Mark Henning - Jupiter Jive

This one might take a couple listens to get into, even for those who do cream themselves for minimal. Jupiter Jive disappoints by failing to recognise its own role: it's too fast to be classed as tech-ambient and too slow to be an out-an-out club album. A stand out track is hard to pick on the first listen. It’s well produced, and Henning uses some interesting smoke-esque’reverse delay samples. After a brief opening rant, Alamaha913 starts it off with some swing-time tech house and the album then progresses through one trippy affair after another. Some hit, some miss and the album culminates in particularly dark territory. Stash is eery, conjuring the feel of the title's secretive cave, and benefits from a stonker of a breakdown. Tracks like Moody Bastard and I Lost My Brain at Winchout have enough freaky funk to keep a floor moving when knocked up a couple of bpm. It’ll suit Soma fans that like to keep their sets on the minimal house side of things.