The oblique and annihilating transmissions emanating from the workshop of Polar Inertia have been issued intently and surely over the last decade and more. Environment Control grants access to the biggest consignment to date, with eight tracks of mesmeric play that are fraught with clinical impulsiveness and astringent rushes.Opening with a didactic panegyric to transmutation, Polar Inertia swiftly counter our recoil with an ominous display of pressure on 'Smothering Dreams'. The intensity is sustained—as if to suggest that there's now no way back—until the menace relents on 'Artic Horizon', its shimmering gravitational pull amounting to an idealism after the unease that delivered us here.Credits:Recorded by Polar Inertia between Montfort and Ivry 2022-2023Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, RomeDrawing by Jonas RönnbergPhotography by Marcel Engdahlnorthernelectronics.se
The concept of naught (Ø) has challenged Salvatore Mercatante throughout his musical career, specifically, trying to understand how the idea of ‘nothing’ fits into the realm of sound, and at the same time, exist in a world of influence at every turn. In the absence of everything, are we able to create something truly free?As a lifelong New York-based musician, Mercatante’s influences and productions run a wide spectrum. Just as happy producing 80s-inspired horror soundtracks as he is refining acute drum patterns over and over again, Salvatore is the first to ask himself, where next? When a musician’s output can be influenced today by so much, and there is no self-defined or perceived artistic goal in mind, how do you start from a place of nothingness, again and again?This approach has born many minimal and experimental albums of note in the past, but with Ø, Salvatore ended up with an almost controlled maximalist approach. Beginning with open spaces and allowing sonic textures to live and evolve past where you may expect, Ø allows the space between notes to become equally as important as the notes themselves. Walls of noise, soaring soundtracks, dense techno, glittering IDM, and minimal glitch, sit side-by-side to present an all-encompassing palette of sonic possibility.Often, even without any intent, what can be born from nothing will somehow transpire back into something more recognizable. It’s human nature after all. A subtle fingerprint, as a sequence, melody, pattern, or drum kick. Whether Salvatore intended for this record to represent his defining sound or not, only time will tell. Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci @ Enisslab, Rome, Italy. Artwork by Brandon LocherWritten and produced by Salvatore Mercatante
All tracks written and produced by Rita Mikhael in Toronto, Canada 2023 Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, Rome
Visual by Dominique Saiegh ”The euphonic tics of E-Saggila's music are typically found in symbiosis with the exacting intensity of her rhythmic arrangements, as meticulously deranged as they are. 'Gamma Tag' refreshes expectations by making more space for melodic conditioning and inculcation, whipping ultraviolet harmonics into uncanny plains for a wide range of tempos and cadences. While breaks remain staccato hammers, and kicks are cast to negate cardiac systems, E-Saggila's modulation of rhythmic dynamics is more p
Recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark August 2023
Music By Christian StadsgaardMixed By Christian Stadsgaard and Malthe FischerMastering by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, RomeFor Helle
AI-36 comes from Ear to Ear - the debut collaboration between label regular Samuel van Dijk (Multicast Dynamics) and Ukrainian artist Yevgen Chebotarenko. Taken from a series of live recording sessions, the album explores in four parts a markedly darker realm of soundscape music. A cornucopia of abstract morphing scenes and heady synesthesia, the album brims with rich sonic detail and evocative gestures. Deftly blending organic sound textures with an experimental austerity, ‘Live Recordings’ displays potent and accomplished storytelling.The album opens to a grey overcast vista, a natural landscape that slowly melts into a descending chasmic dysphoria. The mood transitions to a drone-based piece on the B-side, characterised by a more psychologically suspenseful framework and exotic blend of sound design. The atmosphere lightens, yet equally pensive as side C takes on a more elemental form, invoking water and its array of microbial and metabolic ecosystems. Brief cathartic moments in the final section pave the way for deeper wayfaring on the D-side. Stray signals and unknowable artefacts skitter across a vast subaqueous domain, a fathomless womb of potentialities that ebbs into eternity.
