Lists
February: 18 albums you need to hear this month
Nightmares On Wax, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Nils Frahm and more
Jonny L 'Sawtooth' (XL)
Amid a swirl of 20-year reissues and label jamborees, XL cuts through the noise with an absolute masterstroke. Restoring Jon Lisners’ underground 1997 d’n’b classic is not only a fitting acknowledgement of the LP’s role in the genesis of the tech-step sound, but the rebirth of a thrillingly relevant suite of sci-fi tech arias. If Roni Size’s ‘New Forms’ saw a tentative embrace from the mainstream, ‘Sawtooth’ took d’n’b back down the rabbit hole: it’s icy, minimalist, technical and atmospheric. The seminal twisted drone ‘Piper’ is just the beginning, as cool soul on ‘I Let U’, ambient bliss on ‘Tychonic Cycle’ and various other production experiments combine to create a dark-light d’n’b prototype that captures the essence of the genre’s appeal today. Ewen Cook
9/10
