Lord Tusk returns on Levels with yet another salvo of left-leaning machine funk. It’s been an exciting year for Lord Tusk since his debut on Levels - invited as part of Dean Blunt’s Redeemer tour alongside fellow nonconformist John T Gast, he was then touted as one producer to watch in 2014 (Fact Magazine). Now fresh from his split 12” on Funkineven’s Apron imprint Lord Tusk drops another EP of outsider sounds. Escape From Babylon sets off the EP off with an old school electro swagger, before launching into the 4:4 industrial march of Bowl Right on Tru. Meanwhile on the flip, Sharkey’s Night / Sharkey’s Day finds our hero Tusk at his most dubby and hypnotic yet. Mastered for pure sound system power by Matt Colton at Alchemy studios and receiving support from DJs in the know - Benji B, Tama Sumo, Jon Rust, NTS DJs.
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LORD TUSK makes his vinyl debut with “The Natural Partnership EP” the first in a series of releases on the newly minted LEVELS imprint. A veteran of London’s underground as a selector, Lord Tusk’s influences run deep: electro, hip-hop, old jack swing, film scores, p-funk, roots & culture and dub. A devotee of sound system culture and martial arts, both are reflected in his approach to music making which is free of restrictions. There are no specific tempos, genre limitations or fixed methods he works by. With Lord Tusk it is all about sensation, emotion, stimulation and inspiration from the sounds, instruments and effects. These are raw sounds for the big speakers, with early support from Benji B (Radio One), Lakuti and Tama Sumo (Panorama Bar). More

Jackson Bailey aka Tapes joins MIDA with a 7” packed to the brim with jazzy vignettes. This little plate holds six servings. Finely tuned frequency signals as cymbals & drums, nutty gliding arps, playful keys shot all over the place backed by a firm low end. Sweet kooky business. Moving around with ease, it’s surely got dub sprayed all over it, but in its fidgety core lies a deep nod to library music. More

With three releases under his belt together with Porridge Bullet's bossman Ajukaja: a cassette, a 12” & a rare split–dubplate with Rezzett, this is Ats’s first solo transmission. Woozy pseudo–goth jams for the weirdos.


Music by Ats
Mix by JX5N
Master by Jörgen Hermaste
Layout by Jan

Cat no. MIDA06
Pressed in Estonia at Vinyl Plant More

Estonian label MIDA serves it's second summery seven (of three, as promised) & it's by Rotrum.

Rotrum has functioned anonymously under the moniker for a decade or so. The selection on this 7” is as laid back as you'll probably ever hear him. “Panko” moves responsibly in the 100 BPM range with a punchy gallop & lovely phased synthwork. Ethereal “Tutelary” & its vibrant drums are clearly lost somewhere, if not the desert it can easily be a South Estonian bog he throws us into. More

Following last year's debut LP “Palav Aed” for Amsterdam’s Wake Dream & a remix for Versatile boss Gilb’ R, Ruutu Poiss gives us a peek into his old demo compartments.

A side raw & tireless drum workout gets charged up by lush pads & synth maneuvers. A bit breaksy? It’s called “Drumstixxx” for a reason. The flip is full of intruders – awrily measured bass stabs & FX-fuelled leads jumping in & out whenever they feel like it. The glue here is that clattery hihat that leads us thru the track. Keeping it moving, always.

The two tracks on this 7" might feel “old” for Ruutu, but hold a true sense of his unique imaginative style. More