Growing up the son of Polish immigrants in Berlin Neukölln in the 90s, Somewhen cut his teeth as a producer within the city’s burgeoning rap and R&B scenes, making beats for local MCs and gravitating toward bass-heavy arrangements. At the time, pre-gentrified Neukölln was known as an affordable working class district with high dropout and unemployment rates – paths Somewhen avoided by immersing himself in sound engineering, working construction and, in his spare time, honing his gritty productions.
Following his first club experiences in the German capital in the early 2000s, he was eventually drawn toward the era’s loop-heavy and industrial aesthetic – a sound reflected in 2016’s dark but melodic Null EP for Unterton, as well as previous releases on his own SANA label and Marcel Fengler’s IMF imprint.
Now, on his first solo EP for Ostgut Ton, Somewhen offers his own take on distorted techno, combining squelchy, ultra-saturated drums with chromatic basslines and EBM inflections. “Ryte” (A1) thrusts forward at 133 BPM with a sinister Gabi Delgado-like chant, whipping snares and metallic hats – a kind of set-closing joker. On “Undress” (A2) things slow down significantly, while menacing vocals and melodic synths guide the listener through a hypnotic sonic tunnel.
“AFL” (B1) emerges into ravier territory, with modulating synth figures and bass drones made for the floor. On EP closer “Kilo” Somewhen reintroduces sinister, staccato vocals, minimalistic melody and ominous pads. All in all, 'AFL' is equal portions thrash and groove.
Dissemblance, a one-woman EBM machine from Paris, spikes danceable minimal-synth grooves with gothic gloom and springy bass. Bandcamp New & Notable Dec 4, 2019
Written in a country house in the middle of nowhere, “Suicide Disco” is bleak, driving old-school industrial designed to unsettle. Bandcamp New & Notable Dec 2, 2019
More far-out experimental techno from Geo Rip (Protect-U with Dope Body's John Jones) on this all-original mixtape for Trilogy Tapes. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 26, 2019