Steve Mills, Sterling Moss, Mobile Dogwash, Jack Wax – Braingravy 04 (Braingravy)

With its stellar line-up of Moss, Mills, Dogwash and Wax, Braingravy 4 always promised great things, and lo! Great things have come to pass.

Ride the Snake by Sterling Moss and Steve Mills leads off, and there is indeed something slithering about it – like a vast, mutated alligator feeding off luckless sewer workers beneath the city streets. Accordingly the track gets more and more corpulent, bottoms out to a cavernous, echo-strewn breakdown and then treats you to a delayed drop that, when it comes – when it eventually comes – tears off the back of your head. And that’s a good thing.

With a Parsnip is business as usual for Dogwash. i.e it rocks like a bastard. And how do they get those acid lines so damn filthy? After that, Burnout, from Jack Wax drops the old-school acid, 303 that couldn’t be more different from Dogwash if it tried. In terms of the EP it’s a brilliant change of pace, and hats off for that, while as far as the track itself goes, I’ve got one word: whoosh. It’s a builder, a grower. The kind of tune that like maggots festering beneath an aluminium cranial insert, will gradually burrow its way into your brain. And that, again, is a good thing.

Get it from: Juno Download

Hear it:

Osmo, Sterling Moss, Chris Liberator, Darc Marc, Athar – Scythe Squadron 10 (Scythe 010)

Inside the Government comes from Chris Liberator, Darc Marc, and Athar, who’s otherwise known as Pawel Panczyk and is, along with Osmo (Tomasz Osmański), one of Scythe Squadron’s founders. The track has everything you’d expect of such a mighty pairing: fluid drums, plenty of changes and an Acid line that begins at lick and just builds and builds. Strong stuff, and on any other EP it would be the clear winner.

Any other EP, that is, apart from this one. Because after Sterling Moss’s Rebel Rouser, where the acid strolls a bit and a horn motif which promises much doesn’t really do a lot, leading to what is, by his high standards, a fairly restrained number, comes Osmo’s Acid In My Mind. Which is a destroying tune. A showstopping, how-do-you-follow-that? headfuck of a track. Gathering its elements patiently, it fireworks after a short break at around 1.49, after which anything goes. Fast – is it really just 142 BPM? – the foot only comes off the pedal for an Osmo speciality break, where you think the track’s going to flip out into something new, before all hell breaks loose for the next section, the main riff blasting away,  counter-melodies and choirs of acidic angels giving it a glorious busy feeling. I’m not exaggerating here. It’s glorious, exhilarating headrush techno, and the only problem, really, is how to get out of it without the energy dropping. You’ll manage, I’m sure.

Lady Sybil’s Last Words Mix

In memory of the lovely Lady Sybil Crawley, I present a mix of a few recent favourites, a couple of old ones…

Tracklist

Chris Hawkins – Canarian Island (Trevor Benz remix)
Mobile Dogwash – Usual Pharmacology – Mobile Dogwash Remix
Temperature Drop – Mosquito’s Tweeter 2012 Remix
OB1 – Random Act
Osmo – Fuck Your Lies
Starsky & Hutch feat Fazmo – Bitches from Brighton
Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss – The Swarm
Tassid – It’s Ridiculous
Jye Feelgood – Acid Swamp
Tik Tok – 303 Brotherhood
Nesbit – The Game
Fantompowa Meets The Geezer – Dadawas
Convection Criminals – Fajitta Swing
Mobile Dogwash – Lucy Int Sky Wi Dogwash

Jack Wax – Wax Is All (Flatlife Digital)

Wax Is All – Original Mix
The carnage kicks off with the original, a splendid tune from Eindhoven’s Jack Wax. And wow – someone’s been hiding their 303 genius under a Garry Bushell, because this totally rocks: the kick is chunky and clean, the 303s taught and sinewy, the melodies light and airy. I totally approve of the 142 BPM as well, which makes a nice change from the industry standard 145.

Wax Is All – Chris Liberator & Darc Marc Remix
Chris and Marc make good use of the ‘motherfucker’ sample – be rude not to, after all  – dial up the BPM to 148 and take a chisel to the acid sound. It’s a good day at the office for all concerned.

