TURNTABLE LAB

Tremor
Viajante Digi-LP

downtempo meets south american folk music

Tremor combines rhythms and sound across genre borders, fitting component parts of varying tradition together in eloquent symmetry. The artist breaks sound barriers across South America and presents his digital folklore tracks to a new, global audience. On his last record, "Viajante," Tremor executes folklore melody through a digital context. Layers of rhythm are fortified with modern synth loops and paired with timeless Andean flute, strings and drum samples for evocative hybrids. Glitch, IDM, and electronica reinvent classic rhythms for today's listener.
reviewed by label review

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dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dstep+grime+baile / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic / and more

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FaltyDL
To London Digi-12

uk garage meets new school beats

After several release on Planet Mu, FaltyDL has moved over to Ramp Recordings, bringing his brand of mutant beats to this super-hot label. "To London" is like a hybrid of UK garage and new school beats, it's got a great movement about it. "Metacognist" is a great piece of head music. Falty twists up samples into an undulating wave, and gotta love those crisp drums. Lastly, "Tom@Ramp" is an abstract 80s electro track. Recommended.
reviewed by mgmnt

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dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dstep+grime+baile / reviewer reccomended / and more

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FaltyDL
Party Digi-12

excellent non-traditional beats

After several release on Planet Mu, FaltyDL has moved over to Ramp Recordings, bringing his brand of mutant beats to this super-hot label. "Party" uses a familiar Falty theme, weaving soul vocals into a beatscape. "Alphafun" is a dark as night beat that conjures up nightmares and muggings.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dstep+grime+baile / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic / and more

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Computer Jay
Distance Digi-12

Dilla-style, west coast beats

LA's underground beatmaker Computer Jay finally gets a solo release with this 10" release on Ramp Recordings. Both tracks are riffs off of Dilla-type beats. Jay makes it his own by adding heaps of swirl on "Distance." Love the medieval energy and kick-heavy drums. "Epiphany" is equally impressive as Jay aggressively explores synth melodies. Makes you thirsty for more, recommended.
reviewed by the mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / reviewer reccomended / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic

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Various Artists
Beat Dimensions Vol. 2 (Nosaj Thing, Dimlite, Samiyam) Digi-LP

new school beats comp, pick

Cinnaman & Jay Scarlett culminate their Beat Dimensions 12" series with this 20 track compilation of the finest in new school beats. We already know about producers such as Ras G, Exile, Danny Breaks, Samiyam, Mike Slott, etc. But it seems like every week, new producers on this comp are emerging like Nosaj Thing, Mono/Poly, Dimlite, and Fulgeance. If the compilers were picking stocks, they'd be rich. If you want a snapshot of the current new beats scene, you can't do much better than this. Highly recommended.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / reviewer reccomended / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic

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Natural Self
My Heart Beats Like A Drum Digi-LP

varied downtempo styles, pick

Quantic may have been the star of Tru Thoughts roster, but for beats, Natural Self is the label's goto. Over the years, we've seen him experiment with different styles (his afro-phase was pretty lengthy); here he puts it all together for one of his best albums yet. He's added a reggae twist in places, plus some static-y synths that are so popular these days. For me, it's all summed up in the sublime "Our Lives," that's some advanced beatmaking. 10 tracks in all, recommended.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / reviewer reccomended / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic

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Moby
Go - The Very Best of Moby Digi-LP

collection of Moby's dance, downtempo and remixed hits

MASSIVE collection of all the high points from Moby's career, with a special focus on his Play and 18 albums. The work ranges from his downtempo breakbeat tracks to his euphoric house numbers, and also includes his softer moments like the epic classical piece "God Moving Over The Face Of The Waters." Also of note is that this compilation includes the original version of "Southside," which is the version without Gwen Stefani on backup vox. Disc 2 focuses on remixes of Moby's biggest songs, and includes work from a ton of huge names, including Pete Heller, Steve Angello, Axwell, Booka Shade, Mylo, even one from DJ Tiesto(!). Tons of material here (27 tracks total), great for new fans and old fans alike.
reviewed by Hires

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dance+house / classic dance / and more

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DJ Roland Clark Presents Urban Soul
Brown James (Alex Kenji & Matthias Heilbronn Remixes) Digi-EP

james brown tribute tracks, house and breaks

James Brown tribute from prolific producer Roland Clark under his Urban Soul guise. A side is a techy house track (don't really hear the connection), but the b-side makes up for it with breaky remake of "In The Jungle Groove." The second Soulflower mix is instrumental and my pick of the two.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dance+house / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic / and more

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Floating Points
J&W Beat Digi-12

complex beats

Much hyped beatmaker Floating Points makes the requisite appearance on Planet Mu, which is quickly rivaling Hyperdub as the cool imprint for dub-centric one-offs. This release is much different than his excellent release on R2 Records. Instead of focusing on the swirling synths, FP puts the attention to his tricky IDM drum programming. "J&W Beat(1)" sounds like a kin to Autechre while "K&G Beat(2)" is a fresh, stuttered take on 2-step.
reviewed by the mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic

