Releases
Ellissentials – “No Set Beat” [preview]
by djelroy on Feb.08, 2012, under Releases
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5 & Dime Recordings – “43 Degrees and Cloudy”
by djelroy on Jan.25, 2012, under Preview, Releases
5 and Dime Recordings – 43 Degrees and Cloudy by 5 and Dime Recordings
Elroy Says: “Phase II” is the must-have cut off this one. It’s everything house music should be.
We’re pleased to announce the forthcoming release of our 3rd EP, 43 Degrees and Cloudy, which will debut on Beatport on January 18th, 2012. Building on the deep techy vibe that defined 5D002, 43 Degrees and Cloudy features three original tracks from Zach DeVincent, 5 and Dime newcomer Tony Rodelli, as well as label regular F Stop.
Track one on 5D003, DeVincent’s “Phase II” (Original Mix), once again features the richly layered sublime production and deep, spacey elements we saw in his last release on 5 and Dime. “Phase II” is a dance floor oriented chugger that masterfully blends the best elements of Zach’s deep house sound with a techy bassline and a groove that’s as hypnotic as it is anything else. Fans of Deep Tech House will not be disappointed with this one!
The second track on 43 Degrees and Cloudy, Tony Rodelli’s “The Way We Go” (Original Mix) has all the staple ingredients of some of Tony’s best work on other labels (Manchester United Music, Phrunky, and Drizzle Music to name just a few), such as a deep and soulful feel which is accented by the background keys throughout. Top class pacing, wispy background effects and vocals, as well as a deeply addictive groove make “The Way We Go” both a stellar track as well as a solid label debut. Already being played out by DJs such as Mark Farina (on his recent Muppets 21 podcast), we’re thrilled to welcome Tony to the 5 and Dime Recordings family.
Santiago Santamaria – “One Night” [preview]
by djelroy on Jan.16, 2012, under Releases
UM Records returns for its fourth release and the first for 2012 with Argentinian producer Santiago Santamaria’s ‘One Night’. The EP serves up four tracks of warm, moody and lazy deep house including two remixes – one from the current darling of deep house Alvaro Hylander, and the second from respected Candian house DJ/producer Jon Delerious.
Santiago Santamaria’s influences lie in jazz and saw him study classical piano as a teenager. His production career started back in 2000 inspired by Detroit’s sounds and early deep house. Followers of Plaster Records, Digital Department, GAM Recordings and more recently Deso Records will be familiar with Santiago’s organic sounds and elegant deep house tunes but he’s certainly one to watch in the coming year with another EP already in production for UM Records.
Alvaro Hylander needs little introduction in deep house circles these days as the man behind DeepWit Recordings. Originally from southern Spain but now based in Denmark his productions have been released on iRecords, Disclosure Project, Lens Media, Acryl Music, Behaviors, Alma Soul Music, TEAM and more with remixes for the likes of The Messenger, Sumsuch and Pablo Fierro to his name.
Calgary’s own Jon Delerious has been a staple in the west coast house music scene since his first ‘big’ gig in 1992. Since then his production talents have seen him grow into an internationally respected DJ/producer. His music has been supported by a diverse array of artists from Gilles Peterson through to Laurent Garnier. As a DJ he’s played around the globe with some of house music’s finest including ‘Little’ Louie Vega, Carl Cox, Mark Farina and Ben Watt. A regular on Nordic Trax he’s also been featured on City Life, Doppelgaenger, Filter Music and more over the years.
Elroy Says: Jon Delerious keeps it Deep with his mix of “Dig It” and this is the song here that made me sit up and take notice!
Marko Nastic – “Belgrade Connection EP” [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.29, 2011, under Releases, Reviews
Artist: Marko Nastic
Title: Belgrade Connection EP
Label: Clash Music
Marko Nastic – Belgrade Connection EP (Clash Music, CM005) (Preview Clips) by Kahua Music
Brazilian label Clash Music’s fifth release couples Marko Nastić with an impressive line up of Brazil’s finest on the ‘Belgrade Connection EP’. The label is the platform for the same-name club night – famous for welcoming DJs such as Vitalic, Dave Clarke, Laurent Garnier and Karl Bartos (Kraftwerk) – to make its very own musical footprint. The EP serves up three original tracks of deep, driving, tech house grooves: ‘Onesided’, ‘Bside’ and ‘Bugged’. Remixes from Mau Mau, Re Dupre and Elemental X offer listeners a real insight into the thriving Brazilian club scene. Dense groovy tech house from Re Dupre and Elemental X and deep house with an introspective atmosphere from Mau Mau.
