TEA Selections - Forward Strategy Group

It was their 2009 Applied Generics ep that saw Forward Strategy Group announce their arrival. They did so via four architectonic productions (if you bought the digital version), which could easily be bracketed as “For Outside Play Only” and should be filed under “landscape techno”.

Patrick Walker and Al Matthews (aka Smear) have since released a controlled stream of eps - largely on Perc Trax - which ultimately lead to their debut album Labour Division, unshackled in May of this year.

FSG’s Labour Division comes one year after Perc’s heralded Wicker and Steel lp -  described by The Guardian in the wake of last years London riots as “an angry snapshot of modern Britain”.

If Wicker and Steel was a snapshot of modern Britain, then Labour Division may well be a snapshot of post-riot Britain. Peace has been restored, but troublesome, menacing undertones still linger. 

The two have compiled a candid selection of tracks citing “arty cry-wank-shoegaze”, Italian breakcore-electro and Japanese noise-rock as influential soundtracks throughout their lives. 

Inadvertently or not, the two offer an insight into the make up of Forward Strategy Group's DNA and lend an understanding to where their dancefloor and non-dancefloor fixes originate.


EDIT: It's been brought to my attention the youtube clips only work using Safari. This will be rendered for future selections.

Ride - Decay [Nowhere] - Patrick

If I had never heard Ride's album Nowhere, I'd have probably never wanted to make music. This album was one of the things that I really connected with as a kid, this track just rips me right open.  The wall of noise, saturated effects and hammering rhythm make this track a bit more than a piece of arty cry-wank-shoegaze for depressed hipsters. This track has something very primal about it, I'd probably want this as a soundtrack to the end of the universe. 

Various Artists - Erode [Chain Reaction] - Patrick

Chain Reaction is one of the often overlooked sub-labels of Basic Channel. It served as an outlet for friends of Moritz & co to follow up and expand the dub-techno universe. This whole album, with the works of Porter Ricks, Monolake, Fluxion etc; are a huge influence on everything I do musically. All of these artists produce music which is effortlessly balanced, utterly hypnotic and the perfect DJ tool for an expanded set. 

FFWD - Klangtest [Inter-Modo] - Patrick

I'm a huge fan of MEGADOG era electronics; The Black Dog, The Orb, Eat Static, Astralasia. This sort of thing used to soundtrack our acid-kissed after parties. The collaborative project between Alex Patterson, Robert Fehlmann, Robert Fripp and Thrash gives a new meaning to the concept of underwater or 'nautical' electronics.

James Bernard - Odyssey [Rising High Records] - Patrick

The album Atmospherics by James Bernard is among one of the finest releases on a label I used to follow religiously: Rising High. The name of the album doesn't entirely serve it justice as it's very engaging, there is a lot of tension. It's fully immersive and incredibly visceral, it’s like a trip to another world - EPIC. 

DJ HELL - Hot In The Heels Of Love (Dave Clarke Remix) [Disko B] - Patrick

Lets face it. If this track isn't in your records bag, if you don't own it on some form of vinyl, then in my eyes - you aren't really a techno DJ. This track never fails to drive people nuts and it was the first “proper” techno record I ever bought. 

ADC - Steel Files [Index Records] - Al

Listen

ADC are 2 Italian breakcore-electro producers. Where others in this genre produced flailing and seemingly random rhythms, ADC is intricate and fluid, yet simultaneously rigid and mechanical. The meaty parts of their tracks generally stay the same, but their reinforcing sounds are subtle, constantly moving and compliment each other in so many ways. There's a wayward catchiness to their work as well, it's pretty easy to mouth along to. I released this kind of stuff quite a few years ago and I was largely influenced by ADC and other similar artists. It shows you can have a degree of finesse and subtlety behind a juggernaut of squealing sounds.

Cupol - Like This For Ages [4AD] - Al

I'm a huge fan of Wire and anything involving Bruce Gilbert and Graham Lewis. Both sides of this single are eerily close to a lot of techno we're into and it's always been a staple in our DJ sets - there's so much going on. It's so hard to distinguish the live instrumentation from the electronics. Both songs on the single were in part inspired by the Master Musicians of Joujouka, but it's taken to such a surreal and disorientating end. It's less about being an overt homage to African music, that influence is just a vessel for two extremely adventurous artists.

