A year and a half ago, THE MFA returned to the fore once more, when we released their "Oranges and Lemons EP".

Their new album, “Lights Out”, which could be described as a long time coming, is definitely THE MFA’s most ambitious work to date.

As they put it in their own words: “The album is very special to us. It’s a long ambition brought to fruition. It’s an album that is at home on the dancefloor or at home. We’ve always been influenced by 90s rave culture and the club scene of that era and the explosion of creative freedom through electronic music that happened back then.”

The album sums up what THE MFA stands for; their love of electronic music intertwined their love of songs and melody, sometimes banging, sometimes pensive, sometimes longing, occasionally up-beat and happy. Melodic techno-pop-rave then.

The album opener "My Desire" pins down the essence of the album, showing some pop sensibility and a healthy dose of that early 90s spirit with longing vocals by Rhys Evans. The track shows from many angles of the intensity of what club culture was about. The track has, for sure, that pop quality which sets it apart - it is a very complete and rounded and in the true sense, a hit.

"Identify This" kicks off with blissed-out sci-fi sounds but commences with 90s rave chords that gets under your skin and creates a fantastic kaleidoscopic picture of moody UK rave with these spurts of emotional uplifting moments which are worth every penny.

"Bear Likes To Rave" takes us back to the warehouse days and reminds us of the acid warehouse parties with fanned stroboscope beams and dry ice cannons. It’s like looking down on a rave party happening from above, from a bird's eye view, which is in full swing where the euphoria spills over into the audience. "Girl Ahead" is a vocal track exclusively on the digital version of the album, again with Rhys Evans on vocal duties. Here they ponder all the possibilities of the future and the mistakes of the past. Features space toms and grand piano rave chords to evoke a housy feel within.

With "Freedom24" a Hi-NRG melody meets nightcrawler sounds ala "Klang De Familie". This is a soundtrack for the night.

"Lammas Day" has the chilling exotic quality of 808 State "Pacific State" if you grant us this comparison, paired with some phantastic Dr Who sensibilities! This track is quite a voyage!

"Warehouse"... Make Some F-...ing Noise... A TV presenter speaks about Acid house...... This is a wild mash up of impressions which nicely go together due to the melodic string composition and the 303 sequences.

"The Snapping Branch" starts with a mash up of sounds and then dives into an episodic snapshot of "happiness" when the serotonin shoots in (just before it drops). Experiencing a perfect flow that does not want to end. Every clubber knows that feeling.

"You Make Me Smile" is the third vocal track on the album featuring Rhys Evans on vocals. It has fantastic radical stark mood changes and blatant shifts, therefore throws the listener from one corner to the other. Just like the contrast of day and night. Bits here and there might conjure a Radiohead spirit, but really this is all MFA.

"Lights Out” certainly puts across the feeling you get at the end of the night - the club has closed; you are walking home. These are the sounds and feelings in your memories as you chase the vibe that is dwindling as the club becomes ever further away. More

The brand new EP "Wellental" by Extrawelt on Traum is herewith reveled to the fans. Their new 3 track vinyl 12" gives a nod to the mayhem and urgency of techno all finely tuned. Straightforward in its brilliance and simplicity, yet carefully measured with a maturity that speaks the language of Extrawelt´s minimalism.

We attest: a unique techno track for the dance-floor on the a side, a trippy track on b1 and a very musical one as B2.

What happens within these 3 tracks is nothing short of alchemy, traversing all sorts of grounds without ever losing the plot. It’s due to the duo’s keen grasp of sound design—they always exchange ideas, on an expansive set of hardware, so no matter what tunnel they’re traveling down head-first, the sounds are always pristine, filled with unexpected details.

The EP opens with the title track "Wellental" which translates as "wave trough". Wave trough valley refers in particular to the points of maximum negative deflection in a traveling wave. In contrast, the points of maximum positive deflection are called wave crests. Musically this converts in a way that, although the title track "Wellental" has a lot of forceful steady forward motion and zig zag sequences cutting into it, it also has that "hanging time" feeling that adds unpredictability and tension to the track. You can defiantly sense that Detroit theme in a post Detroit interpretation here.

The flip-side starts with "Unter Wasser" which is illustrated by urgent uptempo beats that can push it on the dance floor and dreamy, surreal soundscapes on the other hand that account for that great under water feel. The track sounds a bit like the "Deep End" film soundtrack from CAN in that respect.

