>>>>>>>best of 2011<<<<<<<
robag wruhme / thora vukk / pampa
On Thora Vukk, Wruhme demonstrates his superior craftsmanship as a producer as he delicately combines organic field recordings and sparse, contemporary, classical orchestration with micro-house beats. Robag Wruhme will win your heart with his sentimental, mature grooves and sophistication.
maceo plex / life index / crosstown rebels
Since 1993, American producer Maetrik (aka Eric Estornel) has been predominately known for his intricate, machine-driven techno. On Life Index he redefines himself as Maceo Plex, combining his superb craftsmanship with a warmer, more soulful edge. 
andy stott / passed me by + we stay together / modern love
Manchester based producer Andy Stott masterfully pushes the limits with his latest releases. Slowed down beats, heavy weighted reverb with maximum bass frequencies take you on the ultimate deep voyage. Unbelievable! Stott’s most impressive work to date.
tiger & woods / through the green / running back
The mysterious Tiger & Woods create looping disco funk party tracks by extracting cleverly chosen samples from forgotten disco classics and reediting them into new, extended, infectious dance floor grooves.
margaret dygas / margaret dygas / perlon
Berlin-based producer Margaret Dygas releases her exceptionally brilliant mini-album on the notable Perlon label. On this self-titled release, Dygas demonstrates her outstanding mastery of modern, texturally mesmerizing, abstract, deep tech-house.
nicolas jaar / space is only noise / circus company
The Chilean-born New Yorker, Nicolas Jaar fuses and reinvents house, downtempo and jazz to create warm unconventional spatial-paced grooves for the ultimate execution.
james blake / james blake / atlas recordings
British based composer James Blake creates beautiful post-dubstep, ultra-modern, R&B electronica with spatial stunning details and melodic harmonies setting him apart from all other producers. 
emanuele errante / time elapsing handheld / karaoke kalk
Emanuele Errante's compositions flow effortlessly, as he brilliantly combines minimal elements of guitar, harp and piano with lush, swelling, synthesized ambience and fuzzy, digitized effects.
martin schulte / treasure / lantern
Young Russian producer Martin Schulte releases Treasure, his eighth full-length release in five years on Japanese label Lantern. Schulte delivers the best in deep, immersive dub-inspired techno intertwined with beautiful textural ambient layers.
nils frahm / felt / erased tapes
Nils Frahm's will win your heart with his delicate piano compositions. The album is literally named after the fabric he used to muffle his piano strings from disturbing his neighbours. Recorded using a microphone, Frahm captures warm variable tones with white noise and light breathing for an overall astonishing rich organic spectrum of layering acoustics. 
elektro guzzi / parquet / macro
Founded in 2004, Elektro Guzzi creates innovative techno compositions using only guitar, bass and drums. When on stage they look like an average rock band but their tightly woven executions and mechanical techniques deliver astonishing trance-inducing dance rhythms. 
moomin / the story about you / smallville
German producer Moomin (aka Sebastian Genz) presents his debut album, The Story About You on Smallville. Comparable to Christopher Rau, Moomin creates sophisticated minimal house with lush sentimental grooving journeys equaling supreme mind bliss.
bvdub / resistance is beautiful / darla
On Resistance Is Beautiful, San Francisco’s bvdub (aka Brock van Wey) delivers more beat-driven tracks without ever stemming away from his original signature sound. Gorgeous ambient soundscapes propelled forward by chanting vocals, organic field recordings and gritty rhythms.
azari & iii / azari & iii / turbo
Modern music makers Azari & III combine the best of nostalgic '80s dance with '90s Chicago house to create infectious, artsy and emotionally driven lyrical anthems, redefining themselves as cutting-edge house revivalists of the future.
roman flügel / fatty folders / dial
Flügel delivers technically impressive minimal compositions, resulting in a beautiful, whimsical and mature first full-length release. 
arthur oskan / a little more than everything / thoughtless
Toronto based producer Arthur Oskan creates driven, sophisticated deep techno with fluid suspenseful narratives, rooted in melody on his debut full-length album, A Little More Than Everything. A master at his craft, Oskan delivers one of the finest techno releases to come out this year.
marconi union / beautifully falling apart (ambient transmissions vol 1) / just music
Marconi Union duo creates rich immersive grandeur soundscapes with added guitar and organic filtered dub-like percussions. For lovers of Gas and Marsen Jules.
deaf center / owl splinters / type
The Norwegian duo Erik Skodvin and Otto Totland (aka Deaf Center) construct dense, haunting cinematic compositions with elements of sentimental piano. Ideal for lovers of Murcof and Tim Hecker.
