After coming out of nowhere, Ron Morelli has gone on to release a slew of celebrated records through his L.I.E.S. imprint. Through an ever growing collection of official releases, white labels and black labels, Morelli has curated a catalog of disparate artists that he's united under one roof. The label's roster is a curious mix of established and previously unknown artists that seem to exist at the intersection of house, techno, disco and noise music. There's the heavy synth work of Professor Genius and Steve Moore juxtaposed with the house music of Legowelt and Maxmillion Dunbar. The deep and hazy tape saturated techno of Terekke's "Pf Pf Pass" leading the way towards the Balearic VHS psychedelia of Torn Hawk. American Noise Vol. 1 gathers together select tracks from the limited edition 12"s that L.I.E.S. has released over the past 2 years on one CD and throws in a second CD of previously unreleased material as well. With the breadth of material that the label has released the compilation serves as a primer for the uninitiated. Artwork by Björn Copeland of Black Dice. Recommended.

• music label: Long Island Electrical Systems 2012

reviewed by Joey Coco 01/2013