The B2 track is called "Samtstrand" and there is a reason for this since the track is very gentle and brushes over a surface with velvet hands but in contrast to that, the Extrawelt beats are kicking out the jams here! So this song has a twin drive going! More

Originally released in 2007 on CD and now re-released on double vinyl. "Heimische Gefilde" was the second full-length release on Traum at that time from Westerwald based DJ, producer and park ranger, Dominik Eulberg. Dominik has since then expended his activities enormously now appearing as a book author with best selling books in the German official bestseller list. He is the ambassador of the most popular Conservation Union in Germany NABU, he has created a bird quartet and a hand made insect hotel and appears on national German TV regularly next playing in clubs world wide and producing stunning music. "Heimische Gefilde" includes spoken words by the man himself and the release won the price of the German critic awards for music. It is the only compilation that comprises a selection of Dominik Eulberg’s best early works and it is for the first time available on vinyl now.

As Dominik Eulberg says in his own words: „After more than 16 years, "Heimische Gefilde" is finally released on vinyl. At that time it was still a daring experiment to combine music with lustful science communication. Quickly one was thrown into the pot of the "weird eco-techno sound owl". Today, we are increasingly finding that we cannot stop the impending ecocide in a cognitive way. For more than 60 years we have known about the concrete threats to humanity from global warming and species extinction; yet nothing changes. Many alarmist efforts fail miserably, red lists grow longer and longer each year, and global temperatures continue to rise unchecked. It is becoming clearer and clearer that we have to reach out to our fellow human beings in a positive emotional way in order to make a difference, because we only protect what we love. Then sentimental minorities become majorities that change something. Art and culture are low-threshold vectors to make things majority-friendly. They are a fertile and valuable breeding ground to sensitize people outside the eco-bubble and to let their environment become a co-environment again. Today my transdisciplinary work is inseparable. I write books, develop games, lecture, make film, and am a visiting scholar at museums. "Heimische Gefilde" was a valuable cornerstone for my creative work, a very intrinsic work to go my very own way.“

We would also like quote here the description of Forced Exposure done at the time when the album was originally recorded and released to keep the authentic feel: „The influence of nature (bird twitters, owl hoots, flowing water, crunching leaves) and other domestic sounds has made his music easy to identify with. „Heimische Gefilde" means "native habitat," and this release takes the concept of his debut a step further and at the same time is a retrospective of his major hits. Tracks like "Die Rotbauchunken vom Tegernsee" and "Björn Borkenkäfer" are included here in unreleased edits that are even stronger than the originals, and as a bonus, previously vinyl-only More

A year and a half ago, THE MFA returned to the fore once more, when we released their "Oranges and Lemons EP".

Their new album, “Lights Out”, which could be described as a long time coming, is definitely THE MFA’s most ambitious work to date.

As they put it in their own words: “The album is very special to us. It’s a long ambition brought to fruition. It’s an album that is at home on the dancefloor or at home. We’ve always been influenced by 90s rave culture and the club scene of that era and the explosion of creative freedom through electronic music that happened back then.”

The album sums up what THE MFA stands for; their love of electronic music intertwined their love of songs and melody, sometimes banging, sometimes pensive, sometimes longing, occasionally up-beat and happy. Melodic techno-pop-rave then.

The album opener "My Desire" pins down the essence of the album, showing some pop sensibility and a healthy dose of that early 90s spirit with longing vocals by Rhys Evans. The track shows from many angles of the intensity of what club culture was about. The track has, for sure, that pop quality which sets it apart - it is a very complete and rounded and in the true sense, a hit.

"Identify This" kicks off with blissed-out sci-fi sounds but commences with 90s rave chords that gets under your skin and creates a fantastic kaleidoscopic picture of moody UK rave with these spurts of emotional uplifting moments which are worth every penny.

"Bear Likes To Rave" takes us back to the warehouse days and reminds us of the acid warehouse parties with fanned stroboscope beams and dry ice cannons. It’s like looking down on a rave party happening from above, from a bird's eye view, which is in full swing where the euphoria spills over into the audience. "Girl Ahead" is a vocal track exclusively on the digital version of the album, again with Rhys Evans on vocal duties. Here they ponder all the possibilities of the future and the mistakes of the past. Features space toms and grand piano rave chords to evoke a housy feel within.

With "Freedom24" a Hi-NRG melody meets nightcrawler sounds ala "Klang De Familie". This is a soundtrack for the night.

