Get The Curse Music 013 features Oliver Ho aka Raudive, one half of duo The Eyes In The Heat. Widely acclaimed for his vicious minimal techno grooves, Raudive's been on an machine funk bend and crafted two tracks which are as robust as they are potent. True to the GTCM philosophy, distinctions between vintage and modern, old school and new school, mind melting and bodily stimulation are brilliantly blurred. Neither house, techno, EBM or synth punk, these tracks move in their own circles. The same can be said for the XENOGEARS remix, miles away from the tired templates used and abused by most producers. Fuck genres, let's dance. OBSESSION >This here's an exercise in stripped down funk looping and Raudive nails it remarkably. Slapped bass, gated snares, vintage percussion, the odd guitar chord, short vocal samples, oozing synth leads and a rickety bassline make for a cunningly groovy track. This no frills, throbbing track will get dancefloors in a frenzy from bar one. Free your ass and your mind will follow, as George Clinton so eloquently put it. ROMANTIC ROBOTIC >In this track the rhythm section is structured by a groovy bassline and straightforward drum programming including a vintage cowbell and hypnotic shakers. These let the catchy syncopated vowels and droning vintage leads reach mesmerizing heights through twisted melodies. True to its name, this number combines a clinical, mechanical groove with an emotional vibe/ROMANTIC ROBOTIC XENOGEARS a.k.a. THE ANALOGUE COPS REMIXFans of Geeeman's remix on our latest EP will be pleased, because we're bringing you another stripped down, jackin' as hell, nervous as fuck remix that is reminiscent of classic beatdowns from the 90's. Xenogears, of The Analogue Cops fame focuses on a short loop of the mind boggling kind, robust drum programming and analogue synth melodies. This reduced palette nonetheless provokes brilliant results. Neither hard house or acid techno this powder keg of a track is more than ready to make dancefloors explode. More

Another critical release, following the deadly DJs Pareja single of last month. Perfectly timed and cued after the recent Raudive long-player on Stefan Goldmann's Macro label. Raudive is Oliver Ho's darker, more 'new-wave' operative, and these latest productions have caught the attention of the folks at History Clock - and it's a perfect alliance. The 'Levels EP' is a debased mix of sleazy, after-hours acid-dancehall with the icy cool of minimal, machine-music dynamics. Essential, in a word. More

As one of the founding talents of James Ruskin’s continuing Blueprint Records empire or Richard Polson and Nick Dunton’s seminal Surface Records, we at THEMA don’t really think we need to remind you who Oliver Ho is. Since 1996 he’s released a steady stream of high quality, stylistically diverse, and highly dependable records on Blueprint, his own Meta, Light and Dark imprints, and such leading labels as Klang Electronik, Macro, and Poker Flat that bridge the gaps between techno, tech-house, and deep exploration and always keep DJs like us reaching for them when we need that not-quite-ordinary thing that keeps people moving. With his different aliases and long career, it’s sometimes difficult to say what exactly makes his sound so unique, but we’ve always enjoyed their tight, funky grooves that keep experimentation in mind at all times. It’s a delicate balance that most couldn’t maintain, but over 15 years Oliver has nailed it almost every time, and we’re proud to have him aboard here for more of the same exceptional quality we’ve come to expect from yet another legendary producer. Whether its under his own name or his more house-focused Raudive material, we’ve always been very impressed with Oliver’s originality, and we’re pleased to report that he integrates some of those avant-garde tendencies noted on his new Wires releases to excellent effect. Actually, some of that comes out on Glass Hearts opening track of the EP, a spooky echofest haunted by abstract, metallic keyboards and repeated vocal detritus. Things go uptempo for the next cut, the “Dark Version” of Seven, where more repeated vocals, some very controlled toms and hats and downcast keys make for an appealing, tightly wound tune sure to make an impact in the mix. Widescreen splits the difference between the opener’s abstraction and the drive of Seven, and it comes up on the half-tempo, introspective side of things for something that we personally find a lot to like about. He heads back to the floor on the B side cuts, certainly the hardest and most unabashedly driving pieces here. Windows sneaks in with some nice rising pads making for something a bit moodier and deeper when combined with the punchy groove established by the drums and female vocal samples. The closer, King and Queen charges forwards with his percussion programming, but there’s still a darker current under those fierce drums that shades the edges and makes for more complex and compelling listening to close this well versed EP. A little something for all users.
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Jorge Ciccioli shows up again on RRYGULAR. With his new release "Southern Tool" the Argentinian dives really deep into the minimal genre. By focussing on the most important elements he created three handy and driving dj tools. And although the tunes are already well arranged there is room to experiment while playing. The track "Sinatsuma" comes with a nice signature phrase that might get stuck in your head. The whole B face is reserved for the remix by Franco Cinelli who turned the main track into a dubby Techhouse tune of almost 10min. Nice one More

The very sophisticated dry to dubby tracks happen somewhere between weird coldness and warm brutality. More

"Blackwood" rides wonderfully unagitated & alarmingly progressive along the label's Minimal Techno road. More