REDCELL / B12 / STASIS
B12 Records Archive Vol. 5
B1212.5
B12 Records 2009
14 Tracks. 63mins11secs

B12
B12 Records Archive Vol. 6
B1212.6
B12 Records 2009
24 Tracks. 75mins04secs

REDCELL / B12
B12 Records Archive Vol. 7
B1212.7
B12 Records 2009
13 Tracks. 79mins09secs

Buy: Vol. 5 – CD | MP3 Vol. 6 – CD | MP3

In the last few months, B12 have been busy reissuing the entire catalogue of long-unavailable EPs released on their imprint in the early to mid nineties, throwing in a heft dose of previously unreleased material for good measure, all in sparkling remastered sound quality. This journey, spanning a mere five years, was collected on seven volumes and constitutes a vibrant document of the period.

The last three volumes in the B12 Archive series offer a slightly different view of the pair’s work. While Volume 5, like its predecessor, is still largely representative of Steve Rutter and Mike Golding’s early years, especially on sister tracks Interim and Outerim, or later, Freeflow, Point Of No Return or Questions For Vanmannam, there are clear signs that, by 1993, the band were in search of new paths to explore. Continue Reading »

REDCELL/MUSICOLOGY/B12
B12 Records Archive Vol. 3
B1212.3
B12 Records 2009
11 Tracks. 61mins30secs

REDCELL/CMETRIC/B12
B12 Records Archive Vol. 4
B1212.4
B12 Records 2009
13 Tracks. 61mins43secs

Buy: Vol. 3 – CD | iTunes

The archaeological endeavour of excavating the classic British techno published on B12 Records between 1991 and 1994, which began at the end of last year with the publication of the first two volumes in this Archive series, continues with two more. Volume 3 compiles the first, self-titled Redcell EP and Hall Of Mirrors, the second EP from Mike Golding and Steve Rutter as Musicology, while the fourth volume focuses on Retreat From Unpleasant Realities, the second Redcell EP, and the Cmetric eponymous release. Both volumes also contain additional previously unreleased material recorded around the same time. All original EPs were released on very limited runs and on vinyl only. Continue Reading »

MUSICOLOGY / 2001
B12 Records Archive Vol. 1
B1212.1
B12 Records 2008
12 Tracks. 60mins04secs

FUTURE/PAST / ZEE# / AS ONE / MUSICOLOGY
B12 Records Archive Vol. 2
B1212.2
B12 Records 2008
11 Tracks. 60mins35secs

In recent years, there has been much archive digging amongst electronic artists, with the likes of The Orb, The Future Sound Of London, Monolake, Pole or 808 States all bringing out shiny remastered albums and previously unreleased or long unavailable tracks. Coming hot on the heels of their first new material in a decade, the British duo formed of Mike Golding and Steve Rutter are now undertaking a vast exhuming project by collecting the entire back catalogue of their B12 Records imprint on CD, most of it for the first time. Continue Reading »

B12
Last Days Of Silence: Remixes
B1220CD/B1220
B12 Records 2008
08 Tracks. 40mins13secs

After years of silence, Mike Golding and Steve Rutter returned three years ago, initially to play a handful of live dates. Last year, they delivered their first new material since their 1998 3EP, and, a few months later, the release of Last Days Of Silence cemented their come back. In the early nineties, the pair, operating under a variety of guises, spearheaded the so-called intelligent dance music scene by bringing flavours from Detroit and giving them a British twist. Originally released on their own B12 imprint, their work was consequently incorporated in Warp’s seminal Artificial Intelligence series with their debut album, Electro-Soma, released in 1993.

As they gear up to release the entire B12 Records back catalogue for the first time on CD, B12 present six reworked tracks from Last Days Of Silence and two previously unreleased compositions on this remix album, also released as a limited edition 4-track picture disc twelve inch EP. Continue Reading »

B12
Last Days Of Silence
B1219
B12 Records 2008
18 Tracks. 103mins34secs

Nothing endures in music quite like a mystery. Unreleased albums, unexplained break-ups – what we don’t know about a band often helps to define them as much as what we do. And the mysterious disappearance of B12 from the music scene ten years ago is a perfect case in point. Their silence since 1998, when they vanished from Warp with an EP ready for release, has forced fans ever since to pore endlessly over the back catalogue in the assumption that that was it. So the decision of English duo Mike Golding and Steve Rutter to return now will inevitably trigger questions about their lost decade. And alongside the anticipation, the big question many will of course be asking is: was it worth the wait? Continue Reading »