With a string of releases on prestigious labels such as The Gods Planet, Affin, Edit Select and Circular Limited - the London-based Acaera (formerly Basis Change) has become a reputable name in the realm of hypnotic techno. We are truly honoured to present this EP as our label’s first release, and we hope to return Acaera’s trust in us with the pressing of a beautifully packaged limited edition vinyl alongside the digital release. The vinyl includes two vinyl-only ambient tracks that book-end the release, with the first being the track from which the EP takes its name. Unfold begins a deeply personal journey, and immediately the listener is welcomed by a rich and atmospheric soundscape. This depth remains through the rolling enchantment of Apex and the off-kilter percussion and shifting grooves of Anaesthesia. Onto the B Side, Learned Behaviour is a track of slow revelation, pulling the listener mesmerically through its unfolding landscape. Forella will resonate with those who know Acaera’s signature sound, with broken rhythm work soaked in beautiful pads. Closing out the EP, Reorientation culminates on an uplifting note, leaving you contemplating feelings of warmth and hopefulness.The Artwork:Created by our resident artist, the cover artwork presents an unfolding succulent photographed from an unusual perspective. Here, the roots appear sprawling and grasping across the frame, evoking a tone that perfectly captures the mood of the record, whilst maintaining a level of mystique and ambiguity.Credits:Written and produced by Acaera Mastered by Giovanni Conti at Artefacts Mastering BerlinOriginal artwork by Anon
Recorded by Anthony Linell & Jonas Rönnberg in Muskö, Sweden 2021 Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, Rome northernelectronics.se“The collaborative project of Northern Electronics' founders, Anthony Linell and Jonas Rönnberg, has never ceased to confront with their coupling of industrious delirium and pensive austerity. By now we know that only adrenaline can make sense of the toxic ensemble of purposes at the heart of Ulwhednar. Meditating on higher flights of thrill and disorder than their previous record, and with an acknowledgement of their Stockholm roots, 'Area 08' induces fever and anticipation with every gesture.The opening tracks make a raucous yet resolute introduction to proceedings, eventually issuing one of the album's most exquisite moments of reprieve with 'Akalla/Broken Swords'. However, it is the second half of 'Area 08' that formally admits their latest work has crossed a threshold yet unexplored by the pair. A suite of villainously propulsive tracks spit embers of caustic balms as they careen out of reach with the engorged march of 'Commuter Madness'. Cunning in as many ways as it is earnest and audacious, 'Area 08' is a welcome alarm from the nucleus of the mission.”
Written, recorded and produced by Matti Bye in Fårö, Sweden 2022 The recordings were made on a 1926 Steinway Grand Piano through the EMS Synthi A, recorded onto tape with Nagra IV S. Photography by Matti Bye Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, Rome“The prolific Swedish pianist and composer Matti Bye has long been associated with Northern Electronics, appearing on well-enumerated compilations and collaboration-rich works. This is the first time he presents his own full-length recording with the label.'Between Darkness and White Snow' captures Bye's elemental radiance in four vignettes. Recorded on a 1926 Steinway Grand Piano through an EMS Synthi A, 'Between Darkness and White Snow' renders the perplexity of polarity with a grave assembly of textural phenomena and lyrical figures. As ephemeral harmonic mazes wilt into subdued distortion, we are left with a tentative invitation to gaze into the pooling material of Bye's compositions.”
