MCA Records: 1989
Greetings, Past-Peoples, I am 2073 Sykonee. Yes, the same writer/reviewer/critic/knob that usually takes up space on this antiquated blooger, but from “The F-U-U-UTUR-R-RE”, as some so quaintly put it. Sykonee Prime made use of his time-dimension machine to take a jaunt forward for once, and despite some really wacky paradoxes even Doc Rick Brown, The Schwifty-Bitch would have trouble explaining, approached I to learn of what developments had gone down in electronic music. I was willing to tell himself this, but he was quickly fascinated by the ponderous amount of social-net music from The Oak Ridge Boys instead. Why them, I asked myself, to which I told me, “They're one of the few officially sanctioned acts by the Atomic Brotherhood.” Young-Blood Me was of course confused – what did I expect from skipping over so much history?
Without getting too over-written, The Oak Ridge Boys are allowed due to their association with the nuclear research base near Oak Ridge, Tennessee, starting out in the Nauty-Forties as a country and gospel group that performed there. For seeing is believing that only music with relevance to our atomic overlords and saviours is deemed worthy of our advanced cochleas.
Sykonee Prime found that fascinating and asked me to return from my time to review some music from The Oak Ridge Boys. “Whatever I can find,” I did say, “for a specifically cheaply amount of course.” Oh, such a naive idea – I had no clue just how extensive a discography The Oak Ridge Boys – in all their iterations – does have. But sure, I can play with myself.
And so it is with my logical but impractical alphabetical approach to reviewing music, up first is American Dreams. This was the last LP The Oak Ridge Boys released in the Nauty-Eighties, a decade that was as commercially successful as they'd ever be (back when such things mattered). Not all was right with the group though, as their iconic 'mountain man' tenor singer William Golden was off on a solo career, replaced by bass player Steve Sanders instead. He has a definite tenor singing voice, but just look at him in that group photo. Doesn't he stand out at odds with that mullet? What was wrong with people of the Nauty-Eighties?
By this point, the boys from near Oak Ridge were settled into a comfortable country sound, the odd gospel harmony thrown in. There's peppy tunes like Cajun Girl and Don't Give Up, humorous sap like If I Was To Start Crying (spoiler: they do at the end), covers of Rod Stewart songs (In My Own Crazy Way), ditties penned by Joey Scarbury (famous for the theme song of the documentary The Greatest American Hero), creeper fantasies in Bed Of Roses, and the mandated Americana odes like An American Family, Turning For Home, and The American Dream. I forget, did every American home have a painting of Jesus In The Garden hanging on the wall? Me memory ain't what it used to be, you know.
Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Dynatron - Aeternus
Aphashia Records/Blood Music: 2015/2016
When I started branching out from synthwave's shores and away from my Perturbator comfort zone, one of the acts that caught my attention early was Dynatron. It didn't hurt that the Jeppe Hasseriis project sprung from the same digital print as James Kent – Aphasia Records – but that whole 'no CDs in discography' factor put him on the back-burner for yours truly. Still, thought I, should he ever get himself in on that physical format deal, I'd absolutely scope his stuff out proper-like.
And so he done did, scoring himself a re-issue deal of his first two albums on Blood Music. Huh, is the Finnish label gonna' be scouring up all these wayward Aphasia alum then? Might we soon see Protector 101, Starforce, or Judge Bitch on Blood Music too?
As for where Dynatron falls on the synthwave spectrum, ol' Jeppe has his sights set squarely on the stars, EPs and albums celebrating all manner of pulpy sci-fi stylings. Many producers fancy themselves 'outrun' racers tearing up the tarmac, but Mr. Hasseriis is all about that Throttle Up, splitting the spaces between planetary places! Because who needs sissy earthly nitros when you can have literal rocket fuel as your means of propulsion! The cosmos is a dope domain, is what I'm saying. I'll never run out of alliterative abuses, yo'! Never!
Aeturnus is the second album from Dynatron, and has a little more of a narrative going for it than his first of Escape Velocity. For those of you that are Latin impaired, the title roughly means 'eternal' or 'endless', which is a handy, fancy way of describing outer space. And Jeppe doesn't mince words in selling the setting in his track titles (The Outer Rims Of Traversed Space, Towards The Island Universe, Out There). Other times he goes more terrestrial (Travelling The Wastelands), or roaming realms other than our own (Not Of This World, Escape). Basically, we're on a ride where no one's gone before, and it's kinda' scary out there. Can we even make it back home?
All that said, this is just assumed on my part, as the music itself doesn't specifically imply anything from the song titles, beyond the tone and vibe they impart. Some do serve their titles quite well: Hyperion Sunrise is as big and synthy as an opening track should be, Aeturnus Theme is as grand as you'd expect of a synthwave theme song, closing cut A Beacon From Home offers the sort of hopeful denouement credits score as any hectic space adventure should warrant. Tracks are thrilling when needed (holy cow, does Escape kick my ass!), others rightfully mysterious (a lot of tracks with big titles that will eat self-imposed word count).
I really have no gripes with Aeternus as a spacey synthwave album. Yet it feels like it's missing just that extra bit of narrative focus that's made so many of Perturbator's albums winners. Just have to wait and see if Dynatron reaches it with his next album.
When I started branching out from synthwave's shores and away from my Perturbator comfort zone, one of the acts that caught my attention early was Dynatron. It didn't hurt that the Jeppe Hasseriis project sprung from the same digital print as James Kent – Aphasia Records – but that whole 'no CDs in discography' factor put him on the back-burner for yours truly. Still, thought I, should he ever get himself in on that physical format deal, I'd absolutely scope his stuff out proper-like.
And so he done did, scoring himself a re-issue deal of his first two albums on Blood Music. Huh, is the Finnish label gonna' be scouring up all these wayward Aphasia alum then? Might we soon see Protector 101, Starforce, or Judge Bitch on Blood Music too?
As for where Dynatron falls on the synthwave spectrum, ol' Jeppe has his sights set squarely on the stars, EPs and albums celebrating all manner of pulpy sci-fi stylings. Many producers fancy themselves 'outrun' racers tearing up the tarmac, but Mr. Hasseriis is all about that Throttle Up, splitting the spaces between planetary places! Because who needs sissy earthly nitros when you can have literal rocket fuel as your means of propulsion! The cosmos is a dope domain, is what I'm saying. I'll never run out of alliterative abuses, yo'! Never!
Aeturnus is the second album from Dynatron, and has a little more of a narrative going for it than his first of Escape Velocity. For those of you that are Latin impaired, the title roughly means 'eternal' or 'endless', which is a handy, fancy way of describing outer space. And Jeppe doesn't mince words in selling the setting in his track titles (The Outer Rims Of Traversed Space, Towards The Island Universe, Out There). Other times he goes more terrestrial (Travelling The Wastelands), or roaming realms other than our own (Not Of This World, Escape). Basically, we're on a ride where no one's gone before, and it's kinda' scary out there. Can we even make it back home?
All that said, this is just assumed on my part, as the music itself doesn't specifically imply anything from the song titles, beyond the tone and vibe they impart. Some do serve their titles quite well: Hyperion Sunrise is as big and synthy as an opening track should be, Aeturnus Theme is as grand as you'd expect of a synthwave theme song, closing cut A Beacon From Home offers the sort of hopeful denouement credits score as any hectic space adventure should warrant. Tracks are thrilling when needed (holy cow, does Escape kick my ass!), others rightfully mysterious (a lot of tracks with big titles that will eat self-imposed word count).
I really have no gripes with Aeternus as a spacey synthwave album. Yet it feels like it's missing just that extra bit of narrative focus that's made so many of Perturbator's albums winners. Just have to wait and see if Dynatron reaches it with his next album.
Lorenzo Masotto - Aeolian Processes
Dronarivm: 2017
I've bought a few releases from Dronarivm now, but it wasn't with intent to scope the Moscow label out. It just happened that way, me spotting a few eye-catching items, and taking a blind leap of faith that they'd turn out interesting. That they have, so I figured a little stop-over at Dronarivm's Bandcamp couldn't hurt either, see what their full discography looks like. And lo', wouldn't you know it, they had one of those nifty 'bulk CD' deals available too. I sure as shit can't resist one of those, and I may as well spring for the big ol' 10x bundle while I'm at it. Only... there isn't even that many available in one fell swoop, Dronarivm's limited-runs having thus created a stock issue. Ah well, the five-piece it is then, starting with Aeolian Processes from Lornezo Masotto.
Mr. Masotto hails from Italy (shock!), and is more of a classical musician than the drone ambient sort I've often found on Dronarivm. Not that this is some anomaly with the label, as they do offer outlets for modern classical composers. As this blog's a testament towards though, it's not a style of music I typically indulge in, but as the more minimalist strains of the genre can tread into ambient's territory, I'll cross paths with it on occasion. That all being said, I cannot deny it was the cover art that drew me into Aeolian Processes, a windswept tree shorn naked by atmospheric forces a striking image among Dronarivm's usual fare. You'd almost expect it a dark ambient release. All that's missing is an abandoned boat laying at the base of the tree's trunk.
Lorenzo primarily specializes in piano compositions, of which makes up the bulk of the music here as well. Again, I'm no expert on this aspect of modern classical, though I do know this is a wide open field of expertise, several pianists across the globe plying their trade to captivated audiences. Martha Argerich! Vladimir Horowitz! Evgeny Kissin! Sergei Rachmanioff! Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli! Maurizio Pollini! Yuja Wang! Krystian Zimerman! Mikhail Pletnev! Vladimir Ashkenzy! These are all great piano players, because Ranker.com tells me they are. I'm not sure how Lorenzo Masotto stacks against them, but I bet they don't add subtle electronic drones and burbling synths to their compositions.
His electronic treatments provide each track with their own flavor beyond being another lovely piece of melancholy piano music. Space Flowers, When The City Sleeps, and the titular cut have little bloopy arps playing in the background. My Great-Grandmother Lived In The Mountains makes use of pulsing synths playing in reverse. Geyser features blobby burbles bubbling out. Desert and Repeater indulge a little pad drone in support. Drone even features something approaching percussion.
