February: Six artists you need to check out this month

Dusseldorf’s DJ Normal 4 is leaving his own stamp on a city with a rich history of electronic music that stretches all the way back to Kraftwerk. He contrasts grainy, lo-fi aesthetics with cosmic sensibilities, and also dips into hardcore for further inspiration. His pairing of crunchy house with old-skool breaks and bleeps has featured on Klasse Wrecks, Brothers From Different Mothers and Aiwo Records, the label he currently helps run.

‘Warriors’ is out now on 777 Recordings

Be Svendsen’s warm take on techno made him a staple at the psychedelic hippie party WooMooN last summer. The Danish producer captivated crowds in the likes of Tulum, Mexico and Ibiza, where the tech-house tribal plod of ‘Andromeda’ became a proven White Isle anthem. After picking up support from Pete Tong, Damian Lazarus and Black Coffee, he’s now working on an album inspired by both spaghetti westerns and tribal rhythms.

‘Andromeda’ is out now via Music For Dreams

South London’s EIVIE has emerged seemingly fully formed: in addition to her arsenal of tech-funk bangers, she’s also got a concept-driven label, Audio Assassins, which tells the story of Twobit City through sonic avatars. She’s a wizard in the studio and the office, a rare explosion of filthy basslines and business savvy – just listen to the slamming snares of ‘Drone’ and tell us you’re not excited.

The Audio Assassins launch event, including EIVIE’s DJ debut, takes place in April

Nilüfer Yanya is the freshest soul star coming out of London we’ve heard in a long time. The 22 year-old’s stripped back, melancholia-drenched neo-soul has a lot in common with BADBADNOTGOOD collaborator Charlotte Day Wilson’s work – or King Krule’s, but with his gruff vocals replaced by her sultry drawl. She’s been on tour with The xx and got a nod from the BBC Sound Of 2018 poll, so don’t be surprised if she’s soon filling the big halls and being name-dropped by your mum.

Nilüfer Yanya’s ‘Do You Like Pain?’ EP is out on Feb 9

[Photo credit: Ronan Mckenzie]

Fantastic Man’s reputation got a well-deserved boost last year, after Aphex Twin started banging out his ‘Rhythm Algorithm’ EP during some headlining festival slots. The Australian’s acid-tinged release – which dropped on Superconscious Records, the label he runs with Francis Inferno Orchestra – is full of the moody textures that have defined his productions for Let’s Play House, Antinote and Love On The Rocks. Next up: nostalgic rave tracks via his PMTC project.

Fantastic Man pres PMTC ‘PMTC’ is out now

Robin Ordell has earned a reputation for laying down varied and vital sets in a range of industrial spaces as a Half Baked resident, and he’s also played cult clubs such as Berlin’s Club der Visionaere. As a producer, he’s released on Eklo and Discobar, as well as Half Baked’s own in-house operation. He makes loopy and hypnotic minimal house and techno bolstered by bumping rubbery drums, with a whole ecosystem of little synthetic details colouring the grooves.

Robin Ordell’s ‘Lost In Misty Byways’ is out on Discobar

[Photo credit: Yonathan Baraki]