Music
Listen To 5 Records That Defined Alec Empire's Intense Digital Hardcore Label
Some of the meanest tracks to emerge from Berlin’s ’90s underground.
“With Atari Teenage Riot, we always thought in terms of cinematic concepts”, wrote Alec Empire several years ago, “Berlin [was] a post-apocalyptic wasteland populated by carnival characters in fantastical uniforms. And Atari Teenage Riot provided the suitable soundtrack.” As a member of Atari Teenage Riot and founder of Digital Hardcore, Alec Empire has been responsible for releasing some of the most menacing music from Berlin’s rave heyday.
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Their dedication to fighting fascism with searing musical artillery made Digital Hardcore home to a dizzying array of extreme music, from drum & bass and hardcore to rave and anarchic noise. But where to start with one of the most imposing labels in recent memory? Luckily, this list has done most of the work for you, sifting through the label’s output to find five of its most remarkable records.
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Some of the list’s blistering highlights include Shizuo’s High on Emotion and Christoph de Babalon’s dread-like drum & bass creations. Head over to Pitchfork to read the full article here.
Read more: This massive archive of hardcore rave tapes will take you back to the 90s
