Another year’s come and gone, and in the words of Kambei Shimada, “once again we’ve survived” (a line both Alex and I have been known to pull out at the close of particularly draining nights of DJing). That said, there’s none of the bitter regret which accompanies that line’s delivery in the original context on my part: there’s plenty on the horizon of 2013 which I’m looking forward to with great relish, both pertaining to ID:UD biz and otherwise. Get that first cup of coffee into you, get rooted in you which is on this adventure, and get ready for some new music.

…Oh yeah: you may notice a bit of a theme (unrelated to genre or sound) running through many of this week’s tracks. Viddy well, kiddies.

Youth Code, “Keep Falling Apart”
Uncompromising duo Youth Code (who we’ve mentioned before and have been earning hosannas from tastemakers in their native LA) have uploaded their raging, scraping, screaming old-school EBM demo onto Bandcamp after two limited cassette runs (there’s a limited number of free downloads, but trust me: these tracks are worth tossing some change into the tip jar). While Alex was quick enough on the draw to nab one of those, I know he’ll be happy to now be able to play this stuff out at the club. The motto on the tape reads: “Go vegan, hold on to your friends, 80s hardcore, when in doubt: Front 242”. Words (and a band) we can get behind.

Mosh, “Collapse”
Edmonton producer Mosh’s steez on debut LP Monarch is a fat mix of electro-house and the Miami electro sound which has been cropping up all over for the past year, with just a dash of the noirish French snootiness which Poni Hoax pull off so well. Heads old and young will find plenty of tunes for the club or the Testarossa on Monarch which can be bought by donation on Bandcamp. Tip o’ the hat to our pal DJ Paulabulus of Dark-ware for pointing us to this!

Perturbator, “I Am The Night”
Speaking of retro electro, James “Perturbator” Kent leaped onto the radar of gamers in the know by lending some tunes to existentially gory indie gaming sensation Hotline Miami this fall. The timing works out well, as he’s just dropped his sophomore LP, I Am The Night, which you could use to score, say, your 1st ed Shadowrun campaign, or that giallo montage you’ve been messing about with. Dark, neon-slicked fun to be had, also by donation on Bandcamp.

Iris, “Another Way”
Texas by way of New York synthpop stalwarts Iris are set to return to action after 2010’s Blacklight. Though this track is undercut with some modern bass warmth and a melancholy atmosphere, there’s still plenty of the classic melodies, harmonies, and strong vocals we’ve come to expect from Iris. Our ears are open for further developments!

terrAhurts, “ilyt”
Matt Gifford of Encephalon (who released our favourite album of 2011, if you’ve joined us at ID:UD recently) just unearthed an old disc of tunes he passed out to friends a full decade ago under the name terrAhurts. While almost completely different from Encephalon (it’s far more structurally experimental and uses a much more limited range of gear), it shows that Matt’s had his excellent ear for the subtleties of production and mixing for some time. Ranging from powernoise-like territory to far more pastoral synth washes, it’s well worth yr time, and can be had, you guessed it, by donation on Bandcamp.

Urusai, “Moth”
Though he maintains a low profile, Gregg McGillivray, aka Urusai, holds cred with heads in the know, having done remix work for the likes of Manufactura, Iszoloscope, and Displacer, and appeared on the very first Tympanik release back in 2007. The technoid whiz and personal friend of the site isn’t the best self-promoter in the world, but he’s a master at weaving filtered melodies through valleys of drones and evocative washes. Recent EP Slow (from which this cut is pulled), his limited run debut LP from 2005 Microbial and its accompanying remix release can all be found oh you know already…