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Various Artists
Jazz & Milk Breaks - Compilation Series Vol. 2 (Dusty, Greenwood Rhythm Coalition) Digi-LP

dowtempo, latin beats, modern funk

Jazz & Milk has never let down on the quality. Here's another well curated survey of the current downtempo scene in all its jazzed-out goodness. In addition to the usual beat and loop themes, you'll hear a strong latin influence on several of the tracks. Discoveries lurk around every corner. Go Greenwood! Recommended.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / funk+soul+disco / top albums chart / reviewer reccomended / and more

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Speech Debelle
Spinnin' Digi-EP

UK hip-hop from mercury prize winner

If you want to hear what the hype is about, this a good place to start. Winner of 2009's Mercury prize for best new artist, Speech Debelle drops a catchy blend of hip-hop and uk grime. "Spinnin" immediately draws you in with a feelgood quality, no doubt borrowing the blueprint from Trick Daddy's "I'm A Thug." Also includes three dance remixes which show Debelle's harder edge.
reviewed by mgmnt

file under:
top albums chart / hip-hop / dstep+grime+baile / ninjay tune / and more

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Illyah
Machines and Ghosts (Feat. Ltd. Candy) Digi-EP

digi-dubs with female vocals

This is a fresh approach to Jahtari's digi-dub style, incoporating downtempo-style female vocals. It's rough and smooth.
reviewed by mgmnt

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dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / reggae / reviewer reccomended / and more

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Daedelus & Jogger
Friends of Friends Remixed (Michna, Eliott Lipp, Nosaj Thing) Digi-EP

mish-mosh of dance styles remixed by Lab heads, pick

Daedelus brought a mixed bag of unusual but wonderful dance tracks on the original Friends of Friends EP, but on the remix he's reached out and gathered an unusual grouping of remixers - many of them (former) Lab heads! "C'est Super" was originally a filtered disco edit with the early Daft Punk sound... that is until Michna got his hands on it. Michna successfully transforms it into a seriously heavy banger, quite literally. The bass kicks on this thing knock hard on this thing! "LA Nocturn" gets flipped from folk rock downtempo to tough electro funk hype by the talented homie Elliot Lipp, while "Nice Tights" gets totally chopped and screwed into a crazy downtempo beast by Nosaj Thing. Tough stuff. Also features some very funky dance remixes of "Nice Tights" by Grahm Zilla and Keenhouse and a dubstep version by Mexicans with Guns. Recommended.
reviewed by the mgmnt

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dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dance+house / reviewer reccomended / and more

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Hawthorne Headhunters
Hawthorne Headhunters Digi-EP

vintage LA boogie, R&B

HVW8, who've long been killing it in the t-shirt game, offer up some awesome downtempo and R&B for the second release of their label. Hawthorne Headhunters hail from Hawthorne, CA, and they channel that fantastic vintage LA sound that's been popularized recently by Dam Funk (who's a friend of the group), James Pants and others. Check out the smooth vibe on tracks like "U Say," "A Song About Her," and "Do 4 U." The highlight of the EP is definitely "Manifest Station," which blends vintage synth pop sounds with R&B for a super catchy uptempo track. Five tracks in all, recommended.
reviewed by Hires

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / reviewer reccomended / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic

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Various Artists
Mary Anne Hobbs - Wild Angels (Rustie, Starky, Nosaj Thing) Digi-LP

excellent comp of new school beats

What Gilles Peterson was to the emerging jazz and soul oriented dance scene, Mary Anne Hobbs is to the new school beats scene. Host of the BBC's Experimental Show, Hobbs has become one of the top curators of Dilla-inspired beats, dubstep, and all the offshoots. This highly anticipated Planet Mu compilation, (her third for the label) expectedly reads like a Lab downtempo bestsellers chart with Hudson Mohawke, Mike Slott, Nosaj Thing, Rustie, Mono/Poly, Starkey, Floating Points, etc. But equally important, there's a more producers we've never touched before. It's like Christmas in here. 19 tracks in all, recommended.
reviewed by mgmnt

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dwntmpo+electronic / top albums chart / dstep+grime+baile / reviewer reccomended / and more

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Sweat.X
I'm That Alley (Mike Slott Remix) Digi-EP

electro synth-pop from South Africa

Sweat.X is South Africa's Spoek Mathambo on vocals and Markus Wormstorm on production. This is their second EP (the first being 2007's EbonyIvoryTrain, and they continue to push the boundaries of electro with tracks like "I'm That Alley" that feature Spoek rockin' a Prince-style falsetto over a thick beat, dripping with syrupy synths. On "The Knife," they go for more of a dirty ghetto-tech style complete with pitched-down vocals and dirty female raps. Mike Slott turns in a nice abstract beat remix of "I'm That Alley." You might recognize him from his recent remix for Flying Lotus and the Blu Jemz Beat Machine. Includes instrumentals for the original versions.
reviewed by the mgmnt

file under:
dwntmpo+electronic / new disco electro / top albums chart / new arrivals - downtempo + electronic / and more

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