Image: Never Normal Records
From groundbreaking new work from some of electronic music’s most subversive new voices to a comeback from pioneers of the form that draws from their past, these are the releases that caught our attention this week. In no particular order, here’s what we’ve had on repeat.
Arca- Incendio
Arriving as her first original work since January’s Madre EP and following her recent remix of Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande’s hit Rain On Me, all signals pointed to Incendio being the first taste of Venezuelan producer Arca’s anticipated album, KICK ii. We now know that this track does not in fact appear on the album, which was recently announced for release on December 3rd via XL Recordings, but rather exists as a standalone single to usher in a new era. Incendio continues Arca’s recent subversion on Latin pop tropes, combining cumbian pop flavour with her brand of disjointed, post-club abstraction. Full of reverbing crashes, yowls of ‘BRUJA!’ and just a thread of discernible structure, Incendio is a delicious return to Arca’s queer dystopia and the beginning of what is sure to be one of her most accomplished and, if KICK ii’s actual lead single Born Yesterday featuring Sia of all people is anything to by, one of her most surprising eras to date.
Elkka – Harmonic Frequencies
With the release of the excellent Euphoric Melodies and its infectious lead Burnt Orange, London based producer Elkka cast her spell on tech and minimal house this year with her warm and ebbing sounds that injected a needed dose of oozing femininity into the genres. Harmonic Frequencies comes as her latest single, taken off the forthcoming EP of the same name which will be released in November via Technicolour Records. This time taking the healing power of dance music as her point of departure, Harmonic Frequencies takes inspiration from the six month period of time leading up to the re-opening of the world’s dancefloors in a combination of field-recording like ambience and simmering club beats. Pre-order the EP here.
KHX05 – BLXCK KXT REMIX
North Carolina’s KHX05 (pronounced, ‘Chaos’) is destined to disrupt the status quo in the best ways possible. The queer and trans identifying rapper and multi-disciplinary musician is audaciously one of a kind in their own right, which is why an EP that sees tracks from their EP BLXCK KXT remixed and reworked by a coven of fellow disruptors is bound to push boundaries. Featuring a roster of queer underground royalty with the likes of Rozay Labeija and GHOZT, BLXCK KXT REMIX sees each of these artists re-imagine KHX05’s raw and unbridled rap tracks while simultaneously telling their own stories about their experiences and struggles with transness. Download it here and see the music video for Rozay Lebeija’s remix of EDNA MODE below.
Tangerine Dream – Raum
As their first EP since the passing of their founder Edgar Froese in 2015, Berlin Krautrock pioneers Tangerine Dream’s latest work is a celebration of Froese’s contributions to electronic music and honours the archives of work he left behind for Tangerine Dream. Probe 6-8 turns these archives, dated from 1977 to 2013, as its core source of inspiration, formulating a collection of tracks that are near impossible to recreate for a live audience (apt, given the current circumstance of the world). Raum is the first taste of what Probe 6-8 has to offer, and the rest of the EP is expected to feature contributions from Berghain resident Barker and Grand River. Probe 6-8 will be released on 26th November 2021 on Kscope/Eastgate Music. Pre-order it here.
Disclosure – Observer Effect
Following the release of their latest EP Never Enough, it was clear that UK electronic duo Disclosure were turning back toward their UK garage and funky roots after playing the pop radio field for the past few years. Observer Effect is a standalone single taken from their forthcoming DJ-Kicks mix, an exclusive track released to celebrate the occasion. Though the duo claim that Observer Effect shares DNA with electro pop of ENERGY, the single is markedly rougher around the edges and formulated without pop radio in mind. While it shares the BPM and propulsion of the music on ENERGY, Observer Effect is entirely its own beast; stranger, slightly grungier and more in tune with Disclosure’s origins than ENERGY ever was. Disclosure’s DJ-Kicks mix will be released on October 15th, pre-order it here.
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