Reviews
HOUSE: JUNE
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COMPILATION OF THE MONTH
Deniz Kurtel And The Marcy All-Stars
The Way We Live (Wolf + Lamb)
Brilliant, mood-driven sophomore album from Deniz K
Laced with spooky, sparkling synth lines, stellar guest stars and deeply trippy vocal lines (‘The Way We Live’ with Gadi Mizrahi being a particularly Depeche- meets-Nico-Jaar moment), Deniz Kurtel’s second album follows hot on the heels of her ace electronic debut ‘Music Watching Over Me’. Here she takes a more collaborative house music road, with the super-slow meditative opener (‘I Knew This Would Happen’, with Tanner Ross feat Pillow Talk), the nod
to Milli Vanilli that is ‘You Know It’s True’, the Boards Of Canada-esque ‘Right On’ with Gadi Mizra and Michael Franti and the frankly massive ‘Don’t Wanna Be’ with Art Department’s Kenny Glasgow all clear standouts. Crucially, the whole record hangs together brilliantly, with repeat plays revealing new depths
and details. Recommended. 8/10
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TUNE OF THE MONTH
Tennis feat Fink
Make It Good (Life And Death)
The dreamy, melancholic lead track ‘Make It Good’ features Fink (the Ninja songwriter also known as Sideshow) and comes complete with gently rocking claps and echoing stabs that are pure Panorama Bar; the (digital-only) remixes from Larry Heard and Tale Of Us will find favour with Damian Lazarus and Dixon alike and better still there’s a superlative club mix from man-of-the-moment Ryan Elliot, too. 9/10
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Nuno Dos Santos
Hamming (Trouw)
Electronic aficionados will already know that Trouw is probably the best underground night club in Amsterdam. And now the in-house label of said club are releasing the debut release by their resident DJ Nuno Dos Santos, who you may recall featured on our Pete Tong CD at the end of 2011. This bright, shimmering house cut is cut from the same bright cloth as Mojava’s ‘Township Funk’, the track that Warp cannily picked up from This Is Music. Packed with more zinc and selenium than a hypochondriac on a bitterly cold vacation, ‘Hamming’ is guaranteed to cause outbreaks of smiles until, oooh, October, if it catches fire. There’s a remix from Donato Dozzy too, but really it’s all about the spark of the original. 8/10
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Uffe
Colors Outside (Pets Recordings)
And now for something superbly different. This guitar-flecked, sunshine-in-a-cup kind of house cut, for the forward-thinking Pets imprint, is pop in the best sense of the word. Uffe Christensen from Copenhagen has delivered an EP that fans of Herbert and Four Tet will find alluring and intriguing. The wistful vocal that washes over ‘I’ll Leave Soon’ is a more sombre, quirky affair, so we say pick ‘Colors’: if you miss The Avalanches but loved Joy Orbison’s remix of ‘Love Cry’, purchase this (also available on vinyl) immediately. 7/10
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Gavin Herlihy
Positive Thing (Get Physical)
We’ve been following Gavin’s plucky run for quite some time now on these pages; the past 12 months have been packed with smashes, from ‘Get Loose’ on Leftroom and ‘Witching Hour’ on Crosstown Rebels to ‘Endless Feeling’ on Culprit. Now it’s the turn of M.A.N.D.Y.’s Get Physical imprint with a four-track EP that continues to impress. To these ears, it’s all about the deep tech charm of ‘Positive Thing’, which has also caught Seth Troxler’s attention. Watch this ‘Thing’ rise! 7/10
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Mr G
Danceholic’s EP (Holic Trax)
It’s a welcome return to the house page for the vastly underrated Mr G, aka London house producer Colin McBean, who follows up recent remixes and productions for Rekids with a super-deep, super-smooth four-track EP for Holic Trax. From the Detroit-ish chord/bassline interplay that underpins the interwoven soul vocal snippets of six-minute opener ‘Don’t Ever Give Up’ (“don’t fight the feeling any more!”) to the more jacking groove of ‘Guidance’ and the deep, thundering tech-house groove of ‘Danceholics’ (think Carl Craig 6am Space vibes), this immaculate collection of songs is one for new and seasoned house-heads alike. 7/10
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André Lodemann feat Natalie Claude
Searchin’ (Best Works)
Andre Lodemann’s production and remix catalogue is not to be sniffed at: one look at the second disc of his new ‘Fragments’ collection reminds you that he’s turned in brilliant reworks of Tracey Thorn, Spirit Catcher and Prommer and Barck of late. On the ‘Originals’ CD, the killer opening track ‘Your Choice’ and the spine-tingling ‘Searchin’ are the standouts. Imagine Billie Holiday singing the blues at Watergate in Berlin and you’ll start to get the picture. 7/10
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Behling & Simpson feat James Fox
Work That Body (Futureboogie)
The second EP from FB’s self-confessed ‘poster boys’, Behling & Simpson, is another brilliant slice of futuristic UK house. But what makes this duo so intriguing is their musical upbringing, which is rooted in classic jungle and techno. There are four tracks here: ‘Work That Body’ feat James Fox, ‘Tangled’, again with James Fox, plus ‘AAW’ and ‘Good Thang’ – but the Bristolians’ best look is ‘Work That Body’. 7/10