I can't say Aeolian Processes is the most exceptional album of piano music I've ever heard, because I'm hardly well-versed in the genre to give such a definitive statement. For those rather grey days, however, I do find it most pleasant indeed.
I've bought a few releases from Dronarivm now, but it wasn't with intent to scope the Moscow label out. It just happened that way, me spotting a few eye-catching items, and taking a blind leap of faith that they'd turn out interesting. That they have, so I figured a little stop-over at Dronarivm's Bandcamp couldn't hurt either, see what their full discography looks like. And lo', wouldn't you know it, they had one of those nifty 'bulk CD' deals available too. I sure as shit can't resist one of those, and I may as well spring for the big ol' 10x bundle while I'm at it. Only... there isn't even that many available in one fell swoop, Dronarivm's limited-runs having thus created a stock issue. Ah well, the five-piece it is then, starting with Aeolian Processes from Lornezo Masotto.
Mr. Masotto hails from Italy (shock!), and is more of a classical musician than the drone ambient sort I've often found on Dronarivm. Not that this is some anomaly with the label, as they do offer outlets for modern classical composers. As this blog's a testament towards though, it's not a style of music I typically indulge in, but as the more minimalist strains of the genre can tread into ambient's territory, I'll cross paths with it on occasion. That all being said, I cannot deny it was the cover art that drew me into Aeolian Processes, a windswept tree shorn naked by atmospheric forces a striking image among Dronarivm's usual fare. You'd almost expect it a dark ambient release. All that's missing is an abandoned boat laying at the base of the tree's trunk.
Lorenzo primarily specializes in piano compositions, of which makes up the bulk of the music here as well. Again, I'm no expert on this aspect of modern classical, though I do know this is a wide open field of expertise, several pianists across the globe plying their trade to captivated audiences. Martha Argerich! Vladimir Horowitz! Evgeny Kissin! Sergei Rachmanioff! Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli! Maurizio Pollini! Yuja Wang! Krystian Zimerman! Mikhail Pletnev! Vladimir Ashkenzy! These are all great piano players, because Ranker.com tells me they are. I'm not sure how Lorenzo Masotto stacks against them, but I bet they don't add subtle electronic drones and burbling synths to their compositions.
His electronic treatments provide each track with their own flavor beyond being another lovely piece of melancholy piano music. Space Flowers, When The City Sleeps, and the titular cut have little bloopy arps playing in the background. My Great-Grandmother Lived In The Mountains makes use of pulsing synths playing in reverse. Geyser features blobby burbles bubbling out. Desert and Repeater indulge a little pad drone in support. Drone even features something approaching percussion.
I can't say Aeolian Processes is the most exceptional album of piano music I've ever heard, because I'm hardly well-versed in the genre to give such a definitive statement. For those rather grey days, however, I do find it most pleasant indeed.
Sunday, October 1, 2017
JāFU - Add To Cart
Waveform Records: 2012
For so very long two acts have dominated Waveform Records: Sounds From The Ground and ZerO One. Their material maintains a consistent level of quality, sure, but likely isn't for everyone, even those who vibe on ambient techno and dubby downtempo. And while some labels get by with a couple core acts, they tend to remain ultra-niche. I don't want Waveform to be ultra-niche – I want more folks to hear their early wonderful releases, their amazing five-year run after the turn of the century. They need new blood to bring in new ears though, so if scoping out a dubstep album will get the ball rolling again, so be it. Besides, my Waveform Records CD collection can't be completed if I skip out on non-redundant items.
And hey, maybe this will turn out as one of those mythical 'good' dubstep albums that I've heard much rumour about. The PR blurb already proclaims this falling on the chill side of the genre, and I've liked a little bit of what I've heard in that spectrum, mostly care of Liquid Stranger's offerings on Interchill Records. James Fuller, the Canadian lad behind the Jafu moniker (or JāFU, if you want to get fancy with it), even appeared on the Saltspring Island label, as well as Dubstep For Deep Heads, and his own conglomerate print Chord Marauders. Waveform was where he got his start though, with this debut album Add To Cart. Man, just how many careers has Waveform launched anyway? Or at least provided that initial push out the door.
Add To Cart opens with a few tunes doing the sort of chill dubstep I don't mind one bit: music that's actually deep and dubby, with a simple, solid downtempo bounce that never loses the plot. Yeah, Jafu still does that over-compressed half-step snare, while tracks like Escalation and Encountering Intruders feature those mid-range wobbles one can't help but associate with the worst aspects of dubstep these days. Mr. Fuller at least rides his rhythms with some finesse and flow though, making them sound none too shabby. All too often producers throw in a bunch of randomized wub-wubs that serve no musical purpose other than wanking off the effects plugins.
Like when he does it in tracks like Subways, Fish Headz, Terminal, and Surgery. Or just go overboard in showboating some 'dope' sound they came up with, as in Yeasaw. Geez, does this ever sound corny. But I get it, I really do! For a generation of kids, this is their distorted guitar solo, or their acid knob tweakage, or their gated supersaw pad, or their flanged hardstyle kick – it's their jam, man! Fair enough, but why can't it stay on rhythm, like in One Lined Face? That shit gets my shoulders boppin', it does.
For as many tracks I like on Add To Cart, at least another third I'd sooner 'add to bin'. At eighteen cuts though, that's still a decent ratio to come away from. On a dubstep album, anyway.
For so very long two acts have dominated Waveform Records: Sounds From The Ground and ZerO One. Their material maintains a consistent level of quality, sure, but likely isn't for everyone, even those who vibe on ambient techno and dubby downtempo. And while some labels get by with a couple core acts, they tend to remain ultra-niche. I don't want Waveform to be ultra-niche – I want more folks to hear their early wonderful releases, their amazing five-year run after the turn of the century. They need new blood to bring in new ears though, so if scoping out a dubstep album will get the ball rolling again, so be it. Besides, my Waveform Records CD collection can't be completed if I skip out on non-redundant items.
And hey, maybe this will turn out as one of those mythical 'good' dubstep albums that I've heard much rumour about. The PR blurb already proclaims this falling on the chill side of the genre, and I've liked a little bit of what I've heard in that spectrum, mostly care of Liquid Stranger's offerings on Interchill Records. James Fuller, the Canadian lad behind the Jafu moniker (or JāFU, if you want to get fancy with it), even appeared on the Saltspring Island label, as well as Dubstep For Deep Heads, and his own conglomerate print Chord Marauders. Waveform was where he got his start though, with this debut album Add To Cart. Man, just how many careers has Waveform launched anyway? Or at least provided that initial push out the door.
Add To Cart opens with a few tunes doing the sort of chill dubstep I don't mind one bit: music that's actually deep and dubby, with a simple, solid downtempo bounce that never loses the plot. Yeah, Jafu still does that over-compressed half-step snare, while tracks like Escalation and Encountering Intruders feature those mid-range wobbles one can't help but associate with the worst aspects of dubstep these days. Mr. Fuller at least rides his rhythms with some finesse and flow though, making them sound none too shabby. All too often producers throw in a bunch of randomized wub-wubs that serve no musical purpose other than wanking off the effects plugins.
Like when he does it in tracks like Subways, Fish Headz, Terminal, and Surgery. Or just go overboard in showboating some 'dope' sound they came up with, as in Yeasaw. Geez, does this ever sound corny. But I get it, I really do! For a generation of kids, this is their distorted guitar solo, or their acid knob tweakage, or their gated supersaw pad, or their flanged hardstyle kick – it's their jam, man! Fair enough, but why can't it stay on rhythm, like in One Lined Face? That shit gets my shoulders boppin', it does.
For as many tracks I like on Add To Cart, at least another third I'd sooner 'add to bin'. At eighteen cuts though, that's still a decent ratio to come away from. On a dubstep album, anyway.
ACE TRACKS: September 2017
Five years now, and I still haven't finished going through my entire music collection. Well, technically six, since I started the listening process a year before I decided writing about the experience could turn into a blog. But the end is on the horizon for sure, the last of the large letters in 'W' now finished. Just a casual little jaunt to the finish line for the remaining three letters. Except there's that alphabetical backlog accumulated over the summer, a much heftier amount of material there. Like, nearly two months worth. I think I can get it all finished before the end of the year, but man, is it ever gonna' be tight.
Then what after that, I wonder? Do I go back to those missing albums from the start of my alphabetical arrangement? I'm starting to feel obligated to, just so it doesn't look like I'm deliberately avoiding items. Like all those ambient dub compilations, various entries in the Balance series, plus a few bona-fide classics that this blog would feel incomplete without me reviewing them (Big Men Cry, 6 Feet Deep, 604, Alter Ego, Blue Moon Station, Blade, CB4). *sigh* I'll never end this, will I? On that cheering note, here's the ACE TRACKS for September 2017.
Full track list here.
MISSING ALBUMS:
Sounds From The Ground - Widerworld
Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 20%
Percentage Of Rock: 13%
Most “WTF?” Track: The live Hybrid bits, if you 'd forgotten just how dope these guys used to be.
It may feel like there's a lot of Wu-Tang Clan on here, but really it's only two album's worth – an album and half even. What can you expect from the back-end of the letter 'W' anyway? The Wu dominate that realm, no matter what type of music you listen to. A decent variety of classic rock, modern psy-chill, mid-era downtempo, and Golden Era 'electronica' rounds out the rest, with the entirety of Hybrid's Live Angle set lumped at the end. Seriously, if you haven't heard it yet, you've no excuse now! Well, unless you just don't have Spotify, which kneels the question why you're even bothering with these Ace Tracks updates in the first place.
Then what after that, I wonder? Do I go back to those missing albums from the start of my alphabetical arrangement? I'm starting to feel obligated to, just so it doesn't look like I'm deliberately avoiding items. Like all those ambient dub compilations, various entries in the Balance series, plus a few bona-fide classics that this blog would feel incomplete without me reviewing them (Big Men Cry, 6 Feet Deep, 604, Alter Ego, Blue Moon Station, Blade, CB4). *sigh* I'll never end this, will I? On that cheering note, here's the ACE TRACKS for September 2017.
Full track list here.
MISSING ALBUMS:
Sounds From The Ground - Widerworld
Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 20%
Percentage Of Rock: 13%
Most “WTF?” Track: The live Hybrid bits, if you 'd forgotten just how dope these guys used to be.
