Best Tracks of 2013: 85-26

While making this list, I couldn’t help but dwell on how inevitably arbitrary the order of year-end lists are. There are a number of problems facing a music site who wishes to post year-end lists, and the roundup of best songs poses more problems than any other. While albums and labels can be compared by their overall coherence and power, short tracks are often incomparable – you might know your favourite twenty songs of the year, but how do you choose between them? Then there are external pressures: not wanting to list the same tunes as other sites, while not wanting to rock the boat so much that your critical opinion is devalued. More to the point – the songs themselves, even in a niche such as dance music, are so different that it seems an utterly pointless task to put them in any sort of order. Exactly how does one decide if x disco track is better than y techno track, when there are so few (if any) points of comparison: the tracks are not trying to do the same thing, so how can they be compared?

With what criteria do we even judge the quality of a track? There are certain songs I love but aren’t in any way mould-breaking, while others I’m not that fond of but greatly respect as innovative pieces of music. In the world of quasi-objective music criticism a problem becomes clear when there's conflict between the music you like and the music you respect. Ultimately, White Noise has never been a review site which has claimed a strong degree of objectivity, and so when it came down to those final choices, I just listened to both tracks and picked which one I liked more – no rationalisation, no heed paid to the prevailing schools of taste or ‘cool’, just the tracks that made me feel warm inside and set my mind/ pulse racing.

The fact is, the world of journalism, particularly online, relies entirely on readers. And for whatever reason (as the existence of buzzfeed will testify), people prefer reading ranked lists to general selections. Is your eye more drawn to a countdown of the year’s best, 10-1, or to an unordered list of 10 highlights? Most would say the former, and so, while picking the best between Pev, Tessela and Levon Vincent may torture me like some sort of clubland Sophie’s choice, I’m gonna give it my best shot.

The point to be made here, before we embark upon this list, is that all of these tracks are really, really great. The top 25 or so are even mindblowing. They probably don’t represent even a fraction of the great music that came out this year, but they’re certainly all more than worthy of your time. So with the waffle out of the way, let’s get to the tunes.

85: Cuthead – Deep Shadows

84: Orson Wells – Leaving

83: Marquis Hawkes - Get Yo Ass Off My Grass [EP Review]

82: Moomin – Au Bord De La Mer

81: Francis Inferno Orchestra – Take No Time [EP Review]

80: Zomby – Memories [LP Review]

79: Dense & Pika – Colt

78: Laszlo Dancehall – Gave Up [EP Review]

77: DJ Fett Burger & DJ Speckgurtel – Speckbass

76: Huerco S. – Apheleia’s Theme

75: Perseus Traxx – Gorgon

74: Les Level – Fever Baby

73: Joy Orbison – BRTHDTT! [LP Review]

72: Headless Ghost – Basik Fire [EP Review]

71: Pev & Kowton – Raw Code

70: Benjamin Damage – 010x [LP Review]

69: R-Zone – Romijn Ravine [EP Review]

68: Tiger & Woods – Golden Bear

67: Head High – Burning (Keep Calm Mix) [EP Review]

66: Kyle Hall – Crushed [LP Review]

65: Deadboy – Nova [EP Review]

64: Motor City Drum Ensemble – Send A Prayer Pt. 2 [EP Review]

63: Machinedrum – Eyesdontlie [LP Review]

62: Objekt – Agnes Demise [EP Review]

61: Four Tet – For These Times [LP Review]

60: Tuff Sherm – Burglar Loops

59: Jon Hopkins – Breathe This Air [LP Review]

58: Randomer – Bring

57: Lucretio – Want

56: HNNY – Boy

55: Tessela – Horizon [EP Review]

54: MGUN – Mask

53: Innershades – Nina At The Boiler Room [EP Review]

52: Voiski – From White To Red [EP Review]

51: Midland – Drumtrak [EP Review]

50: Trevino – Twelve

 

Since his conversion to the church of 4/4, Trevino’s take-no-prisoners techno has proved a steady source of club-tooled grooves. On Twelve from his latest EP for 3024, he let loose one of his darkest yet, with momentum to spare and a dangerous piano breakdown.

49: D’Marc Cantu – Size & Shape

This weird and wonderful highlight from Cantu’s Alternate Frequency EP was an oddball joy, with an unexpectedly catchy vocal joining jittery drum machines for a unique ride. The track really takes off in the second half as a more melancholic chord sequence joins the fray, sure to spice up any set.

48: Terekke – Amaze

 

No one does baked quite like L.I.E.S.’ wonderful Terekke. The atmosphere is deep and soupy, the light rustle of percussion and distant synth burbles accompanying a dubbed, ghostly vocal. One for the after-hours.

47: Stingray313 – NKKtwo_2

Detroit’s superb electro-vet DJ Stingray came out on top with this top scifi trip, where slow synth washes counterpoint razor-quick percussion and skittering melodies.

