Aaron Spectre "Evil Most Fowl" 12" (Death$ucker)
Mr Spectre supremely represents here with a stop-start, jammed style
with an industrial puff/tuffism. This along with Speedhall and Dubplate
War represent an expat. Berlin running wild with sounds day and night.
The first track on this one, however, takes the cake - original +
anti-Bush!!! $10
**Aequo "Mictlan" CD
(Isolate 12) Very sadly, the last release from Isolate after
labelhead Wai Cheng's untimely death. Somehow he was able to
forge a contact with Aequo, a breakcore act from Beirut, Lebanon.
As you might expect, this music is dark, claustrophobic soundscapes
with sharp skittering breaks which unravel more than roll out.
Well produced with good dynamics and an unrivaled urgency. $12
Assdroids "Daddy's
Gone" LP (CockRockDisco
06) What the fuck is going on here??!!? Somewhere between some
new noise rock band, Jason Forrest's chopped pop and random samples,
The Assdroids are spazzing out having a lot of fun. The best
electronic thrash we think we've almost ever heard. $14
Big Joan "The Flood" 12" (Death$ucker Rec.)
Thirteen different electronic nutters remix Bristol group Big
Joan, whose original here is out of the AmRep / SubPop school
in a good way. That said, it's cool to hear Parasite's, Shitmat's
and My Ambulance is on Fire's takes. An experimental 6-track
blend of influences. $9 **Bintree 12" (Prat
01) Paris musician Bintree returns with some multi-speed experimental
breaks action a la Scorn: snappy, hypnotic rhythms with a lot
of snare and texture. And seriously - what speed is correct?!
Sound good at 33+8... $10
Blackmass Plastics "The
South Side Rules" 12"
EP (FDB Rec.) Experimental electro-breaks from South London
with old school ravey edges and a nice dark DJ-friendly edge. Ill
basslines give a grime edge - very street. $12
Bloodclaat Gangsta Youth - "Kill or Be Killed
(remixes)" 12" (Ambush) Last few copies of
this DJ Scud track remixed by Panacea, Slepcy and Bogdan... $10
Bong-Ra - "Conquering Lion" 12" (Hyrdophonic)
Bong- Ra's finest hour, in our book. His smokiest, grittiest distorted
breakcore 12" yet with a sharp anti-war angle amid the smoke.
Doesn't get any more breakcore than this. $12
**Bong
Ra "Grindkrusher" 12" (ad
Noiseam) Not new, but we're happy to get our paws on what is
unquestionably the best breakcore take on grindcore, as if Earache
was just starting to release stuff in the new millenium. Bonecrushing
guitars with pitched-down everything, dogfight vocals and Bong
Ra's ace drum programming make this a real treat. With Doormouse
and Sickboy remixes and perfect cover art. $10
**Bong Ra "I Am the God of Hellfire" 2x 12" LP
(ad Noiseam) Similar to his first full-length, this LP dabbles
in electronic forms but generally comes back around to a rave-tastic
ragga breakcore sound only improved-upon by plenty of dope MCs:
Drop the Lime, Ras Bumpa, Hanin Elias, MQuest and Mike Redman,
to name a few... A solid LP in a genre that's not too focussed
on them... $14
Bong-Ra "Old
School Armeggedon" 7" (Death$ucker 06) Reissued
7" with one side of jungle ragga vocals and the other ravecore
retro madness. Dope. $7
Bong
Ra "Praying Mantis" 12" (Russian Roulette
Rec.) We find Mr. Bong on more of a dark ambient jazz tip here
evoking hints of Crowley and, one assumes from recent releases,
a bit of an anti-Iraq war vision ("River Euphrates" and
Mephistopheles II".) Nice to hear him do interesting non-ragga
stuff - props! Mind you, the breaks are still great and the bass
still heavy... $12
Breakin' Stevens "Ze French Bootleg,
Vol. 1" 12" Hard electrobreaks mash-ups
of Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" and the themes
from "Rawhide"
and "Brother, Where Art Thou." I shit you not - and
you will like it. $10
**Burial "South London Boroughs" 12" EP
(Hyperdub 001) London's Burial represses their first release to
coincide with their new full-legth. Burial create a very original
form of dubstep, sharp yet smoky with a unique dubi-ness. Four
solid early dubstep tracks with a toe in two-step and 9 toes in
the door of dread... $13
Candy "It's
a Pity" 12" (Jungle Therapy 09) Wicked 2-track
slab of runnin' mentasm synths dancing with more synths and minimal
snare. The flip is a great ragga/ska breakcore track with some nice
vocals and horns. Another dancefloor stunner from Jungle Therapy.