It may feel like there's a lot of Wu-Tang Clan on here, but really it's only two album's worth – an album and half even. What can you expect from the back-end of the letter 'W' anyway? The Wu dominate that realm, no matter what type of music you listen to. A decent variety of classic rock, modern psy-chill, mid-era downtempo, and Golden Era 'electronica' rounds out the rest, with the entirety of Hybrid's Live Angle set lumped at the end. Seriously, if you haven't heard it yet, you've no excuse now! Well, unless you just don't have Spotify, which kneels the question why you're even bothering with these Ace Tracks updates in the first place.
Saturday, September 30, 2017
EDM Weekly World News: December 2011
Are we all tired of DJ popularity polls yet? All the hullabaloo that marked each annual competition for biggest, bestest marketing whore seems to have simmered down in recent years, some losing all sense of credibility when non-DJs started winning, while others have fallen into repetitive ruts. Some years ago though, controversy still kept these things the talk of techno-town, and who can forget the year when we suddenly found ourselves with TWO (2) number one DJs? Even more shocking was that neither of them played trance! The poor, pathetic Trance Family was irate, flabbergasted, flummoxed, and not very polite either, raining on that year's champions like a wet fart. No, wait that was the actual celebration and its weak-ass spizzler fireworks. Sad.
Of course, if you didn't care for the results of those particular #1 DJ Polls, there was always the TranceAddict #1 DJ Poll, the TranceFix #1 DJ Poll, the Mixmag #1 DJ Poll, the YourEDM #1 DJ Poll, the DI #1 DJ Poll, the Beatport #1 DJ Poll, the mmnlssg #1 DJ Poll, the Pitchfork #1 DJ Poll, the CokeMachineGlow #1 DJ Poll, the TinyMixTapes #1 DJ Poll, the FACT #1 DJ Poll, the Vice #1 DJ Poll, the XXL #1 DJ Poll, the Rolling Stone #1 DJ Poll (I think Chemical Brothers won it that year... and every year), the Guardian #1 DJ Poll, the Billboard #1 DJ Poll, the BBC #1 DJ Poll, the NBC #1 DJ Poll, the CNN #1 DJ Poll, the CSPAN #1 DJ Poll, the FoxNews #1 DJ Poll (their result made Glenn Beck cry), the MTV #1 DJ Poll, the MuchMusic #1 DJ Poll, the Channel Awesome #1 DJ Poll, the Escapist #1 DJ Poll, the ScrewAttack #1 DJ Poll, the MetaCritic #1 DJ Poll, the IGN #1 DJ Poll, the EGM #1 DJ Poll, or Ishkur's Worst DJs poll.
Of course, if you didn't care for the results of those particular #1 DJ Polls, there was always the TranceAddict #1 DJ Poll, the TranceFix #1 DJ Poll, the Mixmag #1 DJ Poll, the YourEDM #1 DJ Poll, the DI #1 DJ Poll, the Beatport #1 DJ Poll, the mmnlssg #1 DJ Poll, the Pitchfork #1 DJ Poll, the CokeMachineGlow #1 DJ Poll, the TinyMixTapes #1 DJ Poll, the FACT #1 DJ Poll, the Vice #1 DJ Poll, the XXL #1 DJ Poll, the Rolling Stone #1 DJ Poll (I think Chemical Brothers won it that year... and every year), the Guardian #1 DJ Poll, the Billboard #1 DJ Poll, the BBC #1 DJ Poll, the NBC #1 DJ Poll, the CNN #1 DJ Poll, the CSPAN #1 DJ Poll, the FoxNews #1 DJ Poll (their result made Glenn Beck cry), the MTV #1 DJ Poll, the MuchMusic #1 DJ Poll, the Channel Awesome #1 DJ Poll, the Escapist #1 DJ Poll, the ScrewAttack #1 DJ Poll, the MetaCritic #1 DJ Poll, the IGN #1 DJ Poll, the EGM #1 DJ Poll, or Ishkur's Worst DJs poll.
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Various - Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture
Babygrande Music: 2005
When I was in the throes of my hip-hop honeymoon, two groups ruled supreme as all that was great within the genre. You know who these two groups are, because I've constantly name-dropped them for as long as this blog's been active again (five years, oh good God...). And as any 'young rap fan' can attest to, when you start following groups, you start thinking up potential pair-offs between them, like comic super-team cross-overs. How dope, thought Year 2000 Sykonee, would it be for Del Tha Funkee Homosapien and Inspectah Deck to trade lyrical atomic bombs! Casual and ODB riding a warped rhythm with their rugged, warbling flows! Souls Of Mischief sharing street tales with Ghostface and Raekwon! A-Plus and True Mathematics blending samples! Never mind the Wu and Hiero ran in such drastically different hip-hop spheres that these pairings could never to happen - I could at least dream of them.
And then it did happen! ...kind of. While not a full-on collaboration, the fact I'm holding a CD that includes Del, Casual, GZA, RZA, and U-God in the tracklist feels like a minor miracle in of itself. I guess having MF Doom, Ras Kass, Aesop Rock, Prodigal Sunn, R.A. The Rugged Man, J-Live, plus others is a nice bonus, if you're down for such acts too.
Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture is the brainchild of Dreddy Kruger, who appeared on a couple Wu affiliated tracks, but settled into an A&R role for the franchise, producing compilations and the like. When he launched his own print in Think Differently, he wished to bring more underground acts to the light, and figured mixing 'backpacker' rap acts with Wu-Tang stars was a good way of doing so. Providing the bulk of beats for all these MCs to spit their bars over is Bronze Nazareth, who's had a decent career in his own right following this record. He certainly gets the Wu aesthetic as laid out by The Abbot, funk and soul samples looping over gritty or smooth rhythms, as per each cut's lyrical context. Oh, and RZA handled his own 'blaxpoitation' beat for his team-up with MF Doom in Biochemical Equation, though the infamous masked MC lacks much spark in his verse. Kinda' happens when the 'collaboration' doesn't require everyone to be present in a studio.
That's unfortunately the vibe I get from Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture - a lot of disparate acts doing their minimum best for the project before they moved on to their own interests. There isn't anything wack on this CD, but nor does it elevate much higher than whatever excited ideas were probably germinating in your mind from the core concept.
Still, Dreddy Kruger believed in it enough to get enough recognizable names involved, his enthusiasm coming through in the paragraphs of liner notes. The highest praise I can give this is Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture is it's the best 'third tier' Wu project I've ever heard, though my sample-size is minuscule.
When I was in the throes of my hip-hop honeymoon, two groups ruled supreme as all that was great within the genre. You know who these two groups are, because I've constantly name-dropped them for as long as this blog's been active again (five years, oh good God...). And as any 'young rap fan' can attest to, when you start following groups, you start thinking up potential pair-offs between them, like comic super-team cross-overs. How dope, thought Year 2000 Sykonee, would it be for Del Tha Funkee Homosapien and Inspectah Deck to trade lyrical atomic bombs! Casual and ODB riding a warped rhythm with their rugged, warbling flows! Souls Of Mischief sharing street tales with Ghostface and Raekwon! A-Plus and True Mathematics blending samples! Never mind the Wu and Hiero ran in such drastically different hip-hop spheres that these pairings could never to happen - I could at least dream of them.
And then it did happen! ...kind of. While not a full-on collaboration, the fact I'm holding a CD that includes Del, Casual, GZA, RZA, and U-God in the tracklist feels like a minor miracle in of itself. I guess having MF Doom, Ras Kass, Aesop Rock, Prodigal Sunn, R.A. The Rugged Man, J-Live, plus others is a nice bonus, if you're down for such acts too.
Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture is the brainchild of Dreddy Kruger, who appeared on a couple Wu affiliated tracks, but settled into an A&R role for the franchise, producing compilations and the like. When he launched his own print in Think Differently, he wished to bring more underground acts to the light, and figured mixing 'backpacker' rap acts with Wu-Tang stars was a good way of doing so. Providing the bulk of beats for all these MCs to spit their bars over is Bronze Nazareth, who's had a decent career in his own right following this record. He certainly gets the Wu aesthetic as laid out by The Abbot, funk and soul samples looping over gritty or smooth rhythms, as per each cut's lyrical context. Oh, and RZA handled his own 'blaxpoitation' beat for his team-up with MF Doom in Biochemical Equation, though the infamous masked MC lacks much spark in his verse. Kinda' happens when the 'collaboration' doesn't require everyone to be present in a studio.
That's unfortunately the vibe I get from Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture - a lot of disparate acts doing their minimum best for the project before they moved on to their own interests. There isn't anything wack on this CD, but nor does it elevate much higher than whatever excited ideas were probably germinating in your mind from the core concept.
Still, Dreddy Kruger believed in it enough to get enough recognizable names involved, his enthusiasm coming through in the paragraphs of liner notes. The highest praise I can give this is Wu-Tang Meets The Indie Culture is it's the best 'third tier' Wu project I've ever heard, though my sample-size is minuscule.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Wu-Tang Clan - Wu-Tang Forever
Loud Records: 1997
The Wu-Tang Clan's sophomore album couldn't help but be a double-LP. I mean, it was already The Thing to do for most rappers of note in the mid-'90s (Tupac, Biggie, Bone Thugs, Master P), but at least it made sense for this dynamic group. Their debut Enter The Wu-Tang was as perfect an album as any dropped in hip-hop's history, and the half-dozen solo records from various members after proved there was no lack of dope material in their ranks. After so much unprecedented success as a rap conglomerate, they absolutely deserved more room to breathe, letting all these MCs have more opportunities to shine on the mic, and celebrate The RZA's five year plan coming to fruition. Concerns about filler and bloat? Oh come on, how could the Wu Empire falter in their moment of triumph, especially after such a glorious lead single in Triumph?
