Tag: Abdul Raeva

Top 20 albums of 2022: #’s 15 – 11

We’re getting close to the top half of the list. Who’s in the top 15?

#15: Psymon Spine – Charismatic Mutations

This album is a full remix record of Psymon Spine‘s Charismatic Megafauna. There isn’t a bad remix on the whole record, which isn’t easy to pull off.

#14: Lu.Re – Ruminate

Another excellent EP that came out this year (and there were several). Lu.Re’s EP of house music mixed with a bit of dark wave was an EP that made me sit up and think, “Oh, I need more of this.”

#13: Abdul Raeva – Atlas Corporation

Seriously, there was a ton of great electro and house music released last year. I’m sure I barely heard the tip of the iceberg, and yet there were great finds like this EP from Abdul Raeva that hits heavy and with undeniable grooves.

#12: Frayle – Skin & Sorrow

It wouldn’t be a “best of the year” list for me without some doom metal, and Frayle‘s newest album fits the bill. Described to me as “Black Sabbath meets Portishead,” I knew I was going to like it. Imagine the ghost of a witch fronting a doom band, and you’ll get the idea.

#11: Goat – Oh Death

As weird and wild as the cover depicts, Goat‘s new album covers death, transcendence, and sex – three of their favorite topics – and was a great return for them. Their psychedelic voodoo sound was sorely missed.

Who makes it in to the top half of my best records of the year? Tune in tomorrow!

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Abdul Raeva – Atlas Corporation

Atlas Corporation is a killer techno-house EP from Abdul Raeva. The Duality Tax label seems to have a stellar batting average when it comes to finding talented DJs and producers and releasing material from them.

Made up of Steffan Todorović and Jonas Arro, Abdul Raeva blends house music with both psychedelic and even prog-rock elements to make a scintillating sound. The title track immediately gives you the sense that your normal, everyday life is about to break into an action film sequence at any moment. “Death Race” is an instant body-mover with its thick bass thumps and psychedelic synth chords.

The Andy Garvey remix of “Death Race” starts off the second half of the EP with a spooky intro that builds into something that sounds like a beatboxing robot working in an underground nightclub. I love how the EP ends with a mellower cut – “Guardian of the Vault.” It’s a sultry, almost tropical jam.

It’s one of the better house / techno records I’ve heard this year.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Harbour Music Society.]