Two new free releases here courtesy of E&C and Watchtower, a very nice surprise after the launch of Two Against the Void. Risk Addiction 2 might be the headliner here, a great rework of the classic original that manages to squeeze in some harder sections alongside the energetic melodies, going in a different direction to Substanced’s still-awesome remix.

Psychotropic is a fantastic left-field track, sounding unlike anything else we’ve heard from the duo for a long time. It raises all sorts of possibilities for use in a slower set - I can already imagine it working brilliantly in a Tyranoid mix, for example.

Another very welcome return as ConfigSys Project shows the first of his comeback tracks. The CFS formula works as well as ever here, and as usual in his psy-influenced tracks it’s the final section where everything truly kicks off. Great to see him back, as he really does bring something a little different to the NRG scene.

More amazing stuff from Einhander, this time a remix of Permission to Die and what might be his fastest tune so far. This is about as NRG as freeform can sound, with his trademark rough and ready synths and thumping kick. Definitely up there with Le Dos-on’s version as the best remix so far.

I probably didn’t talk enough at the time about what an influence Horzi was having on DJs and artists in Tokyo, but two or three years ago you were almost guaranteed to hear his tunes in any freeform event, while new producers like Le Dos-on and ikaruga_nex regularly cite him as an inspiration. Great to see some new material from the man himself then, and as it’s all to easy to miss something in the avalanche of free tunes that is the FINRG SoundCloud, it’s surely worth linking them all here.

Human Hater is a track well-known to most people these days, but those melodies are as good as ever and the style is something a bit different that can fit into all kinds of sets. Face the Destiny is a brilliant tune that maybe sets a new standard for his productions, both technically and in terms of atmosphere. Might there be a bit of Japanese influence in this one? Whatever it is, the melancholy of the breakdown and the energy of the drop make this a real highlight. Finally comes Over My Soul, a more experimental tune that breaks away from the drum and bass opening with a superb guitar-led breakdown and some awesome pacy synths in the second half.

It’s been a long time since the last Horzi track, so the news this week that he’s planning to release a batch of new material should please many. First up is Face The Destiny, a great track that brings back memories of the older Hybridize sound along with quality modern production. Great use of the melancholy vocal and what sounds like a Betwixt & Between influence make this a top quality tune.

One of those tracks that I thought had already been released, the DJ-friendlier version of Silver Cube is now available via FINRG. Most will have seen it already, a must-download if ever there was one.

During the last Munted! I mentioned that I’ve been working (very occasionally) on a goa set, and that Japanese producer K.U.R.O’s tracks were some of the best examples of dark goa I’ve found so far. It seems like the subgenre doesn’t really exist, but one day I’d love to put together a set of darker melodic goa that doesn’t just drift into the droning technical nuttiness of dark psy. I’ve only got 3 or 4 connections I’m happy with so far, but let’s see if I can get it done sometime this year.

K.U.R.O. released a digital-only goa album called Conception last year, which included updated versions of his Zombie Family tracks (minus the brilliant-but-short Hard Zombie). As it happens though, I prefer the original version of Red Zombie, an excellent dark track that just about stays on the goa side of the goa-psytrance divide with some great Ka-Sol-esque melodic filtering. The kick’s harder here too, but sadly the original Zombie Family were only 160kbps releases.

If the goa fans here have suggestions for any other darker tunes I’d love to hear them.   

Just a preview at the moment, but Alchemiist’s Neurotic is definitely one to watch out for. I’m not always keen on freeform with drum and bass in the breakdown, but Alchemiist’s done a brilliant job here of blending the genres and creating a nice dark atmosphere.

Congratulations to Le Dos-on for his second place in the recent Permission to Die remix competition (which I completely forgot to mention, sorry about that). It’s a brilliant rework of the original, with some awesome synth work that has a slightly rougher (and very welcome) feel to some of his other recent tunes. This deserves to get a lot of play, as does the overall competition winner from Tornadoz.

The biggest news this week has to be the free release of two Nomic tracks, hopefully marking the master’s return to action after Suicide Machine. Most will know that Chaos Maker has been a favourite of mine for years, and while an incredibly useful addition to a set is also a superb standalone track. Rift is newer (and might even be remastered here), featuring some of those wonderful, emotional sequences you’ll only find in Nomic’s productions.

Limited downloads here, so make sure to get over to Nomic’s own SoundCloud asap.