And CD1 doesn't disappoint, almost a strong album experience in of itself. Yeah, the overlong Wu-Revolution opener reeks of pretentious hubris, that the Wu nation is willing to sit through a nearly seven-minute long sermon from Papa Wu. On the other hand, it does set a tone that the Clan is aware of social issues impacting black communities, and that they aren't gonna' just be another bunch of rappers glamorizing gangsta' lifestyles. Cool, but now that you've cleared your conscience, RZA, how about bringing the motha'fuckin' ruckus again? He done does that, Reunited showing off his newfound twitchy-soul production chops, follow-up For Heaven's Sake bringing the ghetto-grime to the fore, As High As Wu-Tang Get a fun bit of bouncy funk, Maria a boozy-woozy fest, and It's Yourz a good ol' stompin' crowd anthem.
And the rest of the Clan bring killer material to CD1 too, some of their all-time greatest lines ever dropped here (GZA: “Too many songs with weak rhymes is mad long; Make it brief, son - half short, twice strong.”). MCs that didn't much get spotlight in 36 Chambers have equal opportunities among the established stars, and a decent range of topics are covered among the ten tracks (lyrical showcases, street tales, conscious slabs, slum love, etc.). The only thing missing from CD1 is a definitive, stone-cold classic cut, but then they had to save something for CD2.
Disc number two starts off strong as well, Triumph the kick-off, followed by Impossible containing what RZA considers “one of the illest verses of all time”, Ghostface Killah vividly narrating the last moments spent with a dying friend on the street. Unfortunately, this is where that anticipated bloat starts to settle in, a run of average, oddball tracks leading to a slog of hip-hop between the islands of right dope shit (harrowing Little Ghetto Boys, ODB's wonderfully unhinged Dog Sh*t, the orchestral punch of Heaterz). Cheekily, the closing ghetto-soul of Second Coming is strictly handled by vocalist Tekitha, with nary a Clan member in sight.
CD2 is essentially a glorified B-side, but as mentioned, Wu-Tang Forever is easily worth the admission price for CD1.
The Wu-Tang Clan's sophomore album couldn't help but be a double-LP. I mean, it was already The Thing to do for most rappers of note in the mid-'90s (Tupac, Biggie, Bone Thugs, Master P), but at least it made sense for this dynamic group. Their debut Enter The Wu-Tang was as perfect an album as any dropped in hip-hop's history, and the half-dozen solo records from various members after proved there was no lack of dope material in their ranks. After so much unprecedented success as a rap conglomerate, they absolutely deserved more room to breathe, letting all these MCs have more opportunities to shine on the mic, and celebrate The RZA's five year plan coming to fruition. Concerns about filler and bloat? Oh come on, how could the Wu Empire falter in their moment of triumph, especially after such a glorious lead single in Triumph?
And CD1 doesn't disappoint, almost a strong album experience in of itself. Yeah, the overlong Wu-Revolution opener reeks of pretentious hubris, that the Wu nation is willing to sit through a nearly seven-minute long sermon from Papa Wu. On the other hand, it does set a tone that the Clan is aware of social issues impacting black communities, and that they aren't gonna' just be another bunch of rappers glamorizing gangsta' lifestyles. Cool, but now that you've cleared your conscience, RZA, how about bringing the motha'fuckin' ruckus again? He done does that, Reunited showing off his newfound twitchy-soul production chops, follow-up For Heaven's Sake bringing the ghetto-grime to the fore, As High As Wu-Tang Get a fun bit of bouncy funk, Maria a boozy-woozy fest, and It's Yourz a good ol' stompin' crowd anthem.
And the rest of the Clan bring killer material to CD1 too, some of their all-time greatest lines ever dropped here (GZA: “Too many songs with weak rhymes is mad long; Make it brief, son - half short, twice strong.”). MCs that didn't much get spotlight in 36 Chambers have equal opportunities among the established stars, and a decent range of topics are covered among the ten tracks (lyrical showcases, street tales, conscious slabs, slum love, etc.). The only thing missing from CD1 is a definitive, stone-cold classic cut, but then they had to save something for CD2.
Disc number two starts off strong as well, Triumph the kick-off, followed by Impossible containing what RZA considers “one of the illest verses of all time”, Ghostface Killah vividly narrating the last moments spent with a dying friend on the street. Unfortunately, this is where that anticipated bloat starts to settle in, a run of average, oddball tracks leading to a slog of hip-hop between the islands of right dope shit (harrowing Little Ghetto Boys, ODB's wonderfully unhinged Dog Sh*t, the orchestral punch of Heaterz). Cheekily, the closing ghetto-soul of Second Coming is strictly handled by vocalist Tekitha, with nary a Clan member in sight.
CD2 is essentially a glorified B-side, but as mentioned, Wu-Tang Forever is easily worth the admission price for CD1.
Labels:
1997,
album,
conscious,
gangsta,
hip-hop,
Loud Records,
Wu-Tang Clan
Monday, September 25, 2017
Snap! - World Power
Arista: 1990
They hadn't planned on it. Sure, they were having some fun dabbling in productions and all, but Michael Münzing already had a tidy career running clubs out of Frankfurt, all the while doing a little DJing on the side. And while he had some synth-pop success with Papa Sven and Luca Anzilotti as OFF, most of Münzing's productions were in service for the clubs he played at, even using sampling gear in his shows.
Still, any European DJ worth their salt at the turn of the decade couldn't help but notice the sounds coming out of clubs from Italy and Belgium (not to mention how sample-happy everything had gotten), American styled hip-hop and house music the new hotness. Never mind that such genres had never charted in Germany. Misters Münzing and Anzilotti figured they'd adopt an American-sounding alias, make a record or two for their own clubs and leave it at that. Only trouble is the resulting record became an international smash, a tune rinsed out at clubs, on radio, at sporting events, during high-school dances... and still does to this day. To imagine a world without The Power is to imagine a darkest timeline indeed.
There's more to the story surrounding that single of course (oh is there ever more!), but I've an album to get through here. Point is Münzing and Anzilotti had to follow that sudden anthem up with an LP, the duo and their newly minted 'Snap!' moniker going from strength to strength in the singles department. Ooops Up turned into another winner (though not quite as big in The US), and Cult Of Snap! showed they weren't afraid of injecting a little Afro-funk into their jams. And while “Benito Benites” and “John 'Virgo' Garrett III” had undoubtedly tapped into a nascent european-fusion of hip-house few others could replicate, it was rapper Turbo B who gave them their unmistakable charisma, Darren Butler's deep, aggressive American inflection often coming off like a Chuck D clone. Yeah yeah, he'd never be as politically charged as the Public Enemy frontman, but between his tone and Snap!'s wilful incorporation of Afrocentric music (in Germany!), it was enough to get Mr. Butler inducted into Afrika Bambaataa's Zulu Nation. Yes, really.
We all know the big hits off here, not to mention the charming house hit Mary Had A Little Boy (oh God, the high-school memories with this one!). The rest of World Power amounts to a little better than filler, and is probably quite wonderful if you dig those early '90s hip-house jams. Most of the tracks are just excuses for to Turbo B drop a bunch of brag raps (Believe The Hype, Witness The Strength), with Blasé Blasé the most charming with its strict Funky-Drummer throwback vibe and off-ball asides from a faux Flavor Flav (plus, that bassline!). The mid-album ballad I'm Gonna Get You probably sounds all kinds of corny on the surface, but I've no doubt 'friend-zoned' dudes everywhere play this as their anthem.
They hadn't planned on it. Sure, they were having some fun dabbling in productions and all, but Michael Münzing already had a tidy career running clubs out of Frankfurt, all the while doing a little DJing on the side. And while he had some synth-pop success with Papa Sven and Luca Anzilotti as OFF, most of Münzing's productions were in service for the clubs he played at, even using sampling gear in his shows.
Still, any European DJ worth their salt at the turn of the decade couldn't help but notice the sounds coming out of clubs from Italy and Belgium (not to mention how sample-happy everything had gotten), American styled hip-hop and house music the new hotness. Never mind that such genres had never charted in Germany. Misters Münzing and Anzilotti figured they'd adopt an American-sounding alias, make a record or two for their own clubs and leave it at that. Only trouble is the resulting record became an international smash, a tune rinsed out at clubs, on radio, at sporting events, during high-school dances... and still does to this day. To imagine a world without The Power is to imagine a darkest timeline indeed.
There's more to the story surrounding that single of course (oh is there ever more!), but I've an album to get through here. Point is Münzing and Anzilotti had to follow that sudden anthem up with an LP, the duo and their newly minted 'Snap!' moniker going from strength to strength in the singles department. Ooops Up turned into another winner (though not quite as big in The US), and Cult Of Snap! showed they weren't afraid of injecting a little Afro-funk into their jams. And while “Benito Benites” and “John 'Virgo' Garrett III” had undoubtedly tapped into a nascent european-fusion of hip-house few others could replicate, it was rapper Turbo B who gave them their unmistakable charisma, Darren Butler's deep, aggressive American inflection often coming off like a Chuck D clone. Yeah yeah, he'd never be as politically charged as the Public Enemy frontman, but between his tone and Snap!'s wilful incorporation of Afrocentric music (in Germany!), it was enough to get Mr. Butler inducted into Afrika Bambaataa's Zulu Nation. Yes, really.
We all know the big hits off here, not to mention the charming house hit Mary Had A Little Boy (oh God, the high-school memories with this one!). The rest of World Power amounts to a little better than filler, and is probably quite wonderful if you dig those early '90s hip-house jams. Most of the tracks are just excuses for to Turbo B drop a bunch of brag raps (Believe The Hype, Witness The Strength), with Blasé Blasé the most charming with its strict Funky-Drummer throwback vibe and off-ball asides from a faux Flavor Flav (plus, that bassline!). The mid-album ballad I'm Gonna Get You probably sounds all kinds of corny on the surface, but I've no doubt 'friend-zoned' dudes everywhere play this as their anthem.
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Carbon Based Lifeforms - World Of Sleepers
Ultimae: 2006/2011
I love Carbon Based Lifeforms. Adore their ambient grace, their manipulations with little TB-303 knobs, their sense of open spaces both outer and inner. And yet, even after a half-decade of nabbing a copy of World Of Sleepers (thanks, re-issues!), it's never quite clicked for me the same way all their other records have. Heck, despite hearing Interloper for the first time just this year, it stuck with me stronger than most music off here. Right, that album was almost blatantly immediate and obvious in its songcraft, but Twentythree was pure synth-pad drone, and even that's taken more residence in my brain-pan than World Of Sleepers. Believe you me, it's getting ever more crowded up there, though I get the sense a little memory degradation has set in. Like, I can only recall about three out of fifteen tracks from 1993's D.J. Club Mix Vol. 2 from Polytel, one of which being a lame cover of Mr. Vain by 'Club Beat'. Oh dear, I'm doing that old man thing of ridiculously long anecdotal tangents, aren't I.