Marko Nastić was at the forefront of the Serbian club scene during the countries most troubled times, gaining accolades from Mixmag, The Face, DJ and NME. He was behind techno label Recon Warriors and later Recon Light as well as being a member of DJ crew ‘Teenage Techno Punks’. Following the war Marko’s distinctive three-deck style allowed him to DJ across Europe and around the world. Since 2006 he has presented ‘Music For Body And Soul’ on the countries leading radio station, B92. His previous releases have graced labels such as Recycled Loops, Earresistible Musick, Night Light Records, Tronic, Sleep Is Commercial and many more.
Phil Weeks – “Love Affair LP” [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.26, 2011, under Preview, Releases
Artist: Phil Weeks
Title: Love Affair LP (DJ Sneak vs The French Gangsters Remixes)
Label: Robsoul Recordings (France)
Style: House
The start of 2011 saw Phil Weeks release his ‘Love Affair’ LP, exploring funk and soul samples and turning them into dance floor bombs in his inimitable style. Over the course of the year Phil has invited an all-star cast of remixers to rework the tracks across 4 vinyl releases and this final installment might well be the best yet as DJ Sneak goes up against Phil’s hand picked “French Gangsters” – namely D’Julz, Chris Carrier and DJ W!LD.
All four remixers can be considered house music legends and they show why on remixes of ‘Can’t Get Enough’, ‘Mind Game’, Luv U Need U’ and ‘Slow Dance (U Cry)’ – covering the full scope of Chicago, deep and tech house every version will undoubtedly rock dance floors the world over.
The vinyl will feature four remixes while a bumper digital package will include additional versions from DJ W!LD and D’Julz (included on this promo as tracks 5 and 6), as well as Phil’s four original album mixes.
Nick Turner – “InnerVisions” [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.24, 2011, under Preview, Releases
Artist: Nick Turner
Title: InnerVisions
Label: Turquoise Blue
Turquoise Blue Recordings’ fourth release brings us Middlesbrough born DJ/Producer Nick Turner and his ‘InnerVisions’ EP. Two original deep house tracks are bursting with vintage smokey atomspheres and warm basslines. Djebali remixes the lead track, picking up the pace and adding a menacing bassline while Arttu follows up his ‘Just This One Time’ EP for the label with a deep and dreamy workout packed with his trademark percussion. Toronto’s Basic Soul Unit rounds things off with his remix of ‘Truth’ – raw, scattered and growling with plenty of old school flavour.
Nick Turner’s original music can also be found on Trendy Mullet, CityWest, Audio Parallax and Cover Music, while remixes have graced Turquoise Blue and Lady Blacktronika’s excellent Sound Black Recordings.
Finnish producer Arttu (now based in Portugal) is the new name being used by Lump. 2011 has seen Arttu remix for 4Lux and release original material on Philpot. As Lump, he has worked with a range of labels including Contexterior, Morris Audio and Rrygular.
A club kid in Paris in the early 00′s Djebali graduated with a first class degree from the presitigious SAE Institute of Paris and has been spreading his love of deep and groovy house sounds since DJ’ing at venues such as Bar25, Tbar, Rex Club and a residency at Freak N Chic’s Batofar parties between 2008 and 2010. He’s featured on Tuning Spork, Monique Musique and Nordick Net imprints.
DJ/Producer Stuart Li aka Basic Soul Unit was born in Hong Kong and now resides in Toronto, he started producing in 2003 with his first release “Basic Soul” as Basic Soul Unit moniker coming out on Iwanai, subsequent releases have appeared on Ostgut Ton, Philpot, Left Of The Dial, Versatile, Mule Electronic, Mathematics Recordings and Creme Organization.
Turquoise Blue hails from near to Newcastle upon Tyne and has been founded by Neil Harker. The label is inspired by underground house stalwarts such as Freak ‘n’ Chic, Crosstown Rebels and Leftroom, and more recently Supplement Facts, Culprit, Visionquest and Hot Creations – labels who have managed to grow while maintaining an underground spirit. The has featured the likes of Tom Ellis, Kris Wadsworth, Arttu, Ruthit and more to date.