More!!!! $10
Cavage 13 CD
(Cavage) Another strictly underground Paris Cavage CD. This is
way French with hard electronic beats drudging along while French
MCs and cabaret singers sing over the top. I wish i could understand
what they are saying because the vocals play an important part
here... featuring Gorki Plubakter, Nerf, Ann'so and Donkishot
among others. Another introduction to the free party scene which
survives in the catacombs of Paris. $12
CDatakill "666" 7" (Eupholus)
A little heavy on the goth tones, but good breaks with a new dubby
take on the darkbreaks style with plenty of nice industrial ambience,
as usual. A sweet 7" with cool packaging. $5
Chan and
Mike 03 12" Don't know much about this wicked experimental
hardcore disc except that Mike is Michael Forshaw and you can hear
his excellent slurred, stop-onna-dime electro style here. Four tracks
stretching from booty to hard electro to hardcore with 10 locked
grooves of sounds from the vinyl! Reissued for a reason... $11
Cock E.S.P. "Greatest Dicks 3" Mini-CD
(Breathmint) A great introduction to Midwest godhead noise wackos
Cock E.S.P. with 39 greatest hits from 2001-2003. The first 38 tracks
are under 20 seconds, but everything blends together as a mix. Then
there's a more tribal 4 min. track and a weird interview with them
ends it all. I told you Wisconsin was weird. $6
Cycheouts-Ghost "Vikalpa" 2x12"
LP (Romz / Suburban Trash)A nutty
raver-toy, neo breaks LP that really should come with E or something.
Fun summer jungle madness with ace drum programming and a clean
sound great for blending and pitching-shifting to anywhere. $20
Dan Doormouse
"Have a Few Get Some" 2 x 12" LP(Addict
7) Early largely overlooked 2x12" LP showcasing
Dan's early breakcore and acid hardcore, but also his jazzy programming.
His first full-length. $14
**dDamage 12" EP
(Planet Mu) This French duo has a hard tek and breakcore edge,
but with more melody and breakdowns which deliver a cinematic
feel to the whole thing. Sometimes it reminds us of the Trolls...
a definite compliment in our book! A trip hop resurgence, perhaps??!!
$12
The Dexorcist "D. exe" 12" (FDB
Rec.) Dex is back with more sharp electro-breaks. Here he blends
his sci-fi sound with slower 4x4 elements: bassline breakdowns,
shuffle steps and handclaps. Thick-bassed experimental electro.
$11
The Dexorcist "Dextermination" 12"
(SMB) Another fine release from SMB. Dexorcist keeps getting better
with bass-heavy electro punctuated with keyboard stabs and snare-heavy
breaks. How do you know it's good? Because it sounds good at any
speed... sharp. $10
The Dexorcist "Quad Angle" 2x12"
EP (SMB 11/12) Ill cyborg electro-breaks from the French/English
SMB label. Always good dancefloor breakers, this one will not disappoint
with plenty of broken edges to their runnin' electro style. $15
**Diamond Geezer "Weed It and Reep" 12" (Renegade
Weed 01) - The mash-up jungle on this new London start-up devastates!
First they turn Buju Banton's "Humble" into a sweet
ambient jungle track that also steps. Then they take "Uptown
Top Ranking" and make it all steppers with nice dub flair
- a wicked hot summer track. $11
DJ Balli
"From the Inside" LP (Sonic Belligeranza) A
full-fledged DJ scratch LP from this Italian label. Absurdist
noise meets everything from rap acapellas to electro breaks to
cinematic interludes to meteorological forecasts to horsey clip-clops.