Naturally, this isn't a problem when I'm playing CBL's sophomore album. After the slow, gradual build of opener Abiogenesis, where soft ambient pads, ethereal tones, bleepy electronics, and digital voices guide your synapses to 'wake up', you're damn skippy my body's ready for the thumping beats and burbling acid after. If there was any doubt that Misters Segerstad and Hedberg weren't worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Ultimae's other key acts of the time (Solar Fields, Aes Dana, Asura), that opener should have quelled them.
And World Of Sleepers doesn't let down from there, follow-up Vortex a haunting piece of ambient techno once again playing to CBL's strengths (dubby pads, acid!), and Photosynthesis working another wonderful builder containing a melody that's on par with the classic MOS 6581. Three tracks, three winners! But after that, World Of Sleepers starts losing me.
The music remains all fine in of itself, it just feels as though CBL are retreading similar ideas already explored in the openers. More burbling acid, more lovely synths, more dubby percussion, more filtered 'science' lyrics, all of which kinda' blends together as World Of Sleepers plays through. Yet when I hear the crunchy acid work from Proton/Electron, the soft chill-out of Gryning, the gentle piano tones of the titular cut, or the geek-hop rhythms of Erratic Patterns out of context, I always do a double-take of “whoa, why haven't I heard this CBL track before?” I have, every time I've thrown World Of Sleepers on for a playthrough and unconsciously let it slip into the background of my attention span. Why does my brain keep doing that!?
The final track of Betula Pendula does draw me back in though, a gorgeous ten-minute piece of space ambient. Always gives me the uber-feels after, which keeps World Of Sleepers high on my 'Great Ultimae Albums' list. Why yes this 'list' is ridiculously big, why do you ask?
I love Carbon Based Lifeforms. Adore their ambient grace, their manipulations with little TB-303 knobs, their sense of open spaces both outer and inner. And yet, even after a half-decade of nabbing a copy of World Of Sleepers (thanks, re-issues!), it's never quite clicked for me the same way all their other records have. Heck, despite hearing Interloper for the first time just this year, it stuck with me stronger than most music off here. Right, that album was almost blatantly immediate and obvious in its songcraft, but Twentythree was pure synth-pad drone, and even that's taken more residence in my brain-pan than World Of Sleepers. Believe you me, it's getting ever more crowded up there, though I get the sense a little memory degradation has set in. Like, I can only recall about three out of fifteen tracks from 1993's D.J. Club Mix Vol. 2 from Polytel, one of which being a lame cover of Mr. Vain by 'Club Beat'. Oh dear, I'm doing that old man thing of ridiculously long anecdotal tangents, aren't I.
Naturally, this isn't a problem when I'm playing CBL's sophomore album. After the slow, gradual build of opener Abiogenesis, where soft ambient pads, ethereal tones, bleepy electronics, and digital voices guide your synapses to 'wake up', you're damn skippy my body's ready for the thumping beats and burbling acid after. If there was any doubt that Misters Segerstad and Hedberg weren't worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as Ultimae's other key acts of the time (Solar Fields, Aes Dana, Asura), that opener should have quelled them.
And World Of Sleepers doesn't let down from there, follow-up Vortex a haunting piece of ambient techno once again playing to CBL's strengths (dubby pads, acid!), and Photosynthesis working another wonderful builder containing a melody that's on par with the classic MOS 6581. Three tracks, three winners! But after that, World Of Sleepers starts losing me.
The music remains all fine in of itself, it just feels as though CBL are retreading similar ideas already explored in the openers. More burbling acid, more lovely synths, more dubby percussion, more filtered 'science' lyrics, all of which kinda' blends together as World Of Sleepers plays through. Yet when I hear the crunchy acid work from Proton/Electron, the soft chill-out of Gryning, the gentle piano tones of the titular cut, or the geek-hop rhythms of Erratic Patterns out of context, I always do a double-take of “whoa, why haven't I heard this CBL track before?” I have, every time I've thrown World Of Sleepers on for a playthrough and unconsciously let it slip into the background of my attention span. Why does my brain keep doing that!?
The final track of Betula Pendula does draw me back in though, a gorgeous ten-minute piece of space ambient. Always gives me the uber-feels after, which keeps World Of Sleepers high on my 'Great Ultimae Albums' list. Why yes this 'list' is ridiculously big, why do you ask?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Things I've Talked About
...txt
10 Records
16 Bit Lolita's
1963
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2 Play Records
2 Unlimited
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
20xx Update
2562
3 Loop Music
302 Acid
36
3FORCE
3six Recordings
4AD
6 x 6 Records
75 Ark
7L & Esoteric
808 State
A Perfect Circle
A Positive Life
A-Wave
a.r.t.less
A&M Records
A&R Records
Abandoned Communities
Abasi
Above and Beyond
abstract
Abstrakce Records
AC/DC
Ace Trace
Ace Tracks Playlists
Ace Ventura
acid
acid house
acid jazz
acid techno
acid trance
acoustic
Acroplane Recordings
Adam Beyer
Adam Ellis
Adam Freeland
Adham Shaikh
ADNY
Adrian Younge
adult contemporary
Advanced UFO Phantom
Aegri Somnia
AEI Music
Aes Dana
Aesthetical
Afgin
Afrika Bambaataa
Afro-house
Afterhours
Agoria
Aidan Casserly
Aira Mitsuki
Airwaves
Ajana Records
Ajna
AK1200
Akshan
album
Aldrin
Alex Smoke
Alex Theory
Alice In Chains
Alien Community
Alien Project
Alio Die
All Saints
Alpha Wave Movement
Alphabet Zoo
Alphaxone
Altar Records
Alter Ego
alternative rock
Alucidnation
Ambelion
Ambidextrous
ambient
ambient dub
ambient techno
Ambient World
Ambientium
Ametsub
Amon Amarth
Amon Tobin
Amplexus
Anabolic Frolic
Anatolya
Andrea Parker
Andrew Heath
Androcell
Anduin
Andy C
anecdotes
Aniplex
Anjunabeats
Annibale Records
Anodize
Another Fine Day
Antares
Antendex
anthem house
Anthony Paul Kerby
Anthony Rother
Anti-Social Network
Anzio Green
Aoide
Aphasia Records
Aphex Twin
Apócrýphos
Apollo
Apollo 440
Apple Records
April Records
Aqua
Aquarellist
Aquascape
Aquasky
Aquila
Arcade
Architects Of Existence
Archives
Arctic Hospital
Arcturus
arena rock
Arista
Armada
Armin van Buuren
Arpatle
Artifact303
Arts & Crafts
As If
ASC
Ashtech
Asia
Asian Dub Foundation
Astral Engineering
Astral Projection
Astral Waves
Astralwerks
AstroPilot
AstroPilot Music
Asura
Asylum Records
ATB
ATCO Records
Atlantic
Atlantis
atmospheric jungle
Atom Heart
Atomic Hooligan
Atomine Elektrine
Atrium Carceri
Attic
Attoya
Audiobulb Records
Audion
AuroraX
Autechre
Autistici
Autumn Of Communion
Auxilary
Auxiliary
Avantgarde
Avatar Records
Aveparthe
Avicii
Axiom
Axs
Axtone Records
Aythar
B.G. The Prince Of Rap
B°TONG
B12
Babygrande
Balance
Balanced Records
Balearic
ballad
Bålsam
Banco de Gaia
Bandulu
Barker & Baumecker
Battle Axe Records
battle-rap
Bauri
Beastie Boys
Beat Buzz Records
Beat Pharmacy
Beatbox Machinery
Beats & Pieces
bebop
Beck
Bedouin Soundclash
Bedrock Records
Beechwood Music
Ben Sims
Benny Benassi
Bent
Benz Street US
Berlin-School
Beto Narme
Beyond
bhangra
Bicep
big beat
Big Boi
Big Dada Recordings
Big L
Big Life
Bill Hamel
Bill Laswell
Bill Leeb
BIlly Idol
BineMusic
BioMetal
Biophon Records
Biosphere
Bipolar Music
BKS
Black Hole Recordings
black metal
black rebel motorcycle club
Black Swan Sounds
Blanco Y Negro
Blasterjaxx
Bleep
Blend
Blood Music
Blow Up
Blue Amazon
Blue Hour
Blue Öyster Cult
blues
blues rock
Bluescreen
Bluetech
BMG
Boards Of Canada
Bob Dylan
Bob Marley
Bobina
Bogdan Raczynzki
Bombay Records
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Boney M
Bong Load Records
Bonobo
Bonzai
Boogie Down Productions
Booka Shade
Boom Boom Satellites
Botchit & Scarper
Bows
Boxed
Boys Noize
Boysnoize Records
BPitch Control
braindance
Brandt Brauer Frick
Brasil & The Gallowbrothers Band
breakbeats
breakcore
breaks
Brian Eno
Brian Wilson
Brick Records
Britpop
Brodinski
broken beat
Brooklyn Music Ltd
brostep
Bryan Adams
BT
Bubble
Buffalo Springfield
Bulk Recordings
Burial
Burned CDs
Bursak Records
Bush
Busta Rhymes
Buttertones
bvdub
C.I.A.
