The wait is finally over: after six years, Isolée will release his third album on Pampa Records. “Well Spent Youth” showcases Rajko Müller’s talent as an exceptionally visionary producer.

No one sounds like Isolée. Not even close. The name says it all: one-of-a-kind.

Over the last 15 years, Isolée has managed to create a breathtaking trademark sound. Every note seems lovingly scavenged from the depths of his analogue equipment pool, then polished and woven into an abstract, otherworldly, always morphing yet still binding and bouncing sound composition of epic proportions. Well Spent Youth is a chameleon; it assumes different forms depending on the volume it’s played. Tunes like ‘Taktell’, ‘Thirteen Times An Hour’, ‘Hold On’, ‘One Box’ and ‘Celeste’ set the club on fire, quickly spreading the unique, indescribable Isolée vibe, which imbues the often cold, bleak dance floor with a unique, clever colour. The collective joy at being challenged is ubiquitous. People dance to Isolée’s music with their eyes closed – opened every now and then only to exchange knowing nods.

But it’s an equal pleasure to play this album at home on your living room system. Especially when you feel sick and useless, unfit for anything other than the contemplation of your screwed-up life. Throw on the record and let the sound reach out a warm, safe hand, pull you out of the whole damn mess.

In 1998, Isolée achieved a timeless stroke of genius with “Beau Mot Plage” (Playhouse), which enchanted listeners across genres and the world, pushing the boundaries of electronic dance music further than they’d ever been pushed before. This was followed by two highly acclaimed albums on Frankfurt label Playhouse, Rest and We Are Monster, along with numerous remixes for artists like Recloose, Blaze, Franz Ferdinand, Roy Davis Jr., Tiga, Alter Ego and International Pony, to name a few.

Now, Isolée reminds us yet again what electronic music is capable of – crossing boundaries and achieving the psychedelic! Pampa is happy to bring this latest album to the world. Though if we’re honest, the very best part is: we get to be friends with Rajko!

In all of his years of being a certified veteran in the world of techno - from his beginning days in Napoli in the early 90’s to his celebrated status around the world today - Marco Carola never once lost grip on his main priority: letting the music speak for itself. Throughout his leagues of vital releases and endless stream of DJ dates, his focus always steered clear of sensationalized press angles, or ranking up the charts; he chose to instead keep his head down and his passions high. Carola retains a rare sense of integrity, despite being an artist who’s consistently changed the face of techno. He shrugs it off modestly, claiming only to “always try to do something new.”

“Inspiration changes a lot," he tells. "When I was a kid, I was inspired by other people’s productions, and today I’m more inspired by the energy of evolving. I’m really passionate about the progress of music. I listen to all of the promos that I get sent because I look and search for something that’s new to me. For me, music is still all of my passion. I don’t really do many other things - I don’t run a label, and I don’t have people working for me because I don’t want to use up the time that should be spent on music. And I think that’s the reason that I'm always looking for something new: to expand even more.”

It only makes sense that with Marco Carola’s latest album, “Play It Loud!”, his first full artist album in 9 years (since ‘Open System’ on Zenit), he embraces to an entirely new expansion of sounds, concepts and formats. The album is not a collection of individual singles (as unique as each may be). True to form, and an encapsulation of his incomparable expertise, the artist “born as a DJ” opted to blend all 10 previously unreleased tracks to form one tight-knit, seamless mix. In keeping with a typical Carola DJ set - sometimes on 3 decks, always an energy-fueled dancefloor retreat - the album has a divine ability to morph and shift, bleed and punch between beats and grooves so smoothly, it's impossible to hear when one track ends and the other begins.

He explains: “I had the concept of creating an album of new music that’s also a mix CD, because that’s the way I produce. I was born as a DJ, so most of my productions were made for DJs. It wouldn't make sense, to me, to produce an album with single tracks, because those tracks were created to be mixed, in a way. For me, that’s the way it should be with my art form: it’s an expression of everything I am, as a producer and a DJ. I put the energy into what I can do best, and I made this in the way I am; in the way I’m playing and the way I like my music. I made this album to do one thing: to enjoy the passion I have for music, without making any compromises. I was really focusing on what I could create, and Minus gave me a free opportunity to do that with no restriction.”

