SDH Fake is Real LP (Avant!) 

The Barcelona duo’s 2nd LP is an omnivorous collection of spicy bangers and dramatic pop numbers. “Denial” immediately tweaks the subconscious with a dark, bouncing groove. “Cellular Sky” features a big chorus and sweeping synths. The album’s closer, “Hectic,” is seven thrilling minutes of oversaturated Italo-disco. In a singles era, Fake Is Real makes a strong case for the album format, with a cohesive collection of unique, kinetic and memorable tracks. 

Knower Knower Forever LP (Knower) 

Knower is a duo that makes highly technical, ribald, funky sounds grounded in jazz, with a new wavy synth aura that seems to draw phantom power from storied LA outfits like The Mothers of Invention, Sparks, and Slow Children. Knower Forever is their fifth project. It features an extended band, with a lot of horns and strings and a choir—which Knower makes very efficient use of. Twelve tracks in all, the album seems less esoteric with each listen, as one surrenders to the Knower universe of alternative time, narrative and taste.  

Puerta Negra Playa Sola EP (Synthicide) 

Puerta Negra keep their synth arrangements simple and clean, with guttural vocals that seem refreshingly light on processing. The underlying hooks and harmonies make for a compelling contrast. 

Sextile Push LP (Sacred Bones)

LA’s Sextile continue to relentlessly mine the endless post-punk era for inspirations and quotations to mix into their smart electronic pallet. Push, their 3rd album, is a deep gash of tunes with dogged synth basslines and snotty vox, inventively arranged to bend your brain and get the house jumping in unison.  

Xibling auswahl EP (ant-zen)

It takes chutzpa to swing at The Normal’s 1978 history-making single, the primeval anthem of synthpop, already redefined by Grace Jones, but Portland’s Xibling connects, turning Miller’s monolithic sex beat into a cinematic pile-up. The three originals of auswahl are no less compelling. Instrumentalist Julien Thieme pulls from a deep well of sounds that land squarely in the here and now. Vocalist and lyricist Moriah West adds a sensual snap to every syllable and makes full use of her range, delta growl to witchy psychedelic wail.