Repress!

Fresh his Keysound D&B opus Blue, Sully returns to Astrophonica with four pristine slabs of breakbeat science. "Flock" places the full strength melodic elements over the faraway amen echoes in a way that's not dissimilar to early Good Looking. "Helios" is a much colder flashback to the darker corners of jungle's formative dance; all breathy minor key chords and vapour trails of paranoia countered neatly by a precision dub vocal sample. "Crystal Cuts" recalibrates the focus to the drums by way of broad jazz chord strokes while "Hours/Miles & Still" concludes affairs on an emotional electronica tip where the breakbeats thanks to a beautifully arresting intro. Powerful.

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Repress!

Jack Stevens aka Sully has become somewhat of a cult figure in the jungle world with his output being in high demand. His work is unmistakable. It’s always true to it’s origins while simultaneously adding new takes and juxtapositions in palette and composition. A true artist that excels in his field.

Stevens returns to Astrophonica with Swandive, a body of work presented in dual energies - dark & light, body & mind, Yin & Yang. In Werk you’re put to the test physically as es- ki-like percussion stabs grab the attention and demand a response. A staple in Fracture’s DJ sets for the last year or so.

Poison demonstrates a side to Stevens’ production that is harder, meaner, cruder and all together more brutal than he is known for. The result is an infectious mix of venomous bass and corrupted drum breaks fit to kill any dance.

The title track Swandive begins to counterbalance the fierce energy and bring some har- mony opening with calming strings and trademark icy melodies before elevating to an intense state of amen divinity that twists and turns in a story like fashion.

Memories completes the balance with euphoric bass stabs and emotional strings culminat- ing in a searing and conclusive anime-like solo. Some of Stevens’ most daring work. The cycle is complete.

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Since our inception back in 2007 we've had eyes for Sully (it's no secret) and now in 2016 he delivers a plate of austere but bass heavy Black Acre wrongness. Departing from recent Junglist output Sully delivers a distinctly futurist and spacious collection of bangers. Vamp - is a 6 in the morning drama piece which explodes into Juked-out binary code rinser. Arco - features a pure military Grime skank with fizzing synths hectic percussive switch ups and Roger Corman's laser cannon. Bronze - returns to seeming familiar places as the tempos is ratcheted up and we take and eastern junglist detour full of mystery and deft drum programming

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After their first outing on Future Retro London, the trio return with Sage EP for FABRICLIVE. Across four tracks they balance toughness and detail: breaks cut sharp, basslines hit heavy, but the space in the mix leaves room for atmosphere. Charades layers wistful vocals over warm pads and low end weight. Sage drifts between dreamlike textures and hammering drums, flipping between amens and four-to-the-floor momentum - a bridge between classic jungle and jungle tekno. Magpie pushes the intensity higher - fast, tense, built for peak time systems. Golden Hour winds things down with airy pads and organic detail, easing the pace without losing presence. Sage EP distills jungle’s grit, beauty, and power - moving both body and mind.

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FABRICLIVE’s new incarnation as an artist-focussed label continues, with a stunning two-track 12” by the Hong Kong-born, Netherlands-based rising star Kiana Li, aka gyrofield. Rooted in drum & bass but distinctly the sound of now, this single sparkles with freshness, and stands-out with an exquisite verve for detail and craft. Balmy and comforting, atmospheric and melodic, the cloudsurfing breakbeats and celestial propulsion of ‘Akin’ is pure friendly pressure, whilst on ‘Mother’ big vocals, low-end precision and techno swathes soar even higher. “'Akin' and 'Mother' remind me of my earliest days writing dance music. These are two free-spirited, transportive pieces that feel like spreading my wings and letting the air take me. Brought skyward in the hand of fate, nurturing yet weathered by my very own ideals. We all wish for better days. And toil to heal.” gyrofield. gyrofield has released music on prominent labels including Critical, Overview and Noisia's Vision. Last year she released the album A Faint Glow of Bravery on Metalheadz, and the EP These Heavens for XL’s prestigious house bag series, which has previously showcased music by Blawan, Joy Orbison and Overmono.

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After their first outing on Future Retro London, the trio return with Sage EP for FABRICLIVE. Across four tracks they balance toughness and detail: breaks cut sharp, basslines hit heavy, but the space in the mix leaves room for atmosphere. Charades layers wistful vocals over warm pads and low end weight. Sage drifts between dreamlike textures and hammering drums, flipping between amens and four-to-the-floor momentum - a bridge between classic jungle and jungle tekno. Magpie pushes the intensity higher - fast, tense, built for peak time systems. Golden Hour winds things down with airy pads and organic detail, easing the pace without losing presence. Sage EP distills jungle’s grit, beauty, and power - moving both body and mind.

