Browse by Label: MEANWHILE (UK)

Artist:	MURMUR
Title:	Section EP
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 005EP

"Offering up the kind of subterranean exploration that Jules Verne could only dream about, this fourth appearance by Murmur on the shockingly consistent Meanwhile label is a micro masterpiece. Taking the techno/house teachings of Deepchord and Basic Channel, Murmur have injected a spaciousness and soul into their recordings that has been left untouched for years by the aforementioned labels. Maybe this is down to their recording techniques; using all analogue gear and avoiding the digital fetishism that has plagued recent techno recordings, or possibly it is down to their obsessive attention to harmonic and melodic parts which makes the tracks so impossible to forget. Kicking off with the sublime rolling tech-house of 'Section' it is easy to see why Murmur are at the top of their game. Thick warm pads, punctuated by a no-nonsense 808 groove make this track an absolute winner. 'Gradient' on the flip side continues this theme effortlessly, before the 12" closes with 'Nub,' an abstract slice of underwater dub. Don't sleep on this, it is only a matter of time before the name Murmur can only be mentioned in hushed tones at the stroke of midnight."

Artist:	MURMUR
Title:	Undertone
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	MEAN 009CD

2007 has been a year defined by the imperceptible merging of dub and techno, and the UK's Murmur land with a debut album sure to connect on every level of this musical and cultural phenomenon. The submerged hip-hop-tinged swaying of "Pansula" starts off proceedings in fine form, bringing to mind Detroit at its best, but before long, the album is whisked onto a plane, flown half way around the world and dropped straight into the heart of Berlin, where this detailed and glorious sound design really belongs. "Mesh" could almost be the sound of a synth factory being flooded; every echo dissipating into layers of murky liquid, never to be found again. By the fourth track, "Flex," the water has settled and the soiled, grey walls of a warehouse loom over an after-after-party dancefloor where tired feet are revitalized and rejuvenated until the crowd throbs in unison. As "Bloodclot" trickles from your speakers and into the inner coils of your ears, comparisons to Basic Channel are inevitable. But this isn't some idle rehash of the past -- Murmur belong to a new breed of techno connoisseurs, leading the way with other less-is-more pioneers: think fondly of recent amazing output from the DeepChord axis, Scion Versions or the Styrax family -- artists such as Redshape, Sven Weisemann or Quantec, all showing increasing empathy with the Murmur sound. There's a massive emotional pull in this music, nestled between an obsessive love of analog hardware and an intuitive knowledge of what can make a track work both on the floor and as a repeat soundtrack to many a late-night headphone session. As all around us, "dance" artists are making steps into album territory with varying degrees of success, Murmur (and Meanwhile) show how it should be done. With Undertone, Christmas comes early for the dub-techno faithful.

Artist:	BOVILL/MURMUR
Title:	Low Pressure/Magnetic
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 011EP

The folks behind the Meanwhile label join forces for a third split release. Bovill tracks are genuine rarities -- this will be the 7th track made available in 5 years. "Low Pressure" sees Rob Lawrence exploring a slightly drier seam, and yet the production is still crisp -- clean and bright, killer 4/4 material. Murmur's "Magnetic" sees them exploring nighttime spaces -- shimmering and wobbling as filtered minor keys play over classic 303s and 808s. Pedigree stuff -- highly recommended.

Artist:	QUANTEC
Title:	Distant Space Pt 2
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 012EP

This is Quantec's second release in his three part series for the Meanwhile imprint. With killer releases on Styrax Leaves, Echochord, and Millions of Moments, plus a choice selection of remixes, the first volume was an instantaneous sell-out. With all the attention on the Basic Channel continuum right now, and general interest in dub techno at pretty much its pinnacle, the world is ready for these tunes. Deviant bass maneuvers, endless echo space, delays forever.

Artist:	QUANTEC
Title:	Distant Space Pt. 3
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 014EP

This is Quantec's third release in his three-part series for the Meanwhile imprint. Continuing on from its predecessors, "Electromagnetic Pulse" is a 4/4 killer with bass that sounds as though it's been recorded through Burial's private sound-proofed wall -- all haze and blurriness, synced up to a crisp hi-hat. "Specters" features grainy analog synth-stabs over another murky groove. Nine and-a-half minutes of sonic bliss, sure to rattle around in your brain cage for what seems like an eternity.

Artist:	MOHLAO
Title:	Ambrose
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 015EP

Another artist debut from the increasingly influential Meanwhile label. Friesland-based producer Mohlao starts his Ambrose 12" with a super-deep slab of ambient techno. The title track builds from almost nothing into a totally organic and utterly mesmerizing slow-burner, dark as hell! "Individual" offers up a more upbeat yet equally brooding track, dropping an old-skool 808 break partnered with searing synth lines arcing over dark melodies. With a total Detroit-electro flavor, this is another great release from Meanwhile.