Pleanty of DJ options on this one. Class A... $11
DJ Balli "Mutant Milly and Commodore 16" 12" (Sonic
Belligeranza 01) This is labelhead DJ Balli's first release and
it combines a lot of dub elements with some breakbeat experiments
and plenty of funky bass. Ten tracks give plenty of options for
spinning... $11
**DJ Balli "The Pure
Spirit of Rock'n'Roll" CD (Belligeranza)
Balli does a cool job of mixing assorted breakcore and noise tracks
from his label utilizing his friend DJ Nuts and the label's own
scratch records cut in. Tracks by Slaam, FFF, Balli and more. $9
**DJ Floorcleaner "Roger's Massive Armpits" 12" EP
(Death$ucker Rec.) Full-on mental rollin' hardcore starts this
one off and it only builds from there into teutonic filtered mental,
mentastic mentalness. What's he saying? "Try catching monkey!"?
Side 2 devastates in a straight thumpin' ragga breakcore smash-up.
One for the breakcore massive, indeed! $10
**DJ Rupture / Filastine "Soot Fall Tour '06" CD
- This is the new Soot mix with a new half-hour mix by Rupture
extending from Digital Mystikz to Gang Gang Dance, as well as a
half-hour live mix by Filastine of what appears to be remixes from
his Soot CD. Rupture blends between genres wickedly and Filastine
executes live vocal cut-ups and live drumming perfectly. Do you
doubt its dopeness??!!?? $6
Doormouse "Fractured Hearts" 12" (Peace
Off!) The man just keeps improving. This one mixes his aerobics
gabber with hardcore rap snippets and some ragga melodies and then
throws in some surfer dude. Sounds like Doormouse to me. There's
also a great jazzy breakcore number among his best. Great package.
$12
**Dr. Bastardo "When Dubplates
Attack" 2 x 12" LP (Hurry Up!) English breakcore
fiend debuts his mental, skittery style with plenty of effectual
madness, setting him a bit apart from the crowd. Tempos morph, sounds
come in and out and... well, the shit is just really fast and psychedelic.
Quality product from Peace Off, yet again. $17 **Drop the Lime "Bad Girlz" 12" (Rag & Bone 14)
London's Rag & Bone drop a delicious DtL track here. "Bad
Girlz" is all Metalheadz for the 21st century. Fuzzy bassdrops
and candy in the treble and all Aliens scenery - momma birthing babies
with 15 sets of teeth like that shark/eel thing they just found.
The 2 tracks on the flip are all angular dancefloor 4x4 dub experiments.
Dope. $13
Drop the Lime / Blackham split 12" (Ruff / Peace
Off) DTL nails his style on this new 12", inaugurating Peace
Off's new grime sub-label. Using peices of grime, breakcore, dubstep
and jungle, Luca creates a truly unique style of dance music all
his own. Very similar to his work on his Mirex 12". Blackham
comes with a darker sound on the flip like if Somatic Responses
made grime... $10
Drop the Lime "Shot Shot
Hearts" CD (Tigerbeat6)
A long EP of the newer DtL style, a reinvented pop, that's just
as mental as past efforts with an emphasis on lyrical songwriting.
Don't think there aren't wavering basslines and fast snare work,
but you'll be hard-pressed to call it breakcore. Original. $10
**Drop the Lime "Step It Up" 12" (Mirex)
Hard-to-find masterpiece from a couple years back. Luca morphs
from breakcore speed to grime steps with this. Some of his best
breakcore tracks, especially "Lost in Brooklyn." Seven
tracks and ace graphix by DtL, as well. $14
Drop the Lime - "Sweet Desire" 12"
(Ambush) Luca's premiere 12" from 2003 awakens the world
to his vox & stop-on-a-lime breaks. Drop the Lime debut and
going fast... $10
**Drop
the Lime "We Never Sleep"LP (Tigerbeat
6) Luca's new LP is condensed onto one 12" with a mere 6 of
the tracks, but plenty of ear candy, nonetheless. This LP boasts
even better vocal work (and looping) definitive of Drop the Lime,
but with a sleeker techno sound, stripping all his previous breaks
down to a bangin' mix of B-more, bootie and techno. Always unique,
but don't expect breakcore... probably good for you... $13
**Droon 7" (Wood Records) Cowboy breakcore
from Belgium on the first side. It will entertain you. Side two
will scare you in the way that Belgian raves like it. The way Droon
mixes this whole thing live really adds a lot to the intensity.