Calibre
calypso
Canibus
Canned Resistor
Canopy Of Stars
Capitol Records
Capsula
Captain Hollywood Project
Captured Digital
Carbon Based Lifeforms
Caribou
Carl B
Carl Craig
Carlos Ferreira
Carol C
Caroline Records
Carpe Sonum Novum
Carpe Sonum Records
Castroe
Casual
Cat Sun
CD-Maximum
Ceephax Acid Crew
Celestial Dragon Records
Cell
Celtic
Centaspike
Cevin Fisher
Cheb i Sabbah
Cheeky Records
chemical breaks
Chihei Hatakeyama
Children Of The Bong
chill out
chill-out
chiptune
Chris Duckenfield
Chris Fortier
Chris Korda
Chris Liebing
Chris Sheppard
Chris Witoski
Christmas
Christopher Lawrence
Chromeo
Chronos
Chrysalis
Ciaran Byrne
cinematic soundscapes
Circle of Pines
Circular
Ciro Berenguer
Cirrus
Cities Last Broadcast
City Of Angels
CJ Stone
Claptone
classic house
classic rock
classical
Claude VonStroke
Claude Young
Clear Label Records
Clementz
Cleopatra
Cloud 9
Club Culture
Club Cutz
Club Tools
Cocoon Recordings
Cold Spring
Coldcut
Coldplay
coldwave
Colette
collagist
Columbia
Com.Pact Records
Coma Eye
comedy
Compilation
Comrie Smith
Congo Natty
Conjure One
Connect.Ohm
conscious
Control Music
Convextion
Cooking Vinyl
Cor Fijneman
Corderoy
Cosmic Gate
Cosmic Replicant
Cosmo Cocktail
Cosmos Studios
Cottonbelly
Council Estate Electronics
Council Of Nine
Counter Records
country
country rock
Covert Operations Recordings
Craig Padilla
Craig Richards
Crazy Horse
Cream
Creamfields
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Crockett's Theme
Crosby Stills And Nash
Crossing Mind
Crosstown Rebels
crunk
Cryo Chamber
Cryobiosis
Cryogenic Weekend
Cryostasis
Crystal Moon
Cube Guys
Culture Beat
Curb Records
Current
Curve
cut'n'paste
CYAN
Cyan Music
Cyber Productions
CyberOctave
Cyclic Law
Cygna
Cymphonica
Cypher 7
Cypress Hill
Cyril Secq
Czarface
D York
D-Bridge
D-Fuse
D-Topia Entertainment
Daar
Dacru Records
Daddy G
Daft Punk
Dag Rosenqvist
Damian Lazarus
Damon Albarn
Damon Wild
Dan Terminus
Dan The Automator
Dance 2 Trance
Dance Pool
Dance With The Dead
dancehall
Daniel Heatcliff
Daniel Lentz
Daniel Pemberton
Daniel Wanrooy
Danny Howells
Danny Tenaglia
Dao Da Noize
Daphni
dark ambient
dark disco
dark psy
darkcore
darkside
darkstep
darksynth
darkwave
Darla Records
Darren Emerson
Darren McClure
Darren Nye
DAT Records
Databloem
dataObscura
David Alvarado
David Bickley
David Bridie
David Cordero
David Guetta
David Morley
DDR
De-tuned
Dead Coast
Dead Melodies
Deadmau5
Death Grips
death metal
Death Row Records
Decimal
Deconstruction
Dedicated
Deejay Goldfinger
Deep Dish
Deep Forest
deep house
deep tech
Deeply Rooted House
Deepwater Black
Deetron
Def Jam Recordings
Del Tha Funkee Homosapien
Delerium
Delsin
Deltron 3030
Denshi Danshi
Depeche Mode
Der Dritte Raum
Derek Carr
Detroit
Deviant Records
Devin Underwood
Devroka
Deysn Masiello
DFA
DGC
diametric.
Dido
Dieselboy
Different
DigiCube
Dillinja
Dirk Serries
dirty house
Dirty South
Dirty Vegas
Dis Fig
disco
Disco Gecko
disco house
Disco Pinata Records
disco punk
Discover (label)
Disky
Disques Dreyfus
Distant System
Distinct'ive Breaks
Disturbance
Divination
DJ 3000
DJ Brian
DJ Craze
DJ Dag
DJ Dan
DJ Dean
DJ Gonzalo
DJ Heather
DJ John Kelley
DJ John Storm
DJ Merlin
DJ Mix
DJ Moe Sticky
DJ Observer
DJ Premier
DJ Q-Bert
DJ Shadow
DJ Soul Slinger
DJ-Kicks
Djen Ajakan Shean
DJMag
DMC
DMC Records
Doc Scott
Dogon
Dogwhistle
Dooflex
Doom Poets
Dopplereffekt
Dossier
Dousk
downtempo
dowtempo
Dr. Alban
Dr. Atmo
Dr. Dre
Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show
Dr. Octagon
Dragon Quest
dream house
dream pop
Dreamworks
DreamWorks Records
Drexciya
drill 'n' bass
Dronarivm
drone
Dronny Darko
drum 'n' bass
DrumNBassArena
drumstep
drunken review
dub
Dub Pistols
dub techno
Dub Trees
Dubfire
dubstep
Dubtribe Sound System
DuMonde
Dune
Dusted
Dyadik
Dynatron
E-Mantra
E-Z Rollers
Eardream Music
Earth
Earth Nation
Earthling
Eastcoast
Eastcost
Eastern Dub Tactik
EastWest
Eastworld
Eat Static
EBM
Echodub
Ed Rush & Optical
Editions EG
EDM World Weekly News
Ektoplazm
Electric Universe
electro
Electro House
Electro Sun
electro-funk
electro-pop
electroclash
Electronic Dance Essentials
Electronic Music Guide
Electrovoya
Elektra
Elektrolux
Ellen Allien
em:t
EMC update
EMI
Emiliana Torrini
Eminem
Emmerichk
Emperor Norton
Empire
enCAPSULAte
Encym
Engine Recordings
Enigma
Enmarta
Ensiferum
Enya
EP
Epic
epic trance
EQ Recordings
Equal Stones
Erased Tapes Records
Eric Borgo
Erik Vee
Erol Alkan
Erot
Escape
Esko Barba
Esoteric Reactive
Espacio Cielo
ethereal
Etic
Etnica
Etnoscope
Euphoria
euro dance
eurodance
eurotrance
Eurythmics
Eve Records
Everlast
Ewan Pearson
Exitab
experimental
Eye Q Records
Ezdanitoff
F Communications
Fabric
Facture
Fade Records
Faex Optim
Faint
Faithless
Falcon Reekon
Fallen
False Mirror
fanfic
Fantastisizer
Fantasy Enhancing
faru
Fatboy Slim
Fax +49-69/450464
Fear Factory
Fedde Le Grand
Fehrplay
Feist
Fektive Records
Felix da Housecat
Fennesz
Ferry Corsten
FFRR
Fictivision
field recordings
Filter
Filteria
filters
Final Fantasy
Firescope
Five AM
Fjäder
Flashover Recordings
Floating Points
Flowers For Bodysnatchers
Flowjob
Fluke
Fluxion
Flying Lotus
folk
Fontana
footwork
Force Intel
Fountain Music
Four Tet
FPU
Frame
Frame Of Mind
Francis M Gri
Franck Vigroux
Frank Bretschneider
Frankie Bones
Frankie Knuckles
Frans de Waard
Fred Everything
freestyle
French house
Front Line Assembly
Frou Frou
fsoldigital.com
Fugees
full-on
Fun Factory
Function
funk
future garage
Future Sound Of London
Futuregrapher
futurepop
g-funk
G-Prod
gabber
Gabriel Le Mar
Gaither Music Group
Galaktlan
Galati
Gang Starr
gangsta
garage
Gareth Davis
Gary Martin
Gas
Gasoline Alley Records
Gee Street
Geffen Records
Gel-Sol
Genesis
Geometry Combat
George Issakidis
Gerald Donald
Gerd
Get Physical Music
GGGG
ghetto
Ghostface Killah
Ghostly International
Glacial Movements Records
glam
Gliese 581C
glitch
Glitch Hop
Global Communication
Global Underground
Globular
goa trance
Goasia
God Body Disconnect
God's Groove
Gorillaz
gospel
Gost
goth
Grammy Awards
Gravediggaz
Green Bay Wax
Green Day
Grey Area
Greytone
Gridlock
grime
Groove Armada
Groove Corporation
Grooverider
grunge
Guru
Gustaf Hidlebrand
Gusto Records
GZA
H:U:M
H2O Records
Haddaway
Halgrath
happy hardcore
hard house
hard rock
hard techno
hard trance
hardcore
Hardfloor
Hardly Art
hardstyle
Harlequins Enigma
Harmless
Harmonic 33
Harmonic Resonance Recordings
Harold Budd
Harthouse
Harthouse Mannheim
Havoc
Hawtin
Headphone
Hearts Of Space
Hed Kandi
Hefty Records
Helen Marnie
Hell
Hercules And Love Affair
Hernán Cattáneo
Herne
Hexstatic
Hi-Bias Records
Hic Sunt Leones
Hide And Sequence
Hiero Emperium
Hieroglyphics
High Contrast
High Note Records
Higher Ground
Higher Intelligence Agency
Hilyard
hip-hop
hip-house
hipno
Hollywood Burns
Home Normal
Honest Jon's Records
Hooj Choons
Hope Records
horrorcore
Hospital Records
Hot Chip
Hotflush Recordings
house
Howie B
Huey Lewis & The News
Human Blue
Humanoid
Hybrid
Hybrid Leisureland
Hymen Records
Hyperdub
Hypertrophy
Hypnotic
Hypnoxock
I Awake
I-Cube
i! Records
I.F.
I.F.O.R.
I.R.S. Records
Iboga Records
Icarus Music
Ice Cube
Ice H2o Records
ICE MC
IDM
Iempamo
Ignis Fatum
Igorrr
Ikjoyce
illbient
ILUITEQ
Imba
Imogen Heap
Imperial Dancefloor
Imploded View
In Charge
In The Face Of
In Trance We Trust
Incoming
Incubus
Indica Records
indie rock
Indisc
Industrial
Infastructure New York
Infected Mushroom
Infinite Guitar
influence records
Infonet
Inhmost
Ink Midget
Inner Ocean Records
Innovative Leisure Records
Insane Clown Posse
Inspectah Deck
Instinct Ambient
Instra-Mental
Intellitronic Bubble
Inter-Modo
Interchill Records
Internal
International Deejays Gigolo
Interscope Records
Intimate Productions
Intuition Recordings
ISBA Music Entertainment
Ishkur
Ishq
Island Def Jam Music Group
Island Records
Islands Of Light
Italians Do It Better
italo disco
italo house
Item Caligo
J-pop
Jack Moss
Jackpot
Jacob Newman
Jafu
Jake Stephenson
Jam and Spoon
Jam El Mar
James Blake
James Holden
James Horner
James Lavelle
James Murray
James Zabiela
Jamie Jones
Jamie Myerson
Jamie Principle
Jamiroquai
Javelin Ltd.
