Best Albums

July 2022

- Black Rave Culture Records
  Black Rave Culture - Black Rave Culture Vol 2
  
  Three DC producers make jungle, house and techno that shows the true breadth and power of Black American electronic music.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Night Time Stories
  Ron Trent presents WARM - What Do The Stars Say To You
  
  With a cast of guests and plush live instrumentation, Ron Trent makes something close to his masterpiece, blurring the lines between house music and chill-out.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Heavenly Recordings
  Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy - Balearic Breakfast Volume 1
  
  The long-time DJ and radio host redefines what Balearic is and can be on this beautiful, sometimes eye-opening compilation.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp
- Hyperdub
  Kode9 - Escapology
  
  An imaginary soundtrack to a video game about Scottish space colonization—and one part of a larger multimedia piece—features some of Kode9's funkiest, most innovative rhythms yet.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music
- Leaving Records
  Time Wharp - Spiro World
  
  A virtuosic display of ambient and downtempo musicianship that runs through kosmische, jazz and techno, acknowledging that genres may exist, but often sound best when allowed to bleed into one another.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify
- Slow Life
  Various (Slow Life) - Chromophore Vol. 2
  
  One of the most important house labels of the last decade returns for a victory lap with loopy, colorful beats from the likes of S. Moreira, Primary Perception and Paolo Mosca.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Soundcloud
- Portraits GRM
  Kali Malone - Living Torch
  
  The much-hyped organist turns to synths and horns on this (relatively) short but overwhelming experiment that calls back to some of the earliest electronic music as well as minimalist heroes.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify
- Air Texture
  Anthony Naples + DJ Python - Air Texture VIII
  
  The ambient compilation series creeps closer to techno with two of its most high-profile curators yet, offering plenty of new artists to discover.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- BLKRTZ
  Deadbeat & Sa Pa - The Mountain
  
  In its vision of minimal techno through dub, The Mountain is both comforting and refreshing, and about as epic as its title implies.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify

Best EPs

July 2022

- Tratratrax
  Nick León - Xtasis
  
  Cutting-edge techno incorporating Latin styles like raptor house and tribal guarachero, with excellent remixes from Pearson Sound and Doctor Jeep.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify
- Objekt
  Objekt - Objekt #5
  
  The first 12-inch in Objekt's legendary self-titled series in five years brings in dancehall influence into his precise, prickly, breathtaking club sound.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Scuffed Recordings
  Gag Reflex - Sisyphean Rhythms
  
  Inventive and unorthodox house from the rising Berlin-via-Seattle star.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Anonymous Club
  LEECH - HEADLESS
  
  Shayne Oliver updates the classic GHE20G0TH1K sound for 2022 with provocative lyrics, killer production and clever guest features.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify
- Voam
  Pariah - Caterpillar
  
  Arthur Cayzer's solo project hits the dance floor again with a monster of an anthem (the title track) that calls back to the big hyped hits of the 2009 through 2011 era, huge bassline and all.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Sex Tags UFO
  Jennifer Loveless – Water Remixes By DJ Fett Burger
  
  DJ Fett Burger adds even more psychedelia to the Australian producer's oceanic jam, with bits of jungle, dub and his usual idiosyncratic touches.
- More Time
  Ahadadream - Homecoming
  
  Lively and percussive, Homecoming is a rowdy homage to the UK, Pakistan and a few places in between.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud
- Klockworks
  
  Ben Klock & Fadi Mohem - Klockworks 34
  
  Two generations of Berghain meet in the middle for glorious, galloping techno.
  
  Listen:
  Bandcamp / Apple Music / Spotify / Soundcloud

Best Mixes

July 2022

- Kilbourne
  Nature Loves Courage Festival 2021
  
  Thrilling, super-intense hardcore techno, recorded live at Nature Loves Courage Festival in 2021.
- Lychee & Aaron J
  Live At Nowadays, May '22
  
  This is a three-and-a-half-hour recording of New York DJs Lychee and Aaron J opening up the May edition of Nowadays Nonstop, starting out with slow, bubbling grooves and working their way up to atmospheric techno. Basically, it's a masterpiece.
- Tash LC
  SYSTEM Mix 076
  
  Jumping from UK drill to global club sounds from across the African diaspora, this mix from a hotly-tipped UK DJ also includes one hell of a reggae section.
- Martyn
  fabric podcast 004
  
  fabric's impressive new mix series continues with this session from 3024 head Martyn, who keeps things moving with a twitchy, swung and eclectic selection of contemporary dance music, featuring the likes of Jasmine Infiniti, Ehua, Rhyw and Skee Mask.
- Willis Anne
  Noods Mix
  
  LAN founder Willis Anne impresses with a Noods Radio session that starts off chilled with some wistful, Detroit-style techno before blasting off into atmospheric jungle.
- Coffintexts
  Untitled 909 Podcast 123
  
  Trippy techno, acid heat and more from Coffintexts, one of the many—and the best—of Miami's hyped-up new wave of DJs and producers.
- Ila Brugal w/ Logan
  Keep Hush at Outlook Festival
  
  This Keep Hush video captures Ila Brugal and MC Logan in action live at this year's Outlook Festival in the UK, starting off dank and dubby before reaching towards drum & bass and beyond.
- OK Williams
  NTS 06/30/22
  
  An NTS session that highlights the energy and joy that underlines the London DJ's sets, with plenty of deep house, pacey techno and a heart-palpitating race to the finish.
- Powder
  Mantissa Mix 250
  
  This is what Powder had to say about this hour-long mix for Mantissa, which tapped the beloved Japanese DJ for its 250th episode. "I am still dizzy... flying from Tokyo eastbound through Los Angeles and Detroit to London. I see pigeons nesting in the pine trees from the hotel window."
- Lafawndah & Lamin Fofana
  Bottega Radio
  
  Lafawndah and Lamin Fofana team up for the latest in Bottega Veneta's collaborative monthly NTS Radio show, bringing together tracks from across avant-garde musical history, featuring Xenakis, Oliveros, Miles Davis and even that 800 percent slowed-down Justin Bieber remix from YouTube. (Plus a few tracks of their own.)

Best Albums

July 2022

Best EPs

July 2022

Best Mixes

July 2022

Lychee & Aaron J

Lafawndah & Lamin Fofana