Sandwell District – Feed-Forward

The sound of techno geniuses second-guessing themselves. Once the high priests of pressure and shadow, Sandwell District here offers an album so polished it slides right off the skin. You get moments—Immolare, Hunting Lodge, Speed and Sound—but they’re buried in an album that's all texture, all precision. A metallic sheen with no heat. Where’s the menace? The bite? The sweat?

I imagine them in the studio, circling each other like tired animals—each afraid to dominate, each afraid to vanish. So they polish. They layer. They restrain. Not a note out of place, not a breath that hasn’t been calculated by some unseen algorithm of taste. They’ve traded ritual for refinement, ecstasy for elegance. But then I find the reworks. The bastard children. Svar Live, Grey Cut-Out, Speed + Sound Z-Arts. And there is the fire. These are not just better—they are alive. They growl, they gasp, they fuck. And I ask myself: why? Why serve the sketches when the paintings are hanging behind the curtain?

So I spin Feed-Forward again, like a man revisiting the scene of a betrayal, hoping for some different outcome. And again, I am left with texture disguised as sound. It is not a bad record...that would be too easy. No—what it is, is a lost record. A cold cathedral built by gods who forgot they were divine.

There's a cassette version of this that's still available exclusively through Bleep. Limited to 250 copies.

Oh boy... apparently Sandwell District - Feed-Forward album. Basically, ALL pre-order options for the announced 1000 copies were sold out everywhere within a little more than a week... That really happened much too quickly and is far too little to satisfy the great demand! 😒.

What a disappointment for many collectors who will miss out as this forthcoming re-release will be superior to the original 2010 edition because it will feature the two fantastic 'Untitled' ambient tracks on one large, great sounding 12-inch single instead the small 7-inch disc used at the time.

Anyway, even if it's basically too late, you might still be able to order a copy from one or the other retailer if you search extensively. But you must act NOW... 😉.

reissue incoming. feels go out to those that purchased the og believing this would never be reissued..

Great record for its era, but i dont think its ageing well.

Changed the landscape of techno in a way that I think is still evident right now. I was fortunate enough to buy this when it came out but desperately hope they consider a reissue at some point because the prices on here are ridiculous. The tracks maybe don't sound quite as groundbreaking as they did 10 years ago simply because so many of the concepts, sounds etc. have been copied ad neaseum since but Hunting Lodge is my personal favourite cut here.

One of the only slabs of wax, that actually is worth the triple figures. Considering it wont be getting repressed, now that the label isn't operating anymore. A true masterpiece.

Took digital in car for proper listening (evaluating such an hyped record at home could lead to misunderstanding, I thought ...) and I must say that it is not that milestone. Certainly the style is clear and the 'rite of techno' well preserved, but I can't a track in particular. You have many religious tributes to Basic Channel, to Rob Hood's best moments, to Surgeon/Regis BMB and the sole truly seminal track - thinking to 2010 - 'Immolare', seems to me not enough for declaring that "Feed Forward" is a masterpiece. Of course this is not a record that humans can buy, but my comment it's not simply a matter of 'vulpes et uva', according to Aesop's tale. I mean: there are better works out there that people can play and enjoy, so the risk is to forget the music - that remains valuable - making this 2ep a mere battleground for collectors (or -my god ...- investors !!!).

I like this style of techno. Dark, ominous and death simple, yet ultimately immersing. Harsh POW POW POW without gimmicks, just the tribal rhythms, anemic hi hats and right amount of cold ambiance for immersive experience. I am new to the techno, and am surprised how little there seems to be production familiar to this style. Most of the style are either too complex and uplifting (Detroit), has stupid gimmicks like the bleeping lead (typical in minimal techno as well as in big room house), are too experimental and weird (some brutal techno), are too soft (dub techno, 90's ambient techno) or sound too polished.

Is there a name for this type of techno to distinguish from the former? Hypnotic, mantra like techno where ruthless beats meets ambient, still preserving enough impact to blast in the after hours? Raw style, no gimmicks.

The 7" that comes with this album contains two of the finest ambient/electronic music tracks I have ever heard!!
Soaring, light as air synth lines dominate and amaze.
Beautiful, beautiful music!! Bravo SD