Enlightened Listening for October 18

My goodness have we got a great edition of Enlightened Listening this week. Opening the playlist below are back to back brilliant and truly masterful examples of electronic albums, a form that I often hear is dead. Floating Points' Crush is a captivating quest that will send you soaring through your consciousness. While Jacques Greene's Dawn Chorus does the same, it feels more at home on the dance-floor, particularly through its entrancing grooves. Staying groovy, the next release features a trio of remixes of Boston Bun's "Don't Wanna Dance" with a sublime standout from Mighty Mouse.

Changing gears a bit, the fourth step in our twelve part release showcase comes in the form of ABSOLUTE.'s second EP on Family Planning. This is not the titanic ABSOLUTE. we're used to but rather a more tempered touch that actually works wonders. I love "Get Off The Floor" and I'm in awe of "This, Too, Will Pass." Speaking of awe, Pete Tong has reunited with Jules Buckley and The Heritage Orchestra (as HER-O), launching the first single of their all original album Chilled Classics. "Go Crazy" is an instant sensation and I urge you to check Pete's twitter for further insight into the project.

After Pete comes a pair of singles. The first, Grum's return to Anjunabeats is big, bold and beautiful. The second, Uppermost's "Selfless" is sublime, soaring stuff. Exactly what I've come to expect from him. And while it's hard to have expectations with regards to Joe Goddard, as his capabilities seem limitless, this remix of ALASKALASKA shows off a wonderful wandering spirit that beckons you into its beautiful, warm and comforting arms. Just like Joe, Alex Metric always manages to deliver incredible offerings no matter what the mood or who he happens to be working with. Jacking goodness prevails here in this Waze & Odyssey collaboration.

The final three releases feature a couple remixes alongside an absolute killer EP from rising star Rebūke. First, Theo Kottis has crafted a brilliantly bouncy and upbeat remix of Mind Enterprises' "Monogamy." Slick and strong, it is a wonderful affair that I will no doubt be returning to many a time. After that is Valentino Khan's crisp and cool remix of Tchami's Blackbyrds sampling "Rainforest." While the original is quite nice, the drop in this version seems to fit the sample even better than before. Finally, Rebūke's 3 track Drumcode EP shows incredible power and progression, not just from a tracklist perspective but even within the tracks themselves, no better than in the title track "Rattle."


Floating Points - Crush

Jacques Greene - Dawn Chorus

Boston Bun - Don't Wanna Dance (Remixes)

ABSOLUTE. - Make The Call

Pete Tong & HER-O - Go Crazy (ft. Todd Edwards)

Grum - Tomorrow

Uppermost - Selfless

ALASKALASKA - Happyface (Joe Goddard Remix)

Alex Metric x Waze & Odyssey - Jack To The Future (ft. Russoul)

Mind Enterprises - Monogamy (Theo Kottis Remix)

Tchami - Rainforest (Valentino Khan Remix)

Rebūke - Rattle

Enlightened Listening for September 7

Fridays are always fantastic but this one is particularly so, thanks to six EP/albums. This week's edition of Enlightened Listening is firmly focused on those longer form releases moving from Uppermost's uplifting grooves, through Sébastien Léger's sublime soundscapes to the techno from BNR and Cardopusher to the fantastic fire of ANGELZ's third iteration of Saint Thug. I won't get too deep into descriptions as I'm again cramped for time (I'm working on the new seasons of both Bump In The Hump and My Mixtape which premiere next week), but I will hopefully sell you on the quality of each of these releases in a brief 'elevator pitch' if you will. Enjoy each below and have a great weekend!

Uppermost - Given By Nature
Warm analog designs with a human touch and sneaky underlying groove. If there was one word or feeling that I get throughout this, it is undoubtedly soaring. Favourite track: "Dreams."

Sébastien Léger - Underwater Rocket
Seems like Seb has found a fitting home with All Day I Dream, where his progressive deep house mysticism can truly thrive. How tracks can be so free floating yet earthbound through bass is beyond me. Favourite track: "Satellite."

Qrion - GAF 1
Not what I expected when I pressed play, but boy did Qrion deliver with this EP. "GAF" jumps right into the conversation for my favourite house tracks of the year. A bright, bouncy, juicy, spiraling sensation.

Brain Dancing - Far From Finished
Old school bleepy rave, electro, techno blended like only BNR can deliver. Reach for the sky raucousness with some supremely strong soundscapes that will immediately invoke club/warehouse feels. Favourite track: "Opti C Dorian."

Cardopusher - Zone 34: Face The Machine
Hard driving grooves with a strong serving of acid to eat away at your mind while your feet fly all over the floor. Cardopusher is always good but this may be my favourite release of his, and not just because of the clever titles. Favourite track: "All Fall Down."

ANGELZ - Saint Thug: Numero III
Easily one of the hottest producers in the club/bass house scene ANGELZ has done it again. These are bangers of the highest quality, not just turning the bass up to a ten but thriving through sick sound design and dope features. Favourite track: "Yeah Yeah."

Enlightened Listening for August 17

We may be past the halfway mark of August and even further through summer but the heat just keeps coming. This week's edition of Enlightened Listening includes a killer lineup of releases with some legends (Method Man & Roy Of The Ravers), personal favourites (Attlas & Kotek) and rising stars (Dawg & Deathpact). As always the playlist flows from light to heavy, bright to dark and includes brief descriptions below. Click through to find downloads, support the artists and of course, enjoy!

SG Lewis - Hurting (ft. AlunaGeorge)
At times brooding, while others shimmering and bright. Truly a match made in heaven.

Devault - Steele
I'm a sucker for steel pans, but this track isn't just shiny, ear grabbing sound design, its got groove.

The Knocks - Goodbyes (ft. Method Man)
We've heard The Knocks with Cam'ron, Carly Rae Jepsen, and X Ambassadors, so it shouldn't be a surprise seeing Method Man in the mix, nor should it be surprising to hear him kill it. The real surprise? How good he is en español. Holy hell this is cool.

Kidnap - Ursa Minor (Attlas Remix)
Another out of this world production from Attlas. Par for the course aka PERFECTION.

Delerium ft. JES - Stay (Matt Lange Vocal Remix)
Speaking of par for the course, another epic, progressive masterpiece from Matt Lange. Pure puppet mastery; the dance floor does as he demands. What a mix!

Uppermost - Starslide
Those synths and that guitar. Absolutely gorgeous, uplifting stuff.

Roy Of The Ravers - Transmission 303
It's almost impossible to match "Emotinium" but this comes close. Furious, fantastic work on the 303s as this acid number winds along with its wicked groove.

Dawg - Get Back*
Viral remix master shows he's more than capable of crafting killer originals. Raw, rough and full of power. The drums slap, the piano pops and vocal chops kill. I feel like this might be the birth of a star.

The Funk Hunters ft. LIINKS - Say Something (Kotek Remix)
I've been waiting on this mix since the remix competition many months ago. Kotek is on one hell of a tear, and this mix is proof of his sensational status. Funky, fat and fun, this one leaves me in awe.

Flava D - Pick Pocket
Deep grooves that not only serve as a surefire party starter, but get your feet flying across the floor.

Deathpact - First Interference
Whoever Deathpact is, they're on some kind of a roll. Many people see "Life & Death" as the standout on Certain Kind Of Magic and that same kind of killer sound design is on display here. Incredible power, no needless repetition and godly glitches make for blistering bass that I can really groove to.

Varien x SWARM - Never Ending*
This collab had me hyped from the get go and yes it delivers. If SWARM and Deathpact are the future of the bass scene it's in good hands.

*asterisks indicate track available for free download