"Lammas Day" has the chilling exotic quality of 808 State "Pacific State" if you grant us this comparison, paired with some phantastic Dr Who sensibilities! This track is quite a voyage!

"Warehouse"... Make Some F-...ing Noise... A TV presenter speaks about Acid house...... This is a wild mash up of impressions which nicely go together due to the melodic string composition and the 303 sequences.

"The Snapping Branch" starts with a mash up of sounds and then dives into an episodic snapshot of "happiness" when the serotonin shoots in (just before it drops). Experiencing a perfect flow that does not want to end. Every clubber knows that feeling.

"You Make Me Smile" is the third vocal track on the album featuring Rhys Evans on vocals. It has fantastic radical stark mood changes and blatant shifts, therefore throws the listener from one corner to the other. Just like the contrast of day and night. Bits here and there might conjure a Radiohead spirit, but really this is all MFA.

"Lights Out” certainly puts across the feeling you get at the end of the night - the club has closed; you are walking home. These are the sounds and feelings in your memories as you chase the vibe that is dwindling as the club becomes ever further away. More

The fourth vinyl release with Carsten Halm "Licht Und Schatten" highlights another cover design by graphic designer Daniela Thiel and shows collages of the animals in a similar graphic context as his previous releases. The idea was to keep the graphic idea of the series but to use only artifacts of his previous designs to create a new cover. The ep kicks off with "Licht" a track that has the quality to embrace you emotionally as well as musically with a massive warm and widening synth sounds that is a true a-side tune. "Chimäre" instead is more jumpy and good natured, resulting in a nice break to carry the listener throughout the track. "Schatten" kicks off with a rather dry drumming but in the course of the track is joined by a merry melody which is pushed aside by a bad ass rectangle synth sound that inflates the track with a techno spirit that is very welcomed at open airs. The ep closes with the track "Notes" a horse ride though valleys of sparse vegetation with a happy sad Morricone inspired soundtrack that is very easy to like. More

Extrawelt are back with a raw unpolished techno jewel called "Heracid". A track that slowly drills deep into your techno soul. Be sure this track will not let you down. It has that unique Extrawelt quality of being friends with you before it even gains traction. Maybe it is the trust you put in Extrawelt after having released so many great tracks that you feel in good hands and in good company with this new Extrawelt track! "Heracid" is no classic acid track though it throws in a reference to the acid days. But overall it carries more of an undercurrent urgency and simmering that builds the tension of the track. This may as well put it next to the excellent techno tracks you have heard recently. It is a powerful and muscular track to sink into and enjoy. "Madjafala" has a different logic than the a-side track "Heracid" it gives only vague „answers“ to the arising expectations when listening to the track. It could be called a track perfectly in tune with our unstable times. There is certainly a lot of neurotic energy and tricky twists in directions you would not have expected. There is enough tension for a whole year in this unusual track. More

After the very successful debut of the Cologne based artist Carsten Halm on Traum in June, we here release his second EP "Fuchsbau". The release comes on vinyl as well as digitally. The EP kicks off with the title track "Fuchsbau" which works its way steadily into the dancers heart by adding melodies to the arpeggiator that trigger imaginations of a romantic kind that are touching but also energetic and stormy at times. "Hummel" starts with a drone sound that is joined by huge pads achieving a quality of boundless generosity. This feeling of unselfishness where you are the guest rules this track and stands for a superb performance. "Hummel" incorporates the new feel in house that you can find in some of the best releases around. "Fernweh" is at the beginning pure energy, a current of waves… that sees its turning point in the break which puts it on the bestseller list of epic trance music. The contrast between the techno rawness and the refined piano melodies could not be more obvious, yet this makes the track so special and prepares it for performances on festivals and bigger clubs serving an exceptional collective feel. The English producer and DJ Yeadon hailed as one of Britains biggest talents in the field of progressive house with a strong drive with releases on Global Underground and UV has remixed the title track "Fuchsbau". The interpretation is a great take on the original. He moved the original more in the direction of gentle cinematic seductive house music which appeals to a wider audience. More