Jay Haze
Jay Tripwire
Jaydee
jazz
jazz dance
jazzdance
jazzstep
Jean-Michel Jarre
Jeannine Sculz
Jefferson Airplane
Jerry Goldsmith
Jesper Dahlbäck
Jesse Rose
Jessy Lanza
Jimmy Van M
Jiri.Ceiver
Jive
Jive Electro
Jliat
Jlin
JMJ
Joel Mull
Joey Beltram
John '00' Fleming
John Acquaviva
John Beltran
John Digweed
John Graham
John Kelly
John O'Callaghan
John Oswald
John Shima
John Tejada
Johnny Cash
Johnny Jewel
Jon Hester
Jonny L
Jori Hulkkonen
Joris Voorn
Jørn Stenzel
Josh Christie
Josh Wink
Journeys By DJ™ LLC
Joyful Noise Recordings
Juan Atkins
juke
Jump Cut
jump up
Jumpin' & Pumpin'
jungle
Junior Boy's Own
Junkie XL
Juno Reactor
Jupiter 8000
Jurassic 5
Justin Timberlake
Ka-Sol
Kaico
Kay Wilder
KDJ
Keith Farrugia
Ken Ishii
Kenji Kawai
Kenny Glasgow
Keoki
Keosz
Kerri Chandler
Kevin Braheny
Kevin Yost
Kevorkian Records
Khetzal
Khooman
Khruangbin
Ki/oon
Kid Koala
Kiko
Killing Joke
Kinder Atom
Kinetic Records
King Cannibal
King Midas Sound
King Tubby
Kiphi
Kitaro
Klang Elektronik
Klaus Schulze
Klik Records
KMFDM
Koch Records
Koichi Sugiyama
Kolhoosi 13
Komakino
Kompakt
Kon Kan
Kontor Records
Kool Keith
Kozo
Kraftwelt
Kraftwerk
Krafty Kuts
Kranky
krautrock
Kriistal Ann
Krill.Minima
Kris O'Neil
Kriztal
KRS-One
Kruder and Dorfmeister
Krusseldorf
Krystian Shek
Kubinski
KuckKuck
Kulor
Kurupt
Kwook
L.B. Dub Corp
L.S.G.
L'usine
La Luz
Lab 4
Ladytron
LaFace Records
Lafleche
Lamb
Lange
Lantern
Large Records
Lars Leonhard
Laserlight Digital
LateNightTales
Latin
Laurent Garnier
Layer 3
LCD Soundsystem
Le Moors
Leaf
Leama and Moor
Lee 'Scratch' Perry
Lee Burridge
Lee Norris
Leftfield
Leftfield Records
Legacy
Legiac
Legowelt
Lemony Records
Leon Bolier
Les Disques Du Crépuscule
LFO
Life Enhancing Audio
Linear Labs
Lingua Lustra
Lionel Weets
Liquid Frog Records
liquid funk
Liquid Sound Design
Liquid Stranger
Liquid Zen
Literon
Live
live album
LL Cool J
lo fi
Loco Dice
Lodsb
LoFi
Logan Sama
Logic Records
London acid crew
London Classics
London Elektricity
London Records 90 Ltd
London-Sire Records
LongWalkShortDock
Loop Guru
Loreena McKennitt
Lorenzo Masotto
Lorenzo Montanà
loscil
Lost Language
Lotek Records
Loud Records
Louderbach
Loverboy
Lowfish
Luaka Bop
Lucette Bourdin
Luciano
Luke Slater
Lunarian Records
Lustmord
M_nus
M.A.N.D.Y.
M.I.K.E.
Mack 10
Madonna
Magda
Magicwire
Magik Muzik
Mahiane
Mali
Malignant Records
Mammoth Records
Mantacoup
Marc Simz
Marcel Dettmann
Marcel Fengler
Marco Carola
Marco V
Marcus Intalex
Mark Farina
Mark Norman
Mark Pritchard
Markus Schulz
Marshmello
Martin Allin
Martin Cooper
Martin Nonstatic
Märtini Brös
Martyn
Marvin Gaye
Maschine
Massimo Vivona
Massive Attack
Masta Killa
Master Margherita
Masterboy
Matthew Dear
Max Graham
maximal
Maxx
MCA
MCA Records
McProg
Meanwhile
Meat Loaf
Median Project
Medicine Label
Meditronica
Melusine Records
Memex
Menno de Jong
Mercury
Merr0w
Mesmobeat
metal
Metal Blade Records
Metamatics
Method Man
Metro Area
Metroplex
Metropolis
MF Doom
Miami Bass
Miami Beach Force
Miami Dub Machine
Michael Brook
Michael Jackson
Michael Mantra
Michael Mayer
Michael Stearns
Mick Chillage
micro-house
microfunk
Microscopics
MIG
Miguel Migs
Mike Saint-Jules
Mike Shiver
Miktek
Mille Plateaux
Millennium Records
Mind Distortion System
Mind Over MIDI
mini-CDs
minimal
minimal tech-house
minimalism
Ministry Of Sound
miscellaneous
Misja Helsloot
Miss Kittin
Miss Moneypenny's
Mistical
Mixmag
Mixmaster Morris
Mo Wax
Mo-Do
MO-DU
Moby
Model 500
modern classical
Modeselektor
Mohlao
Moist Music
Moljebka Pvulse
Moodymann
Moonshine
Morgan
Morphic Resonance
Morphology
Moss Covered Technology
Moss Garden
Motech
Motionfield
Motorbass
Mount Shrine
Move D
Moving Shadow
Mr. Scruff
Mujaji
Murk
Murmur
Mushy Records
Music link
Music Man Records
musique concrete
Mutant Sound System
Mute
MUX
Muzik Magazine
My Best Friend
Mystery Tape Laboratory
Mystica Tribe
Mystified
N-Trance
Nacht Plank
Nadia Ali
Nano Records
Napalm Records
Nas
Nashville
Natural Life Essence
Natural Midi
Nature Sounds
Naughty By Nature
Nav Bhinder
Nebula
Nebula Meltdown
Nebulae Records
Neil Young
Nelly Furtado
Neo Ouija
Neo-Adventures
Neogoa
Neon Droid
Neotantra
Neotropic
nerdcore
Nervous Records
Nettwerk
Neurobiotic Records
neurofunk
Neuropa Records
New Age
New Beat
New Jack Swing
New Order
new wave
Nic Fanciulli
Nick Höppner
Night Hex
Night Time Stories
Nightmares On Wax
Nightwind Records
Nimanty
Nine Inch Nails
Ninja Tune
Nirvana
nizmusic
No Mask Effect
Nobuo Uematsu
noise
Noise Factory Records
Nomad
Nonesuch
Nonplus Records
Nookie
Nordic Trax
Norken
Norman Cook
Norman Feller
North South
Northumbria
Not Now Music
Nothing Records
Nova
NovaMute
NRG
Ntone
nu-italo
nu-jazz
nu-metal
nu-skool
Nuclear Blast
Nuclear Blast Entertainment
Nulll
Nunc Stans
Nurse With Wound
NXP
Nyquist
Oasis
Ocelot
Octagen
Offshoot
Offshoot Records
Ol' Dirty Bastard
Olan Mill
Old Europa Cafe
old school rave
Ole Højer Hansen
Olga Musik
Olien
Oliver Lieb
Olivier Orand
Olsen
OM Records
Omni Music
Omni Trio
Omnimotion
Omnisonus
On Delancey Street
One Little Indian
Onyx
Oophoi
Oosh
Open
Open Canvas
Opium
Opus III
orchestral
Original TranceCritic review
Origo Sound
Orkidea
Orla Wren
Ornament
Ostgut Ton
Ott
Ottsonic Music
Ouragan
Out Of The Box
OutKast
Outmosphere Records
Outpost Records
Overdream
Owl
P-Ben
Pale Glow
Paleowolf
Pan Sonic
Pantera
Pantha Du Prince
Paolo Mojo
Parental Advisory
Parlaphone
Part-Sub-Merged
Pascal F.E.O.S.
Past Inside The Present
Patreon
Patrick Dream
Paul Moelands
Paul Oakenfold
Paul van Dyk
Pendulum
Pentatonik
Perfect Stranger
Perfecto
Perturbator
Pet Shop Boys
Petar Dundov
Pete Namlook
Pete Tong
Peter Andersson
Peter Benisch
Peter Broderick
Peter Gabriel
Peter Tosh
Phantogram
Phonothek
Photek
Phutureprimitive
Phynn
PIAS Recordings
Pinch
Pink Floyd
Pioneer
Pitch Black
PJ Harvey
Plaid
Planet Dog
Planet Earth Recordings
Planet Mu
Planetary Assault Systems
Planetary Consciousness
Plastic City
Plastikman
Platinum
Platipus
Pleq
Plump DJs
Plunderphonic
Plus 8 Records
PM Dawn
Poker Flat Recordings
Polar Seas Recordings
Pole Folder
politics
Polydor
Polytel
pop
Popular Records
Porya Hatami
positivesource
post-dubstep
post-punk
power electronics
Prince
Prince Paul
Prins Thomas
Priority Records
Private Mountain
Procs
Profondita
prog
prog metal
prog psy
prog rock
prog-psy
progress house
Progression
progressive breaks
progressive house
progressive rock
progressive trance
Prolifica
Proper Records
Prototype Recordings
protoU
Pryda
psy chill
psy dub
Psy Spy Records
psy trance
psy-chill
psy-dub
psychedelia
Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia
Psychomanteum
Psychonavigation
Psychonavigation Records
Psycoholic
Psykosonik
Psysolation
Public Enemy
Pulse-8 Records
punk
punk rock
Pureuphoria Records
Purl
Purple Soil
Push
PWL International
Q-Burns Abstract Message
Quadrophonia
Quality
Quango
Quantic
Quantum
Quinlan Road
R & S Records
R'n'B
R&B
Ra
Rabbit In The Moon
Radio Slave
Radioactive
Radioactive Man
Radiohead
Rae
Raekwon
ragga
Rainbow Vector
raison d'etre
Raja Ram
Ralf Hildenbeutel
Ralph Lawson
RAM Records
Randal Collier-Ford
Random Review
Rank 1
rant
Rapoon
RareNoise Records
Ras Command
Rascalz
Raster-Noton
Ratatat
Raum Records
rave
RCA
React
Rebecca & Nathan
Recycle Or Die
Red Fog
Red Jerry
Redman
Refracted
reggae
ReKaB
REKIDS
remixes
Renaissance
Renaissance Man
Rephlex
Reprise Records
Republic Records
Res
Resist Music
Restless Records
RetroSynther
Reverse Alignment
Reverse Pulse
Rhino Records
Rhys Fulber
Ricardo Villalobos
Richard Durand
Richard Stonefield
Riley Reinhold
Ringo Sheena
Rising High Records
RnB
Roadrunner Records
Robert Hood
Robert Miles
Robert Oleysyck
Robert Rich
Roc Raida
rock
rock opera
rockabilly
rocktronica
Roger Sanchez
ROIR
Rollo
Roman Ridder
Rough Trade
Rub-N-Tug
Ruben Garcia
Rudy Adrian
Ruffhouse Records
Rumour Records
Running Back
Ruptured World
Ruthless Records
RX-101
Rykodisc
RZA
S.E.T.I.