Archae - Resolute [Maracas] - Al

I'd always dabbled with techno when I was younger, but I was never really that passionate about it. Hearing Archae, Grovskopa & Luka Baumann for the first time was the catalyst for me diving headfirst into producing techno completely. I was never keen on any music that relied heavily on 909 hi-hats and chords to drive it, it's so cheap. Finding techno that was really intense, inventive and cliché-free was a revelation. I knew straight away techno had more possibilities than the power-noise and hardcore I was making.

Melt-Banana - Section Eight [A-ZAP Records] - Al

I had an extreme dislike for almost all music growing up. I never really had any access to anything I would have liked. I'd dip into John Peel and hear the odd interesting track, but it was quite late on that I found a band I really loved - I was  maybe 16 or 17. To me Melt-Banana was the best pop music I'd ever heard; no notes, no storytelling, no emotive changes, just all the good stuff.

Death - High Cost Of Living Chapter 1 [Trope Recordings] - Al

When I was 14 I bought a tape called DJ Freak Live In Geneva, it was full of the noisiest and most violent, hardcore techno around at the time. At 45rpm the tempo would start at around 240bpm. After 40 minutes or so everything stops and Freak plays this Heckmann track just before he really lets rip. Set against the racket of the rest of the tape, it's rather nightmarish, but equally stunning.

TEA 2011 Albums in Review

2011 may well be looked back on as the year where the techno LP broke free from the shackles of mediocrity that continue to hold back many a genre from fulfilling their full potential. Nowadays a well received techno album needs to be more than a handful of dancefloor friendly productions bookend by and intro an outro and middled by a token ‘experimental track’. Narratives and concepts are more prominent then ever before with political, humanitarian and historical undertones making themselves as known as the productions themselves. Perc’s Wicker & Steel intentionally or not soundtracked this years London riots, whilst Legowelt’s The Teac Life made from malfunctioning, cheap and retro analogue equipment was released free digitally, only to see a successful vinyl release due to its hugely positive response, baffling scores of net-labels in the process.

UK electronica influences run deep within the productions of Lucy and Xhin, specifically when the two distance themselves from an EP format. Both are rewriting techno’s current rule book and in doing so have further blurred the lines between techno and everything else. After Lucy’s deep and meaningful Wordplay For Working Bees which draws parallels with the architecture of Le Corbusier and the groundbreaking electroacoustic experimentations of Karlheinz Stockhausen, Xhin released his own personal reflection Sword, the Singaporean’s third full length and Stroboscopic Artefacts second, seeing both artists share in nods of appreciation toward modern day luminaries Aphex Twin and Surgeon.

Luke Slater’s emphatic Planetary Assault Systems project saw Ostgut Ton release one of this years most played albums The Messenger, which unlike some of the aforementioned albums could essentially be a club and dance floor orientated classic. Had it not been for Slater’s ability to reinvent himself, his latest admission could have easily passed over us like Robert Hood’s Omega Man released last year, but it didn’t. Slater’s The Messenger saw a new (and younger) allegiance of fans join the hordes of Slater faithfuls who still stand strong (even after his leftfield 2002 pop dance album Alright On Top). Fellow established notable Anthony Child aka Surgeon is yet another UK act to this year push his music to the limit and as his latest offering Breaking The Frame suggests through tracks like Radiance, Child is ready to put even the hardest of trained ears to the test, a technique seen with his remix to Xhin’s Foreshadowed also.

Dub techno is often criticised for its lack of evolution since the first blue prints were drawn up by the likes of Mark Ernestus, Moritz von Oswald and Monolake. A genre firmly set in its practiced orientation, the past 10 years has seen the likes of Rod Modell, Quantec and Mikkel Metal keep Kenneth Christiansen’s Echocord on top of the dub techno pops. Mokira aka Andreas Tilliander’s sub aquatic and verging on beatless dub techno dream Time Axis Manipulation pushed dub techno even deeper (if that’s possible) via the Swede’s uber dub masterpiece. Bredon Moeller made similar in roads with his Subterranean LP released under his Ecologist moniker via his own Steadfast, but it struggled to maintain the emotive and narrative flow of Mokira’s Time Axis Manipulation.

