation for their generational journey. The masters of the journey, those perennial species that brave the cycles of the earth, continue to endure. Rewind nearly 20 years to a festival in Augsburg, Germany, called Lab30, which featured a bouquet of forward-thinking musical pioneers. In that collective were the cross-genre band KiloWatts and Vanek, who had played their first show in 2004 as part of a gathering of like-minded music producers and artists worldwide, focusing heavily on experimental electronic music and art.

Fast forward to the present, KiloWatts and Vanek have reunited in a boundlessly special album called Perennials. The album is a truly impressive blend of their classic signature sound and multiple nods to musical innovations that have sparked in between their albums. In celebration of Perennials, the duo decided to reach out to some of those artists for a reunion, as well as collaborate with new friends made along the way. The collection spans a network of producers from near and far, old and new, with eyes looking to the future. The remix collection offers a bountiful selection for all musical minds, from the intelligently precise ethereal offerings by Orphax, The Village Orchestra, Megaheadphoneboy, and Lackluster to the upbeat midtempo music from Erothyme, Gift Culture, Polygon Rainbow, and PointBender. Heavier techno placements from PointBender and Andrew Sega ultimately crescendo into the edit-heavy, dub offering from PHAENOS. Rediscover the Perennials listening experience with this dynamic selection of remixed offerings and rediscover the collective experience.

*Klaus Benedek (Fortunea Records) – “The Gift Culture Remix of One Day is a Beauty!” LUROB (Still Bumpin) – “Nice variety on this release. PointBenders Warehouse Dub of Nankurunasia is my go to.” P.M.F.M. (Deep Dive Corp.) – “Excellent release!” Danny Ward (Moodymanc) – “All nice … Fermenwah (TVO Tool) in particular got me here.” Sandro Bianchi (Ibiza Sonica) – “This is amazing!” Redstickman** (The Ambient Mafia) – “Great album! Please Hold (Polygon Rainbow Remix) is amazing. Super lush and chill. Love it!”

Available Now From: Beatport, Bandcamp, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Ransel - The Colour And The Shape feat. Mari Boine (Beatservice Records)

Ransel returns to Beatservice with his latest alluring studio manifestations, joining revered Sami singer Mari Boine on the hypnotically charged “The Colour And The Shape.”

The Ransel project arrives via the fertile production mind of Øivind Sjøvoll, an artist who has long been a firm fixture in the Beatservice roster thanks to his routinely brilliant work recorded as Kohib. Here, he collaborates with pioneering Norwegian folk singer Mari Boine, an artist famed for her groundbreaking fusion of Sami joik singing and contemporary rock music. Unsurprisingly considering the protagonists, the music is utterly spellbinding, with each artist bringing their indelible sound signatures to the profoundly affecting composition.

Built around a magnetic groove, “The Colour And The Shape” bubbles and broods over rolling percussion as Boine's distinctive vocals interplay with otherworldly synth refrains and menacing bass. The evolving music throbs and undulates to a dramatic climax as bewitching vocal lines soar into the stratosphere while intoxicating melodies gyrate below.

This is genuinely mesmerizing work from Ransel, with this inspired collaboration proving to be some of his most memorable work to date.

Jon Wesley (Machine Friends) – “Great tune. I’ll definitely play it. Love that groove.”
Nick Warren (The Soundgarden) – “This is very, very good.”
Rory Hoy (Super Hi-Fi) – “Incredible stuff – love it!”
DJ Hal 9000 (Excuse Me? Club) – “A magic and addictive track.”
DJ Firefly (WRCT 88.3 Pittsburgh) – “Very hypnotic.”
Simon Kirk (Stag Beetle Radio Show) – “Wonderful sonic spaciousness. Those drums are just immense against that beautiful vocal.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Ursula 1000 - The Glass Dragon (Insect Queen Music)

New York producer Ursula 1000 is known for his signature retro-future electronic dance fusions, but it's less known that he started off as a jungle and drum 'n' bass DJ during the scene's golden era in the early '90s. For Insect Queen Music's first release of 2023, Ursula 1000 decided to pay homage to some favorite elements of that period by mixing that sound with what he thinks is the perfect theme: classic martial arts movie vibes!

Early inspirations for Ursula 1000 were producers like J. Saul Kane's proto-trip hop stylings in Depth Charge and Photek's initial series of 12"s. Both producers often deployed the sound of whizzing shuriken throwing stars, whooshing swords, high-flying kicks, and karate chops for percussive hits. One should also mention the amazing Wu-Tang Clan, who also championed this recipe. With this sound palette in mind, Ursula 1000 has created the ultimate kung fu meets spy movie suspense thriller. Who is and what is … "The Glass Dragon"?

Andy Cerutti (Fort Knox Recordings) – “REWIND & come again … This is wicked, nice beats & fun groove. Let’s go!”
Kassi (Stereo de Luxe) – “Refreshing funky beats and excellent vintage martial arts vibes.”
DJ Moneyshot (The Allergies) – “Hi-Yah! Dope little cut of slickly sliced Shaolin soul samples for all you kung-fools to get busy with.”
Morphososis (NSB Radio) – “Yep! Will be supporting this fo sho!”
Mikebee (Vinyl Dreams) – “Nice vibe, definitely sounds like a throwback to 1997 jazzy D&B, not a bad thing at all.”
mister (Green Arrow Radio Show) – “Can’t break this Glass Dragon down. The entire piece is da FUNK.”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Apple Music, And Spotify.

Hector J Rodriguez - You & Me (Underscore Recordings)

The latest release from Hector J Rodriguez on Underscore Recordings follows his previous offering on the Tremulant label. Where that one was a dubby and eccentric project heavily influenced by ambient and dub techno sounds, the vibe-focused You & Me lands squarely in the lo-fi house sub-genre.

"Deep Late Nights" is an ode to those post-party back-to-mine moments with friends. Lush pads and pitched vocal samples set the tone and atmosphere, with groovy bass lines and airy vocal parts further enhancing the track as it develops over time. "You & Me" follows with a deep heavy kick and detuned strings dancing in the stereo field. These elements push the track towards a mini-drop which includes an accented bass line and call-and-response male/female vocal phrases. The end of the track punctuates an implied sentiment with one last vocal chop: "We're done here..." A fitting metaphor to be taken both literally and figuratively as the mark of completion.

Rise Ashen (Balanced Records) – “You & Me is a banger!”
Nick Warren (The Soundgarden) – “Cool and classy.”
Pat Lezizmo (Conya Records) – “Deep Late Nights is cool.”
Sumsuch (5 Magazine) – “Haunting! Will review.”
MGiK (Sofa Surfing) – “On air a must! Oh my dayzzz!”
DJ Firefly (Couch Dancing) – “Deep & hypnotic - such a great vibe on this!”

Available Now From: Bandcamp, Beatport, Traxsource, And Spotify.