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Operating on the outer rim of the drum & bass scene for over a decade, Blocks & Escher have been designing intelligent and forward-thinking electronic dance across a multitude of releases for labels such as Metalheadz, Digital Soundboy and their own Narratives Music. Their first release of 2022, ‘Shot In The Dark’ EP, pulls together four outstanding cuts of shadowy breaks and abstract electronica. Otherwise known as Phillip Smith and Will Hansen, Blocks & Escher distilled their sound into the critically acclaimed 2018 album ‘Something Blue’. Released on Goldie’s Metalheadz imprint, the long player displayed a confident maturity of sound, and a more than capable accomplishment of pulling the visionary sounds of drum & bass into a new era. The industrial breaks and hoover bass of ‘Shot In The Dark’ anchor a wave of cinematic synth sweeps, fashioning an arresting opening track on this accomplished EP. The ingenious beats continue to unfurl across ‘Abyss’ and ‘This One’, as brooding atmospherics wash over in waves. The finale of ‘Dance Girl’ ramps up the BPMs and beat complexity, as a breathless assault of rhythm and sound captivates and rewards in abundance.

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Joe McBride AKA Synkro has built up a hugely impressive catalogue of releases over the last few years. Via albums and singles for Apollo, Exit Records and his own Synkro Music imprint, the Manchester based producer and sound architect has amassed a dazzling archive of elaborate, emotive and intellectual soundscapes drawing in influences across a spectrum of bass culture and electronica. On the ‘Information’ EP, it’s business as usual, as Synkro deploys four fresh and forward thinking tracks that slither across the genres with ease. From the frantic percussion and dubwise tones of title track ‘Information’ to the absorbing textures and crackling ambience of the beatless opener ‘Cycles’, the attention to detail and the depth of layered sonics across all four tracks afford the listener a truly mesmerising experience. The dusty and dark skank of ‘Signal’ is a real mood piece, whilst ‘Last Breath’ closes the EP drenched in sanguine sentiments.

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Two titans in UK breakbeat culture, Loxy & Ink were both present at the inception of the birth of UK dance music and continue to be torchbearers. With ‘Manifested Visions’ the duo does exactly what the title suggests; transcending the boundaries of genre, roots dub meets hip hop and in-your-face drum and bass to create a five-track EP that will make you submit, revel, rave and float.

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Repress!

Fresh his Keysound D&B opus Blue, Sully returns to Astrophonica with four pristine slabs of breakbeat science. "Flock" places the full strength melodic elements over the faraway amen echoes in a way that's not dissimilar to early Good Looking. "Helios" is a much colder flashback to the darker corners of jungle's formative dance; all breathy minor key chords and vapour trails of paranoia countered neatly by a precision dub vocal sample. "Crystal Cuts" recalibrates the focus to the drums by way of broad jazz chord strokes while "Hours/Miles & Still" concludes affairs on an emotional electronica tip where the breakbeats thanks to a beautifully arresting intro. Powerful.

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Manchester based DJ/producer Antagonist cues up a collection of dense and uncompromising electronic tracks on his R&S Records debut. The ‘Rites’ EP pulls together 5 new tracks that lean on the artist’s drum ‘n’ bass roots and influences, a sound that has informed his DJ sets and studio productions since he launched the project in 2004. Channelling his productions towards the more cinematic and darker side of drum ‘n’ bass and broken beats, Antagonist has released a strong run of EPs for labels such as Samurai Music, Ronin Ordinance, One.Seventy and his own Discipline imprint, stamping his hybrid sound across these well received releases. Layers upon layers of shadowy ambience and wistful tones are punctured by hard edged beat-science, as Antagonist goes in deep on the complex breakbeats, chopping back and forth knifelike loops and dynamic kicks. A highly accomplished debut for the R&S label from this sonically exciting young producer.