Choice breakcore with oodles of originality! $9
**Drum Corps "Grist"
CD (CockRockDisco)
Aaron Spectre has successfully forged an alliance between metal
and breakcore that somehow transcends both genres. Yes, heavy words,
but this one iS heavy and also psychedelic and simply one of the
best stop-on-a-dime deliveries ever. Aptly released on CockRockDisco
late last year and deserved of much more attention. $16
**Drum
Corps "Live and Regret"
12" (CockRockDisco)
Aaron Spectre's live metal breakcore projects rears it's ugly
head, but wait, it's not so ugly. More like a chrome phoenix
rising from the ashes of sacrificed Flying V guitars. Unbelievably
well done metal breakcore mash-down. Slayer breakcore. Five tracks
from the CD - dope graphix. $13
Dubberman
"Sous Influence" (Apocalypse) from the same
French label that gave us A.P.PARTT.'s "Nu Tango" comes
this similar project of experimental breaks pan-ethnic fusion.
Quite similar to many acts on TheAgriculture, the album veers
from experimental dubby breaks to ambient dub in a pass of the
spliff. A.PPART. shows up for a track, as well. A solid album
of material in a world of 3-good-track releases!
$15
**Dub Trio feat. Mike Patton 7" - blue vinyl (Cargo/ROIR)
Dub Trio plays an exercise in Ruts DC / Bad Brains reggae rock.
The A-Side mixes that sound with Mike Patton trying out for Def
Leppard... to good arena effect. The B-side contains 2 ace dubbed-out
instrumentals which stop on a dime, but still add plenty of echo
to the guitar and snare. This NYC band is the best live dub going
right now and this is a tight display of their creativeness. A
7" demanding
a sound system. $9
Duran Duran Duran / The Magus split
12"
(Advanced Idea Mechanics) DDD's first 12" from up-and-coming
label A.I.M. highlights his developing splatterbreaksboogie style.
Magus holds down the flip with more a a Somatic Respponses vibe.
$8
Eight Frozen Modules "Rejected
Resident EP" 12" (Mutant
Sniper 04) A very skittery, glitchy, bubblin' electro sound gives
way to dubbier breakcore that's more up Peace Off's direction. Definitely
some breakcore crowd-pleasing ragga here, as well. Yowza! $12Electromeca "Battling Doll Breaks" 12"
(Hurry Up Limited) The skitteriest of the skittery breaks, Electromeca
always comes correct with a strong hip hop edge to his breakcore
and unlike anything else out there. Never enough copies of his stuff...
this stuff is great mixed with rap because of the space he leaves
between beats. $12
Enduser "Bollywood Breaks" 12" (ad
Noiseam) A wicked re-stock of this breakcore / Bollywood mash-up
record. Chopped-up Indian samples with breakcore. A simple formula
which Enduser pulls off with hard, dreamy ease. $10
Enduser "Caustic Pulse" 12" (Damage
/ Peace Off!) Enduser continues in his quest for domination of
the killing-est ragga breakcore track out there. If this were based
on straight throbbin' thick, smoky vinyl density, the A side would
win - a killer track with some of the best vocals I've heard on a
breakcore track. Props to the art and mastering departments, too!
Rinsin'. $12
Enduser "Pushing Away" 2 x 12" LP (ad Noiseam)
Cameos from Shadow Huntaz, Kamuki, DJ Hidden and Bong-Ra reinforce
this broody, dark new release from Enduser. It's d'n'b breakcore
with nice nods to Doc Scott-era Metalheadz, as well as a little dubstep
flavor. Solid breakcore with good vocal and MC work. $14
Entropie vs. Leto 12" (Toolbox Ltd. 05) Solid downtempo
experimental for all those late-night DJs. Leto packs a dusty lo-fi
Muslimgauze edge with nice found sounds added. Entropie is like
their name - electric, hovering downtempo electro. Impressive. $10
**Evergreen 12" (SPB)
Weirdo electronics with female vox from Hamburg via Istari's label.
Does it deliver? Yes, in a broken pop style with punk undertones.