Extrawelt are busy this year and a buzz for their new music already exists so we are exited to release their brand new EP for Traum. Their opening track "Mr Wednesday" is probably one of the most adrenalin packed tracks we have heard for a while. The track is a beast of a techno track constantly changing its color in a pace that pushes you to the limit. Don’t you think the break will give you relief, the opposite is the case... the break here seems to spark off new energy. Extrawelt do what they do best by letting their synths speak in a human syntax! And man how upset "Mr Wednesday" is! Raging with anger this track goes berserk and cries out loud. This is techno with its original message to shake off the dull skin of everyday life offering a parallel more personalized world. This is a topic which could not be more up to date. The second track "Little We Know" is nothing less than a rocking bass-line funketeer but draws more on a melancholic state at times. But since we know Extrawelt it is not for long until they drop an uplifting sick theme in retaliation. This track is an emotional rollercoaster by any definition. And it has the surprise at its side for example you will suddenly hear a melodic theme which you would like to hear in a new episode of Dr WHO !? It is very clear by now that Extrawelt are full of creative ideas and could probably make a stunning bass drum out of a banana. The third and last track "SEM" features a flow of heavily changing sequences but more in a way that sees the sound settle down, as we know it from dub music. Which is a good thing to do after two tracks that are tempo reflecting trax. Having said this Extrawelt spit out a machine made hi-hat pattern that elevates also this track towards techno madness. If you have ever seen one of Extrawelt’s live acts this EP very much verifies that. The flow of energy they generate can be highly addictive. More

Carsten Halm is a German DJ and producer who keeps his doings very much under the radar. He started his DJ career more than10 years ago avoiding clubs playing at self organized parties in the countryside near Cologne with just two residencies. The parties got so famous that DJs like Sven Väth came to visit and hang out. This experience prepared him to understand the essence of his music production. His music has the unique quality to bring people together and experience something very positive. With his release on Traum Carsten Halm drifts slightly towards a different direction which can be described as a blend of techno with melodic elements all done in a minimalist fashion. Powerful and warm sounding... ready to rock the dance floor. The full length EP will be released on vinyl and will feature a remix by Nils Hoffmann. The artwork was done by Daniela Thiel. More

Philippe Cam is the Thomas Pynchon of the electronic music world. Little is known about him and only a couple of pictures have been put online since he emerged on this planet to write his first and only album18 years ago. We know he worked as a sailor and that’s it. If you dig deeper you might find out that he worked as a DJ in the beginning of the 90ies in Brussels and began to study electronic music there and also began to write music for theaters and ballets.Philippe Cam once was referred to as one of the main protagonists of the minimal music scene along with Wolfgang Voigt's Studio 1/Gas and Basic Channel/Maurizio. A true artist with a vision which is very rare. Philippe Cam has picked up the sound he was famous for but has developed it further without selling out to any genre and expectation that rules our daily business. Exactly this is the strength of the album to create a vivid world of impressions by using instruments in a whole different way than all software developers would suggest. "Rotterdam" is a piece of art that can set off a firework when you listen to it and it owes nothing to anyone. More

Here we are releasing the second album of Cologne born producer Thyladomid who is familiar to many through his work on Hamburg label Diynamic which has lead him to perform around the world, together with artists such as: Adriatique, Solomun, Kollektiv Turmstraße, HOSH, David August, Stimming, and many more. More then 30 minutes playing time, 6 tracks and artwork by Florian Kramer offer a lot to discover. Thyladomid is famous for his forward thinking deep melodic dance music which earned him respect and support from many people of the scene and evolved also in cooperations with Adriatique and the singer Mahfoud. You can find two tracks featuring Mahfoud on the album. With his first album "Interstellar Destiny" in 2015 Thyladomid has already changed towards more introspective music and you will hear he has taken that a step further here. More

After releasing a full length ambient album by Mario Hammer And The Lonely Robot in November, we now reales a vinyl 12" with two remixes and one original from the album. The EP kicks of with a rare remix of German producer duo Extrawelt who have created a somewhat unusual hybrid of 2 of the album tracks. Their remix connects Mario Hammer’s ambient music with their beat formula in a brilliant way. Extrawelt's remix of "Mono No Aware / L'Esprit De L'Escalier" shows signs of a voyage since it starts off very quiet with sounds from Mario Hammer's original and then weaves in the accelerating techno beats and later electro beats they are so famous for. The symphonic sounds in the outro hook it up with a Steve Reich mood and sound that is hip again and liked by musicians right now. For all who prefer a more linear approach Extrawelt have included a 4/4 mix on the digital version. On the flip side the Cologne born artist "Thyladomid" aka Charles Thiemann who is known best for his releases on Solomun’s label 2DIY4 and Dynamic has teamed up with young artist Jonas Mantey who at his young age is referred to as a wunderkind of the electronic scene despite the few tracks he has released which all have been quality and have seen heavy circulation in the social networks. His biggest success so far was a track on Oliver Koletzki's Still for Talent label which got fabulous reviews.
Together they have written a sensual low key melodic remix off "Sirimiri (Hammersche Modularverschaltung)" that acts from the inside out forgetting about stunts but focussing on a fine blend of sounds that create a stunning tension und at times also an urgency. As a third track on the EP Mario Hammer has written a slightly different version of his album track "Misodoctakleidist" adding piano parts to make it work even better as a stand alone track. More