Rastor Noton boss Alva Noto this year unveiled his Univrs LP, an upside down sequel to his 2008 Unitxt. Univrs featured one of this years most fascinating collaborations with French poet Anne James Chaton, who also released a 2011 long player on Rastor Noton called Événements 09. The Emptyset made up of James Ginzburg (aka Ginz) and Paul Purgas released their Demiurge LP on Bristol label Subtext, following up from their 2009 Caravan Recordings self titled. The two were introduced to a wider techno audience in January via their Altogether Lost collaboration with Underground Resistance vocalist Cornelius Harris, released on CLR which featured Ben Klock’s tantalising Glowing Clap Mix.

Mancunian imprint Modern Love produced a hat trick of outstanding pieces with Andy Stott’s Passed Me By / We Stay Together double package and Demdike Stare’s Tryptych, a release on par with the unrivalled talents of Tropic Of Cancer and their The End Of All Things released on legendary UK imprint Downwards. Wrapping up a year which seemingly belongs to UK producers is Dave Huismans’ aka 2562 Fever released on When In Doubt. Like Stott, 2562 combines his take on dub techno, broken beat and crackling ambience with smudged vocal scares and post industrial noise. If we begin our techno timeline with the precedent set by labels like Planet E, Warp and Axis, techno is now 20 years old. Young enthusiasts and hardened veterans now eagerly await a slew of celebratory rereleases and gift wrapped anniversary packs that will no doubt descend upon 2012, and as electronic music slowly recovers from a hangover of a poorly engineered DIY productions and blase label management, 2011 is making the first steps in setting a new precedent for the next 20 years.

Own Stroboscopic Artefacts Vinyl Back Catalogue

Stroboscopic Artefacts celebrate their entrance into double figures of vinyl releases with a special 10X12" shipment.

Not to be confused as a boxset, Stroboscopic Artefacts has made available the label's entire back catalogue of vinyl pressings so far, to be sent as one no nonsense, all substance bundle. From the labels birth in 2009 to their trailblaze through 2010 and 2011, SA now offers its fans the chance to own and cherish a time capsule of one of techno's most enterprising labels.

10X12" Package Includes:

SA001 - Lucy - Why Dont You Change//Dub Man Walking//Krishnamurti Accapella Extended

SA002 - Xhin - Fixing The Error//Link

SA003 - Lucy & Ercolino - Gmork//So The Nothing Grows Stronger

SA004 - Lucy & Ercolino - Gmork Luke Slater Remix//Dadub Remix

SA005 - Frank Martiniq - Blast Corps//Darkstar//Lovelane

SA006 - Jonas Kopp - Alkitran//Vary//Lucy Tool

SA007 - Perc & Modern Heads - Dax//Mendax//Percdax//Moddax

SA008 - Beelines For Working Bees Remixes - Tommy Four Seven//James Ruskin//Peter Van Hoesen//Truss

SA009 - Pfirter & Dadub - Universe//Metropolis

SA010 - Xhin//Go Hiyama//Donor - Hepta//Tasu//Lapse

Get your Stroboscopic Artefacts vinyl back catalogue here

TEA Selections - Perc

TEA selections is a new feature where we ask artists to delve deep into their record boxes, cassette collections and memory banks to let us in on some of the tracks that have been of particular influence throughout their lifes.

Kicking off proceedings is Perc aka Ali Wells who is on the cusp of releasing his debut LP Wicker & Steel on his very own Perc Trax Imprint. Last time we caught up with Perc it was in the lead up to his Monad release for Stroboscopic Artefacts which followed a slew of EP's on CLR, SA and Nachstrom Schallplattan. 2011 now makes way for his debut long player set for release June 10th, the second full length on Perc Trax behind Sawf's Flaws LP released earlier this year.

TEA caught up with Perc for an hommage to 9 tracks that have helped define the Perc Sound.