46: Martyn – Oceania [EP Review]

The two house tracks on Martyn’s Newspeak EP were wonderful, but in a year where good ‘bass music’ was in cruelly short supply, Oceania was one of the few miracles. The glittering melodies evoke space-age cities and sunlit superhighways, while the growling bassline and ricocheting percussion will keep feet skipping across the ‘floor.

45: Fuewa – Blhok [EP Review]

Fuewa’s lovely debut EP was an masterful exercise in atmosphere, and nowhere was this clearer than on opener Blhok, where a blissful synth is built over ramshackle percussion and subtle windchimes.

44: Funkinevil – Ignorant (Igno) [EP Review]

Kyle Hall and Funkineven made one of the year’s most striking club tracks in the form of slow-jam Igno, a low-slung roller whose appeal lay in its skeletal structure and gallons of funk.

43: Borrowed Identity – Leave Your Life

The first release on DVS1’s new Mistress imprint was a great success, and the pick of the bunch was this eyes-down roller of the highest calibre. Leave Your Life is a consuming track, taking you deep inside to commune with its heavweight groove.

42: DjRUM – Honey [LP Review]

Until the last minute, Thankyou was going to be the track that represented DjRum’s wonderful Seven Lies album on this list. But it was Honey’s sense of menace which won us over, its vocals beautifully processed, its beats lurching and destructive. DjRum’s attention to structure is also evident in spades, as a dreamy outro makes this more song than track.

41: Stephen Encinas – Disco Illusion

Though it was recorded in 1979, we couldn’t keep this recent reissue of our list. Sultry vocals and cosmic melodies take this disco trip to the next level, the lyrics lifting you into the sky while the unadulterated funk keeps feet rooted to the dancefloor.

40: Raw M.T. – Walkman Is Dead [EP Review]

This track is analog techno at its finest: deep and inviting, made up of few perfectly-tuned elements, cresting at a series of highlights: the final emergence of that threatening acid line, or the penetrating interruption of those metallic snaps. Top notch 5am material.

39: Murat Tepeli – Workinstrugglin

Tepeli’s homage to man’s struggle is an absolute epic, evolving over eleven minutes with precision and feeling, subtle melodies and a simple bassline making for a stark, involving experience. You can be sure this one will still sound great ten years from now.

38: The Field – No. No… [LP Review]

Listen to a clip here

The track whose creation solved Axel Willner’s creative block is a deeply emotive affair, as that plaintive one-word vocal stretches off into an immense, swampy darkness, its humanity stolen as the track reaches its haunting climax.

37: Dark Sky – In Brackets [EP Review]

This softened offering from the reliable Dark Sky was unfairly slept on this year, but it has all the makings of a winner: pretty synth notes play across a stripped, organic beat pattern, while the payoff when the beat clicks back into place after the long, emotional breakdown was one of our favourite musical moments this year.

36: SSOL – Untitled A1

This disco number from Soundstream has all the ingredients of an average disco/house edit: cooing vocals, funky riffs and snapping drums. But there’s something else: a special quality to this edit, whether it’s the energy of those live-sound drums or the smart instrumental editing, which raises SSOL’s cut high above your average filter-disco.

35: L-Vis 1990 – Ballad 4D [EP Review]

Night Slugs label-head L-Vis can be a frustratingly inconsistent producer, but his Ballads EP turned out to be NS’ unexpected highlight of 2013. Ballad 4D was a particular triumph: as submarine bass swipes resonate beneath a stark field of clicks and kicks, it’s an alarming, vital affair.

34: White Material – Put On [EP Review]

Galcher Lustwerk’s Tape 22 EP certainly received a lot of attention this year, but it was his contribution to WM’s collaborative EP that really had us amazed. This wonderfully simple slice of house creates an enveloping atmosphere with just a few elements, Lustwerk’s recognisable vocals adding a sultry atmosphere to the track’s languid bump.

33: Anthony Naples – Faceless

Really, any of the tracks from Naples’ ace Ill Still EP could have placed highly on this list. But for us it was Faceless’ curious nostalgia that won us over: sweet yet melancholy, it constructs a strong groove that only strengthens over whirring synths and metronome woodblocks.

32: Dopplereffekt – Gene Silencing [EP Review]

Gerald Donald’s triumphant return to the scene was crystallised on Gene Silencing, a seething slice of electro dripping with menace and scifi trappings, its tunnelling bass hits and glistening arpeggios whisking us away to distant worlds.

31: Red 7 – I Lost My Shoes On Acid

One of the year’s most exciting white labels was an odd combination indeed: classic vocals set over a taut acid workout: even a painfully old-fashioned hip hop verse couldn’t damage its blissful appeal.

