Press Info:
David Flores’ raw, jacking sound refines the best bits of modern production whilst staying true to the core proponents of the Techno genre. His upcoming appearance on the label shows him in great form, channelling classic sounds in an elegant, reduced fashion.
Opener DTW 2 LAX V1 pairs a pitching sequence with dry drums and the careful arrangement of a pro. On the follow up, DTW 2 LAX V2 – Flores swaps out the immediacy of the 909 for a deeper 808 drum kit without any compromise on energy. On the flip The Dawn riffs on Hood-esque polyrhythms with frenetic, driven drum arrangement before closer Minimize offers a moment of psychedelic, heads-down introspection.
Press Info:
Following on from Fuga I, which featured music from new and exciting talents alongside more established players within the genre, the label presents its next incisive entry.
Spread across eight tracks once more, the release continues in the same vein as its predecessor presenting a collection of reduced techno recordings in equal parts atmospheric as they are functional.
As a compilation the release develops gently – JRD’s undulating workout Purple Blades opens proceedings, followed closely by Dutch Stalwart Deniro’s crisp riser Silhouette. Sleek reduction Blush, courtesy of JSSL, continues this soft increase in intensity before ORBE’s stylish, acid driven Motor opens things up properly into peak time territory. Argentinian Pfirter toys with big room kick drums and an outlandish rave lead on Cyclic Model, managing to deliver an occasionally misconceived combination with some considerable style – and Dustin Zahn turns in a compilation highlight with The Organ Trail, an incessant, heads-down workout. The Lady Machine keeps the energy up with Resilience, and Arthur Robert’s closer Illegal Gatherings provides an off-kilter conclusion to the compilation release.
Fuga II provides a continuation of the motifs and constructions explored in the first entry, advancing them to some degree and introducing new characters to Token, whilst maintaining a sense of cohesion within the series itself, and the label as a whole.
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Full Track Streaming:
Arthur Robert – “Illegal Gatherings”
Press Info:
Border One debuts on Token with the Radon EP.
The artist’s first outing on the label gathers up four more floor focused recordings, whilst maintaining the rich, low-sunk atmospherics characteristic of so much of his popular work. Dense and propulsive, the EP majors on leftfield sound design, with synth abstractions underpinned by warm, pulsating polyrhythms.
Opener Tracer sets the tone for the record with sleek, swung sequences sparring and panning off one another. Each component shifts and develops neatly over its run time lending the recording an exciting live element. Split, the EP’s most obvious main room missive, strikes from the first kick drum – classy and well worked, the recording marries tight snare rolls & a tripped out breakdown without losing any sense of style. Nuclide opens the B side, and continues in this same, effervescent vein – channelling pure peak time energy. Title track Radon closes the EP – a stunning exercise in purist techno that places its emphasis on a single repetition to great effect, buoying the work with occasional flourishes that serve to propel the track on towards its end. A top tier release from a certified talent within the contemporary Techno genre.
05) Planetary Assault Systems The 808 Track (Parts 1 and 2)
06) James Ruskin No Trace
07) Surgeon Fixed Action Pattern
08) Inigo Kennedy Arcing
09) Karenn Pace Yourself
Press Info:
It was early 2007 when Inigo Kennedy inaugurated Token. Since that Identify Yourself 12” the Belgian label has gone from strength to strength, integrating both Kennedy and Ashley Burchett, aka Ø [Phase], into becoming integral cogs in the Token machine. In between releases by Grovskopa, Oscar Mulero and Go Hiyama, both Ø [Phase] and Inigo Kennedy dominated Token’s output, but it wasn’t until Burchett’s watershed Binary Opposition that Token received the shower of praise it deserved. Following this, label founder Kr!z issued three remix 12”s of that release which, including Token regulars, took in a profound cast of producers to reprocess “Binary Opposition” by the way of Sigha, Peter Van Hoesen, Planetary Assault Systems and Ben Klock. It was here Token stamped their authority on contemporary techno.
Since then Token has grown exponentially, bringing into their fold artists like Xhin, Mark Broom and Rødhåd, while Ctrls, formally one half of Northern Structures, has seen his solo career flourish on Token with the release of five records to date, and he joins Inigo Kennedy and Ø [Phase] as a label stalwart.Additionally this year, Orphx and Ancient Methods debuted their relentless Eschaton collaboration on Token, and Christian Wünsch’s Spherical Coordinates dalliance with Oscar Mulero has gained even more momentum with a second release called Kinematics Equations. Now, seven years after that debut Kennedy record, Token present Aphelion, a nine-track CD and triple vinyl grandstand of new and exclusive material from label regulars and like-minded artists whom Token founder Kr!z specifically commissioned for this milestone release.
The penultimate record before Aphelion was a second Token 12” by Rødhåd, another artist adding to the cultivation of the label’s sound and roster, and for this compilation the Berliner supplies his cosmically inspired “Haumea”. Joining the Dystopian founder on Aphelion are three of the UK’s most influential techno artists: Surgeon, James Ruskin and Luke Slater under his Planetary Assault Systems alias who provide Token with solo material for the first time after previously appearing on the imprint in remix form. Entirely new names to grace the label via Aphelion include Stroboscopic Artefacts founder Lucy, and Blawan and Pariah’s Karenn project, while label faithfuls Inigo Kennedy, Ø [Phase] and Ctrls naturally commit three Token defining productions.
Casting one’s eye over Token’s back catalogue and it’s clear to see the label is a staunch advocate of absolute techno, remaining steadfast in issuing quality material that remains true to classic strands of the genre regardless of its popularity flux. In that respect, Aphelion – a word used to describe the point in orbit when a planet or comet is farthest from the sun – provides a simple analogy that the magnetic force of Token, unfazed by the shadows cast by popular opinion, will proudly shine light on their artists and given styles.
“We started in an era where our genre was very unpopular,” Kr!z explains. “And in the end that seemed a big advantage for us, because when everyone was giving up, we started our mission.” Regularly hosting label nights in prominent clubs around the world, Token has become a label supported by a wide-ranging body of artists like Âme and Ben Klock to Efdemin, Truss and Ancient Methods. With the label now branching out into album and compilation territory, Token’s duty to techno may not yet be accomplished, but it’s been a job well done.
“First, time will tumble and then the earth. The clouds begin to race, the earth boils over; this is the sign. This is the beginning of the end”
Those who are familiar with their techno will know that the genre doesn’t get much more intense than it does on the music of Orphx and Ancient Methods. The former are Canadian duo Richard Oddie and Christie Sealey, whose 20 odd years of experience has seen them release an extensive catalogue of albums, cassettes and EPs, most notably for Adam X’s Sonic Groove label. Formerly a two piece act, Ancient Methods meanwhile is the current solo concern of a Berlin-based artist who has worked alongside Adam X, Kareem, Regis and whose music is similarly relentless in tone.
The three artists unite now under the name Eschaton for this four track EP on Token.