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Elton vs Pnau
Good Morning To The Night (Mercury)
Some backstory first: a decade back, old Elt gave Southern Fried the keys to his ‘Love’ (and bagged a No. 1 hit when ‘Are You Ready For Love’ was remixed for millennium floors). Similarly, in 2010 Elton gave Pnau access to his old masters. And here’s the result: a house/trance/Balearic hybrid that’ll have Pacha in a lather all summer long. But is it really as good as the hype suggests...? 6/10
Zombie Disco Squad feat DJ Funk
Twerk (Made To Play)
Thanks to a successful US tour for Jesse Rose and his chart-chomping new partner in crime Oliver $, Made To Play have been having a great time of late. And now the second single from Nat Self’s debut sees him collaborating with Detroit’s DJ Funk for a groove custom-built for anyone called Jack. Not necessarily that clever… but definitely big! 6/10
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Machines Don’t Care feat Meleka
Beat Dun Drop (Columbia/Deconstruction)
“Angel on the street with my headphones on,” goes the hook on this electronic pop-house belter. A new signing to Deconstruction/Columbia - and a track they’re calling a “tropical bass monster” - this song features the vocal prowess of UK funky star Meleka. FireFlowerz & Housquare and Wideboys provide the mix package, but none outshine the original. Great video too. 6/10
Monty Luke
Tomorrow (Black Catalogue)
This is the first release from Planet E producer Monty Luke’s brand new label, and it already sounds like a stark Detroit-style soundtrack to a Blade Runner sequel (not that we want a sequel, we hasten to add). With instant support coming from from Damian Lazarus, Âme and Matt Radio Slave, the eight-minute ‘Tomorrow’ is one for anyone who dug Kenny Larkin’s brilliantly wonky techno take on Inner City’s ‘Future’. On the flipside, ‘Yesterday And Today’ offers a more esoteric space jam that’s simultaneously nostalgic and future-facing, and has a male spoken word vocal that sits perfectly in the mix, intoning “we got to make today, what about tomorrow?” What is it with Detroit and the future, anyway? 7/10
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Sam Sparro
Wish I Never Met You (Virgin)
What a weird and wonderful ride it’s been for Oz electro-pop pin-up Sam Sparro so far. A No. 1 with ‘Black And Gold’, a pretty solid follow-up with ‘21st Century Life’ and then a series of misfires, first with his debut album and then that bonkers collaboration with Basement Jaxx. And now a complete change of (major) label, no less. But change can be good, and this is definitely his strongest single release since those first couple of hits. And while he’s still trying to hit the heights that Scissor Sisters cut through to so well, and the first couple of mixes (Stereogamus, Devils Gun) don’t bring much to the table, the third remix from Toronto’s Azari & III –deep, brooding and decidedly different – will find favour with anyone who’s ever tuned into Beats In Space in New York City. 6/10
Pépé Bradock
Katoucha? (Avatisme)
With melting jazz moods, movie soundtracks and an unmistakable Pépé panache on every release on his Avatisme label, the first release in quite some time from Monsieur Bradock goes straight for the jugular with a series of scorched, jazz-fried keys underpinning a classic Masters At Work-style house groove for two glorious minutes: and then at the three-minute mark, he veers down a completely new path, adding layers and layers of psychedelic, atmospheric, acidic gloop. There are four tracks here; ‘Inconsequent Pussy’ and ‘Attaque De Boulangerie’ take an even more esoteric jazz route and ‘12Turn13’ is a cool, percussive Villalobos-friendly jam, but it’s all about ‘Katoucha?’ (bless you). The second-best house release of the month. 9/10
Baunz
The Same Thing (More Music)
(As Ralph is the A&R for More Music we let our disco ed Digby review this release) Skippy hats and a bassline that’ll warm your cockles quicker than a brandy shot provide the backdrop for some deep female vocals on newcomer Baunz’s original. And then there are the remixes: with a club and a dub mix, Huxley cuts back the reverb, beefs up the drums and stabs the synths: both are quality, heads-down house jams. Whereas the original’s more Maya, Huxley’s is more Ferrer. You decide. 8/10
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Mirko Loko feat Jaw
Harder (Visionquest)
“Treat me like a dog!” intones dOP member Jaw over a growling, sleazy house production with more bite than the average angry mutt. Having previously recorded for Cadenza and now on his second release for cover stars Visionquest, Swiss producer Mirko Loko continues to impress. And this could well be his best release yet: a gurgling 12- minute house jam that snaps, bubbles and hisses in all the right places. ‘Harder’ doesn’t outstay its welcome, and may even get asked back for a bone after midnight. 8/10
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