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Artist: Android Spirit Title: Synthetic Organism Label: Timecode Records Date: January 2014 1. Omdma 2. Kirobo The Robot 3. Swirl In Unity 4. Born In The Desert (feat. Distant Touch) 5. Targaryen Blood 6. High As A Kite 7. Freedom South Africa 8. Tokolojoe 9. Remember (Android Spirit edit) - Tickets Timecode. "B*itch get down here! Sh*t! This motherf*cker is heavy! Do you know how many D batteries I had to buy!?!" Really think Apple missed the boat not using that as their slogan. Anyway, Timecode. The very name makes my windows rattle with anticipation. This label has been releasing albums true to the night time South African sound for over a decade. Trojan, The Turning, New Blood, both Retrospectives...and that's just some of the compilations. They're the Suntrip of the dark continent where each album is an almost instabuy. Having spoken at length with the guy who runs Timecode these days I can tell you that he is exceedingly nice and seems to have a direction for the label. And that's good. But in the world of psytrance where you're only as good as your last release what is in store for us the listening public? Android Spirit is the teamup of Timecode mainstay Tickets (Josef Summs) and that very polite label manager Till Daksinamurti. If I'm being honest I would tell you that I'm unfamiliar with this project. Can't catch all the releases now can I? Do they bring back the glory days of Timecode or are they forging a new path? Omdma- Chants. lasers, and eerie piano? Pretty cool and that's just the first track. Kirobo the Robot- "Kirobo the Robot was exposed to zero gravity before being blasted into space." And wouldn't you know it the f*cker left before paying the cable bill. This is dark with a chip on its shoulder that undergoes several twists. It has that massive Tickets sound all over it. Now we're talking. Swirl in Unity- "No barrier, no boundaries...nothing to hold us down." The acid is here so a good track, but not as engaging as some of the others. Perhaps a little too generic. Born in the Desert- "If we ride together, we ride for justice!" Apparently the sample was better than the Lone Ranger movie. With a Principles of Flight symphonic quality it's another dark and powerful track. Targaryen Blood- "..." Yeah, I have no f*cking idea what he was saying. Probably something about porn cause it's always about porn. Thumping like a migraine the leads echo with aggressive attitude. There is mucho adrenaline to be found here. This is what it would sound like if Leonidas was behind the decks. High As a Kite- "You're high as a f*cking kite!" "Oh man...I have no idea what's going on. So f*cking high right now. Are you going to the beach? Don't forget to...oh man...I don't remember how that goes." *Brushes self off* "Do I still look high?" This one goes out to fans of Pineapple Express. The samples make it as it builds momentum and becomes a good rumbler. Freedom South Africa- "It's easy to love people that's a long ways away from us. But can you love yourself?" More rolling leads, lasers and thumping beats. This is what Timecode does and they do it well. Tokolojoe- Ah the wild and unrestrained chaos is front and center with this juicy blaster. The layers coalesce into a nice yummy powerful track. Remember (Android Spirit Edit)- "Time erases everything." There are not enough f*cking erasers in the public school system to...Look, I'm no vet, but I think you're gonna need a lot more Conan. The closer had rapid leads that were squeezed for all they were worth. As usual the bass was punchy and the acid splashed in nicely. I was wondering if they still had it. Had some of the luster come off this diamond? The last few albums from Timecode weren't the bombastic breath stealers that were their trademark years ago. But times change and if you don't change with it your risk becoming a fossil and a relic. This release holds on to a lot of the stuff we love about the label. Great samples, hard beats, and acidic energy. Tracks were full and there wasn't much dead space to endure. The middle of the album flirted with some melodies that had me thinking about the beaches of goa. Don't know if that was intentional but perhaps that is a wrinkle to explore further. As a Goa lover I would appreciate that of course, but what this album did was to solidify their position. It's a quality release that hits hard and isn't mindless. While not perfect it still keeps them near the top of the game. Psyshop Beatspace Mdk

Artist: Alienn Title: Follow Your Bliss Label: Mechanik Records Date: January, 2014 1. Follow Your Bliss 2. Everything Is Energy What he said. I'm talking to you mister! This is so far beneath you. Did you get tired of seeing your friends party with all the hot chicks that commercial brainless music provides? Did you make a deal with the devil? Madonna did that and it ain't workin' out so well for her. "Like a virgin..." Is this what you want? Tiresome buildups and all those f*cking stops and starts? What's that? Oh, all your friends are doing it. If your friends jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge does that mean you'd do it too? This is subpar pablum and hopefully just a phase you're going through. Prom Queen? Prom Queen of the damned maybe. Are you on drugs? Look at me when I'm talking to you! Are you doing the crack! Or the tweeds? No? WELL GET THE F*CK BACK ON THEM SO YOU CAN MAKE SOMETHING CREATIVE! I sincerely hope we don't have to have this conversation again. No get up to your room and make something productive. Beatport Mdk

