Datacide 15 Record Reviews by DJ Controlled Weirdness

Nana Love
Disco Documentary Full of Funk
[BBE]
Re-issue of the insanely rare Ghanaian disco record from the wonderfully named Nana Love. I have wanted a copy of this record for years but the high price and normally battered condition always stopped me from acquiring one. Imagine my delight when BBE dropped the re-release on super loud double vinyl. What you get is some of the most mental afro-funk disco workouts in history with Nana dropping her amazingly twisted vocal gymnastics over the top. With a touch of James Brown and Grace Jones in her voice she screams exultations of desire over the hypnotic disco funk. Check the amazing 12 minutes of “I’m in love” with Nana in full flow whilst Moog and horns counterpoint her deranged delivery. If you only buy one Afro Funk disco record this year, make it Nana Love!!

M/R
Let that shit breathe
[L.I.E.S.]
L.I.E.S. have released an amazing amount of vinyl over the past couple of years and have a seemingly endless supply of raw and downright deep and dirty techno to impart to the world. It can be easy to be overwhelmed with their prodigious output but dig in and you’ll find some absolute killer tunes that you need to take a listen to at the right time to understand. This EP from M/R has some pitched down rhythms that at the right point of the night will devastate any dance floor. Sometimes Techno is better slowed down. In the space you can dance heavier. ‘Coconut Jar’ is a killer 106bpm sleaze funk groove for the right moment.

Clarence G
Hyperspace Sound Lab
[Clone]
Essential reissue of rare first vinyl outing from Drexciya’s James Stinson. Some raw Miami bass style rapping on two of the cuts, and the production is noticeably less refined as befits an early release from a producer learning his craft.

The 808 beats are still sharp though and the deep-sea vibe is present. You can hear the rise of the wave of killer releases to come.

OD/MB
Shplittin the Shtones
[No Label]
Split EP of spaced out experimental tones and subtle shifting grooves from OD and MB that is part techno, part spaced hypnotic house beats and has a jaunty Krautrock swag. Both sides are nice and trippy without being too indulgent and keep an off kilter beat to nod along to. Great psychedelic sleeve of a frog on a kaleidoscope pattern, which helps to set the tone. Mesmerising.

Paralel Disko / Afakan
Disco Hamam – 2
[Disco Hamam 2]
Top Turkish disco and psych action with edits from Paralel Disko and Afakan. Label owner Baris K has already put out some highly limited and sought after edits, so snap this up before it gets too expensive on Discogs. Check his amazing series of Eurasia mixes on Soundcloud for an introduction to the wild world of Turkish Cosmic Space Disco. This EP also features an amazing vocoder boogie funk tune for all the Black Sea break-dance crew.

V/A
Vol 2
[Disco Halal 02]
More Middle Eastern disco edit goodness. Top tune award on the EP goes to “Hilbeh”, Tel Aviv duo Rabo and Snob’s mesmerizing acid house meets Eurasian disco workout. Proper chugging groove with solid bass as the pace picks up. Once the vocal drops and the acid kicks in it’s game over.

V/A
Mutant City Acid 2
[Balkan Vinyl 17]
Four tracker of excellent deep, dark and grooving acid featuring tunes from Warlock, Hardfloor, Shinra and Acidulent. Sounds for the hidden corners of a dark warehouse. Limited press, of course, so don’t sleep.

Dunkeltier
Rising
[Macadam Mambo]
Four tracker of 80s dark wave edits. Top tune for me is a slamming version of “Tanzmusik” by Belgian early eighties electronic outfit Absolute Body Control. Features throbbing synths and what sounds like a dentist drill filtered in and out of the mix whilst badly recorded toms clatter at select intervals. Nasty, but brilliant.

Italian Dance Wave
Disco Tre
[Slow Motion Records]
Four tracker of various artists from Italian label Slow Motion with definite hints of chugging eighties synth disco. I’ve got a love hate relationship with what in the UK we call Italo Disco. Some of the worst records I’ve ever heard have been part of this genre, but there are also killer cuts that I love to death and changed my life when I first heard them on the dance floor back in the day. Slow Motion is a fantastic label that focuses on the best key core elements of the sound: robotic drums, arpeggiated synths, pulsing bass and filtered vocoder. Discodromo produce the stand out track on the EP for me. Driving melodies, obscured robot voice and an undulating synth line that feels like the soundtrack to a late night drive down the Amalfi Coast.

Egyptian Lover
1984
[Egyptian Empire]
In the world of Egyptian Lover it’s always 1984, there are booming 808’s and fucked up freaks on the dance floor. This of course is not a bad thing and Mr. Broussard rocks the 808 like no one else. He’s a bona fide old school electro legend still rocking it worldwide; if you ever get a chance to see him perform don’t miss. One of the best gigs I’ve seen in the past few years involved him getting the crowd to chant “The Eight Oh Motherfucking Eight” whilst he held the 808 over his head and dropped some serious bass. If you love the Lover you’ll freak to this Double LP of twelve new jams.

CP/BW
Untitled Album
[Not on Label – BW003]
Collaboration between the Texas duo of Corporate Park and Chicago’s Beau Wanzer. Nine cuts of deep clanking beats and dirty industrial techno rhythms recorded live from hardware jams over the past 3 years. Mr. Wanzer has released several killer filthy techno tunes over the past year on labels such as L.I.E.S. and Russian Torrent Versions, and this alliance hasn’t dimmed the ferocity of the grooves. This album is pure raw energy for the dance floor and probably hasn’t been near a mastering plug in.

Cute Heels
Nepotism EP
[Schrödinger’s Box]
Deep and funky EBM influenced grooves that flow and mutate with abandon. Very hypnotic electronic dance music, like some of the groovier Cabaret Voltaire outings from the eighties. Cute Heels is from Columbia but lives in Berlin. Not sure if that is relevant to the beats, possibly, but I love this record, dark and grooving.

Golden Teacher
First Three EPs
[Golden Teacher]
Crucial compilation of the first three releases from Golden Teacher. The original presses were highly limited and go for silly money now so grab an essential primer to their sound. Linked to the Optimo crew, the Glasgow six piece have a punk funk disco sound with elements of ESG, Liquid Liquid, Dub, Acid House and a bit of the funkier end of Mark Stewart and The Pop Group thrown into the mix. Yep, that’s some cool influences right there and thankfully they don’t disappoint. It’s all about the weird fucked up groove and these tracks are full of random disco acid punk funk. Killer.

Cold Waves of Color
Volume 3
[Color Disc]
Fantastic compilation of early UK synth-pop, post punk and dark wave electronics. These tunes were originally released between 1981 and 1985 on the cassette only label Color Tapes in very limited numbers, with only 100 copies of most releases available. This is the first time these tunes have been on vinyl and they have been lovingly re-mastered by Denis Blackham. Expect the usual off kilter synths, lo-fi drum machines and slightly uneasy ambience, but there are no fillers here just the authentic sound of the original underground UK electronic subculture in top form. You also get a reprint of the label’s Purple Twilight fanzine from July 1985 with interviews from bands featured on the comp to add to the nostalgia flow.

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