30: Mix Mup – After The Job [EP Review]

Mix Mup couldn’t have chosen a better vocal to kick off his brilliant EP on Hinge Finger. Tina Turner’s promise of a ‘nice and rough’ sound is exactly what we’re given, a lumbering bassline and click-clack percussion creating an unsettling yet seductive world. The late entry of a searing synth line is Mix Mup’s victory lap, perfecting the track’s threatening groove.  

29: ∆ ∆ - You [EP Review]

There’s something indescribable about You’s impact. The vocal is loving yet plaintive, the melody hesitant yet catchy, the stripped drum workout groovy yet not explicitly for the dancefloor. It’s hard to pinpoint just what makes this track stand out, but maybe that curious appeal is its real strength. Either way, it’s been heavily played at WNHQ for almost a year now, and that counts for a whole lot.

28: Jon Hopkins – Open Eye Signal [LP Review]

The lead single from Hopkins’ phenomenal Immunity LP was widescreen techno at its most vital. Every sonic element feels alive: breathing, growing, contorting, emphasising Hopkins’ unique ability to make music that sounds huge without sacrificing subtlety or detail.

27: First Choice– Love Thang (Genius Of Time Rework) 

It’s always dangerous to remix a classic, but Aniara staple Genius Of Time struck gold with this fantastic remix of First Choice. Chilled disco roller gives way to stomping house seduction, before a showstopping bassline brings the funk in inimitable style. If you ever wanted a whole party in a song this is it: and it’s exactly the sort of party we’d want to get invited to.

26: Cliff Lothar – Dro Friday [EP Review]

The Hague’s longstanding electro/italo outpost Viewlexx showed they can still pick out new talent like the best of them on this superb EP from the shadowy Cliff Lothar (who’s next up on Skudge White). Dro Friday was our pick of the lot: a creeping house roller whose melodic and atmospheric intricacy would amaze even if it weren’t for the fantastic vocals that lend this club-track a song-like structure and appeal.

 Join us for the countdown of 25-1 tomorrow!

Best of 2013:

* Best Labels of 2013

* Best EPs of 2013
* Best Tracks: 85-26
* Best Tracks: 25-1

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April Roundup 2013 & Hiatus

Another month of excellent music is over. White Noise collects our favourite April releases (and a couple that slipped through the nets last month) in a monthly roundup.

In other news, my university finals are coming up and as a result White Noise will be taking a hiatus until the end of May. Expect a return to usual reviews in June, including some new exciting features and our second round of big summer playlists. For now, the cream of April's crop, and you can keep up to date on the latest music through the White Noise Facebook page.

Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Omar S - The Shit Baby [LP Review]

Murat Tepeli - Forever (Prosumer's Hold Me Touch Me Mix)

Divvorce - E3 [EP Review]

Arkist - 23 Summers [EP Review]

Joy O - Donell

Citizen - So Submissive

Bicep - Rise [EP Review]

Adalberto - In Your Face

Lorca - Have I Told You [EP Review]

Koreless - Sun

L-Vis 1990 - Ballad 4D [EP Review]

Jon Hopkins - Open Eye Signal

Pev - Livity [EP Review]

Kode9 - Xingfu Lu

Demdike Stare - Primitive Equations

DjRum - Honey [LP Review]

Not satisfied? Check out our Roundup archives:

March 2013

February 2013

January 2013

November 2012

October 2012

September 2012

August 2012

June / July 2012

May 2012

April 2012

March 2012

February 2012

January 2012

Best of 2011 Playlist

L-Vis 1990 – Ballads

Label: Night Slugs

L-Vis 1990 is a slippery one to pin down. Alongside helming Night Slugs, one of the UK’s key tastemaking labels, James Connolly has moved from early grime-inflected excursions to full-blown pop crossover on his divisive 2011 album. More recently Connolly has locked into a raw, analog sound on EPs for Clone and Night Slugs on their Club Constructions series. It’s been an inconsistent ride, but the young producer has shown himself capable of real brilliance, and happily the Ballads EP signals a welcome return to form, mixing guttural sonics and processed sheen to ferocious effect.

We join Connolly on mind-bending opener Ballad 4D, which has been doing the rounds for a while. Ballad hones in on the dark, polished playfulness on which Night Slugs built their name. It’s a stark piece, with subtle percussive twitches setting the scene for a brain-melting bass throb that’s sure to shake up the ‘floor. While the arrangement is undeniably minimal, the attention paid to space and sonic texture makes for a taut, thrilling ride. Second cut Not Mad was last heard on the label’s latest Allstars compilation, and sounds just as good as it did then. The future-funk ambience offers a nod to label-mate Jam City, as insistent handclaps set a steady pace which is penetrated by iridescent synths, an intrusive tumbling bassline and a prominent cowbell. It’s an intoxicating combination: showing L-Vis at his best; disorientating, thrilling, and utterly in control.

