Being a label – hell, being a human – can feel pretty virtual these days. So let’s lean into that, huh? Face exploded – filter, check. Face melted – music, yes.
DJ Kero at Detroit Underground just keeps glitching and deconstructing people, so it’s only fitting that he’s turned to augmented reality and face filters.
And yes, please wear real masks in real life. Now the science is far clearer that they help, plus if you have any qualms, just imagine you’re cool and Asian. (Especially as it turns out they weren’t just trying to look cool, but also worked out that it helps keep people around you healthy.) DU sells one of those; if you, uh, fancy a CDM design, let me know!
For your virtual self, you can just grab the filter with your Instagram mobile client pointed at Kero’s profile or DU’s. Everything is tagged (as should you) with #DUSLF –
Now that I have your attention, as usual, you can just tune into the full Detroit Underground feed and be guaranteed fresh sounds. So while part of what makes DU is Kero’s ferocious, obsessive visual taste, it kind of works blindfolded, too.
There’s Daniel Troberg (formerly of Elektron fame) with an intricately produced set of isolation grooves:
Virtuoso Berlin synthesist Jessica Kert has some out-of-this-world explorations on modular, dark and alien:
Pounding dystopian future-horror is the order of the day from this brilliant Oliver Dodd:
Crisp, oddball, eccentric sonic sculptures stutter and shine on the new XZICD, which features transhumanist bio grooves, basically. It’s produced in “euclidean and odd geometry shaped sequencers, while melodies and harmonies were mostly driven by probabilistic AI programs. “
Hey, we should really have a new name for “IDM” when the intelligence is machine intelligence. MiDM?
The cover for Syntax Error suggests something similar to the XZICD, but instead the Barcelona-based artist weaves spacious, chilly ambient:
The label has Detroit in the name, so let’s finish in Detroit with Trafficca. The brief, humble description says that these were made quickly “to show a decent range between my tough beats and weird melodies.”
Well, consider it shown. Damn.