Maya Shenfeld: Shine On
Embracing modular synths, acoustic instrumentation and superb depth of expression, composer Maya Shenfeld’s sumptuous arrangements make for a hugely compelling listening experience
Office For Personal Development: Funny Business
Office For Personal Development are both a great synthpop band and a mischievous spoof of the more sinister side of motivational corporate culture. Where the line falls is anybody’s guess…
Tangerine Dream: Paradigm Drift
Epic and mesmeric, sensual and influential, ‘Phaedra’ is Tangerine Dream’s definitive masterpiece. It was recorded under trying circumstances, but the album’s sequenced, otherworldly sounds – built on Mellotron and Moog synths – arguably resonate even more today than they did in 1974. To mark its 50th anniversary this month, we tell the story of an enduring cornerstone of progressive electronic music
Tangerine Dream: Dream Ticket
Post-Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream have continued to evolve. Reinvented and revitalised with a contemporary line-up, they are fully embracing the 21st century
Tristan Perich: Pattern Recognition
American composer and sound artist Tristan Perich tells us about using 1-bit electronics, working with organ virtuoso James McVinnie, and the importance of patterns in making music
Yard Act: Utopian Values
A contemplation of success and the power of hope, Yard Act’s much-anticipated second album finds the innovative Leeds outfit in superlative form
Brian Griffin: Trip The Light Fantastic
You will know the iconic work of photographer Brian Griffin from a raft of classic 1980s album sleeves, including the cover of Ultravox’s ‘Vienna’, the inspiration for which lay in the pages of business magazines
Montañera: Flowered Up
Colombian producer Montañera makes deeply hypnotic and emotive music that fully draws you into her sonic world – all rich, expansive electronic textures and warming ambient hues
Fever Ray: Free Radical
Always striving to challenge the status quo, Swedish enigma and visionary Karin Dreijer does things very much on their own terms, artistically and musically. Here, they open up on electropop experimentation, identity politics and the “visceral confection” that is Fever Ray
David Holmes: Back In The Saddle
Big-name DJ, go-to producer, award-winning soundtrack artist… David Holmes needs no introduction. And his first solo album for 15 years – the blistering, euphoric and exquisitely crafted ‘Blind On A Galloping Horse’ – is an absolute pearler