Connolly goes down a moodier path for closer Signal, where a vast space is created through a whirring scifi wash and the deepest sub-bass resonances. The cavernous space is adorned by an array of clever percussive accents and a funky bass bounce, adding an edge of play to the monochrome construction. Connoly’s unique awareness of space, detail and hints of a keen pop sensibility means that Ballads easily stands among the producer’s best work. As well as pushing sonic boundaries, it all never sounds anything less than quintessential Night Slugs, which I’m sure most will agree is a very good thing indeed.

8/10

Read this review in context at Inverted Audio

November Roundup

You know the drill by now, all of November's top tunes in a tasty Youtube playlist. Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Chesus - Goodfoot feat. Didz & The Organ Grinder
Jessie Ware - No To Love (George Fitzgerald Remix)

Ejeca - Horizon

Swindle - Mischief

Gerry Read - Be Pushin (She)

Artifact - Turtle Flight (October release)

Ballistiq Beats & Jamakabi - Concrete Jungle (Yardman Riddim)

MPIA3 - Ridge Way

Also, here are some links to some of our top mixes from the internet and the real world in November:

JETS Fact Mix

October's RA mix

L-Vis 1990's NSMix

T. Williams' Rinse Mix

L-Vis 1990 – Neon Dreams

Forever You (EP Version)

Lost In Love

James Connolly’s rise to dance importance has been close to meteoric, championing the club night cum label Night Slugs all the way to the top. Night Slugs has spent the last year releasing some of the most interesting and forward-thinking dance singles around, but Connolly stated early on that his debut album as L-Vis 1990 was going to be different. Signed to a sub-imprint of Island, aimed at telling the story of the last year of his life, here he has created a homage to digital pop that sounds like a cleaned up 90s French disco more than anything else. It raises the complex question of throwback that has been bandied around a lot recently: to what extent are you creating new music (i.e. drawing influences from the past), and to what extent are you merely lazily rehashing what has come before? The answer will differ from artist to artist, but it’s not the only uncomfortable question that this album raises.

Connolly is clearly a talented producer, as can be heard with ease in the woozily brilliant Forever You (included on an EP earlier this year) which could become a crossover hit if given the chance. Sadly, it’s the only track that can verifiably be called excellent on this album, and it came out almost a year ago. Elsewhere the largely instrumental tracks shine more than anything else; such as The Beach, a dark and pacey number with a sugary synth-pop tinge. He hits on another winner with the tight Illusions, in which hollow beats underpin meaty bass and a superb breakdown. The problem here is consistency, for every Beach there’s an overworked One More Day, and although the anaesthetized vocals suit the sparse and broody Play It Cool to a T, the exact same over-synthetic feel is the downfall of the too-clean Shy Light and make tracks like Feel The Void verge on self-parodic cheese.

The cheese factor also leads to the downfall of more vocal-heavy tracks, for example the inane lyrics of Lost In Love distract from its simple, clean charms. Likewise the overtly cinematic opener Vague Flashes is rendered ludicrous by the terrible writing (“Vague flashes that trickle over the galaxies for aeons / rapid eye movements laced in memories with neon”). The whole album makes you wonder why a greater effort wasn’t made to find more soulful and interesting vocalists, and why Connolly couldn’t pick between the underground and the pop mainstream, because he ends up fluttering weightlessly between the two: nowhere near enough grit for the underground and too restrained for the pop crowd.

Despite these problems, there are a few things that I think most reviewers have overlooked to the credit of this LP. The sound quality is lovely with warm honeyed synths, and the tracks are quite well sequenced and mixed together to allow for a diverse and easy listen. Another thought that occurs to me is that in essentially creating a digital pop/ disco throwback fusion, L-Vis is slightly ahead of the current trend. Dance music is slowing down now, and is now more than ever heavily recalling the enormous genres of the past, such as acid house, electro and disco. In this respect Connolly is looking to the future, but unfortunately a fair amount of these tracks fall more on the side of cheap euro-trash disco than the best of the genre. The issue that really surfaces is while a lot of contemporary producers look to past genres for inspiration, this album takes French electro and doesn’t really add anything new to the formula whatsoever, leaving most of the tracks sounding clean but dated. When they do sound fresh, such as on the meaty and intense Cruisin, it sounds good but not good enough to pick L-Vis out of the crowd.

It’ll be clear to anyone with a set of ears that this is nothing like any of Night Slugs’ output to date. And that’s okay, Connolly has admirably gone out to try and do something different. The problem is, this LP reaches towards pop, it reaches towards dance, it reaches towards throwback, but it doesn’t quite do any of these things consistently well enough to give it any sort of clear appeal. I don’t think Neon Dreams deserves the slating it’s critically received, because it’s an okay album. Some of it is even good, but that’s not what you expect from the head of one of the most interesting and important dance labels out there.

6/10