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Hell Yeah kicks off 2024 in fine style with a new album from Australian producer Dawn Again. Every Dog's Hotel is a dreamy and breaks-driven downtempo excursion the artist has dubbed "pubwave."Melbourne-based Nick Verwey has been crafting solo and collaborative cuts for the best part of a decade on labels like Houseworx and Enjoyment Division. He operates in a world where danceable grooves are paired with laid-back moods. His lo-fi sound is both sunlit and sunset-ready and is for grown-up crowds who like to get down on rooftops, sandy enclaves, or laidback living rooms. This new album, however, he describes as "pubwave" and was conveyed during lockdown when Nick and his friends were missing their favourite communal drinking spots."My friends and I were missing the pub, missing dance floors, missing being able to hang out and have fun," he says before explaining that, at the time, he was listening to a lot of 90s and 00s downtempo chill out by the likes of Heights of Abraham, Pork Recordings, Baby Mammoth and Bullitnuts. He came up with the idea of creating something similar but in his own way, initially with spoken word poetry from his friend over the top, though when it came to recording that never quite worked so it was shelved until later when Nick?tried again without the vocals. "The whole project has been more than years in the making. I'm super proud of the end result. I think it still nails the dreamy, Balearic "pubwave" vibe and comes with a gorgeous cover painting by my mate Holly Hunt. It's an old English haunt called the Old Neptune, and what nails the brief more than a pub that is literally on the beach?"The title track is a welcome opening with leggy breaks and soft shakers encouraging you to sway while gazing up at the melodic stars before 'Foam Party' gets more zoned out with its vaporous chords and gentle drum tumbles. 'Journey Through The Schoonerverse' is a suspensory trip to the clouds with effortlessly loose breaks and painterly synth smears, 'Wonky Friends' has a more weighty but still dubbed out and slow motion house kick and 'Kneverending Knockoffs' keeps the energy rising with raw percussion and acidic twitches that journey through a heat haze on a warm afternoon. Closer 'Backyard Paradiso' is the horizontal finish that washes over you like rays of sun and gently breaking waves to leave you relaxed from head to toe and digital bonus 'Hard Earned Thirst' is an extra chance to luxuriate in Dawn Again's richly layered synths and leisurely breaks.The superbly welcoming Every Dog's Hotel is a place to pull up, sink a drink, and soak into some lavish and escapist downtempo sounds.

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We go through life. We shed our skins. We become ourselves.” This line from Patti Smith was going round and round Felix Manuel’s head as he gradually constructed Under Tangled Silence, his first album in six years and a record of a literal creative rebirth. Felix originally began it in earnest in 2020 Covid lockdown, but a catastrophic hard-drive meltdown destroyed almost all his work and sent him close to psychic collapse himself. However, ultimately this pushed him to rebuild from scratch and in so doing to confront and reassess every part of his musical and psychological processes. The result is utterly extraordinary. Felix was a child prodigy as an instrumentalist and his advanced musicality has always been prominent in his music, but here he has put himself front and centre as pianist, harpist and more. And this sense of exposure as a performer interweaves with an unflinching emotional openness too. Where sometimes electronic production as advanced as this can use intellect and techniques as shields from soul-baring, this is the sound of someone who can boldly say “I feel things, I cry all the time, and I'm not afraid to say it or show it in the music.” But this doesn’t mean there’s a move away from the soundsystems and dancefloors where Felix made his name as a uniquely innovative vinyl DJ. Even just in the opening track “A Tune for Us”, minimalist piano ripples and jazz drumming flow into the breaks of vintage jungle – and as the structure of the LP unfolds, a deep ambient meditation like “Hold” can sit very naturally in between the futurist dancehall of “L’Ancienne” and the high-definition acid house mind movie of “Galaxy in Silence”. In fact, as with the hands-on musicianship, that gutsy big-speaker electronic impact is delivered with more certainty, more expertise, more personal flourishes than ever. And all of those elements are more integrated than ever too: the sound of a total musical personality emerging afresh is truly something to behold. An already remarkable talent has been refreshed, reborn and is making the music of his life.

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DISCO EDITS!

A. IN THE BUSH

B. NOW I KNOW

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Inscrutable Eager Tension Builders

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Over the course of 2025 IARC will be celebrating their eleventh year of existence by revisiting some of the most celebrated (and hard to find) entries in their decade of releases. These LP packages will be presented with new liner notes, new insert booklets, and the fresh 2025 redesign of their iconic obi and dome logo. They will also be at a price point intended to help make it easier for stores to stock and sell these essential pieces of their catalog.

Classic Black 140g LP inside a heavyweight reverse-board jacket with 16-page insert booklet (new for IA11, with additional photos, new liner notes written by New Breed bassist / co-producer Paul Bryan, and an in-depth conversation between JP and IARC co-founder Scott McNiece), IARC 2025 obi strip and printed poly-lined printed innersleeve. Pressed at Pallas in Germany, with lacquers cut by Daniel K at SST.

https://listen.k7.com/2a605c5a-e78e-4cc5-88cf-b5a9ff52e487

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DEENAMIC steps up with 4 deep hitters for Syncro65. Raw dubtech pressure,future echoes and machine soul straight outta Madrid. Don't sleep — this one's got that late-night basement grip

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