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"In A Landscape" marks a welcome return to action for Sa Pa, a publicity-shy (correction: deliberately anonymous) artist renowned for his mutations of ambient and dub techno on Forum and Giegling. This is his first release of any sort for three years, but it's like he's never been away. Crafting dense, mind-altering soundscapes and hypnotic dancefloor excursions from a combination of field recordings, effects-laden/processed sounds, slipped machine beats, drowsy, deep space electronics and barely audible snippets of spoken word samples. It's pretty far-out in parts, but also very, very good: a superb example of the potential of sound layering and manipulation that never loses its inherent early morning groove.

Lewis FAUTZIFigure 59Figure Germany

Faithful to the ethos of the label to put new talents on the map, the second E2-E8 release comes from newcomer Hems. A regular punter at underground festivals such as Freerotation and Labyrinth, Hems spends some of his time making great electronic music in his East London cave… And we are very happy to be the first to put his music out.A fine connoisseur of ambient and electronica, Hems has sometimes featured on the line-ups of Astral Industries parties. This release covers a wide spectrum of his sound. The almost beatless title track Post Radiance opens things up, followed by the subtle dub techno of I Know This Road and by the raw and relentless beat of Dirty Chords. On the B side, Let It Go is a suspended 15-minutes journey clocking in at 140bpm – arguably the highlight of the EP, sounding like little else out there. Madsituation closes the EP, with a nod at lighter atmospheres and a hint at Detroit-influenced strings.Techno heads will be pleased to hear that the record has already got praises from techno talent Refracted, who loves Let It Go, and from Jane Fitz.

An echo through the ages, channelled and tuned by Young Marco. Feelings of tactile, loved-up naivety, transferred to musical waves of colour, rhythmic energy, and hallucinatory aural visions. This is ‘I’m Still Mellow’ and the psychedelic yin to its’ yang, reverse alternative version ‘Wollem Lits M’I’.Both are imaginative 21st century takes on ‘Mellow’, a long-forgotten Amsterdam-born sub-genre of dance music that took the house template and re-imagined it for Dutch dancefloors in the early ‘90s.