ólafur arnalds / living room songs / erased tapes
Icelandic modern classical composer Ólafur Arnalds originally started recording videos of himself playing in his living room so he could remember his songs. Enjoying the atmosphere of these videos, spawned him to do this series. Beautiful heartfelt minimal classical piano works incorporating strings and electronics that are bound to make you shed a tear or two. 
bnjmn / black square / rush hour
BNJMN revitalizes '90s IDM and ambient techno into new futuristic digital executions.
tim hecker / ravedeath 1972 + dropped pianos / kranky
Montréal based producer Tim Hecker delivers two stunning companion releases this year, Ravedeath 1972 and Dropped Pianos. Hecker is predominately known for his rich textural ambient compositions, eloquently combining noise with harmony. Overall Ravedeath 1972 is a spiritually immersive and gripping release. Dropped Pianos is defined as a collection of sketches and is his most accessible album to date, showcasing Hecker’s talent for minimal piano structures with somber melody.
stephan mathieu / a static place / 12k
Stephan Mathieu constructs new breathtaking gaseous ambient journeys from ancient Gothic, Renaissance and Broque music.
hauschka / salon des amateurs / fat cat
Avant-garde composer and pianist Hauschka delivers rich minimal melodies within rhythmic piano structures that are eloquent yet playful, offering more with repeat listens.
a winged victory for the sullen / a winged victory for the sullen / erased tapes
Composer Dustin O'Halloran and Stars Of The Lid's Adam Wiltzie team-up to form A Winged Victory for the Sullen, with contributions from Hildur Gudnadottir and Peter Broderick. Together they create somber chamber music with superb craftsmanship.
maps and diagrams / lights will call on you + the town beneath the sea / nomadic kids republic
Productive ambient producer Maps and Diagrams (aka Tim Martin) creates distant soundscapes with grainy organic static and shimmering delicate tones, that drift and quiver around for an overall understated and subtle beauty. 
roll the dice / in dust / the leaf label
Swedish innovative duo Roll the Dice (aka Malcolm Pardon and Peder Mannerfeltaka) deliver beat-less gritty analogue synth tracks that are cinematically expansive and richly hypnotic.
kuedo / severant / planet mu
Formally known as a dubstep producer, Jamie Teasdale delivers his first debut album as Kuedo showcasing futuristic sci-fi themed 80’s synth tracks with driven melodic vibrant structures that will have you coming back for more. 
the brandt brauer frick ensemble / mr. machine / !k7
German avant-garde trio Brandt Brauer Frick become an ensemble with seven added orchestral musicians on Mr. Machine. Together they create rich textural compositions incorporating some vocals for the first time. They are one of my favourite acts to see live, go if you ever get the chance.
marow / + - 0 (plus minus null) / mille plateaux
Marow (aka Marcus Gabler) delivers clean crisp minimal glitch IDM with infectious melodies on his debut album, +-0 (Plus Minus Null). 
art department / the drawing board / crosstown rebels
Toronto hometown superstars Kenny Glasgow and Jonny White received RA's No. 1 track of last year with their Without You EP, now available on their full-length, Art Department has skyrocketed into international fame with their magnificently drawn-out grooving house numbers.
teeel / amulet / moodgadget
Teeel (aka Jim Smith) delivers the best in 80s new wave synth pop incorporating warm vocals. I owe this discovery to a twitter suggestion and have been enjoying this release ever since. 
apparat / the devil's walk / mute
Apparat (aka Sacha Ring) creates accessible, emotionally driven epic pop songs evoking feelings of uplifting melancholy with intricate woven rhythms.
bruno pronsato / lovers do / thesongsays
Bruno beautifully constructs sophisticated, artful, organic, minimal tech-house. His experimental, spatially fractured grooves have been compared to the likes of Ricardo Villalobos, but his unique voice and skilfully produced compositions places him in a league all his own. 
k-s.h.e / routes not roots / skylax
Terre Thaemilitz (aka K-S.H.E. + DJ Sprinkles) reissues Routes Not Roots, a modern expansive experimental house album primarily rooted in issues of sexual identity. 
ricardo villalobos + max loberbauer / re: emn / ecm
Ricardo Villalobos’ minimal techno outings take a back seat, collaborating with Max Loderbauer to reinterpret ECM’s back catalogue of classical and modern jazz outputs, showering the originals with dense organic percussion and spacious pulses.
