Los Angeles based producer Minion debuts on EVAR Records with the four-track EP 'Nite Lyfe.' Released on Aura T-09 and Trickfinger's revered record label, 'Nite Lyfe' merges hardcore, techno and gabber with soft textures and gossamer sheens, evoking an intense, wavey trip. This one is suited to a churning, post-3 AM dancefloor, or in Minion's own words, "warm summer nights in Los Angeles warehouses." Opener 'sAD B0i MASSiVe' blends distorted, gabber-flecked drums with crunchy snares, while a hazy, Daft Punk-esque synthline conjures a dreamy vibe. This signature Minion move conveys his knack for serving up harsh yet romantic atmospheres, pairing two opposite moods that melt into one another like acetone and water. On 'Magnetar', we're caught up in the Thunderdome circa 1990, but just for a moment. While rubbery kick drums and whooshing hoover sounds shape the track, Minion combines these old-skool elements with a more modern quirk, producing a twinkling melody that arouses emotion and euphoria. The penultimate track 'Grey Goo' is the toughest of the foursome. Built with off-kilter, grainy kickdrums and cinematic pads that slink between rusty beats, it bridges hardcore motifs with delicate shades of grey, Minion-style. Final track 'Saturday Night in a Parallel Universe' displays Minion's versatility as a producer. Delving into a potent palette of electro, breakbeat, techno and 2-step, he welds rapid-fire claps, fizzing hi-hats and a heartfelt melody, weaving through bleeps and a chunky bassline—a signal to end a long trip, somewhere in a parallel universe. Although Minion produced the tracks four years ago, 'Nite Lyfe' stands the test of time and doesn't follow any one trend or genre. Instead, it's an alchemy of sonic patterns and contrasting colours, nodding to Minion's punk, hardcore and experimental influences that cultivated oddball electronic music in the 80s. The afterglow of these sounds culminates in an EP that ripples with intriguing hooks, corrosive qualities and strangely blissful melodies. It reflects the expansive ethos of EVAR down to the final bar. More

This November, American cult hero Dev/Null debuts on Trickfinger & Aura T-09's Evar Records with MICROJUNGLIZM, an 8-track album that explores the power and beauty of darkcore, jungle tekno and breakbeat rave. Chopped drums, hairpin turns and alluringly emotional pads open up a time portal between the past and the future, decorated with haunting samples and musical Easter eggs that show off Boston-based Dev/Null's deep history as a rave historian and scholar. MICROJUNGLIZM's fantasy suite was written over the last year, arranged and sequenced entirely without a computer. Dev/Null fell in love with Teenage Engineering's PO-33 Pocket Operator – a portable, pocket-sized sequencer that he started using during his DJ sets to create special versions on the fly. The limitations of making entire tracks inside the PO-33 immediately suggested the sampling techniques and stylistic hallmarks of early jungle, already one of Pete's longtime obsessions. While these tracks may seem maximal, they are minimal to Pete's ear – a departure from the intricately sliced and information-dense breakcore for which he's known. The album emotionally bottles the essence of a bygone era with an individual palette of influences, from UK grime anthems to Italian horror soundtracks. Pete is not merely trying to tap into the cultural zeitgeist for all things jungle and breakbeat rave – he's already been here, stoking the fires of this scene since the early 2000s with his tastemaker blog (Blog to the Old Skool), his cult vinyl reissue label 8205 Recordings, and his deep dive radio shows: Demon Poetry on NTS and BTTO (with new-era jungle torchbearer Tim Reaper) on Jungletrain.net. MICROJUNGLIZM itself follows on from the momentum created by Pocket Selector, Dev/Null's 2020 outing with the PO-33 on the Modern Urban Jazz label, run by veteran UK drum 'n' bass producer Justice. More

Called a "slow-burning vocal-house juggernaut," and an "invigorating artist's artist," BRANDON has put together a collection of tracks featuring some of the genre's best producers, such as Chicago scene founders DERRICK CARTER & ANTHONY NICHOLSON. More