We were surprised when Dominik knocked on our door with two tracks from Gabriel Ananda and himself. We had released "Harzer Roller", "Kirschplunder & Jasmin Tee Bei Gabriel" and "Eucalypse Now!" ages ago and these releases for us always had a special quality, a kind of energy exchange which took place between them, so we were excited to hear their newest recordings. Once heard we instantly knew: these tracks are crowd-pleasers in a big way and come now for the first time on vinyl! The title of the first track "The Space Between Us" refers to the energy which happens between them but also shows the differences in their personality which makes their tracks so special. The music of "The Space Between Us" is 100% techno music, club music... when you hear the track in the club it instantly attracts your attention because it synchronizes quickly with all the people around you in the club. It is in every sense a perfect club track. "Dinosaurs In The Sky" is less obvious and you need to listen it a couple of times then the track reveals itself to you and you understand its magic. The core of the track is more house in the modern sense than it is techno so you might enjoy the contrast of these tracks as well. More

Extrawelt are back with brand new 3-track EP for Traum. The opener of the vinyl is "Breedle", a track as Arne put it in his own words, a track that works in favor of a spirit similar to "Doch Doch". "Breedle" starts with a sequential melody leveling the path for manipulated vocals and strings in an FX box. Enough simmering energy collected along the way, Extrawelt manage to disperse an undercurrent of tension throughout the track. "Breedle" alternates between sequential toughness and emotional uplifting string programming making it a wonderful sensual piece of music! "In Shape To Escape" is in contrast to "Breedle" a funky and twisted baseline monster of a clubby electro track, wow! The track keeps a nice pace and plunges into breathtaking breaks with electronic noodeling all present. So this is high voltage music at its best... keep this in your bag, it can save your live! "The Inkling" is a bit of a daring "sound punisher"… and when we talked to Dominik Eulberg about it we were of the same opinion, played at the right time, this harsh contrasting pounding trax, will freak out people in a big way! This track is physical damage without any high hats or connecting sounds this is a pure On & Off affair not for the weak. We cannot expect that everyone will understand the track, but for the ones who know this is a great track to have. More

The new Max Cooper is a very nice crowdpleaser in it's best way. We expect this 12" to do very nice in clubs. More

Ryan Davis has been recording music since 2006. He has produced for Manual Music, Cocoon, Proton, Areal, Archipel, Back Home, Wunderbar and many other labels. Recently he has released two EPs with Traum. One can say without doubt, Ryan is a real artist and a tastemaker. The album consist out of 11 never released tracks that highlight his talent to keep away from preset formulas and turn toward music compositions. More

Max Cooper's new release the "Egomodal EP" comes in its vinyl version as a 4 tracks EP. Once again it focuses on dynamics and tangents, along with the concept of complexity and simplicity. Ê The "Egomodal EP" stays true to Max Cooper's approach to link a mathematical structure with a simple one. We are happy to say he has succeeded to fuse complexity with variations by still finding time to focus on details and keeping up that nice randomness which makes his music so appealing also for clubbers and DJs. Ê This release is extremely diverse in styles and offers in its vinyl version everything from the dark Detroit electro styled techno piece "Epitaphy" that evokes old Detroit days… to the melodically trembling "Autumn Haze" that is a huge track because its flow is superbly programmed... to Ripperton's mighty house hymn of a remix, ending in the basseline monster "Raw" which looses its teeth towards the end. The second part of the release features the beautifully melodic "Micron" and the abstract piece of electronica with the name of Ê"Simplicity" that has its cut up vocals dancing like flames around a campfire. The second part of the release also features a remix from Rone who has recently remixed Dominik Eulberg's track "Der Tanz der Glühwuermchen" for Traum. Rone has chosen "Simplicity" to work it in a lyrical and build up… stream like fashion. More

A strong and powerful remix by Dominik Eulberg is the higlight on this remix EP followed by Microtrauma and Spada. Limited to 300! No repress! More