Neon vibes and keen energy from AURAGRAPH’s ‘Acid Disco’

Second single from upcoming album "Opacity Field" by AURAGRAPH! Release date: January 15th 2021.

The darkwave producer draws from vaporwave and techno to create an LP with polished melody and a touch of tension

The producer behind experimental synthesizer project AURAGRAPH is Hector Carlos Ramirez II, who originally became involved in the music scene through the hardcore and punk community active in Texas. Coming into contact with electronic music ignited a fascination for synthesizers and samplers, and set Ramirez to work on experimenting with electronica under a range of different aliases.

Ramirez set up AURAGRAPH a few years ago following a move to LA, venturing into themes of dark and vaporwave. The result has been pleasingly smooth, as the nostalgia brought in by vaporwave softens the colder electronica. AURAGRAPH’s talent for the muted ambience of darkwave is evident, but shimmering melodies and striking drum beats give energy to a neon atmosphere, and a unique injection of excitement.

Following on from composing and mixing for Netflix’s Stranger Things and collaboration with artists like S U R V I V E and Missions, AURAGRAPH is looking ahead to a fresh LP in early 2021. Containing nine new tracks and two remixes; ‘OPACITY FIELD’ will be released via vaporwave specialists Hiraeth Records and Midwest Collective. Of the two tracks released so far ‘Acid Disco’ is the more downtempo, mixing light melodies and gothic delivery.

Pre-order the album on Bandcamp or stream the single on Spotify

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Ke Thu turn down the lights with ‘Salis’

Rising from a strong debut as support for DJ Boring, Ke Thu release their second impactful EP

Musical collaboration supports a sharing of experience, talent, and passion. It also means the synthesis of something new, as ideas collide and styles combine. Such is the case with Ke Thu, a project created by Detroit based electronic duo Tim Barrett and Steven Stavropoulos.

Together the pair has more than 20 years of experience at their disposal, built up as they separately experimented with bands and production, testing out genres including indie, experimental and techno. It’s the latter which feeds the core of Ke Thu, as Barrett and Stavropoulos delve into darker corners of techno and return with soft, shadowed synth and ambient echoes of deep dub.

The sound of Ke Thu slides into the echoes left at the end of the night; minimal and almost listless in the employment of moody IDM, but determined in the pursuit of club rhythms. Our featured track ‘Salis’ is drawn from the recently released ‘Bound Apart’ EP, and captures the ethereal moments of late night dance clubs.

‘Bound Apart’ was composed earlier this year as quarantine rolled in, leaving the two artists to cooperate from a distance. The EP is one of the few examples of 2020’s isolation giving way to a deeply communicative work.

Support the album on Bandcamp or stream it on Spotify

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Harmony from chaos: Tenebral Cortex’s ‘Shore of Laments’

Amazing track from the upcoming album Arduous Recursion by the powerful Tenebral Cortex! Coming out 13th June on Geometric Corruption and Minuteless Recordin...

Dark electronica artist Tenebral Cortex lets loose his unpredictable new album: ‘‘Arduous Recursion’

Tenebral Cortex has been working as part of the Geometric Corruption label, a coalition of artists from the underground, both in terms of the sector of electronica they inhabit and the lightless form of dark IDM they create.

Geometric Corruption joins together international electronic producers of experimental and psychedelic, a community which embraces avant-garde. It’s an environment which suits Tenebral Cortex well, his own moniker giving connotations of braindance and darker tones.

Native to France, Tenebral Cortex has previously found his way onto the Horrordelic collaboration album ‘Echoes in the Dark’ put together at the end of 2018, his atmospheric and somewhat disconcerting single ‘Seeking Entropy’ being chosen as the lead-in track. Like ‘Seeking Entropy’, much of this artist’s work finds a balance between chaotic glitch sampling and focused effort to keep rhythm and cohesion in the final release.

That pattern returns in the intro to ‘Shore of Laments’, a song taken from Tenebral Cortex’s recently released eight track album ‘Arduous Recursion’. The harsh beats of glitch and corrupted digital noise create a soundscape before moving towards a more rhythmic and harmonic environment. Part of that unfamiliar ambience helps clear expectations, as the seemingly random effects begin to give way to lucidity.

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The magnetism of Industry, 'Kärntnertor' kicks off a trio from The Black Dog

Industry veterans ‘The Black Dog’ are keeping pace with the community with a three part series of releases being referred to as the ‘Allegory EPs’. The group are recognised for their work in pioneering early Techno, with standout albums including Parallel, Bytes, and Spanners, helping them grab the attention and acclaim of music journalists at sources like Slant Magazine and Pitchfork.

The Black Dog has been a creature of change, drafting in new members and cutting into new genres. We featured their album ‘Conspiracy Tapes Live’ at the end of January, which showcased ambience and drone vibes leaning further towards the realms of IDM. The band’s core connection appears to consistently be a sound which elicits both a sense of physical claustrophobia and mental breakout.

Heavier grooves and industrial basslines have returned in the first of the Allegory EPs, which dropped on May 29th bearing the title ‘Red’. Sketching out the rough appeal of brutalist industry and architecture with darkwave ambience, the four tracks are headed by Kärntnertor, a techno house driven paying tribute to darker shades.

The next EP in the series ‘Allegory 2: Green’ is planned to made public July 3rd, and promises a minimalist return to groove.

Support the Allegory 1 EP on Bandcamp or stream it on Spotify

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Dark Ambient Synth and Bass with Only Ruin's 'brks1030'

Brooklyn based producer ‘Only Ruin’ may be flying under the radar, but they’ve no doubt been keeping busy. With the end of 2019 seeing their first full length album release, they’ve shown no sign of slowing down, consistently pumping out fresh tracks since the turn of the new year. Coining their style “dark ambient synth and bass”, their diverse catalogue consists of glitchy and stabbing IDM, dark ambient and bass heavy downtempo, deep pulsating techno, and with their latest release ‘brks1030’, moody and melodic DnB.

With a catalogue of primarily heady sounds, ‘brks1030’ shows a step in a new direction, sitting somewhere between visceral and dancefloor- ready. With the elements of the track playing in contrast to one another, the rapid breaks that define the track provide a vehicle for the deep synthesized bass, swelling chords, and disjunct melody to propel forward. 

Only Ruin is one to keep an eye on in the new decade. If you’re into ‘brks1030’, be sure to check out the rest of their catalogue:

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