Sprawl
Wednesday 9th November 2005
Charterhouse Bar, Charterhouse Street, London

Considering the history of London and electronic music, this capital should have experimental electronic music nights coming out of its ears. True, the high-brow arts scene has irregular forays into such left-field activities. But Douglas Benford (aka Si-Cut.Db) and Iris Garrelffs have managed to keep their Sprawl nights on an accessible street level for nearly 10 years.

Tonight's entertainment consists of three white guys staring motionless into computer equipment.

Mike Cooper, I'm told, has an extensive discography and has moved from all forms of guitar work into more experimental and electronic territories. Armed with a miniture pedal steel, sample bank and mini-disc player. He coaxes an ever-fluctuating drone that takes in textural analysis, found sounds and noise to hypnotic effect.

Octex navigates through weightless dub that intrigues before familiar percussive patterns render his set slightly predictable. It's left up to AM/PM to conclude the evening with style. His accessible fusion of classicist tones and micro-techno rhythmics are exploratory and revealing.

Needless to say, its about as exciting as watching paint dry. But then, these nights aren't about stage theatrics.

Number 2 and 3 from Boka Records: more welcome additions to the dubstep movement. DJ Distance impressed with his first 12" and whilst Mark One continues to explore areas less concerned with the dancefloor. The two offerings on this 12" seemed a bit too sparse, too disjointed for my liking. 'Lost Gold' weaves arabic / indian motifs into its pattern, whilst 'The Greatest' stutters electro handclaps to free-falling sub bass.

More successful are the offerings on 'Low End Dubs'. Slaughter Mob finally managing to deliver something that I actually like. 'Tinji' cranks up the tension with slow build; smart drum programming and an ever mutating B-line are the essential ingredients. Professor J-S also impresses with a multi-layered approach on 'Militia'; where roughed up bass leads and everything else follows.

As much as I try to write something clever and original about this release, I just can't seem to shake off the comment that some smart-arse wrote on Discogs: "sounds like Trentemoller sold his soul to the devil to make the record." That sounds about right. The other releases on this fledgling Danish label don't quite reach the stunning heights scaled by Trentemoller, but they're just as engaging.

Meanwhile Koln's Boxer Sport have been going for nearly four years and in that time, have notched up an impressive number of releases. None of which I've heard. This release is by Node1; it came out in May 2003, is the only release i have on this label and is pretty fucking sweet. You'd have thought that the remix by Reinhard Voight would be the highlight, but it isn't. The title track is sophisticated schaffel with smatterings of midnight jazz and suppressed acid. Yes.

Stunning slice of dancehall_reggae courtesy of Chessie Roots at the controls with nephew Ackie on the mic. The A-side is a smart excursion into scuzzed-bass dynamics peppered with 8-bit machine gun fire, whilst the B-side is its natural extension. superior re-configured dub from North London via Berlin. Essential.

Jackie Mittoo scares the shit out of everyone on 'Ayatollah': psychedlic swirls and rapid-fire echoes with what little vocals are left being pushed down in the mix. Before buying everyone a round of drinks on 'Mash Down Babylon'. The forces of good and dread battle it out on a single piece of vinyl. Special.

Finally, Tenastalin graces an innovative mix of R'n B and reggae on this sublime cut. 'Commercial Bwoy' actually swings along to a ragga swagger; sweet honey-dripped vocals against machine-drum antics. 'Burial Tonight' is more straightforward, but its simplicity is its charm.

No filler. All Killa.

Buying drum'n bass records has a certain 'hard man' quality to it. Label, artist and track names all ooze masculinity to the max. I mean, I'm totally intimidated when I'm downstairs at Black Market Records. Attitude and a steadfast refusal to go away have played a part in the scene's longevity.

But even with all this front, I find that the majority of records simply don't cut it. You have to remember I flirt with the likes of Venetian Snares and Merzbow here: I can take a sonic punishment. These records seem to be all talk and no action.

But Barcode Recordings are an exception. Relentless, pounding and hyper hyper. Their entire catalogue will totally appeal to those who find solace in breakcore and all its ilk. Whilst still retaining that pop edge that exists in all the best jungle. This release is all I had to hand, but needless to say I doubt there's a duffer in any of the other thirteen releases so far.

Girls need not apply. It's a bloke thing.

What were they thinking when they came up with the name for this label. Still, shows that the people responsible must have a sense of humour. 'Cos there's nothing funny about any of the four, deeply frozen nuggets of techno here. Basically, two are great and the other two merely grate. 'Silence' and '35MM' are reserved and explore areas of sub to superb effect. But the remaining duo of 'See the Dawn' and 'Ich Weiss Nicht' contain repetitive, brittle melodies that eventually lead to mild annoyance. A 12" of two halves then.

Oh yes! Remixes too....Tomas Jirku instantly warming things up with a disco-fired crank revision of 'Silence' that far outdoes with original. Portable tackles the same track, stripping the original's starkness and injecting microbes of african loopism.