July: 8 electro releases you have to hear this month

Squane & Rees 'Illuminating' (Jelly Bean Farm)

Jelly Bean Farm co-founders Squane & Rees have created quite a cult following with bass-laden productions that draw from a range of varied influences including techno, dubstep, electro and UK bass. Their latest four-track EP is a heady blend of layered atmospherics, driving drums, heaving sub frequencies and robotic vocal snippets. ‘Garble’ sets the early pace as sparse rhythms entwine with pulsing basslines, before bringing all the different elements together for a complex yet minimal main drive. ‘Shards’ leans a bit more towards the bass music end of the spectrum with a dash of electro-techno thrown in for good measure. The title track is more traditional sounding, but it’s still hard to untangle its influences as the duo weave a clever fusion of timbres ranging from Italo to synthwave. On ‘Automotonic’ a contorting bassline rolls over spiked percussion and cyborgian leads, while closer ‘Aphotic’ is a beatless palette cleanser.

7/10