Axel Toben draws in an alternative perspective, with ‘Orbit’

Alejandro Bento has been an active part of the electronic community for a more than 20 years, composing, producing and refining his personal style of contribution to the scene. Working under his own name, Bento constructed rich piano pieces that carried heavy emotion, cinematically moving works which attracted the acclaim and attention of other significant figures involved with electronica. Bento’s 2016 EP ‘Ripples’ included a remix by Robot Koch, with other artists following with their own re-workings of his songs.

In 2019 Bento established the new alias of Axel Toben, maintaining the sound that he spent so long developing through years in the industry and becoming a welcome addition to the left-field supporting label Subtempo. As Axel Toben he released the neatly titled EP ‘Phonosynthesis’ in October of the same year, injecting a much heavier dose of electronica and techno into his sound. Here Bento claims his title as a multi-instrumentalist, bringing his talent for melodies to more alien environment populated with lo-fi drums and analog synthesizers.

As Bento returns to the Axel Toben project with debut album ‘Orbit’ he looks to more careful, atmosphere defining tracks. The result is emotive, an interstellar point of view wherein the glacier-like patience and beauty manages to trace a circle of solace.

Support the album on Bandcamp or stream on Spotify

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Listen to the label - Subtempo Records
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Exploring 'CNX', the new track from FLOCKS

Making their debut with a self-titled album back in 2018, 3-piece group FLOCKS work with (among other instruments) drums, guitar, keys and synths to lay foundations within their music before firing out in more experimental directions electronically. The band formed in Cincinnati, Ohio has been a bit quiet on the release-front this year, so it’s great to see that there’s been no drop in quality or ambition with their most recent outing.

There seems to be no limitation on what could appear in each track. Vocal samples occasionally play a part in their music, but I wouldn’t expect any hesitation from FLOCKS to make use of whatever sound complements the aesthetic of each song.

The fresh new track, CNX, is rich with flavour. The early sections of the track are playful, leading with electronic melodies which are just charmingly upbeat. The mood becomes more chilled out as the song continues; making some great use of organic cymbal percussion as the cosmic atmosphere builds, eventually giving way to bursts of higher energy and tension. Many artists attempt to create a journey in their music, as FLOCKS have attempted to here, taking experience from travel in Thailand. Certainly, CNX has the ability to take you on that journey.

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The work of a veteran in the modern sphere of beats

Juan Miguel Alsace, aka Bmbu, is a producer based out of Philadelphia who has been honing his craft over the past 16 years into an impressive collection of instrumental / chill out pieces. He has numerous releases across the web and is signed to German independent label Vinyl Digital. Bmbu mastered the skill of synthesis along with sampling and apart from his 13 solo projects and 4 collaborative beat tapes, Bmbu has also produced albums for various hip-hop artists around the world.

The piece ‘fun dip’ is part of his project titled Interludes III, and it holds true to the art of instrumental beats whilst at times taking on a more modern approach that can be heard through the rolling hi-hats and heavy basslines. It is a project that will satisfy the younger lofi crowd and old skool hip hop heads alike. Bmbu takes an open minded approach whilst sticking to the roots of his craft, delivering intricate melodies that will surely set the mood for any room of people. The short pieces leave you wanting more and encourage us to further delve into his discography. Interludes III was released on September 24th of 2019 and is a great example of the way Bmbu manages to incorporate all sorts of stylistic elements rooted in a vast number of musical genres, from trap, R&B and hip-hop to modern electronic sounds, Interlude III has them all.

Grab the release over here

Bmbu: Bandcamp/ spotify/ soundcloud/ facebook