Wax Is All – D.A.V.E. the Drummer Remix
Suck my old brainpan, this is good. I mean, you’d expect it to be good from Dave, who in the last few years has been ringing the changes and producing his best work in the process, but this is quite something special. Lately he’s lowered the BPMs (but not completely deserted them, The Drums, anyone?) and in place of speed brought quality, and here it’s all in the bottom end, with a lovingly crafted kick so deep and cavernous it’s positively demonic, while shredding 303s take a blood-stained fire axe to the original. It rules, in other words.

Wax Is All – Sterling Moss Remix
Sterling’s mix is a cracker, just what you’d expect. Looser, funkier drums bring a tribal feel to the track – think the feel of his Streaker EP from last year – while busy riffs keep things skipping along. Being none too keen on either Riff Raff or Sick of Capitalism, which were his last two Acid tunes with Chris, I’m pleased to be loving a new tune with his name on it.

Wax Is All – Luke Creed Remix
Creed brings the madness, fiddling and treating every little sound like a crazy kid who glues the arms of dolls onto their foreheads.

Incidentally, here’s a Jack Wx mix on Soundcloud, Acid Techno classics, no less. We likey.

Chris Liberator, Sterling Moss, Rackitt, D.A.V.E the Drummer, Ant – SUF 100.1 (Stay Up Forever)

Cat no: SUF 100.1
Release date: 02/12/11
Get it from: 909 London

Croydon Girl – Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss with Rackitt
BPM: 145
Heralding a year of celebrations from SUF (and for more details of that check out the new SUF 100 site) comes this EP, the first of four in the 100 series. Croydon Girl is supreme filth, with a Sterling Moss-speciality kick interrupted only by the odd outbreak of spitting hi-hats, a very hefty 303 line right from the off, and the main melodic acid line from 1.19. All in all, as nasty as you’d expect. The vocal is Rackitt expressing her love of Croydon as well ruminating upon her love of ‘fat 303s, fat rigs, fast drugs, fuck you,’ all of which are fine and upstanding pursuits.

The Drums – D.A.V.E the Drummer & Ant **
BPM: 145
Backing it up is The Drums, which is not so crowd-pleasing, but probably the better track in my humble Orion, and wraps up what has been a superb, transitional year for D.A.V.E the Drummer. After a section of layered drums comes all manner of freaky acidness, before more drums. And then more drums!  A drum solo in the break, no less! Imagine an Edinburgh Tattoo trip to the Rio carnival by way of Goa and you’ve got an idea what’s going on in here, and that it all holds together is a tribute to the acid-funking genius of the two talents involved. Great track, awesome EP, roll on the next one.

2011 Autumnal Acidity

Some NEW acid in the mix, mainly from the last few months.

Tracklisting is:

Alex Kenji & Luigi Rocca – Acid Monks
F+S (Franz & Shape) – Acid One
Adam Derry – 130 Jam
Woo York & Vegim – Bass Machinnen (DAVE The Drummer dub mix)
D.A.V.E The Drummer & Marcello Perri – Purpose
Justin E – Resistance
Freethinker – Release The Scud
Freethinker – 401
Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss – Acid Corrosion
Steve Mills – London Acid Techno
A.P & Josh Inc – Pure fuzz
Nitronoise – Drink & Drive
Zoid – Day Off
Tik Tok & Turtle – Boxed Up
Tik Tok – Fucka Hooka (2011 mix)
Justin E – Jacob’s Ladder
Mobile Dogwash – Roll Em Phat
Acid Chochi – Running For Fun
OB1 – A Little Something
Subutex & DJ D8 – Fuck That
Austin Corrosive – Recharge
Tassid – Recharge Remix
KitShunt – With A K (1st Edit)

Epic Acid Mix

Tracklisting is:

China White – Theme From The Underground
Robotman – Do Da Doo (Plastikman Acid House Remix)
Saint Etienne – Like A Motorway (The David Holmes Mix)
X-Press 2 – Rock 2 House (Plastikman Acid House Remix)
Bassheads – Is There Anybody Out There? (Hardfloor Remix)
The Aloof – Mind
System 7 – Alpha Wave (Plastikman Acid House Remix)
Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss – Impact
The Orb – Asylum (Kris & Dave’s You Are Evil But I Like You Remix)
Rozzer’s Dog – The Pusher, The Pimp & The Panther

Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss, Austin Corrosive, Tassid – Corrosive 02 (Corrosive)

Cat no: Corrosive 002
Release date: 13/07/11

Get it from: 909 London

Acid Corrosion – Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss
BPM: 145
Clean, loud and efficient: a spry, fidgety acid line fades in slowly over the first minute-and-half before the kick drops away at 1.33, then slams back in at 1.46 with teeth-grinding ferocity . A whispered ‘acid corrosion’ sample tops things off by which time the acid line’s started to get all wide-eyed and raggedy and out of control. And though sadly it never quite goes to that promised next level it does have a long outro with the acid corrosion sample repeated, that you just know will sound great bubbling away in the mix.

