Josh Wink - "Are You There" (Ben Klock Remix) [Ovum Recordings]
Twenty years ago, the "are you there" refrain that loops throughout this distressed acid techno classic was lifted from Josh Wink's "answering machine mini-cassette," whatever that is. Even two decades on, the Ben Klock remix will take your head clean off if you're not careful.—Max Pearl (@maxpearl)Abdulla Rashim - "Path Inwards" [Northern Electronics]
I'm coming back to New York this weekend after two months in Berlin, and this time the eight-hour flight doesn't seem so long. If I close my eyes and listen to Abdulla Rashim's new record on loop I can just pretend I'm doing a very short shift at Berghain.—Elissa StolmanHNNY - "Most Really - Pretty Girls Have Pretty Ugly Feet" [Permanent Vacation]
I'm pretty sure you could blast this from speakers in the middle of a Crimean war-zone and watch the entire mass of soldiers drop their shit and join arm-in-arm for an exuberant River Dance. If this doesn't get you over the hump I don't know what will.—David Garber (@DLGarber)Handbraekes - "Bravo" [Boys Noize Records]
I love how Mr. Oizo and Boys Noize play off each other under their Handbraekes alias, turning this track into a clever back-and-forth that retains their signature sounds, rather than melding their distinctively different personalities into some kind of awkward Frankenstein. Hats off, boys.—Michelle Lhooq (@MichelleLhooq)Heavee - "Here We Go" [Teklife]
Following DJ Rashad's sudden, devastating death, the most important move for Chicago footwork right now is to stay in the spotlight and keep pushing forward, continuing on the path paved by the original ambassador. Most of that work will fall on Rashad's own Chicago crew, Teklife. So far, they've been up to task. Last Thursday Teklife's Heavee self-released The Message and it's a masterful continuation of the footwork tradition. "Here We Go" is a standout track, but you should really listen to the whole thing. This is what summer in Chicago should sound like. Bring it to a town near you.—Lauren Schwartzberg (@LaurSchwar)Ellie Goulding - "Beating Heart" (Vindata Remix) [Interscope]
Goulding's songbird charms can wear thin if not grate at times, but Vindata expertly diffuses those pipes through some cheery minitech that somehow reinvents the very definition of a drop along the way. This duo is keeping everyone's interest piqued.—Zel McCarthy (@zelmccarthy)