Various Artists
BOOOoo! VA1

Amsterdam-based artist and record label owner Malin Genie returns to his post-lockdown era label Empam for a second time after the incredible 'Midnight Zero' 12" last year. Genie has never been one to be tunnel visioned on just one style of techno, and much like 'Midnight Zero', 'Acheron' embraces deep, acid, ambient and hardcore flourishes through the project. Opening track 'Acheron' has an ambient aura that glides over its smooth drumline, while 'Tumladen' is wielding the power of acid techno with its throbbing metallic rhythms. The last track, 'Halcyon', is a personal favourite with its atmospheric reverb and trad-style groove.

Four years in the making, Duct Tape Project is the new brainchild of Tripmastaz in the realms of Trip-Hop and Downtempo. And it's a project that makes perfect sense to anyone familiar with Andrei's background (making Hip-Hop beats since his teenage years), musical capabilities and decades-long experience. Duct Tape Project joins Andrei with a troupe of stellar musicians not only from many different corners of the world but also from acutely distinct genres - Guti, Argenis Brito, Mad Dim, Denis Kaznacheev, Krussia, Damien Vandesande of DOP, Sarkis Ricci, Andrey Orenstein, and vocals by Inga.Featuring all sorts of live instruments, drum machines, synthesizers and modular systems, Duct Tape Project brings forward a complex work brimming with musicality. Using Hip-Hop, not only its rhythmic structures but also its sampling techniques, as a foundation, Tripmastaz created a vibrant and fascinating ecosystem with enough sonic texture to leave one captivated, enraptured and lost at the edge of words. There are 13 musical compositions in total that explore all things Hip-Hop, Downtempo, Trip-Hop, Chill Pop and Lounge, forming a cohesive and deeply soulful album.