Dutch dance troupe ISOTOOP inaugurates its label with a quaternity of sly rhythms to mystify and elevate. Adhering to ISOTOOP’s unstated yet practised mantra of many growing as one, the culprits behind the pieces are none other than core family members Shoal (Kenny Kneefel) and Vand (Viktor van der Riet), unifying for the first time under the name of Voal. The longtime friends and compatriots in sound meld together to form a distinct entity; aligned as one, but audibly a product of their individual approaches. Across the four cuts, the two producers share a singular vision of club music, designed to initiate movement and shake the floor, while leaving essential space for thought and imagination. From the low-down and dirty funk of ‘Carpet Crawler’ to ‘Take My Hand’s bleary and dazed downtempo, evaporating in its final moments into transcendent closing ambience, Voal journey through a wide landscape of club electronics with a fervent pulse. Pinned between the two slower joints are ‘Lucifer’, a consecutive tumble through iterated rolling percussion and minimal basslines, and the kinetic, high-tempo fiesta of ‘Saffron’, a sure-fire favourite for the ecstatic midnight. Thick like warm tar, and airy as steam, Voal’s debut whets the appetite for more.Written by Freddie Hudson
In 2022 we journeyed to the center of the earth with Agartha, Lasha Chkhaidze's first album. This time we go the opposite direction, and fly towards the outer edge of the atmosphere. Atmos, the latest offering of the young and talented Georgian artist, sees him explore the ether. Subtle and intricate layers are weaved together on the course of six tracks. This ambient album offers a completely different artistic direction compared to his previous work. Where melancholia and piano dominated Agartha, we are throughout Atmos taken into an otherworldly environment. The LP’s atmospheric undertone combined with its glitchier elements brings it into a lightly psychedelic dimension. With its really beautiful soundscapes and subdued intricate ideas, Atmos will undoubtedly please listeners of finely written ambient.Lasha Chkhaidez is a gifted musician capable of crafting evocative music, The Intergalactic Institute for Sound is glad to present his deeply immersive experience to the public.
Following their 2021 debut album, ‘Brama’, One MillionEyes return with their highly anticipated second album,‘Iris’, set to captivate us once more through akaleidoscope of rich analog and instrumentalfragments.The inspiration behind the album was born from apowerful symbol—the iris of the eye. Controlling theinflow of light, the iris mirrors the duo's mission for thealbum, “letting light in, even in the darkest of times”.Representing an attempt to shed new insight on theirsometimes indescribable approach, Paolo and Lucianocompare the ambition (and consequent imperfections)throughout their music to that of the imperfect, yetunique array of color found within an iris, in the hope itcan completely entrance and mesmerize.With much of the album recorded live, ‘Iris’ marks arefined evolution in the One Million Eyes sound bornunder their Tempelhof guise many years ago. Infusingorganic sound elements such as voice fragments,acoustic guitar lines, and drum beats at the forefront oftheir compositions, their vast array of analogsynthesizers once again provide added depth andwarmth, resulting in majestic, hypnotic circular motifsthat Paolo and Luciano describe as "Mantras, rising andfalling in volume and intensity."Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri, and featuring artworkby Ventral Is Golden, ‘Iris’ will be available onNovember 10th, on turquoise vinyl, digital, and streaming.There will also be a limited run of multi-colored ‘Iris’ 12”available directly on the label’s Bandcamp.
For nearly 40 years, English producer Mark Van Hoen has been making challenging music that eludes easy categorization under his own name, as Locust, and in the groups Autocreation, Scala, and Drøne. While his output has skirted around the fringes of IDM, techno, trip-hop, ambient, drone, and electropop, it has mutated these genres' elements in distinctive ways, revealing a mind always questing for unprecedented sounds.This is Mark Van Hoen’s ninth album as Locust, and an instant classic.Drifting, hanging, holding. Hoping, seeking, searching. And then finding.Mark Van Hoen's ninth album as Locust is a cosmic whisper, a tender touch, where candid songwriting commingles with the afterimage of trip-hop and jungle. Across eight tracks, spectral melodies dance between languid breakbeats, and a formless murmur drifts through the ether, seeking a common thread.Layered in strata, "The First Cause" reveals itself anew with each listen. Delicate tones share space with bass weight. Drums crunch, and rhythms cascade. Voices loop and intone, bodiless. What at first seems melancholy, you may later find reoriented—toward promise.We seek solace in each other, and we seek solace in sound. Kinship isn't easy to come by. When a record offers its kind embrace to us as this one does, without reservation, we should take heed.Written, performed and produced by Mark Van Hoen© Touch Music/Fairwood Music UK Ltd℗ 2023 Mark Van Hoen under exclusive license to Mysteries of the Deepmarkvanhoen.comMastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri at Black Knoll Studio, NYPhotography by Grant AaronDesign by Gabriel BenzurWords by Chris Zaldua