Nik Frattaroli – Synesthesia [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.22, 2011, under Releases, Reviews
Nik Frattaroli – Synesthesia (Sangoma Music, SM001) (Preview Clips) by Kahua Music
Artist: Nik Frattaroli
Title: Synesthesia
Label: Sangoma Music (UK)
Style: Deep/Tech House
The debut release from Sangoma Music sees label boss Nik Frattaroli deliver two tracks – ‘Livin’ In The Box’ and ‘Synesthesia’. The former is classic sounding deep house; heavy on the bass and complimented by a soulful vocal, while the latter is an atmospheric, deep and hypnotic groove. With releases for Soulman Music, Digital Disco NY, Killawatt Recordings and LOCO Records already on the digital shelves Nik has steadily been hitting the mark and thanks to Sangoma we’ll be hearing a lot more from him in future.
Originally from Manchester, Nik was right in the middle of the early 90s madness in the North West, cutting his teeth at some truly legendary clubbing institutions like The Hacienda, The Boardwalk, and Cream. It is no surprise that he was inspired to emulate some of the DJ heros of the day (Sasha, Laurent Garnier, Carl Cox etc.), and that his DJing style can move right across the deep and techy spectrum, informed by his original love for Acid House, Hip Hop and Indie. You can see the Manchester effect in Nik’s production as well – Acid and old-skool noises are never far away from his trademark deep and tribal groove.
Quality not quantity – we’ve heard it all before, but all too rarely in the music business, which is why that ethos is so important to Sangoma. For Sangoma stands for the highest quality underground house, when the time is right – not when the calendar dictates it and certainly not for the sake of making a few extra cents.
With label boss Frattaroli in tight control of quality and quantity matters, this is all about getting blown away by magnificent tracks… there’ll definitely be no fillers on his watch. No digital bonus mixes. No generic dub versions. No DJ tools. No compromise. But within Frattaroli’s law there is room for artistic license: the sound of Sangoma is a building process of experimental sounds on top of deep and tribal foundations, inspired by the likes of Moon Harbour, Freerange, Tsuba, Plastic City and Crosstown Rebels.
Elroy says: This is HOT! “In the Box” is my pick, but “Synesthesia” is a great complimenting cut on the flipside.
5 & Dime Recordings “Morally Casual EP” [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.22, 2011, under Releases
Denver’s newest digital house label is cookin’ up something new for the holidays.
The “Morally Casual EP” is the sophomore offering from 5 and Dime Recordings and features the work of local and national house-music devotees.
“Transitional Period” is aptly named with it’s deep and minimal tech-house vibe. No big surprises, but that’s the beauty of it. The bassline and atmospheric reprise-like quality make it the perfect cut to change direction in a set.
“Quadratic” brings a bit more to the table with the percussion and samples yet manages to keep a chill vibe. The track plods along until about halfway thru (around 3m) where it seems to wake up and finally come to life.
“Under Water” is what makes the EP. It’s more upbeat than the others and is just plain more interesting. I love the layers and flow, this is definitely what house music is all about. Can’t wait to hear more from Devincent!
Digital Dirt – Boom Boom EP [preview]
by djelroy on Dec.19, 2011, under Releases, Reviews
Artist: Digital Dirt
Title: Boom Boom EP
Label: Click Therapy Recordings
Lee Guthrie’s ‘Digital Dirt’ guise gets it’s second outing on Click Therapy’s ninth release with four more club orientated tracks, unashamedly purpose made for the dance floor. Deep, dark and driving is the theme for the ‘Boom Boom EP’ line up.
Lee’s productions are currently drawing attention from all corners of the house and techno scene, including Richie Hawtin, Layo & Bushwacka, X-Press 2, Luciano, Paco Osuna, M.A.N.D.Y, Slam, Roger Sanchez, Inland Knights, Tyler Stadius, Stacey Pullen, Nathan Coles, Terry Francis, Eddie Richards and many more
As Click Therapy continues to gain pace, there are plans in the pipeline for a series of remixes from some well established artists when the label celebrates its next release this winter.
Sleazy McQueen – 5+1 (Headtunes) [out now!]
by djelroy on Dec.18, 2011, under Preview, Releases
Various Artists mixed by Sleazy McQueen – 5+1 (Headtunes) (Preview Clips) by Kahua Music
“When you think of House Music, usually the first thing that pops in your head is either Chicago, or New York City. Boston is not a city that would roll off the lips at first, but now it shall with Boston based Headtunes Recordings!” – Philadelphia Weekly
5+1 is Headtunes Recordings’ first mix CD and also falls on the label’s 6th birthday! Born in November of 2005 with Grant Dell’s ‘Love Tilt’, Headtunes have gone on to release some amazing deep and tech house tracks from artists such as Joshua Iz, Audio Soul Project, Pete Dafeet and Jay West. Mixed by long-time collaborator Sleazy McQueen, 5+1 tells the Boston imprint’s story past, present and future. (continue reading…)