Saafi Brothers
Sabled Sun
Sacred Seeds
SadGirl
Saitoh Tomohiro
Sakanaction
Salt Tank
Salted Music
Salvation Music
Samim
Samora
sampling
Samurai Red Seal
Sanctuary Records
Sander van Doorn
Sandoz
Sandwell District
SantAAgostino
Saphileaum
Sarah McLachlan
Sash
Sasha
Saul Stokes
Scandinavian Records
Scann-Tec
sci-fi
Science
Scooter
Scott Grooves
Scott Hardkiss
Scott Stubbs
Scuba
Seán Quinn
Seaworthy
Segue
Sense
Sentimony Records
Sequential
Seraphim Rytm
Setrise
Seven Davis Jr.
Sghor
sgnl_fltr
Shackleton
Shaded Explorations
Shaded Explorer
Shadow Records
Sharam
Shawn Francis
shoegaze
Shpongle
Shuta Yasukochi
Si Matthews
Side Effects
SideOneDummy Records
Sidereal
Signature Records
SiJ
Silent Season
Silent Universe
Silentes
Silentes Minimal Editions
Silicone Soul
silly gimmicks
Silver Age
Simian Mobile Disco
Simon Berry
Simon Heath
Simon Posford
Simon Scott
Simple Records
Sinden
Sine Silex
single
Single Gun Theory
Sire Records Company
Six Degrees
Sixeleven Records
Sixtoo
ska
Skanfrom
Skare
Skin To Skin
Skua Atlantic
Slaapwel Records
Slam
Sleep Research Facility
Slinky Music
Slowcraft Records
Sly and Robbie
Smalltown Supersound
SME Visual Works Inc.
SMTG Limited
Snap
Sneijder
Snoop Dogg
Snowy Tension Pole
soft rock
Soiree Records International
Solar Fields
Solaris Recordings
Solarstone
Soleilmoon Recordings
Solieb
Solieb Digital
Solipsism
Soliquid
Solstice Music Europe
Solvent
Soma Quality Recordings
Songbird
Sony Music Entertainment
SOS
soul
Soul Temple Entertainment
soul:r
Souls Of Mischief
Sound Of Ceres
Sound Synthesis
Soundgarden
Sounds From The Ground
soundtrack
southern rap
southern rock
space ambient
Space Dimension Controller
space disco
Space Manoeuvres
space music
space synth
Spacetime Continuum
Spaghetti Recordings
Spank Rock
Special D
Specta Ciera
speed garage
Speedy J
SPG Music
Sphäre Sechs
Spicelab
Spielerei
Spinefarm Records
Spiritech
spoken word
Sport
Spotify Suggestions
Spotted Peccary
Spring Hill
SPX Digital
Spy vs Spice
Squarepusher
Squaresoft
Stacey Pullen
Stanton Warriors
Star Trek
Stardust
Statrax
Stay Up Forever
Stealth Sonic Recordings
Stephanie B
Stephen Kroos
Stereo Raptor
Stereolab
Steve Angello
Steve Brand
Steve Lawler
Steve Miller Band
Steve Porter
Steven Rutter
Stijn van Cauter
Stimulus Timbre
Stone Temple Pilots
Stonebridge
Stormloop
Stray Gators
Street Fighter
Stuart McLean
Studio K7
Stylophonic
Sub Focus
Subharmonic
Sublime
Sublime Porte Netlabel
Subotika
Substance
Subtle Shift
Suction Records
Suduaya
Suicide Squeeze
SUN Project
Sun Station
Sunbeam
Sunday Best Recordings
Sunscreem
Suntrip Records
Supercar
Superstition
surf rock
Susumu Yokota
Sven van Hees
Sven Väth
SVLBRD
Swayzak
Sweet Trip
swing
Switch
Swollen Members
Sykonee Survey
Sylk 130
Symmetry
Synaptic Voyager
Sync24
Synergy
Synkro
synth pop
synth-pop
synthwave
System 7
Taboo
Tactic Records
Take Me To The Hospital
Tall Paul
Tammy Wynette
Tangerine Dream
Tau Ceti
Taylor
Taylor Deupree
Tayo
tech house
Tech Itch Digital
Tech Itch Recordings
tech-house
tech-step
tech-trance
Technical Itch
techno
technobass
Technoboy
Tectonic
Telefon Tel Aviv
Telstar
Terminal Antwerp
Terra Ferma
Terror Cell
Terry Lee Brown Jr
Tetsu Inoue
Textere Oris
The 13th Sign
The Angling Loser
The B-52's
The Beach Boys
The Beatles
The Black Dog
The Boats
The Brian Jonestown Massacre
The Bug
The Chemical Brothers
The Circular Ruins
The Clash
The Council
The Cranberries
The Crystal Method
The Digital Blonde
The Dust Brothers
The Field
The Frozen Vaults
The Gentle People
The Glimmers
The Green Kingdom
The Grey Area
The Grid
The Hacker
The Herbaliser
The Human League
The Irresistible Force
The KLF
The Micronauts
The Misted Muppet
The Movement
The Music Cartel
The Null Corporation
The Oak Ridge Boys
The Offspring
The Orb
The Police
The Prodigy
The Real McCoy
The Roots
The Sabres Of Paradise
The Shamen
The Sharp Boys
The Sonic Voyagers
The Squires
The Stills-Young Band
The Stray Gators
The Tea Party
The Tragically Hip
The Velvet Underground
The Wailers
The White Stripes
The Winterhouse
themes
Thievery Corporation
Third Contact
Third World
Tholen
Thrive Records
Tiefschwarz
Tierro Cosmico
Tiësto
Tiga
Tiger & Woods
Tijuana Panthers
Timbaland
Time Life Music
Time Warp
Timecode
Timestalker
Tineidae
Tipper
Tobias
Tocadisco
Todd Terje
Toki Fuko
Tom Middleton
Tom Tom Club
Tomas Jirku
Tomita
Tommy '86
Tommy Boy
Ton T.B.
Tone Depth
Tony Anderson Sound Orchestra
Too Pure
Tool
tools
Topaz
Tosca
Toto
Touch
Touched
Tourette Records
Toxik Synther
Tracing Xircles
Traffic Entertainment Group
trance
Trancelucent
Tranquillo Records
Trans'Pact
Transcend
Transformers
Transient Records
trap
Trax Records
Trend
Trentemøller
Tresor
tribal
Tricky
Triloka Records
trip-hop
Triquetra
Trishula Records
Tristan
Troum
Troy Pierce
TRS Records
Tru Thoughts
Tsuba Records
Tsubasa Records
Tuff Gong
Tunnel Records
Turbo Recordings
turntablism
TUU
TVT Records
Twisted Records
Type O Negative
Týr
U-God
U-Recken
U2
U4IC DJs
Überzone
Ugasanie
UK acid house
UK Garage
UK Hard House
Ultimae Records
Ultra Records
Umbra
Underworld
Union Jack
United Dairies
United DJs Of America
United Recordings
Universal Motown
Universal Music
Universal Records
Universal Republic Records
UNKLE
Unknown Tone Records
Unusual Cosmic Process
UOVI
Upstream Records
Urban Icon Records
Urban Meditation
Utada Hikaru
V2
Vagrant Records
Valanx
Valiska
Valley Of The Sun
Vangelis
Vap
VAST
Vector Lovers
Venetian Snares
Venonza Records
Vermont
Vernon
Versatile Records
Verus Records
Verve Records
VGM
Vibrant Music
Vice Records
Victor Calderone
Victor Entertainment
Vidna Obmana
Viking metal
Vince DiCola
Vinyl Cafe Productions
Virgin
Virtual Vault
Virus Recordings
Visionquest
Visions
Vitalic
vocal trance
Vortex
Voxxov Records
Voyage
Wagram Music
Waki
Wanderwelle
Warmth
Warner Bros. Records
Warp Records
Warren G
Water Music Dance
Wave Recordings
Wave Records
Waveform
Waveform Records
Wax Trax Records
Way Out West
WC
WEA
Wednesday Campanella
Weekend Players
Weekly Mini-Review
Werk Discs
Werkstatt Recordings
WestBam
Westside Connection
White Cloud
White Swan Records
Wichita
Wiggle
Will Saul
William Orbit
Willie Nelson
Wintersun
world beat
world music
writing reflections
Wrong Records
Wu-Tang Clan
Wurrm
Wyatt Keusch
Xerxes The Dark
XL Recordings
XTT Recordings
Yahgan
Yamaoka
Yello
Yes
Ylid
Youth
Youtube
YoYo Records
Yul Records
zakè
Zenith
ZerO One
Zoharum
Zomby
Zoo Entertainment
ZTT
Zyron
ZYX Music
µ-Ziq