“Play It Loud!” kicks off with no restrictions, and certainly no hesitation. Jittering, building drums in the album’s 'Intro' quickly construct the heavier bass-laden groove of ‘The Jingle’, a sonic reverie filled with a vast space of percussive layers and stuttering vocals. Sharp rhythms interlock through the divine unfolding of his mix into ‘Magic Tribe’, a playground of drums and colorful beat textures. The groove never loses its hold through the gripping twists and turns of ‘Kimbo’, and liquidly bounces through the shuffling bassline of his masterful ‘Lighthouse’, where around each loop lies a surprising new rhythmic element. ‘The Black Box’ feels exactly as it sounds, teasing and throbbing with dynamic climbs into a soundworld immersed in shadows, leading into the intricate subtleties of breathy vocal hints and hand claps in ‘The Tool’. Melodies slowly emerge and begin to take shape through the aptly titled ‘Suspense’, raising the energy to meet stomping bass weight through the wide-eyed entertainment of ‘One Man Show’. The album, after taking the listener to all corners and colors of the electronic spectrum, kicks into its final chapter on the all-out club shattering closer that will undoubtedly be a mainstay on dancefloors this year, ‘Freak On’. From start to finish, so many layers and beautifully subtle intricacies are hidden and tucked inside of the LP’s many narratives, if you’re not listening close enough - or loud enough - you may miss them completely.

Creating an album his way, and his way only, Marco brings back the art of DJing and the essential elements on which electronic music was founded: energy, atmosphere, passion and, of course, volume.

He agrees: “I called it “Play It Loud!” because I think my music is based a lot on the groove and the bassline. I don't think I ever play a record if it doesn't have a bassline. So I think the way this album makes most sense is when you actually play it on a big soundsystem. Something like an iPod speakers won’t probably make much sense of it. This is just my opinion of how the album should be played: loud! The energy of the music is for that.“

From the streets of Berlin, English born Mark Henning is reunited with Soma Quality Recordings after the critically acclaimed release of his debut album Jupiter Jive in the summer of 2008 to release EP Cupcakes. Having been picked as a nominee for DJ Mags Best of British Awards for Best Breakthrough Act 2009 it is clear Mark has broken out and is a key contributor to the underground scene all over Europe and beyond.

Cupcakes is a deep and grooving techno slab, keeping true to Mark’s style. With subtle and quirky synth stabs and a heavy bass line, the twisted melody and crisp hi-hat hits will be sure to work the crowd. With well respected DJ’s such as Richie Hawtin, Ricardo Villalobos and Loco Dice supporting and regularly playing Mark’s productions this tune is sure to keep the dance floor alive.

Tim Xavier and Camea, the American techno duo, give us their take on the masterful Cupcakes upping the tempo and adding an enchanting and tripped out picked guitar. This gives the track a tougher edge adding to the driving bass and groove of the original.

Up last is the dark and intriguing Last Night. Building through layers of bass and percussion, mark takes this track on a wander through rhythm. Everything works away behind a hovering synth, until a key change breaks and the synth starts to swell. Masterful and infectious use of the filter on this synth grabs the attention of anyone within earshot. This is one of those tracks where you turn and say what the fuck is that?!

The release of this EP and 2011 is certain to expose just how talented Mark really is.

With a fresh dynamic sound that mixes elements of classic pop with an uncanny sense of euphoric dance, Diagram Of The Heart are a unique new British band that cross different genres with effortless ease and are the first signings to the legendary and recently resurrected Deconstruction label.

With a bassline that will knock the unsteady clubber clean of their feet and a slow build that seems to continue for the tracks entirety, Jeremy Olander has set the bar high with his first Phazing release. Massive, soaring synths ensure there are few downward pointing hands in the building, while on the flip label boss Dirty South steps up to deliver a typically polished remix.

You don’t get to tour with Swedish House Mafia and Deadmau5 unless you’ve got some serious talent behind the decks, just as you don’t get to remix the likes of The Prodigy and Lady Gaga unless you know your way around a studio.

Kim Fai has proved time and time again he isn’t lacking in either of these areas, and his latest double-A side releases continues to assert his global dominance. With ‘Era’ and ‘Supernova’ he delivers two epic tracks of screaming synths and heavy bass that are as good as you’ll hear this year… and you’ll be hearing them a lot.

Two fine production outfits are stirring up hype from big trade magazines to the radio with “Prostitute”. As we listen to the pros and cons of falling in love with a prostitute, a low cycling sub bass, punching kick and sharp snares give this spoken word track a deep swinging groove. Visionquest gives us a deep, jazzy vibe before a tripped out bass line and quick snare shots intensify the remix.