Silicon Scally and Fleck E.S.C. need no introduction at this stage. Both artists are veterans not just of Sheffield's Central Processing Unit label but of modern electro as a whole, with the pair having decades of skin in the game at this point. Their new release, a four-track EP entitledSlipwhere Silicon Scally handles the first half and Fleck E.S.C. the second, carries itself with the adventurous confidence of a record made by masters of their craft. Slipopener 'Phased Array' is exactly the kind of top quality machine-funk tackle you'd expect from this meeting of minds. The beat programming is deliciously tactile from the off, hissing and clanking like machinery in an old Detroit factory. The feel of 'Phased Array' is altered, though, when the chords come in, a series of alternating floating sounds which give the track an altogether eerier feel. When all of this is coupled with the otherworldly synth blurts that periodically force their way to the front of the track, the overall effect is a piece of real depth assembled by an expert practitioner. 'Phased Array' is followed up by 'Stax', another brilliantly propulsive number. Here we find the drum beat - one which is a little reminiscent of that Kraftwerk tune about the numbers, no less - once more offset by some decidedly more shadowy synth work, all while arpeggiated keyboard licks work against an intricate web of basslines, chords and unidentifiable flying synth tones. Fleck E.S.C. opens theSlipB-side with 'Good Ride', a number where the nudge-wink title is borne out by a track built around looped snippets of sighing vocals. That said, with a bassline that sounds like a blurting old landline telephone, a ghoulish synth lead and all manner of motion-sick breakdowns, the 'ride' in question could just as well be aWipeout-style whizz through hyperspace as anything more suggestive. 'Good Ride' also sets itself apart from the other joints here by showing off a swaying halftime breakdown. 'Intox Remedy',Slip's closer, wraps the EP in a manner which continues some of the trends of the record's earlier tracks - richly tuneful chords, precision-engineered broken beat drum programming and a wide palette of delightfully unusual synth tones are all present and correct. However, there is also something about the chords here which pares back the eeriness of previous joints for a bit more of a wide-eyed, stargazing feel, and as such 'Intox Remedy' sees the record out by placing the listener firmly back in the cosmos. Tough enough for the dancefloor and intricate enough for home listening, theSlipEP is a fabulous collaboration from two of the most respected voices in the electro game. RIYL:Cygnus, Maelstrom, DMX Krew, Jensen Interceptor

CPU DJ Tools Vol.1 - 808 Tracks CPU's homage to the Roland TR-808, the drum machine ubiquitous on binary imprint. CPU label boss Chris Smith has meticulously rebuilt the drum tracks of classic electro funk records known for their pioneering and influential use of the 808. Strictly for DJs and MCs, this is an essential tool for remixing, looping or laying vocals over. Cut loud and ready for battle.

Noumen returns to Central Processing Unit after a six-year absence with Altum. This bumper record, the Ukrainian artists fourth release for the Sheffield label and first since 2019 double-LPObscurium, serves to remind us all why Noumens music has been lauded by the likes of Mixmag and Resident Advisor in the past.Altumis a consummate piece of contemporary electronic production, a technoid exploration of outer-edges electronica that nods to genre greats like Autechre while still maintaining its own unconventional charm. Across well over an hour of music here we find Noumen repeatedly playing punchy mid-tempo beat work off of some more cerebral tuned synths.Altumkicks off with the epic Oion - beginning in that Autechre/AFX mid-tempo zone, full of deep-sea bangs and whirrs, the track slowly builds to a final stretch of delay-drenched keys which set us free amidst the outer cosmos, almost Sun Ra-style. Its a perfect liminal-space roller and an apt scene-setter forAltum. Oion provides a blueprint for several of the albums other highlights - plenty of the joints here adopt that same approach of hitting hard with the drums and soft with the synths. Second track Splitter takes on the baton from Oion while souping up the kick to warehouse levels; the beats in Far Wind splutter like a needle skipping on a mid-90s Tresor drop; Fate Carette, all eerie looped synth leads, is a highlight as the album enters the home straight. The rhythm production (which, it should be noted, is exemplary throughoutAltum) is ratched up in intensity on a handful of numbers. Telemask displays a delightful breakbeat - if youd told me this was sampled from golden age A Tribe Called Quest, Id have believed you. Mid-section anchors Awe and Axis are glitchers in the Mike Paradinas mould, with the latter showing off some pleasing steel pan-esque synth leads for good measure. And whileAltumgenerally maintains a processional pace throughout, there are points where Noumen toughens up the drums for club deployment - Unveilness shows off a real chunkiness in the low end, closer Spurling Sign plays a satisfying rolling groove off of ever-layering synths, and the title-track is an alien machine-funker in keeping with fellow CPU electronauts like Silicon Scally and Cygnus. Noumens third album for Central Processing Unit is a pleasingly hefty double-LP which builds on the zany invention of acts like Modeselektor and Autechre to delightful effect. FFO: Autechre, Aphex Twin, Modeselektor, Bochum Welt, LFO