With nods to Jean Genet and Kathy Acker, it all follows a conceptual
journey through the history of containers and the Walkman using spoken
word, pop samples and electronica. Original. $8
Expedisound 1 12" (EXPLP01) Arok & Mecha,
Midi Link and Tahiti Bob throw down what appears to be a French-African
experimental electronic 12" spanning bubblin' electro, digidub,
raw rhythms and electric call-and-response breaks. Seriously worth
checking out and some of the best French MC edits we've heard... a
winner. $12
Fanny "Fear and Loathing for Dummies 2" 12"
(Zod) - Snares-like mayhem from his roomate and they live in Winnepeg
and he's Scottish and was once in The Exploited, but he doesn't suck
like they did. In fact this is our favorite Zod release: twisted,
cracked and genius. $10
**FFF / LFO Demon
7" (Artcore 01)
Raw dirty rinseout breakcore with bassdrops, divas, insane speeds
and reverse snares. Yeah - as good as they've done. $9
Filastine "Burn
It" CD
(Soot) Seattle's
Filastine collaborates with a world of musicians from all corners
on his debut full-length. Being a drummer, his beats come alive
within every production here, whether it's under Spanish rap, Middle-Eastern
flutes or anarcho street bands. A great debut on Rupture's Soot
label only complemented by Swoon' awesome cover art ( too bad it's
not on vinyl...) $14**Filastine "Selections
from Burn It!" 12" (Soot) Here Filastine
strips down tracks from his new CD giving us some instrumental
versions perfect for DJ use. Six tracks which bubble with desert
grit and hip hop swagger, delivering a muti-culti stew of rhythms.
Ace! $11 Flourescent
Grey CD (Isolate) A quality CD of glitchy psychedelic soundscapes
which tend to meander down some nice experimental roads. Where many
releases in this vein fail, this one succeeds by holding your interest
and always throwing an audio screwball your way. For fans of Warp's
ambient releases... $12 **Fosforo "Mosquito" 12" Fosforo
are an L.A. trio who play a potent mix of hip hop, electronic and
folk akin to Mano Chao. Many of you may remember
this song remixed on DJ /Rupture's last LP. This is a nice 6-track
single with the original, Rupture's version and other variations.
Good stuff! $10
Framix
CD (Hi-Subway) Everyone here loved the LP by Kazamix
from Western France. It was a great weird electronic ska-driven
world of exotica executed perfectly. Well, we are happy
to discover another earlier release from 2001 by one of
the 2 members, Framix. This release has more digi-dub and
less psychedelia, but if you dug Kazamix, you'll dig this...
probably even been waiting for more like us.
$13
Framix
vs. Boulez Republique 12" (Toolbox Ltd. 07) Framix is
one-half of Kazamix and practically the same gorgeous ska-driven,
exotica/country dub plus nice French English chants. Boulez Republique
compliment Fraza's 3 tracks with kitchy vocals over solid beats.
If you liked the previous Kazamix, you will love this!!!! $11
Fuck Uphner 12" (Mewe 01) The debut release
from this new Belgium imprint delivers nice experimental dirty electro
with plenty of strange textures mixed among the kicks and breaks.
A good DJ tool for electro or downtempo... $11
Goodie Pal "Statoil" 7"(Pal) Another
picture-disc 7" from the Pal - this one very dreamy and Greenlandish
you might say. Nice bugged-out slithery underwater cave Gollum bit,
too! $7 Hecate's Ascension Chamber 2x12" LP (Zhark
Intl) Michigan's Rachel Kozak has always followed her own path, injecting
dark breakcore with a heavy dose of Crowley and her own vocal presence.
This is one of her best-realized releases to-date. The synth-driven
splatterbreaks often break down into ambient passages with hand percussion
and the drum programming is definitely some of her best. There's
a lot of different stuff to DJ with here, but be warned - there's
still a strong goth vibe as in past releases. $15
Hecate/Eiterherd split 12" (Zod) - Hecate's
characteristic dark abrasive break textures and an eerie symphonic
last track. For those of you not familiar with Eiterherd, this would
be a good place to get acquainted with his signature apocalyptic
sex fetish ragga breaks hardcore chaos. Zod done good once again.
