Piroman
The Piroman EP

Lacking no celerity in its approach to dancefloor traction, the second incursion on STRCTR from Paris-based rising talent Vitess is primed to slap a smile on the face of 90s breaks, electroid techno dashers and pumped-up trance lovers. Following up to releases on Happiness Therapy, Pulse Msc and Chat Noir Tools, Vitess is bound to break the sound barrier with “Splitter” - a no-frills four-tracker featuring two originals + two remixes designed to bulldoze its way onto upper spheres of consciousness with absolute panache and determination.

Turntable magician and champion of all things strange in the world of dance music, Jerome Hill, joins Craigie Knowes for his debut record on the imprint. 4 mind-melting acid trax primed to contort even the most rigid of dancefloors.

Memento Records’ boss Idriss D goes back to his more experimental side on this release, pushing the boundaries like he did on his first Lunatic EP, coming up once again with another Jungle-infused mesmerizing piece of Electronica that mixes breakbeat influences with melodic soulful vibes.A very welcome follow up, aptly titled “Lunatic 2”, this tune is fiercely uptempo and energetic: the psychedelic melody swirls inside, outside and around your mind, while the fluid bass line counterparts the schizophrenic rhythm. On top of this, powerful emotional vocals take you into another dimension.The prestigious remix comes courtesy of Gilb’R, founder of Versatile Records and one half of Chateau Flight: a slower downtempo piece with an infectious, almost improvisational synth melody, with vocals taking center stage here, full of atmospheric sounds all over that land into a deep dreamy break.

Following Tom Jarmey and Aiden Francis on Houseum sublabel Ellipse Records, French artist 440 Hz steps up next with his ‘Deep Sea Driving’ EP. It’s a psychedelic six-tracker, mellow through subaquatic melodies, though also built for the club with powerful bass, punchy, stripped-back percussion and breakbeat, UKG and acid influences. ‘Mindscape’ kicks the proceedings off with swirling pads, organ keys and crisp grooves before ‘Gazoline’ joins in with its dubbed-out synth hits and elastic womp-like bass.