Champion Sound – Austin Corrosive
BPM: 147
A fantastic homage to late nineties SUF and an interesting sonic workout in its own right, Champion Sound begins fast and stays there, dripping with acid lines so sleazy they’re downright pornographic. During an extended break at 3.42 things take a twisted, fucked-up turn, the noises weirder and more disorientating, the whole thing almost threatening to ping off in some random, unexpected direction. It’s thrilling, seat-of-the-pants stuff, and you sense that Mr Corrosive could get seriously ninja with with the head-wrecking noises if he so chooses. Hint: let’s hope he does.

Lethal Poison – Tassid **
BPM: 153
A jaw-droppingly good tune, this, its individual elements marshalled superbly, sounding as funky as it is hard. The funkiness comes via an M.I.A sample; the hardness partly from a brain-damaging kick, but mainly from an acid line that is to-die-for. No, really. It is to. Die. For. Fast and dirty and hard, you’ll grin when you hear it. You’ll get goosebumps and the hairs on your arms will rise like zombie hands from graves. Every track on this EP is great – I cannot get enough of Corrosive at the moment and this must be their strongest release yet  – but this track takes the honours. Just.

Yolk 90902 (Yolk Digital)

Cat no: Yolk 90902
Release date: 07/06/11

Chris Liberator & Sterling Moss – Pressure
BPM: 140
A Chris Lib/Moss collab is always a thing of great joy. And though our rapture is tempered somewhat by the lack of any 303, Pressure’s still an essential release as well as being a signpost to where these guys are currently at, which is, in a word: fastandhardfunkytribaltechno. Here, a well-fed kick and a simple sawing line is enough to sustain it to a series of brilliantly staged timebomb breaks after the halfway mark. And if it lacks some of the pyrotechnics of Sterling’s other new release on Keep on Techno, that doesn’t matter. It rocks like a beast.

Sterling Moss – Uppercut **
BPM: 142
I can see why this is on the flip but it’s probably the more interesting track, and so gets the double asterisk of delight. Full-on bad-tempered drums trade blows with various bad-trip noises. It sounds faster than it actually is, but in a hard and nasty acid techno set this would be welcomed like a long-lost brother.

Get it from: 909 London

Sterling Moss – Streaker EP (Keep on Techno)

Cat no: KOT 046-X
Release date: 01/06/11

Streaker **
BPM: 140
London’s finest on Fer BR’s Croatian Keep on Techno label and the result is as big, funky and tribal as you could wish for – with a bit of Hackney sleaze thrown in for good measure. The standout is this one. You hear the drums first and then a hellish misfit marching band shimmies, struts and staggers into town. A band of witch doctors, revenants and soothsayers; of fallen women, disgraced nobility, drug addicts and Jesus freaks. All of them consumed by rhythm: hard, driving drums, bandstand percussion and insistent chanting that grips hard for nigh-on eight minutes and will not let go. It’s hard and hypnotic; it sticks two fingers up to minimal; it puts the lotion on its skin.

Long Player
BPM: 140
Like the rest of the EP this is tough, house-referencing techno that finds its groove and stays there, snarling at anybody foolhardy enough to get too close, even Pippa Middleton – even if she was wearing ‘that dress’. Blake Baxter used to make tracks likes this, ones that talked Chicago, walked Detroit. He probably still does for all I know.

Skyride
BPM: 140
Remember how on Game Form and Ten Four Joey Beltram took house and threw it to the techno pit, where it got mauled and mutilated and reshaped into something crunchy and hard but funky as all fuck? Sterling Moss does. Try not to nod your head to this. It’d be like eating a doughnut without licking your lips.

Get it from: Juno