Artist:	PCB
Title:	Deft EP
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 016EP

For this artist debut on Meanwhile, Pendle Coven Breakers have made a three-tracker shaking off any opaque guises, reveling in a deep intimacy with the music of early Prescription or original Harmony Park vibrations. Long-term mutual admiration and artistic relations with pioneers such as Anthony "Shake" Shakir, Mike Huckaby, David Moufang/Move D and contemporaries DJ Woody, Andy Stott, and Claro Intelecto have all bounced off and resonated with this artist's boundless invention and spirit of generosity.

Artist:	MURMUR
Title:	Fume EP
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$12.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 019EP

First new tracks from Murmur since 2008, backed with a mix from MLZ under his PCB guise. "Tangle" is house music for bubblers -- one for those who know how to build a true dance music session from the ground up. Murmur give the machines a thorough going-over on the title cut "Fume," ever so restrained and beatless. Miles Whittaker and Gary Howell's mix is a beautiful, controlled and yet understated rub. For fans of Uzuri, Convextion, Horizontal Ground, etc.

Artist:	CONFORCE
Title:	Machine Conspiracy
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	MEAN 020CD

Meanwhile's second-ever album release presents the work of Netherlands-based Conforce. Opening with an insolent, precise, tightly-wound bass and hats configuration, there's immediate affinity with Carl Craig's myriad shades of impeccable funk. A kinship is established between windy cities, gloom, lakeside living -- a central, if slightly murked connection. A primordial roving bass line wades through the cooled-out density of "Sonar Conversation," a body-speed, electro-funked tussle follows on "Robotic Arm Wrestle": poised, oiled and housed with the swanked machine operative's last moments. "Love Hate" already slayed on 12" and improves on every listen. "First Impression" typifies this album's marriage of fractured emotion with a heart of soulful belief -- the pulsing but still-functional human wreckage and embers that remain after the machines have moved on, if you like. "Subtraction" doffs its cap to Manchester's own emergent noughties sound: fat, sub-bassed, minimally-conjured, slightly-squeezed, acid-hi-tech-business. Superior stuff that wears it well on a drive at dawn through Babylon. "Intimidation" certainly lives up to its title, a sullen sense of clammy fear and whispered malevolence emanates, while the tune builds up a significant dancefloor momentum, deadly funky even within its coldly insistent patterns. "Machine Conspiracy" warms us back to life with a thrumming Basic Channel surge and a rimshot to die for -- one of those stripped dub destroyers you can return to in any mood for guidance. "Rare Education" jams on it like Magic Juan lording it at a mint bar hosted by Lil Louis -- sheer classic vibes. "Stop Hold" ushers us into humid technological tropics where a brief history of the after-future is busy melting down all connections. Machine Conspiracy is a gripping album.

Artist:	INWARD CONTENT
Title:	Inward Content
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	2LP
Price:	$25.50
Catalog #:	MEAN 021LP

Meanwhile unveils Inward Content's highly-anticipated album project for 2011. Recorded specially for the label by a couple of highly-regarded Dutch producers, namely Niels Luinenburg (Delta Funktionen) and Samuel van Dijk (Mohlao) made together over the course of a two-year period. Following a string of dancefloor and critical smashes for the likes of Delsin and Ann Aimee, Niels Luinenberg has found a challenging, like-minded collaborator in Mohlao, who debuted for Meanwhile early in 2009 with his neon-lit Ambrose EP. In some ways, this double pack album could be seen as continuing the label's exploration of the "Leuwarden sound," furthering its fascination with the Netherlands crew. And while comparisons to the Conforce epic Machine Conspiracy set from 2010 are inevitable, Inward Content find themselves preoccupied with another area of techno research entirely: inner and outer space. The clue lies in the intriguing name and title: Inward Content -- somewhere in between the rich double meaning lies what is both concealed and self-evident. This is magnificent techno, no-nonsense, driving four-fours, immaculately swung rhythm. A sound informed by heritage. On "Halogen" you find yourself at home on a rain-streaked night-time drive or all day any day on the largest sound systems. The blatant ascetics of "Austere" are simply destined to detonate off concrete, bounce from brickwork. "Quantum Mechanics" transitions into "Continuum Mechanics," which takes us right around the M�bius strip with a softly-growling bass line rising in intensity, insistent, digging bass drum and ever so gradually, inside some mystical inner space, the hi-hats introduce themselves, a delight restrained for several minutes. As we progress from the haunted disembodied vocal on bass-weighted killer "Gravitational Collapse," all appears to dissolve back into itself into "Dust." All-day dance music at its best. All tracks by Niels Luinenburg and Samuel van Dijk. Mastered by Rashad at Dubplates & Mastering.

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Artist:	BOVILL
Title:	Transfesa EP
Label:	MEANWHILE (UK)
Format:	12"
Price:	$11.00
Catalog #:	MEAN 017EP