Bristol-based Sex Tapes From Mars continues its vinyl-only odyssey with the latest transmission from Ukrainian, half-Syrian, Nizar, whose Naked Groove EP fuses minimalist techno with a surreal twist, backed with vintage hardware and delivered with robotic precision. An exercise in controlled chaos, the EP embodies the label’s ethos of pushing boundaries through unconventional sound design, where abstract and wiggy, skipping grooves drive forward.

Across its four tracks, the EP navigates through a warped sonic terrain, stitching together fragmented rhythms and glitch-infused textures with a hypnotic, purposeful pulse. Nizar masterfully dismantles familiar late 80s and 90s techno frameworks, creating space for alien melodies, stuttering beats, and deeply physical low-end. The result is a sound that feels both stripped-down and intricately detailed—dance music at its most unhinged, with a raw edge that demands attention. The track’s taut frameworks often build tension without release, offering a disquieting and strange dancefloor experience.
Among the highlights is a standout remix of “Mon Amore” by Hearthug, who twists the original into an even more disorienting version of itself—manipulating rhythm, space, and atmosphere to create something warped yet irresistibly groovy and swooning.
With Naked Groove, Nizar solidifies his status as a purveyor of leftfield techno curiosities, delivering a record that’s equal parts alien and captivating, uniquely exploring the fringes of a plethora of genres, and delivering a body of work that’s as unsettling as it is danceable.