Artist: Various Title: Forensic Science Vol. 2 Label: Iono Music Date: January, 2014 1. Sad Paradise - Super Junkie 2. Skyfall - Triplet 3. Ritmo - The Way We Are (Lifeforms Remix) 4. Zyce & Aquafeel - I Am The Sunlight 5. Ace Ventura & Darma - Acidcore (Egorythmia Remix) 6. Darma - Paradigma 7. Roger Rabbit - Single Snapshot 8. Egorythmia & E-Clip - Time Travellers 9. Sonic Entity - Mental Universe "There is more to reality than meets the normal eye." I'll always have a soft spot for Iono. No, that's not it. That either, look stop touching me. Just...stay over there before I have to get human resources involved. Iono has been top dog for quite awhile in the lush melodic progressive market very rarely taking a misstep. Their music doesn't just make you want to dance...it involves you. Catches you up in a detailed vortex as effects resonate at every turn. It really is all about atmosphere with this label and in particular this compilation. When you call out the forensics team it means a terrible crime has been committed. So not really the time for light heartedness. Some of the tracks pack a heavier punch resembling psytrance more than progressive, but they all have one thing in common. The rich compositions take you from your world to their dark and intricate one. As usual it's melodic and effects heavy with the overall vibe of malice lurking in the shadows. The music breathes and crackles with futuristic energy. Zero bad tracks and an experience that is greater on a full listen through. Several other labels have challenged their supremacy recently perhaps sensing the old dog could no longer hunt. But with this outstanding release the rumors of Iono's demise have been greatly exaggerated. The names may change, but the quality remains the same. Highly recommended. Psyshop Beatspace Mdk

Artist: Various Title: Undergrounded Label: Quantum Satis Records Date: January, 2014 01 - Ka-Sol - El Doktore (140 BPM) 02 - Zoon - Gate (Hada Remix) (144 BPM) 03 - Goch - Extemporary Devices (146 BPM) 04 - Schoiroideairis - Natural (148 BPM) 05 - Nirmanakayas - Deep Inside (147 BPM) 06 - Battle Of The Future Buddhas - Lacking It All (148 BPM) 07 - Grobians - Da Mind Twister (148 BPM) 08 - Taigan Sunset - Xmas Shoe Eater (148 BPM) 09 - Spirituz - Mind Warping Spirits (148 BPM) 10 - Cavedave - Bruced Lead (129 BPM) And now for something completely different. Dissonant sounds and dark journeys through a magic laden forest. That's the dream isn't it? Let's see what have we got here...Ka-Sol, yeah that track sounds like they handed in a rough draft, Gate is dreary wailing, but the Goch offering does it right. Dark and frightful it seems to strike the right balance between being terrifying and just putting a gun in your mouth. The cat in the blender style of Deep Inside shows the outright contempt for the swift justice of PETA, and Buddhas devolved into an evil trance like state brimming with tortuous screams of agony. Otherwise known as a drive through Harlem after midnight. The Grobians (Google wanted to call them the Fabiens, just sayin') is a bubbly pool of monotony. But at least nobody died during it. Actually I cannot prove that. Probably nobody died. Xmas Shoe Eater is my favorite due to its title of course, but also its funky swing and chuckling goblins. Liked Mind Warping Spirits also, some wicked fun. Lastly with the f*cking shocker of the week is some downtempo enter the dragon sh*t with Bruced Lead which would seem more appropriate on a Kaaya Project album than a forest compilation. Taken as a whole it sounds like someone spiraling into a wicked depression. This could be the soundtrack that a disturbed individual would use when he fantasizes about mowing down soccer moms in the produce department of Food Lion. If you have the slightest mental issue or irregularity please give this a wide berth. That said there is creativity here. And that's why I continue to listen to the forest and the dark stuff in the hope that an artist nails it and creates something mindblowing. Without making me want to eliminate the 10th grade of the local high school. Free at Ektoplazm Mdk

Artist: Mumukshu Title: Time Passes At Various Speeds EP Label: Released on Ektoplazm Date: January, 2014 01 - Transformative Adventures (100 BPM) 02 - Parallel Planes (105 BPM) 03 - Time Passes At Various Speeds (105 BPM) 04 - Folding (108 BPM) Sounding more like something you'd order from a sushi restaurant Mumukshu is American Jacob Penn who has made something I can nod my head to. Bouncy breakbeats and plenty of bass sounds with melodies that give it a sense of grandeur. There are glitchy tendencies of course, but it's not just noise. Computer sounds are melded creatively with melody and the whole thing is rather juicy. Sometimes I think it can lose it's way, but definitely worth a listen. Free at Ektoplazm Mdk