$8
I:gor "Znak Zapytania" 12" (Low
Res 015) Spacious gritty slow core with glitchy idm (i should wash
my mouth out with soap for even thinking to utter that word) sounds
that lighten up the mood for a while. Thankfully not for the duration
though. The last track is a gnarled mass of breaks and wraps the
record up with a big fuck you to the previous prettiness. $10
Infernal Noise Brigade
7" (Post World Industries) Filastine's activist marching
band recorded this after being released from jail at the RNC Convention
here last fall. They note that you should pitch up the record
because their wrists were sore after being handcuffed, but we
think this sounds just great with its multi-culti throb and strong
sentiment. Sweet. $6
Istari Lasterfahrer "Dubcore
Vol. Four" 7" (S.P.B.) Istari rarely disappoints
on his many self-produced 7"s and this is one of his best yet.
"Sound Gets Dropped" does the raggajungle sounds but really
makes something very original like a breakcore Metalheadz....Class
A dub effort, to boot! On pink vinyl with stenciled pink hearts shows
his love.$7**Istari Lasterfahrer "The Rabbit in Me" 12" (SPB)
Istari presents 6 new tracks here in his unique DIY electronic style.
It's breakcore with simple, dirty basslines and old school Ambush
- style breaks - all snares and kick with some dubby sirens and sound
effects. Unlike its influences, it doesn't take itself too seriously
with a mental edge not unlike Ove Naxx. Good stuff!!! $11
Istari Lasterfahrer / Enduser 7"
(Stoodioplastiks.tk/S.P.B.) Istari cuts a nice gritty ragga
jungle number with KRS-ONE samples and Enduser delivers the same,
but more techstep with dread vocals. $7
Jason Forrest "Shamelessly Exciting" LP
(Sonig) In which Jason moves to Berlin and refines his oddity for
a city crying out for a shot of cockrockdisco. Everything we've
come to expect - prog interludes, metal licks, all yer fave punk
guitars in one song, some great melodies and, of course, many a
rampant snare. DJ Shadow on Ritalin. LP or CD $14
LP
CD **KGB Kid 7" single (Clash 07) boogie-along ragga
breakcore in the Clash 7" stylee. Definitely in that Belgian
/ Dutch old-school ragga jungle flavor we all ove so much. Call
it "Original Nutter" redux
and call a rewind!!! $8
Kid 606
"Wickid" 12" (Peace Off!) Miguel picked a
barnstormer for his French release, remixing it twice and adding
numerous locked grooves from the track - call it "The Kid 606
Remix Starter Kit." Dope track in his ragga styley. $11
King Honey "Trinity" 12" (SoundInk)
Philly MC King Honey spits over an ill beat that's great for mixing.
Add DJ /Rupture and Heat Sensor remixes and an instrumental and you
have one of this label's strongest releases. $9
K.K. Null "Kosmik Engine" CD (Important)
- Beautiful, shifting, complex noise with lush, shimmering textures.
Highly recommended, cheap import. $12
Konundrum 12"
(Switchcraft 3) Jagged break-heavy free party techno from Jack Clang
and his brother Nic Fit. This shit delivers - definite hardware-oriented
throbcore for the non-sleepers among us. Great to see that SF crews
are working hard to get this stuff out. Hardcore!!! $9
**Kovert "Dubcore Vol. 5" (Sozialistischer
Plattenbau) Another great little single from Istari's S.P. Dubcore
series. Here Kovert does a mean take on steely dubbed-out breakcore. Obvious
Scud comparison's don't obscure Kovert's post-punk metallic dub vision. $8
Kurva "Dub Elements" 12"(Kurva 03)
An older release that's pure French digi-dub with plenty of chanting
and ragga crooning amid the reggae basslines and dubby atmospherics.
Side two starts things rolling a lot harder, but still finds room
to dub shit out. Great cover art, again. $11
**Neil Landstrumm "Kids Wake
Up" 12" (Planet Mu) Like his buddy DJ Slip,
Landstrumm has always provided awe-inspiring experimental techno
from his Scottish home. Here he discovers dubstep and incorporates
more of a synthed-out bleep-driven edge to the dubstep sound.
Neil's got the experience to produce a track ready for the
dancefloor and this one doesn't disappoint, regardless of the
crowd. $12
**LFO Demon - "Grand
Hotel Abyss" 12" (Junk)
Berlin's LFO Demon delivers his best to-date with this experimental
breakcore gem. We hear Tuxedomoon, Metalheadz, Prod
