23rd January 2020.

Boiling down the discography of Kieran Hebden into core styles is not a challenge achievable in one brief article. With constant experimentation and 10 major albums produced, compressing 22 years of work into a summarising statement is to do a discredit to the English musician.

Hebden started his solo career using the moniker Four Tet while still performing in the student band ‘Fridge’, back in his late teens. In the years that followed he’s been nominated for a Grammy for his remix of The xx’s ‘Violent Noise’, performed a live Boiler Room set in London, and collaborated with David Arnold to write music used in the Bond film Quantum of Solace. It’s obvious at a glance that Four Tet is an accomplished artist, and with his 2019 song ‘Only Human’ named as Pitchfork Magazine’s Best Track, there’s no retreat in his creativity.

Looking back to the future, Hebden’s highly anticipated upcoming album ‘Sixteen Oceans’ is set for release in March. The track we currently have access to, ‘Baby’, has already marked as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record. The vital element here is the warmth drawn from the vocal samples of Ellie Goulding, cultivated into a disorientating influence and set against a driving beat.

Grab the single over on Bandcamp or stream it on Spotify

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‘Ro-minimal’ is the often used term to describe the unique blend of minimal techno and micro house crafted within Romania’s boarders. Pioneering DJ / producers Rhadoo, Inspirescu and Raresh worked within a tight knit community to build early iterations of the sound throughout the 90s and 2000s. But it wasn’t until 2006 when the wider world began to take notice, thanks largely to Chilean-born techno trailblazer Ricardo Villalobos. Booked to play an event in Bucharest with Raresh as the opener, Villalobos was so impressed with the encyclopaedic musical knowledge of the local producer / DJ that upon returning to Germany he advised Cocoon (his booking agency at the time) to immediately add Raresh to the roster.

Then in 2007, a much-needed platform for the rapidly growing home-grown sound was created with ‘Sunwaves’ festival. A 5 day festival on the picturesque Black Sea Coast in Mamaia, it’s quickly garnered international attention for it’s excellent lineups, lengthy sets and passionate crowds.

As the Ro-minimal sound keeps evolving, it will no doubt continue to be characterized by it’s strong local community and eclectic, drawn-out sonic modulations. And today’s guests- NTFO, certainly fits the bill as being a continuation of this dynamic, minimal Romanian sound.

The duo’s recent release ‘Dobr’ serves as an excellent entry point not only into this unique minimal sub-genre, but also into their already rich personal discography. The EP opens with the title track ‘Dobr’ establishing the clean and technical approach that unfolds throughout release. With just the right amount of coloration within the mechanical framework, Dobr EP is a shining example of not only the underground electronic scene in this region of the world but also of two experienced musicians at the peak of the powers.

Grab the EP- vinyl and digital

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