Ed Rush & Nico - Technology [No U Turn]

I could have chosen almost any No U Turn track or even something from early Renegade Hardware, but Technology is a classic. Stepping drum & bass that focused on the techno influences and dark urban atmospheres. For me No U Turn is a classic label. They knew their sound and stuck to it whilst slowly progressing forwards with each release. The 2xCD compilation Torque is one of my top 5 cds ever.

Micronauts - Bleep To Bleep [Science]

A vital album in my musical upbringing. Even though I'd heard a lot of techno albums already at this point, this album was so bloody-minded and uncompromising. A few key themes are stretched out across all the tracks. It is a lesson in groove, filtering and sound design and the fact it came out on an offshoot of the major label Virgin makes it even more staggering. I can just imagine the day this was was played to the A&R guys.

A Guy Called Gerald - Black Secret Technology [Juicebox]

Proto-jungle/D&B album released in 1995. This taught me the idea of having a cohesive sound aesthetic across a whole release. Of course at the time this was due to the limited equipment available. Now you can change between production sounds with a quick change of plugins, but the moment you do this an album loses the connection between the tracks and just becomes an expanded EP. This album also taught me that production does not have to be loud and banging to still have an effect on listener. The bass is deep on this album but the drums just tap away on top. It's an aesthetic that suits the urban paranoia of the album perfectly. The film and TV samples and the way they are handled on this album are genius as well.

Perc - My Head Is Slowly Exploding [Perc Trax]

Whilst it might seem strange that I've chosen a track of my own, please let me explain. This track was written on a wet Saturday afternoon about 18 months ago, it was completely different to what I was writing at the time and straight away I knew I had a track I could launch an album from. I then hid it away, occasionally going back to tweak it and check that I still liked it. When it was time to start the album I already had the starting point and exactly the atmosphere I wanted. One thing I'll never forget was starting my live set at Berghain with the percussion hits from this. Each one hit like a heavy gut punch.

Autechre - Second Bad Vilbel [Warp]

Warp was a huge label for me as I grew up, though I follow it less closely now. This track blew me away when I first heard it. Distorted, broken beat techno and electronica that destroys everything in its path. I followed the label religiously from the Artificial Intelligence compilations and artist albums up to the We Are Reasonable People release. LFO, Aphex, Autechre, the early bleep sound had a huge influence on me.

Throbbing Gristle - United [Industrial Records]

I talk enough about Cabaret Voltaire, but I almost see Throbbing Gristle as the other side of the same coin. Both bands used DIY methods to get their music heard and also to produce the music itself. When you look at other music being released and celebrated at the time when these bands were starting out, what they did was even more startling. United is like a regular pop song but twisted and bent out of shape, so whilst recognisible it belongs to a whole different place. Having Chris Carter remix the first single from my album was obviously a huge honour and I owe a lot to him thanks to both his past and his current musical work.

Beth Gibbons & Rustin Man - Mysteries [Go Beat]

Beth Gibbons voice sounds uniquely British to me and her work as a solo artist or with Portishead has always been an inspiration to me. The dense atmospheres seem to have a foundation in British history, you would think her voice would get lost in the backing tracks but instead it just glides over them. The sound of the latest Portishead album (3) was a brave change for them and it split many fans, but for me the electronic edge makes it their best yet.

Aphex Twin - Metapharstic [R&S]

For me this is a battle cry for the Aphex sound, for British techno and for any music with this same kind of rough industrial aesthetic. Selected Ambient Works I & II, the Aphex classics album and Polygon Window's Surfing On Sinewaves were the sound of my university years and I still try to drop the occasional Aphex track in my sets where possible. From the DIY attitude to equipment to the self-created mystique and myths surrounding his character, Aphex has it all.

Ekoplekz - Stalag Zero [Punch Drunk]

For me Ekoplekz represents something both old and new and his junk/DIY approach to production has really connected with me recently. I was always intending to bring some hardware into the production process for my album but his sound made me push even further down this route. The track Snow Chain from Wicker & Steel was performed completely live with all analogue equipment and this is a production method I am keen to return to.