John Dimas
Rave Wave

With the UKG scene carving out it's niche, 1996 saw the all too brief, but much lauded appearance of the mysterious Mred Marquez for this excellent one-off release on Crosstown Records. Dedicating himself to the tougher, trackier & darker side of UK house and garage, this 4 tracker perfectly encapsulates his vision.'I Release', opens with melodic chord stabs and heavy, warm analogue bass, swinging percussion drives the track on before a classic garage organ plays an unforgettable riff. 'I Realise' (Dub) strips it down and goes for a heads down vibe, a slammer of a track that never loses any of the original's devastating punch and potency. 'Nathalie X' brings the muscle, driven along by yet another monstrous speaker rattling b-line that builds and moves to an incredible peak, there's yet again top draw bumpin' drums and quintessential garage chords and keys. Lastly, 'Do Not Pass Go' is a classic sweaty basement jam. Gritty and more uncompromising in it's approach, banging kicks underpin the percussion that builds with those ever essential skipping snares and clipped hi-hats.There's hefty lo-slung bass throughout, whilst classic riffs and dubbed out chords lift the higher end.

A reference work, a body of knowledge, a record of human endeavour: this archival release of works from Arcarsenal's fertile collaboration in the period 2011–2016 is all of those things. Pressed on its two discs you will find, in the duo's own words, the 'broken flowers that needed just a little care and attention to bloom'. And exquisite flowers they are, rooted in the reduced formality of minimalism, yet prone to frequent and unabashed florescence. Ranging from their very earliest productions, made with limited gear, through to later recordings from a fully-equipped studio, the tracks move from techno to dub and house and into blissful after-hours and ambient, all with the rich and spacious imprint that is their own. Most of these tracks have been firm favourites on the dancefloor, whether played by other DJs or Arcarsenal themselves, yet this is the first time any of them have seen an official release. This 'Compendium' is a record of Arcarsenal's past achievements; only time will tell what new endeavours the two may pursue.

The On Board Music imprint returns with its third release this October, a five- track various artist package featuring material from Lanoche, Yugen, Serena Butler, Estrato Aurora and Vera Logdanidi.Laura BCR’s On Board Music delivers its third release here, following two mini LP projects from Healing Force Project and Mesak. The ‘Point A’ project marks the beginning of a series of VA’s coming on the imprint focusing on both established and up and coming talents from different origins, stylistically ranging from ambient to techno and all meeting together on the dance floor. French painter Natacha Mankowski provided the artwork once again, and mastering was taken care of by Carsten Dämbkes.Taking the lead is Lanoche’s ‘Love Fall’, an ethereal opener fuelled by hypnotic pads, wandering bass tones and heavily reverberated, shuffled percussion before Yugen’s ‘Phantom’ lays focus on pulsating arpeggios, choppy bass stabs and swirling atmospherics. Serena Butler’s ‘Fertile Fancy’ follows next, a cinematic four minute ambient cut employing subtly nuanced pads and bright voice like tones throughout.Estrato Aurora’s ‘Icnita’ opens the flips side with murky, oscillating bass tones, gritty, off-kilter drums and an ever-present underlying tension before Vera Logdanini’s ‘VPlanet’ rounds out the package perfectly, delivering a reduced Techno cut fuelled by cavernous atmospherics, arpeggio bleeps and swirling low-end pulses.