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wolf cub cover artLike much of pop culture, house music moves in cycles, different sounds and styles coming in and out of fashion every few years. In the past 12 months, the cycle has resolutely stopped at the sound that Frankie Knuckles and Marshall Jefferson brought to Chicago in the 1980s. Diva vocals, stripped down jack tracks and the TB-303 are all back in style, largely a rebuke of the aggro “electro” sounds that have come to dominate our airwaves. At the pinpoint of this revival is Wolf Cub of Leeds-based crew/label Transmission Collective), who, as a whole, are doing more than just about anyone else to restore a positive ethos into the genre we all know and love. We couldn’t be happier to have Wolf Cub  kick off May right with the latest in The Astral Plane mix series. Here, Wolf Cub puts the vibe first, wringing out as much raw emotion from a number of memorable tracks, both modern and classic, ranging from unforgettable disco sing-alongs to punchy house from producers new and old. Don’t forget to get nostalgic. Stream/download below and hit the jump for the full track list.

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riff raff

Not one to conform to expectations, Harry Fraud’s latest Scion-endorsed heater, “Yacht Lash” is loud, rough, overtly psychedelic and as far from high fanutin’ beats he’s generally produced in the past. It features kindred spirits Earl Sweatshirt and Riff Raff and will appear on Fraud’s upcoming High Time EP (coming next week). For those that don’t understand the gawd Riff Raff, this probably isn’t for you, but it should be. Earl fans will be in for a nice surprise as “Yacht Lash” is one of the toughest tracks we’ve received from Mr. Sweatshirt in quite some time. Stream below and download here.

chance the rapper acid rapI find it hard to believe that Chance The Rapper isn’t signed to a major yet, what with the snazzy media campaign for Acid Rap and the way music journalists have fawned over him in the past six months. Chance’s last tape, #10Day was more-or-less ignored by the majority of the music press (everyone except for Fake Shore Drive at least) until earlier this year when all of a sudden, poof, and he’s the next Kanye/Eminem/*insert tenuous comparison here*. Anyways, my point is that I have my suspicions and don’t be surprised if talk of an album on one of the majors comes out in the next month or two. I haven’t listened to Acid Rap yet (damn you internet speed), but this is one of those tapes that deserves to be disseminated pre-judgement. He is the like, the next Kanye after all.

Download: Chance The Rapper – Acid Rap (Left Click)

royal-t

To say that Royal-T brought the party back into grime might be a slight reach, but the Rinse.Fm pickmaster and producer extraordinaire certainly has certainly brought grime to the party. With another EP (I Know You Want Me) coming soon (May 20) via Rinse’s label arm, it doesn’t appear that his fast and fresh roll will end any time soon. Stream a preview of the EP’s title track below and look out for a pre-order on May 6 that will include a VIP remix of 2012 hit “Inside The Ride”.

kingdom

Next month, Kingdom will release the seven track Vertical XL EP on Fade To Mind, an EP that should further entrench him as one of the most innovative American club music producers. At this point, there isn’t much I can elucidate about the Brooklyn-resident expect for the fact that his latest track, “Corpse” is another huge one. Similar in sound to his remix of Fatima Al Qadiri’s “Corpcore”, “Corpse” is industrial and forboding, but retains the fun dance sound of Kingdom’s earlier ballroom material. Stream below and pre-order Vertical XL here.

L.I.E.S.

At the beginning of this calendar year, a lot of buzz was generated for Ron Morelli’s Long Island Electrical Systems label (L.I.E.S.) through its contributions to what has become known as “left-field house”. And it’s true, L.I.E.S. does churn out very weird and experimental house music, but it’s so much more than that. Operating through a preferred medium of low run white label releases, the label has re instituted a sense of rarity, both through its production methods and its general sound, that has been lacking in the electronic music-sphere. Choice releases from Legowelt, Delroy Edwards and Bookworms have defined the label to this point, but no two L.I.E.S. releases sound the same beyond a general adherence to the lo-fi. Recently, Morelli dropped by Ben UFO’s Hessle Audio slot on Rinse.FM (which should be a staple on your weekly to do list) and laid down an hour of virtually unknown L.I.E.S. tracks. I can’t say I’m familiar with more than one or two of these joints (which happens often during Ben’s slot), but the mix is incredibly engaging regardless, which is easier said than done. The general mood of Morelli’s hour is upbeat, but he doesn’t stick with one sound long enough to really apply any more audial signifiers. Oh and Ben’s first hour isn’t half bad either. We’re blessed to have shows like this pop up on a weekly basis.

goon club allstars

Leeds/London-based label/collective Goon Club Allstars have been the talk of the grime world as of late in no small part because of their willingness to the original tenets of the London-born genre with regional American club sounds. With Samename and Moleskin behind the decks, this mix for Cluster Mag is as prominent of a mission statement as one can expect from a fledgling label (think the Body High FADER mix) and features a bevy of incredible tracks from across the UK/US club spectrum. You’ll find Fade To Mind staples, veteran grime classics and forthcoming edits and originals from Goon Club artists. The mixing is impeccably scatterbrained and rough around the edges, but encapsulates Goon Club’s wide ranging influences and strict adherence to abrasive dancefloor sounds.

FKi

It was only a matter of time before DJ Sliink started entering his productions into the hip hop pool and further enhancing the connection between the club of today and the club of five years ago. Here, Atlanta duo FKi (who produced Jeremih’s “Fuck U All The Time”) wax poetic on dippin’, Gucci Mane memes and phallic projection. File under “tasteful trapEDMstylederp” if you will, but this is more in line with the ratchet tunes of Iamsu!, or the psychonautics of Danny Brown. Because, bitch we all might be.

jerome lol

If you weren’t already tingling at the prospect of Anticon’s remastered re-release of D33J’s Tide Songs, then this will surely get your toes curling. Jerome “LOL” Potter is back once again to add his wholly organic melancholy to D33J’s “Park” and he performs his duties with aplomb, measuring out equal doses of comfortable pop pastiche and forward-thinking melodic structure. I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of this crews cross-pollinating ways. Stream below and via the above link.

lake haze

We know virtually nothing about Lake Haze except for the fact that, next week, he will release a single via the always mysterious Unknown To The Unknown. For all we know, Lake Haze could be a pseudonym of label boss DJ Haus or another of the imprint’s internet savvy producers. What we do know is that “Late Night Trip” is one of the more exciting forays into the realm of experimental dance music we’ve experienced this year and should foment quite a reaction among the technophiles. The song should be taken in alongside its suitable psychedelic visual accompaniment and, as of next Monday (May 6), played out in full form at the weirdest dance party you can put together. Stream/watch below, download courtesy of XLR8R, and/or pre-order the single here.